04 — i just wish you'd open fire on me

[upfall]

[when aizawa dumps the whole motley lot of them in the middle of nowhere for a day-long wilderness exercise, uraraka half-expects it to go just as well as last year's summer training camp. which is to say, not at all.

one, it's the dead of winter. there are already a couple million ways someone can die while roughing it out in the woods, why not heap an avalanche of snow on top?

two, they were all arbitrarily distributed throughout the forest. they'd have to tough the climate out on their own, unless they chanced upon one of the others at some point. not exactly something she'd hold her breath for.

it's not all bad, though.

before being dropped in snow hell, the students of class 1-a were given the small kindness of a pack, containing the bare minimum of equipment needed to survive: some flares in case of an emergency, water, and one randomized item. for uraraka, it'd been a single multitool. a lot of good that'll do her when the hypothermia sets in.

that's how she finds herself in the back of a cave, knowing full well that her attempts to light a fire won't give because the only kindling she could scavenge was damp wood and clumps of dead grass. she persists!]

Alright, let's try this again— [cue the sounds of stones hitting against each other, but not quite with enough friction cause a spark] Rrrgh. Come... on...

Comments

[upfall]

[the mention of remedial lessons does stir something in her memory. she vaguely remembers taking part in a conversation where someone or other—maybe deku, maybe iida—had asked todoroki how the lessons had gone. there'd been something about a horde of children... oh.]

Hey! It's not like that! [she sounds positively affronted. um??] This is a perfectly adultlike conversation. Now, c'mon.

[although it'd be even more adultlike if she didn't need to resort to games to make a small decision like this...]

[explosivo]

[ yeah, hopefully todoroki didn’t tell them about how he’d been ready to threaten kids or how they’d stolen his gauntlet for a while or how he’d... reluctantly... tried to actually be decent with them, after all.

anyway. ] Fine, janken. Let’s go. [ rock paper scissors...! he chooses rock, because of course. ]

[upfall]

[truthfully, she's a little stunned at his relatively easy agreement to humor her, so when the time comes to make her move, uraraka fumbles and two fingers reflexively jut out. scissors. guhhh.]

Aw, darn it... [uraraka's not particularly down and out about the loss, though. if a fair and square decision was what she wanted, it's what she got. it's just that she feels a little—guilty. like she's wasted their time with her insistence. her arm drops back to her side.]

Alright, fine, I'll stay back. If you run into anything [like a yeti...!] just, uh, yell? Or maybe bring it back if we can eat it...

[explosivo]

[ well, he likes winning.] What were you gonna do if you win, keep me here like a prize? [ that’s a surreal thought. but even a small silly win like this seems to put him in a slightly better mood as he leaves the cave, pausing just outside the entrance. ] If I find a kill a bear or some shit, I’d drag it back here for you to butcher, how about that?

Since you’re the loser. [ mature as shit bakugou katsuki. ]

[upfall]

We wouldn't even finish eating a bear, Bakugou!

[she calls out after him, against her better judgment. why... why does she have a feeling he's going to go out there and purposefully find something to hunt down now? what if the bear has cubs?

the moment he's completely gone from her sight, uraraka lets out a breath, one that creates a silvery cloud. reluctantly, her gaze dips back down to sorry pile beside her feet. no escape.]

...back to work, I guess.

[explosivo]

[ he's gone for about twenty minutes, moves briskly out into the woods with a stronger sense of purpose now that he's found shelter and found company. he'd spent a lot of time being the antisocial lone wolf or whatever for half his first year tenure already but... by now even he's had it drilled into him, he's learned after everything that's happened that it's better not to be alone. and it wouldn't be something he'd say to uraraka but honestly he is pretty glad to have found her. just knowing she's there gives him more incentive to make sure the both of them are all right.

so, twenty minutes later there's a shuffling noise of snow off of the rock face--if she looks out she might see bakugou resting large fallen boughs thick with winter foliage against the entrance. a block to wind and, maybe, creatures who might want to enter the cave. and then moments later he enters again, dragging more fallen branches, the pockets of his loose hero pants seem to be full with more presumably kindling material. ]

Fucking... pain in the ass shit.

