The cafeteria was packed with finalists, support crew, and students from eliminated teams who'd stuck around to watch. Arthur claimed a corner table, away from the noise, and focused on eating. Protein, carbs, hydration. Fuel for what was coming.
"Is this seat taken?" Tokoyami appeared with his tray.
"Go ahead."
They ate in comfortable silence for a minute before Tokoyami spoke. "You're analyzing the competition, aren't you?"
"Habit."
"Dark Shadow and I have been doing the same." The bird-headed student's voice carried its usual dramatic weight. "Your team's performance was impressive. That strike on Bakugo's team was ruthlessly efficient."
"He was distracted. I capitalized."
"Most wouldn't have seen the opportunity. You read combat situations differently than other students."
Arthur took a drink, considering his response. "I've always been good at patterns. Seeing what people will do before they do it."
"Your Instinct quirk?"
"Partially. The rest is just experience."
"Experience," Tokoyami repeated. "You fight like someone with far more of it than any fifteen-year-old should have."
"I trained hard," Arthur said simply.
"Clearly." Tokoyami's Dark Shadow emerged slightly, eyeing Arthur curiously. "When we face each other, I look forward to testing that experience."
"If we face each other. The bracket could put us on opposite sides."
"True. Though I suspect the universe enjoys dramatic matchups."
Before Arthur could respond, a commotion erupted near the entrance. Bakugo was yelling at someone, which wasn't unusual, but the target was.
"I DON'T CARE ABOUT YOUR QUIRK THEORY!" Bakugo roared at a nervous-looking Midoriya. "STOP ANALYZING ME LIKE I'M A LAB EXPERIMENT!"
"I'm just trying to understand your fighting style!" Midoriya protested, notebook clutched protectively. "If we face each other in the bracket, I need to know—"
"YOU'LL KNOW MY FIST IN YOUR FACE!"
"Bakugo, please, "
"Someone should intervene," Tokoyami observed.
"Someone will," Arthur said, watching Kirishima already moving to extract Midoriya from the situation.
"You're not going to help?"
"Kirishima's better at handling Bakugo's temper than I am. I'd just make it worse."
"Fair point."
The chaos resolved itself as Kirishima dragged Bakugo away and Uraraka rescued Midoriya. Arthur returned to his meal, but his mind was working.
Bakugo's wound up tight. The cavalry battle loss hit his pride hard. He'll be explosive in the finals, probably dangerous to whoever faces him first.
"Hey, Arthur!" Kaminari dropped into a seat uninvited, recovery from his brain-fry apparently complete. "Did you see the way we smoked that cavalry battle? We were like, whoosh, zap, steal! Perfect teamwork!"
"You said 'wheeey' for ten minutes."
"A small price for victory!"
"You couldn't remember your own name."
"Again, small price!"
Yaoyorozu joined them, looking exhausted but satisfied. "That was more intense than I anticipated. My quirk's lipid consumption was significant."
"English, Yaomomo," Kaminari said.
"I'm tired and hungry because creating things burns fat."
"Oh. Yeah, you should eat more then."
"Thank you for that medical expertise, Kaminari."
Arthur found himself almost smiling at the exchange. Is this what it's like to have friends instead of subjects?
"ATTENTION FINALISTS!" Present Mic's voice boomed through the cafeteria speakers. "We're about to reveal the tournament bracket! Head to the prep area!"
Everyone scrambled up, excitement and nervousness mixing. They gathered in the prep area where a massive screen displayed the bracket. Midnight stood beneath it, whip in hand, smile predatory.
"The matchups have been randomized!" she announced. "Let's see who fate has chosen!"
The bracket filled in:
MATCH 1: Midoriya vs ShinsoMATCH 2: Todoroki vs Sero
MATCH 3: Kaminari vs ShiozakiMATCH 4: Iida vs HatsumeMATCH 5: Ashido vs AoyamaMATCH 6: Yaoyorozu vs TokoyamiMATCH 7: Kirishima vs TetsutetsuMATCH 8: Bakugo vs UrarakaMATCH 9: Himura vs Honenuki
"Aw man!" Kaminari groaned. "I got matched against Shiozaki? She's crazy strong!"
"Who'd you get?" Kaminari asked her yayarouzu.
"Tokoyami." She looked nervous. "His Dark Shadow is formidable."
"Light," Arthur said simply. "His quirk weakens in bright light. Create flash grenades or sustained illumination."
"That's... actually brilliant." Yaoyorozu's eyes widened. "I was overthinking the problem."
