Chapter 7_The First Chapter of Snow White's Love Story

Chapter Summary: Shouta recalls how he and Hizashi first met long ago.

After working at the mines for the entire day Shouta and the kids returned to the little cottage. While the kids cleaned themselves (properly this time) Shouta made a quick meal with some boiled carrots and potatoes. The kids still had some energy so they started goofing off, playing with their toys while Shouta did dishes with Tsuyu who dried them.

"...and then! All Might came in and cried, 'Kingdom smash!'" Izuku said excitedly. Denki flopped on the floor face first with a loud groan.

"Enough!" he moaned loudly. "I can't listen to another All Might story!"

"O-oh… sorry." Izuku mumbled. He looked away, head bowed and shoulders slumped.

"Don't be so rude, Denki!" Ochaco scolded.

"Aw, come on! You're just as sick of them as I am!" Denki shot back. He flipped himself on his back as he rolled his eyes. "It's been a hundred years! I just wanna hear something new!" Izuku shrank a little.

"Y-you're right. Sorry. I shouldn't babble..." he said.

Denki felt bad after hearing his tone but didn't apologize. He didn't want to hurt anyone's feelings, but it was the same stories over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over—he was going insane! And the others felt the same way even if they didn't want to say it.

"N-no, it's fine Izuku!" Tenya said quickly trying to cheer him up.

"Yeah, we don't mind!" Toru lied. "It's just nice to hear other stories too once in a while, you know?"

"I understand…"

"Oh! I can tell you about how I became invisible!"

"We all know that story; we were there."

"I could tell a story." Tsuyu offered.

"No!" Tsuyu was famous for telling scary stories that kept the kids awake at night for weeks.

"Mr. Aizawa!" Ochaco said quickly turning to him. "What about you?"

"What about me?" Shouta said over his shoulder as he finished the last dish and was getting ready to scrub the pan.

"You must have a lot of stories, right?"

Shouta stopped and leaned his head back, staring at the ceiling.

"Not really," he admitted. "I didn't really do anything interesting."

That wasn't exactly true as he and Hizashi did have fun together when they used to sneak out of the palace, but nothing that would entertain them or ones that should be told to kids. Besides, he didn't want to risk giving too much of his life away and placing the dwarfs in danger.

"Neither do we. But at least your 'not much' is different from ours and therefore story-worthy." Momo pressed.

"Not sure how that logic works..."

"Aww, c'mon! Please!" they begged.

Shouta hesitated but eventually gave in to the seven pairs of big eyes watching him.

"Well—I guess I have one story..." he muttered. His face had a pink touch to it as he rubbed an awkward hand behind his head.

"Yay!"

Shouta sighed. He removed the pink apron he was wearing and moved to sit on the rug where all the kids all gathered around him with bright eager faces, curious to hear anything new.

"It was several years ago..."

777

Snow White had been fifteen years old, five years after his mother died. As soon as his mother was out of the way, Snow was stripped of his crown, his title—everything. He was banished to the servants' quarters, where he was forced to work as a scullery slave. He resisted at first, but when he did Snow was beaten by either a servant or a guard until he decided it wasn't worth it. No matter what some people thought Snow White was just an ordinary person. Without his princely title, he had no power whatsoever. And though his otherworldly appearance would suggest otherwise, he had no magical talent either, or any skills, in general.

"Snow White!" The young teen jerked awake and peered up at the towering figure of Luna. She had pursed lips and a haughty brow raised as she stared down at him. "I should have known you were lazing about." Snow White rubbed his eyes.

"I was just resting a minute…" he mumbled as he stood.

"Hm-hm, which I'm sure turned into hours," Luna said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "No wonder this place is falling apart!" Snow pressed his lips together to keep himself from responding. He knew there was no point in doing so, so he might as well save his energy for the piles of work Luna obviously had in store for him.

"Since I trust you're well-rested, you can get back to work! Unless you want your meal privileges taken away." That wasn't much of a threat; the food they gave to the dogs was better than the slop given to him.

