Chapter Text
"I'm smarter than some lying second grader!" Kacchan metaphorically exploded though there were signs of sparks in his palms.
"First of all, she's a first grader," Mr Aizawa said plainly, "And secondly, if you have a problem with us teaching her? Take it up with the principal, another non-standard hero. We can't stop weirdos from being heroic, no matter their demographic. This wasn't my choice. Now, kid, introduce yourself."
It was so strange. He was a child, wearing a specially made uniform that had what was closer to a soft cardigan than a blazer so he wouldn't have to deal with any itchy fabric if forcibly 'unmasked'. Although, the fact he was actually wearing a skirt was the part making him blush the most, even if it wasn't as awful as it seemed.
"I- I'm Meroto Midoriya, a-and I wanna be a hero," The shrunken hero-in-training bowed, "Please t-take care of me."
"Miss Midoriya here will be taking classes in place of her brother sometimes as he goes to do… Ugh… Whatever Nezu meant by 'surprise training' in that email," It almost looked like Mr Aizawa had a migraine, "And she's got better academics scores than at least five of you, so she's able to keep up as long as you all don't overwhelm her. Act your age, not hers."
"What's the bet Izuku's trying to learn not to self destruct?" Kaminari whispered to Tokoyami, only getting a death stare in return, "… Right, that was rude. My bad."
"This seems reckless, but I don't know what to expect from someone here due to the principal," Yaoyorozu was deep in thought, "It almost puts my own recommendation letter to shame."
"Mr Aizawa, there might be a problem, kero," Pointed out A- No, she liked being called Tsu, Meroto would call her Tsu, "If she's here in her brother's place, that would put her right behind Bakugo. I think that might be a bad idea."
"Do I really look like some kind of animal that would hurt a kid?" Kacchan barked out.
"Yes." Said most of the class, a select few including Ochaco and Iida staring the explosive boy down as if to try and frighten him off from even trying to touch Meroto.
"The only spare seat is spot 19 behind it, which is oddly suited for someone her height despite never having anyone sit there," Iida analysed, "That would surround her with Yaoyorozu, Todoroki, Tokoyami, Sero, and one empty space. Is that suitable to you, Meroto?"
All the people Iida listed were definitely safe, although Todoroki was much more of an enigma than the rest of the group. However, only a single desk between Meroto and Kacchan? The memory of at least a decade worth of bullying and explosions flashed in the kid's easily overwhelmed mind, causing involuntary shaking.
"I'll sit there." A voice from the back of the class spoke up, one Meroto wasn't as entirely familiar with compared to the more talkative classmates.
"Just… Whatever. Behave." It was increasingly clear that all of this was getting on Mr Aizawa's nerves in such a way he couldn't do anything about.
Rikido Sato, one of the biggest and tallest members of the class, took his bag up to what was the usual Midoriya spot and sat right down, creating a barrier right between Kacchan and the now safe seat number 19. Given the whole class was staring, and someone had moved for it to be possible, Meroto took the long way around to avoid the explosive bully on the way to the new seat.
"Here, help yourself to one," Sato turned to face the kid, an open lunch box of marshmallow and choc chip cookies being held out, "Sweets always help me get used to a new environment."
"Oh, th-thank you!" The cookies were honestly huge in Meroto's small hands, but smelled and tasted so delicious that she already was calming a little from the stress of having to reintroduce herself while lying to her- To his classmates.
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"I guess it makes sense why Meroto wouldn't join us on practical lessons," Pouted Ochaco, leaning against the seat in front of her, "But I didn't get to talk to her at all earlier because she's on the opposite side of the classroom…"
"I don't think she would've talked to anyone too much, anyway," Hummed Jirou, "Did anyone else hear her mumbling? Poor thing's a nervous wreck."
"Well duh, she was a 6 year old in a high school class," Ashido seemed to shudder a little, "I don't think I could cope being in a room of our senpais without at least one person my age. Think of how bad it must be for her."
"Midoriya?" Asked Iida, "Does your sister have similar issues to you?"
Izuku, trying to keep everyone in the dark, wasn't quite sure how best to answer. "Um… What kind of issues?"
The entire bus of students took turns. "The anxiety." "Long term bullying." "Some kind of undiagnosed neurodiversity." "Reckless self destructive tendencies." "Being short for your age." "A potential problem with your lacrimal glands." "Being easily distracted." "Being so plain looking that no one notices you, no offence."
"I. Uh. Well. Uh…" It took a deep breath before Izuku kept trying to hold himself together, "I… I don't know about all of that, but we're very alike. I'm f-fine, but please be patient with her."
It almost felt like the entire class didn't quite take that right, because there was a strong feeling that everyone suddenly extremely pitied Izuku as he was. He didn't want them to see him as fragile as he really was, but that he couldn't help but feel like that was out of his control. The more hopeless he thought he seemed, the more people seemed to think he was.
