You made your way onto the field. So many thoughts were plaguing your mind - from large to seemingly minuscule teenage-drama. Once your eyes met Todoroki's, they all seemed to quiet down.

***

"No..." you said.

The corners of his lips fell. His hands remained by your face, waiting to see if you'll change your mind.

"I'm not rejecting you, exactly," you quickly recovered, "it's just that..."

It would feel wrong, you thought. You didn't want to cheat. Wouldn't it be better if you stole Todoroki's energy during the match? It wasn't like villains were going to let you snuggle them before beating them to a pulp.

Then again, maybe you weren't thinking outside the box enough. If your opponent was offering himself, were you stupid to turn it down?

You sighed, why was Todoroki being such an idiot? It wasn't like him at all.

"Why would you do that?" You asked, "Even if you what you said is true, it's stupid for you to lower your chances of winning."

"I don't see it that way," he said.

"Then, understand, it makes me feel like you underestimate me..."

Was that what really bothered you? He thought you would lose so terribly to him that he felt bad enough to give you a leg up? Didn't Bakugo do the same thing?

Why does it irritate you when Todoroki wants to?

"I'm sorry," he actually looked concerned, "I didn't mean any disrespect."

Now you felt overdramatic.

Todoroki's thumb brushed against your cheek, "I wasn't lying. It wasn't a pity offering," he cleared his throat, "I know you've been holding back, and maybe that's because your quirk scares you or you're afraid to be to public about it. I'm not a good example, either."

"That's why..." he continued, "It's not that I don't think you're a worthy opponent. But I'm not holding back this time. You can accept or take your chances on the field - I respect that. But you will need to be at your best either way."

He was right about that. Without a great source of energy, one giant ice wall and you were done.

You nodded into his palms. Suddenly, he seemed to get shy. He couldn't look you in the eye for more than a second at a time.

"The aftermath with you and Midoriya in the cavalry battle was hard on you. In a way, I guess I still wanted to be a gentleman. I know how ironic that sounds in this situation..."

He would rather you kiss him in private..?

You studied his face and wondered why someone like Todoroki would be so insistent on you performing well. Normally, he was the type to leave everyone in the dust...

He slowly began to take his hands back, "I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable."

His fingertips were at your jawline, when you caught his hands. Todoroki looked puzzled by your actions. You were as well. All you knew was that your heartbeat was so loud you were going deaf.

Neither of you spoke, but you both knew to lean in. He held your face again and pulled you closer.

His lips were shocking. Much like his quirk, you couldn't tell if he was giving you chills or making you sweat. It was sweet, calm but passionate, much like Todoroki.

It wasn't like Bakugo where you thought you were being ravaged by fire. This was a slow burn - probably more dangerous because you didn't know when to stop.

***

"I hope you're ready for this, Todoroki," you said. Your quirk activated, earning an excited rumble from the crowd. The energy glowing off you was a brilliant purple.

Todoroki smirked. His fire burned through his second gym shirt.

They should really just let him wear his hero outfit... You thought, as you admired his pecs.

He was insanely powerful. You watched his seemingly effortless movements and he danced his was around you - keeping you at bay.

It was true - even with your quirk he was almost impossible to touch.

You broke a few ice attacks that came your way and you were pleasantly surprised that the cold didn't hurt like usual. Anytime you tried to get to him, he'd throw up a wall of either ice or flame.

Finally, you were able to land a powerful hit, but he saved himself by blocking the boundaries with ice. He was just too good...

Did he ever run out of juice? You knew you would, especially with all these heavy attacks you were landing.

An opening arrived while he was preparing a fire attack. You were able to catch him by his arm and chest and pin him to the ground.

You had an opportunity here. You could take more vitality, until he was too weak to move. The idea was tempting and you went with it, letting your hands do most of the extracting.

It was working! You were getting stronger again.

He was so helpless.

You were in control...

Your vision could only see colors as they slowly depleted from his body.

With a short gasp, you pulled away, sharply. It was the time to win this - end the match - but you lost focus. That was different than with Denki, this reminded you more of that time at the USJ...

It made you sick inside.

