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2019-11-04
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2021-07-02
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24/?
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Chapter 24: An Explosive Lesson

Summary:

Class 1–A has their first Heroics Lesson, and Aizawa has a heart attack.

Chapter Text

WELCOME BACK! It's been over a year since this story has been updated, and I am SO sorry for that. But, despite what many of you have thought, this story IS NOT OVER! :D There's still much to do and many chapters to write. I have no idea where this story is going, but I'm excited to find out!

I have gotten so much AMAZING fanart for this story, it's unreal. I'd have to say Swan Dive and Viridian are my two most popular stories, with (shockingly) my oneshot, Lifeline coming in third. (Seriously, why the oneshot?) Normally, I'd like the art right now, but I'm posting this chapter right as I head off to work, and the fanart linking usually takes a good 20-40 minutes, so... next time. Sorry about that. (I have to sort through a year's worth of e-mails and stuff to find all the Swan Dive fanart. Haha.)

Future fanart can be sent to me via e-mail to [email protected] or on my Discord Channel! https://discord.gg/a6D9KhjUFq

I also want to thank everyone for being so amazing! I love you all! I encourage people to be inspired by my writing, so if you want to write a story that involves my headcanons or OCs or whatever (or a 'reading/watching the fic', 'characters from other fics get dumped into a room together', or something similar), go for it! Just remember to credit me! (and link me, because I love reading them!) This DOES NOT mean copy/paste my story and claim it as your own, though (in the case of a 'characters reacting to the fic', so long as you disclaimer my work and actually add in the reactions yourself and the like, then I'll trust you to use common sense).

:)



He slid into his seat silently; none of his classmates even realized he’d entered the room—sans Kacchan, who gave him a curious look.

His dad trudged through the door just as the bell rang, looking for all the world like he’d rather be anywhere else. “You all should’ve had the chance to look over your syllabus. For those of you who don’t know, we’ve got a new class member. Shinsou Hitoshi will be your classmate from this point onwards.” He gestured towards the purple-haired kid tiredly before turning back towards the class. “I’m going to take a nap, now. Do whatever you want, just try not to wake me up.” With that, his dad curled up in his yellow sleeping bag and conked out.

“Wow, so you’re Shinsou, right?” Ashido grinned. “Nice to meet you!! You must be pretty good if Aizawa-sensei put you in here.”

“Especially considering the fact that he expelled Mineta so quickly…” Kaminari grimaced.

Izuku tuned out the introductions as he leaned forward to speak with Kacchan. “What do you think we’ll be doing for Heroics today?” He asked excitedly.

“Dunno.” The blond shrugged. “Whatever it is should be pretty damn cool, though.” He grinned.

“I heard All Might’s teaching Heroics!” Jiro commented, bringing attention towards their conversation.

“I meant to ask… how did you get a cat in here?” Ashido tilted her head.

“Ah, Yuki is my Hero’s Partner.” Izuku explained, scratching the feline under the neck. “He’s got a Quirk of his own—Shadow—and I put in the paperwork last year. Legally, he’s treated like support gear, so I can take him everywhere with me!”

“That’s so cool!” The pink-haired girl beamed.

Yuki eyed Koda curiously. The quiet boy flushed a bit as he brought up his hands to sign. “Yuki wants me to tell you that I can understand him, and can…” He flushed a little darker when he remembered that most people didn’t know sign.

With a grin, Izuku raised his own hands. “I understand sign, Koda. No worries! Kacchan does, too!”

Koda’s expression brightened considerably and he brought up his hands again. “Really?! That’s so great! I’ve only met a handful of other people who know it!!

“I know some sign, but it’s mostly the basics. I can’t do it nearly as fast as you.” Shinsou spoke up softly, and Koda set him a smile too.

“Maybe we could help teach you?” Izuku offered. “My pa’s parents are deaf, so he taught me sign so I could communicate with them.”

“I… If you’re okay with that.” Shinsou looked down, and Izuku was abruptly struck by just how meek he seemed in that moment. Meek and unsure and bitter. Much like how Izuku himself had been before he met his dad. Was Shinsou okay at home? Had he been bullied at school, too? Could he also be Quirkless?

“Oh! Shinsou, I totally forgot to ask!! What’s your Quirk?!” Ashido beamed.

“I don’t think we saw yours either, Yamazawa.” Hagakure added.

