Happy-soon-to-be-Easter everyone! Remember that this is the last candy holiday for five months, so don't eat all of your chocolate in one sitting (also you'd probably die!)

My life has improved somewhat since that spot of misery a couple weeks ago and I am doing well! Got to see some friends, met work deadlines, got this chapter out and Spy X Family's anime adaption is finally out! Woo! Already watched the first episode and it was just as great as I hoped! Check it out!

Have a great day and see you in two weeks!

Borderlands is owned by Gearbox and 2KGames and My Hero Academia is owned by Kohei Horikoshi and Funimation. Please support the official release.

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"This means someone is talking."

'This means someone is thinking to themselves.'

This means it's a flashback.

*This means it's a sound effect!*

{This means I'm speaking in a different language!}

Angel in a Gilded Cage

Angel's boots echoed off the linoleum floor and the walls, the sound bouncing all around her to match the rampant thundering in her ears. Reaching a doorway on the right, she grabbed the knob and threw it open.

"Ura-chan?! You here?!" She called out, just to be met with the sight of Sato and Jiro standing in front of a whiteboard, drawing various diagrams and arrows to plan out their strategy. Both of them jumped and whirled around at the sudden intrusion.

"Woah, hey!" The boy in the yellow bodysuit exclaimed, his surprise making him mess up the shape he was working on. "What's the rush Hodunk-san?"

"Yeah, is everything alright?" Jiro asked.

"I'm looking for Uraraka-chan! Have you seen her?!" Angel panted, trying to slow her breath before she passed out.

Both shook their heads much to her frustration. "Sorry, we've been here the whole time."

"Darnit! Sorry for bothering you!" Angel quickly bowed her head, closed the door and resumed her mad dash down the hall. All the while her mind was torn between thinking of where her partner could be and theorizing on what was going on.

Why would Uraraka just take off like that without saying a thing? Their fight against Eraserhead was due in a few minutes, now was not the time to just leave by herself! They hadn't planned anything and now they will be going in completely unprepared. That is, if Uraraka was even going to participate.

Was it her nerves? It wasn't the first time this thing had happened Angel thought, remembering her explosive battle in the Sports Festival. But that just made her wonder if her friend found their teacher that much more intimidating than Bakugo?

Unlikely to say the least and at the same time, she couldn't shake the nagging feeling that it was something else entirely. Back then, Uraraka had been acting more or less like her normal self. Bright, joyful and wearing a supportive smile on her face, as a way to mask her nervousness

This felt totally different. In the hour and some change since the details of the exam had been revealed, Uraraka had acted unlike herself in almost every way. There was that short conversation they had in the hall, where she had been visibly irritated and reserved, then she snapped when Angel pressed the issue. After that, she remained eerily silent while they watched the fights leading up to them, keeping her attention on the screens and rebuking any attempts Angel made to communicate with her.

It was almost as if Uraraka, one of her first and very best friends, was angry with her, harboring some kind of grudge. For the life of her Angel couldn't figure out why.

So fixated on her thoughts, she had scarcely any attention on where she was going, almost running into a metal clad form as she rounded the corner.

"Woah!" Iida just barely stepped out of the way in time, grabbing her before she fell over. "Are you alright Angel-chan?" He asked while Sero peeked his head out from behind him.

'Speaking of friends.' She noted briefly.

"Iida-kun! Have you seen Uraraka-chan anywhere?!" She questioned anxiously, getting a startled blink.

"Actually, yes! We passed her not a minute ago!"

"Really?!" She beamed in relief, grabbing him by the shoulders and giving him a shake. "Where?!"

Iida took hold of both of her arms to cease the rocking."A-Angel-chan, what is this about? Why are you so agitated?" He sputtered, concern written all over his face.

Angel pulled herself out of his grasp and started pacing anxiously. "Uraraka disappeared on me! She's been acting super weird since we got here, then she yelled at me, wouldn't help me plan and now it's our fight in a few minutes, I can't find her and I don't know what to do!" She rambled, gnashing on her thumbnail down to a nub. Iida gently pulled her hand away from her mouth before she could cause any lasting damage and she looked up to him.

"Calm down Angel-chan. Try to breathe." He said in a soothing tone. "I'm sure there's a perfectly logical explanation for everything. Uraraka-san is probably just overwhelmed with stress."

She shook her head. "That's what I thought at first, but now? I-I don't know…I… I think she might be angry at me or something."

"Does anything come to mind?"

"No… at least I don't think so." She mumbled glumly and he gave her hand a comforting squeeze.

"Then just have faith in her right now. Uraraka wants to pass this exam just as much as any of us and she would absolutely not abandon you when you need her. You know that, correct?"

