A/N: Not quite the tenth yet but it's technically a week late either way. Translations provided by Google at the bottom. Hope everyone had a fun and safe start to 2023.

A Wannabe Hero In Another World!

Chapter 4: Brawling In Another World

The waves were more passive this evening than they had been in recent memory, more passive than the hedge witch he spoke to said they'd be as well.

Bjorn scrubbed a wet rag against the scratched barrel of his matchlock, a frown growing on his face as he turned it over to continue its maintenance, "I won't pretend I don't know you're there. Save us both some time and step out of the damn shadows."

From the water's cold surface rose many hands that grabbed the edge of his boat and dozens of figures crouched there with water running off of their wooden bodies. His head turned to the white haired figure with the large bust sporting a loose robe standing at the end of his boat over the covered rudder.

"Very discerning for an "old sea captain"," she spoke in a soft voice that felt as though it would better suit possibly anybody else.

"Yeah well, pirates and all means I can't be caught slacking when it comes to attentiveness."

"I find it odd that you're lacking the accent so many of the Geeta town residents know you for."

Scratching at the stubble on his cheek helped but him time to count them out; thirteen wooden soldiers, one puppeteer. He'd have preferred to have been set upon by the pirates if these were his odds.

"Let's not waste each other's time. Elric want me dead or is this about something else?"

"Our valiant Lord has simply sent me to investigate, and I doubt that the evidence I've found leading me toward you is a coincidence."

A stray wind blew across them, the soulless soldiers uncaring of the chill it carried with it. Bjorns eyes moved from the puppeteer over to his small box of match cords and suppressed the frown as he noticed the band of knives tied around her waist.

"If you're looking for something feel free to hire me. I'm known to get results."

"Yes your infamy is a well maintained whisper in the castle walls. But I have no need for a barbarian or his methods. Now, the Kings cleric has felt the residue of the Star Lords or something equivalent bleed into this zone two months prior."

"A Megidola user?"

"Nothing so grand, else I'd have sunk your ship and sent you to meet the fifth Star already for failing to bring this to his majesty yourself."

Before Bjorn could return an equivalent insult a sound like wooden chimes reached his ears and he felt secure enough in this stand off to look away to its source. As it turns out wooden chimes was the perfect description as a large wooden egg with dozen of silver strings coming off of it floated toward them, the chiming noise coming from the many wooden dowels along the lengths of the string, Bjorn could only assume the bright blue crystal at the base of the egg is what allowed it to fly. The odd flying contraption came down next to the woman and made a few repetitive clacks.

"Mabufa huh, should have known that old bat would be involved somehow. Find her trail, she'll be next."

'She'll be next.' Bjorn thought as he readied his legs and shoulders, "Seeing as you have your lead, how's about you vacate my vessel before I become less…hospitable."

Her smirk only made him angrier, "My name is Winry, proud servant to our Majestic King, Elric Yosiff Deliere, take solace Ryotaro—"

"MAZIONGA!"

The clap of Bjorns hands engaged the spell, the blinding flash erupted outward, the splintering sound of wood as the direct hit caused a puppet soldier on either side of him to shatter to bits was emboldening. The sound of lightning splitting waves and riding off into the distance before dissipating— a clear missed attack—was less so. His sideways lunge kept him from taking a knife to the chest, but his pants suffered a light cut near the thigh, no bodily damage for which he could be thankful.

His hands crushed the wood beneath his grip as he tore up the banister and swung it like a club, knocking away six of the wood men coming to pummel him to death. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end as the temperature dropped and he dove into the water just in time to dodge the blast of chilled air that froze over the deck of his ship.

His head burst through the water's surface and greedily gulped at the air before diving back down the inky mirror to avoid detection, arrows and darts pierced where his face had been nearly a second prior.

His hands pointed palms out behind him as he cast Garu. The displaced liquid erupted out as the wind surged him through beneath the waves above and away from the assassin. The cold stream washing against his face burned his eyes and his chest felt tight from the spells he cast so far, and probably due to the lack of oxygen as well. But it seemed his assailants were willing to help him with that as he felt something stab through his ankle before expanding inside his leg. The stabbing had broken his concentration enough to disrupt his spell and sudden pull backwards jerked his thoughts enough to keep him from casting a counter attack.

