The match started and I wasted no time in throwing ice at her with my right-wing to gauge her reaction time. She was still a bit surprised about me smiling at her so there was a small lag in her movement.

Yoayorozu just barely managed to move out of the way and that's when I saw her wrists start to sparkle telling me she was activating her quirk.

'Oh no you don't' I thought to myself as I flicked both my wings forward and sent ice her way again.

Again she was barely able to move out of the way but it didn't stop her from creating whatever she was making. She threw her right hand forward and I saw she had thrown something my way. I moved to the side but it barely missed me still ripping the side of my shirt.

'Was that a throwing knife? I can't underestimate her. She read my movement before I even did anything'

The right side of my shirt was now torn and was exposing part of my sides. I flew into the air and formed thin ice spikes. Then I saw her throw another one of the knives and I changed the form of my spikes to form a shield in front of me successfully catching whatever she threw at me. I grabbed it off of the ice remaking my ice spikes around me.

'So it was a throwing knife. I didn't know she even had that skill.'

I looked back down and saw she made something that was attached to her wrists and another throwing knife came my way. Something was different about it. It was coming at me faster and my reaction was again predicted and the right shoulder of my shirt was ripped.

'How is she doing that'

I threw the knife I had caught once I saw she was making something else. She barely dodged it and it only confirmed my suspicion.

'There's a delay in her creating and her movement. She has to focus too much on what she's still making. That delay will be a problem when shes a hero'

I sent my spikes down and she tried dodging them but I threw them to form a circle surrounding her. She noticed what I did and moved both her hands to send the throwing knives again. I didn't get a chance to move because of how quickly they were moving through the air. That's when I realized what she was aiming for. She was never aiming at my body; she kept aiming for my shirt. I looked down at my shirt and saw that it was hanging on by a threat.

'She found out I was insecure about my body. She thinks by forcibly exposing my body will give her an advantage.' I had finally figured out what she was after. For the first time since I encountered the first bully I ever met. Pure anger flowed through my veins. I melted my ice spikes that surrounded her which caught her attention. Without any hesitation, I used my full speed to land right in front of her.

The sheer force of my speed caused my shirt to tear even more. "You really thought you had me figured out," I said in a cold menacing voice while still crouching down in a hero style landing. I didn't even recognize my own voice. She let out a small squeak of fear most likely from noticing my sudden presence in front of her. I stood up slowly and I knew my face showed my distaste of her tactics.

Imagine yourself making this face towards Yaoyorozu.

I ripped off what was left of my shirt with my left hand and dramatically let it go. "I am insecure about my body," I tell her as I stood there in just the black fireproof sporting bra I had recently gotten. Although not a lot of time had passed since the beginning of school, the amount of training I had put in with Todoroki had made my body slim up. My muscles were starting to show in my arms but I was still very much not in shape or athletic as the other girls in my class.

"But when it comes to being a hero. My ambition and my drive outweigh my fears and doubt." I say and I send my right-wing to essentially punch her. She wasn't quick enough to react and the force of that hit sent her at least 10 meters. I started running towards her while she was struggling to get up. She quickly made a shield and my right arm punched it straight on. The force still caused her to scoot back.

That's when I saw it. The fear that now clouded her eyes from my sudden display in strength. I decided then that there was no point in dragging out the fight. I used my right wing to make it look like I was going to hit her again.

As she prepared for the impact I simply did a scooping motion with my wings and threw her out of bounds from the side of the stage.

"Yaoyorozu is out of bounds! L/N moves to the second round!" Midnight yelled out. I flew off the stage and gracefully landed next to Yaoyorozu. She looked up at me with fear still in her eyes. But it was over. I had won. Whatever she had against me, it was time for her to let it go. It was time for me to be the bigger person and take the first step.

"There's a delay when you create. Those few milliseconds can mean the difference between life and death as a hero. You're smart and you know how to use your quirk really well. If you didn't you would be a lot slower." I paused and confusion took over her face. "You need to train your body so it can keep up with your mind. I'm sure you're already doing that but keep it up. You'll be a great hero Yaoyorozu"

I offered my hand to help her get up and she stared at my hand then at me. After what seemed like forever she finally took my hand and I pulled her up. The crowd exploded in cheers from the show in sportsmanship.

I smiled at her letting her know I held no ill feelings towards her.

"Come on our class is waiting for us," I tell her as I start walking towards the entrance of the hallway.

"L/N wait!" I heard Yaoyorozu yell out. I started to turn around when I was suddenly embraced by a familiar fabric from behind. I looked down and saw it was a top for the school P.E. uniform.

