Act 1. Kindle

Scene 1. Through Chance

Araphen was by no means small, second in size only to the territory of Ostia. At the heart of it was a city almost as bustling as the trade route through Thria, but with a more rustic feel. The milling people and constant cacophony of the streets suited Ochako just fine. Walking down the main drag, she weighs her coin purse, pondering the pros and cons of dipping into her reserves. Her Elfire tome had certainly seen better days so purchasing a plain old Fire tome could help stretch its use. On the other hand, one never knew when one would need a vulnerary or antitoxin to patch themselves up.

She could do magic plenty, but healing was not something in her arsenal.

The apothecary looms and Ochako makes her decision. No use having extra weapons if you aren't around to use them.

A small bell dings overhead as she walks in. The redheaded shop keep calls out a greeting as Ochako rifles through the various potions and supplies available, immediately skipping over the staves. Supposedly, those with the ability to heal could feel a warmth in their hands, a certain tingle, but she had only ever felt cool wood.

"Looking for something in particular?"

"Huh? Oh, not really. Just some vulneraries and maybe an elixir."

The woman grins and leans over the counter. "We're having a special on vulneraries right now; buy two and get one half off!"

The mage's eyes narrow. "Not much of a deal if you ask me."

"Good thing I didn't, dear." The woman watches as Ochako pulls a few vulneraries out of the crate they're stacked in, the small flasks clacking together. The young girl is clearly doing some math in her head and the vendor grins when she puts down the third only to pick it back up again. She makes it a step before she turns back around and puts down two, frowning.

"Just the one?"

Ochako's mouth twists, weighing her purse again. She probably needed to save for a new tome.

"Alright, then. That'll be 300 gold." Ochako pulls out three small pressed coins and pushes them across the counter. "You know, if you need some cash, may I suggest gambling?"

Her head snaps up. "Why would I gamble if I don't have money?"

"Well, you seem like a smart girl. Perhaps you could make some money betting on the arena in town?" The shopkeeper's eyes drift down to where Ochako slips the flask into a bag on her hip under her faded blue cloak. She catches a small glance of a book, red, worn and scorched on the edges. "Or maybe you could bet on yourself? I'm sure that your competition wouldn't put up much… resistance."

Ochako's eyebrow raises. "Thanks for the tip, uh…?"

"Anna, and no problem. Tell that name to the bookstore down the street and you can get yourself a new… electrifying read."

"Thanks, Anna, I'll remember that," Ochako laughs. "But I prefer something with some heat, you know?"

She walks out of the shop and Anna calls out after her, "Who should I be putting my wagers on this week?"

Ochako turns, halfway out onto the street, grinning. "Uraraka."

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE - KINDLE

He'd barely crossed into Araphen when these fuckers had shown up.

Honestly, was it too much to ask to be left the hell alone? Why did every vagrant and vagabond want to pick a fight with him? And why on Elibe were there so many?

The bandits had boxed him in quickly and, fatigued from days of travel with little food and water, Katsuki was getting his ass kicked. His hand axe had seen better days and the advantage of throwing it to strike from a distance was not useful in a situation where his assailants were already upon him. The burden of the blade strapped to his back is heavy and while his hand itches to pull the familiar weight out, he ignores it.

Using a fire-imbued axe would draw some attention he doesn't need, even if these bandits look dumber than the rocks his face is being pushed into. The group strips him of his hand axe, shoes, jacket, shirt, and money, ripping the cloth he'd been using to hide messy blonde hair away for good measure. Everything on him aches as the bandits squabble over who gets what. It's only a small sick satisfaction when one has the bad idea to try and pick up the untouched axe, letting out an undignified yelp.

The handle burns their hands and they lose interest after trying to lift it wrapped in cloth, effectively catching it on fire. Katsuki spits out blood and grins at them, only to get a swift kick in the gut and a smoldering bandana thrown in his face.

He waits until the vagrants are gone, listening to the sounds of the forest when their noisy steps are gone and mentally cataloguing all his injuries. He curls up into a seated position and glares at the axe lying next to him.

The blade just shines at him, glinting in the little light that filters through the canopy. The metal is hued golden, etchings into the handle delicately painted red. It isn't an obscenely large axe, only a bit larger than one used to chop lumber. Katsuki scratches the back of his head, wincing when he finds a lump from the one-sided fight.

With no other choice, he reaches out, pulling the weapon closer and using it to help himself stand. He limps into the largest city in Araphen, the handle of his axe, Hauza, a familiar warmth in his palm.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

"Hey, Eiji, does this place look good?"

A redhead in a black shirt and brown pants, Eijirou, turns, shifting the large pack on his back. The girl ahead of him points at the food stand, steam and good smells wafting from it. He can feel his mouth watering.

"Definitely, Tsu."

Tsu, or Tsuyu, smiles lightly, turning to the small stand. A man gets up and bumps into her as he leaves. He pushes past without apologizing and Eijirou turns to say something, but Tsuyu grabs his wrist and shakes her head. He sighs heavily as the cook turns around to greet them. The portly man looks genial until he sees the empty spot the rude man had just vacated.

"Damnable cur, ducking out without paying… Urgh. How can I help you two?"

The food is great and Eijirou looks in concern at the spot the cook had cleared next to them, where an empty bowl and no money had been left.

"Eiji, don't worry about it."

"How can I not? It isn't-" a jingling noise sounds from his other side where Tsuyu is. He turns to see her shaking a small coin purse that most decidedly isn't theirs. "-right. …You didn't."

"I did. The cook doesn't deserve to get stiffed by a jerk like that."

"Well, yeah, but Tsuyu you can't just…"

"Take money from someone who has the means but not the decency to pay?"

He pinches the bridge of his nose as Tsuyu counts out the coins. She leaves enough gold to cover their own meals and the rude man's as well as a large tip. Eijirou decides this is another one of those times where he just has to let Tsuyu do her thing. He looks away as she pockets the rest. At least her sticky fingers had morals.

"C'mon, we've got to grab something for Kouka, just in case she didn't find something to hunt in the forest."

Tsuyu hops up from her stool, waving politely at the cook who looks like he might cry from gratitude. As they step out onto the street again, Tsuyu tugs on the strap of his bag.

"Hey, look at that guy… he doesn't seem well," she says, voice tinged with mild concern. And she's right. The boy she sees in the distance looks ragged and beat up, without shoes or shirt. His light hair is dirty and matted with some blood and his wounds look fresh. Behind him, he drags a large axe.

Eijirou's eyes flick up the street to see that the guy seems headed to the apothecary. He seems to at least have his priorities in order, so Eijirou sees no need to interfere with a guy who looks like he can cause some serious trouble. Even as he steers Tsuyu away, he keeps one eye on the axe-wielder out of caution.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

Ochako is grinning as she leaves the apothecary, hip pouch one vulnerary heavier. She checks again to make sure she's got everything, walking without paying mind to anything around her. If she hurries, she can make it to the last arena fight of the day and determine a betting strategy for tomorrow. Then she could get as many vulneraries as she needed!

Her thoughts are cut off when she slams into another body, crashing to the ground. The vulnerary clatters out of her bag, thick glass preventing it from breaking. "Ugh, I'm sorry, I wasn't looking where I was… going." Ochako looks up from the ground to the dirty bare feet in front of her. There's mud and what may be blood crusted between the toes and she flinches away from the unexpected sight. She stands quickly, taking in the appearance of the boy before her.

"You damn well better be sorry! Watch where you're going, you stupid girl," an angry mouth forms on an equally angry face. A large bruise is darkening the side of the boy's face, hidden just barely by dirty blond hair. A quick scan while he continues to yell reveals he has cuts and bruises all over his arms and chest which are inexplicably unclothed.

The next thing she notices is the hand clutched around a long-stemmed axe. He's still yelling, so Ochako shoves her lone vulnerary out at him. Maybe he'll shut up and let her live if she gives him something to heal himself up?

"I don't need your damn handouts!" The vulnerary hits the ground again, rolling to a stop a foot away. Her hand stings a little and she clenches it into a fist. Enough of this.

"Oh, so you don't have tons of internal and external bleeding? Excuse me, then," she spits, glaring. She storms off, completely ready to be away from this frustrating boy that can't accept a stupid vulnerary. Her brain is so hazed with rage that she barely registers that she is now out a vulnerary (her only healing potion!) having left it behind when it was smacked out of her hand. She arrives at the arena, still fuming, only to find out she's missed the last fight. Nothing was going right today.

Katsuki watches the stupid girl stomp away, towards the arena. The torches had been lit there before, but without money, he hadn't been able to go inside. The man working admission had given him information about the next tournament, to be held in a few days. If he was going to earn some money back from what he'd had stolen, he would have to find a job, maybe even enter this tournament.

He looks down at Hauza. Somehow he feels it's a big joke that he's been avoiding using it for so long, only to be forced to use the magic blade now. How far had he fallen? The dropped vulnerary catches his eye and he grumbles as he snatches it up.

If he was going to fight for money, for food, he needed to not be in pain whenever he stretched too far. So Katsuki sits in the alleyway around the side of the arena, watching the fighters from the night leave, gauging their strength from afar as he pastes the salve over his more painful injuries and the open wounds. Hauza's warmth keeps the night chill away.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

For the next few days, Ochako scouts out the arena, making small bets to keep her purse from being depleted by the inn's fees. She's replenished her vulnerary stock, eventually taking Anna up on her 'deal' and getting a backup fire tome. After some deliberation, she feels she has enough information on the pool of competition to enter the tournament starting tomorrow. All she has to do is not get hit by the large brutes.

She was fairly fast and they seemed to not have many mages come through the arena gates. She doubted any of the entrants would have much magical resistance, leading to an easy victory for her and a pretty purse. Then all she had to do was get out of dodge.

"Oh, excuse me!" she says, twisting to avoid bumping into a girl a little shorter than her. She had pretty long hair, dark green and tied in an elaborate knot. The girl's wide eyes stared up at her and she let out an apology, tipping her head in acknowledgement before blending back in with the crowd milling in the street.

Tsuyu walks away, unfolding the parchment that had slipped from the other girl's cloak. She had seemed nice and cute, short brown hair and soft brown eyes. Tsuyu was taking a break from helping Eijirou at the nearby orphanage to get some supplies and listen to town gossip. A huge tournament was coming up and she was certain that Eijirou would want to take part in it. The trouble would be getting him to put up with only being in the audience.

