"He's your oldest and your best friend...

if you need him, he'll be there again..."

Answering a call for help was standard fair for any hero. Running to the aid of someone you might not reach in time to save, arriving just in time to watch them die... all too often did things like this transpire too. Getting the call, hearing the screaming, begging pleading for their lives, it reminded him that he was just a man. There was only so much one could do, even with such gifts as his, to quell the suffering of innocents. By the time he'd arrived at the scene, it was long over.

This was someone's home. He stood there breathing, chest heaving up and down. A cold clammy sweat had started down, past his wide open eyes. Shock had overtaken his nerves, his mind. Blood caked the room. Ceilings, walls, the chairs, the table, all were splashed in the still warm fluid. Fingers lay scattered on the floor, a hunk of bone and flesh was centered in a puddle of red. Someone's torso, legs still attached, lay against a wall, torn open. The head was attached by what remained of their neck, half their face torn away and revealing the bones beneath. Hidden behind the couch was a much smaller body, its little hand resting over the head of a bloodied teddy bear.

He lurched away. Metal mask torn from his face he vomited over the railing into the street below. Gasping for breath, chest still heaving he shuddered and gagged. "What kind of-" he had to gulp back what to tried to evacuate his stomach. "It couldn't have been human!"

"Are you indeed so certain, Ingenium?" Wiping the vomit from his lips, Tensei Iida looked up to see her, in all her black and red splendor. Vanessa Valentine, he'd never had the opportunity to work with her. They'd all heard the stories, how she'd appeared one day, Eraser Head vying to see her established as a professional hero. The foreigner with unbelievable strength. When she'd first arrived on the scene it was only a few years into his career as a hero. Aizawa had dodged every question he'd asked, told him nothing he'd wanted to know about her or why he wanted her in this profession. Only he and someone called 'The Nameless One' seemed to have any idea what she was doing working as a hero. Not many knew about Valentine, most that did were suspicious of her at best. Tensei Iida was one such person.

Right now he was just thankful she was here, and that was a first. "Look at them..." he breathed, trying and failing to do so himself. "There's... there's nothing left. Just... parts." His stomach churned, queasy as if he'd eaten sour milk. She on the hand, looked right into the face of it.

Horrible as it was, there was not a trace of the disgust she felt worn upon her face. She walked to the center of the apartment, taking in the sight and rancid smells. "Have you been to the other apartments in the building?" Her eyes were locked on the body hidden behind the couch, her tone as lifeless as what now surrounded her.

"No," Ingenium replied, "I haven't."

Valentine pointed to something, hidden from view in another room. "They smashed through the wall, going into the next one over too."

The engine hero felt his heart -and stomach- sink. "What do you see in there?"

She turned and looked at him, not that he saw. Looking into that spectacle wasn't something he was brave enough to do. "It's... comparable to what happened here. Whoever our perpetrator is, they can't have gone far. This is... fresh."

How she knew this so easily, he didn't want to know. "They?" So he focused on what he could bear to.

"The bite marks... massive, jagged teeth." Eyes covered by tinted lenses surveyed the carnage, "I've only ever seen one person with teeth that could have done this." double checking her observations. "No one else could have-" she seemed to choke on her words for a moment. "eaten..." Which indeed she had, as just then she sounded as unsettled as he. "this much, besides."

Tensei's hand gripped at his belly, jaw clenched and eyes winced shut. "Oh god, you mean that thing from the news?" his head hung low, "where do you think the... thing went?"

Steeling her resolve, gulping back her own disgust, she ventured into the adjoining home. "When I find out, I'll call for you."

Did I ever tell you about my favorite flower?

I saw you fight today, in the tournament...

heard what you said...

in a lot of ways, you remind me of it now.

But then... you always did, my little Izu.

...

Vines were cut to ribbons with scarcely the effort required to move his arms. A feat either of his immense strength or the sharpness of his claws. Either way, it was an altogether brief encounter. Shiozaki hadn't even managed to bring up enough foliage to shield herself from him. She was barely obscured even from view by the time his palms -fingers splayed wide, an effort to diffuse the force of his hands impacting on her flesh- met her abdomen, throwing her from the ring. When Present Mic's announcement cut through the air, declaring him the victor, his hands were already over his ears. Wincing eyes declared he'd been hurt by the volume all the same. While the crowd cheered for him, he slunk away back to the concrete halls of the stadium. Winding back to the seats, where his classmates were waiting for him.

Some minutes remained between now and the final bout of the tournament, and recent events had left his mind disquiet. Jiro, his friend and arguably the one he felt closest to right now, had told him a great deal. Both about herself personally and what sort of life she'd lived in recent years. And that last implication... No. That didn't matter, not to him. With any luck, things would just go on like usual. A few awkward moments of putting his foot in his mouth, some sarcastic quips and the odd reference. They hadn't been friends long, but he was starting to get used to it. Of course, that was hardly the thing to focus on now, what with his next fight being so imminent. If he was one to gamble, it was a safe bet on his opponent being Todoroki. A young man formerly very much unknown to Deku. Their interactions before this day were to be described as non-existent, a fact that neither bothered nor put Deku at ease. He was just a classmate, someone who's face he only regarded as familiar thanks to their mutual attendance of Aizawa's classes.

Soon he would be his final opponent in the arena.