"I did tear apart your uniform. This is the least I could do for you." Yaoyorozu said with a sympathetic smile.

I was suddenly reminded that I was in fact in just a bra from the waist up. I let out a small yelp suddenly getting embarrassed.

"I added zippers in the back of the shirt to help with the wings. I hope it fits right. Here I'll help you put it on in the waiting room"

"T-thanks" I answered sheepishly, as I moved the shirt to cover my front, my face blushing furiously.

'Oh god I just fought shirtless in front of so many people and TELEVISION' I thought to myself.

Once I was redressed I walked back to the stadium with Yaoyorozu. The zippers were a great addition to my P.E. uniform but I would need help getting it on and off. Something I would have to figure out eventually.

"L/N! Yaoyorozu! Just in time to see the next match up!" I heard Ojiro yell out to us. I quickly ran to my seat next to Shinsou to watch the match. Present Mic Gave both Tetsutetsu and Kirishima the same introduction. I knew that had to hurt for both of them.

"Go Tetsutetsu!" I could hear his class cheer.

"You can do it Kirishima!" I yelled out towards him. The rest of the class was quiet but I kept cheering throughout the entire fight. They just kept punching each other yelling out how it didn't hurt. After some time it began to get difficult to watch.

They kept hitting each other until they both became exhausted and were now both laying on the floor out cold. It was determined to be a draw and once they both had some time to recover they would determine the winner by some other means.

However, the fight I was dreading the most was about to begin. I knew Bakugou was going to try and finish the fight quickly. He's not the type of person to waste time on something or someone he considers useless or unnecessary. Just the idea of those two fightings gave me the chills. My wings shivered at the idea.

"L/N?" I heard someone call out my name.

"Hm?" I answered as I turned around to see Iida with a concerned look with Deku right next to him.

"Is everything all right your feathers just shivered?" he asked.

"Oh, I'm just nervous about the next fight. Bakugou isn't the type to hold back," I said.

"He should be holding back considering he's going up against a girl from his own class," Shinsou added surprisingly.

"No he wouldn't" Deku and I said Simultaneously.

Shinsou sighed and then said, "I should have known."

"We should go see Ochako before her match," I suggested.

"We just came back from talking with her. She's determined to do her best. But frankly, I'm really worried" Deku said.

I felt my face fall and I knew worry was starting to show on my face. How could Deku not worry, his childhood friend was about to fight the girl he liked. It was kinda obvious he liked her although I did wonder if Ochako felt the same way.

Present Mic had finally announced them and they were on stage ready for a fight. I took my seat in between Shinsou and Deku.

'She's going to have to be fast and try to touch him to get the upper hand. But Bakugou can essentially fly with his explosions so I guess making him weightless wouldn't do much. He's smart so I'm sure he would adapt to being weightless in the air pretty quickly.' I was analyzing everything in my head when I looked over and saw that Deku had started mumbling again. I smiled softly and just then I heard the fight start.

Immediately Ochako started running towards Bakugou.

"Alright this is good!" Deku said. "Even if it's an accident, as long as she can touch him she can make him float."

'So you were thinking the same thing Deku?' I internalized

"Bakugou won't want her to get close," Iida added.

"The problem is Bakugou is great at hand to hand combat," I looked down and saw that Ochako tried to evade the usual right hook that Bakugou is known for. Only to be blown away with an underhand explosion from his hand. "If she wants to touch him, she has to be really quick and smart about it,"

In the middle of all of that smoke, Ochako threw her shirt that she had made float to distract Bakugou. At that moment she appeared behind him about to make him float when he blasted her away again.

I kept my face expressionless as the fight went on.

"She's your friend yet you show no concern in your face about her being blasted away each time," Shinsou said next to me.

"I want her to win more than anything right now, but I know she doesn't stand a chance against him," I said slowly. I was ashamed I didn't have more faith in her. Ochako ran towards Bakugou again just to be blasted away.

"You think that highly of him?" Shinsou asked. Another blast.

"His skills, yes. He's an ass sure, but he's smart and extremely driven by his desire to be a hero," I told him. Ochako ran towards him again but he blasted the ground sending chunks of the stage towards her as she was blasted away again.

'Why isn't he attacking her though? He could finish this quickly, but he's just defending.' another blast. 'It may look like he's attacking but he's actually just pushing her away every time she attacks. He could just blast her right out of the arena when she attacks though' that's when it hit me. 'He's letting her show off her skills so she can get scouted!'

