Momo Yaoyorozu was a strong person, a stronger person than she gave herself credit for. Shouto knew that and yet there was something about her that just made him want to protect her. He would do the same for his other friends like Midoriya and Iida and would help out his classmates when he could but when it came to Yaoyorozu, the need seemed to intensify.

He would never try to impose this new found protectiveness on her though, especially during class practicals or training exercises lest she feel like she was being coddled. He knew that she sometimes suffered from issues of self-doubt and the last thing he wanted to do was make her feel weak. But deep down he felt this growing need to keep her safe and could feel it becoming stronger with each passing day he spent around her. Sooner or later, he was going to do something that would throw himself in front of her somehow. As if he was to be her own personal shield. Both physically and metaphorically.

And like most incidents with Class 1A, it started with a pervert.

I.

Despite finding himself on amicable terms with most of his classmates, Minoru Mineta had a way that really grinded Shouto's gears. It wasn't just that he seemed to disregard the unspoken rules of what it meant to be a hero for his own perverted goals but more so the fact that most of his convoluted plans of debauchery seemed to be focused on Yaoyorozu. And that really didn't fly with Shouto.

At first he had largely ignored Mineta along with the rest of their classmates unless it directly involved him but once he was broken out of his shell by Midoriya, he started to notice it more and more. They had all recently moved in to the school dorms, which was taking some getting used to. Occasionally he would see Yaoyorozu on her way to the shower rooms and observed some odd movements. As if she were keeping an eye out for something before she entered the bathroom. Maybe she was a bit nervous about her new surroundings he assumed.

One day he found out the true reason why.

It was late evening and Shouto was just finishing up a study session in the common room with Midoriya and Iida when he heard a shriek. It was coming from the nearby bathrooms and sounded an awful lot like Yaoyorozu. Both Midoriya and Iida looked up and were about to investigate when Shouto beat them to it. They had never seen him move that fast before. As soon as Shouto bolted through the hallway he came to an abrupt stop when he saw Yaoyorozu standing there in her underwear, desperately attempting to cover herself up. Without thinking, he removed the jacket he was wearing and threw it over her shoulders.

"What happened?" He asked.

"T-Todoroki-san!" She yelped.

If she wasn't so distressed, Shouto would've found the way she said his name to be incredibly cute. He noticed that she clutched the jacket around herself tighter and willed himself not to gaze upon her shapely body.

"Wh-what happened?" He repeated.

"Mi-Mine…" Yaoyorozu started to say before she seemed to shrink into herself.

It was then Shouto heard a cough and a few obscene yells coming from the women's bathroom.

"I was so close!" He heard the voice say.

He recognized that voice. Shouto had always been rather good at memorizing what people sounded like.

"Is that Mineta?" He asked.

She gingerly nodded and Shouto felt his blood boiling over in anger. Sure, other boys had perverted fantasies too but others like Denki Kaminari knew where to draw the line. Normal people would never do something as disgusting as this.

"I'm going to destroy him." Shouto muttered darkly as Yaoyorozu watched on.

Midoriya and Iida soon arrived and saw the state Yaoyorozu was in. Midoriya followed Shouto's actions and removed his own jacket to help cover up Momo who was still trembling. The two newcomers noticed how tightly Shouto had been holding his fists.

"Todoroki-kun, what are you do-" Iida was about to ask when Shouto threw open the door.

They all saw Mineta who had been hunched over Yaoyorozu's clothing, almost basking in it as if it were some uncovered treasure trove. The smaller boy froze like a deer in headlights as he saw the anger in Shouto's eyes. He quickly moved to say whatever excuse he could find to save his sorry hide.

"Todo-"

Shouto didn't even let him say one word before a layer of ice encased Mineta. And then said ice was shattered when the Half and Half Hero blasted through it with a huge haymaker.

"Todoroki-kun!" Midoriya and Iida both shouted and they moved to hold back the rage filled teen before he did something he might regret.

The commotion caused others to arrive and Shouto saw Kyouka Jirou move to comfort her best friend. Hanta Sero had arrived too and picked up on what had happened. He quickly wrapped up the now unconscious Mineta in tape.

"Man, Aizawa's not gonna like this…" He muttered before turning to Shouto "I guess Iida and I will drag him out and let them know what happened."

"Yes, of course! Good idea Sero-kun!" Iida saluted and the two carried the captured pervert out.

