Ten minutes later or so, Momo finally returned to the common room, carrying herself with her usual calm and confident smile. Then, without a word, she slipped back onto the couch beside Jiro, settling in as casually as if she hadn't just walked out on everyone only minutes earlier.
The room fell quiet again, though the weight of everyone's attention never left her. Dozens of eyes tracked her every movement, and after letting it hang in the air longer than she could stand, Momo let out a faintly exasperated sigh. "What is it now? Do I have something on my face, or has staring at me suddenly become more entertaining than watching the video?" she asked irritatedly as she tilted ever so slightly.
"Hey! You can't just brush off what happened a few minutes ago!" Mina shot back, her golden eyes narrowing suspiciously. "You just disappeared out of nowhere, and now you're acting like it was no big deal. So where the hell did you go, huh? And what about what your counterpart just did on screen? You can't tell me you don't have at least something to say about that!"
"Mina, first of all, I told you all I went to stretch my legs, and that's all you need to know," Momo replied with a sweet smile that didn't quite reach her eyes, sending a cold shiver down the pink-skinned girl's spine. "As for what my counterpart did on the screen, I do have my opinions, but I'd rather wait for the plot to unfold a little more before I make any kinds of remarks."
"But—" Mina started to protest, only for Momo to cut her off before she could get another word out.
"Mina, it seems you don't find the video we're watching all that interesting if you're still so insistent on dragging this conversation out instead of just resuming it." Momo gave her a cold glance before tapping her chin in mock consideration. "In that case, why don't we just turn this off and use our free time more productively? Getting a head start on next year's curriculum would be a far wiser choice. It might even help certain people who... occasionally struggle to keep up academically." She let her words hang for a beat before adding with a dazzlingly sweet smile, "Don't you agree, Mina? Doesn't that sound like a wonderful idea?"
"No, no, it's not!" Mina shook her head furiously. "There's no need to go that far, Momo, seriously! You know how silly I can get sometimes. I was just messing around, that's all!" Desperate to change the subject, Mina pivoted so quickly it almost made her dizzy. "Anyway, why are we wasting time talking? Come on, let's just get back to watching this amazing, totally entertaining video before the guys return to the dorms!" she pleaded, casting nervous glances at Momo, who looked quite satisfied with herself for cutting down the entire discussion in one clean strike.
"Wow, okay," Mina mumbled from the side, Izuku fighting the reaction to look at the source of the sound just at the last minute, "Momo out there makin' moves."
"That's exactly what I was saying!" Mina burst out, throwing her hands up as she glared at Momo, still clearly salty over having been threatened with extra studying just to shut her up. "I've got every right to get excited when someone finally makes a move! Especially when that someone is one of the most upright, perfect goody-two-shoes people I know!"
"Yeah, tell her, girl!" Setsuna and Toru shouted in unison as they rallied behind their pink friend and partner in crime.
"Set, for crying out loud, stop yelling in my ear!" Itsuka snapped, clapping a hand over the side of her head. "You're sitting right next to me, and it's like getting blasted by a megaphone!" she added while rubbing her ear with a wince. "And Ashido, quit harassing Momo by demanding an explanation for earlier. Sure, you've got the right to ask, but Momo's just as entitled to keep it to herself if she doesn't want to answer."
"Thank you, Itsuka. I couldn't have phrased it more perfectly myself," Momo said smoothly, turning her head toward the tangerine-haired girl with a warm, grateful smile.
"Of course, you two are in cahoots," Setsuna scoffed, rolling her eyes.
Izuku had the front row seats to watch Momo's eyes shift slightly, her irises wobble and pupils shrink, a blush starting to coat her cheeks as she got more and more flustered.
Part of his mind hummed in the realization of just how close they were, how her breath tickled his lips and how her hands were still tracing his face.
Oh, there it was. The feeling of his cheeks catching fire in a blush that almost got him sweating, and his heart beating out of his chest.
"I- It's not like that!" the tall and black-haired angel shot back, taking a step back and pulling her hands away from his cheeks. Which he missed from the second they left contact.
"And now she blushes and gets all flustered right at the finish line, ribbit," Tsu said, rolling her eyes before shaking her head with a sigh. "If Momo's counterpart had been just a little braver, we probably would've seen her practically swallowing Izuku's face whole."
"Tsu, really, there's no need to put it in such crude terms," Momo replied, her cheeks blooming a noticeable shade of red. Still, a small, amused smile tugged at her lips. "That said... you're not entirely wrong. A touch more courage might have given us a far more enjoyable scene to witness," she punctuated her words with a playful wink in Tsu's direction, earning a quiet chuckle from the frog girl.
"So... are you planning to show the courage your counterpart didn't?" Ochako asked suddenly, fidgeting with her fingers. And even though she was the one who brought it up, she wasn't sure what kind of answer she actually wanted to hear.
Momo's eyes lingered on Ochako, reading the storm of doubt and hesitation written across the brunette's face with almost unnerving ease. She understood it, even empathized with it, but she had no intention of softening her own stance. Hiding her feelings or pretending otherwise simply wasn't an option... not from Ochako, and not from anyone else in the room. Momo had a goal she was committed to chasing, and no amount of discomfort from her friends would deter her. If her honesty forced them to confront fears they'd rather ignore, then so be it. In fact, in her humble opinion, facing those truths would only help them grow stronger in the long run.
"Yes, Ochako. If the opportunity presents itself, I'd like to be a little bold and make my move on Izuku," Momo admitted without a hint of pretense or hesitation. "That said, unlike my counterpart, I'd take a more subtle approach. I'd leave no room for confusion, no chance for misinterpretation. I'd tell him exactly how I feel in clear, direct words rather than wrapping it up in riddles or half-truths." A soft laugh escaped her lips as she shook her head, remembering a romance novel she'd once read where the two leads spent the entire book stumbling through pointless misunderstandings, creating a bizarre and endlessly frustrating chain of events.
"Wow... I didn't know you were that serious about this," Ochako said, a cold dread settling in her chest at Momo's words. And how could she not feel that way? She had only just started to come to terms with her own feelings for her best friend, but if Momo actually confessed, she couldn't imagine him rejecting someone like her. In fact, Momo was so perfect and desirable in her eyes that if she had asked her out, Ochako wasn't sure she'd be able to say no, even though she didn't really know if she liked girls like that or not.
"Ochako, I always take important decisions in my life very seriously. And this one... this one ranks high, because if I treated it as casually as wondering whether or not to get ice cream, it could not only damage my friendship with Izuku but also affect my relationships with our other classmates, and even disrupt our class unity as a whole," Momo explained solemnly, before her gaze softened, and she looked at Ochako with genuine warmth and concern. "Besides, I'm not the kind of person who would deprive myself of the happiness I could reach for just by stretching out my hand. Being rejected by Izuku would be one thing, I could live with that, stay friends with him, and eventually move on to find someone else. But I won't deny myself the chance without even trying, only to live with that regret for the rest of my life. And Ochako... I truly hope, from the bottom of my heart, that you wouldn't either."
In response to Momo's words, all Ochako could do was nod meekly, unsure how to react to such kindness from her supposed love rival. By all logic, Momo should have been discouraging her from even thinking about confessing her feelings, but instead, she was encouraging her to take that leap.
