Deciding not to go back to the stands for now, Micah made his way to the locker room to wait for them to repair the arena and platform. He sat in silence as his mind went over the various events to come after today.
'Hosu City, the Hero Killer, I-Island, the training camp. Bakugo getting kidnapped, Kamino Ward. All For one.' He shivered at the name. No one could know he knew about that monster, not even Sasha. He still worried in his mind about telling Nezu, probably the only person on the planet he could trust with that information.
Still, the idea that he wouldn't be able to explain it haunted his mind. He knew he would be able to rest until he either told Nezu, or at the very least someone like Aizawa. For now, though, he still had a Sports Festival to finish.
The roars of the crowd seemed to snap him out of his thoughts as he put on his media smile before taking the stage. Shoto was already waiting and had a particular look on his face, one that Micah already knew to associate with Endeavor.
"Did Izuku talk to you?" He ventured as Shoto stayed silent, his voice barely reaching, thanks to Mic whipping the crowd into a frenzy. "You are more than him, Shoto. You just have to prove it, don't be remembered as Endeavor's son, make him be known as the father of the Number 1 Hero."
Shoto's eyes looked less angry and frustrated, somewhat. Midnight then sauntered over as she gave each a searching look before raising her whip, "Ready? START!"
She almost didn't get away in time as Shoto filled the arena with an iceberg nearly double the size of the one he used on Sero. To his surprise, Shoto had been able to catch Micah inside. The only problem was that he was now destroying the ice from the inside.
Micah emerged like a phoenix as he hurled flames at Shoto. He threw down a wall of ice to battle the flames as Micah flew around, ripping chunks of ice off the berg and throwing them at Shoto. The two danced around the area as Cementoss made a few more barriers to protect the audience.
Knowing that he could never reach Shoto's heart like Izuku, Micah stayed silent as he formed wave after wave of fire to beat back Shoto. Rather than stay still, Shoto skated around the ring as he hurled pillars of ice and frost at him, hoping to ground him.
Nothing seemed to work, however, as Micah stayed far enough away to react to any ice constructs that got too close, while being close enough to lunge forward with flaming claws if Shoto tried to get any closer.
As the two fought, people around the country cheered as they enjoyed the best fight so far. Already, various agencies were drafting requests to the two, hoping to get at least one, especially the son of Endeavor.
A few were more interested in Micah, though. The HPSC, for one, since Micah was a foreign student, and anyway, to keep such a strong hero in Japan was something they wouldn't give up on easily. The others with their eyes on Micah were much more sinister; the League of Villains had their eyes on the only person other than All Might to fight with the Nomu and survive.
None of this mattered at all to Shoto, and much less to Micah. The two were busy trying to take each other out of the ring as their time slowly ran out. Already this fight had gone on long enough for Shoto to start using his flames, if only to not get frostbite as his entire left side seemed to be encased in ice and frost.
Micah, although not physically burdened, was starting to feel affected mentally. The stress of kiting someone as strong as Shoto was not small, and with the unpredictability that was inherent in humanity, he was constantly on guard against any new tricks Shoto might try.
He was busy waiting for an opening when one suddenly made itself known. Without hesitation, he lunged forward, driving his fists into Shoto's stomach and chest before shoving him as hard as he could out of the ring.
"MICAH WINS! WHAT A SHOW!" Present Mic nearly lost his voice screaming as the crowd went wild. Micah ignored the noise as he hopped off the stage and helped Shoto to his feet, "How. How did you do it?" Shoto asked as Micah told him plainly.
"I noticed in your fight with Izuku. Each time you use your flames, you take a second to swap over to it; that's because you never train with it and aren't used to using it. It can still be fixed." Shoto nodded as they went to make themselves presentable before being called back for the award ceremony.
Down under the platform, Micah and the others made sure they didn't slip, and the floor under them started to rise into the open area. The audience cheered, as did the student section. Micah could even see Sasha and Momo waving.
As Midnight presented the winners, Micah felt ready to pass out. All day long, he'd been running, flying, or fighting. He was more than a little tired and was getting impatient when All Might finally arrived with their medals.
He stood before Fumikage and Bakugo in Third place and gave them their medals. "You both have shown the entire world your strengths, hold your heads up high for everyone to see!" He encouraged before moving on.
"Young Todoroki. Your power will only grow as you do, so don't limit yourself. Be the best hero that you want to be, not what others want." He said softly before placing the Second Place medal around his neck.
"Well done, young man. You've proved your strength, now show the world that this is only the beginning of your journey." All Might flashed his iconic smile as Micah couldn't help but grin. As they all posed for a series of pictures, all of them silently wished they were anywhere but there, even All Might.
"Micahhhh!" Sasha whined as we made our way to Shoto's house, where Fuyumi had already prepared a meal. "Yes, Sasha?" I asked silently, wanting her to hurry up because I was STARVING!!
"My legs are tired, can you carry meee!" She said dramatically as Momo and Shoto kept walking, and I sighed, but still stopped. "Fine." She was in my arms before I realized it as I caught up with the other two in time to get in as the smell of Fuyumi's food wafted down the hall.
"Ah! Hello, you two must be Momo Yaororozu, and Sasha, I'm guessing." Fuyumi grinned, seeing my predicament. "Shoto was right, she does have you wrapped around her finger." I was too tired to respond as Sasha cackled manically, before following Shoto to crash on the couch.
"So, do I really freeze before switching to fi-" I interrupted Shoto before he could start. "Food and sleep. Please. We can talk and spar tomorrow." He seemed to realize just how tired he was himself as he agreed, and the girls brought the food over to us.
I didn't even complain when Sasha started to feed me, even though Natsuo's laugh was grating when he came home to find us all eating. Since Momo and Sasha were the least tired, they regaled Shoto's siblings with what we did during the Festival, despite them watching the entire time.
Once I finished my food, I made sure to return my plate to the kitchen before returning to the living room. Sasha had stolen my seat, but I was so tired I just ignored her and plopped down next to her, letting my head rest on her shoulder as I drifted off to sleep. Today was a good day.