Hello, everyone. This is my first attempt at a story for this series. I hope you enjoy.

Feedback is appreciated.

The afternoon sun cast lazy amber beams of light through the tall windows that marked the outer wall of the teacher's lounge. The ceiling fan spun silently overhead, occasionally ruffling the loose pages spread about the corner desk. Aizawa Shota lifted his steaming mug to his lips, carefully sipping the hot liquid. His bloodshot eyes peeked from behind his unruly black hair, carefully scanning the files before him.

Seated on the sofa across the room, Principal Nezu trainquilly sipped at a small cup of tea, eyes closed as he relished the flavor. His normally carefree personality belied the cunning intellect of the bear-rat-dog.

For now, neither spoke. Some might be disturbed by the silence of the normally long winded principal, but Aizawa was fine waiting. Speaking without anything to say couldn't be considered rational, after all.

Aizawa scanned over a few more reams of paper before coming to a silent decision. He gathered the pages and returned them to their appropriate folders. He placed the filled folders in a stack to the side, almost two feet high, keeping eight of them separate. Taking these, he set them down on the table in front of Nezu.

"Made your selection?" the principal asked, opening his eyes.

Aizawa nodded, separating five of the folders from the other three. "These students will accompany me to capture these," he gestured at the remaining three folders, "villains."

Nezu began scanning through the offered files, spending only a few moments on each of the students' files but lingering on each villain. He knew the students' abilities well enough by now, but he needed to have the full measure of what they would be up against before he gave his approval.

"You're sure your choice of students can handle this?" the principal asked. He knew as well as Aizawa that they could, but he needed to know the man's own convictions.

"I'm sure," the teacher answered. "The targets are on a level that I might be able to take them working alone. With these five added to the mix it should be relatively simple. Assuming things go as planned, of course."

"It seems like it could be a volatile mixture," Nezu pointed out.

"All the more reason to take them on this guided mission. Three of them have experience in pitched battle, but the other two missed out. This will be a good chance to bring them up to speed while making sure they've learned to put aside their differences. At least for the duration of a mission."

Nezu nodded once. "We'll be recording this as a short-term internship for them, just in case things don't go as planned."

"That makes sense."

"Very well, you have my permission," he said after a moment's contemplation.

Aizawa nodded once in acknowledgement, his bloodshot eyes straying to the clock.

5:36 PM

He would need to let them know tonight so they could be ready come the morning. He considered teaching them a lesson in preparedness by not warning them, but even he had to admit they had proven themselves capable enough not to need such basics anymore.

"I'd better get ready," he finally said, excusing himself.

"Have a good night!" Nezu called after him cheerfully.

"DIE!"

Katsuki Bakugo roared, his face stretched into an expression of malicious glee as Kaminari Denki began to panic. There wasn't much else he could do really. He attempted to dodge; Bakugo anticipated him. He attempted to block; Bakugo broke through. The conclusion was foregone, he supposed as the flaming fist approached that would mark the end of his life. He'd had a good run. He had no regrets. Then the attack connected.

"K.O!" the TV shouted as Bakugo tossed his controller in triumph while their audience either applauded the winner or comforted the weeping Kaminari.

Across the common area, Iida Tenya, Midoriya Izuku, Uraraka Ochako, and Todoroki Shoto were seated around a table comparing notes for the upcoming quiz. Not that one had been announced, but since the end of the work study program, Aizawa had increased their course load. "The tenacity of society's villains has increased, so it's important that your preparation increase too," he had reasoned. Since the announcement, they had had no fewer than thirteen pop-quizzes, six essays, and three practical tests.

Izuku sighed, running a hand through his messy, green hair as he stared down the problem in front of him. The calculus assignments were still largely gibberish to him, but Iida had helped the rest of them keep up. His green eyes narrowed in concentration.

"Iida," he spoke up, drawing the attention of his stern-faced classmate. "Could you pass me the derivative table again?"