Shouto watched them leave before he glanced over to where Yaoyorozu was. She was no longer shaking and Shouto silently thanked Jirou for always being a good friend to Yaoyorozu. His expression softened when his mismatched eyes met Yaoyorozu's. She didn't say anything to him but the soft smile she gave him told him enough. She was thankful that he had been there to protect her.

II.

Shouto was never fully reprimanded for his actions that day. The UA staff had given him leniency due to what had happened and while they didn't end up expelling Mineta, they kept him on a short leash. And while the smaller boy still had the same perverted fantasies in his head, he more or less kept them there and never acted on it, even keeping his behaviour rather clean when Shouto was present.

Yaoyorozu had never really spoken of the incident and Shouto silently agreed that it was best they move on from it. However, he did find that his friendship with the Creation Hero had become much closer and found himself around her presence more and more. She was fast becoming a dear friend to him and he was even able to partake in small talk with her though the majority of the time it was just her rambling on about something while he listened with a content smile.

Things had been going great until one time at the cafeteria a few days after the Provisional Exam.

Despite very rarely interacting with him, Shouto could already tell he didn't like Neito Monoma. The Class B student wasn't exactly a terrible person but his hatred and jealousy in regards to Class A could pretty bad at times. And unfortunately this day, he went and took it too far.

"Oh what's this?!" He heard the obnoxious boy shout "It seems there's a failure eating lunch here!"

'Not this again…'

Shouto took in a deep breath and ignored Monoma, instead focusing on eating lunch. He was currently present with Yaoyorozu and Jirou, the latter of whom Shouto knew to be easily annoyed. He hoped Monoma wouldn't get on their nerves too much.

"Hey hey hey, do you think you're too good to talk to me just because you're from Class A?" Monoma continued "But you failed the exam anyways!"

"Ahaha I can't believe you failed it! I thought you were supposed to be one of Class A's aces!"

"So much for having a big name hero for a Father!"

Shouto did his best to ignore the annoyance . Normally it was here that Class B's Class Representative Kendou would reel Monoma in but she wasn't around.

'Oh right, she's got that regular meeting like Iida.' Shouto remembered.

It seemed the lack of a leash gave Monoma the boldness to continue. Shouto felt like he needed to say something before he or even Jirou would explode in annoyance.

"That isn't very nice to say, Monoma-san." He heard Yaoyorozu say.

Leave it to Momo Yaoyorozu to try and keep the peace.

"Everyone worked hard including Todoroki-san and sometimes things just don't go the way we want but he's still working hard on improving."

Shouto let a tiny smile grace his lips. It felt nice to hear Yaoyorozu say that about him. It felt nice to have a friend stick up for you. He prayed that Monoma would take the hint and leave. That he wouldn't get a reaction out of them but the boy didn't move, instead keeping to his spot like an unpleasant stain.

"Oh who are you to tell me what to do when you're just Class A's Vice Rep?" He arrogantly huffed "Don't think you're better than me just because you're Class A's Vice Rep!"

'No, she's better than you because she's not going around being a nuisance.'

Shouto glanced to Yaoyorozu's left and saw Jirou in a similar state as him. Rather annoyed. Monoma just didn't seem like he was going to stop and it was starting to attract attention around them.

"Do you order people around because you're from Class A?"

"Do you think you're better than others because of that?"

"Just because you have big tits doesn't mean you can get guys to do whatever you want!"

Shouto's eyes bulged and Jirou looked like she was about to have an aneurysm.

"I bet whenever you can't get your way, you try to seduce others like the whore that you a-" Monoma's rant continued before he was abruptly cut off by an unseen force.

Yaoyorozu and Jirou blinked. Did they just see that right? Shouto Todoroki had straight up decked Monoma from Class B. Everyone present in the cafeteria looked on in silence. The normally reserved and quiet ace from Class A had actually punched a fellow student in the face.

"Wh-wha-whaa…" Monoma stuttered in disbelief, unable to form a coherent sentence as he held his hand up to his cheek.

Shouto looked down at the fist he had used. It was his left side. His more explosive and volatile side. But if he was honest with himself, he didn't regret it. No one, not even a fellow hero in training could say that about Yaoyorozu.

"You have no right to say that." He firmly stated.

Monoma looked like he was about to explode when the nearby door opened and in walked Iida and Kendou. They stopped as soon as they entered and looked at everyone with curious eyes.

"What happened here?" Iida asked.

They saw Monoma slumped against the wall, holding his cheek that was now bright red and Todoroki standing a few metres away, his left arm still raised in a fist.