Then his world came crashing down, his mind now free of the hypnotizing allure of the physical affection Yaoyorozu had provided. It began rushing at the speed of light realizing how many naked women he was around, and his eyes were open , and he was-
His neck cracked from the speed he looked up in, the muscles on his back whining as something pinched at the nape of his neck. But at least he wasn't staring at private bits.
So many sets of private bits.
"Hahah! Midoriya's reaction is priceless!" Mina laughed, throwing her head back and clutching her stomach. "The way he cranched his neck back, it was straight out of those old-school cartoons, like Tom & Jerry! I can't stop laughing!"
"Amusing as the spectacle may appear, that disquieting crack when he snapped his neck back hardly bodes well," Reiko said, frowning. "I sincerely hope it proves nothing grave, for such a mishap would surely mar the occasion, leaving Midoriya's counterpart with a memory far less cherished than what our counterparts so clearly intend."
"Hmm... I hope he's okay," Yui added quietly, nodding in agreement.
"Oh, after all those things Creati said you're doing that?" Tokage groaned before Izuku shuddered; he could feel the fellow greenette scheming something.
"Oh, other me, come up with something spicy and exciting! Our reputation's on the line!" Setsuna urged her counterpart, hoping she'd do something to toss a little pinch of chaos into the overly sweet, fluffy atmosphere playing out on the screen.
"Who's picking people now, by the way?" Tsuyu mumbled, the rest of the girls sparing her a glance. Rather than staring at the sole man in the bath with them.
None of them would ever admit they were trying to see who he would peek at.
'Well, he's obviously going to sneak a peek at me,' each girl thought at the exact same moment, only for their eyes to lock in shock, as though they'd just blurted it out in unison. But no, they were sure they hadn't said a word aloud... which somehow made the realization even more awkward.
"I suppose, Ibara?" Kendo offered, looking at the vine-haired Christian.
"Ah, right." she nodded, then shot a glance back to the man looking up to the stars. "Midoriya, if you would?"
"Oh, truth," he quickly said, trying to not think too hard about anything. The amount of naked women around him, the choice, anything.
"Damn it! Midori's playing it way too safe!" Mina groaned, puffing out her cheeks in a pout as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Why couldn't he just be some hot-headed, muscular hunk who'd pick a dare to try and impress us girls? That would've been so much easier!"
"Mina, given the situation he's in now, thanks in no small part to my counterpart, there was no way he was going to pick anything other than truth," Momo replied with a soft chuckle, shaking her head slightly. "And besides, if Izuku really were, as you put it, a 'hot-headed, muscular hunk desperate to impress us,' would that honestly be fun for you? Someone like that wouldn't get flustered. He'd just flex or smirk, and then what? You wouldn't get the reactions you clearly enjoy provoking so much. Wouldn't someone like that get boring quickly?"
"Huh... I didn't really think about it that way." Mina paused, frowning for a beat before the realization dawned, and she nodded in reluctant agreement. "You're right, Yomomo. It's way more fun to trap someone like Izuku and watch his flustered reactions."
"Ah dammit, he knew I was gonna get him to look down!" Ashido hissed, punching the water and making a splash, earning a giggle from Tooru.
"And you still wonder why he didn't pick dare, ribbit," Tsu said dryly, fixing Mina with a flat, pointed stare. Mina immediately whistled innocently and glanced away, suddenly finding the ceiling of the dorms quite interesting.
"Have you ever had a girlfriend?" Tsuyu asked, quiet and calm that seemed to slice through the entire bath.
"Great work, Tsu! Now that's a great question," Setsuna said with a grin. "Way better than just asking each other about our quirks like a bunch of nerds."
"I doubt it's nearly as great a question as you think, ribbit," Tsu replied, shaking her head with her usual deadpan expression.
"What are you—" Setsuna began, only to be cut off by Tsu, who gestured sharply toward Ochako. The brunette's expression had darkened into a deep frown, her brows furrowed in irritation. "Hey, Uraraka, why the long face? Something wrong?"
"Yes, there is," Ochako scowled at Tsu's counterpart on the screen. "I really wish she hadn't asked that question." She clicked her tongue in annoyance, knowing just how sensitive that subject was for Izuku. After all, she wasn't just calling herself his best friend for show. She had access to so many of his secrets and insecurities that most of their classmates would never even dream of knowing. And in return, he knew plenty about her own secrets and insecurities as well.
Izuku paused, drinking in the question. Then chuckled softly. "... Tsu, Uraraka was the first girl I've- had a positive interaction with."
The bath seemed to grow quiet at the reveal, Izuku fighting the urge to look down and see if he'd said anything too weird.
"I mean, other than my mom that is."
"Oh, so that's what you meant when you said it was a sensitive subject for Midoriya," Itsuka said as she glanced toward Ochako and noticed the way her friend's shoulders tensed and looked even more uncomfortable than before.
"Yeah... that's exactly why I hated it when he was asked that question," Ochako replied, shaking her head with a mix of frustration and hurt. "Some secrets are too personal. Only the person they belong to should decide who gets to know them, not some stupid video exposing them without Izuku's consent," she let out a sharp huff, crossing her arms tightly over her chest.
"Now that you put it like that, it really does feel like a huge breach of Izuku's privacy," Momo admitted with a troubled frown. "But at the same time, there's nothing we can actually do about it except stop the video. And honestly... after watching for so long, I think it would be a waste of all the time and emotions we've already invested if we quit now, especially when it seems like we're finally so close to the finish line."
"It's okay, I'm not telling anyone to stop watching," Ochako murmured, her voice heavy with guilt. "I just... can't shake this awful feeling, like I'm the one betraying his trust by sitting here and letting everyone learn something so personal about him without his say-so." She slumped back in her seat, shoulders sagging under the weight of her thoughts, while Tsu quietly reached out and patted her shoulder in sympathy.
Jirou coughed. "...care to explain?"
"...explain what?" He responded, blinking. "I-I mean, my quirk came in late so girls from my classes just, didn't bother, no one really wanted anything to do with the 'quirkless loser.'"
"Ochako, do you know what he's talking about?" Momo asked with a frown, glancing toward the brunette. "I know you don't want to reveal anything Izuku might've told you in confidence, but since this is already being shown to us, could you at least shed a little more light on the matter?"
"I'm sorry, Yaomomo. I really wish I could, but the truth is... even I barely know anything about it," Ochako admitted gloomily. "The only reason I even found out the little I do was because the conversation kind of slipped into that territory by accident. And the second he realized what he'd let slip, he looked so damn ashamed and begged me to forget I'd ever heard it."
She let out a long sigh, leaning forward with her elbows braced against her thighs, pressing her face into her palms. "Of course, I tried to push him, to get him to open up, but he completely shut me out. He just kept insisting there was nothing worth talking about, that his past wasn't interesting, and that he hated dredging it up." Clicking her tongue in irritation, she shook her head, remembering all the times he had deflected and redirected every one of her questions. "That said, there is one more person who might know the answer..." her voice trailed off as she glanced at the other girls.
"Bakugo..." Jiro muttered with a grimace, the image of a certain spiky-haired blonde immediately coming to mind, "...of course. If anyone has answers to our questions, it'd definitely be his childhood friend."
"I wouldn't dare call them friends, ribbit," Tsu said firmly, her tone unusually sharp. "Not when you think about the way Bakugo treated Izuku with hostility for the first half of last year. You couldn't call it anything other than a bully and his victim."