Luna shoved the bucket at him so hard Snow White stumbled back. He clenched his jaw as he scowled.

He hated this. He hated the fact that he wasn't strong enough to fight back or even say anything. He wanted to stand up to them, but he couldn't. He was barely strong enough to carry the buckets of water he had to haul around to clean everything.

"Get back to work!" Luna ordered. "I want this courtyard cleaned before sunset, you hear?"

'Yes Snow White; scrub the floors, wash the dishes, trim the garden, do everything in this fuckin' castle because we're too lazy to do shit.' he thought sarcastically. He was smart enough not to say any of this aloud, lest he get his ass beat to the ground.

Luna left and Snow White went to scrubbing, something he seemed to spend half his life doing. The deed was annoying enough, but what really got to him was that it was pointless. Hardly anyone came to the palace anymore and the stones were—stones! They were supposed to be filthy. Plus, they were outside where dirt was born and bred. Plus, shouldn't the rain from the night before have cleaned everything? No, it just made it messier. Where was the logic in that?

His chore took him near the well in the center of the courtyard. He supposed he should wash that too—after a minute.

Snow White set the bucket on the well's edge as he bent down to massage his bare feet. Technically he had shoes, but they were wooden, and walking on glass shards would have been more comfortable. At least it was summer, so he wouldn't have to worry about his feet freezing or anything.

With a loud sigh, Snow leaned his head back against the well.

His mother had told him that this was a wishing well and that this was where she wished for his appearance. He didn't believe this well had any magic. Even in a world of witches and wizards, it wasn't logical to believe that wells had powers to grant wishes. Maybe if it was enchanted, but…

"Wish, huh?" he mumbled aloud.

If it was charmed and could grant wishes, what would he wish for? His royal title? Revenge against those cruel to him? His mother to be brought back?

He closed his eyes and whispered.

"I wish..."

Nearby, a cat was playfully chasing a squirrel through the yard and to the well where Snow White was cleaning. The squirrel climbed up the well, the cat jumping after it. As it did so, its head rammed into the bucket Snow White had set there. It rocked for a moment before falling forward and landing on Snow White's head, drenching him in the filth of the water. For extra humiliation, the bucket landed on his head. He let out a yelp followed by a groan.

"UGH!" Like things weren't bad enough, shit like this had to happen. He supposed it was his own fault. If he had been smart, he would have set the bucket on the ground rather than the edge.

There was a soft laugh from behind him. He lifted the bucket and turned to glare through his dripping bangs. The source was a boy around his age with golden hair and tanned skin. There was something odd about his laugh. It wasn't unpleasant. In fact, had the situation been different, Snow White would have been tempted to laugh along with him. Maybe. But that wasn't what was strange about it; what was strange was that it sounded—too pure to be a human laugh.

Seeing Snow's look, the teen tried to stop himself.

"Sorry, man!" he said. "Here, let me help you."

Snow quickly yanked the bucket off his head before the other could take a step. As he stood he wiped the bangs soaked with dirty water from his face.

He noticed that the other had stopped in his tracks and was slack jawed as he stared at him with large, peridot green eyes. Snow White was used to this as he had a strange, unnatural appearance that kept most people at bay. Either they thought he was too beautiful, or they thought he was otherworldly which frightened them. Snow thought he just looked like himself. (Though he admitted he wished he could tan once in a while.)

He ignored the gawking and gave the blond a look over himself, trying to place him. While people kept their distance, Snow had still memorized the faces of all the servants and guards. The boy wasn't even close to them in appearances so he wasn't related to anyone who worked at the palace. He might have been a new guard as he wore leather armor on his arms and torso over a forest green shirt. He also had a dagger on his hip and a crossbow on his back. If Snow White cared about appearance at all he might have felt a little embarrassed that he was in patched, damp rags even though the other boy wasn't dressed THAT much better.

The blond finally seemed to realize that he was staring and shook himself out of the daze.

"Oops! S-sorry didn't mean to.. um… Here, hold on! I'll go get a towel or something to dry you." he stammered, looking everywhere except at Snow. He made to run off, but Snow White stopped him.

