Yuuei (Bakugo x Tsuyu)

𝙏𝙞𝙘𝙠𝙚𝙩

Releasing the frogs is no big feat. At least not to Tsuyu. She's reminded of simpler times, when she was younger, of buying frogs from the local market just to run to a freshwater lake to release them back into the wild.

Setting the frogs free now, though, was bittersweet. She wondered if there was anything more she could do for them. Now that she's older, she understands now that releasing an animal back into the wild doesn't ensure its safety and happiness forevermore. All it would take was another bad run-in with people like the JSPCA to erase all of their hard work and recovery.

Walking back to the van, Tsuyu feels heavy. It was amazing that they were able to save an innumerable amount of frogs, but who was to say that JSPCA wouldn't just come crawling back here, and take more innocent frogs for their weird experiments?

"Chin up, Asui. We ain't done," Bakugou flashes her a smug smile. "I saved the best for last."

"You'll see," Bakugou responds unhelpfully as he pulls off. "Deku, did you call Hagakure yet and make sure she's got the story in?"

In the front seat, Izuku nearly vibrates with excitement. "I did you one better!" Reaching into a backpack under his seat, he pulls a folded newspaper out. "I asked her for an advanced copy!" Izuku turns to Tsuyu in the backseat. "Did you want to read first? Tooru's exposés are always amazing! You'll love it. And she mentions you!"

"Me? Specifically?"

"Oh, no. Not you you. Your sanctuary! And she talks about how you guys have been saving the lives of amphibians for about five generations now. That's amazing! I can't believe the JSPCA was going to shut down such a pillar in the community." He shakes his head, but a small smirk emerges on his face. "Too bad for them they're soon to be out of business."

"And into a prison cell," Bakugou says. "Fuckin' weirdos."

Tsuyu is confused, but also hopeful. She takes the folded newspaper from Izuku and opens it to reveal the front page. Her mouth drops open at the headline. "Oh my god."

The front page is covered in pictures of the horror that Tsuyu discovered at the JSPCA headquarters. The pictures look even more horrifying, now that they're printed on grainy newspaper material. In big, bold letters running across the top of the page the words, 'JSPCA: The Japanese Society for the PROTECTION of Cruelty to Animals.' Underneath in smaller bold letters, the byline reads 'How CEO and founder, Shigaraki Tomura, hoodwinked the Japanese government into funding his Black Market frog-leg industry while putting actual rescue centers out of business.'

Tsuyu's mouth hangs open in an uncharacteristic show of outright astonishment. "Oh my god."

Izuku continues to nearly vibrate through his chair. "Right?! She's amazing! There's no way anyone working at JSPCA is coming back from that!"

Tsuyu feels an intense weight lift off her shoulders. All of the stress and unhappiness from the past few weeks has evaporated underneath the light of the truth she had been looking for since hearing about the things JSPCA had done to other families and rescue centers like hers. She's so happy, she doesn't even notice Bakugou examining her through the rear view mirror.

"What did I tell you?"

Tsuyu laughs. "That we're partners in crime?"

"Fuck yeah. Not just that, though. What did I swear to you exactly three weeks ago?"

Tsuyu racks her brain to replay the first conversation she ever had with Bakugou. After a few moments, she remembers. A grateful laugh escapes her again. "You said we were going to 'dead those motherfuckers in three weeks.'"