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CHAPTER START---
Walking into the 1A dorms Horizon is immediately hit with a cacophony of noisy chatter.
All the remaining students of 1A and 1B are now gathered, he sees some sitting at the tables. Others at the couch, and most of the girls are on beanbags in the middle of the room chatting.
Looking over toward the kitchen, Shoji and Bakugo were cooking, with some help from Asui.
"Horizon!" Mina yells out, causing everyone to turn toward him. "You here to wish us luck on the exam tomorrow?"
"Don't involve me in the outcome of your exams Pinky, win or lose on your own..." he says before walking over to the kitchen.
Mina gives an exaggerated frown, "you know it wouldn't kill you to be nice!"
"It might."
Arriving at the kitchen, he sees Bakugo, Asui, and Shoji staring at a pot of some brown sludge.
"What is that supposed to be?"
"The sauce for the Tofu," Bakugo growls out.
Shoji rubs the back of his neck, "I may have read the recipe wrong."
"It'll be ok, we can probably fix it," Asui gives him a pat on the arm.
"Uh-huh, can't follow simple steps, good thing its not like people will be counting on you to save them or anything," Horizon walks over to the counter and places a card on the table.
"You don't have to rub it in, he made an honest mistake," Asui points out.
"Whatever," Horizon raises a hand and snaps his fingers, swapping the metal card for a stack of two dozen pizzas, a tower of boxes ripped out of some of their dreams. "And Horizon saves the day yet again, enjoy..."
It takes a moment for everyone to process what is happening, that he actually did something nice for them. Then they yell a chorus of thanks to Horizon, which he ignores.
Walking toward Sero while everyone else moved toward the kitchen.
And a moment later only he and Sero are in the couch area with the tv, and Sero is giving him a bored stare.
"What?" Horizon asks as he sits on the left side of the couch, opposite Sero's single seat.
"You put me on a diet then buy everyone pizza...that's diabolical."
Horizon just leans back, laughing, "didn't even think about that. How's that been going by the way?"
"Honesty, I don't know if it's good or bad that I don't even want the pizza at this point. My life is all upside down."
"It's called progress, see, told you I'd make you into a good Hero. Disciplined, efficient, and effective, that's all you need."
"Yeah, then comes the money," Sero smiles.
"And the women."
"Ye---uhhh," Sero cuts himself off as Yui takes the single seat beside him, eating a slice of pizza. "Well, one is just enough, for me atleast."
"Sure sure, but while I'm here I figured I'd check out your progress. I was in Nezu's office watching footage of your training."
"Oh," Sero stiffens up. "And, uh, how was it?"
"Not bad, we'll do more intricate training when you get your Provisional License tomorrow. It'll be easier when you see what having to patrol and deal with real villains is like..."
As they continue talking everyone breaks back into their groups, meaning Momo, Kendo, Tokoyami, and Juzo join them all at the couches.
With Momo sitting beside Horizon and Kendo to her left.
"So what have you been up to while we were all training?" Kendo asks. "Every time you show up on the news it's after taking down some villain or gang, you're actually pretty cool."
"Awe, are you one of my fangirls now?"
"Psh, unlike them I know you're a jerk," Kendo rolls her eyes. "But everyone knows that villains and criminals have been acting really wild lately since...you know."
"Since All Might got retired, you don't have to be scared to say it."
"Yeah, but it's just...it feels wrong." Everyone nods in agreement with her, aside from Horizon.
"Like the whole world stopped making sense," Juzo says.
"Heroes die every day, same shit. But yeah crime and the villains went crazy. The record-high crime rate happened really fast, and since a large portion of the crime in Japan happens in Tokyo---"
"You were in the hornet's nest," Momo says. "But don't you think you were pushing yourself too much? You supposedly only left the scenes for 4 hours over an 80-hour period. That can't be healthy."
"Well I lived, so it can't be that bad. Besides, there was work to do. I act as the main deterrent in Minato Tokyo, if I leave the scene then the more... eye-catching villains come out. People with Gigantification and such Quirks stay in hiding when I'm on duty."
"Like a mini All Might," Tokoyami says. "With the way he suppressed crime nationally, I mean."
"Basically, but the crime rate has been on a steep decline the past few days. The first wave was handled pretty well. Between just myself and the top 10 Pros, a lot of villains got arrested. Enough beatdowns and they keep to themselves."
