Chapter Text
“He’s dying.”
Deku falls to his knees, tears already streaming down his cheeks. He reaches for Todoroki’s arm, missing on the first few attempts due to his post-battle disorientation. He emits this tiny, choked whimper as a new batch of tears slides down his face, and Uraraka has to turn away, wiping at her own eyes.
Several sets of footsteps advance towards them, and she sees Kirishima, Iida, and many, many Shiketsuian civilians, haggard and injured and breathing heavily. Despite her fogginess, she recognizes Kaminari, Tsu, and several of the pixies they encountered on their journey, including Mina. Her friends must have used Carnage to contact the allies they made along their way. Uraraka shakes her head. She can thank them later.
Iida’s and Kirishima’s eyes widen at the scene before them, and even Inasa looks disturbed. Nagamasa and Camie send them sympathetic looks before rushing off to help Bakugou tie up the unconscious King.
“I-Is he really not going to make it, Uraraka?” Kirishima asks, his voice breaking.
Uraraka tries and fails to keep her tears from flowing. “It would be different if I had my mage’s staff, but I can’t heal to my full capacity alone.” She sniffs, wiping blood and mucus off of her face with her sleeve.
“But what about an infirmary?” Iida demands. “Surely-”
“The entire palace is destroyed,” Inasa tells him, for once his voice is solemn.
“So that’s it?” Bakugou comes up from behind, his face bloody, burned, and furious. “You ain’t got any other places to heal the injured in this fucking kingdom?”
“The closest infirmary is the one in Shiketsu,” Seiji informs them, pushing his sweaty purple bangs from his face. “But from this location, the fastest route is blocked by a lake. You could attempt to go around it, but I’m afraid it would be too late by then.”
“Kirishima? Kaminari?” Uraraka asks desperately. “Can you…?”
The redhead shakes his head, tears escaping from his eyes. “I had to transform back towards the end of the battle. I’m not strong enough to do it again.”
Kaminari ducks his head. “Same with me. I’m sorry, Uraraka.”
“I would carry him across the lake with my magic, but those wounds look bad. I think my torrents would do more harm than good,” Inasa adds.
Uraraka turns to Deku to see if he has any ideas, but her best friend, the boy she always counts on to have a plan, can’t even form a coherent sentence. His entire body is wracked with sobs as he clutches onto Todoroki’s sleeve like a lost child.
“There has to be something we can do!” Iida insists, his voice rising in his anxiety. “There has to be some way across the lake! Perhaps someone could come here? Or perhaps-”
“-I’m telling you, by the time we got a message through-”
“-Not to mention the lake is in the way-”
“You’re telling me there’s no goddamn way to get him there?!” Bakugou barks.
“I’m sorry,” Seiji snaps. “I wish there was something we could do, but unless you can walk on water, the Prince of Endeavor is lost!”
The world goes still for Uraraka. The throne room becomes silent; the arguing in the background fades to oblivion. She breathes low and deep, her gaze rising as she looks out one of the cracked windows. She can see the lake from here.
Bakugou is halfway through another rant when his gaze connects with hers. Bemusement glitters in his ruby eyes and then they widen just a fraction. He knows what she’s thinking.
Good. He can explain it to the others.
Summoning all of her strength and spirit, Uraraka presses her fingers to Todoroki’s core, activating her magic. Deku jerks back as the prince rises gently off the floor. He looks to Uraraka, a question poised on his lips, but she doesn’t have time to answer. She cradles the prince, securing him tightly to her body and ignoring the burns on her arms.
She leaps out of the throne room window.
The gasps and screams of the others fade behind her, and she focuses ahead; all she can see is the lake and the rising sun. She does her best not to jostle the prince, his blood already soaking her tunic. Her breath comes out in fervent pants, and her heartbeat hammers in her chest with every step. The lake is approaching, black in the darkness. She only has one shot at this. She only has one chance to save him.
And she can. She’s strong enough to save him. She’s strong enough to save anybody.
