In the days that passed for Izuku, he was more on edge than ever. He was more fidgety and nervous than he usually was, and seriously unsure on how to handle the situation he was in. Add in the constant fear that Bakugou would show up at any moment and decide to smite him, and Izuku was nervous wreck. He knew that the correct choice of action was to just agree to whatever the god wanted, to keep himself alive, God Bakugou placated, and his city still intact. Who knows what would happen to his mother or his friends, or the city. The stories he's heard of the god told that he had one hell of a fiery temper. Running away wouldn't help, Izuku knew that he would be found.
So, to offer at least the illusion of protection, Izuku had started carrying a small dagger with him, tucked away in a leather sheath that hugged against his right hip. Izuku tightened the leather strings, keeping the belt for the dagger secured before he headed out to his workshop for another day. It was early, the sun barely peaking over the mountaintops in the distance, the roads quiet with only his fellow early commuters to join him.
While his mind wandered, the temple came to his mind. He felt a bit guilty for not praying lately, but felt too awkward having to walk past Bakugou's statue to get to the other gods's. He wanted to get to his shop early to start the day, but as much as it saddened Izuku, he knew he didn't have much work to get done. Only Tsuyu's knife, which was nearly completed, and a few blade sharpening orders. Izuku thought it best he at least go and pray to the gods besides Bakugou, even though he knew that would only piss off the god even more. Still, it felt better than kneeling down and praying to Bakugou after he assaulted Izuku. That just let like giving in and begging forgiveness for his disrespectful behavior, and he was not going to let Bakugou push his around like he had any longer.
Purposely missing his turn, he continued forward, now planning on making a small detour to the temple to pray before work. Still, he couldn't help his heart pounding in his chest, he was still nervous. His right hand gripped around the hilt of the dagger to remind himself that yes, he did have a weapon if Bakugou decided to show his face to him. It still didn't remove the jitters he felt in his fingertips to his toes.
The white temple finally came into in view as he approached it, only about four or five people milling about quietly, the temple emptier than Izuku usually sees it. He walked up to the fountain and washed himself before entering the temple, dropping his sandals off at the entrance. Avoiding eye contact with Bakugou's statue, Izuku made his way to Koda's statue which stood next to Bakugou's, about twenty or thirty feet away. He approached and knelt down, pressing forehead to the floor before praying. He thanked Koda for giving life to the planet and sustaining his mother's garden. He stood and made his way to the next god, Kaminari.
Izuku made his way around the room, one after the other, thanking each god for protecting them, keeping the world sustained, and for their thriving civilization. Kaminari for the storms he brought with precious water, Yagi for the peace they sustained in their mortal lives, Iida for the winds that rustled the trees and moved Kaminari's storms along, and Todoroki for the easy winter that he had given them this past year.
Izuku saved his prayers for Uraraka last, as he had some requests in mind. He approached her statue, looking up and the smooth marble that created the image of the goddess. Her statue looked frozen in movement, as if someone had frozen her in mid-dance, the dress of the statue flowing its' body, hands outstretched and standing on one leg. The statue's lips curved in a soft smile, its' eyes gazing lovingly at the ground before it, right in front of it where most people like to be when they prayed to her. Stories tell that she is a very kind goddess, full of love and compassion. Izuku heard rumors that people in dire circumstances come to Uraraka for help, and as she takes pity on them, will give them blessings to assist them. Izuku hoped he'd be lucky enough to encourage the goddess's assistance.
Izuku knelt before the statue, pressing his forehead to the floor before sitting back up and putting his hands together in prayer. "Goddess Uraraka," He began, "I know you might be aware of my situation already, but... I ask for your assistance, or, uh, at least advise." Izuku let out a short sigh before continuing. "I know it is most disrespectful of me, but I do not wish to continue my current... Relationship, I suppose you could call it, with God Bakugou. I pray for your blessings to give me strength as I continue to encounter him. I do not know what I did to incur his wrath, but I wish to make amends and continue with my peaceful life." Izuku lowered his hands, done with his prayers and rested his hands on his knees, his head bowing as he stared at the floor.