"Some of those fights, the aftermath looked like a warzone," Momo says. "Especially after the raid on the League Of Villains."
"Mhm, too bad they got away, but next time I'll just escort them to prison myself," Horizon says. "Even if technically it's illegal for me to be on the mission. It's not illegal for me to just fly within a few miles of the convoy."
"Wait, why is that illegal?" Sero asks. "I mean they trusted you to help arrest them, right?"
"Yeah, but the risk of someone on the convoy being a security risk is much worse considering where we'd be taking them to. Not even all Pro Heroes are cleared for those missions. You need special permission from Commission President Pantu for that. And she'll never let me near one of those facilities."
"Huh, why not?"
"Because you can't trust someone you can't control, atleast not in her position. Especially not when that person can wave his hand and warp almost everyone out of the prisons."
Tokoyami shudders at that thought. "Luckily you're a hero. Trying to stop you would be---"
"Impossible," Dark Shadow pops out and says. "Your Quirk is really weird and creepy!"
"Says the shadow that lives in his belly," Horizon says.
"Dark Shadow, enough," Tokoyami retracts him. "Sorry about him."
After a bit more chatter about the situation in Tokyo, Kendo asks something that some students have been curious about for a while.
"Hey, what's the deal with you, Nejire-Chan, and Ryukyu?" This immediately earns a side eye from Momo.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, you've been working with them for the past few days, on a few big Trigger raids and stuff. You guys seemed really close in those pictures, and well. You know how the internet is, they---"
"Think I'm dating every girl I appear in a picture with, as usual," Horizon groans.
"Yeah, but you do look good with her."
"I look good with any pretty girl," Horizon says. "But Nejire is far too damn annoying, girl never shuts up. All her stupid questions about my Quirk and my suit and the visor and...you get the point."
Momo perks up at that, until Sero asks, "what about Ryukyu, see seems like your type."
"She is, too bad she's a Pro Hero, that seems like such a headache to deal with."
Momo frowns at that but quickly schools her expression. And Sero bites his tongue instead of voicing his opinion, which more closely resembles Horizon's stance on that matter as the days pass.
The idea of Yui getting hurt doesn't sit well with him at all.
But he kept that to himself, especially with his Hero Course girlfriend beside him.
"Well that's good," Momo says. "I mean, the fact that crime is declining again. And you did well in contributing to that."
"Naturally."
"But that begs the question, why are you back at UA? It seems unlike you to come all the way back here to wish us luck when you could be working, not that we don't appreciate it."
"I honestly didn't know the exam was tomorrow until I spoke to Nezu on the phone."
"Oh, you didn't see the class chat group?"
"I don't check that, your opinions and personal lives aren't that valuable to me."
Kendo shakes her head, "well you don't have to be an ass about it."
"Get over it fister."
"That's not my hero name!"
"Might as well be," Horizon sees Sero suppress a laugh. "Nezu called me back to work on a different issue. So while you're all in the exams I'll be dealing with that."
"You and Principal Nezu are pretty close huh," Sero says. "How did that happen anyway?"
Horizon shrugs, "well over a year ago he needed a doctor for All Might. Chance brought us together, then he realized I was strong and capable, and All Might was running on fumes. So he decided to get a replacement Symbol Of Peace ready before All Might retired."
"So All For One ruined the timeline he had plotted out?" Momo asks.
"Exactly."
"So he really did just bet on you," Kendo was in genuine awe at what she just heard. "That's, insane. Should you really be telling us this?"
"It's not like the principal tries to hide it," Tokoyami says. "From day one he made it clear that he has a favorite student. On the second day he even told us directly that he doesn't expect anyone to ever match Horizon, atleast 1-on-1, within UA."
"Yeah, hearing that sucked, plus you were a total jerk from the first day of school, just the worst," Sero says, and his classmates nod in agreement. "And that was right after we saw what Shoto could do. Meanwhile, I've just got tape..."
"Nezu isn't the most... emotionally wise person. But his logical mind more than compensates," Horizon says.
"No wonder you two get along so well," Kendo says. "But atleast when he's a jerk it's accidental."
Horizon looks down to his left, directly at Momo. "Well, if it ever stops working maybe I'll consider changing it, but for now, I'll enjoy the life it gives me..."
END CHAPTER---