we ballin' [melody]

Kutsu held open what looked like a bear pelt crossed with a balloon. "Right in here!" he insisted, snapping the bag like a whip for emphasis. Four bubbly limbs protruded out the core. Thin plastic stretched into the shape of a mildly obese middle school boy, except this boy had no head and was supposed to be a bear. Such a contraption couldn't be found lying just anywhere. No, in his clutches was the product of highly specialized, top of the shelf, nationally funded military magic.

A ziploc. But not just any ziploc. This beauty right here was custom made, designed and manufactured within a secret lab. Plus, it came with a sliding fastener, not one of those janky grip sealers that people use to preserve sandwiches. The army's sharpest minds banded together to produce it just for them, in exchange for front row seats to their combat training. He didn't really want to complete another exercise, but the bespectacled lady in the white coat made a sad face when he tried to turn her down. Plus, she didn't let go of the ziploc until they agreed.

Leave it to the army to execute these persuasive maneuvers. In which case, he found himself preparing for a tag-team battle with his aquatic classmate, Melody. Hopefully she harbored no hard feelings over their clash at the sleepover. How lucky she must be feeling to soon siphon herself into these waterproof walls.

The duo lingered inside a brightly lit room, largely windowless save for the one-way mirror glaring down at them at second-story height. He could feel the lab coat lady's intense stare burning into the back of his skull.

Despite grand lettering over the door that read Dynamic Observation Center for Biological Enhancements, this very much looked like an upcycled basketball court. Scuffed hoops faced each other at opposite walls. Fluorescent patches reflected off weathered glaze, obscuring the shabbiness of the wooden tiles lying underneath. They hadn't even bothered to repaint the floors! Their defense budget could only go so far, it seemed.

A high frequency beep sliced through the silence, followed by a brief static signal. "Five minute warning," crackled a nasally voice.

Kutsu gave a start. Not too long from now, mock adversaries would be swarming in. He struggled to recall the prescribed scenario.

If he remembered correctly, they would be going up against a team of five soldiers. The goal of the army men was to shoot the ball through either basket as many times as possible. The two Yuuei reps, in contrast, had to stop them by any means necessary. Aside from the court and equipment, this exercise didn't resemble the original sport one bit.

"There's a changing room if you need one," suggested the boy, pointing to a curtained off nook in the corner. He'd never actually seen Melody's quirk in person, but he couldn't imagine her transformation powers extended to her clothes. And the only reason he could even cite her quirk was because this giant ziploc bag was tailored to her. "Oh, and bring Honeydew."

He motioned to the pale green bearskin lying limply at their feet. Standing at full height, he was a head shorter than his maker, but since Melody's support item needed to go inside him, he was currently demoted to pancake status. In response to his master's beckon, Honeydew flopped obediently and began to wriggle across the floor, like a dying flounder, toward the changing room. His zipper glinted in the light, sealed shut for now, but as soon as the water user unzipped him, he'd instantly power off, demoted further to lifeless object status.

Standing at attention behind them were a sea of hand-sized teddies. From the fifty-count rainbow, Kutsu picked up a pastel orange one. "Clementine here will handle your zippers." The tiny soldier gave Melody a peppy salute. He'd go in there himself to help his classmate get situated, but he doubted a body of water could call out to him. Plus, he wanted to avoid the backlash in the unlikely event she was forced to undo her transformation. With a gentle smile, he held out the small bear for her to take. "Let me know if you need me!"

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