Chapter 69: News on Finals

Despite all the drama and confusion, they'll still students in college which means something all students dread...semester finals, only with a twist.

“Text” – Normal speech

‘Text’ – Thought

“Text” – Quirk Spirit speaking in the human world

“Text” - Attack

“Text” – Radio/Communication lines

“Text” – None Japanese speech

(text) – Subtext/meaning behind a spoken word

Chapter 69: News on Finals

After being caught by Tsu, she kept her word. She didn't even treat them any differently, not even to ask how their date had gone.

So, the days went on, and the events of Hosu and Oruto Purutonia fell out of the spotlight. They were still discussed, but far less than the newer stories dominating the headlines, such as some rescue All Might handled, a hostage crisis Endeavour resolved, and Detnerat entering the hero support item market.

All things went on, but fell to the background for the students who went to lectures, did their assignments, studied when they could, and undertook hero classes. However, there was a lingering question, one which, as time went on, only grew.

Where was Todoroki? He would be around for classes and wasn't sick as far as most could tell, but when it came time to suit up for combat, rescue, or any other field training, he was strangely absent. Even Bakugo felt the absence, if for no other reason than the fact that he couldn't prove himself the best if the entire roster wasn’t present.

Then one day, as the final bell rang and they packed up from their electives, an announcement came over the speakers for them to meet back in their homeroom, hero students only. Midoriya, along with Todoroki, Mineta, Hagakure, Ashido, Yaoyorozu, Yanagi, and Kamakiri, were in Hero Agency Base when the announcement was made. Glancing at their teacher, who merely told them to get moving, and all would be explained.

Not knowing what this could be, but not wishing to get into trouble by being late, they quickly packed their things and made their way out.

Line Break

As the last group arrived, along with their teacher, Ectoplasm, they found that all the hero course teachers were present, along with the dean, who stood on the podium, his smile plastered on his face, hands held to his back like a soldier. It would have been more adorable if they hadn't seen how serious even staff members like Present Mic and Supercharge looked.

Taking their seats, Nezu smiled as he spoke. "Good afternoon, students. Apologies for keeping you, but there is something that needs to be discussed."

“Is it about Todoroki?” Ashido blurted out.

"Yeah, he's been absent from field hero classes for a few days now," Kamakiri noted as Bakugo just grunted; his feelings about Todoroki's absence were well known by this point.

“I suppose we couldn’t keep a lid on things forever,” All Might, in his weakened form, sighed as he glanced towards the back, where Todoroki sat. As he did so, so did most of the class. “Would you like to explain it to them, or should we, Todoroki?” The Number One asked.

Todoroki, who was hard to read on most days, was as easy as a children's book now. They could see he had been uncomfortable for days now, even more silent, but with focus on him, it was like he wished to just leave.

But he didn't; he refused to continue being a weakling like his father. “…I can handle it.”

Taking a breath to calm himself, Todoroki stood and walked to the front. Once there, he turned to address his fellow students. “Guys, I’m not injured, I can handle hero classes just fine.”

“Then what’s the deal?” Tokage asked, as it was just weird that a fellow recommendation's student would be barred from class like Bakugo was. Still, neither she nor anyone else could figure out why.

“You all recall our internships and where I ended up?” Todoroki answered with a question, which drew a pause from the class.

“Yeah, you got involved in that big villain incident, same as Iida.” Kaminari pointed out that, as that was basic knowledge, it was all over the news, and from what they had seen, he had kicked serious ass, even if he was left unable to stand.

“Was it perhaps related to a quirk spirit instead?” Aoyama questioned, as that could be a factor. However, he had heard nothing which could justify it, and neither had Izuku.

Todoroki's discomfort didn't let up; if anything, it grew as he bowed to them in apology, which only confused and worried the students more. "It was, but…people got hurt, really bad, some even worse, and part of that…is my fault."

“Wait, what?” Yanagi asked.

“Am I missing something? How could it be your fault?” Sato asked while Todoroki remained bowed, the teachers, for their part, remained silent. Midoriya noted how All Might's face was shadowed, almost haunted, while Eraser's carried a deep sense of…disappointment?

"Indeed, we can't handle much when it comes to these unique cases, but you can't blame yourself for not being capable of such." Iida tried to assure his fellow student.