He certainly couldn't bring Kouka into an arena. Not when they were this close to Bern.

It had only been a few months since they'd left their home territory on the back of a wyvern. Scouts had been sent out after them, hoping to recover the flying reptile, one of the few left that wasn't in the employ of the Bern army. Kouka had formed a bond with Eijirou, a young recruit in the winged division. She couldn't handle being near any of the other recruits, eventually killing one. When the army ordered Kouka's execution, Eijirou had defected and Tsuyu had helped him get the female wyvern out of confinement.

Now they were both wanted by the Bern armed forces.

Eavesdropping was a talent she'd gotten much better at since she'd started listening for scraps of news after their departure. The more she heard, the easier it was to distill how close they were to finding the three of them or if they were even still looking. So far, they'd been lucky, but her ears had not picked up any news that the search had ceased. Today's chatter, though, wasn't related to them at all.

"Tsuyu, where did you go? It couldn't have taken that long to grab something to eat," Eijirou says, jogging up to her as they meet outside the inn. They head up to their room together, Tsuyu handing the container of food she'd gotten from the innkeeper to him. "You were listening again, weren't you?"

"I have to find out if anyone knows Kouka is here or not, Eijirou. You know that."

He sighs and flops on the bed in their meager room. "Yeah, but I don't have to like that you have to do it. What if you get caught?"

"Then I wasn't doing it right."

"How can you be so cavalier about it?!"

"It doesn't matter right now. I didn't hear anything about us or Kouka today." She chews on her lip, weighing whether to bring up the stuff she had heard. His trust in her and their lifelong friendship pushes her to reveal it. "But I did hear something else. Something about… 'gathering energy,' some kind of bounty from Etruria maybe? And… well, and the Black Fang."

"Stuff about Etruria? All the way out here? And hasn't the Black Fang been defunct for almost a century?"

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

Katsuki stretches as he scans the small armory he's been working at. The blacksmith who owned the place was short-handed and promised him clothes and a small stipend to help out with some manual labor. The shirt he'd gotten wasn't quite the right size, but it was better than nothing. The shoes were really the most important purchase as was the hand axe he'd been eyeing since starting work. When he wasn't doing errands and chores for the old man, he was sizing up the competition at the arena, the tournament prize still on his mind. He could have entered some of the daily brawls, but he didn't see much point in wasting his energy when there was a bigger prize to be won. Any remaining time was spent conditioning himself and making sure his injuries from being mugged weren't going to bite him in the ass.

The shop bell rings and a young man with shockingly red hair walks in. He is in a pair of sturdy boots and while his clothes appear to be fairly commonplace, Katsuki recognizes the armor. Even if it's been painted over with black and silver, it is definitely armor from Bern. He tenses; no one in Bern should care about him, but he really didn't want to draw attention to himself from any realm. He only doesn't say or do anything because of the dye-job; the guy probably wasn't working for Bern, with armor discolored purposefully like that. It was just too risky to tell.

The guy turns and his face lights up, seeing Katsuki behind the shop counter.

"Hey, I saw you around town a few days ago; you look much better now!"

"What?"

"You looked kinda like shit, but you seem to have found some work and got cleaned up. Good for you!"

"Mind your own damn business."

"Well, okay, then… I'm looking for some tethers and a lancehead. Do you have those?" The redhead looks a little down at his rebuke, but Katsuki just doesn't care. He lifts his hand and points at the corner of the shop. In a minute, the redhead is back, equipment in hand. "I'm Eijirou, by the way."

"I don't care. 750 gold."

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

Scene 2. Ring of Fire

The first day of the tournament arrives and Ochako looks around at the many men in the waiting area under the arena's stands. Most of them are the type of guys she wouldn't want to meet in broad daylight, much less a dark alley. She catches a glimpse of the boy that yelled at her outside the apothecary and rolls her eyes. He probably ended up using her vulnerary by the look of him. And found a job.

Slowly, their names are read off by the organizer, dividing them into pools. Today's event was a 'last one standing' melee. Her fingers curl around her tome as the man calls out 'Uraraka! Group D!' and the others in her pool look at her as she steps towards them. The leers are gross and she can't wait to burn their eyes out of their skulls. She ignores them, best she can as the rest of the groups are called out.

"Bakugou, C!"

The blond boy from before steps forward, looking cool and collected. The orange hued axe he had is strapped to his back, crossed with a hand axe. The organizer calls a few more names before the first group goes through.

It's barely been a half hour until one man comes back in, looking unscathed and grinning cockily. He's huge and Ochako looks at him from behind her book. The man presses his forearm against a very similar looking guy on his way out for the next brawl in some sort of manly handshake. They were probably the brothers she had heard about that only came out for the big tournaments. Supposedly, one or the other always won.

As she expected, another thirty minutes go by only for the brother to swagger in, looking no worse for wear if it wasn't for the sweat and dust and the blood he wipes off his blade. The third group is filtering out of the room, and Ochako watches the blond boy stretch and crack his knuckles before disappearing through the archway.

Fifteen minutes later, a hulking shadow falls over her and she looks up to see one of the brothers hovering in her space.

"And what's a fine looking lass like yourself doing down here?"

Ochako weighs whether or not she should pretend to be mute, but she'll have to speak to use her spells anyway, so she sighs. "Same as you, here to win a tournament."

The man stares at her before laughing loud and long. "Oh, I like you, spitfire. You've got the face of an angel, but I fear it won't last long here. Sure you don't want to just come home with me? I'm gonna win after all and I'll treat you… the way you deserve."

Ochako slaps his hand away that had taken hold of a lock of her hair. "I don't think so. I believe what you think I deserve is far different from what I do. I'm gonna wipe the floor with you and your brother and I'm going to enjoy doing it."

The man's face colors purple and his teeth grind as he reaches out for her again. Ochako snaps her book shut and steps away before he can reach. "Why, you—"

"Ah-ah, better not," she taunts, as the entry to the arena opens. The blond boy walks through, pants splattered with blood and wiping sweat from his forehead. He looks tired, but grins to himself in his victory. "Time for me to go."

"I'll get you before this tournament is over, girlie. You just wait, you'll be begging for me-"

"For you to stop talking to me? I'm already doing that." She steps towards the arena arch, passing through it before the man can make more of a scene.

The arena floor is oval and littered with rocks and broken weapons. The organizer spreads the contestants out and explains the rules, of which there is just one: Be the last one standing.

Ochako squares her shoulders.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

"Oh man, I wish I had entered; that guy from the armory was so cool!" Eijirou squirms in his seat while Tsuyu just smiles lightly at his enthusiasm. The next contestants are filtering in and spreading out, sizing up their competition. "Hey, that person looks kinda small, don't you think?"

She follows his pointing gesture and sees a smallish figure wrapped in a well-worn blue-green cloak. Her, for it's a girl, hood is down and Tsuyu's sharp eyes recognize her as the one she'd picked the tournament advertisement off of yesterday. She hadn't given off much of a fighter vibe, so Tsuyu is eager to see what would happen in this free-for-all. When a horn sounds to start the event, the girl pulls out a book. "She's a mage!"

"A mage? Wait, it's a girl? Whoa!" Eijirou's attention snaps back when a ring of fire erects itself between the girl and her competitors. The book is open flat in her palm, pages burning away as fast as her lips were moving, each cast sending a ball of flames at a competitor. It's only a couple minutes before they can start to smell the smoke from it, the cloying sweetness of unnatural fire. The bodies litter the ground around her fire ring, which was never breached. They are still moving, but with burnt hands or feet, were not much good in a fight.

And then she is the only one left standing.

"And Group D goes to… Uraraka!"

Eijirou woops as Tsuyu claps along. Quite a few people around them must have bet on the match though, because a lot of people were throwing their hats or jackets on the ground or pulling at their hair in frustration. Hopefully, this Uraraka could take care of herself outside the ring, too.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

Ochako glances at the betting ledger she had swiped from the ticketing booth before the second day of the tournament commences. Folded into the pages of her tome, she does the math in her head. On the way in, she had seen several of the entrants that had been in yesterday's A and B group looking decidedly unharmed. As if the unfatigued condition of the bulky brothers was not suspicious in its own right, the lack of true injury on their opponents is even moreso.

Clearly, the tournament is rigged in favor of the Brothers Brawny.

The four of them are in the waiting area beneath the stands, listening to the rumble of footsteps and cheering outside. The brothers sit together, sharpening their blades and talking amongst themselves. The one that had accosted her yesterday looks up and grins, licking his lips. Ochako shudders in revulsion and breaks eye contact. Her gaze lands on Bakugou, who is stretching in the corner.

She has to warn him that the game is rigged. "Bakugou and Marius!"

The older of the two stands and saunters out to the roaring crowd. Bakugou shakes out the arm he was stretching and follows. As he passes, Ochako snags his shirt only to have her wrist twisted.

"You again, eh? You'll get your turn in the ring. If you can beat the snot out of that other idiot, anyway," he hisses. "Can't say I'm holding out much hope."

Ochako grits her teeth, wrenching her hand away. "Listen, this tournament is rig-"

"Rigged?" he scoffs. "So what? I'll win anyway."

He pushes away her away, not watching when she bounces off the ground in a small cloud of dust. Katsuki hears her snap his pseudonym out as he steps into the ring, but it is dampened by the noise of the throngs. The arena attendant is explaining the rules, but he barely listens, sizing up his opponent and looking for weak points. The match begins and he is a flurry of motion. Hand axe whizzing through the air to nick his adversary's elbow.

It changes the trajectory of the brother's swing and Katsuki easily ducks under the blow, snatching up the hand axe again. He whips it as Marius turns, catching the back of his knee. Katsuki is there in an instant, boot slamming into the new injury and fist striking a kidney. The man drops his own axe, on his knees, and Katsuki kicks it away. He almost feels like the battle was too easy, but who is he to complain about quick money?

He draws Hauza and lays the edge against the man's throat. "Yield."

The brigand snarls and spits at him. Katsuki just presses harder on the golden blade. He can feel it growing warmer as the pupils of his opponent constrict with a manic fear. There is a slight hissing sound as the handle of Hauza grows warmer in his hand.

"I said…. Yield!"