The turbo student passed a page full of equations to Izuku as Uraraka flipped over an egg timer in the center of the table. Iida's idea, though they had all agreed to it. If anyone needed to use a cheat sheet to remember a rule or equation, they had only as much time as sand in the glass. From there, they had to solve the problem themselves. This was intended to prevent them from becoming dependent upon their notes and to push them to memorize the information as they applied it.

"I'm gonna grab something to drink," Todoroki spoke up, pushing out his chair. "You guys want anything?"

"No, thanks," both Iida and Izuku answered.

"Water for me, please," Uraraka requested, hand raised but eyes hidden behind her chestnut hair as she continued to stare at the paper in front of her.

Todoroki moved into the kitchen and proceeded to poor a glass of water for Uraraka and a glass of orange juice for himself. As he turned to leave the kitchen, something caught his mismatched eyes. A second TV was positioned with a view into the kitchen for anyone who might be working there at the time. Right now, it was tuned into a news channel.

"Breaking Story!" the screen displayed. "Notorious killer escapes prison!"

He decided to stay for just a moment to see if they would provide any useful information or if it would devolve into the mindless sensationalism that was so popular these days. He adjusted the volume so he could hear.

"-have confirmed that the serial killer known as Shadowmark has escaped confinement," a smartly dressed woman spoke from behind the news desk. The newscast cut to footage of a man with the head of a dog speaking at a podium.

"We have confirmed that after a power failure at Hakure National Prison, the prisoner known as Shadowmark has escaped confinement. He is considered extremely dangerous. It is imperative that members of the public not engage him if spotted. If you have information or a sighting to report please contact us immediately, woof."

"That was Mr. Tsuragamae Kenji," the newscaster spoke as the feed cut back to the newsroom. "Shadowmark was originally apprehended seven years ago in a joint operation between All Might and Endeavor. With All Might now retired-"

Todoroki chose to return to his classmates before the fear mongering could begin. He didn't recall his father being involved with a villain by that name, but, then again, at the time he hadn't been too interested in paying attention to the man. Passing the water to a grateful Uraraka, he turned his attention back to his own papers. Unfortunately, it appeared fate did not care for his studies this evening.

"Oi! Nerd herd!" Mina called out from her place on the couch, "Any of you wanna try taking on King Explode-y over here?"

Izuku looked up from his paper, sparing a glance at his pink classmate before answering, "Ah, n-"

"Thank you for the invitation!" Iida shouted, interrupting his more soft spoken classmate. "But we must be prepared in the event Aizawa-sensei springs another quiz on us tomorrow!"

"Come on~," the black-eyed girl cooed with a cheeky grin. "He just gave us one today, he probably doesn't have one prepared for tomorrow."

"That's not very good reasoning," a tired voice cut in from the entryway. Mina jumped in surprise as Aizawa walked through the front door, pulling a cart behind him. "Even if there isn't a quiz tomorrow, your grades would improve if you studied like there is one." he concluded with a withering, bloodshot glance.

"Aizawa-sensei," the class president greeted. "To what do we owe this visit?"

The teacher regarded him neutrally. "Sorry, but Mina is actually right about there not being a quiz tomorrow."

The four students at the table stared at him, dumbfounded while Mina tried, and failed, to hide her excitement. Todoroki, for his part, was nonplussed, choosing instead to turn his attention from the blank face of his teacher to the cart he was pulling. There were five steel cases stacked there.

"Is this about the prison break?" he asked.

"No," the teacher dismissed quickly. "That matter is being handled by the police and whatever heroes they call in to assist with the capture." His eyes turned to the cases, directing their attention there. "I got permission from the Principal to take some of you out for a practical lesson in villain capture. Midoriya, Katsuki, Todoroki, Kirishima, and Uraraka," he addressed them, glancing at each in turn, "I've brought your costumes. You'll also find a dossier on our targets in the case. Study it tonight. We're leaving at four tomorrow morning."

