Chapter Text
"Don't you need a licence to take pictures of people like that?" Sero squints at the camera held proudly in Denki's hands. After three more shudders and flashes, he's granted a response.
"No, I don't think so, actually." Denki shrugs. "Or, well, I hope not. Or I'll be going to jail." He laughs at himself. Ever since his grandfather gave him his old, rusty camera, Denki has decided it his calling to be a reporter. For the past three days, he's been entranced, photographing everything he sees. Including whisps of blonde hair.
"Point that camera at me again and I'll lodge it in your throat." Katuski spits, barely looking at Denki as he lowers his camera.
"Sure thing," He groans.
Denki, Katuski, Sero and Izuku found themselves observing a third year training session. With Aizawa sick, and no lessons until later in the afternoon, the four wanted to make use of their free time. Well, Katuski and Izuku did, but the others liked to follow like helpless ducklings.
Denki flashes his camera once more as a girl with a water quirk shot a cacophony of aqua bullets. "That was the coolest fucking thing I've ever seen," He marvels as he lowers his camera. Izuku, second in amazement, leans further over the railing.
"You're right! These third years are incredible!" He gleams, watching a boy dart from corner to corner.
"Are they hell," Katsuki groans. "I could do that in my sleep."
"Sure" Denki teases. "The boy with an explosion quirk could shoot water bullets in his sleep."
"Watch yourself, or I'll blow that camera up in my sleep." Katuski spits, and Denki ducks his camera safely in his lap.
Izuku interrupts their bickering. "Hey, do you guys want to go down there to watch them closer up? I think I could take better notes if we were on the ground." The third year training facility had a helpful row of seats elevated above the grounds of the building. It was mainly used for observing battles while staying safe. Anyone was allowed to sit in them so long as the building was open, and the boys took that opportunity for the day.
"Sure, I think that could be cool." Sero offers, and with that it was decided. The boys head down the thin spiral stairs and collect at the edge of the facility. Cementos was currently overseeing the training, and he greeted the boys as they caught up to him. Izuku, getting the most out of this while the others faffed about, took out his notebook and began to observe the students. He watched a boy with long, thin antenna. From the looks of the people around him, and their seizing and yelping, he had to be able to produce harmful rays from the antenna.
"Are you watching Yuto?" Cementos asks as he peers down to Izuku's notes. "The boy with the antenna?"
"Yeah!" Izuku looks back up. "What's his quirk?"
"He can send out waves from the tips of his antenna that cause the people in the radius to seize up. It's remarkably powerful in close combat, however his waves only scale a few meters before loosing intensity. Therefore, Yuto needs to get close before proving useful, and that can be quite a challenge." Cementos offers, and watches Izuku scribble down notes with remarkable speed.
"I wonder how he gets around the close range issue." He mumbled to himself, much to the distain of Katsuki, who can't stand the lowly murmuring beside him.
"Why don't you ask him? Yuto!" Cementos calls. "Talk to these students a moment?"
The boy, with pale skin and dark ruffled hair, looks over at his calling and hurries down from the ledge he was on. He, Yuto, arrives shortly after, breathless and sweaty. "What's," He heaves. "Up?"
"Midoriya had a few questions about your quirk." Cementos explains.
"You don't say," Yuto raises his brow. "Hey, I know you from the sports festival! That crazy kid who broke, like, a hundred bones."
"Sure, that's me - but I was curious about the close range aspect of your quirk." Izuku stars, raising his notebook to his chest. "Do you find it difficult to get in close, or are you quite good at that?"
"Well," Yuto shrugs. "I had to have a lot of practice in stealth, so instead of fighting my way into close combat I sneak up on them! It's kinda tricky, really, but I'm getting the hang of it." He explains, beginning to feel proud of himself.
"That's amazing." Izuku drifts off, lost in his notes and workings. He's so preoccupied with writing that he doesn't notice the loud trail of insults Katuski begins to spit, or the alarmed calling of a girls name from both Yuto and Cementos, or the bizarre 'the fuck?' from Katuski before Izuku is bashed into and trampled by a girl.
It's a light hit, but he's tumbled to the floor alongside the girl and Yuto. Izuku sits up, brushing dirt out of his hair, and rubbing his shut eyes.
"Manami! What were you trying to do?" Cementos scolds, but he doesn't sound particularly shocked. Perhaps 'Manami' is used to cataclysmic encounters.
