The hunt for the winter wolves begins! Ochako learns that Izuku is always prepared. Tsuyu learns she is truly the most patient of all. Izuku learns...wait, what?
Traveling with Izuku and Tsuyu was…different than she expected. The prior trip had been a day trip, out and back. This was going to be a much more extended duration…Tsuyu estimated it'd take them three days to reach the bottom of the mountain they needed to scale, and to find the Winter Wolf pack? Another day or two. Then they had to fight them, bandage whatever wounds and allow Tsuyu to collect what she needed (the Collectors wouldn't come out this far), and then head back. At best, eight to ten days, but two weeks was not out of the question.
Assuming they didn't die, of course, but Ochako wasn't really concerned. At least, she hadn't been. The trip had been eye-opening for her in a lot of ways. Tsuyu's presence meant that she always could find a safe location to refill their waterskins, and if it wasn't exactly the best water quality, she could purify it. She also was excellent at foraging and finding various herbs, berries, and the occasional root vegetable to add to their pot for the evening.
And yet again, Izuku proved he had no ability to estimate his own talents. When he said he was 'good' at hunting, she'd taken him at his word. But no, the damned man was some sort of savant at it, able to track a deer for what felt like leagues, with no discernable mark she could see (and sometimes even Tsuyu was confused as to how he knew), but then…a single thrown knife, or a shot from the hand crossbow he carried would bring it down. And no, she hadn't known he could use a crossbow, or a bow for that matter…but when he asked to buy a basic crossbow she already had sitting about, she wasn't about to say no to more money after all.
So the trip to the mountain was, all things said, rather pleasant…during the day. At night, it became…different. Izuku's tent he purchased was enchanted to keep the inside at a stable temperature no matter what was outside, which was incredibly nice. However…it was still a tent. With limited room. Now, none of the trio were hulking giants…Izuku was barely taller than Ochako, and neither were winning any height competitions anytime soon, and Tsuyu was practically miniscule…but it was still cramped.
Which led to her real issue…Ochako was quite careful that she was only in her bedroll while she slept. No touching anyone anywhere, it was rude. But see, she had a small problem…she cuddled in her sleep. She could handle it if it was Tsuyu she was grabbing…it'd be awkward, but she could deal. The problem was she kept somehow ending up latching onto Izuku like some type of limpet!
So far, he hadn't noticed, or at least, had the good grace not to say anything. She always woke before him (likely because he always stayed up too late it seemed…they didn't need to set a watch thanks to Tsuyu using some form of magic Ochako didn't quite grasp that would alert her to trespassers better than any of them could, but Izuku still needed time to shut his busy brain off apparently), so he hadn't caught onto her…but Tsu had, and she just kept giving her looks, which Ochako had no desire to ever address.
Not that she wasn't contributing! Her magic made setting up camp a snap, easily moving any obstacles in her way as well as letting them set up some spare defenses (boulders came to mind). She also enjoyed picking up bits and bobs of materials…just because she focused on metal didn't mean she couldn't work wood or leather, after all, they made up large parts of her crafts as well. It was amusing to her, seeing the looks Izuku and Tsu gave her as she snatched up what, to them, looked like junk and commented on what she could make out of it.
But that was all about to change, because it was time to begin their trek up Three. Yes, the mountain was named Three. Ochako still didn't get it, but as far as Izuku could explain, the only 'named' mountain was the one behind Elysium, the rest of the mountains in the Scarlet Peaks range were just numbered by proximity to Scarlet Peak…the unoriginal name of the mountain that held the Cloudtop District. Still to this day she was disappointed in the naming conventions of those who ran the city, but whatever, that was neither here nor there.
Tsuyu pulled the two of them close to her as they approached the mountain, the smaller woman already shivering. Ochako wasn't entirely enjoying it herself, but Izuku seemed mostly unaffected…then again, he was like a bloody furnace when she found herself cuddling him so it made sense-nope not thinking about that right now! She shook her head, getting weird looks from the two beside her, but just clustered close as Tsu held up her staff and placed one hand over the softly glowing green-blue crystal embedded in the top.
