“What?!” Everyone erupts in concern, and Aizawa has to shush them. “Let her speak.”

“I woke up in a room with Dabi, the guy with the blue flames. The last thing I remember prior to that was fighting him and Twice after separating from Midoriya and my brother. I guess at some point between him knocking me out and them leaving with Bakugou, they had cloned me and already brought me back.” You explain. “He tried getting information out of me about the school, but I wasn’t a planned abduction, just ‘a gift that fell into his arms,’ as he put it. So, he didn’t really have anything specific he wanted to know from me.”

“I can’t believe that you were really getting tortured while we were all safe... Even Bakugou wasn’t hurt when they kidnapped him...” Kirishima clenches his fist and stares at the ground. “That's the same villain who attacked us in the classroom...!”

“Is that what those freaks were talking about...?” Bakugou mutters. “I should have blown his ugly mug right off...!”

“I’m just glad he didn’t get to show you the photos...” You sigh.

“Photos...?” Everyone looks back at you.

“Yeah, he took one right as my clone was getting to the hospital actually. He said it was an incentive for you to ‘think rationally’ when they woke you up, Bakugou...”

“Bastards...!!!”

“Those guys... They’re seriously evil!” Kirishima shouts.

“Funny thing is though, since you guys brought up the news with my clone...” You say. “I actually watched that as it aired. I had just finished telling Dabi that he and the League were a bunch of idiots if they really thought Bakugou would join them, and then he saw I was on the news and showed me the live feed. Then my clone said almost the exact same thing I had just said.”

“Woah... Creepy!” Mina says. “How’d you escape?”

“They left me with a clone of Dabi when it was time to wake Bakugou up. There was a small earthquake, and they had given me some water in a metal bottle earlier that still had a few drops in it. I managed to lift it and whack him a few times and beat him.”

“Didn’t they have you restrained?” Tsuyu asks.

“Oh yeah, if it weren’t for Hawks, I’d probably still be in that room! He managed to be passing by at the right time and noticed something was up. I might have beat the clone, but I couldn’t make a dent in the restraints. Thankfully, he got me out of there and to a doctor. After that, we met Aizawa and my aunt at the hospital everyone else was at.”

“So that’s why he was the one to drop you off...” Tokoyami says.

“Since we’re still not sure if Y/n and Bakugou are still targets or not, she was escorted to campus.” Aizawa explains. “The two of you have to be extra careful when in public. The same goes for you, too, Tokoyami. We don’t know where they are currently or what their next moves will be.”

Todoroki, who had been quiet up until this point, speaks up as he looks between the handprint on your arm and the mitts on your hands. “Did he burn your hands as well, Y/n?”

“No way... Is that why they’re covered up...?” Midoriya asks, and you nod.

“It looks like I’m going to have to change the way I use my quirk... The doctors and Recovery Girl helped a lot and got my feet healed up, but... They’re not sure if I’ll ever be able to generate water to the same extent as I could before... I’m going to be doing quirk physio once my hands are healed up, and then we’ll have to go from there.” You see the worried and saddened looks on the faces of your classmates. “Don’t worry! I can still use my quirk!” You quickly demonstrate by twirling water out of the air. “I can generate it from other parts of my body, too, still. I just may not be able to generate it on my palms and soles anymore... But I don’t know that for sure until I go through physio! So quit looking so sad for me!”

“But wait, if no one knew Y/n was kidnapped, who was looking for her?” Uraraka asks.

“The Hero Commission had agents looking into it, along with the police, but they hoped to find her at one of the two locations. That or at least get a lead.” Aizawa sighs. “Unfortunately, they were warping in and out of the room she was being kept in, so there weren't any sightings, not to mention it was a rural area. We're lucky things worked out the way they did.”

Everyone asks you endless questions about what happened, and you do your best to answer them. Aizawa can tell you're getting a bit overwhelmed, so he speaks up. “That's enough. She's already been physically tortured. Don't verbally torture her, too. You still have rooms to unpack.”