"No, that's fine. This fits perfectly with the mood I'm in," he muttered, wringing out his shirt. He crinkled his nose and almost gagged at the smell. As he cleaned shit pots for most his life though he had smelled worse, so was able to fight the gag reflex. (Not that it made the smell pleasant.) He fixed the stranger with a narrow, red stare. "Who are you?" The boy beamed. He had a bright look to him that reminded Shouta of a friendly dog.

"I'm Hizashi Yamada!" he said. "My grampa is the royal huntsman for the king." Snow White blinked in surprise.

"Really?"

"Yeah! He had to take care of something, so I was asked to deliver the meat to the head cook, but I kinda got lost?" Hizashi admitted with a small laugh. Snow raised a brow.

"Why didn't you ask a guard or servant?"

"Well, the guards are a little… intense?" Snow White didn't argue that. He had the bruises to prove how "intense" they were. "And I couldn't find anyone near the gate, so I came looking."

Snow frowned at this. Now that he thought about it, there were fewer servants lately. He usually kept to himself, so he didn't think about it right away but it was odd… oh well. It was just less people he had to deal with.

"I'll show you to the kitchen." If he didn't the cook would probably beat him. "Since I don't see any dead animals behind you I'm guessing you left them in the courtyard?"

"Yeah! And thanks!" the hunter said with a large grin. "By the way, you never told me your name." Snow White walked by him.

"You don't need to know it."

"Er, why?"

"It's doubtful we'll meet again."

"Why? Going somewhere?"

"No, it's just unlikely we'll talk again."

"Why?"

Snow White growled as he rolled his eyes. What, was he five?!

"Because I have better things to do than talk to morons!" he snapped. The blond was taken aback at his attitude.

"Sheesh, no need to be rude, Prince BucketHead," he mumbled. Snow twitched but made no comment at the nickname.

Silence fell for five minutes.
"Soooo! You live here? At the palace? That sounds fun! But looks depressing. But I bet the secret passages and stuff make up for that! Ever find a secret room?"
The boy just kept talking and talking! It was annoying. He was loud. Louder than anyone Snow White ever spoke to. He was surprised the whole courtyard didn't hear him.
"Yes, I live here. No, it's not fun. Yes, it's depressing. There are no secret rooms, and you're annoying." Snow White wasn't one to ramble or talk much at all, but something about "Hizashi" brought it out in him. The other boy scowled.
"And you're rude."
"Yes, I am. Take the hint."
"All right, all right."
Snow White stopped outside the kitchen area. He didn't feel like dealing with the cook right now.
"Here we are. Just look for an angry old hag waving a wooden spoon and try not to lose an eye." he told the noisy blond.
"Thanks?" Snow White was already walking away. He had no time for idiots. Okay, that was a lie. He had plenty of time he just didn't want to deal with them.

With a breath of annoyance, he ran a hand through his soppy hair. He made a face. He supposed he'd have to clean up if only so he didn't die from whatever new disease bred in that mop water. He couldn't believe all that water fell on him like that. What were the chances?
He was mindlessly looking around when an orange tabby caught his attention. He noticed that it had something in his mouth. At first, he thought it was a poor, unlucky bird that got caught, but then he saw a red sparkle glint in the light.
Snow White blinked to clear his vision. The cat was holding a ruby necklace in its mouth. Snow White was too far away to see it, but it looked like the necklace his mother used to wear.