"Hey! No fair!" shouted Mineta, his voice stretched into a high octave as his hand batted at the empty air. "Why do they get to be the favorites?! We can take on this mission too! This is some sort of elitist scheme isn't it!"

"Midnight will be filling in for me tomorrow, but we should be back by tomorrow evening," Aizawa said, addressing Iida while ignoring the small student.

"Good luck you guys!" Mineta shouted now, not realizing in his excitement that he was patting Bakugo on the back. The ashy-haired teen responded in expected fashion.

"Don't touch me, you perverted grape!" he shouted, a small explosion lighting his palm. "I'll kill you!"

"Waaaah!" said grape shouted. "Sensei, Bakugo's getting violent!"

"As for why I chose these five," Aizawa continued, still ignoring Mineta as a wicked grin spreading across his face, "Consider that tomorrow's quiz."

"No! Mineta, why did you have to open your mouth!?" Mina shouted in despair as Momo halfheartedly restrained the distraught teen from throttling the boy. Meanwhile, Aizawa handed each of the chosen students the case containing their costume.

"Well that's all," Aizawa called back as he turned to leave. "Remember, we're leaving at four sharp. Don't be late." And with that, he was gone.

3:00 AM - Monday

Izuku Midoriya sat on a wooden bench outside the dorm, letting the cool morning air chase away the sleep still clouding his mind. In the end, he had only managed a couple hours of sleep between studying the dossier Aizawa-sensei had given them and the raw anticipation of the coming day. He wondered absently is the anticipation ever got better. It was a small comfort that there was no hostage to rescue this time. At least not one that was known about beforehand.

He allowed his thoughts to drift toward Eri. If he were to guess, she would be in Mirio's care until they got back. It had been a couple of weeks since he had seen the shy girl, but the updates he had received from his upperclassman had all been positive.

Not the time for that, he scolded himself. I should be reviewing the information Aizawa-sensei gave us.

There had been three files in the dossier. Three targets. The first went by the name Goliath. From his picture, he appeared to be a brute of a man, possessing a square, scarred face and beady black eyes. One of his ears was puffy and misshapen. His quirk was a simple Gigantification type with a height of ten meters. Given the man's already considerable muscle mass, his full strength would likely be capable of incredible destructive power.

The second went by the name Bug Spray. A sullen man that rarely showed his face, choosing instead to hide behind a hood, bandana, and thick goggles. His quirk apparently allowed him to send out swarms of insects to do his bidding. Useful in tight places, but out in the open, manageable. What would really matter is whether or not his selection of insects included anything particularly venomous.

The last was a woman going by Somnus. Her picture showed that she had dark hair and darker eyes. The rings underneath them spoke of many sleepless nights, but the wild glint in her eyes was one of manic energy. Her quirk gave her the ability to create zones of darkness even in broad daylight. She had used this ability to allow herself and her comrades to evade capture on numerous occasions. "Her quirk would be especially troublesome for Aizawa-sensei who relies on his vision to erase another's quirk. Still, in terms of destructive power, Goliath should be the first target. If he went on a rampage-"

A hand waved in front of his face snapped him back to reality. Looking up, he saw Uraraka, already dressed in her hero costume, giving him a sheepish smile.

"You were really focused that time," she laughed, confidence replacing the bashfulness in her smile. "I bet you've already got a plan for how to deal with them."

"Ah, no, not yet," Izuku answered, slightly flustered that she had managed to catch up to him mid-mutter storm. That's how she had described his habit in the past anyway.

She didn't seem perturbed by his answer though, choosing instead to punch the air in excitement. "We'll have it figured out before then," she assured. "I'm sure Aizawa-sensei has been working on a plan too."

"Yeah, I guess I'm just a little anxious to start moving," he admitted.

