I promise I'm still gonna update Freeze Frame I'm sorry I coudln't help myself

Third person pov

The concept of a Sports Festival is odd to Atlantis. He can't seem to wrap his head around it. The excited roar of the crowd makes the merman feel dizzy and distressed. He has no idea how in the world his cousin can possible handle the cacophony of noise. There's so, so many people. He never once imagined in his entire life that he'd see such a dense concentration of humans. They're packed in like sardines, each assigned a seat in this massive bowl that everyone has been calling an arena. The idea of people paying a currency just to come watch children fight each other makes his stomach turn, but he acknowledges that this may be a bit beyond his realm of understanding still.

It's a small mercy that he's able to hide out in the infirmary with Recovery Girl. They'll watch the event on a couple of screens and wait here to receive anyone who happens to get hurt. It's a huge relief, even if he wishes he could join his husband up in the glass box he and Hizashi have designated themselves too. They're going to be announcers: people who narrate what's going on for the crowd and those watching from home. He doesn't know how the scene outside can be displayed on these 'televisions', but he doesn't ask either. Surely it's something he'll figure out... eventually. It seems menial all things considered.

"Relax a little, dear." Recovery Girl patted his knee, drawing his attention away from the screen as Hizashi's booming voice echoed from the speakers. He can even hear it outside, muffled by the thick concrete walls that separate the infirmary from the busyness of everything else. "You look like you're about to keel over. The crowds can't get you in here; I promise."

Atlantis gave a faint nod, eyeing the screen as the dozens upon dozens of students crowd towards a very narrow tunnel. The first part of the exam is an obstacle race. Recovery Girl had explained it clearly enough. Atlantis couldn't help but lean forward, feeling slightly abuzz with anticipation as he searched dutifully for a familiar head of purple hair. He can see now why Hitoshi had been so nervous this morning. This was totally nerve-wracking, and he wasn't even participating! It was a miracle Hitoshi'd gotten his tail back when he did. His magic-- or quirk, since they're sticking to the guise-- is going to be as strong as ever now. Atlantis hopes he can get into the hero course like he dreams to.

He doesn't know a lot about the class system here. He knows there are categories, and he understand the basis of what said categories are. The hero classes are full of students aspiring to be... well, heroes. Fighting evil-doers and saving people in danger! Very noble, Atlantis thinks. It reminds him of the warriors of his own race, so ready to bring up arms against any threat shot their way. It makes sense that such a thing would exist in other cultures. It isn't as hard to wrap his head around when he thinks of it in that context.

The support courses have inventors. Students who create tools and various commodities for heroes to use, and for society in general. The mer have something similar, and Atlantis finds himself understanding this class as well as he did the hero one. He can't say the same for the next: business. This was the section he understood the absolute least, no matter how carefully Shota and Hitoshi explained it. They were interested in the "marketing" part of the industry. Whatever that meant. General Education-- where Hitoshi was-- was normal classes that most other schools offered. The only difference was the chance of getting transferred into heroics, were taught by heroes, and tended to be higher quality than most schools. Hitoshi was aiming to get into 1-A, under Shota. 

"I-Isn't it unfair?" Atlantis asked hesitantly as ice crawled across the floor of the tunnel, freezing a majority of the students the ground by their feet. Recovery Girl turned to him, perplexed. Atlantis backtracked. "W...Well, if the students aiming to be heroes have trained longer, are they not at a natural advantage?" 

It would be like putting him up against a warrior. Any warrior was going to absolutely flatten him. They were built for combat, their magic able to do a vast array of things that Atlantis could never dream of. It let them rise out of the water unaided, even with their tails, and manipulate the water and weather in more violent ways. They could give the liquid a razor-sharp edge Atlantis could never hope to achieve. They could push and pull with terrifying force and displayed excessive durability. Strong skin and scales nearly impossibly to pierce and honed reflexes. Atlantis had come from a long line of them. Their skills varied from mer to mer. Some could destroy with a single touch, whilst others could manipulate the natural forces around them. He'd seen wind grabbed and thrown, and sand coaxed from the sea floor to act as a barrier. It just... felt unfair.

"You're right." Recovery Girl was blunt and straight to the point, but not unkind. She tapped her cane. "This tournament really is for the hero students. Anyone can opt not to participate if they so choose. This whole event is for anyone who wants to put themselves out there-- this is their debut into that part of society. It's their chance to get scouted by other heroes and let the world know their name. Like an introduction. Every course has an equal chance to try, even if some have had more training." 

