Uraraka had absolutely zero doubt that her left leg had been broken in the fall from the way pain shot like scalding lightning whenever she shifted the appendage the slightest bit, plus add on the fact that she couldn't move the entirety of the limb from the hip down. The only thing she could think of was a break in the femur or hip which resulted in the rest of her leg being unable to move. Her toes could still wiggle with a bit of effort, so it was a bit of comfort knowing the blood was still somewhat flowing to the digits. Upon groggily waking up Uraraka had immediately emptied her stomach contents from the sheer amount of agonizing pain that radiated through her body. Her lunch had been forgotten after Bakugo decided to be a jerk.
The brunette wasn't entirely sure where she currently was as her consciousness had only been briefly returned but even then it was still somewhat fuzzy. The skies above were growing darker and she numbly figured out it had been at least a few hours since the bus explosion. Ochaco curled her fingers experimentally, missing the familiar warmth of her quirk activating. No matter how hard she focused or tried it wouldn't activate in the slightest. A deep pain settled in her chest. Going from having a powerful quirk to nothing was traumatizing to say the least, though the worst part of it was the fact that she couldn't even prevent her friends from getting injured. If only she still had her quirk then she could've pushed the bus out of the way and saved them.
But…she had saved Deku at least, or so she hoped. They got separated after the initial explosion followed by the shockwave, yet luckily she was tossed towards him so she used the momentum to shove him out of the way. Her plan was to shove him towards Ida so he could help the others but the villain appearing out of nowhere took her by surprise. The moment his full weight pulled down on her was when she heard the snap of her leg breaking, a pained scream leaving her throat before the darkness took over. Whoever the villain was must have assumed the fall killed her seeing as there hadn't been anyone nearby in the area since she woke.
"I can't move my leg right now so I'm pretty much stuck on the ground until someone finds me. Though I'd rather it be a classmate than a villain," Uraraka mumbled to herself as she glanced around the dense forest she was residing in. Trickling water faintly reached her ears over the rustling of the leaves and she knew following a river was the best option given the circumstances. "Should be a river nearby. I need to stay hydrated in the very least until help arrives but I should find a splint or something for my leg first to minimize the damage to the muscles and bone. What would Deku do in a situation like this?"
Probably just keep running on adrenaline regardless of his injuries. I hope he made it out alright…
"Is he okay? He hasn't woken up yet," A voice whispered from somewhere outside of his conscious, familiar yet so distant sounding. But the darkness was warm, comforting and he didn't want to leave it quite yet.
"Well, it's possible he went through more trauma than we can physically see so it could take a while longer for him to rouse. Thirteen took a look at him yet apart from a few bumps and scratches Midoriya should be fine. We've already bandaged every injury we could see but it's possible the explosion shocked his system pretty hard."
"Uraraka is to thank for that, she shoved him out of the way and it helped Sero grab him before he completely fell. Have there…" Another voce hesitated, seemingly unsure of how to proceed. "Have there been any updates on her? It's been so long since the explosion."
"Hound Dog is still out searching but…no, nothing new has been reported as of yet. All we can do is keep the faith that she made it out fairly unscathed."
"She tried to warn us about the bus, do you think she knew something from the beginning? Ura wasn't acting like herself after she stopped the machine on the hillside, I wonder if something happened to her up there,"
Ura…
"I noticed that too. Almost like she couldn't catch her breath and the energy was completely sapped from her body. Uraraka practically collapsed against Midoriya! Oh, I hope she's okay. I would hate for anything bad to have happened to her." More and more voices were entering his subconscious and Deku felt his fingers twitch the slightest bit.
Ura…raka…
"That damn nerd still sleeping?" A harsh, grating voice that the green haired teen knew anywhere entered his mind and he mentally grimaced at what was about to happen. "Oi, wake yer ass up, Deku!"
"Bakugo, calm down! We don't know if he was injured more than we can physically see! Just give him the time to wake up—"
"Fuck that! Deku you fucking nerd, wake up!"
Deku groaned a bit as his eyes flickered open. Everything around him was fuzzy and looked like a bad painting of colors but he could see distinct human-like shapes hovering nearby. Emerald eyes fluttered back shut as the lull of darkness beckoned him once more. Something roughly grabbed the front of his shirt and shook him like a ragdoll, snapping him completely from his half-awake stupor. Bakugo stood over him with a heavy sneer as he barked at him to get his ass up, his other classmates yelling at him to stop shaking the sense out of him. Once Kirishima managed to wrestle the pyromaniac away from the teen, Deku thumped backwards onto the ground, now fully awake and slightly traumatized.
"Deku! How are you feeling? Are you okay? Do you need anything? Tsu, can you grab some water for him? Ah, and let Thirteen and Mr. Aizawa know that he's awake!" Yaoyorozu darted her attention between Deku and Tsu while the teen attempted to sit up, a bandaged hand moving to rest against his temple. "No, no, don't push yourself too hard. Rest, there's no more danger for the time-being."
"Yaoyorozu…I don't remember anything after getting on the bus this morning. What happened?" Deku asked wearily as he took in his surroundings. They appeared to be in the forest, a clearing of sorts at least, with a fire going to fend off the chill of the air. A shiver ran down his spine and he glanced around for his jacket. It was folded neatly behind where his head had been so he snatched it back up, slid his arms through it and zipped it nearly to the top. He brought a heavier jacket for the bitter nights yet it was stored on the bus.
"A lot of us were knocked unconscious by our bus exploding thanks to some villains, but the few who weren't tried their best to at least soften the blow of landing in the trees. Everyone else woke up fairly quickly though you took a bit longer. No thanks to Bakugo on that part." Mina jerked her thumb towards said teen, a dangerous glare sent her way before he stomped over to the fire. "Ochaco managed to push you out of the way and towards Ida—"
"Uraraka, where is she? Is she fine?" Deku interrupted with a blurt. It was beginning to come back to him now; the bus exploding, everyone sent flying through the air, Uraraka shoving him out of the way…before disappearing into the woods. "What about the villain that attacked her?"
Silence answered him and a hollow feeling carved deep into his chest. Mina looked away and averted her gaze, Yaoyorozu placed her hands over her mouth as she became emotional, Todoroki merely shook his head slowly and Tokoyami rubbed the back of his neck. Ida glanced around at his fellow classmates before adjusting his glasses and turning towards Deku. "They…Uraraka is still unaccounted for Midoriya, since the explosion late this morning. Hound Dog is still out searching for any signs of her but so far they haven't been able to find a trace. I'm sorry to be the one to tell you the news."
