-"When life gives you lemons? How should I know what to do with them, I hate lemons. I'd throw an entire lemon tree back at life and laugh in its face when the damn juice splatters all over them."- Uraraka Ochako.
Zero to Hero
Chapter 6: Six blows of change
A flaming fist connected with flesh.
Shouto snarled with vigor, all of his hate and anger put into that one attack. Flames licked at his skin, but he wasn't afraid of it anymore. He wasn't that little boy who got burnt by his own flames anymore. No, the fire was his friend, his ally. The only fire he'd have to fear was not his, but the monster's. This fire was warm and inviting, it was his. His fire.
He panted as Enji stumbled across the tatami floor. His eyes were wild and full of raw emotion as he glared at the taller man. The next words that spilled from his lips shocked not only Enji, but himself as well.
"If you hurt her, I will kill you."
His fire grew stronger, igniting the wooden walls. He could hear the faint crumbling of the roof; this room was going to be burnt down if he didn't control himself. He knew that he should, but he couldn't find it in himself to care. Only the man in front of him mattered right now.
Unfortunately, Enji didn't seem to care about the room, nor about Shouto's feelings either.
"Shouto…" Enji breathed, standing up as if Shouto's punch had no effect on him at all. He approached the smaller boy; causing him to tense up and for his flames to erupt more violently.
"DON'T TOUCH ME!" He roared defensively, his arms in a guarded position in front of him. Enji didn't pay any attention to Shouto's obvious intimidation; he reached out and gripped Shouto's shoulders, almost crushing the boy with his brute strength. Shouto hissed and thrashed, but nothing he did seem to have any effect on Enji.
"Shouto, my son!" He cackled, his grip tightening as Shouto winced in pain. "I knew you'd stop resisting me! I knew you would give in and use your fire powers eventually!" He threw his head back and let loose a booming laughter.
Shouto always knew, but he never thought it as much as he did now; Todoroki Enji, no, Endeavor was crazy. He was power hungry and drunk with ambition, he didn't care about anything else but himself.
And Shouto was sick of it.
"Let me go!"
"Shouto, I'll have to remake your training menu!" Endeavor continued, not hearing Shouto's screams of resistance. "I knew you were going to let go of your futile resistance eventually! You will be the world's greatest hero! You will be strong enough to overcome All Might!"
No, Shouto thought. Not with you. I'll never be the hero you want me to be.
His mother smiled warmly at him as she stroked his hair lovingly. "It's okay not to be bound by blood. You decide who you want to become."
"Now," Ochako put her hands together, shooting him a cheeky smile that he remembered so fondly.
"What do you want to do?"
He screamed in anger; and brought his knee up to gut Endeavor in the stomach.
He erased his fire and activated his right side, ice exploding out of his knee and covering Endeavor's entire body in a heartbeat. He felt so driven by his feelings, all of his pent up emotions were finally released, and right then, he felt that nothing was impossible. His ice was cold enough to not melt instantly at Endeavor's flames projecting from his costume, and Endeavor's grip slackened with the sudden attack, so Shouto took that moment to pry himself away from the his arms.
He burst out of the burning room and ran. He ran pass his grandmother who was probably worried about the smoke coming out of the windows. He ran past his siblings who were rushing to the burning room with buckets of water in their hands. His eyes caught the gaze of Fuyumi's, his sister, and she silently shared a small smile with him.
Go, her eyes seemed to say. Go.
He plunged forward without anything in his way. As he exited the manor and continued running, he swore he had never felt so free. The wind felt so good in his hair, in his face, and the burn he could feel in his legs was exhilarating. His lips finally quirked up into a small smile. Feeling overwhelmed with everything, he burst into a full grin as he let out a yell of delight.
He was free. He fought back.
Ochako was safe. His mother was safe.
They were okay. Things were going to be okay.
He arrived at the playground an hour later than schedule. His breath hitched when he saw Ochako kicking the tree next to the swings, her feet red. After a back kick firmly made contact with the bark, she exhaled, bringing up a hand to wipe away the sweat from her forehead.
She was safe. She was okay, he thought, tears welling up in his eyes.
Ochako turned at that moment to see Shouto running at full speed at her. She did a couple double takes when she saw his face, and her eyes widened to the size of the moon.
