These Stones We Skip

by miraimisu

Uraraka, as a newcomer to the most powerful guild in this forsaken village, had not only one, two; but three responsibilities: grow stronger until she was able to pin the world down, untangle the mystery that her past was and survive under the eyes of a crowd that watched over her as night chased the sun, the charade going on and on until the thread... suddenly snaps. [MEDIEVAL!AU]

12. Traitor of a Nation, Savior of a Planet

[A/N]: I'm so sorry for how long this chapter took! As you can see this chapter was especially long and I wanted to make it perfect. I know the beginning will be a bit slow but I hope you guys like it regardless! Join me for the last ride, and please enjoy!

---

"This is the end!" she screamed from the circle, and the light only grew in power as it consumed her and gave a few more pulses before it started fading. "I win!"

When the light cleared up, it gave view to a horribly pessimistic outlook. He looked up from the ground, sight blurry. His lover was hovering from the ground, rising only higher and higher as the building started to give in to the magic within it. Her cloak had become a long white dress with pink colors, her staff became pointy and what was wood was getting slowly dyed with white light.

Her hair was becoming white, her skin frail like porcelain. Her eyes fluttered open, blown wide and white like those of a mage that couldn't see anymore. The seal under her gave its last spurts of power as the fortress began to crumble down with loud noises deafened by his fading consciousness. Her frame brimmed with light as tears soaked her cheeks, for she was doing this for them.

The world was ending.

She would give them a shelter from the rain.

And then, Bakugou saw wings. Shining white wings sprouting out of her back like a majestic fairy. Her hair, the brightest of platinum, her hand open in his direction, eyes a clear as the full moon.

But, after all this time, it was still her.

Then, it all went black.

---

As she had been told over and over again, humankind was keen on repeating their mistakes. It had been an endless circle of despair and misfortune everywhere she walked, everywhere she touched, and every timeline she destroyed. No matter how many lands she obliterated, no matter the amount of lives she took, no matter the tears she shed– her thirst for revenge wasn't quenched.

In fact, it felt like she had never moved from the starting line. Maybe, it was because she never had.

Her pain hadn't subsided. In a corner of her heart, a lonely mage wept for the pain to stop. No matter what her body gave, she knew that this madness and time-travelling, the godly art of destroying and remaking over and over again… things were only becoming more and more strained, more and more enmeshed. Things would only go downhill if luck was pressed too hard.

In the darkness, tears were shed, but on the outside, cries of anger and tears of loneliness were the only thing to be seen. Her body was punishment-proof, and her heart was like that of a stallion, relentless and seeking the secret, concealed revenge that had been preset in her brain. The revenge, the anger. Uraraka wasn't angry.

But Ochako was. Ochako, if anything, had been angry. And a part of her, now in the darkness again, wondered how many times it had been Ochako and her had been rebirthed for this chaotic mess to continue. She wondered how long it'd take for the world to finally break and for any realm to cease existing.

Things were becoming more fragile. All Uraraka could wonder was how long she'd have to go through this. Ochako was a beast she didn't want in her life. Uraraka had been the reincarnation of a mistake this lonely and sad mage did. Uraraka was Ochako, but Ochako was not Uraraka.

And yet, she was being pushed to the same corner over and over again, no matter how far things were being taken. Timelines were being restored as that cage kept Uraraka tortured, but now that she found herself at the end of that dark pitch, of that dark cell, she couldn't help but wonder how long it had been happening.

Maybe her brain wasn't aware of her memories being rewashed and her body being spawn at the beginning of the story, but the more this happened, the more her heart knew this was wrong.

This time, unlike the prior clonic endings – the clonic destruction, the clonic rebirth, endless times – she was welcomed by a pregnant silence. She looked up, and again, found no faces, no air, just a breeze that licked at her body like a demon did to a baby's candy.

She hated this.

And it seemed like the gods above her were realizing that things were starting to get seriously dangerous. Perhaps in the past a pair of rewashes and reconstructions of the same timeline were harmless, but the more they redid and rekilled, the weaker it became, and the more people felt and cried for this.

The world was beginning to know what was going on. Their hearts were feeling the dread. And at the center of it all stood Uraraka, now waiting for a new answer and for a new (yet expectedly old) direction.

Something else welcomed her.

"Uraraka. Or Ochako. It doesn't seem to matter anymore, does it?" a voice echoed in the endless dark chamber. It was almost as if she was suspended in the sea, underwater, and the voice was bouncing in her brain.

She shifted her feet a bit, and she was sure that she could feel ground under her feet, in her drowsy perception. Perhaps she would be able to feel the cracks in this ending if she had been conscious enough.

"It's been so long, and you still won't learn, will you? How many times has it been since you first stepped in? How long has it really been, Uraraka?"

It could have been years of the same story being retold over and over. Honestly, whatever she had lived seemed to matter not, for she knew it was but a lie. Everything around her was a lie, and all she wanted was to feel, see, hear, taste and touch the reality of everything.

But she was locked in this madness. And no matter how many times she was manipulated, no mercy would come from heaven.

Silence wrapped around her.

One beat, two beats, and a small shift. Uraraka heard another voice.

"It doesn't seem like you're helping us. No matter how many chances we give you to redeem yourself, you are hellbent on destroying our work like a child throwing a fit. You're no more than a little child."

Uraraka looked down, because she was at a loss of what to say. Was this really all her fault? Would this cycle have continued if her misplaced feelings hadn't been fueled, but stopped? It wasn't fair, being blamed for this sin on her own.

Nothing was fair. Her fingers curled into fists, and this once, her throat constricted as she shoved the words up her throat.

And after so long, she spoke.

"This is not only my doing! Your own devil spawns have been there to make sure I follow the same path over and over to please you!" she looked at a side, her eyes hooded with both resent and anger. "They deserved it. They deserved all pain I could grant, but in the end I did save them!"

"If the ending of the story is everyone dying, does it truly matter who brought that fate upon them?" at that, she had no words, and remained silent as she processed that fact. At the end of the day, it truly didn't matter.

The only thing that mattered was that she had destroyed the timeline, and brought death to her comrades. Her intentions didn't seem to matter, but the function she was carrying in the story did.

And she was tired of that being shred to pieces and rewashed to a new white. She deserved a fairer chance. "It's the fate" she pointed at the pitch black sky "you guys put on my shoulders! If you wanted me to sort this out, maybe you shouldn't have removed my memories over and over again, or guided me towards a dark path!"

How did she know this? Was the endless repetition finally rubbing and craving itself in her mind?

"You're the one who chose to do this!"

"By your own manipulation!" she bellowed to the heavens, to hell, or to whoever or whatever was watching her. Her fists trembled on her sides, and she screwed her eyes shut. "The timelines becoming weak is your own doing! You're the ones who went insane and decided I should just walk the same path over and over. I might be to blame for what I did in the past, but how the hell am I supposed to get out of that cycle if nobody will let me be free?"

Her words echoed in the chamber, bounced within the infinite constraints of that nightmare. This time, nobody dared answer, for she was absolutely right. And she was certain she was right this time.

Uraraka clutched the chest of her torn uniform, and a small tear fell down her face. "I gave them a shelter to live on again. I saved them from the pain of being pulled apart particle by particle. By destroying that place, I created another one, didn't I? The same time, the same actions, the same mistakes."

Give her freedom, was what she was asking for.

Give me another chance, her heart cried. She sunk to her knees, shaking in desperation. She knew this was her only and last chance to make things right. If the gods above wouldn't let her be free but the times would repeat themselves again, perhaps she could make it work somehow, no matter the pain she brought along.

A small droplet fell on the space, and it echoed like glass in her ears. It felt different than before.

"The rain is long gone now." spoke a deep voice, making her look up. She didn't see a thing, but she knew mercy was at her reach. "We have already dragged the punishment process for long enough. Now it's time for your redemption. Are you ready for that, though?"

Her eyes widened, and she got up again with almost a jump. However, her stance held no enthusiasm, but defiance and bravery she had long lost. "I don't care what I have to do. I will do anything to save everyone for good this time, no matter the cost."

There was no dent to her voice. There was no running away anymore.

"Very well, then." a small part of her held hope for the slightly softer tone. It sounded like a father looking down at his daughter, but not on her anymore. "We will grant you a different path, a different time, and another story. What you will do with it is in your hands, now. You won't be given another chance. This is your last chance to make things right."

Uraraka nodded with a firm frown, as if telling the heavens to throw anything at her– she'd accept and chuck it back to where it belonged.

"I will make things right again… but how? How am I supposed to get out of that path you have marked for me?"

A low hum was heard in the chamber. "You will figure it out the moment you land in your world again. I'm sure that seeing the story from another perspective will give you the right push."

The right push? Hell, why couldn't they just tell her how to do things instead of being so vague? It irked her greatly, yet she guessed they couldn't tell her how to do things so easily. She would have to figure out her way to atonement, and she didn't care what happened. She wasn't going to run away anymore.

She would make the rain stop forever.

"Now, you shall go back to your planet, where this cycle began. While you can't undo the mistakes Ochako did, perhaps you can redeem them for good." there was a slight sizzling in her ears, and while she could hear several voices at earshot, she wasn't sure who or what they were. She cupped her cheek and touched her ear with a small grimace.

Uraraka, despite sensing the danger, nodded at this, accepting whatever risk she was to be exposed at, and the sizzling started to fade away to a small distant echo.

"Take good care of yourself, Uraraka." then, she felt slightly dizzy, a familiar warmth welcomed her as her hands started to feel wet and slick, a humid minty scent invading her nostrils. "Let's see what you do, this time."

In a snap moment, everything disappeared, and the warmth and security of the silent chamber was replaced by the cold downpour on her frame.

She fluttered her eyes open. When she woke up, she was lying in the middle of the rain.

Instead of getting up with urgency like she would have in the past, she cupped her forehead for recollection, and that was when she realized a very key element that had been granted to her. It almost felt like a blessing to realize that, suddenly, she remembered everything.

Uraraka remembered absolutely everything.

She looked forward and saw the familiar streetlamps. She knew the fate that would fall upon her and the world around her if she were to take the same starting line as she did in the past.

So, Uraraka didn't.

Grimacing, she looked at the gushing wound on her side, and with fierce decision, she brought her sleeve to her teeth and tore the fabric apart to create a makeshift bandage. Her fingers felt cold from the rain, but she could feel the wetness of blood soaking her ribs. Panting, the pushed the fabric against she cut, and tried to get up.

She didn't need anybody to cure her, or comrades to help her find the path home. Instead, she pushed herself to her feet and turned around. Without a single thought more, she started to run in the opposite direction. Her boots splashed with water and she panted at the discomfort of her wound, but her oath to save this decaying world didn't let her falter.

The only thing that stopped her mindless meandering was a deep, raspy voice from a man under a big withering sapling with darkened leaves. "Where are you going so quickly, fairy? Don't you know it's bad for kids to roam around these parts?"

Uraraka's breath hitched, and in the dark of the night, her eyes and Aizawa's met like magnets. She didn't know if she should be relieved or scared, but his presence somehow made her believe that she was making the right decisions already. For the confidence he brought in her, she smiled shakily.

"What… what are you doing here? It's so cold tonight."

"You're saying it as if I hadn't been here the whole time, or I hadn't been watching, or the temperature had been any warmer in past times." so, as she had deducted and assumed, Aizawa was a part of all this mess. "Where did you want to go, even? You just got up and you wanna go for a jog?"

"You must be here for a reason, right? I'm sure my heart was seeking you, and it seems I found you rather quickly."

Aizawa chuckled and uncrossed his arms. "Can't blame you for the aimlessness, but you must get that nasty wound cured. You have always been too reckless with your body, throwing yourself around like that."

The mage blinked some rain off her lashes, and cocked her head as she saw him turn around and start walking away. She didn't know if she should believe him– was he a trap from the heavens for her to fall into? What was he doing there?

"Follow me." his head turned a little, not quite facing her. "I know what you can do, and unlike those up there, I know the good your heart holds. I'm on your side this time."

---

Uraraka quietly nibbled on her small piece of bread, clutching it like a hungry rabbit with a carrot. A step away from her, Aizawa walked forward through the small market. Her steps were barely hearable through the crowd, and she could barely hear the man as he talked in a hush.

His head was uncharacteristically low, looking at the ground in thought rather than endless sea of people. The sky was clear and sun beamed from above. Uraraka's eyes were hooded by her hat.

"Are you aware of the sticky situation you are in, fairy? I shouldn't even be here." Aizawa spoke in a grumble. This change of tone, which had been a bit softer than usual until now, made the girl look up to see his eyes turned to hers lightly from over his shoulder.

She stared at him blankly. She was aware of where she was, who she was, and the people she had met, but she was still clueless to what she was supposed to do right now. Aizawa had been hope for her, but right now he looked like an eternal interrogant that would never grant answers to her.

If she focused enough, Aizawa was no more than a blur in a sea of white noise and hollow voices. Uraraka bit a bit more into her soft and warm bread, staring at him. Only now did she notice they had stopped walking.

Aizawa considered her silence to be telling enough. "I suppose you don't. I can't give you all answers, and you must know that. I'm no more than a commissary in this sick game."

A commissary, a messenger. It made a lot of sense to think of him that way, although it was ironic that the man who had spoken so highly and vaguely was just as much of a pawn like her. At least she wasn't as disposable as he could be, and while she wanted to feel superior, Uraraka was too humble to see him as anything else than a peer.

No longer a master. But a peer.

The girl glanced at the surroundings of this familiar market. The buildings around her were of a blueish gray, stone covering the ground and merchants shouting around her for offers and many foods that smelled like home and joy. She had no time for that, and neither did the man she was walking with.

What was interesting for her was when she caught the smell of lavender and a blur of purple, porcelain and black brush past her. The warmth and the smell, the colors, made her turn around sharply with a hitched breath that got stuck in her throat when she realized who it was.

Her eyes landed on a familiar purple haired man talking to the black-haired hunter.

That whip of hers was still on her hip, and her gentle, polite smile was undoubtedly fake and out of a want to be civile, but after all she had been through, Uraraka felt overjoyed to see her. A surge of feelings, frustration and boundless relief to see she was actually alive burst within her. No matter the nature of this world, she never thought she'd see her again, and all she wanted to do was rush to her and hug her close, cry tears of relief as they started to prickle in her eyes.

However, a stern hand landed on her shoulder the moment she took a step in her direction. "Are you sure you want to?"

His cautious voice made her stiffen, and remember. She wasn't here to make friends anymore, or allies for that matter. The context of this world and her destiny, the curse embedded to her heart– she couldn't afford making friends. She had to find a path of her own.

That'd be the first of many pangs of pain that would stab her heart.

Uraraka gave Jack a last melancholic glance. "You're right." her shoulders sunk and she turned to him again, walking by his side with her head an inch lower than before. "Let's get going."

Far away from them, Jack turned in Uraraka's direction. All she saw was a sea of unknown people, and when Shinsou asked what was wrong with her, her voice came out low. "Didn't you feel weird just a sec ago? Like… a very heavy vibe in the air. Or a stare."

Shinsou deadpanned, not understanding. "Must be in your mind. I haven't seen anyone I know around here yet."

Nobody worth remembering, at least.

---

"So, I'm supposed to change their mind, am I?"

Uraraka had stopped walking to stare at the ground, at the dark muddy grass at their feet. Her comrade looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Uraraka pursed her lips, eyes squinted as she thought about this hard and through before speaking her mind. "I mean, I'm supposed to be going through some sort of atonement process, am I? But I haven't done anything other than meandering around like a lost fox."

"You say it as if you hadn't done anything at all."

"But I haven't." she began to walk once more, this time a step ahead of Aizawa. He didn't fall into step with her. Instead, he observed her ramble, exactly what he wanted her to do. "I haven't gotten any sign as to what to do, either. Am I supposed to get a letter falling from the sky? Am I supposed to… I don't know, meet a high monk or a priest?"

A second later, trees started giving way to a warm light that came from a nearby village. He heard the distant laughter of children and the cackling of fire, which Uraraka seemed to be unaware of. Had she heard this, she would definitely know where she was. He knew things had happened in this small village and she was too considerate to forget this place.

The man walked a tad faster. "You will figure things out when the time comes. You have more important things to do rather than planning meetings and all that crap."

Finally, Uraraka reached the end of the forest. Her feet stopped themselves to take in her surroundings– she old houses, the kids running around the fire on a slate of stone, merchant camps and a very familiar wooden residence in the distance. She didn't seem to realize where they were until she took her fist to her heart and shrunk lightly.

She didn't like this place. And that was what he wanted from her.

The man came from behind her. "I have stuff to do, so stay here. I need you to stay here. I'll be back soon."

At that low murmur Uraraka turned around with a light frown. "What do you mean stuff to do? Am I supposed to trust you again?"

"Do you have anybody else you can trust? I'll be back soon, and I already told you I'm on your side this time."

Uraraka, for very obvious reasons, was hesitant to trust this man again. Last time she entrusted her mind to him, he made her a toy for his bosses above. Was she supposed to let him shackle her to a dark destiny once more?

However, she now realized that this time around, she had the aces of her memories with her. If she didn't want to be manipulated, perhaps all she had to do was simply not let him do so. After all, if she was encouraging herself to not make friends or allies, Aizawa himself could be stuffed in that sack.

He had been using her all along. It was time she turned the tables. The girl nodded curtly at him, letting a small hum slip out her mouth. The man nodded back, and adjusting his scarf to his neck, he started walking away from her, leaving her alone.

Her plan of not making any allies or friends now backfired on her drastically. With a hand to her forearm, she glanced around almost shyly, losing all the confidence she had been gathering all along. Her boots remained still, and her expression turned almost grim. What should she do, now? It felt like Aizawa had very kindly guided her to the actual starting line, and that her new journey began now.

You'll figure things out when the time comes.

She sighed. If there was something she could trust, was that sole phrase. So, very hesitantly, she did. Uraraka slowly let her feet walk her to the bonfire, where children were running around. Her steps were like those of a ghost, barely scraping the loose dirt. Her face was concealed by the pink hood of her uniform.

A crisp breeze blew between her legs and arms. She needed to get a coat of some sorts. She knew a river flowed near this village, and they were close to the north. The weather was anything but warm.

"Hey, you there!" her eyes, which had been glued to the fire, shifted to one of the kids. "What are you doing, standing there? You'll get cold!"

Uraraka blinked at this, but nodded regardless. Unused to such impulsive kindness, the girl didn't really know what to expect when she walked a bit closer to the children, and as she grew closer, the kids started gathering to welcome her.

However, a close look into the children's eyes made it clear they weren't there to give her hugs. Their eyes were fixated on her hat and dress, with a glint of childish wonder and awe that she had never seen. Uraraka was painfully used to people pointing at her in horror, a kind like her known for being capable of atrocities and despair.

She had never been marvelled as a being capable of good. Nothing like these kids were doing.

The little guys were rather short, so Uraraka crouched as to not intimidate them. "Hey there, you have a good fire going on here!"

Her voice sounded enthusiastic, as if she was genuinely happy. One of the four children nodded and grinned at her. "I made the fire! Pretty nifty, huh?"

One of the others elbowed him. "You're saying it as if you did it on your own, bragger!"

"Aw, c'mon! I just wanted to let the lady know!"

As they bickered, the brunette giggled. The scenario was a bit familiar. She was trying to not let feelings catch her, but the sheer familiarity warmed her heart up. "And what is the fire for? There isn't many people around here right now! You could be at home."

One of the kids, with a slight tan and black hair, beamed at her and pointed at himself, then at the rest. "It's part of a ceremony! The adults are somewhere else celebrating, but it's a part of a festivity we have here. We light up the fires at the start of the festival as a beginning of a new season!"

Uraraka cocked her head, curious. The fire didn't seem to be anything special. "What for, though? What's the meaning behind that?"

One of the girls smiled at her too as if this was the funniest thing ever. She had similar traits to the other kid. "These fires burn all year! We blow them off a bit before the beginning of the new season and we eat and dance before we celebrate another beginning, and start another fire! It's a festival!"

The word festival had been mentioned a fair number of times and Uraraka finally made time connections between the place she was in and this festival happening. When she had first arrived to this village with the guild, the festival was happening. In fact, Bakugou didn't attend the festivities because of her.

She frowned lightly, but not because of the memory – after all, he had grown from that moment on and rather than regretting it, she treasured the memory – but because that meant her past friends would arrive to this place soon and she still had no plan as to what she'd do. Or if Aizawa would pick her up and leave before they came.

Uraraka frowned. The kids interpreted it as just her being thoughtful and interested. "How long does this last?"

"A week." said the same girl. "You should stay and come to the parties! The food is super yummy too!"

The mage appreciated some good food, but she couldn't afford those distractions. Aizawa had insisted she took it easy but how was she supposed to? She shook her head. "I'm a very busy girl, you see. I can't stay for very long."

"Ooh, are you like…" one of the children's eyes gleamed like a gem under the sunlight. "are you like one of those government witches? Are you hunting monsters!?"

In a way, she was. But not in the way he thought she was. Still, she grinned, because she didn't want to break a kid's fantasy. "Yeah! I'm like a secret agent looking for drooling and gross monsters!"

