The first memory she has as a child is one where she is tucked tightly into bed, the softness of a comforter weighing against her chest as she listens raptly to her mother's stories.
She weaves the tales of their village at the very beginning of time – when the Forest of Whispers had dominated the area and humans had to cross through to reach the city on the other side, demons would often use their confusion as means to spirit them away and eat them. It was widely known to those in the area that they would die most horrible deaths should they chose to cross the land but there wasn't a choice for those who were wishing to trade and move in other cities and so they made their perilous journey to never return to a family who had desperately pleaded that they reconsider.
Eventually their ancestors had thought to strike up a deal with the head of the demons, a snarky fox who would gladly allow his subjects to do as they pleased without reining them in. "Let us build a village at the edge of the forest "they had offered, letting this village be the rode between the two larger cities so that the humans could travel without fear of death. Yet the village would rob them of their food and so the Fox initially denied them the pass to do so without getting killed in the process.
The humans, however, were determined to allow safe passage for their fellow villagers and so they offered the Fox a deal – they had heard legends of the 'Fox Bride', a human girl who would be marked by a Fox Demon as his bride and once she matured into a woman she would become a source of power should she be devoured by him and they would offer up one human woman every fifty years at his discretion in return for the building of this village.
With such an offer, the Fox was unable to refuse them and thus they were allowed to begin construction with the knowledge that those human who wandered within the confines of their territory was free game to be eaten. For the two century he was prompt in the way that he had picked his brides but for a mysterious reason that was unknown to them all he suddenly stopped picking and choosing his brides who were otherwise terrified of him.
It had been at least five hundred years since the last time he had chosen himself a bride but that didn't mean that they were safe – the agreement made with their ancestors was to be followed regardless of the amount of time that had passed and so Uraraka Ochako was forbidden from even wandering close to the treeline that hid the demons from their view. If she was unlucky enough to encounter the Fox there was no telling if she would make it out alive and if she was chosen to be the Bride then her life would end as quickly as it had come to her when she was devoured by the demon whenever her 18th birthday arrived.
Like all the other little girls she was at first terrified by the prospect of becoming food for the demons but as she grew up and stopped being afraid of the dark, she also stopped being terrified of the forest. It had been hundreds of years since there had been any demon sightings and there was a part of her that didn't believe the rumors that shrouded their village in quiet terror. How could demons exist? Was it not just a way to explain the disappearance of humans that probably starved to death in the thick foliage? Was it not just a tale to increase travel and trade from merchants who eyed them all with both curiosity and wariness?
Perhaps it's that train of thought that had condemned her to this life that she was leading.
She was 10 years old and eager to make friends, a bright and happy girl that would do anything to please those around her and it was often taken advantage of. The friend group that she had immersed herself in was full of toxicity as they made fun of her and often dragged her to others because she was 'soft and stupid'. Desperate to fit in she never said anything and laughed along with them, insecurities blooming as she tried her hardest to stay both relevant and friendly with these girls who wanted nothing to do with her.
They had talked amongst themselves on how to get rid of her and one weekend day they dared her to wander into the forest, stand around for 10 minutes and then come back and tell that what she had seen.
Uraraka had spoken loudly before about how she didn't believe the rumors but there was a part of her that was terrified of the prospect of being wrong. What would happen if the Fox came across her and ate her? What if she was chosen to be the unfortunate chosen as his Bride?
Unable to say no to her 'friends' she commanded that they wait here for her and she would be right back – legs shaking in terror as she approached the line of the woods that she had always been forbidden of entering. Those dark eyes flickered behind her to the group of girls that was waving her into the forest and gave them a faux smile before charging forward.
Further and further she entered until the trees became a thick cluster and she couldn't tell which way was right or left. All of the sun was hidden away by the cover of leaves and a chill ripped through her as she hazily made her way in. It didn't take long until she was lost and afraid, the feeling of eyes following her every move making her chest tighten considerably.
"I'm going to be okay.." she murmurs to herself, the sound of trembling obvious to even her ears as the sound of leaves and branches crack underfoot. She doesn't know where she is and the more she walks, the less sure she becomes of where the entrance to the Forest lies. Eventually she stops herself from moving, the sound of her breathing reverberating off the trees that are mixed only with the sounds of giggles.
"It's a human!" the voices say gleefully, causing her panicked eyes to look all around her to see where the voices had come from. "A pretty little girl…those are my favorites! They taste the best!" comes another one, something ominous about the deep tone as she shoves her hands into the foliage below and picks up a weighty branch. It has to be the boys from her class…they must have all planned to scare her out of her wits because there was no way it was actual demons…right?
