One-shot collection

Free From Destiny

Part 1 of 3
My Hero Academia: MaleReader x Mirko

Authors notes: One of my favorite things to read are short drabbles or one-shots about love at first sight, or soulmates. So, with this one-shot, you're getting both.
  It's a very interesting concept to undertake when someone like Mirko is vehemently against the idea of being in a team. There's so much that could be there and I just loved the idea of "Love at first sight, but one side is scared shitless and the other is wired differently. And despite it all, they're somehow meant for one another."
  I intend this one to be at least 12,000-16,000 words. I'd write more but this alone is 6,000.
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Deep within a lush, forgotten forest, a journey was underway. Birds soared overhead, squirrels scurried about, and woodpeckers filled the land with thunderous white noise.
Down below, oblivious to what was above, a lone tortoise walked. He did not know how far he had walked, and he did not know where he was going, only that he was heading in the right direction.
Occasionally, he would sit and feast what the forest offered. Sometimes he would bask in what nature had provided as life flew by.
In a world void man, he was unstoppable. Albeit a little slower than he would like.
Through rain or shine he walked. In his relatively young life, he had little else to do. Or rather, he didn't want to do anything else.
Amid his travels, the grass rustled with mysterious creatures. He raised his head and turned, looking left then right.
Was it a beast? He blinked slowly and dismissed it with a heavy sigh. So it would seem.
His head and legs retracted, encasing his entire body within his armored shell. There he waited, even allowing himself a small nap as the predator outside tapped and scratched on his shell.
Soon, after just a few minutes, it had stopped. Emerging from his shell, the tortoise opened his eyes, set on continuing his arduous journey. Only, when he did, he came face-to-face with snow-white pelt and gleaming red eyes.
It was a bunny. The tortoise hadn't seen one of such rarity and beauty before. To say he was surprised was an understatement.
Lowering his head, the tortoise poked the bunny's nose with his own, narrowing his vision and giving him a better view.
The bunny tilted her head, curiously and almost shocked to his presence. She hadn't seen something such as him either. To think something so large and slow existed was mind boggling.
Soon, the tortoise offered a small sigh and lumbered on. With his slow takeoff the bunny gave way, watching him depart with a painful speed.
For an hour he walked. And sure enough, the sounds of rushing water met his ears. Ecstatic, the tortoise picked up his pace, blitzing through foliage and toppling stones with his brazen mass alone.
Coming upon a stream of water, he trudged in with reckless abandon. A great groan left his chest as the cool water rushed along his shell and into his mouth, quenching his thirst and soothing his aching bones.
Blinking his eyes for a moment, he peered beyond the blurring waves to see a white blotch at his side. It was the bunny.
As curious as ever, the bunny joined him in sipping the cool water. She didn't think it was possible, but seeing the tortoise take off was a thrill in itself.
After a moment, the tortoise lifted himself from the flowing water and continued on. The bunny was very far behind as she crossed the rushing stream from an overhanging log.
She hopped and jumped over tree or stone, rapidly closing the distance between them. The tortoise paid her little mind as he walked. She was no threat to him, and neither he to her.
They walked and occasionally ran, either under the sun or blanket of stars. To where, they didn't know. Only that they knew they were going the right way.

The cheers of men and women were at a knight's back. Cries of savage encouragement filled his ears, calling for blood and the head of his opponent.
Two armies in the thousands came to a standstill. Between a king and queen were two champions, one a knight and the other a warrior.
The warrior was visibly shorter but had strong shoulders and thick arms. The knight gauge her any further when the rest of her frame was protected by ivory armor stained red from past battles.
The knight drew his sword; a one-handed short blade to compliment his small shield. He didn't measure up to the warrior's greathammer, but he more than made up for it with his smaller frame and lighter armor.
"I never expected the queen's champion to be someone so small." The warrior taunted.
"Seeing the womanizer king choose a woman is just as surprising." The knight replied.
"Fair." The warrior snorted before drawing her hammer. "Are you ready?"
"I've said my prayers, you mongrel." The knight spat. "Have you?"
"I'm a child to no god." She growled.
With knees bent, the warrior charged forth. With surprising speed, she swung out in a wide arc, missing the nimble knight.
The knight shuffled to her flank, capitalizing on her open flank with a furious shield bash to her ribs.
The warrior recoiled and swung back, backhanding the man across the cheek with spiked knuckles.
Rattled, the knight powered through, rolling to his side and avoiding a lethal swing from the woman's hammer. Jumping into a recovery, he continued his assault, returning the blow with his shield to her temple.
The warrior seemingly ignored the bone-rattling blow and thrust her wooden hilt out, scoring a debilitating blow to the knight's throat.
Backpedaling, the knight choked and gagged as his throat protested against his commands. Meanwhile, the warrior discarded her helm with a careless toss. The ivory metal had been pushed in, nicking her nose and breaking it.
The knight recovered with unseen fury. And while for just a moment, he stood there, breathless for two reasons alone.
His trachea had nearly collapsed under the warrior's rage. And secondly, the warrior, the woman, reminded him of someone.
"Well met." The warrior huffed before blowing bloody snot from her nose.
Her head was shaved clean and her eyes bloodshot as tears ran down her cheeks. He couldn't see it, but he was sure her eyes were as bloody as her nose.
"Likewise." The knight coughed. He reached up, undoing the buckle to his helmet before discarding it. He was noble and fair, even in a fight to the death.
"Have I seen you somewhere before?" She asked, her eyes narrowed.
"No." The knight cleared his throat and spat.
"Hm." Shouldering her hammer, the warrior grunted dismissively. "Could've sworn... Ah, well."
"Yes," The knight agreed and readied his arms. "Perhaps in another life..."