"He's right, Todoroki. These are trying times, and we're struggling to understand most of it." Yaoyorozu agreed, as this was an entirely new field for study, they couldn't be expected to be perfect.

"That wasn't it. I only used my ice, I…I didn't use my fire, even as I was pitted against ice quirk spirits, I didn't use it, I stubbornly believed I didn't need to…and I just didn’t do enough.” Todoroki bit out, shaking as he couldn’t stop seeing it. Every night, he would have the same nightmares about that day. Every time he closed his eyes or was alone, he could still hear it, the fighting, the screaming, the laughter of that damned fire quirk as she melted everything he had before she soundly defeated him.

But the nightmares didn't stop at reality; they kept going, kept showing him all his flaws, all his mistakes for refusing to listen to his teachers, to his mentor. Even when he tried to speak, he couldn't, for he never could get the word out as he would watch his last self ignore all the signs, all the warnings.

And the consequences of if that 2nd year hadn't arrived when she did. It was always the same…fire…fire consuming everything, blue as the ocean, yet as hot as the sun, as all that he wished to protect was turned to ash.

The teachers noticed that Todoroki was cracking under the surface and was unable to just do nothing. All Might placed a hand on Todoroki's shoulder to try to ground him.

As for the students, if they were confused before, they weren't now. By now, they all knew how his quirk worked. For as insane as his ice was, it was just one half of his power. He could use fire, maybe to the same level, but they didn't know; he never used it in training. In fact, he didn't use it during the Sports Festival, as it was interrupted.

For some, they just assumed it was arrogance, a quieter version of Bakugo's loud, brash ego. For others, they assumed it was a calculated decision undertaken by Todoroki; after all, he was capable enough with ice, so why bring out fire? But all of them believed that when the chips were down, when it mattered most, he would use it.

But…that too seemed to have been wishful thinking, and now it suddenly made sense why he was absent from hero training, why he was withdrawn, why he was put into remedial classes for just his flames.

Todoroki still didn't raise his head, but he could feel the weight of their concern, judgment, and, in some, disappointment and anger. He didn't run from it; he would face this head-on. "If not for the arrival of that second-year girl, Fuwa-I would be dead, along with my mentor and everyone there. Because I didn't fight to my best ability, because I couldn't see part of myself and my issues…people died, people, I could have saved."

"I failed at being everything a student of U.A. needs to be, of what a hero should be, and become something I can't even look at a mirror at." He finished, All Might patting his shoulder to get him to stop as Aizawa stepped up, Jiro noting how none of the staff expressed anything during the reveal.

No…they knew, they’ve known from the start, but what did they think about this? What thoughts ran through their heads?

"Because of this, Todoroki will continue to be barred from practical training, but as this would mean he'll have gaps in his understanding and training, he's also been barred from taking the exams till a later point," Aizawa announced, which didn't get nearly as much fanfare as it could have. Still, when paired with what they learned, that was to be expected.

As Todoroki returned to his seat, his shoulders slumped. Head held low, the rest just sat and tried to digest what they had been informed, as this year was coming to be one with so many secrets and reveals that, at times, it was hard to handle it all. For once, both Midoriya and Aoyama seemed to be just as lost as the rest.

“Shit…I…I don’t know how to handle that.” Kamakiri grunted, his arms crossed as he grimaced, as he didn't want to say it, he wasn't a complete ass, but his respect for Todoroki took a serious hit as he always believed that his fellow classmates would work as hard as he was, it was what U.A. was all about, using all you had to get shit done. Todoroki using just ice in training was annoying, sure. Still, there was a hell of a difference between training and the real deal.

“You didn’t use your fire? Why?” Yanagi turned to where Shoto sat down, or more accurately, collapsed into his seat. She wasn't pleased with this, as she heard how many had lost their lives and now had to ask, could that number have been reduced if too-called-for-socialising stepped up?

“Have you had no training with your fire? Kinda weird considering who your father is.” Sero questioned how the heck could you be the kid of Endeavour, the biggest name in fire in Japan, and not be good at it? Did his old man spend his time working? Then who trained him with his ice?

Nezu clapped, silencing the room. "Enough, we have other things to focus on. If you want to interrogate the lad, you can do it on your own time."