"Did Todoroki-kun punch Monoma?" Kendou simply asked a nearby table.

They nodded and the Class B Rep sighed before moving towards Monoma.

"What did you say now?" She muttered before dragging the still shocked boy out of the cafeteria.

As she left, she glanced at Shouto and gave him an apologetic look, as if to say that Monoma wasn't really like this. Shouto honestly didn't care up until the boy in question's last tirade. As Shouto lowered his fist, Iida approached him with a serious look on his face.

"What happened, Todoroki-kun?"

"I punched him." Shouto dryly answered "Really hard too."

"But why?" Iida questioned.

Shouto glanced behind him to look at Yaoyorozu who had gotten over her shock and instead gave him a rather reassuring smile. She gently nodded at him.

"He was bad mouthing Yaoyorozu," Shouto continued to explain. "Said some rather nasty things about her body."

Iida nodded that he understood why Shouto had done so. The Half and Half Hero wasn't one to lie or embellish stories and Iida knew from Kendou how out of hand Monoma could be with his Class A hatred.

"I'm still going to have to report this." Iida said with a sigh.

Shouto merely looked at his friend and gave a nod that he understood.

"I take full responsibility for my actions."

Iida placed his hand on Shouto's shoulder before turning to leave. When Shouto sat back down the table was quiet. Quiet until Kyouka Jirou broke the silence.

"Damn that was a good strike." She muttered with a chuckle at the end.

Shouto couldn't help but smirk a little before his eyes turned towards Yaoyorozu.

"You didn't have to do that, Todoroki-san." She said before a warm smile graced her lips "But thank you. I appreciate it a lot."

From then Shouto seemed to find a new purpose in addition to his reasons on why he was going to become a hero.

To protect Yaoyorozu's smile was a pretty good one if he said so himself.

III.

Shouto took his one day suspension on the chin. It was the second time that they had provided him with leniency. While Shouto had admitted that he was fine with whatever punishment they gave him, Kendou and Iida's word had kept things from getting worse as did Yaoyorozu's. And the UA Staff knew how Monoma could get when it came to his Class 1A hatred. They just never suspected the more reserved boy to be the one to lash out. But Shouto had been steadily changing, becoming more open with his feelings and while he attributed a lot of his emotional growth to his friends, there was one in particular that seemed to entrance him. Momo Yaoyorozu just had that kind of effect on him.

Soon days turned to weeks and as time passed, their friendship grew until Shouto realized he had begun to fall to for Yaoyorozu. It wasn't just a regular friendship anymore and he didn't just admire her for her high intellect, sound judgement or loyalty to her friends. No, he was actually interested in her romantically. And much to his displeasure, apparently so were a few others.

He and Yaoyorozu were walking back to the dorms when an older student approached them. A second year from what Shouto could gather. He didn't know the guy but had seen him around school before.

"Yaoyorozu-san!" The guy called out as he walked up to them. "Can we uh, do you have a moment to talk?"

Shouto already didn't like the way their senpai's eyes hovered over Yaoyorozu.

"Oh hello Fujita-senpai," Yaoyorozu greeted though Shouto didn't sense the usual warmth Yaoyorozu spoke with "Um well we were just about to…" She trailed off when Fujita cut her off.

"This'll take but just a minute of your time! Promise!" He grinned.

Yaoyorozu turned to Shouto with an almost pleading look on her face. Did she not want to talk to this guy? Shouto sure as hell didn't want to him to talk to her. They were about to do their weekly study session after all and he was interrupting. Still, it was rude to refuse, especially a senpai.

"I'll wait nearby." Shouto said with the most reassuring smile he could muster.

He didn't really want to leave her alone with a guy he didn't know, let alone trust. Shouto glanced at Fujita-senpai for a split second and saw a rather unfriendly expression before he turned back to Yaoyorozu. She nodded at him and he walked a distance away to wait at a nearby bench. He could just barely make out what they were saying.

"What did you need, Fujita-senpai?" He heard Yaoyorozu say.

He shouldn't be looking but Shouto couldn't help but peer over his shoulder to keep his eye on her. He saw Fujita bow before the young man declared a little loudly.

"I like you, Yaoyorozu-san! Please go out with me."

Shouto held his breath. Was she going to accept?

"Err I'm sorry." Yaoyorozu said "Like I've said before, I don't feel the same way."

Shouto's eyes flickered up. He had asked her before? How often did something like this happen? Did other guys approach her in such a way?

"Aw come on! Just give me one chance, please!" Fujita practically begged.