She answered with a nod, frowning in thought as she seated herself on the bench to his left. With any luck this wouldn't be like the last mission. She still remembered the desperate struggle against the Eight Precepts and Sir Nighteye's ominous prediction of defeat. Injury and exhaustion had prevented her from doing anything more than aid in extracting the veteran hero, but they had still won in the end, even if it was at great cost. If they had managed to survive that battle, she was sure they could handle this mission.

"You two are up early," a level voice broke through her thoughts. Turning, they both saw Todoroki approaching. The hair on his right side reflected the light from the lamppost above, making the normally white strands appear orange. His off color gaze examined them each, taking in their expressions and postures as he made his way to stand by the right side of the bench.

"You're early too, Todoroki," Midoriya answered by way of greeting, gesturing to his watch. The display read 3:15.

"I'd rather be fully awake when we leave," the dual quirk user shrugged. "I didn't expect anyone else to be here before me, however."

"NO WAY!" came a cry of dismay from the entrance to the building. Standing there was Kirishima, red hair reaching to the sky as he stared in disbelief at his three classmates. "I was sure I would be the first one here!"

"Kirishima," Uraraka hissed, placing a finger on in front of her mouth. "The others are still trying to sleep."

"Oh," the rambunctious teen responded, dropping his volume. Scanning the group, he grinned widely. "At least I beat Bakugo."

"Who did you beat!?"

Everyone jumped at the sudden exclamation. The three at the bench turned to look upward, their eyes catching the glint of green metal. Lounging on an overhanging branch and scowling down at them was Bakugo.

"How long have you been up there?" Todoroki asked calmly while the other three gawked at their tree dwelling classmate.

"Since two thirty," he answered smugly.

Kirishima looked on, tears forming in his eyes. "Dang it," he muttered. "Now how am I supposed to get good marks with Aizawa-sensei?"

"Bringing your grades up would be a good start," the dreary voice of their teacher answered from the tree. They all looked up again, Bakugo as well, only to find that their teacher was concealed in the shadows of the higher branches.

"Sensei," Midoriya ventured, "How long have you been there?"

The pro looked his way, eyes impassive as he answered, "Since two."

Ignoring the look of annoyance sent his way by Bakugo, Aizawa leapt from his perch, landing silently on the pavement in front of them.

"It's good that you're all here early," he stated. "There are a couple of things I want to go over before we leave. First off, why you five are joining me on this mission. Todoroki, Bakugo, you both missed your opportunity for work study when you had to retake the provisional license exam. This won't make up for it completely, but it will be a chance for you to operate in a professional setting. You three," he turned his gaze towards Izuku, Uraraka, and Kirishima, "you all performed admirably during the fight against the Eight Precepts, but you still have things to improve on."

His gaze turned solely on Izuku, "You still lose control under pressure. I want you to keep yourself regulated during this mission." Izuku nodded as the teacher turned to Uraraka.

"Your physical endurance still needs work. And Kirishima, you need to learn to fight without relying on brute force." Looking over them and seeing the determination each held in their eyes, he continued. "That said, I expect all of you to behave like professionals. We'll go over the current intelligence and battle plan while we travel. Let's go."

1:00 PM - Monday

It had been a rather mundane day, overcast with steady wind that made the small shack creak and groan about them. The shack was a simple wooden structure with a single room. Two bedrolls were placed against one wall while a simple bed was placed on the wall opposite. A single table and chair was placed in the corner near the bed, bearing a small box of jewelry and a few stacks of bound paper bills placed. Across from the door was a stone fireplace with an iron cooking pot hanging over it. Standing over the pot, lazily stirring the contents was a person in wearing a long jacket with a hood pulled up over his head.

"Oi, Bug Spray," a gruff voice called from one of the bed rolls. "How much longer till lunch's ready?"

The man at the pot let go of the ladle and turned, forming a series of signs with his hands. The owner of the gruff voice stared blankly at him.

"Quiet down, Goliath," a dark haired woman chided from her place on the bed. "You know you can't understand him, so why do you bother?"

"So he knows I'm waiting, Somnus!" Goliath snapped back.