With a sharp inhale, her boot touches down right before the water of the lakeshore kisses the material. She activates her magic, springboarding into the air and sailing across the black expanse of water. She’s not going to make it. It’s impossible to jump across the entire lake. It’s large, even larger than the one she and Bakugou used to practice. That’s okay. She doesn’t need to make it across entirely.
She braces for impact.
Her right heel penetrates the water, and her mind goes blank. There is no room for doubt. She inhales again, her magic churning in her core as her heel cuts the surfaces, and then skids upwards with a whoosh. Uraraka rolls onto the ball of her foot, the water feeling solid and firm and safe beneath her mass, or lack thereof. It’s only when she pushes off into the air again, does she realize she’s smiling.
As she glides through the sky, she swears she can see all of Endeavor under the rising sun. Repeatedly she makes contact with the lake, her foot gliding across the surface like glass, before she shoots up to the stars again. Her arms tighten around Todoroki as they fly through the air together. She presses her forehead to his.
“Hang in there, Shouto. It will be okay.”
---
By the time she finds the Shiketsu infirmary hut, Todoroki is white as a sheet, and his breathing is shallow. Uraraka surveys Endeavor’s healing mages-who, unlike her, have actually graduated from their studies-as they work with practiced precision. They either don’t know or don’t care that their newest patient is their lost prince, for they don’t ask any questions.
Uraraka watches them work for over an hour, cleaning his wound, stitching the skin, casting spells for his blood loss. By the time they finish with him, his forehead shines with sweat, and his skin is too pale for Uraraka's liking, but his breathing is calm, more regular.
One of the mages says something to her, and Uraraka blinks, not realizing she has collapsed to her knees. She looks up at the person talking to her, blinking with dazed, brown eyes.
“Eh?”
“I said he’s going to live, Miss. It’s a good thing you brought him here when you did. Few minutes more and even our most experienced mages would not have been able to save him.”
Uraraka blinks slowly, exhaustion rapidly taking over her. She reaches onto the wooden, operating table to grasp Todoroki’s clammy hand. She hangs her head in relief and fatigue.
Several minutes later there are voices all around her, and she looks up sluggishly to see the faces of her friends and the Shiketsuians, having finally made it around the lake.
She gives them a tired smile, and suddenly she’s being kissed full on the mouth by Deku, shyness be damned. He buries his face in her shoulder, his tears dampening her already-soaked tunic, whispering ‘thank you,’ over and over again.
As Deku and the others surround Todoroki, listening to what the mages say, someone sinks to the ground beside her.
“Bakugou…”
His face is a mess, but Uraraka is sure she doesn’t look any better. His mouth tugs at the corners, almost like a grimace, but she sees his eyes. They’re warm. He’s proud of her.
Bakugou gently grasps the front of her bloody tunic, wordlessly bringing her to him. He presses his lips to her forehead. Tears prick the corners of her eyes, and the world is quiet again.
---
---
---
Three months later.
“We’ve got another one for you, Ochako.”
“I’m on it!”
Uraraka examines her patient, a kappa with a broken shell. It’s an easy enough fix, especially with her new healing staff, and after a few spells the creature’s covering is completely mended. Uraraka frowns. Still, something isn’t right. She presses her staff to the center of the creature’s stomach, watching as it writhes in discomfort.
“This might hurt a bit,” she warns and then murmurs an incantation.
The kappa seizes and then regurgitates enough food to feed a small village. Uraraka observes the mess, recognizing purple flecks in some of the half-digested muck.
“I knew it. You’ve ingested polluted kelp,” she tells the creature, casting another spell on its stomach to ease its nausea. “Here. This should help. I would stay away from solid underwater plant life for now.”
The kappa hisses and Uraraka nods in understanding. “I know, there aren’t many other options. But here.” She rummages in her medicine satchel and pulls out some ginger root. “Eat this for the next couple of days. It’s a tad bitter, but it’s solid and found on land. You’ll be able to return to eating kelp in no time!”
