Chapter 327 - 65

Chapter 65: Izuku Midoriya: Love Doctor of 1-A

"Hey, extra lessons group, don't stop," Aizawa called over his shoulder as he and the other teachers led the students towards the training area for day two of hell.

"Yup! Got it!"

"Sorry!"

The few that could function enough to speak tried to get themselves and the rest of their group to keep up with everyone. They were given sympathetic looks as they had the unfortunate hassle and responsibility of having to take extra lessons, before the scheduled Quirk training.

Waking up at three in the morning was rough. Though Aizawa wasn't exactly one to sympathize. "I told you all this camp would be tough. Especially for you lot. Think carefully why you're having to wake up so early now. You all aren't just here to improve your Quirks. And this goes for all of you, not just the ones taking extra classes. You all need to work on the weaknesses that were exposed during your term finals."

Aizawa paused, before adding, "It's hard but don't lose focus. No matter what you're doing, you should always be aware of where you came from. That's what it means to improve. Always keep in mind why you're sweating, and why you keep getting nagged. It's all to help you achieve your dreams."

"Yes sir!" came many determined cheers.

Ochako, lowering a fist after her own cheer, frowned as she thought of something. "So, um… pep talks from Aizawa-sensei, huh?"

"Was that what that was?" Himiko snickered.

Unlike yesterday, when the two classes more or less stuck to themselves while they trudged along so early in the morning, this time, after their shared hell of a first day, they were more willing to intermingle. Some of course kept their distance. Neito and his close friends just talked amongst themselves. But there were other cases, such as Itsuka, who was happily chatting away with Kyouka.

Something Momo took instant notice of as she hung back, mostly keeping quiet or nodding along while Mina commented on the insanity of getting up at three in the morning with herself and a few others. Momo watched the pair, before her line of sight was blocked by a few of the larger students. Frowning, Momo crossed her arms, before something new caught her eye.

She looked, debated, then made her move. Politely excusing herself from the conversation, Momo moved towards what now had her full attention.

"Midoriya." Izuku gave a startled yelp while some of the rest of his friends all looked over at her. "Do you mind if the two of us talk for a few moments? Privately?"

Izuku blinked, then looked over at Ochako and everyone. They were curious, but thankfully, no one seemed to mind. Turning back, Izuku nodded. "Yeah, sure. No problem."

Both he and Momo slowed their pace so that the pair were soon towards the back of the group, and able to talk. Even still, Momo tried to keep her voice down and not to draw too much attention to herself and Izuku.

Though there were three sets of eyes watching them from a respectful distance.

"So, what did you want to talk about, Yaoyorozu?" Izuku said, trying to smile brightly despite the early hour.

Momo worked hard to make herself look dignified. "You recall the events of last night?" Izuku nodded, now looking slightly embarrassed. "Well you should know, no one was able to persuade Jirou to tell us anything." A dignified cough. "Despite multiple attempts to reason with her."

"…Do I want to know what these attempts were?"

"No. No, you most certainly do not. I would hate for your opinion of Uraraka, Toga and Tsu to be diminished."

Izuku blinked. She'd hate if my opinions would be… What did they do?! Shaking his head, Izuku softly but firmly stated, "I'm not going to say anything."

"Oh, of course not. To have that information come from you would be a betrayal of trust." Momo glanced towards the students, thinking she saw a flash of dark purple, or a bright orange ponytail. "Besides, I have my suspicions."

Izuku watched Momo carefully, but said nothing.

"No, what I wished to discuss with you is something else. You see, several times last night Tsu seemed to reinforce that you have a habit of… noticing things that Uraraka and Toga feel you should be… Pardon my language but, complete horse manure at."

Izuku snickered. "Oh? And what am I supposed to be bad at noticing?"

"Specifically our classmates… particularly bonds with each other. Known and unknown," Momo clarified.

Izuku took a second and tried translating 'rich' into 'middle class.' "…You mean who has a crush on who in our class?"

Momo nodded sharply. "Yes, that."

"Oh. Well yeah, I know who likes who. It's all pretty obvious when you pay attention."

Momo could see why Ochako and the rest were so perturbed now. Even herself, who wasn't anywhere near the gossip queen Mina was, felt extremely annoyed that it was Izuku saying this to her. Especially since he seemed to be implying there were multiple crushing parties in their class. Still, she couldn't exactly get into that now. "That is… a bold claim to make. To just assume you know things of that nature."

Izuku just looked up at Momo. "I mean, I know you have it 'down bad' for Jirou."

It was comical how fast Momo lost her composure as her dignified airs were brutally ripped away, leaving a young woman trying desperately to get Izuku to shut his damned mouth. Izuku just looked up at her with a simple innocent smile. "Wow. So this is what it's like from the other side, huh?"

Momo took a deep breath and regained the elegance and grace you'd expect a young woman of her background to have. Then, after checking and seeing that no one from the group of students had heard—they were a good few paces back now and the voices of the students were high enough to drown out their conversation—continued, "I admit… I find Jirou to be an… incredibly attractive and deeply wonderful person… but please don't take my infatuation with her and conflate it with the base and crude idea that I'm lusting after her slender, petite and studded body."

Izuku flinched, looking a little distressed. "Lusting? I didn't—I never said anything about lust!"

Momo blinked. "Yes you did. You accused me of harboring carnal desires for her rebellious figure."

Izuku pointed at himself. "I did not! I said you were down bad for her! Like you like like her!"

The two most naive classmates looked at each other blankly, faces flushed.

"Isn't being 'down bad' slang for wanting to take part in extramarital affairs with someone?" Momo asked as she tried to recall if the term had been used in the large but private collection of trashy yaoi romance light novels she had hidden away.

Izuku was also now desperately trying to file through the collective knowledge he'd acquired in the short amount of time since he started researching how to be a good boyfriend. "I don't know. I just know whenever Jirou's talking about music or her hobbies or anything, you're lost in every word. You're all like—" Izuku cupped his chin in his hands, sighed wistfully and batted his eyelashes as an example, before straightening back up, "—like that."

Momo gulped. "Oh. W-well, Jirou has such a musical voice I can't help but be entranced."

Izuku rubbed his chin. "Himiko said I was 'down bad' for Ochako once. We had just done that rescue class with Thirteen and I saw her floating around and Himiko caught me staring."

"Ah."

Both stood awkwardly for a moment. Then Izuku scratched at his neck. "Studded?"

"Let's just assume that we had a small miscommunication and move on!" Momo hurried to move the talk forward. "I wanted to talk to you because I find myself in a… precarious situation. As you're apparently well aware I… do harbor romantic feelings for Jirou. However I'm unsure if I can or should go forward with any attempts to woo her. Given well… the numerous factors that are working against me."

Izuku could see that this was an issue that weighed heavily on Momo. Though the idea there might be so many issues that Momo was worried about that they were 'numerous' seemed far-fetched. "You think there are things preventing you from trying to get closer to Jirou so you can ask her out on a date?"

Momo sighed. "Very much so. First and most certainly not least is the fact that she has a crush on someone already." Izuku nodded slowly. At that. "Then there is the issue that I did not know if she had any romantic interest in girls to begin with. My own attempts to play detective had unfortunately turned up nothing on that front for some time."

"Eh?"

"She hadn't expressed any obvious clues to her sexuality. I was in the dark, even when I… had done some detective work while visiting her room and didn't discover any romantic novels in the usual places one hides such things to help me find an answer." Momo noticed the slightly lost head tilt. "You know. The classic hiding spots for hiding illicit things, like under the bed or mattress."

"Translation, you snooped but turned up jack."

Momo huffed. "Snooping makes it seem like I was part of something uncouth." Izuku looked at her. "I was simply… wanting to discover things about someone without asking."

"That's the most Himiko thing I think you've ever said." Neither really knew if that was a compliment or not. "Okay, so… it sounds like this is a private issue. So… why are you sharing all this with me?" Izuku wasn't really a gossip and felt a little uncomfortable suddenly having Momo unload some pretty personal feelings. At least without knowing why.

Momo nodded, seeing the question as completely justified. "Let me explain. While I do not know if I should or can pursue Jirou… I want to. To that end, I believe I require an assistant. A 'wingman' I believe is the common term. To help me with my endeavor."

Izuku almost tripped and fell flat on his face. He did have to take several hopping steps before he caught himself and whirled around. "Me?! You want me to be your… Huh?!" Momo motioned for him to lower his voice, and Izuku hissed as he quickly got himself under control, "I don't understand. Why do you want me?"

Momo crossed her arms, taking up a stance and look that was very professional and business-like, "Simply, you're the most qualified."

"Eh?"

"You're also the least likely to break under interrogation." Momo coughed. "That's if anyone has the chance to interrogate you. I think our female classmates are a bit too afraid of Uraraka to risk trying to get to you and apply the same information extraction tactics they… we would normally use."

"Ex-traction?" Izuku gulped, slightly terrified at the word choice Momo was using. "I-If they're afraid of Ochako… then why not just ask her to help?"

"Coming after you directly is what would potentially incur Uraraka's wrath. If she's the one I was confiding in and they found out… She would be a lamb to slaughter."

"…"

"…"

"Girls are scary."

"Yes we are," Momo agreed. "Also you seem to have a unique perspective and experience. Uraraka, Toga and Tsu have acknowledged that you are more knowledgeable than they are in romance and you have been in a relationship the longest. So, you can see why you're the best choice."

Izuku thought about bringing up Himiko and Tsuyu, but then figured that they both may suffer from the same Achilles Heel Ochako had. The other girls would rip them apart.