The thread around his foot spun and spun until it knotted itself tightly into an inescapable binding. Suspended upside down he was forced to stare into the rich hazel eyes of his killer, her white hair shining in the full moon's light.

Originally he had been bound by the flying egg, but another puppet soldier extended its legs and took his bindings to keep him out of the water, not that Bjorn knew any ice element spells.

"I'd compliment the escape attempt but I doubt you'd have made it far in the open ocean. You really should have thought it through a bit more. But take solace knowing your death will ease the burden upon our glorious King."

Bjorn smiled and spit up a bit of phlegm that almost hit her bare feet, his disregard for the fact that she and her soulless soldier were standing on water not that surprising as his mind raced to find an escape to this situation. Winry stared at the floating snot with a frown however.

"Classy. Well, goodbye Ryotaro," she says, turning and leaving with most of her wooden puppets, her form rapidly shrinking in the distance, hardly remaining visible only thanks to the floating oak egg filling the air with its chiming sound and the glowing crystal shard at its base.

Bjorn scowled as one of the puppets opened its hollow chest and revealed a wrapped bundle at its center, pinching the frayed rope with its intricately carved thumb and pointer finger causing the thread to catch fire. Letting loose a long held breath as he felt deep within and found his other self.

"Persona!" Cried Bjorn as the manifestation of his personality materialized in azure flames, the massive humanoid was adorned in animal furs and sported gnarly tusk that poked up past his top lip, empty white eyes and a wild mane of brown hair that fell down his back, "Attack him, Nestior!"

The savage warrior whipped its massive arm around and its knuckles collided with the side of the puppet, shattering one arm and sending it flying before it skidded over the water's surface for a distance finally blowing up as the bomb's fuse ran out.

The blue flames dissipated as a cold sweat poured down Bjorn's face, he heard the rickety sound of wooden joints creaking with sudden movement and turned to see the remaining puppet not holding the rope connected to his bound leg rushing him with blade gleaming in lunar light.

Cursing the Seven Stars for this he forced his body to fold, ignoring the crushing pain in his chest and arms and all over really as he kept his head from being lopped off and instead only had to sacrifice his bound leg!

"Fuck!" He roared as the salt water flowed against his bleeding stump, the cut having occurred just below the knee, he caught the wrist of the blade wielding puppet and crushed it in his grip before bisecting the assailant and tossing the blade through the head of the other puppet.

With the immediate threat taken care of he simply floated there, moonlight against his sunburned cheeks, bloodshot eyes, and a terribly itchy irritation where his newly amputated leg was still being abraded by the ocean's waves.

Groaning as he floated atop the water, powerless to move against the waves and wherever they may take him.

oOo

The sun high overhead beats down on him with a welcomed warmth as snow crunches beneath his feet. His rough leather foot wraps keep the worst of the chill at bay as he pulls his pale yellow scarf tighter around his face. Izuku can scarcely believe that he's been in another world for two months now, and how quickly they've passed him by. The monotony of the schedule kept by Aurelius makes each day flow into the next with such a seamless transition that if it weren't for the varying weather and the shifting complaints of the guards around him he'd think each day was repeating. Whispers on everyone's lips told of them reaching the head of the Vandergraff families estate mid-spring.

"Hey, Midoriya!" Comes the call from his left, he stops the axe mid swing and instead turns to see one of the few permanent line runners making his way to him, a messenger looking for a servant usually didn't bode well for anyone and it always made Izuku's stomach churn with bubbling anxiety in his mind, "Don't look so glum man! It ain't manly at all, anyway, Mariana found me while I was on break and asked me to fetch you."

"And you agreed with no question Carcel?"

Carcel laughs it off while scratching his cheek, his own leather wrapped feet tapping the ground with some impatience, "Well I sort of owed her for sewing up my ripped pants. Not due another pair for a month or two…"

This was much less concerning, mostly, as it meant one of the guards hadn't called for him. His hand came up and adjusted his scarf again, the feeling of cloth against his leather collar all too noticeable to himself; even worse since they've yet to let him remove it since his lighting of the pyre, "Guess it's lucky that I was about to go on break then."

