A/N: This is where the fun begins 3 Please remember this is a Kacchako fic.

Chapter summary: Ochako takes pride in a few things in her life: the way she could give no-nonsense advice to her friends, the way she could work a room for reconnaissance, and the way she studied and developed her quirk.

But first, she needs to pass calculus.

September - Second term - Year three

Uraraka takes pride in a few things in her life: the way she could give no-nonsense advice to her friends, the way she could work a room for reconnaissance, and the way she studied and developed her quirk.

Blowing the bangs out of her face, she frowns at the notes beneath her tapping pencil. She took her quirk training more seriously than most assumed—researching and emailing physics professors around the country to further her understanding of concepts. Unfortunately, the last breakthrough she had was seven months ago, when she accidentally created a gravitational orbit around herself during the sports festival semi-final battle with Sero.

Uraraka grimaces at the memory of being so awestruck at her own growth that she forgot she was in the middle of a pretty major fight. Sero took advantage of her distraction and flung her out of bounds. That concussion was not fun to experience and she hasn't really been able to work on her quirk since then.

She grinds her teeth before leaning her head back on the chair, looking toward the ceiling. Shifting in her place, Uraraka listens for any commotion within the common room. Usually, her classmates would be causing chaos during the early evening hours and she longs for the distraction.

But first, she needs to pass calculus. Ectoplasm is ruthless this year after Professor Yakushu, from the local public university, let slip that he had been sharing his research with Uraraka. It isn't exactly a problem, except she had never announced to her teachers that she was participating in extra research on top of normal classes, extra training, and the unpaid side internship she had picked up. Ectoplasm made it a point of calling on her more in class and today it hadn't ended well for her. She narrows her eyes at the ceiling as she recalls the earlier experience in class.

"Ms. Uraraka, can you come to the board and show us how you answered number five?" Ectoplasm's voice rings out clearly, scaring many of her classmates in 3-A. She stands on shaking legs, trying to hide her anxiety. Question five? She was still back on three.

"Well… Uh... Sir… Actually, I'm still working on question three, Sir," she answers honestly, hoping he'd move on to Deku or Todoroki. Hell, even Kaminari would be better than her at the moment. Uraraka had spent most of the period confusing formulas around and couldn't do it by heart on the board in front of the entire class.

"Ms. Uraraka, if I wanted an excuse, I'd call a doctor. To the board." Damn. Even Bakugou tenses at the lashing. Uraraka feels her face begin to heat but decides today was a good day to stand her ground. She glances down at the question, hoping to pick up on a few keywords as she tries to buy herself time.

"Sir, if I could just… I just need a few more moments to look it over—" She feels the lecture coming as he interrupts her.

His voice hardens with the thought of giving her extended response time.

"When you're in the field, a few moments could cost you your life, your partner's life, or worse, civilians." She stops her eyes from rolling. Of course moments in the field mattered, but it was just a calculus question! And a vendetta. Uraraka can feel most of her classmates trying to look at her without crossing the warpath Ectoplasm seemed to be on. "You need to be quick on your feet and mind as a pro-hero. How do you think a victim would feel about you asking for a 'few moments'," he says, motioning air quotes with his hands, "to look it over?"

Usually, she could read the room well enough to make sure her filter is on. But sometimes, her mouth moves before her brain catches up with what she says.

"I'm sure they wouldn't mind over a calculus question, Sir."

Uraraka's eyes close immediately. Regret. Why did she say that? Why did she say that aloud? Uraraka gathers her notes to bring to the front of the room before Ectoplasm can respond. She chances a glance up and regrets the last three minutes of her life. Every single student is turned fully toward her with gaping mouths and wide, shell-shocked eyes that tell her she royally screwed up.

"No. I'm sure they won't but Professor Yakushu would. Congratulations, you will complete the page on the board. Beginning at question five." Ectoplasm raises his head as he rolls his shoulders back. He looked menacing, looming over the class, eyes narrowed to a sliver, his voice rough with disappointment. "And ending at question fifteen. Oh, and if you don't complete them by the end of the class, you'll have to finish the questions while serving lunch detention."

