Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Ochako coughed in the dusty air, trying to figure out where she was and what had happened. 

She’d gone to her parent’s worksite that day, just to see if she could help out because she was trying to get super strong so she could get into UA. It had gone well for the first while, helping pass wooden beams up to the other workers, sometimes helping with really heavy things with her quirk to lighten it.

But something had happened, something had gone wrong and here Ochako was now, coughing on the dust and blindly trying to work out where she was. 

Okay, there was a wall, that was good to know. It was a start. 

Ochako pulled up her shirt to try and cover her nose and mouth to filter out a bit of the dust, but it didn’t really help, which wasn’t great. She knew the dangers of getting too much stuff in your lungs. 

Where was her phone? It would be able to help light up the area. 

Ochako patted down her pockets, finding her phone, or at least what would be her phone if it wasn’t snapped in half. She tapped at it futility, but it was well and truly dead. Looked like she’d be going without a phone the rest of the school year, they couldn't afford to replace her phone yet. And she'd been doing so well with being careful with this one too. Before this, it hadn’t gotten even a single crack. 

Putting her phone back in her pocket and abandoning the hope of light, Ochako used her free hand to feel around the area. Her wall led to something that felt like rocks, possibly fallen. Was she trapped? 

Panic started setting in a little bit before Ochako consciously bit it back and sat down. She was relatively safe right now, even if she had limited air, and she couldn’t waste the air she had by panicking. She also couldn’t move too much or she’d use up even more air. She just had to wait and hope someone found her before anything else happened. 

She wasn’t hurt beyond some scrapes, which was really good, and the wall she was leaning against felt sturdy and was probably one of the walls of the stairwell. She had been on the ground floor helping pass beams up last she remembered, although she didn’t remember being near the stairwell. 

Maybe she’d run towards it when things started collapsing? 

She couldn’t remember, so she wasn’t sure where she was or what exactly had happened. Maybe it had been a villain? She’d heard tales of villains attacking construction sites to delay heroes once or twice. That was definitely possible. 

If it had been a villain, she really did just have to sit tight and hope the heroes were able to dig her out soon, since they were probably already on site, so it would hopefully be okay. 

She really hoped it had been a villain. She didn’t want to think about the alternative, that she may be trapped in here for potentially days, unaware of time moving along. Was there even airflow in here? Maybe she’d suffocate before she was rescued.  

It was a long time before she started hearing something, coming from her left side. She wasn’t sure how long it had been since she couldn’t tell time in any way, and honestly she wasn’t great at keeping track of time in general. It sounded like someone was trying to dig her out though, which was good. Maybe it was caused by a villain, so the heroes were here really fast. 

Ochako really really wanted to hug her mom and dad and just never let go. She missed them. She’d seen them right before this, but she just really really wanted her parents. 

It was another really long time, alone in the dark with just the steadily getting louder noises coming from the left, before any light started getting through. 

Ochako immediately went over to it, trying to see out to where the light was coming through, but when it had been so dark before, the light was blinding. “Hello?” 

“Hello?” Whoever it was on the other side asked, sounding quite surprised. “Wait, wrong response. Hey, it’s alright, we’re here to get you out. Are you injured anywhere?” 

“Um, I don’t think so,” Ochako said after trying to decide if she was hurt anywhere. “Just kind of sore. And it’s really dusty.” 

“I bet, it’s dusty out here too. Your head doesn’t hurt any? No bumps?” 

“No, I’m okay I think. What happened?” 

“A villain destabilized the foundations while trying to escape, and the structure collapsed without warning. Is there anyone else in there with you?” 

“I don’t think so,” Ochako replied, now actually looking around the little space she’d been trapped in. Nope, no one else. “It’s just me.” 

“Well, you were incredibly lucky, to have gotten out unharmed. And that we found you so fast. Can you tell us your name?” 

“Uraraka Ochako, I was here hanging out with my parents,” Ochako explained, sniffling. Tears were starting to run a bit now that she didn’t have to try so hard to remain calm for fear of running out of oxygen or dying from dehydration. “I just wanted to help out a little.” 

“It was just bad luck that this was the day this all happened,” the hero agreed. “My name’s Muddy, it’s nice to meet you.” 

Ochako couldn’t stop the quiet snort that left her. “Muddy?” 

Muddy sighed theatrically, sounding closer than he had been before. The light was also starting to get brighter. “I wanted it to not sound very intimidating, since I really just do rescue work, but every day I wish I’d thought about it more. If you’re a kid that wants to be a hero, here’s my warning to think about your hero name for a while before you get to the point where you need one, you’ll thank yourself later.” 

“I’m applying for UA next summer,” Ochako admitted. The almost normal conversation was reassuring, a balm on the panic. 

“Oh you are? Nice, hope you get in. Already got a hero name in mind?” 

“I was thinking Uravity?” 

“Definitely better than mine, but I guess that isn’t too hard, huh?” Muddy grunted suddenly, and Ochako pressed against the side where the light was coming from. “This stuff is heavy, glad they’re setting up pillars to support it while I get in here.” 

“Do you have a strength quirk?” Ochako asked, desperate for the conversation to continue, she didn’t want to be left alone again, even if there was light. 

“Huh? Oh, nah, I’d be named something cooler if I had a strength quirk. I can control mud, and right now I’m moving stuff out of the way and making sure this whole thing doesn’t shift with the mud, and, well, this building may not have been built yet, but it is very heavy. I can handle it though. And like I said, they’re starting to set up pillars to support it. I’m just looking for survivors. We’ve got someone with a hearing quirk outside, and they’re why I’m in here looking for you.” 

“Just me?” Ochako asked, panic setting in again. There had been dozens of workers in and on the building, had none of them survived? 

“You’re the only one this deep. Everyone else we’ve already pulled out or is dead. We got quite a lot of people though. We almost didn’t believe them when they said there was breathing coming from the middle of the building, you’re really lucky.” 

