Test of Courage

3

Todoroki's POV
"Todoroki! What are you doing here?! Your supposed to be at the castle!" Midoriya exclaimed. He looked panicked, like he was caught doing something he wasn't supposed to.

"I couldn't sleep so I tried to find something about the sword you found. There's something that doesn't sit right with me about it. There's a lot I need to tell you about it," I held up the book I brought. Then I noticed the backpack and traveling cloak. "What are you doing?"

"I was, uh, going for a walk," He said nervously.

"With a full backpack?"

"Yeah?" He shifted on his feet.

"Your a terrible liar. What are you actually doing?" He seemed to contemplate telling me. Like he was going through the pros and cons in his head. Then he pulled me behind a nearby house. In a hushed tone he told me about how he found the sword and the vision it gave him. He told me about the dream he had and what he read in the library.

"So I'm going to destroy the sword before anyone else can get it. I can't waste any time," He turned to leave but I grabbed his wrist.

"I'm coming with you," I said.

"You can't, it's too dangerous, especially for you. Your the prince," He argued.

"I'm not letting you go alone. You'll never make it to the pit by yourself. It's all the way across the kingdom," I insisted, "please, I want to help you. We can protect each other." I looked into his eyes to see conflict and doubt.

"Okay," He said. I smiled victoriously, "Under one circumstance. You have to be careful and you can't risk yourself for me." I nodded.

"Let's go to the castle so I can pack." He followed me through the streets as I found my way home. The castle loomed over the rest of the village. It was the tallest building and it was made with big stone towers. The kingdom's colors, red and gold, was used to decorated the entrance.

We went around to find a different entrance into the castle. If anyone found out I left at night, unsupervised, I'd get into a lot of trouble. We hid behind bushes and around corners from guards and servants.

We finally got to my room and I began to pack. I didn't have much for civilian clothing but I did have a few outfits for when I visit the village. I grabbed supplies I thought was necessary and then we made our way to the kitchens. It was harder to get there because some of the maids stay late when there is a lot of work. We had to hide from a few girls who finished their duties for the day. We got to the kitchen and fortunately it was empty. I filled my bag and I lead the way out of the castle. We were so close to getting out when we were caught.

"Your highness, where are you going with a packed bag?" Iida marched after us. He noticed Midoriya next to me. "Midoriya what are you doing here?" I glanced at Midoriya.

"Iida, please tell my mother that I left to help a friend. I don't know when I will be coming back but I do intend to return. I ask that no one tries to stop me, It's very important but I can't tell you about it," I said. I wrote my mother a letter and left it on my bed but I figured it be more reassuring if Iida told her.

"If you are going some where I am not letting you go without protection," Iida said, "As your personal guard I am coming with you."

"Please don't come. I'm supposed to go by myself, but Todoroki insisted," Midoriya argued.

"I can only assume you want to go alone because it's dangerous which gives me more reason to come," Iida persisted. It wouldn't hurt to have help. Then I wouldn't have to protect Midoriya by myself.

"Fine, you can come. Pack a bag and meet us in town on the edge of the forest," I said.

"Todoroki!" Midoriya exclaimed.

"He can help keep both of us save. He trained a lot and he's my personal guard for a reason," I said. Midoriya sighed and gave up. We continued to sneak out of the castle and make our way to the meeting point.

Midoriya's POV

As Todoroki and I waited for Iida, I couldn't help but feel like we were wasting time. I felt antsy and couldn't stop myself from pacing back and forth. When Iida finally arrived I was more than ready to begin our journey. He exchanged his metal armor with thick leather on his shoulders, forearms, and chest.

Todoroki and I explained to Iida the details of the sword and what we had to do. After that it was quiet as we walked through the woods. Crickets chirped from the grass and occasionally an owl hooted, besides that it was silent. As we walked I had the feeling something was watching us, but I figured I was being paranoid. Even so I couldn't stop myself from anxiously scanning the forest. I occasionally held the lantern up to what I thought were figures but they were just shadows. A twig snapped behind us and I spun around, holding up the light.

"What was that?" I looked into the darkness.

"Midoriya... I know all of this is a lot, but I think you need to calm down," Todoroki said coolly, "Being overly jumpy and nervous isn't going to help anything." I nodded and turned back to the way we were going.

"Your right," I sighed. We continued quietly. The moon began to set and the sun began to rise. The sky was shades of orange, yellow, and pink. Crickets and owls were replaced with song birds and the occasional woodland creature. We walked through the morning and it was early afternoon when it happened.

I found a way to kept my anxiety at bay by fidgeting with a lose piece of thread I found in my pocket. It wasn't the best solution but at least it helped a little. Then a twig snapped. Whatever did it sounded too big to be something like a squirrel. Iida and Todoroki noticed it too and they drew their swords. I copied them.

"Who's there?" I called.

"Dumbass, now they know we're here," An angry voice said quietly.

"Come out," Todoroki demanded. Some bushes rustled and I tensed.

"Put down your swords, idiots, it's just us," Bakugou revealed himself and Kirishima followed behind him. They both had full backpacks on their backs.

"Kacchan? Kirishima? What are you two doing? Were you spying on us?" I asked.

"You decided to talk about your stupid sword with half n half outside my window," Bakugou growled. I didn't even realize it was his house.

"Why is Kirishima here then?" Todoroki asked. His question took Bakugou by surprise and his face turned bright red.

"I-He-We were just," Bakugou was completely flustered as he tried to explain.

"I was having a sleep over," Kirishima said. His face was pink but it was no where near as red as Bakugou's. I connected the dots and smirked at Bakugou.

"It was just a sleep over, why so flustered?" I asked with a smug looked.

"Shut up, Deku," He crossed his arms and pouted. I chuckled.

"Anyway why did you follow us?" I asked.

"Well, we could hear your entire conversation with prince peppermint and I came to stop you from screwing it up," Bakugou seemed thankful for the subject change. "Before you say anything, we are not going back after following you for half a day."

"Fine," I sighed, "You guys can come." If anyone else tried to come with us I would personally force them to go home.