He sat there, thinking about what had happened a few days ago. He had shown up, assaulted him, possibly raping him if Bakugou had continued with his advances using The Passion, but then just left? Izuku supposed he had looked pitiful enough for him that he lost interest. Regardless, Izuku hoped that he didn't have to see Bakugou again, he was unsure if he'd be able to break through The Passion a second time to thwart the man.
A sudden sensation came over Izuku, lifting him up and sliding against the floor towards the entrance, like he was falling to the side even though he was upright. He skidded to a halt a few feet over, hunched over on his hands and knees, eyes wide. He quickly stood up, lips pressed together in concentration. 'I didn't image that, right...?' He thought to himself before his feet began sliding against the floor again, the strands of his belt lifting and pointing towards the door, his hair and the skirt of his chiton mimicking the same action, as if gravity had been flipped over and the entrance to the temple was now the center of the planet's gravity.
He came to a halt another few feet later, being tossed back onto the floor on his chest. "Ow..." He muttered as he stood back up, turning and eyeing Uraraka's statue nervously. He bowed to her quickly before hurrying out of the temple, but jerking to a stop when he had to pass by Bakugou's statue. He turned his head slightly in its' direction then snapped back straight. He hesitated for a moment, then scurried out the door. Slipping on his sandals quickly, he ran away from the temple and the paved road that surrounded it and headed into the forest that lay opposite of the temple.
As he hurried, his feet would occasionally lift off of the ground an inch or two as he ran, the gravity he felt pulling him deeper into the words. This was a sign from Uraraka, only she had the power to impose this supernatural-like feeling upon him. As he ran, strong winds pressed up against his back, rushing him as he roamed deeper into the woods. And then all at once, everything stopped. The winds, the lifting of his feet, and himself. He slowed to a halt, hands on his knees as he panted, heart pounding. He looked around trying to see what the goddess wanted to show him.
"Heeeey! We're over heeere!" A woman's voice shouted to left. Izuku turned his head to the direction of the voice, and saw a young woman emerging from the brush, a few leaves and a twig stuck in her hair. She reminded Izuku of a too curious child. She had short brown hair and appeared shorter than him by a few inches. 'Was this who the goddess wanted to show me?' He thought to himself as she walked up to him, picking a few leaves out of her hair. "Man you run fast! Tenya, did you see the legs on this boy?!" She shouted behind her, and a man emerged from behind a tree, with dark blue hair and a whole head taller than Izuku.
"I'm sorry, can I help you?" Izuku asked, rather confused by the couple. But, the gods do work in mysterious ways, and besides Bakugou, Izuku doubted that any other god would show themselves to him. "Oh, sorry, sorry! I was the one who called you here! I'm Goddess Uraraka!" She said happily, extending her hand out to him in greeting. Izuku felt like he had just been punched in the gut, and immediatly dropped to his knees to bow before her.
Uraraka had an amused look on her face as she looked down to him as he bowed before her silently. "Man, you humans are so funny! Rise, young Izuku! We have much to discuss!" She said dramatically. "Ochaco, maybe you should have brought it to him a little more subtly? You know how humans are." The taller man said as he stepped up to Uraraka, picking a twig out of her hair. "Yeah, but we don't have time to beat around the bush! I mean, we did, and that's why I hid in one, but not any longer!" Still on his knees, Izuku listened to the two talk. Was this chatty girl really Goddess Uraraka? 'Somehow I pictured her more... Elegant.' Izuku thought to himself.
"Anyway, get up! I need to tell you some things!" She said, leaning down to take an arm of his in her hands and heaved him to his feet. "Well, now! So, cutting to the chase. Hi, my name is Ochaco, and this is Tenya. But I'm sure you only know us as Uraraka and Iida." Izuku's glance shifted between the two as he shifted nervously on his feet. "We came here-"
"You dragged me here with you."
"To tell you some things about K- Bakugou!" She said triumphantly, pointing at Izuku. "Uh, w-what kind of things, my goddess?" He asked quietly, shoulders hugged tight against his body. "Boo! None of that, just call me Ochaco! And, well, we heard about what Bakugou did to you a few days ago. So, I felt like, since he's got this weird interest/complex about you, I figured I better give you a head's up." She said, hands on her hips. Izuku tried to relax a bit, but his entire world had been flipped on his head in just the matter of a few days.