“What about my parents?” Ochako asked desperately, breathing speeding up even as she tried to hold back a fresh wave of tears. 

There was a long moment of almost silence, then she finally saw Muddy as they moved a large piece of concrete aside, mud sliding into the space and forming pillars to hold up the walls and stuff. It coated the path out too, holding it all out. 

Muddy didn’t look that old, maybe recently graduated, and he had a sad look on his face. Ochako’s breath caught in her throat, caught behind the lump that had suddenly formed, caught behind the terror suddenly present. 

“My parents?” she asked again, pleadingly, just barely forcing it past the lump and the terror and the breathlessness and the panic. 

“We’re not sure. We’ll need you to help identify who you can among the bodies we’ve recovered.” Muddy reached out, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Come on, let’s get out from under all this rubble. All Might’s outside, you want to meet him? He’s pretty cool, he’s been working for the last couple hours to help move the heavy rubble. I think he’s about to leave though, he keeps coughing.” 

Ochako just sobbed, unable to do much else. Muddy wrapped an arm around her shoulders and carefully guided her back through the tunnel, whispering reassurances that fell on deaf ears the whole way. 

All Might was indeed outside, still moving pieces of rubble, slowly stacking them in another area in neat piles, alongside several other heroes, while several more were huddled together, discussing quietly. 

All Might noticed Muddy and Ochako first, and his face fell a bit, although he visibly tried to keep up the smile for her sake. “Hello there young one! I am relieved to see you unharmed.” 

Ochako sniffled, trying to use her sleeve to wipe away some of the tears and snot, but it mostly just smeared her face with dust. “H-hi.” Normally she’d be over the moon to meet All Might, but- 

She just wanted her parents. Even if she didn’t know if they were alive. 

“There’s a couple unconscious individuals over here,” Muddy said quietly, directing her towards where there were a couple bodies lying down, another hero keeping a close eye on them. None of them were her parents, but she identified them anyway, she did her best to remember all the names of everyone working on sites when she could, it was practice for when she was a hero and would probably need to be able to remember lots of names. 

The awake workers from the site had mostly been taken away for treatment, but the couple that remained had huddled together, supporting each other. 

When her parents weren’t among any of the living individuals that had been pulled out of the rubble, there was only one option left. 

Only one option left, and it was that Ochako was alone. She was alone, and she would never get to hug her parents again. She would never get to make lunch with her mom, or cook dinner for her parents so they didn’t have to when they got home late, she’d never get to help her dad try and make breakfast for her mom, they would never go on the vacation her parents had always promised they’d do when she graduated highschool. 

She was alone.

Chapter Text

Ochako was brought to the hospital, where they got someone to look at her. Her lungs had a bunch of dust in them, since her shirt hadn’t exactly been the most effective filter. A doctor with some quirk he didn’t explain had her cough a bunch and then all the dust came up trapped in a bunch of weird mucus. 

It tasted bad, but it was a lot easier to breathe after that. Kind of. Every time she was reminded that she was alone, that her parents were gone, it became so hard to breathe all over again, like someone was stepping on her chest. They were gone, just like that, Ochako never had the chance to say goodbye, it was just a normal day. Until it wasn’t. Until the building had collapsed and Ochako had been orphaned. Until she’d had to identify her parent’s bodies, her mother crushed from the waist down, her father with three pieces of rebar through his chest. 

No hero had been enthusiastic about actually letting her see them, or any of the other bodies, but Ochako had insisted. They needed to be identified, and she could identify them. 

And she wanted to be a hero, she’d-she’d have to get used to seeing dead bodies. She’d have to get used to blood. 

Her parent’s glassy eyes would probably haunt her for a while though. 

She was still going to be a hero though, for them, for their memory. So she could help people. She didn’t know what else she could possibly do after this. 

Ochako wasn’t sure how though, after this. She didn’t have any extended family, she would have to go into foster care, and what if wherever she was placed wasn’t close enough to UA for her to attend? Then what? 

Muddy hadn’t had an answer for that when she asked him. He had given her a card, one that she was still holding, that had his phone number on it, telling her to call if she ever needed something. 

Ochako didn't have the heart to tell him she didn't have a phone anymore. She'd have to borrow someone else's or something to call him. 

She wondered if she’d be allowed to grab stuff from home or if she’d just have to work with her single dusty pair of clothes. She was in a hospital gown now, but she’d have to change out of it at some point, right? 

It wasn’t exactly all that comfortable, so she’d definitely like to change out of it. If possible. 

Someone knocked, and when Ochako looked over to the open door, a kind looking woman stood there.

“Hello dear,” she said in perfect, if accented Japanese. “I hear it’s been a rough day.” 

Ochako immediately burst into tears, and the woman was quick to cross the room and gather her into a hug, gently crooning wordlessly to her and rocking her. 

Once Ochako had calmed down a little bit, and gone through a few tissues cleaning her face and blowing her nose, the woman sat down in one of the chairs. To business now she supposed. 

“How about we start with introducing ourselves,” the woman suggested, a kind smile still on her face. “I’m Julie, my quirk lets me speak to animals. I have a background in genetics because I thought it was interesting until I got out of school and realized all the jobs available were boring and so I went back to school for social work. As I’m sure you can guess from the accent, I’m American, but moved here for school.” 

Ochako would have rather liked to meet the woman in better circumstances, that all sounded pretty cool. For now all she could manage was the barest glimpse of a smile. “Uraraka Ochako. I can negate an object's gravity, but it can make me nauseous.” Just when it was heavy enough or she was trying to do it to herself, but since she was often lifting things on the upper end of her limit when on construction sites, she was pretty used to biting back the nausea. 

“That’s a very cool quirk. Do you have any idea what you’re planning on doing in the future? It’s alright if you don’t have the answer.” 

No, no she had the answer. If anything, it was even more secure than before. “I want to be a hero. So I can help people. My quirk’s good for rescue situations, I can help lift heavy things and get them removed.” 

“Is this a recent thing or have you kind of always wanted to be a hero?” 