Shouto's eyes stayed on them and noticed Yaoyorozu flinch when their senpai got a little too close.

"S-Senpai, please! I've already said no."

Shouto didn't know what happened but all of a sudden he was standing between the two with an arm raised a little rather protectively in front of Yaoyorozu.

"Todoroki?!" Fujita exclaimed, shocked by the sudden appearance of the boy.

"T-Todoroki-san…" Yaoyorozu mumbled behind him.

Fujita's face scrunched into a frown.

"Excuse me, but this is between Yaoyorozu-san and I." He said in an almost arrogant manner.

"She already said no." Shouto said.

That only seemed to aggravate the older boy more.

"And what right do you have to butt in like that?" Fujita prodded "Who do you think you are, her boyfriend?"

Shouto's face remained the same and Momo had been silently studying his expressions. She couldn't get a read on what he was feeling but a thought in the back of her mind caused a light blush to dust her cheeks.

"It doesn't matter," Shouto said "She said no."

Fujita looked like he was about to explode in annoyance before he calmed himself and promptly left. It would no good to get into a fight with Endeavour's son and jeopardise his own hero career. Whatever, he'd just leave them be.

When their senpai was out of their sight, Shouto heard Yaoyorozu exhale her breath and sigh.

"Are you alright, Yaoyorozu?" Shouto asked.

She nodded.

"Yes, thank you." She answered with a small smile "I'm not sure what I would have done if you weren't here."

"Does… does this happen often?" Shouto asked.

He didn't want to make Yaoyorozu uncomfortable but a part of him was curious. Was Yaoyorozu often subjected to the unwanted advances of men? He knew people generally found her attractive but outside of Mineta in the past, he hadn't really seen her being approached in such a way. At least, not when he was around. That did have him wondering though. Did his presence around her ever give off an uncomfortable feeling? Was he the same way in her eyes? He hoped not. Yaoyorozu sighed beside him and the rather defeated expression on her face made his stomach drop.

"Not too often no but… lately I've been how you say… approached recently." She explained "That was Fujita-senpai's third time asking me out."

"He did come off a little pushy." He commented.

It caused Yaoyorozu to chuckle a little.

"I suppose he was tired of the nice guy approach when the girls informed me of what he was really trying to do." She murmured "Regardless, I'm glad that you were here."

"Yeah?"

"Yes!" Yaoyorozu smiled "It's almost as if you're my own personal shield."

She sort of swayed on the spot as her school skirt fluttered around her thighs. Shouto could see a slight tinge of pink on her cheeks and the sight of a bashful Yaoyorozu caused his heart to skip a beat.

"Yaoyorozu." His voice said her name.

"Yes?"

"Does uh, does that mean you're not interested in things like dating?" Shouto asked "Because you're too focused on your goals in becoming a hero?" He quickly added.

His heterochromatic eyes stayed on her, studying any changes in her behaviour. He noticed a light blush creep into the paleness of her cheeks as a rather fond looking expression appeared on her face as she tried to avoid his gaze.

"I wouldn't say I'm opposed to it," she began as she momentarily met his eyes before glancing away "But I guess it would have to be with the right person."

He didn't comment on her answer and merely nodded his head but the thoughts on it lingered in his mind. As they continued their way back to the dormitory, Shouto began to realize why he had been so protective of Momo a lot more than he did his other friends. He didn't just like her.

He had fallen in love with her.

IV.

The epiphany surrounding his feelings for the Vice Rep had a larger effect on Shouto than he realized. He began to take notice of the things that he had been subconsciously doing. His body seemed to have a will of its own and would gravitate towards Yaoyorozu at any time. He wouldn't invade her personal space (that wasn't who he was) but he found himself standing beside her whenever they'd be loitering around or timing his walks back to the dorms at the same time as her. During class, he'd occasionally glance at her whenever she was deep in concentration and found her the focused look in her eyes to be one of his favourite expressions of hers.

Then he realized that he was focusing too much on her and would force his eyes back to the front of the class.

School work and Yaoyorozu often went hand in hand in his life and they regularly studied together. It was a minor event in his life but Shouto found himself looking forward to it every time. The session he most looked forward to was the time he was invited to Yaoyorozu's house with a few others during break. Not her dorm room but her actual home where her parents lived.

He was incredibly nervous. So much that he accidentally arrived close to an hour earlier than expected. He wasn't even thinking and before he knew it he had pressed the buzzer.

"Yes?" a voice asked that Shouto didn't recognize, probably a maid or servant.