Deku felt his eyes stinging as his head dropped in shame. Uraraka sacrificed herself so easily just to protect him when he should've been the one to protect his friends. She already seemed weakened by the time she returned from the hillside and he should've been more careful, should've gotten her out of there faster instead of wasting time. It was all his fault. With a push Deku slowly got to his feet. "I'm going to find her. It's my fault she's missing, all because I failed to protect her in the first place."
"Midoriya, we've been instructed to stay at camp while the teachers cycle turns to go searching for her. Hound Dog has been out looking for a few hours now," Todoroki spoke quietly as he placed a hand on his friends shoulder. "We're all worried about her but there's nothing more we can do about it for now. You need to get more rest."
"Not while she's out there possibly injured because of my failure to be strong enough to protect my friends." Izuku retorted with an unwavering look at his friend. "I knew she was weakened and should've moved her away faster. This is my fault and I'm going to fix it one way or another. Are you all with me or not?"
Everyone glanced amongst themselves sharing a silent agreement before turning to Izuku with confident smiles. He understood what those looks meant and nodded, appreciative of their support. Now they needed to come up with a plan to search the area where they fell. "If everyone is in agreement then—"
"You'll sit your butt right down, Midoriya," Aizawa ordered as he strolled up hands in pockets with Thirteen and Tsu. "We've got enough problems on our hands and you running off to play hero isn't going to help anything. Hound Dog should be on his way back before it gets dark. The teachers have this handled."
"Mr. Aizawa, we can't just keep sitting around here doing nothing! Uraraka sacrificed herself to save us! I won't just sit around while she could be injured or hunted down by villains!"
"Midoriya, you need to understand the severity of the situation. We were specifically targeted by villains working for the League, it was all a coordinated attack to get you students separated from the pros. A message has been sent for reinforcements and we'll be escorted back to the school within a few hours." Thirteen spoke softly to soothe the fired-up teenager. She understood what it was like to watch a friend be injured by a villain attack, but acting recklessly in a situation like this could do more harm than good. The hero understood how strong Uraraka was, especially going up against her in the mock battles, but the concern amongst her classmates was nearly palpable.
"We can't leave her out there!" Deku rebutted with his arms spread wide. "With all of us here we can do a sweep of the woods faster than Hound Dog can do solo. Please, give us just a few hours to search! We can find her faster!"
"He does have a point, Eraser." Cementoss interjected casually as he strolled up to the other teachers, hands interlocked at his front.
"You can't be serious, Cementoss. I won't allow any more of my students to go missing when there could still be villains running about. Especially after the last time. We don't know how involved the League is or whether or not they've sent someone like Dabi again." Aizawa countered irately. This was supposed to be a relaxing break for the students yet it turned into another fight for their lives as villains ambushed them just shy of their destination. He should've prepared better for this and because of his failures, one of his students was missing and others were injured. This was no different than last time.
"We know they're all capable heroes, Eraser Head, so why not put a little more faith into them? We, of course, will be going along as support. Students, if you will stick to your respective teachers then we shall start planning out our search areas." Aizawa grimaced but gave a tight nod in agreement. There was no point in arguing with the pro; he always had a way with persuading one's mind so easily. He had a valid argument that he wasn't denying, yet after the last encounter with villains in the woods the teacher didn't want to risk any more of his students getting injured or being kidnapped.
"Since it's going to get dark soon I can create some GPS trackers and radios for each team along with flashlights." Yaoyorozu offered quickly, the creation quirk holder ready to help any way she could. "Flares would be a good idea as well so whoever finds Uraraka first can signal the others on their location."
"Here, take some of my snacks so you can keep your strength up. You've probably used up a lot of your quirk defending us from the blasts." Sato quickly offered up whatever snacks he had to aid the creation hero. She took a few with a thanks before focusing on manifesting equipment.
"Great thinking, Yaoyorozu! Everyone, let's get prepared to scour every inch of this forest for our comrade! We won't rest until she's found safe and sound!" Ida cheered with a fist pump. A resounding chorus of agreement filled the air. Deku clenched his fists at his side. He would find Uraraka no matter what.
It had taken a while to reach the waters' edge, but Uraraka had finally gotten herself off the frigid forest floor and towards the flowing sustenance. Her leg was burning nearly as hot as Bakugo's explosions and she knew without a doubt it was on its way to becoming infected sooner rather than later. While the bone hadn't penetrated the skin, as far as she could tell, it had done damage on the inside that she couldn't see or heal. Splinting it was an option but with nothing big enough around her to do so it became a moot point. The water was cold and helped her parched throat greatly as she scooped it up with her hands after some careful maneuvering to reach it. The sun was dipping below the horizon and a shiver ran down her spine. Being higher up in the mountains as winter approached meant frigid temperatures that could mean potential hypothermia. While her somewhat ripped sweatshirt kept some of her body heat in her leggings and shorts did not, though the tightness of them seemed to act almost as a compression sock for the swollen limb.
Shelter was the next step in surviving the night and with some slow, careful movements towards the bottom of the short falls, Uraraka found a small eroded out cavern hiding in the cliffside. When the brunette was younger she would often explore the woods and quickly learned some of the waterfalls had carved out areas behind them. She was thankful her phone had made it through the entire ordeal and turned on the flashlight to guide her way. It was cold and damp yet went deep enough to keep her out of the main spray of water. With a grunt of pain, she eased herself down to the rocky floor a short distance from the entrance. If anyone were to come looking for her they could easily look right over the cave in the darkness but she would be safe from villains. Uraraka leaned her head back against the damp wall with a sigh. Was anyone even out searching for her or were they still trying to fight of the enemies? It was impossible for her to keep moving in her condition so this was the only option she could think of for the time being. It wasn't the most ideal thing as the bottom parts of her legs were wet from the waterfall, but the cost of being secured from any attacks was worth the dampness. There hadn't been any evidence of fighting in the area from what she could tell though being nearly delirious from pain cancelled out a lot of the situational awareness. All she could do now was to just sit and wait for someone to stumble upon her. If they ever did.
Eyelids slowly began drooping as the temperature dropped. She hadn't realized how exhausted she had become after losing her quirk, not to mention the break in her leg was extremely draining and painful. A heavy arm lifted up the phone to shut the light off when a signal bar blearily flashed at her from the upper corner. Uraraka stared at it for a moment before sliding her thumb over to the messaging app. It was a slim chance that the message would be sent or even if he had his phone on him, but it could potentially lead them to her. Deku's name popped up under her messages and she weakly tapped out a few words before hitting the send button. The phone dropped from her hand as a burning fever pulled her under.