Ochako watches in awe as the burly man forfeits and Bakugou is considered the winner. The fight had lasted mere minutes and the thought of facing him in the final round thrills and terrifies her simultaneously. Marius limps back into the waiting area, one hand on his neck. Some of his lackeys run up with salves, but he slaps them away, rubbing the burn mark just visible against his adam's apple.

Bakugou ignores her as he returns, but at the moment, she only has eyes for her opponent. The younger, more perverse brother stands before her, jeering as the crowd chants "Darius! Darius!" repeatedly.

"How about now, angelface?"

The referee signals to start their match.

"How about never." She whips open her tome, words crossing her lips without even looking at the page. Darius charges without delay, eager to beat her into submission. Speed, however, has always been her strong suit.

The fireball lands on his chest, the mercy of aiming for hands and feet against previous opponents denied. He gets blown back and Ochako's pettiness lets loose a wind spell, slipping beneath the next fireball. It knocks him off his feet and cuts into his arms and legs like little knives. When he hits the ground, he is still and the crowd is silent.

Ochako exhales deeply, breathing in slow. She's a teeny bit winded from the back to back spells, but feels vindication as she is declared the winner. She nearly forgets that the crowd hasn't said a word until the muttering starts when Darius is dragged back into the waiting area.

When he crosses the threshold, Katsuki only looks up from the saddlebag of water because a rather greasy looking cleric knocks into his shoulder. He barely has time to assess the fact that that little girl must have won in at least as short of a time as he did before attendants grab him by the scruff of his shirt. Luckily, Hauza and the hand axe are still strapped to his back when he is unceremoniously thrown back into the ring.

There's a large water spot on his shirt and a very unharmed little mage standing across from him. A vein twitches as the announcer speaks to the audience and his opponent looks at everywhere but him. He saw the results of fire magic on that dumb brother; he has this one in the bag.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

"By the gods, did you SEE that, Tsu?" Eijirou says, unnecessarily elbowing her in the side. "That was incredible! This fight is gonna-"

"This fight is gonna be trouble for them both," she responds. "Also, shush, look over there."

The place she points is where the referee is standing, another man whispering into his ear. After a moment, the two back away and into a hidden door in the walls of the arena. "Eiji…"

The gates to the arena entrances are lowered quietly and they both see glints of iron and steel from the spectators around them. Bakugou is charging Uraraka and Eijirou gets the picture, shooing Tsuyu away as spectators become participants, jumping into the ring and aiming right for the unsuspecting pair.

Tsuyu is already gone when he stands and whistles loudly, "Hey, look out, you two!" He clambers over the stands and stairs to get to the highest point of the arena and whistles again. "C'mon, Kouka, girl, we need ya…"

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

"Hey! Idiot!" Ochako yells, dodging the hand axe whistling through the air. "Don't you see what's going on?" Bakugou shows no sign of slowing down, so Ochako grits her teeth, growling. A flick of her finger pushes the air around the hand axe, tipping it down and out of its natural return trajectory. It lands with a ching at Bakugou's feet, stopping him for only a second. His stance changes and she huffs, pushing him back with a gust of wind.

The skin over his cheekbone and on his exposed forearms split with thin cuts. His hand twitches and he pulls out the golden axe on his back. Ochako senses something different about the axe, but doesn't have time to think about what it is before he is bearing down on her. The strange axe is in one hand and he snatches the hand axe in his charge. The smaller axe gets whipped like a discus and Ochako has the presence of mind to shift the air under her feet as she jumps.

She soars backwards in a flip, pushing the hand axe to the ground with another burst of wind. Yet, Bakugou is still approaching rapidly. So she remembers the tome still in her hip pouch, yanking it out and reciting the lines to erect the fiery barrier from before. The page sizzles away and Ochako takes a second to breathe, but her breath gets stuck in her throat as the boy runs directly through the flames.

He's grinning. He is smirking and excited and NOT burning.

She realizes her error as the axe begins to glow and his red eyes sparkle with gleeful battle lust. The blade is magic and this boy is very resistant to offensive magic.

"KILL 'EM BOTH!"

The yell is just jarring enough that the buttery-colored blade pauses inches from Ochako's throat. She can feel the heat of the magic weapon, uncomfortable, searing. The haze Bakugou was caught in clears bit by bit and he registers the bandits and thugs scrambling over the wall into the ring, weapons drawn and eyes on them. Ochako is tired of watching him process what she has been trying to tell him, though.

"Get- off- of me!" she pushes until he backs away, eyes still darting around the arena, calculating. While she normally would admire such focus, she can only glare at him. She refuses to rub at the still heated skin on her neck.

"Shut the fuck up and hit me with fire."

"Excuse me?!"

He turns back and stares her dead in the eye, tilting his axe toward her again. "You heard me, dollface: Hit me. With Fire."

The blade seems to glow at the prospect of more flames and while she bites her lip until it bleeds at the nickname, she lets the red book fall flat into her palm, the fire wall rising around them. The ruffians are close now and Katsuki watches as the wind magic he swears he felt earlier whistles around him and strikes back the first wave. Clearly, there was more to little miss mage than he initially thought. He grins as Hauza takes in the heat of the magical flames around them.

He dodges in and out of the flames, feeling only a bit of heat where others scald. Katsuki realizes with a start that he'd missed this, the connection between Hauza, the fire, and himself. He had not indulged in it for so long…

But between each asshole he fells, two more pop up and they're speaking, grunting between themselves. He thinks he hears 'Etrurian' and 'Burning General' and doesn't like where those lines of thinking lead. So he fixates on those first, swiping Hauza through the licks of fire every now and then. Panting, he wants to turn around when the glow of the magic behind him dims. Bodies litter the ground, but the gang keeps coming. Did he stray too far away? The light of the fire ring should be much stronger…

No, he realizes, as he turns. The ring is extinguished, a black scorched circle on the ground surrounding the girl. She's pale and her eyes are unfocused as she sways from foot to foot until her knees finally give. She's caught the eye of a nasty looking brute. He approaches her licking his lips and Katsuki's face twists as she stands, her hand pushes out and fire lights at her fingertips-

-only to immediately sputter out.

Unfortunately for this Uraraka person, a swordsman chooses that exact moment to try and slice his nose off. So Katsuki has to let the mage girl fend for herself.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

There's no warning for the three archers lining up in the top row of the arena, notching their bows. A great leathery wing brutally bashes into them from behind, sending all three careening down the stone steps, disoriented and injured. The wing stretches just so to make a tight turn, clipping ruffians on the back of the head. The full body of the wyvern flies just off the ground, gunning it for the redhead that stares directly at her.

Eijirou swings into the harness in a well-practiced maneuver, clipping his feet into the stirrups and wrapping a hand around the reins. "Alright, girl, let's find Tsuyu."

Kouka screeches a tiny bit and banks to the side. Eijirou lets her fly as she wants, knowing that Kouka can sniff out their friend faster than his eyes could search. He's thankful for the short spear he has in hand now and for thinking to keep it with Kouka, fitted into her harness. The large flying lizard dives and her wings spread like a parachute, blowing up dust around a short girl with long hair and a large bag.

"Tsuyu!"

"Eiji, Kouka!" she says, quickly lashing the suspiciously big bag to the back of the harness and slipping behind Eijirou. "Let's go."

"That bag-"

"Nevermind now, Eijirou, just go!" He huffs, but nudges Kouka a little to take off. Tsuyu taps rapidly against his arm. "Look!"

The mage girl, Uraraka, sways on her feet, archers aiming for her and some burly man charging her way. Kouka roars and Eijirou pushes her to fly faster, leaning over to the side to clothesline the archers with his spear as they fly past.

"We've got to help them!"

"Ya got that right!"

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

Ochako dodges like she's had too much ale that she's snuck from the latest bar. Her opponent has deemed her weak enough to abandon his weapon for his meaty fists. He's well aware that she can't use magic anymore after her little sputtering act. She couldn't light a candle right now if she tried her hardest.

"Who am I to ruin such a cute face," he croons. "When it could sell for so much," he sneers.

He punches her in the face anyway, making her eyes see sparkles in addition to the blurriness they already had. She spins to the ground, cheek blooming eagerly with pain. Ochako manages to stay on her hands and knees, spitting out some blood from a cut on the inside of her cheek. What a gentleman, this guy.

The asshole yanks her up by the hair and squeezes her face, purposefully placing his fingers over her newly forming bruise. He leans in and Ochako can't tell if the stench is from the burned skin on her hands and around them, the general odor of an arena, or from the vile excuse for a man in front of her. She figures it must be him.

So she does the natural thing and uses her last bit of strength to spit in his face and claw at his eyes.

Across the way, Katsuki feels a bit impressed at her gall as he pulls his axe from the armor of another brigand.

"I'll kill you for that, ya bitch! Or better yet, I'll chain ya up 'n fuck ya until yer a corpse!"

Katsuki rolls his eyes and scowls. He doesn't have time for this shit. Cursing, he starts to run towards the pair, ducking when a shadow zooms overhead- was that a fucking wyvern?! He doesn't get to focus on that though, because the jerkwad is holding up a now clearly unconscious mage girl by her hair with one hand and reaching for the ties on his drawers with the other, the sicko.

By the time he reaches them, the girl is crumpled on the ground and the disgusting pervert's pants are loosened and his hands are reaching- oops. Katsuki watches as the blood splatters on the ground and on the tattered and scorched blue cloak the girl wears without a care. Hauza was capable of cutting cleanly through skin and bone and he had not hesitated.

There's yelling coming from above and, shit, it is a fucking wyvern. The annoying guy from the armory is riding it with a strange wide-eyed girl behind him. The boy reaches out an arm, yelling again, "C'mon! We gotta get outta here!"

There are still more people to fight, circling in and picking up the weapons of their fallen friends and calling for reinforcements. He's exhausted and he's lost his hand axe again, dammit. Time to cut his losses. Katsuki ignores the pervert, standing, screaming and bleeding everywhere with his stump wrists and instead grabs the girl on the ground around the waist, hauling her over his shoulder.

He allows himself to be pulled onto the wyvern.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

Scene 3. Smoke Rising

The air grows colder with altitude and the approaching night. Tsuyu shifts a bit behind Eijirou, uncomfortably cramped between him and the mage Uraraka. She glances back to see the very grumpy face of Bakugou, as he tries to both hold on to Kouka and the girl without actually touching them. She turns front, asking over the wind into Eijirou's ear: "Can Kouka make it far with this many riders?"