"Um its Shouto Todoroki here, I'm supposed to be attending the study session but err…" He answered but found himself trailing off.

"Oh you're early um, yes the young Miss was expecting you." It replied.

Shouto soon found the gate opening and took that as his cue to enter. He had never been to the Yaoyorozu household before, despite being friends with Momo for a while now. They had already moved to the Heights Alliance dormitory by the time they became close. The front door was impressive, a giant wooden block adorned with golden trimmings. As he neared, it swung open and he was greeted by two maids in outfits he had only seen in manga. Did maids actually wear those things? He pushed the thought to the back of his mind as one of them greeted him.

"Good afternoon," the brunette on the left bowed "The young Miss is preoccupied right now but I have been instructed to lead you to the dining hall."

"Right."

The maid on the right kept her eyes on Shouto as he walked passed her and for a moment, Shouto thought he saw a hint of a smile on her face. He chose to ignore it and followed the other maid who led him through several hallways. While the Todoroki compound was rather big for a house, the Yaoyorozu mansion was massive, almost excessively. Then he saw the dining hall and agreed with his earlier assessment.

"You may wait in here until the young Miss is ready," the maid said before asking "Would you care for a beverage or snack?"

"Uh green tea is fine." Shouto answered.

"Of course."

The two maids bowed and left Shouto to sit alone waiting. His eyes wandered around the room where several classical paintings hung on the walls with curtains of olive green silk framing the many windows. As he sat there in silence, he hoped one of the others would arrive early too. Why did he arrive early again?

Feeling a little anxious, he found himself standing up and walking towards the windows. The Yaoyorozu mansion had several gardens surrounding the main building and verdant hedges lined the sides. He gazed out into one of the gardens where there were less trees obscuring the view. There was a flash of red and he blinked a few times when he noticed what it was.

Momo Yaoyorozu was outside and she was… she was fighting? There were two others with her, a male and a female and they were both attacking her. His mind quickly began to analyse what was before him. Were they members of the League of Villains or just a random attacker? Why wasn't anyone here helping? Where is the security? No, no time to think of that, Yaoyorozu was in trouble.

Luckily for him, a nearby door led to the outside and he bolted through the threshold before using his ice to propel him forward. He would apologize to Yaoyorozu and her gardeners later but he had to go help her. She had blocked two attacks from the man before the woman came in and knocked her aside with a swinging roundhouse kick. Shouto had to get there faster.

"Yaoyorozu!" He bellowed as he neared.

"T-Todoroki-san?!" She squeaked.

He landed in front of her and summoned a wall of ice between them and her assailants. His eyes quickly hovered over her body to make sure she was okay. Good, it looked like she wasn't too injured.

"Are you okay?" He still asked "Are they with the League?"

"T-Todoroki-san!" Yaoyorozu stuttered again.

He stood in front of her protectively as he lowered his ice wall in preparation for an attack.

"Wait!" Yaoyorozu shouted as she held Shouto's arm back.

"What's wrong?"

"It's okay," She said with a smile "You can relax."

He looked at her with confused eyes.

"What do you mean?"

"Damn that was a lot of ice!" They heard the male say.

Shouto turned back to them and was rather confused. They were approaching him casually?

"What's going on?" He asked.

Yaoyorozu cleared her through and spoke.

"Err they're my cousins, Todoroki-san." She answered "I hadn't seen them for a few years and they wanted to spar to see how far my training had gone."

"Oh." Shouto blanched.

"Wh-why are you here so early?" Yaoyorozu asked.

Shouto had no answer, really. Luckily (or perhaps unluckily) for him, he didn't need to reply as he was cut off by Yaoyorozu's relatives.

"So this is the famous Shouto Todoroki." The female said, her eyes glazing over Shouto.

He supposed they knew him as Endeavour's son.

"Momo-chan's told us all about you."

Okay, that wasn't what he expected.

"Yuzuki-nee-sama!" Yaoyorozu cried, her cheeks now bright red.

"I'm just kidding but those were some fancy moves." Yuzuki laughed.

The male nodded.

"Right? Looks like you don't need your ol' Takumi-nii to look after you anymore."

The one named Takumi clapped Shouto lightly on the back, the Half and Half hero standing there still confused. He blinked a few times before noticing the rather flushed Yaoyorozu beside him.

"Err, sorry." He apologized "I guess I got ahead of myself."

She shook her head and gave him a warm smile.

"No, it's fine. I'm flattered that you thought I was in danger and instantly jumped in."

