Chapter Text
“You really gonna do this to me, Pretty Boy?”
Shoto’s eyes narrowed, matching the glare Katsuki was wearing. “You brought this on yourself; you made your choice, now suffer the consequences.”
Katsuki could see his friends shooting him nervous looks, but knew they wouldn’t interfere. He had started this with Shoto, and he would have to accept his fate with as much dignity as he could.
Still, he wished there was less of an audience for it.
The blond cursed. “Just do it already!”
Shoto let out a heavy sigh, a glimmer of disappointment in his heterochromatic eyes. He slid his queen across the board, gently knocking over Bakugo’s king. “Checkmate.”
“SON OF A-“
“I told you sacrificing your bishop was a bad move.”
“I don’t need advice from someone who loses every game of go fish!”
“The rules are confusing, and I’m not fond of fish regardless.”
Half of Class A giggled at the boys’ display, while the other half simply shook their heads.
“Those two sure are competitive,” Uraraka commented, while Shinso let out a snort.
“More like dramatic,” the purple haired boy quipped as the two began to argue in earnest, noting the teasing glint in Shoto’s eye. “If they ever completely stop arguing, it’s a sign the end has come.”
From his seat next to Momo, Izuku looked on the scene his boyfriends were making fondly. On the tall girl’s other side, Hatsume leaned over. “Twenty bucks says they start throwing the pieces at each other.”
“You’re on,” the greenette agreed easily, knowing neither boy would risk breaking Momo’s incredibly expensive chess set.
The arguing began to increase in volume until Aizawa cracked one tired, bloodshot eye open.
“Settle down,” he growled out, his iris taking on that familiar crimson glow, “Or you’ll all be doing laps once we land.”
This threat was enough to silence most of the class, though both Shoto and Katsuki only settled after receiving a pointed look from Izuku. Satisfied with his now subdued students, Aizawa settled back into his seat. “The flight should only last another hour or so; remember, we’re getting a preview of the expo before it opens to the public tomorrow, so be on your best behavior and don’t embarrass yourselves or me while we’re here.”
“Yes, sir!”
Izuku flicked his eyes back to his notebook at the mention of the expo, reading through what he’d written for the sixth or seventh time since they’d taken off.
The annual I-Island Expo had been scheduled in early summer, just a few days after UA’s Spring term finals. The exams they took were grueling, pushing each student to their limit as they proved they deserved to progress to the second-year hero courses. Despite the difficulty each exam offered, all of classes 1-A and 1-B were able to pass, and the two classes had celebrated late into the night after receiving their passing scores.
The trip to I-Island was in part a celebration of 1-A’s new status as class 2-A, though not everyone was there for leisure.
Hatsume and Momo were both invited to take part in the expo, showcasing the hard work they’d done to create the Counter drug used during the Hassaikai raid, as well as the bullets and pistol muzzles Hatsume created to accompany it. Hatsume was eager to show off both her creative genius as well as her girlfriend’s, but Momo was incredibly nervous at the prospect of speaking in front of so many people.
“Just our class or a few pro heroes is one thing,” she muttered to herself, worrying her ponytail between her fingers, “but having our work critiqued by the top scientists in the world is entirely different…”
“But your work is brilliant,” Izuku pointed out. “You managed to create a counter to the biggest drug epidemic in hero society, and you did it in just under a month! That’s worth recognition, Momo.”
“Ya know, you should be presenting with us,” Hatsume wheedled for the third time. “After all, we were only able to synthesize a counter drug so quickly because of you and your kissy powers.”
“My kisses weren’t actually used,” Izuku muttered, wrinkling his nose. “Besides,” he added, gesturing to his notebook, “I have my own homework to do.”
The pink haired girl nodded, shooting him a sympathetic look. She and Momo had been invited to the expo a few weeks before the end of term exams, but Izuku had been scheduled to make an appearance as Pucker Up since the event was first announced at the beginning of the year. Though the Commission had loosened its reigns on the healer considerably after his new contract with them had been signed and finalized, there were quite a few engagements the greenette was still expected to attend.
He supposed it was more than likely due to the backlash of the articles written about him that exposed the seedy nature of the Commission, and now the organization was using both his reputation and hero persona to save face after the PR nightmare principal Nezu had brought upon them.