Aizawa leads a brief tour of the building, and shows everyone what the bedrooms look like. When you're all done, he pulls up the bedroom assignments. “These are your room assignments. Like I said earlier, your belongings should already be in your rooms. Today is set aside for getting settled in, and we'll discuss our next steps tomorrow. Hurry up and go unpack.”

“Y/n! You're next to me!” Mina cheers. “Ochako! You're on the same floor as us! Go floor four!”

“We’re in matching rooms, Bakugou.” You chuckle watching Mina and Uraraka cheer. “The same room on opposite sides of the building.”

Bakugou seems distracted, and simply turns away from you as everyone else rushes for the elevators. Midoriya and Todoroki give you lingering looks, but see you talking to Bakugou and go with the others. Aizawa gives you a curious look as you approach Bakugou, but leaves the building to give you privacy as well, assuming you want to talk about what happened to both of you. “...So what? What about it?” Bakugou shrugs.

“Nothing, I guess…” You say. The two of you are alone now on the first floor. “How are you holding up?”

He shoves his hands in his pockets and shakes his head. “It's whatever... But if I had known…! Damn, that bastard was right there...! I should have killed him!!”

You gently place a hand on his shoulder. “Hey, I'm glad you didn't know.”

Bakugou looks at you with an annoyed expression. “Why the hell would that make you glad?”

“Because I know you, Bakugou. You wouldn't have escaped with the others when they showed up, and you would have tried to figure out where they were keeping me. Probably fighting the villains in the process, more than I'm sure you did already.” You smile as you hold his shoulder with your mittened hand. “I know you wouldn't have left without me.”

“You're making me sound like damn Deku…!” He grunts.

“No, I'm describing you like the hero you are, Bakugou. I can see it in your eyes. I could tell by the expression on your face when I told everyone what happened.”

Bakugou stares at you for a moment, unable to deny your prediction is spot on. “So what? What would you have done if that bird brain didn't show up when he did? What if they came back, and you were still tied up and their clone was dead, huh? Or what if they never came back and no one ever found you? You'd be stuck there, not able to escape.”

“I guess we'll never know.” You shrug. “What matters is we're both back here safe and sound.”

“I wouldn't exactly call your return safe and sound.” He grumbles and grabs your arm to look at it. “That bastard branded you.”

You gently pull his hand away and hold it between yours. It stings a little due to your injuries, but you don't mind it in the moment. “Yeah, but… Look at the positive." You look up into his eyes and smile. “At least we're both alive.”

He stares at you, lost in the tender expression on your face, and unable to tear his gaze away. It isn't one that people typically direct towards him. “If I ever see that bastard again..."

“I know, Bakugou.”

He seems surprised by your comment. “I swear, I'll–”

“I know.” You squeeze his hand a little tighter, and suddenly everything that had happened to you recently rushes back into your mind. Your fears of facing your parents' murderer, of possibly losing Kota, of being tortured by Dabi, and of Bakugou being kidnapped and the worries you had of him possibly being hurt flood your head. Relief spills over and with it comes tears.

Bakugou’s eyes widen as you look up at him, bubbles of tears blocking your vision. Your smile cracks, and a soft sob escapes your lips. “H-Hey…!” He places his free hand on your shoulder and looks extremely uncomfortable. “Jeez… Weren't you the one who was just telling me to be positive?” He awkwardly pats your shoulder and steps closer towards you.

“I'm just… so glad… it's all over…” You mumble between tears. “I was so scared… And I was so worried about you…” You stare down at your hands as you hold his between yours.

“Don't worry about me. I'm fine. They didn't even plan on hurting me. Even if they did, I could have taken it and still beat them all.” Bakugou's face softens a bit, and he rests his free hand on the side of your face, trying to wipe away some of your tears.

“You really are tougher than me...” You chuckle sadly and try to stop the tears, but they keep pouring out, more and more.