Deku jogged through the forest with his flashlight shining in every which direction, the light unsteady from his quivering hands. They'd already been searching for a while now with no clues as to Uraraka's whereabouts and darkness had long fallen. It was himself, Tsu, Jiro, and Aoyama led by Cementoss while the others had separated and gone off in different directions. From the ground it was hard to pinpoint the location where they'd fallen so it became more of a wide sweep to cover a larger area of the dense woods. A few times he'd jumped above the treetops to get a general location but with the darkness it was impossible to locate where they were.
"I hope Ochaco is alright," Tsu spoke up while shining her light more upwards into the branches, her finger against her mouth. "She hasn't been acting herself for a few days now and she looked pretty drained earlier."
"Yeah, me too." Izuku replied quietly. His hand clenched the flashlight tighter as the guilt washed over him. He should've been the one to risk his life and launch at the villains, not her. She had apprehensions about going on the trip and a part of him felt like she was trying to make up for her weakness. But she wasn't weak, in fact there were times when Uraraka threw herself into situations without regard for her own safety. She'd even saved him more times than he could count.
"She's tougher than you guys may think. I mean, she even took Bakugo head-on in the festival and he's a total psychopath. Then she stood up for Midoriya after he shoved into him." Jiro reminded them both. Her ear jacks occasionally plopped themselves into ground to listen for any quieter noises. "I'm sure she's probably got herself somewhere safe even if she's injured. She's learned a lot from Ryukyu and Thirteen when it comes to rescue and first aid."
"Oui, she has shown many a times the strength she possesses." Aoyama agreed, his light anxiously darting around in the darkness. Every small shadow movement would cause a high-pitched squeal to slip from his mouth until Tsu wrapped her tongue around his mouth to silence him.
"That child is very strong-willed, I'm sure you have nothing to worry about. She has shown great strength and resilience in the face of uncertainty. We'll find her, that I have no doubt about that." Cementoss added in and all four students turned to look at him through the darkness. "There are four pros amongst you heroes in training and though our skills vary greatly, I have faith we will find your comrade. Now, let's continue our search."
"Yes, sir."
Deku let out a small breath before putting more energy into their search. He was right. Uraraka was strong, stronger than she believed and he knew the gravity manipulator could handle herself until they rescued her, but that didn't stop him from constantly worrying. Another half an hour of searching led them to a river where they decided to stop for a few minutes to rethink their strategy and contact the other groups. Tsu went on ahead to search the river downstream in case she fell in at some point though she warned about the cold slowing her down. Cementoss removed a pouch from his back and offered the students some snacks.
"Is anyone else's phones not working right? I barely have a signal to send a text to the others." Jiro held up her phone to show her one bar of signal. "I can try to amplify an outgoing signal and listen for the sounds of a phone ringing but receiving a strong signal is out of my capabilities right now. At least we have the radios that Momo made."
"Non, mine was lost during the explosion."
"Oh, I haven't checked mine since this morning." Deku fished around in his pocket for the electronic, quickly unlocking the screen once he grabbed it. Surprisingly it had made it out pretty unscratched having been secured in his pocket. The battery was running low and the signal seemed intermittent but the few messages he received popped up on the screen. There were a few from his mother, one from All Might but that was it. He shoved it back into his pocket before taking the snack from his teacher. "My battery is almost dead and the signal seems pretty weak here. Did Uraraka have her phone with her? I don't remember her ever bringing it out."
"I can try to give it a ring but the call may drop due to the low signal, I don't have more than two bars." Jiro scrolled through her contacts to find Uraraka before pressing on the green phone symbol. She put it on speakerphone for everyone to hear while one jack plugged into the bottom and the other plopped into her headphones that she hastily lifted to her ears. They were dual purpose for sending and receiving signal but in a heavily dense forest, there was a lot of interference going on around her and few towers in the area. There was a heavy pause before a staticky ring echoed from the phone. Once, twice, three times it rang and the teen was about to hang up before it went to voicemail when a soft click had them instantly on edge. Static filled the line as they waited with bated breaths, the three teens crowding around the phone anxiously.
"Uraraka?" Deku asked hesitantly, unsure if the line was active or not. "Uraraka can you hear us? Do you know where you are?" Jiro planted one of her jacks in the ground to sense any vocal vibrations in the area. Tsu reappeared almost silently behind them, tuning into the phone as well.
"…ku…got…mess…in…." A weak voice crackled over the line and a collective shaky breath left them all. Cementoss slowly lowered his drink as he listened in.
"Ochaco, do you know where you are? Are you injured?" Tsu asked worriedly.
"Mon ami, it's a relief to hear your voice!" The Shining Hero sobbed out only to be silenced by Jiro with a raise of her finger.
"…leg...ken…ov…cold…" The gravity user nearly whispered. The four looked at each other in confusion at the broken words.
"Something about your leg? Is your leg injured? Are you able to move at all? Please, tell us where you are, Uraraka!" Deku begged into the phone he snatched from Jiro's hands, panicked eyes locked onto his friends name glowing brightly in the darkness. Silence filled the air again and the flickering flame of hope began dying down once more. Jiro held up her hand as her other jack shifted further down the flowing river, the teen closing her eyes to concentrate.
"…ter…al…" The line suddenly clicked off and the phone screen turned black, the call having died. Jiro waited a few breaths before removing her jacks to look at the motionless Deku.
"What was she trying to say? It didn't make much sense apart from something with her leg. Ter-al? I don't understand what that is." Tsu hummed in thought. Aoyama quickly nodded his head in agreement.
"It was faint but I could feel some pretty good vibrations coming from further down the river. Tsu, can you continue further down the river to see how far it goes? We'll be right behind you. Don't push yourself if it's too cold to navigate." Tsu nodded before hopping into the waters once more and shooting through the river with her light leading the way.
"What was she trying to say…" Deku mumbled into his hand as he tried to decipher the words. They didn't necessarily make sense seeing as they were fractured over the phone but the few words they made out were clearly spoken. It was obvious her leg seemed injured just by the few words she managed to get out but her location didn't make sense. Was she in a tree? On a cliffside? In a cave somewhere? The first word ended in ter so maybe a crater? No, no, that didn't make much sense in this area based on the geographics Aizawa went over before they departed. Deku lifted his gaze at the river, watching as his light reflected in the calmly flowing waters. A gear clicked in his mind and he pointed at the water in realization. "Water…the first part of what she was saying is about water. Jiro, you said you heard something further down the river, right?"
"Yeah, it was weak but it could be a person or animal. There was quite a bit of noise covering it up so I can't be completely sure. What are you thinking of, Midoriya?"
"Did you hear anything that sounded like rushing water? Like a waterfall?" Jiro's eyes widened as she finally caught on, her expression telling Deku everything he needed to know. "We need to find a waterfall, most likely she's in that area. Tsu should already be close to it so let's get going!"
"Right!"