Atlantis nodded. That made sense, but he still felt a little bad for all the students with quirks unequipped to deal with the situation. Unless they did, which was... good. He still didn't quite understand the variety of powers people could possess. They were horribly, horribly random. It was all very odd.

He watches very, very closely. Only so many students are going to make it through the first obstacle, and that means the largest influx of patients. Between him and Recovery Girl, the pair both feel pretty prepared for the onslaught to come. Recovery Girl is already armed with bandages, glasses glinting rather ominously. Atlantis is sitting by the sink, legs kicking out idly as the camera's swapped between the actual race and the finish line where student after student managed to tumble in. The first had gone to the green-haired boy that felt like he'd been kissed by the ocean and moon. The second and third belonged to two others in the hero course, neither of which he'd yet had to interact with.

"Izuku gets injured a lot." Atlantis realized. He'd seen literally none of the other hero course students. Not a single one. Why was he breaking bones so much?

"Kid breaks bones like they're stale saltines." Recovery Girl grumbled. Saltines? "Hey, your purple one crossed."

Atlantis' head whips towards the screen, his eyes lighting up like shining beacons as Hitoshi practically trips over the finish line, face lined with sweat and grin stretched so wide it looks like it hurts. He's jumping up out of his seat before he can stop himself. The camera seems to zoom in on him a little, his name announced as the twenty-something-or-another place. He's too busy shrieking to notice, hands clapping together excitedly. Recovery Girl snorts, moving to prop the door open so the robots escorting students in can get through with anyone too injured to walk. She doesn't expect many of those, but that doesn't mean there wont be any at all.

"Hitoshi passed!" Atlantis wished he could run down there and give him a big hug. He whirls around just as the first student lumbers in, massive bruise forming on their arm. "He made it!"

"All he has to do is make it through the second round. Then he'll be in the finals, dear." Recovery Girl noted, leading the student to one of the cots. Atlantis nods vigorously, unable to stop smiling as he lunges for the sink's knobs. When he turns around, a trio of students with various oceanic-related quirks are staring at him, eyes wide, shiny, and perhaps a little awed. He gasps and almost drops his ball of water on the ground completely. One of them has a shark head. A shark head.

Atlantis is a hit with the kids. As long as Recovery Girl doesn't let too many into the room at once, he handles it like a pro. His cheerful, bubbly persona immediately soothes most of those who come in. They deal with several cases of minor frostbite from those who sat in Shoto Todoroki's ice just a little too long. Atlantis babbles endlessly, making easy conversation with those who are downtrodden from their failure. They watch in awe as water weaves through the air, twisting and forming shapes that coat their injuries and heal their aches. Recovery Girl barely has to lift a finger for once in her life. She revels in it. It's been a very, very long time since she's been able to sit back at one of these events.

Despite his duties, Atlantis watches the festival dutifully. He mostly kept eyes on his cousin, watching and observing him at work. His 'quirk' had definitely gotten stronger. His eyes glowed now when he used his power, illuminating in an alluring manner. He was most definitely a siren, his movements unintentionally graceful and his ability to manipulate clear. Atlantis felt himself puff up with pride. He could feel Shota's contentment from here as well. Eyes naturally drew towards Hitoshi when he used his voice, drawn in my his tone. 

The cavalry battled ends with far fewer injuries. Recovery warns him that it's the final exam they have to worry about. They'll be getting fewer injuries, yes, but the ones they do get will be far more serious. He isn't too worried about it. All the wounds they've gotten so far have been minor, with Atlantis able to heal a majority of them. Recovery Girl took point on a few. Bones that needed to be reset first and burns that needed to have gravel and seared fabric tugged out of them. Atlantis observed her studiously, taking note of the things she did with keen eyes. 

"Of course Midoriya is first for the finals." Recovery Girl grumbled with a small scoff. Atlantis stared in awe at the screen, hands flapping excitedly.

"And Hitoshi!" He tacked on as Nemuri raised her weird rope. It came down with a stifling crack that was nearly drowned out by the crowd's roar.

"Who do you think will win?" Recovery Girl hummed, glancing at the young man curiously. "You did say the ocean likes Midoriya, yes?" 