He approached the animal, but the feline took off. Before the rational part of his brain could stop him, Snow was chasing after it.
It climbed a tree and jumped over a wall, which made Snow hesitate, but he decided that he had already come this far he might as well go the rest of the way. He used the vines to climb over one side of the wall and down the other. Once he had landed on the ground he glanced around for the tabby cat. He started to disparage until he saw the cat sitting on a stump. He ran towards it and it shot off again, prompting a growl from the human.
This continued for a while until Snow finally lost sight of the animal. Snow White cursed at himself for being so stupid! Chasing some random cat because he thought it had his mother's necklace. The worse part of it is that he knew that it was impossible that was the same necklace. His mother had been cremated with it upon her death. Even if it had survived the fire, someone else would have taken it, just like her other belongings.
He kicked at the ground, teeth in a tight grit as he fought back tears.
"Stupid…"
He stood there for a moment to catch his breath, then decided he should get back to the palace before he got in more trouble. No one ever told him he wasn't allowed to leave, but why push it? As he turned though, he realized something fairly important; he had no idea where he was.
He had been so occupied with the cat that he didn't pay attention to all the twists and turns or how far he was from the castle. More importantly, he had no idea how to get back.
"Are you kidding-?!" Snow banged his head into his palms, growling and moaning at his own idiocy. What should he do now? It wasn't rational to just set off in a random direction, but staying where he was wasn't a bright option either. So what could he do?

After some deliberation with himself for a time, he decided to try and find his way back. Least he become a snack for a lion or a bear or some weird amalgamation of the two. (In a world with wizards that was a possibility.) He walked around for a while, looking for anything familiar. After walking for some time he came across a tall shrub. Frowning in thought, Snow White remembered jumping through a bush to catch the cat, so maybe he was on the right track. He shoved his way through and suddenly Snow found himself falling forward into empty air.

"Look out!" Something reached out and grabbed his shirt, but he was so far over that he just pulled the person with him. They fell through the air, the ground getting closer. Snow closed his eyes but felt his weight being maneuvered in the air till something was below him. They hit the ground with a harsh thud and loud groans. Snow White then felt himself rolling like a ball until he stopped.

With a moan, he opened his eyes and saw that he was lying atop someone with blond hair. A few more blinks told him that this "someone" was the boy he had met earlier that day.

"Hizashi?" The young hunter groaned in pain from beneath him.

"Hate it when that shit happens…" he complained. Hizashi's eyes were closed, but Snow White was able to see the position they were in and quickly pushed off.

"What are you doing here?" he asked as the other sat up.

"'Thanks for saving me.'" Hizashi said in a sarcastic tone. Snow White grumbled, pulling into himself.

"Saved nothing. We still fell," he complained. He looked up and saw that they had fallen from the edge of a cliff. He didn't know the exact height, but he knew that falling from that high wasn't a good thing.

"And lived," Hizashi rolled his eyes when Snow White still said nothing. "I was hunting in the woods and saw you wandering around. Then you literally walked off a cliff, and here we are." Snow White flushed as he looked away.

"I didn't see it." he mumbled.

"Yeah, well, here's a tip; don't push through bushes unless you know what's on the other side."

Snow White grumbled to himself but didn't say anything. Hizashi was right, that was pretty dumb of him.

He made to stand, but as he moved his shoulder gave a painful twinge. He let out a hiss as he gripped his shoulder.

"You okay?" Hizashi was in front of him in an instant.

"Shoulder hurts…" he admitted in a low moan. Hizashi reached out and felt it, making Snow yelp a little in pain.

"Looks like it's dislocated. I've done it a lot myself. Hold on;" He reached out and gripped the brunet's shoulder.

"Wait a minute-!" Snow White had to bite his lip in order not to cry out in pain.

"Sorry. Know that hurts, but it's in now, so that's one less thing we'll have to worry about." It took all his willpower not to curse Hizashi out. Despite the pain, he knew the blonde was right, and he did help.

Hizashi grabbed his dagger and cut off his sleeve to make a sling for Snow White's arm and cut off another piece to clean his scrapes.

"There! All done! Unless you want a kiss to make it better." he said with a wink. He chuckled when Snow glared at him, annoyance all over the scullery boy's face. The hunter in training then tilted his head up so he could see where they fell.

"Well, shit. Looks like we're gonna be stuck out here for a while," he said.

"Why?"

"Because it's dusk and it'll take us about-" He did the math in his head. "Six hours to get back to the palace?" Snow's sore muscles stiffened.

"Six hours?! It only took us a minute to fall!" he exclaimed.