Tears stung in Uraraka's eyes as a raging heat took over her body. Waves of fieriness radiated down her body like a chill and she barely even noticed the cold floor around her after a while. In between bouts of consciousness her phone had gone off and she thought she spoke to someone on the line but her mind was too fuzzy to remember clearly anymore. How long had she been down here? Minutes, hours, even days. Everything was dark so there weren't any indicators of the outside world. She wasn't entirely sure where she was currently residing. Frigid fingers searched for something, anything nearby that would help her out but the appendage merely flopped against the cavern floor without an ounce of energy. A shaky sigh passed her lips. She barely had the energy to move; between not eating since this morning, losing the ability to use her quirk, the explosion, her broken leg, and now the fever raging through her body had ravaged every ounce of energy she had.
It's getting…numb…
Deku skidded to a halt at the top of the waterfall a bit breathless, flashlight frantically searching the area around it. Tsu had joined back up with them sooner than planned due to beginning hibernation thanks to the frigid waters. Jiro and Aoyama offered to stay back with her so they could keep her warm and call for backup. Cementoss followed behind Aizawa's student with caution, steely eyes checking the surrounding area for potential enemies. They had managed to trap most of them but a few sneaky ones slipped through their fingers and were most likely waiting amongst the trees. The pro stepped up to the edge of the falls and shone his light below, searching the waters for any sign of the missing student.
"There, do you see that down there, Midoriya?" Cementoss pointed down to where his light was shining. It was resting on a spot along the shoreside where a wide sand bar resided. The teen squinted down at the brightened area, searching for what his teacher was pointing at. "A footprint alongside intermittent drag markings heading towards the bottom of the falls. Uraraka may have fallen into the water at some point so we can't rule that out but for now we shall search down below in case there is another area she could have wandered into. Perhaps check to see if there is a cavern carved out behind the falls. One of the first steps in survival is finding shelter."
"Yes!"
Deku jumped with ease down to the embankment while Cementoss took the more sensible path along the hillside, his light swaying in front of him with each step. Crouching down, his fingers traced over the shoe print stopping just shy of the water's edge. It seemed to be about the size of a woman's shoe and the jagged, intermittent drag marking would coincide with a leg injury. The teen shone his light along the edge in search of more footprints. The sand bar tapered off as it hit the falls so if she did in fact go towards it, then she would've had to trudge through the water and bypass the falls. Seeing as Tsu had a hard time with the temperature of the water he couldn't see Uraraka intentionally risking hypothermia on top of an injury unless there was no other shelter to reach. The gravity manipulator must have found a way back there somehow. His light shined against the edges of the falls and it was difficult to discern if there really was an opening behind the rushing water. "Uraraka! Can you hear me? Let me know you're back there somehow!"
He couldn't hear a response over the roaring crash of the water so he did the only sensible thing he could think of; forced some power into his legs and propelled himself through the thundering falls. His theory proved correct in that there was a cavern of sorts behind the falls, yet what he wasn't counting on was how slick the floor was and the hero went flailing across the floor as his boots failed to find a grip. A wall finally stopped his fall and Deku grunted as he smacked into it, the flashlight in his hand skidding across the floor loudly. He let out a few hisses of pain as he sat upright, rubbing the back of his head as it throbbed. Not exactly the best entrance he's had but it had been a fifty-fifty shot regardless. Just as he reached down to grab his light, Izuku stopped short as his gaze wandered towards where it was pointed, a heavy warning going off in his head. It felt like there was someone or something lurking in the darkness.
While it was still extremely dark within the cavern the light had managed to aim back towards the entrance, illuminating the droplets of water as they dripped from above. The only thing that stood out was what looked like a small, dark rectangle of sorts on the jagged ground. Carefully grabbing the light the teen kept it aimed directly at the spot while shifting closer to it. Light reflected off the front of it and he quickly realized it was a cellphone. He crouched down to lift it up. The front screen refused to turn on even after holding the button down so he knew it was completely dead and flipped it open to confirm as well. Uraraka was the only one in the class that still had an outdated phone like this. A chill ran up his spine, unease filling the pit of his stomach and weighing it down as he slowly turned the light to his left. Tense seconds passed as it was nothing but rock until a familiar grey and white tennis shoe entered his vision.
"Uraraka?" Deku asked in a high pitched voice, throat clenching tightly. The light traveled further up to reveal a set of legs with one obviously more swollen than the other. Torn leggings and shorts trailed beneath a tattered green U.A. sweatshirt and Deku began shaking. Uraraka was resting slumped against the cavern wall with a heavily flushed face, skin covered in a sheen of sweat as she breathed shallowly. "Uraraka, can you hear me? It's alright, I'm here now. Please, I need you to wake up for me."
The brunette didn't respond though her eyes seemed to crack open a bit. Deku set the flashlight on end so it illuminated the area better then ripped his partially damp jacket off to cover her with. There were no medical supplies nearby and help could still be hours away, the nearest hospital was down at the base of the mountains. It was obvious her leg had been broken as it had swelled to nearly double compared to her other one. Without knowing exactly where her leg had broken splinting it was even more of a challenge. Infection could be beginning to set in judging by the sheen of perspiration covering her face and neck, but it could also be the shock and trauma of the injury. Deku bit down hard on his lip while trying to hold back the tears. She'd been injured because he'd failed. He should've moved her faster away from the bus, should've held onto her tighter after the explosion, should've pushed her out of the way and taken the blow from the enemy.
Something cold brushed against him and he startled. Uraraka stared at him with the tiniest hint of a smile as she touched his arm lightly. Deku clasped her hand tightly against his skin, the cold appendage nearly burning against his warmer flesh. "De…ku…"
"I'm sorry Uraraka, I should've been there for you. You got injured because I failed to protect you." Izuku took in a shaky breath as she tried to sit up only to scrunch her face up tightly in pain. "Don't move, we'll get help here soon enough. Cementoss will send a flair to alert the others of our location, save your energy for now. Are you in a lot of pain?"
"Yeah…" Uraraka breathed out. Auburn eyes fluttered shut momentarily before reopening wider. A pounding headache made it hard to think about anything at the moment and she tried her best to focus. "Femur…broke mid-air…villain…"
"The villain that grabbed onto you?" She nodded slightly. He could tell she was in an indescribable amount of pain and it just made his heart clench all that much tighter. His free hand reached up to move a clump of damp hair from her eyes, tucking it off to the side so it wouldn't bother her as much. Just that brief skin contact nearly burned his fingertips and Deku knew she needed urgent medical care. He placed the back of his hand against her forehead to confirm and the skin was nearly too hot to touch. "You're burning up, we need to get you out of here and to the nearest hospital. I need to alert Cementoss that you're in here—"
"No need, Midoriya, I have already signaled to the others that she has been located safely. Jiro, Aoyama, and Tsu are waiting to guide the others to our location though from the looks of her we may be running on borrowed time. Have you already done an examination on her current condition?" Cementoss rumbled as he emerged from the waterfall with quiet steps.
