How...?
He didn't see Bakugou for a good seven years, but apart from his attitude he didn't change much. He's as robust as ever, and his Hero costume makes him appear bulkier and even more provocative. His almost villain-like mask covering his eyes highlight their fury, but somehow it's subdued as his gaze roams over Midoriya, as if not quite believing his presence.
...could someone...?
"Ah?" Bakugou snarls at Todoroki, eyes still riveted to Midoriya. "You're babysitting now?"
"I'm going to escort this civilian to safety," Todoroki declares, roughly grabbing Midoriya's arm. "Come, Midoriya, and don't think of getting away."
For a foolish moment he believed Bakugou forgot about this Quirkless boy who wanted to be his friend but a hand grips his other forearm, stopping him. "Wait, you really think I'll let you go...?"
...like him...?
"...Deku?" He cackles, pulling Midoriya so harshly that he tears him away from Todoroki's grip. Bakugou smiles as if in triumph, exclaiming, "Quirkless Deku, it's really you."
...be a Hero?
"I thought you'd jump off a bridge when you realised how useless you fucking are."
Midoriya tugs at Bakugou's steel hold on his arm but it doesn't budge, so he resumes to nodding grimly, mumbling, "You must've been disappointed."
"Well, it's not like I cared what happened to you, Deku."
Todoroki's eyes narrow as he watches their conversation, his gaze shifting on both Bakugou and Midoriya. He opens his mouth to speak when the monster wails. Now that the smoke dissipated, they notice it standing a mere few meters away, already coiling its body and ready to leap on them.
Bakugou doesn't give it time to reach out for them as he jumps forward, blasting the creature in the face. Midoriya flinches at the explosion, ears ringing and eyes assaulted with memories he'd rather bury deep down in his mind. It's a sound and a sight he didn't miss.
"Midoriya." Even Todoroki's voice can't calm him. Old scars on his arms and on his back, are stinging, as if activated now that the source of their pain is so near. "Midoriya, you have to rest."
"I have to..."
His voice fails him, his chest rising and falling at a rapid pace. He can't focus on anything but Bakugou, now an angry blur of orange as he fights against the monster. A faint whistling sound escapes his lips and Midoriya clasps a hand over his mouth. He bends over as the churning of his stomach intensifies and all he hears is the blood rushing to his head.
"Midoriya!"
He rationally knows that it's Todoroki's hand that brush his shoulder but he slaps it all the same. He remembers a similar hand closing on him, tiny red explosions cracking off like fireworks before fading away and drawing marks across his back, gripping his shirt by the collar and throwing him on the ground like he weighs nothing. He remembers the pain blooming from the back his neck and following his spine, the dull pounding of his head and the cold tears leaking from his eyes. He's always been such a weakling. The canvas of scars etched across his body proves it.
He urges himself to breathe, to stand up, to appear somewhat dignified despite his misty eyes and his ashen face. As he scrambles to his feet, he notices how quiet it is. The sounds of battle have faded away like a dream, leaving him disoriented. He whirls around and his heart lurches in sync with the motion, frantic eyes searching for Bakugou. There's no one standing near him except for Todoroki who's watching him, aware that his help would be denied if he as much makes a move. The Heroes are agglomerated near the bridge, as if to give them some space, or perhaps Todoroki insisted they retreat further since the fight agitates 'the lost civilian'.
"Midoriya," Todoroki begins, but Midoriya doesn't want to contempt or even worse, pity dripping from a voice he's known to be impassive. He doesn't need anyone else telling him he's weak.
"Kac—" He catches himself, eyes wide as his own mind betrays him. He hates Bakugou. He hates Bakugou Katsuki with vicious passion, he tells himself, yet here he goes using the same nickname that always earned him two or three blasts in the face. "Bakugou. What's he doing here?"
"He's a Pro Hero. He's helping," Todoroki answers as if it's the most natural thing in the world but it's not. It's the most outrageous, the most horrendous thing if someone would ask Midoriya.
"He's not helping. He's destroying."
"Perhaps, but as long as he doesn't hurt civilians, he's helping."
"He hurt me!"
Midoriya slams one hand on his chest with such strength he feels the recoil in his bones. Todoroki meets his gaze without giving away what he thinks, half-turned from him. His eyes measure him, pondering, before settling on the brawl.
"Did he now?"