Shinsou scowled a bit. “You’ll find out eventually, so I’ll just tell you. My Quirk is Brainwashing. It’s response based, so I understand if you don’t want to talk to me.”

There was a beat of silence as the room processed that. “That’s so cool!” Izuku grinned. “It’s perfect for hero work! You could stop robberies, or save hostages without any collateral damage! Keeping injuries and casualties to an absolute minimum! Oh, wow, I couldn’t imagine all the people you could save with that! Is there a limit to how many people you can control at once?! How complex can the commands be? What happens if you ask someone to do something beyond their natural physical capabilities?”

“Zukkun.” Kacchan poked his shoulder with a snort, and he abruptly realized he was rambling.

“S-sorry! I just find Quirks so fascinating!” He laughed a bit.

“Y-you don’t…” Shinsou was staring at him owlishly. “You don’t think it’s a villain’s Quirk?”

“Of course it isn’t a villain’s Quirk!” Iida butted in. “You’re in the Hero Course, aren’t you?”

“Whatever anyone else has told you, ignore it.” Kacchan huffed. “They’re idiots who wouldn’t know All Might from a purse snatcher.”

“He’s right, kero.” Asui spoke up. “You’re in the Hero Course. Your Quirk doesn’t determine what kind of person you are, your decisions do.”

“I…” Shinsou blinked a little rapidly, and Izuku caught a bit of a shine to his eyes. “Nobody’s ever told me that before.”

Eyes turned to Izuku expectantly. He shared a look with Kacchan as he ran a hand over Yuki’s soft fur. “Sorry to disappoint you, but I’ve got zilch.” He chuckled a little at their confused looks. “I’m Quirkless. I don’t have anything special.”

They stared for a long moment. “You… wait, that’s a thing?!” Ashido gaped. “I thought only old people were Quirkless!”

“I mean, I’m probably one of the only Quirkless people in our age group in Musutafu…” He trailed off, eyeing his classmates warily. “You’re all taking this rather well.”

“Well if a Quirk doesn’t define a person, then the lack of one doesn’t either, kero.” Asui sent him a smile. “You’re still one of the top scorers for the entrance exams.”

“I remember watching you fight.” Iida clenched a fist. “You were remarkable! Even more so now that I know you did it all without a Quirk!!”

“Damn, I’d pegged you for an intelligence Quirk.” Kirishima laughed. “That’s so manly!! You got top score with Bakubro and didn’t even have a leg up!”

“Bakubro?” Kacchan mouthed incredulously.

“Hey, Yamazawa? I was wondering about that scarf of yours… Sensei has one that looks just like it.” Uraraka spoke up.

“She’s right. It looks like it’s a hero-grade weapon of some sort.” Yaoyorozu hummed.

“Ah…” Izuku scratched the back of his head. “I’m not actually able to say much, as it’s got to do with an ongoing investigation, but it’s for my protection. I’m legally allowed to carry it and my taser both at school and in my daily life.”

“Investigation?” Iida echoed. “Are you being sought after by villains?”

“Like I said, I’m not able to say anything right now.” Izuku sighed.

“Lay off of him.” Kacchan glared. “If he can’t say, then he can’t say.”

“You’re too loud.” Izuku’s dad spoke up from his napping corner. He cracked open an eye to glare at the class. “And stop pestering Yamazawa, or I’ll make you take the Second Year legalities course during your free period.”

“Sorry sensei.” Several people chorused together.

“You can apologize by letting me sleep.” Aizawa groaned. “It’s about time for your lessons anyways.”

“UA is so weird.” Kaminari muttered as they gathered their things. “Making us move from one classroom to the next. Isn’t Homeroom usually… you know, your home room?”

“Yeah, usually it’s the teachers that switch rooms, not the students.” Ashido tapped her chin.

“From what I can remember, UA likes to use a college-based class rotation system.” Izuku hummed lightly as they walked to their English class. “Something about preparing us for a higher education.”

“Yeah, well I’m just glad I can stretch my legs.” Kacchan yawned as they walked.

“I know what you mean, I get jittery if I sit still for too long.” Kaminari sighed.

“I’d rather just sit and nap.” Shinsou chimed in. Yuki meowed in agreement.

