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Tsuyu draped herself over the only open window in her room. She let her tongue slip out and she sighed, eyes drooping shut as a breeze tickled her face.
Once upon a time, she thought the area around the castle was gorgeous. However after a year of having to see the same scenery over and over again, she could no longer appreciate the beauty of it. Instead, the trees were too green, the fruit growing on them looked like plastic, and the sun was too bright.
All in all, the life of a princess sucked.
She opened her eyes slowly, half hoping the setting she had to endure would transform for once. She looked down the road leading to her castle and froze. Down the path were two figures, heading her way.
She immediately stood up and forced her tongue back inside, momentarily choking at how dry it had gotten. She cleared her throat and waved a hand at the approaching duo.
“Hello!” She shouted.
The two people broke into a jog after that, quickly reaching the front of her castle. She looked down at them, eyes roaming over their appearance.
One had wild green hair that matched perfectly with the trees that taunted her. He wore a white long-sleeved shirt and a green vest. Tsuyu narrowed her eyes at his footwear, huffing a small laugh at how out of place the bulky boots were.
“Are you here to save me?” She asked him, head cocked to the side.
“Oh, ah, n-no!” He replied, trembling hands held in front of him.
“That would be me!” The person next to him said. Tsuyu switched her attention, her heart skipping a beat at the sight of the girl below. She had on a rouge colored hooded piece that formed a pointy hat around her head.
“A witch?” Tsuyu called out, leaning forward so she could get a better look. The girl had a wooden staff with some sort of gem embedded into it.
The witch grinned, “I’m Ochako Uraraka, and I’m here to save you, princess!”
Tsuyu blinked, and then gulped. “Thank you.”
Uraraka gave her a thumbs up before she held out her staff. She turned it onto its side and Tsuyu’s mouth opened slightly as she let go and it remained in place, floating above the ground. Uraraka settled down onto it and then she was levitating higher, and higher until she was right in front of the castle window.
Tsuyu shivered in anticipation as she held her hand out to the other girl. Uraraka smiled sweetly as she helped her, carefully grabbing her wrist and balancing her. Tsuyu sat next to her, refusing to look down. Soon they were on the ground again.
“Hello! I’m Izuku Midoriya, nice to meet you, princess!” The boy walked over to them and bowed. Tsuyu chuckled.
“Thank you very much, travelers. I am princess Tsuyu Asui.” She curtsied. “I must admit, I am quite glad Uraraka is my rescuer. No offense, Midoriya. I just prefer girls.”
“S-so blunt,” Midoriya stuttered, face pinched up around a smile. “It’s fine, princess Asui-”
“Call me Tsu!”
“P-Princess Tsu,” Midoriya seemed very pale. “I-I prefer rocks to pebbles myself, so I understand.”
Tsuyu perked up, “In that case, I know of a prince not too far away from here who is looking to get saved as well.”
“You do? How is that?” Uraraka questioned, brows quirked up.
“Pigeons, of course.” Tsuyu stuck her tongue out. “Prince Todoroki and I have been writing messages to each other since I was first trapped here. He’s been stuck for much longer than I have. His father sure is something.” Tsuyu shook her head. “Something awful.”
Midoriya didn’t reply to her, but she could see the distant look in his eyes. He turned away from them and started muttering to himself. Uraraka snorted and faced her, smile wide.
“He’s going to be like that for awhile,” She gestured to him. “How long were you trapped here?”
“A year or so, I think. It’s easy to lose track of time when all you have to focus on is how food keeps reappearing in the castle even though you’re the only one it in.” Tsuyu brought a finger up to her chin in thought.
“That sounds like magic!” Uraraka replied quickly, eyes sparkling. Tsuyu stared into them. Were it not for the sound of Midoriya mumbling nearby, she was sure she would get lost in the blanket of warmth Uraraka’s eyes provided.
She coughed, swatting away the thoughts for now. Midoriya was done thinking to himself and was now staring at her strangely.
“Oh, are you cursed? Like the frog-prince?” He asked suddenly.
Uraraka choked at his side, flailing her arms around as she shouted. “You don’t just ask people if they’re cursed, Midoriya!”
Tsuyu laughed. “This is just how I look.”
Midoriya blanched, an almost quiet stream of broken noises escaping him.
She took pity on him. “Both of my parents were cursed, and they never found a way to truly break it. You’re looking at the daughter of two very cursed frog parents.”
She could sense an onslaught of questions incoming, but Uraraka was quick to shove her hand over Midoriya’s mouth.
