Discord server, if you're interested: https://discord.gg/DSBF4dP 

~ 

The students spent a week creating and refining their techniques, as well as upgrading their hero costumes to better suit their needs. Izuku swapped out his goggles in favour of a tinted visor similar to Kaminari's, one that settled comfortably on his forehead and was easily shifted over his eyes when he needed to use Flashbang. During the training, he also discovered that a lot of his special moves from the previous timeline were a lot more difficult to accomplish due to his smaller, slighter form, and it was almost impossible to use while restraining himself to less than 10% of his power. He couldn't move fast enough to make a good Smokescreen, focusing his Quirk in one place for Power Surge would likely injure him, and his legs weren't really strong enough yet to create a good Earthquake, but he had spent a decent amount of time perfecting less intense versions that didn't run the risk of him hurting himself or someone else.

It was frustrating to be so limited, but he would have to deal with it, since this second chance allowed him to do so much good.

Their coach slowed to a stop outside the Provisional Licensing Exam Location, and everyone piled off, eager to finally put their skills into action. The building was massive, segmented with stripes of soft red and pastel yellow, looking oddly similar to a circus tent aside from the large spire twisting skyward on top. Izuku clutched at the case that contained his hero costume, holding it to his chest while he and his friends listened to Aizawa as he gave them the run-down of the situation. Tension was palpable in the air, and even though he knew he was totally capable of passing, the boy couldn't help but shift nervously on his feet, always betrayed by his over-active imagination plaguing him with the what-ifs.

He glanced aside when he noticed a familiar face approaching them, wearing Shiketsu uniform, with a white short-sleeve shirt and a navy-blue cap. Without thinking, Izuku grabbed Shouto's arm, wholly intending to march right over there and set things straight before taking note of his friend's questioning expression and realising that, oh, yeah, right, he should probably explain things to the boy, lest things end up even more bitter between the duo.

"You accidentally made a bad first impression on him when you briefly met at UA before. He was also a recommended student. Uh..." Izuku squinted, desperately trying to remember what he'd been told before. "I think... he had a bad run-in with Endeavour, and when you dismissed him, you reminded him of Endeavour. So, um... I figured it'd be good if you two started afresh, so that misunderstanding doesn't cause any trouble."

"I see," Shouto said lowly, frowning a little. "You're right. Thank you."

Izuku flashed a smile and linked their arms together, gaining raised eyebrows from his friend at the unusually enthusiastic contact. The boy merely laughed softly, practically prancing over to the Shiketsu student and placing his costume case on the ground before raising his hand in a friendly wave. They waited for the fellow first-year to unfold himself from the brutal bow, standing in an awkward silence as the two others stared at one another.

"Hello! I'm Midoriya Izuku, and this is my friend, Todoroki Shouto-kun," Izuku introduced, nudging his friend with their arms still locked loosely together.

"It's nice to meet you," Shouto said with a nod of acknowledgement that could be considered warm.

The tall boy faltered, his scowl morphing into something more uncertain at the unexpectedly pleasant greeting. "I'm Yoarashi Inasa! UA is simply incredible! I can't wait to see you all in action!" He exclaimed, although the overbearing enthusiasm seemed a little less genuine than before.

"You got in on recommendations, right?" He blinked in consideration, lips quirking up in the faintest of smiles. "You must be strong. I hope to see you in action, Yoarashi."

Izuku pumped a fist, grinning widely. "Let's all do our best!"

Yoarashi plastered on a smile that was just as bright. "Plus Ultra!"

His friends were already walking away, and he hastened to follow them, striding enthusiastically in a way that almost reminded Izuku of Mirio, not that the two had really met yet in the current timeline. The boy offered a thumbs-up to the rest of the Shiketsu students as they filtered past, all heading across the short plaza towards the front doors. Shouto disentangled his arm and raised it to brush through the red side of his hair, looking a little troubled.

"How did that meeting go before?" He asked quietly, turning to face his friend.

"It was a little rocky, but you overcame your differences during the exam, and then you two became pretty good friends," Izuku informed brightly, his smile softening a little at the vulnerable uncertainty in his companion's expression. "You're not Endeavour, Shouto-kun. I've told you before, haven't I – you're so much better than him."

"If you hadn't prompted me, I wouldn't have done anything because I don't remember him," he muttered, heterochromic eyes downcast.

