Mystic

Chapter Four

        The day had finally come. Today was the UA Sports Festival and the day I would finally be free. Sure, I still had to come to class Monday through Saturday, but I'd actually get to go home after school instead of hanging out with an elderly woman. I had thanked Izuku profusely for allowing me to stay with him, which I think threw him off a bit, but he deserved the praise.

        During the two weeks of my time here at UA High, I had tried to make some friends. Unfortunately, no one really wanted to talk to me. They still seemed a bit uneasy about having someone who could be a villain nearby. I wasn't sure what I would need to do to prove my innocence. For the time being, winning the competition would have to do.

        Kacchan hadn't garnered our class a lot of support from the other first years. He acted as though he was a god, which wasn't anything new, and made certain that the general studies class that had been scoping us out the other day hated us with a burning passion. I was afraid he was gonna lead us all to our graves at the rate things were going. It would be better for him to just shut his mouth sometimes. His pride was just as infuriating as it had been when we'd been 'friends'. I used the term lightly.

        At the moment, all of Class 1-A was awaiting our summons to the stadium. We'd been given a waiting room to, well, wait in until we were called out. Despite us all having costumes, we'd been forced to wear the school's gym uniforms. Ashido wasn't very pleased by this, as she voiced to Ojiro. I hadn't exactly been avoiding the others, though my lone chair in the corner didn't do much to support this fact. People just didn't make any attempt to drag me into their conversations. In a way, I appreciated the silence. It wouldn't be long before—

        "Everyone, get your game faces on!" Ida cried, coming into the waiting room. "We are entering the arena soon."

        As the room erupted with voices attempting to calm themselves, I watched Todoroki make his way over to Izuku.

        "Midoriya," he said, grabbing the kid's attention. I found myself watching their interaction with interest along with the rest of my classmates.

        "Hey, Todoroki. What's up?"

        "From an objective standpoint, I think it's fairly clear that I'm stronger than you."

        "Uh— Um, yeah" Izuku's face dropped, seemingly disappointed.

        "However, you've got All Might in your corner, helping you out. I'm not here to pry about what's going on between you two. But know that I will beat you."

        Kaminari gasped. "What's with all these declarations of war lately?"

        "Yeah, what's the big deal?" Asked Kirishima, resting a hand on Todoroki's right shoulder. "Why are you pickin' a fight all of a sudden? And right before we get started. . ."

        "We're not here to be each other's friends," Todoroki replied. "Don't forget. This isn't a team effort."

        He walked off, leaving the two of them behind. I couldn't lie, he sorta intimidated me. At the same time, I just felt more eager to beat him now.

        Izuku spoke up. "Wait a sec, Todoroki. I don't know what's going through your head or why you think you'd need to tell me that you'll beat me. And, yeah, of course you're better than me. In fact, you probably have way more potential than anyone in the hero course. That's why you got in so easily."

        "Midoriya," Kirishima started. "Maybe you're being a little hard on yourself, and us."

        "No, he's right, you guys. All the other courses, they're coming for us with everything they've got. We're all gonna have to fight to stand out. And I'll be aiming for the top, too."