Eijirou tilts his head back a bit. "No, we won't get far, but we should be able to clear the town at least."

Tsuyu nods and looks back at Uraraka, who is fading in and out of consciousness. Bakugou looks distinctly uncomfortable with this since she can't keep her head up or her body straight. She slumps against the boy, head lolling back onto his shoulder no matter how many times he tries to sit her upright.

"She's probably just magically exhausted," Tsuyu yells over the wind. Bakugou's red eyes flicker up and she knows he heard her. "You should check that she isn't concussed before letting her sleep."

With that she turns back around and leaves Katsuki with an armful of semi-conscious mage girl. Huffing about being left to this task, he shifts to tap a hand against a cheek. "Hey, dollface, wake up, dammit."

He jostles her and she groans, alternating between squirming in his lap and bonelessly rolling her head along his shoulder. Katsuki really doesn't want to deal with this shit, but he persists. He angles his mouth over her ear when her eyelids flicker. "What were you doing just now?"

She groans, and her mouth moves. The wind whistles too loud for him to hear, so he repeats his question and moves his ear near her lips. "...fightin' an assho'..."

His eye twitches and he resists the urge to throw her off the wyvern to the ground below. "Fuck you, too, Angelface." Katsuki swears he feels her breath shuffle across his ear and cheek like she's laughing at him. He clears his throat and stamps down the heat in his face. "What's your name?"

Now he knows she's a little delirious, because she definitely laughs. "Not Angelface, shithead."

She tries to push him away, but he just clamps his arms around her. No use in taking care of her if she falls from the wyvern's back to her death. She'd better be fucking grateful for this. "Argh, just tell me your stupid name and you can go the fuck to sleep!"

Her eyes are a dark brown in the dimming light and she blinks owlishly at him. "Okay…" her voice is getting softer, weaker. He leans back over to her mouth and catches the name, confusion filling him. "Ochako…"

He could have sworn her name was Uraraka.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

Eijirou directs Kouka to land at the abandoned outpost Tsuyu had pointed out just before the last glimmer of daylight left them. He vaguely hears her directing Bakugou to carry Uraraka inside and the grumbling that causes. Kouka doesn't have any stray arrows or other injuries in her thick hide, thankfully. He unties the large saddlebag Tsuyu had and a few other items and lets Kouka go out to hunt for herself. When he arrives at the barracks within the outpost, he is not surprised to see their dilapidated condition. Tsuyu seems to have picked the cleanest and sturdiest looking beds out of the lot and hovers over Uraraka, slicing her cloak into long strips to bandage the injuries on the girl. Her efforts seem to be focused on the other girl's hands and arms. She also wets a cloth and lays it over the mage's forehead before tucking the blankets loosely around her.

Bakugou sits on the next closest bed, spacing out for a moment before collecting himself. He yanks off his shirt and starts tearing it to help stopper his own cuts and wounds. His face is wrenched up into a grimace, and if Eijirou had to guess, he'd assume it was because Bakugou had just gotten that shirt and now had to waste it for scraps. He spots some cabinets in the back of the dorm and heads for them.

"So how are you doing? Aside from the cuts and scrapes, that is?" he tosses over his shoulder.

Bakugou's tone is just as frosty as in the blacksmith's shop. "Why'd you think I needed help?"

Eijirou hears Tsuyu sigh to herself, but decides to answer anyway. "We couldn't leave the pair of ya to get pummeled in such an unfair fight! It just wouldn't be right to let you die over winning a tournament." He digs out some tunics and shirts from the storage area, sniffing them gingerly. A little dusty, but not the worst. "Besides, I admire your technique on the field."

He tosses one of the shirts to the other boy. Bakugou shakes the garment out before stretching it over his head. "If it was unfair to anybody, it was those fucking losers. I don't need-"

Eijirou doesn't find out what Bakugou does not need, though, when a very wyvern screech breaks through the air and crawls up his spine. He's out the door in a flash and can feel Bakugou behind him. From the entrance of the outpost, he can see flicking pinpricks of light in the forest. Someone with torches.

Bakugou moves forward, drawing his golden axe, but grunts in pain. Eijirou pushes him back inside. "Hey, hey, maybe these people aren't looking for a fight? We should lay low."

"Who says I can't still fight?!" Bakugou pushes back against his hands, boiling temper and all. Kouka takes that moment to reappear, snapping at the blond boy and pushing him back. The wyvern is too strong for Bakugou when he's so tired. Tsuyu pushes past the boy, handing Eijirou a lance that is threaded with the new head and leather he'd bought from Araphen. The short girl turns on her heel and faces Bakugou, who is in a strange staring contest with Kouka.

"You, get back inside and watch over Uraraka. Kouka, you keep an eye on him," she orders. Bakugou looks like he's going to refuse, but the great wyvern crowds his space, squeezing into the hall and pushing him back towards the barracks. When they're gone, she turns back to see Eijirou leaning against the open door to the outpost.

"That was well done, Tsu," he chuckles.

She grants him a small smile. "There aren't any other entrances to this building, but a few hard hits to some of these walls will have them crumbling."

He hums and looks back out into the night, eyes tracking the tiny lights in the distance. "Whoever it is, we'll meet them and see what they want before picking a fight." Tsuyu flashes her daggers at him anyway, just to show she's armed. The chill of nightfall settles over them and Tsuyu leans into Eijirou a little. The warm blanket of companionship and familiarity falls over them as they gaze out into the forest.

In the end, the lights pass and Tsuyu is sent back while Eijirou takes watch. Inside the dorm, Bakugou sits, glaring at Kouka.

"Tell this flying lizard that people aren't fucking snacks."

"What did you do?"

Bakugou's hackles raise, "Not a damn thing! It bit me and won't stop staring at Angelface over there."

"'It' is a she," Tsuyu just giggles, passing a hand over Kouka's neck as she moves to her bed. "Kouka just doesn't like boys as much as girls, Eijirou being the exception, of course." Bakugou still looks mad so she continues. "Besides, you seem pretty annoying."

The blond can barely start to get agitated before Kouka snaps at him, dangerous teeth glinting. His resulting unintelligible yelling cuts off as Uraraka groans and shifts in her sleep. Tsuyu removes her boots and lays down.

"You'd better get some rest, Bakugou. You're on guard duty after me."

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

The wyvern's snores definitely don't help him. Katsuki has always been a light sleeper so the great beast's snuffling keeps him from getting real rest. But a few winks are enough with how he's been living on his own. Footsteps pad into the room: the red-headed wyvern rider. He wakes up his companion quietly and sinks into the still warm bed on the other side of Uraraka… Ochako? Katsuki shakes his head.

When the other girl is out of the room, he speaks. "Why are you doing this? I could be a serial killer, a criminal, and you're just trusting me to not kill you all in your sleep." He hears a hum from the boy's direction.

"Well, you haven't yet." A yawn. "Tsuyu can take care of herself and you saved Uraraka, right? So you can't be all bad…" There's a beat of quiet and the sound of rustling sheets. "I was worried when I saw you running around Araphen, looking like you'd been living with wolves a few days ago, but after meeting you at the armory and watching you fight… I guess I think you're an interesting guy. I think it's alright to trust you."

Katsuki has no response.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

The sun barely peeks over the horizon, sneaking through the nearby forest in small rays of yellow. Katsuki basks in the relatively small warmth it gives him, shifting to sit more in the light's direct path. He's cold and he hates it. The last shift had been the coldest and quietest. The higher the sun gets, the more his blood warms and he stretches lightly, ready to be on the road and on his own again. Walking back inside, he wonders if the other three are up and hopes the stupid false dragon is not.

The pair from Bern- and he is certain now that they are from Bern, based on their clothing and accents, though they did a decent job of hiding it- are asleep on the same cot, back to back. The girl is holding the handle of something under the pillow. Likely a dagger. At least someone had some presence of mind around almost strangers. The wyvern is wound into a large ball of reptile at the foot of their bed. Her form takes up most of the floor space between the rows of cots in the barrack.

When his red eyes wander over to Uraraka, he finds her eyes open, the brown orbs much clearer than when she'd been flushed out of magic. She slowly and silently lifts herself up, maintaining eye contact. Tenderly, she grips her head and he doesn't envy the headache he knows she must have from emptying her reserves. When she manages to get up and tiptoe around the sleeping semi-dragon, she stops. Barefoot and shoulder to shoulder with him, she circles him as he does her in the doorway. They break eye contact when she jerks her head towards the entrance. To follow her.

Unwilling to wake a sleeping dragon, he does.

She's checking her wounds and stretching her toes in the grass when Katsuki meets her at the entry hall. "Who are those two? Where are we?"

"Ask them yourself," he says, slumping back into the dirt next to her. "I'm out of here as soon as they're awake."

"Hmm, well, I guess that's your right, but thanks for saving me back at the arena," she hums while peeking beneath the bandages wrapped around her fingers, wincing a little at whatever she sees. He starts to reply, not wanting her to think he was trying to save her or anything when a noise comes from the bushes on the periphery of the tiny clearing the outpost is in. They both sit stockstill, waiting.

The rustling begins again, followed by shouts and loud footsteps. Bandits burst from the forest. Shit, they must be part of the arena collusion ring, he thinks. They were caught! Katsuki unclips Hauza, mind wildly trying to think of a way that this many men could have snuck into the area without him realizing it. On his watch, too!

"Go grab your tomes and those lazy sacks outta bed! And for fuck's sake, put on some shoes!" he yells, sparing a quick glance at Uraraka. She doesn't respond, though, eyes narrowed then blown wide as she watches the approaching brigands. She's rooted to the spot, boots clutched in one hand loosely. Katsuki growls, "Uraraka!" Nothing. The men are almost upon them, close enough he can make out tattoos on their arms and wicked expressions on their faces. He barks at her as he counts the bodies throttling towards them. "Ochako! GO!"

Instantly, she snaps into action, running, slipping on her bare feet against the old and mossy tile. The guys charging have swords and therefore the advantage over him. He grits his teeth and gets ready to guard the entrance.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

The wyvern is already awake when Ochako busts into the barracks, triggering the girl to wake and jump out of bed, knife in hand. The boy with her is putting on his armor and picking up a lance. The girl tosses Ochako's satchel, heavy with the weight of her tome, toward her. She snatches it. The telltale sound of metal on metal can be heard echoing off the walls.