"But you didn't have to come with me to fix things, did you? You could've just stayed back and not said anything. You wanted to sort this out, and you did, and that's amazing, okay?" Izuku reached up and patted his friend on the shoulder. "And really, could you ever imagine Endeavour being that polite?"

Shouto cracked a minuscule grin, shaking his head and letting his hand fall back to his side. "No."

Izuku heard a female voice call out his teacher's name, and he automatically sidled closer to the man, looking up at his absolutely exasperated face. Aizawa's shoulders were tensed and his jaw was jutted out frustratedly, but he slowly loosened up as he accepted his fate that arrived in the form of a cheerful lady with pale turquoise hair, an orange bandanna tied around her head and a dark grey tank top hugging her curves. The boy made the most of the distraction to quietly unclasp his case and retrieve something from the inside, quickly pulling the sticker off its plastic backing and lightly pressing it to his teacher's chest, half-hidden by the rolls of capture gear.

"Let's get married," Ms. Joke suggested, eyes closed in a serene smile as she motioned between the two of them with a yellow-gloved hand.

"No," Aizawa deadpanned, glaring down at his student when he couldn't stifle the giggle in time.

"No? Good one!" She exclaimed, bursting out laughing, palms over her stomach as she doubled over with her enthusiastic chuckles.

"You're hard to talk to as usual, Joke." The man's bland tone didn't change in the slightest.

"If you marry me, then we can make a happy family with never-ending laughter!" She beamed, one arm raised in a thumbs-up while the other hand rested on the white belt at her waist.

"A family like that can't be happy," Aizawa muttered dully, not even blinking.

"Plus, have you seen how terrifying his smile is? His laugh is probably just as scary!" Izuku added with a fake shudder, struggling to blank his face of mischief as he blinked innocently up at his teacher.

Ms. Joke turned her cyan gaze on the boy, a delighted giggle bubbling over her lips. "Oh, I like you! But, I think his smile is very unique and charming, really."

"Midoriya," Aizawa's tone was dangerous, his half-closed eyes leering down.

"Yes, sensei?" He responded amicably, entirely unaffected by the threatening voice that made his other classmates shiver.

The man narrowed his eyes, tapping a foot against the ground next to him. "Stand there."

"Of course!" He obediently shifted into place, green gaze almost crossing as he watched his teacher raise an arm and heavily rest it upon the student's mess of green curls.

"Who knew your height was good for something?" Aizawa flashed that creepy grin they'd been talking about, but instead of striking fear into their hearts, both of his companions burst out laughing.

"A joke! You made an actual joke! I knew it, I knew you were funny! I'm so happy, I could just kiss you!" She spluttered out between ragged breaths, wiping a tear from her eye as she straightened up.

The man's smile fell back into the murderous expression. "Don't."

"Oh, I love your quick retorts! You're so worth teasing, Eraser." Her gaze drifted to his chest, and she reached forward to lift up the capture gear to get a better look at the bright sticker on the black fabric of his shirt. "Number One Dad? Did you settle down and have a happy family? Without me? I'm hurt!"

He frowned, leaving his arm on the student's head as he shifted the ribbons aside with the other hand, face melting back into utter exasperation. "I don't have a family."

Izuku pouted, exaggerating his sad eyes as they filled with tears on cue. "You don't have a family? What do you mean? What about me?"

"You two are related?!" Joke gasped in wonder, reaching out to affectionately pinch the boy's freckled cheeks. "Who knew someone so cute and sweet could be related to someone like him? Don't listen to the killjoy, honey! He's mean to everyone!"

"Stop telling everyone we're related, Midoriya," Aizawa grumbled, lightly bringing his fist down on the kid's head.

"I will not!" He exclaimed defiantly, squinting and wrinkling his nose as the man aggressively rubbed his knuckles against the top of his head.

"Oh, this is just the cutest! I've never seen him act so soft before! What's your secret, Midoriya? I've been trying to get him to love me for years!" Joke gushed, stepping back and clasping her hands together as she twisted one foot against the ground.

Before he could coyly respond with whatever sprung to mind, Aizawa pressed a hand over his mouth to silence him. Izuku narrowed his eyes threateningly and licked the offending palm, causing the man to recoil and stare in annoyance at his hand.

"You disgust me," he said finally, roughly wiping away the saliva on the kid's shoulder.