Them all 'ooh'ed and gasped in surprise. She was such an awesome girl already! The little girl from earlier clapped her hands together and gave her an angelic smile. "Could you show us some magic, miss? Pretty please? I have always wanted to see a sorcerer in action!"

They were too cute for her to say no. She took a hand out, spread it, and her hand started to burn until a small, gentle fire was issuing from them. Her temperature was dipping at this stunt, but their shock and joy at the cool trick was worth any cold. "Woah! That's so pretty!"

Uraraka smiled and nodded, thanking them. "Doesn't it hurt, miss? Don't your hands burn?"

That was complicated science, but there was a quick answer to that. "Not at all! It's very warm, but I have trained very much for this!" she turned her palm, and the fires melted into water that dripped down her hand, and the kids squealed even harder.

Uraraka couldn't control water around her, create waves around her body or make them calm, but she could control her own body better than anybody else. "Miss, miss! Can you do it to my body? Can you turn me into water?"

The friends frowned at the boy, and before they could scold him, Uraraka shook her head. "I'm not that dextrous. Besides, it could be dangerous!" the brunette got up and ruffled the boy's hair, making him groan as he was rejected. "You have a fine body of your own, no need to risk it."

Uraraka giggled as they swarmed around her for a bit more, but the fun was about to be over. A few voices called from buildings away, and the children didn't hesitate to grin and follow the voices. Uraraka smiled at their eagerness to rejoin the celebrations. One of the girls turned as she ran and put her hands around her tiny mouth. "Please miss, come by soon! We wanna see you again!"

The girl's breath hitched. It had been so long since she had been told that. If ever, actually. With a sweet smile, Uraraka waved as the little girl smiled and bid her farewell. The warmth that settled in her heart was… nice, comfortable, unlike anything she had ever felt in this world.

Her eyes shifted to the fires again now that she was alone, covering her orbs in a golden halo. The girl lifted her hand slowly to hover over the fires, and when they grew closer to her hand, she abruptly raised it and removed it to let the fires escalate and soar like a dragon surging from the pits of hell.

However, she tamed it in no time, and when the fires started shrinking again, they slowly changed to a white pure color. She clasped her hands together, as if in a prayer. "I hope your fires don't die anytime soon, kids. They shouldn't, anymore."

After this small plea, Uraraka smiled to herself and walked away from the warmth of the fire, the cackling of the flames making her step bounce a little. The girl hadn't planned this, but she ended up padding to the residence she had once slept in, in the past. Her hand touched the doors, then the doorknob.

Her breath got stuck in her throat as a whirlwind of memories surged from deep within her, yet she wouldn't let this make her falter. She needed a place to stay, after all.

Shaking her head, she twisted the doorknob and stepped in, not before glancing back at the fires and seeing kids come back to it, squealing at the new fancy color. She smiled to herself, and disappeared behind the doors.

That bonfire wouldn't die for centuries to come.

---

Uraraka spent god knows how long in her room, secluded from the rest of the world. The blankets had been familiar against her skin, and the glass windows had been more than a memento of the memories she had shared in this place. It wasn't a nightmare or a dream; rather, it was a white-washed sense of nostalgia that chased her like a shadow everywhere she went.

So she stayed in, day after day, waiting for Aizawa to come by. Or maybe, somebody else would fall from the heavens and tell her what to do. No matter what Aizawa told her about taking it easy, this mission as far too important to rest easy. She felt like she had done absolutely nothing.

Her bed was surrounded with open books of different ages, sprawled over her bed as she consumed their letters hastily. The sentences became enmeshed at some points, and the drawings far too confusing, and she doubted she was learning anything from this– but at least she had the feeling she was doing something.

In the dead of the night she sat, criss-crossed on the bed with a focused glare on one of the books. She slowly turned the pages to not tear them off, the books were old and delicate. The small rustling noise filled the room.

Suddenly, she heard steps in her hallway, out from her room. The girl was surprised by this, and slowly got up from the bed to tiptoe between piles of books and eavesdrop. From what she had gathered, nobody came this late into the night. It could either be Aizawa or somebody of equal interest for her.

Her fingers hovered over the knob, ready to get out in case of danger, almost by instinct. Then, came a familiar voice.

"You dumbass, I told you to not fucking do that!" the gruffy voice was so close her heart stopped in its tracks. They were right behind the doors, slowly making their way by the rooms. "Now we have frog girl in a fucking bed because you sent her against that monster!"

It was Bakugou.

It was Bakugou.

"I told you that it was my mission to ensure we defeated Pyrox! Asui assured she could take it, how am I supposed to read her thoughts?" and that was actually Midoriya, talking back to the fearsome leader she expected to be baring his teeth at him. The notion didn't make her smile. "She will be okay in no time. It's been a long way here."

Bakugou growled at him with a frown. "Just don't fucking play chess with our members, goddammit. We need them for our next mission. Rumor has it there's a legendary monster sleeping under the canyon's river, and we need everyone strong and healthy in case that shithead appears."

Uraraka turned from the door to rest her back on the wooden surface, torn on what to do. They were there. Her guild was there, they had arrived not to her, but it somehow felt like it. She wanted to step out and say hi, maybe cry and apologize over and over for what she had done to them, to their trust, to their faith.

The girl sank to the floor, her back sliding down and her shoulders hunching over.

But they don't remember her. They don't know who she is.

Her shoulders shook, and her expression shrunk into one of pain. Hearing the familiar two bickering brought an immense feeling of despair storming through her, because no matter how much she wanted to avoid it, the truth was that she missed their company.

Enshrouded in darkness within her room, the little mage wept in silence.

This would be harder than she thought.

---

From then on, Uraraka spent her next days thinking about her next steps, and very secondarily waiting for Aizawa to come at her rescue.

She spent her days, once more, sitting on her bed and planning her steps carefully. She would sneak out late into the night for some meat and bread in the festive markets, and then fly back into her room without being seen. She was aware that her status regarding the guild was horribly delicate and that any contact could make the story get too complicated.

Her mission was to plan how to get out of that town without being seen, which seemed to be something this place was hellbent on forcing.

She had almost stumbled with them a few times, actually, and these brushes with danger where what forced her into self-captivity. Once, she had been headed to the quaint library in that place for maps and references. She was eating an apple, cheerfully dedicated to her own thoughts and hopeful that things would end up in her favor.

However, a second before she reached the end of the street, Uraraka heard a collection of voices that made her spring back into the shadows of the street, a few apples rolling to the ground.

She blended with the building while Midoriya, Todoroki and Kirishima walked right by the ending of the avenue. "Yo, is Asui doing better?

That was Kirishima's voice. Uraraka frowned as they stopped in front of a market of medical goods a few metres away from her. She tried to push harder against the wall as if it could swallow her, but it didn't, obviously. Her nails dug into the surface, for she wanted to run, but needed to hear about her fellow alchemist.

"She has a fever. She was pushed by her own tides, after all. I had never seen her blend with her magic so perfectly." Midoriya picked up a small bag with a black ribbon, and Todoroki nodded and continued speaking. "I sometimes forget she's a very powerful water magician."

The leader chuckled. "Totally, but she's very strong. She'll be fine in no time."

There was a small silence. They weren't doing anything, nor was Uraraka running away, tense.

Kirishima sighed. "You don't seem very convinced."

The other two snapped their heads to the hunter. "What do you mean? I have full trust in her."

"That's not what I mean." she saw the redhead rub his scalp. "I know you're worried sick about her. You spent the night treating her. I still don't know why you sent her with us."

Midoriya almost pouted at him but Todoroki intervened. "He's right, you know." the leader mouthed the knight's name in disbelief. "I also think Asui is super strong, but she only hindered our walk here. Why did you insist to much?"

The other knight blinked at them without answering, then looked back to the medical goods. His brow sunk progressively until he sighed before his two friends, who waited and waited until he couldn't take their eyes' pressure anymore.

"She was muttering things in her sleep about wanting to come. She said she wanted to meet somebody in the province."

Uraraka's eyes widened a notch at this.

"Someone? I never knew Asui had a friend out of the village." then, the redhead smirked, mischief in his features and elbowing his leader. "Or a boyfriend."

Unlike the girl had expected, Midoriya didn't seem appalled by the possibility. However, he was quick to deny that scenario. "No… she said it was a friend. A girl she wanted to say sorry to." his voice seemed to grow sadder. "She was mumbling things about a monster and a sorcerer, and being very cold. All of that, over and over, like a lament."

Uraraka's eyes widened in horror, her hands grasping the basket of goods tighter.

Of course, this timeline was delicate. And of course Asui wouldn't be left off unscathed. Those up above her had to put that tiny wrinkle to the mix to make things tougher for her. It was a bit self-absorbed to believe Asui was specifically talking about her, but it couldn't be helped considering this new time was almost like a gift to Uraraka.

Her eyes flashed to them one last time before running away, fruits falling off her basket in her haste.

She hadn't left the room for leisure ever since then, scared of encountering another conversation like this, one she wasn't meant to hear. Or worse, maybe she was.

Uraraka sat on her bed, more and more books piling in every imaginable surface as she scanned through each and every index, looking for any catchy title. She was impulsively buying any book with a familiar cover title and taking them to her room, then discarding most of them as they ended up having little to no value at all.

She had never been a bookworm or really enjoyed reading, but this was a mission of extreme importance.

And while she scanned, filtered, threw books away and sighed, she would hear the constant chatter behind the wall right under her back. It had been awfully coincidental for them to end up right by her room, and she couldn't help but blame the gods above her for this punishment.

The temptation to help them out was almost unreal, yet she didn't waver, and needed to stay away.

You can help out.

No, she couldn't.

You can! You don't need to tell them you are but…

That would mean involvement anyway, and she didn't need to reinforce the bonds she was trying to ignore. Once she left, they would be out of sight and out of mind.

And that was the status she was striving for.

Will you really feel good about leaving a dear guildmate in the dark? C'mon, she needs your help! Do you think any of them other than Asui know medicine?

… Not really.

Well, maybe Yaoyorozu did, but her knowledge on the matter was rather superficial. So indeed, the only people who could cure Asui were Asui herself or Uraraka. The problem was, Uraraka couldn't go.

She looked out the window, which she had opened a bit ago to let some air in. Living there like a hermit made the air in there become a bit heavy, and the moonlight was gorgeous tonight. It was pretty late, and she should be sleeping. The hopes of somebody coming to take her out of that place and to another was the only thing encouraging to go to bed.

Tonight, not even that worked. Not when she knew Asui was in pain. She sighed and got up from the bed, which groaned in protest at her leaving. The mage took a deep breath and dodged piles of books to stand before the seemingly gigantic door. Sigh after sigh, she twisted the golden knob and pushed the door open.

She didn't want to regret this as she did it, so she jumped out of the room, grabbed the key and closed it softly behind her. Asui's door was closed shut, her peers long gone. The corridor felt cold and looked dark, making this look like a terrifying act she would someday regret.

But how could she ever regret healing her? What sort of human being would she be if she left her out? All she had to do was not be detected, which was easy considering the hour and the darkness around her.

Uraraka positioned herself before the door and pushed her hand against the lock, letting her skin morph into iron as it sneaked through the enginery inside the door. She grimaced, but then, a small click was heard and the door fell open silently, giving sight to the moonlight washed room.

Uraraka couldn't bring herself to look up and watch her dear alchemist sleep until minutes later, when a breeze of midnight air made her strands dance along her cherubic cheeks. The mage's lips were parted and her eyes twinkled against the moonlight that filtered through the curtains. A silly tear threatened to spill but the girl held it in place.

She wanted to hug that silly alchemist so badly, thank her for everything and apologize for what she had once done, something nobody but her remembered. Something that where she was, had never happened. The girl patted her cheeks with a small hum and walked the path to her bed, slowing down as she reached the bed, and kneeled down before it.

The mage took Asui's hand. It was cold, but had a beat under the wrist. She wasn't in danger, yet Uraraka wanted to help. If she was to ever implicate herself with this crew, she would do it like this.

The girl enveloped her cold hand with her warm ones, closed her eyes, and murmured those little spells this very own alchemist had once taught her. A soft light emerged from their union, and Uraraka could feel her energy softly blending with Asui's– tangling, meeting, and mixing. It was slow enough for Uraraka not to be noticed yet intense enough for Asui to sleep better.

The sleeping girl was murmuring things under her breath.

"Cold… too cold…" mumbled the girl. Uraraka took a brave peek at her expression and found it to be washed in anguish, something that made her screw her eyes shut and bite her lip as she staggeringly continued her thread of spells. "Don't… we were… friends. You promised…"

Uraraka closed her eyes even further and gripped Asui's hand with a force that screamed regret, remorse, and immense pain at the prospect of never making all of this up to her personally. All she would have to do was go through an atonement path she didn't even feel she had begun.

It was so unfair. And worst of it all, she had brought it on herself.

"I'm sorry…" it was Uraraka who muttered this between spells, her healing getting erratic and pulsating. Her energy was growing more rebellious in Asui's body. "Forgive me…"

But it was useless. Soon enough, the girl's small mumbling died down. The cura sunk into her body and replenished her energies, closed her wounds and freed her from her current nightmares, ones Uraraka had created and were now plaguing the mind of an innocent girl.

The mage got on her feet and her fingers traced a small scar on the alchemist's forehead. "I will make things right. No matter what…" her voice was barely a whisper, and with a small tap, a brief light sparked under her fingertips as she granted Asui a good night of sleep

The sight of her ex-comrades at peace made Uraraka feel a warmth she hadn't experienced in a long time, and she could watch this scene forever just to be sure nobody would be hurt ever again. However, just as she drank from the peace and quiet, she heard steps coming from the hallway and towards the room she was in.

Her eyes flashed to the door and her hands balled into fists, regretting not having more time. She had to flee, or else she would be discovered.

The girl frowned and walked to the window, opening it wide and letting the curtains raise to the wind's mercy. Uraraka tugged her hat down, a foot on the edge of the window as she heard a small fragment of the conversation that came from the hallway.

"I heard a noise coming from the hallway. Maybe Asui woke up or something." the doorknob twisted and Uraraka pushed her boot against the edge of the window, prepared to jump. Her hands were slanted on the frame of the windows. "Let's just check on her."

Uraraka didn't jump in time, because the door unexpectedly swung open and Kaminari and Todoroki emerged from the shadows, gasping as they saw the obvious silhouette of an intruder in the room, dark against the moonlight. Her tresses twirled against the wind slowly. She looked back with a small frown, because she had been caught, but the sight of her comrades alive and healthy made her get the same warm feeling from seconds earlier.

But she knew better. And she was no more than a shadow in the night for them.

"Who the hell are you!?" Kaminari took out a small dagger as he frowned at her. Uraraka breathed in and breathed out, waiting for him to strike. By her side, Asui's bed creaked as the girl incorporated herself, wide awake. "Show yourself! What the hell were you doing in Asui's room!?"

Uraraka didn't even dedicate them a small speech. She knew that roaming around here would only cause her trouble, and it was her time to now flee from the scene. She couldn't explain her reasons, for she would sound crazy, or explain the whole mess she had gotten everyone in. A mess inconceivable to the human and bare eye.

She refused to wait any longer, and she lunged through the windows and behind the curtains, disappearing in silence in the night like an eagle in flight. Todoroki ran to the window, confused and wanting answers from this stranger, but he didn't see her anywhere. She was gone like the wind.

"Asui?" the knight turned when Kaminari called the alchemist's name. She was awake, lying in her bed with a strangely appeased expression that none of them could comprehend. "Are you okay? Why are you smiling?"

Because, indeed, the alchemist had a very soft smile sketched on her features, a sincere soft one that only she could understand. The girl caressed her forehead softly, her eyes closed in bliss.

"I don't know." her voice was colorful and cheerful, soft with care for somebody she didn't know, somebody she couldn't remember. "I just… I feel very happy, for some reason. I feel like an angel just touched my heart."

---

Uraraka's room was clean and tidy the day after. The books had been stacked into small piles by her bed and the various feathers and pencils were in their proper containers. She had intended to make this look like just an average host had passed by, not a mad witch seeking answers for a path she couldn't see.

She woke up at the crack of dawn and tidied the place up in no time. She had several rolls of paper with important locations she would follow for answers, as well as shops she remembered that sold good gear. Some basic botanics were jotted down there as well, just the basic knowledge necessary for an emergency.

After surveiling the room's appearance, she let herself have a break, and slumped over a small set of cushions on the window. The sun had barely risen over the horizon, she should be sleeping. But quite frankly, after last night's regrettable visit to Asui's room, the tides had turned to a very unpleasant direction. While she didn't want to be noticed, this sudden impulse she got to want to be noticed was the sign of her heart's sickness.

Nostalgia plagued her heart like thorns surrounded a wall, and for the sake of the world and her own, she had to get rid of it. And for that, she would have to pack up and run away before she gave in to the desperate need to cling to their shoulders and sob meek apologies.

Just the thought of meeting her guild under the sunshine made her sick with guilt and drowned in despair, but she had resolved to be strong, and so she would.

Her eyes lazily travelled to the white burning fires, making some residue from the last festival gleam in the dark soil. The night had been noisy and wild, and the recollection of the event made her wonder if Bakugou had gone to the festival as he had once planned back then. Back when she was in his life.

She bet it had been fun, but it wasn't a leisure she couldn't afford. Happy times she didn't deserve. Her punishment hadn't been more real and vivid until now that she was crawling through it all.

Uraraka's eyes had started to drift close, her emotions draining all energy from her, until she heard footsteps in the hallway. Her eyes snapped open, wide in attention, and she jumped to the entrance of her room with an ear glued to the door.

"If Asui is fine, then we gotta go. Those guys at the Capital won't wait forever, y'know." that seemed to be Kirishima's voice. "Is Bakugou ready yet? What's taking him so long?"

"He's making more and more plans. No clue what he meant with it, but he said he felt like we were forgetting about something." Midoriya said. Uraraka bit her lip. He was probably now doing all work he hadn't done before the meeting with Gunhead that was supposed to happen in the Capital.

Had she been a distraction in the past, hindering his investigation? She hoped not.

"He's very invested with the campaign. Bakugou doesn't like to take it easy." said Tokoyami from a bit afar. Uraraka could barely make out his voice. "He's very driven to take down that giant at the north. Maybe too driven."

The girl furrowed her brows, concerned and failing to realize she was wading in waters that were too deep. "I totally agree. That guy's been training like mad." Kirishima sounded just as concerned as Uraraka was feeling. "He's always looking ahead, but I don't know what at. He's always barking he has something to protect, because he doesn't wanna fail again."

"We've all heard that. But when we ask, he always gets angry and moody and tells us to shut the hell up." sighed Kaminari who was dangerously close to Uraraka's door. "He must be just hellbent on drinking that dude's blood. He's a barbarian like that."

That word, barbarian, made her snap out of it and widen her eyes as she felt her heart dangle in her chest, tense and threatening to fall. She couldn't invest herself in this, she… she shouldn't. This was not her game, and making her atonement cling to their adventures didn't feel like it was the right thing to do.

Yet… what else was she supposed to do? Where was she supposed to do? What conclusion was she supposed to draw from being alone like this, from just meandering until some divine force came to her? Scars she couldn't erase were embedded into her skin and nobody else's– scars she had gotten from hurting them all with her revenge.

Uraraka couldn't keep on running away from her sins.

No. Uraraka would find her own path. And she had a vague idea of what direction she could point it at.

She walked away from the door.

"Yo, Bakugou, you're finally here!" cheered Kirishima as the leader walked out the door. Everyone started walking out when the blonde appeared, deeming him to be ready to begin their voyage. "Dude, you took forever. What the hell are you up to?"

"Shut the fuck up, rockbrain!" yelled Bakugou, probably waking up half the residence, his fist shaking before Kirishima's eyes. "I'll kick your ass to the moon and back if you keep on pryin'."

With that, the blond hunter began to walk down the hallway with a small 'tch', but Kirishima smiled tenderly, knowing Bakugou was a great barker but a horrible biter. Besides, if he wanted to have a fight, the redhead wouldn't let him down, that was for sure.

Suddenly, the leader stopped in his tracks. Kirishima was surprised by this, and when he looked up, Bakugou was looking to his side, to nowhere in particular. His eyes were slightly wider than usual. "You ok there?"

When the other man spoke, his voice was a bit raspy. He gulped. "Yeah. It's nothing." he turned again, his stride never faltering. "Let's get going. That bastard won't have his ass kicked unless we do something about it."

In her room, Uraraka's windows were open wide, the curtains floating with the morning wind with sunshine streaming into the empty room ever so slowly.

---

"Guys, what was that?"

The parading warriors stopped in their tracks through the edge of the canyon, looking to their sides and down to the river deep blow them. The canyon's valley was relatively slim, and with the incoming thunderstorm that was closing in from behind them, the waters had adquired a dark green color.

Bakugou frowned and crouched to look into the waters. "Nothing seems outta place."

The waters rocked below them, yet nothing out of the ordinary happened. The little waves and crashes of the river were becoming a bit fierce with the northern winds, nothing more remarkable than that. Midoriya looked down as well. "It might have been something from the other side of the canyon."