"You analyze too much," Arthur told her. "Sometimes the simple solution is the right one."
"DEKU!" Bakugo's voice cut across the prep area. "YOU BETTER NOT LOSE BEFORE I GET TO FIGHT YOU!"
"I'll do my best!" Midoriya called back nervously.
"And you!" Bakugo rounded on Arthur. "Don't you dare lose either! I'm going to destroy you myself!"
"Looking forward to it."
"STOP BEING SO CALM! IT'S CREEPY!"
"We have thirty minutes before matches begin!" Midnight announced. "For those not competing immediately, there are recreational activities available! Cheerleading exhibition, support course demonstrations, refreshments!"
Most students filtered out to explore or rest. Arthur found a quiet corner and closed his eyes, centering himself.
First match is Midoriya versus Shinso. That'll be interesting. Midoriya has power but Shinso has something else, something we haven't seen.
My match is ninth. Hours away. I could watch the others, learn their patterns, but...
"Himura."
Arthur opened his eyes. Todoroki stood there, expression intense.
"Walk with me."
It wasn't a request. Arthur followed the dual-quirked student out of the prep area, through corridors, until they reached a secluded stairwell. Todoroki stopped, turned, and his heterochromatic eyes were conflicted.
"I need to tell you something," Todoroki said quietly. "About my father."
Arthur waited, saying nothing.
"Endeavor is the number two hero. He's been number two his entire career, always in All Might's shadow. It drove him crazy, the gap between them." Todoroki's left side, his fire side, unconsciously grew colder. "He couldn't surpass All Might himself, so he decided to create someone who could. A child with the perfect quirk combination."
Quirk marriage, Arthur realized with cold anger. Breeding people like horses.
"He married my mother for her ice quirk. Had children until he got the combination he wanted. Me." Todoroki's voice was flat, emotionless, but Arthur heard the pain underneath. "Then he trained me. Made me fight until I collapsed. Broke me down and built me back up as his masterpiece."
"And your mother?" Arthur asked quietly.
"He broke her too. She couldn't take it anymore, the training, the abuse, being trapped in that house. One day she snapped." Todoroki touched his scar unconsciously. "She poured boiling water on my face because my left side reminded her of him."
The silence stretched.
"That's why you won't use your fire," Arthur said. It wasn't a question.
"It's his power. His quirk, his legacy, his ambition. If I become number one using it, then he wins. He gets exactly what he wanted." Todoroki's fist clenched. "I'll become the greatest hero using only my mother's power. I'll show him that his masterpiece rejects him."
Arthur understood the logic, understood the pain driving it. But he also understood something Todoroki didn't see yet.
"You're not his masterpiece," Arthur said carefully. "You're your own person. Your fire isn't his, it's yours. It's part of you whether you use it or not."
"You sound like everyone else."
"No. Everyone else probably tells you to forgive him, to let go of the anger. I'm not saying that." Arthur met Todoroki's eyes. "I'm saying that refusing to use half your power isn't rebellion. It's letting him control you through absence instead of presence."
Todoroki went very still.
"True freedom," Arthur continued, "isn't rejecting what you have. It's choosing how to use it for your own purposes, not his. But that's your decision to make, not mine to force."
"Why are you telling me this?"
"Because when we fight, I want to face all of you. Not the half-version you've decided to be out of spite."
Todoroki stared at him for a long moment, then nodded slowly. "When we fight, I'll show you that my ice alone is enough."
"Then I'll prove you wrong."
They walked back to the prep area in silence, but something had shifted. Not resolved, but acknowledged.
The speakers crackled to life.
"ALRIGHT FOLKS!" Present Mic's voice echoed. "THE BREAK IS OVER! IT'S TIME FOR THE FINALS! FIRST MATCH: IZUKU MIDORIYA VERSUS HITOSHI SHINSO! COMPETITORS TO THE ARENA!"
The crowd roared, and Arthur felt the energy shift. The recreational period was done. Now came the real competition.
He made his way to the competitor viewing area, a raised platform where finalists could watch the matches. Most of Class 1-A was already there, along with students from 1-B and other courses.
"HERE WE GO!" Kirishima was practically vibrating with excitement. "Midoriya's first up!"
"That Shinso guy looked intense," Sero said. "Think Midoriya can take him?"
"Midoriya's got crazy power," Kaminari said. "Should be easy."