"Woah, woah, woah! Calm down, Tsu! No need to go dropping the B-word on one of our classmates," Mina jumped in quickly, her voice rising, clearly not liking where the conversation was headed. She forced a laugh, but it sounded strained. "I know they've got history before U.A., but come on, it's probably some kind of misunderstanding. I really don't think it's the way you're making it sound right now."
"Mina, I understand that Bakugo's a close friend of yours, and I know you and Kirishima tend to see his behavior through rose-colored glasses, but you can't just ignore the facts staring you in the face," Momo said, her eyes narrowing as she folded her arms. "Honestly, just ask yourself this: do you really want to be the kind of person who looks the other way when one friend is suffering, just to protect the other?"
"Hey! Don't put words in my mouth!" Mina snapped at the raven-haired girl. "And don't blow this way out of proportion! Midoriya isn't suffering, and even if they had bad blood in the past, Bakugo already apologized. From what I see, they're fine now and actually seem to get along pretty well!"
"Yeah, some apology that was," Jiro said flatly, her tone dripping with sarcasm. "Saying sorry when Midoriya was practically on the brink of a total physical and mental breakdown? Please. I doubt he even registered it in the moment. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if Bakugo's already forgotten it ever happened. Because from where I'm standing, I sure as hell haven't seen much of a change in how he treats Midoriya or the rest of us, for that matter."
"Well, I think it would be unfair and biased to claim Bakugo hasn't changed, because fortunately, he has. He's not nearly as volatile as before, and he doesn't look like he's two seconds away from murdering Izuku every waking moment like he did at the start of the year," Momo said, chuckling softly when Jiro shot her a scowl, clearly annoyed at the defense. "That said, I do understand your perspective. With a quirk as sensitive to sound as yours, it's only natural you'd find him grating. Even with all his improvements, he still has a ridiculously short fuse and a bad habit of subconsciously using his quirk when he's venting at people."
"Yeah, no offense, Mina, but hanging around your group is kind of exhausting," Toru added. "It gets really old being stuck near a guy who screams like a damn banshee every thirty minutes. Meanwhile, you and the others just sit there like it's normal, like you've built up some kind of immunity to him. For the rest of us? It's obnoxious as hell."
Mina, meanwhile, kept her mouth shut for once, her jaw tight and her expression unreadable. She was still simmering over Tsu outright calling one of her closest friends a bully, and she wasn't about to let that accusation slide. No, once this was all over, she was going to dig deep into Bakugo and Izuku's history, piece it together for herself, and when she proved she was right, she'd make damn sure to rub it in everyone's faces for the rest of her life.
"...Green, I'm coming in to hug you and you can't stop me," Jirou almost grumbled, a tinge of sympathy in her voice that calmed down whatever part of his brain that was about to oppose the action. Or maybe he just liked the idea of getting more physical affection, he was in too deep to figure that out.
"Good work, girl! If your counterpart hadn't gone in for that hug with Broccoli Head, I'm pretty damn sure mine would have," Setsuna said with a lopsided grin. For once, she kept any suggestive remarks to herself, out of respect for the heavy atmosphere lingering in the room. "Still, I've gotta admit, I'm shocked at how composed your counterpart is right now, especially since how flustered she was earlier at just the thought of Izuku joining them in the bath."
"Well, I can't say for certain why she's holding it together so well right now since I'm not the one living that experience, but if I had to guess, it's a mix of her having already come to terms with the idea of him being there with them, and her care and worry for him," Jiro reasoned, leaning back against the couch "Plus, I'd like to think I've got enough heart to put aside a little of my own discomfort if it means comforting a friend."
"What wise and thoughtful words, Jiro," Ibara said, her gentle smile radiating warmth as she looked at the earjacked girl. "I'm certain Midoriya, and honestly, all of us, are lucky to have a friend like you in our lives."
"Hey... it's really not that big a deal," Jiro muttered, her cheeks coloring bright red as she fiddled nervously with one of her earjacks. As always, she had no idea how to handle being the center of genuine praise, and her fidgeting only gave away how flustered she was by the unexpected spotlight.
Jirou's gentle touch against his shoulder pulled him out of his musings before he felt her arms wrap around his shoulders, only her towel separating their bodies as she settled down to his side and hugged him tightly.
He really didn't know how to act at that moment. Truth be told, he couldn't even remember the last time someone had hugged him like this. The closest was Eri clinging onto him for dear life, but he doubted that counted in the long run.
"Okay, this is just way too sad to watch! I swear, all I want to do right now is track Izuku down, wherever he is, and wrap him up in the biggest, crushing hug ever!" Toru cried, her voice breaking as the urge to comfort him overwhelmed her.
"Yes... even I feel the same," Ibara admitted quietly, a heavy ache weighing down her chest. "It troubles my conscience to hear such a downhearted confession coming from someone as gentle and selfless as him. To think that a heart so kind could be carrying such sorrow... it's unbearable."
Then, with careful deliberation, he wrapped his arm around Kyoka, hugging her back from the side without looking at her, melting into the contact with ease he couldn't consider himself having mere moments ago. "...thank you."
"Good lord, how bad did you have it that you are thanking me for a hug?" Kyoka teased, her jack prodding his shoulder but not even flinching at his returned hug. A light blush bloomed on his cheeks when he felt a second jack wrap around his wrist twice.
It felt really, really nice.
"Hey, can we just... you know... fast forward this part? I have this feeling that the mood in the room is really starting to drop to a depressing low," Setsuna said, rubbing the back of her head. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I feel bad for Izuku too, and I fully plan to smother him with affection the next time I see him, but right now the vibe's nosediving into depressing territory, and I don't really want to feel sad after having so much fun with this video so far."
"Don't you dare touch that fucking remote," Jiro said, narrowing her eyes at the lizard-quirked girl as her earjacks slithered like snakes, pointing threateningly in Setsuna's direction. "Yeah, it's a little sad hearing Green's inner thoughts, but are you seriously blind to the adorable moment happening between my counterpart and Izuku's right now? You think I'm letting you skip over that?"
"Fine, fine, I get it. No need to go all murderous on me," Setsuna snorted, rolling her eyes. Setsuna shot back with a snort, rolling her eyes. "But damn, color me surprised. Looks like even you're starting to warm up to the whole 'you and Izuku' thing your counterparts have going on."
"I mean, it'd be pretty stupid to get all flustered and defensive every single time my counterpart and Izuku's have a close moment on screen, especially when it's not like I can change or control what's being shown," Jiro said with a shrug, casually tossing a potato chip into her mouth. "Honestly, it makes more sense to just sit back, watch, and pick up whatever hints I can from my counterpart before I figure out how I really feel about Green." Her tone was casual, but the faint blush creeping across her cheeks betrayed her calm act. It was the first time she'd come anywhere close to openly admitting she might actually like Izuku, something she'd never said aloud to anyone else, and maybe not even to herself until now.
Momo, meanwhile, smiled warmly at her best friend, pride shining in her eyes. It genuinely thrilled her to see that, just like herself, her friends were starting to look at the video objectively, not as something to be embarrassed by, but as an opportunity... a chance to reflect, to learn, and to her delight, some of them had even started working on sorting out their own feelings with
"Oh, he looks like a puppy being petted, I can't!~" Tooru squeaked, Izuku almost hearing her regret something . If he didn't know any better, he'd guess that she was regretting not bringing a camera.
