The first thing Ochako feels is a dull ache in the very center of her brain, throbbing so loudly that she has no sense of anything but her pulse. The shooting pain of her arms follows, from nerves that slowly awaken with all her movements.
She winces and doesn't move. Slowly, the throb in her head dampens, and she hears human voices speaking not far from where she lay.
"... apologize for our late appearance, your highness! Alas, we were not able to stop her from her plans to escape--"
"That's right, my Prince! Ah, she's really a fired-up one, isn't she?! I heard as much from General Usagiyama!"
It takes a while for her to make sense of what she's hearing, but eventually she becomes aware of the softness of a bed, the echo of a wide room, the wind blowing outside the window. The smell of ashes fill her nostrils, but there is no heat. Iron, as well, sticky over her sleeve. She winces at the sensation.
"Oh! She awakens!"
Heavy footsteps thud to where she lay. She thought about staying still and pretending to be unconscious, but she feels the bothersome weight of the strangers' gazes around her, observing every minute movement of her face. And the awareness of the aches and pains all over her body makes it so difficult to stay still...
"Iida, Yoarashi. Give her space."
That voice--that's him, with that... That thing on him . Yellow eyes and darkness and skin as hot as coals. His voice is much closer than she expected. How did she not hear him breathe at her bedside?
She hears the owners of the other voices make baffled sounds and step back. The person next to her exhales briefly, sounding inconvenienced for some reason. "Do you really want to sleep for so long in this place? I wouldn't advise it."
The voice is refined, smooth as silk to her ears, but so flat and unaffected that it annoys her. He was there when she almost dropped to her death, right? And when he burnt her with dark magic and made her almost bleed to death? And now he has the gall to tell her off for resting after all that?
Before she can stop herself, she scowls and opens one eye.
She sees one-half of him. Silver hair like moonlight, a dark eye, smooth unmarred skin. A beautiful man by all accounts. A Prince, the other voices had said. If she didn't just witness this man almost kill her with giant claws, she would have swooned herself into unconsciousness.
Yet the situation is as such. If she had more fight in her, Ochako would have given him many vulgar choice words. "Are you seriously nagging me to wake up like you're my nanny?"
He looks into her eye, soft mouth in a straight line. "I'm telling you this for your own good."
Ochako opens her eyes fully and sees the other half of him as well. To her disdain, the vision she saw earlier was no illusion: red hair, bright yellow eyes. Pure black skin, shifting every so often that makes it look otherwordly. Steam rises as bright red peeks from cracks in his skin.
A monster?
He tilts her head in quiet curiosity. "What's wrong? Is there anything on my face?"
No, that can't be right. He doesn't sound like a monster. The half of him that looks like one looks different from before too. It wasn't as grisly or demonic as she remembered from before she passed out.
She blinks. "Yes? That black thing on your face? You can't miss it. Might wanna wash your face or somethin'."
Maybe sarcasm isn't the best response to this inane situation. Two men make a simultaneous surprised "Ah!" behind her, while the man stares at her with a hint of amusement in his mismatched eyes.
"That is quite rude, Princess Uraraka Ochako-kun from Mie!" One of the other men in the room, a knight in glasses, steps robotically into her line of vision with a disapproving look in his eyes. "Perhaps you are unaware, but you are in the presence of a Prince! Are you insinuating that his highness is half-blind, or cares so little about his appearance that he has neglected to see that half his face is--"
"Yo Iida!! Don't be like that!" The other one, a giant man with a loud voice that shakes the entire tower. "The princess's just concerned over Prince Shouto, that's all! I think it's awesome that she's trynna help him with it, don't ya?!"
Prince Shouto? Ochako looks at the man carefully again, more confused than ever. This doesn't make sense... the crowned prince of Shizuoka is renowned for many things, one of them his dashing looks. He isn't supposed to look like... well, this.
"She's being sarcastic, I think," he tells his knights, who look comically flustered at his declaration. "It's not a reaction I expected, all things considered."
By this time Ochako has seated herself up. The Prince, or so he is addressed, leans in closer to her so that she has a closer view of that side of him, and can see nothing else.
"Interesting how you can call this," he tells her, taking one of her hands with his right and pulling it close to that side of his face. He lets her fingers hover over the charred skin; her fingerpads sting with the searing heat emanating from within. "... as just a, what was that? A black-thing-on-my face?"