Shouto's cheeks flushed a similar colour to his hair and he looked away in embarrassment. This whole feelings thing was going to be the end of him.

V.

Luckily for Shouto, things began to go smoothly afterwards. He had accepted his feelings for the girl and much to his surprise and relief, Yaoyorozu returned them. They agreed to act upon these feelings and had begun dating. As their relationship progressed, Shouto found his need to protect Yaoyorozu lessening, something he thought would actually increase in time. He didn't think he was possessive in the first place and supposed it helped due to them almost always being together. Guys approached her less, especially when he was around. And he was always around Momo Yaoyorozu.

However they hit a snag after Momo's 18th birthday.

"Tell me again." Shouto said.

He and Momo were resting on the large bed in her dorm room, lying on their sides as Momo recounted what had happened. It seemed that a large conglomerate that worked with the Yaoyorozu family had approached them about a potential marriage between Momo and their heir. Shouto had tensed so hard that he almost froze Momo's bed when she told him. His mouth went dry.

"So um," he croaked "is your family going to agree?"

Her parents knew of their relationship but that didn't mean they wouldn't agree to a sudden engagement. After all, while not completely gone, it was still a thing that rich families partook in. His own parents were prime examples. His breath hitched as he waited for her answer.

"They told the Hisakawa family that I was already in a committed relationship and didn't wish to break that up." She said.

Shouto exhaled the breath he had been holding as a wave of relief washed over him.

"That's good then." He said with the calmest voice he could muster.

"But…" Momo continued.

Shouto tensed.

"But…?"

Momo sighed.

"The Hisakawas wouldn't take no for an answer, especially the son and well," She began to explain before sighing once again "He's challenged you to a duel. He seems set on the idea that if he bests you in combat then I'd magically become his betrothed."

"So I just have to fight him?" Shouto asked.

"Yes but, no!" Momo said, sitting up on the bed "You don't need to give into their silly demands. I'm with you, Shouto." She raised her hand up and stroked the side of his face "No stuck up rich boy is going to break us apart and my parents have already accepted us."

Shouto breathed a sigh of relief at her statement. While he knew he would stay and love her no matter what, the fact that her parents had essentially given their blessing helped a lot. Still, there was a matter of pride and it might be stupid to think about but he had to enforce himself.

"No I'll fight him." He firmly stated "I have to show everyone that you're mine."

Momo blushed as she did whenever he said something sweet to her despite her mild annoyance. Her boyfriend could be as stubborn as anyone when he wanted.

The duel had been arranged for that weekend at a Yaoyorozu complex. Momo sat with her parents awkwardly waiting at a long table with the Hisakawa family across from them. The looks the Hisakawa heir was giving her was really making her uncomfortable. Shouto really didn't need to worry himself with this whole ordeal. This wasn't worth the attention.

"In less than an hour, you'll be my fiancée." Hisakawa said with a smug grin. "Whoever this boyfriend of yours is should simply forfeit already."

Never mind, she hoped Shouto would destroy this guy. A tense air filled the room as they waited for Shouto's arrival. Momo suddenly felt something rest on her hand and she turned to see her Mother looking at her with encouraging eyes.

"It'll be okay, Momo." Her Mother whispered.

Momo nodded. It's Shouto Todoroki, after all. Shouto Todoroki was her shield and protected her even if she didn't need it. She felt her body jolt in surprise when an aide broke the silence.

"The Todorokis have arrived!" He announced.

The two large metal doors swung open and in walked Shouto except there was someone else following behind him. Someone Momo did not expect at all.

"E-Endeavour?!" the Hisakawas exclaimed.

The first ranked hero eyed them before turning to the Yaoyorozu's and greeting them with a respectful nod. Momo rose from her chair and approached Shouto while Endeavour spoke with her parents.

"What's going on? Why is your Father here?" She asked.

Shouto scratched the back of his neck.

"He found out about this somehow, I think from Fuyumi-nee and uh," he stopped before pausing to think "Well he went on about not being there for his woman so he…" Shouto's cheeks flared pink "He wanted to make sure I was there for mine."

Momo had to supress the smile that threatened to form. Despite her opinions on the Hellflame Hero, it seemed he had been trying to make amends for his past transgressions, albeit in his own odd way. She could never truly forgive him for what he had done to Shouto but she was looking to compromise if it helped Shouto overcome his own issues.

"So this is your woman," she heard the gruff voice of Endeavour say.