I looked over at Deku and Iida to see if they had figured it out like I did but they just had concerned looks on their face. Another blast. Rightfully so, Ochako was pushing herself a bit too much. I looked at the rest of the class and they all had the same look of shock and desperation. Another blast.

"You figured something out didn't you?" Shinsou asked. I snapped my head to look at him.

"It's a habit you have. When you figure something out you look at others to see if anyone else noticed to give yourself validation," he stated. I had never thought about that. "You're going to be a hero one day. You'll be the one giving others validation."

Another blast.

I could hear whimpers from my class as the fight continued.

"He's letting her show off," I whispered to Shinsou.

"What?" I heard Deku ask.

"What are you saying L/N?" Shoji asked. Another blast.

"Look at how Bakugou is fighting. He isn't attacking, he is purely defending. He's letting her show off her skills in the fight. The way he is doing it is aggressive, sure, but he wants for her to attack him," I explain loud enough for the rest of the class to hear, and that's when we heard Aizawa Sensei.

"Was that a pro hero saying he's playing around? How many years have you been a pro? If you're saying that with a straight face, there's no point in you watching anymore so go home"

'Wow, harsh' I thought to myself.

"Go home, and look into changing careers!" Aizawa yelled out.

"Mr. Aizawa" I heard someone say in the distance but I wasn't exactly paying attention to them.

"Bakugou is being careful because he's acknowledged the strength of his opponent who has made it this far. It's because he's doing everything to win that he can't go easy on her or let down his guard," he finished off.

I looked back down to the arena and the smoke was clearing up and that's when I saw some parts of the arena were dark but there was no smoke. I looked up and saw what Ochako had been planning.

She kept him busy while having him supply her with rubble that she kept sending upwards with her quirk. She also kept attacking so the smoke wouldn't let up, causing Bakugou to notice the shadows forming due to the concrete she sent upwards.

'I shouldn't have doubted her so quickly' I lectured myself internally. I heard Ochako yell and when I looked down she released all her hold on the rubble she had collected. It came crashing down like a meteor shower.

"She had a desperate plan like that up to her sleeve?" Deku yelled as he stood up from his chair.

As the debris was falling Ochako started running towards Bakugou again. So that was her plan to distract him with the debris and with that she'll have an opening to touch him and make him float. A big closed mouth smile formed on my face as I watched her run at him while he was completely focused on the sky.

That was until Bakugou detonated the biggest explosion I had ever seen. In one explosion he blew away all of the rubble that was coming at him while simultaneously blowing away Ochako, who was now laying on her side. My smile was soon taken away as I watched her slowly get up.

I looked over at Bakugou and I saw the hand he had used to blow away the debris start to shake. An explosion like that would have caused a serious strain on his hand and wrist. I looked back at Ochako who was struggling to stand.

'She must be exhausted after taking all those blows AND using her quirk all at the same time'

Bakugou started charging at her.

'He's getting serious now'

Ochako turned around but her legs gave out from under her. When Bakugou saw her hit the ground he stopped whatever attack he was planning.

"Ochako!" I yelled from my seat. I was slowly losing control of my feathers and they began to quiver slightly at my emotions.

"She passed her limit a long time ago" Deku whispered beside me. Ochako was crawling her way toward Bakugou. I started to grip my thighs in frustration. I wanted to yell at her to stop but I couldn't do that to her.

Bakugou got into a defensive position, and even though she was no threat, he had enough respect for her as an opponent to still take her seriously at this moment. However, soon enough Midnight went to check in on Ochako.

"Uraraka's out of commission. Bakugou advances to the second round!"

Once that was announced I jumped from my seat and started running down the hall toward the infirmary.

By the time I got there, I was gasping for air. I saw Recovery girl had already healed Ochako, she was asleep.

"You worry too much dearie. Uraraka is fine, I know you're the class deputy and all but you worry too much about your classmates," she told me sincerely.

"Oh.. uh, ok" I couldn't say much more. I simply started walking around. I wasn't ready to go back. While walking I saw Todoroki walking down the hall.

"Oh hey Todoroki, your match is next right? What are you doing walking around the hall?" I asked

"Hi I was just heading back to the player waiting room" He replied

"Oh ok," I said and started walking away.

"Hey L/n, what's wrong?" Todoroki asked.

"Hm? Oh well, I just got back from checking in on Ochako, and well Recovery Girl said I worry too much" I pause for a second before continuing. " I guess she's right, I guess I was worrying for nothing since we do have Recovery Girl here so Ochako would have been fine. I just don't know why I worry so much," I started to let my frustration enter my voice softly and Todoroki was noticing. "It's just… How am I going to be a good hero if I'm constantly worrying about everything" I finish off by looking him in the eye.