"Yes, I'm positive my counterpart is kicking herself for not having a phone to snap a picture of this adorable moment!" Toru giggled with a hint of disappointment in her laugh. "Seriously, if I had that picture printed and framed, it would've made the cutest little gift for the both of them... not to mention perfect blackmail material to shut Kyoka up whenever she decides to go off on us."
"First of all, Toru, do you really think either me or Izuku are shameless enough to hang up a picture of us half-naked in a bath, in a bath, in our house?" Jiro deadpanned, staring at her like she was an idiot. "And second, if you ever manage to dig up any kind of 'blackmail material' on me, the first thing that's going to happen is that your phone would mysteriously disappear, never to be seen again. And the second? I'll make damn sure to go off on you even harder every single day after that," she added with a huff.
"Hey! Stay the hell away from my phone! I've got a lot of important pictures in there!" Toru snapped, only for Jiro to smirk back at her with a smug grin.
"
"Ohh, that's such a good nickname! I'm definitely stealing it!" Pony exclaimed, her grin stretching from ear to ear, and her eyes sparkled with excitement, glued to the sight of her counterpart tackling Izuku as she leaned forward in anticipation to see where it would lead.
He laughed lightly, his eyes looking over her horns to the stars above, barely managing to avoid seeing anything too lewd, and Izuku wrapped his other arm around Pony and returned her hug as well. "
His brain buzzed with a revelation: 'Soft'
Really, really soft.
"Wait, are-
"
"Pony, you seriously..." Itsuka let out a long, tired sigh, rubbing the bridge of her nose as she watched Pony hug Izuku, completely naked and pressing herself shamelessly against him. The poor... well, incredibly lucky boy was doing his absolute best to maintain near-mythical levels of restraint, trying not to picture the pleasantly squishy things pressed against his chest.
"What!? I'm not doing anything bad!" Pony protested, still wearing a wide grin. "Besides, you can't tell me Izzy hates being pressed against me. In fact, I'm sure he would've looked down and admired me in my full glory if it weren't for that stupid self-restraint of his!"
"You..." Itsuka started, but the words died on her lips. Earlier, she had been the one to scold Ibara into silence over indecency and proper behavior, so now she had no ground to reprimand anyone. She let out a weary sigh and muttered under her breath, "Why do I feel like a mother who's just discovered a devious new side to her seemingly innocent daughter?" The thought brought her back to the sweet, naive blonde-haired American girl she had first met on the very first day of school, now apparently hiding a surprisingly impish side, which she never knew about.
"Heeeey Izuku~"
He decided that he really didn't like the tone Tokage had.
"What are you planning? " Kendo hissed somewhere in the baths, the other girl laughing in response.
"Of course, disaster never comes alone," Itsuka muttered, sighing once more as her eyes drifted toward Setsuna.
"Disaster?" Setsuna arched a brow at her before flashing a toothy grin at the tangerine-haired girl. "Aww~ that's honestly one of the best compliments I've ever gotten!"
"Ever heard of float-a-boobie?"
Izuku heard Shiozaki flinch. "You wouldn't!"
"Where are my boobs, Ibara?"
"Unfortunately, my counterpart, no matter how hard you try to keep indecency from spreading, it's pointless when you've got imps like these running around," Ibara frowned at the screen, already guessing what sort of shameless stunt her mischievous friend was about to pull next, though she still held back from making any harsh remarks toward the lizard-quirked girl.
If Ibara was being completely honest with herself, she knew the only reason she held back wasn't just because of the promise she'd made to their class president, but also because, little by little, she was growing more tolerant of her classmates' crude antics and the constant nudity shown in the video. What she didn't realize, though, was that without even meaning to, her mind was slowly beginning to adapt. The thought of being unclothed no longer felt quite as scandalous when it came to this particular group of people... and especially not when it came to the boy who, somehow, had been at the center of everyone's attention since the very beginning of the video.
Izuku groaned, noticing the bust that the girls were shocked to see were missing, slowly getting into his peripheral vision then into the center of his gaze. "...found them."
Setsuna's cackle echoed off the walls of the bath.
"You must really think what you just did was hilarious, huh?" Ochako asked flatly, shooting Setsuna a dry, unimpressed glance.
"Of course I do!" Setsuna shot back instantly, flashing a toothy, challenging grin back at Ochako. "I mean, come on, look at this magnificent pair of titties..." she gestured shamelessly toward her chest, "...you can't tell me they're not a treat for Izuku's counterpart. Hell, with charm like these two babies alone, my counterpart must have wormed her way into his dreams and daydreams without even trying."
"I like your confidence, Lizardy, really, but sorry to say it wasn't funny or entertaining. You've gotten kind of predictable, you know. In fact, most of your jokes don't even land anymore since we already expect you to throw something crude in as the punchline," Ochako said sweetly, though her smile carried more hostility than warmth. "And just so you know..." she leaned in close, locking eyes with the lizard-quirked girl as her chest subtly lifted in challenge, "...you've got nothing on me. If yours are charming, then mine?" Her lips curved into a sly grin. "...Mine are breathtaking."
Setsuna froze mid-grin, caught completely off guard by Ochako's boldness. The stunned look on her face was priceless, and the rest of the girls couldn't help but laugh, thoroughly entertained by Ochako flipping the tables for once.
"...I had no way to escape this exact thing from happening right?" Izuku murmured, the rest of the girls chattering up a storm as they all noticed the floating breasts right above the man.
"Nope~" Setsuna chuckled gleefully, causing Shiozaki to sigh and give up what little hope she had for her classmate's salvation.
"Well, at least he's smart enough now to cover all the legal bases, making sure he's on the right side of the law as judged by the council of bathwomen," Momo said with a soft chuckle, earning quiet snickers from a few of the other girls who found her remark just as amusing. "That said, it looks like Ochako really did a number on one of the council's founding members," she added with an amused smile, glancing at Setsuna, who still looked stunned, muttering to herself as she wondered if she was, in fact, becoming predictable.
"Huh, you really were adamant about Izuku seeing your bust, huh, Lizardy?" Tsu croaked with monotone seriousness. "Makes me wonder..."
"I mean, it is a nice pair," Izuku mumbled out, coaxed by the sheer bluntness that was Tsuyu.
"Huh!?" Izuku's remark caught Setsuna completely off guard, yanking her out of her daze. Her eyes widened as she stared at the screen, and the rest of the girls leaned in, grinning, clearly eager for any hint of flustered reaction to tease her about.
He noticed that fact a second later. "Did- did I say that out loud?"
"OH MY GOD!" Mina screeched, along with something that sounded like Tokage almost falling face first into the water. "Midori out here getting all smooth on us!"
"I'm sorry! It just- slipped out!" he squawked and tried to look down to Ashido, only to get an eyeful of Pony's large eyes instead, staring at him with a slight blush on her face.
"Well, well, well, looks like someone's flustered," Mina drawled, slowly turning her head like a creepy doll from a horror movie until her wide, devilish grin locked onto Setsuna. "For someone who always pretends to be so bold, you sure folded fast over one little compliment. Tell me, was it just because Midori was the one who said it, or are you actually a shy little flower hiding under that shameless teaser act you want everyone to believe?"