“You do get to nap all day.” Izuku booped his cat on the nose, who licked his chin in retaliation. “Don’t give me that look.” He huffed as Yuki gave another meow, a look on his face told Izuku exactly what he was getting at. “No, we’ll get enough exercise during our Heroics Class this afternoon.”

Koda tapped his shoulder, drawing Izuku’s attention. “Are you sure you can’t already understand him? Because your conversation was nearly flawless… Even Yuki wonders if you can understand what he’s saying.”

Izuku chuckled a bit. “I’m just good at reading cats.”

“Yeah, you certainly get enough practice.” Kacchan snorted in amusement.

“I feel like I’m missing something here.” Ashido looked between Izuku and Kacchan with a mildly annoyed expression as they sat down for his pa’s lesson.

The day sort of sped by after that. Classes were interesting, but it was all stuff that Izuku already knew. The only class that’d challenged him so far had been his pa’s class, and he was fairly sure that his pa had given him different work from the rest of his classmates.

Ectoplasm’s math class was fun, though. And seeing all the different heroes in such a calm and mundane setting was certainly a treat! He was really having an absolute blast at UA.

At lunch, he sat with Iida, Shinsou, Kacchan, Kirishima, Uraraka, and Koda. He listened with half an ear to the conversation that Kirishima, Iida, Kacchan and Uraraka were having while he spoke with Shinsou and Koda.

“Uh… I’m not really sure how to do this.” Shinsou admitted. “I’ve never had…”

“Friends?” Izuku finished with a knowing smile. “Me neither. Kacchan’s the only friend I’ve had since I was pronounced Quirkless. Even then, we had a small falling out over a misunderstanding for a few years, so I’m kind of figuring out this whole… socialization thing, too.”

Koda nodded. “And most people don’t understand sign language, so nobody wanted to talk to me.”

“Well, Yamazawa, Bakugo and I know it.” Shinsou shrugged. “Since my Quirk is response-based, my parents forced me to learn sign language. I had trouble controlling it as a kid… My father wanted to muzzle me, honestly. My mother compromised on sign language and forbade me from speaking.”

Izuku frowned. “That’s… not right.”

“I mean, it’s just how it is when you’re born with a villain’s Quirk.” Shinsou shrugged, completely missing the horrified looks that had been traded by their four other table companions.

“I can understand to an extent.” Izuku sighed. “My biological sperm donor left when he found out I was Quirkless. My mother was the best though.” He smiled sadly. “She was killed just over a year ago, now… Then my dad and pa adopted me.” He gave Shinsou a meaningful look. “If you aren’t safe at home, you can always crash with me or Kacchan.”

“I… I couldn’t do that.” The purple-haired brainwasher denied instantly. “B-besides, you’ve just met me.”

“You can stay with me, too.” Koda smiled. “My mom is an amazing cook! Oh, but we’re up in Iwate, so it’s a bit of a ride unless it’s on break. But you can absolutely stay with us during breaks! I’ve got a small apartment here for school. It’s not that big, but it’s a couch at least.”

“I’ve got an apartment here in town.” Uraraka spoke up. “It isn’t much, but you’re welcome to stay with me if you’d like.”

“Che.” Kacchan sighed. “My mom’s a hag, but she’s a good person. If you don’t mind a bit of yelling here and there, then you can stay with me, I guess.”

“Of course!! You’re also welcome to stay with me!” Iida beamed.

“We don’t really have much room at my place, but you can stay with my family and I too! It’d be super unmanly to let you stay in a place like that!” Kirishima gave Shinsou a sharp-toothed grin.

“I…” Shinsou hastily wiped away a few tears that’d started to trickle down his cheeks, but the effort was futile. “I don’t know what to say… nobody’s ever…”

“We care, Shinsou.” Izuku placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. “Don’t feel pressured to do anything, but our doors are open whenever you need them.”

“We should make a group chat!” Uraraka proposed excitedly.

“What a great idea!” Iida grinned, pulling out his phone. “We should all keep in contact so should anything happen, we’re easily reachable.”

Izuku pulled out his phone, too. He’d never had so many numbers in his contacts before, and it felt good to have to scroll to find the bottom of the list.

“Oh! Iida, I’ve been meaning to ask, are you a rich kid? You just speak differently, is all.” Uraraka asked suddenly, causing Iida to blink.

“A-ah, well… I was trying to cover it up a bit… Truth is, I’m from a family of heroes. Ever heard of Ingenium?”