Cementoss picked things up from there. “Related to the finals, yours is coming up in 2 weeks, and I hope for your sakes you've been studying, as you need to score a grade of 70% and above in your compulsory classes written exams to pass, and 65% and above for your electives."

“So high?” Uraraka whispered, trying to focus on their studies.

“I thought it would be 50%!” Ashido whined, as the material was already super hard, and now they wanted them to score over 60% just to pass?

“Of course, as expected of U.A.! You wish for us to become the best of the best, and that should be reflected in our grades!” Iida stated, with Yaoyorozu and Honenuki nodding along. As U.A. had never hidden this in their promotional material, even if it was towards the back of brochures, which, if Momo was honest, she was starting to question if her class had finished reading.

Inversal nodded. "Correct, Iida. It's also why we offered extra classes for those who felt they might fall behind. Of course, you do have a lifeline of sorts. You don't need to pass all of your classes; you can fail up to 2 electives, so if you truly believe yourselves in a pickle…" He smiled, which didn’t inspire much confidence.

"That said, while the written portion will be similar to any other year, the practicals will be different," Saffron added.

“Normally, if we needed to make changes, we wouldn’t tell you as to grade how well you handle the unexpected, but this semester has been filled with far too many curveballs.” Supercharge waved her hand in mild annoyance, as they still needed to worry about the cops and hero commission on their backs.

Aoyama raised his hand. “So, you’ll tell us now?”

“Of course, you’ll be handling quirk spirits!” Nezu announced, leaving the room silent for a moment as most wondered if they had heard that wrong. Midoriya shook his head as he leaned closer, as he couldn't be serious…right?

“…Pardon?” Shiozaki asked, as she could recall the 'Nomu' creature and prayed that it had truly fallen that day, she couldn't handle the idea that it was kept alive for heaven knows what before being sent back to fight them.

"Is that a joke, sir, because I don't get it," Kaibara asked, to which Nezu only smiled wider.

"He didn't misspeak, you won't be handling robots or even us, but quirk spirits." Midnight spoke up to her boss, addressing the students. “They’ve been at the root of 3 of 4 incidents this semester, and we can’t just ignore that. And since it would be…difficult to see all of you receive the means to handle them on your own.”

"Give me a pink one, and no one would notice," Ashido complained, as she still wanted a cool second power.

“You have something to add, Ashido?” Snipe called her out, leading Ashido to yelp as she nearly fell backwards, catching herself in time.

“No, sir!” She called back, Snipe’s gaze, despite his mask, searing her as she started to sweat before the man let up and allowed Midnight to continue.

“As I was saying, as it would be a challenge to just have the proper means created and bonded with you, you can still work on how to handle such incidents, keeping casualties to the absolute minimum, studying your opponents, and relying on that info so when help does arrive, it can move faster." She explained that, as far as they could, they were finding themselves in the role of police when it came to such matters.

She would feel more confident… if Inko didn't have a shortage of people who could be relied on to handle things. As she couldn't draw them away from other countries where she had business, they could only rely on what could be supplied here in Japan. Best bet at the moment was whatever schemes she, Nezu, and the president of the hero commission could cook up.

Though that was all for the future, and thus, she and the rest needed to work in the now.

Another student raised their hand. “Yes, Honenuki?”

“How would we even do this? It’s not like we can just…simulate attacks, right?” Honenuki questioned, as from what they were told, such incidents were like handling wild animals only on steroids.

"Will we be using specially designed robots?" Ojiro asked, as U.A. certainly had the funds for such, considering how many they supplied just for the entrance exam, the festival, and even training.

“We can, in fact, simulate this.” Nezu corrected. “It’s something Professor Midoriya couldn’t handle on her own, what with her other duties, but one of her best was able to draw up an effective means for us to conduct these tests with the real thing.”

“Essentially, they’ll be recruiting quirks they’ve captured who would agree to participate. You get the real deal, and we don’t need to worry about a possible rampage, and with the sites being on school grounds, we’ll be able to better monitor in case something does go wrong.” Present Mic picked things up from there.

“Seems intense.” Shishida mused that, even in a controlled environment, this was a notable change from what they typically did.

"That's an unfortunate reality we must face, and as heroes in training, you'll face them as well. Unlike with us and other pros, you'll be experiencing entirely new training regimens and lessons." All Might remarked that, as if he could, he would have voted against this, but he had to think about it.

