Broken Mask

Quick note before we start: I'm going to be putting out some of these chapters randomly to develop characters I can't write into the main story as of right now. Saturdays will always be a full chapter, these will likely be around 500-1,500 words depending on how much I want to write, and will focus on characters at UA and occasionally some minor villains :)

This takes place about four days after the end of chapter nine.

"Hey Tsu, hi Iida!" Ochako said, a bit too cheerfully, sitting down with her friends.

"Are you alright Uraraka? You seem very tired and you've hardly touched any of your food for the last few days." Iida said, worried about his friend.

"I'm fine! Just haven't been that hungry, that's all."

"Ochako, that's not true. You're still thinking about what Bakugou said aren't you, kero."

"What? No no no, it- it's not that! I'm fine, really!" She took a bite of her mochi.

"Alright, if you say so, but if you are struggling, you can come to us. We are your friends, right?" Iida said.

"I told you I'm fine! Just a little shaken up still. Let's talk about the sports festival! I'm really excited for it!" She laughed, changing the subject. Tsu and Iida shared a look of disbelief, but dropped the subject.

Later that night

"Hey Iida, I'm still worried about Ochako. She didn't even eat half her food today, and she went to take a nap as soon as afternoon classes were over, meaning she skipped dinner." Tsu said, sitting on the couch.

"Yes, I'm concerned about her as well. Maybe you should go check on her? I would go myself, but I'm trying to stop Sero and Kaminari from pulling too many pranks. Bring her some food, I'm sure she's hungry."

"Yeah, I'll be back in a little bit, kero." She got up, got a plate of food, and walked to the girl's side of the dorm, making her way to Ochako's room.

"Ochako?" She said, knocking gently on the door. When she didn't get a response, she tried the handle, which was surprisingly unlocked. She carefully opened the door and found Ochako asleep on her bed, hands clutches over her stomach.

Tsu crept closer, trying not to wake her friend up. She carefully set the plate down on the bedside table and stood for a second, unsure of what to do. On closer observation of the sleeping girl, her bones seemed to be starting to show through her skin. The frog girl had known that her friend was bony, but seeing her asleep made her look more fragile than ever.

Just as she was about to leave, Ochako woke up.

"Tsu?" She said groggily. "What are you doing in my room?"

"I brought you some dinner because you missed it. I also just wanted to check on you. Don't say that you're fine because I saw how frail you looked while you slept."

"What? I told you, I'm just-" Tsu shot her a glare- "okay fine. I'm not okay right now. Bakugou's words really hurt me, and I have a bad habit of not eating because... because my family's poor. I taught myself not to eat that much because they couldn't afford it. I started sleeping whenever I felt super hungry. I was getting better, but I've just been so upset that I guess I started doing it again without thinking. That's why I want to become a hero, so I can make money for them."

"Ochako... I'm so sorry. Look, Bakugou was just being an angry pomeranian, as per usual-" the brunette cracked a small smile at this comment- "and none of us think any less of you. You need to eat. The sports festival is coming up and I don't know what I would do if you got hurt badly because I didn't see what was happening. Take this food, and I'm going to stay here until you eat it all."

"Thank you Tsu. I- I know my reasoning for becoming a hero is selfish. I guess his comments just reinforced the feeling that I'm not cut out for this." She smiled gratefully as she took the plate from Tsu. There wasn't a lot of food on it, but there was enough to get her energy up.

"Ochako, listen, you are not selfish. You're doing this so your family can have a better life! That's the opposite of selfish, kero. Now eat or I'll shove this down your throat myself!"

After forty-five minute, Ochako managed to eat everything off of the plate. "Tsu? Thank you. You're the best friend a person could ever ask for. I don't know where I'd be without you."

Yeah... friends Tsu thought. Out loud, she said "Of course Ocha! You're my best friend, and you deserve to be happy and healthy."

"It's almost curfew, you should go before Aizawa~sensei catches you here."

"Oh, right, kero. See you tomorrow! You better eat. That is a threat!"

"Haha! I'll do my best Tsu." She gave a soft smile, blushing a little more than usual, causing Tsu to blush too as she left the room, taking the plate back to the kitchen, where she met up with Iida.

"Oh, Tsu! Is Uraraka doing alright?"

"Well, she is now." Tsu explained what had happened.

"Ah, I see. I feel horrible for not having seen it sooner. I'll have to apologize tomorrow."

"Iida, all that matters now is that we take care of her, kero."

"Yes! You're absolutely right! Good night Tsuyu, see you tomorrow."

"Night Iida." Tsu made her way back to her room and went to sleep, dreaming of the look Ochako had given her as she left the building.

Word Count: 881

Hope you liked this short chapter! Again, they'll be uploaded randomly when I feel like writing about characters that have been pushed to the side. The kinda sad thing is that it's actually canon that Ochako actually doesn't eat sometimes because of the fact she was brought up in a poor family. Also, Tsuchako. I'm sorry if you think this book is too shippy, but I can write what I want, so NYEH. Have a great day/night <3