“You mean the Ingenium that works over at Hosu?!” Izuku’s eyes widened a bit. His dad and pa had told him all about Ingenium and how they’d gone to UA together. They were fairly good friends, from what he knew, but he had yet to meet him.

“That’s my big brother!” Iida proclaimed proudly.

“So your brother is the same age as our teacher?” Kacchan snickered.

“I’m sure Aizawa-sensei is older than that.” Kirishima shook his head. “I mean, teachers have to be older, right?”

Izuku snorted into his cup of coffee, earning a snicker from a now dry-eyed Shinsou. He could practically envision his dad glaring death at Kirishima for that comment, and his pa laughing hysterically until his dad reminded him that the blonde was still a few months older.

“Come on, lunch is just about over. Heroics is next.” Kacchan grinned. “I can’t wait to see what UA has to throw at us.”

They shouldered their bags and returned to their homeroom classroom just in time for the bell. It took a few minutes for All Might to arrive, but when he did the entire classroom fell into an excited chatter. Izuku blinked when he saw Mama Nem walk in behind him.

“I AM HERE!” All Might proclaimed with a massive grin. “And I’m also your Heroics teacher this year!”

“Sweet! We get All Might?!” Kirishima grinned.

“I can’t believe it! He’s so different in person!” Kaminari bounced in his chair.

“I may be a hero, but I’m no teacher.” All Might admitted a little sheepishly. “So your art teacher, Midnight, will be helping me out! Even heroes need help, don’t forget that!” Izuku perked up a bit.

“All right everyone, settle down.” Nemuri chuckled. “I know you’re excited, but let’s put those jitters to good use! You’ve sent in your hero costume designs, and the Support Course has been working hard to make them a reality for you! You’ll find them in these briefcases.” She hit a button and the wall slid out to reveal a shiny silver briefcase for everyone. “Now go get changed! We’ll lead you to the area where the actual class will be taking place.”

Izuku excitedly grabbed his and rushed off to the locker rooms. He didn’t think twice about stripping down and pulling out his new hero uniform. Unfortunately, he didn’t think about all the scars that littered his body from both years of bullying and his week of torture.

“Y-Yamazawa…?” Kirishima stared. “Where did you get all those?”

Shinsou winced alongside Izuku as he stripped as well. His own body was littered with scars, but most of Shinsou’s were on his back. It painted a very detailed picture for Izuku. Shinsou was likely only attacked from behind because people feared his Quirk. Izuku, on the other hand, was almost always attacked from the front, because he wasn’t deemed a threat.

Eyes flitted between Izuku and Shinsou with growing horror. “The world isn’t kind to people like us.” Shinsou spoke softly as he pulled on his Hero costume. It was relatively simple—just a dark purple jumpsuit with a very high collar and a voice modulator sewn in—but it looked fairly practical.

“Is… is that it, Shinsou?” Iida blinked.

“Underground heroics doesn’t need flashy stuff.” He huffed, crossing his arms. He gestured to Izuku, who’d just pulled on his own outfit. He’d spent a lot of time working out the specifics with his dad on this one.

It was dark green, nearly black. The jumpsuit hugged him like a second skin, and had lighter green highlights. A small headset could extend a bulletproof lens over his right eye, allowing him access to his digitalized notes or infrared vision if necessary. His boots had sound-muffling technology, and his joints were extra padded. A pair of gloves would allow him to catch the edges of rooftops easier, and hold onto his capture weapon more securely. A thin sleek rectangular object was strapped to his back, acting as a backpack of sorts so he could pull out any research materials or supplies as needed (such as his notebooks) on stakeouts or recon missions. Finally, a utility belt held his readily accessible supplies and weapons.

The blades he got for Christmas were strapped to his lower back, ready to draw at a moment’s notice, along with an extendable staff for non-lethal fights.

“Wow, lookin’ good.” Kacchan complimented.

“I’m planning to go into Underground Heroics.” Izuku explained. “But my specialty isn’t necessarily fighting—it’s analysis.” He smirked. “So I designed my hero costume with that in mind.”

“As lame as it sounds, Zukkun’s able to weaponize that knowledge.” Kacchan huffed as he put on the last bit of his costume. “Now come on—let’s go.”

They walked out into the sun with massive grins. It was one thing to go along with his dad in the costume that his dad had had made for their patrols, but it was something completely different to be able to go out in his own hero costume.

