TAKEN
Ochako could barely pay attention to the voice of Mandalay inside her head.
She was focused on the enemy in front of her, worried about her next move. The gravity manipulator had already been cut, and she had no idea what that meant - she didn't know the quirk of the blonde villain in front of her.
She was trying really hard to keep her attention equally divided between the telephatic warnings and the enemy before her, but that only lasted until Mandalay said Kacchan:
"Bakugou-kun" Ochako whispered, almost out of breath. She then made sure to pay attention to the voice of Mandalay in her head. The hero was saying the explosive guy was the villains' target.
The gravity manipulator tried to take a deep breath while anxiety insisted on consume every cell in her being. She felt Tsuyu get tense beside her.
So a student was a target. And not only any student: Katsuki Bakugou, the class number one. Bakugou, who had a filthy mouth. Bakugou, whom she had talked so casually just a while ago. Why? She remembered how grumpy he got when she pointed out his abilities with a knife. Why is he a target?
Nevertheless, she wanted to help - but she had no way to. She had no idea where Bakugou was, she didn't have a quirk that would help with the task of finding him, and, most important of all, she had a villain right in front of her.
If she wanted to go anywhere, she would have to fight against the blonde. She couldn't just go to where Bakugou was. It was illogical.
She knew that.
So she did her best to leave her mind blank and focus on the villain she had to beat.
.
It actually felt like forever, but she had finally done it. It was nerve-wrecking, but she was able to imobilize Toga, the crazy villain who was after her and Tsuyu, using Gunhead's martial arts teachings.
She quickly asked Tsuyu to help her, but the frog girl's tongue was hurt:
"That was awesome, Ochako-chan! Gimme a second with my tongue..." Ochako began to nod, but Toga's voice interrupted her action. The villain was saying weird things. Weird things that Ochako didn't get, like how they both had the same smell - one of someone in love.
It was just enough to distract Ochako.
The gravity manipulator felt shivers as the villain spoke. The blonde's voice was so extremely sweet Ochako felt like throwing up. Among all the uncomfortable feelings, however, the words of Toga began making sense. They quickly made Ochako think about one of her classmates: Deku.
She admired him a lot. He saved her when she needed, and he inspired her in many ways all the time, every day. He was so strong, and she wanted to be like him. The words of Aoyama during their fight against Thirteen, however, made her doubt if that was everything to her feelings.
Had her innocent admiration turned into something different?
"You wanna be just like him" Toga was still talking, each word ringing in Ochako's ears.
That's right, she wanted to be like Deku. She wanted to be strong like him.
And not only like him, but also like-
She couldn't finish her thought. A sudden sting in her thigh made her lose her focus. It was Toga, who had taken advantage of Ochako distraction.
"Ochako-chan!" Tsuyu screamed in worry.
What was she thinking? Thinking about love in the middle of a fight? And where were her thoughts going anyway? The possibility of liking Deku was already scary enough. What else was there for her to think?
Before she could get rid of the villain by herself, the boys showed up to save the day.
As soon as Toga got a glimpse of them, she quickly got away, saying something about not wanting to die.
"Wait!" Ochako tried to scream at her, but the villain was already gone.
As she did, Ochako shifted her attention to the boys. She explained to them that Toga was nuts, and her concerns immediately fell on Deku, who was being carried by Shoji and seemed hurt.
His presence wasn't making her embarrassed, she realized. Not at that moment, at least. So, what was it? What was that that she was thinking again? Deku. And something more-
"Come with us!" It wasn't the time to think about her feelings. Focus, Ochako. "We're guarding Kacchan and heading for camp"
"Huh?" She looked beyond Deku, Todoroki, Shoji and a boy from class B to find the explosive guy, but there was no trace of the blonde.
The panic fully installed when a villain showed up, claiming he was the one who kidnapped Bakugou. Todoroki quickly pointed out that Tokoyami was also missing.
Now they had to rescue the two boys.
Ochako was ready to act, but before she could finish a single thought, Todoroki threw the class B boy in her direction:
"Uraraka, take care of him!"
She could only agree.
.
The kidnapper was fast. Ochako had made the class B boy float, and she dragged him along as she ran.
"If only we had Iida...!" She cried. They were all trying to get to the masked villain, but no one there had a quirk suited for it. Their rescue would've been over if the class president had been there.
She was frustrated. Once again she was in a situation where her quirk was useless. She was useless.
"Uraraka-san" Deku's voice cut through her thoughts "Make us float! Quickly!"
Deku summarized his plan and Ochako felt her face lighten up when she realized she would be able to do something to help in the rescue.
After helping Deku secure his broken arms, Ochako manipulated the gravity of her three classmates, leaving them weightless. Their surprised faces would've made her laugh any other time, but not then.
Tsuyu threw the boys in the air, and, when Ochako judged it was the right timing, she released her quirk.
All she and Tsuyu could do now was running with all their might to catch up to them.
.
Ochako was worried, but she felt a little bit of relief when she saw her classmates from afar. She and Tsuyu had finally caught up.
Her mouth was open as she screamed to them, but her face froze as soon as she got closer and fully understood the scene before her.
Deku was on the ground; the other boys around him, worried.
Bakugou was nowhere to be seen.
She felt her stomach sink. All the adrenaline in her body dissipated when she realized the villains weren't there anymore. She felt weak.
Bakugou had been taken.
He had been kidnapped. The explosive boy. The grumpy boy. The boy who would hate to be saved, no matter the circumstances. The boy who had won against her in the Sport's festival-
Ah.
Ochako looked at her own hands, in a sudden realization.
She went to her internship with Gunhead after her fight against Bakugou.
She went there because she wanted to get stronger, because she wanted to be able to fight body-to-body, because she didn't want to only realy on her quirk.
She had gone to her internship with Gunhead because...
That was it. That was what she couldn't finish thinking when she was fighting Toga.
Her hands fell beside her body. She blinked really slowly.
She didn't want to be just like Deku. If wanting to be like someone meant liking them, then there was someone else she could be liking:
The boy who had just been kidnapped.
Feeling a heavy weight on her chest, she came back to reality in time to hear Deku's screamings.
It was as if they were her own.
.
This is kind of what I wish had been going through Ochako's mind during Bakugou's kidnapping. It honestly makes sense in my head... Although maybe I exaggerated a little.