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CHAPTER START---
"Court will resume after a 2 Hour recess," Judge Boshu's words are immediately followed by an uproar in the courtroom that's cut short when the screen cuts to a news update.
Mina immediately mutes the TV as everyone is stunned silent by what they just witnessed.
All of 1A were gathered in the common area watching the trial with bated breath, only for things to constantly escalate beyond belief.
The only sound in the room is Sero eating a bag of potato chips, waiting for the case to resume as he idly scrolls on his phone.
Beside him Shinso is tapping his foot nervously.
And among the other girls sitting on blankets and cushions on the floor, Momo and Jiro are deep in thought, forced to consider the implications of their relationship with an admitted murderer.
"Is that true?" Asui is the first to break the eerie quiet. "If Horizon leaves is everyone really going to die?""Pretty much," Bakugo admits, surprising many of his classmates. "Glass face is strong enough to scare the villains just as much as the regular weaklings."
"But he may have just ruined his chances at winning this case with that stunt," Ojiro says, one arm draped around Hagakure as she's clearly worried about this entire situation. "I mean causing that kind of scene after all the things he's being accused of, not smart."
"I don't know about that," Shoto taps his chin. "The only way to make people realize the truth of the situation is to be direct and stating it, and being that blunt and graphic is the best way."
"Does your dad have any thoughts about this?" Mina asks. "I'd hope the #1 Hero would have an opinion at least, or are you not allowed to tell us?"
"He's backing Horizon completely," Shoto says, surprising many of his classmates.
"Really? I didn't expect that, I figured he'd want to put Horizon in jail or something," Mina says. "Well, maybe he's not as heroic as All Might in that kind of way."
"Him not being as 'heroic' as All Might is the best course of action right now," Deku says, which definitely surprised everyone. "I hate to say it, but right now only thinking about things in terms of right and wrong will hurt a lot of people.
Horizon doesn't hurt innocent people as far as we know, and I really don't like the way he treats villains, and that he's so open about his…kills. But I don't imagine he'd just let someone put cuffs on him without a fight.
Not to mention if he really does leave Japan everything will happen exactly as he said. Endeavor must know that and understands that we atleast need Horizon here until the League Of Villains has been stopped."
Hearing that from Deku of all people makes Uraraki sick to her stomach, and for Deku, saying it felt even worse.
"I can understand how that makes sense, logically at least," Uraraka admits. "But, I don't know how I feel about sharing a classroom with some mass murderer."
"Him being here is what was keeping the villains away, remember?" Jiro asks, with a disgusted look on her face. "So as much as we may hate it, it's necessary for a while."
"That's assuming they'd even allow it," Asui says. "I mean would they allow him to return to UA, at this point why not just have him complete the Provisional Hero License time just working from Horizon Tower, or just give him a full Pro Hero License."
"Well for the first part, they're definitely gonna let him come back to UA," Kirishima says. "I mean principal Nezu is the only one he trusts and they'll want someone to keep an eye on him for them, so they have to keep those two close."
"The full Pro Hero License could still happen though," Shoji says. "I mean before they didn't do it because of the reformations in Japan's constitution regarding Quirks and Pro Heroes, plus some United Nations stuff that I still don't understand. But if they allow someone to remain free in the country after all the things he's done, making him a full Pro Hero should be nothing in comparison."
"The public would fall apart if they did that," Shinso says. "People are already getting ready to riot in the street," he gestures to the muted TV. "If Horizon is made a full Pro Hero, then that means Japan has truly accepted him for the foreseeable future."
"Yup," Sero cuts in. "But the reason we have Provisional Licenses is because Japan doesn't really trust us yet and it's easier to cut someone with just a Provisional License, which will obviously still be the plan."
"I don't get it," Mina admits. "Why keep him if they don't plan to ever accept him? It's not like he can remain a Provisional License holder forever, they'll have to make a decision in just over 2 years."
"It's like only keeping a player for one season," Tokoyami says. "Japan essentially will keep him until he deals with the League Of Villains, then he'll accept one of the offers another country has made him and the government will cut him loose."
