This was originally uploaded on AO3, and moved here. This was my very first multichaptered story, and I hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own MHA!

'It's over. It's finally over…'

Ochako looked around the battlefield of what used to be a city. Their fight against the League of Villains was finally over. With Shigaraki -and therefore All For One- now defeated and apprehended, Uravity finally felt that the looming evil looking over them, ready to attack at any moment, was finally gone.

Their battle with the League and their followers was a long one, where Class 3-A and 3-B gave it their best to finally defeat the villains once and for all. Now all that was left to do was search and rescue; after that, it was finally over. No more unease during school trips. No more anxiety of any of their classmates being a villain or a traitor. No more need to always stay alert. They could finally just be teenagers and enjoy the time at UA that they had left.

It made her happy that they could all finish school without the fear of another villain attack. The past three years had been full of pain and horror for Class 3-A with attack threats and the Paranormal Liberation Front battle - a massacre they still remembered three years later. But now, it's finally over.

Ochako looked around the now-silent ruins and sighed, starting to remove the gravity of rubble to try to find any survivors beneath the concrete. As she helped a middle-aged woman up, Ashido and Tsuyu joined her side, helping the survivors walk to the small medical zone set up on the flat ground beside the rubble. Uravity looked around, trying to spot a certain green haired boy. His fight against Shigaraki had been one of the most incredible feats she had seen him pull off.

Her crush on Deku had grown since the first year to full blown love. She always liked being around him. Talking to him. Cuddling while watching a movie because he had a nightmare. Teasing each other about hobbies or other things. Working together in training and being a great duo. There was nothing she didn't love about Izuku, from his soft green and black hair, to his determination, his shyness and adorableness, and his smile and personality. She was also embarrassed to admit it, but Deku was a very handsome and attractive guy. For her, Deku was everything she could ask for, as a friend, as a fan, and as a crush. Ochako was excited and nervous to finally confess her feelings to him. Even after the repeated reassurances that Deku had feelings for her from her classmates, she was still too embarrassed to confess to him, even if she wished she could.

However, she couldn't find him anywhere she looked. 'Hm, maybe he's doing some rescue, too. Ah, Deku, always being the hero,' she thought with a smile. She helped civilians up and joined other Pro Heroes on the rescue. Being here on the remains of a battle or a disaster didn't affect her too much anymore. She would still get the sick feeling in her stomach, but she didn't puke or cry anymore. She had to deal with a lot of civilian deaths in the past three years, so this was much more bearable to her, even if every death took a toll on her mental state. But she always had Deku to rely on, her pillar of hope that brought happiness even to the darkest of places. He was the inspiration of the class to push themselves forward, to strive to become better people and heroes. He never backed down from helping someone in need and always found a way to make them happy. She was glad to have met him and that she could have him stand beside her in the darkest of times.

That is… until he wasn't there anymore.

As Class 3-A met up in the medical bay, Ochako looked around the group and frowned when the green-eyed boy was not around. She turned around, looking for him seemingly everywhere without success. This wasn't good.

"Guys, have you seen Deku anywhere?" Ochako asked, a growing dread wrenching at her gut.

The group shook their heads, looking around for him.

"Maybe he's helping other people? Ribbit," Tsuyu suggested, concerned about her friend.

"I am pretty sure that all of the civilians have been brought here though," Iida commented, trying to contact any fellow heroes to see if anyone spotted him.

"We should look for Midori! Maybe he got caught up on something," Mina proposed. The group nodded and started to walk around the area, looking for Izuku. 'Maybe I'll check where Deku fought Shigaraki. He might be over there,' Ochako thought, lowering gravity on herself to move towards her destination faster. During her time at UA, she was finally able to improve her quirk into Gravity Manipulation, allowing her to lower and increase gravity on an object or person, as well as remove gravity from them like before.

As she hopped around, Ochako spotted a shiny white dot near her. Putting her fingertips together, she ran towards the white dot, which seemed to be some sort of equipment. She tapped the side of her helmet with a finger and held as she approached the object, speaking into the built-in microphone.

'I found somethi-' Uravity gasped, falling on her knees and gently grasping the object. She sobbed, holding onto it with one hand, the other covering her mouth as she cried.

"No, no no no no this can't be happening..." Ochako sobbed, breathing heavily.

As everyone else approached, she gently pulled the object out for everyone to see.

Held between her hands, was Deku's right gauntlet, broken from his suit and covered in blood.

She felt it drop from her hands, but she hardly cared. Her heart ached as she sobbed onto her hands, her wails passing through the rubble, her friends joining in after her. Her mind was blank as she stared down at the gauntlet from her friend's suit, her gut wrenching and twisting in pain as she screamed into her hands and cried into the night sky.

