Dorms

(Kou's POV)

At first glance, the message declared by All Might over that brief transmission seemed to be issuing a warning to the yet unseen criminals out there. His appearance was that of an unbreaking Symbol of Peace… and yet with his final words, a certain someone came to mind… someone who could've possibly interpret it a different way than everyone else.

Meeting up with Bakugo and the rest, we took Bakugo to the Police. Bakugo was strangely quiet, like the condition the rest of us were in.

With nothing left to do, we all went our separate ways home.

Plopping myself down onto my bed, I immediately take to my phone and begin to scroll through the news.

All For One, considering the severity of his actions, was put under exceptional circumstances. Exceptional measures were taken. Without waiting for a decision of his punishment, he was incarcerated in a special prison, Tartarus.

Alongside that, society was in chaos after witnessing the truth about All Might and the fact that we had witnessed the Symbol of Peace snuffed out.

To make matters worse, over the course of a week, news stations got more and more info about the scene. To start out, it began with All Might's retirement as a hero to everyone after having reach the absolute limit of his stamina. In addition, Best Jeanist, who barely escaped alive in All For One's attack, was taking a break from his hero duties. On top of that, Ragdoll, underwent an abnormal change that made her quirk unfit for use and her career was suspended.

In but a single night, many heroes have suffered severe injuries and losses.

This is a nightmare I'd see from my own Quirk, but it was completely real.

What will become of Japan from here on out? And what of the heroes?

Sighing to myself, I shut my phone off and simply lie there in bed. Of course, like always, my rest in interrupt.

Strolling into the room like it was his, Shota sit himself onto my bed, handing me a sheet of paper. Taking it from him confusedly, I read over its title, listening to him as he talks.

"I'm sure you know, but U.A. has been under some pretty heavy fire as of recent and a lot of parents are questioning whether or not it's safe to keep their children here. So, Mr. Principal came up with this plan for U.A. High School to transition to an All-Boarding School system. Meaning that the students would live here on campus. From here on out, more firmly and strongly than ever, we must nurture, protect, and raise the students. I was tasked to speak with the Class 1-A to ask for cooperation in this plan, but… how should I go about it?"

"Just do as you usually do…" I reach up and pat him on the shoulder, "As much as the parents wish to piss and moan, the targets are already our backs. If we choose to ignore the threat and try to live a normal life by leaving U.A., then when the time comes to defend ourselves, we won't have a way to."

"…How much criticism and reproach should I expect?"

"Honestly, not a lot…" I stroke my chin, "Just because an event like this happened doesn't suddenly mean that U.A. can no longer raise the greatest heroes we've ever seen."

"Thanks Kou…" Shota ruffles my hair, "I feel much more at ease now."

"Of course." I smile, "But, since I'm still feeling down in the dumps, why don't we annoy Nezu a little."

"Oh…" Shota grew interested, "How?"

"You shall see."

-~-~-~-~-~

Walking into Nezu's office, we see him sitting there happily while kicking his feet.

Looking up from his papers, Nezu smile, "Kou… what can I do for you?"

Stepping in around me, Shota hooks an arm around my shoulder. "We were thinking Nezu, but I really don't think we can accept this boarding school business. I don't really feel safe with my kid living here."

With the loading signal appearing above Nezu's head, he blinks confusedly, "He already lives here though…"

Ignoring his words, I cry a fake tear, "To have to let go of the home I've grown so fond of, I simply cannot accept Nezu."

"Kou… you'd live in the same space."

"Well, since we've stayed our welcome, we'll leave you to it… we hope you have a wonderful rest of the day."

Sadly shaking our heads, we walk out of the room, only to peek our heads in moments later to find Nezu still sitting there with a baffled expression. Closing the door once more, we begin to laugh with one another.

"Try to wrap your head around that…" I chuckle.

"It is indeed still pleasurable to mess with Nezu like that…" Shota chortle, "But I should really be heading out to convince those who need it."

Nodding, we separate, only to meet up later that day with Shota being the confused one.

"They really behaved like you said they would…" Shota purse his lips.

"What can I say," I smirk, "I must be some sort of prophet."

"Or… you just took you Class President job seriously, so you'd know your fellow classmates."

"That remains to be seen..."

With time flying by, we reach the middle of August.

Leaving my dorm room with my stuff packed and ready to go, I say a quick farewell. As much as I did 'love' living in the main building, I felt it better to be pieced together with my classmates. So, after resolving Nezu's still lingering bewilderment, I move to the school building that was built but three days ago.

With a structure similar to the main building, a giant 1-A hung between the two front pillars.

Standing in front of us, Shota claw at his capture weapon, "First of all, Class 1-A… What's more important than anything is that you all have gathered again safely."

I look around to find all my classmates there with me.

"We could say the same thing sensei…" Tsuyu state, "I'm relieved that you made it back here with us too. After watching that interview, I thought you might not be able to come back. I was really sad…"

"…It's surprising to me as well. Well…. A hell of a lot happened, that's for sure. Now then," Shota clap, "I'm going to give you all a quick briefing regarding the dorms. But before that, just one thing…

It's true that the plan was for you to receive your 'provisional hero licenses' after the training camp. But you didn't get them. So why were some of you walking around acting like you did?"

This was one of the questions that constantly lingered in my mind since he definitely knew I was there that night… but he probably wait to pierce me with his gaze once he had all of us gathered.

"Todoroki, Kirishima, Midoriya, Yaoyarozu, Iida, and Kou. You six were present on 'that evening' at 'that place'…. You took it upon yourselves to proceed towards the site of Bakugo's rescue. From the looks of things, all your classmates understand the weight of you behavior in deciding to go there.

