Getting fired up and Getting Fired

"Wow! You know, when I taught you how to cook, I never thought you'd be this good."

"Huh? Whatta ya mean? I can do anything!"

Uraraka giggled, deciding not to argue. It had only taken a few hours for Bakugou to understand how everything in the kitchen worked. It took him less than a week to become the best chef Uraraka had ever seen. She watched as Bakugou sliced through the veggies quicker than an automatic machine could. It was kind of creepy, how good he was with a knife. But, she tried not to think about that. Meal prep time was halved because of his skills! Once she'd even invited Midoriya over to see him cook.

Well, tried. As soon as Bakugou heard he was cooking for Midoriya he threw down his knives and went to work out back.

That night, at around five, Uraraka and Bakugou enjoyed yet another one of Bakugou's home cooked meals. She silently wished they had enough money to get him more stuff. Then the food would be even more awesome! Unfortunately, Uraraka didn't even have the time to enjoy it. "Gah. I've got to get ready to go. I start work in half an hour!"

Bakugou blinked up at his human as she pushed her food into one of those plastic boxes she had and into the fridge. For some reason, always around that time, she'd leave in a rush. That was fine with Bakugou. He didn't care where she went. Besides, she was gone in the mornings and during the day all the time so he hardly noticed except for those days when she was at home.

But the times she left at night…It wasn't that he cared that she was out. But when she got back, he could smell the difference on her. Whenever she returned from her night trips, he began cursing Overhaul for giving him a sensitive nose. There was the distinct smell of this…burning, harsh liquid. Almost like a deadly yet intoxicating smell at the same time. That itself was annoying enough to deal with. Then there was the other smells. He could smell, distinctly, a number of male scents around her. Majority were just close and annoying, but there were a few that seemed to close, as if they'd actually touched her. He remembered one day she came back in a bad mood with the small of a male covering her shoulder. The thought of some humans all over his human sent rage coursing through him. Who the heck did some measly humans think they were? What was Uraraka even doing to be around so many males? Her morning events made her come back with the smells of only friends he had met, but the one at night had humans getting far too close for his liking.

That bugged him. That bugged him a lot.

"Where are you going?" Uraraka paused packing her bag to look up at him. His voice was heavier than it normally was, which was odd, even for him.

"I'm going to work. At the bar?" She was sure she'd told him about that before. She had, but Bakugou hadn't paid attention then. Now the thoughts of many humans on her sent his heartrate into overdrive. He didn't know what a 'bar' was but he decided right away he didn't like it. It was frustrating that the human didn't seem to see this herself.

After quite a long pause, Bakugou stood up as well. "I'm coming to." Uraraka stared at him. He glared at her in response. "What?"

"Nothing! Just…You've never really showed interest in my work before." He grunted, giving no answer other than that. Uraraka decided to chalk it up to just another one of the mysteries that was Bakugou. "Alright. But you know I won't be able to talk to you much. I'm going to need to actually work."

"Don't care. Let's just go, Uraraka." Uraraka blew out her cheeks in annoyance. Well, at least he was coming. Maybe she could introduce him to Gunhead...On second thought, she wasn't sure she wanted Bakugou meeting her favourite teacher.

Before she turned back to her stuff, though, she paused. Had he just called her by her name?

Unfortunately, Gunhead was not there that night.

Uraraka sighed as she wiped the bar. Sure she'd guessed that he probably wouldn't be there that night. But she'd been hopeful. Since she was busy working, she'd hoped that Bakugou would have someone to keep him company. In the end, all that happened was Bakugou had to sit at the counter watching Uraraka while only taking breaks to glare at the customers that went up to her. Really, it wasn't that good for business.

Oddly enough he seemed to fit in there pretty well. No one could identify the tattoos on his arms, but they added to his rough demeanor. The scary face, permanent growl and sharp eyes kept everyone at a distance. It was kind of funny to watch from Uraraka's perspective. And hey, most of the creeps that sometimes came to the bar were too scared to go up to her that night. That was quite a relief. Even the security guard tried not to look his way!