"Don't get snippy with me!" she shot back.

"I'll get however I want!" he spat, oblivious to the placating gestures Bug Spray was trying to make.

The sound of a couple of soft knocks at the door instantly silenced the bickering villains. They rose cautiously, stepping back from the door. Their bodys were tensed as their eyes and ears strained for information. Their little shack was located in a small clearing on the slope of a mountain. It wasn't as if the girl scouts made regular visits.

Bug spray began to move forward to listen at the door when the wall behind them exploded inward. They turned swiftly, shielding their faces against the flying splinters. They saw red eyes and a manic grin. With a shout of "DIE!" Aizawa's plan was put into motion.

Bakugo initiated his stun grenade technique, releasing a non-damaging blast of light and sound. His targets were stunned, but they still acted on instinct. A wave of darkness engulfed him, forcing him to pull back as the sound of cracking wood filled the air around him. Propelling himself backward with a few quick blasts, he saw Goliath, now grown to full height, still rubbing his eyes as he stepped forward.

With only a single stride, the giant was halfway across the clearing. Bakugo grinned as Goliath put distance between himself and the darkness user. He took another step, attempting to stomp down on Bakugo, but as his foot came down, it failed to impact the ground. Instead, it slid through the air as he felt a slight sting on his cheek. Uravity fell past him, grinning through her nausea as the giant took flight. He reached out to swat her, but pale cloth wrapped around her and pulled her out of reach as he felt his size diminish against his will.

"Let me down!" He shouted in frustration.

Uraraka sighed in relief as the strain on her quirk diminished with the man's weight. Her relief was short lived, however, as a swarm of insects burst from the darkness, swiftly covering the clearing and obstructing their view. She felt the nausea return as quickly as it had left as Aizawa's quirk lost its hold. Her visor protected her face from the swarm, but if it managed to reach her, she would be in trouble.

She felt the temperature drop rapidly, then the air ignited. Brilliant flames erupted through the clearing, consuming the swarm in an instant and revealing the ring of ice that protected the surrounding forest from the conflagration. Another swarm erupted as quickly as the first and was summarily suppressed as the Todoroki and Bug Spray held a stalemate. Their struggle lasted only a moment. The bugs stopped suddenly, and a moment later, Kirishima emerged from the shack, and unconscious Bug Spray cuffed and draped over his shoulder.

He hurriedly deposited him next to Bakugo as Aizawa snatched the now falling Goliath from the air and cuffed him. With the two offensive types restrained, they turned their attention to the bubble of darkness still in the shack. A tense moment passed as neither side made a move. Then the darkness faded.

Aizawa raised a hand in a cautioning gesture. He stepped forward, eyes watching carefully as Bakugo and Kirishima followed behind. He stepped through the gaping hole in the wall and glanced about. The shack was empty and the front door was hanging open.

Somnus raced nimbly through the forest. Branches rushed past her face as her lungs sucked in the air needed to keep her legs moving. The pros were getting pretty sloppy if they thought a few students could catch her. Still, she hadn't expected her cohorts to be dispatched so easily. She'd have to find a better crew once she managed to slip back below the radar.

A sliver of motion caught the corner of her eye, a flash of green that didn't belong to the forest. She turned to intercept, a mote of darkness already springing from her hand. A flash of green light was all she saw as a voice shouted, "Eight percent, SMASH!" Her vision flashed white and faded into darkness.

The ice was steadily withdrawing from the edges of the clearing as Izuku emerged from the forest carrying the bound and unconscious Somnus. Aizawa had predicted she would rather run than fight given the nature of her quirk. All that remained was to pick her escape route. If they attacked opposite the front door, that was the best escape route to avoid being seen. So that was the route he had watched, patrolling from the treetops until he had found his target.

"Oh, Deku!" Uraraka called out as he came into sight of his teammates.

"Midoriya!" Kirishima greeted excitedly. "You caught her!"