"So, you both have Quirks similar to All Might's?" Tsu's question hit like an unexpected cartoon anvil, "You did a big smash punch like he did, and Mero-chan could easily kick Bakugo across the room, kero."
"I was going easy on her." Katsuki claimed.
"Threats are not 'going easy' on a distressed child!" Iida rebutted, "It's unheroic, and-"
"Why do I get the feeling this is going to last the whole ride?" Complained Kaminari, adjusting his costume's earphone as if it'd do anything about the noise. The earmuffs in Izuku's new backpack of tricks, courtesy of Mei, were pretty tempting too, except for how they wouldn't fit a teen's head.
The rest of the ride was relatively smooth sailing as long as Izuku tried to keep his metaphorical mask up. The device Mei made to warn for a potential transformation, while accurate, was only able to buy him seconds in the single digits so far. The slapband bracelet-looking gadget wouldn't be much help in a moving bus.
Still, he was worried, and that was a bad sign. He knew All Might probably wouldn't make it to the excursion, given how many articles spotting him had popped up that morning, so if something went wrong… No, Mr Aizawa and this mystery guest lecturer they were going to have would be perfectly capable, even if worst came to worse.
It was just… Something made Izuku want to go and ask All Might if he did a good job, or was doing a good job, or just… Anything that would get him that positive praise from his idol and mentor. Especially with this whole involuntary regression thing making being a hero harder, it would be nice to know All Might thought Mero- Izuku was doing well…
The bus made it to the facility safely, and Class 1-A soon found themselves inside. With a central fountain and several large set pieces, the comparison to a theme park was inevitable. Izuku had only ever been to a theme park once, so the idea was still incredibly novel to him, but he couldn't go acting like this training facility was one.
"Welcome, class," Said a voice coming up the stairs to meet the students, "To the Unforeseen Simulation Joint, or the U.S.J.."
While the majority of the class kept up the theme park comparisons, Izuku was more distracted by it being the Space Hero, Thirteen, acting as the guest teacher. Another real pro hero, one known for her amazing rescues. One that, admittedly, Izuku was feeling a little awkward about, because rescue focused heroes got a lot of plushies, and his mum had been offering a lot of those lately due to the Meroto issue.
"Thirteen here will be guiding you all through a series of simulated disasters," Explained Mr Aizawa, "This is to build your rescue skills. We will be standing on the sidelines, ready to step in if needed."
"Before we start, I need you all to remember something," Thirteen spoke, holding out her hand to shoe off her gloved fingertips, "My Quirk, Black Hole, is capable of dragging anything towards me and turning it into dust, but I am still a rescue hero. Your powers aren't meant to hurt people. No, as heroes, you must use your skills to help, first and foremost."
Some of Class 1-A were having issues imagining exactly how to handle that. Izuku already had the way everyone could in mind. Acid and lasers could destroy debris trapping people. Invisibility was a tool to gather information as much as super senses were. Even explosions could save a life if aimed at the right target.
But there wasn't much Izuku could do to help if he kept breaking bones, just like Mr Aizawa said, becoming a liability on the battlefield. And there was not enough information on how One For All worked while small, nor was there a way to reasonably have a child be so helpful in such a scenario. Izuku got small when his mask broke, and that left him far too vulnerable.
Briefly, there was a quiet conversation between the adults, and Izuku could guess why. After all, All Might was no where to be seen, so it was important they were both up to speed on why. At least that meant Thirteen might be far more trust worthy, maybe even being someone- No, Izuku didn't have to keep making his problem everyone else's.
… There was something happening right in front of the central fountain that was more important anyway. A weird, purple mist, or at least some kind of cloud, appearing to grow out of thin air, clearly a Quirk at work. It was as people began to step out of it that it became more threatening, far too many people to be just normal volunteers for high school first year training.
The purple smoke then suddenly started to disappear, leaving behind a crowd down there that all seemed posed to attack. And Izuku was having trouble keeping up with the rest once Mr Aizawa made his attempt at attacking the invaders. He should have been taking mental notes about his teacher's fighting style, but something in the air made it impossible to focus.
Something in the air like a man made of teleporting smoke.
This was a villain attack, one without All Might around to help. Izuku could vaguely catch Kaminari talking about a lack of communication with the outside, which meant that these villains had someone jamming the signal which would likely lead to a delayed response at best from more combat oriented heroes arriving on scene so it would be up to the hero course to defend themselves which would be hard if there was some kind of teleporter and-
Both Kacchan and Kirishima took big swings at the man made of mist, disappearing into him and likely teleporting elsewhere. A majority of Class 1-A seemed to get scooped up into the clouds as well.
Izuku heard his warning device beep right as he was engulfed in darkness, resulting in Meroto hitting the water.