"You know, you really have to watch how hard you push yourself."

Ochako furrowed her eyebrows, her muscles still aching as she vomited out onto the grass, her stomach churned in agitation. She recovered after a couple of heaving breaths, swallowing the swell of sickness as she wiped the remaining bile off her mouth with her sleeve. Despite the awkwardness of the unflattering retching, she managed to form a sunny smirk as she heaved herself back upright and shifted her gaze from the ground.

Deku stood tall, adorned in costume as she was, his eyes creased in worry as he watched her compose herself. His doting concern was touching, but she quirked an eyebrow at his hypocrisy. Her eyes ran over his body (while definitely not appreciating his physique) to see a mixture of nicks and bruises. The wounds seemed to migrate across his skin through the weeks of hero training.

"Hehe — yeah, I guess so," she chuckled brightly to Deku. "But there are some people I know that could stand to hear that too." She poked his arm gently with the outside of her finger, aiming for a spot next to one of his larger gashes.

Deku only chuckled in response and Ochako gladly joined him, enjoying the levity. She treasured little moments like this, which had become scarcer as they both trained themselves to the brink of exhaustion day in, day out.

The two stood isolated, away from the rest of their classmates spread throughout one of Yuei's facilities. Everyone was trying to cool down after an exhausting hero class. The intensity of basic heroics had been ramping up fast; everyone in Class 1-A struggled to keep up. More than a few people collapsed on the grass as they awaited their instructors to dismiss them.

Ochako idly looked around, glad she was one of the students managing to stay upright, despite her aching muscles. It wasn't that long ago that her limbs would turn to jelly after using her quirk this much.

"But that was pretty great," Deku complemented, snapping her out of her temporary distraction. "I've never seen you lift something that big before. You've really improved, Uraraka!"

Ochako tried to fight the surge of heat to her already rosy cheeks at the unabashed praise. She decided to redirect it.

"Look who's talking! You've been doing so much crazy awesome stuff now!" she replied with a matching grin. "It's hard to keep up."

She enjoyed watching him sputter and blush himself, glad to put the shoe on the other foot. She didn't like dwelling on how warm his words made her feel. They were just two heroes-in-training complimenting each other on jobs well done. She didn't want to be awkward about it.

Despite the physical toll their training efforts was taking on them, she knew neither of them would ever stop. Deku's determination was relentless. And so long as he was pushing himself to his limits, so to would she. She would give it her all to keep up with him and be the best hero she could be. The embers of his own fiery determination had helped ignite a newfound drive within herself and she had no intention of letting it waver.

Even if it made her body feel like it might crumble to ash, even if the odds of her ever catching his shadow were next to nonexistent, even as her unattended affection for him struggled inside its cage. She would not let that fire die.

"Alright class!" All Might's deep voice broke through the scattered murmurings of Class 1-A, grabbing their attention as he stepped boldly out onto the grassy field. The class had grown more comfortable with his new form and he had grown more comfortable in showing it. However, a few students looked a little creeped out by his emaciated face smiling as confident as the sun.

"Good work out there today, students!" he exclaimed as the class gingerly gathered around him. "Your improvement is staggering! We'll have a special test for tomorrow to evaluate how far you've come."

There were a few groans at the thought of another, presumably difficult, test thrust before them.

"Can't you give us a...a break!" Mineta panted, speech broken by his breath as he tried to recover from the toll of their previous session.

"I think you'll change your tune when you hear what the test is," All Might explained, unsettling smirk growing even wider. "Tomorrow, we'll be doing one-on-one combat training amongst the class."

Immediately, Ochako could feel a nervous tension seize the rest of her classmates, the scattered whispers immediately silenced as they pondered this test. They hadn't really fought against each other competitively since the sports festival, which already felt like eons ago. She could feel people's eyes start to roam as they sized-up one another and she resisted the urge to shiver. She tried to match her own energy to that of group and scrunched her face to wear a look of steely determination. This would be her opportunity to shine. To make up for her failure the last time they did this.

"There's one catch though," All Might continued, as his eyes roved over the class. "We're going to let you choose who you fight."

Ochako heard a couple of small explosions from Bakugo's direction. Glares were exchanged across the throng of their class. Timid glances scanned the group nervously, looking to see if anyone would meet their eyes. And in front of her, Deku shrunk a few feet as he realized what was coming next.