The two men walked ahead of the group as well. Todoroki looked at Bakugou with an uncertain glance. Something seemed to be amiss. The aforementioned craned his head back to look at the knight, his hand on the tilt of his sword. "What's up, bastard? You want a piece of me?"

Todoroki didn't pay attention to this brazen statement and shook his head, looking to his side in search of any foe that dared come for them. "We can't stop walking, or else the storm will catch us. If anything, we should walk faster."

Yaoyorozu nodded. "The canyon bends to a curve a bit ahead in an esplanade, then goes downhill to the forest before the Capital. If we reach the forest and make it to a cave, we'll be able to find shelter."

Everyone nodded in agreement and the tempo of their steps grew. A small pitter-patter drizzled on them slowly, very gently, making Asui look up to the sky as she walked. Then she sighed before taking another step forward– until, suddenly, a crash was heard, the waves below them rocked angrily against the wall of the canyon, and a clear screech echoed closer than before, as if the monster was right below-

"Back off!" Bakugou was able to order this as he leaped back, and a giant tail swiped the underside of the cliff to make part of the path crumble to the river with the noise of thunder rumbling in the distance.

The rain suddenly got a bit heavier, the night got darker, and terrifyingly loud cracks were being made on the surface as the creature pieced its claws through the cliff like butter. Midoriya's eyes trembled, his frown deepening, and he ordered Yaoyorozu to come to them quickly. "Make a bridge, quick!"

The girl was quick to comply, nodding, and opened her cloak to let a slate of wood slide to the floor and settle over the big gap the creature had created. Everyone began to walk over the board, and once they made it to the other end, the path they had been previously standing on was destroyed.

Bakugou stayed behind to make sure everyone was safe, and took out his sword. "We gotta make it to that darm curve!" in cue, he heard another screech, but he didn't dare look down to face the creature lest his cool was threatened. "That bastard's coming!"

He ran away with his peers, but just as he caught up with them, he heard the monster crawling its way along the river on the wall, its claws piercing great cracks on the surface. It screeched loudly in a predatory and territorial threat. They had walked into the wrong lane.

The path they ran was destroyed within minutes, and when they eventually reached the esplanade, it wasn't without signs of distress and exhaustion. The second Bakugou and Kirishima arrived, the monster crawled up the walls of the canyon and everyone's breath hitched at the terrifying creature before them.

"It's a legendary beast from this river!" bellowed Midoriya, taking out his sword. His body gleamed with streaks of red. "We need to kick it back to the river, we're invaders to them!"

The blond hunter grinned at the creature. As it crawled nearer to them, it let out another high pitched wail of anger as it frowned on them, its scales brightening after a flash of thunder and revealing a dragon with green scales, colossal tail and sharp claws, his teeth wet with blood and sweet water. Its tail was wagging back and forth, relishing at the meal that was them.

Bakugou's eyes gleamed in excitement, because this motherfucker would serve for some glorious supper. He wiped some rain off his forehead, glaring at it with a sadistic wolfish smirk, weighing his sword on his hand.

Kaminari walked to them, cracking his knuckles. "We ain't gonna beat him, but I can at least paralyze this guy!"

He pushed his knuckles into the dirt which he knew had a great amount of iron in it, and the land flashed with light once, twice, before the currents reached the monster and it screamed in pain, the scales steaming as Kaminari grinned with confidence.

However, the creature shook the zapping off and swung his tail at him, throwing the archer off to roll close to the cliff's edge. When he realized he was too close to falling, he backed off with a pant. "What's up with this guy!? I barely grazed him!"

"That doesn't matter!" yelled Todoroki in the rain, mustering a few of his flames to try and be stronger than the rain. If he tried hard enough, he could muster enough energy to not let them be consumed. "Everyone, we need to go all out! Let's use brute force here!"

As if it had understood the threat, the monster screeched, and Bakugou understood the message somehow. It was trying to defend its home, but the blond was sure this fucker wasn't aware of the troublemakers it was going against, and he couldn't be more thrilled about it. Whipping his cape back, he began walking as his peers got ready to attack.

"Well motherfucker, this ain't your home anymore!" the red-eyed man licked his fangs and stomped to him, then progressed to a sprint and readied his palms. "Get ready for a beating-!"

Bakugou was brutally pushed aside by a gust of wind that knocked the air out of him and made him roll to his side, an anonymous attack that was anything but natural. Thunder rolled again, lightining clapped in the distance, and Bakugou grunted in pain as everyone saw him land.

Before they could blink or ask, a shadowy figure landed on the head of the creature, hands on its horns. Her face was shadowed by her big purple hat, and a black cloak clung to her body and blew in the ruthless wind. The monster was startled and shrieked as the figure took control of it.

"What the-" Mina frowned, getting ready to slay another enemy, considering that person to be the controller of this monster. "Who is that!?"

Midoriya, however, could tell they weren't the enemy.

Uraraka slammed her hands on the creature's forehead and horns to send furious flames into its body, burning its skin and slowly making her flames go way into him. As she applied her magic on him, she frowned and panted, trying to shove as much damage in his body as capable.

The creature wailed and growled, and the rest watched the show with frantic eyes. Uraraka lifted her head up to meet their eyes under the shadows of the night. "Everyone, run away! This place is dangerous!" Uraraka wrapped her hands in lightning and struck the creature's wounds with it, staggering to stay up on its head as he shook and tried to get her off his scales. "I'll take care of this! Run to the Capital!"

Bakugou, who had managed to get on his feet, spat at the idea of somebody who believed to be almighty and heroic taking the glory off his hands. And how the fuck did she know where they were headed? "Who the fuck are you!?"

"Does that even matter!?" she screamed without thinking. "I said run! This place is too dangerous for you guys!"

Uraraka summoned her staff and pierced the creature's neck with it, and the monster tried to stagger to the river before she took hold of its horns and tried to redirect it to the land again, all under her unknowing peers who had no idea of who she was, or where she had come from– but all they knew was that she was saving their lives and had probably more power than all of them together.

Without a hint of hesitation, everyone nodded and followed her orders under a very baffled Bakugou. "What the fuck are you little shits doin'!?"

Kirishima stopped running and beckoned at him. "She's right, Bakugou! Look at her, she probably can do this quicker than us, and we have other priorities right now! We gotta trust her!"

In the rain, the blond placed his eyes on her form, and unbeknownst to him, she was also locking eyes with him, as if begging for him to leave. She knew how this would end if she let them face this beast by themselves: they'd be separated, some thrown to the river and others alone to run away. She was securing a safe path for them.

But he didn't know any of this, and in his ignorance, he had no other choice but to trust her and ignore the weird aura that enshrouded her spirit. Grimacing, Bakugou took to his peers and followed them. "Fucking fine!"

He didn't even regard the fighting sorceress other than a last glance in her direction that she knew had zero meaning. Maybe he was making sure she wasn't a mirage, or making sure she didn't do anything sketchy. Uraraka knew Bakugou hated being indebted to others, but he didn't know this wasn't about debts and whatnot.

The girl leaped off the creature and crossed her hands in a sign, making a violet seal appear under her feet, stars and quills engraved on the soil below her feet. Her eyes were lighted for a moment, showing her feral scowl and the dark look the was throwing at the creature, and then suddenly balled her fists to release the power of the seal, breathing in deeply, and-

A blinding beam of light shot up to the sky in the distance, and the warriors turned in their hasty path to look back to the dark sky. The beam disappeared three seconds later, and a hush fell upon the area.

Jack frowned. "Do you guys think that girl…?"

Bakugou's eyes narrowed for a split second, and then he turned to walk forward, his hands rolled into fists and his eyes shadowed by his hair. His jaw was clenched for a reason he didn't know, and he felt a heavy weight in his heart he couldn't quite put his finger on.

"I don't fucking care." after all, he didn't know her. His voice was disdainful and, after a few seconds, the feeling was gone. All he wanted now was to arrive to the Capital. "Let's get going."

---

The river flowed languidly along the canyon line, the waters rocking with sparkles that the sunrise had glittered. There was the croaking of a frog and the peaceful dance of a bee, all interrupted when a frantic hand shot up from the crystalline waters and held onto the grassy patch of land she found. A groan made the two creatures flee, and the hand crawled its way to the surface.

From the waters shot up a very wet Uraraka, her clothes dark and her hair a mess. Panting, she knelt on the ground and looked back, and when she didn't find any disruption in the glow of dawn, she let herself release a sigh, relieved. It seemed like the creature wouldn't come by anytime soon.

While Uraraka had taken good care of the animal and let it perish in the highlands of the canyon, its weight had made those very grounds collapse and the cliff broke down right under her feet, as if fate was attempting to pull the strings attached to her feet and drag the human that she was back to Earth, far away from the Sun.

And that Earth meant meeting the cold dark waters she had once been saved from by the dear barbarian, yet this time she made use of her magic to maneuver through the waters. She wasn't the most skilled swimmer but she was a very skilled magician, and she knew when to make use of her little tricks up her sleeve.

So there she was, in the very same land she had once upon a time landed on, but alone. But she didn't really care, as that meant the currents of fate had been changed, and all she had to do now was make sure that river flowed in the direction she desired.

Uraraka got on her feet, her knees quivering. A part of her expected somebody to come to her with the intention of helping, maybe Aizawa– her eyes widened and she hesitantly looked back at the river. The clear waters gave off an orange glow as the sun shone on it, and bathed Uraraka in the glory of dawn.

But she felt her heart wrench as she realized she had left Aizawa behind on a whim– and she wasn't sure if she should have left somebody in a higher status than her in the dust, no matter how long he had been taking to come back. Her eyes trailed down to the grass.

"Maybe it's for the best." she mumbled, her eyes now to a side, watching the river flow. Her cloak was dripping. Her hair was plastered as it curled on her face. Her hat was no more than a rag. The shadow she cast on the ground extended far ahead of her as she didn't face the rising sun just yet.

Her eyes drifted then to her reflection, which rippled on the soft waves of the current. She was radio silent, watching her own shape remain unchanged in that reflection. Maybe she had expected something to change in the few minutes she observed her reflection, thinking, hesitating, but after all this time, it was still her.

Her eyes closed for a brief second and she let a soft smile of content drag itself across her features. She was tired, but not broken, and this was the right way to go. Somehow, her heart felt she was making the right decision, walking this path, and instead of doubting– instead of looking back to her track record, instead of letting those dark flames of her heart reduce her confidence, she took pride on those, wore them like a reminder of what she had done, and swallowed the load.

With that, Uraraka turned around to face the sun. There were no clouds in the sky and the purple and orange hues of the horizon were starting to shift to cerulean blue. A small breeze toyed with her tresses, and she took the collar of her cloak to tug it up her neck. The fabric blew in the wind as she walked forward, her staff tucked under her garment.

With a gentle smile, she tugged her gloves further on her hands.

"Off to the Capital we go."

---

When Uraraka got there, it was almost nighttime, yet the sun still shone. The familiar path up to the gates, all covered in cobblestone and surrounded by trees stretched up and down the hill, dimly lit by oil lamps as the stars twinkled dimly above her.

She had stopped in a small village for a quick change of clothes, which she realized would so help not be recognized by her ex-comrades, other than to keep dry. After that and a quick meal, Uraraka embarked on her new journey. And when she arrived, she was feeling energetic enough to contemplate the idea of blasting through the entrance and slap the guards out of her way.

Much to her chagrin, she saw a few guards were stationed in front of the big wooden gates. None of them had a scratch, so she assumed the guild had been let in peacefully. Knowing the true dark nature of the government, she didn't like that sly peace one bit. Her gloved hands balled into fists, tense at the thought of them all running wild, unknowing of the condition they were in.

Uraraka gulped. Her main objective had been to not cause too much noise and go around on her own without disturbing the waters too much. But then there were people like these guys, not letting her do her job, and she was conflicted about what she should do.

Normally, she wouldn't let a bunch of guys stop her, but the operation was too delicate for her to mess it up and be noticed by the guild or the government for that matter. Her determination usually let her blast through everything, for she didn't need to care about major consequences other than an earful for attacking security forces.

But now she didn't know what to do.

She stood in the distance, surveilling her options. She could breeze through with some trick that woke up suspicion or be inconspicuous and silent, yet that would make her slower. She reckoned the guild should be resting right now, so while she had time to spare, Uraraka didn't like waiting around if she could do something about the matter.

She heard something rolling on the pavestone and a merchant walking by.

The merchant walked up to the gates. He had a gray long beard and thick eyebrows, almost shadowing his eyes. The man wore a sandy colored kimono and a white headband. He waved at the guard, who seemed to recognize him almost immediately. "Good afternoon! Could you please let me in? I have the government pass right here…"

After the man began to rummage for the small plaque, the guard hurried to put him at ease. "Don't worry, we were expecting you. The General informed us of your arrival, so you can come right in."

Their voices were unexpectedly polite to the true nature of their organization, and the gates slowly opened to the transitated Capital. The merchant nodded with a smile and pulled the cart full of hay past the gates, and right after he was through, the gates closed once more.

A few minutes later, the man parked the cart on a street near the cathedral. He wiped some sweat off his brow. The weather today was relentless with its heat, and he needed some water. He left the cart there for a second when he spotted a small tavern nearby, needing to get a fresh beer.

A bit later, Uraraka's head peeped from within the hay. Her hands parted the mess in twain to get hear bearings, searching for any source of trouble in the street, and found it to be empty. Soon enough, she heard coordinated military steps past her, and hid again in the golden threads of food.

The guards stopped by the cart. One of them arched their eyebrow in suspicion. "Who the hell would leave their cart in here?"

"Miss Stewart asked for some hay for her horses, and Gunhead is a sucker for that woman. I guess he sent somebody to provide." theorized the other, and a small sigh of relief pushed through her lips at the unsuspicious man. It was cut short as she heard the drawing of a sword. "This mount is big as hell, though. Big enough to hide a treasure."

"A treasure!? That has nothing to do with us!"

"Think about it, idiot!" spoke the other in a whisper, even though they were alone in the street. That was the levels of suspicion their intentions carried. "If we discovered a trafficking ring within the nobility of Gunhead's contacts, we'll get the promotion of a lifetime! And we might even get that bastard off his lil' throne."

"Now you're being ridiculous." one of the men walked to the pile of hay, right in front of Uraraka's hidden frame. "Why would somebody hide a damn treasure here?" his palm slid into the hay to part it and Uraraka sucked in a hitched breath as light started to peer through the hay. "It's not as if that old man had a…"

The guards made eye contact with Uraraka, their faces pale and cold at seeing somebody actually hidden there. She blinked at them. They blinked back at her, unsure of what to do with this information, because she had an adorable face, yet had a suspicious reason to be where she was.

Three seconds passed.

And then, a massive diagonal beam of light accompanied with a explosion rippled through the street and boomed throughout the whole city with its deafening detonation. Guards in nearby streets heard this and hurried to the scene, only to find the guards on the floor, the hay slightly spread on the ground and no enemy to be found. However, the panicked and pale faces of the guards said somebody had definitely been there.

The leader of the squad turned to his mates. "Comb the zone! Whoever did this must be a terrorist!" the hurried steps of soldiers looking around tapped on the ground, while others picked the soldiers up and gathered them in their arms. "Colonel! Colonel! Snap out of it, what the hell-!?"

Hidden from the public eye, Uraraka hid. Her body hung from the handle of the sewer tap, her hand curled around the iron handle as she panted. The speed at which she had kicked the tap open and leaped in had been astronomus, taking advantage of the smoke her explosion had created. Her body hung a few feet above the sewer grounds, and she looked around with a pant in search of any authority.

Deeming the place to be safe, she dropped to her feet, removing a hair of hay off her cheek. Her body turned around in search of a path. The sewer roads were rather bleak and dark, the way illuminated by a few flickering yellow oil lamps. The depths were dark in any direction she wanted to take.

"Drat." she let out, not wanting to curse. Somehow, she feared being heard in this echo-friendly space and knew she had to keep it low. The only rational way to go about this was to sort a path out based on the city above her, based on the foggy memory she had of this city.

She was very close to the cathedral, thus close to the corners of the Capital. Anywhere she went would be a step closer to the center, where the Council lay. She had some business to do there, and hopefully successfully avoid her guildmates. But the corridors were very wide, circular, and prone to easy echo. The only thing that accompanied her was the pitter-patter of water as it fell from the several sewers and tubes.

The corridors were terribly dark as well, but she could make out a faint light amidst all the foggy obscurity. Any enemy could come at her from behind and she would be done.

She had to figure out a way to pinpoint her surroundings in a dark, sketchy place. Balling her fingers into fists, she started humming a small lullaby, low enough to not be heard from very afar, but booming enough so she could pinpoint any place where the echo didn't bounce off, thus where an enemy could be waiting for her.

Uraraka's steps rippled through the crevice as she walked almost aimlessly, looking up and ahead in search of any tap to the surface. The stench in there was unbearable, something she hadn't stopped to think about before leaping in. A clearly foolish decision, but the cover this place offered to her if the authorities tracked her down was worth any toxic smell. She could put up with it, or if worst came to worst, cast a spell.

She was almost skipping from step to step, using the extra noise her boots made for extra caution. If anybody found her, the chances of them coming out alive were slim. In the darkness, she had the upper hand, and could cast spells at a ridiculous speed without them being able to see it coming. If anything, she was scared of being surprised, because Uraraka didn't quite like surprises in the dark.

Almost giddy at this point, Uraraka leaped around and leaped, trying to pinpoint her own location by what noises she could hear. She bet the guards were looking all over for her. Let them, she thought. That will make her investigation easier with all the fuss.

Right as she was skipping by a cascading stream of water, Uraraka heard an unnatural, out of rhythm splash come from the current by her side. Her steps halted to a stop, hands behind her back, and glanced back at the river, where she saw conspicuous bubbles of greenish water popping and growling in her direction.

She faced that direction, shoving her gloves further into her hands, a frown present in her features that shadowed her otherwise angelic face. Turns out she'd have another showdown sooner than expected.

"My, my." she mumbled, getting ready for another fight. "This city seems to want to get rid of me too soon."

---

"Dude, chill! Who the hell would be in the city after that alarm that went off earlier?"

"I don't care!" bellowed Bakugou at him, walking ahead. "If there's some bastard here to annoy the shit outta me, they'll have to go over my dead body first. Something's off about this place."

"You're just being paranoid."

"I'm not!"

After saying that, Bakugou stopped in his tracks and shifted his eyes to the right, then to the left. Something was very wrong with this city, but it was just a gut feeling he couldn't explain. He had felt it the moment he stepped past the gates, and the feeling had but faded. It was in the air, even, like some sort of corruption that wasn't letting time and air flow naturally.

Bakugou was a barbarian to everyone, but he was awfully perceptive. And he knew something was very wrong or misplaced here. And that girl from earlier…

The place was only getting weirder and weirder. The Capital seemed to be surrounded with corruption and weirdness despite the elegance it stinked inside of it. First a legendary monster tries to raid them, an unknown girl saves the day for no absolute reason (and very casually, might he add, as if she had done this countless times), and then there's a terrorist attack?

They were faces with too many problems just the first day. Seeing how the day was going, Bakugou had thought it'd be good to stroll around at night and investigate, lest some criminal scum was around planning a coup-de-état. Or something weirder. Maybe he could get rid of these feelings if he walked them around and exhausted himself into slumber.

But he knew that the pulsating energy right under his feet were too mind-consuming to just be his mind making things up. Judging by the ways some people had grimaced while strolling to the residence, he was sure they had felt it too.

The vibrations. Like despaired screams of agony thumping in his head. Like crawls needing release from the earthly soil. This place felt to be haunted yet looked as normal as any metropolis.

Bakugou felt stupid. And Kirishima, in exchange, looked as bright as ever.

Couldn't he feel the blood crowding the ground, making small rivers between the stones? Why wasn't anybody talking about this? Why was this town so silent, as if it held an enormous secret?

"Tch, whatever." conceded Bakugou. Him and Kirishima were walking alone by a small stream of water, no guards to be seen despite the attack earlier. "We'll just go around and search. Won't hurt us to sniff around a lil'."

Kirishima grimaced a little. "I wanted to sleep, y'know. Some people here appreciate their beauty sleep." his arms were bent under his head, as if he couldn't sense the danger Bakugou felt throbbing in his heart. It was irritating as hell. Suddenly though, Kirishima stopped in his tracks and looked at the crystaline stream. "Huh?"

Bakugou stopped as well, looking over his shoulders with disdain. "If you're gonna complain, at least fucking walk while at it."

Kirishima looked at his leader, then at the stream. He shook his head, deeming that small passing thought to be just a fragment of his imagination. "It's nothing." he answered, as if Bakugou had asked. The blond saw his small hesitation and frowned. "Let's keep going. Any places you wanna check out?"

"Do you think I got any time to plan this out? Haven't been here for a while. I just came for some political stuff and some competitions back in the day. I barely know the place myself." explained Bakugou, looking ahead when he felt Kirishima was following him. "I just wanna do some walkin', then call it a day. Can you do that without complaining?"

"You say it as if I only did that."

"That's all you have done since we left the dorms, dumbass."