"Very much so." Atlantis murmured back, leaning even closer to the screen. Hitoshi's eyes began to glow, and Atlantis smiled.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Facing off against Izuku Midoriya is an odd experience, Hitoshi felt. Standing so near him, he could feel very clearly what Atlantis had been talking about when he said the Ocean liked him. Izuku Midoriya felt like he was wrapped in sea salt and green coral. His soul was surrounded in crashing waves, so potent with magic he had to wonder how he hadn't noticed the extent of it sooner. He was almost too mesmerized by the feeling to speak. He was not a mer, Hitoshi knew, but something about him was rooted so deeply in the ocean that he almost didn't want to fight.

Calculating emeralds observed him from afar. Hitoshi opened his mouth without thinking, his eyes lighting up with their new purple glow that he'd gained just recently. Something in Izuku stirred to life when Hitoshi's words spilled past his lips, his usual taunts aiming to get a response coaxing him forth. The power in Izuku rose to meet his, embracing it like an old friend and almost knocking the wind out of Hitoshi. His magic still took hold, entwining itself with Izuku and taking hold of his mind. 

Izuku Midoriya felt like a ship in the sea that harbored something precious. He was not the waves, but he skirted above them, in them, as though he was meant to. He was the power that pushed the tide, but not the tide itself. The freckled boy melded, an adoptive family member everyone cherished and accepted as their own. Hitoshi wondered if Atlantis could feel it too. He'd always seemed so adamant on the sea's love for Izuku, a stranger by all means. Hitoshi could only not see how true it was. How deep it ran, spiraling around Midoriya's veins but not quite in them. As close as it could get.

"Walk out of bounds." Hitoshi's voice rumbled out, a soothing, deep timber meant to enrapture even the most stubborn of foes. He watched Izuku turn, and he gasped. 

The power that rose up in response to his demand made his heart stop beating. Something familiar and old woke up in Izuku's very being. A dragon sleeping, calling out so clearly that even Hitoshi could hear it. Air escaped him, his necklace of coral thrumming against him happily under his uniform, excited and cheering. Izuku stilled just before the line between him and failure. Something in him whispered. Hitoshi stared in awe as it waged. It felt ancient and untouchable. It was unfolding in him so fast Hitoshi couldn't keep up, taking a small step back. Izuku's hand twitched, his finger going purple as he managed to flex his index and release in the energy trapped beneath his skin. The blast of power seemed to send the raw feeling of power away too. Hitoshi took a deep, shuddering breath.

The eyes of the sea closed, and it nestled itself back inside Izuku as though it had never been there to begin with. It wasn't hard to dig in and find it again now that he knew where it lurked. It was nested deeply inside of him, roots dug into Izuku's soul, stuck there and growing. It pulsed with a life of its own, so intelligent and strong. Hitoshi had never felt something so clearly before. It did not feel like a bad thing. It was welcomed. 

He barely registered Izuku whirling on him. He didn't try to speak again, eyes still glowing that same violet as Izuku turned. He stalked forward, green eyes the color kelp and the deepest parts of the sea dancing. He seemed impressed, smiling ferociously and stealing his opponent's breath. Hitoshi wanted to reach out and grasp him by the shoulders. Stare into those green irises and beg for answers. Soak in the feeling, call upon it and ask every question under the sun. He had never felt something like that before. Not on land. Not here. He got the distinct impression that he had just looked the sea in the eyes and lived to tell about it. That if the ocean was a single point, it would be in Izuku Midoriya's chest.

Izuku grabbed his wrist in a tight grip, and Hitoshi grinned.

"Izuku Midoriya." He said, his voice ringing with something otherworldly. Izuku's face twisted with confusion, gaze drawn to him unbidden as magic poured through Hitoshi, so warm and welcoming. "The ocean doesn't just like you, it's in you."

He's was shoved out of bounds hesitantly, but he doesn't care. He doesn't tear his gaze away from Izuku, even as the boy glances back at him with furrowed brows and a mild amount of concern, ushered towards the infirmary for his broken finger after his win is announced. Hitoshi watches him go, the glow in his eyes fading as the crowd awkwardly claps and tries to figure out what the miasmic feeling in the air is. He looks down at his hands, flexing them a little. His grin widens.

He has a feeling things might've just gotten a whole, whole lot more interesting.