"Well said, Ashido. Even I didn't expect a supposed temptress like her to crumble as easily as wet tissue paper," Ibara chimed in a calm, serene voice, which felt quite odd with the mischievous glint in her eye. Turing her head slightly, she gave the lizard-quirked girl a knowing smile, clearly relishing the way Setsuna's eye twitched with irritation.
'Damn it, sister! Do you have any idea how bad it looks when we go parading our assets in front of the boy we like, only to turn into flustered wrecks the second he actually pays us a compliment?!' Setsuna raged inwardly at her counterpart before snapping her glare toward her friends. Every single one of them looked far too entertained by her counterpart's embarrassment for her liking. But she kept her mouth shut, knowing full well that if she opened it now, she'd only hand them more ammunition to fire back at her and to tease her even more.
Still, she was already marking names on her mental hit list. And at the very top was none other than her partner-in-crime, the pink-skinned menace herself, Mina Ashido. Getting teased by Ibara was one thing since their back-and-forth had practically become a running gag at this point. But Mina? Mina's betrayal cut deep. A fellow shameless, free-spirited girl stabbing her in the back like this was unacceptable... an unforgivable offense that Setsuna swore she'd avenge. For now, though, she played it smart, biding her time until the perfect opportunity came to strike back and put Ashido right back in her place.
"
" WHAT!? " was the only thing Izuku could respond with in that revelation, trying to pull away from the de facto group hug. Between the horse heroine laying on top of him and Jirou's jack wrapping a little tighter around his arm, Izuku's escape had no chance of happening.
Pony's giggle was worth whatever instance of sheer dread he had felt, washing over him like a soft calming wave. "
"Haha! Pony almost killed him just now!" Kinoko burst out laughing, clutching her stomach as she watched Izuku struggle to escape while trapped between two beautiful girls. "Seriously, he looked like his poor heart was about to mush-room its way right out of his mouth!"
"Truly, I never imagined Pony possessed such a side to her," Reiko remarked, shaking her head with an amused smile. "It feels as though we have uncovered an entirely different friend concealed beneath the one we believed we knew. And while this revelation is certainly overwhelming, even carrying a hint of mischief, I cannot claim it to be unpleasant. On the contrary, it is rather refreshing to have another voice carrying the burden of impropriety, sparing Setsuna from her usual role."
"Also...>" she spared a glance back to look at a very flustered Tokage. ""
"I'm honestly more worried that you tried to apologize for a compliment ," Kyoka added, her free jack poking his upper torso for emphasis. "I don't think any one of us would mind hearing something like that from you..."
Izuku remembered what Pony had told him- what felt like an eternity ago- in the changing rooms.
He looked down to Jirou, making eye contact with her as she started flushing in the cheeks at the action. "...If you say so..."
"See, Izzy? You should listen to me more. I'm way wiser than people give me credit for, you know," Pony said as she preened a little, clearly pleased that Izuku's counterpart remembered her words, never mind the fact that she'd only said them in the first place just to convince him to join them in the bath.
"Kyoka isn't wrong either," Momo chimed in gently, her voice softer than usual. "Just like she said, I wouldn't mind hearing some compliments from Izuku myself..." She gave a shy, almost secretive smile before her cheeks flared crimson and she nervously twirled a loose strand of her dark hair between her fingers. "...especially if those compliments were about certain things I'd never want anyone else but him to even think about."
"Goddamn, Momo's got it bad for Green," Mina muttered under her breath before scoffing at herself. "Who the hell am I kidding? I'm no better than her. Shit, if anything, I'm probably even worse," she admitted with a sigh.
Jirou looked like she was expecting something more than that, her fluster slowly ebbing away and into an empty feeling of disappointment before he got the courage to continue, his classmate flinching the moment he sharply breathed in to continue.
"I- uh... your bust is good, too, from what I can feel. Uh, very soft?"
Jirou just looked back at him, trying to decipher the mangled mess that was supposed to be a flirty compliment. Slowly, a smile etched its way on her face before she burst out laughing, gently laying her forehead on his shoulder as she cackled. "Green- god, you are so bad at this!"
"Yeah, Green, that was pretty bad," Jiro said, laughing softly alongside her counterpart. "But... there's something kind of endearing about it, in its own awkward way. Still, I wish it had come from the heart, not just because he thought my counterpart was expecting a compliment," she added quietly, her tone softening as she hoped for something a little more genuine from the interaction playing out on the screen.
Whatever little worry Izuku had left after this entire assault was blown away with that last bit of reassurance from Kyoka. The man cracked a wobbly smile and pressed on. "Cut me some slack, I usually don't try to flirt with cool, beautiful women."
Kyoka flinched. Looked up into his eyes with the kind of fear he felt when Mina looked ready to tease along with something he couldn't quite place, her cheeks slowly growing red. "Sometimes, you scare me with how fast you learn."
"Oh don't be like that," he smiled back, then rubbed the back of his head. "I'm just happy I got you to smile. It's a gorgeous sight, you know."
"
"So, was that genuine enough for you, Kyoka?" Momo asked, grinning at her best friend as she bumped shoulders with her. "Or do you want him to literally pull your counterpart into his arms and kiss her just to convince you?"
"Momo! Don't shove your fantasies onto me!" Jiro exclaimed, her face turning bright red as the other girls around them erupted in laughter at her reaction.
"My fantasies?" Momo raised an eyebrow, amusement twinkling in her eyes. "Darling, you wouldn't be able to handle my fantasies," she added, winking at Jiro with a teasing, seductive smile.
"You know, if she went after Izuku with that smile, he wouldn't stand a chance, ribbit," Tsu said, chuckling to herself.
Izuku heard some splashing before Kodai appeared above him, looked down into his eyes as she tugged the towel around her a little tighter, before she sat down right next to his head, gently urging him to lay his head on her lap. "You're hogging him," she breathed out simply.
"Good," Yui said, nodding in quiet approval at her counterpart's actions on the screen. After all, just because her counterpart shared her reserved personality and preferred to stay in the background didn't mean she wasn't willing to share a little intimate time with Izuku, just like the other girls' counterparts were taking their turns doing.
Kyoka used that chance to bolt, hiding behind Momo, the taller woman laughing at her friend's antics. "Too smooth?"
"Momo, sometimes I wonder if you're my best friend or my arch-nemesis, since you never miss a chance to mess with me," Jiro said, shooting the raven-haired girl a mock-threatening glare.
"Of course I'm your best friend, idiot. And like any good best friend, I'm taking every chance to tease you before anyone else gets the opportunity," Momo replied, patting Jiro on the back with a laugh.
Izuku heard a soft 'you shush' from Jirou as Kodai lifted his head and rested it on her thighs.
"Your turn." Yui whispered, barely audible to Izuku, and poked him on the cheek. "Pick a person."
"Oh- right..." he gulped, just letting Yui do her thing. He wasn't about to admit he was enjoying the eccentric way she was giving affection, but he knew that in his heart and soul.
"Hmm... good boy," Yui said softly, her quiet approval slipping out when she heard Izuku's thoughts on the screen.