Midoriya lets out a shaky breath, his hand fisting his shirt as he feels his heart drumming under his fingers. "More than you know."
The smile Todoroki gives him is mirthless. "Believe me, I know." His inner turmoil vanishing like a bubble that just burst, he stares at Todoroki who shrugs, "I did my research before inviting you in my house. So did you, I assume."
"Invited? More like coerced."
Todoroki sighs, stepping forward. "I thought we were past this."
"We're still in the middle of it. Wait, what are you doing?" Todoroki was kneeling in front of him but his back was facing him. It was almost like... "A-Are you expecting me to climb on your back?"
"You're too exhausted to go on like this. Besides, I don't want your mother to kill me when she finds out I didn't exactly treat her son right."
Midoriya's tempted to accept. He's aware of his own limits and he's nearing them faster than he'd like to admit but his pride ties him to the ground, so he snorts.
"That won't be necessary, Todoroki-kun. I'm Quirkless, not completely disabled."
Todoroki starts, eyes widening of a fraction. "This isn't what I—"
"I'll go first," he cuts him, ignoring the stabbing pain in his knee, spreading up in his thigh. "I need a head start, right?"
He doesn't expect Todoroki to reach for him and the Pro Hero proves him right. He stays behind, watching Midoriya limp away. This stubbornness of his won't cure his knee; on the contrary, his case will worsen. Todoroki closes his eyes as he musters his resolve to get Midoriya on his back, no matter what, and only had time to step forward before the winged creature dashes above him, claws extended.
"Midoriya!" He warns, his right hand instinctively shooting forward with crystals materialising on his fingertips. "Midoriya, watch—"
The wave of ice he hurled in the creature's direction hits the creature's wing before instead of paralysing it as planned, the attack rebounds effortlessly. Todoroki relies once more on his ice Quirk but it refuses to respond to his call, his body staggering as the frostbite roots itself in his legs.
He clenches his teeth, punching his legs as if they would react immediately. He feels his muscles tightening but they're like a rusty machine unable to function with its rattling engine on the verge of collapsing. The creature's claws curl around Midoriya's armpits and take him off the ground under his very eyes. Midoriya trashes instantly and his legs kick in the air. He reminds Todoroki of a fish dragged out of the water, struggling for air.
"Civilian!" Todoroki screams, the familiar Hero code acting like a call for help, but he's too far from the scuffle, and his voice's drowned in screeching, lightning bolts and explosions. "Dammit..."
He tears his eyes away from his useless limbs, rather squinting as he looks up to the monster flying away with Midoriya in his grasp.
This isn't how it's supposed to happen.
He's supposed to observe Midoriya in his apartment, in control of the variables influencing the latter. With close to no contact with outside and limited information from the radio, Midoriya wouldn't be able to contact anyone to do his bidding if the Judge he is, and if Todoroki's gut instincts are right then Midoriya would snap one day or another. But instead he was being taken away and Todoroki can't move.
Like hell he's getting away. He's my prey.
Even during a most dire situation, Midoriya doesn't ask for his help. He's still resisting since his entire body squirms and flails around but he's obviously failing to free himself. He isn't asking for help and he doesn't need to. Todoroki's a Pro Hero. It's his job to rescue civilians.
Todoroki breathes out, eyeing his left arm already aiming at the creature. There should be no doubt clouding his mind. He should fire, thaw himself out, and attack the beast without showing any mercy. He should take Midoriya back to a healer and make sure he rests properly this time. Should is all but a pretty word that gets no actions done, in the end. Todoroki knows he should do it, but should doesn't actually compel him to do so.
Listen, you're Todoroki Shouto and you can manipulate fire, so do it.
Manipulate is a generous word. He's not even sure he can find the source of his fire after so many attempts to quell it. Besides, he also has no idea if his flames can even reach the creature. With each ticking second, the distance between them grows at an alarming speed, reducing his chances to get a hit, or even a graze. He readjusts his aim but he can't stop his arm from quivering like a leaf caught in the gale.
That's enough reason to blast that thing, right?
It should be. It should be.
You're enough.
It has to be.
A stream of flames gush out of his entire left side, swallowing him in fire. Todoroki feels like a powder keg that's been sparked. He has little to no control on his Quirk's fierceness. After being confined for so long, the fire wants to consume everything on his path, perhaps even its own wielder. The recoil from the shot is so intense that Todoroki stumbles, falling on his knees.