"YOU'RE FIGHTING ME, LOSER!" Bakugo led the charge, as he so often did. He roughly shoved Ochako aside with his shoulder and grabbed onto Deku, who quivered and shook, melting under the fiery gaze of his rival.

"Uhh...well…" Deku tried to stammer out a response, but he was interrupted.

"I'm afraid he can't. Because he's going to be fighting me," Todoroki put an icy hand on Bakugo's shoulder, causing the explosive blonde to drop Deku and direct his ire backwards.

"Midoriya, it would do me great honour if you would agree to do combat with me! I assure you, our clash will be worthwhile and enlightening for both of us!" Iida burst between the bickering pair, shoving his bespeckled face in front of Deku, who fell backwards in surprise.

"If you don't mind," the soft voice of Fumikage penetrated through the growing crowd around Deku. "I would also like to challenge you, Midoriya."

Ochako found herself pushed to the outside as the four boys quickly swarmed and collapsed in on Deku. For his part, Deku flailed helplessly, besought by an unexpected siege and having no idea how to decide between them all.

The rest of the class kept more of a distance as they got into scattered groups and tried to talk about who they might want their opponents to be. Not everyone was as interested in trying to slug it out with one of the 'big three' of their class and the rest appeared content to wait to see how those three sorted themselves out.

"Well, I suppose I'll leave you to it. Have your partners picked out by tomorrow," All Might exclaimed boisterously, a bit of mirth reaching his eyes. "Class dismissed!" He quickly sped away from the class lost in chaos, Deku feebly raising a hand towards his mentor in search of help.

Ochako scanned her classmates, pondering who exactly she should try to fight. She knew she wanted to face one of the stronger members of class; someone she could test her mettle against to prove that she could stand amongst the best. To herself, if nobody else.

But who could that be? She pondered who her quirk could fare well against, realizing that analysis was probably part of what All Might was testing. Ideally, she could fight against a close-range fighter, someone who would have to put themselves at risk against her quirk. Perhaps Kirishima, or even…

Why not fight...Deku?

The provocative thought smashed into the forefront of her mind, steadily growing in size and insisting she follow through. Deku, the boy she was constantly pursuing in her quest to improve and become a hero. Deku, a mostly close-range fighter, who she could immobilize with her quirk. Deku, her best friend, who made her heart hammer irritatingly.

What better way was there test how far she'd come?

But you don't stand a-

She shoved the self-consciousness aside in her mind before it got the best of her. Ochako curled her fingers into her palm and leapt into the air, floating over the gaggle of challengers for Deku's might. She reached down and grabbed onto the hapless boy, yanking him out of the crowd and landing them both safely a short distance away.

"Give him some space!" Ochako declared fiercely, freezing the group of boys momentarily with her threatening glare, answered in kind.

"Thanks...thank you, Uraraka," Deku said from behind her, panting out in nervousness but genuine in his appreciation.

Ochako turned to face him, balling her fists up towards her chest and affixing him with the same aggressive stare.

"Please, fight me Deku!"

"What...wait, what?" Deku's eyes bulged slightly as the challenge rang through his ears.

"OH NO YOU DON'T, PINK CHEEKS!"

"He's fighting me. "

"Uraraka, please allow him to respond to my challenge first and do not try to cut in front!"

"This is unexpected."

"Deku," she pleaded, not heeding any of the protests of her classmates. "Please. I need to fight you. I need...I need to see how I can do against you."

The nervousness quickly faded from Deku's face, his eyes creasing in worry again. She wasn't sure what to make of the expression.

The long silence from him irked her to no end. She waited with bated breath as he stroked his chin and seemed to consider her carefully while she struggled to maintain her determined look. She had no doubt her newfound rivals behind her were doing the same behind her.

"...Alright..." Deku finally spoke. Her breath hitched. "Alright, Uraraka," he answered more firmly, giving her a small smile. "I'll fight you."

Ochako jumped in place and gave Deku her best beaming smile, the chorus of groans behind her music to her ears. A small laugh escaped her lips as she saw Deku's face start to heat up in response to her delight. He could be so open with his emotions. It made her own feelings hard to contain when she was with him; a big reason why he was so challenging for her.

"Thank you, Deku!" She delivered the line with all the enthusiasm she could muster, before stepping away with a bounce in her step. "I'll be sure to give you a great fight tomorrow!"

Her mind was alight as she hopped towards the school dormitories, thinking of ways she could approach their battle the next day. She never turned back to see the reaction of her classmates. She didn't want the weight of her challenge sinking her too deep.