The kappa sniffs at the root then takes it between its teeth before scurrying off to the banks of its pond without so much as a thank you. Uraraka doesn’t mind. It’s satisfying enough to help someone in pain.
“Congratulations, Ochako,” a new voice says, and Uraraka turns to see the Chieftess of the outerlands enter the healing hut, dressed from head to toe in furs and animal bones. Uraraka immediately bows her head in respect, but the older woman laughs.
“No need for that shit,” Chieftess Bakugou Mitsuki remarks with a sharp wink. “I like you enough to skip those damn formalities.” As Uraraka rises, the Chieftess looks to her instructor expectantly. “Well?” she prods.
Her instructor nods, a pleased smile on her face. “She’s healed every patient I’ve thrown at her. It’d be foolish not to pass her at this rate.”
Uraraka’s heart pounds as Chieftess Mistuki shoots her a snarky smile. “Well, fuck it then! You hear that, Ochako? You’re officially a healing mage.”
Uraraka presses a hand to her mouth as she swallows back her tears. A few months ago she thought she would never complete her training, but now…
She’s wiping away her tears right as Bakugou enters the healing hut, his eyes searching for her. When he notices her state, his face contorts in outrage.
“WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU DO TO HER, OLD HAG?!” he demands.
“OH, FUCK OFF, YOU LITTLE SHIT! THESE ARE HAPPY TEARS! NO THANKS TO YOU!”
Uraraka laughs through her crying, still not accustomed to how Bakugou and his mother interact. Neither of them would be pleased to hear it, but they are spitting images of each other.
Once Uraraka explains her new title to Bakugou, the blond’s face drops, and in the next moment he’s mashing his face to hers. The instructor hollers her approval, while the Chieftess rolls her eyes.
“Oi! We get it; you’ve fucked her! No need to remind your goddamn mother!”
Uraraka gently pulls away with a blush. One thing she’s discovered from staying in the outerlands is that Bakugou was right; his people are absolutely unapologetic and accepting when it comes to their basic needs.
Later, as she and Bakugou walk through the village square, he places a protective arm around her, sneering at any man who so much as looks in their direction. Uraraka wants to snort; it’s not like anybody would attempt to steal the Dragon King’s woman from right under his nose.
“Those extras are coming tonight, so take care of any other crap you need to before we leave tomorrow,” Bakugou tells her.
She nods. “Okay.”
Uraraka leans into him as they walk, and he turns his head, pressing a firm, quick kiss to her forehead. A lot has changed in such a short amount of time.
After they had dethroned King Enji and healed completely, the group began aiding Endeavor’s people in rebuilding their city. As predicted, most of the soldiers on the King’s side were more than willing to forget their old ruler, as soon as it became clear he had been defeated. Deku and Todoroki, no longer a prince, were the busiest of all, helping to establish elected representatives within each of the city’s provinces. Todoroki was even able to work well with Inasa, although it was clear the two still didn’t care for each other much.
While the group helped to rebuild and transform the palace into appropriate meeting quarters for the new council, Todoroki properly introduced them to his siblings. They had been locked in a separate wing of the palace for years and were just as relieved with their father’s defeat as the rest of the kingdom. Todoroki also visited his mother, once alone, and the next time with Deku. It was kept between the three of them, as it should have been. If nothing else, it warmed Uraraka’s heart to see that two of her best friends could finally be together in a way society previously would not have allowed.
Todoroki Enji, Uraraka learned, had been tried and sentenced by the new council of Endeavor. He would live in the outerlands without magic, working as any other serf would for grain. He would be monitored closely at all times, should he plan to strike back, but with no supporters and no source for his magic, it was safe to say he had resigned himself to his new life.
After they had done all they could in Endeavor, Kirishima had transformed and, waggling his large, scaly eyebrows at them, extended a wing and allowed four new humans to ride on his back for the first time since Bakugou. He flew them across the country into the capital city of Yuuei, and it was almost laughable how short the journey was compared to the one they made on foot.