A lot of things have been pigeon-holed considering everything that happened, but I'll say this now. If it weren't for All Might's sudden retirement… apart from Bakugo, Jiro, and Hagakure, I would have you all expelled as punishment.

For the five perpetrators I mentions, it goes without saying, but the same punishment applies for the other eleven of you who were aware of their actions and did nothing to stop them. Regardless of the reason, the fact that you all betrayed our trust doesn't change.

From now on, if you all would do me the favor of following the established procedures and acting accordingly… I would very much appreciate it… and it would certainly go a long way towards restoring my trust. That is all! Now, let's head in with smiles on our faces and lots of energy."

Snickering, I stride ahead of my depressed classmates, "What're you all standing around for? Shota, someone who loves threatening people, obviously still loves us to the core. So, quit worrying about the things he says… We've got a second chance, that's all that matters."

To further lighten the mood, Bakugo grabs Kaminari, forces him into a bush, and turns him stupid.

"Thanks…"

"I didn't do it for any of you… that feeling just made uncomfortable, that's all."

"Of course, our class tsundere." I bow to him before then sprinting away.

"What did you say you bastard!"

Chasing after me with explosions shooting from his hands, our little farce is ended by Shota who start to explain the dorms.

"It's one class per building. Boys and girls are separated by wing. The right wing is for the girls, and the boys' wing is on the left. However, the first floor is common space. The dining area, baths, and laundry facilities can be found here."

We walk inside and are immediately blown away by something that can only be considered a mansion or 5-star hotel.

"Did I hear that right…? The baths and the laundry rooms are shared space? Am I dreaming? Somebody pinch me!"

I fulfill Mineta's request and punt him across the room.

"Obviously, the boys' and girls' bathing and laundry areas are separated." Shota continue, entering an elevator, "Your rooms are on floors two and above. On each floor, there are two groups of four rooms: half for boys and half for girls, up to the fifth floor. You each get your own private room." He shows us an example one, "Each room comes with an AC unit, a bathroom, a refrigerator, and a closet. It's quite a luxurious space if you ask me."

Exploring the room to fulfil our curiosity, Shota then show us a picture.

"The allocation of rooms is just us you see here. The luggage we had each of you send beforehand has already been delivered to your rooms. For the time being, use today to get unpacked and arrange your rooms. Tomorrow, I'll give you an explanation of how things are going to operate from now on. That is all, you're dismissed."

"Yes, sensei!"

Looking at the map that Shota provide us, I found Mineta, Midoriya, Aoyama, and Tokoyami situated on the 2F.

On the 3F, there's Koda, Kaminari, Iida, Myself, Jiro, and Hagakure.

Floor 4 is Shoji, Kirishima, Bakugo, Uraraka, and Ashido.

And finally, Floor 5 is Ojiro, Todoroki, Sero, Yaoyarozu, and Asui.

Entering my room that had only three boxes, night quickly comes onto us.

With all the guys sitting in the common area besides Bakugo and Todoroki, we all sigh aloud. Soon to join us, the women make a suggestion.

"So, y'know… we were all talking, and we've got a suggestion!" Ashido rally, "Let's have a showcasing competition! How about it?!"

Before we were even allowed the option to accept or deny, the girls were already marching to Midoriya's room. Crashing through the door, it's about what we'd expect from an All Might fanatic. It's All Might from top to bottom and by far the most geek room I've ever encountered.

Moving on, we get to Tokoyami's room where he tries to barricade the door with his body, but with enough pushing, the door is open. Being dark and dreary to match his edgy character, Tokoyami gives us all a threatening stare only to get a thumbs up from me.

Then, there was the exact opposite which was Aoyama's room which emit nothing but sparkles from every item.

"Glitter Disease!!"

Escaping from the room, we almost went to Mineta's room, but remembering his character, we calmly passed by it, heading to the third floor.

With Iida first, we witness the innumerable number of books and the absolute array of extra glasses he had.

With Kaminari next, it was gaudy, looking like everything that could be grabbed was thrown in.

Koda's room was strangely normal besides the stuffed animals and the live rabbit that sat in his room. Immediately earning likability points from the women, we make our way to my room.

Showing them the way in, everyone was immediately blown away. My room had a lot of showcased items that served as an important period in my life (like a brick made by Cementoss). I had spent the whole day arranging them how I wanted and mix in a few world-class art and tiny toy cars, the room was so far the best. The showcase that attracted the most attention though was my absolute favorite.

"Woah, these are really co- WAIT… is that blood?! Kou, what are these?!"

"They're Shota's old goggles. Back when he was in the underground circuit, he tends to fight his enemies in closed quarters which sometimes resulted in him having his goggles nicked and blood to run onto them. Normally, he'd dispose of him, but as a sign of respect to him, I beg him to let me have this pair."

"You really look up to him, don't you?"

"Of course!" I thump my chest, "If it weren't for him, I'd be dead on the streets or… something much worse."

Causing the atmosphere to plummet dramatically but was quickly resolved with Mineta's appearance.

Pointing at the girls, he shouts, "You guys seem to have fun judging our rooms, but don't you think it's strange that only the boys have had to suffer criticisms of their rooms? This was supposed to be a 'tournament' wasn't it? So, it goes without saying… we can't decide the winner until we see the girls' rooms, isn't that, right?! To determine who's got the best interior design sense in the class… We must evaluate every room equally, with all members present, don't you think?!"

"Ok, why not?"

And so began the inaugural first Class A 'best sense' playoffs.