"OCHAKOOOOO!" He shouted with all of his might, sprinting towards her in blindness.
"Shouto?! WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED-BLARGH!" Her breath was knocked out of her as he tackled her to the ground. They were propelled by the force of his jump, and they were knocked back into the sandbox. Sand flew up around them and Shouto could hear her coughing, but he couldn't care less. His arms tightened around her, and he let loose a laugh.
She was here with him. He was here with her.
They were fine. They were free.
They were okay.
XXX
Never did I think I would see the day Shouto tackled me to the ground in a feet of flurry emotions.
Now that I did, I can safely say that I saw everything that needed to be seen in life.
"Soooo," I started, swinging on the swing as Shouto sat on the one next to me. "You beat up Endeavor, huh?"
After that little surprise, I finally managed to make Shouto let go of me and calm down. His eyes were still a little widened from the adrenaline rush, but his breath and heartbeat were relatively slower compared to the past few minutes. He was panting slightly, but the smile on his face made me forget everything I wanted to say to him since I thought he ditched me.
Since that I didn't want to stay butt deep in sand, I requested that we talk on the swings. He agreed, and here we were, him explaining his story.
"I guess…Well, not really." He said sheepishly, scratching his cheek. "I just kicked him in the gut and froze him, then I ran."
I was fucking proud of this half popsicle.
"Dude, you just got away from your sick excuse of a parent. How are you not deliriously happy? Hell, I could shimmy down to hell with glowing pants and come back alive with all the giddiness I have right now!" I waved my arms around. Damn, his excitement was getting to me too. I shot him a huge grin and he reciprocated, his smile just a little less wide than mine. I got up from my place and outstretched a hand towards him.
"Come on party boy. We got a celebration to do." I said in the most serious voice as possible. He let out a laugh and took my hand. I pulled him and practically ran all the way to my house.
I was so glad I could wail like a baby right now. He finally stood up to Endeavor and punched the gut out of him, like a fucking badass. Hell I wished I could've seen the look on that jerk's face when Shouto unleashed his flames of fury and ice of hatred. Damn, I always knew it but my best friend was as BAMF as hell and I loved the shit out of that half-and-half.
When we arrived at my humble abode, I told mother whether it was okay for Shouto to stay over. He looked at me in surprise, but I was sure that he didn't want to go back to that mansion right now; there was a high chance Endeavor was still lurking around. Then again, since that he already knew of my relationship with Shouto, our meeting may not be that far down the road.
Mother was happy to have Shouto over no matter the time or occasion, and as always, promised to make his favorite dish; cold soba. His eyes lightened up like fireworks at that moment, and I felt my heart bloom in happiness at seeing the delighted expression on his face.
Father was surprised at the sudden occur of event, but he just chuckled and patted both of our heads.
"You both look like you've been through a lot." He smiled, ruffling Shouto's hair. "Have as much fun as you can tonight, you deserve the rest."
"Ochako." He murmured, touching his head. I turned to him, my face stuffed with chicken.
"Ya?"
"Thank you." He turned to look at me and the chicken almost got caught in my throat. He looked at me with such warmth and sincerity, it almost made me blush. But hey, Uraraka Ochako wasn't known for blushing (the permanent blush didn't count, it was passed down from my mother), so I just swallowed the meat down and slung my arm around his shoulder, pulling him closer.
"Shouto, I should be the one thanking you." I chuckled, my brown eyes meeting his gray and blue ones. "I couldn't have had a more badass friend than you."
He smiled and he gently bumped his forehead to mine. I nearly went cross-eyed, and he let out a small laugh.
"You too, Ochako." He replied.
"The most fantastically awesome girl in the universe?" I cheekily said, separating from him and pushing a fist in his direction.
"The most fantastically awesome girl in the universe." He replied, and our fist bumped together.
We ate, drank, and partied (Translation: We played Uno and Twister like bauses) till both of us collapsed of fatigue, but we were smiling and laughing all the way. I had never seen Shouto smile so freely until this day, and I was glad that I stayed by his side. His smile made everything worth it.
However, karma seems to love me a lot, because the next day when I woke up, mother was standing in front of us with a pale face and a letter in her hands.