Setsuna glanced at the reserved girl with an amused smile before saying, "Honestly, if I were in Izuku's place, I'd let Yui's counterpart do whatever she wanted with me too," she said with a chuckle. "I mean, just look at him! He's got two beauties cuddled up against him and his head resting in the lap of a third! If someone snapped a picture of this frame and leaked it, Izuku would instantly become the number one target of envy and most probably curse-filled hate mails from the boys and men all over the damn world!"
"Hell, forget the world, even I'm jealous of him!" Setsuna sighed dreamily. "If I could switch places with Izuku's counterpart right now, I'd take that deal in a heartbeat!"
"I don't doubt you would, Set, but the problem is you wouldn't be able to stay in his place for long, in fact, instead of relaxing, you'd end up walking away in a ton of pain," Itsuka said, glancing at Setsuna with mock-sympathetic eyes as the green-haired girl tilted her head in confusion with question marks floating above her head. "I mean, knowing you, I don't doubt for a second that you wouldn't let your hands wander where they shouldn't be, which in return would piss me off, and then I would use you as a punching bag, which will cause you a ton of pain... but it's not the case so sadly you are safe for now."
"Sadly!?" Setsuna shot back, glaring daggers at her. "Why is everyone so goddamn punch-happy all of a sudden!? Can't you just fight me with logic, facts, or jokes like an actual independent woman instead of going straight for violence!?"
Izuku had long since given up on trying to understand the entire event he found himself in. Time and time again, his grandest expectations were shattered by the women he admired as heroines and friends, constantly showing him how little he seemed to know about them. After all, in what world would Izuku "Deku" Midoriya even have the slightest chance of resting his head on Yui's lap, staring up at the sparse stars above him while slender fingers carded through his hair affectionately?
'Well, it happened in that world, so it could definitely happen here too, if you and I willed it,' Yui thought, fidgeting with her fingers as a small, hopeful smile tugged at her lips. But just as quickly, the smile slipped away into a frown. 'Oh no... we really haven't spent much time together outside of the mixed-class drills or those casual hangouts with everyone, have we? That's not good at all. I really need to start talking to him more. Maybe... maybe I could set up some study sessions with him. Yeah, that'd be a good place to start.'
It's gotten really late , Izuku mused absentmindedly. Were he in any position to think clearly, he might have worried about the teachers searching for him, or the end of the women's allotted time in the hot spring. The thought was thrown away when Pony relaxed completely and allowed her head to rest against his chest.
"Wow, someone's really working her magic~" Toru teased in a sing-song voice before shooting Pony a playful chuckle. "Seriously though, out of all the girls, I never would've thought your counterpart would be the one to be so forward about this kind of stuff."
"It is what it is," Pony said with a carefree shrug. "I mean, come on, what would've been the point of dragging Izuku's counterpart into the bath if all our counterparts were just gonna sit around, chatting and doing nothing, without anyone actually taking a shot?"
"Yanagi, truth or dare?"
Yanagi's hollow voice drew him back to the present. "Permit me to confess a truth."
"I've been curious, actually!" Tooru exclaimed before anyone else could speak up. "Why do you talk all fancy and spooky? Is it a quirk thing, a cool thing?" Quirks did affect their users in rather unique ways, Izuku had found. He remembered reading a study a long time ago that tried to compare a user's quirk with their personality to determine if quirks themselves defined the person that had them.
"Ah, that was certainly not the sort of query I imagined my counterpart would be confronted with in the video," Reiko said, pursing her lips as she brushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "I cannot vouch for its veracity, yet I confess that responding to such a question may well prove far more arduous for my counterpart than simply undertaking the dare," she added, earning a few curious looks from the other girls.
"I..." Yanagi started, but fell silent. When she spoke again, it held a grave seriousness that almost caused Izuku to look down to her. "I must ask you all to perform a vow of silence, for this insight into my existence is one of a surreptitious nature."
Many women scattered around the hot spring voiced their confirmations, one of which being Ashido. "Keep our damn mouths shut cause this is a secret, got it!"
The girls' curiosity only intensified as they watched Reiko's counterpart go so far as to request a 'vow of silence' before answering. Now, they were practically dying to know what kind of reason she could have for using her usual fancy dialect when speaking that demanded such a level of secrecy.
A meaner part of Izuku wondered if Ashido knew what 'surreptitious' even meant.
"Midori! That's so mean!" Mina shouted, shooting daggers at Izuku's counterpart on the screen before flopping back onto the couch with a pout.
"So... you actually know what that word means?" Jiro asked, a sly smirk tugging at her lips, already guessing the answer.
"W-well... no," Mina stammered, her cheeks flushing as she caught Jiro's mischievous grin. "Uggg~ you're mean too!"
With all of them sworn to secrecy, Yanagi answered, "T'was an artifact of ages passed. I had known my physical appearance was disconcerting for those who lived only as long as I had, and I developed concerns surrounding my social standing. I... decided to construct a façade that matched my visage. I would become an undead mistress, whose voice rang from beyond the veil of life and death. The eccentricities of my being granted me a unique position within my peers, one that offered equal shares of delight and woe."
"Well, looks like we're in for another sappy few minutes," Setsuna said with an exasperated sigh, slumping back in her seat.
"Ah, my apologies. It appears, on this occasion, that it is my counterpart who casts a shadow over the mood," Reiko said apologetically, lowering her head in shame.
"Hey, none of that!" Setsuna said, a hint of panic in her voice as she slid into the seat next to Reiko. "Why are you taking me seriously? You know I ramble all kinds of stupid shit! So just relax, let it play out on the screen, and don't worry about it."
Izuku didn't realize his fist was clenched until he felt a hand tap it. His eyes found Pony's large blue ones, filled with concern and more than a dash of a painfully familiar anxiety. He relaxed his hand and offered the horse girl a smile, hopefully one that wasn't weakened by memories, before he rested his hand on top of Pony's head to soothe her worries.
"Such rhetoric has served to protect me from the harshest of naysayers," Yanagi continued, ignorant of Izuku's empathy.
"Well... I cannot claim to take pleasure in being pitied," Reiko admitted honestly, placing a hand over her heart. "...yet, there is a peculiar comfort in knowing that others bear anger and sorrow on my behalf. Be it Izuku's, Pony's, or that of your respective counterparts, I feel nothing but sincere gratitude toward them and toward all of you, for caring for me with such depth," she added, receiving warm, encouraging smiles in return.
"After all..." Again she hesitated and allowed silence to slink into the bath. She huffed and spoke stiffly, "Bein' real creepy was better th'n just lookin' like ah slept in a graveyard an' crawled to school." The sudden shift in Yanagi's speaking style caused Izuku to blink. Even the women from Class B were caught completely off guard as the hands in Izuku hair stilled and confusion washed over Pony's face. She looked over her shoulder as her ghastly friend kept speaking as if she hadn't swapped to a southern dialect out of nowhere. "They'd never let me hear the end of it. Even still..." Yanagi trailed off, unwilling to finish the darker thought.
The scene on the screen played over again in the common room, leaving the girls with wide eyes and slack jaws as they shifted their gazes between the screen and the visibly flustered Reiko sitting beside them.
"Wait!" Uraraka's voice was thick with excitement as she recovered from the shock first. "You're from Kansai too?!" Water splashed noisily as Uraraka probably raced over to Yanagi's side.
"Uh..." It was Yanagi's turn to be blindsided. "Sorta. My folks were born an' raised in Mie, but ah grew up in Aichi. Ah always used their dialect when it was jus' us, though. Hol' up, you're from Kansai?"