He looked the same, his face was expressionless and his eyes were looking at me almost coldly. As if what I said offended him.

"The fact that you worry so much and care so much is what's going to make you a great hero. Those things will push you to be your best when it comes to training and saving people." Todoroki told me.

"Huh? What no these things will only distract me during a fight" I countered what he said.

"Fighting isn't the only thing that makes a good hero, you must know that….. You worry and care about Uraraka because she's your first friend isn't she?" Todoroki asks.

"Well no… technically my first friend was.." I started to say but Todoroki interrupted me.

"The one you made in Junior High? The one who you thought was clingy and weird?" He asked.

"Well yes she's a little weird but she was my friend all throughout Junior High… I didn't really see her much since she hardly went to school. But when she was at school she would talk to me" I defended her slightly.

"Didn't you say she stopped talking to you when you told her you got into the hero course at UA?" he asked again.

'Why does he have such a good memory… I told him everything all the time'

"Oh yeah but I'm sure she's just busy" I Defended her again.

"L/N we started attending UA over a month ago. Someone who doesn't make time to check up on you or to even text you, that's not a friend L/N. So I'm right, Uraraka is your first friend and that's why you care so much about her because she is your first friend," he said.

"Oh" was all I could say at the moment. I was so dumbfounded that he would say something like that seeing that we both had a little social experience. He must know more about how relationships are supposed to work.

"You're like me. You're my first friend L/N, that's why I cherish you so much," he said seriously.

My face immediately blushed and I could feel my heart start to beat erratically in my chest. "Oh Ummm… Thank you Todoroki…" I said in the most awkward tone I ever heard myself in. The threat of my cheeks suddenly lighting on fire was very serious. "You don't just have me you know. You have Deku, Iida..".

"No. You are the closest friend I have. Midoriya, Iida… I still consider them acquaintances, I do believe they are close to friends but I don't consider them as close as you," he continued on. The more he talked the more heat I felt on my cheeks.

I saw a flicker of light to my left and I knew immediately it was my flames acting up. I quickly got my hand and covered it, extinguishing it immediately. Todoroki was looking at the ground at the moment so he didn't notice. Having that bit of relief helped my blushing cheeks settle down.

"It's ok to worry. Uraraka was the first person who took a genuine interest in you in the kindest way you ever thought possible." Todoroki finished off.

"Yeah ho-...how di-... How did you know that?" I asked him. I was confused about how he knew exactly how I felt about Ochako being my friend.

"Because that is who you are to me. You've shown genuine interest in me, not my family name, not because of my connection to the hero industry, just me" he said. I felt my face blush again and Todoroki's eyes began to shine just a bit brighter. I didn't know what to say but he reached out his hands toward me and patted me on top of my head. He didn't say anything, he just walked away after that. Once he was out of sight I bolted in the other direction turning the corner and slamming my back into the wall. I covered my face with my hands as I tried to control the blush that would just not go away.

"L/N?" I heard someone call out to me from a distance. I looked up and saw it was Deku. "Hey, are you ok? Your face is all red" he asked.

Suddenly I remembered Todoroki saying he cherishes me and how he patted my head as a goodbye. Those small memories made my heart race and a strange sensation appeared in my stomach, causing my face to burn hotter. I looked at Deku and his eyes were shining a bit brighter just like Todoroki's.

"Ah! L/N!" he squeaked frantically as his arms wailed about. "Your head," He started patting my head urgently "it's on fire!" he kept patting my head. That's when I realized I lost control of my fire quirk and ignited small flames on top of my head due to the sudden rush of emotions I was feeling.

"Ah, I'm sorry!" I said back, looking down at the floor out of pure embarrassment, and helped him pat my head to put it out.

"What happened? Are you ok?" he asked a bit calmed down. I was about to answer when I lifted my head and saw his face was really close to mine.

He must have noticed this too because he instantly got beet red and jumped back while squealing "I-I'M SO S-SOR-RRY! IT WASN'T L-LIKE THAT I-I S-SWEAR!"

His panic state seemed to have calmed me enough for me to laugh a bit.

"It's fine Deku, I know it's not. You like Ochako anyways" I stated bluntly as I stopped laughing. He got even redder if it was possible and it seemed he had lost his ability to speak. I stood up and extended my hand to help him up. Once he was up too he simply said "I have to go, my fight is next" and he ran away.