Night swallowed the Earth faster than you would have preferred. With the setting of the sun, you knew that your life was now in the hands of fate, with multiple factors involved. Who would be the one to kill you or to make sure that you survive? Would Bakugou take your life or would you fall at the hands of an unknown warrior during the attack? Of course, you hoped it was neither, but you couldn't help but sit in a constant state of worry, gaze locked on the crackling fire in front of you.

Everyone had bathed and eaten a hefty dinner of fish, and much to your surprise, you were the only one that seemed tense. The others were laughing and enjoying a moment to relax, currently listening to some odd story Kaminari was telling. The only thing you gathered from it was that he had attempted to court a girl at the castle once, and he had failed in one way or another that you didn't much care to retain. The only other person not involved in the conversation was Bakugou, and you could feel his eyes on you from across the fire.

You assumed he had been watching you for any signs that you might give off, such as a signal or hint when the attack would come. He would get nothing from you, unless he took the shifting of your legs up to your chest as a signal of some kind. In truth, you couldn't quite find it in yourself to care about what he thought or what he was waiting on. You had told him the truth and all that you knew, so now, all that was left was to await the attack.

His glare boring into you was something that you just couldn't ignore, no matter how hard you tried, so eventually, you pulled your gaze from the dirt to look up at him. As expected, his crimson glare was locked on you, leaning back against a tree with his sword resting against his right side. He had one arm around it, and you couldn't help but think for a moment that it resembled how a man would hold his lover, except for the obvious harsh grip he had on the neck of the weapon, right below the round and highly ornate hilt. It was clear to you that he was ready to go at any moment, even though he seemed otherwise relaxed. You suspected that he was having the entire group act as if their guard was down, perhaps to entice the attackers to pounce.

"-Isn't that right, Sir?" Kaminari's voice addressing him finally pulled Bakugou's glare away from you to instead glower at his subordinate, obvious annoyance crossing his face.

"Eh? What?"

"That you didn't give a damn about leaving me passed out drunk in the hallway! For an entire night!"

"Of course I didn't give a shit. I'm not your damn caretaker." Bakugou fixed his sword down across his lap as he sat up, the annoyed snarl on his face almost enough to make you crack a smile.

Kaminari sighed, leaning back on his hands as he stared up at the sky through the trees. "You could have at least called a servant to come to get me. A cute one."

"Bakugou wouldn't know 'cute' if it smacked him in the face!" Ashido giggled, grin on her face as she swirled around some liquid in a flask. Sake, you assumed, and it was obvious she had a few too many sips of it. "He doesn't think anyone or anything is cute. He just hates it all."

"You included," Bakugou growled, glaring daggers at the woman as she giggled. Kaminari huffed, still pouting about his experience. Though, before he could speak, there was a rustle in the bushes behind you and it took every ounce of your self-control to not jump at the sound. Bakugou had warned you, very roughly, to not react if you heard any noise. Although your body didn't move, you couldn't help but look at him with worry, though he only shared a glance with you. Nearby, the horses began to shuffle and grunt, stomping their hooves into the ground. Still, there wasn't any reaction from the group, and you began to grow truly scared.

Much to your surprise, Kirishima began to whistle a pleasant tune, one that you couldn't recognize, but it seemed to have some significance. With this, Bakugou stood, making his way towards you and sitting down on your left side. "Are you ready to sleep?"

Unable to help your confusion, you looked up at him, giving a small shake of your head. "Sir, I don't understand-"

"Are you ready to go to sleep?" He asked again, this time with a stern glare from the corner of his eye. Kirishima's whistling only grew louder, a glance from the redhead giving you a sense of urgency.

Shuffling in your spot a bit, you nodded, keeping your voice quiet just to where Bakugou could hear you. "Yes, I am."

"Under the bushes will be the most comfortable. I found a spot next to that tree I was sitting against, there is a boulder behind it. That way I can hear if you try to escape, Demon." Bakugou stood, grabbing your upper arm and pulling you up to your feet. "And you had better not come out the entire night. Understand me?"

