NOVEL NEXT {Part 2} The Thrice-Accursed School
"Once you start disliking someone,
everything they do is irritating.
But when they are actually doing irritant things, it gets even worse."
-Unknown
Deku and Izuku quickly made their way to U.A., the latter especially nervous upon the revelation that he was late. The kid was quite literally shaking when he realized and hurriedly dragged Deku alongside him with astounding speed - so much so that a cloud of dirt rose up in his wake - it reminded him of Uraraka and her feet of stunning speed back when he hadn't even been a 'student' of U.A. yet.
(Was it some kind of special technique that only U.A. students had access to? Then why didn't he learn it?)
In mere minutes, they had arrived at the truly ginormous buildings the composed U.A., with Izuku's fascinating speed seeming to dissipate away the moment he got within the premises. Now, the kid looked like a soggy noodle; he was liberally soaked in cold sweat.
"...Calm down. You're just late; is it necessary to freak yourself out about this?"
He had clearly gone off to looney land.
"T-This is the first time I've ever been late... T-T-the teachers are going to be so disappointed and K-Kacchan will absolutely hate me-"
Deku...
Deku just stared at the soggy noodle of a person in front of him. That was actually him. Ugh.
He felt his patience and sanity melt like snow in the spring (with only the hardest and most stubborn chunks of sanity remaining). Thus, he didn't comfort the soggy noodle, nor did he do anything. He just silently stood there, wishing for this day to be over, and plotting rather extreme plots to get back at Bakugo. If that little bugger hadn't charged into the portal, if he wasn't as nice as he was, he'd be in his little, cozy apartment reading a good book with a cup of hot chocolate in his hands.
Eventually, it seemed like even soggy noodle had calmed down, although he still looked he was having a seizure.
"Are you done now?"
"Y-Yes..."
He opened his tightly shut eyes, before nonchalantly walking into the building. He hoped he wouldn't get a migraine from this. He already had a perpetual headache because of his quirk; he didn't want it to happen anyway because of the events in his life. That would be sad.
"W-Wait, you need an ID or the alarms will go off-..."
He grabbed for the ID within his vest, subtly burning a line across his name and in a few other locations on his ID to make it look natural, before holding it up to the scanner at the entrance of the building. As long as the barcode was still visible and useable, it didn't matter how many tears and scars decorated the surface of the card. He had checked himself; that barcode, in particular, was just a general one that notified U.A. that a student was the one entering; it didn't specify the name of the student.
It made sense; UA didn't just have Hero Course students, but an impressive line-up of classes that extended all the way to K.
Homeroom was for checking which student was actually there.
"It got a little wrecked on the journey here, but it still works."
He said his lie without the slightest change in expression, waving the card nonchalantly in the air to illustrate his non-existent point.
"A-Ah, sorry, I forgot that you were a U.A. student for a while there... I-If you don't mind me asking, what's your quirk?"
There was a peculiar look in his eyes like he didn't know if he wanted the answer or not.
"Lightning."
"H-Huh, sorry?"
He stared down at the soggy noodle in front of him. He had literally just asked this question-...
Calm. Calm is a virtue.
"My quirk."
His expression turned downcast in an instant like a once sunny sky had been shadowed over with clouds.
(He didn't like it, he wasn't supposed to look like him-)
"...Did you really want to get lightning as a quirk or something? I'm sure your quirk is fine. You got into U.A., after all."
(And didn't that sting-)
That seemed to snap him out of whatever funk he was in, but his smiles were a tad bit hollow.
"Yeah... You're right."
"I'm a-... Two Midoriyas?! Oh my... Although one has gray hair..."
He turned around to find Principal Nezu, once more. He had welcomed him when he himself was a 'student' here, and it seemed like he was here once more to see the late student once more. It was like it was fate. But Deku didn't like it. Even now, he wasn't sure if Nezu had known all along or if it was just an act. He didn't dare underestimate him, as a creature with intelligence as its quirk.
'I wonder how both Nezu and Soggy Noodle recognized me immediately, now that I think about it. I still do have gray hair currently. I can understand Soggy Noodle, considering we have the exact same face, but Nezu shouldn't have seen 'me' too many times...'
"Mr. Principal! Uhh, you see... It's-... It's a little complicated..."
Nezu's voice turned cold and soft, in what seemed like a contradiction, but it fit rather well with him.
"Do come inside, and explain. I'll get some tea to sip on."
Deku had the urge to widen his eyes in horror, but he barely suppressed it.
"I see... This is indeed a rather large problem. We can help you search for your friend if you'd like."
'If they discover that Kurogiri is a villain, things could go wrong... Actually, I can just pin the blame on this world's Kurogiri and act shocked like his very existence betrayed my trust. That should do it. No-one actually knows what my universe is like, after all.'
"Yes, your help would be appreciated."
Nezu took another sip from his cup of tea, before smiling.