Once again, just like on the screen, the moment seemed to repeat itself in the common room as Ochako hurried over to Reiko, unceremoniously shoving Setsuna aside before plopping down next to her and immediately striking up a conversation, slipping effortlessly into the same Kansai dialect their counterparts were using on the screen.
"Wow... and here I was thinking Pony would be the only one pulling a surprise twist with a hidden side to her personality," Itsuka muttered with a sigh, unsure whether to be shocked or not.
Izuku was suddenly aware just how close Pony's face had gotten to his, distracted by the conversation behind her. He stiffened, unsure if he was going to get another kiss tonight, and without warning, too. A deep part of Izuku was more than ready for it.
"Damn it, my counterpart! If only you had the advantage of hearing Izuku's thoughts like I do, you would've had the perfect chance to kiss him!" Pony groaned, frustrated and genuinely annoyed that her counterpart had been so thrown off by Reiko's sudden accent that she completely missed the golden opportunity dropped in her lap. "Well, at the very least, she's in a much better position than the rest of the girls right now," she added, noting how her counterpart was still cuddled up with Izuku on the screen.
Instead of getting his wish, Pony whispered in English, "
It took more effort than Izuku would admit to beat down the disappointed part of himself so he could give Pony a reassuring smile. "
"Ah, forgive us, we rather got carried away," Reiko said with a soft chuckle, her accent slipping back into its usual elegant, posh lilt as she realized that none of the girls were able to follow either their own conversation or what their counterparts were saying on the screen.
"Yeah... sorry about that," Ochako added, giving a sheepish little smile as her own accent returned to normal.
Uraraka laughed awkwardly, no doubt rubbing the back of her head as she did so. "Surprise! Ah was born in Mie myself, but ah didn't wanna sound like a 'dumb country bumpkin' in th'top hero school. New friends, new me, y'know?"
Finally, Izuku raised his voice to chime in. "And I still say your accent sounds amazing, Uraraka. It's strong, and it fits you well. You too, Yanagi."
Voices of agreement bounced around the hot spring, including a very smug ribbit for some reason. "Izuku's right," Kendo added, "it's different, but you're still our favorite ghost girl, no matter how you talk."
"Thanks, y'all," Yanagi murmured bashfully, barely loud enough for Izuku to hear. "Maybe... maybe ah'll use it durin' the next Girls' Night." She cleared her throat and drawled, "At the present moment, however, I feel most at ease beneath the shroud of grandiose verbiage."
"They're not wrong, you know," Itsuka said, glancing at Ochako and Reiko with a warm, reassuring smile. "You can speak in whatever accent or dialect you want. No one here is going to judge or make fun of you. And if they do... well, they'll learn why my friends call me 'big sister,'" she added, raising her enlarged fist and waving it around threateningly.
"I appreciate your support, Itsuka, yet I daresay I shall not be reverting to that former accent with any regularity," Reiko replied, smiling at the tangerine-haired girl. "Do not misunderstand me, I no longer feel the inferiority or hesitation I once did. On the contrary, I have come to genuinely cherish this elegant and loquacious manner of speech. It imbues me with a certain distinction, and, as my counterpart remarked in the video, it harmonizes splendidly with the very essence of my quirk."
"It's kind of the same for me," Ochako chimed in. "Even though a little of my old accent still slips out sometimes, I prefer speaking this way because it's easier for everyone to understand me."
"Hey! On the bright side, you two can totally bitch about someone right to their face without them even realizing it!" Mina said, chuckling at the thought of someone standing there, completely dumbfounded, while Ochako and Reiko roasted them in their old accents.
"Of course you'd suggest that," Jiro muttered, rolling her eyes and shaking her head with a sigh.
Izuku almost snorted when Ashido groaned at Yanagi's advanced vocabulary.
"Does Midori have something against me? Why does he keep picking up on my counterpart?!" Mina scowled at the screen.
"Well, Mina, I wouldn't say he's picking on you since he hasn't voiced any rude thoughts out loud or insulted you in front of everyone in the bath. And if we're being honest, he's kind of the victim here, since we're hearing thoughts that were meant to be private," Momo reasoned, trying to make Mina feel better.
"Well... when you put it like that..." Mina paused, thinking it over for a moment before she relented and decided to let go of her anger for now.
"Returning to the task at hand, Mina, veracity or challenge?"
"Wait, wait-wait!" Pony wriggled out from underneath Izuku's arm and jumped to her hooves with a splash. And no, Izuku did not watch her jump animatedly. His eyes remained locked on the sky above him. Honest. "Come on, Izzy." He did not expect her to reach down, grab his left hand, and pull him onto his own feet before he could even think about rejecting the help, and he couldn't even begin to understand the disappointed grunt that Kodai made.
"Pony, that's not fair!" Yui said, glaring at her. "My counterpart just started her turn with Izuku, and your counterpart is already pulling him away!"
"Sorry, but it looks like my counterpart has other plans," Pony replied, completely unfazed by Yui's glare. "That said... if you're still mad at me, I guess I owe you a threesome sometime in the future."
"Pony! How can you say something like that with a straight face?!" Ibara yelled, looking utterly scandalized at Pony's audacious words.
"Alright, I'll take you up on that," Yui said after a brief pause, taking a moment to consider Pony's offer.
"Yui! How can you accept something like that with a straight face?!" Ibara screamed again, her shock now doubled as she stared at Yui in disbelief for agreeing so casually.
Once again, Izuku's eyes almost settled on the multitude of women surrounding him, but he managed to avert his gaze fast enough, rushing out a quick "sorry," as he did so. The wooden divider that separated the male and female baths looked very interesting to Izuku. Unbidden, a certain grape-headed classmate climbing that very divider came to Izuku's mind. God, how would he even react to Izuku's situation?
"As far as I know, that little disgusting pervert would either scream bloody murder at Green's counterpart for stealing his dream or start worshiping him like a god. Honestly... it could go either way," Jiro said dryly, her tone flat and detached, clearly uninterested in dwelling on that particular classmate any longer.
A finger jammed into Izuku's chest painfully, causing him to yelp. "No! Stop that!" Pony huffed. "
Izuku opened his mouth to protest, but Tokage cut him off. "What Pony said. Really, dude, it's cool. You've already seen my tits, and you're still alive, right?" A mental image of Shiozaki glaring at Tokage's shit-eating grin jumped to the forefront of Izuku's mind.
"Well, if Ibara raging at you is the first thing that comes to Izuku's mind when he thinks about your breasts, then I'm sorry, but I don't think they're all that charming," Ochako teased Setsuna, shooting a playful jab at her for daring to challenge her earlier.
"Hey! My babies are fucking top-class! Don't you dare insult them!" Setsuna shot back, glaring at Ochako. "And it's not my fault that Ibara is so damn obnoxious that her face and voice always pop up whenever anyone is trying to remember the fun memories!"
"Did you just call me obnoxious!?" Ibara snapped at the lizard-quirked girl. "Setsuna, I don't usually believe in revenge, but I swear I'll buy and burn every single box of Dino Nuggies within a 10 km radius if you don't stop calling me stupid names!"
"Blasphemous!" Setsuna screeched, mock-horrified. "You truly are a monster for threatening me with something so precious!" She jabbed a finger at Ibara, who just scoffed, unimpressed by Setsuna's over-the-top act of shock.