And so it was asked of the healer to make a speech at this year’s expo, something sweet and caring as would be expected of UA’s Sweetheart, but nothing that painted the Commission in too good a light.
“That ship has already sailed, Midoriya,” Mera had told him. “No one has any faith left in the Commission, and not much more in the heroes that ignored what the Commission has been doing. The public is looking to you now, as well as your classmates, to usher in a new era of peace. The Commission needs Pucker Up, but the people need him even more.”
Izuku was thankful to the Commission rep for speaking plainly about the stakes, though it did nothing to assuage his nerves.
The public still didn’t know he was one of three remaining registered healers in the country, after all.
He shook his head, looking up from his notes as his attention began to wander. He spotted Shoto and Katsuki, now dozing peacefully against one another in the next row. He noted with fond exasperation the rook jutting proudly from Katsuki’s blond spikes, and was quick to retrieve it before Hatsume noticed.
Looking back to Momo’s worried frown, the greenette gathered the rest of the pieces, plopping them down on the small table in front of him. He shot the girl a mischievous look. “Ready to lose a game of chess, Momo?”
It worked like a charm, as the tall girl gave him a saccharine smile. “Oh, you’ll be eating those words, Izu; just you wait!”
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
When the plane had finally landed and its occupants had gone through the security system, they were elated to see a familiar blinding grin.
“Students of UA, rejoice! Because I AM HERE!”
Class A whooped and cheered as All Might flexed for them, the sight a welcome one even in the blond’s skinnier form.
Izuku was in front of him in an instant, scanning the former hero out of habit. “Yours vitals look good, and your bone density and muscle tissue have come a long way in your recovery!”
All Might chuckled. “I told you there was no need to fret, Young Midoriya; My time here has served me well.”
It had been a tearful time for the hero students when All Might had announced his short sabbatical for the remainder of their first year, though no one had the heart to voice their discontent. With the aid of Izuku’s healing, All Might had recovered remarkably from his final fight with Overhaul; however, for all of his miraculous ability Izuku could not heal a wounded heart, and so the former hero had chosen to spend the rest of his recovery with his old friend David Shield in the hopes of helping him find new purpose now that his time as the number one hero had finally ended.
The healer noted the healthy layer of fat on the man’s cheeks, as well as the light tan on his face, neck and arms, and smiled.
Aizawa approached them, giving his colleague a nod. “You look good, All Might; you better keep it up when you come back to UA, or Midoriya here will have your head.”
Izuku gave All Might his most fearsome glare, causing the blond to chuckle. He gave the boy a crushing hug, which was met with equal enthusiasm.
“Really, I’m glad you’re doing better,” Izuku muttered.
“I know,” All Might replied, ruffling viridian curls as he did. “And I’ll never forget all that you did to help me, even when I didn’t deserve it; thank you, Young Midoriya.”
He quickly released the healer, turning to greet the other students with just as much exuberance.
Aizawa smiled at the sight, before turning to Izuku. “The Commission has you in a private room on a separate floor, but you’ll be in the same hotel as the rest of us. There will likely be agents posted outside your door, but if they get to being a bother just let me know. I’ll handle them.”
Izuku felt sorry for any agent foolhardy enough to invoke his teacher’s ire, but kept the thought to himself. “I’ll be fine, Mr. Aizawa; besides, with everything happening at the expo I doubt I’ll be in my hotel room when I’m not sleeping.”
The hero grunted. “They’ll likely be shadowing you the entire time you’re on the island.”
Izuku blinked. “But this island is one of the most secure locations in the world, surely they don’t think-“
“We can’t rule out any possibility, Midoriya; I don’t like the security detail any more than you do, but I can’t completely argue against its necessity.”
It wasn’t something Izuku could refute; in the months since the greenette had been saved by Dabi and had met with Kurogiri to bring back his former self, the League of Villains had been suspiciously quiet. There had been no crimes committed that could be directly traced to them, and none of the most infamous members had been spotted even from a distance.
The Commission was most concerned about Hawks’ radio silence throughout.
Izuku wasn’t foolish enough to believe that the villains had simply given up, or that their organization had collapsed due to in-fighting, as the public had begun to speculate in their new, tentative time of peace. Knowing what he did of both the League and its leader, Izuku was willing to bet their silence only meant a more calculated, thorough plan to reach their goals, though he highly doubted the I-Expo would have any part in those schemes.