Sweat trailing down his skin, slick on his forehead, was wiped away by the back of his hand. Exertion's reward to a toiling body on a heated day. His stomach rumbled, his mind raced to recall if he had anything left in his thermos to eat. Memory has a way of faulting in the wake of hunger's pangs. So wend his way back to his compatriots he did, footsteps echoing in the faint light. A smell of glycerin and sweat, burnt skin reached his covered nostrils, laboring to breath beneath his silicone mask. Rounding the corner he saw him walking side by side with Uraraka, thus his feelings of encountering his old bully were mingled with something warmly, strangely, positive.

Waving to a smiling Uraraka, Deku went to walk right past them, to ignore Bakugo altogether and get to his thermos, when the familiar voice reached his ears. "Wait."

"I can't." His pace hadn't even slowed, barely had he gone passed the two of them when a hand grabbed his collar.

With a snarl, angry, maybe with some other emotion coloring that anger, Bakugo bared his teeth. "Damn it, Deku!"

"Wait!" Uraraka interposed herself between them, making Deku's eyes leap wide open. "You said you wanted to apologize for something! Not hurt him!" Heart rate through the roof, Deku froze with fear. After losing that fight against Jiro there was no predicting what heights Bakugo's temper would flare to, what he'd do to her. He put a hand on her shoulder, trying to move her away, but she just reached up and took his hand, squeezing it reassuringly. While Bakugo seemed to boil in his flesh, she stared him down, determination blazing behind her eyes.

"Shut up!" Snapped the warhead, "He was just gonna walk away!"

Uraraka seemed to get taller, her own anger making her puff up slightly. "If you were serious about apologizing that wouldn't matter!" She stepped closer to him, Deku's hand fell away from her shoulder. "Sorry isn't about what you want, it's about being kind to someone you wronged!"

Bakugo faulted at this, silence his only retort. He almost looked confused with that raised eyebrow, like he'd never once had this explained to him. No one spoke for a few moments while the warhead collected his thoughts, tried to comprehend what he'd just been told. His mouth had only just opened to speak when another voice caught their collected ears. "No." Icy, emotionless, monotone. The three of them peered back around the corner Deku had just rounded, down the hall, catching sight of two individuals who hadn't noticed them.

One bore a crimson scar over his left eye, iris a searing blue, and hair that was both red and white. Young, tall and with a physique earned by over a decade's worth of sculpting his body for the life of a hero. The other was a mammoth, towering over the boy with enough muscle mass to crush a lesser man with weight alone. His flame-red hair was offset by fierce eyes and beard made of fire. The nation's second greatest hero, Endeavor.

"I wasn't asking, boy." Said Endeavor. "You will use that fire of yours, embrace that part of yourself in this next match."

Todoroki's eyes narrowed into a glare. "I said no, and you know full well why I wont."

What was this? Why were these two arguing? Did they know each other? Wait... The resemblance, something in the area around their eyes. Father and son... "You're being an arrogant little fool." Endeavor scoffed. "I didn't spend so long trying to create you only for you to cast aside your gift like some unwanted toy." He took a step forward, looming over his son and casting a threatening shadow over his smaller form. "Do you understand?"

There was a slight tremble, a shaking of Todoroki's hands as he stared defiantly into his father's eyes. "You've never taken refusal of anything well, have you?" Something about the seething bite those words carried made Endeavor's twitch. At the barest hint of motion on his father's face, Todoroki's hand clenched into a shaking fist. "So it is true... " His eyes went wide with rage, "that's why I have this eye." blood trickled down the space between his fingers and palms. "You really are just a monster wearing the skin of a hero."

Nausea had settled into the pit of Deku's stomach, Uraraka's face told of similar horrors snaking through her mind. That... what was that implication? What did that mean? Why did Endeavor look like he was about to strangle Todoroki? Questions that received no answers before the hero's hand was around his son's collar, lifting him off the ground. "You..." He hissed, "haven't the slightest idea what you're talking about, what you're thinking."

"It's all I ever think about." Todoroki's voice strained, his teeth bared at the man holding him off the ground. "That's why, no matter what, I'm going to be the kind of hero you never were. I'm going to be better than you!"

Knuckles impacted into Todoroki's gut before he was dropped unceremoniously to the concrete floor. "You have until your final fight." Endevor turned on his heels, walking away, leaving his son in pain, on the ground. "Do not disappoint me." Without any regard for his child, rounding the corner and failing to notice the three onlooking teenagers, Endeavor stalked back to his seat.

"What-" Uraraka, pale as a ghost, gulped. "What just... what was that?" She was shaking, trembling in fear, disgust.

Deku was fighting a similar battle against his own body. Sickening, that was the only word for what he'd just seen. "I... I don't know."

Beside them both, a cold sweat drenching his skin, Bakugo's mind was racing, puzzling together the evidence he'd just beheld. 'Why I have this eye...?' Bakugo, slowly, linked something between the pro hero and his son. Flame quirk, brazenly on display. A burn scar over Todoroki's eye.

A burn scar over Deku's eye.

The kind of father who would lift his own child off the ground by his collar and-

His breathing stopped. Slowly, Bakugo's eyes trailed back to Deku. His hand, still gripping Deku's collar, pinning him to the wall. In horrified disgust, his fingers released the cloth of Deku's clothing, backing away from him, mouth agape. No. No no no no no no no no no no no no no! That wasn't him! He wasn't like that! That wasn't the kind of hero, the kind of man he'd- he'd...

Move aside, Deku! Get out of my way or you're dead!

Have you ever had a friend who wasn't scared of you?

What kind of dirty tricks did you use to do it, you quirkless twerp!? HUH!? I was supposed to be the first and only!