Wow, Yaoyorozu really gave this a lot of thought. Izuku gave a slow nod of his head. Well if that's the case…

While it had looked like Izuku was mulling things over, Momo had taken the moment to glance out towards the crowd, eyes lingering where she knew Kyouka was. With Itsuka. When she turned back, she was startled to see Izuku holding his romance notebook, turned to the last couple of pages and he was already writing things down, muttering to himself.

"I'll need to… new book for… transfer entries into it later…"

"Um… Midoriya?"

"Okay, so let's recap," Izuku spoke as he wrote. "You want help getting closer to Jirou, and you're looking for advice to do this romantically. Key issues. One, you said you hadn't been sure if Jirou had any interest in girls. Implying this has changed? And recently by the way you seem to be kicking yourself." When Momo said nothing, Izuku looked up at her and smiled. "If I'm going to be your wingman, I'm going to take this seriously."

It looked like, to Momo, that Izuku was applying the same exuberance and attention to detail he did to his notes on heroes and his own personal romance. Which was terrifying, but also exactly what Momo wanted.

"That issue was resolved last night thanks to you." Momo then discreetly pointed towards Kyouka, happily chatting away with Itsuka. "I caught the two flirting yesterday. While I can't be sure of Kendou's intentions, it's very obvious that she has caught Jirou's eye."

Izuku paused his writing. Looked over at the pair. Blinked, then slowly wrote down. "Potential crush on 1-B's Kendou."

Momo huffed. "It's a little more than potential."

"Let's… stick with 'potential' until you hear it directly from her," Izuku cautioned.

Momo frowned, but soon agreed. "I understand. In fact, I commend you for being able to assist me and keeping your knowledge of Jirou's crush a secret. You value her privacy greatly. Thank you. You're showing I chose right to come to you."

Izuku just smiled, but said nothing more on that subject. "So, are there any other issues you feel are or may stop you from pursuing Jirou?"

Momo nodded solemnly. "My… station and potentially my parents."

"I don't follow."

Momo rubbed her hands together, a nervous twitch as she thought up how to explain it. "So. You're aware that I'm…"

"Uber rich?"

"Yes, that."

"I am aware, yes."

"Well… due to my… shall we say privileged upbringing, there are certain expectations I'm expected to uphold and live up to. Responsibilities and duties. Members of society that I need to make sure I'm on good terms with to ensure the continued respect and prosperity of my family name. Someone like me is… expected to always present myself in such a way that… well… that I don't just appear better than other people. That I am better than other people."

Izuku had paused taking his notes and was giving Momo a chilled look. Some of the warmth in his eyes had faded. "So you're worried about dating someone who's beneath you?"

Smack!

Momo's hand shot out without her thinking and slapped Izuku across the face.

Momo's complexion was a scowl of righteous indignation while Izuku was blinking in shock. The slap hadn't actually hurt. It was just a very blunt and direct way for Momo to make it clear, she did not think that at all.

A split second later and Momo now looked just as shocked as Izuku at what had happened. As she stuttered to get an apology out, Izuku was back to making notes, a smile on his face. "Willing. To. Fight. For. Her." He underlined that part with a nod. "Okay, good to know you're not going to let people badmouth Jirou. If you want to get closer to her, you need to be willing to fight."

Momo, still a little in shock, just asked, "Figuratively or literally?"

"Yes," Izuku answered. "Take it from someone with experience in this matter. Fighting brings people closer."

"It does?"

"Ochako and I sparred all the time when we were training to get into U.A. Also, look at Ochako and Himiko. They beat the stuffing out of each other. So just do what you just did going forward. Or do you have to use a glove first?"

Ignoring the dated view on how the rich settle their disputes—no one really dueled directly anymore; they paid other people to do their dirty work—Momo still nodded along with the advice, but pointed out, "I think I'd be fighting other people. Not Jirou."

"Eh, those kinds of details don't matter. As long as you're committing some kind of violence because of her, it'll make your relationship stronger."

Momo's eyes drifted to find the bright orange ponytail. "So violence is the answer."

"One of them, yes," Izuku answered straightforwardly. His own run-ins with Katsuki came to mind when he gave this answer. Granted, while term finals was the first time he had punched him in retaliation over Ochako, it wasn't the first time he had been ready to act whenever Katsuki had besmirched Ochako in his presence. Walking the steps to U.A. to take their tests, and the confrontation after his old junior high principal had congratulated them for being accepted, were good examples Izuku pulled from to give him certainty in his answer.

"I'll be sure to remember that." Momo then brought her attention back towards Izuku. "Just to make sure I'm being clear. The issue of station isn't me seeing Jirou as beneath me. My worry is how others will view her. Some may hold no opinion whatsoever. Some might view her positively due to her status as a hero in training. However, more than likely the majority will hold generally negative views. At best, they will be passively dismissive of her or passive-aggressive. At worst…" Momo gave a small shrug.

Izuku frowned. "See, that's when the answer is yes."

"Oh, I'm very capable of defending and protecting Jirou. And, I'm connected in ways that people may wish I took the direct approach and challenged them to a duel due to their offenses." The cold look in Momo's eyes made Izuku nod with approval. "But, that comes with its own… potential issues."

"Such as?"

"There might be some that see me protecting her. Before, maybe she's not worth the time, but if they see me investing effort to not just protect but punish, then suddenly she's a direct link to me. Some may then court her to curry my favor. Or they'll explicitly take actions against her to get to me, or my family. So now I'm responsible for any discomfort or pain Jirou will have to deal with."

"Something Himiko told me once. We're responsible for our own actions. If someone wants to try something, then that's not your fault," Izuku offered with a reassuring smile. Though Momo could see the little bit of uncertainty reflecting in his eyes.

"You don't believe that completely, do you?"

Izuku huffed out a sour laugh. "I think I cause more than my fair share of problems for people around me, yeah."

"Pursuing Jirou… would mean bringing her into the game… so to speak." She saw the slightly confused look on Izuku's face. "It's what people like to call the constant tug of war of social standing, political manipulating, monetary exchange and other activities people in certain circles get up to to better their position." Momo finished with a grim smile, "And the game doesn't offer sympathy for newcomers and novices or those that the other players think don't belong. It's a dark but accurate reflection of my station and the society keeping it raised above everything and everyone else."

"…Rich people sound like jerks… Um… present company excluded."

Momo chuckled softly. "You don't get rich, or stay rich, being nice. Something father has reminded me a few times, in fact."

Izuku was making more notes, including that Momo seemed more worried about how people she associated with would treat Kyouka, versus how she herself would be treated. "You also mentioned your parents."

"Ah… yes. Mother and Father."

"Parents can be ignored if they're going to cause problems," Izuku grumbled to himself.

Momo frowned deeply. "You can say that because you've had to deal with Toga's… parents," Momo clearly didn't like calling them that, since they clearly hadn't put any actual work into being anything close to a parent, "and because your own relationship with your father is strained."

Izuku was not a fan that that part of his personal life was public knowledge. Me and my big mouth.

"But my relationship with my parents is wonderful. They spoil me, and supported me when I began working to become a hero instead of taking the path to take over the family business," Momo explained. "Would you ignore Uraraka's parents if they stepped in because they did not approve of your relationship with their daughter? Would you want her to ignore them? Or Tsu's, or your own mother?"

Izuku scratched at his neck. "Oh… okay… If they're good parents, then how could they be an issue?"

"My parents have met Jirou, along with many of our classmates, when they were coming over for study groups. They found them charming, and the right sort to be training as heroes."

"Right sort?"

"Honorable, kind. All positive qualities," Momo reaffirmed. "But friends are one thing. If they knew I wished to have a romantic relationship with Jirou, they might protest. They are… traditional in many respects, and I'm unsure how they will handle it if I suddenly cause another disruption to their long term plans for the family."

Izuku had a feeling this was more rich people weirdness.

"So originally, before I expressed interest in becoming a hero, it was assumed I would take over the family's holdings and businesses. So I was being tutored and raised with the assumption I would take those steps."

"But being a hero means you won't be… part of the family business."

Momo shook her head. "Not in the same manner Father is, no. He owns and runs the company. Technically ownership can still pass to me. I'd retain control through owning the most shares. But I wouldn't be able to run things like he does. I don't intend to be a sidekick all my career of course. I do intend to open my own agency, and I could in theory make it a part of the company as a satellite agency or subsidiary. But my focus would be on that single branch, not the company as a whole. But that's only one part of the issue. The other is… well, the field we have chosen to work in does come with inherited risks. If I were to be killed, things get unfortunately complicated. I'm their sole heir. And while we do have extended family…" Momo made a face. "My aunts and uncles are not the most… business savvy."

"I'm not sure I follow the problem?"

"Midoriya, in order to preserve our family's control over our… well… everything, my parents need a direct heir. Which is why we began the process of getting in contact with a well known and highly sought after matchmaker, so she can find me a husband." Izuku blanched. "And I've had the pleasure of meeting a few candidates too."

"This sounds like a Quirk marriage thing."

Momo's face twisted in distaste. "Quirk marriages are a disgusting perversion of the field of matchmaking. The art of Omiai is a long tradition held to the highest standards."

At least this isn't another Todoroki situation. Izuku breathed out. "But your parents are still trying to marry you off and for you to have a baby! You only just started high school! That's not good at all!"

Momo face-palmed, shaking her head. "No one is expecting me to get married and have a child right now, Midoriya. This isn't the dark ages where families sold off their daughters."

"Oh."

"Also, my parents are not forcing me into this either. We had several talks before we all agreed to begin the process. The list of applicants is extremely long, so it will more than likely be several years after I graduate before I find the person I will marry… or at least that was the original plan."

"Before Jirou serenaded you to the rock and roll side."

Momo blushed. "She does have a lovely singing voice."