Mina snaps her fingers, "Right! But making him a full Pro Hero would be showing some form of permanent commitment, I get it now!"
"Damn, who would have expected this to happen, just when you think you're getting to know someone," Ojiro sighs.
"Yeah, I know right," Mina says. "I mean he was always a jerk, but I never took him for a murderer." She eyes Bakugo wearily, "anything you wanna tell us Bakugo?"
"Tch, I'm not a killer Pinky! I'm gonna be the #1 Hero!"
"Alright alright," she raises her hands in surrender. "Just making sure."
"If you're gonna question anyone it should be those morons," Bakugo gestures to Sero and Shinso. "They're on his team, if anyone knew it was them."
All eyes immediately turn to them, with the exception of Momo who just keeps staring lifelessly at the TV.
"Well?" Kirishima asks. "Did you guys know?"
"Obviously not!" Sero says.
"He's always been a bit heavy handed with villains, but nothing lethal, at least that we've seen," Shinso says. "But like they said, he wasn't in his right mind during the Gigantomachy, or versus Wolfram, and against Overhaul he didn't have much of a choice."
"But he was when he tortured those villains, what about that?" Asui asks.
Sero frowns, knowing this probably won't end well, but he speaks regardless, "look, the kind of cases Horizon gets handed by the commission, with the stakes that high you really can't afford any delays when getting information out of people, maybe sometimes it goes to far but its always to save lives."
Beside him Shinso nods, but the classmates look disappointed in them all the same.
At this Momo finally moves, standing up with much of the color drained from her face as she lifelessly walks out of the room.
"I'll see you all later, I need some rest," she says while walking past them.
"Uh, don't you want to see how it ends?" Hagakure asks.
Momo stops, and they see tears forming, at the brink of overflowing, "it's Horizon, he'll win, he always wins, even when he shouldn't…" is all she says before going to her room.
Nobody speaks for a minute after she leaves, then Hagakure looks around awkwardly, "well, she took that a lot better than I expected."
"But a lot worse than a certain someone," Shinso nods toward Jiro.
"Huh, me?" Jiro asks as she feels all eyes fall onto her.
"How come you don't seem as affected,did you not care about him, or are you just better than her at hiding it?" Shinso asks.
"I did care about him, a lot," she glares at Shinso, then relaxes. "But I wasn't anywhere near as into him as Momo. "To her he's been this symbol of perfection from the first day of UA, and now he's been proven to be some kind of psychopath."
"And for you?" Shinso asks.
"It hurts, a lot, someone you've reluctantly started to l… like, turns out to be some kind of, thing, that you can't even describe. I don't even know what I'm supposed to do anymore," Jiro says as she wipes the tears the moment they start flowing.
Mina and Uraraka wrap their arms around her, "well if nothing else he owes both of you some apologies," Mina says.
"Yeah, definitely," Urakara says.
"I should go check on Momo," Jiro says as she gets up, tears still flowing down her cheeks. "I'm the only person who really understands what she's going through, so I have to be there for her," she says before quickly leaving the room to find her best friend.
After Jiro is long gone Sero leans closer to Shinso to ask quietly, "so, do you think if he comes back they'll keep sleeping with him, or is it done forever?"
Shinso looks at him as if he's a moron, "he crushed a city into a meteorite then dropped it on Japan, what do you think?"
Sero thinks about if for a moment, "definite no on Jiro, 50-50 on Momo?"
Shinso thinks about it for a moment, then sighs, "10-90 against for Momo."
"Yeah that makes more sense," Sero says.
"You two morons know we can hear you, right?" Asui smacks them both with her tongue. "And those are our friends you're talking about."
"We were just thinking of how weird things could get if he comes back, jeez," Sero rubs the side of his head."
"The better question is, would either of you remain on Team Horizon after this?" Shoto asks.
"Now that's the real question…" the entire room freezes as Horizon walks into the common area from the hallway, looking directly at Sero, "so, what'll it be, and why are you eating my chips?"
END CHAPTER---