Blow me to bits!? You're awful! Do you really wish to be a hero?

I'LL KICK HIS QUIRKLESS ASS!

Psychopath. Don't yell at Uraraka like that. She doesn't deserve it.

You've always been a bug! A useless little, STUPID DEKU! AND DON'T YOU EVER FORGET IT!

Take it back! Take back what you did, god damn you!

You wanna be a hero so bad? Here's some advice: take a swan dive off the roof! Maybe you'll have a quirk in your next life.

His stomach, lurched, a hand flew to cover his mouth and Bakugo bolted for the nearest rest room. He was barely at the nearest sink when his stomach emptied itself into it. Body heaving with burdened breath, his shaking hands gripping the edges of the sink were the only things keeping him from falling over. His hands... fuck today... he raised one of them, turning it over and staring into his palm. "God damn it..." his fingers curled inward, fingernails cutting into his skin. Tearing his gaze away, unable to look at the cursed bearer of his quirk, he saw his reflection in the mirror. A look in his eyes, a seething anger, cutting into the world they beheld. Eyes that burned with a rage he would forever attribute to an abusive, violent monster of a father. "GOD DAMN YOU!" Combustion of his quirk rocketed from the scant space between his fingers as his knuckles flew, shattering the mirror with cacophonous retribution. Shaking shoulders, breath trembling and quick he pulled his hand back and hit the mirror again. And again. And again. And again. Again. Again. Again.

Arms snaked up, under his shoulders. Pulling him away from the wall before he could ruin his now mangled hand any further. "Stop it!"

Shaking, flailing to get free, Bakguo screamed. "GET OFF ME! LEAVE ME ALONE!"

Deku just held him tighter, even as Bakugo's elbows railed against his ribs, the side of his head. "Not until you stop! You're gonna ruin your hand!" After one nasty blow to the side of his face, Deku's sunglasses went clattering away.

Feet kicked about, heels hitting the floor, Deku's toes, his shins, his knees. "WHO THE FUCK CARES!?"

Hands gripped Bakugo's shoulders, hauling him against the wall, knocking the air from his lungs. When he looked up, Deku was staring him in the eyes with a desperate, pleading look in those mismatched orbs. "ME!" The hands gripping Bakugo's shoulders were slight, gentle, doing their utmost not to so much as scratch him. It made the warhead want to weep. "I CARE! SO CUT IT OUT ALREADY, KACCHAN!"

Bakugo's jaw dropped, shoulders slumped and all tension in his muscles just went away. Plastered on his face, making him look nothing like his old self, was the most broken-hearted expression Deku had ever seen. His face dipped, turned to the floor as his shoulders started trembling. "Why?" hands curled into fists, his eyes hid behind his hair as he stared at the floor. "Why do you still-?" his voice cracked, choking in his throat. Fight as much he could to hold it back, it seemed nothing was going to keep this dam from bursting. Guilt, pain in his flesh and bones, seeing Deku's mangled, worried face looking at him so concerned... His palms clasped over his eyes, moments before the tears started flowing. "You- You idiot!" His body shook, heart shambled. Arms went around him, holding him tight and Bakugo sobbed louder. I don't understand... why are you still being nice to me?

After a time, perhaps not so long as it felt, Bakugo managed to calm down, at least a little. "You should go see recovery girl." Deku's arms unfolded, freeing Bakugo from their embrace.

"But-"

"Go," said Deku, "get that hand seen to." And he left the room, passing by Uraraka as he went.

Concern worn plainly on the brunette's face directed itself toward both boys, looking between them both. As Deku wandered away, her eyes shifted to the warhead and his mangled hand. She said nothing, he said nothing. He just stooped to the floor, picked up Deku's sunglasses and passed the off to her as he walked away. "This isn't who you wanted to be, is it?"

Bakugo stopped in his tracks, face staring gloomily at the floor. Drawing in a long breath, he sighed. "...No." Sniffling, he wiped his face with his uninjured hand. "I never really... I just..." he bit his lip. "What does it matter?" He shook his head. "Why do either of you even care? I'm obviously not worth it."

She hesitated, foot fussing at the concrete floor. "Maybe not... but can't you still change into someone who is worth it?" The question cut like a knife, lancing his heart like the glass now in his mangled fingers. "You don't have to be like this forever." No reply came forth, no reply was even thought of. He just sighed, and walked away. Even if he could do that... it was too late to change what he'd already done. He'd marked a friend of his for life, on his very skin. Even if the damage hadn't been direct, even if his behavior had prompted something self destructive and stupid long ago, the markings were his fault, and his fault alone.

Be someone who's worth it... Like that was even possible. If he had any sense in his brain he'd just push until everyone walked away. They'd be better off, safer that way, if nothing else.

But then... he was never that selfless, was he?

He found him curled up in a dark corner, face behind his knees, arms hugging his legs tight. Gingerly, he sat beside him, saying nothing. The other boy knew he was there, he could tell by the way his breathing went quieter. Rather than say anything Deku just sat beside him. What could he have said anyways? Abusive parents were a tribulation he'd not known. Had Endeavor simply been unaware that there'd been onlookers? It seemed the only reason he'd been so shameless with his behavior. Something Todoroki's eventual mumbling confirmed. "What did you see?" He sounded scared.

Deku could only admit to the truth. "I... heard all of it, I think."

Todoroki seemed to grow smaller, shrinking further into the ball he'd curled up into. "So why aren't you saying anything?"

Again, all he could say was the truth. "Because I don't know what to say. What to ask." you're obviously not okay...