"Yeah, it was just like Aizawa-sensei said," he answered, setting his quarry next to her teammates.

Aizawa checked the restraints, making sure their countermeasures were in place if any of them tried to use their quirks, then turned to his students. "Good work, all of you. That went about as smoothly as it could have. We need to get moving now if we're going to make our rendezvous with the police at the base of the mountain. They'll probably wait, but it's not rational to keep them waiting."

They gathered up the fallen villains, taking turns carrying them back down the mountain. As Izuku reflected on the short skirmish, he thought that it was a good thing nothing had gone wrong.

Two hours later, he was regretting his thought. Surely that had been what jinxed them. Then again, knowing their luck, when had things ever gone as planned. They were trudging through knee deep snow, a sudden snowstorm having surprised them. He knew such flurries weren't uncommon in the mountains, but this was beginning to become a full on blizzard.

"We need to find shelter!" Todoroki called out over the wind. His flames were rising from his left side, licking hungrily at the air. The heat he was giving off was sheltering the for now, but the sweat staining his brow showed how quickly he was reaching his limit.

"There was a structure around here when we were climbing up," Aizawa stated, recognizing the problem. "It's too hard to see through this snow. Bakugo, search the area around us for it and alert us with an explosion if you find it. Todoroki will signal with his flames periodically to let you know where we are."

Bakugo ran off into the snow without a word. His face was screwed up in a mask of determination as he felt the bitter cold biting into his exposed skin. Behind, Uraraka and Kirishima had huddled closer to Todoroki for warmth, while Izuku kept watch over the villains.

"Sensei," the green haired boy spoke into the relative silence about them. "Are you sure, he should be going out alone? If something happens, we won't be able to find him."

"If something happens, he'll signal us," his teacher responded. "Have a little more faith in your classmate."

As if on queue, an explosion sounded from somewhere off to their right.

"Follow me," Aizawa ordered.

They made their way in the direction of the sound, occasionally correcting their course with the help of another explosion from Bakugo. It took only about five minutes from the time he had first signalled them, ten from the time he had left, for the group to find the location. It was a run down forest lodge. A wide wrap around porch separated the entry from the forest floor. Many of the windows were broken, but the two story, wood edifice was better than the open air. They quickly hurried inside.

Once inside, Todoroki froze the broken windows, sealing out the wind. The lodge was divided into two sections. The main level consisted of a wide commons room with a number of tables and chairs. A large, stone fireplace was situated in the center of the inner wall, currently dark and cold.

A door from the common room led to a large kitchen. Despite the apparent age of the structure, it was composed of surprisingly modern appliances: steel countertops, steel refrigerator/freezer, steel sink. Upon inspecting the cabinets, Kirishima confirmed that no food had been left behind. Not that it would have been edible anyway.

A set of stairs facing the entryway led to the second floor where a long hallway stretched the length of the building. A number of doors opened off of the hallway into separate rooms. What furniture was left in them was worthless except for firewood. They quickly gathered it up.

A single door was left locked next to the stairs. They left it untouched.

They gathered in the common room. Todoroki worked on arranging the spare wood to set a fire in the fireplace. Aizawa situated their now conscious captives in the center of the room.

"We should be safe here for the time being," he said, taking in the room again. "We'll rest in shifts. Once the storm passes, we'll need to leave immediately. Uraraka, Kirishima, you're on first watch with me. The rest of you, get some sleep while you can."

Izuku didn't argue. Neither did his classmates. They hadn't packed any sort of camping supplies, so they each found a section of floor to settle on, trying to ignore the grumbling of their empty stomachs. Within five minutes, all three of them were asleep.

Izuku drifted in darkness as his dreams flashed by, each to fast for his mind to grasp onto. Places he had never seen, faces he recognized, all disappeared in an incoherent jumble. But in each of them was a light. A strange, green light periodically flashed, driving the images away, and every time it flashed a voice would reach out. He strained to hear it, but it was disjoint and distorted. "...mber…..ku….De…..Deku!"