"Yeah, well it's easier to fall off a cliff than climb it, your majesty," Sarcasm covered each one of Hizashi's words. "In our case, we'll have to walk around it. The rain from yesterday made this area too muddy to climb." To prove his point he grabbed a hand full of mud and tossed it in Snow White's direction. Snow made a face as it landed with a soft, plop! "Not that it would have been safe to climb either way. And we can't walk around at night. Too dangerous."

"Great, just great!" So they were supposed to just camp? Out here in the wild? Snow had work to do back at the palace! Dammit, Luna was going to beat him till he could never sit again.

"Glad you're so excited about it." Snow White narrowed his gaze at the blond, who ignored it.

Hizashi helped Snow White to stand and then they started on the path. Along the way, the two picked up branches and stuff to make a fire right away. Snow felt embarrassed that he couldn't do anything to help. He grabbed some sticks, but couldn't carry too many with one arm, so the blond had to carry the load. To his credit, Hizashi never complained about it. In fact, despite being lost in the middle of nowhere he seemed perfectly happy.

"It's not too bad! Besides, if worse comes to worst, gramps can track us down," he said when Snow White brought this up.

"Does he know you're missing?"

"Er, depends how drunk he got at the tavern?" He said, tilting his head towards the sky in thought. "I mean, he'll figure it out eventually? But we'll get back before then."

"Your grampa drinks?" If he was anything like the guards, then that wouldn't be good for them.

"Ah, it's not like that. He just likes to celebrate after a good hunt. Usually, we'd just grab a meal or something, but as I'm fifteen now he lets me wander a bit by myself. Though I was supposed to be back at the tavern room by now. Like I said, I'm hoping that he'll be drunk and hungover enough that he doesn't notice."

"Think you'll get in trouble?" Hizashi tilted his head to look at the orange and pink sky.

"I think… there's a chance I'll be so grounded that I'll be able to make coffee jealous." He laughed, but there was a hint of nervousness that told Snow White he knew he was in trouble. Snow felt guilty for that. After all, Hizashi was only here because of him. He shuffled from foot to foot, rubbing at his arm before he spoke.

"Thanks…"

"Huh?"

"For helping me," he explained. "You're an idiot, but—I'm glad you are. In this case, I mean." He didn't look at the other, instead content to watch the ground as they walked.

"Wow, you suck at thank yous," Hizashi stated. Then he grinned, his smile bright like sunlight. "You're welcome!"

Snow White quickly looked away. He couldn't remember when anyone ever smiled at him like that.

"What about you?"

"What about me?"

"Anyone back at the palace worried about you?" Snow White shook his head.

"Nope. Not at all. I'm just the scullery boy." he said flatly. "The only reason they'd even notice I'm gone is that there's no one to wash the shit pans and everything else."

"Gross…"

"Yeah, my job stinks."

"Hey, so you can joke. Still, I'm sure that's not true. I'm sure someone would care." Snow gave the other a look that told him otherwise.

The two fell into an awkward silence after that. It wasn't long before night fell, but luckily they found a decent place to make camp for the night.

"This area should be fine. The ground's dry, and the ledge here will block most the wind, so we won't freeze." Hizashi explained as he dropped the pile of wood. Hizashi arranged the stack then lit it with a flint that had been in his pocket. Once that was done, both the young teens took a spot by the flame. The two sat away from each other, unsure what to say. Hizashi hadn't said anything else but was obviously anxious as he was shifting from one sitting pose to another every few minutes.

Snow was bemused by him at first, but then he got a headache. He turned his attention to the sky. There weren't many stars as it was cloudy, and the ones he did see weren't that impressive, at least not to him. Then again, maybe that was because he would watch them every night from the palace.

Now he started to shift. Snow White had never spent the night away from the castle. He wondered if anyone noticed he was gone by now.

'I doubt it.' No one at the palace gave a damn about him. No one in the world gave a damn about him. Before these thoughts could consume him, he heard a soft sound. Snow turned his head and saw that Hizashi was singing to himself.

"What's that song?" he asked, oddly curious.

The hunter jumped, unaware he was singing aloud.