"It's not funny anymore….I don't want to play these games…" She cries out, tightening her grip on the branch as laughter swirls around her and invades her mind. Is it so funny to see the terror in her every movement? Her friends are awful, she knows that, but isn't this too much? She wants to cry and the sensation of burning pricks the edges of her eyes and her bottom lip trembles just a little bit. "Show yourself….I'm going to tell on you if you don't stop that!" she threatens the voices that she cannot see, eyebrows furrowed on her youthful face that slowly slips into terror.
Otherworldy beings come from behind the trees to surround her – some tall with sharp teeth, others short with ogre like faces, and some with shiny horns that are dripping with black blood. These are not her friends; she knows that as the monster closest to her licks his lips with a bit of sadistic glee lingering in his eyes. "It's been a while since someone's wandered into this forest….you're a very unlucky little girl." He lets her know, hand reaching out to grip her chin and force her head upwards to look into his unlucky crimson orbs. "We're very hungry after all…and you smell really good." An exaggerated sniff and sigh from him causes her knees to wobble a little bit, her little arms swinging the branch in her hand against him as a splintering crack causes him to stumble back a little bit.
"You little bitch!" He growls angrily, swiping at her as she crouches to avoid it, forehead resting against her knees as she cries. "Go away you stupid demon!" She demands without much conviction to her voice, the obviousness of her fear only causing a rumbling laugh from the demons. "You got hurt by a little thing like that? You don't deserve to eat her then…." Someone says to her far left, her eyes squeezed shut as she feels them begin to converge on her spot. "We have to split her up evenly! Everyone deserves a little piece, right?" Another one claims before she hears the sound of someone tripping.
Is this the end of her? "We have to hurry up before he senses that she's here so shut up and just get her." This voice is wispy, thin and scratchy the way that it claws against her ears and she knows that in that single moment that she was going to die here because of those kids who had probably abandoned her the moment she stepped into the shadows. "I'm sorry Mom" she murmurs to herself, voice lost in the laughter and sound of cracked branches as she braces herself for the pain to come.
Only it never does.
Instead she feels another chill blow past her as the sudden feeling of others coming forward stops. She can feel the tension and eyes that are blurry with her tears finally peek up from behind her hands.
The first thing she sees of him is the beauty of blonde strands shifting in the wind, carefully dragging across gleaming, pearlescent skin. He was like a god – aged and furious crimson eyes glaring daggers into those who would cause her immediate harm, looking at them each in turn before he finally spares her a glance. "So you planned to eat a child before I could figure it out, is that right?" His voice is deep and almost comforting, save for the icy edge that splinters his words and causes the demons to flinch a bit.
"How long has it been since a human has been in this forest? Are you seriously going to tell us we can't eat the little brat?" The squeak comes from the demon that is furthest away from her, teeth showing in what she can only imagine is supposed to be a menacing grimace. If she wasn't so afraid to move she would have already bolted because the points of ears atop hair that falls to his waist tells her that this demon is the Fox that centered upon all of their legends….yet she doesn't dare to even breathe hard in his presence.
Instead she watches him as his otherwise irritated face turns to one of barely concealed rage – his fangs bared at the one who had dared to speak up to him. There is a note of beauty there that causes her to stare up at him as he seems to defend her despite being vastly outnumbered. "Oh, I wasn't aware that you decided to ignore my rules just because you're a little hungry." He says nonchalantly, a mass shudder ripping through the group that even she noticed. "Who else agrees with him…that we should eat this girl because she came into the forest despite the rule about sparing children?"
He phrases it so innocently and while everyone looks around at each other only a few of them raise their claws and the rest looks on in disbelief that they had been so bold. The Fox looks around in turn at each of those with their hands up and nods his head. "I see."
It takes a single second for him to leave his side behind her and grasp at the one who had spoken up first, a sudden shower of blood spraying across his beautiful, pale features and painting him as dangerous and frightening as she knew he was. A sudden shriek rips through the crowd and he growls, turning around and grasping the throat of the demon who had thought to attack him while his back had been turned. It takes a moment for him to crush their head between powerful hands and drop the lifeless body to the ground.
The collective and suddenly eerie quiet shrouded them and one by one they begin to disperse into the mist until only she and the Fox Demon remained.