“Always I guess,” Ochako replied, shrugging. Definitely since she was little at the least. Although the motive had changed over time. Guess it had to change again, she couldn’t send back money for her parents anymore. She wouldn’t have anyone to send it to. Maybe she could donate what she would have sent back to some charities in her parent’s names. Honor their memory. 

She-she didn’t really want to have to honor their memory, she wanted them back, she wanted them here to hug, she wanted to wake up and realize this was all a bad dream. 

But she was awake already. You couldn’t really wake up from reality. 

Ochako was discharged from the hospital the second day from her parent’s death, wearing the clothes she’d come in with, although they had been cleaned. It made it almost surreal, but in the worst way possible. 

Julie, the social worker from before, accompanied her to her parent's apartment, and stayed while Ochako worked on trying to decide what to put in the suitcase she had dragged out of her parent’s closet. 

Everyone was dead. And Ochako was left in the aftermath. The last one left. The last one to remember them. 

Julie had said most of the things in the house would simply be sold in an estate sale, the money going towards the funeral, and then what was left would go to her when she was eighteen. If she wanted something, she should pack it now, but she only had limited space, and most of it needed to go to clothes. 

Ochako packed just enough clothes for just over a week, substituting most of what were usually her pjs for her father’s shirts and her mother’s most comfortable pants, desperate to bring something along that had belonged to them. That maybe still smelled like them. 

She grabbed her favorite things from her mom’s jewelry box, things she’d borrowed from time to time, things she’d loved to see her mother wearing, things her mom had promised one day she would get. Most of it wasn’t expensive, sometimes they could barely afford food after all, but it didn’t need to be expensive to mean something. It didn’t need to be expensive to contain memories.

Ochako would take all the memories she could get. Since she couldn’t make any more. 

She’d thought she’d managed to cry herself out, but she was proven wrong when some tears still sprang to her eyes. She wiped them away quickly. She had to finish packing, she didn’t have time to cry right now. Maybe…maybe later. When she had a moment to breathe. 

A moment to breathe, and a moment to grieve. She hoped she got one soon. Maybe then she’d feel less like she wanted to curl up and hide for the next twenty years, or just until it stopped hurting so much. Would it ever stop hurting so much? 

Did she want it to stop hurting so much? For it to no longer hurt did she have to forget her parents? She didn’t want to forget them. She just wanted it to stop feeling like someone was stabbing a burning poker into her chest. 

What else did she need? She could barely think past the grief and having to acknowledge she’d never see her parents again. What did she want to keep and remember? What could she take? What should she take? 

Ochako didn’t keep track of time, but she was sure it was hours before she finished packing. It certainly felt like hours, or maybe days. Realistically it was probably only a couple hours but it felt so long. 

“Ready kiddo?” Julie asked gently when Ochako came back out into the living room, clutching the baby blanket her mother had spent most of her time pregnant with Ochako making by hand, pulling what used to be her parent’s suitcase behind her, and her own school backpack on her back, now empty of most school supplies except for the basics. “I know it’s a lot, and we still have some time if you want to remain here for a little while longer.” 

Ochako nodded numbly, sinking into one of the armchairs she’d never get to see again. They would leave, and she would never see any of this again.  

After too long and also not long enough at all, Julie stood up. “Alright sweetheart, it's time to go. We need to head back to headquarters for just a little bit. I won't be the social worker on your case long term, so I'll be switching out with the other social worker there, and they'll bring you to the home we found for you, alright?” 

Maybe Ochako should be worried about that, but she couldn’t bring herself to do anything more than just nod quietly. The numbness was setting back in, and it was all she could do to follow Julie out of the apartment she’d never get to come home to, the apartment she’d never see as it was again.

Chapter Text

The new social worker was named Kamiyo, and she swiftly bundled Ochako into a car and then they were off. Ochako barely got to wave goodbye to Julie. 

The car was silent, Kamiyo not bothering to try speaking. Ochako couldn’t decide if she appreciated it or not. 

It was a pretty normal looking neighborhood they pulled up in. Nothing really out of the normal, except for how it wasn’t in the main city and they weren’t going to an apartment, they were going to an entire house, which was kind of weird. 

“There’s another kid your age who wants to apply for UA in this house,” Kamiyo finally said something as they pulled to a stop outside a house with brick walls. “He’s a troublemaker though.” 

Ochako settled for a nervous smile, unbuckling her seatbelt as Kamiyo did the same. Someone else her age? Maybe they could make friends? Help each other study maybe. 

When Kamiyo rang the doorbell, it was only a minute before a woman answered, a somewhat kind looking face looking at them both. “Ah, you must be the social worker, which makes you Ochako. Hello dear. I hear it’s been a rough few days.” 

Ochako managed to muster up a small smile, the lump in her throat not letting her speak. 

“Come in, come in, the room isn’t really set up much, but we’ve got all the basics. Do I need to do anything with you?” The second question was presumably to the social worker, who was shaking her head when Ochako glanced at her. 

“Just get her settled in. After a couple weeks for recovery, you can put her in the same school as your other one.” 

The woman’s face flattened out a bit. “Ah of course. Hitoshi.” 

Was something the matter? That was a little weird. 

But did Ochako have the energy to figure it out right now? Probably not. She kind of just wanted to sleep for a few days and pray she would wake up back in her bed at home in a world where her parents were still alive. 

“Come in dear, I'm sure you'd like to settle into your room. Dinner will be ready in a few hours, and we'll expect you out then, but until then you're free to set up your room.” 

Ochako just nodded tiredly, unable to do anything else. What else could she do anyway? 

She had set out her suitcase and dropped her bag on the floor, then sat on the bed, unable to muster up the energy to do anything else when someone knocked on the door. 

“Come in,” Ochako said automatically before she really thought about it. 

Based on the pause, whoever was at the door apparently hadn’t expected that either, but eventually the door opened to reveal a boy probably about her age with purple hair. Probably the previously mentioned other kid. 