The people of Yuuei were practically transformed, dancing in the streets, playing music, laughing jovially, and celebrating the mysterious return of their water. The group had requested an audience with King Yagi, for up until that point, not a soul in Yuuei had known the cause of the drought nor King Enji’s plans to attack.
Needless to say, the King was furious once Deku had explained everything to his master. He admonished Deku, and all of them for that matter. Saying how reckless the plan was, how it was foolish and careless and courageous and admirable and heroic.
When the King had finished his speech, he addressed his apprentice directly, acknowledging his actions and intelligence. Once he learned Deku had been the one to strike the finishing blow, he bowed to his apprentice, shocking everyone in the throne room.
After King Yagi retired from the battlefield, King Enji was proclaimed the land’s number one warrior. Deku, striking the final blow and severing the King’s weapon in two, had defeated him without contest, thus making him the new greatest warrior in the land.
Deku had tried to protest, insisting it was a group effort to which many replied he was being too modest, sans Bakugou who wholeheartedly agreed with the peasant for probably the first time in his life.
After they had rested, celebrated, rested again, celebrated again, and repeated, the group finally went their separate ways. Iida returned to serve under King Yagi, where he was happiest. Deku and Todoroki returned to Endeavor to live with the latter’s family and to continue rebuilding the kingdom. Kirishima, Uraraka, and Bakugou journeyed to Kansai where she introduced them to her parents and embraced her mother and father. And now, she’s been living in the outerlands for the past two months.
She had never thought she could complete her mage training here, but when it became apparent she could, she was beyond excited. This revelation paled in comparison to all of the new things she learned and the people she met in Bakugou’s life.
She discovered he took after his mother. His father was a strong, soft pillar of guidance. She learned his people lived harmoniously with dragons, the creatures often coming and going and never staying for long, sans Kirishima. She learned Bakugou had a knack for cooking in addition to hunting and combat, and she would often bug him to prepare her something delicious after a long day of healing. She learned he had a favorite spot on top of a rocky overhang where they could watch the stars and gaze at the orange-colored cliffs.
She learned she was falling more in love with him every time he opened that big, dumb mouth of his.
“...And I swear if Shitty-Hair thinks he’s bringing that pink, sprite bitch with us, he’s got another thing coming,” Bakugou growls as they walk out of town and up to the cliffs.
Uraraka giggles, glancing up at the fading sun. “Do you think we’ll actually be able to find them?” she questions thoughtfully.
“The extras? Fuck knows all four of ‘em will find us, whether we want them to or not-”
“No, not them,” Uraraka clarifies. “I mean people like us. Like Inasa.”
Bakugou looks at her, his mouth smirking in that confident way. “We haven’t failed a mission yet, have we?”
Uraraka huffs. “We’ve only been on one journey so far!”
“Yeah, and we crushed it!”
Uraraka rolls her eyes, and then abruptly grabs his face, kissing him fiercely and relishing his surprise. When he settles into the kiss, she thinks he will push back roughly, but instead, his lips move carefully as if she’s made of glass. When he pulls back from her, he’s breathless, and she isn’t much better. He brushes a calloused thumb across her cheek.
“When those idiots get here, we’ll be able to do whatever the fuck we want again. Go wherever we want. We’ll be able to fly and blast shit, and walk on water and take down anyone in our way.” His thumb stops at the corner of her mouth. “Does that sound like something you’d want, Cheeks?”
Uraraka once thought that she could find a home in the outerlands, a substitute for what Yuuei was supposed to be. She was wrong. While the village is amazing, breathtaking, everything she imagined it to be and more, she realized very quickly it didn’t feel like home. She doesn’t think any place ever will.
But when she’s with her friends it’s different. It doesn’t matter if they’re in the pouring rain or blistering sun, if they’re facing danger or exchanging folktales around the light of a campfire. As long as she is with them-an honorable knight, a redeemed prince, a manly dragon, a pure-hearted peasant, and a man who is neither a dragon nor a king-she could be anywhere in the world and it wouldn’t matter. She’ll never forget that feeling, and she can’t wait to have it again.
Uraraka smiles.
“Yes, Katsuki.”