"Thanks, you guys," Katsuki Bakugo clasps his hand into a loose fist, as if trying not to crush a delicate flower. "I owe y—" He stops himself. "No… I love you too."

There it is. The very first time he's ever told his parents he loves them.

"Y… You…" His mother's voice trembles.

And suddenly she has him in a headlock.

Bakugo chokes and gags, trying to pry her arm off. "Gah! *hack* The… fuck're you doing, you hag?!" Obviously, this was not the response he was expecting to his first "I love you".

But she holds her grip. "That's right! I'm an old hag, and you're my stubborn brat!"

For a second, he's afraid she might really kill him as he gasps for air, but then he slowly feels her grip loosen, until it turns from a headlock into a smothering hug, pressing her head against his cheek. "That's why… if you ever ask me that again… if I regret having you… you'll be grounded 'til the end of time," she sobs. He feels a few warm drops on his shoulder.

"…Yeah. Sorry."

Masaru, who had been so shocked at his son's words that he sat there frozen with his eyes watering, finally wipes them and joins his wife in giving their pride and joy a crushing hug. For a second, Bakugo finds it insufferable and wishes they would leave since he's fine now and has a lot to do in preparation for Saturday… But he thinks about how he might not get this chance again, how long it's been since he let his parents hug him, how he's never stopped to enjoy it (if that's possible). And he feels bad about it. There must've been a lot of times they just wanted to hug him like this, but he was too caught up in chasing his "shining future" to notice.

Well, now things will be different. Remembering his training, he takes a deep breath in and a slow breath out. Placing a hand on each of their arms, he slowly relaxes, breathing in and out, entering that Zen-like state that's become so familiar, so comfortable to him lately. For a long minute, he just breathes… and takes everything in. No judgement, no fight, no winning or losing. Just the warm embrace of the people who've always loved him. And it feels…

Ah… This feels nice. And not so little after all.

Meanwhile, Midoriya also makes a decision to try something he never would've done in the past: he takes a break. As much as he wants to stay and keep learning and not miss any more days of school, he desperately wants to avoid his classmates for now, and he can't very well stay in the nurse's office forever. Add to that the fact he's already scared his mother half to death and should probably stay where she can see him for a while. Trying too hard to be a hero, so much that he's neglected the trauma from the incident, seriously almost broke him. He forgot that self-care can be just as important. The same way he can't call himself a hero if he lets his trauma get in the way of getting stronger, he also can't call himself a hero if he's destroying himself by ignoring it.

His mother feels better knowing that he's willing to take a break and stay with her for a bit, but before they leave, Present Mic visits him, alone. He says that Rose was apprehended for stealing Dr. Shinbyou's memories, that Midoriya ought be grateful and hope she doesn't get expelled… and that Rose has a message for him. She says that no matter what, Midoriya has to be here on Saturday for the team attacks, and that Bakugo "won't disappoint him". Midoriya looks shocked and scared for her but eventually nods to Mic and swears to be rested enough so that he won't drag Kacchan down anymore.

When Bakugo finally talks to Aizawa about what's been going on and about the assignment, Bakugo assures him that they'll still do it, that it's not over yet, and that Bakugo finally understands what he needs to do. Aizawa can see in his eyes that he means it and leaves the boy alone, but over the next few days, he secretly checks up on the blonde during class training. What he sees surprises him. He normally would've expected the blonde to be pushing himself even harder, but instead, he's… meditating. From the very beginning of the class to the very end, Bakugo sits there quietly with his hands in his lap, his eyelids low but not closed, and he just… breathes.

And meanwhile, at home, Midoriya asks his mother for help with something. He wants to learn to make spicy curry properly. Not just for Kacchan, but for himself. He'd forgotten how fulfilling it can be to just do one thing right. Just one thing, no matter how small. He'd been so obsessed with making progress as a hero that he'd forgotten some of the little things he had to do to get there. And there was no shame in starting with those little things again. If building his strength back was going to take time and couldn't be rushed, he could at least get better at all the other little things that didn't rely so much on strength. Things like getting enough sleep and eating enough. And if he couldn't handle such simple little things, how could he ever expect to become the #1 hero?

So over Thursday and Friday, he does just that. He sleeps, he eats, he reads, he relaxes, and he practices the curry recipe from the notebook Kacchan made for him. The steady, careful repetition grounds him, just as Bakugo's steady, slow breath keeps him calm and focused. And like his breath, his emotions flow in and out of him, simply being observed but never acted upon. And even in that calm state, reaching a level of peace that neither of them have felt in a very long time, each one is surprised at how often the other crosses his mind. Each one is a bit shocked that he might even feel… lonely.

Then it's finally Saturday. And when the two meet again, rather than only two days, it feels like it's been two years.

Ignoring the fuss their classmates make as Midoriya arrives right on time to watch the first pair demonstrate their move, the two make a beeline for each other. As she approaches, Midoriya marvels at his new and improved hero costume. Instead of just a mask, he wears the heat-vision goggles that Midoriya had especially designed for him. Gone are the gigantic gauntlets that (while admittedly cool to look at) made it impossible to comfortably carry a civilian in his arms. They've been replaced by an even larger sweat-collecting pod on his back that could conveniently detach, allow him to take aim like a gun, and deliver an even bigger explosion, then return to his back to reload. His gloves have become slimmer and more breathable to let the smoke through more easily, and on the belt at his hip, he has a pouch on each side for "Konpeito".

Seeing him like that, completely transformed, truly takes her breath away. They stop at arm's length from each other. Bakugo pulls down his goggles so that they rest around his neck. At first, silence, just staring, and then—

"Kacchan… I—"

"If you apologize, I'll end you right here and now."

