Aiya's feet find the ground easily beneath her. Across the arena, Kaede stares her down. The intense look is nothing she isn't used to, but the implications of this battle—what it could mean for them, for her—is almost too much.

She clenches the hem of her jacket once to settle herself, then lets it go. Her hand brushes against her pouch of pixie dust at her hip. It won't work against Kaede, this she knows, but she's gotten so used to fighting with it that she worries removing it would throw her off.

"You're not seeing double, folks!" Chemex exclaims. "We're about to watch a rare twin face-off!"

Kumarēza tosses his coat glamorously over his shoulder, and the crowd goes wild. "I'm on the edge of my seat, Chemex! These two have been fierce competitors so far in the competition. How will they stack up against one another?"

"Only one way to find out!" she cheers, practically bouncing with anticipation.

Together, the teachers shout the highly-awaited, "BEGIN!"

The twins leap from the ground and zip toward each other, connecting mid-air. As they have trained together, they know each other's moves and can anticipate each other's actions. Aiya raises her arm to swat aside Kaede's punch, and Kaede flaps to gain altitude and avoids Aiya's kick.

The blonde reaches for her sister's leg, but she's already out of reach. She ascends to meet her twin once again. Kaede moves to kick down at her incoming sister, but Aiya flies aside and catches her twin around the waist.

The impact creates a stir in the crowd. They cheer in delight, watching every move the sisters make. Such an evenly-matched fight captures the audience's rapt attention.

Neither twin can get a clean shot as they grapple with each other, unable to get enough force behind their attacks. They wrestle through the air, gradually fluttering to the ground.

The instant their feet hit the cement, Aiya turns and kicks Kaede hard in the side. The redhead stumbles back, allowing Aiya to advance. In the blonde's mind, she's back in the field behind their house. She can almost feel the dusty ground under her feet, hear the dragonflies buzzing in her ear.

Aiya feeds upon the momentum of landing a good hit. She blocks another punch and lands a direct kick to Kaede's chest, toppling her to the ground. The audience cheers upon seeing one sister make headway.

"I guess I can still hold my own, huh?" Aiya taunts her twin.

"We'll see about that." Kaede launches herself from the ground and catches Aiya on the shoulders, forcing her backward onto the cement.

All the air leaves Aiya's lungs. She half-heartedly raises an arm as Kaede straddles her and drives a punch straight to her face. Caught between her fist and the cement arena, Aiya's vision goes fuzzy.

Her sage eyes gleam with tears, staring up at her sister in shock. She's never done something like that before when they were sparring.

This isn't a sparring match, Aiya tells herself over the rushing in her ears. She grits her teeth, swats aside her sister's hand, and punches her in the nose. Kaede reels, allowing Aiya to flip her over. Before the blonde can center her balance, Kaede yanks her sister's hair and flips her back.

They tumble over the ground, each trying to gain the upper hand. Aiya tries to elbow her way out from underneath Kaede, but the redhead keeps a strong grasp on her hair, making her eyes water. Aiya tries for a move she learned from Takara, leaning up to headbutt her sister.

This doesn't have the desired effect, instead making Aiya more woozy. She throws her hand out in a desperate attempt to hit her twin when she's least expecting it, but Kaede isn't as dazed from her sister's move. She pulls back to avoid the sloppy punch.

Kaede rolls to the side, onto her back, and uses the momentum to fling her dazed sister over the boundary line.

"Aiya Komatso is out of bounds," Chemex announces. The crowd cheers for Kaede as she pushes herself to her feet and waves with her bruised hand, smiling brightly.

Deep within the hallways of the arena, Takara hears the announcement and clenches her fists.

•°•☆•°•

Kaito's hand develops a warm glow. "Those last few matches were pretty crazy," he says with a confident smile. "Let's lighten the mood."

He shoots a beam of light into Takara's jade-coated arm as she stalks toward him. She giggles at his pun. "Sounds good to me."

Noticing his first attack didn't do much, he tries again. "Guess we're in a bit of a rocky situation," he quips, firing another beam of light for her to block with her forearm.

"You're definitely staying sunny despite it."

"What can I say?" Kaito asks with an even wider smile. "I like to look at the bright side!" Using both his hands, he shoots a scalding beam of light at Takara's face. The attack stops her in her tracks. She crosses her arms, blocking the onslaught, but her eyes water from the brightness.

The ray dissipates, and Kaito fires another few beams of light at her as he tries to get to a more favorable position. The brunette knows this is no different from her training with Sugita, so she sets her feet firmly and defends against the beam.

She advances slowly, forcing Kaito to a corner of the arena. He tries to rush to the side, but Takara swiftly blocks his path. Sensing immediate danger, the boy's hands glow with a searing light. The air above them wavers with heat. Even as she blinks, the after-image of the light clouds her view.

Takara crouches to sweep his legs out from underneath him, but it isn't enough for him to be caught off guard. He jumps over her leg smoothly.

With her opponent already in the corner, Takara knows she should try her best to get him out of bounds. The boy from 1-B is ready to fire a strong beam of light at her to hopefully gain some distance when she pops back up. However, she jumps directly at him, jade-encrusted forehead smashing into his nose.

He reels back and fires off a ray of light anyway, directing it through his blurred vision. It's at this state that a person's attacks become reckless. The wayward beam hits Takara in the shoulder and catches her off guard enough to topple her. Heat crawls into her skin from the constant heating of her jade. Insulating as it is, it doesn't cool down easily. Now, the heat sears her skin like a sunburn.

She forces herself back to her feet and grits her teeth against the pain. Takara takes a deep breath and recenters herself; she knows she can pull through.