She nodded.

"Good. In any case, she was heading towards your test field."

"The residential zone?"

"The very same."

Angel's shoulders sagged. "Thanks Iida-kun." She said and sprinted down the hall.

"Good luck!" He called after her.

"Sheesh, that was rough. I feel like I wasn't supposed to hear all that." Sero muttered off to the side, feeling much like the third wheel in this scenario.

"I trust you will be silent on this matter?" Iida requested, a stern edge in his voice, not that it was needed as Sero gave him a smile and a salute.

"After that play in the exam, of course man!"

Thankfully for Angel's nerves (and unfortunately for the dread bubbling in her stomach), the residential zone was a minute's run from the center building. She took a small amount of pride at how less winded she felt compared to a few months prior as she jogged on the cement path, those mornings with Moxxi paying off right about now.

Her brows raised when she saw the white and light pinks of her friend's costume up ahead, where she was standing in front of the gate, her back to Angel.

"Ura-chan!" She cried out, using the nickname she was gradually becoming more comfortable with.

Though did she imagine Uraraka flinching as soon as she did? The brunette turned her head and that unsettling, cold look returned.

Angel tried not to let her worry appear on her face while she slowed her pace when she got close. "There you are! I couldn't find you anywhere! This was the last place I thought to look, heh, f-funny right?" She joked awkwardly in an attempt to dispel the tension in the air.

It didn't really work, as Uraraka didn't laugh, not so much as a snicker. Rather, she nodded curtly and pursed her lips.

"Yup. Sorry about that. I, uh, had to get some fresh air." She let out a terse breath before bending over to do some stretches.

Conveniently avoiding her gaze, Angel might add and the heavy silence settled again.

She watched her friend limber up, trying to take in any clues she could get and try to figure out what to do. She desperately wanted to ask Uraraka again what was bothering her, but thought against it when the memory of their last conversation crossed her mind. She just couldn't say anything, like the unexplained tension was forming a barrier between the two of them, all perpetuated by Uraraka's glowering. Angel had never guessed that she would be using the word brooding to describe her typically happy-go-lucky friend, but here she was.

'But I have to try something.' She thought, taking a quick breath through her nose to strengthen her resolve.

"S-So, um…" She floundered a bit as Uraraka twisted some pops out of her joints. "Got any ideas for how we're going to approach this?"

Uraraka didn't answer, keeping her gaze straight ahead.

Angel scratched her head nervously. "B-Because I mean, w-we never really got the chance to strategize earlier, you know?"

'Because you wouldn't talk to me.' Went unsaid.

"Yeah." Angel perked up when her friend finally spoke, pulling out of her stretch. "I have a plan."

"R-Really? Cool! Can you tell me what it is?" She asked, her concern immediately eased.

"I'm going to beat Sensei."

Angel nearly facefaulted at her answer, her brain coming to a halt as she tried to process what just came from her friend's sounded like a very Bakugo plan.

"Uhh… anything else? Like a start or a middle? Where do I come into this?"

"There isn't much to it. I just need to stay out of Aizawa-sensei's vision and take him by surprise. One touch and he's done." Uraraka elaborated(barely), her tone low and menacing.

"Y-Yeah, but that's still not much of a plan!" Angel protested, baffled beyond belief. "You can't seriously be thinking on taking Sensei by yourself!"

She just barely caught the sight of a scowl marring Uraraka's face. "Hmph. Of course you would say that." She spat in a hateful voice, making Angel recoil at the sheer vitriol coming from her closest female friend. The girl that had been nothing but kind and supportive since the day they met, now stabbing her with her words.

"What?" She faltered, taking a step back. "Ura-chan, you… you're starting to scare me. Did I do something-?"

"Team Hodunk and Uraraka, practical exam!" Angel jumped as the announcer rang out overhead and the gates swung open, revealing the suburban neighborhood facsimile before them. "Ready! Start!"

The test had started. They needed to coordinate and get moving.

Angel returned her gaze to her friend, preparing to restart the conversation so they could actually start cooperating.

But Uraraka was already running, leaving her behind.

Taking only a second to recover, Angel dashed after her partner.

"H-Hey! Wait up! We need to stick together!" She yelled, but either Uraraka couldn't hear her or was choosing not to as she just kept running.

They continued on in this fashion for the next couple minutes, sprinting down the empty street. It was eerie passing by the rows of fake, empty houses. Gone were the sounds of running cars (though there were plenty of them parked on the sides of the street), dogs barking or children playing. Just the echoing of Angel and Uraraka's boots on the pavement and the occasional drone of cicadas in the trees. It felt like a scene taken straight out of a horror movie, the kind where all the residents have disappeared, abducted or destroyed by an otherworldly force.