Nemuri practically squealed when she saw him. He mentally sighed when he saw her slip her phone back into her pocket—no doubt with a new photo.

“They say the clothes make the hero!” All Might laughed. “And you all look incredibly heroic! Today, we’re going to jump right into the action with two-on-two battles! A battle simulation!”

Everyone started chattering excitedly. “Now quiet down.” Nemuri spoke up. “As this is your first Heroics lesson, I’m going to be very clear. You need to understand that your Quirks are dangerous. One wrong move or miscalculation could easily kill someone, even if you didn’t mean for it to happen. Even my Quirk can kill if I’m not careful.” She took a moment to let those words settle upon them.

“All Might, I know this is a heavy question, but have you accidentally killed someone before?” She asked him, and the Number One hero sighed.

“I have.” Silence met his words. “You must understand the strength of each blow you dish out. Control is a must. I suppose I thought it was obvious, but there’s a reason I’m new to teaching. When you engage in battle against a fellow human being, you need to be very aware of what they can and cannot survive. And sometimes, even that won’t be enough. But that’s what we’re here for!” He grinned.

“At UA, we’ll teach you not only how to survive as a Hero, but how to keep others alive too. We will give you the experience you need to understand your own powers enough for that level of control.” Nemuri grinned. “That being said, I’m going to let All Might take it away for the simulation explanation.”

Izuku shared a look with Shinsou. This would be interesting. Names were drawn and people were divided off into hero/villain pairs. Shinsou and Todoroki were the hero pair facing Shoji and Yaoyorozu. Izuku was very excited to see the two recommendation students’ Quirks. From what he’d seen during the assessment, Todoroki had an ice Quirk and Yaoyorozu had some kind of creation Quirk.

Iida and Kaminari were the villain pair facing off against Uraraka and Jiro. That would certainly be an interesting face-off. Speed vs antigravity and sound vs electricity. He was very glad he’d brought his notebook.

He perked up when he heard his own name. “Hero Pair! Yamazawa Izuku and Koda Koji! Villain Pair! Bakugo Katsuki and Ojiro Mashirao!” All Might grinned.

Izuku grinned at Kacchan. “Well, looks like we’ll be facing off again.”

“This time, I won’t lose!” Kacchan grinned.

Koda gave a small smile. “I’m very happy to be paired with you.”

“I never did ask… is speaking to animals your Quirk?” Izuku tilted his head.

“Yes. But I can also strongly influence their actions. So if I asked a flock of birds to attack someone…”

“What about insects?” Izuku hummed. They wouldn’t find many animals in an old abandoned building like this, Yuki aside.

Koda froze up a little. “I… I hate bugs! My Quirk works on them, but I really can’t stand them! I freak out whenever there’s one near me. I’m so sorry!!”

“No worries, we’ve all got our weaknesses.” Izuku chuckled. “And to let you in on a little secret? I hear Present Mic is scared of bugs, too.” Watching his pa freak out over a spider would never get old. Especially when Yuki would just walk over and casually eat it.

Izuku glanced over towards where Kacchan and Ojiro were talking quietly about strategy. Izuku and Yuki shared a conspiratorial grin. “Okay, so here’s the plan…”


Katsuki grinned as he heard All Might call for the start of the battle. The tail guy he was paired with seemed to be pretty decent in martial arts, but if there was one thing he’d learned from Uncle Shouta, it was to never place complete faith in fighting ability alone. It was obvious that he’d learned from a dojo, which meant he’d probably be pretty stuck in his routines.

That meant he’d be easily predictable, which wasn’t a good thing when they were up against Zukkun. The plan was simple—distract the silent kid and Zukkun until the time limit was up. Katsuki wasn’t the best with coming up with strategies—that was Zukkun’s strong suit. He was more of the ‘wing it’ kind of guy (something Uncle Shouta had been rather exasperated about).

Since he didn’t know his partner too well, he decided that a simpler plan was better, and they could adapt as needed. “Remember what I said, Tails—Zukkun is scary observant. He’ll use anything he can against you. If he manages to get past me, be prepared.” He shot the tail guy a look. “I can’t guarantee I’ll be able to keep the Disney Princess down there—Zukkun’s going to take up most of my attention.”

“Right. A-and the name’s Ojiro.” Tail guy crossed his arms with a small glare.

