The next week is filled with anxious preparations for the Sports Festival. Even so, the teachers don't leave much free time for the students. Their first tests take up much of their time. Between training and studying, excitement is limited to the wistful looks out the window at the construction of the arena.

The Friday before the festival, Class 1-A congregates in their morning class. Attention is low as the science teacher, Chemex, raps her knuckles against her desk. "I know we're not awake," she drones, "but can we at least pretend to be?"

The pro hero is still nursing her coffee. The cruel irony of giving the morning classes to a teacher who needs to be caffeinated isn't lost on Takara. Chemex shuffles through her files to pull out a pile of papers marked in sharp red scribbles.

"I've finished grading your exams," she says as she stands from her desk. The hero walks between the lab benches, returning the sheets.

When Takara receives hers, she looks through it to find a dark red blotch smeared over the third page. "Umm Chemex," she calls after her teacher. "What exactly is this?"

Chemex walks back and scans over the page with blank eyes. Usually her rich brown irises swirl with glowing color. However, before coffee has activated her quirk, her eyes are dull and motionless.

"Ink blot," the woman notes with a huff of a laugh. "That was towards the end of the night, and the coffee was running out. Sorry about that."

Takara nods and goes back to flipping through her exam. When she reaches the final page, her face lights up. Scrawled on the back is a 24/30 in narrow red writing. For a test with so many calculations, she's proud of herself for getting so many right.

Morita sets down her exam with a smile. Takara notices the score of 29/30 and nudges her friend's arm. "Good job!" she exclaims.

At the front of the class once again, Chemex drains the rest of her extra large coffee. She blinks, and her eyes begin bouncing their attention around the room. Every student can't help but think the same thing: there she goes...

From this point, the teacher launches into her lecture. The scratching of pencils on paper as the students hurriedly follow along is the only thing to fill the miniscule spaces between her sentences.

Chemex looks back over her shoulder at the class as she continues writing on the blackboard. Her eyes flick back and forth so fast they seem to be a sphere of pure brown. "And that would mean–" her eyes settle on Aiya's barely raised hand, "Komatso!"

Kaede whips her head up, wings fluttering in a panic. Chemex is known to call on random students on occasion. Her mouth hangs open as she consults her notes. In the seat next to her, however, Aiya is ready with the answer. "The object wouldn't move."

"Because?" Chemex probes further.

The blonde glances between her notebook and the teacher. "The force pushing in and the friction are greater than the force of gravity?"

"Exactly," she affirms, hastily sketching out the problem on the board. "And we'll show all the forces as arrows when we draw this..."

•°•☆•°•

How does she draw a perfect circle?" Araya inquires as he exits the class with Aiya and Takara.

The silver-eyed girl looks up at him. "No doubt her quirk comes into play. But with those jitters, I'd assume there'd be a lot more shaky lines."

"Talk about jitters," Aiya mumbles, flexing her hand. "She writes so fast I keep missing chunks of my words. My notes are basically illegible."

Araya readjusts his backpack. "We can compare notes later and try to fill in what we missed."

"Oh, I don't think so!" The blonde furrows her brows at him. "If I write another thing, I think my hand will just pop right off."

"Alright, no notes tonight," the boy concedes, hands raised.

"We've been doing so much, I just want a chill night."

Takara perks up with an idea. "Maybe we could have a cookout or something!"

Aiya's wings flutter. "That actually sounds awesome. We could have a campfire and everything."

"I haven't had a campfire in ages," Araya says, eyes glittering with happy memories. He blinks himself out of hit and stretches his lanky arms over his head, effectively untucking his shirt. "And we've been cooped up inside too long."

"We should invite the whole class!" Takara suggests. "I'm sure everyone needs a break before the festival."

"We have to clear it with McCaffery first, though," the boy points out with a shrug. "We don't even know if a fire is allowed."

"It actually is," their teacher says from behind them, causing the three students to jump. He trundles past them with his uneven steps, heading to their classroom. "Make sure it's ten meters from the nearest structure. I'm only giving Morita permission to light it. Nobody else is allowed to touch the fire," he adds with a knowing grin.

Takara reaches out to grip her friends' arms on either side. "That sounds like a yes," she remarks, a smile spreading over her features. "Let's go spread the word!"

The girl slides her grip down to grasp each of her friend's hands, pulling them along behind her. Aiya and Araya share a glance over her head, silently laughing at her enthusiasm, but eyes sparkling with excitement nonetheless.