"That's right, can't ignore the call of a woman, Midoriya! What kind of a man neglects their gal!"

Taking a stance he squares his shoulders and swings the axe as hard as he can and drives the blade deep into the trunk, his sore palms grateful for the rest even if they didn't know he'd be returning to the grind before even an hour had passed.

He swung by the camp center and retrieved his midday rations—a quick affair since he was late and had nearly missed them— the guards had come across a raiding party and dispatched them with immense ease which led to them dispersing the spoils of battle. Fresh meat and grain for the warriors, and the gray bitter ration bars for the servants were doubled. It was hard to complain about an extra meal everyday, but when it left such a sour taste in your mouth you could find a way.

Izuku first swung by the mending bench, many of the female, as well as any of the oldest and youngest servants were polishing armor, pinching chain rings, sewing blankets, or fixing the odd basket or two. But Mariana was nowhere to be seen. Instead they caught sight of him scanning their lineup and began to chuckle.

"Look girls, Mr. Izuku just can't stay away from our little place can he,~" one of the younger girls said in her sing song tone and got the rest to giggle at his expense, another one further down the bench added on, "He must be after Mariana, I wonder if I'll ever be so lucky to find me such a hungry pup?"

More laughter at his expense and relations ensued and he only smiled and carried on. Everyone needed to find some way to make light of their situation, plus it's not like they were really hurting anyone. If anything, the fact that so many people acknowledged what he had made him kind of happy.

He finally managed to find her in the servants tent, mostly alone save for one or two others choosing to spend their break napping, she looked up from her lap and her green eyes shone with a renewed ebullience that melted away whatever chill the winter air still clung to him. Slowly walking in and crouching beside her he remained calm as her hands rose and caressed his face, a hint of red grew on his cheeks as the distance between them shrunk and he felt her lips on his.

"Sorry to have sent for you while you're on break…I just couldn't wait all day to do that."

His dopey smile seemed to settle whatever nerves she had about the action and he took a seat beside her.

He went to work unwrapping his ration block and broke off a corner piece, holding it up to Mariana. Her brow rose as she looked from the food to Izuku before sighing and softly taking hold of his wrist before taking the ration chunk, her teeth nipping at his fingertips and warm breath washing over his knuckles. She chewed silently as he bit away at it before finally forcing it down.

"Bleh. I don't know how you can eat that so readily."

"Hungry." Was his simple reply as he took another big bite and offered more to her, she couldn't shake her head in the negative quickly enough.

He made quick work of lunch and crumpled up the greasy film it was wrapped in before wrapping it in a piece of worn cloth he had come across, his emerald eyes wandered over the form of Mariana and he leaned forward, head resting on her shoulder. His entire body felt all the weight of the day bare down on him double that of what it was earlier.

"It's not fair they're making all of you work before even the sun has a chance to rise," she says, gently running her fingers through his matted hair.

The cutting crew, that is to say the servants asinged to lumber duty, had been putting in more hours in the last few days, with winter at their heels an abundance of wood was never a bad thing. As well as the none too rare occasion where they'd pass by a town and Aurelius would sell off their felled timber for a nice profit, plus whatever repairs needed to be made to wagons or Lord Vandergraff's home on wheels.

Izuku snickers at that, "I don't think a single one of them cares about it being fair…"

Her fingers made soft taps against his skull, and her lips quivered into a smile as his arms wrapped around her. The difference in height between them meant that this sitting position they shared was always when they were at their most equal in terms of affectionate displays.

"You've changed so much in such a short amount of time."

"For the better I hope," his lips graze her neck and his warm breath on this cold day makes her heart beat just a bit faster.

"If you were any better then the Seven would have to descend and invite you to their ranks."

"You think I'd make a good Star Lord?" He chuckles and the soft sound of it adds to her racing heart.

"I don't think I could let you go, bad enough you'd ascend to the sky, but then everyone else would see how amazing you are…I think I wouldn't care for sharing your attention."

This time his laugh is a snort with shaking shoulders as he tries to remain quiet for those napping nearby, "You'd always be my favorite worshiper if that means anything."