You gave a quick series of nods, following him to the place he indicated. Using his sword, he pushed the brush aside for you, allowing you to crawl into the space. Before you could utter another word, a blanket was shoved underneath with you, a hard object poking you uncomfortably in the cheek. Frowning under the cover of the brush, you carefully moved the folds of the blanket aside, spotting the dagger buried within. Your stomach rolling and bubbling with fear, you took the dagger in one shaky hand, covering yourself with the brown blanket in hopes that it would work as camouflage and keep you unnoticed. Through the gaps in the brush, you watched as Bakugou stood back with his companions around the fire, placing his sword back into place on his hip. They all seemed so calm, yet you knew exactly what was going on. They were preparing for the battle, somehow able to sense the presence of the enemy where you couldn't.

A tangible heaviness fell over you as Kirishima's melody came to an end, silence swallowing the entire area. The only sounds came from the crackling of the fire and the nervous huffing of the horses, or at least, the only sounds that you could hear.

And then, it came like a whirlwind.

Blood was not something you were particularly familiar with, or at least, not anyone's but your own. But in those few seconds, you had seen more than you ever thought you would. The black clothing of the fallen assassins did little to hide the gashes and injuries inflicted upon them, making you have to cover your mouth so you wouldn't scream out or vomit. The violence was sickening, and yet, you couldn't turn your eyes away.

The people that you had been traveling with were something different now. They were completely focused on their tasks at hand, which were killing all who attacked them. The laughter and soft expressions you had seen were now gone, not a single hint of enjoyment on any of their faces. That is, except for Bakugou. The manic grin on his face was something… horrifying, and yet totally mesmerizing. You could see the intense focus in his eyes as he pierced his blade through the attackers, but it wasn't just that he was doing his duty. No, he loved it. War and fighting was his life, and the ear to ear grin told you that he was… having fun.

That fact scared you.

Suddenly, you felt a grip on your foot, yanking you backward out of the brush roughly. As the branches scratched your skin, you squealed out in fright, instantly losing your grip on the dagger and leaving it behind. As best you could, you struggled against the rough hands that pulled you to your feet, screaming and demanding your release. "L-let go of me, you fucking asshole!"

"Someone help the Demon!"

"I can't get to her!"

The voices in the background were barely recognizable to you over your sounds of struggle and the yells of the men around you. It wasn't until you felt a sharp blade at your throat that you stopped, finding that your arms were held behind your back and up against the body of a man who, in all honesty, smelt like death.

"What a fine piece of meat I've found." He hissed in your ear behind his face mask, bringing tears to your eyes as your exhausted body was already giving out on you. "I think I may just take you with me. You'd be some fine entertainment- gah!"

Your own shriek of surprise left your lips as you watched Bakugou's blade suddenly pierced into the man's stomach right alongside your torso, so close he could have easily stabbed you on accident. In one swift movement, you found yourself held against Bakugou's body, one strong arm around you with the other finished off the man that had attacked you. Sobbing and trembling in fear, you couldn't help but clutch onto him tightly, moving along with him as if you were a ghost, completely disconnected from your body.

With a rough shove, Bakugou pushed you back down into some brush, barely dodging an attack. With a frustrated yell leaving his lips, Bakugou sliced the man down in an instant. The feeling of hot blood splashing onto your cheek finally brought feeling back to your body, which instantly revolted in the form of vomit rushing out of your system. You collapsed down onto your hands and knees, holding your hair back with one hand as you retched.

You didn't stop until every last bit of the contents of your stomach was emptied before you, gasping and coughing as you tried to catch your breath. Behind the pounding of your ears, you could hear nothing, the silence of the forest pressing down on you. For a moment, you felt like a stranger trespassing in a deadly land, and any sound or movement would bring instant death upon you. That feeling was actually fact, and so you sucked in a breath to silence yourself, sitting down as quietly and carefully as you could.

Beginning to grow confused at the silence, you turned your head to look towards the still crackling fire, though you could barely see it behind the bodies surrounding you. Looking up, you were met with the glaring and wary eyes of those whom you thought were becoming your companions. They looked at you now as they had the first day they found you, and Bakugou's now bloodied sword was once again pointed at your face. Trembling with tears blurring your vision, you looked between them all, struggling to find words to say.

"W… what-"

"Shut up." Bakugou snapped, instantly making you cower down into yourself. "It was true. Your prediction was true."

With a timid nod, you clutched your clothing tighter around your body, trying to ignore the wet and sticky feeling of blood on your skin. "I told you…"

"We can't risk this, Sir. Having her around could be dangerous!" Kaminari spoke, prompting a conversation that you had no say in. "If she knew this was going to happen, then what else does she know? She could be leading us into a trap!"

