Notes: Me at myself: Don't get lost in the exposition and world building.
Also me: But I want to write about Todoroki and his daemon. ;_;
One day, I swear. In the meantime, let's take a visit with everyone's favorite Kacchako trope: sparring.
Notes on Daemons
Katsuki Bakugou: Eurasian Wolf - Mako
Ochako Uraraka: Asian Golden Cat - Hayato
Izuku Midoriya: Maned Wolf - Tomoko
Shouto Todoroki: Arctic Fox - Shizuka
Tenya Iida: Peregrine Falcon - Shun
Tsuyu Asui: Poison Dart Frog - Kouki
Day Three: Rematch
Ochako had known that she was in for a bumpy ride when she had asked Bakugou for a rematch, but she hadn't realized just how intense it would be. Not that she hadn't expected anything less from him, but the moment she had been able to dodge that first punch, which could've knocked her across the room had it connected, her blood had begun to sing and she could feel Hayato's excitement and determination thrumming strongly through their bond. He was cheering for her out loud, but it was his emotions that bolstered her further.
It had been a few weeks into their third year when she realized that she and Bakugou went to Gamma Gym around the same time. However, as soon as she'd noticed him, she couldn't stop noticing him. It was impossible to ignore someone that simply radiated strength. She'd picked it out their first day of school when she had spotted his wolf daemon, but it was somehow different now. It was overwhelming. It was more. He didn't even need to use his quirk these days for that feeling of power to radiate from him.
Of course, he had to be like that if he was going to compete with Deku and Todoroki.
They had grown a lot too since the very beginning. Ochako hadn't really thought about what would change as they grew during the three years they were at UA, but Deku hitting a growth spurt and gaining muscle had caught her off guard. Even his Tomoko was stronger-looking, although she would never be able to grow completely out of that thin body. It was all her and totally unique. As much power as they had though, Deku still got lost in thought and Tomoko continued to play around with Hayato.
Meanwhile, Todoroki had begun to, for lack of a better word, thaw out as the years passed. The more he used the fire side of his quirk, the more powerful he became. It had taken until Uraraka had nearly died for his Shizuka to start speaking with Hayato, but once they did, the two of them became exceptionally close. It was unexpected of the fox daemon, who was even more closed off than Todoroki. Hayato kept their conversations private, although he admitted that he was uncertain if Shizuka did the same.
Bakugou couldn't expect to become one of the top heroes if he did not grow and change at least a little during his time at UA. They went in as children and they would come out as heroes, one way or another. He was still arrogant as hell and could be an asshole when he wasn't in the mood, but he had people that he cared about and he was much more willing to work with others. Ochako had thought Mako was massive when they were first years. Now in their third year, she had grown larger with more muscle, massive paws, and even sharper teeth. Her muzzle was thinner than the wolves seen on television, but that didn't make her any less dangerous.
The most notable thing about her was the scar on her face, but that had been there since the kidnapping. Most daemon wounds healed without incident, but occasionally, if the wound was deep enough, both physically and mentally, it didn't. No one ever mentioned it, not even Deku, although Tomoko must have asked because she and Mako had gotten into it severely after their first Provisional License Exam. The scar wasn't as large three years later, but it was still there, just as Deku's and Tomoko's had never faded as well.
Mako prowled on the outskirts of the mat now, her head held low like she might growl and her eyes locked on Ochako and Bakugou as they grappled with each other. Just as it had been impossible to ignore Bakugou's power, she could feel the wolf daemon's eyes locked on her, sizing her up for what felt like a meal. It was the same way Bakugou looked at her now as he looked for an opening, but instead of scaring her, she felt thrilled. Not to mention sore as hell.
She had done more with hero internships to help with her hand-to-hand combat and fighting skills, but what she really needed was a sparring partner. Practicing moves and hitting a punching bag would only do so much. Hayato had pointed out that Bakugou had been the one to inspire her and recognize her weak spot in the first place. Plus they went to the gym at the same time. Maybe back in their first year she would've hesitated to ask him, but now in their third year and much more comfortable with each other after having lived in the dorms, it hadn't taken her much to walk up and basically ask him if he'd fight her.
Instead of scoffing or turning her away, Bakugou had smirked and asked, "You looking to get your ass kicked?"
Ochako thought she put up a damn good fight, especially after a month of going at it with him, but she knew that there was plenty of room to improve too. Bakugou was on such a higher level than her and she knew that he wasn't going all out, if only because they couldn't rely on Recovery Girl to patch them up every time they got into a down and dirty rough and tumble. She was fine with that. She had to learn and couldn't start where he was and he was able to learn how to rein himself in when the situation called for it.
No matter how much he threw her around today, without the use of his quirk, she always got back up again and, even though he harped on her about her form or something else, Bakugou was obviously pleased with the results. His eyes were sharp and intent, but there was a faint smirk on his face that he couldn't seem to wipe off. He was much quicker than her, light on his feet as he circled her counterclockwise while his daemon went the other way. Hayato sat still on top of a bench, watching Ochako's every move. It felt like a game of wolf and prey, but even if she was the prey, she'd fight like hell back.