And somewhere in this place was Eraserhead, committed to making them fail their exam. Taking a moment from trying to get her partner to stop, she gave that problem some thought. From what she gathered from watching Aizawa in action at USJ and learned since then (primarily from Midoriya), was that he was the type of hero to fight in urban environments, specifically in the tight spaces of city spaces. He would attack from out of view, using his neutralizing gaze to close the distance before restraining his targets with CQC and his capture scarf.

Meaning the suburbs was one of the best for him to be, which spelled trouble for the girls. They had no clue where he was or when he was going to strike. The many high walls and houses, long alleyways and trees provided many hiding spots.

'He could attack from anywhere. So just in case…' Angel clenched her fist and activated her power, but just the barest minimum to light up her tattoos. At least now if her quirk stops she'll know if Aizawa was nearby.

Now she needed to get back to her original problem, getting Uraraka's cooperation.

"Uraraka, please! Can we just stop and talk for a minute?!" She implored her, getting nothing but silence just like before.

She was getting nowhere. As much as she really didn't want to do this, she had no choice.

"That does it!" Angel fumed. She made a short hop and sprouted her wings, performing a quick jump over her partner's head and landed in her path.

The brunette halted, her eyes narrowed in irritation. "Out of my way, we're wasting time!"

"No!" Angel pointed. "Not until we find a place to hide and come up with an actual plan!"

"I do have a plan!" She protested, trying to step around her.

"Running headfirst into a fight is not a plan!" Angel shot back as she kept blocking her path, not giving her an inch.

"I've got more than that, just let me go!"

"And what about me, huh? We're supposed to be a team! How am I supposed to help with whatever you've got if you don't tell me a dam-darn thing?!" Angel shot back, getting more confused and incensed the longer the conversation went on. "Who do you think you are? Bakugo?! You can't take Sensei by yourself, he's a pro for a reason!"

She must have struck a nerve, because Uraraka's expression darkened and her brow furrowed further to the point that she was glaring at her. It was so surreal to be receiving it from her close friend. "So you're saying that I can't do it, is that it?" She muttered, her voice low. Her fist was at her side, clenched tight and trembling.

"I'm saying neither of us can! Not without each other's help! That's the whole point of this exercise!" Angel threw her arms out, beyond exasperated by this point. Letting out a tired breath she pinched the bridge of her nose. "Look, I don't know what's going on for you to be acting like this Ura-chan." She said in a softer voice. "But we need to cooperate, otherwise we're both going to fail and miss out on the camping trip. You don't want that, right?"

Uraraka gave her a small shake.

"Then please… please try to calm down and let's think this through rationally. Can we do that?" She begged earnestly. Her words hung in the air for a second then falling to silence as Angel waited for Uraraka's answer in trepidation.

Her friend's expression softened a little and looked down with shame. "I guess you have a point." She admitted, scratching her neck.

Angel breathed a sigh of relief and smiled slightly. "Thank you.

"I'm sorry." She added quietly.

Angel shook her head. "All's forgiven. Let's just spend a couple minutes in an alley or something and get this done." She said, glad that whatever had been straining the air between the two of them was now put off, for now.

She met her gaze and gave her one last reassuring smile just to be safe. The corner of Uraraka's lip curved a little, before her eyes shifted past Angel and widened in alarm.

"Oh no! He found us!" She shouted, pointing behind her.

"What?!" Angel whirled around, fingergun drawn and sparking as she searched the immediate vicinity, but not spotting their longhaired teacher anywhere. "Where?!"

Then she felt a hand briefly press on her back, followed by a familiar sensation of weightlessness as her feet left the ground.

"Wha?! Hey!" Angel yelped in shock as she floundered about in midair like a helpless fish. "What are you doing Ura-chan?! Put me down!"

"Sorry Angel-chan…" Her friend apologized again, walking past. "...but I have to do this on my own."

With that, Uraraka sprinted down the street without a second glance.

"Ura-chan! Stop! Don't leave me like this! You can't beat him alone! Come back, please! Ura-chaaan!" Angel desperately pleaded, tumbling this way and that in an attempt to reach the road and chase after her, but it was out of her reach. After a few moments, she stopped struggling. She felt a sharp pain in her chest as she hung upside down, watching her friend leave her behind.

"Uraraka… what did I do?"

The residential test zone was eery. Like alien abduction stories eery. The knowledge that there was a scruffy, middle aged pro hero prowling nearby made it doubly so. Eraserhead being an underground hero kept Ochako's head on a swivel, having her look down shady alleyways constantly.