The girl swings quickly, and her fist connects with Kaito's face. He stumbles back, already preparing another beam of light, though Takara doesn't let him use it.

Stalking forward, the brunette deals an incessant array of blows on Kaito. She doesn't want to hurt him too badly, but she hits him solidly enough that he has to keep stepping back to keep his balance.

Takara reaches out to push him over the line, but he catches her wrists in his burning hands. The heat licks at her exposed palms, searing the skin. She gasps in pain and drives both of them forward, inching Kaito's heel closer and closer to the edge.

His shoes scuffs against the ground, and he stumbles over the line. He releases Takara's wrists as his defeat is announced.

"Oba is out of bounds," Kumarēza exclaims. "Juba advances to the semifinals!"

Both students drip with sweat. Despite his defeat, Kaito gives his opponent a bright smile and puts his hand out. "Good job!"

"Thanks!" Takara is about to grab his hand, but thinks better of it when she feels the burns tugging at her skin. She sharply inhales, shocked that such a little movement could make them hurt so bad.

"Oh, uh," Kaito fumbles, blinking before extending his elbow instead. She grins and knocks her own elbow against it, accepting it as a replacement for a handshake.

Together, the opponents head off to Recovery Girl's office. Takara's chest swells with pride, not only that she won her match, but also that she's on good terms with yet another student from 1-B. She wonders how scandalized Rosebud will be when she sees all the hero students being so buddy-buddy.

Kaito chuckles to himself as they walk. "You'd think with how many students need to be rushed down here, they'd make the infirmary a little closer."

"Oh, tell me about it!" Takara nods, examining her outstretched hands. "I've been sent to Recovery Girl more times than I can count today."

"I hope you don't have a concussion," the boy quips, to which Takara giggles.

"I doubt it; I've got a hard head."

Kaito touches his swelling nose with a wince. "You don't say."

The two enter the infirmary to see Recovery Girl tending to Araya. She listens to his deep breaths with her stethoscope. In the corner Hirose rolls out from underneath an array of heat lamps.

His arm glows along phantom fractures. The golden heat from the lamps clings to his porcelain, fusing the pieces back together. Takara's eyes are drawn to the glowing web along the pale glass. She ponders how the light creates sharp contrast along each angle. If she were to paint it, she thinks she might call it Healing.

"That was quick," Hirose says. Despite his even smile, his words have the slightest bite to them. "Guess that means I'm up."

Kaito gives him a smile and pats him on the shoulder. "Yeah, good luck."

"You can't stay out of my office for one event?" Recovery Girl gripes upon seeing Takara and loops her stethoscope around her neck. She takes a wobbly step down from her step-stool. "You're all set, Araya."

"Thanks." The boy walks up to Takara as Recovery Girl plants a kiss on the girl's blistered hands. Araya's pupils have been reduced to thin slits as he glances over to a more secluded hospital bed. Aiya's blonde hair lays tousled on the pillow, sleeping off the nurse's healing quirk. "What happened?"

Takara sighs, recalling the sight of the robot gurney carting her friend off. "Her fight happened. I didn't see the whole thing, but Kaede won. Aiya put up a good fight though from what I could tell."

A deep growl rumbles from Araya's chest, but he bites his lip to silence it. Takara nudges him with her elbow. "But hey, I won! I'm going to the semi-finals!"

Araya turns his attention back to the girl, wearing an even smile. Despite his relaxed posture, his ears remain alert. "Congrats," he says with a smile, showing off those sharp canines.

"I'll see you around, Juba," Kaito chirps as he's led away by Recovery Girl to treat the abrasions on his face. "Good luck!"

"Thanks!" Takara waves to him and walks out by Araya's side. A rush of fatigue hits her as the blisters on her hand smooth out to soft skin.

Her classmate reaches out to steady her when she stumbles to the side. "Whoa, careful Juba."

The girl rubs at her eyes and rights herself. "You know you can call me Takara," she admonishes in a dreary attempt at a playful tone.

"Fine," Araya chuckles, wrapping an arm around her to keep her upright as they walk to the stands. "You gonna be alright? You've still got another fight."

"And another after that!" she cheers, raising her fist triumphantly in the air. "I'm gonna win!"

"That's the spirit."

"Though a nap would be nice."

Araya laughs, ushering her out to the 1-A stands. "I'll have Morita wake you when you need to go to the prep room, but you have to keep yourself awake from there."

"Deal."

As Araya sits her down next to said friend, they catch a glimpse of the fight between Hirose and Ohara. Fire blasts into the air from the girl's flamethrower. Hirose has become a cloud of glass particles, swarming her from every side. Pieces of him lay useless on the battlefield.

"Oh damn," Takara mumbles, the intense fight waking her up.

"She used a bunch of tape for a while," Morita explains. "Just like Cellophane. But Hirose is just everywhere."

With Ohara's attention focused elsewhere, Hirose's pieces pry up a strip of tape from the arena floor. Pulling it around her, he pushes the girl to the edge, then snaps the tape taut, slingshotting her from the arena.

"Uh oh, looks like her own strategy has cost her," Chemex observes. "Hirose has won this match and will move onto the semifinals!"

"That means you're–" Takara glances around, but can't find Araya. She frowns and leans back in her seat. "I guess he already left."

Morita shrugs. "He didn't have much time to prep for his fight."

"He'll do great, though." Takara sends her gaze over to Class 1-B. "I hope."

Thank you to my wonderful friend JunieWeathers for lending me her sunshine boy, Kaito for my Sports Festival! I loved writing his fight with Takara and their banter!

Featured Character: Kaito Oba
Quirk: Light
Likes: Orange, Video Games, Chocolate Dorayaki, and Pro Heroes