Notes: First of all, I can't believe I've made it to twenty chapters on this monstrosity. Yowzers. Also, I might have food poisoning (no wonder I felt like crap yesterday), but I managed to get this chapter up. If there are any typos or whatnot, it's because I wrote this after getting sick and then passing out for five hours. I'm feeling a little better now, but I wanted to get this up before I eat dinner in case I get sick again. Thank you for being patient with me! Next chapter will mark the return to Bakugou's POV, so yay to that.

"Hard times don't create heroes. It is during the hard times when the 'hero' within us is revealed."
- Bob Riley

Uraraka knew that there was no fixing this. There was no amount of soothing words and touches that could placate him or turn things back to normal. Whatever normal was these days. Even if there were, she wouldn't have done them. She wouldn't take them back even if she could. Despite the anxiety and fear that were washing over her as they stared at one another, there was a sense of relief.

It was out. The truth was out, as it always did in the end.

She couldn't keep lying to Deku - lying to herself. Todoroki had known that. She had thought by letting him live out his illusion with her that it would save him, protect him, bring him back to her. It hadn't. Instead, somehow, it had taken him further away from her. She had tried to give him what he wanted as much as she could handle without betraying herself, but she couldn't do it. She couldn't keep deceiving him like this. It hurt too much. He deserved better.

A part of her wanted to reach out to him, to call to him, but she couldn't do that. He had to come to her this time, but she was afraid that he wouldn't.

Instead of coming to her, Deku walked over to one of the doors and ripped it open to demand, "Where is Mizumi?" There was a mumbled answer that Uraraka couldn't hear. Apparently a few of the villains hadn't gone too far, probably so they could eavesdrop on her and Deku's argument. It was embarrassing on such a petty level. There were so many worse things to worry about. "I don't care Where is she? I need her here now!"

Uraraka tried once more to steady her breathing as her eyes frantically swept the room. Should she find a weapon to protect herself? Did she need one? Deku had promised not to hurt her - he had sworn that he would rather die than bring her to harm - but that was before she'd been completely honest with him. What would he do now? Who was he calling for?

Deku dragged a woman into the room with them, one that Uraraka recognized as the villain that had sniffed her and said she'd smelled like nitroglycerin. She had been smirking a little while ago during Bakugou's interview on tv; she wasn't smirking now. Her bright green-yellow eyes flickered from Uraraka to Deku and she was reluctant to step closer to Uraraka.

"Do it," Deku demanded.

The villain, Mizumi, hesitated and turned to Deku. "You might not like-"

"Now," Deku stressed coldly, shoving Mizumi forward.

Uraraka took a step back. "Stay away from me."

Mizumi glowered sullenly. "Trust me, I wish I could."

"She won't hurt you," Deku said. "I promise." That didn't put Uraraka's mind at ease one bit, especially when his voice was so devoid of emotion. There were a lot of things that Deku had said were good that clearly weren't. Todoroki's conditioning under Kyōmu's quirk being only one of them. Gods, she wanted to be with Todoroki right now. "She's just here to find out the truth."

Uraraka wrapped her arms around herself. "The truth?"

"My quirk helps me detect certain scents on people that I can...divine truths from, emotions, wants, fears," Mizumi explained, waving her hands in the air thoughtfully. "A weak quirk, all things considered, especially compared to Midoriya's or yours, but it comes in handy during interrogations." She stepped closer to Uraraka, who found herself backed into a corner and unable to move away any further. What truths did Deku want? She had told him everything. She had been honest with him. "Whether a person is telling a lie, where they've been recently, who they've been with, sometimes even what's on their mind or who their heart belongs to… It all depends on how strong each impression is."

Deku folded his arms across his chest. "Go on then."

After taking a quick glance back at Deku, Mizumi leaned forward and took a long sniff near Uraraka's cheek, her eyes closed in concentration. It put Uraraka wholly on edge and her entire body tensed up as she held in a breath. For a few moments, there was nothing but silence as Mizumi breathed deeply, as if she was sifting through all the scents on Uraraka that told her story. Deku tapped his fingers impatiently on his arm, but kept his mouth shut as he stared at the back of Mizumi's head. Uraraka could only gape at the villain.

