Hello hello, everyone. Guess who's back. I hoped you missed this story as much as I did. Technically this is still supposed to be the second arc, so I guess you could call it Arc 2 Part 2? Anyway, it's my birthday, and I'm happy to return and really make this day feel special. Please enjoy.

Todoroki was definitely surprised at first. Not just by the moment his face showed up next to Midoriya's and Bakugo's, but by the rush of excitement and relief he felt. To him the chances felt like one in a million that he'd actually end up with the one person he hoped to be grouped with the most. He recovers from the shock of it and then turns to her, his mouth forming an odd line, like it wants to smile, and he nods to her. She seems to recover from the shock of it too and nods back, still looking a bit apprehensive.

Then after she turns back around, he glances at Bakugo, and from that angle, Todoroki can tell that the blonde is also surprised. Todoroki doesn't blame him. Given everything that's happened between them, Todoroki isn't really sure how to feel about this matchup either. He knows that he wants to be with Midoriya, to keep her safe, and he knows that Bakugo is at least trying to make amends, but their performance during the paired assignment left much to be desired. Bakugo put Midoriya into a lot of danger, blasting them into the sky the way he did, and if Todoroki had been in his shoes, he would've just taken the loss instead of risking their lives to "win" at the assignment. As he thought, Bakugo's obsession with winning really bothers him, since winning should never come before keeping a helpless civilian safe.

Recovering from his initial shock, Bakugo takes a deep breath… and finally looks back to meet Todoroki's eyes. Todoroki pauses. Bakugo doesn't look angry… at all… He actually looks… calm. He nods at Todoroki as if to casually say, "Looking forward to it". And after recovering once again, Todoroki nods back. Satisfied, the blonde turns back around.

Okay, so maybe he knows now that Bakugo doesn't really have bad intentions, and maybe something about that also makes Todoroki happy and relieved. And the fact that Midoriya could bring this out of him in just a few weeks is nothing short of amazing. He can't deny that he's proud to get to work with them. But something still nags at the back of his mind. He no longer thinks Bakugo is evil… but that doesn't necessarily make him safe. Now, rather than a bully or an abuser, Todoroki gets the feeling he's more like a ticking time bomb. As harmless as he is now, if he can't control his drive to "win, no matter what it takes", then maybe it's only a matter of time before he does something reckless and irreversible.

Oh well. It's still too soon to say, and Todoroki knows he shouldn't jump to conclusions. For now, he's looking forward to it, and he'll savor this feeling for as long as he can.

And by the time they start their hero training period, he already has a great idea to start them off. As the trio amble over to an empty space behind some boulders in the training hall, Todoroki begins, "Midoriya, Bakugo, I know this is sudden, but what do you think about a move that focuses on guarding civilians?" They both blink at him, because clearly they hadn't thought of that. "Sometimes after saving someone, they still need to be guarded from villains before backup arrives and everyone can move to a safe spot."

Midoriya's face lights up as she understands. "Ahh! Like what happened during our license exam when Gang Orca showed up! Yeah! That's a great idea! Let's do it! Ah, Kacchan, that's alright, isn't it?"

Bakugo glances at her from the side and replies, "Yeah," so calmly and quietly that Midoriya starts to worry that he's not really interested.

"Um, I mean, if you wanna do something different… Did you have something in mind?"

He lifts an eyebrow and cocks his head at her a bit. "I said it's fine." He genuinely doesn't understand why she thinks he might be dissatisfied. If he was, he would've said so.

She realizes that he really did mean it. "Uh, oh… Right…" She'd noticed it a little yesterday, but now it's fully dawning on her that Kacchan is so much calmer now, like he's always in neutral, and she has no idea how to handle it. Normally he'd be screaming at them even when he's not really that angry. Now it's like he's still angry inside (it's not like a temper that big ever really goes away), he just has it more under control and doesn't take it out on everybody for no reason. She really appreciates that, and it means that now he's more open to communication and more aware of how his attitude affects others. But it also means that sometimes she can't tell how he's really feeling. If he doesn't show his anger on the outside as much anymore, then it's harder for her to tell when he seriously is angry.

But as she's in the middle of thinking this, he turns to Todoroki and suddenly looks solemn. "But that means you and I gotta' be able to pull off somethin' fool proof. A one of a kind, indestructible barrier. Got it? If we do this, we don't half-ass it."