He waved, although it was a bit awkward. She waved back anyway. 

Ochako waited for him to speak, but he didn’t, so she had to. “Is it dinner time?” 

He shook his head, so it wasn’t that. She wished he’d just say what it was. She didn’t have the energy for this. 

“Do they want me for something?” She guessed next. The lady had said she was free to set up her room until dinner, but maybe she’d changed her mind? 

Another head shake. 

Did he just want to say hi? Ochako voiced that one, and got a shrug. A different reaction, so maybe she was on the right path. 

“She’s making you introduce yourself?” Ochako guessed at last, and he gave her sarcastic looking finger guns. Well at least she figured it out. “Well, hi, I guess. I’m Uraraka Ochako.” 

When the silence reigned for a while, Ochako gestured to the desk, which held a new notebook she had noticed but hadn’t touched yet. “Can you write it down I guess?” She wasn’t sure she wanted to know why he wasn’t talking, so she’d just work around it. Maybe then he’d leave and she could go back to sitting on the bed and staring at the room like if she looked hard enough, she could peel back the layers and go back to her home. 

The guy glanced back down the hall, then came further into the room, beelining for the desk and the notebook. Maybe he just couldn’t talk. 

He scribbled in it for a little bit, then offered it to her. Ochako accepted it, then started reading. 

“Nice to meet you, Shinsou,” Ochako said quietly, scrounging up just enough energy for a tiny smile. She didn’t want him to think that she was rude or something. She offered the notebook back, and he accepted it, scribbling in it again before showing her. “Ah, I see. I’m sorry.” 

They didn’t let him talk in the house? That was ridiculous. Who didn’t let their kid talk? 

Shinsou just shrugged, looking resigned. There must not be anything he could do about it. He scribbled something else, then showed it to her. 

“Doesn’t make it any better,” Ochako replied quietly. They were afraid of his quirk? Who cared? Put him in quirk counseling, ask him to promise not to use it, anything was better then just…not letting him speak at all. 

Shinsou just shrugged resignedly again. After a little bit, he showed her a new note. 

“Could be worse? You know that doesn’t make it better, right?” 

Shinsou just looked at her, a deeply tired look in his eyes. Ochako could sympathize with that, but it didn’t make it any better. 

“They’re my best bet if I want to make it into UA,” Shinsou whispered finally, glancing nervously at the door. “There isn’t anyone closer, and at least they don’t beat me or withhold food that often.” 

That often? At least they don’t beat me? That was an at least? 

Shinsou exhaled sharply, drawing her attention. “They’ll prefer you. You have a good heroic quirk. You’ll be fine.” 

Ochako just looked at him, shoulders hanging low with grief. She wasn’t especially concerned about herself right now. 

He just shrugged again, walking back over to the desk and dropping the notebook and pencil on it. Ochako mentally designated the notebook as the Shinsou notebook, for him to communicate with. It would be easier than using a random one all the time. 

He looked back, just a quick glance over his shoulder, as he left, eyes tired. Ochako could only stare back, feeling as tired as he looked. 

Dinner was simple, rice with some sort of curry. It didn't really taste like anything to Ochako, but she was pretty sure it was just a her problem. Everyone else seemed to like it well enough. She ate it anyway of course, it’d be rude not to, and she did need the food even if she wasn’t really feeling that hungry, she hadn’t eaten all day. Breakfast had been utterly unappetizing hospital food, so she hadn’t eaten anything, and lunch had disappeared in the haze of packing and leaving the only home she’d ever known. 

At least she was eating now. It’d have to be good enough. 

Dinner was also silent. Ochako, being used to a dinner full of laughter and tales of what she and her parents did that day…well, it was another kick to the gut, another reminder of what she had lost. Another reminder of what she could never get back. What she could never have again. 

Plus it was just kind of awkward. Everyone sitting in silence while alternatively looking up at the other people and looking down at their plate? Awkward. 

Once she finished her plate, she politely excused herself, automatically going into the kitchen to wash her dish. It took a little bit to actually find the sink, since the kitchen layout was completely different. They even had a dishwasher, which wasn’t something she’d had at home. It was probably nice, not having to handwash all of your dishes. 

Since it was polite, Ochako quietly rinsed her dish, opening the dishwasher to see if there was any room in it. There was, and it didn’t look clean, so she slid in her plate and chopsticks. 

That complete, she just stood in the kitchen for a little while. Should she try and wash something? Wipe down the counters? Sweep? 

She wasn’t sure. 

“You don’t have to help with cleanup tonight dear, we’ll discuss that tomorrow,” the woman called from the dining room, solving her dilemma. “We know it's been a long day, you go ahead and rest.” 

Right. Probably good. She was exhausted. She didn’t want to accidentally break something. She’d be sure to help tomorrow.

Chapter Text

Things settled down, even if Ochako kind of didn't want them too. 

She was expected to do her share of chores and sometimes help cook dinner, and Shinsou brought back some work for her from the less sympathetic teachers. 

It was hard to find the motivation to bother doing any of it, but she needed good grades to get into UA, so she did it anyway. At this point UA was starting to feel like the one bright spot in the darkness. If she could get there, maybe it’d be alright, she’d be on her way to being a hero, it’d be a big step. She was almost proving she could still be a hero. If she got there, maybe she wouldn’t just be a broken girl clinging onto a dream she should have given up on long ago. 

As things settled down though, well, Ochako began to have the brainspace to notice more things, and she didn’t like any of them. 

All of them had to do with Shinsou. Not only was he not allowed to speak in the house, if she accidentally forgot to do a chore, he always had to do it, usually because he was blamed for it. The foster parents just seemed to have it out for him. 

It wasn’t hard to realize why it was. Not in the least since it was mentioned what felt like every five hours. Ochako had the good heroic quirk, Shinsou had the evil villainous quirk. 

