Chapter 14: "Reaching Out"

"How long has he been out for?" Kaminari asked as he observed Bakugou lying unconscious on the office couch.

"Just a few minutes," Kirishima answered, "It's good that you got here when you did, Midoriya. I wouldn't have thought of knocking him out. Imagine what Todoroki could've looked like."

"Yeah. I couldn't think of a quicker option. There's no use talking to him when he's like that," Midoriya carefully lifted Todoroki. His face was badly bruised and bloodied from Bakugou's punches, "Kacchan really did a number on him. He's totally blacked out."

Kirishima walked over to him to lend a hand, "I'll take him to the hospital."

"No, I'll take him. I don't want to be here when Kacchan wakes up and realizes that it was my idea to knock him out," Midoriya half-joked as he slumped Todoroki over his back, "In the mean time, Earphone Jack and Ochako should be here soon. Once I drop Todoroki to the hospital, I'll come back. We can come up with a plan to rescue Yaoyorozu then."

Kirishima and Kaminari nodded in agreement.

"I'll call Jirou and find out her ETA," Kaminari took out his phone and stepped outside. Midoriya went on his way to the hospital.

Kirishima took a seat across Bakugou and watched him as he twitched in his sleep.

"Momo…" he groaned softly. Kirishima could hear Bakugou's teeth grinding.

He let out a heavy sigh. Bakugou must really…

Kirishima lightly chuckled and shook his head. He fell in so deep…

After seeing Bakugou's actions, it was clear to Kirishima how he felt about Momo Yaoyorozu. He felt somewhat guilty that it went this far. He felt that he didn't try hard enough to avoid all of this.

"Sorry, bro" Kirishima half-heartedly smiled and nudged his arm.

"Momo!" Bakugou yelled out of his sleep and immediately shot up with heavy breaths, "Where is she?!"

Kirishima almost fell out of chair in surprise. Bakugou jumped to his feet in a panic. Kirishima got up and tried to calm him down, "Bakugou!"

"Momo! Where the fuck is Momo?!" his eyes scattered all over the place. He wasn't thinking straight as his adrenaline spiked up. All he wanted to do was blow everything up like the hole that was blown up inside of him.

Kirishima held him down on his shoulders. He's never seen him like this before, "You need to calm down first, Bakugou."

"No! I'm going to get those shitheads!" Bakugou threw his hands off of him.

Kirishima stood in front of his path, "We need to come up with a plan first. We'll wait until Midoriya gets back. Just be patient, Bakugou!"

"Get out of my fucking way, Kirishima! Who knows what they're gonna do to her!" Bakugou pushed him aside. Although he had a tough exterior, the worry in his voice was evident.

Kirishima grabbed him by the arm to hold back the raging blonde, "Listen to me, Bakugou! You ne-"

"Shut up!" he pulled his arm back and continued walking forward. His feelings were getting the better of him.

Midorya was right. There's not point in talking to him like this. Kirishima ran in front of him and CRACK!He landed a solid jab on Bakugou's face. It was enough to knock him on his back.

Bakugou sat up and touched his cheek, dumbfounded. The friendly redhead wasn't the type to hit his friends. Bakugou clenched his fists, "What the fuck do you-"

"Will you just shut up and listen to me?!" Kirishima yelled over him, "You're not gonna save her!"

This sparked him. It made him angrier. He could feel himself getting hotter. Bakugou was about to charge him to the ground and knock the sense back to him.

"I know how you feel about her, Bakugou!" Kirishima yelled even louder.

Bakugou flinched. He snapped out of his anger flushed, "What the fuck are you-"

"I know you have feelings about her," Kirishima said more calmly. Bakugou put down his fists. Kirishima placed his hands on his shoulders and clenched onto them tightly, "We're gonna get her back, but we don't know where she's at and you can't just go out there on your own."

Bakugo looked down, but this just made Kirishima shake him up. He barred his sharp teeth with his dorky smile. It made Bakugou feel better for some reason, "Yao-Momo is strong, intelligent – She would give those guys a hard time for sure! Plus, if you go, there's no telling what will happen to you…And I know you wouldn't want us to go out and rescue you a second time. We got you, didn't we? So don't worry! We got your back, bro!"

The tenseness in his shoulders started to ease up. No matter how much he didn't want to admit it, Kirishima was right. They had no leads, no information – nothing. But this didn't matter to him. He was going to find her no matter what.

He shook himself off of Kirishima's grip. Bakugou just gave his typical 'Tch' and sat back on the couch, slouching forward.

That was all Kirishima needed to hear to know that Bakugou was back to himself. He let out another heavy sigh and returned to his seat.

"Momo!" Todoroki barged into the Creation Cult's hideout. His voice only echoed eerily in the dimly lit room. There was no one in sight. When he took a step forward, he heard something clatter. Bones of the deceased were hauntingly aligned on the floor. The eyes of the skulls seemed to stalk Todoroki as he walked forward.

"Shouto!" her voice rang in his ears.