"Sorry! Sorry!" She begins, her voice light and delicate. She's laughing. "I just wanted to get a hit on Yuto while he wasn't paying attention. I didn't mean to hit the kid." She sighs, and Izuku begins to open his eyes.
"Damn nerd, you're just always in the crossfire, aren't you?" Katsuki groans, and Izuku looks up to him as he finally pries his eyes open.
Katsuki looks bored, perhaps a little fed up, and he's crossing his arms over his chest like an impatient mother waiting for her kid to stop crying. He frowns at Izuku, and then jolts when he truly looks at him. "Who the fuck are you looking at like that, because it's sure as hell not me." Katsuki flinches.
"Sorry, Kacchan!" Izuku mutters, shaking his head to snap out of his gaze. "Will you help me up?" He asks, putting a hand out.
"Get up yourself."
"I'll help you!" Denki grins, pulling Izuku up. Not before taking a photo of him, dirty on the floor.
"I'm sorry, kid!" The girl, Manami, puts a hand on Izuku's shoulder. "Are you alright? I didn't... touch you, did I?"
"Didn't touch me?" Izuku asks, a little thrown off by the strange nature of the question. Judging by her paling face, this was very important to her. Maybe she was a germaphobe. "No, no don't worry. I think it was just Yuto that bashed into me." Izuku says, trying to be reassuring.
"Oh," She sighs, "That's good. Well, I'll try and refrain from jumping around like that. Huh, Cementos?" She grins.
"If you could, Manami."
Sero whips his phone out from his pocket and has a scan for the time. He groans dramatically. "We should probably get going," He says, and jumps as Denki takes a flash of his face. "We, uh, have training now."
"Really?" Denki whines. "I definitely won't be able to bring my camera, will I?" Their voices fade as walk out of the facility. Izuku not forgetting to wave his upperclassmen goodbye.
"Finally you're doing us a favour." Katsuki complains, unreasonably hostile toward his friend.
"Chill, you're loving my photos." Denki teases, before raising an eye to Izuku. "Hey, Midoriya, you alright?"
Izuku rubs his temple wearily and pulls a sour face. "I'm okay, I think I'm just getting a headache." He says, a uneasy feeling bubbling in his stomach. That girl left him feeling awfully unsure about himself.
"Alright, but don't hesitate to call 'sick' if you're feeling worse. We all know how much you love to push yourself." Denki chides, pulling a laugh out of Izuku.
"Okay, sure thing."
Training wasn't so grilling under the supervision of Present Mic, but there was still a lengthy agenda intended to follow. Mic held up a large sheet of paper, pushing up his yellow glasses and scanning the sheet. "So, Sho- Eraser want's us to practice long distance combat. I think he means finding solutions to problems from a distance. I guess I can team you up and place you at opposite ends of the arena?" Mic mutters, quieter than usual and half to himself.
There's a long pause before he raises himself up to his usual standard. "All right! Partner up and we'll go from there!" He yells, sending shudders down spines of the students.
It doesn't take long for the class to team up, comfortably sorting themselves into the people they work best with. Mic watches the pairs begin to form, and section's the duo's into two teams. It's an even and seemingly fair split - the best outcome for a teacher who doesn't know the students abilities as well as Aizawa would.
"Okay!" He sings. "Team A, who's leader I'm appointing to be Midoriya, see yourselves to that corner of the arena!" Mic points to a distant area. "And Team B, who's leader can be Bakugo, over there! But - before you go, both leaders take a flag and place it in your corner. First team to make it back to me with their enemies flag wins! Think smart and hard! I'll shout when it's time to start, so hurry! Run!" Mic throws out a red flag and a blue flag with an encouraging thumbs-up and toothy grin. Both teams hastily make way to their area of the area, nervous to not place their flag down before Mic decided to yell.
"Midoriya," Iida calls, midway through running. "Trust me with the flag and I'll run it over quickly. Tsu, accompany me and help me to protect the flag." He decides, picking out the person he believes to be able to somewhat match his pace. Even though Aoyama was his pair.
"Sounds good!" Izuku says, throwing the blue flag to Iida before watching him and Asui speed off.
It was a far distance to run, therefore why Mic gave the students ten minutes to make it to their corner, set up the flag, and strategize. Plans required an understanding of what the other team would do, and that's why Izuku decided combat was more important than defence. "Knowing Kacchan," He began, hand finding itself on his chin as it usually did when he planned, "He'll run off from the group and go straight to attacking us, thinking he'll be able to capture the flag on his own. Then, Kirishima will follow him, trying to convince him to stop. And Kaminari will follow, also, but for that I'm not sure why."
