#it took me so long to post cause i couldn't decide what chouko would wear lol

[scribblestatic]

As Aizawa promised, he told his class about the bi-centenarian cryptid.

But he hadn’t had to do it alone in the end.

Both hero classes were called into a larger room, where Yagi Toshinori stood as one of the three announcers. And together, Vlad King, Eraserhead, and All Might himself told the prospective hero students of what they knew.

All Might ended up doing most of the talking.

The tall skeleton of a man stood at the podium with the lights shining down on him. His gauntness stood out more then than ever before, and Aizawa was sure the man could feel all 40 students with their gazes set on every divot of his body as the students searched for the hero they had grown up with. Even so, the suited man stood tall, his voice firm and yet kind all the same.

“And so, with you’re current knowledge, I want you to look deep into yourselves. I want you to take the time to really come to understand what it means to be a hero. What becoming a hero in this day and age will mean.” All Might stares out at them, blue gaze gleaming. “It won’t mean the same thing that it meant ten, five, or even one year ago. You will be facing forces brought on by a man even I have still failed to defeat, one who will not care for your age when deciding your fates. You’ve already seen this now, with the attack on the USJ—right now, more so than ever, you have targets on your backs. And so. We at U.A., your teachers, your faculty, everyone. We will all understand if you decide this is not the right path for you. If you so choose to change, we will open your space for the General Education course, or if you so decide to leave the school entirely, Principal Nedzu has given me his word that he will work with the schools in your local districts to find a place for you there. More than for the sake of the world, I want you to look out for yourself right here and right now. Think on it. And by the end of the week, give your decisions to your homeroom teachers.”

The students stare, shaken, unable to even move. Even Bakugou’s a frozen rock, eyes wide. He almost appears to be in shock...

That boy...Aizawa will need to check on him before the day’s over.

When the students do not respond, All Might nods. “For those of you who do decide to stay, we will be training you now more than ever for your safety and the safety of the people you aim to rescue. Our focus will further pinpoint onto your personal faults and current weaknesses so we can help you grow strong. We will not let you flounder on your own—it is our job to guide you, and we will do that.”

Aizawa watches as some of their shoulders droop, some scrunch leaving some of their faces, some laxity loosening their spines. Even in such a situation, All Might is still an expert at his job, and his voice brings ease to them. 

“And in order to gain a better picture of how you can improve, we have come in contact with an expert in the field of Quirk Studies. Her expertise and attention to detail are, as far as our current research details, unparalleled. She’s been contacted and has agreed to work with U.A. staff for the good of your futures if you so choose to continue with us."

Then, much to the surprise of the class, All Might steps from behind the podium and bows to them.

“It has been...of my own shortcomings that all of this has befallen upon your shoulders. And for this, I give you my most humble apologies.” The students couldn’t respond. It took Aizawa clapping his hands together for them to snap out of their daze. “Like he said. End of the week. No one will blame you if you decide to leave. We’ll also be making rounds with your parents by visiting their houses over the week. We’ve already contacted them about the situation, but we also want for you to come to your conclusions. I trust you all can care for your own safety.”

And with that, the meeting adjourned, and Aizawa brought out his best pressed suit to eat crow in front of the parents of all of his students.

To his surprise, all of the parents allow their children to continue attendance if they so wish to. Well, some were much more worried than others. Bakugou’s mother for instance—whom he looks like to almost a startling degree—was more concerned about her son’s strength and making sure he doesn’t force any lag in the class.

“He’s a smart boy with a strong Quirk and a hard-ass head,” she boasted, smacking him on the back of said head when a curse uttered out of his mouth. “If he couldn’t face up against some janky villains in front of him, he’d be useless as hero.”

Endeavor had said something similar.

“Shouto won’t be leaving U.A. It’s his destiny to become a hero, and he will do it from that school. The danger doesn’t matter—if anything, it will only prove his strength to overcome it.”

Then there were parents like Asui’s, who Aizawa and Yagi couldn’t even meet in person.

“Welll...our daughter. She takes care of her siblings. But, well, it’s her dream,” the father of the house said in the Skype call, followed by a deep, throat-expanding croak.

“Right,” her mother said, her call from a different location than her husband’s. “I think it’s best to leave this kind of thing to Tsuyu. She knows what she can handle more than we do. I’m just worried about her.”

“But she’s a tough girl,” the father said. “She can make the decision by herself.”

Or Tokoyami’s.

“I think it’ll be fine if he attends. His quirk use has improved since he started attending that school, after all,” the boy’s bird-faced mother said, the long eyelashes of a Secretary Bird blinking at the two men across from her. “If anything...I’d consider it better quirk therapy than he’d been getting before. If he wants to stay, I’ll have no objections.”

“Indeed,” a human-faced man says beside her, holding one of her hands. His hair is very dark and slicked back, two wisps of a mustache and a goatee on his face. “We’ve always loved our little Fumi-kun, but his quirk can be a bit rowdy. But he’s grown more confident in his control since going to the school. We’d hate to take that away from him.”