Arthur said nothing, but his Instinct was whispering warnings. Shinso hadn't used his quirk during the cavalry battle, at least not visibly. Either it was useless in that format, or he was saving it.
A quirk that doesn't work on robots. That's what he said about the entrance exam. What kind of quirk is useless against machines but viable against people?
The competitors entered the arena. Midoriya looked nervous but determined. Shinso looked coldly confident.
"MATCH ONE!" Midnight announced. "BEGIN!"
Neither moved immediately. They stood across from each other, and Shinso spoke first.
"You're the kid with All Might's favor, right? Must be nice, having the number one hero as your personal cheerleader."
Midoriya's expression flickered. "It's not like that."
The moment Midoriya spoke, he froze. Completely still, eyes vacant.
"WHAT?" Kirishima shouted. "What's happening?"
Arthur's eyes narrowed. Mind control. His quirk is mind control, activated through verbal response.
Shinso smiled coldly and started walking toward the boundary line. Midoriya walked with him, movements stiff and puppet-like.
"NO!" Uraraka screamed. "DEKU, SNAP OUT OF IT!"
"This is his quirk," Arthur said quietly, more to himself than anyone. "Brainwashing. Once you respond to him verbally, he controls you."
"That's insane!" Ashido's voice pitched high. "How do you fight someone you can't talk to?"
"You don't engage in conversation," Arthur replied. "You attack immediately, before he can bait you into responding."
But Midoriya wasn't attacking. He was walking toward the boundary, about to step out and eliminate himself.
"MIDORIYA!" The entire Class 1-A section was screaming now. "WAKE UP!"
Then something strange happened. Midoriya's fingers started glowing, that green energy crackling around them. His face contorted, fighting something invisible. The energy intensified, and suddenly he snapped out of it, stopping just before the boundary line.
"What?!" Shinso looked genuinely shocked. "How did you—"
But Midoriya wasn't giving him a chance to re-establish control. The green-haired boy charged, and Shinso tried to defend with basic martial arts, but it was useless against superhuman strength.
Midoriya grabbed Shinso and threw him out of bounds.
"MIDORIYA WINS!" Midnight announced.
The crowd went wild, but Arthur barely heard them. His mind was replaying what he'd seen.
Midoriya broke free. Mind control quirks are supposed to be absolute until the user releases them or loses consciousness. But he broke free through sheer will... or through something else.
"THAT WAS AMAZING!" Kirishima was jumping. "Did you see him power through the brainwashing?!"
"How is that even possible?" Yaoyorozu looked stunned. "Brainwashing quirks typically require external intervention to break."
Arthur watched Midoriya leave the arena, saw All Might in the stands looking proud and concerned simultaneously.
There's more to Midoriya than just raw power. Something deeper.
"NEXT MATCH!" Present Mic announced. "SHOTO TODOROKI VERSUS HANTA SERO!"
"Oh man," Sero groaned as he stood. "I'm so dead."
"Just do your best!" Ashido encouraged. "Maybe he'll go easy on you!"
Arthur watched Todoroki enter the arena, expression cold and focused.
He won't go easy. He's trying to prove something.
"BEGIN!"
Sero immediately launched tape, trying to bind Todoroki from range. Smart strategy against an ice user who needed time to create large-scale attacks.
Todoroki raised his right hand, and the entire arena exploded with ice.
A mountain of ice that towered over the stadium, freezing everything in its path, encasing Sero in a glacier so massive it defied rational analysis.
The crowd went silent, stunned.
"That's..." Kirishima couldn't finish the sentence.
"Overwhelming," Arthur finished for him. "That's overwhelming."
"TODOROKI WINS!" Midnight's voice carried shock. "Sero is completely immobilized!"
Todoroki was already walking away, not even checking if his opponent was okay. Pro heroes rushed in with heat quirks to free Sero from the ice.
"He didn't have to do that much," Yaoyorozu said quietly. "That was... excessive."
Arthur understood though. Todoroki was making a statement. Showing the world, showing his father, exactly what he could do with ice alone.
That's the power of someone with everything to prove and nothing to lose.
"Man," Kaminari breathed. "We have to compete after that? That's not fair."
"NEXT MATCH!" Present Mic announced. "DENKI KAMINARI VERSUS IBARA SHIOZAKI!"
"Oh no," Kaminari stood on shaky legs. "That's me. I'm up."
Kaminari walked toward the arena entrance, trying to project confidence and mostly failing.
Arthur settled in to watch, analyzing, learning, and preparing for his own match hours from now.
The finals had truly begun.
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