I want to preface this story by saying one thing. I wrote this over the course of 2018, so yes, almost 4 years ago now! I gave it to two of my friends to read and then fell out of the MHA fandom. I can't exactly say I've returned, but I'd like to give you guys a chance to read this story too. I also have not posted on this site since August 2019, so bear with me while I remember how to post and write A/Ns, haha.

I'm not sure where the idea of stranding Todoroki and Deku in the desert together came from. All I know is that back in 2018, I used to be obsessed with their brotherly relationship (THIS IS ALSO NOT A SHIP FIC, IT'S PURELY FRIENDSHIP) and this basically spiraled into a bro/whump fic. There will be plenty of Deku!whump in here and brotherly Todoroki, so if you're into that stuff, great! Their friendship is awesome. I plan to rewatch MHA soon (after like 1-2 years of not watching it, wow) and am excited to watch them again.

I also apologize if anyone is OOC in here or if anything related to quirk laws is off. I think only season 3 had been released when I wrote this, and I was new to the fandom and haven't edited this since.

With that, I hope you enjoy To Hell and Back! You're in for a long and exciting ride!

The first thing Todoroki was aware of as he opened his eyes was that he was absolutely covered in sand.

It drowned his body, his hair, his eyes, his nose, and even clogged his throat to a point where he thought that someone might have stuffed it down his mouth.

A moment later, he was coughing violently as he pulled himself up into an awkward sitting position and shook off some of the dust from his face and hair. His throat was burning and he desperately wanted something to drink, but first, he had to make sure he could actually breathe.

After his coughing fit subsided, he sat there for a long moment, still gasping for air. His memory was foggy and he couldn't quite remember where he was and, more importantly, why.

However, when he looked up a second later, his mouth parted and he blinked, in complete shock.

Miles and miles of orange sand surrounded him, confining him in its vastity, and a blue sky held the burning sun hovering above him. He was in a… a...

A desert?

As he turned to look around, pain suddenly shot through his head and he grimaced, a hand flying to his forehead. He felt something warm and wet, and when he pulled his hand away he saw red smeared on his fingers..

Blood.

His skull felt tender to the touch and his skin bruised, and he had a feeling that he might have a concussion. When he looked down at his arms a second later, he also saw scratches and cuts lining them. By the aching feeling in his legs, he guessed it was the same for them. He blinked, staring into the sea of sand that stretched out in front of him. What had happened? The last thing he remembered was…

He winced as the pain in his head spiked. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to try and remember things so soon. The most important thing was getting out of this heat as soon as possible.

He was about to stand himself up from his spot and see if he could find out more of where he was, when suddenly he heard a low moan to his left. His eye twitched and he turned his head to see what - or who- it was.

And then, he saw him.

Midoriya.

His heart nearly stopped when he spotted his friend lying there in the sand as well, with only the small rise and fall of his chest to prove that he was still alive. Todoroki pushed himself up from the sand and stumbled over to the other boy, barely feeling his own pain anymore.

As he grew closer, it was clear that Izuku was in just as bad shape as he was, if not worse. His oddly-twisted left arm was sticky with blood, staining the cloth of his grey uniform, and a layer of sand coated his body like someone had dumped it on him. His face was scratched and cut up, and the sun's violent rays only emphasized their dark colors.

"Midoriya," Todoroki rasped, kneeling beside Izuku as his hands gripped his shoulders. "Midoriya, wake up!"

Izuku let out a low moan, but his eyes didn't open. This was not a welcome response.

"Midoriya, come on… can you hear me?"

But this time, Izuku was silent.

Todoroki's mind began to race. Everything was coming back to him now. Everything that had happened, what had put them here in the first place, and why. He slammed a furious fist against the hot sand, biting back a curse as he did.

They were going to die… and it was all their fault.

EARLIER THAT DAY

"Mr. Aizawa, are we allowed to take pictures?" Ashido asked as she scooted closer to her teacher. She made a show of giving her biggest smile in an obvious attempt to sway him.

Aizawa visibly held back a roll of his eyes. "No, Ashido, you may not."

"But Mr. Aizawa…!"

"This is not the time for sightseeing. Just because you have never been to Southern Asia before doesn't mean you're tourists. We're training. Phones will only be distracting today so there's no reason for you to bring them along in the first place. But if you do decide to bring one, I suggest that you put it away until later."