After a hurried dinner at the cafeteria (an unexpected boon to living on campus), Ochako immediately got to work in her room, pulling out a notebook and starting to jot down a strategy she could use to approach the battle with Deku tomorrow. She threw herself into it with gusto, mind jumping with possibilities and excitement. She could come up with a better plan and win, where she had failed against Bakugo. She could prove herself and stand amongst the best!

Dusk fell before Ochako started to realize how much of an idiot she was.

The words on her page jumbled together, the etch of her pencil straying on the paper into mindless doodles.

The pitter patter of the rain on her windowsill felt like a drum beating on the back of her head, a ceaseless distraction. Try as she might, she could not form any coherency to her plan to fight Deku. Writing down lengthy descriptions of his quirk, his capabilities and his follies was doing little to help her figure out a way she could win.

The scribbling on the page was scattered. Sentences plummeted into nothingness partway through. Crossmarks and eraser shavings stretched far across it, making it difficult to keep staring at. Ochako groaned out, taking a large eraser and trying to start from scratch. How did Deku make this kind of scribbling look so simple?

Sick of the frustrating paper in front of her, she slid off her chair and onto her bed, burying her frustration into her pillow.

What madness had possessed her to throw out a challenge so callously like that? Why hadn't she listened to the little voice in the back of her mind telling her it was a bad idea? How could she possibly hope to use her up-close combat skills against someone with Deku's strength and speed? A massive iron wall seemed to form in her mind, blocking her from any answer as to how she might beat Deku. There could be no hope for her. She was going to get humiliated — again.

She rolled her head over, looking out over a couple of still pictures framed on her desk. One was large and prominent — a photo of her parents and herself as a kid, beaming carefreel out towards the world. The thought of recreating that carefree image was what drove her every day.

But next to it, a much more recent addition — a 'gift' from the girls of class 1-A — was a small picture of herself and Deku, just talking candidly with each other in class, easygoing grins on both their faces. She hadn't seen Mina snap the photo and was more than a little infuriated by that, but kept the picture all the same. It had somehow become a comforting part of her desk.

She couldn't bear the prospect of letting her parents down. The thought of repeat of her fight at the sports festival made those feelings resurface. She didn't want to disappoint Deku either and be less than a worthy opponent. An opponent that could challenge and perhaps even defeat him.

Ochako's eyes shifted upward toward the mirror left of her desk. She lifted her head up, meeting a weary and frightened girl within the glossy surface. She tried to summon a more courageous expression. She didn't want to let the girl inside there down, either.

A light trio of uneven taps at her door broke the spell she had put herself under and she scrambled to lift herself off the bed. "Coming!" she exclaimed aloud to help herself reclaim the mask of her sunny demeanor as she cracked her door open.

"Hey...there...Uraraka." The source of her endless frustration, adorned in a casual white shirt and black shorts, was before her. The back of her mind screamed out and she was tempted to avoid him by slamming the door in his face.

"Hey Deku! What's up?" she responded glowingly. Sometimes, she scared herself into wondering whether acting would have been a better career choice for her.

"I was just wondering if we could...could talk for a bit." He didn't meet her eyes as he nervously twiddled his fingers.

"Of course! Come right in." Her expression shifted to one of concern as she gently stood aside to invite him. Focusing on whatever was ailing her best friend gave her a convenient recluse to her own problems.

He stepped gingerly, eyes roaming the room in instinct as he worked to avoid stepping on anything.

Ochako felt a surge of embarrassment at the room's sparseness and motioned Deku over to take a seat at her desk, with no other chairs available. He obliged, eyes still scanning over as Ochako slumped down to take a seat at her bed across from him.

"Sorry it's not much," Ochako said, scratching the back of her head with a smile, wishing to be anywhere else. "Not really great for guests, but it's home, I guess."

"Oh, don't worry about it, it's fine," Deku reassured her, meeting her eyes for the first time since knocking on her door. He didn't hold the glance for long.

"So...what did you want to talk about?" She desperately hoped it had nothing to do with the fight tomorrow. Let it be something completely different that she could distract herself with.

"Well...I guess...this afternoon has been bothering me," Deku explained earnestly. "I wanted to know why you wanted to challenge me."

Figures. The claws of dread sunk deep into her chest as he asked one of the worst possible questions. She wracked her head for an escape, but couldn't think of anything in her frazzled state of mind.