After giving a group of friends their drinks, she headed over to the bar near Bakugou's stool. "Did you want a drink Bakugou? You've been just sitting here, staring at everyone all evening." Again, Bakugou said nothing. He continued to survey the setting with a cautious gaze, as if he was an undercover cop looking for a culprit. Uraraka wondered if that was the reason people were avoiding making eye contact with him. He'd be great in a good cop bad cop situation. "Bakugou?"

"This is lame," Bakugou finally answered. With a scowl, he looked up at her. "Nothing happens here. All you do is talk to humans and bring them drinks and food."

Again he had managed to confuse Uraraka. Did he say humans? "Well, yea. What did you think would happen?"

"I thought there would be a bunch of losers who'd get their f #$*%g faces punched in."

His voice was serious, but Uraraka couldn't help but laugh. "I-If you wanted a fight, you should have gone to a wrestling match! Really, not much happens here other than that?"

Bakugou slammed his hands down on the counter, startling her. "Then how come I always smell so many humans who have touched you?" A number of customers shivered at his yelling, either staring openly or trying to avoid looking altogether. Uraraka was the only one who actually paid attention to what he'd said, not his screaming. Smell like humans?

"Heeey, bartender!" Both Uraraka and Bakugou looked up at the third party that had joined. Uraraka groaned, recognizing this as the man who had caused problems for her a while ago. Bakugou recognized the foul stench as the human who had put his hand on Uraraka's shoulder when she came back in a bad mood. The memory made Bakugou's hair stand on end. The stranger didn't seem to notice Bakugou and walked right up to Uraraka, pushing himself right in her face. "You-you really look nice, you know?" His voice was slurred and he had an awful smell about him. Bakugou scrunched his nose up in disgust.

Uraraka's nose twitched, but she was able to forcibly keep her expression under control. "Sir, you've had too much to drink. Again," she added, under her breath. Drink? Curiously, Bakugou sniffed the pitcher Uraraka left on the counter. He could smell a faint mixture of something he had not found in Uraraka's house. Ah, so the drink Uraraka served was some form of inhibitor. It dulled the human senses. Was this place a human ploy in order to trap people and make them do their bidding? If that was so, Bakugou had to admit he was impressed. Uraraka was more devious than he thought.

…She hadn't been trying to trick HIM during his stay at her house, had she?

While he debated this internal dilemma, the man let out a laugh that made even Bakugou think twice. "No I haven't! Aw, come on. I'm not asking for a drink, I'm just talking!" Bakugou's eyes narrowed at the man. Uraraka, so far, had been decent to everyone he'd seen her with. This man however…her arms were crossed in front of her chest and her face was barred off. Not a good guy.

"Fine. Then sit down."

"Don't sound so harsh!" he slurred his words, not noticing as Ochaco placed the tray on the counter cautiously as she tried to keep some distance between them. "I, I just want to get to know you." Bakugou already didn't like this guy. He smelled, he talked like an idiot, and more than that, there was a dark look in his eyes that said he clearly didn't want to get to know her. It wasn't a look Bakugou particularly recognized, but he knew malicious intent when he saw it.

Apparently Uraraka was able to see it too. "Well I'm afraid I'm working right now. And I live up the mountain, so I can't say I'd be able to spend time with you." Bakugou's approval rating of Uraraka went up a few notches. She was able to hold her ground without even stumbling against this man. Nice.

"Eh? Up the mountain, oh sweetheart." His voice changed as if he was pitying her. Looking down on her. The thought made Bakugou fume. She obviously was the superior of the two, how dare he look down on her! "It's can't be nice having such a pretty girl up in that big house all alone, huh? Must be scary~." He winked, reaching out and tucking her hair behind her ear. Uraraka recoiled in shock, but Bakugou had seen enough. If she wasn't going to fight him, then Bakugou needed to teach this loser a lesson.

Not even a second passed before Bakugou was up on his feet, between Uraraka and the stranger. "She's not alone," Bakugou interjected. The man looked so stunned he stumbled backwards. Though some of that might have been from the drink. Uraraka at first looked confused- then when she noticed the anger radiating out of him, started to feel dread. Oh no-

"Eh? Who are you supposed to be?" The man puffed up his chest, similar to the teenager Bakugou had fought a while ago. Was it a human attempt to frighten him? If it was, it was pathetic. Bakugou could clearly see that the man was in no condition to actually fight, and even if he was, Bakugou was certain it would take less than ten minutes to destroy him.

