Don't mind the bees. I took down the queen and took control of them.

Katsuki rolled his eyes and shoved his phone back in his pocket. Izuku's texts were getting weirder, but he couldn't help feeling proud of the nerd. He hadn't heard Eraser announcing any of the in-between games, so either he was asleep, or Izuku was finally learning that he could ask the heroes for help and they would actually listen.

Midoriya: I don't think he figured that out though...

Bakugo: Just learn already!

The games were almost over and Katsuki felt a small smile pull at his lips as Uraraka made her way toward him. Even though it had been a prank, most of the girls were still wearing their cheer outfits and Uraraka's fit her perfectly, emphasizing her curves while being long and full enough that she could probably fight in it if she needed to, not that she would need to. She could always just ditch the skirt and go with the matching shorts Yaoyorozu had made for her to wear underneath.

He didn't let himself stare long, but Uraraka's naturally pink cheeks seemed a little darker than normal, so he'd probably been caught. He had no idea what to do about that though, so he just ignored her in favor of chugging his water.

(Bakugo and Uraraka stared at the screen before slowly turning to look at each other)

Uraraka: You're not... are you?

Bakugo: No... (a beat passed)

Uraraka(quietly looking back at the screen): Glad we've got that straightened out.

Bakugo: Yeah.

Uraraka shook her head and nudged his arm, "Have you seen the matchups yet?"

"Yeah." Katsuki glanced up. "I guess they're pitting us against each other, huh?"

Uraraka grinned, "I guess so. Think you can win, Kacchan?"

Bakugo(rolling his eyes): I mean, I beat you, didn't I?

Katsuki shrugged, "Don't need to. Still, don't expect me to go easy on ya, cheeks."

"If you do, I'll get Aoyama to glitter bomb your backpack." Uraraka threatened. "Don't you dare hold back."

"That'd be an insult." Katsuki rolled his eyes. "And stupid. If I don't go hard, how will all those recruiters see what you're really made of? I think I'd be pretty @$*!& support if I didn't help you show off."

Midoriya: So he's not going to win? Oh right, he's not aiming to be the best this time.

Uraraka rolled her eyes, "You can win, you know. We both know you're stronger than me and I know you've got this whole, standing in my shadow strategy, but I won't be mad if you decide you wanna go on and try for first place."

"Nah, you can take the spotlight cheeks." Katsuki took another swig of his water. "Just don't make me look like an idiot, alright?"

"Alright." Uraraka bit her lip. "And you can call me Ochaco, you know? We've been fighting pretty well together, so I'd say we probably qualify as friends now, don't you?"

(Bakugo and Uraraka paused and looked at each other again)

Bakugo: First name basis?!

Uraraka: Let's pretend this isn't happening.

Bakugo: Agreed!

Katsuki blinked. He hadn't really realized that, but yeah, they probably were friends at this point, which meant that he had somehow gotten a lot better at choosing his company since middle school. Those idiot extras couldn't even hold a candle to badass fighters like Shinso and Urar... Katsuki shook his head and gave her a teasing look, "Whatever you say, Cheeks."

Ochaco punched his arm, "Alright, Kacchan, have it your way."

Katsuki grinned and went to take another drink, freezing when a loud buzzing started echoing around the stadium. Ochaco glanced at him, then glanced up and Katsuki spilled half the water bottle on his hand as he crumpled the cheap plastic, "Oh !%@$."

Midoriya: Don't worry I handled it!

Ochaco looked at him, "You don't like bees, right? Something about..."

"Not knowing who they're reporting to." Katsuki forced himself to take a deep breath, but didn't take his eyes off the swarm as it slowly blocked out the sun. "I think I know this time though, I just hope Izuku actually knows what he's doing."

Snipe: He does, don't worry.

"Izuku..." Ochaco frowned. "Is that who you were talking to earlier?"

"Yeah." Katsuki nodded, hovering a hand against the small of Ochaco's back so that he could push her down and protect her if he needed to. "If these @#&* attack, I want you to run, okay Cheeks?"

Ochaco shot him a quick glare, "Not a chance, Kacchan. If they attack, I'm fighting. There are civilians in those stands."

Mt. Lady: No offense but I don't see how your quirk will help you fight a swarm of robotic bees.

"Cheeks..." Katsuki growled a warning, but was cut off by Present Mic's cheerful voice echoing through the stadium.

"Isn't that a breathtaking sight, folks?" Mic yelled. "That's our support course for you, always going plus ultra like this. So sit back, relax, and enjoy this drone powered fireworks show before the third round begins!"

The bees began exploding and Katsuki found himself grinning sharply, "That @$*&^ actually did it. !(#*^ nerd."

Mitsuki: He definitely did.

Ochaco looked at him in confusion, "Did what?"

Katsuki grinned at her, "Took down the villain and saved the day. Don't worry about it too much, cheeks. Just enjoy the show."

Uraraka: Other me must be so confused right now.

Ochaco huffed, but looked up, taking a step back to get a better look as every single bee was wiped out in a colorful explosion. Katsuki didn't realize he'd never moved his hand until it was all of a sudden resting on her hip, but she hadn't said anything and calling attention to it now would just make everything more awkward, so he took the coward's way out and just left it there, smiling slightly as they watched the show.