It flared for a moment, a blue wave of energy flowing off it and over her fingers, twining about the staff until it reached the ground. It flooded into the earth beneath them, the blue turning an angry, burning red a second later as jolts of warmth shot up Ochako's legs, making her eyes go wide at the sensation. She shivered, unable to help the reaction to the unfamiliar magic, but felt the cold around them receding to a much more manageable level.
"That's the best I can do, but it will keep us from getting frostbite so long as we don't get caught in a blizzard or something," Tsuyu said, her words eliciting a groan from Izuku.
"You just cursed us!" he whined, the two women sharing a look.
"I didn't take you for the superstitious sort, Izuku," Ochako remarked.
He turned to her with a deadpan look. "I'm not…but my luck is dedicated to making sure anytime someone says something like that around me, I pay for their hubris somehow."
"Oh stop, it'll be fine you big baby," Ochako giggled, gently slapping him on the shoulder.
He rolled his eyes at her, but he couldn't help the twitch of his lips showing the smile he was trying to hide. "Yeah yeah, laugh it up. C'mon, we're burning daylight, we may as well get started."
"Lead the way," Tsuyu gestured with her staff towards the mountain. Izuku nodded, rolling his shoulders for a moment before striding forward, beginning what they all knew would be an arduous trek up.
"...I'm sorry for doubting you," Ochako muttered, her cloak pulled tight around her shoulders as she stumbled behind Izuku, her entire body freezing. The enchantment Tsuyu wove kept them from getting frostbitten, but it didn't change they were wading through half a meter tall snow drifts. Izuku was forcibly creating a path, gritting his teeth as green sparks slid off his skin like the snow that melted upon him, trying to find them *somewhere* to set up a form of camp to wait out the blizzard.
Ochako had Tsuyu in her arms, the pink glow of her magic flickering across the smaller woman's body. The pressure of keeping her magic up, and how much shorter she was than the other two, made it so they almost lost her in a snowdrift so instead Ochako chose to carry her while she focused on the magic to keep them from freezing to death. The wind and snow had whipped up on them within the first few hours of their trip, and it had been devastatingly quick. Though there had been snow on the path before, it had accumulated in minutes, growing larger and becoming more hazardous so quickly Ochako started to become scared.
"Shouldn't we make camp?" She asked, having to shout for her voice to be heard against the wind.
She could barely see Izuku shaking his head no. "The wolves are near. They'll find us if we don't find a defensible location."
"...how can you tell?" Tsuyu managed to ask, her voice trembling with the strain of holding her magic and dealing with the cold (for it appeared she was not handling it nearly as well as the other two were).
Izuku shrugged, his eyes scanning the horizon as if in search of something. "I just can. They are nearby." He stopped in his tracks, holding one arm out to get Ochako to stop moving. His other arm slowly slid down to his waist, reaching for his sword and gripping the hilt tightly. Ochako, seeing this, shifted Tsuyu in her arms so she could set her down swiftly and reach for the hammer slung over her back.
"...it's not the wolves. But something is watching us, and I don't like it," Izuku said, his voice barely audible over the whipping winds that stung their eyes and skin.
"Do we go back?" Ochako asked.
"Same problem going back as going forward. But…Tsuyu? I know your subspec is water, but any chance you can use some basic earth magic?"
"What do you have in mind, Izuku?" the druidess asked.
"Either a detection spell for a cave or some rock formations, or earth moving? We could dig ourselves a hole to hide in. Even a rock wall would give us a defensible area."
"I-I could create us a space, but I'd have to drop the spell that's protecting us from the cold for at least a few minutes."
Izuku shared a glance with Ochako, the brunette biting her lip and nodding. Izuku returned the nod solemnly. "We'll just have to deal with it until we have the space. Ochako, take the tent and start getting it set up. I'll guard Tsu."
"Alright," Ochako replied, setting Tsuyu down and accepting the bundled tent from Izuku as he pulled it from his pack.
Tsuyu grit her teeth, eyes flaring blue for a brief second as she planted her staff upon the ground. The warmth in Ochako's bones vanished in an instant, her entire body erupting into shivers the second it fell away. She felt her teeth chattering, her entire body in sudden pain from the onslaught of sheer cold slamming into her. She felt her nerveless fingers begin to slip on the metal pieces of the tent, but forced herself to try to stay as upright as possible. She wasn't about to make this worse on herself by dropping the tent into the snow.