Izuku smiled, before moving on. "So. I'm guessing you're worried because Jirou doesn't line up with the people your matchmaker and parents have brought to meet you."

"That would be… putting it mildly. Most of the families so far are in the same circles as my family. Some above, and a few below. But all come with influence, either economically or politically at a minimum. They are wealthy and have connections that could help improve our own standing. Plus, Father is making sure that in all interactions, it's clear we're the party in control."

"All men too," Izuku said offhandedly.

Momo shook her head. "My parents are well aware of my orientation. Some of the suitors have been women."

"Oh! But what about all this heir stuff?"

"IVF treatments have been a method for same sex couples to have children for a long time Midoriya," Momo said with some humor as she watched Izuku realize he missed the obvious. "And if that method is chosen, it would be my eggs used, so the Yaoyorozu line would continue. Something all the female suitors are well aware of. Plus, mitochondrial replacement techniques for sperm donations have come a long way. There are still high risks, but perhaps by the time I'm to have a child, the baby could have my and the mothers DNA."

"So a matchmaker brings in someone for you to meet. What happens?"

"Mother and Father let me talk with them. It's all very formal, but I can see how well they respond to certain questions. Then my parents will speak with their parents. Business and getting a feel for their family. Afterwards my parents will speak with me, asking if the candidate had anything about them I found unsavory or suspicious. And after we talk and the matchmaker is brought back in we move forward, either keeping them on the list for another visit or move on."

"They let you make that final say?"

"After much back and forth, yes. My thoughts on the person hold a lot of sway."

Izuku hummed to himself, while he kept filling out the pages. "So I guess when you and your parents started the whole matchmaking process, it was decided that dating or anything like that was off the table."

Momo blinked.

Izuku noted the silence. "I mean, like something along the lines of 'no dating unless it's someone the matchmaker sets up.'" Momo didn't say anything, almost looking a little lost. "Um… You did decide what you were going to do while you were going to U.A., right? I mean, we're allowed to date. So with the way your parents seem to play the long game, they must have said something about dating someone from school."

"…That… was never broached… no."

Izuku closed his notebook. "Yaoyorozu. You came to me because you needed someone to give you advice, right?"

"That's correct," Momo answered, suddenly feeling a little nervous.

"You might want to talk to your parents and let them know you at least have a crush on Jirou. Because rich weirdness aside, it seems like your parents want you to be with someone that'll make you happy. You said it yourself, they defer to you a lot in your talks. If they were only worried about legacy and money… they probably wouldn't."

Momo frowned. "They may be angry and feel I was wasting their time if I suddenly pick someone."

"You said this would potentially take years, right? Seems like you might be saving them time in the long run."

Momo looked uncertain. "I know what my parents are looking for in a spouse for me. And Jirou…"

Izuku held up a hand. "Out of all the people you've talked to. Did any of them seem like they fit perfectly with what your parents would want, but after you talked and expressed disinterest they let you strike their name from the list?"

"Many," Momo answered immediately. Izuku spread out his hands, in a 'and there you go' motion. Momo sucked in a breath. "I… think coming to you might have been a very good idea."

Izuku beamed happily.

Momo, noticing that their group was getting close to the training area, decided to see if Izuku had any other nuggets of good advice for her. Would any advice he'd given before help her situation?

Izuku rubbed his chin. "I think for now, keep doing what you're doing. Keep it slow, but make sure to drop some nice compliments when you can… Unless you're going to want to treat Jirou like how I told Tsu she should treat Himiko."

Momo knew whatever Izuku had told Tsuyu to do would probably not work for her, buuuut, "What advice did you give Tsu?"

"I told Tsu to basically make out with her until she was dizzy," Izuku said with no small amount of pride, but when he saw the deep flush on Momo's cheeks added, "But with you, we'll stick with subtle flirting."

Momo nodded profusely.

Izuku saw the slightly glassy look in her eyes though. "Whatever you're thinking about though, hang onto that. When I sometimes think of all the different ways I can kiss Ochako, it makes me love her all the more. It's a good feeling." Momo, face still red, seemed to take the advice to heart, because Izuku caught her looking towards Kyouka longingly.

"It's scary though. Knowing she likes someone already."

"Don't worry about that. You just focus on showering Jirou with compliments and little tender moments of affection and who knows, maybe we'll get her to come to you."

Groups were getting ready to split up, but Izuku had one last thing he had to clear up. Because as the groups started spreading out… "So. Out of curiosity. What should I tell them when they ask what we talked about?"

Momo blinked and noticed where Izuku was indicating. Ochako was looking back at them.

"Ah… I suppose asking you to lie to them would not do well to your long term health."

"That's an understatement." Izuku waved nervously at Ochako. "Last time Ochako caught me in a lie, she ran me down."

"…Was that what that huge chase around campus I heard about was over?"

"Yuuup."

"…If you wish to tell them you're helping me with relationship advice, then I think that will be fine. I just ask you to leave specifics out."

Izuku felt that was fair. At the very least it would keep knives out of his body.

As the students began to split apart, and Himiko was pulling off her sweat top, ready to spend another day not wanting anything touching her skin after all the sludge she was going to be making, she paused when Hitoshi slid up beside her, trying his best to appear casual, but his slight lean in, lowered voice and the fact his eyes were scanning, seemingly looking to make sure certain people weren't paying attention to him, meant this was either going to be some juicy gossip, or a pain in the ass.

"Hey."

"Yo."

"So I'm about to stick my nose into something," Hitoshi said, with some annoyance. Though that might just be the sleep deprivation.

"Oh?"

After another glance around just to be safe. "Midoriya was with you. Before lights out. Right?"

Himiko nodded slowly. "Yeah. The girls from both classes had a sleepover. Izuku left as we were getting started."

"Hmm. Do you have any idea what he might have done between leaving your group, and coming to bed?"

Himiko stopped walking, and was now giving Hitoshi her full attention. "Possibly. Though, I think it would count as a private matter."

"I would agree, except we all know Midoriya isn't exactly himself right now." Himiko nodded, glad to see that more of their friends were aware. The emphasis on 'all' made it clear the squad was on the same page.

Hitoshi looked around again. "So I'm just curious if you'd know what might've had him coming to bed… looking upset. And that might, might, have something to do with Midnight-sensei."

Himiko blinked, as that little nugget of information worked its way into her head. "He was upset?"

"He played it off that he was tired. Which we all were, so no one really questioned it. Though Iida, Todoroki and I didn't buy it. But we decided to let him sleep off whatever it was, since we didn't want to go digging while he was like that. But I did hear him mutter something about 'Midnight' and 'mistake.' So I figured you might know what the deal was. Since you and her are close."

Himiko's mouth formed a hard line. "Thank you for letting me know." She looked over where Midnight was prepping her training area. "I'll go… talk with her right now."

"Just don't get kicked out of camp," Hitoshi said with a shrug. "Otherwise we'll be dealing with your moppy better halves."

"I'm calm. I'm going to handle this calmly."

Hitoshi paused, then turned. "Alright, where's Tsu?"

"Oh fuck you," Himiko grumbled as she walked off, pausing only briefly to look over her shoulder at him. "But thank you for looking out for Izuku."

Hitoshi waved her off. "Yeah yeah, I'm a saint. Good luck with whatever you're about to do."

Himiko stormed forward. She was well aware there were probably better ways to confront this issue. Hell, going to talk to Izuku was probably the best idea. But Himiko wasn't exactly thinking straight.

You're the one who sent Midnight Izuku's way; you're the one who told her when she'd be able to get him alone.

This issue had a bite of betrayal mixed in. For Midnight and herself.

She should definitely wait until the whole crowd had fully dispersed. Wouldn't do to have any of the stragglers hearing her go off.

"You fucking bitch!"

Yeah, she didn't do any of the smart ideas.

The few students within ear shot all turned in alarm, Midnight's head snapped up, and Aizawa frowned as he stopped his perimeter walk of the training zone.

Himiko pointed at the few students that were gawking. "Get lost. Now!"

With yesterday's danger reminder still fresh in their heads, the students decided to just get on with their training.

"Toga hold on one—"

Wam!

Himiko's feet slammed down on the table as she jumped onto it, giving her a boost up so she could now glare downat Midnight. "What? The fuck? Did you do? To Izuku?"

"Toga," Aizawa warned. "Get down and get yourself under control. I will not tolerate you speaking to Midnight like that."

To his annoyance, Himiko flat out ignored him. To his greater annoyance, Midnight seemed to now recognize the situation and sighed, "No. I am a bitch in this situation."

Himiko jammed a finger down towards Midnight. "After your whole spiel about how the three of us don't have the experience to help Izuku with his trauma, after I help you find a time to talk to him, I find out he came to bed, in worse shape than when I last saw him? Every time we helped him, he got better. You step in and this happens?! The fuck did you do?!"

"I fucked up," Midnight responded bluntly and sincerely. "I underestimated just how much the attack against his mother has shaken him, how him not being there to step in and save her himself had reaffirmed his belief that his previous acts were justified, and didn't realize that the advice, the lectures he'd been given after these events, telling him that he shouldn't be stepping in… that he's come to feel disgust and vitriolic resentment at the idea. Worse yet… that the one pushing the narrative that nothing is better than something, is by a man he feels has an actual vendetta against him… I stepped into the situation thinking after all our talks, this would be a simple matter. And completely misread the obvious tells that should have had me shutting up and moving on. Instead I pressed against his beliefs and it backfired."

There was a lot to unpack there.

"He… feels he could have saved his mom?" Himiko was noticeably deflated. Izuku's past words, said in his dream that she had pushed to hear, now made an unwelcome return. The one time I needed you to be a monster.