(Bakugo and Uraraka looked steadfastedly away from the picture, quietly mumbling under their breaths to pretend it isn't happening)

Kirishima: This is weird.

Kaminari: Bakugo and Uraraka?

Mitsuki: Eh, at least he picked a strong woman.

Bakugo: Old hag!

He'd really have to thank Izuku after this.

All for One ground his teeth together as he listened to the alleged fireworks display that had taken the entire sports festival by surprise. The crowds were cheering and enjoying themselves, all infuriatingly unaware of the months and years of preparation that had just been quite literally blown to smithereens by a meddlesome kazoo player. The vigilante had even had the audacity to fill some of the bees with colored powers and chemicals from the support students' supplies so that they actually looked like real fireworks. It was as if he thought burning an entire movement of All for One's symphony was something worth celebrating, instead of a death sentence.

(everyone froze)

Shigaraki: Oh %$&# he's pissed.

Jana: Language but yes, he is very mad.

Queen Bee had outlived her usefulness, that much was clear. Her entire hive was gone and would take too long to regenerate even if she hadn't gotten herself captured by the heroes and this was far from her first mistake, so she would have to be eliminated as soon as possible. Additional chaos would be advantageous as well, but there was one thing All for One was certain of.

Viridian had interrupted his symphony for the last time.

All for One grabbed the microphone that allowed him to speak through the television at the hideout, "Kurogiri, get Shigaraki. I have a mission for you."

Dabi: They're going to kill Viridian.

Inko: Izuku no!

Izuku kept an eye on his laptop and waited until the only signal he could detect was Queen Bee herself before closing down the program and quietly snapping it shut. Eraserhead was helping Denki take care of Hagakure, who was obviously pretty disoriented after being possessed by a villain for so long, and it was sweet watching the two of them comfort her. They were both such amazing heroes.

Hagakure(shuddering): I don't even want to know what that's going to feel like...

He stood slowly, careful not to make any sound as he grabbed his bag and inched toward the door. Nezu raised an eyebrow, but made no move to stop him. He managed to make it almost to the door before Eraserhead's capture weapon wrapped around his wrist, "And just what do you think you're doing, Problem Child?"

"Um..." Izuku gave him a sheepish smile. "Escaping."

Aizawa: There is no way other me is letting you go.

Eraser gave him a look before wrapping the capture weapon all the way around Izuku with a flick of his wrist, "Nice try, kid, but you should have thought about that before sneaking into UA."

Hawks: You technically left the door unlocked for him.

"I didn't sneak in." Izuku muttered. "You left the door unlocked for me."

Eraser smirked, "Same difference. You willingly surrounded yourself with heroes, and this is the only logical outcome. Deal with it."

"In my defense," He tried, "I wasn't exactly thinking that far ahead."

Iida: He was only thinking of rescuing Hagakure.

Izuku struggled against the bindings, panicking slightly when the scarf got tighter instead of looser and he realized that this might actually be it. He tried to wiggle and grab any of his weapons, but both his arms were pinned to his sides, so even if he managed to grab any of them, he wasn't at a good angle to use anything besides his knife, which Eraser would probably be looking for. This... this wasn't good. Eraser was gonna find out he was quirkless and then he was gonna tell everybody and...

Inko: Izuku breathe please!

"Viri." Denki's voice was just enough to cut through his panic. "Breathe with me, okay? You're gonna be fine."

"No. I'm not." Izuku's face turned hot as his voice cracked. He didn't want Eraserhead to see him like this, not that he hadn't before, but it was just one more evidence that he was weak and useless, just like he'd always been. "Denks, they don't know."

Denki looked confused for a moment before he realized what Izuku was talking about and his eyes got wide, "They don't know?!"

Spinner: Nope.

Izuku shook his head, tears threatening to fall. "No."

Denki blinked a few times, "Oh..." He glanced toward Eraser and Nezu. "Well, like, Aizawa's probably not gonna care that much..."

Mic: No he's not.

Izuku shook his head emphatically, "You don't know that."

Denki's face fell, "No... I don't. I'm sorry."

"What's going on?" Eraserhead glanced suspiciously between the two of them. "What exactly don't I know?"

Joke: Viridian's quirk status.

Izuku stared at the floor while Denki opened and closed his mouth a few times, "Uh, nothing! Well, I mean, obviously you don't know a lot of things, it's just this one thing in particular, but well... actually, technically it is nothing, but uh... you know what, nevermind, it's not a big deal."

(everyone snorted)

Dabi: Someone really needs to teach electricity kid how to lie.

Eraserhead, unsurprisingly, looked unconvinced, "Viridian..."

Izuku kept staring at the floor, "Just let me go, Eraserhead. I can't be a hero."

Eraserhead sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose, "Kid, no matter how many times you say that, it doesn't make it true. Just... you know what, no. You're joining the hero course whether you want to or not. Come on, problem child, let's go meet your new classmates."

Shoji: Guess he's finally meeting us now.

Mina: Maybe we can convince him that things won't be so bad.