The group nods, finding comedy in the truth of it. "Therefore, we're pretty soon going to be up against explosions and electricity. That's why we need to begin combat quickly and stop them before they get to close. Todoroki," Izuku prompts, and Shoto looks up. "I say you start toward their corner on your own and try to find them before they get to us. You're the best at large scale attacks and probably have the highest chance at stopping them."
Shoto nods, unable to find faults in the plan. "Should I bee-line, or do you think they'll take an opposing route?"
"Kacchan will want to make it quick, I think you should head straight on. Or, listen for explosions."
"Okay," Shoto looks out to the direction they came. "I'll try my best." He says before he heads out with pace and leaves the others to plan.
"What next, Deku?" Ochako, Izuku's original partner, prompts.
"Hm, I think it would be useful for you, Yaoyorozu, to work on making barriers and defences for the flag. It's a useful commodity the other team don't have." Izuku strategizes, and Momo begun quickly creating planks of wood to border up the flag. "And then-" Izuku stops short, suddenly hit with a wave of faintness. He felt his skin prickle in the way it would when you begin to go lightheaded.
"Deku?" Ochako flinches, "Are you okay? You're going kind of pale."
"I must say," Iida comments, "You haven't been looking yourself. Do you think you might be getting sick?"
"No," Izuku gulps, a guilty feeling welling in his turned stomach as he thinks over what Denki told him. To not lie. "I think I'm just a little tired because I was training late last night, but I'm not sick."
There was an unsteady silence for a moment, before Izuku turns to himself again. "Anyway, I've been thinking that Hagakare would be the best to actually steal the flag as they won't see you coming, but you alone would be at risk of caught and we don't know what defences they've put up. So maybe Tokoyami would be a good match for accompanying you, as Dark Shadow is difficult to fight while also on defence."
"I believe that's a good start, but those two alone would struggle." Iida adds, "Perhaps Uraraka and I would be more useful on the enemy's side, as I'm no good at defence, and Uraraka could prove useful in stealth and exit operations."
"Good point," Izuku notes. "It could work well if you were able to quickly float the flag and it's holder out of the crossfire. I think you two should go."
"On it, leader." Iida states, finding himself immersed in his role as he usually was.
"I'll make you proud, Deku!" Ochako grins with a mock-salute. She giggles as she runs off with Iida, floating her way over the buildings. Hagakure and Tokoyami, as commanded, follow along with them in an attempt to steal the flag. All that's left is Izuku, Asui, Momo, Aoyama, and Sato - all much better suited to close combat.
"Should we stay here and defend the flag?" Momo asks Izuku, who has been crowned the leader by teammates, and not only Mic.
"I think that's the best course of action. Todoroki might not be able to hold off Kacchan and the others, and so we should stay if we don't know what's going to happen."
"And are you sure you're alright? I mean this kindly, but, you do look a little unwell." Momo squints as she places her last wooden defence.
Izuku focuses in on himself, truly searching for an answer to the question. Around Iida and Ochako, he felt the urge to lie knowing how they would worry for him, and maybe falter on their mission. Honestly, he felt a little queasy. "I think I might be coming down with something, but I'm okay for now. I'll try and visit recovery girl after class."
"Don't push yourself, Midoriya." Asui prompts after searching around the area for the other team.
Izuku laughs, "Don't worry, Tsu."
Katsuki was brash and closed-minded, his only saving grace the raw power he possessed. Heading, alone and full speed, into the enemies territory would be a foolish idea to anyone, but Katsuki had the skill to compensate for it. At least he, when up against the opponent who most definitely would come for him, could save himself.
No one was shocked when Shoto found them.
Katsuki's loud and obnoxious explosions made him easy to find, and Shoto followed their sound until he enountered the three. Izuku was mostly right, in that Katsuki had run off, and Kirishima had attempted to stop him. But Denki was a no-show (possibly because Kyoka, his teammate, would never allow him to make a dumb decision like that)
"Come to fight me you icy-hot bastard? I wanna' see you try." Katsuki calls, voice reverberating around the faux-city.
Shoto didn't speak, partically because the answer to the question was obvious, and he didn't want to raise his voice. He sent forward a large wall of ice, stopping with intense precision before he reached Kirishima, who he knew would struggle to escape from it. For Katuski, he had no regard of precison.
A large explosion threw Katsuki upwards and out of the crossfire, bursting a huge hole in Shoto's ice. He laughs maniacally from atop a building, fingers curling around the plug in his gauntlet. "Taste this, nerd!" He shouted before releasing and plummeting an explosion in Shoto's way. Rapidly, he counteracts with his own burst of flames, which redirects the fire upward.
