Set Me Free

Chapter 12. The Capital

A/N: Check out the image at the top.

---I-AM-A-LINE---

"Strangers are just friends you haven't made yet."

---I-AM-A-LINE---

Bakugou had settled in for a miserable night of being drenched to the bone and shivering his ass off, but when he awoke the next morning, that wasn't the case. It was still pouring but he felt nor saw a single drop. In place of cold was warmth, and what should have been wet was high and dry.

A surprisingly neat pile of clothes topped off with a familiar pair of boots next to his legs caught his eye. Bakugou was surprised by the care she showed for the things he had given her, and again, without them, their deal of her coming into the city with him today would be off.

The rain finally seemed to fade, but by then Kirishima's deep, steady breathing had attempted to lure him back into slumber, and he found himself losing the battle. He managed to shake it off and pry himself away with great effort on his part. Well, partly.

Kirishima was in her larger form, and she had managed to coil around him in a sealed-off cocoon of sorts. Bakugou tried to shift the spread wing that had acted as a shield from the elements but to no avail.

"Oi, get up, damn it," with growing annoyance, the blonde shifted what he could of her tail to find the tip of her nose peeking inside, "don't you fucking dare crush me." Bakugou lined his foot up and, with perfect aim, nailed her right in the centre of her nose.

Immediately her nose disappeared out from under her wing, and Bakugou felt her shift into a more upright position, probably reeling from her rude awakening. A moment later, the red dragon cautiously lifted her wing and peered underneath. Kirishima narrowed her eyes slightly before folding her wings back and releasing her 'captive'.

"Finally."

Kirishima rolled her eyes before recoiling her tail, swiping his legs out from under him, and beginning to change to her other form. The blonde's indignant cry kept her company as she did so, closely followed by the usual colourful language.

She grinned and said, "It's going to be a good day.'

The redhead practically skipped as she collected her clothes and shoes, on full display as usual, much to her companion's displeasure. (A/N: sureeeee) Though to his surprise, she dressed quickly and, even more surprisingly, correctly, and when she moved onto her boots, Bakugou nearly choked.

"The dragon winds around the mountain, through the cavern, then pulls tight." She looked so serious while reciting it and then suddenly broke out in a wide grin. The blonde felt the corner of his lips twitches slightly before frowning.

Damn it, why did he have to teach her that? He just hoped she wouldn't continue to say that out loud every time, and certainly not in front of the others. He would never hear the end of it. Though even so, Bakugou felt no need to correct her otherwise; he was so going to regret that choice later, he just knew it.

"I'm ready; let's go!" Kirishima was practically glowing as she bound off to the tree line.

"Oi," Bakugou raised an eyebrow when she spun on her heel to look at him before pointing in the opposite direction, a tick mark beginning to form when she laughed sheepishly.

He sighed "This is going to be a long day..."

---I-AM-A-LINE---

Excited didn't even begin to describe Kirishima at that moment. She was surrounded by so many new things and smells. Some were pleasant, some not so much, but they were all new, and she had the feeling she could spend days on end and still not explore all there was.