Bakugou sighed as Kirishima proceeded to complain further, but a sudden crash behind them interrupted their spiel. At that moment, the leader felt that same throb from earlier hitting him on the head, as if it was at the verge of release, and Kirishima actually felt it too, cupping his head with a grimace. The ground trembled, the men could hear actual fighting closeby.

And suddenly, a beam of light made the tap of the sewers boil and shoot up to the sky, a shadowed figure with a cloak jumping out of the surge of power as it subsided and faded. The blinding light faded and the boys uncovered their eyes to see a cloaked person standing a bit far away from them, their back to the boys as it stared down at the-

The smoke revealed a terrifying monster roaring at the figure, which only panted as the monster wagged its tail and hissed. The cloak blew in the fog and the beast was bleeding severely from a gushing wound on its belly. The monster's features reminded Kirishima of a dinosaur, one with glaring fangs and a crest like that of a sea atrocity. Its golden scales were hard to miss.

"What the hell is that!?" screamed Kirishima, taking out his daggers and getting into a position to fight.

Uraraka turned around hastily, her eyes widening in terror as she saw her guildmates had happened to be there. She looked back at the monster with a wince of anger. "I told you to not take it up here, you monster!"

That voice. That crystalline yet rough voice. Bakugou growled. "I can't believe it!" he took out his sword, prepared to slay down this foe threatening the Capital's safety and also that woman who had ridiculed him earlier. "It's fucking-"

A flash of light blinded the pair once more, and before them appeared a screen of green that blinked out of existence a second later as the boys were able to see again, little stars twirling out of their sight as a complicated star seal appeared under her feet. Bakugou was ready to throw a fit, not wanting to be fucking jailed by this bitch– what the fuck was she trying to pull?

He thought he was being imprisoned when Uraraka was trying to protect them. However, the leader was ready to blast them off and Uraraka wouldn't have that. Her eyes turned angrily to them, paying attention to them for a split second before the monster roared for her attention. Seeing how the beast was still standing and preparing its claws to destroy her, she knew she had spent too much magic today to be able to face him and win.

She had to flee.

Her hair started floating, and she slammed her hand on the seal below her feet, making sudden rock hands appear from nearby to push the monster back, but they only nudged him a few feet back, as it pierced right through them with ease, only burdening its sight. Unbeknownst to it, that was Uraraka's plan– to only hinder its attacks for a split second.

The monster was already screeching arrogantly when Uraraka appeared from behind the lights and flying debris, light beams and twirling small claws of light around her as her lights were wrapped around her body, giving it enough momentum and force to knock the foe off its place. "That wasn't the right spell!" she smirked.

Then, the beams and hands of light collided with the large body of fat and scales while Uraraka crashed with its head, kicking it back on the head and making it fly across the street and fall on some closed shops. Slates flipped off the ground as the monster's flying path created a big crevice on the ground, leaving smoke and fog at its wake.

And at the center of it all stood Uraraka, aware that authorities would soon come and neighbors would have undoubtedly noticed this. The protective screen dropped from her… friends? with a blink of dust, and the boys blinked at her as her head craned back to them slowly.

Her cloak and clothes were blowing in the waking wind, her eyes were shining in a very familiar tone Bakugou could almost recall. They were gleaming, almost in white, her hair flowing and bending to the current's desire.

And it made Bakugou's throat constrict for some reason. But he recovered quickly, but not without a falter of his voice. "Who… who the fuck are you!?"

A fortunate blow of smoke concealed her figure for a split second, in which Bakugou wasn't quick enough to reach her. After the dusty smoke cleared out, Uraraka was gone from sight, leaving only the traces of her destruction behind. If none of that had been there, if the bleeding monster hadn't been wailing in the distance, perhaps Bakugou would have thought it had been no more than a mirage.

But it had happened. She had happened.

When he noticed she was gone, his heart, for some reason, squeezed.

---

"It's nice to finally meet with you, Gunhead." Midoriya wobbly walked to the man's desk, and the General promptly got up and offered his hand to shake. "We've had to wait for quite some time."

"I've been told so. My sincere apologies." he sighed, shaking Midoriya's hand. After that, he tried to offer it to the other leader as well, but Bakugou just gruffly sat down and crossed his arms like a big baby. "Papers pile on papers lately. Big things have been happening around the Capital these days."

"Oh, fucking tell me about it." Bakugou looked back for no reason. Strangely, he had expected to see a whole guild backing him up– but then he remembered that only the leaders of the guild had come, and settled on his chair. But his expression wasn't quite as ease. "What the fuck's going on here? First a terrorist attack and then a sewer beast?"

Gunhead sat on his chair as well, hands folded and entwined on the table in a unnatural manner. He almost dared laugh it off. "We haven't been able to track down the figure behind these attacks, both the terrorists or the person who took down the monster. The guards that were knocked out in the process are still hospitalized, and memories are but a haze for them."

Midoriya's eyes darted down, as if ashamed, but just saddened by the news. It appeared like the moment the guild stepped into the city, trouble had risen and relentlessly shaken the Capital awake. It couldn't be easy to manage a situation like this, so he couldn't really complain about the meeting's delay. Gunhead seemed apologetic enough to feel pity for the man.

Bakugou, however, was harder to convince. "Don't you have a fucking army for this shit? It shouldn't be us taking care of your little beasts, y'know."

The General sighed. "We didn't know there was a monster that big in the sewers, or in our waters for that matter. The river harbor has been closed down until investigations are finished and we can find the culprits behind all this." his chin rested on top of his hands now, as if thinking deeply about it. His tone shifted with the context of his thoughts, cunning and suspicious. "My men barely have a sniff of where the culprits could have gone. But some others have… theories."

Midoriya knew this was not the reason why they came to his office, but it didn't hurt them to hear about this. "Theories?"

The man before them nodded, and sighed whilst standing up to look out the window. "Yeah. Some silly, some not as silly." his arms were bent behind him. The big windows before them cast a mild noon light that made Gunhead's silhouette a mere shadow. "Something's happening within the city's limits. Something I don't quite understand myself."

That piqued Bakugou's interest and his crossed arms relaxed, eyes zeroing on the man who apparently saw disturbances that could very well be his own. "Spit it out already."

Gunhead was almost amused by his impatience, but his stance became serious a second later. "Suspicious activity has been occurring in this town, around the merchant areas and mining zones. It's not something that has been officially reported or investigated– it's a gut feeling I have."

That sounded stupid, but not baseless. The two men let the other continue.

"Rumor has it a mafia is lurking in the outskirts of the Capital, near the cathedral where the terrorist attack occurred. My men have a hunch this could be one of them attacking guards who walked into the wrong territory. Needless to say, seeing what pain befell those two poor soldiers, most of my troops are… scared shitless." his words were severe, yet that last sentence was pronounced with a hint of near humor. "It's amusing, isn't it? To be almost killed instantly the moment they got close to a particular zone. A weird and unique event may I say."

Bakugou and Midoriya exchanged glances. It was indeed weird for that to happen, and if one thought about it coldly, it made sense to join the dots. A mafia lurking and a weird out of the usual attack for no specific reason? Terrorism could fall in that category. What Bakugou wasn't very sure about was if the tone Gunhead was approaching it with was the most fitting one.

"Yeah." said Midoriya, almost breathless. "This place is very wealthy. It could clearly be the case that somebody could be interested in this zone's mines and gems."

Bakugou shot him another glance that showed he didn't agree with them acting compliant, but Midoriya nodded at him in reassurance. Gunhead was unaware of this exchange and responded. "Truly. Gems are our first and foremost way of business with the south region, as well as other major businesses." the way he said major businesses made Midoriya shift uncomfortably for no reason. "So whoever this mafia is, they are attacking our merchants and profiting from our gems. Townsfolk will have to close their shops because of this lack of mining activity."

Bakugou nodded, listening carefully. Midoriya decided to speak no words, waiting for more information.

Gunhead suddenly chuckled. "All of this under the blanket of a rumor, of course. No need to alarm as of yet."

Midoriya shifted on his seat, fists on his lap that were tightening with each second of silence that passed after Gunhead's statement. Bakugou, on the other hand, leant back on his chair and looked at his back with crossed arms. He had a hunch that under that iron helmet, a smirk lay. "Huh. So there's mafia even in this city?"

"You're acting almost surprised."

"That's because I am. No damn wonder nobody can queue for a single meeting when the system is so busy. One would think you would be doing something about all that, though."

Bakugou was met with no response, for Midoriya interrupted before an awkward foreboding silence settled again. "Do you think the beast is some sort of pet from this organisation?"

Gunhead brought a hand under his chin, rubbing on the small stub on the junction between his chin and neck. "That's an interesting theory I have no proof against. We certainly don't know where that creature came from, and we had never had notice of it until now."

Bakugou looked back and thought about it. The creature had been blisteringly similar to the one they encountered at the river, where that bitch had saved their ass or at least bragged about wanting to do so. She had, once more, appeared for that monster at the city, as if she was chasing after it… or them.

A thought crossed his mind. Was that girl following them or something, or had it been pure casualty? Bakugou truly thought it to be the latter, yet had suspicions against that. That mage had a very ominous around her that he couldn't shake off. An almost dark and mysterious fog around her magic and the way she moved, so mighty and unreachable.

Hell, they had only met twice and he was already thinking about her flashy moves. That was how impressed he was. But if that monster from last night had been a mafia pet… could it be that…?

"The bitch from yesterday." blurted he out suddenly, looking at the desk as he let his lips speak his mind. "Could it be that she's from the mafia and was chasing after that monster?"

"If she was from that mafia, why would she attack their own pet?" asked Midoriya, frowning, arms crossed as well, crossing his legs like Bakugou. "She didn't leave it exactly undamaged. The monster was almost dead by the time she disappeared. Why would she attempt to kill a pet? You know what we saw."

Bakugou totally fucking knew what they saw, but he couldn't get rid of the thought that her mysterious aura was way too unknown and eerie to be good, and deeming her to be part of that dark mafia was the quickest and easiest explanation for that. It was all too easy, though. "She… was weird."

Gunhead had been listening to the conversation for a bit in silence when he decided to pip in. "Oh, do you mean that sorceress from yesterday?"

"Yeah." responded Bakugou, remembering her uniform, the flight of her robes, her hair, her magical eyes, and the way she moved. It was all too vivid to be good. "She also lent us a hand with a beast that appeared at the river. Totally seems like she's keeping this place safe in your army's stead."

Midoriya mouthed his name and Bakugou smirked at the fidgety and almost nervous pose Gunhead adopted after that. He seemed almost uneasy at the thought of her meandering about, which amused Bakugou to no limit. His statement had been worded to see what Gunhead thought of a mage actually doing better in his territory than his own army.

Neither Bakugou or Midoriya knew if he didn't enjoy being humiliated or he was just nervous because there was a powerful being going around with free will. It was like seeing somebody realize they have a sneaky mouse in their home and they didn't know how to catch it. While the reaction was amusing, Bakugou found it even more suspicious.

Shouldn't Gunhead be happy somebody was helping out? Was he nervous because she could act against him, because nobody knew who or what she was fighting for, what her motives were?

Gunhead eyed him in silence, and Midoriya only grew tenser as time passed. "I think what Bakugou means is that she seems to be helping a great deal. Are you sure she could be involved with all this mafia stuff?"

His words finally broke the stale air and Gunhead looked at the instead. "It could be a possibility, totally. She hasn't done anything to prove us she's to be royal to the government. In these dire times, being neutral isn't possible. You're either against us, or with us."

Bakugou and Midoriya, once again, crossed glances with each other at those stern words. There were little things in this world that made them double over, but they were aware that antagonizing somebody with more power than them, like Gunhead , would only bring them more trouble. The blond growled a bit, like a small hoarse sigh, and eyed the man in silence.

At the moment, his frame towered over them, arms bent behind his back, as if meditating. Bakugou's eyes narrowed, feeling how the General's last words were peeling layers off his patience and digging themselves into his skin, into his veins, and making him extremely uptight.

The aura of this man… something was wrong with him, with this place. He couldn't be more sure of it.

Midoriya cleared his throat. "In any case, we reckon our petition already reached you, didn't it? We wish to head to the northern territories and fight the beast inside there. We only request a official permission when we're asked for a badge in the frontier."

Gunhead's shoulders loosened and Bakugou only squinted further as the man sat down on his chair, looking at them with a silent stare. One would think he hadn't listened, but he had. He had long meditated about the complications behind this operation, the risks this relatively inexperienced yet powerful team would take just to take down that foe.

A foe that Gunhead couldn't really care less about. Whatever was happening a mile away from him didn't concern him, nor conflicted with his wicked interests. He had heard about the dangers RampAge supposed, but it was something that affected a faraway future, not his present.

He eyed the two boys a bit more. As things were now, they weren't really helping his case, but they weren't antagonizing his position either. However, that blond man… he had the fangs of a wolf and the heart of an untamable beast. He had been warned about this man, he had heard stories about his feats, but Gunhead had expected that brat to take his ego down a notch in front of an authority like him.

His eyes shifted to the green-haired boy. He seemed far more self-aware and conscious of what he was doing. Gunhead had also heard about his divine powers and his strong leadership, yet he couldn't be less peeved about somebody like him being bestowed with such great abilities, divine to say the least. He didn't hate him, but he was a bother to his eyes.

And Bakugou was a rebel who could potentially shake his ground in these dire, dark times. Gunhead couldn't have these brats burdening him.

He smirked inside his mask. "I will gladly give you access across the frontiers." his voice had a gentle layer that hid his intentions. The boys believed him, and looked at each other with relieved looks. "I will have plaques and weapons delivered to your residence this afternoon, so please look forward to that."

Midoriya had a hand on his chest, a grin forming in his lips. "That's great to hear, sir. Thank you so much!"

"Heh. It's a pleasure to let heroes take charge of such a messy situation. You might have the manpower to defeat RampAge… and seeing your feats, I'm certain you will conquer this mission."

But that was a sick, dirty lie.

And Uraraka knew it.

As the two warriors got up and shook hands with the general, Uraraka hung from the roof, upside down, a pair of binoculars perched on her nose. She was barely a shadow behind the upper side of the tall windows, a rope was tied around her leg and the lower part of her long dress, holding it up and against gravity. Her hoodie made her face nothing but a black blur, but when her eyes blinked out of the binoculars to watch the boys leave, she frowned.

Gunhead was sending them on a reckless mission despite knowing, like her, that they would most likely not make it out alive? She should have been more cautious of this guy, but she was here to sort that out. After all, she couldn't have all the sinners dancing on her people's graves.

Uraraka grabbed a small dagger from her thigh and cut the rope loose, falling a bit before she grabbed the windowsill and climbed up to the window again while Gunhead sorted some papers out, probably cackling to himself at his success, his back to her. With a small push, Uraraka opened the door of the window, and that was when Gunhead noticed her.

He should have seen her earlier, for now was too late.

The man instantly panicked upon such sneaky entrance, his hands aiming to grab a weapon. "Who are you!? What are you-"

Before he could grab a weapon, Uraraka flung a string of ice his way that stabbed his right hand, making the man scream in pain and hold his bleeding hand. "Who gave you permission to defend yourself?" the mage retreated her magic from his skin, and the man couldn't help but stand still and watch her walk closer, her face concealed, serene. He was probably hoping she had just come for a friendly chat.

Though, seeing her violent ways, it was anything but that.

"You…" he squinted at her, and she stopped a few feet away from him. Her fingers curled around her hoodie and she threw it back, revealing her face. "You're that mage from yesterday! Do you know how much your stupid pet damaged my-"

"My pet? Don't make me laugh." Uraraka wasn't usually this biting and serious, but she knew who this man was. She knew the intricate web of lies he had knit around himself, she knew the ways shadows blended behind him and the corruption schemed he rubbed his hands with every night. He deserved nothing else but cruelty for his evil deeds. "You know very well I'm not associated to the kind you so desperately point fingers at, yet have associated yourself with."

Gunhead was clearly taken aback at her knowing, but before he could speak a word, a flash sped to stand before him and give his chest a strong kick, making his back fly through the room and land right behind his desk. Before he could land on the beige wall, a protection screen appeared behind him. However, her attack woke some dust from the polished rugs, and it still hurt him nonetheless.

The screen faded away when he slumped over it. "Can't have your heavy body breaking the wall. I'm making you the favor of letting your dear office be unscathed." the girl walked again, her fingers brushing the edges of the ancient desk, her steps going around the desk. "You should be thankful."

Gunhead grunted, his hand was still bleeding and he had no way to reach a weapon unless he took that shining dagger out of her hands. "You little brat." he coughed.

"You have seen nothing yet." she said, her voice devoid of any mercy for her opponent. She stood at his feet, not moving, seeing him bleed, grabbing his hand, not doing absolutely anything to fight her. He either knew she had the upper hand and preferred the grovel to her feet, or he was just a wimp. But Uraraka knew him to be cunning and malicious.

He could very well have a trick up his sleeve. She better be careful.

"What the hell are you doing here, you terrorist?" the nickname made her eyes widen, then squint and darken, because there was only one person she would ever allow to insult her with such venom. She didn't like the nickname, but it sounded far worse coming from a criminal's mouth. "Do you think you'll win? What are you even here for? The guards will eventually come."

"Guards can't come if there's no door."

Gunhead let out a disgruntled noise of confusion, and looked at the door from the small leeway he had. Indeed, the door had been replaced with a marked patch of wall, the doorknobs still rolling on the ground. She had indeed melted the door to become a part of the wall.

Cunning little cunt.

Uraraka finally knelt in front of him, his mask inches away from her face. She glared daggers at him, still stunned that this man had once been one she looked up to, one that she had once even said thanks to. One she had been under the protection of, unknowing of his connections and the dark tone of his wings. She had once dug herself into the wolf's den, and made it out alive.

She wouldn't do that ever again.

"You just sent my comrades into a suicide mission." she spat with such venom and coldness it could freeze hell over. Uraraka had no way out of here now that she had made the General bleed once. Once bitten into his skin, there was no way she'd stop there. Not after all the mess he had gotten this city into. Not after all the lives he had taken in the name of power. "I know what you are doing under this very building. You should be thankful I'll send you to hell instead of letting this city beat you to a mush."

Gunhead snickered. Her hold on his shirt tightened. "As if they'd believe-"

Uraraka quickly grabbed her dagger and pushed it to his throat. She wasn't breathing heavily, feeling nervous, or trembling. Gunhead gulped. She knew what she was doing. She had a reason to be here, and he knew he had more than one reasons to be killed. And by the way she spoke, she had too many reasons to end his life.

A small bead of blood landed on the shining knife. "I don't care who you are. All I know is that you're a part of this mess, and you're a worthy link to the Jirou clan." her words were biting like frost. "Consider this my greetings to the gods that created you. This will be the last time I stain my hands with blood."

Gunhead stayed silent, his hands limp, still bleeding. Uraraka stared at him with her big doe eyes that, instead of holding the deadpan and void of a cold-blooded killer, had the emotion and anger of a burdened human being.

It all made sense now.

"Any last words?"

Under his mask, Gunhead smirked again.

"Let's see where this path takes you to, chosen one."

A second later, a thick splash of blood smeared over the presidential windowpane, covering it with bright crimson. To the left, a open window let the curtains blow with the wind.

She was sorry.

But she couldn't let them move forward.

---

"So they found Gunhead's body yesterday, huh?" Todoroki said, walking with Midoriya across the hallway. Many townsfolk of different status, many ministers and some noblesman crowded the place, talking among themselves. At the end of the hallway, a cracked door and a hole in what seemed to be a wall behind it showed a grim scene. "I guess that mafia people got tired of him."

Midoriya frowned the whole time. "Nobody heard a thing, despite how… gruesome the murder was, or at least that's what I heard." they were finally at the doorstep, stepping over debris residue. "Nobody saw anything. Nobody heard anything. It's like a ghost had killed him and not a expert Jirou assassin."

"Do you really think it could be the Jirou's doing?"

"Who else could it be? The man was a bit sketchy, sure, but nobody I know had a thing against him. The only ones who could would be the Jirous, wouldn't it?" theorized Midoriya as some guards saw them coming, walking away from the scene once they had taken care of the details. "I don't see a reason for them to actually let this guy live. It's a wonder such a powerful organization hasn't come for his head sooner."

Midoriya was still clueless to the truth, and accepted this as the universal truth. Uraraka had unknowingly hidden his crimes, but paid with his blood.

The pair walked around the desk. Seeing the gruesome murder, the amount of blood soaking the carpet (their steps had a splashy noise to them), their breaths hitched. "Speaking of his head…"

Midoriya looked away, not wanting to see anymore. "God. That… must have hurt a lot."

Todoroki nodded in agreement, gulping and tactfully looking away as well. Right in the moment he darted his eyes at a window, the bloom of sunlight faded slightly and the knight caught glimpse of crimson on the wall, which caught his attention.

His breath hitched. There was a dripping message written with messy handwriting, already getting brown, exposed to the air. Todoroki gently tapped his friend's shoulder, whose eyes widened upon seeing the message.

You're too late. It dripped. Run away.

The two read the message meticulously, over and over again. Their eyes had gotten used endless reading and overthinking. Upside down, backwards, little characters. They found no hints of a hidden message there.