Oi, round face. [ HAULS IN more birch or pine branches. ] Got more wood for you. [ ....... ] To burn. [ ... right. though it'd probably have to be broken down. anyway how's progress with the fire. ]

[upfall]

O-Oh, thanks! [there's a forced, uneven quality to her voice, like she's actively trying to keep her teeth from chattering. judging from the way tremors roll off her entire body, head to toe, it looks like the cold has finally been getting to her. probably something to do with the temperature drop that came with dusk fall.

she's in the exact same position he'd found her in, squatting and hunched over, only this time she doesn't look quite as defeated. there, beneath her hovering palms, a small, wispy flame flickers, its tips reaching for her hands. knowing her luck, it would have been snuffed out with a single gust in due time, so bakugou's return and foresight—she never would of thought of adding extra coverage to the entrance—couldn't have been more perfect.]

Go ahead and warm up, I'll take care of the wood...! While you're at it, feel free to toss in whatever you have in your pockets.

[the second uraraka pulls herself up off her haunches and past bakugou, to the pile of branches, she immediately misses the warmth of the fire. if it's this cold in the cave, it must have been freezing out there. geez, it may have only been twenty minutes, but how'd he do it? sheer stubborn force of will? complete spiritual denial of the elements?

...

actually, that kind of aligns with his character. she could believe it.]

All I need to do is just... halve 'em, right? [her hand grasps one end of a branch, bobbing up and down a little to test the weight of it. hm. heavy.]

[explosivo]

[ damn... well, this is a start. it could be worse. he could have walked back in here and she might be an icicle--

his eyebrow twitches a little but shittily enough, he isn't even sure what he's even irritated at--the fire progress, her state, maybe even the weather itself for being cold... ] Did you pay attention during those survival lessons or what? [ then again it's not like he's some camping nerd or anything, but-- ] When you start the fire you gotta feed it with the small pieces of bark or moss and shit, then give it the bigger twigs... look. [ he's not some lecturer, it's simpler to just do things himself sometimes. he's independent. he's someone who would still rather do shit himself and rarely rely on people.

he sits down heavily next to her, practically fuming a little. even if he does get cold rather easily, moving about outside and trekking through the wilderness does quite a lot to keep him warm, even at this proximity his body heat is evident. as a person his temperature always runs high.

he tosses her a branch, catch fast...! then takes one of his own, peeks off thin pieces of outer bark to feed to the small spark of fire and coax it into growing. ] Like this. [ almost patient in this as he builds the ember into flickering up, but he's surprisingly intent about it. the priority here is to warm her up. ]

[upfall]

[between the demonstration and the sudden proximity, uraraka's a little thrown. and on any other day, she might have questioned him, asked if he was coming down with something, but right now she's just appreciative of the additional warmth, whether or not he means to offer it. better not look a gift horse in the mouth.

hugging the branch to her chest, she leans in closer to him than is probably necessary, trying to get a better view of his hands and the darkening peels of bark. it isn't as if she hadn't been listening to the lessons. sure, she'd tuned out every once in awhile, but she'd still managed to catch the most important bits! the thing is, application is always different than theory. the former usually requires either practice or talent, both of which—in this case, anyways—she lacks in spades.]

Ooh, it's really working... Geez, you're good at this. It's like you could be a forest ranger or something!

[tearing off a few her own pieces of bark, probably a little thinner than bakugou's had been, uraraka experimentally slides one into their slow-blooming fire, then another; there's something a little mesmerizing about the way the flame burns through the fodder. maybe it's just how, only a few minutes ago, there had been barely anything there, but with their combined efforts, they'd made something lasting! it's kinda nice.

then, without looking at him, eyes glued to the campfire:] You know, I'm really glad you're here, Bakugou.

