(Y/n) stood in a field of snow.
It was knee-high and thick, but she couldn't feel the cold. Small white flakes trickled down from the pale grey sky, landing on her lashes and melting against her warm skin, but the snow itself held no temperature to it. It tickled but nothing else.
Her eyes explored the surrounding area, staring at the fog that wove in and out of the forest surrounding the white meadow, but it never dared to go any further.
It didn't take long before her gaze landed on the looming figure in the middle of the field. She recognised him immediately.
(Y/n) slowly made her way towards him, trudging through the thick white blanket.
"You look awful." She stated as she finally made it to him.
"You've grown." The man replied, his eyes sunken and sickly, his body a mere shell of what it once was, "Not in the way I would have liked. I thought I made the right choice in passing on my grimoire. Why are you trying to prove me wrong?"
(Y/n) narrowed her eyes at him, "I never asked to be a witch." She grumbled, walking past him to see what was beyond. Disappointed, she stared at the mist, though she wasn't really sure what she was expecting.
"You are a witch through, young one." He sighed and lowered his head.
"Why are you here now?" She asked, her tone was blunt but not malicious. She was genuinely curious. Then the events of the night swarmed her thoughts. "Am I dead?"
"No." He shifted a hand through his long blonde hair, "Not yet, at least."
"Comforting." The young girl huffed. Turned back to face him again, "So, why are you here? If not to take me to the underworld."
"How you have changed." He frowned, "A little too much. Where did that young girl go that I once knew?"
(Y/n) avoided his eyes.
"You have grown so much." The man put his hand atop her head and exhaled, "You were so little when we last met like this. You're stronger now."
"Where did you go, after I left?" (Y/n) glanced up at him.
The man gave a short laugh that was interrupted by a small coughing spout, "You'll find out one day, (Y/n)." He smiled as he looked up at the crescent moon slowly rising in the sky, "It's time for you to go."
(Y/n) felt a pang of disappointment, "So soon?"
The man just nodded, not looking at her.
The girl watched him for a moment, taking in the features of the man she had once felt was a father to her, though now a stranger stood before her.
"I've missed you, Yagi."
His eyes glowed a bright blue,
"Me too kid."
(Y/n) slowly awoke to birdsong surrounding her. Her throat was dry and her stomach shrivelled in hunger.
Slowly, she opened her eyes and lifted her head. A throbbing pain forced her back down again as the light seemed to blind her. (Y/n) groaned and threw a hand to her head as the thumping sensation pulsed through her skull.
How long had she been asleep for?
Her heart stopped as she realised she wasn't in the castle chambers anymore. Shit. Had the league captured her?
Fighting the urge to keep them closed she carefully peeled her eyelids open, taking in her surroundings slowly. She was in a tent, the air was warm and felt humid, and she could glimpse the forest outside every so often when the wind blew the entrance open.
When she peered down, she noticed her torso was bandaged as was her ankle, though she was back in her clothes that Ashido had gifted to her. The cuff on her bandaged leg was rolled up as to not irritate the wound she had received on it, as was the bottom of her shirt which rested just low enough to allow her some privacy at least - especially when she noticed the blonde-haired, red-eyed prince staring right at her from the corner of the small tent.
He sat on the floor with his arms draped over his knees, not uttering a word as their eyes locked onto each other's.
(Y/n) tried to swallow, but instead ended up holding back a choke as she remembered just how dry and sore her mouth and throat felt. She cast her eyes over to the waterskin that was tied to Bakugou's waist. He followed her gaze before staring back at her for a long moment. The silence was deafening.
When Bakugou finally stood and took the sack from his belt, her heart began to beat faster.
The blonde crouched beside her, once again looking her up and down with the waterskin clasped between his hands. A second later he was gently pressing it to her lips, allowing the water to dribble out.
Almost like a starved animal, (Y/n) clawed onto his wrist and began to gulp the refreshing liquid until she felt sick. She gasped for air as she pulled away, closing her eyes as she felt her sore throat ease slightly.
Without a word, Bakugou began to stand but (Y/n), still clutching his wrist, pulled him back.
"Please..." She croaked out, "Stay- stay here."
He furrowed his eyebrows as he looked at the corner of the tent, but his head drooped in defeat, his blonde hair shielding his eyes,
"Okay."
It was quiet, but his voice gave a sense of safety to (Y/n) that she realised she hadn't felt in a while.
Nervously, she stared up at him, "Thank you."
"You're... welcome." He refused to look at her as he sat down next to her on the floor, though (Y/n) didn't hide her gaze one bit. She studied him.
Bakugou shifted uncomfortably and slouched into himself slightly, "You should continue resting up here while you get your bearings." He coughed out, "You've been out for a few days so you need to get your energy back, I'll get Dunceface to bring you some food in soon and ask Shitty Hai-"
"Why did you come back?"
Bakugou froze, swallowing awkwardly, "I-"
"Last time we spoke you made it very clear you wanted nothing to do with me, but you came back. Why?" The young witch stared at him unblinking.