The fire hits the target and, unlike the ice so easily reflected, actually damages the creature by burning its wing's thin membrane. Even far away Todoroki can hear its shriek of pain, losing altitude as smoke spirals around it. With the fire reducing the ice covering his right side to small puddles of water at his feet, he's regained his motion. He would've liked to use his flames to propel himself forward but trusting a power he hasn't used in ages could kill him. He opts for familiar ice surfing while keeping his body temperature at a healthy level.
The creature may be having trouble flying but it can still endanger Midoriya. A crash from this height would be deadly to anyone without a skin-strengthening Quirk like Kirishima or being completely free from the laws of gravity like Uraraka.
And Todoroki refuses to see Midoriya plunging to his death.
Not on my watch.
When Midoriya was a child, he dreamed countless times about his Quirk. When each of his friends, though he later learned that no one was his but actually Kacchan's, all began having their Quirk, Midoriya wasn't jealous in the slightest. He'd have his later, and although it was rare to receive a Quirk at the old age of five, it wasn't impossible. When fire burst like petards in Kacchan's sweaty palms, Midoriya was the first who smiled at the sight and told him how amazing his Quirk was while dreaming of his own, how his absent father's fire Quirk could match Kacchan's.
Around him, one by one, people were blessed with a Quirk. It would sometimes create chaos in the class, such as the girl able to accelerate vegetation's growth and who ended up growing the plants sitting idly on the window sills until their roots popped out of their pot. Midoriya got a scar that day on his chin, barely noticeable since it was hidden by the shade of his mouth, but he didn't even notice he was bleeding until he was ushered to the infirmary. All he could think of was how this Quirk was interesting, how happy his mother would be if he'd be able to resurrect the dead plant in their living room if he had a similar Quirk.
Around him, everyone got their Quirk. Recess consisted of showing Quirks, building castles in the air using leaves and dead branches, drawing bullseyes on trees and practising their aim, sometimes even fighting with their Quirk activated, which always occurred with a detention to the brawlers. Midoriya watched it all in wonder. His classroom was like a huge laboratory where dangerous chemical reactions could happen all of sudden. The children were learning to tame their powers and by observing them, Midoriya was convinced he was ready for whatever Quirk he would be bestowed.
"I'm sorry."
The first one who told him was the doctor, his professionalism fading for a few seconds as he stared at Midoriya with compassion. The second was his mother, hugging him firmly from behind, tears streaming down her face. He half expected his classmates to be sorry too but he was wrong.
"Hey? You don't have a Quirk?"
"Have you heard? Midoriya Izuku from Class B doesn't have a Quirk."
"Woah, people like that really exist?"
The whispers weren't quiet enough not to reach Midoriya. Even if they were, Midoriya was telling himself the very same things.
He was hanging out with Kacchan and his friends when someone he's never talked to came and apologised to him.
"What's he talking about?" Kacchan asked when the unknown student was out of earshot. "You two had a fight or something?"
"Don't be ridiculous, Kacchan," Midoriya chuckled, telling himself his shoulders were shaking from laughter and not from nervousness. "It's just... Haven't you heard about my... situation?"
But Kacchan hadn't been in the mood to guess, his features twisting in a scowl Midoriya's been accustomed to by now. "Are you gonna spit it out or what?"
"W-Well, I'm..." He glanced to the other boys he knew less, wondering if he should tell them as well. With Kacchan it was different but them... He swallowed the lump in his throat. He doesn't mind not hanging out with them; it's Kacchan who's amazing. "I don't have a Quirk."
The blond boy growls, "Yeah, we know that. If you'd have one, you'd tell us."
"No, I mean... I don't have a Quirk and I will never have one. I'm Quirkless."
There, he said it. He closed his eyes, releasing the breath he's been holding.
"Is that true?"
Kacchan looks downright furious, so much that Midoriya takes a step back. He's never seen his friend so angry before, not even when his mother refused to buy him the console he wanted for his birthday. Also, Midoriya's witnessed his rage countless times but it's never been directed to him. What he earned were glares and snarky comments, yes, but they didn't possess the contempt shining in Kacchan's red eyes.
"I can't believe it," he spits, and had Midoriya been closer, he would've received it in his face. "I spent my time with you, a Quirkless."
Something sinks within Midoriya at the harsh words but he offers a tentative smile. "K-Kacchan, I'm still the same as before. I'm me and you're still your friend..."