•°•☆•°•

The prospect of a cookout has reinvigorated Class 1-A for their afternoon subjects. In the training gym, the students practice with new vigor. They have continued their warmups every day of regular hero training, which has been harder on Endo than the others. It's hard for Takara to watch, especially after witnessing her outburst that first night.

"You must keep going," their teacher growls, standing before the shadow girl as she struggles to do her tenth push up. "Fight through the pain! Prove you're not just your quirk, you deserve to be here!"

The brunette glances up to see Endo's arms shaking and her face dripping moisture onto the gym floor. While it's common enough for the ground to be covered in sweat, she can't help but think the girl is crying.

When the basic workout is over and they get into pairs to spar, Takara immediately approaches the shadow girl.

"Hey Endo," she chirps, making the girl turn around, startled. "Wanna partner up?"

Her neon blue eyes look the brunette up and down with trepidation. "Okay," she responds weakly, downtrodden from her struggle to keep up in basic training.

They watch Gila's demonstration of a spin back kick and are instructed to practice the movement until they can execute it at full speed and strength. Takara suggests they walk through the movements slowly and work to speed them up before practicing on each other. She tries to keep herself cheerful while working with the girl.

Once they have the movement under control, they decide to start sparring, agreeing to try and work in the kick as they go. Takara notices that Endo seems much less anxious without Gila standing over her. Her shadows seem to shift in anticipation rather than unease. The girl isn't necessarily calm, just less tense as they sink into fighting stances a couple feet away from each other.

"You ready?" Takara asks, shaking out her hands.

"If you are," Endo replies, the light on her fingers shining as she makes two fists.

Takara swings first, expecting the sidestep from her opponent, so she transfers her weight to try and execute the new kick. What she doesn't foresee is for her leg to be thrown aside, setting her off-balance. Endo throws a punch quicker than Takara expected, hitting her in the jaw. The crystals under her skin catch most of the force, but they still put pressure on her jawbone, nearly grinding against the bone itself.

The shock makes her stumble and fall, but she catches herself, hopping back to her feet and ignoring the ache in her face. However, she can't ignore the foot heading right for her chest. In the time it took her to get up, Endo had already transitioned into the spin back kick.

Takara tries to push aside her opponent's attack, much like the shadow girl had done to hers, but she can't move quick enough. Her chest takes the full force of the kick, sending her flying onto her back.

The air is knocked from Takara's lungs, and she has to regain her bearings as she lays there. Tilting her head up, she sees Endo standing where she was, hands still fisted, expecting retaliation.

"Gimme a sec," the brunette grumbles, pushing herself into a sitting person.

"Much better, Endo," Gila says as he walks past. "You seem to be getting the hang of this. Juba, there is no resting in battle. Stand to face your opponent."

As their teacher moves onto the next group, Takara pushes herself up to her feet at his words. "You're good at this," she notes, thinking about the smoothness with which the girl moves.

"It just wears me out so fast," Endo sighs.

"Well, you're quite a natural." From where she's standing, she just barely notices the shadows pause before continuing their usual dance around the girl. "Let's go again."

Next to them, Ozaki gives notes to his partner, Sugita, as they spar with one another. The blond spits out corrections with every few punches. Eventually, Sugita shakes out his wrapped hands with a wince.

"If you didn't insist on having daggers for nails, you wouldn't be having this problem," Ozaki gripes, grabbing his partner's wrist to examine the hand.

"It doesn't have to be that difficult," McCaffery interjects, shuffling up behind them. He plants his cane in front of him as he raises a hand to show another way of clenching his fingers rather than his whole hand.

Gila jogs over to provide his own input on the matter. "When I was in school, I couldn't extend and retract my claws all that quick," his voice rumbles. He extends the slate-grey talons for good measure. The long claws glint in the light as he mimics his fellow teacher. "It cut up my hands pretty good before I learned this little trick." The reptilian man beckons them over to a sparring dummy and sinks into a fighting stance. He slams the base of his palm into the sparring dummy's head, sending it toppling over.

"Similarly," McCaffery continues, having drawn the attention of the whole class, "this is one I used to teach in my self-defense lessons back home." He gestures for Gila to hold up a board for him, which he instantly obliges. "Hit with the side of your hand in a hammer-arm motion." At the first swing, the board begins to splinter. With the second, it buckles in Gila's grasp. McCaffery smiles ruefully, a hint of red tingeing his fair skin.