"Momo?!" he acted hastily and ran in the direction of her voice. His legs suddenly felt heavy. He looked down to find the skeletons grabbing at him. They climbed over him and drowned him in the sea of bones.

"Shouto!" she yelled again. He surrounded himself in fire and broke free of their grasps. He burned his way through. Nothing was going to stop him from reaching her. Once his fire cleared up, Momo stood in front of him in good health, smiling.

Todoroki couldn't believe his eyes. He immediately took her in his arms and held on tightly.

"Shouto…" she whispered.

He felt so relieved that he got her back into his arms, "It's okay, Momo. I'm here now."

Momo shook and told him weakly, "You're too late…"

Todoroki was confused he looked at her to find some answers.

He felt her slip through his fingers as her body parts separated itself into slices. He panicked and tried to grab at the pieces, but they melted in his hands. Piece by piece, nothing stayed in his hands. What is happening?

His fingers trembled; her blood stained his skin. This can't be happening!

All that was left was Todoroki and a pool of blood. His whole body shook and his sight was blurring. Nothing was processing. Momo…

When Todoroki was awakened, he sat up in a cold sweat, shaking. He ran his fingers through his hair, reassuring himself that he's awake. It was just a nightmare…

Midoriya had jumped away from him out of shock, "T-T-Todoroki, you're awake."

"Midoriya," Todoroki looked around. The scenery seemed out of context. He was surprised to be on the roof of a building. Todoroki refocused his attention to Midoriya, "What happened?"

"I was going to take you to the hospital, but you were bleeding too much, so I decided to do a quick patch-up here," Midoriya kneeled next to him, "You were out cold for a while."

"Hospi- Oh…That's right," he touched his swollen face. It all came back to him. The Creation Cult, Bakugou's outrage, Momo getting kidnapped. This was the second time Momo slipped through his fingers. Damn it all…

"Don't worry, Todoroki" Midoriya snapped him out of his thoughts. His feelings must've been visible, "We'll get her back."

Todoroki nodded and looked at his hands. He imagined his nightmare – the blood-stained skin. This wasn't the time to sulk. He got his priorities straight. He won't let her slip through his fingers. Not again.

Midoriya reached out to him to help him up, "But let's get you to the hospital fir-"

"There's no time for that, Midoriya," Todoroki hastily responded, getting on his feet.

"But you're in-"

"I'm fine," the injuries on his face didn't hurt as much as the pain in his heart, "We have to find Momo."

Todoroki's feelings were too strong for him to be talked out of it: Midoriya knew this. Although the odds were against them, he admired Todoroki for staying positive.

Beep! Beep! Beep!

Shouto did this all for me. Momo gazed out the car window, lost in thought. All the painful emotions that she once felt for him were brought under a new light. It all made sense. The way he treated her – pushing her away. And for Bakugou to agree to all of this…"

Momo slumped back in her seat and sighed. She didn't know what to think, or what to feel.

"You alright there, sweetie?" the male twin, Ranger spoke, trying to be comforting. He sat next to her in the car. Momo and the other Creation Cult members were on a car heading to the real headquarters. She was going to be introduced to the cult members. Although she wasn't completely sure of the cult's intentions, she had to try her best to make it seem like she trusted them.

"We're almost there. You'll understand soon enough," Ranger assured.

Ranger's twin, Ava, was staring at Yaoyorozu from the front seat. She tapped on her chin and studied her face. This was the one Momo was most cautious of. How could she forget the face of the person who held a knife to her throat and almost shot the person she cared for. If anyone was going to spoil the plan, it would be her.

"I don't like her…" Ava groaned.

The striped head member, Gill, kept his eyes on the road, "Dear sister, do you ever consider the words that come out of that pretty little mouth of yours?"

It was clear that she was going to say something, but she bit her lip. She turned her head to look forward and buried herself in her seat. Ava seemed to fear her brothers, despite her aggressive attitude.

The rest of the ride was quiet. Her feelings were a mess, but she had to concentrate on the situation at hand. She used this time to think about her plan, considering the possible problems and solutions.

"Well, we're here," Ranger finally spoke, breaking the silence.

They stopped in front of an abandoned meat factory. Momo used this opportunity to take her first plan to action. When everyone stepped out of the car, she subtly pressed a button on her uniform belt.

Before she and the Creation Cult left Todoroki's hero agency, Momo stroked Todoroki's face to divert attention away from her other hand that planted the tracker in his jacket. It was the tracker similar to what they used to save Bakugou. Pressing the button on her belt sent her current location to the tracker.

Ranger opened the door for her and placed his hand on her back as he directed them to the cult's leaders.

In the front of the headquarters stood a sophisticated-looking woman in a business suit. She was pushing a wheelchair that had an elderly man connected to some sort of machinery. He was dressed casually with a blanket placed over his lap. The elder man smiled sincerely through his white beard and waved.

"Welcome to the cult, Yaoyorozu Momo" the old man coughed.