Or the Ashidos.

“You all will be looking out for her, right?” Mr. Ashido asks. There’s a well-kept shrine at the back corner of the room with a woman’s face. She looks fairly plain, with glasses that shade her eyes and a salaryman’s smile, but there’s a tint to the grin that hides a wild side. That same woman is in a picture of the Ashido family together, the two doting parents coddling their baby girl, the father’s purple skin and completely white eyes a contrast to his daughter’s pink and black. The man in front of them cries viscous tears. “You’ll be looking out for her...and protecting her...and this...she’s wanted this for so long. I...I won’t take this away from her if she wants this. She’s my baby girl...reminds me so much of her mother...so I know. I know she’d hate it if I took this decision away from her.” He smiles wetly. “She’s a hero at heart.”

In the end, Mr. Ashido knows his daughter well. 

She’s the first out of both classes to say she’ll continue.

Eyes wide, clenched fists shivering as she grins up at Aizawa, she proclaims that she’ll continue the path to becoming a hero.

Bakugou’s a close second, saying he wouldn’t be worth his shit if he backed out because things got a little tough.

But it’s not a little tough, it’s a serious threat to his health, and Aizawa begins to wonder what else Bakugou has gotten from his family.

Todoroki’s a close third. He’s particularly expressionless when he says it.

And one after another, his class progressively continues to state their approval to continue.

Vlad King loses a student, a young girl with a bright future, and a kind but unremarkable smile. Her presence hadn’t been particularly noted and her performance during the Sports Festival was lackluster. All Might’s confession had been the final nail in an already built coffin.

After a quick evaluation of the Sports Festival and current class scores, Shinsou Hitoshi’s family are given a visit and a full run-down.

Shinsou approves of his class acceptance the very next day.

The following Monday, nearly all of the same students are sitting in the meeting room, with the new addition of a purple-haired, baggy-eyed boy in 1-B, his slouch hiding his excitement at finally being in the hero course.

Monday’s meeting is headed by Principal Nedzu instead.

“We’ll give you your new class schedules by the end of the meeting. After all, with the threat you all will face from here on out, more than ever, we need to promote cohesiveness and work ethic! So, while you all will be in classes 1-A and 1-B, your hero classes will be taught at the same time.” Before a blond 1-B boy could start complaining, Aizawa finds himself impressed by the efforts of a orange haired girl in the same class, a quick smack to the back of his head shutting him up before he can start. “Of course, working together won’t be enough just to prepare you all for your futures as heroes. So! I’ve taken the liberty to hire on a new staff member who will be looking over your quirks today.”

The students begin to look at each other, a low murmur rumbling from the crowd.

“The new staff member is an expert in the field of Quirk Studies. Even though she doesn’t yet have a degree in the subject, she’s already written theories that surpass dissertation-levels of attention to detail. From the regimes she’s written for several heroes, they have already seen improvements in their bodily functions and in their quirk efficiency.”

The mumbles increase, but a quick glare from Aizawa silences them, 1-B a little startled, not used to the firm handling.

“Then, I hope you all give a warm welcome to our new staff member!” Principal Nedzu cheers, clapping his paws together.

The students in the crowd start clapping as well, ready to see the new teacher...well, counselor.

The slight clack of little heels from behind the side curtain alerted them of her presence, which began getting Mineta and Kaminari a little hyped up.

The first thing they see is a small red heel. It has a low heel with two criss-crossed straps around the black stocking-covered ankles. A red skirt flutters into view, followed by a long-sleeved button-down with a cute string bow tied under her shirt collar.

The clapping peters off, and four students in particular freeze solid and turn blue with horror.

The girl’s peach gloss gleams in the overhead lights, and greenish-black hair curls loosely down her back and over her shoulders, her eyes covered by her bangs. But they don’t hide the smattering of freckles all over her cheeks. With the click of her feet, she stops beside the podium and smiles happily at the crowd.

“This is Kobayashi Chouko. She looks pretty young, don’t you think? I’m sure many of you are surprised, aren’t you? Of course, a few of you already know her, hahaha!”

The principal’s laugh is pointed, humored but serious, and the four boys feel their stomachs drop into their guts.

“As I was saying, Kobayashi Chouko will be attending the school both as a student and as your new Quirk Counselor. After you all do a few designated exercises today, she will be compiling the information she has with the new stats that you all will be giving her today. Then, one by one, you all will be meeting her in her office for a personal consultation! From then on, we’ll continue your training and improvements based on her studies of your quirks and personalities. Do you have anything you’d like to say, Kobayashi-san?”

“Ah, yes, I do!” Kobayashi claps her hands together with a pretty smile on her face, cheeks flushed. “I really hope I can get along well with you all from here on out! So, please go get in your gym clothes and meet us on Field A! Okay~?”