"Uraraka said her femur was broken on her left leg when a villain grabbed onto it after the explosion. She's running a high fever yet her hands are freezing cold. High pain level currently. It's not safe to try and move her right now, not with her leg like this and nothing to splint it with. I don't know the exact location of the break so that makes it more difficult." Midoriya explained to his teacher as he crouched down as well. Uraraka briefly glanced over at him before returning her hazy gaze to the green-haired teen. Her other hand shifted from the floor to slowly hover above her broken leg, just slightly above mid-thigh to indicate roughly where the break was. Deku gave a quick apology before carefully resting his fingers over the spot. With all of the injuries he's had over the past few months, Izuku Midoriya was no stranger to broken bones. While he couldn't fully locate the break beneath all the swelling, he based his guess by the amount of pain his friend was displaying with each light graze of his fingers. He wasn't a medical professional yet he had enough knowledge to know it hadn't broken through the skin, which was a good sign. "It doesn't seem like it's broken through the skin, thankfully, but I doubt she can even walk at this point. Can you move your toes?"
Uraraka panted heavily as harrowing pain coursed through her body and shook her head no, leaning back to rest against the cavern wall. Just the small amount of pressure on her leg had nearly sent her back into the black oblivion of unconsciousness yet she tried her best to fight it. She would normally be more relieved that Deku had finally stumbled upon her if it weren't for the pain and fever wracking her broken body. Hot, watery eyes opened to see his mouth moving but no words were coming out and her brows pinched in confusion. What was he saying? Deku's face contorted into what looked like alarm but Uraraka didn't have the energy to keep her eyes open any longer. Everything began blurring in her vision and she finally gave into the comforting warmth it provided once more.
Recovery Girl twisted the syringe into the port connecting to the unconscious student's arm, a deep frown on her worn face as she pushed the medicine into the veins. She'd seen injuries in all shape and form but this leg break was one of the worst she'd encountered since Midoriya's sports festival injuries. The child was too worn out for the pro to use her power so she would have to heal the old fashioned way with rest, strong medications, and corrective surgery. The break itself was one she didn't see too often, even in her line of work; a displaced spiral fracture. From what the teachers and witnessing students told her, Uraraka had been falling after the bus explosion and after pushing Izuku Midoriya out of the way, had a villain latch onto her leg and drag her down into the depths of the forest. It was a poor situation to be in for the girl since the motion of the twist caused a good amount of damage that could potentially take months to heal properly. There was always the chance of a permanent limp but the nurse would try her best to get the up and coming hero back into fighting action.
The old pro hopped up onto her chair after cleansing her hands, a heavy sigh escaping her wrinkled lips. It seemed the League of Villains were gathering a good amount of underlings to do their biddings. Ever since All Might announced his sudden retirement, the world had turned on its side with low-life villains rising to the occasion now that the number one hero of peace was gone. Life was going to continue to get even messier for all of the newer generation of heroes. A knock on the infirmary door a while later dragged her attention from the notes she was adding onto the computer.
"Recovery Girl, have there been any updates?" Aizawa asked as he shut the infirmary door behind him. It was brief but the nurse thought she saw a crowd forming outside of her infirmary before the door was closed and audibly locked. No doubt Jiro would use her jacks to relay his and Recovery Girl's conversation.
"Well, Shota, it's going to be slow in regard to her recovery," Chiyo spun her chair around to face the ragged looking teacher as he sat down in a nearby chair. "The surgery is scheduled for later today and that will take me no more than a few hours to repair the break and place some pins in her leg. She doesn't have enough energy left for me to repair her the fast way so it's going to be a long recovery ahead, though I'm confident she'll make it out alright. I am concerned about one thing."
"What's that?"
"Her body is registering very low on the energy readings so some part of her body is either draining it rapidly or there's something else going on. Did any of your students mention Uraraka acting out of normal during the fight?"
Aizawa scratched his stubbled chin in thought. All of the students had swarmed him after they returned and Uraraka was rushed into the infirmary, all going off at once about what happened. Midoriya though seemed to be the most persistent of the class with requesting a private room to talk. The moment that classroom door shut the teen recalled everything about Uraraka from how she had been acting off a few days prior to having no energy after destroying the automated machine on the top of the hill. The thing that had struck him as odd was when she placed her hands against the bus as if to lift it away and nothing happened. No glow, no movement from the vehicle. "Yeah, Midoriya mentioned how Uraraka was acting weak after destroying the machine then when she tried to lift the bus away from the rest of the class, it was like her quirk didn't activate. I'm wondering if something happened to her once that machine was destroyed. It's possible it was rigged with some sort of quirk paralytic."
"Hm. I'll run a full blood screen before the surgery just in case she came into contact with a paralytic substance. You can tell those students to go back to their dorms until she's out of surgery later this afternoon, Shota, they're crowding my doorway." Chiyo chuckled as the teacher scowled, yanking on his scarf in preparation to intimidate them away. "Don't be too harsh on them they're just worried about their friend. I'll let you know once she's out of surgery. Go reassure your students before they end up in here sick from stress."
Uraraka hazily opened her eyes and took in a deep breath when her lungs remembered to function probably, chest heaving a few times until they eventually calmed. It felt like there was a desert residing within the brunettes mouth, tongue like a dried out sponge as she smacked her lips. She wasn't entirely sure what had happened but as her mind cleared a bit the teen noticed it was the schools infirmary. Through the curtained windows the rising sun filtered through vibrant shades of orange, red and hints of yellow.
"How are you feeling, Ochaco? You've been out for a bit now." Recovery Girl made her way over to the bedside with her usual kind demeanor and smile resting on her worn face. Uraraka blinked the odd feeling sleep sensation from her eyes before looking at the nurse confused. "I had to go in and fix that broken leg of yours. You did quite a bit of damage to yourself, child, and it's going to take you a good amount of time to heal before going back to your usual schedule. Don't worry about those pins they'll come out once you've regained some of your energy."
"Oh…that's right, my leg broke after the villain grabbed onto me." Uraraka spoke softly as she glanced down at the casted and pinned appendage. A grimace twitched at her lips at how the pins protruded in every direction. While she didn't feel any pain or discomfort it was still weird to look like a human pin cushion.
"It wasn't your fault according to what Aizawa told me so don't worry about that. What I would like to know is how you were hit with a quirk paralytic and what all it felt like when it took effect." Chiyo hopped onto the stool residing beside the bed with her fingers crossing against her lap. "Poor Midoriya has been blaming himself the entire time for letting you get injured so badly, but none of us could have predicted League underlings would ambush the bus like that. Principal Nezu has personally sent a few higher up pros to take care of the problem."
