This Thing A Quiet Madness Made

Chapter 49

"That depends, Ashido. Are you?"

The pinkette laughed boisterously as she smacked her arm, pulling herself off the girl with a bright grin, "Hey, what's with the formality all of a sudden? We're all friends here, right?"

"Ah," she smiled, "right. It's been so long, I must have forgotten for a second. How have you been, Mina?"

"Oh, me? I've been great! It's been a crazy few years, but hey, we made it! You know, I used to watch the Gala streams on TV when I was a kid, so it's kind of like a dream come true!" she grinned triumphantly with her hands on her hips, eyes curving the same way they always used to. "But what about you? What's it like being America's most beloved hero?" she cooed, batting her lashes dramatically.

Now it was Doublecross' turn to laugh, an amused smile spreading easily across her lips. "I'm not sure I can claim that title just yet, Mina, but things have been good. It's nice to have a break from everything though."

"Ugh, I know the feeling-"

"Mina! Where'd you go? Don't just run off like that!" a voice called out from beyond the sea of chatter, just loud enough to reach the pair. They glanced over as three familiar faces shuffled into view not far away.

"Guys! Over here!" she shouted, grinning as she quickly caught their attention.

"Naoko!" Uraraka beamed as they reached the two in a moment, "We were just wondering when you'd get here! You look so pretty!"

"Ah, thank you! You all look great too, and it's nice to see you again, Asui, Yaoyorozu."

"We're glad you're here, ribbit," Tsuyu smiled, echoed by the girl beside her as she offered a small wave.

"Hey, hey, there's too many people here: let's move over there!" Mina gestured towards the far side of the ballroom, her voice raised just a bit over the noise.

Doublecross noticed the well-dressed crowd around them had indeed thickened in the few moments they had been idling around, leading to a bit of a shuffle as the new group of five slipped across the busy floor, landing themselves in a more dilute part of the crowd.

"Jeez, is it always this busy?" Mina stuck her tongue out at the streams of bodies passing by.

"It never seems as crowded on TV, ribbit," Tsuyu tilted her head, "Maybe it's the angle?"

"It should get better when everyone starts spreading out, I think. It was like this last year too."

"I still can't believe you got to go last year! It's crazy- we were just out of school!"

"I told you, it was really just luck! And we had already been out of school for a while," Uraraka scratched her head sheepishly, "Anyway! Yaomomo, I heard you had a shift earlier today?"

"Oh, that's right. It wasn't supposed to run so long, actually- I was just going in to finish some paperwork, but there was an emergency nearby and I kind of lost track of time trying to help out, so I ended up having to rush to get here on time!"

"Gosh, you worked a full shift before this? That's cruel," Mina shook her head dramatically, arms crossed over her chest, "Don't worry, once the bar opens, we're gonna be the first ones there! Guaranteed!"

"You sound like an alcoholic, Mina."

"Hey, I'm just trying to help Yaomomo relax! Plus, rumor has it they've got really good stuff!"

"Good thing it doesn't open until later, or else you might not make it to the end of the night, ribbit."

"Well, I at least have to make it until the speakers go up," she grinned, clapping a hand onto Doublecross' shoulder, "No way I'm missing out on this one's deep and infinite wisdom!"