There was also the revelation that Izuku felt disgust and resentment over the issue of him stepping in. Those were not words she thought she'd hear used to describe anything Izuku was feeling. Angry? Yes, that made sense. But now it seemed Izuku was waaaay past that.

Himiko glanced to her side, now acknowledging Aizawa for the first time. "I think you should go, so we can talk privately." Himiko didn't have to guess at who the one with the vendetta was. Best not to give the pain in the ass more ammunition to use against Izuku.

Aizawa just crossed his arms. "Midnight and I have already discussed her talk with Midoriya." As Himiko's face twisted back into a scowl and it looked like she was about to rip into Midnight again he continued, "Which she was correct and justified in doing. She's not a licensed professional therapist, so she's not bound by any confidentiality. So if she knows something that we teachers need to know, she'll do the right thing and inform us. Which she did."

Midnight's face soured. "That is not how I would phrase what I did or my responsibilities."

"Moreover," Aizawa continued. "You seem to expect her to disclose everything to you about last night."

"I'm. Involved," Himiko replied curtly.

"So am I," Aizawa answered bluntly.

Himiko stood on the table in growing agitated silence, before she hopped off with a snarling, "Fucking shit."

"Toga, none of us knew just how bad things were. Not me, not Aizawa and clearly not you either," Midnight explained softly. "Things are fucked up. However, at least now we know. As much as I hate to say this, this might be best in the long run."

"Really?"

"Do you remember our early sessions?" Himiko did. "How many of those ended with you blowing up?"

"…Practically all of them at the start," Himiko relented.

"It sucks it took Midoriya snapping for us to figure this out, but now that we know, we can adapt and plan on how to help him through this."

Himiko grumbled, not liking that Midnight was making sense. "Fine. Fine, you might have a point. But you're done for now. Izuku can't deal with you making him miserable every night and also focus on training. Which is the reason we're all out here after all."

"Aizawa and I agree completely on that front." Which made Himiko blink. "At this point, the talks I want to have would be the wrong kind of distractions we want for Midoriya."

"And there are right kinds?"

Midnight nodded her head. "There are. First, I want the three of you to keep doing what you've been doing. Your… interactions," Midnight chose that word carefully, "are keeping his spirits up. Keep that up." She side-eyed Aizawa before adding, "I'm not giving you all carte blanche to do whatever you want. You're still expected to follow the rules. Just keep things as they've been. Are we clear?"

Okay so she knows the shit we've done already. "Crystal," was Himiko's truthful answer. Keeping things the same meant she had a lot of wiggle room to work with.

"Secondly," Aizawa stepped in. "The teachers and the Pussycats will make sure Midoriya is focused on training. Midoriya is dedicated to becoming a hero, and part of that is overcoming challenges. We'll make sure he's too exhausted to worry about anything else."

Himiko frowned. "Your plan… is to work him to exhaustion?"

"That's my plan for all of you," Aizawa corrected, earning a dirty look from the little one eyed vampire people blender.

"While your lot and the training keep Midoriya's attention," Midnight quickly stepped in, "Aizawa and myself are going to figure out what the next step is. A key aspect to helping Midoriya is to mend the bridge between himself and Aizawa. The unfortunate villain attacks along with Aizawa's… unique teaching methods."

"Lying to us," Himiko muttered.

"…Unique. Teaching. Methods. Have caused a situation where there are some… unfortunate circumstances between teacher and student. We want Midoriya to know that unlike the situations he's had to deal with around other teachers, Aizawa doesn't have it out for him. And he's acknowledged that his method of handling Midoriya's… actions has not been the wisest. Fortunately, Aizawa is adaptable. So while the finer details of what we're going to do are being discussed, at the very least I will be mediating some talks between the two. And also probably All Might as well, as I've only just been brought up to speed on how he's been directly responsible for reinforcing some of Midoriya's… choices."

Himiko had a pretty good idea what little nugget of information Midnight had learned. If she was a betting girl, it would be some of the finer points of the sludge villain attack. After some silence, Himiko just stood with her hands on her hips, thinking things over. "What if Izuku is against talking with you all again? After the disaster of your last talk, it sure sounds like he wouldn't be thrilled coming in for another."

"I would hope that those close to him would help nudge him our way. It would go a long way to helping things go smoothly and calmly if Midoriya feels it's his choice to come back."

"So in between the necking, try to steer Izuku in the direction of coming back. Got it, alright."

Midnight seemed a little surprised. "I… honestly was expecting to have to twist your arm over this. Or go to Uraraka and have her convince you all over this part of things. You're alright with Midoriya coming back to talk to me?"

Himiko crossed her arms in a huff. "Fortunately for you, my desire to help Izuku is stronger than my annoyance with you right now. So, I'll trust you and play ball." When she looked up at Midnight she flinched seeing the woman looking close to tears. "Why are you looking at me like that?!"

"You trust me!" Midnight looked like she didn't know whether to cheer or cry.

"I swear to god if you hug me I'm publishing your internet history!"

Aizawa, seeing the situation was resolved, left before Himiko started listing off sites to prove she could back up the threat.

Soon after, Himiko was ready to get her training started, but paused as Midnight handed her the first syringe of blood. "Can I ask you something?"

"Hmm?"

"You said Izuku… said he would have been able to save his mom. He didn't… happen to say anything else did he?" Himiko wasn't sure she wanted to hear the answer. Because one of the answers she was pretty sure would rip her heart right out of her chest. Compounding the fear was that she was all but certain she'd let Izuku do it and she wouldn't be able to blame him one bit.

"No," Midnight answered gently, apparently being a mind reader or just able to see clear as day the fear coming from Himiko over this. "He never said anything that made it seem like he blamed you for what happened. Not when he was calm or in his rant. I don't think you have to worry about that fear at all."

"Um, I'm out of boulders to punch!"

Momo looked up from the gigantic wedding style ten-layered chocolate cake she was halfway through devouring to see, not a few yards away, that Itsuka had her enlarged hands over her head, fingers interlocked, as she used the moment to catch her breath.

Ragdoll bounded by, with some training supplies in her arms. "Pixie-Bob is focusing on the kitten that swims through the ground and the one that splits apart into many tiny itty bitty pieces. She'll be busy for a bit. Find something else to punch soon or you'll be sorry!"

Itsuka grumbled as she looked around. It looked like she was trying to pick between the mountain side or to go full Paul Bunyan on some trees.

Momo took another large bite of cake while she watched the other girl look around. A part of her, a very small and admittedly petty part of her, was looking forward to seeing what Ragdoll's 'you'll be sorry' threat would end up being.

Hmph, if you're to be my rival for Jirou's affection, you'll need to prove you're more than just Michelangelo's David and Sandro Botticelli's Birth of Venus merged into one form. She deserves more than just some handsome princess. She deserves someone with a keen mind. Momo elegantly, snobbishly and a little arrogantly finished off her slice of cake before reaching for another.

Jirou would also want someone that isn't acting like an altisonant plutocrat… I must remember what Father taught me. Above all else, to stay elegant and always follow the rules of decorum. Especially with those you are working against.

It helps lull them into a false sense of security.

"Ahem, Kendou?" Momo waved her rival down. "If you'd like I can provide you something to strike while you wait for Pixie-Bob."

Itsuka perked up as she jogged over. "Really?"

Momo smiled magnanimously, pausing her own training of constantly creating small matryoshka dolls, and tugging up her sweat top and pulling her arm out of the sleeve, leaving her side exposed, but her front covered. "You were punching what looked like sedimentary stone. Not a particularly hard stone, relatively speaking. I could make you some large granite stones, if you wanted something a bit more challenging."

Itsuka's eyes sparkled at the offer. "Oh, that sounds great!" Momo started to focus but then Itsuka snapped her fingers, a very loud sound since her hands were still enlarged. "Wait. You can make anything right? How about diamonds? That's supposed to be really hard."

Momo laughed nervously. "Oh… Technically, yes I can. It is after all just pure carbon, the atoms are just in a lattice pattern. It's just…" Momo coughed and got herself back on track, "I'm heavily restricted from creating any kind of precious gems or metals… diamonds, rubies… gold. Also money. I'm not allowed to… After what happened when I was younger."

Itsuka leaned forward. She wasn't much of a gossip, but damned if she was going to pass up something being served to her. "I might have… made myself a room that Midas himself would be jealous of. And when the Ministry of Finance found out… I was given such a telling off. As a result, I was given a list of certain items that I was restricted from creating. Though there is some leniency now, given my career choice. But I still have to document and retain anything I make that's on the list, so it can be destroyed and not cause irreparable damage to the global markets and economy."

"The government came and stole your wealth, huh," Itsuka said with a chuckle.

"Governments tax the wealthy, and as they always do, made sure all was fairly taken."

Itsuka frowned. "Wait, don't the rich always make sure to hide their money so it doesn't get taken away? You're going to tell me you don't have a little hidey-hole somewhere filled with gold or something?"

…

"So no, I can't make you a block of diamond to punch. But if you are looking for something to challenge yourself, perhaps this will satisfy you." Momo's side sparkled before a huge inches thick metal slammed into the ground before it tilted over and was now leaning up against the cliff face. "That is tungsten steel. You should get plenty of punches against that."

Giving Momo a sly look, which the other girl ignored with grace, Itsuka cracked her knuckles as she got ready to see what the metal had to offer. Momo for her part was getting her sweat top back on, confident that the plate would satisfy Itsuka until—

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

CRACK!

Momo's head whipped around, and she openly gawked at the shattered metal. Itsuka was rubbing her knuckles with a huge smile. "Wow, that took three whole punches. I was shattering those rocks with just one. This is great! Can I have another one?"