Todoroki noticed your hesitation. Even in his weakened state, he formed an ice structure around you. You could probably break free, but part of you didn't want to.

"Come on," he grunted as he stood up, "Don't stop now."

His eyes were focused. If you didn't decide to act he would end it in a heartbeat. This wasn't going to be like the ice walls moving towards you, you actually had to break out of a freezing mold formed around your body.

After wiggling around a bit, you were able to break one arm free, but Todoroki was already prepared to reinforce the prison. He added layer after layer until you couldn't even see. You were cocooned and losing air and heat.

Your body strained to shake from the cold. Your fingers and toes began to feel numb. Darkness crept its way into your vision, until a peaceful sleep took you.

Birds chirping and warm sunlight woke you. Your head was on a soft pillow. A groan escaped your body when you attempted to move.

"Now, now," a familiar voice said, "You haven't been resting long. Take it slow."

"Recovery girl?" You looked up, "I don't even remember how I got here."

The little older woman bobbed around your bed, "I'm not surprised. You were out cold after you last match. Luckily, no severe damage. When you're ready I have some hot tea to help with the chill."

You noticed you were covered in blankets. Swaddled almost.

"That young man was nice enough to melt you at least," Recovery girl snorted, "Quite the battle. One of the longest so far but I had the least cleanup!"

You smiled. Well, that meant you lost. But third place was more than you ever expected or dreamed of. If you had to lose to anyone, Todoroki was quite the challenger.

A knock came to the door and Recovery Girl invited them in. To your surprise, it was All Might. He lowered his head to hit his giant body through the doorway.

"HA-hahaha," his heavy legs stomped toward you, "Look at you! Hardly a scratch. You were impressive out there today, (Y/N)."

"Thanks, All Might!" Your teeth chattered a bit, "Am I missing the last match right now?"

"It's about to start, but don't push yourself if you need the recovery time. Recordings will air for a while so you'll watch it one way or another."

You nodded, but watching it in person was so much better!

"I just came to congratulate you," he said, "I know you were worried before coming into this. You should be proud. Midnight can't shut up about you, which is making the rest of this show difficult to get through..."

You laughed, "I should be glad she likes me, I guess."

All Might looked like he was going to sit down on a chair, but it looked too small, so he knelt by your bed instead, "As your teacher, I'm to help you on this journey to heroism. Training is one aspect of it, your physical abilities make half a hero. What I want to discuss now - now that I've seen your power - is the other half."

"Why do you want to be a hero?" He asked.

Why...

"Strange," you scoffed, "I didn't think that would be a hard question."

All Might waited patiently.

"At first, I just liked the idea of being a pro hero. Using my power for something useful like saving others. I thought that with the right training I could figure out what to do with my strange quirk... Growing up, I was feared by my classmates. I never did anything horrible to them, but the idea of needing their strength to fuel my own gave me a black mark," you paused, "Later, I began to admire my aunt for becoming a teacher. I kept searching for ways that I could help people, but I didn't understand how my quirk could do that when it was so selfishly designed. So, hero training seemed fitting. And then, after the USJ and finding out about my parents, I wanted to prove I could be used for good more than ever... I'll admit, it's still hard."

"Hard - because?" He titled his head.

"I'm afraid to like my quirk. I feel like if I like myself then, in some way, I approve of my parents..."

All Might's face couldn't change much, but you could sense his sadness, "I'm sorry that you've been feeling this way. It's not easy to have such a looming past following you wherever you go. Consider this; it seems hard now, but once you overcome this, you'll set an example for future students who may be in your same situation. You aren't the first student, or the last, to have villains in your family."

He pat your head, "Do what your parents couldn't, and make your quirk known for its goodness."

You met his gaze and instead of crying - like usual from his speeches - you gave him a confident smile, "That's a good goal."

"It is - isn't it!" His heroic volume returned, "Now I have to get back to the match. See you at the ribbon ceremony, young (Y/N)!"

This wasn't at all how you thought you'd feel after the sports festival. You came in with dread but were leaving with hope. If All Might believed in you, the greatest hero in the world, then maybe you could believe in yourself.