Izuku shot awake, feeling a hand carefully shaking his shoulder. Uraraka knelt over him, concern lining her face, but she held a finger to her lips. Her eyes were alight with something he couldn't place.

He glanced about the room and saw that the others were already awake, staring steadfastly toward the door. Their faces were drawn. Tense. And then Izuku understood what he had seen in Uraraka's eyes. Fear. Something had them afraid. Searching the room, he saw the villains still bound, their eyes full of curiosity, fear, or indifference. Aizawa was not among them.

"Uraraka, what's going on?" he asked in a hushed voice, standing quickly. He glanced at his watch: 9:57 PM.

"About fifteen minutes ago, we started to hear strange noises outside," she answered, keeping her voice low. "There was knocking on the walls. It was too regular to be the wind, so Aizawa-sensei went out to check on it, but that was ten minutes ago."

Izuku kept his expression as calm as he could, fixing a determined gaze at the front door where Bakugo and Todoroki were stationed. The ashy haired student was tense, his sneer replaced with a deep frown as he listened.

"Bakugo?" Todoroki asked as his classmate reached for the door handle.

"Shut up," he answered. "He's been gone too long."

The lodge groaned loudly as a blast of wind battered its sides. Bakugo steadily opened the door as Izuku came up behind him, peering out. The wind was blowing full force, driving snow across the landscape beyond their firelight in a white sheet that refused to yield. They stood there, hesitant to step out, but not wanting to leave their teacher to whatever peril awaited outside.

A figure appeared from the darkness, indistinct in the poor light. It was moving toward them.

"Aizawa-sen-?" Izuku's question was cut short as Bakugo slammed the door.

"Todoroki!" Bakugo shouted. "Seal it!"

Todoroki hesitated for a moment, before conjuring a wall of ice to seal the door.

"Kacchan!" Izuku protested. "What about Aizawa-sensei?"

"Shut it, Deku! That wasn't Aizawa."

As if to emphasize his pointed, the door shuddered as if struck, the icy covering cracking with the force, forcing Todoroki to brace it again. The door shook again. Again. Then as quickly as it had started, it stopped. Then a knock sounded on the wall.

Uraraka yelped, hands latching onto Izuku's shoulders instinctively as she hissed, "That's what we heard." Under normal circumstances, he might have been flustered by the contact, but right now, his senses were dialed in, focusing. He felt her hands leave his shoulders as she took a ready stance next to him. Todoroki kept his right hand raised, ready to shore up any breach made by whoever was out there.

Another knock sounded farther down the wall. Then another, moving away from them. Then it stopped. They held their breath, waiting. The building groaned in the wind. Everything went quiet.

"We need to find Aizawa-sens-" Kirishima was cut off by a low whisper from the shadows.

"Welcome," it said.

Bakugo whirled, releasing an explosion in its direction. The shadows were briefly dispelled by brilliant light that revealed nothing but empty air.

"What the hell?" he muttered, face stretching as his sense focused on finding his prey.

"You don't understand yet, do you?" the voice spoke again from the same direction. "You're trespassers now, so I suppose you wouldn't," it continued from the opposite direction. The students turned quickly, tracking the voice, searching for its source in vain.

"This is my house now," it continued, shifting locations again. "I don't like trespassers."

"Oi, it's a pretty run down house anyway!" Bakugo called back. "What kind of loser would want to live here!?"

The voice was silent for a moment. "I want you dead," it answered. They all felt a chill run down their spine as the lodge groaned, this time without wind. "I want you all dead, but I'll settle for one. Kill one of you, and all the others get to live. I only need one," it taunted, as the students set their faces into stony expressions of defiance. Unwilling to be intimidated by a mere voice from the shadows.

At its next words, however, Izuku felt his blood run cold, and Bakugo's eyes widened in shock that went uncomprehended by their classmates.

"If you want to live, you just have to give me One for All."