Her suffering heart could no longer hold back its ambition as she pushed against him, true he had grown strong over these last months due to his many laborious tasks, but he was surprised and never on guard around her. So the two fell onto their backs, Midoriya against the ground and Mariana on top of him. Her lips found his and she proceeded to peck at them with a dozen kisses, her smile reaching ear to ear at the sight of his reddening cheeks.

"M-m-Mari—"

"Your stutter is so cute. I wish I got to hear it more."

His mouth wordlessly falls open and slams closed as he can't seem to make his brain function while his girlfriend peers into his eyes with such obvious mischief. One of her legs slides between his two and her hands push against his chest as her lips press against his cheek and jaw and work their way over to his ear where she begins to nibble and whisper sweet indecipherable promises to him. Her head rises once more and looks at his lost expression, Izuku's entire face nearly crimson red and radiating warmth, her smile radiant as she once again connects their lips and licks at his with her tongue.

Izuku would have without question lost himself to her commanding movements if not for the sound of the tent flap opening and disgusted grunt that disturbed them. Turning his head away from her was more difficult than swinging the heaviest axe in camp, even more so when what he turned to face was the sneering countenance of Stronoff. The guard captain first focuses on Mariana, the stare distant and face slowly scrunching up with anger before returning to simple disgust.

"There are trees to be cut. Why have you shirked your duties?"

"I'm on break…sir." The sir appearing at the end is an afterthought.

"Consider your break over, return to your task."

"But—"

"Silence! Obey your betters like the mongrel mutt you are!"

Mariana felt her face heat up, but not with the same joyful exciting and worrisome amount of lust Izuku provoked within her, but instead with anger at how this guardsman could look so far down at someone simply because of their place in a cast. Just as she prepared to speak she found her lips occupied by Izuku who quickly broke off the kiss and slipped out from her hold. He offers her a reassuring smile that vanishes as soon as he faces Stronoff.

"Have your scrawny legs ceased to work? Return to the forest and fell me some trees."

"I shall do as the sir ask…once my break—" Izuku doesn't get to finish his rebuttal as a backhand sends him back to the floor. His cheek is already swelling but he forced the sting of tears to remain in his eyes as a hand latches around his ankle and pulls him from the tent, he see a worried Mariana screaming and reaching for him, but she can't quite reach him as Stronoff yanks and sends Izuku flying through the air.

The impact steals away any breath he had in his lungs and causes a wave of pain to radiate across his back.

"Ugh."

Izuku isn't able to stand in time as a kick threatens to pop his stomach and a stomp nearly crushes his kidney. The stomping doesn't let up and follows no defendable pattern, kick stomp, stomp, kick, and scrabble before repeating. Stronoff finally ceases his harsh kicks but grabs him by the throat and lifts him high before smashing his fist into the green haired boy's face and letting him fall to the ground below.

Izuku can barely cling to consciousness as the blood runs from the busted skin on his face and the bruises on his torso make it difficult to draw breath.

Stronoff turns away from the beaten boy and takes a step away before halting. Many of the servants had stopped their work and turned to look at the beating he had delivered. He prepares to chastise them and offer them similar treatment if they don't return to their own task when something warm and wet slaps against the back of his head. It stupefies him for a moment and the muttering only adds to this until he turns around and with a dumbfounded look and sees the green haired boy standing, bloody and bruised and trembling on shaky legs. But his unswollen eye glares at him. Glares at him with growing and unhidden hatred.

His master made it clear what this one's purpose ultimately was but even so Stronoff could not keep his rage from taking his mind and warping it.

Stronoff's growl sounds feral even to himself as he stomps back over and swings, everyone gasps as the hit goes wide and Izuku delivers a punch of his own. It does nothing except press against the guard captain's muscled stomach and leave a bloody print of his knuckle there. The roar that erupts from Stronoff would later be compared to thunder by the servants that evening as he delivers a kick as crashes against Izuku's chest and sends the boy under and over several times before ceasing his forced back flipping.

The red faced Stronoff looks around at all the spectators and screams, "Get back to work!" Spittle flying from his mouth as he does. He stomps over and sees Izuku still clinging to the waking world of consciousness with a busted lip and bloody faced smirk. The kick to the temple is enough to finally send him off the dream world, if not the afterlife.