Ashido bit her lip sullenly. "Yes, sir."

Meanwhile, Izuku had stayed silent through the argument although he also wanted to take pictures once they had gotten closer to the desert. As soon as he'd heard the news about the classroom internship in North Yemen of Asia, his inner fanboy had been sparked and there was no turning back. He'd packed cameras, notebooks, quirk analysis sheets, and, most importantly, a nice cleaned-up version of his hero suit.

There was a hero agency a few miles away from the town they were staying in, which Aizawa had announced they were later visiting, and he could barely contain his excitement to meet pro-heroes he'd never even heard of before. That was the main reason they had come here in the first place, however, it was also because one of All Might's friends from Yemen Hero Academy had invited them down for a week to introduce new training skills and learn how to combat hot weather. Aizawa had agreed to the idea, saying that it could provide useful training before summer break. And, well, Izuku wasn't complaining.

As of right now, they were standing in the town's dirt street with all of Class 1-A lined up and waiting for the jeeps that were due to arrive soon. They planned to go to the border of the desert so they could test their quirks in an open environment with no repercussions. In fact, they were allowed to use their powers as much as they wanted out there.

All Might was off visiting his friend and had been unable to join them for the day, so Aizawa had taken over the teaching along with an Arabic tour guide's assistance.

Even though his mentor was absent, Izuku's enthusiasm failed to dwindle and he found himself still more than ready for a productive training day. He'd stared at countless pictures of the Arabian Desert over the last few weeks and was eager to see it in real life.

"Wow, Deku, you look more excited than usual," Uraraka said from beside him.

Izuku blinked, and it wasn't long before a blush started to flood his freckles. "W-well, I mean, it's not every day we get to get so close to the Arabian Desert!" he explained. "I've done a lot of research about it and it's amazing! Did you know that it has an area of nine hundred thousand square miles? It's the fourth largest desert in the world but it only has thirty-seven types of plant species recorded! That's amazing compared to how big it is! All of the minerals make the sand really red and orange, and I think it would be incredible to be able to study-"

Uraraka cut him off with a laugh. "You've really researched this, haven't you?"

Izuku went bright red before he started to fumble with his fingers. "I-it's a very interesting topic-"

"Ah, Midoriya! Uraraka! So this is where you two are!"

Both Izuku and Uraraka's heads snapped up to see Iida who was marching towards them, but he was wearing something over his standard U.A. uniform which resembled… well... a large plastic bag. It covered him from his head to his knees and even had a see-through hood that wrapped around his forehead. He looked so funny-looking that snickers came from the other students as he passed them, although Iida didn't pay attention to them.

Uraraka could not contain her giggles when he stopped in front of them. "Iida, what is that?" she gasped.

"Hm? What?"

"That outfit you're wearing!"

"Oh, this." Iida inspected his costume again before shrugging. "I suppose you two have never heard of it. I was passing a booth in town when this man began shouting at me in this strange language… anyhow… we managed to communicate some and I learned that it provides cover and ventilation while you're out in the sun!" He nodded vigorously. "I would have bought you two some as well but I'm short of money at the moment. Maybe you could get them tomorrow if we're out here again!"

"Iida," Izuku said faintly, re-examining the hastily put together outfit, "I think you paid too much for that."

"Oh, why? Did you see one cheaper somewhere else?"

Again, Uraraka burst out laughing. Iida had definitely paid too much for it- it looked like something even a child could make. Its only use was to get quick money from tourists.

Just as Iida was about to question them further, Aizawa suddenly called out, "All right, everyone! Quiet down, the jeeps are here! You'll all be separated into groups until we arrive and then we're going to practice our quirk training, as I said earlier." He cleared his throat as he tugged at his scarf. It was so hot out already that Izuku didn't know why he wore it anyway, but that was just his teacher. "Also, I'd like you to meet Mr. Rashid. He'll be accompanying us today on our tour and making sure we don't get lost." He gestured to the dark-skinned man standing next to him who wore a breezy black shirt and an expressionless face.

Iida leaned closer to Uraraka and Izuku. "I wonder why he's not wearing this ventilation suit," he whispered. "You know, I'm already feeling cooler."

"Everybody load up! If a jeep's already filled, move onto the next one." Aizawa scowled. It was obvious the heat was already getting to him. "And try to be quick about it."