Instead, she watched Tsu, the shorter woman standing tall even as her shoulders shook in the frost. Green-brown energy flowed down the staff and into the ground, pooling beneath her, the snow shifting and rumbling beneath her frozen feet. The land buckled and cracked, a spout of dirt rocketing into the air making Ochako shield her face from it. The land around them in a diameter lifted up, craggy rocks lifting into the air and cutting off the incoming wind, slowly cracking together and forming a large stone dome over the trio, cutting off what little light they had besides the glow of Tsu's staff…which cut off a moment later as Tsu fell to her knees, gasping for air.
A crack sounded in the dark as Ochako rushed to Tsuyu's side, a soft glow lighting up around them as Izuku tossed one of the magical light sticks he'd purchased back in the city to the ground, lighting up the stone dome. He glanced about, nodding after a moment. "Really great magic, Miss Tsuyu. I'll make a couple holes for us to get some fresh air in, and to let the smoke out for our fire, but we should be much warmer here."
"Y-yeah," Tsuyu croaked, leaning against her staff as Ochako helped lift her off the snowy ground. She shivered in the brunette's arms, the other girl worriedly rubbing at her back.
"Are you going to be okay, Tsu?"
"Y-yes, I'll be fine. We just need to get a fire going."
"One sec…" Izuku grunted, his bloody crowbar out and stuck into the cracks between one of the rock pillars near the ceiling. He twisted it, arms bulging, green energy glaring, as a small hole opened up and let in a gust of wind that Izuku blocked with a blanket he stuck to the stone with a climbing pick? How many weird things was he carrying in his bags, Ochako wondered.
"I'll set up a little chimney here to keep the cold out but keep us from getting suffocated by the smoke," Izuku explained, already pulling…wood and nails out of his bag. Seriously, how did he have everything in that bag?! Ochako shook her head. She had to get the tent set up. She shuffled over, pulling her hammer off her back with a touch of her magic, and began to use the blunt end to try and sweep some of the snow out of the way of the tent. Tsuyu saw this, and gently waved one hand, a small gust of wind flaring out and pushing the snow away. Ochako gave the druidess a glare, not wanting her to overwork herself, but Tsuyu just shrugged at her with a wry grin on her normally expressionless face.
By the time she had the tent setup, Izuku had managed to create a small fire that had the smoke going up and out, as well as a few small holes that he covered with cloth to give them breathing air while also cutting off the wind from entering and cutting down what little heat they could get.
Izuku gently shoved Tsu closest to the fire, wrapping his own cloak around her to add onto the one she wore, ignoring the insistence from her that she was fine. He pointed out that he did not feel as cold as she did, so she needed it more. Ochako huddled next to her, hoping to share some of her own body heat (and warm up herself, since she felt horribly cold as well). She didn't quite get why Izuku wasn't as cold as she was, but then again, he did seem to radiate heat when they were sleeping…guess he just ran hot.
"I don't think it's a great idea to break out a big meal, but we'll need something warm and filling for the night. I'll toss together some stew for us," Izuku remarked, digging in his bag.
"Can I help?" Ochako asked, glancing down at the shivering Tsu.
Izuku beamed at her, his eyes twinkling in the firelight. "That'd be awesome! Here, can you get the pot in place, I'll pull out the ingredients. We'll need more water but-"
"I can create the water," Tsu murmured, pulling the cloaks closer to herself.
"Are you sure? I know you're very tired from protecting us all day," Izuku asked softly. Ochako couldn't help but smile at what she noticed him doing…he made sure to make it clear why Tsu was tired, making sure the druidess knew that it was because of her efforts they got as far as they did, so she wouldn't feel bad about being so cold-struck as she was.
Tsuyu nodded. "Water is what I'm closest to…making fresh water is easy for me."