Activating her quirk only on her torso, she suspends herself in zero gravity at the top left of the chalkboard. Uraraka crosses her ankles, bending her knees close to her chest, creating a table for her math book. Immediately, she begins answering the first question, changing the gravity affecting her torso to float down as the solutions fly from the chalk. She knows her face is still brilliant red but refuses to acknowledge anyone or anything other than the task at hand: finishing the ten equations without getting more detention. It takes her the remainder of the class, plus ten minutes into lunch, accompanied by a fierce scolding by Ectoplasm and Aizawa.

"So didja have a death wish or what?" A familiar gruff voice startles Uraraka, bringing her back to the present. Bakugou leans his hip against the counter, red-faced and sweaty. His hair is pulled off his forehead with a black band, which suits him in a strange way.

She doesn't realize she is staring at him until he lifts an eyebrow at her.

"Uh... what?"

"I asked why did you suddenly grow balls of steel today in class?" He moves toward the fridge to grab something. She almost doesn't catch it, but he mutters, "How stupid can you actually be?"

Uraraka scoffs, crossing her arms. "I'm not stupid! I'm far from it actually!" God, why was she the target of his Bakurage tonight? Uraraka just wanted to get this work done and go to bed.

"Could'a fooled me, Rank Fourteen! Only someone as stupid as you would have said anything other than 'yes' to Ectoplasm.'' Bakugou rolls his eyes. "But no, you went on and on, and STILL got the questions wrong! Did you and the damn nerd have a fight or something?" he says, spittings out his question before sitting across from her at the table.

She groans, leaning back in the chair again.

"No, I just thought 'who needs to die in the line of duty, when you can be brutally murdered by ya pro hero calculus teacher who is suddenly out to get ya 'cause ya got some side research happenin'?" Uraraka feels her accent slipping but she can't stop the floodgate. "I mean, the nerve of that guy! Here I am mindin' my own business doin' the work he assigned and he acts like I have the audacity to ask for a moment. A moment!''

Bakugou looks back at her and scoffs.

"Now my head's a poundin' with all this extra garbage I was assigned. Dunno why it was such a big deal when I run at the mouth but you literally exploded classrooms last year and ain't nothing like this ever happen to you."

Bakugou chokes on his water. Uraraka merely raises her head to watch him struggle to breathe.

"What is that supposed to mean?! I never exploded classrooms." He points his bottle at her, his eyes narrowing. "Besides, it's not anyone's fault but yours, Round Face. You couldn't figure out simple math! Maybe I should call you Dunce Head instead."

Her lips pop open as her eyes widened. "Simple math? Bakugou, it's calculus! The steppin' stone to all other maths and sciences start 'ere. And 'ere I am, needin' to pass."

Bakugou scoffs. "But you're not. You've never been great in the books, Dunce Head. Unlike me, you've never broken the top ten in overall standings!"

"Oh, shove off. Sorry for not being lil ole miss perfect and gettin' everythin' right." She bristles at the facts. "I am passin' but I haffta get at least an A to continue with Professor Yakushu. And my pretty lil' B is looking more like a C over this… this garbage! Maybe I should get a tutor."

Bakugou wiggles his fingers for her to pass him her notes and she pushes them across the table before putting her head on the table.

"Good luck finding someone with the patience to deal with you," he murmurs, flipping through the pages. The extra work assigned bled into the next chapter, the one the class would be working on tomorrow. He snaps his fingers twice to get Uraraka's attention and she looks up to see his hand making a writing motion in the air. Uraraka tosses him her pencil aiming for his head, but he catches it without even looking.

Uraraka rolls her eyes. Show off.

"Mineta'll do it if I show 'im some skin," she says, only half-jokingly. "He does have the best grades in the class after all."

They share a look for a second, then both shudder.

Bakugou scoffs. "Don't you dare ask that shit head." His eyes avoid hers as he pushes her notes back towards her. Her mouth ties into a bow as she looks over what he has scribbled in the margins.

"Your handwriting is really bad. I can't even read this." Uraraka rotates the notebook one way, then the other, trying to decipher the doodles.