“Think before you speak,” she growled at him. Tsuyu found her threatening persona underneath her bubbly appearance very endearing. She dropped her hand and Midoriya exhaled heavily.
“It’s not the weirdest thing we’ve encountered, I suppose.” Midoriya chuckled nervously.
Tsuyu’s eyes widened. “Really?”
Uraraka laughed. “Our, uh, acquaintance,” she emphasized with air quotes, “went to go slay a dragon, but ended up going home with the dragon instead.”
Tsuyu’s gaze dropped. Could they have been talking about Kirishima? She knew the boy was eager to meet a knight, but she had assumed he wanted to eat one, not get into one’s pants. Although if she was honest, she was not surprised. The dragonoid shapeshifter had been alone for many years, after all.
“Princess Tsu?” Uraraka’s voice brought her back to the present. She felt her cheeks tingle at the croak that involuntarily escaped her. Uraraka didn’t seem to mind though, sending a smile her way.
“Sorry,” Tsuyu replied. “How about you two? Why did you decide to rescue me?” She watched them closely. Truthfully, she was giving them a test. She wanted to know what they were after. No one went to the trouble of saving a princess if there wasn’t some sort of reward. Her own castle was not surrounded by much trial, but she refused to think people would save her just so she was saved. Otherwise, she would have been saved many months ago.
What did these two want? Wealth? Fame? From the looks of the duo, they did not seem to be royalty. Perhaps they wanted to share her position.
“Oh, actually, funny story, or I guess not so funny-” Midoriya started, but Uraraka cut him off.
“Let’s cut the crap,” Uraraka’s expression meant business. “Truth be told, princess Tsu, there’s a low-life knight on his way here as we speak.” She paused, glancing at Tsuyu before continuing. “His name is Minoru Mineta, and he wants your hand in marriage.”
Tsuyu hummed, “That is nothing new.”
“Of course, but you don’t know him like we do! He spent weeks bragging to the townsfolk about how he was going to have a princess as his wife soon, and how he would show her off as much as possible.” Uraraka’s expression darkened. “He made sure to remind us how he would have her bear his children, so he could take over the royal name with his gorgeous puppet queen.”
Tsuyu felt her fingers twitch at that. “He sounds like a fool to think I would meet his demands.”
Uraraka’s face lit up at that. “I said the same thing!”
“So, you came to rescue me not from this castle, but from a boy?”
“When you put it that way…”
“That’s pretty gay,” Tsuyu laughed, eyes closing in satisfaction. “Thank you, Uraraka. I appreciate it greatly.”
“Plus,” Uraraka whispered, “You sounded beautiful from the way the townsfolk described you.” Tsuyu opened her eyes to look at her. Uraraka was biting her lower lip, gaze off to the side. “You’re far prettier than I imagined.”
Midoriya chuckled by her side, resting a hand on her shoulder in support. Tsuyu stared at them for a moment before nodding.
“Then it’s settled,” she clasped her hands together, smiling at them. “I will gladly go with you two wherever you choose to take me.”
Uraraka looked like she was about to vomit as her eyes snapped to Tsuyu, mouth agape. “Really?”
Tsuyu nodded again, stepping over to stand directly in front of the witch. She leaned over and pressed a quick kiss to Uraraka’s cheek, watching with great amusement as her face reddened. She placed a hand on the spot Tsuyu placed her lips and a shaky sigh escaped her.
Midoriya glanced at her and snickered, placing both his hands on Uraraka’s shoulders as he turned her around, gesturing with his head for Tsuyu to follow.
“I think you broke her,” he commented, pushing her forward as they began to walk.
Tsuyu averted her eyes with a smile, a warmth spreading through her chest at the words. She was glad these two were the ones that came to rescue her. If the heartless knight had been the one, she would have made the decision to stay in the castle, despite how much the thought ached her. She was ready to live life again.
The thought of Uraraka by her side as she did was far from unpleasant. In fact, from the way the brunette was staring at her after she calmed down, Tsuyu imagined they’d be walking together for a long time to come.
“So, about that prince.” Midoriya spoke, having let go of Uraraka in favor of intertwining his fingers together in front of him.
Uraraka rolled her eyes. Her face was still pink, but she seemed relaxed enough. “Come on, Midoriya, one royalty at a time.”
Midoriya huffed, and Tsuyu chuckled. She reached over, refusing to make eye contact as she gently grabbed Uraraka’s hand. Her skin was soft, a contrast to how sweaty her own felt. Uraraka squeaked by her side, shoulders hunched up. Tsuyu went to pull away, but a hand wrapped around hers quickly.
She smiled.
For the first time in a long time, Tsuyu saw beauty once again.