"Um, yes." Momo said sheepishly before remembering to bow respectfully "It's an honour to meet you, Endeavour-san."

"Hn." The large man grunted before moving away.

"Uh, Shouto?" Momo asked.

"Don't worry." Her boyfriend said, holding her hand in reassurance "I think that was him stating his approval."

She smiled at him and squeezed his hand back. They were in their own loving little world and that was suddenly broken by the Hisakawas. The Hisakawa patriarch cleared his throat, clearly unnerved by the appearance of the Todorokis.

"So err… the um a-arena is th-this way…" the middle aged man stuttered.

Shouto nodded and released Momo's hand. He followed behind the Hisakawa heir and Momo kept her eyes on their figures. Shouto was just as cool, calm and collected as always but his opponent was trembling. She allowed herself a wry smile. What happened to that ego he was proudly showing off earlier? Momo joined her parents and Endeavour who stood a slight distance away from them with his arms crossed.

"What are the rules?" He asked in an almost demanding way.

"R-right!" The Hisakawa Father squeaked "It'll be a standard battle and quirk usage is allowed. You are eliminated w-when you are either incapacitated, are removed from the arena boundaries or otherwise forfeit."

Shouto nodded his understanding of the rules as did his opponent, albeit in a less confidant manner. Shouto didn't know what quirk this guy had but it didn't matter. If he was impeding in the way of his happiness with Momo then he'd have to be dealt with.

"Please don't injure your opponent too much!" Hisakawa added.

Shouto's eyes met Momo's for a moment. While she had complete confidence in his abilities, he still saw the look of worry in her eyes. Even when things were obviously going to go his way, she always had this look of apprehension on her face. He didn't mean to worry her but the fact that she cared so much for him always made him feel fuzzy. It made him feel protected and safe. His gaze returned to his opponent.

"Begin!"

As soon as they moved, Shouto's opponent threw his hands in front of him, shooting forth his… fingernails? That was an interesting quirk. Shouto raised a wall of ice to block it before propelling himself over it. Hisakawa looked up in awe at the movements of the hero in training and Shouto took advantage of his opponent's lapse in attention. In mid-air, Shouto sent forth a wave of ice that barrelled into Hisakawa. The rich heir was literally frozen in place and could do nothing but watch as Shouto kicked off the wall of ice he had raised earlier, using his fire side to boost him through the air. He drew back his left fist, engulfing it in flames before thrusting it forward into his opponent's torso, breaking him out of the ice prison with such force that he hit the back wall with a violent thud and landed outside of the arena.

Everyone looked on in silence at the result. Shouto Todoroki had absolutely destroyed the Hisakawa boy in less than 5 moves. Momo looked on in relief at Shouto who stood there victorious. It was Endeavour however that spoke up first.

"Hmph, as expected." He snorted before beginning to walk away "Notify me when the engagement preparations are being made."

And with that, the first ranked Hero left the room. Momo ran up to Shouto and wrapped her arms around his neck, drawing him into her embrace.

"I knew you'd pull through but… that was something else." She whispered.

He smirked and returned the hug.

"Well when it involves you, I have to give it my all."

VI.

The Hisakawas never bothered them again and other families with similar interests stayed away, hearing the rumours from others. The upper echelons of society knew that Momo Yaoyorozu's boyfriend was not to be messed with.

The common populace however was a different story.

They had eventually graduated from UA and became Pro Heroes. While Momo had been able to keep the majority of her private life away from the prying eyes of the media and fans, Shouto wasn't as lucky. Everyone knew him as the son of Endeavour and it didn't help that his hero name stayed as his first name. Being the handsome young man he was, he was often in the top rankings for Japan's Sexiest Male Heroes and was voted first place this year (Momo herself was ranked second for the Women's). She understood that they would have fans and occasionally fans could get a bit overzealous. Plenty of them approached Shouto with declarations of love and affection, some even offering themselves to "fulfil his needs".

It wasn't really their fault, she told herself. While they had been in a steady relationship since high school, it wasn't public knowledge. They had agreed to keep their romance in the privacy of their home or when surrounded by friends and relatives they trusted. The news of two of what the public perceived to be the most eligible bachelor/bachelorettes having been in a relationship for years would probably take over the hero world.

While she was content with how things were going with Shouto, sometimes Momo wished she could be more open about her love for him. Everything was fine at home and she loved cuddling up with him on the couch in their shared apartment but she wondered how nice it would be to be able to go on public dates with him without the need to cover up or wear disguises. The dozens of fan mail he'd get from his fan girls didn't help matters either. She had accidentally read one particular letter that vividly described all the things the woman wanted to do to Shouto. On top of that, some of the younger and more flirtatious heroines took to showering him with their attention, their eyes glazing over his muscular body.