When she narrows her eyes and begins mouthing out syllables, he slams his hand on the table. "Oi! Shuddup! You can read it just fine."

"Wrory cymbal? Miteel ip…'' She tries to read, lips curling around the undecipherable words. ''Okay these ain't real words." His cheeks reddened and she takes a little happiness from his embarrassment.

He tries to hide his blush with exasperation. "Jesus Christ, you mixed up the symbols in the solutions! I'm not tutoring you in reading too!"

She pauses her assault on his handwriting to study him. Was the entire conversation supposed to be him offering his tutoring services? No way. "Wait, who said you're tutoring me in math?"

"Who else is going to put up with you?" His jab stings a little more than usual. He's right. She couldn't even keep it together in class, who would want to help her?

At his dig, she puffs out her cheeks and pouts. He would be an awful tutor! "You're not doing a great job 'putting up' with me yourself! You'll just keep yelling at me and making me feel stupid!

"Well," he says, "then don't be stupid!"

Uraraka huffs. He was being impossible at this point! Her head drops roughly onto the notebook, suddenly too tired to care about calculus or the fiery blond in front of her.

"Ugh, I give up. You win. I'm stupid. Leave me alone, Bakugou!"

"FINE!" he shouts.

However, when Uraraka doesn't hear his chair move or his usual stomping, she raises her head. Bakugou has his hands clasped in front of his nose, eyes staring straight into her soul. He asks, "What's wrong?"

She clicks her tongue at his sudden shift of behavior. "Um, calculus. Or did you wipe this entire conversation from your memory?"

"Oh please! Don't pretend I'm stupid. You're really upset about something else, and taking it out on calculus. Why?"

Uraraka can't stop flinching at his words, and she looks down at her fingers fumbling with the edge of her shorts. "Why do you care?" She mumbles, like a child getting caught with a cookie.

"Let me guess." His arm goes on the back of his chair and that smug smirk appears on his face. Uraraka feels about two inches tall and knows he is about to unravel her fears in clear words. "You're plateauing. You pulled that move out of your ass during that fight with Sero last term and you can't replicate it. You have no idea what you did or how and now you're trying to take a theoretical approach instead of taking your ass to the gym and breaking it down."

Uraraka's eyes widen but she makes no other move

"You weren't on number three because you were slow,'' he starts, "You were stuck on three because this little voice in the back of your head is telling you you're wasting time." Uraraka huffs, feeling her eyes prickle with tears. "Even now, instead of training your quirk, you're sitting in here, spinning over a misplaced symbol you got correctly in the previous section."

Uraraka can't stop the heat that spread across her face as she tries to blink away the prickling tears. "Are ya here just tah make fun of me? Laugh it up, Bakugou, I get it. I'm just a stupid hick girl." Her voice is harsh and low as the tears fall onto the table. She grabs her books and stomps around the table.

A hand grips her elbow, effectively stopping her. It's warm as the grip loosens slightly.

"Wait,'' he demands, "Fuck. Cheeks, I didn't…"

The nerve of him, demanding her to wait when he fully reminded her of how she shouldn't even be in Class A.

"Don't you mean Dunce Head?" she spits back yanking her elbow from him. Again, he grabs her, this time her wrist, and spins her around. She stumbles for a moment seeing his eyes full of regret. Her face is heavily contorted in disgust.

"Stop that. Look, I…" he trails off as his eyes glance from her books to her wrist. His jaw twitches as he chews on his tongue; Uraraka decides to hold her response, waiting to see what he would say. He eventually sighs and releases her wrist. "I'm going to grab some snacks. You need a distraction right now, not a tutor, so if you wanna come with you can, Uraraka."

He moves toward the door, not waiting for a response. Uraraka watches him trying to decipher his words. A distraction wouldn't hurt.

She blows out a breath, dropping her books onto the wooden table with a thud. Why is she even considering this? He is always so quick to dole out a tongue lashing but then expects her to go to the store with him as an apology? Stopping at the door, she looks out at him.