"Hey, are you alright, Uraraka?" He leaned closer — too close — and focused his eyes on her. She hadn't realized she had been showing her internal struggle and sought desperately to reclaim her mask.

"Oh, I'm fine, don't worry," she managed to blurt out, giving him a weak smile of assurance. "And I just thought it would be good for me to go up against you. I still want to see how I stand up to you as a rival and I haven't really gotten the chance to yet."

Ochako summoned the best of her bubbliness in an effort to sound confident but she wasn't sure she managed to. His gaze was analytical as he lifted a hand to his chin, as if studying and judging her performance. She felt her cheeks flush a little more in discomfort.

"But, you know, if...if you...want to change your opponent, that's fine," she stammered out quickly while wringing her hands together, suddenly wanting nothing else than to avoid a fight with him tomorrow. She started to feel light headed, the world tilting vertically. "I know I came on a little forcefully earlier and I'm sorry, you don't have to fight me. I wouldn't blame you if you wanted to fight Bakugo, or Todoroki, or-"

"I want to fight you, Uraraka," he reached a hand upward and grabbed onto her right hand. It was so gentle, despite the hard callouses. His grip stopped her in place; she hadn't realized she had started to float.

"Oh shoot, thanks," she muttered, before releasing her quirk and plopping back down onto the bed. Her face felt like it was on fire at this point.

Deku's freckled face wore an unsubtle blush as well. He was embarrassed just by touching her hand. He was far too adorable for either of their sakes.

"I...I want...to know too," Deku stammered through his nerves."I know how hard you've been training. I want to see that in action. I want to see how I stack up to you...Uravity." He pumped his fist in the air lightly and flashed her a steely stare.

Ochako could feel her heart thump, could almost sense the blood in her veins flowing faster at the proclamation. But it wasn't just her fondness for him; there was a drive to her heartbeat, a surge of eagerness like she felt this afternoon. The electric sparks of a rivalry.

Was this what preparing for a destined battle was like?

Ochako managed a genuine smile then. The feeling was empowering. She liked it.

"Right back at you, Deku," Ochako proclaimed, enjoying the astonishment that flashed across his face as she stared him down hard. "I need to know how well I can compete. You're...you're incredible, Deku, and I want your best. So…" A memory of the boy in front of her, except battered and bloody, popped into her mind.

"Come at me with everything you got!"

She held a fist out for him and he obligingly bumped his own fist into hers. The two began a blazing staring contest, the intensity between them rising to a fever pitch. They were a pair of passionate rivals, ready to do great battle to prove their worth. Their surroundings dissipated, consumed by the fiery energy of their clash.

But their ever-widening smiles quickly dispelled the moment. The energy released and the two burst out laughing together, clutching their sides at each other's ridiculous expressions. The fire between them dissipated for the moment as they fell back into easygoing friends.

"Thanks...thanks Deku," Ochako managed to squeak between chuckles, relief pouring out from her. Leave it to him to be the source of, and solution to, her anxiety.

"Anytime," he replied. "I'm...glad we could get that sorted out. It's been...pretty hectic lately, huh?"

"Understatement of the century," Ochako said, nodding her head, images of all the dangerous encounters they've had over the past few months flashing in her mind. "You also seem to have a quirk for getting yourself into trouble," she joked.

Izuku didn't respond immediately, his eyes scrunching up as he pondered the statement. "Yeah, maybe…" he murmured weakly, before shaking his head as if trying to banish whatever had crossed his mind. "But I've missed hanging out with you, Ochako."

Thump, thump, thump, thump, her heart's beat escalated again at his sugary sweet swords, her caged affection for him rattling on its chains.

"I...I've missed it too, Deku," Ochako whispered out honestly, hoping the reply was neutral enough.

She let out a sudden yawn, her weary mind and body both demanding rest. Deku didn't miss the cue.

"Well, it's getting pretty late. I should probably head back," he suggested, getting up and making his way toward the exit.

"Probably a good idea. You have a very tough fight tomorrow," Ochako quipped, nodding in agreement. He smirked at that.

"No kidding," Deku replied as he moved towards the door. "I think it might be my toughest fight yet." He flashed her a toothy grin. "Well, good night, Ochako."

As his back turned to her, she momentarily pondered trying to do more. Her rattled heart called out to her to say how she was really feeling, to tell the incredible boy in front of her how much she appreciated him.

But she chose to continue keeping all of that locked up tight.

