A few days passed after I was released from the hospital, I had to watch for three days straight as all of my friends went to school and I was forced to stay in the dorms to 'recuperate' and 'get in the right mental headspace'. No matter how many times I argued that it would be beneficial for me to attend school, all of the teachers refused to let me go to school yet. Dad and Papa kept telling me that it was my own good and that I would be returning to school after a few days off, but that didn't reassure me. I simply wanted to go back to school. It wasn't a hard concept to grasp. I wanted something to distract me. There was only so much talking to Natsu-san and medication could do. Sure, both of those things were extremely helpful, but that didn't stop the fact that I craved to return to my old routine. I craved at least some sense of normalcy which I had lost due to The Mission and the death of my parents. It seemed that even in death Hisashi and his actions held sway in my life.

Thankfully, on the fourth day, when everyone returned from school and shuffled off to their bedrooms to change out of their uniform, Dad came to talk to me about returning to school the next day.

"Izuku, follow me to my room, we need to talk about you returning to school." Dad sighed, beckoning me to follow. I grinned as I bounced after him, the prospect of returning to school was exhilarating and pulled me from the boring haze which had been hovering over me for the past couple of days.

"We've spoken to Natsu-san," Dad began with a sigh, "And she has heavily suggested that you return to school now. Seeing as tomorrow is a Friday, you will obviously only be going to school for one day. In that day the teachers will be observing you and seeing how you are dealing with it. I understand that you just want to return back to school, but your mental health is imperative and we don't want to put too much pressure on you. If at any point you feel overwhelmed or on the verge of panicking, all you have to do is tell someone and we'll make sure you feel safe."

I nodded in understanding, trying and failing to keep my joy sealed inside of me. As odd as it may be for a teenager to be excited to go to school, you can understand where I'm coming from when you consider that I'm going to my dream school and I'm training to be a hero. Dad smiled slightly at me, shaking his head at my obvious jubilation.

"Remember, Izuku, take your health into consideration whilst attending school. You've been away from school for around two weeks, and only one of those weeks was spent in safety. I don't really want you to return just yet, but I can't dictate that. If both you and Natsu-san think you can return to school then I won't argue. But, please, don't push yourself too hard." Dad's voice took on a slight pleading tone, he was obviously concerned for me. The concern my dad held for me was refreshing. It showed that he was nothing like Hisashi, who didn't care about me and actively tried to hurt me, Shota was nothing like that.

"I know, Dad. I will be careful, I know what my limit is. Did Natsu-san tell you that maybe I shouldn't fight others just yet? Cause I don't think I'm ready for that yet." I hummed.

"Yes, she did. You can practice your quirk control and special moves. We'll give you options when it comes to training, we can pull you out whenever you want." Dad explained.

After we spoke for a while longer, Dad and I bid each other farewell, I left the room after squeezing him in a hug. When I ran out fo the room, I ran headfirst into somebody else, causing us both to topple over onto the floor. I lay winded beside the person, fighting to regain my breath.

"Oof." a familiar voice groaned from beside me. I rolled onto my side and came face to face with the familiar violet eyes of my new brother. Upon seeing that it was Hitoshi, I beamed at him.

"Hitoshi! Hi, how are you?" I asked with excitement and enthusiasm in my voice.

"I'm doing well. Aside from the fact that I just got thrown to the floor by you. How are you so strong for a person so small?" Hitoshi grumbled. I laughed at him heartily as I pushed myself off of the floor and offered my hand out for him to take.

"I guess it's all the training I do. Where were you off to?" I queried with a tilted head.

"I was just going to see Shota, I want to talk to him about something," Hitoshi muttered with averted eyes. I nodded and wished him luck before bouncing off to the kitchen where I knew Kacchan and Kyoka were residing.

"Hey, Kacchan! Hey Kyo!" I exclaimed energetically. I watched as both of my best friends turned around and offered me small smiles, neither one of them were much for the same beaming smiles I presented to others.

"Hey, Izu, good day today?" Kyoka asked.