“Tch... That's not what I meant, and you know it. How many pros can go through torture and still smile afterwards? How many people out there can resist it without spilling anything?” He forces you to look up at him with his hand on your cheek.

You look up into Bakugou's eyes, entranced by the care you find within them. “I was only able to resist it because I knew you wouldn't give in...” Bakugou's eyes widen slightly, and he waits for you to continue. He leans in slightly closer to you, unable to take his eyes away from yours. “I... I just kept thinking about you... And I knew you wouldn't tell them anything... So I couldn't, either.” You say.

“You really... Were able to handle all of that because you were thinking... Of me?” He asks, incredulous.

You slowly nod up at him. “Don't get me wrong, I didn't want to tell him anything... But thinking about you helped me push through.”

Bakugou squeezes your hand, unsure of how to respond or take your confession. “Those bastards... Deku shouldn't have let you go off on your own.”

You shake your head. “He was too injured. He just would have been killed. They really want him dead. I needed him to bring my little brother back to camp, anyways. He had no way of knowing what would happen to me. I'm sure he feels bad enough about it, too.”

Bakugou glares down at the ground, furious with the situation you had been in while he was treated better. “That patchwork freak...”

You rest your forehead against Bakugou’s chest, still holding on to his hand as he cradles your face with his other. “I’m okay...”

Bakugou is surprised by your actions, but leans his own head forward, almost as if trying to protect you from the memory of Dabi. “You don't have to worry about that freak anymore. I'll protect you.” He takes his hand from yours, and wraps his arms around you in a tight hug. “You're okay now...”

Another sob breaks free of your lips as you cling to Bakugou's shirt. Tears pour down your face, and he holds you tight with one hand resting on the back of your head. “I was so scared...!” You cry. “I'm just glad you're okay...”

“You need to worry more about yourself.” Bakugou tightens his grip on you. “Seriously, you went through hell...”

You wrap your arms around him, and hug him back as you shake. “I thought I was going to die...”

“I won't let you go through anything like that ever again. I'll kill anyone who even thinks about it.”

You cling to his shirt, and the two of you silently hold each other for a few minutes, the only sound being your crying. Bakugou holds you close, not caring about the fact that your tears are soaking his shirt, and he tenderly strokes your hair. The two of you remain like that for a while, and you can feel yourself beginning to relax.

“Thank you, Bakugou...” You sniffle and wipe your eyes.

He simply shakes his head and squeezes you. “If that patchwork freak ever shows his disgusting mug again, I'm killing him dead.”

His phrasing distracts you from your sadness, and you can't help but chuckle. “Killing him dead…?”

“Shut up... You know what I mean.” Bakugou rolls his eyes as he continues hugging you.

Another gentle chuckle escapes your lips, and you find yourself thankful that even after everything that happened, Bakugou is still himself. “Isn't that redundant? Won't he be dead anyways if you kill him?”

“You know what I meant!” Bakugou huffs as you begin to laugh against his chest more.

“Sorry, sorry...! I just... The way you said it...!” You giggle and shake against him as you try not to laugh. “Here, I'm sorry, I'll dry your shirt,” you laugh and evaporate the tear stains soaking it. Another giggle breaks through.

“Shut up!” Bakugou lets go of you and crosses his arms over his chest. “And here I was being nice!” He scowls and steps back.

You can't hold back your laughter, and your tears quickly have new meaning. “No, no! Keep being nice!” You reach after him, and try to wipe the tears from your eyes as you laugh at him. “I liked it!”

“Quit it!! Stop laughing at me! I'm never being nice to you again!” Bakugou huffs and turns away from you to scowl in embarrassment over your laughter.

“No…!” You hold on to your recently healed ribs and struggle to stop laughing. “I just, I missed you…!”

“So you're mocking me?! Funny way to show it!!”

Bakugou continues to become more and more embarrassed, and you can't help but continue descending into even more laughter. His face reddens, and he grunts with displeasure as you keep laughing.