"The guy who's gonna kick you're a# if you don't go back to sitting on it," Bakugou answered with more bite than Uraraka thought necessary. He was just a drunk guy? Bakugou HAD to know what drunk guys looked like before. Maybe he was worried she couldn't stop him herself? It wasn't like Bakugou had really seen her fight before.

Gently Uraraka placed a hand on Bakugou's shoulder. Bakugou whirled around, startled by the sudden contact. Uraraka tried to reassure him with a look, but Bakugou refused to maintain the eye contact long. Normally she was able to calm him down when he got to mad! This was…well, exactly like him, but it was strange that he wasn't reacting to Uraraka. Seeing that nothing she did would calm Bakugou down, she turned back to the man. "Look, if you don't leave right now, I will call security again. If this becomes a common occurrence, then we have the right to ban you from this store." Bakugou tried not to pay attention, but he couldn't help feeling a sense of pride in the determination in his human's voice.

The man's confidence wavered at that. He was a frequent customer, and Uraraka doubted he wanted to change that. After a moment of debating, the man let out a grumble. "Fine. Whatever." Bakugou's fire began to fade when the man turned away, stumbling as he did. Uraraka let out a sigh of relief, thankful that there would be no problems that night.

Unfortunately thinking it seemed to jinx it.

"If you ever get tired of that weakling," The man called back. "Give me a shout. See what a real man is like."

Inwardly, Uraraka groaned. Oh no.

"DIE!"

No one even saw Bakugou move. One second he was next to Uraraka about to sit down on the stool again. The next second, the stranger was lying in the middle of a broken table, splinters and pieces of wood scattered around him and Bakugou standing above him. He'd moved so fast that everyone gasped in surprise. There was even a faint mist, steam coming off of him. Uraraka stared, stunned. She didn't know he could move that fast. HOW could he move that fast?

The man in the destruction groaned. Uraraka snapped out of shock. When the feelings of surprise passed, fear coursed through her. "Oh my gosh! Bakugou, no!" Bakugou didn't seem to hear her. He did have a habit of never bending to what other people wanted. Unfortunately that was the time he needed to bend. Without even glancing at her, Bakugou grabbed the stranger by the cuff of his jacket. Effortlessly he lifted him into the air, making the man screech in terror.

"You want to see how a real man fights?" Bakugou hissed. Catching sight of him, Uraraka paused in surprise. His body was tense, but not from pure battle stamina. There was excitement. A thrill at being able to overpower this man, of being able to stand above him. The smile on his face made Uraraka's blood coil. People weren't supposed to look like that when hurting another human being. And his eyes…

For the most part, Uraraka had managed to ignore his red eyes. She'd assumed they were parts of his costume, coloured contacts that he didn't want to take out for some reason. But in that moment the red in his eyes was deeper, darker than she had ever seen it. And it was filled with satisfaction. At seeing another man tremble in his hands.

A question that had been considered before came to her mind again. But for the first time, she asked it to more than just herself. With wide eyes and a gaping mouth, she asked Bakugou. "…Who are you?"

Bakugou's head snapped around at the sound. It was the first time that Uraraka flinched, showing visible fear. Bakugou caught the movement. He saw, when he met her eyes, the fear that was there. Fear over him. Something he was used to. He'd seen that expression in many eyes before.

But none of them were Uraraka's brown eyes.

Bakugou stopped. His hands slackened on his hold on the man. His glee at finally being in battle again faded when he saw his human's fear. The smile faded, transforming into a look of confusion. She was afraid of him. That was clear. That was normal.

Why did he care?

For a moment the room was silent. Empty but for the gasping of the man who fell to the table. Neither Bakugou nor Uraraka paid attention to the man who stumbled to his feet while they stared at each other, a silent war battling within both of them. Uraraka was frozen in fear, so unsure of the man who she had thought had become a friend, but at the moment wasn't sure anymore. Bakugou responded by locking onto her eyes with his own confusion. He wasn't sure what had changed to make him so mesmerized. It felt as if his heart was going to burst as he waited in…in fear…for her reaction. Was that fear? Bakugou wasn't sure he'd really felt that before. Every second that passed where she said nothing made the fear grow and grow. He was impatient. He wanted something.