The moment they actually stopped to process what the message meant, a hand landed on their shoulders. They turned around, still stiff at the ominous message written on the wall, only to be met with a stern face that was jotting stuff down on a small paper. "You kids were the last ones to see the General alive. You had a meeting scheduled with him, didn't you?"

The doors closed for a second, and two guards stepped to it, as if guarding it. Todoroki's brow arched at this, and he saw some more guards walking closer to them behind this man. Midoriya seemed unfazed. "No, sir. We… It was me and my leading companion, Bakugou."

"That matters not." he said. His voice was raspy, but not with concern or sadness, but a gruff aura of authority. "What matters is that your guild was the last one to visit Gunhead. There's no way anybody else could have gotten in, as there are no buildings nearby."

Oh no.

Midoriya was starting to catch up. He gulped, a hand starting to lightly shake. "What do you mean, sir? Anybody could have walked in and-"

"Security told us nobody came in, and that the door had been sealed with some sort of alchemy handwork. We are aware of the power you hold, and nobody in this city holds resent for such loved leader." stated the man, hitting the side of his notes, and then looking at them. "The only people that could ever hold direct resent to him to commit such atrocious murder would be somebody who was prevented from reaching a goal, somebody resentful."

Suddenly, two guards came from behind them. Their arms were pulled back harshly, and soon enough, ropes were being tied to their wrists. Todoroki was quiet, waiting for Midoriya to talk, which he did. "Wait! It couldn't be us! He did allow us to go in our mission!"

"Please, our leader would never send such an unexperienced guild to a suicide mission." this man was clearly new, as he was by far not acquaintanced with the Council's shady connections. Midoriya frowned, as this assumption clearly contradicted what Gunhead what told them. "And we know your group is rather… eager, your barbarian companion has sure made your guild gain some nasty notoriety."

They were suddenly being pushed forward, with Midoriya starting to panic. Seeing how everything had been set up, it was becoming clear that they had been dragged into a trap. He looked back to the guards, who were checking the corpse once more. "Wait! This has to be a mistake! This wasn't our doing!"

The man looked at them again, almost smirking. "Who else could it had been, kid? A ghost? Don't make me laugh." Midoriya tried to squirm, but he was being taken away with a force he wasn't familiar with. Todoroki was torn between burning the ropes or freezing the cops, but both would get them in trouble.

Another soldier piped in. "The trial will be held in two days." Midoriya's breath hitched, because that meant they'd ne locked in the Capital for a little bit before they could part. If they would ever, he might add. "You kids better sit down for a little. You're in deep shit."

Midoriya tried to squirm for freedom, but it was to no avail, for he was being taken away with a strength that was superior to his. In a last attempt to get a view of the scene, his head turned and met the bloody message on the wall.

You're too late. Run away.

That was the last thing he saw in the room as the weak doors closed on them.

He was starting to feel like something superior to them was looming over them all.

And he was starting to understand something was, indeed, wrong with this place.

His head was hung forward, a shadow cast over his eyes. "Run away, huh…?"

---

The guild had been temporarily taken to a small jail while the Council meditated on their actions. Nobody had been given a mere second of time to testify or speak– everyone believed those sinners that had killed the General deserved zero mercy or benevolence, for which Bakugou had been close to murdering everyone in sight for real this time.

Midoriya and Bakugou had been forced to sit in a room full of nobility and brats that had nothing to do there but defend the interests of the spoiled and privileged. Bakugou hated it– the air of superiority, the feeling that all those bastards had their heads up the Council's ass, and that they had no option but to sit down and just listen and be quiet.

The green haired man had been surprised at Bakugou's resiliency, because the situation had been frustrating to go through. A man with something akin to a wig had talked nonsense and made all little and possibly chances in the universe match so that Yuuei was suddenly an assassin guild with lots of power and, above all, bloodthirst.

They'd either rot in prison (they didn't know a guild like them could easily break out) or be kicked out of the country. Both were easily sortable situations, yet painfully bothersome to deal with.

As they sat in their respective jails, starting to lose faith in ever finishing their mission, all locks simultaneously clicked unlocked and fell to the floor. Bewildered, Midoriya, who was the only one awake at that time, looked out and saw a man hidden in the shadows with a sphere of purple magic that was fading from his hand, arms crossed as he watched the leader walk out of the jail with doubt and a hint of confusion in his step.

From the corner of his eye, he saw Bakugou was also awake, strangely. That guy always fell asleep the first, so it was uncanny to see him awake this late into the night. The blond instantly caught up with Midoriya as they reached the man, who was also walking towards them with sagging shoulders, as if bothered.

He threw back the black hoodie of his cloak, and both men gasped in shock. "Shinsou!? What the heck are you doing here!?"

"I'm breaking you out of here, idiot." he said with a exasperated sigh, rubbing the back of his neck as he surveilled his surroundings. "Don't tell me the strongest guild in our village couldn't make it out of these weak bars. If you don't learn these tricks my people will catch up, y'know."

Bakugou showed him his fist, growling and frowning in a silent threat. "Quit the damn sass. What the fuck are you, of all people, doing here?"

Shinsou understood their confusion for several reasons. For one, he shouldn't know of their whereabouts, nor help them break out of prison, because they were sworn enemies and no fiber of him felt satisfaction at the prospect of helping these assholes out of the shit they had gotten themselves into.

He liked the idea of letting little shits sink like a stone in water, but it hadn't been up to him this time.

"Wake your people up, we gotta get going." said he simply, not answering Bakugou's question yet and unpurposefully irritating him further. Seeing none of the leaders was moving, he stepped between them to do it himself. "Good grief, you guys are so useless."

"We made you a fucking question!" roared Bakugou, successfully starting to make some of his peers stir in their sleep. "What the hell are you doing here, dipshit?"

Shinsou turned in his step, frowning. "First, stop calling me names. Is that how you treat somebody who just took your sorry ass out of prison? You're such an ungrateful brat. I'm unsurprised." Bakugou started stomping over to him with the goal of giving him a beating, but Midoriya stopped him.

The sorcerer frowned at them, his hands balled into fists. "I don't know what you idiots got yourselves into, but I have been told to take you outta here, so that's what I'm gonna do. Whatever grudges you have, you can save it for later, I don't care. I'm taking you to the village."

Shinsou spoke as if he had been ordered by somebody to rescue them all, and Midoriya's first guess was that King Enji has heard of the trial and was giving them a hand. However, everyone knew better than to think that man was concerned with anything but power. Nobody in their small government had the power to give orders, and he knew his village's administration was extremely loyal to the Council.

Midoriya started mumbling. Bakugou hit him on the head, growling at him to shut up before talking again. "We're not going to the village. We came here for a fucking reason, it ain't like we're sightseein'."

Shinsou glared at them from over his shoulder, stopping and crossing his arms. "I don't care what you wanna do here. All I know is that I gotta take you back home, and that's that."

Midoriya shared a confused look with Bakugou, the latter not liking his ordering a single bit. Then, Shinsou spoke up to back himself up. "This has nothing to do with your case, but you told me you were gonna go catch that beast up north, right? That's not gonna be possible for a while."

That piece of information caught them off-guard, and Midoriya grimaced, worried, his voice almost urgent at the thought of more hinders in their mission. "What do you mean with that?"

Shinsou gave them a thoughtful, concerned glance. "Well, the only bridge that connected to the north region has been mysteriously cut off. My people saw it happening, it just crumbled and disappeared into the canyon. There's nothing left."

The bridge!?

"The bridge!?" screeched Midoriya, almost scandalized. Bakugou also looked alarmed in his own way, growling at nothing, jaw clenched and hands balled into fists. "Who could have possibly done that– and why!?"

"I got no clue." responded Shinsou. "But it's destroyed, and that's all. Nobody can go to the northern frontier now, not even the Council. It's a big ass bridge, so I guess it must have been some organization or whatever. It's not my business to theorize, but I thought it'd be good to let you know there's no way you can make it there anymore."

But the gentle leader wasn't giving up. "Can't we leap across?"

"No."

"Maybe we can get Sero and he can-"

"There's a pretty nasty snowstorm going on over there. The moment the bridge broke down, a storm broke out as well."

Bakugou glared at him. "And how the fuck do you know all this? How am I supposed to not think you just wanna hog all the glory?"

"I got no interest in sending my men there to just die. Unlike your people, we're not crazy." Bakugou had nothing to say against that, maybe because he took that as both a compliment and a severe reprimand. "And I got some people watching over that area. I was told to send some of my members there some time ago, and they've been watching over the area until the storm appeared. If you think your guild's the only one to have spies all over the country, you're wrong."

Midoriya was starting to calm down, and so was Bakugou, because they were convinced that they didn't really have any other way out of here but to take Shinsou's help and go back home. Maybe there they'd figure things out, they weren't in such a rush.

The knight spoke up. "You're talking as if you were obeying orders."

Shinsou only stared at him in silence, then shed a small smirked smile, but it held zero evil intentions… just a prideful sort of satisfaction. "You could say I am."

Then, the sorcerer turned again and walked into the dark hallways again. It was clear he didn't really intend to wake up the inmates there anymore, as most were already waking up, but he was possibly looking for something.

The duo followed him, expecting some sort of follow-up to that mysterious sentence.

Shinsou elaborated. "My old man told me to get your asses out of here and to make sure you made it back to the village. He said she'd take care of it all."

Not knowing who he was talking about (they assumed the it was RampAge, which was strange and very surprising), they frowned with confusion. They didn't remember ever being a she in the equation. "She? She who?"

Shinsou sighed. "Good question. That man is always giving me the vaguest and weirdest of orders, but it's not like me to disobey." then, he scratched his hair, just as confused as the men behind him. "I got no idea who that is, that's all I know. For now, all I gotta do is take you to the village. She'll handle the rest."

He was basically paraphrasing what his father had said, because the tone that man had spoken with was filled with certainty, as if he knew what they were doing, she and him. Shinsou had no idea how those two had anything to do with this story, as Aizawa had refused to give any more details, but he wasn't one to pry, either.

"Well, it ain't like we can do much more." said Bakugou. He was pretty violent most of the time, but he knew when to call it quits. At least, for now. He wouldn't give up on the future issue just yet. "I'm just irritated some bitch is gonna do the work for us." the thought was almost hilarious, and he smirked in amusement. "I bet she won't even make it out of there. What a dumbass."

Midoriya didn't know what to make of his smug behavior, but Shinsou didn't like it one bit. "I wouldn't doubt her that easily, barbarian." his face turned into a grin that drew itself without will. "I'd say she knows what she's doing."

---

In the distance, a figure loomed from the snowy cliff, a blizzard making the edges of their hoodie shake and bend at the wind's mercy. In their hand, a staff touched the ground, and they looked down at the people watching them with an almost defiant stare, invisible in the storm.

Kendo took a step back from her position at the lookout, a telescope tucked safely under her arm. "Who the hell is that!? She just-"

A strong gust of wind interrupted her, the telescope fell off her arm and the glass shattered. The girl looked down at her broken gadget just as her companions got ready to pack up, too freaked out by the sudden change in weather. They had been there for weeks before suddenly somebody was walking through that old bridge, silently.

All they knew was that ten seconds after the stranger set foot out of the wooden structure, there was a booming crash and the bridge crashed down under a cloud of dust and light snow. A weird, powerful and mysterious aura full of secrets settled right on the back of their heads, and when they looked back, they made out a figure looking over a cliff, the snow partially hiding them.

The figure wasn't moving, as if ordering them to move or else, and given the sudden drop in temperatures and the ominous tension, no good would come from fighting such warrior. The blizzard was only growing more intense, they could feel omnipresent eyes watching their every move, like cat eyes in the night sky.

"Kendo, we gotta get the hell out of here!" screamed Tetsutetsu from a bit afar, a thick coat wrapped around his shoulders. He followed his friend's eyes to the cliff, and gulped upon seeing that the mage was not moving. Their cape was flapping in all directions, and while Tetsutetsu expected them to move, he knew they wouldn't.

He knew that if they had broken the bridge down so effortlessly, they weren't some pushover assassin on the loose. They had chosen a very uncanny and worthless piece of construction that was particularly important, too, so they had a very careful and polished hand. And seeing how they stood there, in the wind, almost challenging to go up and fight them, not allowing them or anyone to go to the northern region…

He frowned. "I can't help but wonder if Yuuei sent that bastard to us to kick us out. If they did, they chose a damn bulldog to defend their little new castle."

Kendo bent down to pick up her coat, and throw it over her shoulder. The broken telescope was getting buried in the snow, and it wouldn't take long for them to join it if they hung around for too long. "Let's get going. I hate having to tell Shinsou about this, but there's no way we can fight a sorcerer in this weather!"

They heard Monoma calling for them to hurry up, and they nodded to each other and broke into a run down the snowy almost frozen hill. At the top of it all, of the hills by the entrance to the north stood Uraraka, her staff like that of a queen marking her territory.

When she saw the members of Grinning Blade running away, she sighed. In no way had she meant to scare them or summon a storm, but she couldn't let any of the people she knew go over the thin line she had traced.

Not after all she had seen.

Uraraka looked up. The clouds were thick with angered snow and hail, but she knew they would fade soon. At this moment she was certain there would be no time for anybody to reach her or RampAge when the storm calmed down, yet she couldn't help but be uneasy. Surprises came as inconveniences at times like these, and she couldn't help but be too damn careful with those.

The girl turned around to face the northern region. It was covered with dead trees and houses were a splatter of black and blue in the canvas of this countryside. It was all blanketed in snow and frost. The black mountain ridge, characteristic of the area, separated the big nomad cities from the chaotic time mess she knew to rest at the end of this forsaken country.

In fact, behind all the frost, the range, the storm and the fog, she could make out the peak of a very elegant dome: RampAge's lair, waiting for her to come. The girl frowned, fists tightening, and she fastened the ties of her cloak to shield herself from the cold. No matter how many layers of clothing she wore, a very different kind of frost had wrapped around her numb heart.

The fear of not knowing if she'd defeat the foe that awaited miles away from her.

But she did it once, she'd do it twice, and she'd do it again if it meant changing the course of history. To everyone that saw her, she was no more than a peasant taking a nice walk down the meadows of the north.

But to her and to the devas above, she was the savior of this world.

With that, Uraraka left into the snowstorm, disappearing in the hail.

---

It took her two days to reach the end of the region, stopping for an extra day of rest in a small snowy village called Nixia. It was quaint and had no more than ten houses and a small fireplace that, contrary to her region, had a very fancy cover to shelter it from the rain, as if it was a religious item to this place.

Uraraka had a reservation in an inn for the night and had been told to sit still while they checked on the rooms and cleaned it for her if necessary. The storm had long faded and the only thing lingering in the air was the frosty scent of the north. She had been given a thick coat at the frontier and a cerulean dagger that had little to no value.

It was still usable for stuff though, like cutting some loose threads that hung from her coat. She sat on a log near the fire, basking in her loneliness. Nobody would dare go out when they could stay inside in the warmth of a fireplace, but Uraraka had nor a home or a fireplace, so she had to wait for her room to be tidied.

She hadn't been given a time or an hour in specific, but she would just go in and ask when it got colder. For now, she just did some minor fixes on her thick coat, sometimes sighing to look at the sky and close her eyes. She felt the snow raining on her skin and the wind moving her tresses. It was a quiet, peaceful night.

The sky was dotted with stars of all colors, bright clouds in the distance where comets would flash occasionally, granting Uraraka the wishes of a shooting star. Sadly, she had no wishes– none that a star could grant, at least. Her eyes reflected the infinity of the sky, and for a second, she allowed herself to close her eyes and get lost in faraway sound of stars clashing and glittering, the vast space and the call of planets to be conquered, like a dancer's tiptoes on a surface of glass.

The sky was big and she was small, yet she felt warm and at home. This planet at the moment was hers to step on, and for once in this lifetime, she felt like the stars and her were in sintony, with them watching her and her staring right back. A small smile, full of nostalgia, spread on her chapped, cold lips.

"I'll be going home soon." she mumbled. The faces of her people flashed right before her, and her eyes fell lidded an inch. In this fight she was enduring alone, she'd make sure to give them all a home once again. A sky of stars, air to breathe and a sea to sail in. "Wait for me a bit more, please. I won't take long."

She spoke as if talking to anybody, but upon inspection, she was alone. A woman sitting by a fireplace, a dagger in her hands and nostalgia written in the stars.

Steps crunched on the snow a few feet away from her. Uraraka's eyes slowly panned to a cloaked figure approaching her. This meeting was too sudden to not be planned or fated. For some reason, it felt weird to think somebody would approach her during her lonely voyage, or that somebody would meet with her tonight in this silent night.

She shed a small smile again. "And who might you be, in this cold night?"

The man took off his hoodie. "I was expecting somebody bigger, at least." Shinsou scoffed, his eyes narrowing at her comfy, round figure. "As he said, here you are. That old man's always making the weirdest of decisions."

It was also strange how she knew so much about this man before her, yet he knew little to nothing about her. Immersed in her own irony, Uraraka giggled. There was no use in fighting this man. "You could say he does. What brings you here? And how did you find me?"

"I was told somebody would come take care of things up here. There aren't many other towns to stay in." the male mage stayed silent for a few seconds. "You seem to know who I am."

She did. "Strange, right?" then, she looked at the fire. Her expression of content didn't change. "You seem to have questions."

"I don't have any my old man can answer. The only thing he couldn't tell me was where you were. He sounded irritated as hell." despite Uraraka having plenty space around her, Shinsou wasn't sitting down. It was a bittersweet metaphor. "Must be irritating to have an associate as disorganized as my father."

Uraraka sighed, not tired, not content, just a release of air. Aizawa not knowing where she was at every second of the day was a new development. It felt weird to not be watched when you realized that, in the past, you had been no more than a watched and looked after puppet.

The sorceress shook her head. "He's not that bad. I don't think he needs me for anything anymore."

And that was good.

That was great.

She smiled again, clasping her cold hands together. The dagger rested on her lap. "Weird, huh? I don't know if those above him can see me, though." she looked at the sky again. The thought of still being watched by the devas struck a mixture of emotions in her. She welcomed the change, as it meant progress, yet was scared of it. "I wonder where he is now."

Shinsou crossed his arms. "He's fine. He's probably messing around with people's brains. Wouldn't be a damn surprise."

She agreed, yet didn't voice her opinion.

Ten seconds of silence later, more snow and more fire, the man spoke again.

"Who are you, exactly?"

At this, Uraraka turned her head. The question was asked with an ominous and accusing voice, not offended, not angry, but as if he knew she hid secrets in that heart and memory of hers. Uraraka could only breathe through her nose and think this answer through, because saying she was just Uraraka didn't cut it anymore.

She exhaled a puff of white air.

"I'm just a hermit sorceress, looking for something she lost once." her voice was far away and distant. "Don't ask where I come from, because I don't really know anymore. Don't ask me where my friends are, because I don't have any anymore. Don't ask what my name is, because that doesn't matter anymore."

Nothing was the same anymore. And while she was happy and glad she was changing things, or at least trying to, she couldn't help but feel nostalgic for the good old days that only she remembered. It made her feel isolated in this planet of a cage.

Shinsou wasn't mesmerized by her answer, and just thought of her as a mysterious warrior that Aizawa had supposedly hand-picked for this journey. "You're the one who got rid of the bridge, didn't you?"

For this, Uraraka had a question. "If I did, may I ask how you got here, then?"

"I'm a sorcerer. My kind is rare to say the least, not even the Council seems to have mages in their fleet." strangely, stating his profession did nothing to change her expression. He blinked at her dagger. "Weird. You don't seem to be surprised."

Uraraka gently smiled at him. "I might have a thousand daggers under my cloak, but I still have the hands of our sinful profession." she spread her fingers downwards and they started melting into water that dropped on the snow, recovering their shape shortly after. "I can't rely solely on my magic. You also have a sword under your cloak, don't you?"

Shinsou hummed in agreement, and the wind blew the hem of his coat up so the handle of his blade shone to the light. It was dyed in a burgundy color with golden streaks cutting across. "Of course I do."

Her eyes blinked in its direction, then back to the fire. "Did you come to kill me with that sword?"

His silence afterwards was leering, and she could feel his stare on her neck. She knew he probably had reasons to slay her now: she was going for the most powerful beast in the country, she had gained his father's favors and she was a mysterious figure. Shinsou was ambitious for power, had some issues with that man and he was impatient regarding what he didn't know.

Uraraka was the perfect capture. But she wouldn't go down without a fight.

Still, despite all those reasons, she knew Shinsou better than to doubt him that much.

"No, I haven't." his sword rested unsheathed. "I'm not that foolish to not know you're not worth fighting against, not when I know I'll leave with a few broken bones. I also have a guild to lead, you know."

Yes, she knew. One hell of a burdening guild, might she add.

Shinsou wasn't sitting down yet. She had a feeling he would never. "You're so small, though. I still got no idea who you are or what you'll get from all this, but I just wanted to see you with my own eyes." he put his hoodie on once more, concealing his identity. "I don't see the point in risking your head this badly, whatever it is for."

Uraraka looked at him with big eyes, no change in her expression yet, as if processing his words. He sighed, deeming her to be impossible, and turned around to walk away.

He only made it two steps away from her before she spoke. When she did, he could barely hear her.