Katsuki yells something incoherent with a rage directed at the fail of his plan. Kirishima finds his way up to join him, and tries to cool him off.
There's an orange and green glove pointed at Shoto, who could care less for the intimidating scowl Katsuki sports on his face. "Take this!" He hears, but makes no attempt to move. Surprisingly, but not upsettingly, the explosion Katsuki produces is larger than he anticipated, but the technical skill of his ice blocks and protects him from the impact. "You idiot!" Is faintly called from the otherside of the ice.
Before long, a precise and rounded hole cracks through the ice - a window into the sight of Katuski and Kirishima. Shoto can see the two through the cavity and waits for Katsuki to move again.
Suddenly, a familiar face joins Shoto on the space he made for himself atop an opposing building. It's Asui, who has perched onto the roof beside him. "Todoroki, you need to go back to the flag. Yaoyorozu wants you to use your ice to cool Midoriya down. He's got a pretty bad fever."
"Really?" Shoto questions, taking a look back at Katsuki. "What about Bakugo?"
"Sato is on his way to try and hold them off. He's a good match for Kirishima, and able to withstand Bakugo's blasts better than the rest of our team. I'll stick around to help him, too."
"If you say so." Shoto decides, and heads back the way the flag is.
"Are you kidding me? Where is that bastard off to?" Katsuki yells, one foot forward in his direction before Asui wraps him in her frog-akin tongue, throwing him over the edge of the building. "Slimy bitch!" He shouts, voice trailing as he plumets.
Izuku is dazed with his head on Momo's lap as she crafts ice-packs to keep him cool. If it were any other boy, she'd probably feel a little squeamish with their heads resting on her legs, but Izuku wouldn't think perversely of a paper doll, and she's willing to let her maternal instincts take over for him. Plus, he's half unconscious.
Shoto lands on rooftop with agile ease. He wanders over to them, the only two left, with bouts of curiosity. "Is he okay?" He asks calmly.
"He said he was feeling unwell a little while after you left, and soon after he dropped to the floor with a temperature. I think he's really sick." Momo says, pulling Shoto down once he's in reach and silently instructing him to cool his head. "I told Aoyama to inform Mic, but all we can do is wait."
The soft air of Shoto's ice, produced on the lowest intensity he can perform, floats over Izuku's reddening forehead. Besides the crystalline sound of his quirk, the only sound if the soft and uneasy breathing from Izuku's parted lips.
"He sounds sick." Shoto adds rather obnoxiously.
"Well, he is." Momo says bluntly.
They wait impatiently for Mic, or some kind of assistance, to join them. It's a wonder when the loud and grading call of Mic is heard over the buildings.
"Okay! Time's up! Head back to the starting point!" He shouts hurriedly, heard from every inch of the facility, and it's not particularly long after that when he shows up, Aoyama close behind him.
Shoto stops cooling him when Mic arrives, and much to their disappointment, it didn't do much to help him. "What the hell happened?" Mic groans, pulling his cheeks in stress. "Shota's gonna kill me if Midoriya collapses or something." He mutters as he kneels down.
"Midoriya said he was feeling unwell, and now he's coming down with a fever." Momo explained as Mic studied the sleeping student. Izuku's breaths came slowly and difficultly, like his nose was blocked or throat was sore.
"Seriously? This kid never catches a break. I guess we'll have to carry him down to recovery girl, she'll know what to do with him." Mic, slightly unhelpfully, decides.
"I can craft a stretcher to make it easier?" Momo offers.
"Don't worry," Shoto interrupts, "I don't mind carrying him. It would probably be easier, anyway."
There's a general agreement, and Izuku is lifted onto Shoto's back. It takes them a while to navigate their way back to the entrance of the facility, but Mic is glad to see all of the students made it there in one piece, even if they look impatient.
"Who'd have known Deku is the reason for this. 'Asshole stole my win. The fuck is wrong with him, he didn't do anything." Katsuki, characteristically, complains.
Mic looks over to Katsuki as he frantically tries to call someone. "Uh, Midoriya is sick. I guess you can all just- Shota! Hey, you're never gonna guess what!" He gulps. "Wanna come to Ground Beta? Yeah, I know you're sick... No, I get that..." There's a long pause. "Do you know what, it is actually Midoriya's fault."
There's a resounding scoff from Katsuki.