Which was ridiculous, Ochako had plenty of ways to kill people with her quirk, just as many ways as Shinsou had to help with his. Sure her quirk would be so useful for a rescue hero, but so would his! The ability to make a victim calm down if they were panicking and making the situation worse, the ability to help lead people who were paralyzed by fear out. So many options. 

But they just saw that he took away choice sometimes, and immediately deemed it bad. It didn’t matter that he had it perfectly under control, they couldn’t risk it. 

He spoke in the house one time, and they brought out the contraption that made Ochako want to burn the house to the ground and run away with Shinsou. Surely between the two of them they could figure out how to make it on the streets. 

Shinsou had barely managed to convince her not to do that, something about him being used to it, and how this muzzle wasn’t as bad as some others, which Also made her want to burn the world down and run away with him. 

Maybe she had gotten very attached in the short time she’d known him, but in her defense, he was kind of the first friend who didn’t pity her in the slightest, he just knew what it was like. It was never pity in his eyes, just a sad empathy. They were in this situation together, and in that way they were the same. 

They were also the same in that they both wanted to be heroes. Shinsou had started crying when she told him his quirk would be fantastic for it, which was also on the list of things that made her want to run away with him and burn the world down for hurting him. 

Maybe she should be doing more. Something else to help her reach that goal of being a hero. Before she’d helped out at the construction sites sometimes as training, but that wasn’t an option anymore. She’d need to figure something else out. 

Perhaps she could bring it up with Shinsou, see what he thought. He’d probably want to join her anyway, he did also want to be a hero. If they could collaborate maybe they could get farther than one of them could alone. 

Plus, they could motivate each other when they might not be able to motivate themselves. And if something happened, it’d be safer to have two of them, one could get help or something. 

She was just waiting for him to get home now, sitting on the porch. He should be getting back soon, and the house had been feeling a bit stifling, so Ochako was outside waiting for him. 

She stared blankly down the road, until she spotted the telltale spot of purple that meant Shinsou was getting close, at which point she hopped up, tried to slap on a smile, and ran out to meet him. Her parents always greeted her with a smile even if they weren’t really feeling it, so she tried to do it too. No one else ever seemed happy to see him, so she tried to at least look happy to see him every time. 

Even if she was still in the ‘wondering if she’d ever really feel happy again’ stage of grieving. 

“Shinsou!” Ochako did her best to chirp, although based on his tired look it was perhaps not the most convincing. “How was school?” 

He gave her a dry look, evidently not about to respond verbally. Ochako squinted a bit and realized he had a red line across his face, already fading, but for now, still there. 

“They let the school do that?” Ochako asked, aghast but kind of not surprised. She didn’t like that she wasn’t surprised. 

Shinsou just shrugged resignedly, attention drifting away. After a second he spoke, breaking Ochako's heart further. “Who do you think gave them the muzzle.” 

It was whispered flatly, like they both knew the answer. 

That was because they did. 

“What was it this time?” Ochako asked, wishing so badly she could just go into the school and destroy anyone who even looked at him funny. She couldn’t, she needed a clean record for UA, and starting fights would make that impossible, especially if they were fought over Shinsou, who the system didn't care about. 

He was slow to answer, so it couldn't be good. “Just some jerks who wouldn't be able to tell a monkey from an ape. Cornered me in the hall then claimed I used my quirk on them.” 

“You didn't,” Ochako guessed, and he shook his head. “I'm sorry.” 

He just shrugged. “Sorry won't stop it. Sorry won't change the society we live in.” 

It wouldn’t. He was right. “That’s why we’ll become heroes. Show people there's a better way. Show people that's not okay.” Try and get the laws changed too maybe. 

“Neither of us are going full apprehension spotlight, I don’t think we'll get that much publicity,” Shinsou replied dryly, but thankfully louder than his previous whispers. 

“Then we make friends with someone who will,” Ochako decided, nodding firmly. Perfect plan. 

“Hate to burst your bubble, but we have to make it in first,” Shinsou said, evidently not noticing his use of ‘we’ that nonetheless made something soften just a little bit inside of Ochako. It may not be happiness, not yet, but it was enough for now. 

“I have a plan,” Ochako said instead of addressing it directly. Her saying that was a bit of a lie though, since the extent of the plan was ‘ask Shinsou if he wants to train together for UA’, and that wasn’t much of a plan. “We just need to be really ready. We can start working out, get stronger for the entrance exam. We have time.” 

“Not that much time, but if you're sure.” He looked cautiously hopeful, like he wanted to be, but couldn't let it out just yet. Considering the red line still faintly visible across the bridge of his nose and his cheeks… Ochako couldn’t blame him. She was barely managing to be hopeful, and it was just through sheer stubbornness. 

“It’ll be worse if we don't even try,” Ochako pointed out quietly. If they didn't get in because they didn't try hard enough, they didn't deserve to get in in the first place. 

He hesitated, but nodded eventually. “Alright. We can do that. The more time out of the house the better anyway.” 

She was glad he was onboard. She had figured he would be, but it was still good to hear it. Hopefully now they could come up with an actual plan. Something more solid than a vague ‘work out’.

Chapter Text

It was a bit rough to figure out something that would work for both of them, Ochako hadn’t really considered herself all that strong, but Shinsou wasn't nearly as strong as she was, and tired far quicker. His stamina was so low. 

It wasn’t helped by the fact that sometimes he wasn’t allowed to eat a meal or two by the foster parents. The fact that he would usually just say that he was used to it just made it worse. 

The fact that he was resigned to it all made everything worse. 

When that happened Ochako started saving pieces when she could, taking a little bit too much, pretending to be throwing it away, which, when that was more acceptable than her giving it to Shinsou, it felt so antithetical to everything her parents had taught her. It let her sneak things to him though, and she had to settle with that. It wasn't enough, it was just pieces, but it was better than nothing. 

Ochako just had to keep repeating that; it was better than nothing. 

It didn’t make her feel any better. 

It snuck up on her. One minute things were continuing as they had for the last week, the next Ochako was being told she was going back to school the next day. They’d gotten her a new backpack and some new notebooks. 