"Yeah. I get to return to school tomorrow. Isn't that cool! Plus, I think my medicine is working a bit too well today, I've had a ton of energy all day and I've been feeling quite happy." I explained, "But don't worry about that, what are you two up to?"

"Kat and I were just going to bake a cake. There isn't really a reason, we just want to." Kyoka explained as Kacchan silently nodded along, measuring out flour diligently as he did so.

"Can I help! I have nothing to do. I can't hang out with Shoto since he's out shopping with Momo and Auntie Nemuri. Tsu and Ochako are on their date. Iida is studying in his room and he doesn't like being disturbed and the Bakusquad are doing their weird ritualistic gaming thing." I listed off.

Kacchan scowled heavily upon hearing the class adopted nickname for his group of closely knitted friends. Kacchan tutted and snarled, "Don't call them that. They're fucking idiots. Anyway, if you're going to help, put on an apron and get to it, shit nerd, we don't have all day."

I quickly hurried over to the other side of the kitchen to pull my apron off of the wall. Everyone in the class had an apron, courtesy of Aoyama, it was his gift to us all when we first started living in the dorms. My apron was green and white with the silhouettes of different animals decorating it, Kyoka's was black with purple music notes and Kacchan's was black with orange and yellow explosions. "Hop to it, pipsqueak, we're going to make the best fucking cake this dorm has seen!"

Kacchan, Kyoka and I finished the cake in record time, all thanks to Kacchan's no-nonsense behaviour when it came to all things cooking. Though, Kacchan's attitude didn't stop Kyoka and me from messing about when his back was turned. I'm sure Kacchan figure out what we were doing, what with all of our laughter and the fact that both of us had flour in our hair, but he seemed to ignore our misbehaviour in favour of simply continuing to cook.

When the cake had come out of the oven and cooled enough, Kacchan let Kyoka and me decorate it, under his watchful eye of course. Even if he was being kind, he wouldn't take kindly to someone messing up his cake. Kyoka and I decorated the cake carefully, frosting it orange and adding black, green and white details such as swirls and shapes. It by no means looked professionally made, but given that we had no prior knowledge of how to decorate cakes, I'd like to say Kyoka and I did quite a good job. Kacchan also seemed to think so since he grunted something along the lines of 'not half bad' before taking the cake and storing it away so that we could have it for dessert after dinner. Kacchan was like a mother, strict when it came to matters of health. Kacchan sent Kyoka and me away, giggling like school children, ordering that we both take a shower to rid us of the remnants of baking which lingered on our skin and hung limply in our hair. We both saluted before we marched away, arms linked and laughing together. It was nice simply spending time with Kyoka and Kacchan. Although I had a plethora of close friends within our class, Kacchan and Kyoka were always ever so slightly closer to my heart given I had known them since childhood, spending time with them alone always boosted me mentally, no matter what. They had been with me through thick and thin, and they were dependable, I could rely on them no matter what.

As agreed upon, the following day found me sat at my desk, a beaming smile spread across my cheeks. I couldn't express just how joyous I was to be back in the classroom after so many weeks away. I was desperate to learn in a school environment and be surrounded by my friends. I had been deprived of the experience for far too long, all I wanted was to integrate back into what I had known up until recently.

"Izuku!" Ochako cheered as she bounced over to my seat, there were five minutes left until Dad was due in the classroom, plenty of time to mingle and socialise. "It's great to see you back in the classroom. I know you've been desperate to get back."

"Yeah, I'm so excited to be back!" I enthused.

"Speak any louder and they might hear you on mainland Asia." Kacchan snarked at the same time as me. I looked back at Kacchan with an unimpressed look on my face, my glare and the set of my lips speaking volumes about how Kacchan shouldn't butt into other people's conversations.

"Don't be rude Kacchan. If you've got a problem with Ochako, speak it out with her whilst you two fight or train after school, there's no need to use such a harsh tone." I chastised my best friend. Kacchan, like always, simply rolled his eyes and went back to listening to the conversation he had previously been engaged in before he stuck his nose where it didn't belong.