Finally, Deku reached his limited patience. "Well?"

Mizumi slowly opened her eyes, locked onto Uraraka's, a little frown on her face that only Uraraka could see since her back was to Deku. "She smells like you."

Behind her Deku let out a breath and turned around, running his fingers through his hair and muttering under his breath to himself as he nodded his head. She couldn't tell exactly what he was saying, but it sounded like he was either comforting himself or confirming something. All she could tell was that he looked relieved, the tension from his body mostly gone. Immediately, the air in the room felt less dangerous, even though she knew that she wasn't out of hot water yet.

As if to confirm her fears, Mizumi leaned forward and hissed in her ears, "You do smell like him, but I'd wipe that stench of nitroglycerin if I were you. You reek of it. Get rid of the ice as well. Your only concern should be Midoriya. He's not the sharing type."

When she pulled away, knowing eyes that almost looked desperate locked on hers, Uraraka could only stare at her in horror. She didn't know what to say or if there was anything she could. How could she not be worried about Bakugou or Todoroki? Except she was afraid that wasn't what Mizumi had meant, at least not about Bakugou, and it made her stomach turn. Her main concern was Deku.

"Is that all?" Mizumi asked, turning to face Deku. He didn't look back at her, just waved a dismissive hand. She gave Uraraka one last parting glance and then swept out of the room in a hurry, holding a hand over her face, as if the smell in the room was overwhelming and she couldn't stand to be in it a second longer.

Before Uraraka could react, Deku had turned back around and was on her in an instant, gripping her by the arms. He looked mostly pleased, which threw her off, considering that they had been fighting seconds ago. Mizumi's half lie had calmed him down tremendously. She must've have realized somehow that he was a hair trigger away from exploding something fierce and had done what she could to bring him back down. Still, there was something off about him now that made Uraraka even more uneasy. She didn't really smell like that, did she?

"You're good, Ochako," Deku murmured, smoothing down her hair with one hand. His grip on her arm tightened though despite his gentle words. "You're so good." It sounded more like he was reassuring himself than talking to her. "Of course you love me. I don't know why I doubted that. Sometimes, things just get so confusing that it's hard for me to think straight."

Uraraka cupped his cheek with one hand. "That's Kyōmu's doing. Can't you see that?"

"No, no, he just showed me the truth," Deku insisted, shaking his head. "You'll see once he's done with Shouto. He'll be so much happier."

"I don't believe that," Uraraka told him.

"It's a bit of stretch - I understand - but you'll see. We can't let anything hold us back. Kyōmu helps with that." Deku kissed her on the forehead and then pulled her close so that her chin was tucked on his shoulder, one of his hands on the back of her head and the other wrapped around her waist. "I just have to take care of one more thing and then we can move on. We can be happy again." He softly rested the side of his face against her head, but dug his fingers into her head and gripped her hip. "I've got to kill Kacchan."

Uraraka tried to jerk out of his grip, but he was unrelenting and didn't budge. "Deku, that's not-"

"It has to be done," Deku told her, refusing to let go no matter how much she squirmed. "He's holding you back and I won't have it. I should've killed him the first time, but you caught me off guard." His turned his head slightly so that his lips were at her ear and she froze. "You are a hero. Kacchan wasn't wrong about that - I suppose I'll have to teach that reporter a lesson as well - but he shouldn't have said the things he did. I have to kill him. I've put it off for too long, afraid it would upset you too much, but he's only hurting us."

Unable to escape his hold, Uraraka gripped the back of his vest tightly. "Please, don't do this. If you do, I don't know if I'll be able to forgive you."

Deku let out a sigh. "That's a bridge we can cross when we get there." He pulled back so that they could look each other in the eyes, their faces so close to one another. "Besides, you forgave Kacchan for everything he did. Even if you didn't know the details, you knew it was bad and it went on for years."

"I only did because you did," Uraraka said.