He couldn't keep being their unshakable number one; his health and even age couldn't allow it. And as much as he wished they would flee from such, he had to at least try to ensure they had all the skills and training they would need to be the exceptional pros he knew they could be.

“Think of yourselves as the pioneers of Rock and Roll! Sure, music existed before them, but they took it in a completely new form!” Mic mimicked playing an electric guitar as Vlad nodded.

"Because of that, while the written exams would maintain their regular criteria, which means you'll need to study hard," The Blood hero started, his harsh gaze causing those who take his P.E to gulp, as they might not need to worry about a written portion for his class. Still, they could bet he would have a hand in the practical. “Your practical will be more lenient as we, like you, would be learning as we go.”

“As for what comes after, that would be your summer break, a month of typical relaxing and slacking off.” Ectoplasm continued with it.

“Would we not get that?” Kirishima asked, as it sounded like they would spend the summer here in class.

"No, for 2 of those 4 weeks off, you'll be at a school training camp," Aizawa replied, which caused a fuss among the students.

“A summer camp?” Komori asked, already giddy at all the things they could do.

“Sweet!” Kaminari pumped his fist.

"Wait, if the teachers are there, would that mean all the summer camp fun, but with our quirks?" Midoriya asked.

“Hot Springs!” Mineta sang, but he was ignored for the moment.

“Fireworks.” Asui chirped, as she always loved that part of summer festivals.

“And s'mores.” Even Iida seemed to be in the mood.

"Don't forget campfire ghost stories, oh, I can see it now, it's gonna be wicked." Monoma crackled as Yanagi’s eyes sparked, as she already had a few she would love to share.

‘They’re moving on quite fast.’ All Might noted as the students fell into a casual, if not excited, class discussion on what they should do, what games and other activities they could get involved with, while the calmer one of the group tried to keep things from blowing up, after all, they didn't know where the summer camp would be taking place.

‘Or are they just focusing on the good and will crash out later?’ Saffron wondered, but she didn't break it; she let the students have this calm before the storm.

"It does make sense that we'll focus on rural training, heroes don't spend all their time in urban environments, and U.A.'s facilities for such are limited compared to the true outdoors." Yaoyorozu mused.

"That said, it would play to some of our strengths as we may realise we'll be better suited for less urban settings," Shishida added. However, he liked to think he would be suited for either, as long as he didn't need to worry about large patches of water and uneven terrain.

"Regardless of whether it plays to our strengths or weaknesses, a hero needs to be well-rounded to ensure favourable results." Tokoyami thought of his time under Hawks, and how the Winged Hero handled just about everything while making it seem easy. He was a flier and yet found the means to be a scout, a multi-ranged fighter, and a supporter.

“However,” Aizawa spoke up, ending the fun little talks. "While we could have made it so that those who fail the upcoming exams would be barred from the summer camp," He saw how some gulped, those he and the rest would suspect based on their grades and general attitude, but lucky for them, he wasn’t done.

"That would be illogical. If you find yourselves falling short in the finals, you'll need the camp more than anyone. Thus, regardless of performance, you'll all be attending." He concluded, which had some worried students jump for joy.

“Yes!” Kaminari cheered, joined by Ashido, Awase, and Sero.

“Hell yeah!” Awase looked in tears.

“Now I don’t need to worry about it.” Ashido laughed, though the teachers saw this coming, considering all 4 were at the bottom of the class in the midterms.

“I would worry, we’ll allow you to have time off during the camp to goof off…only if you pass. If you fail, you’ll be spending that free time in class, with one of us, for the entire summer camp.” Aizawa's smile was as welcoming as a rocket coming towards your house, and somehow scarier, as they knew he wouldn't joke about this. Still, now they wondered if he wanted some to fail just to make them suffer.

“For real…?” Tsunotori, who didn't do too well herself in the midterms, gulped.

Vlad crossed his arms. "As real as the blood in my veins. After all, if you fail, it means you need additional teaching. If that's the case, how can we not take that time to ensure you receive it?"

"Everyone, do your best!" Tokage stood and turned to her class.

"Screw that, I want to hang out with everyone, so no one's allowed to fail!" Hagakure agreed as Ojiro tried to get her to sit.

"Yeah, and we'll show that we get to have fun by passing all our classes!" Uraraka cheered, as more got into the mood, even if that meant studying till their brains were all mushy.