“Whatever. I’ll remember your name if you become important.” Katsuki huffed, ignoring the offended expression on Tail guy’s face as he made his way down the stairs. No way he was letting Zukkun get near that room—the closer he got to the fake bomb, the higher the chances of Zukkun’s team winning.

Katsuki felt a grin spread across his lips as he saw Zukkun round the corner, Capture Weapon already loosened. He didn’t see Snow White, but Zukkun was the major threat here, anyways. He had confidence in Tail guy being able to handle the quiet one, at least.

Zukkun made to block his signature right hook, but Katsuki was already prepared. Unfortunately, Zukkun also blocked his follow up spin kick. He felt a grin stretch across his features as he landed a good punch on Zukkun’s arm—using an explosion from his elbow to propel his fist forward.

The greenette let out a pained yelp before grabbing Katsuki’s arm and slamming him into the ground. He quickly rolled away from the staff that Izuku had aimed his way, blowing up the ground on reflex. They both landed on their feet one floor down and were quick to action.

Zukkun was fast. He’d always been fast, but now Katsuki could see that he’d been holding back in their spars. He moved like a shadow, flitting in and out of Katsuki’s peripherals with the same eerie grace as Uncle Shouta.

On an instinct alone, he managed to bring his arm up to block the hit from Zukkun’s staff, which made a somewhat pretty ringing sound when the staff hit his gauntlet. He felt something creak a bit, but dismissed it. His return punch was dodged, and he cursed the gauntlets on his wrists—the gathered sweat was throwing off his balance as it sloshed within the support equipment. He hadn’t expected the Support Course to make them functional on the first day of school. What were they thinking?! He couldn’t use that kind of power in a spar!

He barely blocked the staff, but wasn’t prepared for the kick to his gut. He coughed violently as he tried to catch his breath, leaping to the side just in time to avoid another attack. Since when was Zukkun this strong?!

Katsuki kicked out, catching Zukkun in the ribs, sending the smaller boy spiraling away with a cry. When he staggered to his feet, Katsuki saw the ghost of a smirk and quickly backed off. That smirk meant that whatever was going on, was going in the direction Zukkun had planned it to be.

Katsuki narrowed his gaze. “What’s that look for?”

“Thanks, Kacchan.” Zukkun gave him a grin that he no doubt learned from Uncle Shouta. He wiped a bit of soot from the corner of his mouth. “You’ve done exactly what I wanted you to do.”

“Exactly what you…?” Katsuki blinked, adjusting his stance, wary of his bruised ribs from Zukkun’s kick.

“Look around us, Kacchan. What do you see?” Zukkun chuckled.

Katsuki took the risk of a quick glance. They were in the basement, below ground level. The room was a wreck and the ground was badly cracked. The smell of sewage drifted up from below, making him crinkle his nose a bit. “So what? We’re in the basement.”

“Kacchan… You do remember Koda’s Quirk, right?” Zukkun laughed. “I’m just the distraction.”

A sudden realization had him glancing around. There was an odd chittering squeaking sound as rats were called forth from the sewers by the quiet kid’s Quirk, but Katsuki’s concern wasn’t what he saw—it was what he didn’t see. “Where’s the damn cat?!”

Zukkun laughed as he moved to attack again, staff held out to his side as he charged. Katsuki barely had the time to bring up his arm to block it.

Katsuki felt it a moment before it happened. Just as All Might’s voice called out in the hero team’s victory, Zukkun’s staff hit his gauntlet, and he felt something within the support equipment give. His eyes widened and he tried to move the gauntlet away from Zukkun, but it was already too late.

Boom.


Shouta was not a happy camper. He’d come in halfway through All Might’s first class to see how things were going. Nemuri had volunteered to help All Might this time, because none of them trusted the blond with Izuku, let alone with nineteen other kids.

Things had been going remarkably well. Izuku had sent Yuki ahead to scout out where the bomb was, and by goading Katsuki into blowing open the sewers—which were connected to the actual city sewers—he’d released a few dozen rats for Koda to control.

Koda had followed Yuki up to the bomb and presented himself before Ojiro, distracting him while the small army of rats started to carry away the bomb without alerting a hyper-focused Ojiro to what was occurring. Once the bomb had been successfully moved to another room, Koda had ordered the rats to swarm Ojiro, who had understandably freaked. Koda took that opportunity to run to the other room towards the bomb.