The heterochrome chuckled joylessly. "I guess that's fair..." Slowly, his legs drifted away from himself, his shield lowered as he slumped his head back against the concrete wall, to stare at the ceiling. "you know... it's pretty obvious that it's gonna be and you in the last fight. I don't mean to speak ill of Yaoyorozu but..." his eyes drifted shut, mind searching for the right words. "when it comes to raw offensive capability... you, Bakugo and myself are the ones at the top of the roster."

Yet another thing Deku was left uncertain how to meet with a reply. "You think so?" He scratched at the back of his own head, behind his ear. "It's not like the others are so incapable..."

"They're not." Todoroki said, making sure his tone was gentle. It was... odd, unexpected from one with such a demeanor as he. "They're more versatile, in most cases. But this makes their potential and presently available combat prowess somewhat limited, in comparison to us."

All people are not born equal... "Maybe you're right about that much..."

Todoroki sighed. "Even so, inevitable as this was, I was really hoping it wouldn't be you." Deku blinked, confused, about to question his meaning when Todoroki turned to look at him, pointing the scar over his own eye. "You and me, we're... a lot alike, I think." His eyes drifted away Deku, unable to look into his as he spoke. "Marked by the violent pride of horrible people, given powers that are more akin to curses than 'gifts'... things that we have to keep at bay, lest we become what we hate." another sigh and he turned to look at the ceiling again. "Sorry if either of things are... sensitive matters."

"N-no, it's okay." Deku tried to reassure him. "So... Endeavor he... he did that to you?"

Todoroki winced. "Not... directly."

"FASTEN YOUR SEATBELTS, OH GENTLE AUDIENCE!" Deku almost screamed as his hands lurched over his now ringing ears. "IT'S TIME FOR OUR SECOND TO LAST MATCH! TODOROKI VS YAOYOROZU!"

A growl that could only belong to Aizawa resounded over the loudspeakers. "Please tone it down a little... I can only take so many painkillers for this headache." And then the microphone cut out.

Tired, that was how Todoroki looked as he climbed back to his feet. "Midoriya?" Said he, back turned to his classmate.

Meekly, quietly, he replied. "Yeah?"

"I wont hold back... but I hope you win." Before he could do more than blink in confusion, Todoroki had wandered away. Alone now, Deku got back on his feet too, before wandering back to his classmates.

It wasn't far, not as far as it had felt the last time he'd tried to go this way. An occupied or otherwise distracted mind can go a long way to passing time. He couldn't help but wonder about Todoroki. Powers akin to curses... It was only as he made it to the threshold of the seats when reality rudely stormed the gates to his thoughts. Sunlight, barging into his eyes and stinging made him yelp, recoiling from the light as his eyes watered.

"Hey." When he managed to open his teary eyes, he saw Uraraka, her hand outstretched, offering him his sunglasses. "You lost em again."

She always seemed to be the one to return them, whenever those silly things went missing. "Sorry."

Sorry? She couldn't help but smile as he took them back. "Why are you apologizing?"

Right, he didn't have to do that."Old habit, sor-" he caught it that time, she still giggled. "... thank you." Said he, returning them to his face.

She shrugged, "Don't mention it. With everything you've had going on today you can't be expected to keep track of everything."

"Yeah, but without these I'm blind, so long as it's sunny." A finger tapped at the scratched, dented and chipped rims of the silly, round rimmed spectacles. "It was stupid of me to leave them behind..."

"Don't be silly," Uraraka's smile went from amused to gently reassuring, "you were running from one boy that needed help to the next." she reached up, fingers self consciously fiddling with her hair. There was a hint of something else, a twinkle in her eye, in her smile that confused him as she looked at him, after saying that. "I wasn't sure what to do... just wound up following you and trying to talk some sense into Bakugo."

Clearing his throat, recollecting his thoughts, he managed, "D-did you help?"

Another shrug, coupled with a frown. "Didn't make it worse, at least. Last I saw he was off to see recovery girl."

Now it was Deku's turn to sigh. "Well, it's something."

He'd started walking back to his seat, feet dragging slightly as he went, when she heard herself speak again. "You really do worry about everyone, don't you?"

With a scuffle, clicking of a heel against concrete, he halted. Back turned to her, uncertainty gnawing at him, his words were difficult to find. "Not sure what you mean."

Walking up beside up, her presence drawing his gaze back to her face, she elaborated. "When Jiro lost her fight, you ran after her. When Bakugo, someone who used to pick on you someone who..." he winced, she guiltily looked away from the right side of his face. The discolored skin, the paper-white hair, the jet black sclera around a green iris, faintly glowing behind his sunglasses. "When he was freaking out, you just went and helped him anyways. And as soon as he was okay," there was that twinkle, that warmth in her smile all over again. "you ran off to check on Todoroki." She seemed to laugh a little, though the vocalization was oddly breathless, like her lungs were directing energy somewhere somehow more important. "When I tried to talk to him he just..." she averted her gaze again, a touch of sadness on her features. "is he okay?"

It took a moment for him to find an answer. "I... No. But he uh, might've gotten some of it off his chest, at least." The audio feed clicked to life, Present Mic was going to start yelling again. Hands went over his ears, palms pressed firmly down to shield his sensitive hearing, only they were hardly his own. After he was done wincing, the pain subsiding, he realized his hands were over hers on the sides of his head. From the embarrassed look on her face, that heated flush of her cheeks, he surmised that she'd acted without thinking. Clearing his throat again, he gently removed her hands from his face. "Th-thanks. I think..."