Those dark brown orbs had been unable to tear away from him as he had stood as her protector but when he crouches in front of her she flinches a little bit, fear so obvious in her crouched stance. "Are you going to eat me?" She wonders aloud to him and the irritation that had been there before smoothed into more of a detached amusement. He begins to reach out to her but halts his hand before he can smear the demon blood onto her childlike face and instead hides it inside the folds of his kimono and out of sight.
"Would I save you only to eat you?" He asks her, the edges of his lips turning upwards as he looks down at her crouched form. She can only suppose not and so she shakes her head, releasing her knees from her death grip and instead sitting on the forest floor and next to this Fox. "I guess not….but they always tell me that you eat unsuspecting girls…" She answers in that childish honesty that causes him to laugh a little bit in surprise.
She finds herself thinking that it sounds almost like silver bells, beautiful and lovely and surely someone who looks and sounds so amazing cannot be bad?
"Maybe one time I would but I don't think I could bring myself to eat you…" He answers her, the softness of his words lost on her. "Though I do have to wonder when you're here if you know the rumors..? Humans have been avoiding this place for centuries but here you are….so tiny and brave…" He cleans his hands with the cloth that he has taken out of his kimono and finally allows himself to gently pat her head.
She should have flinched away but instead she offers him a rare smile, the fear that she had felt earlier was gone completely from her. The Fox was nothing like she had imagined him to be – he was dangerous, she knows that much, but he is also a lot kinder than she might have imagined him to be. "My friends dared me to come in here….they're probably gone by now, laughing somewhere." She deflates a little bit, looking down to her hands that are picking at the seam of her sleeve out of habit.
"They don't sound like very good friends." He offers after taking a few moments to look at her, reading her every move because it has been such a long time that he had human company and he isn't used to how their emotions switch. "Perhaps you should find new ones?" He suggests as he crouches down to her finally, allowing the two of them to be on a somewhat similar level. She appreciates it as well, looking up to him with a little bit of a smile…he can see the sadness in it however and it perplexes him more than he would be able to tell her.
She is still young, she won't understand.
"No one really likes me here….they think I'm a push over…and I guess I am." Another harsh sigh leaves her before she looks back up to him almost shyly, tilting her head to the side so that soft brown locks become unsettled against her shoulders. "You're nice though…" She admits after a moment, a brief little bit of shock crossing his expression before he laughs again.
Humans are certainly amusing.
"Sometimes…" He offers before a little twinge disrupts his expression, those red eyes falling to his shoulder where blood was staining the pristine and white cloth. "Oh no…you're hurt!" She exclaims as she moves forward suddenly – the Fox retreating a little bit with a bit of a smile. "Don't worry about it….the things heal fast…it must have happened when I killed one…" He murmurs to himself before moving his gaze to the child who seemed more concerned that he was bleeding than she was that she was in the demon forest and had been very close to death just moments ago.
What an odd kid.
"We have to get you home before the humans bun down the forest…I'm sure your parents are worried about you." He tells her after a few moments, reaching down to set her on her feet before standing to his own and extending his hand. "Take it…I'll make sure you're safe until you're out of here." He promises her and she makes sure to take his hand firmly, surprised by the warmth of it as he begins to lead her the way she had come before.
The sound of his voice as he chatted with her is a memory she would keep with her forever, surprised that everything she had known before had dissipated until the idea of his Fox sticks with her. She's almost sad when they reach the edge of the Forest and before she lets his hand go she makes sure to look at him. "My name is Uraraka Ochako….what's yours?"
It's an innocent question and while otherwise he would wipe her memory and push her away he decides that, just for once, he can allow himself some leeway. "I'm Bakugo Katsuki….but you can call me Katsuki."
It feels weird to say his name aloud to this human girl but there is something about it that just seems right. She is not like other humans, she is not afraid of him despite his saving her. She is innocent and pure and kind.
"Can I see you again, Katsuki?" She asks softly, rosy cheeks plump as the edges turn up in a large smile. He knows that he shouldn't allow her back into this Forest and should encourage her to stay away but for a single and selfish moment he decides otherwise.
Leaning forward he places a gentle kiss to her forehead, the familiar glow of light as a solitary symbol appears where is lips touched for only a moment before vanishing completely.
"So long as you wear that mark….you're free to come by and see me any time…."
She doesn't know what it means but as he watches her scurry away from the tree line and further into the village square where he is sure people are waiting for her with bated breath, he can't help but wonder if that was the right thing to do.
She was the Foxes Bride now and there would be nothing that any of them could do about it.