"A-another one?" Momo squeaked out. "You're… verystrong aren't you?"

Itsuka nodded excitedly and flexed her arms, making Momo realize her description of David and Venus was quite the apt one.

"Yeah! Hey, maybe I don't need the rocks. Your training is creating things, right, and eating to refuel yourself so you can just keep creating? How about instead of the little dolls, you just keep making these plates!"

Despite feeling like her plan had somehow just backfired, Momo couldn't deny that the idea had merit. In fact, it made perfect sense. It didn't help that the orange-haired girl's excitement was contagious. So acknowledging that she might have just lost this round, and not being all that upset over the turn of events, Momo and Itsuka spent the rest of the day assisting each other in their training.

With Momo being completely unaware that one part of her plan had succeeded.

Kyouka, a little after the first plate shattered, was now keeping a close eye on them.

Oh…. Oh this is painful to watch.

It was the home stretch before everyone was going to get to have a water break, and Izuku was sweating bullets, lifting the large boulder over his head while doing his darndest to keep the ever advancing, and infinitely respawning, stone monsters from getting past himself and doing more damage to Mei's portable workshop.

He was pretty sure after the last one walloped it, the next time Mei used a gadget, it was gonna be on him.

"Everyone, take five!" Came Mandalay's telepathic voice, and at once, everyone stopped what they were doing and slumped to the ground.

Izuku dropped the boulder, and promptly leaned against it while he caught his breath. Unfortunately, he was still facing the direction where the most painful display of pining was taking place. For the whole morning, Kyouka had been in his line of sight, and my god, was she miserable to look at.

Kyouka then looked away from what she had been watching, and her eyes caught Izuku's.

She blinked, and seemed to realize that if she hadn't meant for anyone to notice her mood, she had failed with him.

…

Oh wait. Her knowing I've noticed her might be….. aaaand she's getting up and coming over here. In for a penny, in for a pounding I gue… oh she's running over here… uh oh.

"Ahhhh! My poor baby has another dent in it!" Mei screamed as she gave her workshop a look over during the break.

Normally Izuku would be fretting around her, apologizing for missing one of the stone monsters. Except he was now being dragged into the woods by a very scary-looking Kyouka.

Ha ha haaaa… I'm in danger.

Izuku gulped nervously as Kyouka finally let him go when they were a little deeper into the woods. "Um?"

"You. You need to stop! I'm already in a hole because of you. If anyone sees you looking at me like you were, I'll get grilled again."

Izuku's head tilted to the side. "I'm sorry, but how was I looking at you? And why did you kidnap me?"

If I get kidnapped a third time, does the universe give me free ice cream?

"Pity. You looked sorry for me and if, god forbid, Ashido saw that, I'd be screwed," Kyouka hissed, her jacks looking like they were ready to stab.

Izuku blinked. Then nodded, realizing that he probably was giving her a pitying look. Then pointed back. "It's not my fault you were looking at Yaoyorozu like she's a tall glass of water in the middle of the desert you're not allowed to drink."

Jacks flew and jammed into Izuku's ears, dropping him like a sack of bricks. "Never say that again!"

Izuku defiantly pointed up at the four Kyoukas he saw. "Just proving my point… also, OW! No wonder Kaminari and Sero are so scared of you. That hurts!" Kyouka wasn't exactly brimming with sympathy. "You know, you could save yourself a lot of trouble if you just went over and talked with Yaoyorozu. Personal experience here, talking with Ochako sooner would have been the best thing I could have done. Would have saved us both a lot of unnecessary drama."

Kyouka clearly wasn't convinced as she reached down to pull Izuku back to his feet. "Right, easy for you to say. Uraraka had a crush on you at the same time."

Izuku was back on his feet, and while dusting himself off, gave Kyouka a look. "Yeah?"

"Oh, come on. If you're trying to protect my feelings, don't bother. I saw the looks Yaoyorozu had this morning. Even when the two of you were talking, she still kept…" Kyouka rubbed her brow. "You tell me to my face you didn't see those looks. You're Mr. Observant. You saw. Hell, you were following her gaze!"

Izuku frowned. "Just to be clear. I'm not going around telling people who you're crushing on. So I'm not telling on other people either."

"I respect that. Honestly that's really good on you. But I'm not blind, man," Kyouka twisted a jack between her fingers. "Yao-Momo's been eyeing Kendou a lot. And now she's taking her shot to train with her. Pretty obvious what's going on."

Izuku kept as straight of a face as he possibly could. "Let's, um… put a pin in that. I think a simple confession would be fine if you wanted to make a move. The classic kokuhaku route. Maybe have a love letter too. I could probably find something around for you to use."

"Are you seriously trying to give me romance advice?" Kyouka asked.

"I meant it's either me or Ochako. Or heck, I can get Himiko—"

"Don't even joke like that!" Kyouka shrieked.

"I'm your best bet for experience and advice and you know it," Izuku said with confidence.

"…God help me." Kyouka realized it was true. Cause Himiko was insane, and if she gave anything to the other girls, she was screwed. "Doesn't mean you're right though!"

"Look, stick with the classic. I think Yaoyorozu would jump if you walked up to her and went, Suki desu. Tsukiattekudasai! And don't forget the love letter."

Kyouka flushed. "I can't do that! You're nuts!"

"I'm also in a relationship and helped Tsu and Himiko get in theirs."

"…Goddamn it, listen. Yao-Momo is like a princess! I'm a court minstrel! Huge gap!"

"Okay, but then what's Kendou then in this analogy?"

"Lancelot. The perfect knight. The dragon slayer. She's Princess-harming Man. Plus," Kyouka added with a slightly heated voice, "goddamn she's fucking hot."

Izuku was rubbing his chin, looking like he was thinking. "I mean, it just sounds like you're saying you think Yaoyorozu likes butch girls, so you should be golde—ACK!"

Extracting her jacks from Izuku's ears after dropping him like a sack of rocks—for the second time—Kyouka gave Izuku a stern warning, "And what did we learn?"

"…That I was right about you at I-Island." Izuku grumbled as he got back up. "And you better watch it missy, or I can get you in so much trouble."

Kyouka crossed her arms. "Oh, and how're you going to do that? You gonna cry because I hurt your wittle ears." That last bit was said with a teasing smirk.

Izuku returned it perfectly. "You don't think Ochako might have something to say about this? She's a little protective of me, you know."

"You wouldn't… actually sic her on me would you?" Smirk was gone cause that was actually a little terrifying to consider.

Izuku tapped his chin, looking up like he was thinking really hard about that, before shaking his head. "Nah." Kyouka sighed. "What I'll do is go tell Yaoyorozu about how you were putting yourself down though. I'm sure she'd be oh so pleased to hear about that." Izuku had to admit, he liked the look of pure horror that response got. Being scary was fun.

"Y-you w-wouldn't dare!"

Izuku gave her an even look, turned towards where the classes were gathering around the water station, cupped his hands and shouted at the top of his lungs, "YAOYOROZU! JIROU'S BEING PRETTY DOWN ON HERSELF! YOU SHOULD TALK TO HER!"

Kyouka was frozen solid as Izuku walked by her, gave her a pat on the shoulder and said, "As your wingman, it's my job to punish you when you make boneheaded mistakes. We'll talk about what you've learned later."

Walking out into the clearing, Izuku spotted the group, all giving him really weird looks, and a jogging Momo. As she sped by, Izuku smirked, "You're welcome."

"Eh?!"

"Just gave you a chance to encourage her. You're welcome."

When Izuku got to the station, he was able to explain that Kyouka had been a little worried if the training she was doing was working. She had been a little tough on herself and he decided that the best way to fix that was to get Momo to give her words of encouragement.

The break was coming to its end quickly, and while the kids tried to gulp down as much water as they could, Pixie-Bob smirked as she moved to address them all. "Oh, everyone! Before I forget! Tonight we'll have a test of courage with the classes pitted against each other! After training hard, you all get to play hard! This is our patented Carrot and the Stick approach to training!"

Ragdoll grinned. "You'll be split into your classes with one sent into the woods to lie in wait, and then teams from the other class will be sent in. The class that makes the most people piss their pants with creativity and imagination wins!"

"Ew, why so graphic," Tooru grimaced.

"So we're getting sent into the woods, in the dark… by ourselves…" Himiko smirked past her water cup, "and we're supposed to play hard, huh."

It was scary that people in the squad weren't able to tell if she was smirking because she was planning on using the time alone in the dark to get frisky with her various lovers, or if she was going to use the opportunity for revenge against certain 1-B students.

"Revelry in the dark," Fumikage muttered to himself.

All eyes were on Himiko now. "Hey, he said it. Not me."

Mina was bouncing around. "I can't believe they're letting us do camping stuff too."

Katsuki smirked. "'Pitted against each other' sounds right up my alley."

"Of course it does, Kacchan."

"The fuck does that mean?! You wanna fight?!"

Ragdoll clapped her hands. "Just remember, if we catch you slacking, you don't get to have fun! Instead, I'll get to come up with some punishments!"

No one wanted to know what the manic member of the team could think up that would be a punishment for them.

With break time over, Aizawa held out a bag for the disposable water cups and as everyone was getting on their way, watched them all go, noting that the promise of a game filled evening had given some of the tired kids some pep in their step. While he felt they shouldn't need the carrot to drive them, he wasn't about to step in and make any comments as, at the end of the day, as long as the kids were working hard, the finer details didn't really matter.

Though he expected that when he had to break the bad news to some of them that they wouldn't be able to take part, and instead would have another round of extra lessons, that the Wild Wild Pussycats weren't going to need to come up with another carrot for the class tomorrow.