"DEKUUUUU"

The past few hours had come and gone for Ochako. The police and Pro Heroes looked for Deku to no avail, forcing everyone in Class 3-A to head back towards their intern agencies to prepare for their return to UA.

Ochako could barely walk. She could hardly believe that Deku was gone. He was missing, and there was a chance for him to still be alive, but she frankly didn't know if she should keep her hopes up. She didn't want to lose him, but she didn't want her pain to grow anymore than it already was. She barely remembered anything before now, where she was crying into a couch pillow on the dorm lounge at UA. She looked around the room, seeing all of the girls crying like she was, a lot of the guys in tears and many with somber looks on their faces. The only exception was Bakugou, who seemed to be unaffected, but his eyes betrayed his blank expression, showing pain hidden in his gaze.

Ochako buried her face in the pillow, biting back a sob as she felt her world crumble around her. Her mind couldn't stop thinking about him, as much as she wished she didn't. She couldn't stop the pain, the regret, the sinking feeling that she wouldn't see him again. She wiped her tears away, turning on the TV, hoping she would be able to distract herself from her loss. As the news channel appeared on the screen, she felt her pain return harder than before. All of the pain she felt came back with a force she could barely contain. But above all else, stood one feeling. Regret. Regret she wouldn't get to see him again. Regret she wouldn't be able to confess her love to him. Regret she wouldn't be able to say goodbye.

She looked back up at the TV, bloodshot eyes staring at the screen as people celebrated the victory against the League of Villains, as they showed footage of Deku's fight against Shigaraki. But after the celebration, the stats shown on the screen were horrible: countless losses, hundreds of injured, dozens missing. It was truly a tragedy, but to those who knew the one who saved them all, this was a nightmare everyone wanted to wake up from.

Days passed quickly. Classes for them were cancelled, as internships were released early. President Nezu personally came to their dorms, sending his regards to them all. He talked about the possibility of Deku being found and footage of the battle being rewatched to see what happened to him, to maybe get a clue as to the whereabouts of Izuku. The atmosphere in the dorms changed drastically from before the battle. Barely anyone spoke to one another. Dinners were held in silence, the only noise coming from them was the clanking of silverware and plates. Chores between them stayed the same, with some volunteering to fill in for Deku's position without any comments. Aizawa-sensei came to them regularly, his expression more somber and tired than before. No one could blame him though, as no one was able to sleep that well at all. Life seemed pointless now, even if some still held on to that tiny ounce of hope that he would be found.

But their hopes were for nothing. The police and detective Tsukauchi showed up to their dorm, along with President Nezu and Aizawa-sensei, and they showed the replay of the battle. As the final moments of the battle appeared on screen, they saw Deku standing in a fighting stance, before collapsing on the rubble, breathing heavily. His bloodied gauntlet falling away from his wrist. And as their hopes of survival for him rose, they were crushed, as a whirlpool of light encased him and his body was teleported away from the scene. That was it. The chances of being able to find him alive were slim to none now. And Ochako couldn't feel emptier, her heart was barely holding onto itself. She felt broken beyond repair, as if her soul was ripped from her body. She, of course, went to visit Izuku's mother the day after the incident. They sobbed and cried together until Inko fell asleep out of exhaustion.

Weeks after the incident, and days after the reveal of Izuku's fate, a funeral was held for him. Of course, all of Class 3-A was there, along with their parents. Inko and Hisashi Midoriya were there as well, hugging the other close, as if they hugged tight enough, then their Izuku would come back. His grave was put right beside All Might's. "The retired Symbol of Peace perished at the very hands of the villain Izuku had just defeated. The irony wasn't lost on Ochaco."

The bad thing was that Ochako didn't have his company anymore. And she missed him, they all did. Izuku stood for what a true hero was. Deku stood for hope, for pushing forward, going Plus Ultra beyond their limits against uncanny circumstances. He stood for the determination of a hero and a heart of gold. That's what made her love him so much. That's what made everyone appreciate him so much. Why he was the motivator of the class. Why he was their hero. That's why it hurt so much to lose him, to see him go, to stare as the casket with his gauntlet inside was lowered. And to think he was so close… So close to graduating, to becoming the hero he wanted to be since he was four years old. Ochako remembered the shock she had when he told her his life story. How mad she was at Bakugou for doing what he did to him. She held a grudge towards him for months.

But now that Izuku was truly gone, with no signs of him coming back to her, she barely felt anything anymore. She was numb, her eyes dry and her gaze filled with pain and regret. She still loved him beyond herself, but she didn't know if she was going to be able to move on from his death. And as the casket was finally covered, she felt the world darken around her. Ochako knew she had to be a Hero, but with Deku gone, it felt so much harder to get there. Without her hero, her dreams were incomplete…

And that was chapter one! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Make sure to Rate&Review, and if you want to read up to chapter 4, then go to my AO3! Anyways see you all next time :D