The dark haired girl turns to her as she quickly ties her hair in a knot. "If we can't fight our way out or hold our position, we should use the weaknesses in the side wall to escape. We could lure the attackers in for a cave in."

Ochako withdraws her fire tome, checking the number of pages left unburnt away from use. The pair starts for the door, but Ochako yelps. "Hey! Those guys are- we should just run! Cut our losses!"

The duo look between each other and back at her, stunned. The redhead shakes his head. "We can't just leave Bakugou to fight on his own."

The girl steps towards her, taking her hand. "I understand if you're scared, but our best chance to get out of this is if we all stick together." There is sympathy shining in her deep green eyes and it makes Ochako want to recoil. It isn't of the number of opponents or a repeat of the arena battle that Ochako is scared of. "You won't be alone this time."

There's no way around this, Ochako thinks. She sucks in a breath and squeezes the girl's fingers briefly. "I'm Uraraka."

"Tsuyu, and this is Eijirou. Nice to meet you."

Bakugou is still fighting, despite the numbers against him, when they reach the entry. The wyvern, Kouka, exited from one of the crumbling walls, swooping through the throng of bodies. Eijirou sprints towards her and swings into her harness to begin his attack. Tsuyu slips between their enemies, blades flashing from beneath her shortened cloak. Ochako takes up position behind Bakugou, flipping open the Elfire tome. Eyes on the front line of attackers, she hones in on what had her frozen before: the black tattoos twining up the arms of the men. Her first fire ball slams into the chest of the nearest one, exploding and lighting some of the nearby grass and shrubs. Bakugou barely flashes a grin in her direction, running and swiping his magic axe through the flames.

Decimation is too good for these people, Ochako feels, fingers heating as the spell crosses her lips again.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

Tsuyu is too quick for him to follow on the ground, so Eijirou watches from Kouka's back. He slings the javelin he fashioned, impaling an assailant. When they dive down to retrieve it, Kouka's wings clip several others, knocking them down and disorienting them. Tsuyu is there in an instant to dispatch them.

He hates that Tsuyu has to resort to this. To killing others to survive, to stealing to make sure they can eat, to giving up everything they had in Bern to help him escape. He knows that she has no regrets, having told him as much, but it doesn't stopper the feeling that she deserved better.

She is his best friend and he wants nothing more than to let her live a life not on the run.

For now, though, Eijirou can only focus on keeping her safe. Kouka screeches as they sweep through another group of enemies and he strikes out with his lance, using the long reach to bash heads and stab into shoulders. His peripheral vision stays tuned to the flash of small daggers and long dark green hair.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

Giran evaluates the battle in front of him. A wyvern and four children, laying waste to his lackeys. Warm bodies were a dime a dozen and it doesn't surprise him that these simpletons from a backwater town such as Araphen, large though it is, are not up to task. A bunch of gamblers and drunkards does not an impressive armed force make. Particularly when his form of payment to them was alcohol, bribes, and drugs.

He sighs as he categorizes the children who ran away with the large gold purse from his tournament. Rigged tournament or not, it was a large amount of coin to part with. Funds that he needed in order to both keep his lifestyle and his head. The portion he paid back to the head organization was sizeable, funding whatever it was their master plan was.

He wasn't high enough to know anything about that.

Yet, watching the flames flickering across the field tingles something in his brain. Magic users, particularly strong offensive magic users, were not common in these parts. Bern had long since lost most of its major mage bloodlines to Etrurian and Ilia. Araphen lay in the shadow of the mountainous border between Lycia and Bern. Giran pulls out a telescoping lens, focusing on the epicenter of the flames.

A young girl?

A niggling in the back of his head that feels like familiarity is ignored when another person runs through the flames, golden axe glinting in the red-yellow light. The boy dances between flashes of fire without issue, weapon gleaming with poorly concealed magic power. Blond hair, affinity for fire, and a red and gold axe.

Well, I'll be, he thinks. The prodigal son of the Burning General lost no more.

Missing for the past two years and with a large bounty out for his safe return, Giran grins at the possibility of great reward to add to the money he would recoup with this attack. What he wouldn't give to recruit such a young and capable warrior. He grabs the nearest foot soldier, an archer, to dispense new orders.

"Capture the lordling; kill the rest."

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

When the next wave of reinforcements arrives, Katsuki growls. Did they never cease? He hated to admit it, but he was growing weary. Even the power boost he received from the magical fire blazing around him was not enough to keep regular loss of stamina away. He hadn't eaten anything in almost a day now. Uraraka or Ochako or whatever her name was is nearby, sweating, tome looking near empty. Ash carries on the light wind, all that's left of the pages of the book.

Eijirou is in the air, deadly from the back of his flying lizard. Tsuyu dodges between the enemies, still at work, but flushed and winded. Katsuki scans the battlefield, his eyes catching on one thing between the flames and bodies littering the ground. It's a gray-haired broad-shouldered man, watching the proceedings with a grin. He feels their eyes lock and he curses to himself as he sees the recognition on the man's face.

Katsuki swipes Hauza through some of Ura-ko's flames ready to charge the figure who knows who he is and wants to cash in on it. The bulk of the reinforcements descend upon him at that moment and his opportunity is lost as the fight distracts him with enemy blades.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

Ochako glares down at the empty shell of a book in her hand. The ashy remains of the pages are not good. She did not have a backup, having forcibly abandoned her supplies when they were attacked and then fled the arena. What a waste of gold.

Weaponless, Ochako weighs her options. She could certainly still fight without the tome, but at the cost of their enemies knowing exactly who she was. The focus shift to overwhelming Bakugou was interesting as was the commander staring at him with a grin on his slimy face.

Wait.

That man was-!

Low profile be damned, Ochako's magic flares, fanning the flames on the field into place. The path it lights scorches anyone who gets in her way and she proceeds with purpose. If she isn't going to run from this fight, she'd burn them all to the ground. The flames superheat her skin painfully, but Ochako ignores it as she comes up to Giran. She whips her hands through the air, magic circle thrown viciously into the air. The glowing symbols catch his attention, but the expelled force of her fire strikes him harshly before he can reach for his sword.

The flames are thick, racing up her skin, burning her bandages and sleeves and darkening her thick boots. The pain is grounding as Ochako watches Giran trip while backing away. His face is too burnt to see well, his hands too burnt to grip his blade well. He scrambles backwards on the ground and she steps on his sword, to pause him. Ochako grabs him by the chest plate, wrenching him towards her, heating the metal in her hand.

"How did you find me?"

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

Katsuki shakes sweaty bangs out of his eyes and wipes the blood off Hauza on the shirt of the last opponent from the horde that had descended upon him. They had fought differently than the first wave, aiming to disable him and not kill. He knows that big shot ordered them to take him alive. He knew who Katsuki was. Great.

He grimaces and turns back to the slight hill the man had stood on. Katsuki starts when he sees Ura-ko towering over the boss with fiery hands, no tome in sight. Behind him, he hears yelling and turns to see an archer aiming for her back. On instinct, he throws Hauza, barely registering the thud the impact makes. He runs to pick it up from the body and turns back to Ura-ko.

He can hear more yelling and calls for retreat around him as he watches her drop the smoking body onto the ground.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

Scene 4. In A Name

Her fingers burn under the force of the magic she expels into the chestplate. "How did you find me? Tell me!"

Giran squirms, wincing each time he touches the metal with his skin. Despite the obvious pain and discomfort, he chuckles darkly. "Find you? I wasn't looking for anybody, just trying to keep some pesky kids from ruining my money cow."

Ochako starts, "This is about the arena?! But-"

She's interrupted by a cough and another hissing wince. "I'm in it for the cash, especially after seeing that one boy. With a bounty like-"

"Don't get away from the point," she growls, shaking him. "I know who you are; you, your men, you're branded. If you weren't looking for me, then why are you here, Recruiter Giran?"

"Recruiter? How did you-?" She rips away the sleeve of his tunic, revealing a tattoo. Hidden in the twining dark lines was the crest, plain as day to her eyes: a twisting snake, fangs bared. Giran's eyes widen, thoughts connecting rapidly in recognition.

"You-! I know you, you're-" his words choke off as fire spirals down her arm, burning his oxygen and face. When Ochako drops the superheated metal, the man inside is nothing but a burned mass. The smell is enough to make her heave and her eyes water, but she withholds it, willing herself not to vomit at her own act. It was necessary, she tells herself. She can't be found, not now.

Drawing a shuddering breath, she turns back to the field, hoping beyond hope that the downfall of their commander will force the rest of the troops to retreat. All her eyes catch on, however, is Bakugou, staring at her while wrenching his axe from an archer.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

The field clears of enemies quickly after the commander goes down and Tsuyu really wants to know why the body is so charred. She lets the thought wash over her, however. She was in no position to judge Uraraka's actions. Tsuyu continues to rifle through the pockets and satchels of the fallen men. What did they have need of gold, weapons or medicine for when they were dead?

She's certain Eijirou would not approve, even if he begrudgingly admits she is right.

Tsuyu looks up when the sound of horse hooves clattering on the forest floor reaches her ears. She stands as two cavaliers break out of the foliage, over the crest of the trailhead. Wait, one horse was pure white, with wings folded neatly at its sides. The pegasus rider and cavalier trot their steeds towards her as she is closest to the forest's edge.

"Ho there! Can you tell us what happened here, miss?" the pegasus rider asks. Tsuyu categorizes his features, sizing him up in case she has to fight. She's so tired though, ready for a midmorning catnap, and the man has a serious if earnest face, framed by black hair and spectacles.

Before she can respond, his companion speaks up. "I apologize for Tenya's hastiness. My name is Izuku and this is my friend, Tenya. We heard a commotion and came to see what the trouble was."

Tsuyu takes in his freckled face and windswept green hair. He looks innocent and honest to her eyes. "I'm Tsuyu. Nice to meet you. We were staying in that outpost overnight when we got attacked at first light."

She withholds detail, not quite knowing enough about her two new companions to say anything for certain. She definitely was not going to tell them that they'd fled from an arena full of hostiles and she'd stolen the prize money in the confusion. Even Eijirou hadn't noticed yet.