"Good night," she called out as he quickly left the room and Ochako collapsed back onto her bed in exhausted relief. That conversation took far too much out of her.

But despite that, the prospect of fighting him felt a little less daunting. She was still worried, but speaking with him as a rival had energized her. She would push herself to her limits and give him a fight worth his while. She couldn't back down now.

That night, despise the weight of tomorrow looming over her, she went into slumber with a peaceful smile on her face.

Ochako managed to keep her knees still despite the urge to start trembling.

Fortunately, the mass of their class, adorned in their hero outfits, hid her struggles well. The excitement was palpable as they moved into the training facility for combat training. Several students were even shaking with enthusiasm, allowing her anxiety to easily blend in.

She tried to breathe and focus on her battle strategy. But the thought of going up against Deku kept intruding upon her as she played through her fight plans in her mind. The infuriating wait made her sick to her stomach.

"Alright class!" All Might's voice mercifully snapped her from her thoughts as he stopped them in front of a massive arena of dirt and rocks. Chalk stretched in rectangle around a large, flat service, evidently the battlefield they would be fighting in.

"The goal is simple! Knock your opponent out of bounds, incapacitate them or get them to give up! Use your quirks as you see fit, but don't overdo it," he gave a pointed look towards Deku and Todoroki, who both looked away nervously. "Aizawa will shut down any fight that goes too far." The quirk-stopper standing next to All Might held up a hand, before taking a step forward.

"We'll be evaluating your progression based on your performance. This is your chance to show us how far you've come since the sports festival, so give it your all," Aizawa explained. Ochako felt the energy across the class heat up, even Aizawa's apathetic drawl getting them excited.

"That being said, don't pull the same destructive crap you did back then. When you're heroes out in the field in real fights, minimizing collateral damage is key," Aizawa noted. Bakugo scoffed at the instruction. "We expect you to have a little more control and deliberation in these encounters. Destroying your surroundings without reason will count against you."

Quite a few pointed stares and giggles were directed at Deku, Todoroki and Bakugo at the warning, but the class held their tongues for the time being.

"All right, with that out of the way, our first match: Midoriya vs Uraraka!" All Might declared.

The class parted like a sea from around the two as they quietly stepped forward. Ochako summoned all of her courage to show no signs of her nerves, just as she had tried to do against Bakugo all those months ago. This time, she was determined not to shake.

The pair trudged to the centre of the arena, facing one another a short distance apart. She hadn't gotten a good look at Deku before the match, but he showed no trace of fear, wearing a neutral expression. Just as she would expect.

Ochako tensed up as she was finally faced with the battle proper. She pushed her nerves down as she readied her body for her first moves, taking a steadying breath. There was no time now for pleasantries, or anxiety or her feelings for him to get in the way. The only thing that mattered was how she was going to win.

And she was going to win this time.

"BEGIN!"

Ochako made the first move, immediately trying to close the distance between them. She pushed off hard against the ground as she momentarily de-weighed herself, trying to give herself as big a push off the start as she could. As she expected, he leapt away, hanging in the air to avoid her first strike attempt.

From above, he kicked towards her hard, creating a strong gust of wind that moved her a couple of inches. She dug her feet in and lowered her centre of gravity, playing defensive. She wasn't going to be pushed out that easily and fortunately, as she anticipated, Deku wasn't wrecking his body to try to create a more powerful force.

But as the gust seized, he was onto her in a movement almost too hard to track, grabbing onto her wrists to keep her fingertips at bay and shifting his weight to try to throw her out of the ring. Just like that, she was on the verge of losing this fight.

The quick attack caught her off guard, but she wasn't going to go out that easy. She struggled to loosen his iron grip, instinctively calling on her training with Gun Head to bring herself close to him and grapple before he could let loose.

"Sorry, Deku," she panted out fast.

In their close proximity, she kneed him in the groin as hard as she could, causing him to gasp and stay his attempted throw. She heard a few shocked exclamations and groans from the rest of the class, including a particularly sharp cry that sounded like Mineta. She ignored them.

Deku loosened his grip in reflex and she broke free, quickly taking a step back before reaching her right palm out to try to tap him.

He battled through the pain and managed to leap just out of her reach. But she worked to close the distance again, shooting her hands out in a flurry of fast jabs in an effort to grab him. He dodged each attempt, eventually leaping up into the air again to get out of her reach.