"What? What are you," Bakugou didn't get the chance to finish his sentence. As he spoke, Uraraka caught something out of the corner of her eye. And it caused more fear than before.

"Bakugou, move!" In an instant Uraraka dove forward, catching the stranger who had tried lunging at him. Instinctively, Bakugou cursed. He was so mesmerized by Uraraka's expression that he hadn't paid attention to the movements around him. The stranger who had tried attacking him was caught off-guard by Uraraka coming to his defense. Before he could react Uraraka grabbed him by the arm, kicked her leg out to trip him, and then slammed him into a booth. Cups and glass pitchers went flying, causing people to shriek and duck for cover. As soon as Uraraka had done it, she jumped back. The man tried to get up again, waving one hand out to try and get at least one hit in.

But Bakugou was alert again. Grabbing Uraraka he yanked her out of the man's reach, then using his free hand, shoved the man in the back so hard he went flying through the window in front of the booth. The glass shattered, and the man was thrown outside into the cold, leaving nothing but a stunned silence behind him.

While the customers all rushed around, trying to get out of the building our just away from the damage, Uraraka silently tried to replay what had just happened. She had been afraid of Bakugou. For a moment, she was truly terrified of who he could be. And she wanted his answer. She wanted him to answer who he was. But he hadn't gotten the chance…because she had defended him.

She was afraid. Afraid of him. Of what he hadn't told her about himself. But that didn't change that somehow…they were friends. One broken table couldn't change that. When she turned to look at him, who stared back at her just as stunned as she was, she couldn't help the small smile. "We…Made a pretty good team there!"

Bakugou on the other hand was stunned. She could fight? Well, her movements were slow and sloppy, but apparently it was much better than the other human. The idea of his human being capable of attacking was…not an unpleasant thought. He was startled by her suggestion of teamwork. He'd done all the heavy lifting. But, in the corner of his mind, he acknowledged that she had helped to. How seamlessly they'd been able to move together brought a confusing smile to his face.

Their moment together was shattered by screaming from behind them. "What on earth happened?" Uraraka spun around and her heart stopped beating. It was her manager, coming out after hearing all the noise to see part of his bar in pieces. With her and Bakugou standing in the wreckage.

"S-Sir!" She rushed over to him, ignoring the annoyed expression on Bakugou's face when she ignored him. "I…There was this man, and he,"

That happened to be the perfect-or worst- time for said stranger to throw himself through the doors. If nothing else, the man was quite persistent. "That," He gasped, surprisingly with only a few scrapes and bruises. "Those two attacked me!" Bakugou hissed, wondering why the human wasn't dead yet. He stumbled in fear, but Uraraka rushed back to try and calm Bakugou down again. The boss watched this exchange, confusion still plain on his face. Of course he recognized the man, he'd caused many problems in the past before. But the stranger with Uraraka, he did not recognize. And the damage around the bar was way too much for that man to have done.

Uraraka quickly tried jumping to Bakugou's defense. "Bakugou was only trying to help me, I promise, he,"

"He's with you?" Her manager looked over Bakugou. He took in the tattoos, the dark angry expression and the muscular build that would have made anyone run in fear. The other man may have been annoying, but it only took the manager one snap judgement to decide who was really at fault for the destruction.

Uraraka hesitated while Bakugou studied her curiously. Why was she hesitating? Why was she even explaining herself to this human? "I…yes, but,"

"And you attacked him to."

"Sir, he was drunk!" Ochaco told him desperately.

"That doesn't mean you can attack people Uraraka! You know this!" Not able to attack people? Bakugou found this line the most confusing thing he had heard that evening.

"I know, and I am so sorry." She wanted to say she had a good justification, but she didn't. Bakugou had attacked the man with far too much force, and Uraraka had joined in. Even if she was defending Bakugou, they both used far too much force for the situation, and a drunk man couldn't have done that much to them in the first place. She knew that there was no way she could explain their case to him to make him forgive and forget.