‘Did they just forget about everyone else?’ Mic kept up the smile, but he did wonder about his students.

Some, naturally, weren’t taken by the renewed mood. ‘Todoroki…what could have caused such a reckless decision from you? Come to think of it, I’ve never seen him using fire at all, only to clean up.’ Honenuki thought as he glanced towards where Todoroki remained as silent as a shrine mouse.

'I'm doing okay in most of my classes, no need to panic, but the finals, though, we might know what it would be, but we don't know the criteria or what we'll be up against.' Tokage leaned back in her chair, as she scored in the top 5 last time. Her real issue would be this new type of practical exam.

Quirks are, by their nature, chaotic and unique creatures that defy science and reality; quirk spirits more so. It could be one of those I've taken down. Still, Aoyama tapped his desk, his fingers drumming a beat to a song he had long considered to be one of his favourites. At the same time, his mind focused on more important issues.

'Even if it was, mom wouldn't choose any of them, even if she did agree, but what about us? What would our exam be like?' Midoriya sighed, but there wasn't much he could do. He didn't think his mom would just tell him if he asked, so he would need to just prep. But considering he and Aoyama had experience handling such things, how would their approach differ from the rest?

Line Break

Message given, the next few days came and went without much fanfare. With it known why Todoroki was barred from field training, there were mixed feelings. Since he couldn't write the finals, he would be in summer school. At the same time, they enjoyed camp. While people like Ashido, Midoriya, and Kirishima felt bad about it, others felt it was getting off easy.

Bakugo summed it up frankly: Todoroki was lucky he wasn't expelled, because, regardless of his own failings and issues, Bakugo gave his all in everything he did and was disgusted when others didn't do the same.

So, while they had some concerns and sympathies for their classmate, none really knew how to approach him on it and thus focused on what they could handle, which was their own studies. All of that led Midoriya's group to go out for lunch at their favourite hangout. "About the summer camp, it all hinges on our grades. Have you all been hitting the books?" Jiro asked as they ate their lunch. The restaurant was packed as always, more so since it reopened some time ago.

“Of course, thanks to these 2!” Tetsutetsu laughed as he pointed towards Midoriya and Aoyama, the former having placed 2nd in the group in the mid-terms, while Aoyama was 4th at 13th. Because of them and all the studying aids they gave Tetsutetsu, he was able to come in at 17th.

“I still can’t believe you scored 15 places higher than me.” Kirishima bemoaned, as for once, the two hadn't been identical as Ejiro came in with a non-impressive placement of 33rd.

Hagakure giggled as she nibbled on her fries, a sight which the group had long gotten accustomed to, considering the food would just vanish bit by bit. "Even my grades improved; having a dorm study group really helps with the more complicated stuff.” The Invisible Girl didn’t have too much to worry about, as she came in 19th.

“You mind adding me to that?” Jiro joked.

Aoyama, never one to miss a chance to mess with his friend, turned to her in faux confusion. "I thought you had already convinced our dear Izuku to help you. You two do spend quite a lot of time training." He pointed out, to which both turned to Aoyama.

‘Yuga…’ Midoriya prayed that the ‘romance guru’ Ashido didn’t catch any implication from that.

‘I will cut you.’ Jiro was more…direct in her thoughts as she glared towards Aoyama.

“Wait, is that true? Why didn’t I hear about it sooner?” Thankfully, Ashido was more focused on the fact that she could miss out on summer camp as she tied for 37th in class, which didn’t sound horrible till you recalled that with how close some grades were, Tsu and Kendo also tied for 9th place, so Ashido was closer to second worst in class.

Jiro, by contrast, was placed far higher than her because of all the time she and her secret boyfriend spent studying, because, unlike what some, like Ashido….or Mineta, would think, college students didn't always want to do couple stuff or sex. Good thing, too, as she liked that she placed 11th.

Pot stirred, Aoyama turned his attention from his friend’s love life and back to the topic at hand. "Really, there isn't much need for cramming; I dare say it could make it harder for you to recall such things." He took a sip of wine, though it was non-alcoholic, as the restaurant had a policy against it during lunch hour. Something about too many students showing up for afternoon classes buzzed.