The moment he’d touched the bomb and won the fight, things went wrong. Izuku and Katsuki had been fighting well. They sparred often enough, and Shouta was more than pleased with the progress his son had made.

But something happened and a massive explosion that shook even the observation room took out their visual and audio feed. Instantly, Nemuri called the class to a halt, even as All Might’s voice happily rang out that the Heroes had won.

Shouta immediately rang Chiyo through his earpiece as he and Nemuri rushed onto the scene, leaving All Might to watch the students.

“Shouta? What’s wrong?” Chiyo’s voice was laden with concern. She knew he wouldn’t call him unless something happened.

“Hero Class incident. I need you here ASAP.” He spoke lowly as they entered the building. It was somehow still standing, even after such a massive blast. Ojiro and Koda were slowly coming down the stairs with spooked looks. Yuki dashed past them right to Shouta.

“Go rejoin your classmates.” Nemuri ordered, leaving no room for argument. The two nodded and obeyed.

It wasn’t hard to figure out where to go. Bakugo’s Quirk was not subtle in any sense of the word. Shouta and Nemuri quickly descended the stairs, wary of any crumbling edges that may give out on them.

Shouta concentrated on his Quirk Aspect, amazed despite himself at the way the inky shadows slid into sharp daylight focus. It didn’t take him long to find his son and Bakugo. The two were on their feet, staggering towards the two heroes.

“Zuku!” Nemuri dashed over with Shouta hot on her heels.

“Mom! Dad!” He grinned. The two boys were beat to hell and back, but they didn’t look to have any serious injuries. Shouta instantly noted the missing bracer from Bakugo’s arm, and realized that something must’ve malfunctioned. Bakugo’s skin was resistant to explosions, so thankfully the damage to his arm didn’t look that bad, but the fact that he was still injured at all spoke volumes to the power of the explosion that the faulty equipment had unleashed.

“Kacchan managed to shield me from most of the blast.” Izuku explained softly as Shouta wrapped his arms around his son. He felt Yuki leap up onto his shoulders and brushed against Izuku’s cheek.

“You scared me, Cub.” He whispered softly, finally letting his hackles relax with the knowledge that his son was safe.

“Sorry, dad.” Izuku nuzzled against him a little.

He turned his attention towards Katsuki, who looked more than a little dazed. Nemuri frowned as she looked the blond over. “Looks like a concussion—not surprised considering… Chiyo should be able to fix him up, though.”

They led the two boys up the stairs where the nurse was waiting. Relief bled into her features when she saw the two boys awake and relatively alert. “Honestly… The trouble this family finds.” She shook her head as she gave each of them a kiss.

Katsuki’s eyes cleared and Izuku shook himself. They both looked suitably exhausted, but they were safe and that was what mattered.

“I really thought UA would keep injuries to a minimum.” Shouta groaned.

“It’s okay, Dad.” Izuku grinned. “Kacchan protected me. He put himself between me and the blast.”

“The stupid gauntlets are functional.” Katsuki scowled, carefully removing his remaining one like the volatile bomb it no doubt was. “Who the hell gives a first year something like this?! It’s the first fucking day.”

Chiyo shot him a look. “I’m letting that language pass, given the situation.” She finally said. “But he’s right. Why was his equipment functional? Something like that should’ve been given to him in second year at the earliest, not the first day of his first year.”

Shouta frowned. “I’ll be having a serious talk with Maijima today to see what went wrong. Katsuki, do you know what happened with the other one?”

“I think I cracked it.” Izuku shuffled a little. “I remember feeling something creak or give when we were fighting, but I didn’t really process it at the time.”

“Yeah, same here. I’m going to say faulty design work.” Katsuki agreed.

“Well, you two are all fixed up.” Chiyo finally said. “I’m okaying you to return to class, if you’d like.”

“I don’t want to miss the other matchups.” Izuku frowned. “I’ve been really excited to analyze everyone’s Quirks!”

“Nerd.” Katsuki smirked playfully as he gently knocked shoulders with Izuku. “I’ll look after him, Uncle Shouta.”

Shouta felt a small smile grace his features. “You both did good, today.” He ruffled Izuku’s hair and hesitated a moment before giving Katsuki the same treatment. The blond looked up at him with wide red eyes. “Thank you, for looking out for Izuku.”