'Come on, where is he?!'

She focused on finding her opponent so she could win, if not distract herself from the crushing guilt that felt like it was opening a hole in her abdomen.

'Just nervous jitters! That's all!' She thought, letting out a light, strained laugh. 'I-I mean sure, Sensei is a pro who kicked plenty of butt at USJ, but he's weighed down by those cuff things right? All I have to do is touch him once!'

Though that in itself could prove to be problematic. He could negate her quirk with a look, so she will probably need to fight him hand to hand. Three weeks ago, she wouldn't have been confident in her chances. But with the adorable Gunhead's martial arts in her arsenal, surely she could do it, right?

…Right?

'O-Of course I can!' She assured herself, shaking away the lingering doubts. 'I mean, if I couldn't that'd mean…'

She stopped herself there, but someone else finished her sentence for her.

'It'd mean that you betrayed me for nothing.'

Angel's face flashed in Ochako's mind, her pace faltering. She tried to ignore it in favour of running her tactics over another time.

But it seemed she couldn't run from what she had done so easily.

Ochako slowed to a halt and cast a mournful eye over her shoulder. She couldn't see her friend from here, but she could still imagine her squirming in midair, frantically trying to escape. The look of shock and pain on her face…

Maybe… maybe she had been too hasty there. Her friend had only wanted to help, to get them to work together. The more she thought about it, the worse she felt.

She slowly turned to go back, raising her hands to release her quirk.

'Hey, don't wuss out now!' That other, irritated voice who had set her on this course of action to begin with hissed, making her pause. 'You did what you had to! Now you can prove yourself by beating Aizawa-sensei all by yourself!'

After a moment she nodded, swallowing the temping, honeyed words. Proving herself, that was the whole reason she did this. That terrible burning she felt when she heard Kirishima and Kaminari in the hallway. When Angel said she couldn't win. It was agonizing, but it fueled her resolve. She'll show them, she'll show all of them!

'And Deku will be so impressed.' The voice added, setting her cheeks aflame.

Deku, that's right. He was probably watching wasn't he? Had he witnessed her treachery? God she hoped he didn't, otherwise what would he think of her now?

'All the more reason to not back down now!' The voice reasoned and Ochako found herself agreeing. She needed to stand firm in her goal. She couldn't let these feelings distract her.

"Took you long enough."

Ochako jumped and raised her fists, looking every which way but was met with nothing.

"I expected you two to arrive minutes ago, what were you wasting your time on?" Aizawa's voice echoed all around her. She paced nervously, trying to find where it was coming from.

"But only one of you? Is your plan to distract me while Hodunk runs for the exit? Haven't seen her flying anywhere so she couldn't have gone far." He continued, sounding like he was on Ochako's left but was nowhere to be seen.

'I can do this! I can do this!' She rambled in her head, stepped back a little despite that.

"Doesn't matter I guess." He said from somewhere on the right. Again, nothing was there. "I'll just take care of you and go searching."

'Come on, where is he?!' Ochako swallowed.

"Well…" She whirled around and looked up. Sitting in a crouch on the electric pole overhead, was Eraserhead, capture scarf unfurled and billowing around him. His eyes were hidden behind his yellow, segmented goggles, but from the way his hair was drifting about his head Ochako could tell he was actively negating her quirk. "Let's get this started."

Leaping from his perch, he threw out the long strands of his scarf out at Ochako. She ducked under and scrambled back a few feet, trying to make some space so she could think of what to do next.

"Good reflexes there, it's best to be evasive when you've lost the upperhand." Aizawa complimented, crouching low to the ground. "And without your teammate, it's all you've got."

Ochako froze, eyes going wide. Not even Aizawa thought she was capable on her own

'Angel this, Angel that! It's always about her isn't it?!' The other voice spat.

She clenched her fist to the point of her bones aching, a hot fury rising up her body and Ochako saw red.

"I don't need her! I don't!" She seethed, glaring at her teacher as her body trembled uncontrollably.

Aizawa quirked a brow, but remained silent while he dashed towards her, keeping low to the ground.

Baring her teeth, Ochako ran to meet him.

He cast two lines of cloth at her, to which she promptly sidestepped, ducked and kept running.

Letting out a battle cry, she lunged at him with intent to grapple him, reaching for his arm only for her hand to get slapped away. He jabbed back, but thankfully the two cuffs on both arms slowed his attacks just enough that she managed to block them with her hands. She tried to capitalize by kicking at his stomach, but he was still able to twist away, weights or not.