"Deku? Ah, is he alright? He's not injured is he?" Ochaco became more alert and the old nurse merely chuckled at her reaction. Young love was such a beautiful thing, something she used to know a long, long time ago. It was obvious from general observations between the two and the way they both flushed when realizing how close they were. They would make a cute couple she decided.
"Now, now, calm down a minute. The boy is fine apart from worrying so much about you and constantly camping outside of my office. Tell me what you remember about losing your quirk then I'll consider letting your friends in for a visit."
"Um," Memories were still a bit fuzzy and it took the teen a few minutes to properly recall everything but when it did, all of them came rushing back and Uraraka clamped a hand over her mouth when her stomach clenched tightly. Chiyo grabbed the nearest trash can and handed it to the girl moments before she lost her stomach. The urge died down after a minute and the brunette leaned heavily into her pillows. "I'm sorry, it all came back a bit too quickly for me."
"Don't worry, I'm sure part of that is the anesthesia wearing off as well. I'll get you something to eat here in a few minutes."
"I guess it started after I had shut off the explosive creation device off, when a purple smoke began spewing out of the muzzle. Even though I covered my mouth it still seemed to get into my system. It took effect almost immediately and by the time I had returned to the ground I couldn't catch my breath and my quirk had become unusable. I felt like I was dying…" Uraraka trailed off quietly and dropped her gaze to her lap silently. Recovery Girl studied the student before her. Back in her day there wasn't All for One constantly trying to kill off any pro hero that breathed, he did so more from the shadows and less frequently, yet now the younger generations were paying for their failures of the past. If All Might had won that fight back then…things could've turned out completely different for the future heroes in training.
"Interesting. I did an analysis on your blood and it shows that it is indeed a variant of quirk blocker though we don't quite know it's full potency or how long its effects will last. I'm afraid there isn't a way of predicting when your quirk will return, Uraraka, so until then I'm going to have to suspend your classes and training. We can't risk you going out and getting into a fight then suddenly losing control of your quirk if it becomes intermittent." Chiyo pitied the girl as she solemnly nodded at the grave news. It was her least favorite part of the job but it had to be done. "Since you've held up your end of the bargain I'll grant your friends limited visitation hours for now. They won't know a word of what happened to your quirk, that's up to you to inform them when you're ready. I'll go grab some easy food and more medicine for you so just hang tight."
The infirmary door shut quietly behind the nurse, leaving Ochaco to ponder her thoughts in silence. Dread settled heavily into her chest. Being a hero meant using the special ability you were born with to help those born without, to give strength and courage when it was needed most. Without her quirk she wouldn't be able to help those who need it so desperately. The vacation her parents wanted would never become a reality if it refused to return. What would happen to her if it didn't? What if she became just a normal person going about normal business? Becoming a hero was something she yearned for, sacrificed blood, sweat, and tears just to see the crowds of citizens cheering. She would have to leave U.A. for good, unable to watch while her classmates continued to climb to the top without her. There was always going back home to help her parents with the bills but…
The tears fell silently down her face in hot trails as the reality began to sink in, head hanging low with hands over her face. She would have to leave all of her friends behind as they continued down the path towards being heroes; she would be nothing more than a roadblock for them on their rise to the top. All of that training, hard work, sacrifice…all down the drain just because some villains decided to ambush yet another mountainside trip. The door slammed open suddenly startling the brunette from her spiraling depression party and she looked over to see who was entering with wide eyes.
"Uraraka!"
"How are you feeling?"
"Are you okay now?"
"Recovery Girl said you had surgery last night!"
"Woah, you have pins in your leg!"
"Oh no, are you in pain?"
Most of her classmates rushed through the infirmary doors to crowd around the brunette, mouths going a hundred miles a minute. Mina latched onto her shoulders sobbing in apology for putting her on the catapult. Yaoyorozu asked for forgiveness for not stopping the dangerous stunt sooner. Iida profusely bowed while explaining his failures as class rep. Tsu latched on around the other side of Mina, creating an Ochaco sandwich between the girls. Jiro and Toru took up spots on either side of the bed as well, visible relief exuding from them. Ochaco lightly patted the girls hugging her on the shoulders and took in a breath of air once she was no longer being squeezed.
"Why are you all here so early in the morning? Isn't there class today?" Ochaco asked a bit confused. A quick glance told her most of the class was shoved into the nurses office. Most but not all.
"Mr. Aizawa and the rest of the teachers gave us the next few days off since you finally woke up and they have an active investigation going on. They've been interviewing all of us nonstop. You've been out almost a week! Recovery Girl just came by the class to let us know that you were awake and that she was allowing visitors," Tsu provided while wiping the tears from her eyes. "How is your leg doing?"
"It was pretty messed up from the fall but Recovery Girl thinks it will heal normally in a few months. I guess I don't have enough energy for her to use healing on me so I'll heal the normal way. I'm sorry for worrying you all," Uraraka cusped the back of her neck with her hand, giving them all an apologetic smile.
"You've done nothing wrong, Uraraka!" Kirishima protested, the others voicing their agreements. "No one could have predicted what was going to happen on this trip so don't sweat it. The most important thing is that you're alright."
"Kirishima has a point. You actually helped us out immensely by destroying that machine on the hillside and allowing the pros to take down the villains attacking. Who knows what would have happened if you hadn't done that." Todoroki input from beside Ida, his usually stoic face sporting a tiny smile.
"You were awesome, Ochaco! Especially on the catapult! Sorry about releasing the rope early though that was my fault." Mina scratched her cheek with her index finger, a bit embarrassed at her blunder.
"It was an accident, don't worry about it. Besides, it worked out in the end, right?" Uraraka patted her hand comfortingly. "I never actually destroyed the machine and just flipped the power switch off. I'm guessing the villains were just using it as a distraction before ambushing us."
"Really? That would explain why there weren't any explosions after Sero caught you. I'm just glad you didn't get hurt from the machine." Jiro pointed out with the class talking quietly amongst themselves about how it made sense. Ochaco flinched but covered it up as a shiver, the blankets shifting a little higher against her stomach. Telling them now would do more harm than good and it gave the brunette more time to process the fact that her powers were gone, at least temporarily.
"If you need anything at all don't hesitate to text or call us, okay?" Yaoyorozu clasped her hands against her chest as she looked down at her friend with worry. "You can always count on us, Ochaco, please don't forget that. We're all your friends."