“Didn’t you cram for most of our first year of high school?” Midoriya questioned, noting that once upon a time, Aoyama was struggling to keep up a passing grade.

"If you recall that, then you'll also recall my grades were also a serious hit," Aoyama replied, as he could admit, he spent far too much time goofing off and chasing girls back then to really study. If not for a certain someone, he wondered if he could have even passed all 3 semesters back in 3rd year, never mind gotten into U.A.

Iida fixed his glasses, a stern look on his face. "He's right, students should keep up with their studies so that they can digest the information at a healthy pace, and if you have issues, you can always speak with the teachers."

“Is that why you often stay behind? Didn’t think you’ll need that.” Komori asked, as she caught him speaking with Snipe or Eraserhead a few times. Thinking on it, Uraraka also recalled him being real curious during class with Supercharge, and Kirishima had seen Iida staying longer after class with Serenity a few times.

"And why's that?" Iida asked, confused, as Komori was a little too embarrassed to admit she just assumed he was smart cause he looked smart. “I am not a gifted student, merely a diligent one!" And it was diligence that had paired off as Iida placed the highest in the group, coming in at 3rd.

"That doesn't leave us with many options. I'm not exactly a wizard with half of our materials." Ojiro admitted that, along with Hagakure, he took advantage of Aoyama and Midoriya's study sessions. As a result, the tail user came in 14th.

“And I want to have summer time fun! You can’t let Aizawa lock me up all summer while you all have fun, it’s inhumane!” Ashido leaned into Ojiro, acting like she would faint from just the thought of missing out on all that fun.

"I would also like to get some studying done. I did better than I thought, but I feel like that was more of a fluke." Uraraka admitted that she had worked hard since elementary school. While that never put her in the top percentile, she was really pleased when she got her mid-term ranking of 15th.

When U.A. only took in the best, that meant she was really keeping pace. She got so happy she called her folks just to tell em, and her ma and pa were both just as happy about it as she was, but thinking back on it, that maybe wasn't the best move, as it meant she couldn't let her ranking fall.

“I doubt it. Those midterms weren't easy, and I studied super hard for them." Komori smiled towards Uraraka, as she thought her fellow brown haired friend had done pretty much better than her, who came in at 28th.

"You could join our group, it'll be super fun, we can go over more stuff, hang out, and make sure we all pass!" Hagakure suggested.

As Midoriya and Aoyama glanced at one another, Iida thought it over. "Handling revision work as a collective could lead to better results. We could quiz one another on topics and help explain what we do understand to those who don't, and vice versa."

“Wouldn’t be the first group,” Jiro pointed out, as they recalled how Yaomomo offered similar lessons earlier, and how Honenuki had agreed to help. "The top performing students doing tutoring wonder if they'll survive that?"

"Still, it feels a little dirty trying to boost our grades now just for the finals," Kamakiri grunted, as tests were meant to show what you could do on the day-to-day; no one wanted a hero who could only do their best with 2 weeks' prep time.

"Do you want to spend the summer doing nothing but training and studying?" Ashido countered.

“And that’s why I’m not against a little cramming.” Kamakiri crackled as he tossed back a fry; his midterms weren't nearly as bad as Ashido's, but he wasn't happy that he only came in 24th. Now he was aiming to get into the top 20 for finals.

“I thought we just said that wasn’t-” Iida tried to speak up, but Aoyama brought up another point.

“Midoriya, think you could call in the big guns?” The Frenchman asked.

“Big guns, what are you…” Midoriya seemed confused, but then realisation came, and he coughed into his hand, looking a little paler. “That might be a bad idea, Yuga.”

"Come on, it'll surely net us some improvements." Aoyama pushed, which drew interest from the rest of the table.

“What are you talking about?” Ojiro asked, as it seemed like whatever these big guns were, Midoriya wasn’t keen on involving them.

That put Midoriya in a pickle, but ultimately, he couldn't lie. “My girlfriend, Saiko, she's at the top of the class, always has been. She used to help Yuga and me when we fell behind because of our duties."

Ashido cooed, both at the added couple imagery of Saiko helping Izuku with his work, and at the chance to work with someone who helped people she would already consider smart. "That's great, and we already met her; she seems nice."

"She is, she really is, but when it comes to academics…she can be…rough." Midoriya shuddered as he loved her; he truly did, but if he could be called a hero otaku, she was a taskmaster when it came to one's academics.