"I thought I did," Deku said, "but it's funny, when you look back, how much it still hurts." She could see the pain in his green eyes that he tried to keep hidden. Kyōmu must have dug up every heartache, every fear, every hurt - all that anger, desperation, sorrow - and made Deku feel it all over again. No wonder Deku was so twisted over the whole thing. "I have to do this not just for me and the League, but for us. No more wasting time." As the pain faded from his eyes, a determined look came over him, but it was dark and cold instead of passionate and warm like she remembered. "You heard him on there. Mocking us - mocking me . I can't allow that. I'll take care of him and show him once and for all who's better."

This was the opposite of what she wanted, but there was nothing she could do about it now without setting him off again. She could see the determination written in his body, the way he was holding himself upright as he stepped away from her, his fists clenched not in anger but readiness, the light back in his eyes. She couldn't reach out to him if she tried. This was something that he had to work through himself. This was something that he had to take care of. Bakugou was a hurdle, a brick wall, a red light. Deku couldn't - they couldn't - go any further until he was dealt with.

Even worse, Uraraka knew that it was exactly what Bakugou wanted. He'd intentionally goaded Deku in that interview. The pro heroes must have counted on the villains keeping a close eye on the news to glean any information on the enemy. Judging from the footage she had seen of their massive fight a few days ago, the villains had also used the media as a way to attack.

It was a delicate process. Bakugou had had to gamble that Deku would stick to his promise of not hurting her, but also say just enough to bring him out of the darkness. He had to have believed that Uraraka could hold Deku at bay. She had, but only by a hair and she still didn't feel like she was out of the water.

The only problem was that Bakugou didn't know just how bad things were. Those pictures of the murdered villains had been gruesome, but it was different seeing it happen in person. He also couldn't know how fractured Deku's mind was. She'd been here for what she could only guess was three days and she wasn't even sure if she knew. The only one close to knowing the full extent was Todoroki and it had been difficult to get a straight answer out of him no matter how hard he'd tried.

"You can come back in, Kurogiri!" Deku called out, watching her as if to make sure that she didn't try to run away or move. She couldn't. The aura radiating from him had her pinned in place.

The warp gate villain stepped back into the room, like normal through the door. It was strange to see him walk around like that, his black and purple mist contained in a suit in the shape of a person. "Yes?"

"Assemble the others," Midoriya told him. "We're striking back today." He turned to face the other villain. "We've given them enough respite, maybe too much."

It was hard to tell, seeing as how Kurogiri was made of mist, but she thought she could hear the frown in his voice when he asked, "Are you certain that's a good idea?"

Midoriya threw a hand at the television, which now had a few talking heads arguing about what was going on, Bakugou's snarling face in the corner. "Did you watch the same thing I did? They're getting bold again. The last thing we need to do is allow them time to rally. It could make them more foolhardy, but you and I both know what heroes are capable of when they're backed into a corner."

Yes, they all knew that. Just when there seemed like there was no hope, when everything was done, that was when a true hero could shine in the dark. Deku would understand full well that they were standing on the precipice where Bakugou would be at his strongest, most dangerous, and best. He knew this better than most, considering that he had seen what All Might had done and sacrificed in order to bring back the light.

How many times had Deku himself broken his body to save the day? How many times had he fallen apart and pieced himself back together again to keep fighting? It was so small compared to his other feats as a hero, but their first Sports Festival came to mind when he had fought against Todoroki. How he had broken his fingers to use his quirk before he could control it and then shattered them even further in his struggle. Deku knew what it was like to go beyond. He knew the heroes they were up against better than the villains who had spent years fighting them.

After all, he had been one of them once upon a time.

"Get the others, tell them to get ready," Deku demanded. "Tell Compress to take Ochako back to the cells. Get Dabi while he's at it. He won't want to miss out." He turned back to look at the television. "They want a war? I'll bring them one."

His expression settled into one that Uraraka had learned to recognize from their years at UA, a sign that said there would be no backing down or holding back. She had admired it back then, thinking that she wanted to be as strong as him. He had always been an inspiration.

