I don't own any of the characters within this work of fiction, they all belong to Kōhei Horikoshi. :)

Per my usual, I'm updating the chapter as I write. Enjoy!

"Yo! Hey, man, wai-wait up!"

Kirishima huffed at the, surprisingly fast, suited man continuing down the hall. Yugo didn't stop. Hell, he didn't even slow down. If Kirishima was a gambling man, he'd have bet that the other man had actually increased his speed. A little vexed, Kirishima watched the man's purple ponytail disappear around the corner of another hallway and, after cursing Yugo under his breath, he proceeded to trot down the hall after the man.

The plethora of personnel parading around the hall didn't seem to disapprove of his accelerated speed, they just simply moved themselves out of Kirishima's path and continued on their merry way. He found the lack of response odd; back home someone would have scolded him by now. Maybe it was an American thing? Or maybe these people were so used to seeing others running around that it didn't phase them anymore. Either way, it was strange.

Dodging some sort of expensive looking medical equipment, he rounded the same corner that Yugo disappeared around and continued his pursuit. At the very end of the obnoxiously long hallway, tucked into the end corner with a sour look plastered across his face, was Yugo. Kirishima slowed his pace, his shoes no longer slapping on the tile causing an echo, deciding to briskly walk the rest of his journey.

He found the new hallway much the same as the last – florescent lights, ugly tiled floors, muted paint, medical equipment dotted along the walls, and some rooms with doors propped open. Except, there was a distinct lack of government and hospital personnel. The contrast between the last hall that was crawling with people and the one he was currently walking down was startling.

Maybe there aren't many patients back here… or maybe its like a VIP hallway?

Kirishima passed a partially open door on his right, catching a flash of curly green hair, before he finally caught up with the man in the suit. Yugo's yellow eyes were narrowed, and his arms crossed in front of his chest as he leaned against the wall. When Kirishima was directly in front of the man, his own body language reciprocating Yugo's attitude, the man made a clicking sound with his tongue and mumbled something that Kirishima didn't catch.

"Uh –"

"He's in there."

Yugo's long, lean arm was extended from his body, disappearing over Kirishima's left shoulder. Kirishima cocked an eyebrow in a silent question before his eyes and body followed the path of Yugo's extended arm and finger. There was a hospital room directly across from the pair, door closed, with a little name tag on the wall that read "G. Z.".

The sight of the door made his stomach churn. Instead of butterflies, angry hornets buzzed in his chest, the assault on his heart unyielding. Kirishima ran a hand through his disheveled hair and took in a deep lungful of air before letting it out slowly. He stared at the door, silent and unmoving. His mind raced through all of the possible scenarios of what would meet him when he walked through that door, and none of them were particularly pretty. He didn't know if he could actually walk through that door.

Yugo's voice broke through Kirishima's anxiety. "I figured with how long you waited in the lobby you'd be bustin' down that door to see him."

Kirishima turned slightly to look at the man, his expression slightly scornful.

"You're the one specific person that he asked for. Now, are you going in or what, kid?"

He turned back to the door, Yugo's words bouncing around his head, repeating themselves over and over.

What the hell am I doin' just standing in the damn hallway? That's not manly at all!

That's right! He was Red freaking Riot, the manliest hero in Japan, and he was going to live up to the name and expectations he set for himself. Kirishima closed the small space between himself and the door in two steps. He reached out for the door handle, the smooth metal cool in his sweaty hand. He turned the handle, pushing the door ajar slightly. Right as his first foot crossed the threshold of the room, his phone went off in his pocket.

Wide eyed, Kirishima shut the door quickly and yanked his phone out of his front pocket, incredulously staring at the name on the screen. He answered the call, lifting the phone to his ear as he moved away from the door.

Ah! Kiri! You answered!

Kirishima pinched the bridge of his nose, letting out a slow breath before responding.

"Denki, I'm in the middle of something important, can this wait?"

Sero's, much less exuberant, voice answered.

Hey, Kiri. Look, uh, we know you said you'd be gone a few days… We figured it was something to do with the Fatgum's agency, but, uh, but no one there knows anything about you leaving so… uh, Denki panicked.

An indigent "Hey!" came from the background and then a loud thud.

We're just worried about you, man.

He felt like the world's worst roommate and friend. And even though he wanted to explain the whole situation to Sero and Denki, he couldn't. The first guy he spoke with, the dude on the phone, made it very clear that no one else was to know what was going on. Maybe he could give them some information without letting them know exactly what was happening.

"I'm… I'm in America."

Shocked silence rang through the phone.

"Guys, I, I want to tell you what's going on, but I can't. You're just going to have to trust me when I say that I'm okay and that I'll be home as soon as I can."