"Hey? That's a load of bullshit. It's simple. If you don't have a Quirk, then that means you're nothing, and I'm not wasting my time with someone like you."
His chest is aching, as if someone had plunged a knife in his heart and kept on twisting it. He didn't care about the other boys' snickers since they were never that important to begin with but Kacchan... He was his first friend and while intimidating, Midoriya knew that Kacchan was a good guy. If he lets the other boys tease Midoriya, that's because stopping them would only create conflict. If he always refuses his help, that's because he didn't want to burden Midoriya. If he laughs at Midoriya, that's because there's something funny Midoriya didn't quite catch, and he admits his behaviour can be ridiculous at times.
But this... This was plain rejection, and as he searched for any sign of regret in these crimson orbs Midoriya realised he might have been wrong all along. Perhaps there's a logical reason to Kacchan's indifference and mocking attitude and Midoriya had simply refused to consider it until now.
"Now stop following me like a fucking kicked puppy or I'll blast you to hell."
Kacchan spun on his heels after that, accepting the boys' encouraging pats on his back and their approving nods, not sparing a glance at Midoriya. The latter didn't move until recess is over, and even then he got inside the building at a snail pace.
A chemical reaction had happened. A loose variable had tipped his entire world, and now he was incompatible with any of his classmates. He was the anomaly mothers would warn their kids about if they don't eat their vegetable or go to sleep at eight.
"You'll be Quirkless if you don't do as I say," they'd threaten.
Midoriya doesn't understand. He always did everything his mother would ask him and sometimes it didn't even bother him because he loves his mother too much to make her anything but happy. Yet after striving so hard to be a good son, dreaming so much about becoming Symbol of Peace, that was what he got? A bunch of shattered hopes, tears spilt on notebooks, burns from the one person he called his friend and a mother who blamed herself for what befell him?
What a shitty reward.
Midoriya stares at the sky clear of any clouds and sighs. If he had Quirk, he could soar to join its vastness. If he had a Quirk, he could make its weather bend to his will. If he had a Quirk, he could be so much more.
He tenses as crunching noises grow louder behind him. Kicking the rubble, hands tucked in his pants, posture casual as if it's nothing but a walk in the park, a person's walking towards him. After skirting around the creature's motionless body sprawled a few meters from Midoriya, they stop, they stop only mere feet away from him, licking their parched lips.
Midoriya lets his eyes fall shut.
There was smoke billowing around the place where the beast had crashed, Midoriya still in its claws. It's in these situations that Todoroki finds himself wishing to have a Quirk that could save people, not only destroy them. His fire would do nothing but scorch Midoriya's skin and his ice as a cushion would break his back.
Todoroki isn't sure what he expects to find. He lost sight of the creature when he turned right to avoid colliding into a building, but this slight moment of inattention was enough to make him lose sight of it. He followed the sounds of explosions reminiscent of Bakugou's, wondering if his colleague was somehow successful where Todoroki was bound to fail, but then again Bakugou's Quirk wasn't meant to protect either. Therefore he came to the conclusion that amidst this ocean of smoke he would stumble upon Midoriya's broken corpse.
The thought makes him queasy. He didn't know Midoriya a lot and from what he knew of him, he could be the criminal the Police Force spent the last month searching for. However, he has no desire to see Midoriya dead. He has no reason to yet, anyways.
The ground rumbles as another detonation erupts, much closer to Todoroki now. He tenses, whirling around but he's blinded by the smoke. Shaking his head, he reminds himself that relying on sight is a weakness he overcame. He's been trained with an opaque mask covering his entire face, pushed into an arena and left fending for himself. He can do this.
He musters his most menacing voice, peering through the smoke. "Who goes there?"
He stiffens, listening to the most subtle of sounds, but he doesn't have to try hard since the sound coming from his left is all but subtle.
"Oh, it's you, candy cane fucker."
Todoroki sighs through his nose. "Bakugou."
He waits for his fellow Hero to approach him but instead, thrown out of the smoke like a wild apparition and crumbling on the ground like a sack of flour, there's Midoriya. Todoroki kneels instinctively, one hand reaching for his vitals.
"Seems I found your fucking pet."
He's only unconscious, even if his breathing is a little shallow. As Todoroki hauls him on one shoulder, he notices the blood trickling down his face.
