Stuck Between Realities-Remastered

Part 42~Training in Hell

"Now, remember what I said yesterday? 'Today's the only day we'll be doing stuff for you'." Pixie grinned as she stood in front of the makeshift kitchen, not a single drop of guilt in her body.

"At least make your own food," Ragdoll shouted as the class lowered their heads, dragging their feet behind them. "You all look exhausted, but that doesn't mean you can make any old sloppy cat food."

Iida paused, humming as he talked to himself. "It's true that part of rescuing someone is filling the stomachs and spirits of those exhausted during a disaster. That's U.A for you! No opportunity wasted. Let's make the most delicious curry in the world, everyone."

Izuku rolled his eyes, his arm draped over Shoto's shoulders. "I'm pretty sure Aizawa is just being lazy."

Shoto chuckled with a small smile. "I'm just glad Emiko taught me to cook."

"Cooking is an essential skill."

Hitoshi scoffed, giving Izuku a look. "Right, that's why you can make... can you cook without burning the food?"

Izuku gave Hitoshi a glare as he grinned.

The students split into groups, Shoto and Izuku taking turns to set fire to the coals.

"Are you sure you should be doing that? I thought the fire wasn't good for you," Uraraka questioned Izuku as he smiled.

"I'm working on it. I don't freak out by small fires anymore." Izuku grinned as Hitoshi gave him another look.

"That may be, but a fireplace is too much."

Izuku responded by throwing a spoon at his head. Izuku crossed his arms with a huff as Shoto smiled, holding his hand. "I think he's doing very well."

Izuku grinned, leaning into Shoto's side as Hitoshi stuck out his tongue, turning back to cooking.

~~~

"Thanks for the food," the class shouted before they ransacked the meal before them.

"If I got this at a restaurant, I wouldn't be very happy, but in this situation, it's delicious," Sero muttered between bites.

"Don't say that! It's rude," Kirishima shouted as Izuku rolled his eyes.

"It's not that bad."

"That's just because you're used to Emiko's cooking," Katsuki muttered as Izuku blinked.

"No, that's fair." Izuku slumped back in his chair, leaning against Shoto's side. He paused, watching Momo picking up a bowl and wandering off.

"Is something wrong?" Shoto brushed his fingers through Izuku's hair as he smiled.

"Not at all."

~~~

Momo hesitated before she walked onto the cliffside. "Hey, I brought you some food."

Kota shot up, glaring at Momo. "How'd you find this place."

Momo paused, putting the curry down. "My family taught me how to track. I thought you would be hungry."

"I'm fine. I don't need any."

Momo paused, looking at the food. "I don't think that's how this works. You may think you're fine, but food is important.

"I told you, didn't I? I don't intend to hang out with you. Get out of my secret hideout!"

Momo sighed, putting the food down. "It's here if you want it."

Kota scoffed, glaring over the forest. "Getting all into trying to improve your Quirk. It's gross. You want to show off your power that badly?"

Momo glanced back. "Kota, I am sorry if it appears that way to you, but that is not what I am trying to do. If I simply wanted to show off my Quirk, I could get a Quirk licence and use it in any other way. I don't know why you dislike heroes so much, but we are not all the same."

"Shut up! It's stupid. Calling each other stupid names like 'hero' and 'villain' and killing each other. It's because they're all showing off that it ended up like that," Kota faltered. "Stupid."

Momo frowned, opening and closing her mouth before she took a deep breath. "I don't know what you have gone through, and you don't know what I have been through, but I've also seen people who have gone through a lot, and I know I am not trying to show off, Kota, and I know they aren't either." Momo held her head high as she walked off, being glared at the entire way.

~~~

"I wouldn't bother with Kota," Izuku said as Momo jumped, walking into the camp.

"Pardon?"

Izuku smiled, standing up. "You followed Kota, right? I wouldn't bother. Kota isn't someone who can be pushed into changing his mind."

"Right, you know him."

"I wouldn't say that. I come to these events a lot with Toshi and the others, and I see Kota a lot, but he's always been like that. The more people try to talk to him, the further he pulls away. If you want to impress him, actions are the way to go, but I don't think an opportunity like that is about to present itself."

Momo nodded stiffly. "Why is he like that?"

Izuku shrugged. "His parents were heroes. He blames them for their death."

"What?"

"It's not uncommon. Children don't understand when it's their parents who die. People saying that what they did was heroic means nothing to a kid." Izuku smiled before he walked off, leaving Momo frozen at the entrance of the camp.

~~~

"Extra lessons, group, don't stop," Aizawa snapped as Mina dragged her head back up.

"Sorry, I'm kind of sleepy."

"I didn't think yesterday's extra lesson would go until 2 am," Sato muttered as Kirishima nodded.

"And we started at 7 am."

"I told you it would be tough. You're not just trying to improve your Quirks. Above all, you need to work on the weaknesses that were exposed during the final exams! Think carefully about why you're more tired than your classmates before you move. Uraraka! Aoyama! You two should, too. You didn't fail, but you were close. If 30 points were passing, you were about 35. Don't lose focus. All of you move faster. No matter what you're doing, you should always be aware of where you came from. That's what it means to improve. Always keep in mind why you're sweating and why you keep getting nagged."

Izuku huffed as he gave Aizawa a look. "Don't you think you're being a bit harsh on them? You're usually only this bad after the first year of being ignored."

"Don't make me upgrade your training."

Izuku knew when to shut up.

"More importantly, everyone, tonight, we'll have a test of courage with the classes pitted against each other. After training hard, you can play hard. The carrot and the stick," Pixie shouted as the class muttered amongst themselves. "So do your best right now."