Ozaki glances down at his own hands as he tries out the new technique. His eyebrows remain furrowed, even as Sugita begins to practice. The teachers resume their circling of the class. Ozaki glances over to see Takara's stare. He cocks his head to the side. "It feels wrong."

Takara merely shrugs. "Whatever works."

"Can I have a try at that?" the blond asks Sugita. He nods, moving aside so Ozaki can have the room. "How are you holding your hand for that?"

The two compare their grips, their teacher coming over once more to make minor adjustments. When they have fallen into a groove with their training, Takara hears Sugita say, "What should I be doing to keep this from hurting so much?"

"Your hand?"

"No, my arm," he replies, rolling his left shoulder. "I used to play baseball, but this is different."

Ozaki snickers to himself. "I can tell, you lead with your elbow. Probably more than you should." He blinks, becoming contemplative. "I'd say, your arms are unbalanced. We can go to the gym after school, and I can show you what exercises will help you even out."

"We have the cookout tonight."

The blond shrugs. "We'll go before. We sure as hell aren't going tomorrow."

Sugita considers, once again rolling his shoulder. "Not for too long, though. I don't want to be too sore for the festival."

Ozaki inclines his head. "Fair enough."

At the end of their class, Takara notices Araya approaching Ozaki and Sugita. He flashes them his bright smile. "Mind if I tag along? I'd love to see what else I should be doing."

"Yeah sure," Ozaki mumbles, undoing his jacket and using the hem to wipe the sweat from his face.

Takara is about to ask the boys if she can join, but Morita skips up to her, hazel eyes alight with adrenaline, and any thought of further training leaves her mind. The girl loops her arm around Takara's waist, leading her to fall into step with her as they make their way back to the school. "So what's on the menu? I hear I'm in charge of the fire!"

Her hair glows like hot coals in her excitement, and Takara reaches over to pat it out, covering her hand with jade to protect against the heat. Their steps become almost imperceptibly closer, leaving Takara's arm to fall behind her friend's back, resting on her shoulder. She coughs into her opposite elbow. "Stop trying to smoke me out, you're gonna kill me," she quips, giving her friend a squeeze. "But to answer your question, I'm still deciding. Do you wanna come to the store with me after school to pick stuff out?"

Her friend gives her a bright smile. "Hell yeah!"

•°•☆•°•

Takara tugs a sweater over her t-shirt to block the chill of the fresh spring air. As the sun descends over the horizon, the gentle wind becomes brisk, and the girl's jade can't do anything to protect her from it.

"Ozaki!" Morita calls from inside the fire pit where she stocks the tinder. She waves to the boy, and he inclines his head in recognition, lumbering over. His soaked curls drip onto his simple black shirt.

Araya scoots over on his blanket to make room for their classmate. "Was it still busy when you left?"

Ozaki sighs heavily, crossing his legs underneath him. "Crazy," he grunts. "The Sports Festival has everyone panicking. As if working out the night before will do anything."

"Alright, step back," Morita calls, rubbing her hands together eagerly. The few students who had been passing her twigs return to their blankets. Morita shoves both arms up to her elbows into the woodpile and ignites them. In practically no time, a fire is blazing before them. The girl shakes her hair out in the wind, patting out the pesky embers that continue to glow.

Takara finds her eyes riveted to the sight. The vision of living flame makes her want to break out her acrylics and paint her friend. One day, she tells herself.

There is a brief moment of calm, with only the sounds of the crackling fire and rustling leaves, for the class to take a rare pause to enjoy a warm fire.

Hirose is the one to break the silence. "Food?" he inquires, huddling into his coat with the collar turned up against the gentle breeze.

"We should let the fire heat up a bit," Araya says, warming his hands. The grins at the boy, sharp canines flashing in the light of the golden flame. "What's the hurry?"

The blond somehow sits ramrod straight on his blanket. "I'd rather not dawdle out here longer than I have to." His sneer is met with an easy smile from Araya.

"We'll have you fed in no time," Sugita assures the boy. "Surely this won't take long to cook."

Morita elbows Sugita in the side, causing him to jolt and look affronted. "Says the one who isn't doing the cooking."

He bristles. "I can help."

"Chill out," Morita chuckles. "I'm just teasing. Too many hands would probably get in the way. You can hand me that pan over there, though."