"Is he ok?" Ochako asked with a quirked head. I shrugged and muttered something along the lines of Kacchan being annoyed about something since the previous evening. He had been fine after we had finished decorating the cake, but at dinner, his mood had soured dramatically. I didn't have any idea what had occurred within that hour window to cause such a dramatic change in attitude, but Kacchan's mood hadn't improved since.

"Anyway, we're all glad to have you back, Deku." Ochako beamed before she skipped off to her seat and engaged in conversation with both Iida and Tsu. By the time I had turned back around in my chair, Dad had shuffled into the room and was stood behind the podium, waiting patiently for the class to quiet down. When we all finally simmered to a hush, Dad straightened up and looked out at us with tired eyes.

"Good morning, class," Dad grumbled sleepily.

"Good morning, Aizawa sensei," the class returned in a chipper tone which opposed Shota's. It was almost comedic how different the class was compared to our homeroom teacher. Despite the vast difference in attitudes between the class and Dad, we still had a good dynamic and I knew that Dad loved the class like we were his children (which, I guess, was the case for Hitoshi and me).

"Before Mic comes for your first lesson of the day, I have a few notices." Dad began, "First of all, therapy will be resuming for all of you. It will, once again, be mandatory. This is in light of the fact that you are all attending work studies and faced villains during that time. Furthermore, without exposing too much, I'm aware some of you are struggling but are not sure where to turn. All of you will be attending therapy once a month unless a health professional suggests otherwise.". Where once before declarations of therapy had been met with opposition, now, nobody opposed. We all knew that attending therapy would benefit us all.

"Our second order of business is that soon enough, we will have another resident living with us in the dorms until a new home is found for her. Eri is the child rescued during the hideout raid and she will be leaving the hospital within the next few weeks. Since she is very familiar with Izuku and seems to see me as the most trustworthy adult she has met thus far, I have been given temporary guardianship and therefore she will be living with me, meaning she will also be living with all of you. Please remember that Eri was in a delicate situation before this and therefore will be sensitive to certain things." Dad drawled, sending a sweeping gaze around the room. Apprehension and excitement mounted in my chest like building blocks at the announcement.

"Finally, the UA Culture Festival is coming up and you, as a class, need to decide upon an attraction to present to your fellow schoolmates. Since there has been so much villain activity as of late, the only ones permitted to attend are those in attendance of the school and some prestigious support companies. I strongly suggest you take this seriously. Whilst you may not have noticed, some of the other classes in the school see you as little more than nuisances and spoiled brats, this is your chance to prove them wrong. Think of this as a public support assignment. You'll have to garner and retain public support once you go pro, so learn from this." Dad's tone was serious and I couldn't help but straighten slightly in my chair. There were many components to being a hero, and public image and support were one of the many facets. "That is all for now, Mic should be here in a minute, don't cause too much trouble.". With that, Dad slouched out of the room and into the corridor, leaving us alone in the class.

"Wow, the Culture Festival sounds fun, I wonder what we should do?"

"We'll hold a vote this afternoon. I'm sure Aizawa sensei won't mind if we use the classroom for an extra half an hour."

"I can't believe a little girl is coming to live with us, seems so strange."

"She's adorable. She reminds me of cuddly kittens."

"I never thought I'd hear you say the word 'cuddly', Shinso, the word doesn't fit your whole aura."

Random sentences spiralled through the air and settled in my ears. I smiled gently to myself as the door opened and Papa enthusiastically bounced into the room, sending us all a hearty grin. "What's up, Little Listeners? Who's ready to learn English!"

The day passed in practically no time at all. Papa's lesson gave way to Auntie Nemuri's lesson which was soon followed by Ectoplasm after a brief break. After a delicious lunch served by Lunch Rush, we had a lesson with Cementos before finally having Hero Analytics with All Might. Despite the day seemingly passing by with a snap of fingers, I absorbed every piece of knowledge offered to me like a sponge. Despite not being that far behind the rest of the class, I still had to play catch up when it came to certain subjects. I may not be as outwardly competitive as Kacchan, but I was determined to surpass him in class rankings and I couldn't do that if I didn't pay attention in class.