As if the thought could summon him, Kouka swoops down between Tsuyu and the duo, pushing a large gust of wind up and separating them. Eijirou dismounts as the new pair try and keep their steeds under control. The pegasus looks understandably shifty and nervous in the presence of the wyvern. Izuku and Tenya dismount as well, shaking hands with Eijirou and introducing themselves again. Tsuyu watches as the tension in Eijirou's shoulders dissipates. His innate ability to trust in others warms her heart as he grins at the newcomers.

"Wow, never seen a pegasus in the flesh before!" he says, excitement brimming. Tenya pushes his glasses up his nose proudly.

"Gear is a fine specimen to see for your first," he exclaims. "I've never seen a wyvern before either."

"I'd love to make a few sketches of your wyvern myself, but right now, I think it's more pressing to ask you about what happened," Izuku interjects. "We were brought over here by the noise, but this is an awful lot of bodies for two people to take down. Not to mention the thugs that ran straight past us back towards Araphen in the forest."

"Yes, any explanation would be appreciated," Tenya says. "We're on a bit of a hunt for outlaws ourselves and have had nothing but dead ends. In fact, we passed right by here sometime last night and didn't even notice this fort."

Tsuyu exchanges a glance with Eijirou. "Well, we aren't alone. We're with two others at the moment."

"Can't say quite why we got chased, but we were in a bad situation in the arena in town…" Eijirou trails.

"I think it might have been because of the competition prize money," Tsuyu confesses. Eijirou gives her the most incredulous look, as though he both expected this and cannot believe it. He watches with wide eyes as Tsuyu unties the bulky saddle bag that he had not packed off Kouka's harness. It thuds to the ground heavily.

"You didn't…"

"I did."

"Tsu!"

"What? Technically, Uraraka or Bakugou would have won anyway, so we can split it and take a fee for rescuing them." Her arms cross as Eijirou glances between her and the bag. Izuku and Tenya stand around, not sure what to say about their new acquaintance's sticky fingers.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

Katsuki storms up to the mage girl. She's walking back swiftly to the outpost, tense and back ramrod straight. He stomps faster to catch her.

"What the fuck was that, huh?"

She ignores him.

"If that was their leader, we could have found out what he knows- why the hell he attacked us!" He feels like he knows already, but he needed to confirm that his identity was the impetus and not coincidence. When Ochako ignores him again- and he's certain now that Uraraka is not her real name-, he bursts a capillary. "DAMMIT, Ochako, I'm talking to you!"

Somehow, he isn't expecting her to whip around, finger in his face. "No, you're yelling at me. Those thugs were after the money, so your new friends must've picked it up before flying us outta there. That guy was a threat and now he's not." She huffs, blowing some soot-covered bangs out of her face. "...and stop calling me that."

He twitches, not liking her answer in the slightest. "What, Ochako? That's your name, isn't it?"

The girl flinches and then gets up in his face, so close he can smell the ash and pre-thunderstorm scent that often accompanied magic. "Look, I don't need a wind tome to slice out your tongue. Stop. Callin'. Me. That." Each word is punctuated by the slightest flick of her finger, cutting shallowly into his shirt, his hair and once high on his cheekbone. She backs up a little, eyes guarded despite his probing. "It isn't something I want people to know."

She turns on her heel, moving away again. Katsuki is rooted to the spot as he stews. She'd unknowingly provided him with a large amount of information, more than just her real name. He can't concentrate on it right now as he angrily wipes the blood welling on his cheek away, muttering to himself. "Like I don't have a mantle I want to get rid of."

Ochako is stopped before she reaches the fort by Tsuyu and Katsuki finds himself joining them when he spots the two new men standing with Eijirou.

"I don't think we all were properly introduced, but I'm Tsuyu and this is Eijirou. These two are Tenya and Izuku."

Katsuki glances out of the corner of his eye at Ochako, wondering what her play would be. "Nice to meet you. My name's Uraraka."

He harrumphs and he can feel the animosity rolling off of Ochako. "Bakugou."

The shorter one, Izuku, is looking between them, calculating something. Before he can snap, the young man's eyes latch on Ochako's hands. "Oh my goodness! Your hands are blistered and burnt!"

He continues gushing and offering her salves while Ochako demures, but Katsuki's gaze is now drawn to her hands. He remembers seeing her use of fire sans tome, a feat that was highly difficult and even more unusual. Even career mages didn't achieve that without a deep well of magical potential. He should know. Her hands are red, burn marks twisting around her fingers and up into the torn and crispy remnants of her arm coverings. There are blisters, too, between her fingers and on her palms, lining the inflamed markings.

"Please, take my riding gloves! It will help protect them once treated," Izuku pushes. Ochako winces lightly as she pulls her hand from his, reluctantly accepting the vulnerary, but not the gloves.

"I appreciate the gesture, truly, but it's best to let them get some air, I've found," she says. Her voice is soft and unlike how she spoke to Katsuki just minutes before. It's unpleasant to hear her simpering so he's mildly grateful when the green-haired idiot's companion breaks into a lengthy explanation on how they got there. Two sentences in, his gratitude and patience wear out.

"-and though the storm was heavy and we could hardly find any shelter, we somehow made our way to the great gates of Ostia, when-"

"For the love of- I don't care!" Katsuki explodes. Tenya looks affronted and about to speak again, with Katsuki ready to hit him if he did. Izuku pushes his friend back a little.

"Uh, s-sorry, Tenya can get a bit, uh, long-winded, in his accounts…" he stutters, wilting a bit under the full force of Katsuki's glare. "We met between Ilia and Pherae and came out here searching for clues on the, uh, the r-resurgence of a gang."

Katsuki doesn't realize he's leaning forward and growling until a warm hand pulls him back by the arm. Ochako's skin is too warm from her burns, but she doesn't let him go until she physically steps between them. He scoffs at her short glare and how it melts into a genial smile for Izuku. "Sorry, we've been having a rough week and he's grumpy."

"Well, we're trying to follow in the footsteps of King Roy and Roland, to be heroes of sorts," he says, stutter magically gone while talking to Ochako. "If you're in trouble or need help, you can call on us."

Katsuki sneers, "What a big promise. You going to follow us around just to 'save the day'?" He doesn't wait for a response, instead turning to leave. He can feel Ochako's eyes on him even as he walks away.

"Don't take it personally," Ochako sighs. Bakugou's back gets smaller as he stalks toward the fort. Eijirou calls after him, calls him rude, but Tsuyu tugs him back to her side.

"Why are you both trying to become heroes?" Tsuyu asks, directing the conversation back to less tempestuous waters.

Izuku shifts on his feet, running a hand through his horse's mane. "To be honest, we're trying to track down information on the recent rumblings of an old force of evil…"

"My clan, Ingenium, has been researching and listening to the underground," Tenya says. "We're mercenaries so we have ears in most parts of Elibe. Given their history and the large dormant period, it is quite upsetting to hear that the notorious Black Fang may be returning."

Tsuyu leans towards them, eagerly. "I heard that name in Araphen, while I was... " Eijirou winces at her. "...listening." She straightens, occupying her hands with undoing the knot in her long hair. "Other locations were mentioned, but I wasn't paying close attention. I was more concerned with mentions of Bern, but there were none."

Tenya glances at Kouka again and then over Eijirou's armor. "Yes, I imagine you would be more concerned with news from the west."

"I don't know anymore than what Tsu found out," Eijirou says, crossing his arms. Kouka nudges her way under his arm, muzzle fitting into the crook of his elbow until his arm is around her neck. He is distracted from her presence though, when Uraraka scoffs under her breath.

"Most of the historical data on the Black Fang puts them based in Bern, though," Izuku tries. Uraraka shifts restlessly.

"Oughta search in Etruria rather than Bern…" she mutters. Her face screws up for a moment, twisting into some unknown expression, before she turns on her heel and leaves. Eijirou and Tsuyu stare after her.

"What does Miss Uraraka mean by that?" Tenya asks, openly displaying his puzzlement. He makes a motion to follow, but Izuku pauses him again.

"Tenya, we should take this time to check out the village before whatever presence the Black Fang had there is gone." He turns back to Tsuyu and Eijirou, smile on his freckled face. "Thank you for the information. I hope our paths cross again and wish you well on your travels."

They watch the pair mount their steeds and trot back into the depths of the forest, waving. They disappear in the vague direction of Araphen and Eijirou slowly lowers his own wave, draping the arm over Tsuyu's shoulders.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

Scene 5. Affinity

"So, where to next?" Eijirou says, standing in the doorway. His hands are on his hips and his face is open and eager. The fatigue of the battle seems to have left him unusually quickly when faced with the prospect of adventure. Tsuyu sighs to herself a little as she takes in the state of the inner barracks. Uraraka and Bakugou are on opposite sides of the room, packing whatever meager supplies were still good into some worn bags that she'd spotted while looking for first aid supplies earlier.

"Into Lycia, a city maybe," Uraraka mutters, almost to herself.

Bakugou snorts. "Anywhere but here."

Tsuyu can almost feel the words bubbling up in her long-time friend. "Well, let's get ready to go then!" The implication is there and it causes the arena duo to look up from their packing, baffled. "We're headed anywhere but Bern-" she has to resist the urge to elbow him in the side for basically saying they were on the run- "-so let's go together."

"Not a chance in hell," Bakugou growls.

"Aw, c'mon, bigger groups aren't as likely to get mugged by highwaymen."

Bakugou seems to deflate at this a little before puffing right back up into a series of half-thought out excuses. Tsuyu speculates his poor condition prior to the arena fight was due to a band of thugs charging 'entry' into Araphen.

"Not like I have any gold anyway," Uraraka sighs, staring rather mournfully at the men's clothing she'd stuffed in her bag and the torn and scorched sleeves of her shirt.

"You did win the prize money, though," Tsuyu says. Uraraka turns to her, confused. "I mean, Eijirou and I will be taking a fee for rescuing you both, but it was still pretty sizeable. I think it may have actually been more than was intended for the tournament, but-"

"Wait, you have the gold?" she perks up. Tsuyu nods and unlashes the bag. When she opens it, the four of them peer inside.

There was certainly gold inside, but also other items of value. Some lance heads and metal ingots shaped as though ready to be smithed, a tome or two, raw crystal used for making staves, and a couple rings and other pieces of jewelry. Eijirou sorts through the metalwork while Tsuyu counts out the coins. Uraraka flips through the tomes and Bakugou watches as she discards several. They have covers dyed blue and green. He narrows his eyes.

An Excalibur and a Fibulvetr?

