Jingle-

  Hotaruuuu's- mini adventures!

  I sigh while watching the TV. Bakugo yells at me from the dorm kitchen, "What are you frying your brain on now, imp?"

  "Just a cartoon... thinking of turning it off..." I say as I put my cheek on my fist.

  "Be your first good idea all day."

  Jerk is Bakugo's default setting, so by this point, I don't even acknowledge it. I figure you either put up with it or hate the guy, and- honestly, he's helped me a ton, so I don't wanna hate him. "It's one of those mini-episodes that's impossible to place in the timeline, but the writer will insist that it actually happened. I just know it."

  Bakugo walks into the living area and stands behind my chair. "Yeah, I hate those episodes. Course, it's better than a clip show."

  "Oh, those are the WORST!"

  "Dude- we're in the 1A dorms. You HATE 1A. Stop following me!" I hear Henry demand as he walks in.

  "Who says you're permitted to be here any more than I am?" I hear Monoma behind him.

  The preteen and his older "friend" walk into the small communal area as Bakugo stands up straight. "The twerp is fine, he's friends with Hotes, and I don't think he's even involved in our mutual training bouts- YOU, Monoma..."

  "Oh?" the blonde from 1B says, getting a cocky grin on his face. "Go ahead, tough guy, make me leave." Bakugo takes a swing, requiring no further invitation, which Monoma just slaps aside with timing and smoothness that would impress my dad. "Ohohoho- I never made it to the combat section of the festival- you wanna find out right here how it would have gone if I did?" Monoma holds his hands behind his back with a smirk as if he's not even slightly afraid of Bakugo.

  "Seriously- go back to your dorm, Monoma," Henry interrupts.

  Monoma folds his arms and looks down at Henry. "You fell from the third-story bleachers onto your shoulder, and you keep walking around like nothing happened."

  "Nothing DID happen!" Henry snaps. "That's how my power works, dummy. My copies don't share damage."

  "You say that, but how many people have watched you to ensure no side effects?" Monoma asks Henry. "You're brave, and that's good, but I think you've kinda had to be and- well, that's not so good."

  "I'll be fine. I'll speak up if there's a problem," Henry says, not seeming all that worried himself, but now that Monoma says it, I'm kinda nervous. What if his power DOES have a side effect?

  "I didn't come here for Monoma's paranoia,"

  "Well, then, why?" I ask.

  "I... well, I want to learn to bake, and when I ask the older kids, I keep getting laughed at. The teachers say they don't have time, but there's no oven in the family room, so..."

  "Wait a minute, you don't even know how to bake? Like in an oven?" Bakugo raises an eyebrow, "It's not hard to figure out. What, do you want one of those pizzas? Just read the box, dummy."

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  Henry clenches his teeth, "I can read a box, jerk. I mean for stuff like cookies... I was trying to make something nice for my family in the dorm kitchen, and I kept burning them... I hoped Hotaru could be nice and show me what I'm doing wrong..."

  "Isn't that sweet?" Monoma suddenly says. He even struggles to be nice to his family just because. Ours is better than yours, Bakugo. " He folds his arms and smirks, looking approvingly at Henry, who raises an eyebrow back.

  "I'll show him what to do... wait... what do you mean he's better?" Bakugo says, also confused. "Better than who?"

  "Why yes, as usual, class B is better than A. In this case, as anyone can see, our tag-along is better than yours!" Monoma says. "What's more, he needs a brute like you to teach him. You should stand aside for a REAL baker."

  "Oh huh ha ho! You're not comparing that street rat to Hotaru!" Bakugo demands. "She's been through way worse and turned herself around way faster." Bakugo starts looking up recipes on his phone... well I think that's what he's doing.

  "It sounds easy when everyone is rooting for you," the boys say, their eyes locked on each other, looking furious.

  "Oh, please. Henry just wants to make cookies. I'll show him. I may not be rooting for him, but it's not like anyone here is in his way."

  "Yeah, Henry, c'mon, let's get work!" I say, pulling my friend's arm and taking him into the kitchen as the older boys follow, continuing their argument.

  "Henry is a crook; that's why no one trusts him," Bakugo says. He brought his problems on himself. If anyone makes fun of him or doesn't want to work with him, it's his fault."

  "HA! Henry made a name for himself while your tag-along was still expecting everyone to help her out of her shell," Monoma says. "Big talk, faults- Henry got himself and his sister out of danger on his own- Hotaru was freaking rescued."

  Meanwhile, even with Henry constantly looking back at the arguing teens, I get a cookbook from over the dorm range. "Home-ec is one of my best subjects," I tell Henry. "First off, we get out all the ingredients and a mixer- c'mon, let's go,"

  "Oh yeah? If Henry and Hotaru were to fight, Hotaru would school him," Bakugo says, "Henry has only ever run away from problems. You should see the kind of hand-to-hand crap Hotes can do! Not to mention her power." He looks over his shoulder at us, "Make sure to follow the book, you two."

  "Oh, brother. Like power is everything. What, did her daddy train her? Henry has real-world experience." Monoma gives Bakugo a smug look. "And you can't just say "follow the book" everyone knows that- why else do you think they MAKE a book?"

  Meanwhile, we have all our ingredients out and ready to go. "Are you two going to help?" I ask.

  "Sure I will," Bakugo says. "Not sure about this blowhard."

  "Well, for sure, they'll need supervision at their age," Monoma says.

  "Oh? I thought you said Henry had real experience."

  "In combat, not in stupid household chores," Monoma responds- while Henry and I combine the dry ingredients.

  "So he won't be able to feed himself when he gets out in the real world- hopeless!" Bakugo says- as I show Henry how to break an egg. For his reputation, Henry pays good attention, eagerly doing things right after me, explaining that he might forget if he doesn't. I'm honestly surprised at how quickly we're getting things done. Good thing we have the teens here to guide us!

  "Ha! Put these two in the forest, and Henry will bring down his food while Hotaru hides in a tree." Monoma says.

  "Oh please, she'll fry half the forest."

  "Sounds like she's like you- overkill with no style."

  "Good thing we're here to teach them, though, huh?" Bakugo asks.

  "Definitely," Monoma says as the two teens nod at each other. "But I'm making more of a difference here, you'll see."

  They then look down at us. Henry and I are covered in some flour but have already put a sheet in the oven. "Remember, you check them at minimum, or they might fall if you check them a bunch," I tell Henry. The teens pause.

  Henry looks like I just gave him an epiphany. "Is that what keeps happening when they look like they fall apart in the oven? That kind of ticks me off to see—I work so hard, and they just go squish," he says, letting his shoulders down. "I really want to show Mom how much I appreciate all she does."

  I pat him on the shoulder, "She knows Henry- sides you'll get the hang of stuff like this, trust me."

  "You think?" he asks.

  "You got it," I say.

  "Yeah, especially with guys like us around to guide you," Monoma says.

  "Yeah... yeah, we totally helped," Bakugo says. "Imagine if we weren't here."

  "The tag-alongs are totally better off with us!"

  "Yeah! Imagine if-"

  "Would you guys keep it down? Loud noises can make baked goods fall, too- c'mon, let's go back to the living room," I say.

  "Yeah, you should have known that, Monoma," Bakugo snipes again.

  "Well, whatever; we helped Henry learn baking."

  "Nah, the point is I helped Hotaru socialize."

  "Yeah, you guys are great to us," I say. "Thanks!"

  Both teens nod at me in satisfaction.

  They then look at Henry.

  "You can thank us any time," Monoma says.

  "Are you two ****ing serious?!"

  Jingle-

  Hotaruuuu's- mini adventures!

  Hotaru: When does this occur?!