"Huh? Oh! It's just a song my dad sang for my mom. He was a bit of a romantic, see? Dunno why I was thinking of it. I'll stop."

"No, that's okay," Snow said quickly. Then he looked away to hide the blush across his face. "Actually, I wouldn't mind hearing it… If you don't mind."

Hizashi grinned.

"Well, I don't usually sing for people, but I'll make an exception for royalty, Prince Buckethead."

"I swear I'm going to punch you if you call me that one more time..."

Hizashi laughed before taking a deep breath and singing his song;

"Now that I've found you

Here's what I have to say

One Song

I have but one song

One song

Only for you

One heart

Tenderly beating

Ever entreating

Constant and true

One love

That has possessed me

One love

Thrilling me through

One song

My heart keeps singing

Of one love

Only for you."

When he finished, he and Snow White were staring into the other's eyes. When they realized this, both quickly looked away, each with flushed, pink faces.

"So, um, yeah! T-that's the song that won mom over." Hizashi blathered. His voice was quick and the words threaten to squash together.

"Hm."

"I mean, it's super cheesy and all, but, I mean, it does—er! Did! Did it's job..."

"Y-yeah…" The two boys fell into an awkward silence, each fidgeting on the spot.

"I, um, I-I'll go get some more firewood, yeah?!" Hizashi said, jumping up.

"Is it safe to leave the fire?" Snow asked, his brows down in concern. Even though Hizashi was a hunter, Shouta heard that there were dangerous creatures about that attacked at night.

"It'll be fine! I have good night vision. Besides, I won't go too far. So if something happens, call out, and I'll rush right back to help, okay?" Snow White's face shifted to a pout as he rested his chin on his knees.

"I'm not a damsel. You don't have to protect me." he huffed, blowing a strand of hair from his face. Hizashi's smile turned into a teasing smirk.

"I don't know, royalty is always so delicate, Prince Buckethead." Snow White punched his thigh.

"OW!"

Hizashi disappeared into the night and Snow was left alone. He thought he'd enjoyed the quiet, however, with only the crackle of fire present the silence became filled with other noises;

The chirping of bugs, the animals in the distance, the rustle of leaves in the wind that brushed against his skin, and sent shivers to his toes. The hissing of the wind was especially unnerving. He tucked his knees closer to his body and hugged them for warmth and comfort. He hadn't noticed how empty everything was or how dark the area was when Hizashi was there. Now that he was alone, it was front and center. The dark loomed over him and surrounded him. Even the moon and stars were gone, swallowed by dark clouds.

Hiss...

Snow White shivered. He wasn't sure why he felt the way he did all of the sudden.

'What the hell? This morning I couldn't stand him, now I can't wait for him to get back? What kind of logic is that?' he thought to himself.

Hiss...

He was probably just nervous about being out here alone, that's all. Okay, maybe it was also nice to have someone to talk to. But what did that matter? Tomorrow he'd be back at the palace and Hizashi would be gone, so why dwell?

Hiss...

Snow White suddenly realized that the hissing wasn't the wind. A cold dread pulsed through his body as he turned. Looming over him on the overhang of a hill was a scaled beast. When their eyes met, it out a cry that paralyzed Snow White.

It was only when he saw the claw swipe down at him that Snow was able to move again. He dodged left. The claws scratched at the ground. Snow tried to push himself to his feet but found it difficult with his injury. So he just crawled backward, trying to think of what he could do to defend himself—fire! The fire! Most animals were scared of flames. Snow White turned himself around and with a force of adrenaline threw himself towards the campfire. He grabbed a stick that was poking out. The teen then whipped himself around, holding the branch like a torch.

"Stay back!" He swung it around, hoping to scare the creature off. However, the beast just seemed to be amused. It dropped its jaw and a ball of fire shot out. Snow White didn't so much dodge as he did stumble to the side in shock, but this did save him from getting burned alive. It, however, did not save him from the long tail that hit his side. A sharp gasp was ripped from Snow's throat as the tail connected with his ribs. He wasn't sure, but he thought he heard something crack. The brunet was flung back and rolled on the ground. With a groan, he looked up to see the creature approaching him. Even so, Snow White couldn't find it in him to move.

