"Come Into My Office. Yes, The Restroom."

The Case of the Sports Festival Pt. 2

Izuku raises his hand, face fully serious, "Can I drop out?"

Midnight looks slightly stunned before laughing, "That depends on why, Midoriya." She smirks, peeking up to the booth where Present Mic and Eraserhead were. "Though I doubt he will allow it."

"I didn't mean to get first place, and I don't even wanna be a Pro-Hero..." Izuku trails off, hearing the rumbling that erupted in the crowds of people. Shinsou places his hand on his shoulder, and Izuku is reminded of the reason he's here. "Uh..."

"Midoriya, put your hand down."

Izuku's eye twitches, "Right. Sorry, never mind, continue Midnight-sensei." He rubs the back of his neck, feeling the stares, which act like daggers, piercing him. He couldn't stop himself from hunching his shoulders, subconsciously attempting to shrink right where he stood. He lets out an aggravated sigh, anxiety and annoyance making him irritated. It felt like junior high and the years before that; the stares, the mumbling, the judgement.

("What even is his quirk?"

"Not sure, he didn't seem to use it in the first round."

"He looks so weak! How did he even make first place?"

"I'm surprised he's from gen ed and not from one of the hero courses.")

The worst part is that they didn't know he was quirkless yet.

"Now then, I will explain the rules of the cavalry battle." Midnight is quick to take back attention, swinging her arm outward, whip following. The screen she was showcasing changed, showing a picture of All Might being lifted by three people (though Izuku could only make out two from where he was: 13 and Present Mic).

"The time limit is fifteen minutes. Each team is worth the total of its members' points, and the riders will wear a headband with that number on their foreheads." A large fifty appears on screen, showing the total points added together. "Teams will try to grab each other's headbands until time runs out and try to keep as many points as they can. Stolen headbands must be worn from the neck up." The screen then shows All Might wearing the headbands as an example. "So the more you steal, the harder it'll be to manage them! And the most important thing is that even if your headband gets stolen, or if your team falls, you're not out!" The Pro-Hero points her whip at the students, grinning.

Izuku peeks over at Shinsou, who also looks at him, and they both nod. Midnight continues, "During the game, it'll be a cruel fight where you can use your quirks. But it is still a cavalry battle. You'll get a red card for attacks that are trying to make people fall on purpose! You'll get removed immediately! Now, you have fifteen minutes to build your teams." The screen turns into a timer, showing fifteen minutes. "Start!"

Izuku quickly turns to Shinsou. "Okay," he starts. "We need at least one other person to join our group. I'm not sure who would be willing to join, considering it seems we're the only general studies students that made it past the first round. All students in both hero courses were able to pass, but there's one spot for someone outside of the courses and us. Maybe we should try to find them and see if they'll join or not."

Just as Shinsou opens his mouth to respond, a random voice butts into the conversation. "No need to search!" Both boys startle at the random appearance of a pink-haired girl with a huge grin. "Team up with me, first place!"

Izuku blinks. "Who...?"

"I'm Hatsume Mei, from the support course!" She raises a hand to her goggles, lifting them on to her head to show her yellow eyes. She confidently puts her hands on her waist. "I don't know you, but let me use your position!" Izuku goes to looks at Shinsou but leans back when Hatsume gets into his face. "If I team up with you, then I'll inevitably become part of the team everyone's watching most, right?" She leans in closer, her eyes bright and wide. "If that happens, then my super cute babies will inevitably be seen by the big companies." She leans in again, and Shinsou has to place a hand on Izuku's back to keep him from falling. "That means, in other words, that those big companies will see my babies!"