The tent remained silent for a long moment, "Because I- I realised something. When you were on that boat heading for the ship, I-" He felt the words on the tip of his tongue but didn't know how to get them out, "Whenever we had argued before, in the end, you always came back. No matter how harsh- how much of an ass I'd been. You always ended up coming back and forgiving me. But when I saw you on that boat, I realised that that time you weren't going to come back." He clenched his teeth, "I couldn't bear it. I didn't sleep for days because all I could see was your face when I left you on that bridge, how I should have reacted and how I did."
"I'm sorry."
The boy lifted his head to look at her through glassy eyes, "I'm sorry too."
"I wanted to tell you. I just didn't know how." (Y/n) told him, "I was scared, scared that you would hate me. And you did." She whimpered softly, feeling all her emotions bubbling in her chest.
Bakugou's hand brushed against her cheek, "I never hated you." His rough fingertips trailed across her skin, leaving tingles in their wake. (Y/n)'s breath hitched as the pad of his thumb travelled to a stop at the corner of her bottom lip, "I could never hate you."
She wanted to kiss him. Every fibre in her body was yearning for his touch, for his lips to embrace her lips. Her heart was pounding in her chest as he leaned closer to her. It was suffocating and comforting at the same time.
"Bakugou." Her voice slipped out, abruptly stopping him as she noticed her hand pressed against his chest, "I need time."
Bakugou looked down in disappointment, "I- like you, (Y/n)."
The words came out as a hushed whisper, cutting through the air like a shard of glass. If he had said that a few months prior, (Y/n) felt like maybe she would have had a much different reaction to the heartfelt words.
"You left me."
Bakugou felt like his heart was shattering as he held his gaze to the floor, "I'm sorry."
"One of the League members visited me the night before you found out. He threatened me, threatened you." (Y/n) stated blankly, "He told me that he'd kill you and the village if I told anyone about his meet with me. I was scared, terrified. I hoped that when you did find out, it would have been through another means of me telling you, and that you of all people would accept me for what I was born to be, something I had no control over." A tear slipped from her eyes and trickled over the bridge of her nose, "I'd never cared for someone as much as I did you. And you were the only one who made me feel like the villain for something I could not change or control, all because of some prejudice over a type of person you had never met."
"It was a mistake, I know that now." She could see he was riddled with guilt, but she was upset. Upset with him and upset with herself. He needed to take accountability for what he had said.
"I'm a monster to you." Her voice broke as she said it. The words felt true. She was a monster to many people, all because of her abilities, because of her differences.
Bakugou reached forwards and held her by her shoulders, "No, don't say that. You're not a monster. I care for you (Y/n). I was angry, angry at myself that the person I felt for the most turned out to be the one thing I was told to hate." He moved his hands to cup her face, "I was wrong. Please, please let me make it up to you. I'd do anything for you, anything."
The boy pressed his forehead gently against her's as he confessed his feelings loud and clear. (Y/n) was speechless as she stared up into his crimson red eyes, relishing in the warmth of his skin against hers. He was always so warm.
"I- I need time."
"Time." Bakugou repeated sullenly, "I understand." He was quiet for a second before he met her eyes one last time, "I can wait."
(Y/n)'s heart fluttered.
"I'm going to get you some food. You're probably hungry." He left the tent without another word, leaving (Y/n) alone to her own thoughts. She could feel his warmth still. It always seemed that way, his presence alone leaving fire in its wake.
Shinsou came in not long after, rushing over and kneeling beside her, "You're awake. You had me worried." His hand clasped hers, almost engulfing them, "Sometimes it felt like you were never going to wake up."
Shinsou brushed the hair out of her face, "I missed you."
She let out a hum in response, her attention focused on the entrance of the tent.
"(Y/n)?"
She snapped back to reality as Shinsou stared down at her with his tired violet eyes.
"Are you okay?"
"Sorry, I'm fine." She murmured back. He felt her forehead with the back of his palm,
"Do you feel dizzy at all?"
(Y/n) swallowed, "No, really, I'm okay. Thank you."
He backed away slightly, a look passing over his face, "Alright, I guess I'll get you some food then."
"Oh, no, Bakugou said he was going to get some for me."
Something dark passed through his eyes, "Right, Bakugou." He grit out, "I suppose I'll leave you to rest for a bit then." He pulled away from her.
"You don't have to go," (Y/n) frowned as he avoided meeting her eye, "I'd like some company."
Shinsou swallowed, "Uraraka said she wanted to check up on you anyway, so I'll tell her that you're up. I need to get more firewood anyway."
And with that, he stalked away.
(Y/n)'s head fell back, her mind racing.
I'll wait.
Her lips curled into a smile.
"I'll wait."
***
A slightly shorter chapter than usual, but I hope you all enjoy for this update. How are you all doing?
Stay safe my wonderful readers,
BlueHawk