The sender was Todoroki Enji.
XXX
"So, he wants me to meet him in person, eh?" I muttered, rubbing my chin thoughtfully.
After that little horrifying disaster we had this morning, Shouto and I were sitting cross-legged on the floor in my room. Although mother was shit worried, Shouto and I tried our best to ensure that we weren't going to do anything stupid and that he just wanted to meet me because I was being such a good friend to his son. (I didn't know how we pulled off that bullshit lie. I was sure both of my eyes were twitching the entire time.).
"Ochako, don't go." Shouto said to me, his eyes cast down. "He's going to hurt you. He thinks that you're a distraction to my growth, and if we go it'll be like jumping into an abyss that leads to hell."
"But if I ignore him, there's a chance he might burn this entire house down." I countered, furrowing my eyebrows. "I can't let mama and daddy get mixed up in this. Plus, daddy worked so hard to get us this house, there's no way I'm letting him destroy it."
"At the cost of your life?" Shouto raised his voice. He looked up to meet my eyes, his own orbs tinged with desperation. "It's not worth it, your life is more important than anything."
"But if we let this chance go now, you may never actually be free." I retorted, uncrossing my legs and standing up.
"What do you mean?" He asked me, following my movements.
"Think about it. You managed to run away from him yesterday, that's definitely a step towards your freedom. But it's only a step, you're still in his custody and as long as you become an adult there's no way for you to have freedom." I continued, heading towards my closet. "So, we stick it to the man." I finished, pulling out a dress shirt before tossing it back in.
He cocked his head to the side, lips still pulled into a frown as hesitance reflected in his eyes. "Ochako…"
"Shouto." I said firmly, spinning around and grabbing his shoulders. He blinked in surprise at the sudden contact, and raised his head to look at me in the eyes.
"Do you trust me?" I asked him, completely serious.
He pursed his lips.
"Do you trust me?" I repeated, furrowing my eyebrows.
He bit his lip further, but eventually let a sigh spill from his lips as he closed his eyes. "…You know I do."
I let go of him, a satisfied smile pulling up the corners of my mouth. "Alright. I have a plan to propose. You in?"
He took a deep breath, opened his eyes and nodded. "Alright. I'm in."
"Then let's get to it!" I pumped my fist in the air. "'Operation: Stick it to the Endeavor' commence!"
XXX
Fuyuka was surprised when she was told she received a phone call from an unknown number. She thanked the nurse that told her that information, and went to the first floor to call the number she received.
She was even more surprised when a voice she was not expecting was heard through the receiver.
"Fuyuka! Long time no hear!"
"Ochako?" Fuyuka nearly dropped the phone in her hands in shock. "What's wrong?"
"Hey, mom…"
"Shouto…?!" Fuyuka's eyebrows almost shot into her hairline. "Why…?"
"Sorry for not telling you, but the friend I mentioned in the letter is actually…"
"The awesome me!"
A small laugh escaped her mouth. She listed a hand to cover her soft giggles. She was right; her Shouto was friends with Ochako. Her smile widened as her eyes twinkled softly. They made a good pair, she mused, hearing their interaction through across the line.
"Anyway! We wanted to ask you a favor…"
"If I can be of assistance, I'd be willing to help." She chuckled, her tone taking on a motherly voice.
Hearing what happened to them after Ochako's discharge; Fuyuka almost had flashbacks to her time with the awful man. Her hand twitched to her shoulder, where she could still feel the burn and was horrified when she imagined the same thing happening to the sweet girl who befriended her.
"Ochako…I'm so-"
"It's not your fault, Fuyuka. None of this is. It's his entire fault, and that's why we need your help. Can you give us a small assist?"
Fuyuka hesitated, her fingers fiddling with the telephone cord. "…What you're planning to do is very dangerous. The first action I would suggest is running away, not standing up to him… It never ends well…"
"But we can't keep running away forever mom… I, I want to live with you in peace. I don't want to be trapped by him anymore. After all of this is over, we can live somewhere else. We can be free."
"Shouto…" Her voice was gentle, but laced with a heartbreaking sadness all the same. "…I would love to if I could. But it's not that simple, that man is as cunning as he is heartless. You know that he would never allow us to go separate ways completely."