Ochako would have loved to give it to Shinsou and just use her backpack, which, while worn, wasn’t nearly as wreaked as Shinsou’s, which was basically falling apart, but somehow she doubted that would fly. 

Maybe she could pretend she gave her old one to him and they’d just switch backpacks once they were far enough away from the house. For now, she thanked them and tried to look as grateful as she could. The favoritism ate at her even more. 

She knew why it was. She didn’t like it, but she knew why. 

She had the powerful heroic quirk, one everyone agreed would be good for rescue heroics, and he had the still strong but considered villainous quirk, the one everyone seemed to think would mean he’d automatically become a villain when he was older. 

At this rate, Ochako was more likely to become a villain just out of anger at how he was treated. He’d never do it for himself anyway. 

She just didn’t know how anyone could treat him like that. Sure, once he opened up a bit, he was snarky, and the easiest way to get a response with his quirk was riling someone up, but he was so kind. Despite everything he still wanted to save everyone. 

Ochako was increasingly unsure how he did that. 

Ochako stared up at the school, hands clutching the straps of her backpack, Shinsou with his new backpack that she’d given him beside her. 

“It won’t be bad for you, just avoid me and you’ll be fine,” he mumbled, already not looking at her. 

He was a fool if he thought that was how this was going to go. She wasn’t going to tell him that though, he’d figure it out pretty quickly. She wasn’t going to avoid him. And she wasn’t going to keep her head down as much as he would want her to either. 

She wasn’t just going to drop him like yesterday’s lunch now that there were other people their age in the picture. 

Other than the looks people kept shooting Shinsou, and by extension, her, the first several periods were staggeringly, horrifyingly normal. Teachers introduced her to the class, let her pick wherever she wanted to sit, asked if she really wanted to sit next to him, then moved on when she confirmed she hadn’t accidentally picked the wrong seat. 

“You should just sit somewhere else when they ask if you want to,” Shinsou mumbled on the way to their next class. “It’s fine, I don’t mind, I’m used to it.” 

Ochako gritted her teeth so she didn’t spit out something like ‘you shouldn’t be used to it’. He’d already heard it from her, and he already knew that. He didn’t need to hear it again. Just because he shouldn’t be used to it, didn’t make it any less of a reality that there was a reason he was used to it. A reason she couldn’t do anything about right now. 

“I’m sitting exactly where I want to,” she gritted out instead. 

He made an unconvinced agreement noise. That was fine, she didn’t need to convince him. She was going to do it anyway. Where else would she sit after all? Next to kids who’d just get uncomfortable if she answered anything truthfully? Next to kids who would talk badly about him? 

No. She’d rather sit next to him. 

So, she kept her head held high through their next class, and lunch, and the three classes after that. She was not going to be swayed. Shinsou was her friend now, and she would do what she could for him. This was a pretty small thing, but it was better than nothing. Small but better than nothing was all she was running on right now. 

As the day wore on, the stares turned pitying, and when they did, Ochako started glaring back. She needed no pity, especially not about her choice in friends. 

The pity burned, both the pity itself and the fact that they were turning it on her for something they didn't understand. Ochako heard the whispers, she knew what they were thinking of Shinsou, and if she could hear it, he could too. They were whispering about how maybe Shinsou had somehow brainwashed her, or blackmailed her or something. 

They could not conceive of someone simply being his friend because they wanted to. 

Ochako hated it. 

Ochako hated a lot now. Sometimes she wondered what her parents would do if they saw her now. She didn’t like to think about it, since they couldn’t see her now, they were gone. Gone, and never coming back. 

If someone said that to her face she was going to start throwing punches though. It would get her in trouble, but she was just so infuriated by the implication. If they had the audacity to say it to her face, they were basically asking to get punched. 

And she was just itching to punch someone. Get some anger out. It'd get her in trouble, but if someone was asking for it, it'd be worth it. If she was defending Shinsou, it’d be even more worth it. He deserved to have someone standing up for him, and she was happy to be that person. It wasn’t like anyone else was doing it anyway. 

They almost made it through the day. Almost. Honestly Ochako was surprised the cautious stillness had lasted so long. And she was impressed at herself for not giving into the urge to punch someone for that long. 

“Hey brainwasher! Let the little girl go!” A male voice called out from behind them, and Ochako stiffened, already bristling. Little girl? She was no little girl. 

Shinsou’s shoulders had already dropped when the guy finished speaking. Resigned to his fate. 

Ochako wasn’t going to take it lying down though. She’d meant it when she’d thought she’d start throwing punches if anyone said it to her face. 

She spun around, fists already up. “Say that again,” she challenged, eager for an excuse to hit him. 

“No, Uraraka, don't,” Shinsou hissed, making an ineffectual grab at her. 

He couldn’t stop her. 

“Aw, did I offend the little girl?” The bully, someone she remembered chatting about it derisively with his friends earlier, said mockingly. 

Ochako snapped, decking him across the face. 

He stumbled back, looking shocked that she'd dared to actually hit him, in the hallway, in front of a quarter of the school and three teachers. 

“This little girl knows how to fight,” Ochako told him, shaking with rage, but not going in for another blow, since he was just sitting on the ground, holding his cheek, and looking shaken. 

Him clearly handled, Ochako spun back around and started marching out, although she was intercepted by a teacher almost immediately. 

So that was how she landed in the principal's office on the first day of school.

Chapter Text

The principal was a strict looking man, all pressed suits and stern expression. He'd clearly gotten used to cracking down on any fights. 

Brave, Ochako's old school had given up unless the fights turned into whole school brawls. Or ended up with someone majorly injured. Even then sometimes it didn’t happen. 

Not that she had gotten involved with fights that often. Just when they got involved with her. She just kept her head down and knew if she wanted a problem solved, she would have to solve it herself. Which she had, on occasion. When necessary. 

“I understand you punched another student,” the principal said finally, looking unimpressed with her method of conflict solving. 