Kurogiri held up his misty hands. "I'm not disagreeing with you. Their words should be countered and swiftly at that. I'm only suggesting that you take a step back and think before you act." Deku narrowed his eyes, looking as if he might lash out at Kurogi like he had the other villains, but he didn't say anything. Kurogiri was good at this and it was clear that Deku held some sort of trust towards him. "I heard what Eraserhead and Ground Zero said, but it also sounded like they were directly trying to provoke you."

"I'm not going to allow Kacchan to talk about us like that!" Deku exclaimed. "We're weak? Afraid? We've dealt them multiple devastating blows and he has the gall to say such things?" He scoffed irritably and folded his arms across his chest. "That's just like Kacchan. His ego is always bigger than him. He has to be taken out."

"You see? It worked. They're trying to draw you out. They're bringing you to them."

Deku glared. "You think they can take me out? You think you all will just fall apart without me?"

"I think we need to be aware that anything is possible," Kurogiri countered. It was surprising. The only one she'd seen talk to Deku like this so far was Kyōmu, but even he had been deferential at points, perhaps to ensure that Deku would come to him willingly. With Kurogiri, it was almost like...a father talking to his son. "You're smarter than this. You're letting him get to you. Stop, take a step back, and think."

Even though Deku didn't like it, he did as he was told. He relaxed his shoulders, closed his eyes, and took a breath. She could see his mind working through the scenarios, considering what both Bakugou and Aizawa had said, and what could happen if he did meet their challenge.

Bakugou wanted Deku to come out to fight, so it made sense to do the complete opposite. It would frustrate them, leave them floundering and at a loss, and also possibly make them look foolish in the eyes of the public. If they could do something else under the heroes' noses instead of directly fighting them, it could prevent the public from thinking that the League was weak or afraid. Remaining in the dark after such a public show had its advantages. It left people questioning and everyone's imagination could go south if they were left without answers.

Of course, if they were to meet Bakugou and the heroes head on and defeat them, it would be a decisive win and could possibly shatter the opposition, giving them an almost clear path to do whatever goals they had in mind. It would deal a devastating blow that would change the public's view of heroes forever. She didn't know how they would be able to come back from that one. Also, taking out some of the top heroes would weaken the opposition severely. Deku didn't just want Bakugou dead; he needed it if he was going to progress. If he truly believed that Bakugou was holding Uraraka back, he was done hesitating.

There was a chance that they could lose, if the heroes had figured out a plan that might work, but they didn't know the specifics of what was going on with Deku. To be honest, Uraraka didn't even know if they could be certain that Deku was under the control of a villain's quirk. Surely they had considered it and even believed it, unable to think that he could become a villain entirely of his own choice. She wondered if Shinsou had gotten involved. He was still in close contact with Aizawa, wasn't he?

So many things to consider and she knew that they were all rushing through Deku's mind.

"We meet Kacchan head on; we give them the advantage," Deku said, his eyes still closed. "We don't; we face looking weak and allowing them to gain momentum and strength." He slowly opened his eyes. The absolutely determined look had faded from his face, replaced by a disappointed frown. It made him look innocent, like he had wanted to do something fun outside but the rain had forced him to cancel his plans. "I don't like this."

"And the way around it?" Kurogiri prompted. That was where Deku excelled. Where some people saw dead ends and no way to win, Deku saw hidden opportunities, no matter how improbable they were. When others gave up, he dug deeper to find a way out. Uraraka hated that his mind was at the villain's mercy the most.

Deku sighed. "We bide our time and wait for the right opportunity to strike on our terms." No, he didn't like that at all, but it was better than falling into Bakugou's trap. Uraraka's heart sank, but she also couldn't help but feel relief as well. She didn't want Bakugou to fight Deku when he was out of control. The amount of destruction that he would be capable of was unimaginable. It would be like All Might's fight with All For One again, but worse. "We can't let them go completely unanswered for this though."

"Agreed," Kurogiri replied calmly. "I trust you to come up with a plan."

When Deku brought a hand to hold his chin thoughtfully, Uraraka felt as if the air had been taken out of her lungs. It was such a Deku action. She could see him do that from a distance and instinctively she would know that it was him. They all had their little habits and, much like his inability to properly tie a tie, this was one of his. "Something that leaves them questioning, something that will dig at them and leave a wound, something that will scare them."