"Alright, that'd be super helpful too. Ochako, here," Izuku handed her the pot they used for cooking in, the brunette nodding as she began fiddling with the metal legs to hold it up over the fire. Internally, she felt like she could design much better traveling cookware, but that was something to mull over when they were back in town. For now, they needed food and rest.
Tsuyu had passed out shortly after the food was eaten, the small dome of earth having warmed up considerably in the intervening time. She had curled up inside the tent, leaving Ochako and Izuku alone as neither were quite ready to sleep yet. Ochako found herself helping clean up with Izuku, the green-haired man scrubbing the pot clean before stowing it back away in his bag as Ochako cleaned up the bowls and spoons they had used.
The silence between them was quiet and oddly comfortable. She'd have expected it to be more awkward, but for some reason she felt perfectly content with this. She was a bit worried about the next morning, getting out and into the cold was going to suck, but they had plenty of supplies and hopefully the blizzard will have passed before too much longer. Still, she wondered about how well Izuku knew how to survive out here…his story about how he grew up didn't imply such survival skills as he kept showcasing.
"Hey, Izuku?" Ochako's voice broke the silence as she finished washing off the remaining dishes.
"Hmm?"
"How'd you know where the wolves were?"
"I didn't, I just knew they were close, that's all."
"Okay, but how did you know that?" She asked insistently.
He shrugged. "I dunno. I just…know? I guess I can smell them or something? It's something I've always done."
Ochako tilted her head to the side curiously. "I thought you didn't fight monsters as a kid?"
"Oh, I didn't, I just mean like…I'd know if something bad was nearby, you know? Like we had an issue with a traveling wyvern that flew over, I could tell it was coming so Mom and I hid, and it passed without problems. Stuff like that," Izuku replied.
"Isn't that magic?"
Izuku shrugged again. "I don't think so? Never heard of any passive stuff like that. Like I said, it's…like a smell, or something? Hard to explain. I just know, that's all. That's not normal?" Izuku asked, confused.
Ochako snorted. "Nope. Never heard of that before. I mean, I'm no expert, but still…not something I've ever heard of."
"Huh. I guess I should ask to test that when I do the magic test?"
Ochako glared at him with little heat. "You should have done the magic test before we left."
Izuku waved her off. "C'mon, it's not that big a deal. I know what my magic does, that's what matters, right?"
"Well apparently you don't, soooo," Ochako drawled, getting a deadpan glare in return from the green-haired man.
"Hey, it helped us a lot today!"
"It did. I bet it'd help more if you knew how it worked though."
"Hmph. I'll do it when we get back, okay, Mom?" Izuku shot back at her as he crossed his arms over his chest.
"And you best eat your vegetables too!" Ochako replied with a teasing tone, smirking at the man next to her. He just rolled his eyes and nudged her with his shoulder, the brunette nudging him back in return. She let out a deep sigh. "We should probably get to bed though."
"Yeah. Tomorrow we'll find those wolves and get off this mountain!"
"Such an optimist," Ochako gently teased.
Izuku's smile was soft and warm as he replied. "I'd rather have hope than none, and bring hope where I can. But c'mon, let's get to bed."
The next morning, Ochako once more woke before Izuku, noting she had again latched onto him in her sleep and silently vowed to never speak of this to anyone ever. The trio began to pack up what little of a camp they'd made, moving quietly and efficiently so they could travel sooner rather than later. As the trio finished packing up the camp, Izuku paused for a moment, his eyes narrowing as his body snapped to attention, turning to face the west.
Ochako, recognizing the signs of him sensing 'something' (however that worked), stopped in what she was doing as well, holding her hand out to make Tsu stop for a moment. "Izuku?" she asked quietly to get his attention.
"...the wolves are nearby. I think we're in for a fight when we bring the shelter down, they know we're here. I think…seven? Maybe eight. Can't tell for sure."
"I'm doing much better now. I can put the cold protection spell up without an issue. And the blizzard has faded, I can sense it," Tsu added, bringing her staff up.
"They'll open with their breath weapons I'm sure…I can draw them to attack me first, you come in behind and bring down a couple before they notice?" Izuku said, glancing at Ochako. He flinched a moment later, hunching his shoulders as if he expected to be yelled at any second now.