"A home."

The mage turned around. Her hair sheltered her face, which shone under the firelights. "Huh?"

"A home. It's what I'll get at the end of this." her voice cracked a little. Her face turned to his slowly, and a tear had leaked out of her eyes, gleaming in orange flames. "No matter where I meet my end when all this is over, I will get a home."

His eyes narrowed softly at her, almost pitying such humble ambition. "A home, huh?"

Uraraka nodded again, her eyes filling with joy at the thought of living in a new world with her friends. She looked at the fires again, her friends in her mind and suddenly, she didn't feel as lonely anymore. "Regardless of what happens to me, I will have a home again."

The mage away from her felt weirded out about this statement. He couldn't stop himself from asking a blunt question. "How would you even build a home if you die there?"

Shinsou would have expected her to berate him, to slap him with logic and argue with him, get angry, cry, suddenly realize she wasn't right and maybe, just maybe, ask him for help.

Instead, all he got was a silly smile from her.

"It'll be a home where nobody has to suffer anymore. There's more to me than this body, because there's other people who need me too." her smile widened. "I'll build a little big home for everyone, even if it's with my bones. If everyone's happy… what's there to not risk for this home?"

He left feeling that all logic resided in her heart. He couldn't help but wonder what meant so much for her to fight so hard for it.

---

"Where the hell did Shinsou go now?" barked Bakugou. His voice was thick with exhaustion, looking out to the sunrise with narrowed eyes, arms crossed.

The guild had just gotten there after secretively packing their things up in the residence, and had walked in to half a guild already on their horses ands ready to part. However, they had been surprised when they realized their savior (but hell be damned before Bakugou admitted to the fact) was not there.

The sun was rising over the horizon. They could see the skyline framed by hills and small houses that dotted the distance. A gray and orange brightened the view, as if welcoming them into their runaway. Yuuei was certain guard were looking for them all over their prison, and it wouldn't take long for them to find everyone if they didn't hurry.

Kendo turned from her horse. A hoodie covered her figure, but the dim sunshine framed her cheekbones and auburn hair, which poked up from beneath the fabric. "Shinsou left early at sunset yesterday, he will join us at the village. He said he had some issues to take care of."

Bakugou let out a 'tch' of indignation. A very expected reaction. Todoroki shifted his unsurprised stare from Bakugou to Kendo. "I thought Shinsou would be escorting us there. What happened?"

Tetsutetsu spoke before Kendo could stammer a response. "Nothing he was willing to tell us, at least. He just told us he was leaving because of a prior engagement, and that he'd see us at our headquarters."

The hunter leader grasped the bridles of his horse tighter. "Don't tell me that little shit wants to go against RampAge on his own…"

From a bit afar, a crouching Monoma who was looking out for guards shook his head. Still, his tone was dripping with a vicious tease. "Oh, don't worry. If you wanna go dig yourself a grave there, Shinsou wouldn't dare rob you of that privilege." Midoriya stopped his mate from hopping off the horse and beating the guy up. The other blonde didn't even flinch. "He didn't take any potions or special gear with him, I doubt he's off to a fight."

Kendo looked down from her horse with a frown. "Didn't Shinsou also tell you to behave for once? Do you want to be dragged around by his horse again?" Monoma almost laughed at the empty threat, but Kendo's large hand fell down and smacked the back of his head. She sighed afterwards. The other guild blinked at the extravagant display. "In any case, that means he must be off to some meeting. He's always been a busy man."

Tokoyami spoke from a bit back, Asui behind him. "Not for the best of reasons anyway." that earned him a chuckle from Bakugou.

At this comment, Monoma did turn around with, for once, not a trace of smugness or animosity. His expression was sort of somber and serious. However, it turned into a half-assed smirk of arrogance shortly after. "I wouldn't be so insulting towards our leader considering he took your sorry asses out of prison. We're the ones with control here, losers."

Nobody from Grinning Blade dared contradict Monoma, nor did Yuuei for that matter, because he was right. And they knew that a step in the wrong direction with them could lead Monoma to run his mouth to the authorities. This once, Yuuei didn't have the winning hand.

Sensing the tension in the air, Kendo tried to get some iron off the topic. "We won't go around telling anybody about this, but we'd rather you were respectful to our leader. He's a good man under his sketchy looks and his weird hobbies."

Midoriya smiled apologetically. "We understand. Thank you so much for this, Kendo. Some of my friends here are pretty nervous about all this."

Bakugou side-glared him. "Oi, who are you callin' scared, you punk?"

Tetsutetsu didn't listen to the argument and instead directed his words to Monoma. "Do you think we're good to go?"

"I'd say so. It's not like they'll find us anytime soon, but it'd be convenient if we left before the main exit got crowded with merchants." Monoma finally got up and walked to Kendo's horse, jumping on it afterwards with a sneer to Yuuei. "Now you better keep quiet, or else we'll have the police on your ass."

A collective growl from the guild was interrupted by Kendo's horse letting out a neigh as she hit it with the bridles, and it started walking down the hill, careful not to make it run down the steep hill. Bakugou's horse caught up with Kendo's quickly, and an endless bickering began between him and Monoma, who wouldn't stop teasing him about this weak moment of his guild.

It was all in good terms.

Hopefully.

A bit behind them, Todoroki looked around him in silence. He seemed to be expecting somebody to come up. This behavior prompted Midoriya to ask. "What's wrong? You seem uptight."

Todoroki stopped his frantic looking and he frowned, deep in thought. "Do you… remember that message? The one in Gunhead's office."

You're too late. Run away. Midoriya could remember it clear as day, how the thick rich blood had slowly dripped down the wall, written with almost care that an assassin shouldn't have. He gulped. "Yes, of course. What about it?"

"If you think about it… we're doing as it said. We're running away." stated the knight carefully. "And the person who is helping us run away is…"

Midoriya blinked, his eyes wide as saucers. Then, he looked ahead at Kendo, who had such high praise for her leader. It couldn't be, could it? "Do you think it was him?"

"A part of me thinks he is, but for some reason I don't see why Shinsou would go against a man so powerful. He's ambitious, but he's not stupid." argued Todoroki, shaking his head. "I think something's escaping our grasp, I don't know why. I have had this bad feeling since Shinsou came for us."

"Then who could it be?" frowned Midoriya.

Todoroki looked ahead at his leader. "I don't know but…" he frowned. "I get the feeling something's not quite right with the picture. I think something's escaping us."

Far away from there, the light of a fire faded as a cloaked figure walked away from the snowy village.

---

In the faraway lands of the never ending winter up north, Uraraka stood before big crystal doors with embroidered gems that were all too familiar for her to forget. The distinct smell of frost and smoke, the heaving of her hands, the puffs of steam slipping through her lips. It was all too painfully familiar to her.

It only made this easier, yet the fear that had settled in her belly that day, so long ago, it was still there. Many things could have changed– hell, she knew she herself had changed. That feeling, however, had not.

Using her staff, the doors slam open with a speed rare for their weight. The gates seemed too big for her to walk through them alone. Uraraka could still hear the galloping of her people's horses. This time, though, she was alone.

Like a small ant entering the wolf's den, she threaded through the mesmerizing hallway. Her boots hissed against the sand-like ground. Her eyes gleamed under the gems' shine. Her hands marveled at the dropping temperatures, wrapping her fingers around the staff she held tightly.

Then, there it was. The dormant RampAge, slumped over, as if not seeing her.

Uraraka gulped, not knowing where to begin. Last time, she had been wrapped in her friends' protective blankets and sheltered from this silence. Everything had seemed easier back then, having friends to back her up. Knowing that nobody would come for her, no matter how powerful she was, made the silence around her heavier and wider.

But she knew what the deal behind RampAge was. Aizawa had very well said it a few ages ago.

"RampAge was born for you to defeat him over and over again, an endless cycle that will never end."

Ah, those sounded so foreign and faraway now. But she knew now more than ever that they were true. After all, it only felt right she put an end to that monster, like she had done to many, except herself– the one to blame for all this.

This foe before her was only another stone in the river. Thinking of it as more would only lead her into deception.

But the more she looked at it, the more she doubted. How was she supposed to do this? Would this be a fierce battle? She didn't have the cowl she used last time, nor the naïvety that allowed her to throw herself at her enemy. This time, she had to be careful with her body, lest she hurt herself too far.

"For me to defeat, huh?" she spoke out loud. The monster didn't speak.

Uraraka remembered that Bakugou had told her, that fateful night for her to never forget, that his mother had gone against this monster and lost. Uraraka had imagined a fierce battle of screams, blood and magic flying all over the place. It hadn't occurred to her neither back then or back at the original battle that this was RampAge's true nature.

Just a silent, gigantic and dangerous foe that was seemingly doing nothing. Taking advantage of its comatose state, Uraraka summoned her staff and pounced on it with a scream of war.

Some time later, maybe minutes, maybe hours, Uraraka stood before her foe, unkempt and undone with a panting breath and her hands on her quivering knees. The giant before her finally released a screech of terror, tumbled, and fell on his back.

The impact sent the ground under her to a rumble and she had to protect herself from the wave, shielding her body with her arms, closing her eyes as light issued from the collision.

However, it wasn't a blinding light.

It was… a warm, healing light. And from it started to come out dozens, hundreds and thousands of pastel lights that started floating around, glittering under the sun that came from outside the mountain. The beam started to fade slowly and she uncovered her eyes to see the lights coming for her, gently twirling around her with an aura that resembled a child's laughter.

The girl adjusted her hat, breathing ragged, and looked up with parted lips.

The ice that RampAge had left behind was melting into little spirits that floated around her, spinning and rejoicing over their release. Soon after, the spirits shot for the sky outside the mountain and disappeared under the sunshine. The little stars were being released from their jail and letting out little squeals like sprinkling glitter.

However, one of the lights, a red one, floated to her slowly and hovered before her, as if staring. Most lights were gone now and had disappeared, yet a light mist and this spirit in particular remained. It radiated a bit of warmth and had a wild red aura. It was almost familiar.

Uraraka, still stunned for words, confused, walked to it and tried to touch it. The small spirit met her skin and gave her hand a small jolt, strong enough to tickle but not enough to hurt her. Then, it jiggled up and down in glee and floated away with the rest.

Uraraka watched it leave, mesmerized, their laughter fading in the wind. Nothing was left of RampAge but a dim memory and the stars these spirits had left behind.

"That should take care of it."

Uraraka suddenly turned around and was met with a man she was very familiar with. His hands were tucked in his pockets, his eyes just as dead as always, and if she had to guess she'd say he had been there for a while. "What… what was that?"

Aizawa looked up at the small crevices of the mountain through which the spirits had escaped. They were starting to crumble into bigger holes that would soon enough let the full sunshine stream into the empty mountain.

"When I created RampAge, it admittedly got out of control fairly quick. I created it for you to defeat when this place was designed, sure, but before you came here, many other people did pass. It was no more than a vessel, empty and devoid of power. Like a gem with a case too big for it."

Uraraka blinked at him, expecting more on that topic. Aizawa brushed past her and stared at the glittering remains of the monster. Then, he looked up. "With time, it began to collect power, the souls of the people it defeated, until it grew strong enough to call your attention. Until it grew strong enough for it to be worth defeating. It was no more than a graveyard with souls that had died here."

Things still didn't add up. "But I had to do nothing right now. It wasn't that much of a big fight." she talked about it like a jar a cat would just as easily break.

Aizawa wasn't surprised by this. "Nobody said I had to give him more gems to feed from so it remained strong. All it needed was for its casing to be broken, for its power to be spent. And that's what you did."

So… he had helped her? Her eyes widened, at a loss of words, and he started walking away again. He wasn't expecting her to follow, and she didn't. All Uraraka did was stare at him, speechless.

He looked at her over his shoulder, almost smirking. "I told you I was on your side. This place is a drag anyway. It's very boring when you're not shaking your guild up a little. The Jirous are getting impatient." the girl tilted her head, and then, he started walking away again, waving a dismissive farewell at her. "Maybe you should do something about all that and speed things up a little. Got no time to waste."

A few seconds later, he was gone, but she stared at the hallway tough and thorough. Uraraka looked up to the little holes that the spirits had left for. A warm feeling settled in her heart. It was time to set things into motion.

"Do something, huh?"

Maybe they could skip the formalities this time.

They were running out of time.

---

"You should stop sulking."

"I'm not sulking."

Shinsou's frown deepened, looking at the other leader from the threshold of the big clock tower balcony. His arms were crossed, judging the leader's posture with scrutinizing eyes. Bakugou was leaning against the railway, his eyes facing the moon in a silence that didn't bode well with Shinsou.

He wasn't barking at him to leave his guild or sending him to the moon with one of his infamous explosions.

He was just silent. He was just quiet.

Shinsou stuffed his hands in his pockets. "Then what's all that pouting for, barbarian?" he walked to his side. Bakugou tensed up. "You're been scowling at the air ever since we got here. Was that guy that much of a big deal?"

Again, the mage would have expected him to scream at him to back off and mind his own business, but far from that, he only sighed and frowned as if annoyed, but not livid as one would come to expect from Bakugou. "That ain't it, you nitwit."

"Then? What's up now?" when he was met with immediate silence, Shinsou grew impatient. "I'm trying to be civil here, be a bit thankful for my time, you-"

"Will you stop spitting bullshit?" that shut the other up. "RampAge was a big deal. I ain't happy about letting that beast loose but…" then, a sigh, and he was looking at the moon again with a weirdly soft look. "Something has changed."

Shinsou arched an eyebrow. "Explain that."

Bakugou's shoulders heavened at the prospect of explaining himself. He never did well when trying to open up and be sort of earnest with how he felt. He was known for being a bit of a heartless asshole and for the sake of his reputation he'd rather let it be that way. However, that mattered little now considering how he felt.

"I don't know, something has changed. Got no idea how to explain it, but something's different in the air." breeze blew at Bakugou's hair. "It feels lighter. It feels better now."

Shinsou hummed. He'd be damned if he made fun of Bakugou's honesty, so he chose to respect it. He followed the blond's eyes to the moon. "Come to think about it, it does feel different from when we first left."

"Does it?"

"Yeah." Shinsou closed his eyes, as to feel it better. "It just doesn't feel as heavy anymore. Like a weight's off from it."

Yes, that was the feeling. Bakugou felt weird talking about it. It wasn't everyday that he was that perceptive, but if he were to say, perhaps the Capital had changed his perception of reality. The weird dark vibes he got from that place had been too harsh to be dismissed, and while he wanted to say that this 'lack of weight in the air' was just a result from leaving the Capital, it just didn't feel right.

The air felt different. And he was right Shinsou could feel it, too, no matter how much Bakugou hated his guts.

"It might be because Gunhead's gone now. That guy wasn't good news." Bakugou wanted to chuckle, but he'd never let Shinsou know he was the tiniest bit of fun. "You better watch out, though. The Council might come here for you soon. Don't sleep around."

"Oi, like hell we'd let those fuckers catch us."

"Just telling you not to relax under this renewed air. I get the feeling it's far from over yet." Bakugou was about to protest before Shinsou yawned and stretched his arms up. "In any case, we're gonna move out now. I just came here to tell you I was leaving."

Bakugou smirked, tsking. "Finally got tired of being under our superior wing, Shinsou?"

"Not really. It's just that this place reeks ego. The air's just getting heavier from being around you."

The blond growled. "Shut the fuck up."

Shinsou ignored his comment and stretched his arms back. "Whatever. I'll get going now." he wanted to offer him a hand to shake to finish their successful operation, but Shinsou doubted Bakugou would ever 'steep so low' to shake hands with somebody that had saved his ass. "If the tournament at the Capital is held, we'll see each other there. I bet I'll get to soften your ego a little bit there."

Bakugou looked back to finally look at Shinsou with a defiant smirk, and a moment after, he offered his hand up– not to conclude their cooperation but to start a new competition. "I'll make you kiss my feet for mercy."

The other man chuckled and stepped back to shake his hand. Bakugou's grip was fierce. "Don't say I didn't warn you, barbarian."

After that, they curtly nodded at the other and Shinsou left. However, Bakugou didn't want to leave yet. He remained on the balcony, looking at the moon aimlessly. His eyes would dart around, spotting stars and looking at the clouds with a distant gaze. He tried to count them, hoping he'd find distraction and eventually feel sleepy. The twinkling lights of the town dotted his vision with a mystical silence.

As he was counting the stars and seeing clouds drift by in the silence of the night when his eyes drifted to a faraway tower of his guild's wall. A figure was standing on the summit of the ceiling of the tower, grabbing the blowing flag for support. It was facing him most definitely, and something was blowing behind them.

He didn't know that figure, but Uraraka knew him well.

She had been observing him for a while, sitting before and now opting to stand up as she decided to approach him. Her eyes were decided, looking at him with a weakening resolve (because unlike before, they were alone now, and they had so, so much more time now). She couldn't see him quite well but she knew he was looking at her with increasing animosity, wondering who she was.

Before he could even breathe a curse she was hopping all along the walls of the tower with leaps of a bunny, barely making any noise, before she landed right before him in a mess of cloak and uniform folds. Bakugou watched her land, mesmerized, and she straightened her posture with a hand on her hoodie hat.

Her eyes barely peered from under the hem. "It's been some time, hasn't it?"

God, that sounded awful. Maybe Uraraka looked cool outside,but she was a mess of nerves and her heart was in shambles at this point. It had been so long since she last saw this man it almost felt weird to stand there and attempt to talk to him as if no time had passed. For her, it had been a lifetime full of memories in which he had become somebody dear for her.

For him, she was no more than a shadow that had saved his life and possibly attempted a terrorist attack a bit ago. The title of 'terrorist' would be fitting now.

Bakugou, however, didn't answer. He was almost, dare she say, stunned to see her there. He either was shocked to see a stranger slip into his guild, shocked to see her or just thinking of what to do. She wanted to think he'd know better than to attack her, seeing all she had done not so long ago.

But Uraraka also knew they were pretty much on par fighting-wise. She didn't want to fool around.

Bakugou was still standing still, so she tried to take some lead off the air. "Here I was thinking this meeting would be a lot smoother when I thought about it… it's been so long since we last saw each other. It feels like a century."

Then, Uraraka grabbed the ends of her hoodie and pushed the fabric to fall on her shoulders, revealing unkempt hair under a springing hat and sparkling yet tired eyes underneath. She had been travelling for a long time before getting here. The mage shot him an uncertain smile of contentment he had no answer to.

"It's good to see you again, Bakugou."

For this, he had a question she hadn't expected, asked so lowly Uraraka almost thought he was getting ready to attack her. "How do you know my name?"

Bakugou thought maybe she knew him because of his badass reputation and his guild's notoriety, but she gave a more ominous vibe than to even consider meaningless things like title.

Suddenly, she took a step forward, and for some reason, Bakugou didn't back off, only stared at her and flinched when she was within personal grounds. Uraraka didn't plan to answer him. "You still look the same. You're still as rude as ever, I bet."

Bakugou frowned. "Oi, what the hell do you mean by that?"

The girl wanted to smile. She would have if it hadn't been for the tacky situation they were in, how this would very likely be the last time they would ever see each other. Uraraka would have liked to visit other people as well, but she couldn't pluck up enough courage to do that. After all, she had barely got herself together to face Bakugou.

She didn't know what she'd even tell them, or how she'd even explain her presence. She thought they'd be ignorant to the issue.

Somehow, it felt like Bakugou would either hide from it or fight it. A reaction was all she needed as a farewell memento.

Her hand shakily reached for his chiseled cheek and that was when his hand snatched her wrist and accidentally pushed her closer until he was looking down at her. Uraraka recalled being in a similar position with him forcefully holding her like this, but the context was ironically different. "What are you trying to pull?"

If circumstances had been different she would have grinned at him. "Oh, so you know who I am?"

"It's hard to forget the face of a terrorist. You were quite on our face at the Capital." so he did consider her that, huh. "Again, what the fuck are you doing here?"

Uraraka managed to stay cold and collected. Barely. His touch still made butterflies erupt in her body and her heart writhed at the thought that this was terribly one-sided. Moments like these made her doubt and wonder if she could stay here with them and ride this timeline into the sunset before its last chance was purged.

She had after all said she'd do this alone, right? The promise had been broken. She wondered if she could manage to slip into the guild and try to live there again.

But she also knew that making things messier would only make the last fight more difficult. Instead of giving in and explaining, she wiggled her hand out of his hold. His snatch had made her snap into focus again. "I'm not here to attack you or hurt you."

Bakugou's eyes narrowed, fierce and red. "What's the deal then? Who says you aren't somebody from the Council to take us back to jail? Who says you haven't been following us in their stead?"

Of course he'd think that, because it made sense. In a way, Uraraka was responsible for them being accused, and as much as she felt glad it had served its purpose and they had been held back from facing RampAge, she couldn't help but feel sorry for them. That wasn't the point of her visit, though.

"I'm not here for anything in particular." she blinked, holding her hands to her chest, numb fingers caressing her wrist. "I'm here to say goodbye."

As she had expected, that earned no significant reaction from him. She pretended her heart didn't shake at that and that her throat didn't tighten. "Goodbye? Why the hell would I care? You can go die in a lake for all I care."