A body that belonged to her! Shouto was her man! She should be the only one to be able to say things like that. They had been dating for four years and with Shouto's proposal three months ago, that was almost a five year relationship! She once brought up the topic of being public with their relationship as they lay in bed. She was surprised that Shouto said he was okay with it and realized that she was the one that cared for it more.

"It doesn't really matter to me." Shouto had told her "I'll love you the same, regardless."

Damn that stupid smooth talking bastard. But she did agree a little, it shouldn't really matter if they were in love. Their love was the most important thing. And so she pushed it into the back of her mind until something happened at the next Japan Billboard Hero Awards.

They had arrived at separate times, Momo walking on the red carpet just minutes after Shouto. He was being interviewed at the time and her onyx eyes lingered on his dressed up form for a moment before turning away. She smiled and waved at the people that had gathered and a lot of them were indeed Shouto Todoroki fans. Then she heard someone approach Shouto.

"Shouto!" the rather shrill voice called "What a pleasure to run into you!"

Momo glanced over to find the hero Allure practically invading Shouto's personal space. Allure had been the one voted Sexiest Female Hero this year, one rank above Momo and while Momo didn't care for that particular ranking, she did care that someone was approaching her fiancé in such a way. Her forehead throbbed in annoyance when the woman tried to latch onto her Shouto's arm. Without thinking, she stomped over towards them.

"Allure," she acknowledged, her voice dripping with venom before turning to her lover "Shouto."

She looked into his eyes and he gave her an almost pleading look, as if it ask for help.

"Creati!" Allure smirked "Shouto here was just about to accompany me to the bar."

Momo narrowed her eyes at Shouto whose expression quickly turned to one of defence. They had long learnt how to read the more subtle emotions each other gave and she trusted Shouto's look that the woman was clearly talking out of her ass.

"I'm afraid that'll be impossible." Momo said, much to the confusion of the other woman.

Cameras around them all zeroed in at what looked like a confrontation about to explode. Allure removed herself from Shouto's arm and was about to get in Momo's face when the Creation Hero merely strolled past her. To everyone's shock, she wrapped her arms around Shouto's neck and brought him down for a long and powerful kiss. Everyone was stunned, silence filled the room and Momo detached herself from Shouto's lips before wrapping her arm around his left side.

"I'm afraid my fiancé will otherwise be preoccupied." She said with a triumphant grin as she flashed the engagement ring she had discretely put on.

Shouto's face flushed bright red before he composed himself and smiled. The auditorium erupted in a mixture of cheers, surprise and questions. Cameras flashed and reporters desperately tried to get their microphones towards the newly revealed couple. Allure looked paler than the white dress she had donned for the evening, her eyes still wide in shock at Creati's bold move.

"Let's be off, dear." Momo smiled and lead Shouto away, never removing herself from his side.

They left the room simmering in the aftermath of Momo's bombshell. Shouto and Creati weren't just in a relationship, they were engaged. As they entered the quieter inner rooms, Shouto leant down to whisper in Momo's ear.

"I never pegged you for the possessive type." He smirked.

Her cheeks were pink yet she held her composure and kept her eyes away from meeting his.

"Yes well, it's not the first time one of us has been like that." She replied "You were always the more over protective one."

He laughed at her response and she giggled in return. They had always had that overprotective feeling when it came to each other. He remembered a line she had told him so many years ago, before they had even gotten together.

"We're each other's personal shields, after all." He grinned much to her embarrassed amusement.

Author's Notes:

Protective!Shouto anyone? ;)

In terms of the side characters I used, I hope that it doesn't come off as "character bashing" in Mineta/Monoma's cases. Mineta's instance is something I could see happening in the anime but would just get glossed over in comedic fashion and with Monoma, he isn't a bad person, he just lets his 1A hatred get to him and said something he didn't really mean.

With "Fujita", I needed a character that'd be interested in Momo but was too pushy about it. Normally I see Awase written as a "love rival" for Shouto (kinda feel bad for the guy because that's all he is in fics and he's not a bad guy) but his personalilty didn't fill the character need. So I made a few new side characters. Hope they were fine since they're just 1 off characters anyways.

As always, leave a review/comment on what you enjoyed or any thoughts you have.

Til next time, take it easy.