"She whipped my posterior into shape; my grades weren't much to write home about for a while." Aoyama chuckled, though Midoriya knew that, in the moment, he had been terrified of her and had tried to ditch her several times, only for Saiko to catch Yuga and drag him back to the library for studying or quizzes.

"We should still call her, even if she attends a different school; their curriculum can't be that much different from what we undergo. Perhaps they use different textbooks, but the knowledge within should be compatible." Iida proposed that, as he couldn't speak much to Saiko as a person, but when she had glowing reviews from his friends, it felt right to give her the chance.

"But that leaves us with the bigger issue, the practicals," Kamakiri grunted, pausing in his meal as that had been one of the biggest things on everyone’s mind.

"Hmm, before I heard it was just fighting robots like the entrance exam, only with some added restrictions, but this is a whole other game," Tetsutetsu noted, having heard from Kendo, who had a neighbour who was a 3rd year.

They looked towards the two who always seemed to have answers and info they didn’t, but both Midoriya and Aoyama shook their heads. “We didn't hear anything about this, but I can call my mom after classes and see what we would say," Midoriya stated, which had Hagakure puzzled.

“Can’t you speak with her now? She does work on campus.” She asked, as he seemed to be close to his mom, almost to the point she half expected him to try and spend time like his lunch break with her.

Then again, they were all college students, and part of the experience was no longer living in their parents' houses.

“I could, but she’s typically busy, especially since she took this new job. I wouldn’t want to disturb her.” Midoriya replied, as his mother was rarely idle, and while she often tried to make time for him growing up, things had only been more complicated since the USJ. Then they only piled on from there. He didn't even know she was in talks with the school about these revised practicals.

“Still, you 2 are probably walking into a cake walk, you’ve used to this kinda stuff.” Kirishima laughed.

"Which is why I suspect that for Izuku and me, it won't be a test similar to what you all would handle." Aoyama mused, as if they had come to expect anything from their teachers, that it was never 'easy'. He and Izuku were already well-versed in handling quirk spirits, so surely there was more to their finals that the staff just didn't tell them.

"And that right there is why I'm worrying about it, as we didn't really have…tests in the beginning." Midoriya sighed, to which Aoyama nodded as he brought a fork of food to his lips.

“Didn’t you start when you were children?” Uraraka asked, which raised some concerns, as they imagined their friends as kids fending off such monsters. Where were the adults?

“It wasn’t by design, we just,” Midoriya could see where their minds were going, but had to pause to figure out a means to explain this. "We didn't know so much back then. My mom worked to create quirks, but she and everyone else didn't know they could linger. It was more of an accident when we first handled one, and after that, it took a while for her and the rest of R&D to figure out ways to contain them."

“If you couldn’t contain them at first, what did you do?” Iida asked, since that made sense, they had already heard how things started for them. Still, he would have preferred if Midoriya and Aoyama hadn't been involved till much later.

"Mostly fight them off, scare them away, but it was never a long-term fix as sooner or later, whatever attachments caused them to form would draw them back," Aoyama noted, as at least in the early days, that was mostly possible. "But let's not dwell on that, Izuku. Why don't you give Saiko a call?"

Uraraka giggled at how Midoriya was eyeing Aoyama, who hardly seemed to care. “Come on, how bad can she be?”

Line Break

And we are here, with a new year and whatever it brings! And man, things have really changed. MHA has ended, sure, we have that special coming up in March, but I'm betting it's just gonna cover the epilogue chapter and maybe some new stuff. Vigilantes is still going, as it was when I started writing this chapter; it's days away from season 2 airing. And yes, I knew that the manga ended before I went on break, but as someone who primarily stuck to the anime, I was focused on that.

I will say it's funny that the anime's ending was received much better than the manga's, but that's probably because the haters got their laugh, and most would have ignored the rage comments.

Now, as for the new year, I have some good plans going forward, not so many for this one, as, surprise, surprise, a month break isn't much when you're handling several stories, and you're not just strapped to your desk. Still, I got some interesting points down for this. I also have ideas for some reboots, such as 3 stories, and plans to touch up on others. However, they won't enter regular uploads for a hot minute, as I want to handle some arcs for those currently in the regular slots.

Well, enough said, hope you like the chapter