"Yaomomo—"
"Alright, alright, when I said visitors were allowed I didn't mean the entire class rushing in here at once. She's still a sick patient who needs rest and peace and quiet. Go on now, you can come back later this afternoon after I've run some more tests. Don't stress her out by being so rowdy."
Recovery Girl stood behind the class with a sandwich bag in one hand and the other resting on her syringe-like cane. Everyone bid a quick farewell as they filed from the room, silence filling the room when the door shut. The nurse clucked her tongue and shook her head at the ridiculousness of the students before walking over and handing Uraraka the bag. "You've certainly got some rambunctious friends, girl. Go on and eat then take these pills. I've got a meeting with Principal Nezu for the next few hours so try to get some rest."
"Thank you."
Uraraka ate her lunch slowly while looking through the opened blinds. It was a bit of relief knowing they didn't blame her for the catastrophic failure but that didn't erase the heavy feeling settled into her chest. She began stirring a while later when a knock on the door dragged her from her medicine induced sleep. The door slowly cracked open then stopped and Uraraka groggily sat up with a quizzical look. Did they want to come in or…? "You can come in though I don't think Recovery Girl is back yet."
"Uraraka, you're awake?"
Deku fully opened the door with a relieved expression on his face, quickly making his way over to her bedside with purposeful steps. He stopped just shy of the beds railing, seeming almost conflicted as his gaze shifted from her face to her pinned up leg. Guilt flashed across his face and Uraraka grabbed his wrist before he could turn and leave. She knew what he was thinking; Deku was blaming himself for her injuries.
"Deku—"
"I'm sorry, Uraraka, it's all my fault you got injured." The hurt laced in his voice made her breath hitch and she grasped his wrist tighter.
"No, Deku, it wasn't—"
"I was supposed to protect you and I couldn't even do that, you got injured because of it. I'm a failure of a friend and hero."
"I chose to push you away, Deku, because you're important to me!" Uraraka blurted out and the green haired teen looked up at her in surprise. "I put myself in harm's way because I felt I had to do something instead of sitting there helpless while innocent people were at risk. Even though it didn't go to plan, I was still able to stop the machine creating explosions so the pros could counterattack. Even without being able to use my quirk I still had to try and help one way or another; pushing you out of the way led to my rescue when it could've gone a worse direction."
It was silent for a minute as Midoriya processed everything his friend said, wide green eyes locked onto hers. Uraraka realized what slipped from her mouth and clamped both of her hands over her mouth, auburn eyes widening. She didn't want to tell him because he would just continue to blame himself for her injuries, but it just slipped in the moment of panic to prevent him from running off. Now that it was out there was no doubt he would become even more worried. Deku slumped down into the chair heavily and the brunette shook her head before looking away.
"What do you mean…what happened to your quirk, Uraraka?" Deku asked breathily with disbelief and panic weaving into his voice.
"I didn't want you finding out this way, Deku, I'm sorry," Ochaco whispered, swallowing the heavy lump forming in her throat. Her fists dropped onto the blanket adorning her legs and clenched it tightly. She didn't want him knowing about this. Not now, not in this situation. It was impossible to even look him in the eyes so she kept her gaze averted. "I…after I shut off the machine I got sprayed with a purple mist that…what it did was…I—"
Deku shakily reached over to the trembling girl to cover her clenched fist gently. It was a feeble attempt to comfort her yet they both knew it was meant to keep both heroes from completely freaking out. "Y-you don't have to tell me."
"I need to tell you because you're my friend, Deku, my best friend and you need to know because it's the reason everyone got caught up in the explosion. It cut off my quirk…I can't…use my quirk anymore. It may come back it may not, no one knows anything about it yet. I couldn't move the bus out of the way in time because of it…"
A heavy silence fell over the two, the weight of the words knocking all air from Deku's lungs. Uraraka's quirk…was gone? That—there's no way her quirk was just gone like that, there had to be some reason for it disappearing. It briefly reminded him of when Mirio lost his quirk in the battle against Overhaul. Was she hit with a quirk blocker? Mirio's was a liquid form so had the villains created a smoke version to spread over a large area? "U-Uraraka…your quirk…is gone?"
"Yeah…it is…."
"I…"
"You don't have to say anything, it won't help anyways, Deku," Uraraka finally looked up at him with the most reassuring smile she could muster but from Deku's eyes, it looked like the most heartbreaking expression in the world. "I'm…starting to accept the possibility that it won't come back…"
"No!" Izuku interrupted abruptly and grabbed Uraraka by the shoulders firmly much to her alarm. "Don't talk like that Uraraka, your quirk will come back I know it. It may seem hopeless now but you have to trust in yourself and those around you. We'll find who did it and get your quirk back. I promise you."
"Y-yeah. Thanks, Deku."
The two stared at one another for a few moments until the green haired teen's face burst into flames and he rapidly yanked his hands back, looking away with his arm over his face while mumbling an apology for suddenly grabbing her. Uraraka pressed her hands against her face as it heated up. The feelings were bubbling up inside of her but she stopped them mere seconds from emerging. It wouldn't do either of them any good to let them out right now, not when they were both fairly wound up emotionally. Eventually they both calmed down enough to carry on a normal conversation and that was when Deku mentioned that there were some study sessions coming up before the finals in about a month.
"Ah! I forgot about the finals!" Uraraka moaned into her hands, dragging them down her face in exasperation. "I don't even know if I'll be out of here by then. If I can't regain enough energy then Recovery Girl won't be able to heal me faster. I may not be able to even walk properly by then if things keep going this slow."
"I can help you study! I'll make a notebook with what Mr. Aizawa goes over in class and I can bring it by everyday if that will help." Deku immediately offered excitedly, his nerdy side flourishing in a flash. "Oh, I wonder if I should categorize it by subject or by topic, maybe even by general summarization. Outlines are also a good method to clearly mark out everything with the main point with individual points beneath. Should I cover everything over the semester or just what's recommended in the study guide? Hmm, if it's to prepare for the semester final then maybe I should just go over everything to be safe—"
Uraraka studied the man before her with a tender expression melting her features. Sure he had his nerdy, quirky attributes along with his dorky appearance yet those were what drew her to him. No matter how far they were apart they always seemed to be pulled back together like two magnets. A beat skipped in her heart and the teen knew no matter how hard she tried to push the feelings down, they would always resurface whenever they were together. Just for this moment, this single moment in time, she would relish the feelings threatening to take over her mind and body.
"Uraraka? Are you alright? You're spacing out a bit. Do you need any pain meds? I can go find Recovery Girl for you." Deku snapped her from her daydream with a worried expression and a gentle shake of her arm. Uraraka blinked a few times before smiling gently at him before placing a hand over the scarred one resting on her arm.