Fuck, of course he would say that. She pursed her lips, and then tried to shed a small forced smile. "Of course. It's stupid, isn't it?"

He didn't dare answer that, for words had been caught in his throat. Instead, he chose to wait and let her unravel. It didn't look like she'd last much more.

With her hands on her chest still, she indeed did unravel, but not in the mess of tears she had come to expect from herself upon seeing him. Instead, she stood her ground. Uraraka ignored the writhing of her heart, her wobbling legs and pushed forward. Maybe he didn't know who she was, maybe he didn't care.

But she did. And she had a few things to tell him before things were finally over.

"I know you don't give a damn or that… you don't know me. Of course, you don't." she said those last words as if to mentalize herself of the fresh, cold, hard truth. "But… I know things. I know things are about to happen and… I think you should go meet him before I lose all courage, you know?"

What was she even talking about? The look he was giving her made it seem he had no clue what she was talking about. The wall between them was only getting thicker.

"You… you guys are looking for the head of the Jirou mafia, aren't you? At this point, Kyouka must have left already to meet them…" mumbled Uraraka, gritting her teeth and looking out to the horizon as if she'd spot the hunter somewhere. "I know where their lair is."

At this, Bakugou blinked and shook his head. "You what!?"

"But that's not-"

The hunter finally stepped to her again and grabbed her shoulders, shaking her a little as if in a hurry. "You gotta tell us where that is! If we do that, we'll probably get the Council off our hair!"

The girl flinched at his hard grasp and tried to wiggle out of it, whining. "That doesn't matter!"

His fingertips dug into the fabric of her sleeves. "What the fuck is that supposed to mean!? It doesn't matter to you but it does to us!"

In his agitation, his hold weakened and Uraraka shook out of his deathlock. "I'm telling you the Jirous don't matter! Whatever you find in that lair isn't the biggest menace you got in this planet, in this time, whatever that is!" at this, Bakugou seemed to sort of stop fuming and actually listen, much to Uraraka's pleasure.

He actually seemed pleased with taking on a bigger foe, for he thought they could reel in a bigger fish and still get the Council off their lives. "And what would that be?"

The girl sighed, and looked at him decisively. "In the center of the forest there's a giant lake that will very probably be frozen by the time you get there…" her eyes stared off to the moonlit sky, eyes getting almost watery. She took a step closer to him, hands itching to hold his to transmit the love and warmth she so desperately wanted him to feel again. "Things are only getting weaker faster and faster… it's only a matter of time this place stops existing altogether. In that lake, there's a man who will be to blame for all this– or the only part of this mess that can be defeated."

Bakugou's eyebrows, once more, knit in confusion. "A lake? What the hell are you talking about? Are you high?" Uraraka didn't seem the least fazed by his behavior, only blinked as if she hadn't even heard his question to begin with. This chick was so weird… what the hell was she there for?

His confusion was only growing the more she stared at him. She gazed up at him with a feeling he couldn't quite describe, giving off airs of knowing more than he did and that alone made him feel furious. She was speaking with an authority he had never seen before. Her eyes told more stories than her soft words ever would.

Bakugou had never been overcome with the simultaneous need to kick somebody out but also want to make them sit down and tell him their story. The fact that she knew so much and had come so far so suddenly irritated him beyond control, and he would undoubtedly snap soon if she didn't stop being ambigue soon.

But instead of coming clean, she only gazed up at him with a mixture of tenderness and infinite sadness that had him motionless at his feet for some reason. Her voice came out soft, and just as ambigue as before.

"I thought I'd be able to do it in silence on my own but… I guess I'd rather if you were there with me again, in that place." her head tilted slightly to a side. Bakugou was almost hypnotized, gazing into her eyes. "I hoped things would be easier if I just stayed away. I guess what they gave me was a curse in disguise."

What the hell was she talking about and why wasn't he kicking her out like he did with all strangers that dared trespass his threshold? And why wasn't he barking at her proximity but rather, welcoming it?

In fact, when she lifted up her hand again, he didn't stop her. Her hand landed on his cheek, and he allowed that, too.

"You look just the same as ever. No matter how much time passes nothing ever changes." at that, his heart… throbbed. Painfully. As if her words resonated within him when his mind was just telling him to pull away like a wolf growling at a prey. But she continued with her thing, as if talking to herself or a picture hanging from a wall. "No matter how much time passes, it's still the same you."

Of course he was. No matter the lifetimes that passed or the years that went by, Uraraka knew they'd always manage to find each other. This time, she had had the blessing of having memories of all that had happened, but she was certain that they'd somehow manage to meet again when this was over.

What she wasn't so sure of was if she'd be there to meet him, unlike other times. Her hold on his cheek tightened a notch. "Sure things have changed now."

But they were still there. It was just the same Katsuki she once knew.

While in her deep thinking and gazing into his wine eyes, she failed to notice them getting slightly glossy. A second later, a tear rolled down his cheek and landed on her palm, making her flinch, starting to withdraw her hand.

Before her fingerpads could leave his skin, a rough hand pulled it back to its place, holding her hand in a tight grasp that made her eyes widen like saucers. Bakugou was holding her hand in place, almost leaning into it with a conflicted expression of both regret and confusion. Why did he suddenly need her touch and why had it made him shake that she'd leave him again?

Wait, again?

Uraraka gulped, her eyes still wide as she witnessed him somehow not letting her go. It felt like an ulterior force was forcing him to make her stay. Uraraka, vulnerable as she was, couldn't deny him.

"Katsuki." she didn't call out for any name. She called out for his real name. And it seemed to reach him, for his eyes temporarily shifted to hers, and it made her almost smile. Almost, but not quite. "What's wrong?"

That was a good question, what in the world was wrong with him and why was he acting like this? Why was he becoming increasingly aware that she was about to leave again, whatever that meant? Why did he suddenly feel terrified of her doing so, when he had never been scared of a damn thing in his life, or rather, just never wavered this way?

He couldn't find it in him to answer, and Uraraka was too stunned to figure it out. A part of her wanted to hope timelines had weakened enough for the true, old and brazen Katsuki she had once come to know in a gray village with an orange house in the rain.

Her heart fluttered, either for the pain or for the giddiness, she couldn't tell. But all she knew was that she was glad to see this man again, and that this was the last time they'd very likely see each other.

From this moment on, they'd be no more, because she wouldn't be there to welcome him into her arms again.

It was over.

She tried to let him go, but he just wouldn't. His expression was just as torn and he was clinging as much as before. "Katsuki… I have to go. Before it's too late."

It seemed like the mission at hand, the information she had shared and the ammo of tragedies she had announced were being forgotten by him. Bakugou refused to let her go, not because he wanted to cling or because he wanted to show affection– but because a part of him knew that if she left now, he wouldn't see her again, not this time.

Bakugou didn't actively know this person, but they were calling a name buried deep within him and he didn't have it in him to let her go ever again.

Suddenly, a name slipped past his lips like a whimper. "Ochako…" and the next part just rolled out. "don't go."

Uraraka's hands froze in his hold, she could swear his cheek was freezing under his cheek. Those words… her world moved, spun, made her feel breathless and all she wanted to do now was wrap him into a hug and sob her heart out, because after timelines, ages, decades, centuries and years without him, they had found each other in the end.

But they had been too late. The original lovers had found the warmth of love too late into the tragedy, and she knew she had to go. Right after finding him, the true him, the man she had originally hurt and killed, she couldn't stay ever again. She lost that right long ago.

A small tear trickled down her round cheek with a sad smile he failed to see. "I'm so happy to see you again, Katsuki." and she meant it. Because it felt like they were talking to each other after that fateful battle in the muddy rain and the bleak fog. "I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. I..."

God, they had met again. After the pain, the grieving and the darkness… Uraraka let out a choked continuation. "Everything will be okay. I promise everything… it will be fine. We will see each other again. It's a promise."

But it was a promise she didn't know if she would keep. It was promise she most likely wouldn't keep. For their sake.

He didn't answer. He just held on to her tighter like he should have in the past, clinging to her to compensate for the lack of warmth he had provided that night. It suddenly felt like he was too old for this body and like his spirit was no more than ash. He felt… weak. Tired. It had been a long journey to reach her.

It turns out he had come visit her when she was getting ready to set off.

His eyes meekly met hers between closed eyelids, as if unsure if he should trust her promise, for he was so tired, in such need for closure. But she could see that his eyes flickered in emotion, they seemed trusting, and his hold tightened. He believed her.

They would meet again. It was a promise.

The fact that he trusted her only broke her heart once more.

Uraraka's voice came once more, weak. But it'd be the last time. "I will make things right. The time's coming to a close. Everything has happened as it should have and…" her throat constricted when he still didn't let her go. "the time for the final battle will come soon."

Bakugou's lips let a small sob slip through, but no tears were shed. Instead, his trembling fingers held her hand hostage against his cheeks like a man hanging on for his life. As if she was his lifeline. Which, in a way, she was. Because she'd be the one to make things right again.

Her eyes closed and her head bowed down a little begging for forgiveness for the pain he was inflicting in him who had done nothing to deserve this. "I hope you can forgive me someday, Katsuki."

She tried to slip her hand off his grip but his weakening grip held her in place. His eyes were now facing her, trembling when he found her to be smiling through the pain and the heartbreak to say goodbye for the last time. Unshed tears made her lashes gleam under the clean moonlight.

With her other hand, she smeared a little bit of narcoleptic on his neck as she tiptoed to make their foreheads meet, her smile still soft as she felt his stance weaken little by little. His eyes were still looking at her when they started to lid close, with her smiling through it all, swallowing the tears. "I love you, Katsuki. Forgive me for this."

Those ironic words were last ones he heard before he slumped on her, head lolling on her shoulder and her arms catching his strong frame in something similar to an embrace that she didn't allow herself to dwell into. This timeline had repeated itself as it had been fated, with its changes and its tweaks, and the time for the final show was coming close.

She had no time to lose. Uraraka gently knelt down and let him sit on the floor, wall on the railway. His serene slumber expression was shadowed by the moonlight, and she pulled some of his bangs back. It wasn't the first time she abandoned him while he slept. It would certainly be the last.

Then, she got up and as she had come, gritting her teeth, Uraraka left with the wind, leaping from ceiling to ceiling into the night,

"Heaven, please forgive me for hurting him one last time." her words were carried with the wind.

Uraraka was gone from his hold. Instead, in his hand lay a single sunflower.

---

In a far away corner of the country, Uraraka curled into her spare blankets in a forgotten cave and weeped in remorse into her hands, tears cascading down her cheeks at the thought that the day after would be the last for her. At the thought that her existence would no longer be real. That she would miss making so many memories with her people, would miss her friends, and would probably spend the next centuries crying to herself when the moon rose.

For the last time, she wished none of this had ever happened. That no vendettas had happened, and that she had kept her sorrow to herself instead of killing all those she loved. But she couldn't help but finally realize that the wrought in her heart was plenty of a benevolent punishment for the hell she had caused.

Far away from her, somebody cried, too.

"I'm sorry." she looked at her hands, curled inches away from her chest. Then, she tucked them close to her heart. "I won't be able to keep our promise."

---

Thunder and rain were all that existed now in this battlefield of a planet. Aizawa had his arms bent on his back, a distant look gracing his eyes as he looked out to the dead landscape that extended over the Foehn mountains. Rain was starting to drip in this barren place, consumed by ice and the dryness of the dessert.

His eyes were calm. Any stranger would have thought he wasn't aware of the world ending today. If anything, he looked more at ease than ever, knowing his task was done. He just had to wait and things would slowly unravel if it all went according to plan. Aizawa wasn't certain of what would happen next yet he wasn't as annoyed or peeved as he thought he'd be.

Soon enough, he heard footsteps coming his way. Just as he had expected.

The giant gates slammed open by none other than Bakugou, whose soles were close to steaming with the brutality he applied in that kick. Midoriya trailed close behind, as did the whole guild with a somber quietness Aizawa had not anticipated. What he did see, though, was that the determination and confidence they had come in during prior times was gone.

Aizawa was sure this was none other than her doing. "Looks like you're here. What brings you to my home?"

Bakugou didn't have any plans to answer anything, for he knew very little himself. He didn't know how his man was linked to the Jirous, how he was the cause of all this, but he knew the girl from the night before had been right when she said the world would freeze over, and that Kyouka would have ran away.

Just those random but right predictions and her past saving their asses told him enough.

Upon Uraraka's revelations of how they knew nothing, Bakugou and the rest felt like no more than puppets in a play and he felt burning curiosity as to why it was like this. "Who are you?"

Aizawa raised an eyebrow that was met with no reaction. They seemed way more apprehensive than ever before. "Oh? I thought you came here for a reason." but because they hadn't, he didn't receive an answer. His expression became serious, almost sour. "I'm no more than an employee, a messenger if you will. I believe you're looking for me."

But… were they?

"We were told to come here. And that you were the one to blame for all this." spoke Todoroki from the back. Unlike the rest, he had unsheathed his sword and was ready to fight. His eyes were squinted in concentration. "You must be their leader, aren't you?"

Aizawa almost rolled his eyes and that alone made some start getting tense. "The Jirous should be the least of your problems. Trust me something worse than that is coming."

The ambiguity of his words made Bakugou growl slightly. It was just like last night, or the bits he could remember at least, had been filled with vague words and brief touches, and the rest was no more than a blur. In fact, when he woke up, he had been lying on the floor with a flower in his hand and concerned peers looming over him.

All he knew was that they had to hurry up and leave. He recalled stuff about things starting to unravel faster and worse, and that they had to leave before they got caught up in the whirlwind.

But, above all, he remembered that they had to be there.

At the prospect of not being met with answers, Bakugou was getting tired. "Listen up, loser, we got no time for this! What the fuck do you have to do with all this?"

Aizawa knew they were asking important questions, but at this point of the story he couldn't be bothered to answer. He just looked out the window. "She should be here soon I guess." then, he looked at the increasingly impatient bunch of kids he had in his household. "What are you gonna do? Pound answers outta me? I can assure you whatever stuff you want doesn't matter. It never did. Just sit still like a good boy."

The hunter leader was about to go beat the crap out of him before Kirishima stopped him. Midoriya stepped to the front. "We aren't going to repeat ourselves. Whatever is happening around us is your doing, isn't it?" he took out his gleaming sword and held it out in his direction. "We don't know what you're doing this for, but we have been told to stop you, and so we will."

That was weird. And untrue. "Oh, but have you? Did she directly tell you to come stop whatever I'm doing?"

Midoriya's stance faltered, blinking. "What else would she tell us to come here for?"

"Oh, you're so naïve." Aizawa's dead eyes blinked in Bakugou's direction. "What about you, Bakugou? Don't you know anything? You're the one who met with her, after all."

Bakugou frowned. "Don't point fingers at me, old man." he crossed his arms, as if defensive, but he still answered his claims. "All I know is that she came to me and started speaking super fast about some stuff. I barely remember anything but…"

But he knew who she was. He could recall her face, except her eyes, and the clear tone of her voice. Perhaps if he saw her again, he'd know who she was. Maybe after this was over, he could thank her for leading the way.

Little did he know.

His hand landed on his chest. "I just feel she was right on the money."

Kirishima arched an eyebrow, weirded out by his friend's uncanny care and faith. "Weird that only you and this guy seem to know who this she is. Who are you even talking about?"

Aizawa frowned, waiting for Bakugou to answer. The young man was at a loss of words, because really, who was she and why did he feel so faithful to her words even when her presence had been no more than that of a shadow?

The man looked back at his redhead friend. "No idea. I barely remember her face but… it's a feeling I got. I don't know who she is or what she was doing there, but I just knew we had to come here."

Midoriya frowned. "Wait, we just came here because you got a feeling? You said it was more than that!"

The blond gritted his teeth, eyes closed because he knew he hadn't been the brightest when he ordered everyone to get up and start packing so suddenly, but this gut feeling had been too strong to ignore, as if fate and the universe were forcing him to move, as if it was beyond his control.

"I know, but look all around you! It ain't like I was mistaken!"

True to that. The world had started freezing over the moment they stepped out of the village, trees and walls and houses meshing and melting into one as timeline mistakes consumed the land they walked on. They had freaked out and ran for their lives in the direction Bakugou had pointed at, track during which he had been silent and focused unlike ever before.

They knew better than to say he hadn't been right, but nobody but him and Aizawa seemed to know what was going on. The blond, when seeing everyone was silent, looked back at Aizawa with an angered look. "Listen, old man, we haven't come here to the ends of the world for chitchatting. You're the one behind all this, ain't ya?"

The man loosely looked out the window. Oh, if only they knew. If only they knew they were just being used as pieces moved in a chessboard. "You could say that I'm involved, in a way."

He wasn't admitting it. He wasn't denying it, either. That was enough for them.

"Then that means we just gotta get rid of you so things are right again!" grinned the man, taking out his cursed sword as the rest readied their weapons, too. He could feel Asui readying her magic runes and Yaoyorozu unsheathing her elegant sword. It was practically an army of angry people against one man.

What could possibly go wrong?

Aizawa stayed silent. Even though he sometimes had cursed at Uraraka's naïvety, he couldn't deny that these people's brazen behavior was getting on his nerves even worse than she did. With luck, she would swing by soon.

Midoriya pointed his sword at Aizawa. It was surrounded by orange flames and Aizawa could almost see a reflection on it. "We're taking our world back! You will soon be no more!" he said confidently. A small crashing noise was heard closeby. "We aren't the number one guild for nothing!"

With that, Aizawa assumed he should be scared. He admitted that some of these people looked scary, some downright terrifying and others just not fierce enough to hurt a fly. Had these been different circumstances and he would have felt menaced enough to take out his sword. He was a jobless man, no profession, no profile, but he was enough of a man to know how to wield a weapon and how to murder with it.

For once, he didn't know what would happen, for she had changed the static course of everything in this world. And that excited him in a weird, convoluted and confusing way.

Aizawa brought his hand to his scarf, and the other to a sword he had sheathed on his back this morning. He took the sword out and pointed it at them. If they were going to crash and burn together, at least they'd all die with honor. Her just had to come by so she crashed with them.

"Very well, then." Aizawa crooked his sword a little, earning a snicker from Bakugou. "Let's see what you all can do against my sword!"

And with that, the guild just charged towards him. Unlike other enemies, Aizawa was just one man with a sword and probably good sorcery abilities he was concealing, and they needed little strategy against one sole man. In this case, Bakugou trusted they could beat him with sheer brute force, and that's what they'd do until they beat this guy to a pulp.

Both parties were throwing themselves at each other, jumping in the air with screams of war and rage.

However, right before their weapons clashed, a tremendous beam of lightning struck between them through the roof, destroyed it, and hit the ground with such force it created a soundwave strong enough to push both parties away from each other. It sent everyone to the floor and to the walls, a deaf impact reaching their ears as the earth trembled under their feet.

Bakugou landed on the ground with a grunt of pain at the sudden interruption– the battle hadn't even begun yet, what the hell was going on? The sky around them outside the fortress had turned into a fierce noisy storm of thunder and lightining. "What the fuck!?"

And from the hole jumped a smaller figure with a very familiar cloak and set of colors that blew in the wind and hit the floor with her boots with a strength that sent waves around her, making those getting up tumble down again. A clap was heard as the girl clasped her hands together then slammed them on the cracked floor beneath them.

A familiar seal shone under her feet in a circle, light issuing from her and the lines carved into the stone. Before her, Aizawa watched her come in with a mixture of awe and surprise. "Sorry, I can't let you continue this fight." Uraraka looked over her shoulder with a small smile, straight on her feet. "I'm sorry I dragged you into this. But I can finally give this a proper ending thanks to you."

"Hah!?" coughed the blond leader from behind, then when he caught glimpse of her hair and cheeks, he gasped and frowned. "It's you! What the fuck are you doing here!?"

Todoroki's voice came from a side. "Wait, that's-?"

"Yeah!" the man tried to get up again, but something was pushing him down again. "It's her! That's the damn girl from the Capital and last night!"

"I'm surprised you made it here this early, Uraraka. I thought you would have ran away by now." spoke Aizawa. He didn't even try to get up, for he knew he wouldn't be able to. "I guess birds of the same feather flock together, huh? You still haven't changed."

But to this, Uraraka had something to say. "That's not exactly true." the seal under her feet let out a beam of glow, and her hair started to float. "Many things have changed. I'd say there has been a change of plans."

The guild could only watch this girl talk casually (albeit not truly as casual as it could sound) to the ultimate villain of this planet as if they were buying milk. The feeling of being manipulated and played with only increased upon realizing only those two people knew what was truly going on. Bakugou couldn't help but feel betrayed once more, and so did everyone else.

"A change of plans?" asked Aizawa, an eyebrow quirked. His eyes loosely went to her seal circle. "And what would that…"

His voice trailed off, eyes widening a notch and eyebrows sinking to a slight realizing frown. Uraraka's hands balled into fists, and she adjusted her hat with a solemn grimace.

"I was once told the world is based around the idea of giving, taking, destroying and creating. Around the idea of destroying to create something new." her hands glowed. "I think we're well over those steps. Or, at least, I'm tired of those rules."