[explosivo]

[ oh yeah, he's coming down with a bad case of trapped in a cave with a cute girl--

that is, with uraraka. same difference. look he's finally giving this whole be-a-team-player thing a shot especially after that co-op training session, is this worth that much amazement?? better say it to his face if she's that surprised... ]

What am I gonna do being a ranger? I'm a hero. [ probably not interested unless he's out there fighting crime against bears or something. he scowls briefly but whatever offense perks up is mollified somewhat by her admitting... this. this might as well be the rarest damn thing anyone could say to him. being glad that he's there.

in any other situation he'd like to make anyone sorry to share breathing room with him but for a moment he just stares at her in bewilderment like her.

maybe, just maybe, 1% of him is kind of touched by this.

most of him though... ] Did your brain freeze? [ serious question here. ]

[upfall]

[yeah, you're not so bad yourself, bakugou. confusion's a good look on him.

it feels like, for the first time that night, her shoulders are shaking from something other than the cold. she tosses her head back, the sound of her laughter echoing throughout the cave, bouncing off the walls. there's something warm blooming in her chest.]

Of course not! That only happens whenever I drink slushies or eat ice cream too fast!

[did she completely miss the point or just elect to deflect the question? tune in next time, kids...]

[explosivo]

[ if he's a suspicious bastard (and he IS) then yeah, he'd just about guess she's deflecting. her laugh takes him off guard, he nearly drops the stick he's holding, she has a... nice laugh... wait, maybe this is another distraction tactic. his eyes narrow, almost sizing her up a little because this is deku's friend after all and she has almost gotten the better of him that time in their fight and he respects her but...

yeah, this is still uraraka. she doesn't know how to be shady.

probably. he scowls a little as he stabs another stick at the fire with embarrased shitty fury. ] Damn, what's so funny... then you're just saying that because I went and fetched all the wood. [ yes, he'd volunteered. still. be grateful already!! or rather, don't!! because apparently he's shit at taking compliments or praise, so. ]

[upfall]

Well, not just for the wood... [although, he had been pretty helpful on that front. but. you know. she still could have done it herself.] I'm glad that we're classmates.

[that's not a weird thing to say, right? she means it. no take-backs.

drawing her legs up to a bend, she rests her chin on the valley between her knees, just watching as their flame gradually begins to resemble the ones that'd been in their camping manuals (before aizawa had ordered the class to toss them out the bus window, that is). bakugou's always been good at that, she thinks. prodding the things around him until they either shrivel up and die—or measure up. it's the same way with deku, even if they're unaware of it. even if they fight against it.]

I feel like I'm always learning something from you.

[explosivo]

[ is she in some sentimental mood or what? his glare is skeptical, almost trying to size her up or trying to figure out what her angle is, being this sappy out of nowhere like this. glad to be classmates? what, does she think he's happy to hear that or somethi--

anyway, let's just stubbornly not examine whether he is or not. ]

Guess the first fucking thing you can learn right now is how to at least not die in some survival situation like this. [ but the corner of his scowl twitches like he's trying to hold it. his ears feel faintly warm. god, that better be from the fire. ] What kind of learning are you talking about... [ they don't even hang out that often-- ] You gonna learn how to chop and food prep like a pro after seeing me do it at summer camp?

[ mentioning that summer makes his scowl deepen, just momentarily, before he flicks one last piece of branch into the flames. ]

[upfall]

[maybe it's just uraraka, but, weirdly enough, the mood between them feels borderline... friendly? companionable?

it may be true that they don't really run in each other's circles, but they've been classmates for awhile, and she counts him as a sorta friend, at least. that's probably why uraraka gets a little ahead of herself and. elbows him. playfully, of course! it's more like a light nudge against his ribcage, if he can even feel it through the material of his jacket. eiiither way. take that, bakugou!!! she isn't saying anything strange, okay.]

That's not what I meant! [his scowl doesn't escape her notice, though. a lot has happened since then, obviously, but that summer... everyone tiptoes around what happened. they have to, to avoid a long, deeply uncomfortable conversation. the pout that'd formed at her lips gives way and her expression softens.]

Anyways, I only saw you prep like that the one time... kinda been awhile. You should show me again once we get out of here.