Chapter Text
Your heartbeat hammered in your ears, your mouth hung open as you panted, legs and lungs burning. You had evaded him before; you could do it again. It didn’t matter if he was faster; you had a major weight and size advantage. Making a break for another thicker part of the woods, you barely registered when something snaked around your ankles, tightening and yanking your legs out from under you. A weight smashed into your back, causing you to pitch forward and slam into the forest floor, tearing the air from your lungs mid-breath. The impact stunned you, and you barely registered the hand pressing down on the nape of your neck, or that the heat burning through your veins wasn’t from adrenaline at all.
-
Finals week came faster than anyone would have liked that year, and with it, a miasma of anxiety swept over your class. Last year, the lab exam involved fighting; this one would likely be different.
“Thanks for offering to help me train Y/N, I think Kacchan was sick of me asking him…” The bunny hybrid’s ears drooped, which gave him the appearance of a poodle, his hair still slightly frizzy from the blond’s punishing training.
“I can’t guarantee it’ll be very difficult; my quirk isn’t very useful for this type of thing. I’m more of a group fighter.” Your quirk ‘Lion Heart’ allowed you to increase the strength and endurance of any person, including yourself. It was a pretty simple power-up type quirk, but due to its name and your appearance, it sounded much more impressive than it actually was.
“Well, All Might suggested I do capture training to simulate catching a villain, and well- I haven’t done a very good job so far.” He looked hopeful.
You finish tying your shoes, your watch buzzing. Opening your bag, you pop a pill, then take a swig of water. Stretching, you turn to your short training partner.
“Ok, so how should we do this?”
“I was thinking I’ll give you a 5-minute head start to make your way as far as possible, then I’ll follow.” He fiddles with his gauntlets.
“Are you sure? That’s a long time…” You turn to look at the forest. It was late afternoon, and the trees offered ample shade from the sun. If you tried, you would likely be able to get to a denser part that would be easier to hide in; you didn’t want to get stuck in the open. The only advantage you had was size; since he was faster than you, it would be possible to evade him if you weren’t in a clearing.
“Yeah, I’m sure…” He was spacing out slightly, determined.
“Alright, if you say so.” Your tail flicks as you scheme. “Are you ready, or do you need more time?”
“I am if you are.” He taps his foot in the dirt.
“OK, 5 minutes, on the clock.” You check your watch before taking off into the brush, activating your quirk to give yourself an extra boost. You hated running in all honesty, but thanks to your quirk, you wouldn’t tire as quickly. It was 4:03, which gave you until 4:08 to find a dense area to hide in. But just staying out of sight wouldn’t save you. Midoriya had a keen sense of smell, just like any mammal hybrid. You immediately notice the humidity in the air as you run swiftly through the trees. It was the middle of spring, and it had been raining off and on this week, you would definitely give yourself away from the smell of your sweat. If you could somehow get around him to get upwind, it would be the ideal play. It would take almost the entire time to do that, but regardless…
You keep your tail and ears low, preventing them from snagging on anything or dropping any fur. Thankfully, you remembered to tie your hair up tight prior. The clock made it to 4:06 when you got to the other side of the classroom building, and you began running away from the wind. Finding a dense part of the forest was your best bet now, and then you would climb a tree to hide yourself. When the clock hit 4:08, you glanced around, finding a tree with heavy foliage. Making sure not to use your claws too much, you scaled the branches, going as high as possible without eliminating your visibility of the forest floor entirely.
You focus on quieting your breathing and slowing your heart rate. Rabbit ears were incredibly sensitive; any movement or sound you made would reveal your position. You crouched on the branch, tail held out to steady yourself, ears flicking and twitching at every sound. For seemingly forever, you stay there. The birds sang, a raven cawed, a snap of a branch…above you. Holding your breath, you freeze, only your ear tilting slightly. In a sudden flurry, you both seize the moment, your powerful legs sending you off the tree and onto the ground, and you have to roll to absorb the impact. You can hear him follow as you dart into the brush, your only advantage now being your superior vision. In all honesty, you didn’t know it was actually him when you heard the branch move; it could have just been a large bird, but you had a hunch. Regardless, you had to think fast now; he wouldn’t lose you easily now that he had eyes on you. He was too damn fast.
You take a sharp turn right when you see the trees thinning, the dorm building slightly visible, and you have to dodge him when he makes a leap towards you. A tree splinters and cracks, presumably from him using it to change direction. You had used your own quirk to quicken your pace after your slight change in speed to turn. If you could somehow make your way back in the direction you began, you would gain the advantage and throw him off your scent. You ran for a while, changing your direction at random and keeping out of sight. Only when the sound of him faded did you slow slightly to catch your breath. That was until a flash of green lit up the dim undergrowth, and he was suddenly in front of you. Since it was dense, he wouldn’t be able to use Blackwhip, but he was still fast and made a leap forward to tackle you. Doing the first thing that comes to your mind, you slam a hand down onto his shoulder and leap, jumping over him and taking off away from the dorm building, your prior plan foiled.
-
You were toying with him, using the dense foliage to keep him at a distance, changing directions at random, leading him back to the other side of the woods to try to get downwind from him. But it was when you leapt over him that it really became a chase, sending his adrenaline pumping, and a thrill shooting through him. It was becoming a game now. He only found you in the first place because of your sweat; it was a humid spring day after all. He knew you would try to hide up high; it would be your benefit after all, considering his height and speed. But, because he had blackwhip now, he was able to get a jump on you from above.
He splinters another tree when you change directions again, the smell of your sweat is strong now, and is drowning out the usual scent of your deodorant and perfume. He was keeping up with you easier now; you were slowing, quirk unable to keep up with the constant running and dodging. The realization roused him to pick up the pace; he was getting closer and could hear your panting, could scent your fresh sweat.
-
You didn’t know how much longer you could go. You were too hot, too exhausted, dazed from constantly dodging trees, changing directions, becoming confused by what side of the dorm you were on now, and how close Midoriya was. You couldn’t smell him now, likely meaning he was downwind from you, not good. Pushing yourself, not caring about how loud you were being now, you pressed on. It was only when the realization hit you, the trees were thinning, that you felt your legs get yanked out from under you, a weight slamming into you from behind. The impact of your body hitting the earth immediately knocked the wind from you in the form of a wounded yelp, stunning you. Suddenly, you were in the grass, the weight on your upper back and the hand on your neck keeping you pinned, making it hard to breathe. You were still so hot, your gym clothes stuck to your sweaty skin, and the forest floor was lumpy and uncomfortable. Panting, you couldn’t think about anything, forgetting where you were or why you were there for a moment. You tried to get your hands under you to push up, but they were immobilized. Blackwhip coiled tight around your wrists in a bruising grip. You could feel his weight on the backs of your thighs, and your hips rose instinctively. He had you pinned, couldn’t he see? You let out a whine, arching your back, pushing your hips upward. You felt the palm slide down from between your shoulder blades to grasp your waist, and a pair of hips rolled against you. Realization hits you like a bucket of cold water for a moment, and you remember where you were. It takes all your strength to activate your quirk despite your exhaustion, and to yank your arm back to crack him in the side of the head. A yelp of pain hit your ears.