"Uh, what kind of... Things?" He asked, and Ochaco let out a small sigh. "I know it doesn't look like it from the way he acts, but Bakugou has a crush on you." She said, and Izuku crossed his arms against his chest. "I figured something was... There, with him. Still does not make me feel any better." He said. "I understand that telling you might not help you at all, but I still felt like I had to do something. Bakugou's brash, impulsive, self-centered-"
"You're not making a good case for him right now." Izuku said.
"The point is, is that he doesn't know how to control himself that well. Being a god, he's very used to people always bowing down to him and worshiping, like you!" Izuku frowned at her. "I think he does like you, he just has a hard time conveying that in a healthy way, and acts out when he's rejected. So I guess, just do your best? If you want Bakugou off your back, you need to stand up to him and fight back. I'll tell you right now that communication with words isn't going to work. He's The God of The Passion, messages are best conveyed through the body with him." She explained, and Izuku felt a nervousness in his gut. He didn't like the sound of having to actually fight a god, not just fight him off.
"That plan makes me nervous, you know." He said. "Makes me nervous too, as much as I tolerate him, I don't want to deal with the aftermath on Bakugou's end." Tenya said, sighing and leaning up against a tree behind Ochaco. "I do appreciate you coming to me though," Izuku began, smiling gently at Ochaco. "It's been rough on my mind, lately. With meeting Bakugou, and what's been happening lately. I knew I really couldn't tell anyone about him, or what he's been doing. So, it was nice to at least talk about it a little." Izuku said. Ochaco grinned at him. "Yup! Glad to help! If you ever need any other assistance, just pray to my statue and I'll try to get to you as soon as I can. People are always praying to us, so we tend to just kinda turn down the volume on that."
"What do you mean 'turn it down'?" Izuku asked. "Oh, we're constantly getting prayers for us, and we can hear them. It's like, whispering. We hear it constantly hear it, and we've learned to tune it out. So! If you pray needing to talk or need assistance, give me a couple of days, I might have not heard it, heheheh!" She said cheerily. "Well, thanks again, I really do appreciate it, Godde- I mean, Ochaco. And you too, Tenya. Thank you." He said, smiling at them both, but resisting the urge to bow to them. "But if I must admit, you two seem very different from how the statues of yourselves portray."
"Right?! They always make me look super dainty. I'm not dainty!"
"And I don't always that serious. I'm relaxed!" Tenya argued.
"Yes you are, Tenya! And they make us all look so short. We're only in our human forms now. Our God forms are huuuuuge!" Ochaco said, stretching her arms out. Izuku's eyes widened. "W-Whoa, seriously?! With a taller height as gods, do you get super strength? Can you fly? What about reading peoples minds?" He asked, becoming rather excited to hear lore of the gods straight from them.
"We get a lot stronger, but we can't really fly, aaaand we can't read minds. I'm so sorry your gods are so lame, Izuku!" Ochaco yelled dramatically, placing her forearm across her forehead and swaying backwards towards Tenya, having him catch her as she fell, imitating a woman overcome with emotion. "No, it's just- I have so many questions! Ah, but I guess I better get to my shop. I need to be getting to work!" Izuku said, coming with terms that he'll have to leave the two eventually. While he did have a lot of questions for them, he knew he had to leave to open his shop. Money wasn't going to make itself happen!
"No problem, Izuku! Let's meet up again sometime soon! I'll tell you aaaaall about the gods!"
"Not all of our secrets, for our sake please, Ochaco." Tenya said stiffly.
"Okay, see you later." Izuku said as he began to turn to start heading out of the forest and back into town. With a bright flash of light, the two gods were gone, leaving Izuku alone in the forest. With some newly found confidence, he held his chest up high as he walked back towards town, the sound of the city starting to rise as more people had awoken. Izuku made a new resolve with himself as he stepped back into the city: God or not, he was not going to be pushed around by anyone. Not Bakugou, nor any human.
That was his promise!