Aizawa tried to raise a hand, and pointed a finger to her spell circle. Before, that circle had been a glowing mess of runes and signs embedded to the floor with lines shooting from the mage outwards to the world. Before, those lines had shot from her and jailed the world with its light, like a sun wrapping the world in a hug with its beams.

However, it was different this time. There were no lines taking over the world and destroying the ice. There were smaller lines that were slowly inching from the circle inwards. The little tiny hands were starting to wrap around Uraraka's knee and slowly inching off the ground, wobbling, to take her middle finger of her both hands.

This was not how things were supposed to go. "What in the world are you doing?"

"What…" Yaoyorozu's voice came in a stammer. "What is that?"

The question was repeated by some more. Uraraka heard Midoriya ask that as well, but Bakugou remained silent as he saw the lines take over her body slowly, wrapping around her, as if attempting to suck her in.

"I used to believe this world had no other purpose but for it to be destroyed. It used to be either you, me, or the future who would do it." she spoke. "I walked a long path. I met new people. I realized there's so much more to this world than just its ground. This place… it still needs to live a bit more than I bargained for."

The little arms and hands glowed in warning and Uraraka fell to her knees and, for some reason, everyone in the guild wanted to reach out to her, because something within them was screaming for them to help her. But both the overwhelming gravity and their confusion stopped them.

For some reason, they trusted what she was saying. She spoke of a salvation they all needed, and they couldn't care about the costs right now even when those were starting to become clear as the magic encircled her in a vicious lock.

"My mission once was… to give shelter to my friends. To save them from this fate I created." Uraraka chuckled humorlessly. "I have to get them out of here. No matter the costs. I should have known better than to believe that destroying them and this world with me saving myself was the way out of it. Death was not a way of sparing."

She coughed.

"It was me being selfish."

Aizawa stared at her in silence. He could feel a very light tremble under his legs. He was sure the rest could feel it too, hence their unkempt expressions. "What's the coin of change then, Uraraka?"

She winced and dared look behind her. There, she saw her friends, and a man she deemed to be dear to her but who had very probably forgotten about her and their promise. He wasn't her man, anymore, and she was just an annoying bitch he used to know.

Their expressions were of fear and confusion, but she was sure they would be happy wherever they went, even if it was without her. They would be okay again. They wouldn't have to suffer her sins anymore.

With a closed eye, in pain, she grinned at Aizawa. "Isn't it obvious?"

Accompanied with strength that almost bordered sadism, she slammed her hands hard on the ground, making the arms tighten around her as the ground under them started to break. Unlike before, though, the cracks weren't filled with the darkness of an abyss full of death and despair. Instead, they were full of a blueish, soft light.

From above her from the hole she craved in the ceiling started to come a soft beam of light. Midoriya tried to scramble away from the blinding lights. "What the hell is that? Is… is the world truly about to-"

"No." came a soft reply from Asui, who was calmly sitting, waiting for this storm to pass, a sif unaware of the shaking. "This light is not a force of destruction, ribbit. It's… a healing light." she blinked, her eyes sparkling as she looked directly into the gentle light. The storm was slowly fading away from them. She could almost hear birds chirping as the quaking grew more intense. "The sun… it's being reborn."

The warmth of the light hit Uraraka on the back of her neck as the world started to reset itself. As her vital energy started leaking away from her, she could feel all souls returning to their owners, all monsters being set in peace, the ice all around the world melting under her fingers. The world was in the palm of her hand.

"Instead of giving my all to destroy everything around me…"

Then, the gentle light grew, grew, parted the clouds and invaded the world. The rain… it wasn't raining anymore, anywhere.

She was glad she saw them one last time.

"I'll destroy myself to make the world be reborn again."

The circle around her flashed with a blinding light.

---

Black was all she was met with once more, but this time, she knew it wasn't the pitch black of a gloomy, deserted and barren world, devoid of any life– she knew it was the darkness of being held hostage, away from the world she had created. Or maybe that world didn't exist yet.

All she knew was that she had something to say. Something to do, yet. She had sacrificed her life, so why was she still alive? The world around her spun in silence, black on top of black and on top of something so much more darker and deeper than one could ever imagine.

Could her current state of existence be called a life, even?

She stood still.

Waiting.

Uraraka didn't like waiting. But she still did. She didn't know how long it took, how long she stayed there in the darkness, silence around her and her memories weighing down on her unlike ever before, moreso memories of her friends and what she had sacrificed for them. But there was no way she would ever regret what she did. Things had changed, and she didn't wish for her to move if the world depended on it-

rather, she preferred to let the world move and leave her behind, just like it should have those many timelines, ages and centuries ago. Suddenly, Uraraka felt very old. The prospect of aging to a skinless skeleton in this dark attic of a land didn't sound as bad as it should. If she were to rot there instead of being met with the everlasting silence all dead people dealt with, she wouldn't speak against it.

Perhaps Uraraka hadn't garnered enough trust from those up above her who were, undoubtedly, watching her.

A fickle hum escaped her lips, and she sat down like one who waits for a cart to take her home. It had always been a matter of waiting, after all.

Then a voice. "So, you did it in the end, huh?"

Uraraka would have been surprised before. Not anymore. "You seem surprised. I thought you had all planned out and knew exactly what steps I'd be taking." retorted the girl.

"But you still waited for us to enlighten you, didn't you?" oh, she had. She had been waiting for the stars to guide her for so long. So much so she would sit out at night and pray for her sorrow to end, for somebody to show her the way. She didn't want to destroy anymore. She just wanted to find a way home.

Uraraka remained silent, biting her inner cheek. It wasn't like she felt guilty or anything, but their words sounded chiding enough to make her shut up. But no matter how much pressure they put on her, she wouldn't give in anymore. The sorcerer was certain she had done the right thing.

"Why did you do that? How foolish can you be to sacrifice your vessel of a body for people who have wronged you in the past?" this voice was different, yet almost a hiss of confusion. Had Uraraka known better and she would have thought she had gone against their plans by doing something good. But she knew that voice. She had heard it before.

It was utter and isolated confusion

"Isn't it obvious?" she answered. "Those who wronged me… I already got rid of them. That's something I can't change, can I?" no, she couldn't. She was met with the expected silence. "If I had a chance to let them live again without the wrongs those stupid people did, then maybe things would be different. I wish I hadn't met them with these chains you put on me weighing me down so badly."

"You're saying it as if you didn't do anything wrong in the past."

Uraraka sighed. "What can I say? It's rained long enough since them. It was time that storm stopped. It wasn't their fault. This planet wasn't to blame for the sins of those I called family and allies. Or my sins, for that matter."

But she knew she couldn't shield herself with that truth, because it wasn't a full truth. Ochako had killed those she loved in a very uncharacteristic fit of rage. Frankly, the rage could be justified. Killing those she loved? Absolutely not. Perhaps that was one of the things she hated the most about this situation. She was disappointed with her true, past self.

"So, you're happy with this outcome?"

"Can't say I'm happy about not seeing what I have created. A new timeline should have begun, without the worn out edges you guys created with your over and over recreation and… without me." as she said that, she brought her hand to her chest. She could almost feel the pain under her fingertips. "Maybe that's for the best."

Then… there was silence. It wasn't a necessarily bad type of silence. It was rather calm and comfy. However, knowing that she had time and time to ask all questions to her heart's desire, she realized she had a very good question to ask.

"But…" she sat up straight, hands on her lap. "why am I not dead yet? Why am I still here?"

An incredulous voice chimed in. "Why would you be dead?"

"Well, I gave my body and powers and everything away. I knew I would be dead. Or at least, seeing how things are, I thought I'd be dead." she spoke softly. "What happens now, then? Am I supposed to wait for something?"

There were two claps of silence during which Uraraka thought the gods were debating a long standing question. What now, she wondered. What could she do now? Would she rot here and eventually wither away as she expected? Would they punish her further by taking over her cruelty-free little timeline? Would they further tarnish the den she had created with her power?

"Ochako died with you that day. Ochako has died with you. But you're still here." that literally made no sense to her. She let them continue. "As you said, it's high time we finished this game. It's only a game when you're having fun. And I'd say it's been enough time playing."

Uraraka batted her eyelashes, perplexed, astounded, confused– what did that mean? Did it mean that… she was free? It couldn't be, right? It couldn't be she had won, had she?

The girl jumped up to her feet, mouth agape, a smile threatening to break through her stoic features. "Wait a second… what do you mean? Does that mean…?"

"It means that the game is over, Uraraka. The moment you decided to sacrifice yourself for the good of a new world… you paid the price. You stopped the circle of hatred." a small twinkle echoed in the distance. "You won, Uraraka."

Uraraka looked up, her jaw hitting the floor soundly as she processed their words. It was… over? She was free? Had she finally beaten them to their game by just giving up her life? The girl was glad to know she was but… how could one be free in this dark place?

What did winning exactly mean? Had this game lost meaning along the way?

"But… what does that mean for me? Do I get to watch over my loved ones, at least?"

A noise of disbelief crossed her ears. "That's a stupid question."

Her shoulders sank.

"You're going to make up for your loss, and meet them again." she what!? "After all, it's your world, isn't it? I think it's time we let this game go and you go enjoy what is yours. Not like you will remember any of this, us, but... it's been a long run and you finally made it here. You have paid with your memories, but you will now live a life of blissful ignorance."

Blissful ignorance? Did that mean… she wouldn't remember absolutely anybody? "So… it will be a fresh start?"

"The freshest of starts. We can't possibly let you go out there overloaded with this information, who knows what you'd do with it." Uraraka gulped. They had reasons to not fully trust her with all this information: such powerful sorcery, the secrets of time travelling, the secrets of the gods… it was information too sensitive for one to bear. "Or, you could also stay as a spirit and watch over them… but not be there."

"A... spirit, huh?"

"That's all we can give to you." said the voice. Its tone was serious but held no animosity or pressure, as if either option was fine. But it wasn't like she needed to think about it. She looked up with a small smile, as if mocking them for thinking she would be torn. "Made up your mind?"

Her eyes were closed. "It's not like I need another lifetime to decide." then, her eyes flashed open with a confident twinkle in her eye that could open her a thousand doors to heaven. "After all I have gone through the pain of not being remembered. If I don't remember them either… what pain would there be? Besides…"

Her smile softened, and she opened her palm. She could still feel his touch, his warmth.

"there's somebody I promised to meet. No matter the lifetimes, the years… it'll still be him. And there's no way I'd not meet him, regardless of lives and centuries."

That was an answer that, for once, felt completely honest. It seemed to please the gods above her greatly, for she heard a soft tone speaking next. "Very well. That's a very good answer."

They had finally come to an agreement, at last.

A surge of white light came from above her, just like the light she had witnessed above her when she opened the doors to the new world. It was a gentle, soothing light, like that of sunshine when washed over by trees and reflected on the rocking waters. She looked up into it, letting her feet leave the ground and letting herself be taken out of there.

A small tear trickled down her cheek, and she felt a small stone fall from her pocket and shatter to the ground.

---

Next time Uraraka woke up, it wasn't in the rain. When her lashes fluttered open, her hair was sprayed on the fresh evergreen grass as a warm breeze brushed her cheeks. She blinked her sight into focus and was met with the clear infinite blue sky.

She didn't wake up in the rain. Instead, she woke up in a field of sunflowers.

Uraraka supported herself on her elbows, looking around her. Tall sunflowers dotted the meadow with bright oranges and yellows, the grass pearlescent and bright and springing around her. The grass under her felt cool and fresh, almost wet with dew. Birds chirped around her, close by, flying around.

The sun was beaming on her in a warm, gentle and washing light. The small breeze played with her hair as she sat up, looking around. The sunflowers and grass moved with it too. She also heard leaves rustling in the distance, and turned her eyes to see a big tree hat was providing shade for some sleeping kids.

The place was quiet and peaceful. She looked down at her robes. Dark pink dress with her tattered muddy boots, as well as a loose equally pink dress that had its folds matted down by the slight wetness of the ground. Her gloves were tainted lightly green. Her hair was slightly unkempt and her hat's shape was a bit uneven after sleeping on top of it.

She held her head with her left hand, trying to remember how she got there, a bit dazzled. She blinked to the ground for a few seconds in deep thought. Then, she gasped.

"Drat, the festival!" the girl scrambled around. Of course! she had forgotten! She had stumbled away from the forest and reached this meadow that looked so comfy and inviting to rest on last night. The moon had been bright, the skies clear and her sleep had been peaceful. It had been a long way there, but she had finally made it.

Uraraka gathered her things very quickly. A big bag full of potions, maps and other objects she had acquired during her journey here lay at her feet, untouched, and she put it on her shoulders deftly. She looked around her. A few kids ran around and laughed in joy, chasing each other. Some parents watched from afar.

The girl smiled at the tender picture, then adjusted her hat so it shielded her eyes from the sun. Before leaving, though, Uraraka looked back at the infinite sky above her, and the wind blew a bit harder on her, albeit still soft. A few clouds swirled in circles high above her accompanying the breeze.

For some reason, the peace she was met with made her shoulders relax, and she shed a small smile again, looking back to the path out of the meadow again. She began to walk away, chirping birds and light step accompanying her walk.

The path was soft and curvy as it danced between trees and smaller houses. Small columns of smoke sneaked out of chimneys, the faint smell of bread invaded her nostrils. Everything around her was tainted in warm and pleasing colors. The fences of the houses were painted in white. In the pastures of the farmside, sheep were making their presences known while farmers saluted at her. She greeted them right back.

Some people saw the little girl, clearly a foreigner, and some offered her directions to the festival. Uraraka had been hearing wonders about this Harvest Festival being held in a big village near the coast, where people were inviting and meals were plenty. Of course, she had been inclined to visit and learn about this interesting traditional culture.

A very nice woman approached her and gave her some more directions, telling her which paths to take. Uraraka had been met with a bifurcation under the shade of saplings and maple trees. Dots of sunlight littered her shape as the trees gave her an uneven dash of shade.

The woman also gave her a small piece of bread with some honey on it. "Do be careful with the little boars near the border, little lass! They are grazing the pasture but they can get nervous quite easily!"

The little girl nodded eagerly in understandment and waved her goodbye. She began to walk forward once more, munching on the soft bread enthusiastically. Upon waking up she hadn't realized how hungry she was, after all she couldn't recall how long it had been since she had eaten– or drank water, for that matter.

It was as if she had been born from the sunflowers with no food or water in her stomach. She should have taken some goods with her, clearly.

After some walking and a bit of short talk with some walk-by farmers, the girl made it out of the path and was met with the borders of the village, which were laden with cheer and racket coming from the festival within the entrance.

A gentle zephyr played with her hair and she tucked a strand behind her ear, grinning and her eyes sparkling. The grass blades danced gently with the wind as the tame boars quietly grazed at the sides of the dry path. The sun beat down on the scene, but not too hard. Cradling some food she had been given and some water, Uraraka made her way to the entrance, where two guards awaited her.

But before she got there, a request board right before the entrance greeted her vision. It had a small ceiling and some papers attached to it. Among them, there was a small flyer that was flapping with the wind, which called her attention. Uraraka stopped in her tracks to read the flyer as she ate some more bread quietly.

There was, apparently, a news notice for a mage that was tampering with dangerous dark arts in some faraway country Uraraka couldn't pronounce the name for. The picture of a woman, as well as a man with long dark hair was in the center. The woman wore a sly coy look, but she only looked at the man's shape with narrowed eyes. He was somehow familiar.

However, if she knew him, she couldn't tell, for his face had been tainted with a splatter of mud. All that was left of him was his hair and what appeared to be a scarf.

"Hm." Uraraka let out softly. She wiped some honey off her cheek, her gaze unaltered at the sight of these news. "Hope people watch out for those guys."

And then, as if nothing had happened, she walked away and forgot about it.

She walked to the guards in front of the gates. They had spears in their hands and unlike she expected given their fierce expression, they didn't stop her when she attempted to walk in. If anything, they approached her with no intent to harm her. "Excuse us, little miss. Are you lost?"

Uraraka's eyes widened, but not in surprise. She was very happy when she heard the gentle tone they spoke with. She grinned wide, eyes closed in gee. "Not at all! I'm here to visit the Harvest Festival, I have heard a lot about it!"

The guards turned to look at each other, smiled and nodded. "Of course! Please do come in, everyone from every nation is welcome to visit us!"

The little sorcerer smiled and nodded back thankfully, waving at them as she walked under the gates. The other guard waved at her too. "Do have a good time!"

Uraraka nodded again and waved some more, very moved by the initial warmth she was being welcome with. Then, she turned to look forward and it was her turn to be mesmerized by the view.

There was confetti and banners all over the place. The streets were littered with people who were washed by the sunlight. Stands crowded every wall and the cheerful clamor of passer-bys made her feel embraced and welcome. Flowers were perched on every balcony of every building, with banners and drawings hanging from balcony to another, crossing the street. It was overwhelming– but in a very good and natural way.

She could already smell the vegetables and fresh soup being sold. Excited, Uraraka couldn't wait any longer to dive into the sea of people, and she started jogging into the mass of people.

Nonetheless before she could get very far into the crowd, a thick body collided with hers from the side, making her food and new belongings crash and fall to the ground. "Oh, I'm so sorry!"

She heard a loud grunt from whoever it was she crashed with, who had apparently taken a big tumble in their haste. She knelt down to pick up her stuff as people made an effort to not run over them, creating a clearing of their own.

A man at her side hissed. "Can't you fucking watch where you're going?" then, a hiss. Uraraka grimaced at her very first mess-up of the day.

The girl collected her things and got on her feet. She made sure to pack them into her bag this time, neatly tucking them in with care. "Again, I'm sorry. I wasn't watching where I was going– I'm terribly sorry!" she said anxiously. For the first time, she looked to her side and saw a man with blonde hair who was rubbing his side. He had no shirt on, strangely enough.

Uraraka very kindly offered him a hand. The man, whose face was shadowed by his hair, saw the hand and almost barked at her ridiculous offer for help.

He looked up. Uraraka's chocolate eyes met a blistering wine glare. "What the hell? I don't need your fucking help!"

After that, he slowly got up by himself and her hand fell to her side, watching him to make sure he was unharmed. Sensing he was in a foul mood – she had it in her heart to not think somebody was that crass by nature – she tried to apologize again. "Are you alright? I didn't mean to hurt you."

The shirtless man groaned and rubbed the back of his neck. Then, he craned it around to loosen his muscles with a scowl. "Whatever. Just fucking…" when his eyes fluttered to meet hers again, his voice trailed off. Uraraka blinked at him, confused, waiting for him to go on. "Huh?"

He was giving her an odd look of confusion. The girl blinked at him, twice as confused. "Is there anything wrong?"

His eyebrows were knit as he observed her. His eyes scanned her round cherubic face with a surgeon's scrutiny. "Not really." he said, somehow sounding almost angry at her innocent and genuine question. "Do we know each other? You're sorta familiar."

It was Uraraka's time to look confused. Her head was cocked to a side as she tried to remember ever meeting this man. But it was to no avail. She shook her head. "I don't think so. I'm not from this village anyways."

The blond man looked at her some more and Uraraka did as well, trying to read his eyes. He was almost disoriented at her words, but then he shook his head as if to get rid of that suspicion. "Whatever. Must have hit my head when you barreled over me. Who in the world are you, then?"

Uraraka almost wanted to fight his accusation back, but she only sighed and offered him a smile. "My name's Uraraka, Uraraka Ochako, and I'm a sorcerer." she beamed at him with an upbeat voice. "I came to visit the Harvest Festival. Do you live here?"

He was in silence for a few seconds, probably trying to analyze her name in search of coincidences in his memory, but the name didn't stir any memories or feelings. It must have been his imagination, he concluded. Then, he gritted his teeth at her inquiry. "Do I fucking look like I'm here to visit?"

"I don't know, but you have no shirt…" she pointed at his bare chest. No reaction came from him. "Is that a custom here?"

He jammed his fists on his hips and scowled at her for the upteenth time. She was beginning to think this guy had some anger issues. "Of course fucking not! It's just a hassle to wear one!" he turned around then, scratching his cheekbone. That girl was a damn hassle already.

Then, he began to walk away, his hands jammed in his pockets. He could feel her burning stare right on his neck and it was pissing him the fuck off. He craned his head to look at her at which he swore she squeaked. "What the fuck is that look for, roundface?"

Uraraka blinked a few times and squeezed her arms around a few of the goods she still had on her arms. First stop: she would be buying a new bag. As he waited for her response, Uraraka smiled at him again, cheeks red as if happy and delighted by him. "Nothing, you're just a funny guy!"

His eyes widened a notch and Uraraka giggled to herself. Before he could spat at her to get lost, Uraraka waved at him sweetly and started walking in the opposite direction without a glance in his direction.

Bakugou let out a small 'tch', frowning and walking the other way. He had some bastards he called peers to find in that damn crowd.

But it wouldn't be the last time they saw each other. They had made a promise, after all.

And a promise was a promise.

FIN

[A/N]: I hope you enjoyed this story, and please do let me know in the comments! I love you so very much guys, thank you so much for going through this adventure with me. Shall your life be prosperous and shall our paths cross again!

/rolls away like I always do

Much love,

Meep 3