She gulped, turning somehow redder. "Sorry! I- I just reacted! I know loud noises hurt you if your not ready for them and I just-"

He squeezed her hands, reassuringly. "It's okay." When had her heartbeat gotten so loud? Releasing her hands, adjusting his sunglasses made for a flimsy effort to hide his face from her. Her... excitement, that had to be it, made him nervous in an odd way. In all that excitement, he'd failed to notice that he'd kept his control. Not for one moment had he felt that all too familiar urge to bite, in spite of his stomach. He should have felt proud, but he didn't remember to.

Clearing her throat, calming herself a little, she found that enthusiasm he was beginning to find familiar. "Anyhow... I just wanted to say that I think you're amazing." Ah, there were those butterflies again... wait, again? When had he felt those today? It hadn't been around her. So... who...? "I'm glad you decided to try and be hero. I know it probably wasn't easy to do that after... well, you know."

After becoming a literal monster. "It's not a very happy answer," he murmured, "I wasn't really sure what else to do." A fluttering of her eyes told him he'd surprised her. "It's what I've wanted for so long I..." he shook his head, "I figured if anything could redeem what I was," he'd bitten a man while he was unconscious, "what I am," he'd bitten Jiro when they first met, "it was the same thing I'd always wanted anyways." It was the only thing that could redeem his monstrous behavior.

The careless death of Shigaraki, that still appeared before his eyes.

Nodding, understanding, it was another moment before she spoke again. "You know, I don't think you ever said why you wanted to be a hero," she'd side-stepped it, the topic of his species. she seemed eager to shift from that topic. ...was that why she couldn't look at his face just then? Because of why and how it had healed? "back when everyone was talking about it a few weeks ago." She smiled again, he questioned the smile. "It's had me wondering." was he being paranoid or... was his species an issue for her? Did she not want to think about it? But she was the one who brought it up...

He was about to speak when they both heard the audio click back on. This time, she did not leap to his aid and he managed just fine. All the same, they blushed as Present Mic announced the beginning of the fight between Todoroki and Yaoyorozu. "Guess that'll have to wait..." all of it would.

She nodded trotting eagerly back to their seats as he followed, more sedately, slowly. There was something heavy about him. Not muscle or weight just... fatigue. Today had been a drain in every respect. His body was tired, his mind was tired, he felt tired. Slumping into his seat, Jiro only vaguely caught his attention. She was still wearing that patterned shirt, her violet eyes bearing an odd shine to them that captured his attention. The fight started, Yaoyorozu had managed to evade Todoroki's initial onslaught.

Jiro handed him his thermos, a smirk bearing an odd softness on her face. "You look exhausted."

He gratefully accepted, no longer caring that he'd be drinking blood in front of others. Todoroki missed with his next attempt to freeze Yaoyorozu in place. It was a desperate game of keeping each other at arm's length. "so do you." he emptied it, consuming everything in one go. "Are you okay?"

Neither opponent was eager for any sort of entanglement. There was an odd chemistry in the air, between them. Something that prevented them from acting, moving forward and ending the bout. "No." Her abilities to prolong the conflict were being tested, she was already tired after such a long day. Excitement could only keep one going for so long before the adrenaline left one feeling drained. "I feel a little better though." He seemed to be weary, faltering in his efforts to remain upright already. It seemed she was drawing closer to him. "You?"

There wasn't much space to retreat to, not that he seemed to be trying to. "I don't really know..." he'd let his guard down, an opening in his otherwise usually stalwart defenses.

"Do you need to talk about it? It'd only be fair." An opening she leapt at.

Attention turned from the fight, his eyes met hers. She was sitting closer to him than he'd noticed, almost nestled against him really. Opening taken, caught unprepared, he reacted with the first thing that his mind conjured. "I don't even know where to begin."

Ice erupted between them. Somewhere in the arena, a girl, a classmate was encased in ice. Deku's breathing was sharp, jagged. Adrenaline at the sudden appearance of a glacier had snapped his focus well and truly back where it belonged. To his side, on the other side of the frozen water, Jiro was reacting similarly. They looked back at the arena -what of it they could still see- and saw Todoroki panting with wide eyes. Present Mic declared him the victor, and Deku noticed something his sluggish brain hadn't a few moments ago. Todoroki's flesh was starting to freeze. Bits of ice were clinging to his skin, making his movements sluggish. Overusing his quirk had a drawback after all... he could only freeze so much before his own body succumbed to the cold of his quirk.

Todoroki reached out, his left hand pressing against the ice. Slowly, it began to melt away. Eventually, after Present Mic announced the final fight would begin in a few minutes, the barrier that had nearly encased Deku and Jiro melted away. "That was..." she gulped. "Sobering."

He nodded quickly. "Woke me up." And pulled his mind right away from where ever it had just been. Where ever that was...

Believe me, I am trying to refocus my brain.

Blushing, he turned away from Jiro and hoped she wasn't trying to see his face just then. What was wrong with him today?

A growling sigh, "He's unhinged," the voice of Akaguro caught his attention. "I'd bet on his father having a hand in this..." regarding the sheer volume of ice that still stood, melting in the hot sun, covering no small portion of the stadium, he watched the weary Todoroki walk away.

Deku, once again, could only blink, leaving Jiro to ask what he'd wanted to. "Wait, what are you talking about?"