She blinks. Then looks frustrated, even a little pleading. She's been preparing for this apology for (what feels like) so long, but as usual, he won't even—

"I'm glad you look better," he says. It sounds soft and sincere, paired with those serious, deep red irises. And once again, it makes her question everything she thought she knew about him. But there is one thing that's become familiar to her now. It's how her heart races, and how time stops, whenever he shows her that sincere, caring side she didn't even know existed all these years. "We're gonna win this. You and me." Then he turns, about to walk back to the group. "Come on." And he promptly marches away.

For a moment, she stands there. Suddenly, she feels less prepared than she expected. Kacchan almost feels like a new person. He's changed and grown so much. Can she really keep up with him? Will all the little things she tries to do really add up? Will it make a difference? Will it really help him? She's afraid. She's so afraid of hurting him again, of getting in his way, of making him a worse hero.

"Then you have to decide what it really means to save him."

…Omoda-senpai… She's right. I didn't come all this way just to run away now. I've already decided. I'm going to be useful to Kacchan. Even in this body, I'm going to help him win. She finally takes a step forward.

The two watch as the other pairs go before them, traveling to different spots around school that the pairs chose to show off their moves. Showing everyone's attacks would take all day, and Aizawa tells the two of them that since they had to spend the last two days apart, they should spend as much time as they can settling anything they need to. But the two don't really need much more prep. They're clear on the strategy, and as far as they know, everything's been perfected as much as possible. Midoriya doesn't ask what Bakugo did the last two days to practice. She doesn't need to know. She trusts him. But the two grow more and more antsy as they count down the pairs left. Until finally…

"Bakugo. Midoriya. Your turn," their teacher calls.

It's time! they both think.

They all make their way to the spot that used to be the sports festival minefield, where Ectoplasm-sensei, who arrived a few minutes ago to play their "villain", makes a clone of himself and asks them where they want it to stand. Midoriya and Bakugo share a look as they part ways, Midoriya leading the clone a few yards away towards the end of the field, but not all the way, just just within shouting distance. Bakugo stands on the other end and marks a "finish line" in the ground with his armor-piercing shot. Aizawa, the real Ectoplasm, and the class stand beside the field at the halfway point between them. The clone ties Midoriya up with rope like a hostage and holds a toy gun to her head.

Bakugo and Midoriya can hear their own hearts pounding as they stare at each other from across the field. Their classmates watch with bated breath. And although Aizawa will never admit it, he's almost too scared to press the start button. He had added a challenge before the first team showed their move. The pairs would be rewarded extra points for speedy execution. Assuming the move was well planned and had no major flaws, the fastest (and therefore most efficient) pair would receive the extra credit. And when Bakugo and Midoriya heard that, they immediately knew what that meant for them. If they wanted an absolute, indisputable win, they had to get the highest score with the fastest time. And so far, the fastest time was 2 minutes and 38 seconds, courtesy of Iida and Shoji.

But they can beat it. They know they can beat it.

And without further ado, Aizawa shouts, "Ready… Start!"

…And Bakugo raises his hands in surrender. "Calm down!" he shouts, "I'm only here for the hostage! If you hand him over, I won't attack!" As he yells, he takes a few slow steps forward. He's studied this. Villains are more likely to hesitate if you make them believe they have options or some kind of way out. That moment of hesitation doesn't last long before they say—

"Don't move! I'll shoot!" the clone yells back, pressing the barrel of the gun against Midoriya's temple.

—But still, that moment is enough to get a little closer. Then he stops, making the enemy believe they have control over the situation. And that moment is just as crucial, because as soon as they start to get overconfident, thinking they can't possibly lose as long as they have a hostage to threaten… that's when they're the most vulnerable.

He takes a deep breath.

With no further warning, smoke blasts from his hands. Big grey, billowing clouds of smoke. They cover the field and catch everyone, teachers and students off guard. Then, just like they practiced, he presses a button on the side of his goggles, switching them to heat vision mode, then reaches for the Konpeito, heating them just enough in his palms. As the Ectoplasm clone looks around in the smoke, Midoriya feels the gun pull away a little. It's working. If he can't see Kacchan, he has no choice but to prepare himself for a possible attack.

POP

The clone hears a popping, crackling sound. It's coming from the left. No, the right! The left again! Is it staying left? He points his gun in every direction. But the sound and a tiny bit of light is coming from all directions in front of him! As Bakugo's Konpeito pops on the ground, making enough noise to hide the sound of his footsteps, he charges in. Throwing one last handful to the left, he charges right, and as Ectoplasm turns straight to the sound, he can't see Bakugo emerge from the smoke on the other side. He can't see it, but he can sense it. He turns back around to face the blonde, but he might as well be moving in slow motion, and just as he meets Bakugo's eyes, an armor-piercing shot blasts through his head.

"Not bad," the clone muses as he disappears.

And all that's left is to burn Midoriya's ropes off and carry her back to the "finish line" Bakugo marked earlier. By their estimates it's been only a minute now. They've got this. Everything went perfectly. Bakugo turns off his heat vision, pulls out a small, disposable mask, puts it around Midoriya's face and tells her to close her eyes and hold onto him. She obeys and inwardly cheers at their success. For a second, she forgets why she was so nervous. Kacchan has only proven what she's believed all along, that he's amazing, that he can do anything he puts his mind to, that he's the closest thing to a hero since All Might. And since her eyes are closed, she can feel the fast, but smooth rhythm of his run, his surprisingly steady breath and even… the gentleness in his hands. Just like last time, she had no idea they could be so gentle, and it makes her heart feel fluttery and melty and… safe.

For a long moment, she wishes it would never end.

And just as she thinks that—

BOOM