The line was still silent, and it stayed that way for so long that Kirishima looked at his phone screen to make sure the call wasn't dropped. He sighed, knowing that he was causing his friends to worry caused him an extensive amount of pain and guilt. He hated it, he really did. But it wasn't something that he could change.

The silence continued, his heart thudding in his chest before a voice came through the line. Denki spoke first.

Alright, man, I understand. Just… stay safe. And be careful with those damn disks.

Kirishima laughed lightly. "Don't worry, Denks, I learned my lesson last time."

There was a muffled response of "yea, sure ya did" before Sero's voice was back.

Hey, man, I know you're probably fellin' like shit cuz you can't tell us anything, but we don't care about that. Not one damn fuck is given, alright? We just want you to come back all in one piece. Stay safe dude.

The line went silent again, and Kirishima knew that this time it was because his friends had ended the call. He pocketed his phone, but not before switching it to vibrate only. He could feel Yugo's stare burning holes in his shoulders, but he paid the man no mind. At least, he tried to until the man spoke.

"Your friends seem like very understanding guys."

Kirishima half turned to the man, eyebrows scrunched in mild confusion and annoyance.

"Uh, yea… Yea they are."

Yugo just gave him a nod and gestured back toward the door to the room that Bakugo was supposed to be in. Kirishima turned back to the door and took hold of the handle again, pushing it open just enough to slip his shoulders through.

Here goes nothin'.

Bakugo and his little hellions made it three quarters of the way through the tunnel without any issues. He could even sort of see the opening of the archway – they'd be home free soon enough.

And that's about when it all went to shit.

The ceiling rumbled, small debris falling on the group, one bouncing off of the explosion hero's head. Bakugo growled deep in his throat and urged the kids forward, pushing them to move even quicker.

"Keep moving, brats! No matter what happens, keep mo-"

The stone ceiling exploded a few feet behind the group, crashing to the floor en mass. Bakugo hacked, the dust filling his lungs and obscuring his vision. He could hear the children whimpering between rough coughs, calling out to each other in the hazy room.

"Mother fucker." Bakugo grumbled, scrubbing his eyes with the back of his arm.

"Oi! Brats! Is anyone hurt?"

A chorus of "no's" rang out, the little voices bouncing around what was left of the tunnel. As the dust and dirt cleared, he could finally see his little minions. Mini Kirishima was closest to him and when the boy turned to look at him, a pointy toothed grin spread across his face.

"I did what you said! I protected everyone!"

Bakugo's eyes gave each kid a once over, looking for any signs of injury. They were covered in dust and grime, but not even one of them was injured. He reached out, plopping his hand on the kid's head and ruffled the boy's black hair.

"Good job."

"Was I manly?"

"Yea, kid, you were super manly."

He wasn't sure it was possible, but the boy's smile grew even wider. Bakugo gave the group of children another once over, just in case, before turning and craning his head to peer up at the giant fucking hole in the ceiling. Sinister silhouettes lingered along the edges of the north side of the hole.

Shit.

Against his better judgment, Bakugo tore his eyes away from the menacing shadows above them to address the children. Six pairs of wide eyes bore into his red ones as if they were begging him to save them. He set his face into his usual "un-fucking-bothered" look, leaning down slightly toward the small group of kids so that he could lower his voice. He locked eyes with every single one of the children, speaking as softly and as clearly as he could.

"Run. Fuckin' run and don't look back. No matter what you hear or what happens, you don't stop fuckin' runnin'. There are heroes up top, they'll help you. Now go."

Not one of the little gremlins moved even a fraction of an inch. Bakugo glowered, his voice taking on a more agitated tone.

"Look, I know you ain't deaf. And I didn't waste all that time finding you damn brats for you to fucking die. So, get the hell out of here!"

One of the towering silhouettes dropped from the edge of the gaping hole in the ceiling, landing with a booming thud on the mountain of rubble. Two additional thuds announced the arrival of two more potential threats. Bakugo took a few calculated steps forward, away from the children, blocking their presence with his body. With one last look at the group of kids, his eyes connecting with mismatched irises, and he grinned.

"Get 'em out of here and keep 'em safe, little Riot."

He watched the boy's face change from confusion to realization to shock, and then, all of a sudden, a hardened look of determination settled on the child's face. The boy morphed, covering the rest of his companions, just as Bakugo let loose a mass of explosions into the ceiling.

Rubble rained down between the explosion hero and his little minions, effectively shutting off any access from his side to the group. Bakugo turned back to the forms perched on the pile of rubble and smirked, explosions menacingly going off in his palms.

"Alright ya ugly bastards, let's dance!"