The second year students of Ketsubutsu Academy gathered up behind Joke, and she twisted sideways to grin at them. A boy with messy black hair stepped forwards, an overly friendly smile on his face as he clasped Izuku's hands between his, stooping a little to compensate for the height difference that everyone seemed intent on reminding him about lately.

"I'm Shindo! UA this year's had trouble after trouble so it must've been tough!" He didn't wait for a response before darting off to Kaminari and doing the same. "But even so, you are all still aiming to be heroes like this, huh?" He moved onto a very confused Jirou. "That's wonderful!" He clenched a fist and winked, sparkling in a way that made Aoyama jealous. "Ah, Bakugou. Today, I'll do my best while learning from you!"

Kacchan slapped away the offered hand, turning away with a glower. "Stop pretending. What you're saying doesn't match the look on your face!"

"Hey! Stop being so rude!" Eijirou reprimanded loudly.

"Play nice, Kacchan!" Izuku called over, shaking his head in amusement as the glare was levelled on him, narrowing with peculiar suspicion.

"It's the truth. He's just trying to get us to lower our guard!" Kacchan snapped back, lip curled and teeth bared, hands shoved deep into pockets, but he didn't dare get any more violent with two teachers present.

"Just because it's true doesn't mean you should be so aggressive. Why not fake it right back?" He shrugged, briefly glancing sideways to assess the situation before subtly slapping another sticker on his teacher without the man noticing – or if he did, he didn't bother reacting, which seemed more likely.

"You're telling Bakugou to stop being aggressive? Have you ever even met him?!" Sero cackled in disbelief, leaning behind an equally amused Kaminari when their classmate growled dangerously.

"It's worth a try," Izuku laughed back, sauntering over to Shouto's side as two Ketsubustu students approached him.

"Hey, Todoroki-kun, can I have your autograph?" A girl with spiky blonde hair exclaimed, raising her fists to her chest. "You were so cool at the Sports Festival!"

"Huh...?" Shouto muttered eloquently.

"Stop being such a fangirl," the boy beside her chastised in a low tone.

"Hey," Aizawa called, clearly having had enough of their shenanigans, "change into your costumes and go to the orientation. Don't waste time."

The room was extremely crowded. Everyone was packed in, shoulder-to-shoulder, muttering amongst themselves. All the different hero costumes and Quirks fascinated Izuku, and it took everything in him to refrain from muttering uncontrollably as Mera, from the Heroes Public Safety Commission, tiredly explained everything to them. Tenya glanced down at his friend with a subtle smile, clearly noticing the twitch of the boy's gloved hands and the mouthing of words that indicated rapid thoughts. Izuku offered a sheepish grin in response, clasping his fingers together to keep them still and force himself to focus on the explanation instead of his own curiosity.

Finally, the speech drew to a close and several men in suits grabbed cardboard boxes and started weaving through the crowds to hand students the balls and targets. People tensed up and chattered nervously as the ceiling cracked open, pulling apart and folding down until all four walls were pressed against the dirt ground in the centre of the arena. Izuku looked between his classmates with a growing frown, fighting the urge to warn them about every single detail he could remember which could potentially help them pass the first stage with flying colours.

As much as he wanted to, he couldn't tell them. The whole point of the exam was for them to adapt and overcome challenges as they appeared, and if he were to just tell them entire strategies to follow, that wouldn't truly show off what they were capable of. It was important experience that would reveal their strengths and weaknesses, as well as reassure them that their hard work so far was paying off.

Schools moved in groups as they ran away from the starting room, darting off towards terrain that suited them best. Izuku cast a look around, checking that all of his classmates had stayed on the platform.

"Everyone, don't get too separated!" He warned them when it was empty. "The other schools know our Quirks and fighting styles because of the Sports Festival. They're likely going to target us first, so we need to be careful!"

Most people agreed with him and didn't move. As expected, Kacchan pridefully stormed off, and Eijirou and Kaminari chased after him. Shouto stared at Izuku for a moment in consideration before informing them he was leaving too, and the green-haired boy merely nodded and grinned, remembering how well his friend had done before – he'd likely do even better after sparring and training with Izuku, which helped improve his tactics as well as control over his flames.

The remaining students all set off at an easy running pace across the baked earth. They came to a stop as the starting horn sounded, already shifting into protective stances as they stared worriedly up at the masses of opponents who were all leaping up, ready to attack. A barrage of orange balls shot towards the students, and they all jolted into action, ready to prove themselves worthy of passing.