“Come on!” Nemuri grinned, wrapping an arm around the both of them. “Let’s get back to class.”

Shouta watched as they walked away, leaving him standing there with Chiyo. “I’m going to give Maijima one of the most memorable lectures of his life.”

“Just make sure you let me know if you need help hiding the body.” Chiyo smirked.

“Oh, if he screwed up, there won’t be a body.” He promised with a wicked grin.


Maijima Higari didn’t know fear until he saw Aizawa stalk into his classroom after the last of his students had headed home. The very well controlled anger in his eyes sent a trill of ice throughout his body, and he knew that somehow he’d seriously fucked up.

“A-Aizawa?”

“I hope for your sake that you knew nothing of this.” He set down something on his desk that looked to be support equipment. “This is from Bakugo Katsuki’s hero costume.” He leaned forward with a menacing glare, and for a moment Higari swore his pupils contracted into feline slits. “Mind explaining why this grenade is fully functional on the first day? Because not only is it far too dangerous for a first year, it is faulty, and the other one nearly killed my son.”

Higari felt the blood drain from his face as he processed what the hero before him was saying. “I didn’t make the first years’ equipment. You know I always delegate that to my own first years as a way to foster a healthy support-hero relationship.” He took a calming breath as he reached into his drawer to pull out the student files. “Let’s see who was in charge of Bakugo’s equipment…”

“So you didn’t know.” Aizawa’s anger abruptly dissipated, and Higari finally felt the ability to breathe and think return to him.

“Of course not! You really think I’d put students in that kind of danger?” Now that he didn’t have an angry Dadzawa glaring at him, he found himself rather offended that the other man had thought him capable of it.

“As far as I’m aware, you are in charge of approving all student-made support equipment.” Aizawa sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. Higari had to admit, from Aizawa’s point of view, he did look somewhat guilty.

“I suppose I can understand.” He winced a bit as he remembered what Aizawa had gone through with his son. It was entirely understandable that he’d be so protective over him. This time, he’d ignore the slight. “Ah, here we are. Looks like Yakusaro Nagumi was in charge of Bakugo Katsuki’s hero outfit and support equipment.” He frowned. “I’m sure that I was very clear on what kinds of support equipment could be functional and what would not be functional…” Looked like he’d have to pull Yakusaro aside and give him a written warning.

“If you have any trouble, you know you can always send him my way.” Aizawa had a somewhat fanged dark smirk on his face.

“I’d rather not traumatize my student.” Higari pulled something out from under his desk. Aizawa raised a judgmental eyebrow at the bottle of sake. “Hatsume.” He explained, eyeing the likely permanent blackened area of wall by the girl’s workstation.

“I’d ask for some, myself, but I’m driving home.” Aizawa sighed.

“Find me at lunch tomorrow, and I’ll share some with you.” Higari sent him a sympathetic look. The two of them were actually fairly good friends, considering they ended up with the most troublesome students each year.

Aizawa gave a small snort of amusement. “As much as I’d appreciate a drink, something tells me that it’s not a good idea before a field trip.”

“Ah, that’s right.” Higari smiled as he took a sip. “The USJ trip is tomorrow, isn’t it? Thirteen’s been excited to teach your son.”

“Thirteen’s excited to teach anyone with an aptitude for rescue work.” Aizawa grinned.

“Have you told Yamazawa about it, yet?”

“No. I want it to be a surprise.” Aizawa chuckled a bit to himself. “I have a feeling he’s going to love the USJ. He’s always had a soft spot for rescue heroics.”

“I would love to drop by, but I really don’t want to leave Hatsume unattended.” He shuddered at the thought and downed a rather large gulp of alcohol.

“Indeed.” Aizawa glanced at his phone. “I expect you’ll talk to Yakusaro tomorrow, then?”

“Of course. I’ll talk to him at lunch.”

“Then I’ll see you tomorrow.” Aizawa slipped his phone back into his pocket as he headed towards the door. “Oh, and Maijima?” He glanced over his shoulder, and the steel in his gaze made the support hero shudder. “I’d suggest that you double check the functionality of the hero course’s support equipment from now on, because if something like this happens again, Recovery Girl has promised to help me hide your body.” With that promise—because Aizawa did not threaten, he promised—the Underground Hero took his leave.

Higari would not regret finishing the entire bottle of sake that night.