He pauses at the foot of steps, hands in his pockets looking straight ahead. Is he trying to apologize? Wait, was the whole thing just him trying to help her get out of her own head? He looks over his shoulder, eyes widening for a moment before looking away.

She smiles before putting a frown back on her face as she walks past him. He needs to work on his apology tactics.

"I'm only coming to make you buy me mochi. Calculus is better with it."

He scoffs. "Oi, I didn't say I was buying you mochi."

She clasps her hands behind her back, spinning with an overly sweet smile, stopping him in his tracks as she says, "Dunce Head."

Uraraka laughs at his reddening cheeks.

"Yeah, you're definitely buying me mochi."

$%^$^#^%

"So wait, you really don't know how you did it?"

Uraraka sighs, grabbing a bag of vinegar chips. The walk over to the convenience store had been quiet, both of them processing the last half hour. But as soon as they entered the store, he had brought up Professor Yakushu and she had ended up telling him the entire story of the extra research.

"Nope. It all happened so fast I barely remember the fight at all. One moment, I'm jumping and dodging Sero's tape, trying to flip its gravity, and suddenly I've got rubble circling all around." Uraraka tosses the chips into his cart before moving on down the aisle. "Makin' matters worse, the professor and Ectoplasm up and went to school together. Two peas in a pod, as mama would say."

"I'm not buying the entire store. Stop putting things in the basket," he grumbles.

"Why? Too heavy for ya? Besides, this is part of your apology." She jumps onto the front edge of the basket. "Which we need to work on. Three words sometimes mashed into two: I am sorry. Come on, you can do it." Bakugou rolls his eyes before leaning on the handle close.

"Fuck. Off." He punctuates each word with a matching middle finger. Uraraka reaches over to push them back down into his palms.

"So close!" She grins back at him. Bakugou rolls his eyes but she doesn't miss how his shoulders finally seem to relax with the acceptance of his strange apology. Before she can step off the cart, however, he is pushing them around the corner to the sweets.

"Anyways, yeah, I don't know what's up with that move. Plus, knowing exactly how much gravity to take away, to have things orbit me specifically, I would have to have the gravity be less than Earth but exact enough to match my weight. I think being so close to Sero combined our gravitational pulls, which is why everything was circling us both." Uraraka grabs two packs of cookies and holds them up to him to choose. He nods toward the sugar cookies, pushing the cart forward as she hops back on.

His brows arched. "Is it the fact that you don't know how you made them orbit? Or you don't remember what started the orbit?"

"Both? I guess I don't know the difference."

They grab a few bottles of water before heading to check out.

"Well, today in class when you were doing double integrals wrong on the board," he taunts and her eyes narrow at his jab, "you were floating down the board. How?"

"I only activated my quirk on certain parts of my body. Then, I shifted the gravity on the parts I had already weightless."

"Right.'' He smiles. "You avoided free-falling back to earth by changing your gravity and allowed the momentum of natural gravity to bring you back down, adjusting the speed of it."

She hums with a note of disagreement. What he was saying wasn't completely wrong but something in her gut is telling her it wasn't completely right. He clicks his tongue at her displeasure but they don't speak again until they are out of the store.

As they are walking side by side back to the dorms, Uraraka starts thinking about what Bakugou mentioned in the store. She had been practicing on various levels of gravity. Professor Yakushu mentioned momentum the last time they spoke, but how could she gather it? Or rather, the objects she activated her quirk on? Uraraka stops suddenly and pinches her nose in frustration.

Bakugou stops a few paces ahead of her. He turns around to see her glaring at the early evening sky. "You good there, Round face?" That was all that she needed to have the floodgates open.

"UGH! Why is this so blasted hard? I dunno why I don't understand! I mean honestly, who else in our entire class reaches out to professors to understand their quirk better? No one!'' she cries out, "No one does, and yet here I am, unable tot figure out how to make a stupid rooster crow at the sun!"

Bakugou is quiet for a moment before he shrugs his shoulders. "Well, then don't think about it. Just do it." The no-nonsense way he says it pulls a bark of disbelief out of her before she can stop it.