'So this is it, huh?' This was how he was going to die. Eaten by whatever this was.

Maybe this was for the best. He was only alive to feed the ego of a brat king. No one cared if he lived or died anyway, so-

"GET AWAY FROM HIM!"

Snow White's eyes widen as Hizashi landed between Snow White and the beast, crossbow already firing at the beast's neck. It let out a scathing cry as the bolt hit it.

As it clawed at its neck Hizashi tugged a stunned Snow to his feet.

"Come on!" He yanked the frightened boy after him and dragged him towards the trees. Snow allowed himself to be pulled along and looked over his shoulder at the monster. It ripped out the bolt and was now snarling after them. It chased after them.

"Hizashi!" Hizashi turned and shot another bolt. This one missed only managing to scratch it. It snarled in fury, blazing eyes promising to make them pay for both shots. Hizashi shoved Snow towards the calliope of trees.

"Run! Hide in the trees!" he yelled.

"What about you?!"

"I'll hold it off. Get out of here! Now!"

"Look out!"

The beast leaped at Hizashi and before the young hunter could move he was knocked back. Hizashi's teeth snapped together as a surge of pain spread through his body, courtesy of his back hitting the ground. The beast pinned him with its claws and growled as it loomed over him. Hizashi flinched as the beast started to open its maw and was struck speechless with fright.

Snow White scrambled to where the crossbow was. In a panicked motion, he snatched it off the ground. But as if a dislocated shoulder didn't make things hard enough, his other arm was shaking. As a result, it was hard to steady the weapon. Finally, he managed to grasp it and aimed it at the monster. Just as a fire started to swell in its throat.

"No!" Snow's eyes stung and the monster's flame vanished just as the bolt was released. The bolt soared through the air until it nailed the beast in the eye.

As it reared back, Hizashi rolled out from under it and onto his feet. He then grasped a dagger from behind him and leaped at the beast and dragged it through its throat. The beast flailed and clawed at Hizashi, slashing his arm, but eventually, its thrashing stopped. It fell to the earth with a thud. Hizashi jumped off its back when it did. Both the boys watched it, their harsh breaths filling the air.

Once they were sure it was safe, Hizashi's legs gave out from under him.

"Hizashi!" Snow ran to his side and fell beside him, crossbow set aside.

"I'm fine, I'm fine!" Hizashi wheezed, as though he could barely believe it. "Dunno what a wyvern was doing out here though…"

Snow White didn't believe for one second that the boy was fine. He was covered in scratches and his skin was bruised, not to mention there was a large bump over his eye. Snow White felt himself getting frustrated.

"What were you thinking?!" he snapped. He shook the hunter partly to make sure he was alive, partly to shake some common sense into that brainless skull, but mostly because if he didn't he'd most likely strangle the boy. His red eyes were wide with worry as he looked Hizashi over to assess the damage.

Hizashi laughed, just as frazzled as Snow was, maybe more so. Even so, he forced a smile on his face.

"Well...I wasn't. I wasn't thinking at all. I just… I just knew that I had to protect you, ya know? That was all that mattered," He flushed when he realized what he said. "I-I mean, it's only natural, yeah? I've got the weapons and well, I am the hunter and all..."

Snow White's blush was very visible on his pale skin which heated higher by the second, so he looked away.

"Idiot." he muttered. Hizashi huffed his lips.

"Like you're one to talk, Prince Buckethead," he pouted. Snow grumbled to himself.

"...Told you not to call me that," he said.

Hizashi just laughed in response, making Snow White's heartbeat quicken. When he stopped Hizashi stared at him with a soft look.

"I'm glad you're okay," he said in the most genuine tone Snow White ever heard.

Snow White didn't say anything, worried that his words would betray him.

"So! Now that I've proven myself a dashing hero, can I get your name, fair gent?"

In all that had happened today Snow White realized that he never gave Hizashi his name. It hadn't occurred to him at all.

"… My name is..."