The entire exchange lasted less than a minute but Ochako found herself panting in exhaustion at the intensity. Still, she grinned in spite of herself, oddly exhilarated in combat in a way she never had been before. There was a satisfaction in being able to stand toe-to-toe against an opponent as formidable as he and leaving him gritting his teeth in pain. She was actually enjoying herself. She could get used to this.

Deku didn't stop for long, shooting his arm out at a distance and hitting her with a stronger rush of wind. She expected it to come at this point and she de-weighed herself, jumping high in the air to avoid the gust

She let herself fall back to the ground quickly, pushing off and making a rush in-close onto Deku. Deku obliged the move this time, allowing her to get in close. The two began a deadly dance, each one trying to land a blow on the other but unwilling to allow the other to touch them. One solid hit from either of them would be enough to end the fight. Deku twisted and started to mix more kicks in but Ochako kept up pace, dodging his legs and nearly grabbing onto one before he backed up.

Ochako waited for her an opening and eventually, Deku obliged. He overreached with a wind-up punch and she stepped to the side. She pounced on his vulnerability, grabbing onto his arm and activating her quirk.

This was it. She could throw him away and win. She would finally prove herself. She could actually do this!

There was a chorus of gasps from the crowd but the words she focused on were much closer.

"Sorry, Uraraka."

He punched her hard in the gut with his free arm, taking advantage of the opening she presented him with by grabbing his arm. She heard the woosh of air moving rapidly around her ears and the searing pain around her belly. She grinded her teeth and tried to push through it, tapping her hand and activating her quirk, leaving them both weightless.

Ochako groaned and analyzed the battle state while clutching her stomach mid-air. Deku was aimlessly floating above the centre of the ring, definitely vulnerable. Unfortunately, his punch had knocked her well away from the arena itself, leaving her floating outside the boundaries. Unlike him, she didn't have the super strength that might allow her to redirect herself without a surface to push off of.

She grimaced. It was over.

Ochako released her quirk, allowing herself to fall to the ground, curling up in a ball and touching around her gut. She found the impact point of his blow and hissed as she jabbed it lightly. That was going to leave a mark.

But the blow was nothing compared to the sting of her loss. She was so close, but it didn't matter. She hadn't been able to keep pace with him for longer than a few minutes. Like he always did, he outsmarted his opponent, tricking her with a fake opening to knock her out of the ring. Despite her best efforts, she still was not on the same level as he was.

And yet…

She had managed to take him on, at least a little while. She had almost had him, his last maneuver being more than a little risky. Maybe she could take a little solace in that, as much as it hurt.

Distantly, she could hear the declaration of a winner and the exclamations of her classmates.

"Is she okay?"

"That was badass!"

"HOW COULD YOU BE SO CRUEL?!"

She felt a hand on her shoulder and she uncurled herself, flopping over in exhaustion. She looked up at the smiling face of All Might, extending a frail hand towards her.

"You did quite well. But you may want to rethink how you approach such a fight in the future. You need to find a way to exploit your opponents weaknesses, though taking Midoriya head on was admirable."

She nodded, grabbing onto her his hand. She knew she would have to use this defeat to push herself forward. Just like Deku.

"Thank you, sensei," she flashed him a weak smile, hoisting herself up and wincing as she clutched her stomach.

She was immediately enveloped in a far-too-enthusiastic hug from Mina and the rest of the Class 1-A Girls crowded around her. She tried to appease their enthusiasm and concern as quickly as she could, eventually breaking free, pleading for a trip to the infirmary to get herself checked out.

Ochako breathed a sigh of relief as she stepped out of the facility, appreciating the fresh air and sunshine for a moment.

Heavy footfalls came in behind her. She did not need to turn to know who it was. She closed her eyes, harnessing the energy of the sun above her.

"That was some fight!" she exclaimed, pumping a fist in the air enthusiastically as she turned to face her opponent. "You really did a number on me!"

"Uraraka…"

"I guess I'm going to have to train extra hard to catch up to you now!"

"Uraraka…"

"I wish I could have held out for longer, though. You're still so far ahead of me, Deku. What you do is amazing."

"You don't have to do this."

Her face fell as Deku stared at her unflinchingly. She had seen that look before, when he fought against his rivals. She admired those burning eyes; but they were a little intimidated directed at her.

"What...What do you mean?" Ochako replied, still wearing her false smile.

"You don't...you don't have to put on an act in front of me. You don't have to pretend like losing doesn't bother you much."