He jumped back a couple feet and studied her for a moment. "I see that training under Gunhead has served you well." He remarked.

Despite the situation, his praise caused a triumphant smirk to cross Ochako's face as she got back into her fighting stance. She just had to keep fighting him in close until he blinked and she could use her quirk again. Then it'd be her victory, all hers.

"Yeah, well I'm not done yet! Hyah!" She cried, rushing him once more, emboldened. In a small hop, she lashed out in a flying kick.

"But…" Aizawa calmly dipped under, looped one end of his scarf around her foot and tugged, throwing Ochako past him. He quickly proceeded to spin around her, coiling the cloth over and under her other limbs before she could even react. "...a week's worth of martial arts classes doesn't stack up against years in the field."

He tossed the last strand over the powerlines and heaved.

"UWA?!" Ochako cried as her legs were pulled out from under her, tied together with her arms and she was yanked up into the air! There she hung, strung up like a wild pig caught on a hunting trip.

She stared at her restrained limbs, wide eyed in shock. One second she was holding her own against her teacher, the next she was trussed up and swinging in the wind. It happened so fast! The weight cuff handicap had done nothing to save her. She was beaten.

She grit her teeth and strained against her binds.

No, there had to be a way for her to get free. She couldn't give up now. Not after the promise she had made to herself, that she would make it clear that she is capable, that she belongs at Yūei!

Not after she had betrayed her friend.

"Ah, it all makes sense now." She stopped and craned her neck down to see Aizawa tying the other end of his scarf to the electric pole. "I've seen that expression on your face many times."

"Huh?"

He glanced up at her.

"It's the look I often see on overeager and foolhardy heroes, fresh right out of the academy." He said, lifting his goggles to apply some eye drops. After blinking them in, he fixed her with a disgusted glare. "The ones I hate the most."

Ochako stiffened. "Wha… what do you mean?" She asked fearfully.

"It's something that I wished more schools took measures to stamp out. When some people graduate and get their pro hero license, they immediately desire to get the attention and glory that they believe they so rightfully deserve. They run head first into trouble, chasing villains without assistance or forethought. And guess what happens to them?"

The brunette paled at his implication, but she didn't dare answer. He did for her, much to her dismay.

"They die and others die with them. All because they had to prove themselves, prove that they were better than their peers."

"N-No!" Ochako shook her head. "It-it isn't like that! I swear!"

Aizawa pulled his goggles back over his eyes. "Then tell me, what happened to your partner? She wasn't part of this plan was she? You came here to fight me all by yourself."

She opened her mouth to give a rebuttal, but soon found she couldn't. That had been exactly what she had done. She hung her head, her eyes burning.

"Thought so. And that's why you've failed this exam." Aizawa scoffed. "I don't know what brought about this sudden change, but whatever it is it's no excuse for such juvenile behavior. You're studying here to become a hero. Start acting like it." He finished and turned to leave.

There Ochako hung, utterly defeated. The voice that had spurred her on to this point was dead silent, leaving her to stew in her regret. She had acted so repulsively to the person that until recently, she could call her best friend. Spurning any attempts to cooperate, angrily yelling and leaving her in a position not unlike her own.

All because of her immature feelings of inadequacy. Now she had cost both of them the exam and possibly her friendship with everyone in the class.

She choked, hot tears leaving burning trails down her rosy cheeks.

'I'm sorry Angel-chan! I'm so sorry!'

*PAKOW!*

Ochako and Aizawa looked up. A white bolt of recognizable energy shot past the captive girl's head, striking the street light her teacher was standing under. The sparks enveloped the top and the bulb shattered, raining glass down, forcing him to shield his head.

"No way!" Ochako gasped in disbelief, spinning to see her rescuer Angel, her wings pulled back in a dive and her fingers enveloped in that radiant power!

"Heads up!" She called out and fired two more bullets, both of which burned through the cloth Ochako was hanging from. She had less than a second of freefall before Angel wrapped her arms around her and then they were flying over the housetops.

Ochako couldn't believe what was happening. How was her partner here right now? Then it hit her. Aizawa erased her quirk when they fought, which meant it would have canceled the effect left on Angel.

With that answered, she got right onto trying to figure out the more important question.

"What are you doing here?! I left you behind!" She exclaimed.

Angel shook her head, grimacing while she struggled to maintain control thanks to the added weight. "Don't worry about that right now! We just gotta get as far as we can before Sensei can erase my-!"

There was a small flash and a sort of blip. Angel's wings sputtered out and her tattoos dimmed.

"...quirk."

"AAAAAH!" They both screamed and hugged each other as a tree sped up to greet them.