Both were wind-based tomes, though some would argue that Fibulvetr was closer to making its own sect of magic in with its wintry blast. Ice wasn't really an element of Anima, though. For a minute, Katsuki lost himself in the lessons of his youth, learning about the Magic Cycle and Anima Trinity. Light magic and by extension healing magic cleansed dark magic. Dark arts corrupted Anima, the earth and all its elements. Anima was too solid, too heavy for light magic, a natural, neutral set of forces, and thereby overwhelmed it. Anima itself broke down into fire, wind, and lightning, with lesser elements like water (and by extension, ice) and earth recognized but not strictly a part of Anima. He'd never really understood why water and earth didn't count, but he assumed it was because the Trinity were more volatile and inconstant, things that could be created by man. He shuddered to think of any mage being capable of controlling the oceans or causing earthquakes.

"Here, Tsuyu, you can sell these." Katsuki's thoughts are broken by the mage girl's voice. She easily hands over the powerful spellbooks. How could she do that? He knew she could use wind magic. Was she not proficient enough to cast the spells they contained?

Or was she already capable of casting them without the books?

Before he could follow that train of thought, before he could bring their battles back to mind, scraping for the evidence he knew he felt of her wind magic, Tsuyu jumps up.

"Whoa! These are pretty rare! We should definitely go on a shopping spree," she giggles and Ochako- he really needed to figure out how he was going to refer to her in front of the others- gets swept up in the smaller girl's planning.

Katsuki barely notices he's still watching them when Eijirou's elbow pokes him in the side. "We'll let them do their thing and hit the armory instead," the redhead says, tone modulated like they were sharing in some sort of ill-kept secret joke. "You probably want to replace that hand axe, at least."

He finds himself nodding, fingers errantly scratching at the thin line of scab over his cheekbone.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

Ochako wonders for the what must be the fiftieth time since the group had set out from the barracks two days ago if this was a good idea. She'd managed to avoid much talk outside of casual pleasantries and input about the weather, where they would camp, who would do what task to keep them fed and safe for the night. But now, fully within the borders of Lycia proper, there are fewer risks of brigands and thieves.

Which leads her to the current predicament: an evening of relaxing around the campfire.

Tsuyu had produced some long-saved fruit leather now that they were likely to reach a town soon so she could restock. The kind girl hands a piece to each of her traveling compatriots, but Ochako notices when Eijirou breaks his in half to give back.

"I know all about your sweet tooth, Tsu," he laughs as she tries to push it back towards him. "No give-backs."

It's rather sweet of the two of them and Ochako can't help the soft smile that spreads across her face. It really has been a while since she was last in the company of good people. Speaking of…. Bakugou hunches nearer the fire than any of them, clearly not feeling the heat of the flames nor the tenderness of the moment between the pair from Bern. She still doesn't have a handle on what his deal is, magic ability aside. He's rude, condescending, and intrusive.

Yet she had also observed him to have good leadership skills, a sense of responsibility, and a great deal of intelligence. While clearly a melee fighter, he had more knowledge of magic than he was letting on. If his magic axe didn't raise any flags, then his probing about her abilities was a dead giveaway. Tsuyu and Eijirou had never once questioned her ability to start their campfires without a tome, but she had seen Bakugou staring intently at her, eyes switching rapidly between the flames, her hands and her hip pouch where she carried the Elfire tome she found in the tournament treasure trove.

She'd have to be careful. The sound of more laughter brought her out of her thoughts and she refocused on Eijirou.

"Honestly, when we first left Bern- oh come on, Tsu, they had to know by now- we barely slept at all. Kouka was a right mess, constantly alert until even she needed to rest!" Ochako could hear Kouka snort from her place in the shadows around their encampment. "Anyway, we finally found this cave in the mountainside, overlooking the border with Sacae. She didn't like it, but I managed to convince Kouka to go in this dingy little hole in the wall so we could get some good shut eye."

"We pulled a bunch of scrub brush and branches from the area nearby to help hide the entrance," Tsuyu says. "I think we all slept at least a whole day and a half."

"Yeah, but after that, it's been pretty much smooth flying!" Eijirou recounts. Kouka snorts again, but her rider just chuckles more. "You know what I mean!"

"We made it to Araphen shortly after," Tsuyu says, glancing between Ochako and Bakugou. "So what about you two? It must be very different traveling on your own."

Ochako and Bakugou enter a short staring contest, her smile straining under the weight of how forced it is. His mouth wrenches to one side in a half-pout, half-grimace, but the moment has dragged on too long and Ochako can see Tsuyu opening her mouth again. "Well, there isn't much to say, really!" Ochako squeaks, breaking contact with the intense pair of red eyes.

She stares down at her fingers, wondering what she could get away with saying. "I'm a mage, obviously. From Ilia, but never much liked the weather. It's far too cold there, so when I decided to go get some practical magic experience, I decided to travel around Lycia!" She picks at her nails, dirt and some dead skin from her blisters flake off. "My… teacher… wasn't very good, so I-" she clasps her hands together, tightly interlocking the fingers as she forces herself to look at them. He gaze lands somewhere between Eijirou and Tsuyu, on their shoulders. "I took off on my own."

"So is fire your affinity then? I heard that most people from Ilia are ice or wind!" Eijirou asks. "The way you handle those flames is incredible!"

Ochako refuses to look over at Bakugou, knowing he has to be listening intently. "No, I'm not."

Eijirou seems to deflate, but he doesn't push to ask what her affinity is. "Don't mind him. He's got it in his head that affinities can help determine who can be great friends after we ran into a woman who did a reading on it," Tsuyu cuts in, glancing back at her friend. "Supposedly, they're really just based on your birthday. When's yours?"

"December," Ochako answers automatically. She flinches internally and hope that the woman didn't have some weird system worked out that would correctly guess her affinity.

"Thunder, then." Tsuyu leans back against the log they're propped against. "If what she says is true, then I'm Ice and Eijirou is Anima. I think its a bit of a generalization, though. How could everyone born in the same month be so similar to have the same affinity?"

Ochako laughs at that a little, glad that the so-called reading was so off-base. "Yeah, I can't say I believe that myself."

"So how about you, Bakugou?" Eijirou cuts in.

"April," he huffs. The other three blink at him vacantly.

"I, uh- I meant your story?" Eijirou asks.

Bakugou's eyes widen as though caught in a trap for a moment before they harden again. "Left home, been traveling ever since. Nothing else to say."

Ochako had hoped he'd say something else, something that could make her feel like their playing field was level again, but no dice. He tosses another twig into the flames, pointedly avoiding eye contact with anyone. She barely realizes the camp had gone quiet until the silence is broken.

"Oh, another Thunder affinity? How curious." Tsuyu's voice is still even, but Ochako is starting to pick up on the girl's tones. She's amused.

"Yeah, whatever." Bakugou scrambles to his feet and tosses one last stick into the fire before jamming his hands into his pockets and stomping off. The flames glint off the buttery yellow blade that leans against the log he had vacated and Ochako wonders if he, too, was not aligned with Thunder.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

They reach Thria a few days later. The town is bustling with activity, the streets lined with colorful cloth of merchant tents. Katsuki watches with vague interest as Ochako and Tsuyu go over the wares of a vendor who is selling cloaks. Tsuyu convinces Ochako to try on a deep pink colored cloak, tailored to fall to the thigh with a hood and slits for arms to go through. Ochako twirls a bit in it, admiring the fabric. He has to admit that the color is good on her, matching well with her rosy cheeks. As she moves to unclasp it, he catches himself, coughs and looks away.

He somehow ends up locking eyes with Eijirou who waggles his eyebrows and grins. Katsuki scoffs and looks away. Tsuyu and Ochako are paying for their replacement cloaks, handing over their older ones for the vendor to repurpose and cut down on their cost. Tsuyu folds the dark green fabric over her shoulders and links arms with Ochako. She carries a bundle of deep burgundy under her other arm and Katsuki has to pause mentally before he wonders what it would look like.

"Eiji, we're going to head over the the bathhouse. The vendor said it was just over that way," Tsuyu says, pointing. "We'll find you later, if you can get us some accommodations for the night."

"On it, boss!" Eijirou grins, mock-saluting the small girl. Tsuyu smiles good-naturedly and tugs Ochako off into the crowd. The pink-cheeked mage clutches her new wares tightly and glances back just once at him before allowing herself to be lost in the throng with Tsuyu.

A hand on his elbow almost has Katsuki reaching for Hauza until Eijirou's voice hits his ears. "Let's go check out the blacksmith's and then find a place for the night. We've got all those things to sell or trade that we should be able to get a hand axe and javelin, no problem."

The pair makes it to the smithy without issue, though Eijirou did pause to sell some of the metal ingots to a jeweler instead, hoping to get a better deal and not seem as suspicious to the smith for having so much stock on hand. While the blacksmith appraises Eijirou's lance and looks through his stores for a suitable pole to fix a new lance head to, the redhead turns to Katsuki.

"So, I've been meaning to ask… what's up with your axe? I've never seen one like it."

Hauza is wrapped in some gauze material Katsuki had found quickly upon entering the town and was now stuffed into a slightly too big leather axe sheath. The weapon was recognizable to anyone who knew what it was and he really didn't want to attract that kind of attention. Or the attention of thugs who think it was worth a pretty penny.

And it was.

"It's just an axe."

Eijirou, for all his pleasantness and open acceptance of their tentative (in Katsuki's eyes) friendship, just pins him with a sardonic look. "Yeah, and Kouka is just a gecko."

Katsuki scrubs at his hair, irritated. He pretends to be interested in how long the blacksmith is taking, but Eijirou is focused.

"I mean, I've never even seen you do any maintenance on it! Every blade needs a whetstone from time to time."

"Hauza doesn't need sharpening."

"Oh, it has a name!" Eijirou perks up.

Katsuki presses his lips into a fine line, narrowing his eyes at the man. "I'll be outside."

It must have been enough information for the Bernian as he just waves and says he'll grab a good hand axe for him. Katsuki ducks into the shade of the smithy shop and grumbles to himself as the shoppers continue to mill about the lane.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

When Eijirou wakes, the night paints the room in pale blues. He shuffles out of the spare blanket, twisting his cloak on the rug beneath him. The inn they'd gotten for the night was a bit more expensive than any of them really wanted to pay so they had decided to go for a single room, with the girls taking the bed and the boys camping out on the rather fluffy if old pelt on the floor by the window. Not one of them regretted it when they heard the first tell-tale pitter patter of rainfall on the inn's roof. Bakugou's back is to him, curled up and facing the paned glass. His shoulder rises and falls slowly in deep sleep. Eijirou smiles a bit to himself, glad that the brusque man was starting to feel more comfortable with new friends.