As the U.A. students began to dismiss themselves, Iida started to wave his arms and shout, "Everyone in a straight line now! We must be orderly and get inside the jeeps as quickly as possible!"

"You're the only one out of the line, Emergency Exit," Kirishima pointed out.

Iida reddened, clenching a fist against his chest. "Even out here, the duties of a class rep confine me…"

"Let's just go, okay, Iida?" Izuku said as he moved towards one of the jeeps. "The sooner we get there the better."

There were five jeeps in total, and it looked like they could take four to five people each. Three in the back and one in the front, plus the driver. Todoroki was just ahead of him and stepped into the next jeep after Ojiro had. Izuku made a move to follow after him but stopped when he saw there was only room for one more person (Tokoyami was already sitting in the front seat.) He'd just have to find another jeep so that he could sit with Uraraka and Iida.

He started to step away when someone touched his shoulder. He looked up and was surprised to see that it was Iida. "Come on, Midoriya, we don't have all day! Step inside!" he ordered.

Izuku bit his lip. "But are you sure-"

"Yeah, it's fine, Deku!" Uraraka chirped. "We're going to the same place, anyway."

Izuku nodded slowly. "Okay… I guess I'll see you guys there." With that, he stepped inside the jeep and slid down next to Todoroki. The other boy gave him a side glance before he looked away again, seeming to settle back into his thoughts.

Izuku had noticed how Todoroki had been like this lately. While they had grown closer over the Sports Festival and their time fighting Stain, shortly after it seemed to pull them back apart. Even in simple social situations, Todoroki mostly avoided talking to him and Izuku couldn't think of a reason why. He suspected it had something to do with his personal life- most likely his father- and wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone about it. However, Izuku was too afraid to ask if this was true. Todoroki was very sensitive when it came to his family.

Soon enough, all of the students were loaded into the jeeps, and then they were off, the wheels of the jeeps kicking up dust as they drove away. Izuku stared out the window in wonder and curiosity, eager to see what the way to the desert looked like.

Dirt paths guided them past all kinds of bushes and trees, and the contrast between the soaked blue sky and the earth was starking. Again, Izuku wished they were allowed to use their phones, but his was tucked away in his backpack and he would waste too much time trying to get it out. He might have overpacked a little for the trip, even though it was only for the morning.

It wasn't long before they had arrived and all the jeeps parked next to each other. The students were finally allowed to slide out. Izuku was the first one out of his own jeep because he was sitting closest to the door, and as he looked around at the sand and dirt around him, it was hard to tell where the desert ended and began.

Aizawa and Rashid were already at the front of the group, and Aizawa seemed to be annoyed that everyone was taking so long. Izuku hurried to get closer but bumped into Uraraka as he did.

He smiled, pleased to see his friend. "Wasn't the ride here amazing?"

Uraraka shrugged. "Yeah, I guess! Lots of cool... scenery."

Izuku opened his mouth to begin talking about the seven different types of plants he'd identified on the way there when suddenly Aizawa called them all to attention. Everyone had exited the jeeps by now (which were supposed to return to town and come pick them back up later) and were all coming forward in mixed groups. As Izuku looked around, he saw Todoroki, Kirishima, Mineta, Tokoyami, and Ojiro standing nearby. More of his classmates, including Iida, who seemed to have taken a later jeep, were standing to the side in their own bunches.

Aizawa pressed the tips of his fingers together and stared at all of them. "All right, let's get started before the heat gets too bad. I know that you're tired because we only just flew in last night and then we got you all up early today, but it was so that we wouldn't have to stay out here past noon. Rashid, would you like to explain why?"

Rashid looked uncomfortable to speak. "It starts to get very… h-hot out here past twelve," he said in a thick Arabian accent. It was clear he was struggling to speak Japanese. "Since you all are, eh, new here, you might get-get… ah…"

"Heatstroke," Aizawa filled in for him; Rashid had forgotten the word. "And that would be bad because you wouldn't be able to train for a few days and that's what you came here to do. Anyway, I hope you all came prepared because you're about to find out how challenging it can be to train in this kind of weather."

Iida's hand shot up, and sighing, Aizawa called on him. "Yes, Iida? What is it?"

"Mr. Aizawa, is it true that we are allowed to use our quirks as much as we want here?" Iida asked. "Isn't there some kind of law against that?"