Kurogiri placed a hand on Deku's shoulder. "That's more like you now."

He must have understood on some level that the consistent use of Kyōmu's quirk on Deku had caused him to fluctuate between stable and unstable. That had to be a side effect. It looked like he was getting better about it as time wore on and the state of his mind became normal. Everyone had filed out the room quickly after Kyōmu had snapped his fingers, but most had looked ready to leave before that. Still, as uneasy as they had been, there was a level of...comfort between them as well. When Deku wasn't mad or feeling confused, he was warm with them, familiar, and it was like they were with him.

"I still need you to do one thing for me," Deku admitted, sounding ashamed as he dropped his hand to anxiously pull at his short tie.

"Of course."

"Have someone escort Ochako back to the cells." When Deku refused to look at her when she started, she knew that there would be no changing his mind. The last time she'd gone there, she had almost been killed. After what he had done to that villain though, she doubted anyone would want to go near her. She could practically feel the barrier between her and the other villains. "Someone needs to replace Dabi as well. He gets antsy down there and might do something stupid. I think Mr. Compress would be the most ideal. He's at least more pleasant company."

Uraraka opened her mouth to protest, but then bit her lip. She half-expected him to walk back to her, take her hands in his, and reassure her that everything would be fine (at least, his idea of "fine"), but he did none of that. He didn't even look at her as Kurogiri left to fetch Compress. Neither one of them spoke, leaving Uraraka to hug herself and drop her gaze to the ground as the television continued to play in the background. The only word she could use to describe Deku in this moment was worn thin, as if this whole thing had wrung him dry. Any comfort she tried to give him now would ring false and they both knew it.

It left her feeling very sad.

At least he hadn't gone off the handle. She had been certain that he would. She hadn't thought that anyone would be able to talk him down from storming out of here and using his bare hands to kill Bakugou. He still wanted to, but he had set his personal desires aside for the League's goals. It was what he'd done during his time at UA and when he was a hero. Even if it hurt, he would put what he wanted on the backburner to save the world. It had put pressure and caused strain on their relationship at times, but she'd never begrudged him for it. He had inherited responsibilities long before they had gotten together and even before he'd met her.

When Kurogiri returned to the room with Compress, Deku straightened up and put on a bright face, hiding his exhaustion behind the mask. "Careful with her, mind you? I wrapped her ankle, but she still has to take it slow."

"Would you prefer me to use my quirk to transfer her there?" Compress asked, his eyes flickering to her and then back to Deku.

Before Deku could answer for her, Uraraka stepped forward. "I want to walk on my own."

Compress looked at Deku for confirmation again and he nodded his head, turning slightly so that she was out of his vision again. It stung. Compress held out an arm, which she ignored as she headed in the direction that she and Deku had come from. She stopped when she was at the door and turned back to face Deku, but he was looking at the ground.

"I need some time alone to consider things," Deku told her without looking up. It wasn't that his voice was devoid of emotion anymore; rather it sounded like he was doing his best to keep it out. "You'll have Shouto at least." His fingers twitched and he shoved them into his pockets. "I'm sure you'd rather be with him right now anyways."

There was nothing Uraraka could say to that and so, after a gentle nudge from Compress, she turned around and left, her heart beating slowly and sad. She truly had wounded him and it was one she didn't know how to repair.

"That boy loves you something terrible, you know," Compress said in the silence. "Sometimes I think it hurts him more than helps."

Uraraka swallowed a lump in her throat. She did know that, but she didn't know how she couldn't cause him pain. The one thing that had pulled them together was now tearing them apart.

"I was in love once, back in my youth," Compress continued wistfully.

"What happened?" Uraraka asked in a hollow voice.

"She died."

His words did not make Uraraka feel any better, but she doubted he had expected them to. There was more she could have asked, but they only made her wonder more. What would happen if she died? What would Deku do then? If it was a result of the villains, would he turn his back on them or would he give in completely? She didn't know and she didn't want to find out. There had to be a way to save him. She had to think. Like Deku, she had to find the path to victory.