"I'm sorry Deku, I'm still a bit tired from the surgery so don't worry. Thank you for coming to visit me, it can get a little boring in a medical ward without someone to talk with. The rest of the class already visited earlier but it was a bit overwhelming." Deku flushed at the contact between their hands and rubbed the back of his neck nervously, quickly nodding and averting his gaze downward.
"O-of course, Uraraka, I just wanted to make sure you were alright. We were all pretty worried when the teachers still hadn't found you, but thankfully Jiro was able to get through on her cell phone. You sounded pretty weak and disoriented and it was difficult to figure out where you said you were." The brunette tilted her head at him quizzically.
"I don't remember any of that, sorry. The explosion I vaguely remember but nothing after that. Where did you find me?"
How much of my memory was forgotten?
"Behind a waterfall a good distance from the area we all fell. I'm not entirely sure how you got back there in the first place but you were in really bad shape. Not very coherent, high fever. Your leg was pretty swollen as well and you blacked out soon after Cementoss and I found you."
Oh. I can't imagine how frantic he was when he found me. I'm such an idiot for always worrying him so much. All I'm doing is bringing him down on his path to become the number one hero…
"Deku—"
The nurses door slid open once more to reveal Recovery Girl followed by Aizawa, Principal Nezu, All Might, and one of the detectives who often worked closely with U.A.. Deku made to get up and leave but Aizawa waved him down. The teens shared a worried glance as the group of adults grabbed chairs and encircled the occupied bed.
"Miss Ochaco Uraraka, my name is Detective Naomasa Tsukauchi and I work closely with U.A. and its students when it comes to villain attacks. Mr. Midoriya, a pleasure to see you again. I'll need to ask the two of you some questions regarding the incident last week."
"Neither of you are in trouble this is just a formality due to the incident regarding students and the school," All Might reassured quickly, waving his hand at the others seated around him. "The police just need a report of what happened, what the villains looked like, how many, those kinds of things. It shouldn't take more than half an hour give or take."
"I've already explained what you told me Midoriya, but you'll need to recall the incident for record purposes, both U.A.'s and for the police." Aizawa explained as he rested his arms on his knees with a bored expression, clearly enjoying the interrogations by the police.
"Let's hurry up and get this over with already, I still have an injured patient to deal with. She just had surgery yesterday and all of these visitors are going to interfere with her healing." Chiyo grumbled with a pointed look at the detective. "I suggested waiting another few days after she was fully off of the anesthesia and had time to digest everything."
"I fully understand your concerns Chiyo, but this is an urgent matter that must be dealt with as soon as possible. A direct attack on U.A. is a very serious crime that needs immediate attention especially when a student is critically injured. We'll go through everything as quick as possible, don't worry. Now Miss Uraraka, if you would please begin with any events leading up to the attack." Nezu politely asked while coddling his cup of tea.
The next half an hour was of Uraraka explaining everything she could remember about the incident, including the loss of control of her powers in the classroom though she skipped the main reason as to why for that, and ended it with what little she remembered about the explosion. The detective jotted down his notes the entire time while both teachers and the principal listened intently to the story. Recovery Girl fluttered around every now checking vitals and preparing medications for the remainder of the day, grumbling about the disturbances going on. Once the brunette was done it was Izuku's turn to retell everything he remembered as well. His was definitely more detailed than her recollection but when he got to the part about finding her behind the waterfall after the clues from the phone call, Uraraka began to fidget uncomfortably. The anesthesia had fully worn off and so had the pills, meaning the sensation of the pins piercing her skin was becoming more and more aware to her brain. It started off as a tingling like when your leg falls asleep after being immobile for a while, then it slowly switched to building pressure. The more the meds wore off the heavier the pressure began to grow with the threat of bursting through the already heavily bandaged and compressed limb.
Uraraka let her head fall back against the pillows with a heavy exhale in an attempt to quell the growing pain, tears welling in her eyes. Her hand gripped the blanket as tightly as it could on her lap. Recovery Girl noticed the subtle movement and yanked a syringe from beside her then shoved the teachers aside to reach the catheter port in her hand. Deku jerked forward in his chair instinctively but All Might swung an arm out to stop him, shaking his head lightly and motioning towards Recovery Girl.
"I think we're done for the day gentlemen, as you can see Uraraka's had enough for now. You can email me with any questions you have later on but for now you all need to go." Chiyo ordered with a push of the plunger to ensure all of it was drained out before twisting it from the port and disposing of it. She grabbed another one with a different colored substance before readying it as well. A flush of saline in the port cleared the tubes and she slowly pushed the plunger down this time, carefully watching the brunette's face for the level of discomfort.
"Of course, Chiyo, I'll leave you to it then. We can continue this conversation in my office. Midoriya, please return to your dorm for now. If we require any more information then I'll send one of the teachers for you." Principal Nezu hopped down from his chair and walked towards the door with hands clasped behind his back. "Please do not push yourself, Miss Uraraka, we all wish you a speedy recovery. Thank you for your time this evening."
"I'll check on you tomorrow, Uraraka, take it easy for the rest of the night. Don't worry about any homework or tests, they've been put on hold for now." Aizawa flashed her a thumbs-up before following the principal out leaving All Might and Izuku with Recovery Girl.
"Take it easy kiddo and don't hesitate to ask any of us for anything." All Might gave a short wave and followed suit after his fellow educators.
"I'll come see you in the morning, Uraraka," Deku said quietly, lightly gripping the beds railings as he looked down at her. Glistening auburn eyes locked onto wavering emerald and the brunette gave a short nod. "Try to have a good night."
"Night, Deku, thank you." Ochaco gave a watery smile before a wave of pain washed over her again and she clenched her eyes shut tightly to try to ease it.
"Go, go, out!" Recovery Girl roughly shoved him out the door and locked it with more force than necessary. "They're going to get an earful tomorrow for babbling on for so long when you need your rest. I've given you a pain reliever along with a sedative to help you sleep, Ochaco, so you'll be getting drowsy soon enough. You're going to need all of the rest you can get until your strength returns. I'll check on you one more time before I leave for the evening but if something happens then an alarm is designated to go off and myself, Aizawa, and Nezu will be alerted and we'll come running."
Uraraka nodded wearily. The level of pain was nearing unbearable yet all she could do was try to focus on her breathing until the meds kicked in. Compared to the break itself the pain of the pins piercing her skin was a notch higher on the scale. Maybe her brain was over-actively sending signals in a panic due to the intimidating appearance of the rods protruding from her leg. Despite the suffering Ochaco was glad to at least have seen Deku. Undoubtedly, he would continue to blame himself though for the moment he seemed to be focusing more on finding ways to help her out and keep her company. It didn't take much longer for the medicine to kick in and the teen let the lull of sleep take her.