And there it is, the part of him that she's glad hasn't changed.

But as she smiles in relief, Todoroki replies, "Bakugo… Just so we're on the same page, are you saying that for Midoriya's sake? Or because you want to win?"

Midoriya understands what he's getting at. "Todoroki-ku—" But Bakugo taps her shoulder lightly with the back of his hand to stop her.

He can handle this. "Both. It's no good if Midoriya gets hurt. But it's no good if we lose either. A real hero wins and saves, so that's what we're gonna do. Any complaints?"

Todoroki admits to himself that he hadn't thought about it that way. And it makes sense to him. Objectively, it's a perfectly rational answer. But still… "That's good if it works. But what if it doesn't? What if you had to choose?"

Bakugo's eyebrow twitches. "What I'm sayin' is that the number one hero wouldn't hafta choose. If you wanna be the best, you find a way to do both."

"…And I'm saying that only works in the ideal situation. None of us are number one yet. We won't always be able to do both. So if you had to choose…"

"We won't get to number one if we don't try to pull off both. The point is to push yourself." Bakugo's voice gets just a tiny bit louder.

"…Why are you trying to dodge the question?" Todoroki starts to look visibly irritated.

"Why are you acting like we should choose? It's obvious we should do both!"

"I'm asking what your priority is. Would you let Midoriya get hurt just so you can win?" He's getting louder too.

"What're you, stupid?" Bakugo finally shouts, "If he got hurt, it wouldn't be a win!"

It's like the blonde is speaking a different language to him. He thought winning and saving were two separate things to the blonde. Now they're the same? "Wha… What are you talking about?"

They hear a loud sigh.

They pause and look to the side at Midoriya, who looks clearly disappointed, fists clenched at her sides. She looks like she's thinking of what to say, but she's obviously frustrated at the fact that she has to say anything at all in this situation. She thought things would be better between them, but no, she's stuck playing peacemaker again… or maybe more like babysitter.

Bakugo blushes just a little and turns away, embarrassed at himself, and Todoroki fidgets and runs a hand through his hair, equally ashamed.

Then Bakugo takes a deep, slow breath, clicks his teeth, and finally answers, "Fine… Just so we're clear, I'm gonna do whatever it takes so I don't hafta choose. If I'm gonna be number one, I don't get that luxury."

Luxury? Todoroki thinks, Is he saying… choosing is easy? Well, doing both is definitely harder. Todoroki already acknowledged that. So is the blonde saying… he just doesn't want to take the easy way out?

"… But hypothetically… if on some off chance I had to…" Bakugo thinks about it, about what he'd choose.

He looks at Midoriya, who realized that they'd stopped fighting and is looking back at him with worry all over her face. She's not worried about whether or not he'd choose to save her. After all, he already gave what she believes to be an acceptable answer. Refusing to choose puts pressure on him to be better, and that's very Kacchan. She's more worried that what he's about to say won't satisfy Todoroki, who also has a valid point.

And Bakugo understands that too, but it really is hard to imagine. If he sacrificed Midoriya just to beat a villain, it would obviously defeat the purpose, but if he surrendered or ran away from a fight to get Midoriya to safety, he wouldn't be able to call himself the #1 hero. He just can't rely on that tactic. Just leaving that option open is like settling for failure without putting up a real fight. It's just not who he is… and Midoriya herself knows that too.

Looking into her eyes, he can tell. She'd never look at him the same way again if he sacrificed a win for her. She'll always be the one who believes in him more than anyone (other than his own parents), and he'd rather die fighting than lose her trust… But he'd also rather die than lose her, period.

So that's it. The truth is… "I can't. I can't choose. I'll die before I choose. And if that's not good enough for you, then too bad. That's the best I got."

Todoroki is speechless for a second. "…No one's telling you to die…"

"But if I had to choose, that's what I'd pick."

For a moment, they stare each other down, until Midoriya blurts, "I wouldn't let that happen." They look to her. "Kacchan, if it's ever me you're saving, you should know I wouldn't let that happen."

"Don't you fucking dare!" he barks, silencing her. "You think I don't know what you'd try to do?"

Todoroki knows. He's fully aware. Midoriya would sacrifice herself to save Bakugo if she thought it would work… just like… "Bakugo." The blonde turns to him again. "Are you saying you'd die for Midoriya?"

Eh?! Midoriya thinks, Todoroki-kun, that's a little far, don't you thi—?