Mariana sinks to her knees seeing the guard captain walk away from the bloodied boy, his eyes taking in her quivering form before leaving to return to his own master's side, her heart slams against her chest, threatening to erupt outwards from the worry instilled in her. The entire time she watched Izuku take the beating her mind flashed back to when her husband had been held by the arms beaten upon by cowardly guards, what had broken that nightmarish view was seeing Izuku stand on his shaky legs and spit bloody phlegm at Stronoff and then dodge the punch and counterattack. She had felt so happy upon building her relation with the green haired youth, ignoring her guilt as she tried to use him as a surrogate for her forgotten Asterox. The two were similar to an eerie degree, but seeing him rise and oppose the man after all that…finally hammered the fact into her mind, that these two were worlds apart.

oOo

Izuku hurt. Every part of him hurt in a way so different from soreness that he almost regretted taking the beating as he had. Almost. He turned his head and saw Mariana sitting beside his cot, an apple in her hand that she turned over, occasionally massaging a spot with her thumbs.

"Sore wa watashi no tamedesu ka?(1)" Izuku somehow managed to say the entire sentence without cringing from the stabbing pain in his chest and gut.

Mariana flinched at the sound of his voice and slowly looked up from the fruit she was cradling to look at his unswollen eye, "I might share it with you, if you ask me nicely… and offer to obey my every command for an entire day."

"Wow," he chuckles at her response, "no sympathy for the wounded then, and you know it helps to reply in the language you're trying to learn."

"Watashi no hetana nihongo o waratte hoshikunai(2)… was that right?" She laughs, raising the apple up to cover her small smile.

"It was perfect, you're learning so fast."

"It helps to have such a good teacher, one who I can't help but pay attention to."

Izuku sighs as ignoring his wounds becomes less and less effective, he turns his head to Mariana, no bruises, no cuts or scars. He smiles at her and she frowns.

"Miraculously alive and you're smiling."

"It's too hard not to be happy to see you okay."

Her cheeks tinge red and the apple blends in almost too well, "I never would've thought you'd be such a smooth talker."

He doesn't say anything and just continues to stare, taking shallow breaths so as to not agitate his bruises. Her frown grows deeper and she scoots her seat a bit closer, her nails punctures the apples flesh and she cuts away a piece of it before bringing it over to his lips.

The juice surprises him with its sting, but he's too happy at being fed something that isn't bland or sour prepackaged rations for once to care. The fact that his girlfriend is the one feeding him helps too.

"Midoriya—"

"You can call me Izuku," he blurts out, mind addled from his beating to feel bashful at interrupting her.

"Huh?"

"Izuku, my name…you can call me by it."

Her ears twitch and flatten a bit, "Oh…it's just…I thought we were close enough so that I could say your given name…"

It takes him a second to process this, and then he coughs and cringes as the laugh he had building up can't quite make it out. She's stunned and frantically helps still him and messages his shoulder to ease the tension and calm him.

"Where I'm from, we give our family name before the given one,"

She does her best not to laugh at the mix up and fails as it bubbles up anyway, "I'll call you whatever you like…but, I feel I have to confess something to you."

"Well feel free, I'm not going anywhere."

"I feel terrible. I should've done something when Stronoff—"

"I'm glad you didn't. I don't think I could've stopped him if he decided to swing at you instead of me."

Mariana continues to fiddle with the apple as she thinks over how self sacrificing Izuku is, it takes her several false starts to bring forth her guilt, "I've been using you Midoriya—er, Izuku."

"How so?"

Those words hang in the air for a second, she had expected him to be angry, rightfully so be aide who would honestly be fine with being used. She looked at him, looks at the blackish blue spots on his stomach, looked at the swollen shut right eye with the gash over it, the split lip and red stained skin where the nurses hadn't completely wiped away the blood. And she could see no discontent, no malevolent spirit rising in him. When he noticed that she was silent he gestured for her to continue, that he would silently listen.

"You reminded me so much of Asterox. Your mannerism, your way of speaking, there was so much about you that kept his memory alive for me…it's why I approached you so quickly, why I felt I couldn't let anyone else take you away from me. I felt like you could ease the pain I was feeling without him."

"Did I?"