"You know that's a dumb idea; you're taking all the risk," Tsuyu interjected, narrowing her eyes at Izuku.
"I-I mean…I really am fast, Miss Tsu, I could handle it I swear!" Izuku ran his hand through his hair, giving her a nervous grin to try and assuage her concerns.
"I have limited potions upon me, and you know my magic isn't especially focused on healing."
"I know, but…we can't stay here forever. I swear, I'll be careful, I promise," Izuku said as assuredly as he could, placing his hand over his heart and nodding solemnly to Tsuyu.
She stared at him blankly for a good half minute, the time ticking by before she gave a sharp nod. Izuku turned to glance at Ochako, making sure she was prepared.
Ochako nodded as her own response, the pink flare of her magic trickling across the carved haft of her hammer. She rolled her shoulders, cracking her neck to get herself in position to move as fast as she could, hopefully allowing her to get some quick swings in. Tsu brought her staff up, the familiar warmth flooding into the trio as she focused. After it finished casting, she glanced at Izuku, the greenette having drawn his sword, the sparks of green already flitting off his shoulders and back. He glanced back at her, nodding once, turning to face forward as Tsu brought her staff down, allowing the front third of the dome to fall.
Immediately a torrent of icy cold rocketed in, blanketing the brilliant sunlight visible from above. Izuku practically vanished in a blur of green, leaping up and over it as Tsu brought up a wave of water in front of her and Ochako, the ice breath smashing into it and freezing it into its own icy barrier. Ochako leapt out of the dome, looking for the source of the attack and spotted over half a dozen of the creatures that she now knew were Winter Wolves.
They were massive, even on all fours their shoulders were taller than she was. Teeth like shards of ice, white-fur covered in sparkles of frost, pale blue eyes with a subtle glow to them. She wouldn't let that distract her, watching as their heads all followed the dashing green bolt to the left. Ochako rushed to the nearest one, deciding she'd try something different with this one in the hopes of disrupting their attack.
She slung her hammer over her back, reaching out with her hands to grab onto the frost covered fur of one of the creatures. It whipped about to snap at her, but her magic had already taken hold, allowing her to duck beneath the strike and grip it tightly by its furred neck and front leg. She spun about, letting out a wordless shout as she slammed the wolf into the two nearest it, the trio of creatures falling over with loud yelps and growls. She released her magic's hold on it, the sudden return of its weight causing them even further consternation.
With a thought, she snatched up her hammer and brought it over her shoulder, magic active, bringing the head smashing down upon the top wolf. With a sickening crack, she heard the ribcage split as the creature roared in pain, the ones beneath it little better as her hammer went through the one atop them all and slammed into the two tangled beneath it. A large part of her winced at the sound…the creatures still looked like wolves and she never was a fan of hurting wildlife, but Izuku and Tsuyu had both reassured her these creatures were not natural at all, rather a product of the Storms and not truly alive in the same sense as a creature of the wilds.
She glanced over at a loud growl, seeing a fourth wolf bounding towards her, its mouth open as a blue-white glow appeared in its mouth. She activated her magic upon herself, preparing to leap up as high as she could, but a sudden surge of water split between the two of them, the frost breath hitting it and being absorbed into an icy wall once more. Ochako glanced sidelong to Tsuyu, the druidess' eyes glowing with a white spark for a moment, before a thunderous clash resounded from around them, a bolt of lightning streaking from the skies to slam into the wolf, it's back arching in pain as it's body slumped, unmoving and smoking.
She still chose to leap into the air to get a better vantage, seeing another three wolves fallen nearby, long, slowly bleeding cuts visible upon their flanks. As she floated above for a brief moment, she could see there only appeared to be one wolf left but…oh. Oh that was a big one. Tsuyu had explained to her that not unlike the wolves these creatures were named after, they hunted in packs made up of family units, either a father or mother being the one in charge. And based on the one remaining, lacking the back spikes Tsuyu had said were reminiscent amongst male winter wolves and instead having the fluffier tail of female ones, she was pretty sure that was Momma Wolf…and she did not look happy.