Nezu: Unfortunately, the Hero Commission still isn't going to accept a quirkless vigilante.

Izuku stumbled slightly as Eraser tugged on the scarf as if he was a leash kid, "You're not taking me to the police?"

"Not at the moment." Eraser raised an eyebrow. "We'll get to the paperwork after the festival, but Kaminari needs to get back so he can actually fight in the third round and in the meantime, hopefully Kacchan and the others will be able to talk some logic into that self-deprecating skull of yours."

Izuku pouted and turned to Denki who looked like he was torn between freeing Izuku and trying not to laugh, "Traitor."

(a few people snorted)

Denki's face fell and he glanced toward Eraser, "do you want me to..."

"No." Izuku said quickly, blinking to keep a tear from falling. "I don't want to get you in trouble and helping an alleged vigilante would definitely..."

Eraser rolled his eyes, "You're a bit more than just an alleged vigilante, Viridian."

Midoriya: No, he actually is.

"Not really." Izuku answered evasively. Who knew, maybe Kacchan and Denki were right and it really wouldn't be that bad, but everything in him was screaming to enjoy Eraser's company while he still had it. He would still have Denki and Kacchan and maybe even Tsu, since she already knew and she didn't seem to hate him yet, he just... he didn't know if he could handle being alone again.

"Kaminari! Where have you been! The third round is about to start." A student ran down the hall at them and stopped short when he saw them. "Is that Viridian?!"

Uraraka: Oh, Iida.

Eraser glared at him, "Iida, aren't you always telling the other students not to run in the halls?"

(everyone giggled)

Iida bowed deeply, "My deepest apologies, but no one could find Kaminari and we did not want him to miss the matches. It is a pleasure to meet you, Viridian. My brother speaks very highly of you."

"See kid?" Eraser had a pleased look on his face. "I'm not the only one who thinks you'd make a great hero. Ingenium thinks so too."

Midoriya: Yeah but Ingenium doesn't know about-

Iida: And he doesn't care about quirk status.

Izuku smiled sadly and turned to Iida, "You're Ingenium's little brother? That's really cool! He must be really proud of you for making it so far in the festival."

"Well, I'm not sure." Iida answered. "I haven't been able to get a hold of him, so he must be on a mission at the moment, but I'm planning on talking to him after the festival!"

Iida(stiffening): Right. Stain. This is when he got attacked.

Izuku got a glint in his eye and Eraser glared at him, "No. Absolutely not."

"Ah, come on, Eraser!" Izuku grinned. "Just a few minutes so I can hack his comms and say 'hello'!"

"And of course, the fact that I'll have to untie you so you can use your laptop has absolutely nothing to do with it." Eraser drawled. "Nice try."

Ectoplasm: Wait, this is the same time as the Stain attack isn't it? (everyone stopped, thinking)

Iida(hardly daring to breathe): You don't think...

"Aww, I'm sure Viri won't run away, right?" Denki gave him an exaggerated wink. "And , like, I'm sure the guy'll get a kick out of it. Ingenium, wasn't it?"

"Oh, my brother will love it." Iida smiled fondly. "Moreso if you manage to surprise him. You know that, Aizawa. You're friends!"

Aizawa(grumbling): Still don't know how sometimes.

"It's like, classmate bonding!" Izuku added. "You want me to have a good relationship with the students, don't you, Eraser?"

Eraser narrowed his eyes suspiciously, "You're ganging up on me."

(everyone laughed)

"I mean, yeah, kinda..." Denki smiled innocently. "But you'll be here the whole time and I'm sure I... Viri will let you keep a hold of him or something, he just needs his arms free to annoy Ingenium!"

Eraser sighed in defeat, "And if I let you do this, you'll treat it as a chance to bond with your future classmate, not as a chance to escape?"

"Sure!" Izuku answered a little too quickly. "Definitely."

(everyone snorted)

Eraser just rolled his eyes, but Izuku felt the capture weapon loosen slightly, only to tighten again immediately, leaving him still completely wrapped from his elbows up, "Seriously, Eraser? You couldn't give me a little more wiggle room?"

"Nope." Eraser deadpanned. "You can still type like that."

Midnight: He's really not letting you go this time.

Izuku stuck his tongue out and dropped awkwardly to the floor while Denki laughed, "Fine, I'll just have to make this work."

Shigaraki scratched at his neck as Kurogiri opened the portal, "So Queen Bee's finally outlived her usefulness, huh?"

"That does appear to be the case." Kurogiri nodded. "Remember, she and the vigilante are our main targets, everyone else is secondary."

(everyone froze)

Shigaraki: Oh great. I really hope other me doesn't kill Viridian. That kid did not stop being suicidal just to get murdered.

"Yeah, but Sensei still wants us to cause as much panic and chaos as possible, which means I might unlock a second fight with that Kacchan brat." Shigaraki grinned and placed a hand over his face. "I'm glad Sensei unlocked this level. It's gonna be a blast."

Midoriya: Oh this is bad this is bad this is bad-

Inko: Izuku, calm down!

Mitsuki: It's going to be okay, you hear me? (eventually Midoriya stopped panicking and Jana went to the next chapter)