When the end of the day came about, and All Might left the room with a bow, Iida and Yaomomo made their way to the front of the classroom, causing those who had started to rise from their seats to fall back down.

"Before everyone leaves, we must decide on something to do for the upcoming culture festival. As Aizawa sensei pointed out earlier, a lot of the people within our school hold disdain for us, so I believe we should cater a service or provide an enjoyable experience for the other students in the school." Yaomomo smiled at us with her disarming smile, "With that in mind, why don't we all come up with some ideas.". Iida stood behind Momo with a pen resting against the board, poised to write down every idea which was offered.

"Maid cafe!"

"Petting zoo!"

"Haunted House!"

"Fighting pit!"

"Fashion show!"

"Mochi stand!"

"Crepe stand!"

"Hand made hero merchandise!"

"Photoshoot!"

"Personal Portraits!"

"Music show!"

"Spirit summoning!"

"Comprehensive quiz on hero rules and regulations!"

"Tea room!"

"Fighting pit!"

"Kacchan don't repeat ideas!"

Several ideas were thrown towards Iida and Momo and the two of them did their best to jot down every single one of them, often asking people to repeat certain ideas. Due to the entire classes enthusiasm, it wasn't long until we had a list of 25 possible ideas.

"That seems like enough," Iida stated with a firm nod, "The next course of action is to eliminate the ideas which we know we will be unable to do. For example, I'm sure a fighting pit violates several rules, and so, therefore, will not be a contending idea.". Kacchan predictably huffed as his idea was rejected, grumbling under his breath about how 'nobody knew how to have fun anymore'. Kacchan's idea of fun was a rather threatening one.

And so the process continued. Ideas were struck odd of the board for various reasons. It was unsanitary. It was more self-indulgent than targeted towards cheering others up. 'Nobody want's to do a fucking quiz about hero rules, Four Eyes,' as Kacchan eloquently put it. Too hard. Too expensive. Too much effort. Too much work in so little time. Idea after idea was dismissed, leaving grumbling teens and crushed dreams in their wake. Soon enough, the ideas were whittled down to two.

"These are the two remaining ideas. A haunted house or a music show. Both of these ideas are doable within the time frame and will provide enjoyment for the festival-goers and us simultaneously." Iida said

"I pose we put this to a vote. Everyone in the class shall have one vote and shall decide whether they want to do a music show or a haunted house. Please bear in mind that there will be extra components to both ideas. For example, we will need to build a haunted house and create effects for it. For the music show, we will most likely have background dancers and people producing effects." Momo added on. Everyone nodded in understanding before they scribbled their vote onto a scrap piece of paper and took it to the front of the classroom.

After a few minutes of Iida and Yaomomo counting the votes, the two whispered amongst themselves for a second before standing straight and turning to us. "The votes have been counted and we are delighted to announce that we will be doing a music show," Iida announced to the class. Overall, the reaction of the class was positive, though I noticed Hitoshi and Tokoyami frown to themselves, they clearly wanted to do a haunted house.

"Seeing as the activity had been decided upon, we shall adjourn this meeting today. Oh, actually," Momo gasped as if she had suddenly thought of something, "Kyoka, Izuku and Bakugo, would you like to play for the festival? You do have experience after all."

I glanced at my two friends, silently conferring with them to see what their opinions on the matter were, they both looked back at me with a spark in their eyes which sent determination through my veins. The look the three of us shared conveyed a thirst to play. We hardly hesitated before answering in synch.

"Yes, we'd like to play." 

I have now finished writing this story! Yay! I'm going to be releasing two chapters every weekend now until I've posted every chapter. So one chapter on Saturday and another on Sunday.

Thank you for reading and I hope you have a wonderful day wherever you are.