Izuku was darting back and forth, his limbs barely avoiding getting snapped in half by the jaws of the wolf that towered over the others by at least half. He had his teeth grit, sword at the ready in front of him as he swiped at the larger threat to make it back off, but the snow and ice made his footing unsteady. Ochako dropped out of the sky and began running to his side to help, but skid to a halt when she saw his free hand make a gesture. Izuku darted to the left, away from her, his free hand pointing her to the right. Ah, he wanted her to flank the creature. She got it, giving him a nod of recognition and running the direction he pointed, glancing back to see Tsuyu focusing on something, her eyes closed and gripping her staff tightly.
Ochako reached the back of the creature, and in a strange mirror to their first fight against the Fel Drake, brought her hammer swinging around to slam into the right hind leg of the wolf, the bone snapping like a toothpick as it let out a howl of anguish. Quick as a flash, it tried to spin about to strike at her, but the loud rumble of thunder above heralded another bolt of lightning being called, snapping into it and making it shudder in pain. Blood poured from the creature's mouth as it's jagged teeth ripped into its own tongue, but it was still standing…until Izuku leapt forward, jamming his sword into its massive maw and up, the scaled armor over his arms deflecting the teeth even as the blade pierced the roof of the creatures mouth, sending it slumping to the ground with a pained whimper, it's last breath hissing out.
Izuku yanked the sword back out, his face twisted in a strange cross between anger and sorrow. He wiped the sword clean of blood on the snow, panting for breath as he looked over at Ochako. Ochako smiled tiredly at him, slinging her hammer over her shoulder as if she had no care in the world, even if she understood his expression. She believed them both about how dangerous the creatures were…but damn if the sounds they made didn't tear at her heart a little bit.
"Everyone okay?" Izuku asked, glancing about.
"I'm fine. Just tired. But if we get what we need, we can start heading back," Tsuyu replied, nodding towards the largest wolf's corpse. Izuku nodded back tiredly, reaching into his bag and pulling out the flask Tsuyu had asked him to hold onto. With a swift cut into the flank of the creature, he held it beneath the slow moving blue-tinged blood, letting it seep into the flask until full. He capped it off, placing it carefully back in the bag, wiping his hand off on the snow to cleanse what splatter got on it.
"We're…just gonna leave the bodies here?" Ochako said hesitantly, glancing about.
"Collectors can't come out this far, and we'd be sitting ducks to butcher it ourselves. Don't worry, the other predators on the mountain will smell it and come to consume the bodies, nothing will go to waste," Tsuyu reassured her. "We'll want a fang or two though, as proof of the quest for the guild. I'm confirmation it's completed since I'm the one who submitted it, but they like physical evidence."
Izuku reached in and, with a grunt of effort and some green sparks, pulled one of the larger fangs out. Ochako was mildly fascinated by the fact it looked less like a tooth and more like a shard of ice, translucent and glimmering in the early morning sunlight. She shook her head and sighed, latching her hammer onto her back. "Well…guess that's that?"
"Yeah. We made a pretty good team!" Izuku said, his seeming down mood lifting slightly as he grinned at Ochako.
"We did. Maybe we keep working together?" Ochako said, glancing over at Tsuyu.
The druidess rolled her eyes, but a small smile crossed her face. "Sure. It's nice to be in a party again."
Izuku opened his mouth to speak, but his entire body froze for a moment. He snapped up to full attention, his blade appearing as if by magic in his hand as he stared down the mountain path from them, knees bent and body at the ready. He reached out and grabbed Ochako by the elbow, pulling her behind him so fast she had no time to reach, eyes going wide as Tsuyu seemed to get the message and stepped behind him as well.
Izuku's voice was low, almost a growl as he narrowed his eyes down the trail at something Ochako couldn't see. "Come out. I know you're there."
There was a brief pause, before a high pitched chuckle reached the trio's ears. A moment later, out of the snow, a white-furred rabbit hopped up towards them, stopping a few meters away. It lifted up a paw and rubbed it over its face for a brief second, one of its ears twitching, before its beady red eyes turned to look up into Izuku's green eyes. "You're very perceptive, shardling."