Another sigh from the dhampire. "A long time ago, nearly seven years ago I was..." he winced. "I took shelter with a friend, Todoroki's older brother." He has an older brother? "I wasn't supposed to. He wasn't allowed to bring people inside the family home." Akaguro took a long swig from his water bottle. "Something about hiding some... creation from the public eye." He capped the water bottle, others were listening now too. "His father found out, I was thrown out and... that was the last time I got to really see him."

Ashido, afraid to ask, slowly voiced the question on everyone's minds. "What happened to him?"

Akagro frowned, drawing a knee up beside his long face. "He vanished, ran away from home. Haven't heard from him since... but," he raised a finger, "I did see a kid that looked vaguely like him. Mostly covered in bandages, hard to say really..." he shrugged. "Ever since then though..." his eyes glared, scanning the crowd for Endeavor, "after seeing that kid all bandaged up, clothes just rags, I could never stop wondering why he was so afraid of his father. If he was... violent with his children." His finger flicked something off his knee, releasing some pent up frustration. "I've always regretted not looking into it."

Evidence seen with his own eyes corroborated that one, he felt ill just thinking about it. "What's with that face?" Deku looked up to see Ashido, concerned and eyeing him curiously. "You look like you're about to throw up."

He gulped. "I think Akaguro's right." Jiro's eyebrows jumped. "From... from what I've seen of Endeavor that wouldn't be surprising." And now that he thought about, public record seemed to back that up too. There were few photos out there, online, in publication, where the Todoroki family could all be seen together. Over the years Endeavor had been pictured with at least three different children along with his wife. A girl, now an adult, with glasses and flared white hair. A boy, a few years younger, with spiky white hair with a face and build resembling his father. The third had also been a boy, his only notable characteristic had been black, wildly spiky hair. In truth that last child bore little resemblance to the family, from what he remembered.

"Yeah," Akaguro seemed to perk up, "that was him. Toya." A slight, sad smile played at his lips. "Good kid..." his sad smile remained as his eyes shifted away.

"Wait," Ashido scratched at her head, "where's Endeavor being a scumbag come in? Lotsa heroes avoid being seen with their families."

Deku couldn't answer, his face turned away from the conversation. Speaking for him however... "He hit Todoroki." Uraraka barely mumbled, but everyone turned and looked at her all the same. "right in front of us."

Akaguro's lips twitched in disgusted anger, Jiro looked appalled, Kaminari's jaw dropped, Kirishima's eyes went wide and Ashido looked like a horrified puppy. "Bwuh- No way!" her arm flew sideways, as if to throw the notion far, far away. "You gotta be lying! Making stuff up! How could a hero do something like that?"

Eyes averted from everyone, Jiro gulped, murmuring just loud enough to be heard. "Fame and money, give em to the wrong person and watch what they do, once they think they're untouchable." It was something ugly, an unspoken rule of any industry where one could be idolized.

It would be Akaguro that gave voice to what she'd begun to explain. "Take any soul, give them power or a mask and you will see their true face." He took a long swig from his water bottle. "All too often is common decency a mere facade put on by those too afraid to be themselves, for fear of retribution."

"Theeeeeeeeere's a fun thought..." Kaminari sighed as his head slumped forward into the palm of his hand.

"Man," Kirishima griped, "here I was thinking today was just gonna be fun... Just some healthy competition, not this kinda thing."

Deku looked up at the scoreboard. Just a few minutes to go... Gulping, nerves twisting in his gut, he started walking for the exit. "Goin already?" Kaminari frowned. "You just got back."

Deku sighed. "Yeah... sorry. I'm kinda nervous," he offered, trying not to be too fidgety, "plus... there's not much time before it starts."

Ashido pouted, frowning much the same as Kaminari. "Okay..." then she grinned, mischievously. "But after this is over we're all hanging out! No more doom and gloom for the rest of the day!" Jiro suppressed a groan, wanting nothing more than to go hide away in her room. Something Deku was also keen on, after such a draining day.

All the same, he didn't want to disappoint his friends. "Sure," he smirked, "so long as it's not too exciting."

Smiling, eyes closed, Ashido traced a finger over her chest in a criss-cross. "Cross my heart." Having seen her other hand crossing its fingers, Kaminari smirked and rolled his eyes, shaking his head.

Nodding, Deku made for the hallway again. His footsteps, though hesitant at first, soon picked up the pace. "You're gonna do something crazy," he stopped, shoe scuffing on the concrete. Turning around he saw none other than a certain girl with purple hair, walking slowly over to him. "Aren't you?"

Hesitantly, he turned the rest of the way around. "Define crazy."

Jiro seemed uncertain, one of her hands fussing at the hem of her shirt as her eyes darted away. "I'm not sure... But if there's one thing I've come to realize about you, it's that you tend to throw yourself into danger when people need help." Now his eyes averted, uncertain how to take that. "I heard about what happened, you know. With the sludge villain." Sudden fearfulness crept over Deku, and his eyes darted back to her. "After the USJ incident most of us became pretty well known. Someone in the news recognized you, showed what happened to you when you ran in to help Bakugo." His head lowered in shame, eyes wincing shut for a moment as he recalled it himself. He could still feel the wood, pierced deep into his flesh... "That was before you got your powers, wasn't it?"

Unable to look at her, he turned his eyes to the cold, concrete wall. "Does it matter?"

"Kinda," Jiro crossed her arms, "it tells me you don't give a second thought to yourself when you notice someone needs help."

"Isn't that what we do?"

She growled, sighing in frustration. "It wont be what you do for long if you don't learn to watch out for yourself too!" She advanced a step, leaning forward, arms uncrossed and by her sides. "Whatever's going on with Todoroki, what do you really expect to do here?"