"That's what I'm sayin'!" she hears the blonde answer, and turns to see him looking irritated, as if Todoroki has been making him say the same thing over and over again. "What part'a that wasn't clear?"

A little surprised at first, Todoroki sees the blonde's sincerity and breathes a sigh of relief. "Then that's fine. That's all I wanted to know."

"Hah?" Bakugo's still beyond confused.

"Sorry. I won't ask anymore, so let's get moving."

He gets irked again. "I wanted to get started from the beginning! You're the one who stopped us!"

"Yeah. Sorry."

"Quit apologizing! Let's just start! This was your idea, so you better have somethin' good in mind!"

"Not really."

"That's it! You're doin' this on purpose!"

Thoroughly fed up with him, he turns to Midoriya to prompt them to begin, but he's met with a surprising look on her face. She's red. And angry. And jerks her head away from him, huffing and pouting. Hah?! The fuck is he mad for?!

Unfair… she thinks, So unfair, Kacchan. Why do you have to be so… Sweet? Irresistible? Heart-stoppingly perfect? The most amazing hero ever? A lot of words come to mind, and she hates how much effort she has to put in to shoo them all away and calm her racing heart. "Let's just start already!" she grumbles.

Ignoring his outbursts as he insists that he's been trying to start the whole time, she attempts to refocus by checking back in her notes, especially her notes on Todoroki's quirk. She asks him if she's forgetting any abilities he has or anything he hasn't shown them yet.

As he makes a few corrections to her notes, the excitement finally starts to set in again. What kind of attack will the three of them be able to create together? How will they be able to use ice, fire, and explosions to their greatest potential? The thrill of seemingly endless possibilities sends her mind reeling as she starts jotting in her notebook and muttering her thoughts.

And Bakugo can see it, that starry-eyed look on her face, like she's a kid in a candy store, and it gets his blood pumping too. He knows now firsthand. When this nerd gets that look, nothing can slow her down, and he's prepared to match her speed and over-deliver whatever she wants him to dish out.

Meanwhile, Todoroki watches the same sight, the frantic movement of her pencil, her eyes glued to her notes, like she's suddenly in her own little world, and he can't help but marvel at her. She's always been good at creating strategies on the fly. Sometimes a little slow to act, but still… "Amazing," he absent-mindedly breathes, knowing she won't hear him.

Bakugo glances sideways at him. "Hmph. Obviously. Give him enough time and he'll come up with something without our help." Bakugo starts to walk away, deciding that since he's not needed right now, he should start warming up to get ready for whatever idea his friend wants to test when she's done.

Todoroki follows. "Is that what you guys did last time?" He's willing to bet Midoriya insisted on making the plan so that she could feel useful.

"…Not really. We both just happened to come up with the same idea."

Todoroki says aloud what he thinks the look on Bakugo's face means. "That's why you trust him?" Said more like a statement than a question.

"…S'not just that." It's so much more than that, more than words can ever express.

Todoroki stares at him, then back at Midoriya, who's begun to pace back and forth, still muttering to herself and flipping through her pages. "…I think… I understand," he starts again, "You're…" Rather than being like his father, maybe Bakugo is more like… "You're like me." Bakugo blinks as the two-tone boy stares at his left hand. "We both changed because of Midoriya."

Surprisingly, it's not the first time Bakugo's heard that. The first was obviously from Rose Omoda. But maybe the first one to really be changed was actually Todoroki. The blonde still remembers everything that happened at the sports festival, Todoroki's past and Midoriya's reply when they fought. It's becoming clearer to Bakugo now. The nerd has some mysterious ability to change people. Come to think of it, that phenomenon… he's pretty sure it's called "inspiration".

"That guy," Todoroki continues, "I can't really guess what he's thinking usually, and sometimes he makes no sense." Yeah, Bakugo definitely knows that feeling. "…But something about him makes people listen." Then he turns back to Bakugo. "You think so too, right?"

For just a moment, Bakugo feels something as he looks back at Todoroki. It's not the feel of a friend, not quite, but there's some kind of weird understanding between them. Like sort of an odd… kinship.

But it really only lasts for just a second before Midoriya yells, "You guys!" And their heads both snap back to her. She comes running, bounding energetically towards them, all with that eager, bright look on her face, like she's struck gold and can't wait for them to see it.

And it makes their hearts ache.