Indecision overcame Izuku as the women waited for his answer. They had told him again and again that they weren't angry with him yet, and lots of... weird things had happened to Izuku that he still wasn't thinking about. The entire evening could be one rather elaborate trap for—
No, they wouldn't. Whatever was happening to Izuku, it wasn't any sort of trick he's ever heard of. Even Ashido wouldn't take her pranks this far, and both Uraraka and Yaoyorozu had done nothing to stop the evening from progressing. Still... Izuku called out to the women without turning away from the divider, "Do you promise you won't hate me for this?"
"Okay, just to be clear, I can't be the only one who thinks something's seriously wrong here, right?" Itsuka asked, frowning as she glanced at Izuku's counterpart. The fact that he had even entertained the idea that their affection and compassion toward him could be some kind of trap, even if he had shut that line of thought down himself, the second it had appeared in his head, was enough to make her uneasy.
"Nah, you're not the only one, prez," Setsuna said, her voice unusually serious while her usual mischief and humor nowhere to be seen. "This goes way beyond self-restraint and respecting women juice. If, after spending so much time with our counterparts and experiencing all that love and care firsthand from them, he still thinks it might all be fake or some elaborate prank, then Izuku's got some real trust issues going on in his head."
"Well, neither of you is wrong," Momo admitted with a heavy sigh, sadness clouding her usually composed expression as she looked at the screen. "I've come to the same conclusion after watching his behavior and listening to his thoughts. Unfortunately, I'm fairly certain whatever's causing this started long before his time at U.A. And the only people who could confirm that are either Izuku himself... or Bakugo, who's been in his life since childhood."
"Yeah, good luck getting anything out of that ticking bomb," Jiro scoffed, shaking her head. "I don't think I need to remind anyone how volatile his temper is, not to mention the stubbornness that rivals Green himself. So... long story short, no matter how hard you bang your head against that wall, you won't get a single thing unless he decides he actually wants to talk."
'Don't worry, Kyoka, he'll talk. I'll make sure of it,' Mina thought to herself, already planning to corner Bakugo about the bullying allegation Tsu had thrown his way, so what's one more question added to the list?
Izuku did not like the silence that followed his question. Jirou was the first to break it by muttering, "Good lord, Green, who the hell hurt you?" Izuku very pointedly did not reply with 'Who didn't?' Emboldened by Jirou's remark, several women around the bath spoke up with various assurances. Even Kodai hummed positively from where she was kneeling.
"Well, there goes another thought for the 'things we should be concerned about' list," Ochako muttered with a grimace at yet another one of Izuku's stray thoughts. Her expression shifted quickly into a frown as she glanced toward Tsu, worry tugging at her voice. "Hey... when Izuku thought, 'Who didn't?'... you don't think he meant us, do you? You don't think we're part of the people who hurt him?"
"I don't think or remember any of us girls, or even the rest of our classmates, doing anything knowingly to hurt him. Barring Bakugo, of course, since you already know exactly where I stand on his relationship with Izuku," Tsu replied calmly, catching an irritated click of the tongue from Mina for bringing Bakugo up again, out of the corner of her eye, but she pressed on. "That being said... it doesn't mean we haven't done something without realizing it. A remark, a joke, even something small that felt harmless in the moment but might've cut him a lot deeper than we thought."
"Well... if that's the case, then I really hope I haven't said anything like that," Ochako murmured, unease still clinging to her chest even as she tried to push the thought away.
They won't be mad. Probably. They are not mad. They want him to turn around and look at them. He gave them a chance to turn him away and kick him out, and they also refused to give him a new blindfold. The only option left was to go along with whatever was happening. Izuku took a deep, stabilizing breath, and finally turned to face all of the women in the hot springs.
"Fucking finally!" Setsuna shouted, throwing both hands in the air with exaggerated relief. "I swear, I thought it was gonna take him forever to actually make up his damn mind!"
"Hey, look on the bright side! Now that he's finally taken that step, there's no going back!" Toru chimed in, thrilled that all of their counterparts were slowly but surely managing to peel away Izuku's layers of shyness and anxiety around the girls.
He promptly choked on air when he saw Shiozaki wrapped up in her own vines, the green tendrils writhing subtly as they covered her like a sleeveless tube dress.
"You know, Ibara, for someone who's always calling me shameless and whatnot, you sure seem eager to put on a show for Izuku. Wrapping your vines around yourself all sexy-like," Setsuna teased, wiggling her brows at the vine-haired girl.
"What on earth are you even talking about, Setsuna? Just once in your life, try to make sense," Ibara said tiredly, shaking her head as if already exhausted by the conversation. "Wasn't it Ashido's counterpart, your counterpart's partner in mischief, I might add, who dared my counterpart and made her lose her towel in the first place? So how exactly is her using her quirk to cover herself modestly supposed to be 'putting on a show' for him?"
"Oh... hehe, right. Totally forgot about that part," Setsuna admitted with a sheepish grin, rubbing the back of her head. Then her eyes lit up with renewed mischief. "But hold on! If that's the case, then why does your counterpart still have that very attractive cleavage on display?" she asked, raising a brow as her grin widened.
"Ah... th-that..." Ibara stammered, her face heating up as she glanced back at the screen. "I'm not really sure, but I'm pretty certain it has nothing to do with Izuku," she muttered, though her voice wavered. It was only then that she realized her counterpart really was letting her vines rest a lot lower in the front, showing off a healthy amount of cleavage, something none of her usual outfits ever dared to reveal.
Pony appeared at his side as he coughed, unsure of what to do and hopefully unsure of what happened. Izuku waved her and the rest of the women off. "Sorry, sorry, I just," —and there was no way he was going to admit what actually caused him to sputter— "I don't think I ever would have been ready for a sight like that." Eh, good enough. Izuku's eyes bounced between the rest of the women's faces, quickly trying to decide where to settle without staring.
"Good answer and good thinking," Momo said with a laugh, shaking her head in amusement before continuing her jest. "At least he saved himself from having to buy mountains of apology gifts for thirteen girls and, more importantly, prevented a full-blown civil war from erupting between all of us."
Ashido openly laughed at him, her face bright with mirth. "You're too easy, Midori. I should have pulled you into the showers a long time ago!" She deftly ignored Izuku's panicked " What?! ", instead choosing to look over at Yanagi for a moment.
"Oh, please, Mina. You go on and on with all this high-and-mighty, scandalous crap just to rile people up, but the truth is, you don't have the guts to actually do any of it," Jiro said, flashing a daring grin at the pink-skinned girl. "You're going to pull Izuku into the shower? Yeah, right. As if that's ever going to happen. After all, under all that bravado, you're just a shy little princess at heart."
"Kyoka! Shy little princess, huh?!" Mina repeated, her eye twitching at the mockery, her hands clenching in irritation. "That's it! I swear, I'm going to make this girl eat her words one of these days!"
"My turn, right?" When her gaze returned to Izuku, it picked up a predatory glint, her smile sharpening to match. "I choose dare~" Oh god, what's Tooru gonna make her do this—
"Let Deku touch your horns."
"Huh!?" Mina exclaimed, staring at the screen, utterly dumbfounded, while Ochako's triumphant cackling echoed in the background.
To be continued...