Beast Speaker, Monster Tamer

74: The Crushing of Class 1-A

Tension hung so thick in the air, that Elise felt like she could reach up and grab it with her bare hands. In the back of the bus, there were a few comforting words as Uraraka threw up into a barf bag, and Aoyama himself looked a little green again after his own session earlier. For Elise, there was the continuation of a baby headache behind her eyes, something that began hanging around after she managed to finish two of her team-related Ultimate Moves.

Not as much progress as I wanted, but I at least have my Dual Form Moves and two teams assembled.

I truly believe that all will be well. You have worked hard.

To her left was Jiro, one hand up to her face as she absentmindedly gnawed at the meat of her thumb. Katsuki took up Elise's right and Shoji across from them. The tall boy had all his arms folded across his chest and head dipped down to rest his eyes, but on the ride here she occasionally spotted him tilting it up to peek at her and Katsuki with one shadowed eye.

The bus rumbled past the gates of the exam center and the tension inside racked up a notch, fervent murmurs and chatter cresting. Mina latched onto Elise's arm, shaking her back and forth as she said, "I don't know how you're not scared I'm terrified right now, Elise! Are you not nervous?"

She swallowed and offered a wan smile, knowing that the trembling in her limbs right now was the exact result of the anxiety running through her at the moment. "I am kind of nervous," she admitted quietly. "I... Recently I try not to get too worked up about it because it wouldn't help."

Her smile twitched as Aoyama finally folded and threw up into a barf bag.

Thankfully, by the time the bus pulled to a stop in front of the exam center, everyone had blessedly managed to fix themselves into a presentable state. Aizawa gave them a once-over before nodding in satisfaction and opening the door to let them pour out. Elise gazed at her surroundings, costume box clutched tightly to her chest as the sun shone down on the class.

"Ah, I'm getting nervous," Jiro exhaled, her excitement waning as they were faced with the inevitable.

Elise closed her eyes and took a deep, shuddering breath. If anybody throws up, I'm going to too.

"I really, really hope I can do it," she murmured thickly, partly to Mewtwo and Blaziken and partly to Bakugou and Shoji by her side. The crushing sense of not being enough began to creep up on her. "I haven't trained as rigorously as the rest of you."

She yelped as Aizawa appeared in front of her, bloodshot, red-rimmed eyes peering into hers. "Don't think I haven't seen you training past curfew, brat. Despite your setbacks, you've worked as hard—if not harder—than your peers. It doesn't matter whether or not you can. Don't waste the effort you, me, and the other teachers have put into helping you. Just go on and do it."

Caught off-guard at his uncharacteristic display of emotions, Elise stared at him for a few awkward seconds before dipping her head in a nod with a grateful murmur of her gratitude. His nugget of wisdom dispensed, the man stepped back.

It was the entire class that he addressed next. "If you can pass this test and get your provisional licenses, then you novice eggs will become chicks. You'll hatch into semi-pros. Do your best."

His words bolstered their cheer, a sense of determination filling the air.

"Alright," Kirishima cheered. "Come on everybody, let's call out the usual! Ready, set—"

"Plus... ULTRA!!!"

A massive boy, rivaling even Mezo's height, burst out of the woodwork, scattering U.A. students. He startled Elise so badly that her grip on the costume case loosened, the box slipping out of her hands to clatter onto the ground. Thankfully, she was quick enough to move out of the way so it didn't smash her poor toes. His physical features displayed an incredible amount of prowess, and a deeper underlying power set her on edge. It took her a few moments of barely restrained trembling to convince her brain that it was just another student from a different school and not anyone else.