"Yes! And more than that, you replaced him all but completely, those nights with you in my arms were unlike any before. You reminded me I could be happy, even without Aster. It's another reason why I've been feeling so guilty lately, and you should hate me..."

Izuku ignored the burning sensation running down his side and reached out, his fingers were also swollen and one of his nails was chipped and broken. But since he wasn't bleeding terribly he reached out and cupped her cheek for a moment. Her face was warm and soft and he was was beside himself with joy that she hadn't been harmed.

"I'm happy to be here for you. But Mariana,"

"Yes Izuku?"

"How long have I been in the infirmary?"

She stifled another chuckle, the young man before her showing off a forgiving heart to rival his heroic one, and hums to herself while taking a bite from the apple--and then a second bite to loosen a piece for him to munch on-- before saying, "It's been nearly a day, and try and pretend you're asleep until you feel better. Stronoff ordered the nurses to send you out once you woke up."

Izuku clicked his tongue at that, his opinion of Stronoff was never high, it was low enough after he had ignored those men's right to burial tradition, but hearing that he would send an injured man, injured at his own hands too, back to work before being able really ticked him off. He looked over and saw the pale yellow fabric of his scarf clean and folded neatly at his bedside.

"You mended it?"

"Clean, mended, folded it, I had a lot of free time while my dear was off in the Second Stars domain."

"Free time!?"

"Lord Vandergraff was displeased by Stronoff's handling of you and to keep the rest of the servants from making a fuss he gave us the remainder of the day and following one off. Truly quite boring and frightening sitting here at your bedside, wondering if you'd return to me."

His hand fell from her face and landed on her free palm, holding her slender fingers in his own as he looked at her, determination blossoming across his beaten features, "Mariana. I will always return to you."

She chuckles, "Quite the bold statement for one so young…and toward a relation so new."

She was right on both accounts, he was a young man barely more than a boy, and they'd only been "dating" proper, if you wanted to call it that, for little more than two weeks. He could be deluded, he might wake up in a year and think this is a mistake, a month and think it's a mistake, or maybe even tomorrow he'd wake up and have such a thought. But in this moment, with her hand filling his, with her smile brightening his day, and with her at his side being the only positive thing he can really attribute to this world. He's positive that he'll always make the effort for her.

"Mariana…" he swallowed the growing lump of nerves trying to clog his throat as he clutched at her hand, "A-aishitemasu(3)!"

She cocks her head to the side, brow raised for a moment in pensive though, intimately frowning and giving him a faux mean look, "You haven't told me what that one means yet…but your blushing so you better!"

Laughing at her face and declaration she gave he can ignore the pain with a smile on his face. Curling his toes, making a fist, taking in deep breaths. It all hurt, but he felt determined. He felt as though staying here now that he'd woken up was just handing over a victory to the poor excuse for a guard captain Stronoff.

"You'll have to pay extra attention during your Japanese lessons if you want to figure it out," Izuku struggled to say as he kicked his legs over the edge of the cot and moved to stand.

Mariana disregarded this playful reply and instead rushed around to try and push him back into bed, the instant her hands reached his shoulders he flinched and placed his hands on her wrist. She didn't want to push him if it would hurt but she also didn't want him leaving the infirmary before he'd really had a chance to heal some.

"Stronoffs a jerk, and whether I lay here or not won't change that. I may as we'll get back out there."

She looked down, she couldn't decide if her new beloved was being stubborn, spiteful, or trying to live up to her comments of his heroic heart. Biting her lip she released him and stepped back, she watched him stand in shaky legs and hold his side, all of him was equally bruised but it seemed Izuku naturally favored his right side. She slid her arm around him, a smile forming on her face as she noted his cheeks developing a red tint to them. She wrapped an arm around him so that her hand came to rest at the top of his hip, Izuku had slung an arm over her shoulder—something he could only do because she crouched down to assist him back to the tent. As the pair walked out of the infirmary tent Izuku did his best to hold his head high and walk proud best he could with Mariana's help, the goal in his mind to remain strong and show all the other servants that they might have a chance or could also possess the strength to stand up to their oppressors.

A/N: Japanese to English translations: (According to Google)

(1): Is that for me?

(2): I don't want you to laugh at my poor Japanese

(3): I love you