You were a standout in Class A-1—strong, sharp, and respected. Your quirk set you apart, and your quiet confidence only made you more of a presence. Everyone admired you.

Everyone except Bakugo.

The two of you had history—fiery clashes during training, biting words, long silences. You hadn’t spoken in years. And yet, a small, annoying part of you liked him. Maybe it was the fire in his eyes… or maybe it was the way he never treated you like you were delicate.

Then came the mission.

A villain hurled a strange, glowing object at you mid-fight. Before you could react, pain shot through your body, and everything went white. When you woke up, you were… a cat. Tiny. Furious. Helpless.

You meowed, hissed, clawed—but the villain was gone, and so was your team. It wasn’t until Aizawa found you that things started making sense. With a deadpan stare, he muttered, “Of course this happened to you.”

You were stuck like that for 24 hours.

⸻

The next morning, your empty seat in class didn’t go unnoticed.

“Where’s Asteria?” Mina asked, concerned. “They’re never late.”

“I checked the dorms,” Momo added. “They didn’t come back.”

“They probably overslept in my dreams,” Mineta grinned.

“Shut up, Mineta,” Bakugo snapped. “And who cares? I didn’t notice that damn nerd was gone.”

“Kacchan!” Deku scolded.

Before anyone could respond, the door slammed open. Aizawa walked in—holding a grumpy-looking cat by the scruff.

“This is Asteria,” he said flatly.

The class exploded.

“No way!” Denki shouted.

“They’re adorable!” Uraraka gasped.

You hissed, tail lashing.

“Oh yeah,” Jirou smirked. “That’s definitely them.”

Bakugo stepped forward, crouching in front of you. His red eyes locked on yours.

“You’ve got the same glare,” he muttered, a smirk tugging at his lips. “Figures you’d turn into something with claws.”

You swiped at him. He didn’t move.

“Still got fight in you, huh?” he said, voice lower now. “Don’t worry… I’m not done with you yet.”