There was a pause as the man-continuing to protest- was taken away, again, by the security guards. People took the chance to duck out, leaving the business closed off from any money for the night. He would definitely be banned from coming again. But the problem wasn't just the noise disturbance. No, the manger only had one thought on his mind. "Uraraka, you- Do you know how much this damage is going to cost?"

"I-I'm so sorry. I'll find a way to fix it, I promise,"

"Uraraka." The manager stopped her. His voice was grave. Both of them knew that Uraraka couldn't fix what she'd broken. She didn't have enough money to pay for it. So there was only one real choice for him to make. There was regret of course. But as the owner, he had to make the important decisions. "I think that…we're done here." There was silence for a moment, then he added, "You are done here."

Uraraka thought her heart stopped. "W-what? No! Sir, I-"

"Don't make this any harder than it has to be Uraraka." He interrupted.

"…Yes sir."

After a pause he added, "I won't put it on your record. I'll just say you quit. That way it should be easier to find another job." Uraraka said nothing. The manager realized this, and with a heavy sigh, placed a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry."

Again she said nothing. As the manager walked away, she said nothing. When Bakugou came up behind her, she said nothing. When Bakugou spoke up, she said nothing. "That b#$%$%d should have been taught a lesson a long time ago." Again, Uraraka said nothing. Bakugou noticed this, catching the shaking of her arms and quiver of her lip. "What? What's wrong with you?" Again, she said nothing. Instead she quietly went behind the bar and grabbed her things. Without one word to Bakugou or anyone else, she headed out the door. Bakugou was confused, but there was a stinging feeling in her heart that he was part of the reason she wasn't speaking again. He didn't know how. He'd just fought a bad guy. Heck that had to be the only good thing he'd ever done in his life! But Uraraka still wasn't looking at him. Even as they left the building, Uraraka didn't look up. Eventually even Bakugou ran out of complaints to give and stuff to yell at. They fell into a silence that Uraraka didn't notice, but Bakugou found extremely uncomfortable.

After some time passed, Bakugou's voice was quieter when he spoke again. "…If you were more agile on your feet, you'd be able to catch them quicker Uraraka." Uraraka. Her name again. It may have meant nothing. But in Bakugou language, it could have also meant everything.

That, if nothing else, allowed her to show a small smile. "Thanks' Bakugou."

Uraraka went straight to her room when they got back. This didn't make sense to Bakugou. He was certain he'd gotten her nighttime schedule down, but it was far too early for her to retire to sleep. He hoped that the one attack hadn't drained her of all her energy. That would have just been pathetic. And he was starting to be happy with the idea that his human wasn't as pathetic as he originally expected her to be.

Maybe it was what that man had said. Something about her being done. He didn't understand all that they had said, but it had sounded as if she was being lectured. Which was idiotic. She and he should have been praised for what they did, putting that weakling in his place. That weakling who had apparently put his hands on her before…The reminder made his blood boil. If she wasn't going back to that place, Bakugou was thrilled. He wouldn't have to worry about other humans touching her anymore.

But she had been upset about it. He didn't understand why, but it was the only logical reason he could think of. Somehow their actions had gotten her in trouble, she was no longer able to return to that place, and she was upset about it. Bakugou of course didn't care…but he didn't want her trudging around the house for who knew how long. Why did she care so much about that place?

Could it be…She liked it when that man came to talk to her? No- No, she had tensed up and gotten angry when he got closer. Bakugou knew the idea was ludicrous, but once he thought it he couldn't get it out of his mind. That-that fool? How dare that weakling even think of getting close to her! Stupid women. If he weren't getting information, he would have her begging for him. She would be staring in awe of Bakugou's power and she would never question him again. It would be him that she was sad to not see again, not that fool!

Frustrated, Bakugou couldn't even think of going back to work on his ship. Annoying round-face. What made her think she could distract him from his work by just…being? It was infuriating! Automatically he found himself stomping up to her room nearly an hour after she had retired to confront her about this. Maybe this was some kind of curse that she'd place on him. A way to make him only think about her when he ought to be working. Truly diabolical.