"No, there isn't. First of all, this specific area is privately owned by the hero agency, and secondly, we're so far away from town that there would be no danger in using them as there's nothing to destroy." Aizawa raised his brow. "Is that all?"

"Yes, sir! Thank you!"

"Okay, then." Aizawa's eyes flickered across his students. "You're all going to be separated into groups based on your quirks and-" He suddenly stopped, his gaze fixed on something behind them. "Rashid, didn't you say that all of the jeeps were supposed to return to town while we were training?"

Rashid bobbed his head.

Aizawa pointed to something behind them. "Then why is that one still there?"

Almost all at once, everyone's heads turned to look at the jeep that was mentioned and all were equally surprised to see that it was still sitting there. There didn't seem to be a driver in it anymore and Izuku tensed.

If he wasn't in the car… then where was he?

Aizawa was just starting to move towards the jeep when suddenly there was a loud click of a gun being cocked.

"Don't move," someone said to the left.

Izuku's head whipped in the direction of the voice and saw a tall man, the lower half of his face covered in cloth, pointing a gun at all of them. He guessed that it was one of the drivers but didn't recognize him as the one he'd had. Either way, this situation was turning bad and fast.

Rashid looked startled at this reveal. "Haashim, what are you doing?" he demanded.

Haashim's eyes only glared back. "I want all your money. I know some was brought out here and I need you to give it to me now!"

Aizawa stared at the other man intently. "You're mistaken. I brought no money with me. Whatever money we have is with my friend, and he's not here with us today."

"Lies!" Haashim was getting more furious by the minute. "I know you brought some. I saw you put it in your pocket!"

Aizawa paused before speaking. "It's with my friend," he repeated. "You must have imagined it."

Suddenly, Haashim whipped towards Izuku and his friends and pointed a trembling gun at them. His small black eyes seemed to glow red with rage. "You four! Over here!" he yelled.

Izuku felt his stomach plummet. Oh, no. Oh, no, no, no, no. This couldn't be happening. He'd just wanted to have a training day, not be robbed. From behind him, he heard Uraraka whimper. He tightened his jaw. No, he couldn't be scared right now. He had to be strong, at least for his classmates' sakes.

Slowly, he started to walk forward with Uraraka and a few others- of which he didn't know who- following behind him. When he reached Haashim, he came to a stop a few feet away and turned around to face everyone else. His eyes widened in surprise when he saw that Todoroki and Tokoyami were also coming along with Uraraka. They must have been standing closest to him. That was something he now regretted.

Once they were all gathered by the man's side, Haashim turned back to Aizawa. "I don't need a quirk to kill your precious pupils, Eraserhead," he hissed. "Just give me the money and nobody dies."

Aizawa held the man's gaze for a strained minute before he finally sighed and lowered his head in defeat. "All right, I'll give it to you," he relented. "But only if you release my students first."

"No!" Haashim shouted. "The money, then they will be released! And if you don't… I'll start shooting." He spat on the ground, words final.

Izuku's fears were now being clouded by confusion. Why had his teacher brought money along anyway? They were just training, it wasn't like they were going to buy anything.

Just as Aizawa was reaching into his pocket to fetch the money, Kaminari suddenly jumped in front of the group, electricity crackling in his palms. "You messed with the wrong group!" he yelled with a fierce grin. "We're not just any kids- we're heroes in training! You think you can take us? Yeah, right!"

Aizawa turned deadly pale. "Kaminari, no! He has a gun!"

Kaminari, however, didn't seem to hear him, and by that time it was too late for Aizawa to stop him. A moment later, he was blasting his electricity at Haashim, but Haashim managed to dodge out of the way in time. Mineta jumped into the fray shortly after, tearing the purple balls off of his head and throwing them in Haashim's direction while crying, "Eat this, you stupid villain!"

And that's when it happened.

Haashim straightened from his maneuvering position and, as quick as a whip, thrust his left hand and shot out what looked to be a ball of energy from his palm. It seemed to explode in front of him and then it…

Shocked, Izuku's mouth gaped.

The energy ripped a hole in the very air, and a second later, one of Mineta's balls flew right through it. Izuku waited for it to come out of the other side, but was surprised when it didn't. He waited another moment, heart thudding in anticipation.

However, there was still nothing.