"Of course."

As they begin setting up the cooking utensils, Takara stretches out next to Aiya. The pixie lies on her back, bare feet stretching towards the fire. Tonight, she wears half her hair up in two space buns with the rest tumbling loose. Her green eyes take in the few stars they can see through the smoke at twilight.

Takara inches her head closer, trying to follow her gaze, as if that works with the night sky. "What's that bright star?"

Aiya chuckles, covering her smile with the floppy sleeve of her sweater. "That's Venus."

"Oh, I thought it was the North Star."

"Good luck following it North, considering it's in the West."

This garners a laugh from Endo on Takara's other side. The shadowy girl leans back, craning her neck to look at the sky. "How many constellations do you know?" Her whispery voice is nearly lost in the sound of the crackling fire.

"Oh, plenty," the pixie sighs, looking up at the darkening sky. "My–our grandfather would always bring us out to the field behind our house with his telescope."

"He would quiz us on them," Kaede adds from across the fire. Her eyes remain fixed on the horizon.

Sugita's lavender eyes flick up from the food now sizzling in the pan, assisted by Morita's flaming hand. "What's your favorite?"

"Ly–" Kaede's answer comes quickly, but she hesitates, her eyes regaining focus. Across the blazing flames, she and Aiya share a brief look before she tears her gaze away. The redhead gives Sugita a smile and shrugs. "I like the Lynx. What about you?"

"The Cetus constellation has to be my favorite," he replies smoothly. He raises his hand to trace where it is. Takara watches the way the fire reflects off his rich brown skin to bring out the natural warm tones, so different from the purple glow of his quirk. It brings out the golden jewelry adorning his ears and fingers. He turns to Aiya, though her attention remains fixed on the sky and the column of smoke trailing up to it.

Takara nudges her friend subtly. "Centaurus," Aiya says tightly.

"I've always liked Orion," Ohara comments, stirring the contents of her own pan.

Kaede giggles. "Of course you would."

"Pardon?"

"He's the hunter, got the cool bow and arrow, seems right up your alley," the redhead reasons, folding her legs underneath her.

Ohara quirks a brow at the pixie. "Touché."

Takara prods Aiya's shoulder. "Well now you have to teach me them. I wanna know what my favorite is."

"Oh, I can already tell you what your favorite will be."

The brunette crosses her arms over her chest. "And how do you know that?"

Aiya gives her a knowing smile, pushing herself upright. She brushes a stray strand of hair over her ear and folds her hands in her lap. "You'll like Canis Major, aka the Black Dog. The star Sirius, the brightest star in the sky, sits at the dog's chest, so you'll always be able to find it."

"That does sound cool," Takara mumbles in awe. Her brow furrows. "And how would you know that?"

"Oh, come off it," Hirose implores. "You send dog memes in our class group chat every day."

"I do not."

"You do," Aiya confirms.

"We've all seen them," Sugita says, nodding.

Takara huffs but pauses to consider. "Not all of them are dog memes."

Ohara doesn't bother to look up from where she arranges the bowls as she recalls, "That's true, she sent a bird meme yesterday."

"Oh yeah, the one where it's flapping its wings so that it looks like a potato." Morita snorts out a laugh.

"There were some cat memes too," Araya points out. "But I'm not complaining; I appreciate the inclusivity."

"But mostly dogs," Hirose concludes with a haughty tilt to his chin.

Takara can't help the laugh that bubbles out, despite her best efforts. "Just eat your food."

The corners of Hirose's mouth tick up briefly. "Gladly," he says, accepting a bowl of yaki udon from Ohara.

And so the night goes, the class chatting and joking around before their first U.A. Sports Festival. The students manage to convince Hirose to stick around at least until dessert, but after that, the party starts to break up.

Takara runs around the dark front lawn with Araya and Morita as Aiya flies above, lobbing leftover marshmallows into the air for her friends to catch in their mouths. Sugita reminds everyone that they need to rest, so they resignedly put out the fire, making an agreement to do this more often as the weather warms.

Takara retires for the night with good food in her stomach, a smile on her face, and her friends on her mind, ready to take on whatever tomorrow brings.

Thank you so much for reading Jaded! We have come to the end of the first arc: the Welcome To UA Arc, as I like to call it. Get ready for next week when we begin the Sports Festival Arc!

Featured Character: Chemex
Quirk: Coffee Divination
Likes: Coffee