"Did you hear those odd words she was saying? It could have been a curse!"

"We can't keep her with us-"

"Enough!" Bakugou's snap was loud and harsh enough to immediately silence everyone, startling you so badly that you jumped in fright. His glare didn't leave your face, nor did his weapon. But, there was something new that you hadn't yet seen. There was a fire, glowing with the flickering yellow flames behind him, and all you could relate it to was… ambition. A hunger for power that had been the end of many warlords during this time in history. "She will come with us, and I will present her power to our Lord. I'm sure he will be pleased to have such an asset."

Knowing better than to speak out when their leader has given such a firm command, the warriors around him paused, peering down at you with clear suspicion. You felt as if you were in more danger now than you had been the entire journey up to this point, as any little word or action you say could have an impact on your life here. For now, you figured that staying as calm and cooperative as possible would give you the best chance, even if you did feel like screaming your head off and running into the forest.

"Get rid of the bodies." Bakugou addressed Kirishima with a simple nod of his head, to which they all dispersed away from him. Stabbing his sword into the ground, Bakugou squatted down in front of you, keeping a grip on the hilt for support. Swallowing the sour lump in your throat, you forced yourself to not cower back away from him, eyes catching onto a bead of sweat that rolled down the bridge of his nose. "Are you injured?"

You shook your head, relaxing a bit. "N-no… I think the bush cut me a little when he pulled me out, but I think I'm okay…"

"You're such a damn nuisance. Can't even hide properly. Get up." Bakugou stood, ignoring the furrow of your brow. With a sigh, you struggled to stand on wobbly legs, having to grip onto the tree beside you for support.

"I'm not a warrior like you people, of course I'm going to be a nuisance! There's nothing wrong with that, either." You followed after him as he motioned for you to do so, crossing your arms tightly over your chest. "Not everyone can have those skills. I thought as a General, you would want to protect the weak."

Bakugou was silent as he reached the edge of the river, away from the rest of the group. "Demon… I only want one thing. And that is to advance the will of my Lord, by any means necessary. The weak are no concern of mine. The only reason you are still alive is because of this apparent power that you have." Kneeling, Bakugou scooped up water into his hands, splashing it over his face. "Nothing else matters to me."

"Aren't you worried I may be a danger to your Lord?"

"If I even sense for a second that you have those intentions, I'll remove your head from your shoulders." Once he was content that the blood had been removed from all visible skin, he stood, pointing down to the water for you to do the same. Glowering up at him for a moment, you sighed and did so, finding that the cold water felt good against your flushed skin. You were embarrassed, angry and exhausted, so arguing about literally anything wasn't something that you wanted to do. Not arguing with Bakugou seemed to be an impossible feat to accomplish, as anything that came out of his mouth was confrontational.

As you washed off your face, neck, and hands, you watched his reflection in the water. You couldn't get the vision of that grin out of your mind, or how powerful he looked when fighting. It was his true passion, and finally seeing him in action was… exhilarating. Although it was brutal, you felt like you could easily watch him for hours, like you were the only witness to an elaborate and passionate dance of some sort. You felt both attracted to and repulsed by this man, and you could only wish that he would see you as… well, just more.

Finishing up, you stood, shaking your hands a bit to rid them of excess water. "So, gonna tie me back up?"

"No." Bakugou finished cleaning the blood off his sword, returning it to its sheath. "I told you before. If you were right, I would no longer bind you."

"You… meant that?"

"I do not say or do things I don't mean." Bakugou returned his gaze to you. "I keep my word. Even for someone like you. Now come… We cannot stay here tonight." With a touch softer than what you had ever experienced from him, Bakugou placed a hand on your upper back, urging you back towards the camp.

Walking beside him, you fiddled with a piece of your clothing nervously, glancing up at him. "U-Uhm… Thank you for saving me…"

"Tch, don't thank me. It's not like I had a choice. I wasn't going to let you be killed by that scum."

"You're a… very powerful fighter. I was very impressed."

Although silence followed your compliment, you could have sworn you could see red rise up in the tips of his ears, just a hint of embarrassment crossing his stern features. Seeing that, you couldn't help but smile. He may have been harsh, mean and an overall brute, but there was still something about him that just… called to you.

Maybe soon… he'll warm up to me.