“He was insulting me,” Ochako replied, deciding to leave Shinsou out of it this time. She didn’t want to hear any more about Shinsou being a bad influence or something from another adult. 

The principal sighed. “I cannot tolerate fighting in my school Miss Uraraka, I'm sure you understand.” Not really, no, since her last school had given up on caring. “I know you're going through a hard time right now, so I will let you off this time, but try not to let it happen again.” 

Ochako blinked at him for a few seconds, absolutely baffled. That was it? It was that easy? 

“Perhaps next time, if I might suggest a solution, next time you feel the urge to punch something, I suggest that something not being your classmate.” 

Huh. That was it. It was that easy. 

“I'll do my best,” Ochako said, somewhat insincerely. She'd keep it out of sight next time at least. Probably. She’d make a slightly better attempt anyway. 

“See that you do. I know this time has been very difficult for you, so don't be afraid to ask for help, we're happy to provide some accommodations.” 

Huh. Ochako was getting the distinct feeling that she was about to be allowed to get away with murder if she wanted to. As long as they didn't have a reason to think it was her. “I'll keep it in mind. Thank you.” The thanks left a bad taste in her mouth, but she ignored it for now, standing up and bowing shallowly to the principal before leaving. 

Shinsou was waiting outside, nervously. “So? What was the verdict?” 

“I don't think they're even going to tell our fosters,” Ochako informed him quietly, grabbing his arm and towing him out. 

Once they were in a slightly more secluded area, Shinsou stopped, and so she stopped too. 

“What do you mean they might not even tell our fosters?” Shinsou hissed, glancing around nervously, probably because he'd asked a question. 

“The principal said he ‘understood this is a trying time for me’, so I'm off the hook,” Ochako said, imitating the principal for the quote then sighing. “Can't say I'm not glad for it, but I don’t like what it says.” 

Shinsou was staring at her like she'd grown a second head. “He just let you off like that?” 

Ochako nodded. “Just like that.” She was almost afraid to ask what would have happened if he was in there. “What did you think would happen?” 

He shrugged awkwardly. “Suspended, something on your permanent record, I don’t know. I've gotten worse for being accused of less.” 

And there was the desire to burn the world down and run away with him again. She'd been wondering when that would eclipse the rage at the other kids. 

“That would imply something in the world was fair,” Ochako said after taking a second to get the anger under control. It took longer than it perhaps should have. 

Shinsou just huffed in agreement, a bitter twist to his lips. After a second he spoke again though. “I’m glad he let you off. The other guy did start it. And you only hit him once, instead of continuing to do it after he went down.” 

“If you do it right, you never need to continue a fight after the first hit. The longer it goes, the more likely it is to have more parties injured,” Ochako replied, with practiced ease. You learned things when you were at a school as prone to fights as hers. Fights may not have been really penalized, but that just meant that they could spiral out of control much more easily. Finishing a fight as soon as possible was ideal. “And besides, the faster it goes, the less likely it is that it’ll be noticed.” 

“That doesn’t work when you start a fight in front of three teachers,” Shinsou replied dryly. 

Good point. “Nope. Still good to finish it quickly though.” Just in case. “Hopefully he won’t mess with me anymore.” 

Shinsou shrugged, evidently unable to tell her if he would. Entirely reasonable, Ochako doubted many people had gone ahead and punched the douche, he had gone down easily, and seemed very shocked about getting punched. 

And with how they still bothered to try and punish fighting, she doubted it happened all that often. 

She'd figure it out. 

Ochako vaguely wondered how UA would be. Would it too punish fighting outside of designated times? Or would it not even bother? 

Theoretically they had a strict anti-bullying policy, but was it enforced in a way that actually prevented bullying or in a way that just encouraged it to happen in sanctioned ways or off campus? 

She hoped it was the first, but she was realistic. It was most likely the second. 

She would deal with it either way. She wouldn’t let it ruin her desire to be a hero. She couldn’t. If she needed to throw some more hands, so be it. She’d protect him. 

To be fair, Ochako did hold to her word. She didn’t engage in any more fights where someone could see and tell the principal. 

She’d stop getting into fights when people stopped being stupid about Shinsou. It was as simple as that.

It was as unlikely as that, and they all knew it. 

Their fosters never heard about any of it, as Ochako had guessed, the principal never telling them Ochako had immediately gotten into a fight. 

They never heard about the others either, but there wasn’t anyone who would tell them anyway, since all other fights were off school property and never reported to the adults. They were handling it between themselves. Or rather, Ochako was handling it. 

She didn’t know how long she could keep handling it. 

She didn’t think she had any other choice.

Chapter Text

Ochako was tired. 

Her eyebags could rival Hitoshi's, if partially because they were up equally late studying for the entrance exam. 

It wasn’t just that though. It never was. 

Right now, her ribs were smarting because of a particularly nasty kick from a kid at school, she had a cut along her cheekbone from the same thing, and there were a smattering of other bruises that mostly only hurt when there was pressure on them, but there were enough of them one was always under pressure from something. 

She didn't regret any of it, not really. Everything she had she'd gotten defending Hitoshi while at school and fighting afterwards. 

But it hurt, and now Ochako was staring down the gates of UA, Hitoshi at her side, and the entrance exam awaiting them. 

There would probably be some fighting component. She was good in a fight, but she was also tired and hurt and sore, and she really didn't want to right now. 

She would anyway. She had to get into UA, if not, then what was it all for? What was every long night, every grueling hour of training, every fight she got in defending Hitoshi, what was it all for if she failed? 

She was so tired though. 

Hitoshi nudged her arm, a spot he knew didn't have a bruise, and gave her a smile, although it was a little shaky. She gave one back that was probably more tired than shaky. It got across the point anyway. They were in this together. They’d figure it out. They had to. 

About halfway up to the front steps, Ochako realized her shoelaces were untied, and bent down to retie them, letting Hitoshi continue on ahead, intending to just catch up as soon as she was sure she wasn’t going to trip on her shoelaces. 