"Just do it? What are you—a shoe salesman?" His expression doesn't change, which only serves to fuels her frustration. "I've been tryin' to just do it for the last three months and guess what? Not a thing has happened! I ain't even come close to whatever the hell I did in the middle of battle.''

Bakugou shifts closer to her. "Look, I've always just done what I feel like doing and it's always worked out for me. I don't see why it can't work for you."

"Of course you can't, Mr. Perfect-at-Everything!'' Uraraka rolls her eyes. "Some of us aren't gifted like you!"

She makes a move to stomp past him, but he moves in front of her, crossing his arms.

"I'm not saying it's going to go perfect the first time! But you can't go wrong with your gut feeling, Uraraka." The stubborn look in his eyes make them seem like they burn brighter in the setting sun. She tries to wipe the few tears that fall from her eyes. How could he be so confident that she can just do it?

Uraraka whispers, "Well, maybe my gut feeling is just wrong." Immediately regretting her words, she curses at herself. Damn. Why did she always have to look so weak in front of him?

His eyes narrow before he hurls the bags of snacks toward her face. Uraraka doesn't even have time to squeak out her distress as she instinctively puts her hands up, touching the packet with her fingers, activating her quirk on all the snacks in front of her. It takes less than a second before the snacks are floating around her.

She musters up the most venomous glare at his smug expression.

"See? You didn't have to think about that just now." He waves a hand up toward the cosmos and grins at her. "Now all you gotta do is… I don't know, think about the stars? They orbit, right? And the planets. Just think about something orbiting you."

She puffs out her cheeks but does as he suggests. Inhaling slowly through her nose and out her mouth, she closes her eyes as she thinks about the stars, the planets and the matcha mochi orbiting her. As she delves down to deeper thoughts of gravitational pull and what she's feeling, her thoughts turn back to Bakugou. She is about to shake these thoughts away when his chuckles.

"I'm a fucking genius."

Uraraka frowns. "Yeah, whatever, Blasty. Be quiet over there. I'm trying to 'just feel' my way around this."

"Shuddup and open your eyes, Uraraka!"

She cracks one eye open first, and then opens the other as wide as possible. She can't help but gasp at the sight of all of their snacks—chips, mochi, cookies—slowly orbiting around her, feeling each item pull and drift in her gravity. As she looks around, she feels a different stronger pull. Following her gut, she looks over and sees Bakugou with the first genuine smile she has ever seen on his face. His eyes are wide and full of admiration, almost like stars.

They stay there for a moment as the snacks all move to a center point. He reaches up to start grabbing the snacks as she opens the bags.

Once all the snacks are securely back in the bags, she releases her quirk, and they begin the final stretch back to the dorms.

$%^$^#^%

As they return to the table where her books were, Bakugou separates their treats between them as she gathers her books into her bag. They had missed dinner but the mochi would be fine until the morning.

"Yaknow, once you get to training it, that move will be pretty badass. You might even give Deku a run for his money."

She arches her brow. "But not you?"

"Mr. Perfect-at-Everything doesn't lose.'' He grins. "Not even to badass Round Faces."

They share a smile before getting interrupted by a voice coming from the elevator.

"Kacchan! Uraraka! You guys missed dinner." Midoriya waves at them and pauses, looking between them. "Did something happen?"

"Well, Bakugou offered to be my math tutor and then we… Well, we ended up at the store somehow." Uraraka tilts her head toward Bakugou. "Actually, how did we end up at the store?"

Midoriya's eyes shine. "Yeah, Kacchan, how did you end up at the store? When you left the gym, you asked me if I had seen Uraraka since class because you wanted to check up on her."

"Deku, I swear to—"

"Wait." Uraraka spins toward Bakugou. "That's how you show you're worried about someone? By insulting them and calling them Dunce Head?"

"Tch. Shuddup." Bakugou shifts slightly away. "I bought you your sugary shit, so you accepted my apology already. Get over it, Floaty."

"Oh! Just you wait, Blasty. I'm going to send you into orbit for sure next week!"

Midoriya shakes his head as they all move toward the elevator.

He wonders if Soul Knitter meant galaxies of headaches from all their bickering instead.

$%^$^#^%