…If Nemuri calls me the bad guy tonight… Aizawa groaned and rubbed his brow. His previous classes were much simpler. He was the villain from day one, and it made things so much smoother. Now suddenly his teaching methods were blowing up in his face and worst of all, he found himself agreeing with his friend that he'd gone and made a mess of things.

Stubbornly, he put most of the blame on the damned villain attacks.

And All Might.

As he made sure blame for his predicament was properly spread around, Aizawa got the feeling he was being watched. Sure enough when he paid attention, he saw Izuku giving him a wary, almost skittish look as he put his water away and moved to get away from the teacher noticeably quickly. Striking a little fear of god into his students was just par the course for Aizawa, but this was a whole different situation all together.

"Midoriya." Aizawa frowned when he saw the boy flinch before he turned and put on one of the most disheartening smiles he'd ever seen. Which coming from him said a lot.

"Aizawa-sensei! Y-yes sir!"

Izuku was putting on a painful act. He might not know that Midnight had spoken with him after their talk, but he also wasn't assuming that it hadn't happened. So Izuku was stuck trying to act normal while fretting about the details Aizawa may or may not know.

"You should know that Midnight did come to speak with me after the two of you talked." The painful disheartened smile dropped as worry overcame Izuku. Aizawa held up a hand. "Before you start, you should know that neither she or myself are upset with you. In Midnight's case, she's upset with herself for doing such a poor job anticipating how much the previous events since you came to U.A. have affected you. She's mad at herself but worried for you." Aizawa watched Izuku's eyes dart to the side. He followed them, and saw they were looking over towards Midnight and Himiko. Both of whom were watching their interaction closely.

"You should know I'm also not upset with you."

Izuku jerked his attention back to Aizawa, looking very startled. "You're not? But I said… things that…"

"I'm aware of what you said. And I'm not angry. So," he motioned towards where Mei was getting set up for another round, "you can focus on your training without worry about retaliation or any other concerns you might have had."

"O-oh I wasn't, um…" Izuku trailed off and decided to not add lying to his teacher's face to the list of things he was dealing with. "Thank you, sir."

"However, once this camp is over, there will be some talks. Not just the two of us," he clarified quickly, "but with Midnight mediating and with All Might as well." He watched as Izuku relaxed once that last bit was added. "But like I said. That will be for after camp. For now, focus on what you came here to accomplish."

Izuku bowed. "Yes sensei!" Before hurrying away.

Aizawa grunted, hoping that at the very least, that olive branch would help things stay stable for the rest of the trip.

With a splatter, gray sludge sprayed the ground as Himiko, panting and pale, was unable to hold her transformation any longer. Leaning over, Himiko clutched the table where all the ice coolers, filled with blood samples for her, were stacked, along with a big digital clock, timing how long she lasted until the end.

She had grown to hate that clock. She was also pretty sure it read seconds slower than normal, just to spite her.

"Okay," Midnight reached into a cooler, pulling out a new vial. "Let's go again."

Himiko damn near told her to fuck off, but held her tongue when she saw a large bag of ice waddling over towards them. With a suspiciously familiar horned hat peeking up from behind it.

It's the kid.

Himiko swiped at the syringe Midnight handed her, but didn't take her eyes off Kouta. Midnight was already turning and smiling at Kouta as he dropped off the bag to refill the coolers to keep all the samples chilled.

"Thank you so much young man," Midnight beamed, even when Kouta just didn't acknowledge her at all. He was already turning away while Midnight grabbed the bag, and started pouring it in.

"You're not wrong, you know. Heroes suck."

Midnight froze and Kouta stopped dead in his tracks. Not that Himiko really gave a damn about that. She especially didn't give a fuck about the alarmed face Midnight was making.

"They're hypocritical, selfish and think your business is their business."

Kouta turned and either wasn't bothering to hide his shocked expression or just couldn't. His eyes scanned over Himiko, before his features darkened again. "And yet here you are trying to be one."

Himiko shrugged. "Being a hero is my parole. It was either this or I'm locked in a cell or a padded room."

Kouta scoffed. "Then you're no different than anyone else. Heroes, villains. You're all the same. Doing what you want without caring about anyone else."

Himiko stared at him blankly. "Wow. You've got your head so far up your ass all you can see is shit, huh?"

"…Ew."

"TOGA!?" Midnight looked like she was about to have an aneurysm.

"Oh, shut up, I'm giving a life lesson here to this little bundle of crap." Himiko turned her attention back to Kouta. "Listen. It sucks what happened to your folks. But you really need to get your head on straight while you can and see the gold mine you fell into."

"I lost my parents!"

"And mine threw me away. Guess what, life sucks. But you got people reaching out to you, you dumb fuck. This immature bullshit isn't going to get you anywhere. Grow the fuck up and quit it with this whole, 'heroes and villains are the same' crap. Because guess what, all you're proving is what a dumb kid you are. Because anyone that's met an actual villain wouldn't be saying the stupid shit you're spouting."

Kouta glowered up at Himiko, before turning on his heel and stormed off.

Himiko watched him go, arms crossed with a frown. "Dumbass kid needs to get his head on str—"

"THE FUCK WAS THAT?!" Midnight screeched in horror.

"Huh? I was just trying to give the kid a pep talk."

"THAT'S WHAT THAT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE?!" Midnight put her hands together and pressed them against her brow, looking like she was saying the most stressful prayer of her life, asking the lord to give her the strength to not smack Himiko upside her head. "Toga," she had to take a deep breath before continuing. "Do you understand there are not enough hours in the day for me to explain to you why you. Of all people. Do not have the experience, maturity, temperament, people skills or sanity to talk to anyone about getting over their trauma!"

Himiko just shrugged. "Kid needs a good kick in the pants. Izuku tried with the carrot and that didn't take. I don't mind being the stick. You get great results with the stick. Good for knocking sense into dumb kids."

"You don't have enough sense to spare to worry about him!" Midnight leaned forward, her palms pressing into the table hard enough that the plastic groaned. "Principal Nezu let you teach some classes this summer, and I may have encouraged you to help Midoriya with his issues while we're here, but that does not mean you're qualified to try to play psychologist with everyone! Mandalay's nephew is off limits."

"So… you're trying to get me to be more empathetic, more hero-like. Which involves sticking my nose into other peoples business. At the same time, you're telling me… not to do that." She shook her head. "You need to pick a lane."

"Off limits." Midnight paused. "And you thought that was you showing empathy?! Off limits for a hundred years!"

"Fine, fine. God you look like you're about to have a heart attack. But good luck trying to tell Izuku all this. Cause you all have had such great luck getting him to not get involved in disasters, hmm."

Midnight's head thumped against the table, groaning out a string of swears, complaining she wasn't paid enough to deal with these dumbass kids. "Why? Why did you even try to talk with the kid?"

Himiko was reaching into the freshly filled cooler as she answered, "Wasn't like I planned it or anything. Just saw him and had a lightbulb moment I guess."

"Need to confiscate those lightbulbs of yours," Midnight muttered before taking herself up. "That doesn't answer my question. Even if it wasn't planned, you still did it. Why?"

"Well, I saw Izuku try."

Midnight waited. Expecting that there would be more to that sentence. But when Himiko didn't elaborate, she pressed, figuring there had to be more, "And? Midoriya tried… and then what? Did he ask for help? Was there a conversation or…"

"No." Himiko plucked a needle and looked like she was already moving on and ready to get back to work. "I just figured since he tried, I'd see if I could help."

Midnight tried not to stare but hearing such an offhanded answer from Himiko was startling. On one hand, Himiko had tried to help. Which was good. She did it in quite possibly the crappiest way imaginable because it was all off the cuff remarks, but it was an attempt. But, the fact she seemed to be trying to imitate Izuku, the boy she and her fellow teachers were trying to get to not stick his nose into situations where it was getting broken all the time, was extremely worrying.

God if Toga starts copying and picking up Midoriya's bad habits… I'm going to be replacing my desk whiskey every day.

It was alarming how Himiko, moving on from copying Stain to copying Izuku was going to potentially give Midnight and the other teachers a whole new host of issues.

As with any workout plan, the second day was always the worst. And the Quirk training the students were going through was no exception, with all of them more or less having to drag themselves back to the campsite, only to find once again that the tables were bare, but the cooking stations filled.

"Come on guys, the sooner we get done cooking, the sooner we can eat and get ready for some actual fun," Itsuka encouraged her classmates, putting on her class rep cap.

Tenya immediately followed her lead. "She is right. This is all part of our training. We must strive to hit every goal!"

While day one, Tenya's pep talk got the class motivated, today, the response was much more muted. But at least no one threw anything at him.

The students all split apart, going to different parts of the stations to help prep everything. Izuku and Shouto once again were in charge of getting all the cooking fires lit while Ochako was sharing a table at the vegetable and potato cutting station. On her right was Himiko. On her left was Katsuki.

Ochako did not feel safe in this spot.

Hearing that Katsuki was apparently a good cook was one thing. Seeing the skill he used a knife to chop up carrots was a-whole-nother thing all together.

"Goddamn you're actually really good at using a knife. Damn."

Katsuki, in the middle of cutting, turned to scowl at her. "What do you mean 'damn?' How can you be bad at using a knife? It's easy shit!"

And therein lies the dangerous situation Ochako was in. Because using a knife was Himiko's thing. She was very very good with knives. So to see Katsuki be good too, and then say that it was easy… Well…

Ochako glanced to her other side, at the pissed off vampire who was moving her knife around, making cuts even the fastest mandolin couldn't keep up with without slicing off the operator's fingers, cutting the potatoes into perfect angry cubes.

Sharp metal, held by very aggressive people, moving waaaay too fast. Yup, Ochako would be surprised if she was going to leave her spot in one piece.