Going at him again, Ochako went in for the attack and then dived to the left to hit him on his side. He slid his left feet back almost effortlessly to get out of her reach and grabbed her wrist to use her own momentum to throw her onto the ground. She hit the mat hard, rolling all the way off it. Her body ached and begged for a break, but she pushed herself up anyways.
Bakugou shook his head. "Too obvious, Uraraka. You've gotta surprise me."
"Katsuki loves surprises," Mako supplied from the side. She padded closer over to Uraraka, to the point where it put her on edge, but kept an appropriate distance. After examining her so thoroughly that Uraraka wanted to squirm, the wolf daemon actually snickered. "People are going to think that he's beating you."
He wasn't, but it sure looked like it. Ochako had well-earned bruises all over her that she didn't regret one bit. Sure, Tsuyu asked her if she was alright, her little Kouki pointing out that Uraraka had more color on her than him. Iida had even pulled her aside to ask if there was anything she needed to talk about in private. That had made Hayato laugh so loudly that his poor falcon daemon had ruffled her feathers and leapt from his shoulder to tut at him. Shun hadn't taken Hayato's amusement of Iida's concern well. Deku hadn't asked, but then Hayato noted that Tomoko had been paying attention to Bakugou and Mako more.
None of them knew exactly what Ochako and Bakugou were doing. In fact, they weren't aware of it at all. Not that they would disapprove, but she knew that he was actually a private person and she liked the idea of improving her skills without everyone knowing. They were her friends, but they could also be competition and having one over them would show them that she meant serious business.
Bakugou waved his fingers at her. "Again."
This time, when Ochako came at him, she moved to dodge to the right and Bakugou started to actually sigh, but then she sprung up at the last second and activated her quirk on herself to flip right over him. He tried to duck and grab her by the ankle at the same time, but she planted a hand on his shoulder and lifted her legs of his reach. She didn't activate her quirk on him until she was completely over him, gripping the sleeve his shirt, and throwing him as hard as she could.
Without his gravity, using his quirk to steady himself would be disastrous, and not used to being without it, he had no way of controlling himself in the air and he slammed into the wall. Throwing him had shoved her to the ground and she planted her feet on the ground to spring at him again, still holding onto her quirk. He did the same on the wall though and leaped to the ceiling, spinning around in wobbly manner to land upside down on his feet. This time, despite the danger, he used a small pop his quirk to launch himself at her, too quick for her to dodge, and he slammed her down onto the mat.
Fighting for air, Ochako pressed her fingers together in between their chests and gasped, "Release."
Unfortunately, that meant all of Bakugou's weight fell on top of her as they dropped a few inches back to the ground that they'd started to float from. He tried to catch himself, but it was difficult with his arms around her waist. Instead what ended up happening was Bakugou landing in between her legs and his face against her chest. His face was bright red when he planted his hands on either side of her and shoved himself up, but she couldn't tell if it was from the fight or embarrassment. She knew which one was causing her to blush.
Bakugou was heavily breathing, but managed to tell her, "Not bad."
"You did okay without gravity," Ochako told him, looking up at him.
He didn't move off her and she didn't try to slide out from underneath him. The two of them stared at each other, like they were stuck. Maybe it was another competition where the first one to blink or move lost. It sometimes felt like everything was a competition or a fight with Bakugou, but she was ready to rise to the occasion. Her heart was still racing wildly as she tried to puzzle the emotion in his red eyes. She felt compelled to touch his face, as if it might give her a clue, but he snatched her by the wrist before she could and her heart skipped a beat. Instead of looking angry though, there was something else on his face that she'd never seen before.
And then Hayato was in her face, peering at her with worried brown eyes. "Are you okay? You two landed hard!"
Whatever feeling passing between them was shattered. Bakugou scrambled off and away from her so quickly that she barely had time to blink. She sat up and let Hayato jump into her lap to center her. She felt dazed and her mind was elsewhere. When she looked down at her daemon, he was peering at her with a knowing look in his eyes that had her narrowing hers at him. He didn't look so worried anymore.
When Ochako looked over, she spotted Bakugou and Mako arguing with each other under their breath, just quiet enough to where she couldn't understand what they were saying. Bakugou's cheeks were still flushed and his arms were folded across his chest while Mako was sitting on her haunches at his feet and peering up at him, that typical lupine grin on her face so that her teeth were showing. She looked amused and smug all at once, like Bakugou did whenever he won.
The two stopped arguing and Bakugou's eyes flickered over to her, his gaze so fiery and intense that Ochako held her breath, and then he was stomping away, snatching up his gym bag and leaving. "I'm out!" he called, sounding angry, which was completely at odds with how he'd been looking at her only moments before.
Mako was slower, standing up and shaking her head as she followed him out the gym. Right before she pushed through the doors, she turned back around and cheekily said, "We'll see you around," and then was gone.
Honestly, everything had happened so fast that Ochako didn't know what to do. After all, she was still sitting on the mat where Bakugou had pinned her. Silence overtook the room as her brain tried to work through what the hell went wrong. They had gotten into arguments before - the price of working with someone as opinionated and upfront as Bakugou - but nothing like this.
"What happened?" Ochako finally asked.
Hayato hummed and she knew he was pleased. "Something a long time coming."
Ochako frowned. Well that didn't make any sense at all.