Deku sighed. "His father wants him to use his flame quirk... embrace his full power so he can... I don't know exactly, but he's willing to get violent in public about it." He looked up to gaze at her eyes, finding her sickened, shocked by what he'd just said. "Todoroki has to go home with him. If his father's willing to be that bad where there might be witnesses, what do you think he might do once they're home, alone?"

Jrio gulped, some of her color draining from her face as she returned to something resembling her normal posture. "You're tired, fire is a weakness of yours and it doesn't sound like you're worried about yourself right now." She was persistent, he'd give her that. "Whatever you do, just-" she bit her lip. "Just don't get hurt out there, okay?" She fussed her wrist against the side of her leg, palm turned to the ground, fingers curled in. "If you slip up and bite him on live tv who knows what'll happen."

Giving her a thumbs up, he smirked. "wasn't planning on screwing that bad." He turned back to wander down to the waiting area again, putting his mask back on as he walked.

Sighing, hands stuffed into her pockets, Jiro breathed. "No one ever does..." Before walking back to her seat.

His heart was racing, almost as fast as it had during that first heroics class. In truth, he had no plan. No theories, no ideas, nothing but a twisted feeling in his gut. This was a no-win scenario if ever he'd met one. If he won without getting his classmate to give the fight his all, Todoroki was in for it. If he succeeded in getting Todoroki to use his quirk, he'd likely get seriously hurt. Even then, if he still won, it didn't seem out of the question that Endeavor would still punish him. And if he lost... well, he lost. After coming this far, if he just threw the match, what would that look like? Cowardice? Some collusion with Todoroki to get him out of being punished? Either way, he didn't see that ending well for-

...Or, perhaps...

Maybe he had a plan now. Some idea as to what to do at least. It was stupid, risky, personal and about the only thing that seemed like it might work. It was, at the very least, better than nothing and considering how hard Todoroki had been pushing himself, he had one advantage: while tired, his body hadn't been nearly so taxed as his would be opponent. Todoroki was slowed on top of it all, and Deku had not only speed but agility on his side. So long as he didn't over do it, tire himself out too fast, this could work.

"HOPE YOU'RE READY, OUR GENTLE VIEWERS!" That time, he actually screamed as he covered his ears. "BECAUSE IT'S TIME FOR THE GRAND FINALE: MIDORIYA VERSUS TODOROKI!"

Deku sighed, rubbing at his ringing ears. At least no matter how this ended, things would -hopefully- quiet down considerably. Adjusting his sunglasses, he took those daring steps out the door and walked to the starting line. As soon as the bell rang, he advanced. True to his earlier matches, Todoroki opened up with by shuffling his foot, sending a wave of ice along the ground to entrap him.

Only the vampire was ready. Leaping aside and over it he flexed his wrists and his claws sprang from his fingertips. Now that the expected part was out of the way, there was no telling what Todoroki would follow up with. To his surprise, he stepped up his game: rather than holding back, conserving his energy, Todoroki had gone full force and sent a jagged column of ice, roaring toward him.

Deku's momentum betrayed him, carrying him right into the path of the frozen onslaught. Swigging with one of his arms, hand curled into a fist, and smashed through it. Having lost balance, his footing slipped and he toppled over in an awkward somersault. No room nor time to breathe, he had to dive further aside to avoid an even larger barrage from his opponent. An eight of the ring had just been covered in a glacier. Rolling to his feet, Deku found his footing and sprang toward Todoroki.

Eyes flying wide open, all the Heterochrome could do was put up a literal wall between him and Deku. His claws had cut through the armored steel of a Zero Pointer. Ice, a true force of nature as it was, only slowed him down. Cursing under his breath, Todoroki extended a palm and unleashed a sprawling spire of ice, right into Deku's chest. The force of the impact knocked the wind from his lungs, carrying him far away at a break-neck speed. Jagged bits of ice cut into his flesh, tearing his shirt apart. Hissing in pain, Deku had to wrench himself free as the ice started encasing him. When he looked at the ground, he saw that he was no longer in the ring. Todoroki had pushed him out of bounds! But... His feet hadn't hit the ground! Working quickly, snapping himself free, he almost panicked when gravity kicked in.

"Crap!" Swinging his arm wildly, he hooked his claws into the cold solid and spun himself with the newfound leverage. The force at which he'd swung his body carried him around it in a winding spiral, until he was back on top of it. He wasted no time leaping back for the arena, just moments before Todoroki launched another massive hunk of ice to smash what he was on top of.

The crowd was going insane. Just moments in and they were at the edge of their seats hollering with boundless excitement. "I DON'T BELIEVE IT FOLKS!" Present Mic, thank god, had lowered his voice just in time. "MIDORIYA HAS MANAGED TO COME BACK INTO THE FIGHT! I THOUGHT FOR SURE THIS WAS ALREADY OVER!"

Eyes narrowing, palm aimed right where Deku was headed, Todoroku muttered, "it is." And what followed left the world shocked into silence. If the attack that had won the match against Yaoyorozu had been a glacier, this was the entirety of Antarctica. Sprining into existence with violent speed and force, was a a jagged, overwhelming monolith, leaving Deku nowhere to be seen. Falling to his knees, panting out frozen breath, Todoroki looked at his right side. Blue skin, a pointed chunks of ice protruded from a thin, motion restricting layer that weighed him down considerably. Breathing labored, jaw chattering his teeth together, he looked back up to the ice he'd just created. Was... that the final blow? Did I win?