"Please, please. Oh! And bring Recovery Girl on your way... Yeah! Sure, I owe you. Be quick!" The phone bleeps and Mic pockets his phone. "Didn't know who else to call."
"Do you always call Aizawa when you don't know what to do?" Mina asks with a grin.
"Pretty much."
It's safe to say Aizawa is temperamental when he arrives at the training grounds. The other students were prompted to leave, considering there wouldn't be much more to the lesson. But some stayed. Like Momo who crafted items to aid Izuku, such as a pillow for his head. And Shoto who cooled Izuku as before, and also to help carry him out. And Denki, Sero, and Katsuki, who were there when Izuku started feeling sick. Mic encouraged them to wait around, as Recovery Girl would likely have questions for them.
"Okay, make it quick. What the hell happened?" Aizawa groaned, battling his own illness. People weren't rushed over when he fell sick. Well, besides Mic, not called for but still insistent that Aizawa eat the soup Mic made for him the night before.
"I think he's got a fever, but he's unconscious and getting worse. Shortness of breath, hot and pale skin. Occasionally he wakes up to cough, but he hasn't opened his eyes yet." Momo explains, as quickly as she can for Aizawa.
"Oh dear," Recovery Girl says, "This boy won't leave my care until the day he graduates."
"So, how long has be been sick?" Aizawa asks.
"Since, like, twelve," Denki says, unfocused and watching birds swirl above him.
"How do you know that?"
"Well," Denki snaps out of it and looks over to Aizawa. "We were watching the third years around that time, and after he got knocked over he was looking a little unwell. I don't know, you'll probably have to ask him when he wakes up."
"Knocked over?" Recovery Girl questions.
"Some girl bashed into him while he was asking this guy some nerdy questions. He was fine, though, they just tumbled down. Hey!" He lightens up. "I have a picture!" Denki fiddles around his coat pockets for his camera. He takes time to flick through the pictures until the one of Izuku, flattened on the floor, pops up. "Take a look." He says, more proud of his photography than keen on helping Izuku.
No one seems to care for his image, not making any correlation to the incident and his fever. Recovery Girl almost verbalises her indifference before Aizawa speaks.
"Hold on," he gulps. "That pink haired girl - is she the one who bashed into Midoriya?" Aizawa askes, stopping to clear his ill-affected throat.
"Yeah." Denki says. "She was like, super spooked. Midoriya thought she was a germaphobe." Denki laughs a little, but falters when he sees Aizawa's paling face.
"Fuck." He says bluntly, and most of the students recoil at the unusual profanity from their homeroom teachers mouth. "That's... great. That's- yeah. Amazing." He lists dully, sarcastically.
"What's up?" Sero asks, speaking on behalf of the students remaining.
"Who did Midoriya first speak to when he got up?" Aizawa asked impatiently.
"Huh, I don't know." Sero shrugs.
"Well, think, idiot." Aizawa groans. Recovery Girl chooses to move past his hostile attitude to his students on the basis that Aizawa is sick. Another time she will scold him for being so rude.
"Oh!" Denki interrupts, itching to prove himself useful. "It was Bakugo. He said something about how Midoriya was stupid for being in the way, and so Midoriya said sorry to him or something."
There's a long, tense, and nervous silence. Aizawa doesn't react. He sighs, longer and heavier than usual. "Todoroki, help Recovery Girl take Midoriya to medical. And..." Aizawa hesitates. "Bakugo. Go with them."
"Huh? I don't want to." Katsuki says hurriedly.
"Do as I say." Aizawa says, hair beginning to float above his shoulders as his eyes start to glow.
"Jeez, fine." Katsuki groans, in-admittedly scared of Aizawa.
The four of them, followed closely by Momo, Denki, and Sero, hurry off to aid Izuku. Left behind are Mic and Aizawa, both tense for different reasons.
"I can't believe that child-"
"I'm so sorry!" Mic yells, interrupting Aizawa suddenly. "You should definitely be home sleeping and I called you. But I panicked! You're so much calmer than me and I was totally freaking when I saw him!"
Aizawa furrows his brow as Mic continues to list of thousands of loud justifications to why he called him. Partially because the noise is hurting his head, but mostly out of confusion. "Don't stress, you did the right thing." He offers.
"Ya think?"
"I suppose."
"Woohoo!" He yells, loud enough for the students to hear from their increasing distance. "Come on, you need to go home. I can see you sweating and it's totes-gross."
Aizawa flinches at the strange term but, like he always does, follows Mic regardless.