Caged Freedom -Finished-

Ch 40: Mission??

Valkyr barely paid attention in class. She had horrible nightmares the night before. It took both Bakugou and Kirishima a while to calm her down. She cried clinging to them most the night unable to sleep. She feared what else she would see and remember in her dreams. She felt guilty for making them both lose sleep. Bakugou tried to get her to talk about it but she would just shake her head. She was part of a secret ongoing missions. She didn't think she could tell anyone what was going on. 

Valkyr barely noticed Bakugou, Kirishima, and even Midoirya glancing at her throughout the day. All worried about her. Even Aizawa glanced at her, concerned for her. She looked exhausted and he could see the boys worried about her. During lunch she was slower to pack up her things than others. Aizawa walked over and put a gentle hand on her shoulder. 

"Are you alright, Valkyr?" Aizawa asked concerned. Valkyr gave a soft nod, not looking up to meet his gaze. 

"Just got a lot on my mind from this new internship," Valkyr told him. 

"Well don't let Nighteye work you to hard," Aizawa said and ruffled her hair. "And if something happened that makes you uncomfortable, let me know, alright?" Valkyr nodded. She gave him a soft smile before heading out to lunch, though she wasn't very hungry. 

"Tell me what happened Deku!!" She heard yelling. Valkyr let out a sigh, already knowing what was going on. She walked towards the voices she heard. 

"What do you mean Kacchan?" Midoirya asked looking away. 

"What happened out on your patrol yesterday?" Bakugou growled. "Val hasn't been the same since you both got back. And she was screaming in her sleep last night. I haven't heard her scream like that since....." Bakugou stopped and looked down. His hands in tight fists and she was shaking. "Just fucking tell me!" Valkyr walked around the corner to see Bakugou had Midoirya backed into a corner. 

"Let Izu go Katsuki," Valkyr sighed. Both boys jumped and looked over at her. 

"Val come on," Bakugou said as he took a step away from Midoirya. Though a lot of the anger left his voice while talking to her. 

"Is it true, Valkyr?" Midoirya asked concerned. "Are you ok?" Valkyr looked away from them. It was obvious she hadn't slept well. She just looked tired and defeated. 

"I'm alright, Izu," Valkyr said. "No need to worry."

"Was it because of him?" Midoirya asked. 

"Because of who?" Bakugou growled. He hated being out of the loop especially when it came to something like this. She was hurting and he didn't know how to help. "Who's him?" Valkyr gave Midoirya a pointed look, who covered his mouth realizing his mistake. Valkyr sighed heavily. 

"I can't tell you details. Our mission is a secret," Valkyr said looking at him tiredly. "But on patrol yesterday, we ran into a certain villain that i knew......back then." Valkyr looked down with a grimace. "Someone.....who worked with Shade." she said softly. Bakugou turned to Midoirya and slammed him against the wall. 

"And you fucking let this happen?" Bakugou growled. "You're supposed to fucking protect her!!"

"Katsuki enough!" Valkyr said firmly. "Enough please." She said softer. She looked on the verge of tears. Bakugou frowned and let Midoirya go. "Izu didn't let this happen. Shade knew a lot of people. I'm bound to run into a lot of villains he worked with....over and over." She said looking down. "This one....just happened to be one of the worst ones." She hugged herself. "I'm sorry I woke you last night and kept you awake. I'm sorry I'm worrying you. But I'm not going to stop being a hero." She looked up at him with determination in her eyes. She had to save that little girl.