Present Mic seemed hesitant to speak, even as the audio feed clicked on. "Well... I GUESS WE HAVE IT FOLKS! WINNER OF THE TOURNAMENT IS-"

The ice shook. Todoroki's breath caught, murmurs went through the audience. What was going on? Surely he couldn't be... It shook again, large pieces of ice broke away, falling to the ground and shattering . "No way..." One last time, the ice shook, but this time it was punctuated by a loud smash. A wave of frozen vapor, like dust in the wind, wafted across the battlefield as icy shrapnel scattered across the ground.

Blood splattered on the ground, panting could be heard somewhere inside the glacier and a red sneaker took a step out of it. Labored breathing, legs shaking, Deku stared down Todoroki as he and the audience took in the sight of him. His shirt had been torn to shreds, rags draped over his shoulder, what remained of his under-shirt didn't hide much. There, on display for the whole world, was a boy who's upper body was covered in tiny scars. Burns, nasty ones from the looks of them. Injuries he'd gotten when small, that had stretched as he'd grown. A particularly nasty scar on his side, from the ugly wound he'd gotten the day he'd died.

Well... the first time he'd died. The scar from the second time was right there on his face.

Even then, as he panted, the old wounds now uncovered along with his scrawny frame, new injuries leaked blood into his clothes. What truly silenced the audience and made Todoroki look as though he might be sick, was his re-knitting flesh. "That..." Deku panted, shaking his head, trying to remain standing. "all ya got?"

Todoroki shuttered, falling back, away from Deku. He brought up his shaking right hand, staring into his palm. What... what would have happened if he'd been fighting someone else? How badly had he just hurt Deku? "What did I just do?"

Deku caught his breath. "You're starting to get it, aren't you?" Todoroki turned his gaze toward him. The black eyed boy seemed so... calm. A gentle look took root in his features. "It's not... your quirk that has the potential to make you like him." Todoroki's eyes fluttered, Deku's hand went up to his mask. "It never was." In one fluid motion, he removed his mask and Todoroki's jaw dropped. Tossing the thing out of the ring, jaw trembling with his effort to avoid lounging for Todoroki's throat, Deku smiled. "It's not what we have, not our... quirks that make us anything bad." Holding up a hand, claws on display, he re-sheathed them. "It's what we do. Our choices, above all else that make us who we are." Deku let out a breathless laugh. "Just look at me... I'm more a monster than anyone, but I'm choosing to be something else."

Expression softened, mind and heart partially at ease, the heterochrome had only one reply. "Do... you really believe that?"

The shift in Deku's smile made the boy want to hug him, right there and then. He just looked so sad, so tired... "I have to." I have to...

Nodding, Todoroki understood. "Even still," he clambered shakily to his feet, "I can't do it... not against you." From the look of him, Todoroki had completely lost his desire to fight. "I'd be no better that my father... than Bakugo if I..." sheepishly, he gestured to Deku's right eye. "I can't stomach it. I wont be like them!"

Deku took in a long breath through his nose, before slowly letting it go in a sigh. "Then I've only got one choice..." Seeing Deku's muscles tense, Todoroki got ready to defend himself, but never had the chance. Deku spun on his heels, turning toward the audience, staring down a man whose beard was made of flame. "HEY, YOU!" Todoroki's eyes went wide, his heart started hammering. What the hell was he doing? "WHATEVER IT IS YOU'RE TRYING TO PROVE, I'VE GOT BAD NEWS FOR YOU!" Even from this distance, Todoroki could make out the searing scowl of his father's anger, and his body backed away. "I WONT BE A PART OF IT!" Deku's arm cut through the air, hand outstretched, fingers rigid. "AND I WON'T GIVE YOU AN EXCUSE TO ACT LIKE A TYRANT EITHER! IF HE USES HIS OTHER QUIRK IT'LL BE ON HIS TIMELINE!" Endeavor's lips curled into a snarl. "YOU WANT SOMEONE TO GET MAD AT!? I'LL GIVE YOU SOMEONE!"

Deku took a step forward, Todoroki's hand outstretched, trying to reach him. "Wait!" And Deku stepped out of the ring.

The audience erupted in calamity. While all the world screamed, furious about the end of the tournament, one person leapt to his feet and cheered above them all. "THAT IS HOW IT IS DONE!" Akaguro earned more than a few odd looks, but Kirishima was right by his side, cheering Deku on. Jiro just stood up and blew a shrill, celebratory whistle. Ashido and Uraraka jumped into the air, fists pumping sky high as they laughed. Kaminari just laughed uproariously as he applauded. Yaoyorozu, gave them all very confused looks, but hesitantly started clapping all the same.

Todoroki stood there, in total disbelief, unable to speak as Deku turned back around. Smiling warmly, he gave him a thumbs up. "You win."

Blinking, the herochrome mouthed only one word. "Why?" Deku raised an eyebrow, confused. "You barely know me... you didn't have to protect me..."

Hands in his pockets, Deku smirked. "I thought that was the point." Walking forward again, he collected his mask, returning it to his face. "Otherwise... what are we really doing here?" Shrugging, he made for the exit, leaving Todoroki to his thoughts as the crowd booed.

"...Thank you... Midoriya." I hope helping me doesn't come back to bite you. He clenched his fist. No... I won't let it. Whether they knew it or not at that time, the two of them would count each other as friends from that moment forward. Not a bad trade, where Deku would have been concerned.

"He won't complain if he's caught in a freeze..."