"Did you do this?" He asks, gesturing the injury.
"Me? Why would I waste my time on fucking Deku?"
"Time spent harassing him is never wasted with you, Bakugou," Todoroki replies crisply. "You still appear to enjoy picking on him, even after all this time."
"What's that supposed to mean 'even after all this time'? It's not like that loser got a Quirk, right? He's still as fucking useless as before."
"He's not a loser."
Bakugou snorts, "Yeah, right, that's shit. Only a loser would recognise another."
Todoroki clicks his tongue, looking away and readjusting Midoriya on his shoulder. He's in no mood to fight against Bakugou whose energy never runs out, rather intensifies the longer the argument stretches. It's one of the many reasons Todoroki doesn't interact with the explosive Hero.
"I can't believe Deku's still alive."
"And I can't believe you're still so close-minded."
"Ah?" Bakugou shouts, closing the distance between them and grabbing his shoulder. Todoroki snarls, elbowing Bakugou away. "The fuck you're saying? Like you're any better when you don't use your fucking flames."
"I used them," Todoroki weakly defends himself, feeling his left hand shaking as if reminded of the sensation. "Times are changing, Bakugou, and with your attitude you might not make it."
"Is that a fucking threat? Thought you were smarter than this."
"With the Judge on the prowl, no one is safe."
"Ah! As if that amateur can actually harm me."
Todoroki doesn't bother delving further into the subject. With his motions stiff so he wouldn't jostle Midoriya, he strides towards the civilians' zone. Bakugou doesn't follow him, preferring to head towards the action. Once he's certain he's alone, he stops, looking down at Midoriya's face.
"He's not here anymore."
Midoriya cracks one eye open, immediately fixing itself on Todoroki. "When did you know...?"
"I'm afraid you make a poor impression of an unconscious person."
"But I was really unconscious before," he protests, sliding off Todoroki although the latter doesn't let go of him, acting as his support. "It's just that when I heard Bakugou..."
"I know. You tensed."
Midoriya lets out a sheepish laugh, rubbing the back of his head. Todoroki doesn't understand why. There's nothing to be ashamed of. He didn't learn much when he talked to Midoriya Inko since she herself had trouble talking about this dark period of her son's childhood. What he was told, however, was that Katsuki Bakugou was like an indelible spot of ink staining Midoriya's memories, darkening what was supposed to be pages of white.
"How did you do it?" Midoriya startles, frowning, and Todoroki beckons his state. Beside the bruises colouring his body and his knee as bad as before, he has no broken bones and he's still very much alive. "You didn't hurt yourself in your fall."
"I-I don't know. I don't remember..."
Todoroki assumes a hit to the head does that to people, but he's learned not to trust everything Midoriya tells him. He might look innocent yet he's anything but.
"You can take your time remembering. I won't leave your side."
Midoriya was still bound, after all, to stay with him. He offers him a dry smile, which Todoroki reciprocates. Any hint of seriousness vanishes from Midoriya's face in an instant, his eyes growing wide. Todoroki watches his gawking, suddenly self-conscious.
"What?" He snaps, a little harsher than intended.
"You smiled. Well, it wasn't a real smile but it was one nonetheless."
Todoroki's smile drops, his face darkening. He's aware he isn't the person who has the most welcoming personality but is this really how people see him?
"I'm not the heartless monster you think I am."
Midoriya blinks. "I never thought you were a monster." He sounds sincere and Todoroki truly wants to believe he is but he knows better. As if hearing his thoughts, Midoriya limps forward, eyes glimmering with conviction. "I just think you're a little too stiff. You don't... You're so formal. So aloof. Would you like to befriend a block of ice?"
Todoroki gapes at the comparison and opens his mouth to reply but Midoriya beats him to it.
"But that's alright. I mean, you already improved since you used your fire."
Todoroki feels his cheeks burning yet it has nothing to do with his Quirk. "About that, I—"
"No need to thank me. You always had it in you but you were too stupid not to use it."
Todoroki can't help but scoffing at being called stupid but perhaps he needed it. Arguing won't get them anywhere, so instead he bends over, taking Midoriya's arm and wrapping it around his neck. Ignoring his yelp of indignation, Todoroki starts walking, pulling Midoriya with him.
"Let's go home," he whispers, and Midoriya simply accepts to lean on him, murmuring a 'Thank you' lost in the sounds of explosions.