His gaze shifts back into the room and the dark lumps on the lone bed. He stretches as he stands, ready to get a skin of water to clear some of the cottony taste of sleep. While standing, he notices only Uraraka's brown tuft of hair sticking out of the blanket. He glances back out at the water streaking slowly down the window pane and reaches to the floor for his cloak.

Barefoot, he slips from the room, down to the inn's side entrance they had used earlier. There, he finds Tsuyu, kicking her feet silently through the air, trousers rolled up and sans shoes and socks. The water flicks off her toes even as more rain tickles them. The sheen of her hair and the fit of her shirt on her shoulders tells him she's been playing in puddles again.

Fondly, Eijirou tosses his heavy cloak on her head, snickering when she sputters. He sits next to her as she tugs the fabric off, settling it over her shoulders.

"You're gonna catch a cold, ya know."

"I never do."

"Maybe."

She tucks herself closer to his side and he shifts to accommodate her. Eijirou lets the rain complement her voice, soft and lulling, as she describes the places she went with Uraraka, how clever and nice she was, where they went to get some sweet jellies and more fruit leather. Once her story has left her, they settle in silence for a while, until Tsuyu leans her head on his shoulder and he rumbles out the happenings with Bakugou at the smithy and how Kouka was excited to have a whole night to hunt, how she would enjoy the bath the nighttime rain provided.

When the silence rolled back in, they were both warm under the cloak, content to listen to the rain and steady breaths until the moon broke through the clouds.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

Scene 6. Kindle

Light filters through the canopy as the unlikely troupe leaves Thria behind. This road is still lined with cobblestones, smooth and worn with use. It lies on one of the major arteries of Lycia, connecting the trade markets of Thria to the capital, Ostia. The great gated walls of a fortress city await them, a blue-gray slate that cuts sharp lines into the rolling hills.

"The arena there is supposed to be the biggest in the whole continent!" Eijirou says, nearly vibrating with excitement. "Imagine what kind of warriors that attracts! I can't wait to hop in the ring and test my mettle."

Tsuyu shakes her head fondly, looping her arm around his. "Eijirou, you know you can't bring Kouka into an arena full of people."

Eijirou deflates and looks up, eyes catching the small dark fleck of Kouka, dipping between the clouds. He hears a scoff from his right. Bakugou shoots him an unreadable look.

"Then get better, stupid."

Before Eijirou has time to process and respond, Uraraka snorts from the other side of Tsuyu. Her laughter picks up when Bakugou starts steaming, irritated that she found his comment funny. Then Tsuyu joins in, a quiet chuckle turning into a full giggle fest when Bakugou tries to grab at Uraraka around the pair. Uraraka dodges and the Bernians full on belly laugh at the antics as the blond chases the brunette around.

The chase turns into a game of tag, fingers brushing after the twisting tail of a cloak between giggles and good natured yells. Tsuyu is the eventual winner when no one is able to tag her once she slips from Eijirou. He ends up as 'it' far more often than any of the others, but it's more amusing when Bakugou is 'it' since he targets Uraraka. She's faster than the blond, but eventually gets tagged only to tag him back in half the time or get Eijirou after another failed attempt to make Tsuyu 'it'.

Time passes quickly and the road stretches and shrinks beneath their feet with miles passed. Kouka swoops down to buzz them when she gets bored and for a little bit, Eijirou gives in to his draconic friend, slipping into the sky with her. His outstretched hands catch the wind and moisture of clouds and his face lights up under the sun. Kouka's muscles ripple like a steady tide under a sheet of smooth scales. And when he returns to the ground a little lighter on his feet, his friends are still smiling and Tsuyu's hand slides into his.

It's a good day.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – KINDLE

Katsuki wakes to a paling sky and quiet camp. There is dew on his jacket and his hair feels damp. He ruffles it in an attempt to dry it out, likely leaving it messier than it was before. Eijirou's light snores draw his eye. The redhead and the little thief lean together against the giant flying lizard. It's wing folds over it's master's legs. Katsuki turns away, stretching his arms and back, checking for Hauza and his other gear. Even as far off the road as they'd gone for the night, it wasn't unheard of to be set upon by bandits. He twists to pop a vertebrae when he notices.

Ochako's bag is where it was last night, but with no Ochako.

He stands, looking around to make sure he didn't miss her while his eyes were still bleary. The sun is still only just coming up, but there's enough light for him to catch the lack of dew on the area near her pack. Katsuki stands over it, noting the neatly folded cloak. There are faint impressions of footprints left by the grass and dew and he follows them away from camp.

The tracks disappear into the undergrowth, but Katsuki hears crackling in the air and a soft whistling. He lets his ears guide him, eventually coming upon a small clearing. It contains the person he is looking for and the sight of her nearly takes his breath away.

Ochako damn near floats across the tiny patch of cleared grass between the tall trees. Eyes closed, she moves to music he can't hear and makes her own with magic. Tiny ribbons of flame drip off her fingers, crackling in the air softly. They hang and twist in ways they should not, but if Katsuki squints hard enough he can see the air bend around the fiery streamers. It shimmers with heat like a mirage in the desert and he can almost feel the phantom warmth of it. Ochako's arms extend and curve as she moves, steps in patterns, drawing shapes in the dewy grass with her boots.

The movement is enchanting and he has to shake himself to focus and catalogue what he sees properly.

The mage girl is casting, san tome. She is casting two elements, without a tome. She is combining them, without even speaking a word.

He's flabbergasted. Katsuki hasn't seen mastery of this kind for a long time and the mystery of how she does it is killing him. Red eyes narrow in on her hands and fingers, hoping to catch the movements, to compare with standardized casting.

Ochako's gloves and sleeves are off, revealing red lines, twisting and twining up her arms. They're duller than they were when that cavalier was falling over himself about them, but the skin is still inflamed. She turns and his eyes catch on a different mark on her arm. Hard to miss, there is a black shape or series of lines on her upper arm, above the bicep. He leans in to try and get a better look.

Crack.

He steps on a twig and she snaps her head around. Katsuki finds himself pushed back by a gust of wind, heels scraping into soft dirt until his back hits a tree rather solidly. Ochako stands with her palm facing him, still in the middle of her little clearing as the sun starts peeking through the tree trunks. They lock eyes and she lowers her hand.

"You startled me. What are you doing here?" she asks, left hand slipping over the dark mark as his eyes flick towards it.

"Trying to make sure you don't burn down the forest, Angelface," he says, straightening his shirt. She makes a face at him as she reaches for her gloves and sleeves, piled at the foot of a tree. She pulls them on before he can get a closer look at the red skin and black marking.

He's sure he's seen that mark before, but it was such a quick look and he just can't remember where he may have seen it.

"Sun's coming up. Maybe we should start breakfast?" Ochako says, moving past him.

On instinct, Katsuki reaches out, grabbing her by the arm. One move of his hand will expose the mark, but he figures it's small potatoes compared to the display of magic he had just witnessed.

"Hey- what are you-?" she sputters as he pulls her around to face him.

"How can you use magic like that? Without a tome?" he questions, leveling her with a penetrating stare. She presses her lips together, eyes narrowing. "You use fire with a tome, then without, but you've got these burns like it hurts you. You use wind, too, but no tome."

She inhales deeply, as though trying to inflate herself and appear bigger. Or maybe yell at him. But she holds steady, eyes guarded, not willing to talk.

"You actually sold wind tomes you could use or learn from, so the question is… do you even need a tome?"

Brown eyes thin. "Plenty of people can use magic like this, without a book," she states, a bite behind her tone. "Haven't you ever heard of the mages and bishops of Etruria?"

The barb is pointed, but Katsuki won't rise to the bait. She suspects. He starts to rebut but she cuts him off.

"The Burning General, perhaps? I heard she's quite a powerful valkyrie and a perfect natural, barely ever needed a tome. Didn't she have a son?" Ochako leans in closer, sweeping over his features before locking back on his eyes. "Maybe he can, too."

Katsuki represses the strong urge to push her back into a tree and demand how she knew. In truth, he can't be sure this is more than conjecture- good conjecture, though it is. So he lets Ochako pull out of his grip without asking about the mark or answering his questions about her magic skill. He listens as she calls out to Eijirou and Tsuyu, voice no longer full of suspicion. Katsuki surveys her practice area once more.

The clearing is littered with tiny scorch marks, a blueprint for a potentially deadly dance.

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE – IGNITION

CHARACTER CLASSES AND SKILLS

All Classes and Skills are based on Fire Emblem Awakening Class System. Special Skills are created based on the Individual Character Skills in Fire Emblem Fates and gameplay rules.

Ochako – Mage

- Secondary class: (spoiler)

- Skills: Focus, (spoiler), Mag+2, Tomefaire, (spoiler)

- Special Skill: Zephyr (Mag+4, Spd+4 when wind element tome is equipped)

Katsuki – Fighter

- Secondary class: (spoiler)

- Skills: Zeal, HP+5, (spoiler), Axebreaker, (spoiler)

- Special Skill: Grenadier (when hit by fire element magic, next attack is guaranteed critical if Hauza is equipped)

Tsuyu – Thief

- Secondary Class: Archer

- Skills: Locktouch, Move+1, Acrobat, Prescience, Skill+2

- Special Skill: Camouflage (Avoid +30 when enemies are adjacent, +50 when enemies are within 2-3 tile radius)

Eijirou – Wyvern Rider

- Secondary Class: Villager

- Skills: Aptitude, Str+2, Tantivity, Quick Burn, Deliverer

- Special Skill: Riot (Str+5, Def+5 when adjacent ally is injured)

Izuku – Cavalier

- Secondary Class: Mercenary

- Skills: Discipline, Defender, Patience, Rally Skill, Luna

- Special Skill: One for All (no-miss one-hit KO/kill, but leaves Izuku with only 5% health)

Tenya – Pegasus Rider

- Skills: Speed+2, Galeforce, Relief, Avoid+10, Astra

- Special Skill: Recipro (Spd+7 for first five turns, Spd-3 if health below 50%)