777

"You were the servant boy in the story, right?" Toru guessed. Though he couldn't see her face, Shouta could tell her eyes were shining. He omitted the parts about him being a royal, the abuse, and some of his more personal thoughts. Other than that though, he had told them the whole story of how he and Hizashi met.

"Yeah."

"Did you fall in love with him right away?" Ochaco asked.

"Not right away..." Shouta muttered, his cheeks slightly rosy.

"But you started dating after that, right?" Tsuyu pressed.

"Not right away," he repeated. He tugged at his hair in absent thought. "But we met whenever he came back to the palace and over time… yeah, we started dating."

"You never got married?" Izuku inquired.

"Obviously not."

At first, Shouta had been lost in nostalgia at meeting his first loves, but now the memories hurt.

'Hizashi…' His face dropped as he thought of Hizashi. His wonderful, stupid Hizashi, who Shouta had no idea if he was okay or...

He hadn't seen or heard from him in so long. Where was he? Was he alright? Or was he trapped in the king's dungeon being tortured to death?

It's funny. The last time he and his love were together, Shouta had been so scared that Hizashi would leave him. And in a way, he did. Now he might never see him again...

"Mr. Aizawa? Are you okay?" Tsuyu pulled at his shirt and gave him a concerned look. They all were.

Maybe it was the story or his deeply-seeded feelings of dread, but Shouta couldn't take it anymore.

"I miss him," he admitted. "I don't know where he is, or if he's alright, or even if..."

'He's still alive.' He couldn't say that part out loud. If he did then his heart would shatter.

"I have to find him. But I don't know where to look."

"You can't search the woods alone," Momo said. "They're huge! And dangerous." Shouta didn't need to be told that.
"Even so, I have to try," he said, trying not to image Hizashi being killed by the forest and have his corpse hang on their branches like an ornament. "Where ever he is—I have to find him."
The dwarfs shared a look but hesitated to speak. Finally, Tenya took the incentive and spoke up;
"Like Momoyao said, it's too dangerous to search the woods. But- maybe we can narrow it down, or make it so you don't have to search at all." Shouta frowned slightly.
"How?"
"Well… you could always go see the witch."
Shouta blinked a few times.
"The Witch?" There was a witch here? No, wait. That made perfect sense; creepy woods always have a witch hiding in them.
Tenya furrowed his brow as he fought to remember something.
"My brother told me there was a witch that lived in the forest to the east but to be careful because um,… she's a witch?"

"We haven't sought her out because we're worried she might eat us since we're kids," Denki explained as if it was a common fact that witches in woods ate children. "But we have an idea where she is. Maybe she could use her witchy powers to tell you where your friend is."

Ochaco took Shouta's hand in hers and patted it.

"We can all go look for her tomorrow," she promised. "Then we'll find your Hizashi together, okay?"

Shouta closed his eyes.

"Thank you," he said through a heavy breath.

'Hold on, Hizashi. I'll find you.'

{To be Continued...}

A/N:

*Since the lovers were separated in chapter 2, I wanted write more moments of them together. Plus, this is an Erasermic story, I had to add more Erasermic to it. Also wanted to show the basic dynamic of the two in this story; Shouta will get into trouble, Hizashi will try to save him then get into trouble resulting in Shouta having to save him.

*Starting next chapter, the angst is going to be turned up a notch, so prepare yourself!

Meta Notes:

*The cat was supposed to have a larger role in the story, but now it's just a delusion of Shouta's. Don't think too hard about it, its story arc is gone. I just didn't have another way to get Shouta out of the palace for this chapter. No, this isn't me trying to throw you off at all. Don't make conspiracy theories about the cat.

*I just realized that all this time I forgot Tsuyu's little "ribbit" that she's supposed to do while talking. Think anyone would notice if I just started slipping it in? ^^; Meh, probably too late now.

World Notes:

*Despite being called Dragon wannabes Wyvern are still dangerous creatures to meet on the road and fairly aggressive. They used to live in the Ashen Plains, but a severe change in their habitat has forced them to migrate elsewhere.