"I don't know what you mean by that, but you're no rabbit. What do you want?" Izuku replied, his voice still threatening. Ochako was still a bit in shock…talking rabbit, okay, that could be any number of things. But how angry Izuku seemed, that was what had her shocked. She'd yet to see him be this aggressive to…well, anything. She could practically see the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end, his entire body tense as if he was ready to spring into action at any moment. She couldn't help it…she placed one hand on the haft of her hammer, ready and waiting to bring it forward if she had to.
"So suspicious too. I suppose I should have expected a shardling would notice me, though. Always so tricksy you are, that you are," the rabbit replied, cocking its head to the side with another high-pitched chuckle.
Tsuyu stepped forward, her hand tightly gripping her staff. If Ochako wasn't as close to her as she was, she might not have noticed the barely visible trembles going through her friend's form. "What does a Fey want with us?"
"A learned one of the wilds, you recognize me?! Oh joy, oh joy, I need not introduce myself then! Good, good…no need to owe any favors, yes?"
Ochako knew almost nothing about Fey…save that they were bad news. She kept her mouth shut, unsure what was safe to say. She'd always been told…never take a gift and never give them your name, so she'd just stay silent and let the other two handle it.
"You didn't answer her question," Izuku said, his hand gripping his sword tighter.
"Oh shardling, you worry too much. Fret not. I merely was curious about who would fight the Mistress of the Mountain, and once I saw you, I knew I had to get a better view! And once I sensed it with you, why…I knew I needed to see it."
"See what?" Ochako said before she could stop herself. Well, there went her internal vow to stay silent.
The rabbit's eyes turned to meet hers, amusement dancing in those red orbs. "The relic you carry on you, the piece of the Blade, that which was once whole and is now not. To think a shardling would have found it, tis so amusing to me!"
"What the hell is a shardling?!" Izuku snarled. Ochako was once again taken aback…Izuku seemed angrier than she'd ever seen him. She could see him seething, his breaths visible in the cold air being hissed between his teeth. She looked at him carefully, trying to see why, only to notice him flinching, his eyes flickering as if in pain. She bit her lip, but decided to risk it…taking her hand off the haft, she placed it on his shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. Izuku started, his eyes going wide as he glanced back at her in surprise, meeting her soft but encouraging smile with a wide-eyed look. After a moment, he took a deep breath and his shoulders relaxed, taking in her silent support.
"You should know, shardling, for that is what you be. But I tarry too long, I see that you are displeased by me. Enjoy the relic, shardling. It is everything you ever wanted…and everything you fear." With a cackle, the rabbit leapt into the air, its body contorting for a brief moment into a single ball of white light that vanished in a loud crack a second later. The trio shielded their eyes from the light, blinking to clear them as they saw the mountain settle back into a peaceful silence.
Izuku's wincing stopped, his free hand reaching up to rub at his head. "That thing hurt just to be around," he muttered, his eyes closed.
"That was no ordinary Fey…it was much more powerful than it should have been," Tsuyu replied softly.
"I'm not super familiar with them…what does that mean?" Ochako asked.
Tsuyu stared at the spot the Fey creature had been. "I think it was very powerful. Maybe even an Archfey, but I hope not. Those shouldn't be able to leave their realms so easily."
"Archfey?"
"Demigods, kinda," Izuku said softly. "Like demon lords or archangels. Not truly a divine being, but something more than others of their kind. But that power has a price…they can't easily leave their realms. Our world can't hold them. It's not built for it. So one of them coming here is…concerning. And it kept calling me that weird name."
"Shardling…you don't know what that means?" Tsuyu asked.
Izuku shook his head. "No. I'm just me. I don't get what it was trying to say."
"Um…the whole relic thing…you think it was talking about this?" Ochako asked quietly, holding up the hilt of the blade they'd found with the Fel Drake.
"I don't know…but I think we need to find out," Izuku replied. He shook his head after a moment to clear it. "I don't think we should stay here and talk about this. Let's get off the mountain first and start going home. We can talk once we're away from here."
"Yeah…the predators will come soon. We should go," Tsuyu added. Ochako just nodded, turning to follow as Izuku began picking a path down the mountain, leading the other two away from the battlefield…and from whatever that thing was.