"Of course. We must help our students, even ones from alternate universes," The bell echoed throughout the room, loud and squeaky. "Why don't the two of you go eat lunch? Midoriya-kun, the green one, you can go ahead and tell your classmates; he'll inevitably be found out, so it would be better to clarify now."
"Understood."
The moment Soggy Noddle stepped out the door, his posture slumped as he sighed out loud.
(He was just calling him soggy noodle at first for laughs, but it really did suit him... He went from unprepared spaghetti to boiled spaghetti at the drop of a hat, flopping all over the place. He didn't dare think about the fact that this was technically him, or he would go ballistic.)
Still, there was one thing he was curious about. Even back then, he wasn't this bad.
"Why are you so anxious in the first place? No one will bite you if you speak your mind. ...Actually, even if the Principal actually bit you, it wouldn't hurt."
"Ah, well, umm, Mr, Principal and the rest are great heroes and I don't want to make a bad impression. I was already late today, and-"
'Oh right. Hero worship. Now it all makes sense.'
Fortunately, they soon reached the food cafeteria, and he was forced to stop-...
Ah great, they were being swarmed by teenagers now.
Each one was eager to find out exactly why he was late and had only shown up just down. Deku slightly stepped away from the horde, and left soggy noodle, no, Izuku - he was fulfilling his duty as a sacrifice and that deserved respect - as fast as he could without being noticed. He let his weary body collapse onto the long table with relief. It was just a few hours since he had arrived in this world, but it had felt like days.
'...I don't remember being this popular when I did go to U.A. Well, it seems like he enjoys it at least. Although, I can't understand why.'
He just rested his head there for a few seconds, before he heard a loud shout near him, that he grudgingly looked up with a start.
"Deku!" The sound of his name threw him off guard. But soon enough he realized he wasn't the one it was directed at. "Why didn't you show up for combat practice, huh? I still need to pummel you to the ground for last time, where you won the fight like a fucking coward!"
"K-Kacchan, I-... I didn't... That wasn't..."
He sighed and tucked in the chair behind him.
His eyes were cold as he silently made his way to Izuku's side without none of the students being able to notice him.
He lightly clamped his hand on Izuku's shoulder, letting him know of his presence.
"Y-You disappeared for a moment there-..."
"Izuku, you have a reason for being late. Just calmly say it without stuttering. Don't let him intimidate you."
"And who the hell are you?"
Bakugo's eyes narrowed dangerously (in what he saw as dangerous, really), a wisp of real confusion in his eyes.
The guy in front of him felt weirdly familiar. It was bugging him a lot.
Deku's eyes were cold. He had been forced to admit his Bakugo had grown up, but this one... He hadn't at all.
His image was the same as the one that kicked him, burnt him, and destroyed his dreams.
His sympathy was dangerously close to zero, but he wouldn't act against him on school grounds.
Physically, anyway.
"And who would you be to be acting like a bitch? Going around and mindlessly biting everyone?"
The cafeteria was deathly silent.
Bakugo was silent.
Izuku was staring onwards in horror.
"...What did you say I was?"
"Can you not hear me either? I thought I enunciated it particularly well, though. Bitch-san. Or are you just deaf?"
His smile was cold and deadly, but it wasn't enough to douse the flames of this Bakugo's rage. With a wordless snarl, he punched forward with an explosive charge that would probably hurt Deku for quite a while, but not be life-threatening. In fact, he wasn't even aiming for anything too damaging.
'Well, he's not all bad, I suppose. Just majorly.'
He looked at the oncoming punch with evil eyes as he side-stepped the punch and grabbed Bakugo's wrist in one swift motion. He threw him with his entire weight, sending him crashing to the ground, hard. He would probably have the bruises for quite a while.
"Stop the fight-..."
The lethargic teacher stared at them all, particulary closely at Deku.
"You, huh? Nezu told me about you, but to think you've already started a ruckus..."
"I sincerely apologize, Mr. Aizawa."
The teacher's eyes widened slightly, but they soon returned to their droopy position.
"Why am I surprised that you know me? If you do... You should know the punishment for starting a fight."
Deku's eyes were as still as a puddle of dead water.
"But I didn't start the fight, Aizawa-sensei, I simply defended myself."
He laughed.
"Weren't you the one to anger him in the first place? Very good taunts, by the way."
"Sir, I simply said the truth. It was him that choose to be mad at it. Besides, he was the one pressuring students. We are supposed to be heroes, no? Then it is only right that I stand up for the weak and helpless. There was no telling what he would have done in his violate-"
The lethargic teacher sighed, cutting off Deku's speech.
"I get it, I get it. It seems that no matter the version, you always talk a lot... This is Nezu's problem, not mine. I'm just here to make an announcement that Nezu decided on after careful consideration... You all, listen up! This is your new classmate..."
"Izuku Midoriya."