Ochako's eye twitched and cold dread filled her as Deku called her out on her bluff. This was not how this was supposed to go. She did not think she could handle this.

"I...I'm fine, Deku. I'll be fine," she weakly protested, turning around and taking a few steps forward. She wanted out of this conversation.

"You...you were terrifying, Uraraka." He sounded so earnest. It was awful.

"What? What do you mean?" She could not see how the description could ever be applied to her.

"You...you were so...so intense. And you pushed through everything I tried. And when you...when you hit me...you know…" he mumbled at the end. She didn't have to turn around to know his face was flushed. "That hurt. And I thought you were going to have me right there, I barely got away in time. You're so strong, Uraraka, I just...I had to get desperate to beat you."

"But I still lost." She didn't hide the melancholy this time as she clutched close to her stomach, just above where the evidence of his victory was still imprinted.

"You did. And I know how it hurts. But I just can't...can't stand seeing you beat yourself up like this, Uraraka. You're the incredible one. You have nothing to be ashamed of."

"It's hard." She couldn't stop herself from speaking out anymore. Not when he was being so frustratingly open again. Not when his words were so tooth-rottingly sweet and kind and making it so difficult to keep her feelings under control. "It's hard when I look at you. And I see...I see how far I have left to go. I'm always left behind in your dust."

Deku walked around in front of her, grabbing both her hands tight and staring deep into her eyes. She froze in place, the sudden contact shocking her into stillness.

"I think the same thing when I look at you, you know."

"...Wha...Deku?"

His face went as red as a tomato but he kept his expression focused, not showing his nerves in his voice.

"I haven't really told you this before but...I...you inspire me, Uraraka. You've helped me so much at my lowest and I just...I don't want to let you down. And I see how hard you keep pushing and it reminds me...it makes me want to work harder and if it hadn't been for you I-"

"You can't, Deku." Gods, he was the worst. She loved him and it was the worst.

"What?" his eyebrow quirked up, confused.

"You couldn't possibly let me down." She looked up at him, not hiding the stray tear that ran its way down her rosy cheek. He blinked at her as she squeezed his hands back. They were still so gentle. "Because you're you, Deku."

She managed a quivering smile that he timidly returned before she wrapped her arms around him tight and buried her face in his shoulder. She indulged herself, just this once.

Deku went stiff as a plank before he wrapped a shaking arm around her. She relished in the fleeting closeness, the growing beast caged inside her heart roaring in triumph.

"Thanks, Deku," she mumbled simply into his shoulder.

"I...I...I should be thanking you," he stuttered, clearly uncomfortable with a girl hugging him.

She disentangled herself, blushing a little, as she wiped the wetness from her cheeks.

"And thanks for not holding back. I needed that." She gave him a sincere smile and he looked ecstatic, despite the redness that consumed his face.

"You too," he blurted quickly. "That...that was a great fight. And your knee hurt," he tried to joke, glancing down his body pointedly.

She chuckled at his humour, before giving him a smirk and pointing to her gut. "That's going to be a bruise for weeks."

"They're still…!" he tried to complain, eyes darting to his pants again, but his face reheated as he realized what he was talking about. It sent her into another fit of giggles.

"We should probably actually get over to the infirmary. Might as well get the chewing out over with."

"Yeah…" he sighed out, sounding less than enthused. The two walked, side by side, the light shining down brightly on them.

She was not close to him yet. It was hard to believe she inspired him in spite of that. But how could she not take him at his word?

She wouldn't disappoint him, then. She would grin and bear the sting of inadequacy, using it to keep herself motivated. Like her father always said, there was plenty of time. Plenty of time in which she could close the gap and be more like him.

They would push each other to be the best. She wanted to climb that summit with him and nothing was going to get in her way.

In the back of her mind, a worm of an idea crawled into her consciousness. That despite how much she cared for him, it did not stop her from throwing that all aside in the heat of battle and trying to hit him as hard as she could. It was exhilarating. In that clash, for the first time in far too long, she was able to interact with him without at all thinking about the affection and bond between them. She wanted that feeling again.

"Oh, and by the way…" Ochako drawled, challenging him with the most confident smirk she could muster.

"Yeah?"

"Next time we fight, I'm going to kick your butt."

Thank you to my beta reader SabletKnight for all the work improving this piece.

Leave a review if you enjoyed the piece. They brighten a writer's day and inspire us to go plus ultra! :D