His footsteps only stopped right before he'd reached her door. The idea seemed to leave him as he realized just where he was. Her room…she'd specifically blocked him off from this area…Who knew just what it was that she had been trying to hide form him. Something important? Something valuable? He didn't even remember what she'd said to him before to she'd told him not to go in. Back then he hadn't care one bit. But she spent so much time in that room…

Carefully, he leaned against the door to listen in. All that he could hear was the soft sound of her breathing. Sleeping. Once he was sure he carefully pulled her door open, then slipped inside while closing the door behind him.

It was a good thing for him that he could see in the dark. The room was far less interesting than his imagination had believed it would be. She had a small bed next to a large window showing the plains of grass and the distant forest next to her house. There was a closet and drawers for clothes, though most of them were scattered across the floor. Bakugou knew she didn't own many clothes from the number of times he'd seen her wearing the same thing. Her purse was on a large desk in the corner, next to a door that led to the bathroom. The walls were covered in stars, planets and meteors that danced across space. Huh. So she was curious about the world outside of her own then? If she was lucky, he may show her it all someday. After he conquered her planet and potentially enslaved her entire civilization.

As Uraraka snored, Bakugou caught sight of a number of pictures next to her head. Curious, he went over to the wall above her to get a better look. There was one of a younger version of Uraraka, shorter hair and even rounder cheeks, with a scrawny looking Midoriya. Bakugou hated the way she looked at him in the photo, cheeks a bright red as he waved at the camera. If he didn't want to wake her up he would have burned the photo and thrown it into space. There was another with her and the short-haired women that would visit sometimes, both wearing the uniforms Bakugou had seen her in when they first met.

A number of other photos graced her walls. But the one in the middle caught her eye.

It was a younger version of Uraraka. Much, much younger. She was as small as the human Eri they had met. She was wearing a sweater that was obviously too big for her, eyes closed while she laughed. But the two older humans next to her caught Bakugou's attention. Two adults, one with Uraraka's brown hair and the other with her pink cheeks. They must have been the parents that Uraraka seemed to care so much about. There were other photos with Uraraka older that had the same couple in them. They must have passed recently, no longer than two years ago. In the photo, she certainly looked happy. And her parents were just as overjoyed to see her.

Bakugou…He'd had parents like this at one point, hadn't he? Well, they were different than the people in Uraraka's photo. He remembered his mother was a fighter, strong, loud and powerful. His father had been quiet, a soft side to his mother's harshness. They worked as a team. Bakugou remembered being proud who his parents were.

…He hadn't thought of them in years.

Uraraka shifted in her sleep. Bakugou turned to see her hair splayed out across the pillow while her mouth hung open and arms splayed out like a star on her front. Even in her sleep her cheeks retained the light shade of pink that they always did. He studied the woman in the bed- only truly relaxed while in the comfort of her dreams. During the day she was smiles, talking constantly, and always running around. But never relaxed. Never able to sit still. Always running for fear of something going wrong. But the photos with her smiles showed it was worth it. That for her, the stupid, messed up house was worth it because of the smiles her parents had given her. That doing meaningless chores for those weaklings she called friends was worth it because of the smiles they shared. And even falling in love with an idiot- if only temporarily, was worth it for that smile.

He wanted that smile. He wanted her smile of joy, to be completely relaxed, not running from something that may go wrong. Not just when she was smiling for her friends or for her work or the house or over stupid Midoriya. He wanted the same smile she had in all those photos…but he wanted the smile to be for him.

A knocking on the door downstairs snapped Bakugou out of his thoughts. Uraraka groaned in her sleep, turning over to try and distance herself from the sound. Again the knock sounded, and Bakugou hissed at the direction it came from. How dare the stranger disturb his human's sleep? There was a yawn, and Bakugou panicked when Uraraka almost work. Working quickly Bakugou yanked her blanket and wrapped it around her, using the warmth in the blanket to lull her to sleep. For a second, it looked like she would wake up. Then, slowly, she returned back to the dream state she had been in before. Bakugou sighed in relief.

But the knock outside continued. Bakugou's eyes snapped to the doorway. There would be hell to pay…

After shoving whatever materials he could around Uraraka's door to cancel out the noise, Bakugou stormed down the stairs. The knocking had become a persistent banging that was nearly matched by Bakugou as he stomped through the hall to the door. Without bothering to check who it was Bakugou grabbed the door and threw it open so hard it crashed into the wall next to it. "WHAT THE F\#$K DO YOU WANT A$$%(%*#E?"