When she glanced up after being done, she realized there was a boy in front of her, and as she watched, he managed to trip somehow, and started falling. 

Slightly panicking, Ochako reached out and tapped his back, activating her quirk and causing him to float instead of falling. 

“Are you alright?” She asked, and Hitoshi turned back, raising an eyebrow when he realized the green-haired guy was floating. 

Said green-haired guy peeked one eye open, then realized he was floating and started flailing a bit. 

Ochako backed up hurriedly, dodging at least one flailing arm. “Sorry, didn’t want you to fall, and just panicked I guess, it’s my quirk.” 

The flailing paused, then resumed slightly as the guy managed to get into an upright position. Ochako hurriedly undid her quirk, and he landed back on his feet with a fair amount of grace. “That’s really cool!” He said, instead of anything else. “Can you just float people? Is there a weight limit? Do you need to touch someone with all five fingers to make it work or can it just be a couple? How much control do you have over how much of something floats?” 

Ochako blinked a few times, taken aback by the onslaught of questions. 

She didn’t get to say anything though as the guy checked a watch, then jumped a bit. “We’re almost late! Sorry, better get to my seat! Thanks for the save!” 

Then he was gone. 

“He’s uh, strange,” Hitoshi commented as Ochako wandered over to him, a little shell shocked. 

“No kidding,” Ochako mumbled, trying to push it all to the side. They couldn’t really afford to be distracted. Even if it was by one very odd kid. 

Ochako a little bit hoped they’d see him later though, if just to ask why he had so many questions. That was a lot of questions for someone he just ran into. Almost literally. 

The auditorium they went into for the paper test thankfully placed them next to each other, so they didn’t have to try and find each other through the crowd. It certainly made Ochako a little less nervous. 

The test was hard, but they had studied for this. They’d been studying for it for weeks, months even. It was hard, but Ochako was at least reasonably sure she’d done mostly alright on it. Hopefully it would be enough. 

They wouldn’t know for a while though. Not until they officially got their results, when they discovered if they’d gotten in. 

They were separated for the next part of the test though, which Ochako probably should have expected, they probably didn’t want students from the same school able to team up and get a leg up on each other or something. It still made her nervous, even if she knew why it done. 

Hitoshi would be fine, most people would probably be too occupied with all the bots to really be angry about his quirk, and besides, since it was bots, he probably wouldn’t be using it all that much anyway. They had discussed the possibility of the entrance exam not being suited to Hitoshi’s quirk before, and the only good solution they’d come up with was brute force and/or seeing if there was another trick to the test that could also let him pass. 

It would probably have to be brute force in this case. That was what they had been training for though! 

She just had to hope it would be enough. For both of them. She really didn’t know what she’d do if they didn’t both get in. 

They had to. She needed to be optimistic about this, even if she struggled to be optimistic about anything else. Even if she struggled to be even slightly neutral about anything else. 

It was cathartic, in some ways, to be beating the absolute snot out of the robots. She just imagined all of those stupid bully’s faces on them, and destroyed them. Not the most heroic perhaps, but it was cathartic, and she kind of needed that. 

When the test was just about over, the ground rumbled underneath her, and when she looked towards the source of the rumbles, terror rising in her chest and the dust in the air rapidly becoming suffocating, she found a giant robot, destroying every building in its path. 

She was frozen for a long moment, until she spotted the guy she’d stopped from falling earlier, the one who’d asked all the questions, trapped under rubble right in the robot’s path. 

She couldn’t let him be crushed. 

Ochako sprinted for the robot, brain screaming that she couldn’t see someone else die again. She had to do something. 

She had to stop the robot. Somehow. She couldn’t let another person die in front of her.

It was with a smack that her hand collided with the foot of the robot, all five fingers connecting, her quirk surging with her panic. 

The robot reared back, beginning to float up, and with that, nausea slammed into Ochako and she all but crumpled to the ground, trying to avoid throwing up what little was in her stomach. She was beginning to get dizzy, the world spinning around her, but she couldn’t let the robot fall only to continue its rampage. 

She only barely processed the signal that the test had ended, shakily bringing her hands together to deactivate her quirk. The robot slammed back to earth, sending a shockwave through the ground and a whole bunch of air that carried a lot of dust. Ochako hid her face in her arm, trying desperately not to remember being trapped in the building. 

Fortunately, the robot seemed defeated, or maybe it was just deactivated when the test stopped. Either way, it had stopped. It couldn’t crush anyone. 

“Ar-are you okay?” The guy from earlier asked nervously. He sounded kind of far away, he must not have gotten out of the rubble. 

Ochako pushed herself to her feet, ignoring the way her stomach was turning and her head ached and the world spun. Her vision was weird, blurry and spinning, but she stumbled over to where she could just vaguely see the green hair of the guy, squinting and trying to figure out what was trapping him. If she could just lift it, she could get him out. 

“You don’t really look okay, you can sit down! I’m sure someone will be coming by to get everyone, and this isn’t that uncomfortable, all things considered. I’m not hurt or anything, you can just sit down its okay!” 

No, she needed to get him out. What if the rubble shifted? 

Her vision was no help. Memory it was. Most of the rubble on top of him had seemed like it was all one big slab, not attached to anything else, just an abandoned piece of a building. 

She reached out almost blindly, placing her hand on the first piece of rubble she found. Her quirk activated, and the nausea surged again, but she gritted her teeth and ignored it, keeping a hand on the rubble as it floated up. 

“I’m clear, you can put it down again!” The guy said quickly, now sounding like he was on her left rather than in front of her. “No one’s under it!” 

Right. Put it down. It took her a couple of tries to actually place her fingertips together, but she got it in the end, and the rubble dropped with a resounding crash that had her flinching. 

“Oh! Recovery Girl! We need some help over here. I don’t really know what she did, but she’s not really looking so good, and I’m worried.” 

Hm, the black encroaching on the edges of her vision probably wasn’t good. Too late.