His mind raced for a possible explanation for this, and he closed his eyes to try and concentrate. Was it that his quirk destroyed anything it touched? No, that didn't make sense, seeing as the energy had opened up the air. If it was just meant to destroy things, it would only have stayed as electricity and burst Mineta's ball in plain sight. And if it opened up the sky, then it would have to… to…

His eyes snapped open. "Guys, his quirk must be a warp gate!" he cried.

As everyone stared at Haashim in a newfound horror, Haashim only glared back. "So you figured it out, did you?" he said. "Yes, my quirk is warping things… the smaller it is, the further away I can send it. The bigger… well, you get the idea." He gestured to the rip in the sky with his gun, which was now fading away in a swirl of orange and blue energy. "And sometimes, well, with bigger objects, they don't always come through 'whole'." He raised his pistol again and then suddenly pointed it at Uraraka. "You. Come here, girl."

Uraraka froze, her face morphed into fear. "M-me?"

"Yes. Get over here." His brow lowered. "Now."

Uraraka sent a terrified glance at Izuku before she slowly started to walk up to Haashim, her footsteps small and stiff. This time, Izuku couldn't stand aside any longer. He jumped out in front of her and spread his arms out wide. "Don't you touch her!" he yelled. "Take me if you want someone!"

"Deku, no!" Uraraka whisper-shouted.

Haashim's eyes filled with anger. "I said I wanted the girl, so I suggest that you move out of the way before you get hurt."

"Midoriya," Todoroki warned from somewhere behind him. "Move. It's not worth it. He just wants insurance so that we don't try anything else. You shouldn't provoke him."

Izuku didn't move.

This only went to further Haashim's rage. "All right, if that's the way you want it, boy! I warned you!" He began to draw back his hand- the one that wasn't holding the gun.

Feeling his heart leap into his throat, Izuku knew what this meant. Haashim was about to use his quirk on him.

The sounds of his classmates' shouting filled the air, and he heard Aizawa call for him to get away before Haashim started shooting. However, his feet were frozen and suddenly, he couldn't move.

"Don't even try erasing my quirk, Eraserhead!" Haashim called when Aizawa took a step forward. "I still have a gun, you know! And I'm more than willing to use it!"

Izuku just wanted to run away, but he knew he couldn't until Uraraka had the chance to first. He slowly backed up until he was beside her and took her hand in his. "On the count of three, I want you to run," he said lowly. "Do you understand?"

"But, Deku-"

"Do you understand?"

She nodded furiously, her eyes welling with tears.

"Okay. One…"

Energy began to crackle in Haashim's hand.

"Two…"

Haashim was starting to bring his hand forward again.

"Three!"

Just as Haashim was about to use his quirk on them, Uraraka began to bolt away while Izuku jumped to the left and ducked to the ground. A second later, ice blasted towards Haashim and the man was momentarily disabled as he tumbled to the sand, his pistol skidding away. Izuku's eyes widened in surprise when he saw that it was Todoroki who had saved him.

The other boy turned towards him with an unclear expression. "Midoriya, are you all right?" he asked, but he didn't have time to wait for an answer. "You need to get out of here now! He's-"

"Midoriya, Todoroki, look out!" Tokoyami suddenly bellowed.

From a few yards away, Haashim was rising again, this time angrier than ever. His fist was still sparkling with energy and he began to pull it back. "You shouldn't have tried that, kids! Now you're really going to pay!" he roared.

"Todoroki!" Izuku cried as he scrambled up from the ground in an attempt to reach his friend before it was too late. "Get out of the way!"

Todoroki was just turning his head as Izuku reached him, right before Izuku pushed him to the side.

And then, in a flash of exploding blue light, Haashim threw his ball of energy at them. In one blinding explosion, Todoroki and Izuku were swallowed whole in it before the light finally started to die back down. When it cleared, only an empty space was left behind.

The rest of Class 1-A could only stare in horror and disbelief at the place where their friends were just standing, nobody able to say a word. Even Aizawa was frozen in place, too shocked to erase Haashim's quirk.

Then, Uraraka let out a terrified scream.

"THEY'RE GONE!"

Thank you for reading the first chapter! There will be 22 chapters total, and I will be updating every Monday and Thursday. More of my MHA fics might be surfacing soon as well (I wrote quite a few that I never posted) so keep your eye out if I do post those. :)

See you next chapter!