A small sniveling looking human stood in the doorway, with an arrogance behind that shock that made Bakugou instantly hate him. He'd already decided the man was trash when he'd knocked on the door, and so far he wasn't doing anything to change his mind. With pale blue eyes and even paler blond hair, he took a few seconds to calm himself. A few seconds to long in Bakugou's opinion. "Well? Spit it out! I ain't got all day!"

"You are rude!" the man replied bluntly, angering Bakugou even more. The stranger tried moving around Bakugou to see into the house. "Where is Uraraka? I am here to talk to her." ANOTHER human male? This one coming to visit her? Oh no, that was not happening.

"Who wants to know?" Bakugou retorted. The man scowled again at Bakugou's attitude, but gave the answer anyway.

"I'm Monomo," he replied, straightening his suit as he did. "And you are?"

"None of your business," he shot back. "What the h #l do you want?"

"I'm here to speak to-"

"That's not happening," Bakugou insisted, making sure to take up as much space of the doorway as he could. Part of him just wanted to slug this man and send him flying. But considering how his attack had backfired on him before with Uraraka, he decided he needed to know more about this human before he did that. Then he could CRUSH him. "What do you want? Tell me or get out of here."

Monomo looked affronted. "I don't have any business with you! I'm here to speak to Uraraka about this month's debt!" Debt? What was he talking about? "The payment for the house next month is coming in soon. If she doesn't pay in time…." He continued to talk, but his voice faded out as Bakugou stopped paying attention. Ah, the house. She'd mentioned something about that, hadn't she? How she needed to pay off some money each month until the house was hers? It sounded stupid, the house should have belonged to hers by right. Why did she have to pay more? And…had he just said it is coming up? As in, it wasn't due?

"If she doesn't have to pay yet, why the heck are you here?" Apparently Bakugou had interrupted him, because Monomo looked even more annoyed than before.

"BECAUSE she needs to know that if she doesn't pay it off, the house is mine!" Bakugou stopped him there. The house was his. The house that seemed to mean a lot to Uraraka would belong to him if she didn't pay up in time. And he was pressuring her to remember it before the actual deadline. A battle technique to throw off the enemy's concentration.

Finally, Bakugou understood something.

THIS human. Whatever he was doing was one of the causes for his human's stress.

Poor Monomo had no warning. "Listen here you baka," Bakugou snarled, body getting dangerously hot as he charged his arms with explosives. He knew he couldn't transform- if this man really had some power over Uraraka, he couldn't risk her paying for it if Bakugou attacked. But he could scare the man all he wanted. "This house belongs to Uraraka," he declared, his body heating up and steaming as he did. Bakugou had immense satisfaction in the sight of Monomo's eyes widening in fear. "This house will always belong to Uraraka. She'll get that money to you whenever she sees fit. And you're not going to do anything about it. You know why?"

Monomo stood, frozen in the spot as he started at the man who had suddenly appeared to grow three inches and became so hot there was steam pouring off of him. But it was his imagination, right? That had to be his imagination! "W-why?" With a flick of his tail Bakugou pushed Monomo to his feet. Monomo fell back, stunned beyond belief. How…he hadn't pushed him, had he? No, his arms were nowhere near him!

With a slam Bakugou braced his arms against the doorframe. Monomo jumped to his feet, making Bakugou's leer double in size. Had his mouth just gotten bigger? And his teeth…pointier? "Because if you come here and try to pull s#$t like this again," he threatened, voice low and deep to send chills up Monomo's spine. "I will tear out those smug looking eyes, crush them beneath my feet then hang you by your toes from my ship as I launch myself out of the atmosphere. Are we clear?"

Crystal.

Monomo was off Uraraka's property in seconds. Bakugou made sure to watch the man as he drove away, not taking his eyes off of him until he disappeared. Then he reformed his ear enhancers to listen in upstairs. Luckily, it appeared that Uraraka had managed to sleep through the noise they had made. Bakugou couldn't help but sigh in relief. Then he allowed himself the satisfaction of a grin.

Now Uraraka had even more reasons to smile.