Still, the healer frowned. “You’re more than capable of keeping me safe, sir.”
Aizawa gave him a bittersweet smile. “History says otherwise, kid.”
Izuku wanted to protest, to assure his teacher that none of the altercations the healer had with the League was Aizawa’s fault, but the conversation was cut short by the others joining them.
“All Might’s gonna take us to meet David Shield!” Hatsume gushed, her yellow eyes gleaming fervently. “We’ll get to explore his lab and see all of his babies!!”
Kaminari let out a dramatic yawn. “I’m sure that’ll be fun for our nerdier classmates, but the rest of us wanna explore the expo!”
Ashido nodded. “We’re gonna check out the restaurants, and then the boutiques!”
The mention of shopping had Izuku at Hatsume and Momo’s side at once, the greenette shooting Ashido a weary look. “I think I’d rather meet Mr. Shield…”
“Suit yourself!”
Shoto stepped forward. “Kats and I are going to explore on our own; like a date.”
“What do you mean, ‘like’ a date, Pretty Boy? It is a date!” Katsuki grumbled. “Best date you’ll ever go on, too…”
Izuku giggled at the blond’s grumpy expression. “You two have fun, I’ll catch up with you for dinner?”
“You better, Princess!”
“We’ll be waiting for you, Bunny.”
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Yuga glanced at the itinerary Iida had made for the class, holding back a chuckle.
True to form, the class representative had planned their day in great detail, making notes on different exhibits and showcases that could be of interest to his fellow classmates.
“I realize it would be unreasonable to believe we’d all stay together,” he admitted to the blond, Shinso, Asui and Uraraka, watching with resignation as Kaminari and Ashido led several of their classmates off to explore, “but I thought it best to let everyone know what their options are.”
“It was very thoughtful of you,” Uraraka said brightly, taking the schedule from Yuga and scanning its contents. “Momo and Hatsume are doing their showcase at the museum tomorrow, so we should probably wait to check out the exhibits till then.”
“How about the music festival, ribbit? ” Asui suggested. “It’s only a rehearsal for the shows tomorrow, but this way we can see the whole thing without being crowded.”
The others agreed at once, the group following the map on the brochure they received upon landing.
Yuga had been trailing a bit behind the rest, and thus was surprised when the ever-speedy Iida slowed to fall into step with him.
“I couldn’t help but notice you were packing an envelope with you when we were leaving the dorms,” Iida muttered, leaning in so as not to alert the others. “I take it you were invited to the charity gala tonight as well?”
The blond nodded. Like the Iidas and the Todorokis, the Aoyamas were a wealthy family, though their money paled in comparison to that of the Yaoyorozus. As such, they were often invited to events hosted by the upper echelon of society. The gala in question was to raise money for some of the smaller hero and support courses at schools with far less renown than that of UA or Shiketsu.
“I’m expected to attend as the representative for my family’s agency,” Iida explained. “Yaoyorozu was invited as well, and I’m sure Izuku will be there as part of the Commission.”
“Todoroki has an invite, too,” Yuga replied. “It could be fun, but I’m not sure if I want to attend when so many of our classmates can’t.”
Iida turned to him, giving the shorter boy a mischievous look. “What if they could?”
“Pardon? Iida, what are you plotting?”
The class rep pushed up his glasses. “As you already know, I come from a large family with several big-name heroes, all of whom were invited to attend the charity tonight. I have enough spare tickets to get our friends in either as attendees or plus ones, and Yaoyorozu has at least two tickets from her parents to give out as well.”
Now Yuga was smiling. “I don’t think le bon ton will offer much amusement to our friends,” he pointed out, but knew everyone would show up if asked. The blond had no obligation to go from his family, merely the opportunity to do so if he wished. He had in fact resolved to not attend at all if the others had something more fun planned, but Iida would be expected to go as would Todoroki and Yaoyorozu, and perhaps Izuku as well.
The event itself wouldn’t be all that fun, but having friends show up as reinforcements would make the evening all the better.
“I’ll text Ashido,” Yuga decided, pulling out his phone. If he let her know now, then the rest would most assuredly know by lunch.