There was also the issue that she was still only on her first diced onion and she was pretty sure one or the other were going to give her a hard time.

"Goddamn, Pink Cheeks, hurry the fuck up."

"How are you this slow with an onion?!"

Or both.

Izuku, sitting down with everyone else, glanced to his side as he watched Kouta pace around the edge of the campsite, a tray of food in his hands. The boy paused, seemingly able to tell he was being watched, caught Izuku's eye and made a very obvious motion to his food, before turning and leaving.

"Leave it alone Izuku. You need to worry about yourself right now," Himiko said before taking a bite.

"…I wish All Might was here." Izuku sighed in defeat. He of course knew the reasons why All Might had been more or less forbidden from coming to the camping trip. The large hero had explained with a boisterous laugh.

"We want to keep your training as inconspicuous as possible. And unfortunately, if I come with you all. Well, I'm going to attract attention. So to keep that from happening, I'll be sitting this one out. But at least this way you all won't have to deal with any distractions!"

Privately, All Might added since it was a risk he was a target for villains, it was just better he wasn't there.

So Izuku understood the reason, and yet as he watched Kouta vanish into the woods, towards his hiding spot, Izuku found himself wishing it wasn't the case.

Ochako looked up from her dinner. "Is everything okay? Did you need him for something?" Ochako followed Izuku's gaze and caught just the briefest glimpse of Kouta before he was gone. "Ah."

"Yeah."

"Oh."

"Hmm hmm."

Hitoshi looked at the two. "Anyone want to use more than single words and grunts to explain what I'm missing?"

"Oh, sorry. It's Kouta. Mandalay's little nephew. I was just wondering what All Might would've said to him if he was here."

Mei leaned over as she began filling her plate back up. "You mean the kid that's been a grouch since we got here?"

"I guess being around people you don't like would put anyone in a bad mood, kero. He really didn't seem to like heroes at all."

Izuku frowned. "It's more than that. I, um… tried talking to him last night and it seems like he hates everything about the world. Quirks and how the world revolves around them. Of course I went and opened my big mouth and just made him angry. Sometimes I wonder if I should just shut up."

From the other table over, Katsuki yelled at the top of his lungs, "You're damned right that's what you should do!"

Himiko flipped him off before she got pulled back into her seat. "Hey, look at the bright side. You did a better job at trying to reach him than I did today."

"…I'm sorry, what?"

"You… talked to Kouta."

"Oh, this should be good."

"Himiko, what did you do?"

Himiko shrugged. "Told the kid he was being a dumbass and that he should stop."

"…"

"Oh no."

"Toga, I'm sure you're summarizing your interaction, but please don't use it as an excuse to swear so openly during a school trip," Tenya warned with a chop.

"I don't need excuses to swear," Himiko huffed. "And that's more or less what I said. Told him to pull his head out of his ass and to stop being an idiot."

Ochako was gobsmacked. "You told a child to do what?!"

The rest of the students that overheard the conversation were all looking at Himiko absolutely floored. Even Katsuki had a look that screamed. 'The fuck is wrong with you?'

Tsuyu was too busy croaking in distress to say anything so Mina stepped in, "Why would you do that?!"

"Well, I saw Izuku's gentle approach didn't work, so I figured I'd help by trying the more direct approach."

It's amazing how little that helped Himiko's case.

"I'm sure you and… Toga had the best of intentions, Midoriya," Shouto stepped in. "But you need to remember that to this kid, you're just strangers. And for a stranger to suddenly step into someone's personal business, it's only natural for them to become agitated."

"I'd find it super annoying for sure," Hanta chimed in.

"I don't know what you want to do with him, but I don't think you should keep poking your nose in a delicate situation." Shouto finished.

Ochako frowned when she saw the unsatisfied look on Izuku's face. "Unfortunately you're telling Deku to leave well enough alone. So we all know that's not exactly going to stick."

That got some chuckles from the squad. "That's true. And it's not like he hasn't been able to help people before, you know," Hitoshi then motioned to Shouto and Himiko, "case in point."

Tenya rubbed his chin. "True, but in both these cases it wasn't just words that brought results. Midoriya isn't at a point where his words carry the same power that say, All Might's, do. So to help himself help others, Midoriya also uses action."

Izuku crossed his arms but remained silent. It was good advice, but it also seemed to complicate his question. Now instead of wondering what he should say, he also was wondering what he should do to try and reach Kouta.

Ochako reached over and rubbed his shoulder. "Hey. You don't have to figure everything out in a single day. Give it time Deku. I'm sure something will come up eventually that will give you a hand."

A little later in the evening everyone was getting excited that they were going to get to have some fun.

"While it pains me to say this," Aizawa threw out his capture tool, wrapping up Rikidou, Yuuga, Eijirou, Mina, Denki and Hanta and pulling them all away from the group, "the extra lessons group will not be participating in tonight's challenge. You'll be having class with me."

"You've gotta be kidding me!" Mina screamed while she tugged at the cloth.

"Come on! We worked hard today! Just like everyone else!" Denki challenged.

Aizawa leveled a chilling look at the group. "You did work just as hard. But as the only ones that failed your exams, you are expected to work harder. If I'm not satisfied with your efforts, then you only have yourselves to blame."

That got the group to slump in defeat.

Neito snickered loudly. "What a show. Nice to see those 1-A entitled crybabies face some consequences, ha ha ha ha—"

Vlad King cleared his throat. "You'll be joining them tonight, Monoma. Your effort today was utter crap."

"—" Neito made a sound like a record scratching as Vlad King pulled him away.

After watching the group leave, Ochako squinted her eyes as she walked beside Izuku while the classes were getting led out into the woods. "Are you… chewing gum?"

Izuku wasn't just chewing gum, he was hammering it with his teeth. Like he was trying to force all the flavor—mint if Ochako was smelling right—out of it. Izuku for his part, bashfully looked away. Which set all kinds of alarms off in Ochako's head.

"Deku? What exactly do you think is happening here?"

Izuku blushed, he was so obviously red even in the middle of night, walking through the trees. "Well… um…" Chew chew chew chew, "I mean…"

Tsuyu tapped her chin. "Your boyfriend is having impure thoughts."

"Deku!" Ochako playfully scolded. "What makes you think anything is happening tonight?"

Tsuyu nodded in agreement.

"We're getting led away from camp into the forest, in the middle of the night. Where we're expected to go hide in the woods, and Himiko has been giggling the whole time."

…

"Plus I think Monoma was the only reason Himiko would have picked the scarring option and now he's off the board."

Ochako turned to look back at Tsuyu and the two shared looks. Pointed at each other as their faces began to match Izuku's because the logic was just, right there.

Stammering, Ochako turned back around. "Um… you have any extra?"

"I'll take some too please, kero."

Izuku was quick to fish out some more. He jolted when Himiko snaked an arm around his waist to pluck a stick of gum, and wiggled her eyes at the three when she chewed it.

"By the way Izuku, been meaning to ask you something," Himiko said after she did a quick breath check. "What were you and Momo talking about this morning? She was pretty animated at times and I saw you taking notes."

"She also slapped him," Ochako added with a look of suspicion. "Was really tempted to make my way over, but then you both just kept going like nothing happened."

"Oh, that. It wasn't anything."

"…"

"…"

"…Deku, you want to try that again and look at us when you answer?"

Izuku had tilted his head up, looking up at the night sky. "Um… no?" Ochako gently put her elbow into his ribs. "Oof! Okay, okay." Momo had said that if he was questioned he wasn't expected to lie to them, but he still had to try. "Okay. But this stays here. No gossiping with the other girls."

Ochako gasped. "Deku! I'm offended."

Izuku crossed his arms. "I heard Jirou's screams."

Ochako blinked. "Okay, we're getting a little off topic."

"Uh huh."

"Deku!"

"I ain't saying anything unless I have your three's word," Izuku challenged definitely.

Himiko tsk'd. "Buzzkill."

Izuku was silent, and finally, Tsuyu promised for the group that they wouldn't go and say anything. Himiko made a grumbling protest, but was shot down with a stern hush from her girlfriend. But it was enough for Izuku. "Yaoyorozu asked me to be her wingman and help her with flirting advice so she can put the charms on a crush she has."

One step.

Two steps.

Three steps.

Fooooour and Izuku was picked up by the collar and floated off the ground. "WHAT?!"

"You promised no gossiping and making a scene is going to make gossiping," Izuku quickly threw out. They might have been towards the back of the group. And Ochako manhandling him has been a time honored tradition since day one of school so no one would really bat an eye at it. But if the conversation carried, well, that could draw some ears and eyes.

Ochako's brow twitched as she begrudgingly put Izuku back on his feet. Though it wasn't like that got him out of the blast zone. Some very intense stares were getting directed at him.

"Yaoyorozu. Came to you. For advice on her crush?"Ochako hissed.

"I don't believe you," Himiko growled out.

"You? Out of everyone in the class. In the school. In the country. In the world," Ochako jabbed her finger into Izuku's chest. "You?!"

Izuku cocked his head to the side, looking a little full of himself. "Out of the four of us. Who are the ones that seem to keep saying I know way more than I should?"

Himiko covered her face with her hands. "Oh goddamn it."

"And who here has successfully helped someone else confess and nab their crush?"

Tsuyu croaked nervously as she looked away.

"And who here is in a successful relationship," Izuku held up a finger when Ochako opened her mouth, "that wouldn't crack under Ashido's or the other girls' interrogations?" Ochako tried to interject but, "We both know you wouldn't let them come after me. You're too protective of me."

Silence reigned over the small group before Ochako pushed Izuku with a displeased grunt. "Stop looking smug."

"He he he," Izuku snickered with a grin. "It's fun winning all these arguments. Really sets the tone of our relationshi—OW! OW!"

Lesson one, don't gloat in front of your girlfriend if she's been trained to kick by Miruko.

Lesson two, don't gloat in front of your girlfriend if she's been trained to kick by Miruko and will actively encourage the rest of your polycule to join in on the beating.

"So you're not going to tell us who Yaoyorozu is crushing on, are you?" After being properly walloped, Izuku was now ready to answer some questions. Though Ochako had a good guess some would be flat out refused.

"No, I'm not telling you who Yaoyorozu's crush is. The same reason I'm not telling you who Jirou is crushing on. Which I assume you know since you all haven't tried to ask me yet."

Himiko waved him off. "You have secrets and think we all deserve to have some. Fine, whatever. What advice did you give her?"

"Just basic stuff. I need time to get a real game plan together for her. So, try and pay the person some compliments. Share some tender moments when she can. Know how to start a fight. The basics for right now."

Ochako blanched. "Deku? In what world is fighting good advice for trying to win over a crush?!"

"Experience says that a good fight makes people fall in love. Sometimes violence is the answer."

"That's asinine!"

Izuku pointed at Ochako, then pointed at Himiko. "You two kinda hated each other at first. Then at the sports festival, you beat the stuffing out of each other, and now? Well, look at last night."

Ochako covered her face while Himiko snickered. "You were one touch away from begging 'harder mommy.'"

"Oh god."

"That too, kero."

"Moving on!" Ochako hissed through her fingers. "Deku, you can't use Himiko as an example for healthy advice!"

A short pause.

"Oi, you're supposed to add no offense to that," Himiko warned.

Ochako pulled her hands away. "I know what I said." She then avoided the swipe from Himiko.

"Well, there's also us, Ochako," Izuku added. "I mean I think some of the most fun we had training was when we were beating the snot outta each other in our spars."

Ochako flushed.

"You know, that makes so much sense now that we know you're a huge— aaaahhhhh!" Himiko was cut off when Ochako picked her up, and threw her into the trees. Without bothering to float her first.

"See, just proving my point," Izuku said smugly.

"Deku. I'm about to show you just how much I love you if you keep this up."

Izuku gulped. "…Love is scary."

"Okay, so Class B will be the first to be the scarers. Class A will leave in pairs every three minutes after Class B has been given enough time to set up," Pixie-Bob explained.

Ragdoll added, "Kittens can hide anywhere they want along the path. And when it's your turn to test your courage, I'll be at the halfway point! Don't worry about getting lost, I'll be able to find you all easily with my Quirk! But don't go too far, or we'll have to come get you right away. I got my eye on all of you tonight!"

The three looked over at Himiko, who clicked her tongue in annoyance. Instantly they knew there wouldn't be any sneaking off during the game.

Mei raised her hand. "I'm with 1-A, right?"

"Yup, so stay over with them so you can pull a ticket to see who you're going to be teamed up with. Oh!" Pixie-Bob called after 1-B as they were walking off, "Those being the scarers aren't allowed to make direct contact! You can use your Quirks, but not on anyone!"

Mandalay echoed with, "Let's see how creative you all are!"

Tenya nodded like he understood what was going on. "I see! They're trying to make us refine our ideas by making us compete with each other, giving us more options for our Quirks in the process! As expected of U.A.!"

Himiko looked at him. "Why does he think everything is one big plan?"

Tooru deadpanned. "It's U.A. You actually think there aren't ulterior motives with everything they do?"

Mandalay held up a box with a hole in the top. "Now, come draw your ticket to determine your partners!"

One by one, everyone reached into the box and pulled out a ticket with a number on it. Ochako looked down at the ticket in her hand, then glanced down at the one Izuku was holding. The numbers didn't match up. "Drat." Neither did Himiko's or Tsuyu's. It looked like they were all getting different partners for this game.

"Okay, guess I'll find whoever has ticket one," Ochako said with a sigh. "Sorry guys."

Himiko glanced around. "I'm sure we can trade—"

"No trading," Tiger growled as he walked by. Himiko stuck her tongue out.

Ochako held up her ticket. "Hey, who's got ticket one?! We're teamed up for this."

Ochako was looking around, but Izuku saw someone stop. And stare.

"Oh. Oooh no."

"Hmm? Deku? What's wrong?"

Izuku put a hand on her shoulder. "You need to be strong Ochako. I know you can do it."

"Eh?"

Himiko saw and started cackling. "Oh. Oh my god, this is just so perfect."

Tsuyu was already making a fast exit, not wanting to be anywhere near the mess about to go down.

"Guys?! What?! What's going on?!"

Ochako began fretting, and looking around more. Then she saw that Katsuki was looking right at her, livid and holding up a ticket with a one on it.

"No. No no no no!"

"Fucking… great, I'm with Pink Cheeks." Both looked like they wanted to vomit blood.

Soon, everyone was paired up.

First Team: Ochako and Katsuki

Second Team: Momo and Kyouka

Third Team: Kouji and Himiko

Fourth Team: Izuku and …

Fifth Team: Tsuyu and Shouto

Sixth Team: Fumikage and Minoru

Seventh Team: Tenya and Mezou

Eighth Team: Tooru and Mashirao

Ninth Team: Hitoshi and Mei

Izuku blinked as he looked around. Everyone was paired up now, but as Izuku stood alone, something started to sound some alarm bells in his head.

Wait… hold on. With Hatsume there were twenty three of us. Then six got taken away for those extra lessons… So there's seventeen of us left. One, two… five… seven… Nine? Izuku looked down at the fourth ticket in his hand. There are an odd number of us… And if we do pairs… 

"Ahhh! I don't get to have a partner!"

One by one, teams were brought to the mouth of the dark forest path, and enthusiastically sent to their doom. Ochako and Katsuki were sneering at each other as they both marched forward, neither wanting to show any signs that the darkness scared them.

When Momo and Kyouka were sent in, Izuku caught the taller girl's eye. He as slyly as he could, mimed hooking his arm. Momo blinked, then recognition hit. Just before the pair vanished into the darkness, Momo locked arms with Kyouka so they were side by side.

When Kouji and Himiko got up to the start line, the first screams of terror echoed out from the darkness. Everyone recognized Momo's voice and while some chuckled nervously, Kouji was starting to sweat. Himiko was not phased at all. "Look at 1-B being smart. I bet they let Ochako and Bakugou slip by some of them so they'd get freaked out by hearing screams behind them. Very nice." Looking up at the taller boy, she gave him a good slap on the back. "Come on. Let's go see if these losers learned anything from my summer class."

Then at last, there was Izuku.

"This doesn't seem fair," he grumbled while the three members of the Wild Wild Pussycats all snickered. "Can't one of the teams be three people?"

"Nope," Pixie-Bob answered.

"Why? How is having a team with one person, better than having a team with three people? There's an odd one either way."

Mandalay smirked. "Simple. This is funnier."

Deep in the forest, Ochako was trying to think of a reason not to punch Katsuki in the back of the head.

"I. Wasn't. Scared."

"Bullshit, you shrieked like a little bitch."

"Fuck. You."

Both had chosen to stride confidently through the dark during their turn. When they heard the screaming from behind them, neither showed any signs that they cared.

The long look back and pause in their pace was just to make sure they weren't run over by whoever was screaming trying to rush through the game.

So when they turned back and were ready to start walking again, and a severed head and mutilated body parts fell out of the tree and into their path, it didn't affect either of them one bit.

Nope.

Not at all.

"If you think that lizard bitch scared me, then you're as dumb as you look," Katsuki seethed.

"Oh, and all the premature detonations going on in your hands is just what then?" Ochako countered. "You're so scared you're dripping with sweat!"

"Fuck you!"

"Fuck you!"

In each other's faces, both looked ready to throw down.

"That crazy cat was the halfway point, right?" Katsuki growled while he looked back towards the path.

"Yeah. So we're halfway done with this." Ochako stormed forward. Not rushing at all to get out of the forest faster.

"Good. This shit is a waste of time."

"Not scary at all."

"Damned right it isn't. Only little bitches would be scared of these preschool pranks those extras are trying."

"Gonna get back and laugh at how lame this was."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah!"

A few more steps.

"When that hand reached out of the ground and grabbed your ankle, you looked like you were going to shit yourself," Ochako teased with a sneer. "You're pathetic."

"Bitch, I'll fucking destroy you if you say that again!"

"You couldn't do jack shit to me on your best day."

And they were back in each other's faces. "You wanna bet, Round Bitch?!"

"First day I met you I put your ass on the ceiling. Wanna see what happens if we go now, jackass?!"

Snarling and growling, both Ochako and Katsuki were just itching for a reason. Something must have them both stressed out, but it couldn't be all the scares that 1-B had gotten them with.

As they faced off, something in the bushes rustled.

A twig snapped.

Ochako frowned and Katsuki rolled his eyes.

Then clapping. Slow and sarcastic. Followed by a dry raspy chuckle. "Man, kids these days are so lucky. I never got to go on camping trips when I was growing up. And you're trying to scare each other?

Ochako stopped breathing. Her eyes went wide as she turned towards the dark shadows of the forest. Katsuki was stunned, uncharacteristically frozen in place as he also tried to peer through the shadows and into the dark woods. Both knew that voice. It was something that haunted their nightmares and soured their souls.

A lone figure melted out of the shadows, his black clothing adding to the almost supernatural way he appeared before them. Pale hands clutching at his arms, neck and head. But Tomura's smile still peeked past the edges of the hand clutching at his face. "That sounds like the perfect game for me. Because tonight is going to be terrifying for all of you."