"Fuyuka, please. Maybe this won't be a complete win, but we have to try. I'm willing to take the risk if it means that Shouto would be guaranteed at least more freedom compared to now. He's not even allowed out of the house, and Endeavor is trying to turn him into his own killing machine."
Fuyuka let out a deep sigh. There was a reason why Shouto was forbidden from leaving the manor, a reason that not only had to do with Endeavor, but herself as well. However, this was a secret that she promised never to tell him, a secret that she would never tell anyone outside of her biological family.
Keeping him inside was for his own good, but what good was it if the inside was more poisonous than the outside?
Maybe it was time for change. Maybe everything was destined to change the moment Shouto met Ochako.
Ochako was strong. She was brave and headstrong, she would surely do everything she could to keep Shouto safe from them if she ever found out, and Fuyuka was afraid it might be her downfall.
Not doing anything would definitely result in them being separated, and Fuyuka couldn't bear it if her beloved son was torn apart.
She took in a deep breath, and bit her lip, her resolve decided. "Alright. I'll help you."
XXX
"Excuse me madam, is this the Todoroki household I have received an invitation to?"
The elderly lady in front of me blinked owlishly as I stroked my fake beard. Shouto was pulling off a completely serious face next to me, dressed in a sharp tuxedo with a red necktie and sunglasses over his heterochromia eyes.
I adjusted my pink necktie. "Madam, is there a problem?"
"Ah…Are you…Shouto…?" The elderly woman asked in confusion and hesitance as her eyes wavered to the young boy next to me.
"Negative." He replied in a stiff voice and I almost burst out in laughter there and then. "Who I am is not important."
"What is, is that we have received an invitation by the owner of this house, and we wish to see him." I pulled out the slightly crumpled envelope and presented it to the lady. She took it with shaking hands and confirmed the writing on the front that spelled, 'From Endeavor'.
"Ah…I see…" She returned it to me, her eyes still wandering between the two of us. "I shall inform him. Please, come in…" She moved aside and gestured to the entrance.
I nodded and took off my shoes, aligning them neatly as I entered Shouto's house for the first time. Shouto followed suit, and together, we were guided to a small tatami room not too far from the entrance, and she left us to call Endeavor as we both sat in the formal Japanese way.
"Ochako…Are you sure this is okay…?" He asked me with doubt in his voice. I cleared my throat.
"To be absolutely honest, I have no idea my dear frozen marshmallow." I confessed, fidgeting my legs uncomfortably. "Damn it, I hate doing the seiza. I suck at it and my feet get numb too fast."
"You get used to it."
"Easy for you to say, you've been raised in a house with Japanese customs." I grumbled. "And you never told me you were shitty rich, I had no idea your house was this big! And it's unexpectedly near from mine!"
"How do you think I get to your place in a few minutes? Anyway, it doesn't really matter, your house may be smaller but I like it there better." He countered.
"Of course you do, what are you talking about? The Uraraka household may be poor, but we are a hell lot more homey than anywhere else on earth." I huffed.
Let's see what happened after that small phone call with Fuyuka. We discussed about my plan, and Fuyuka, after much conflict, agreed to help us. All we requested were two tuxedos and one red and one pink necktie, and if possible, black gloves. Oh yeah, and sunglasses and a fake beard to match my brown hair that barely touched my shoulders.
Why?
Well, if you were to intrude on enemy quarters, you must look sharp as the devil, no? Hence, I requested that we had clothes that made us look like assassins, or spies. I didn't have any clothes that formal in my wardrobe, especially one that would fit Shouto who was taller and more muscular than me.
Seriously though, I didn't know I looked so good in a beard. Shouto looked awesome with sunglasses, but he tried to and almost managed to tear off my fake facial hair. Hell no, I'm sticking to this thing unless Endeavor decided to burn it off or something.
The strange thing was that the people who delivered the clothes to us looked similar to Fuyuka. Two people, a man and a woman dressed in casual clothes appeared at my doorstep, carrying a bag. They both smiled at us in comfort, and I could see a silver of resemblance to the woman in the hospital. They had facial features that looked like Fuyuka, and they both had white hair. It wasn't just me, Shouto rubbed his eyes to confirm that the woman wasn't actually his mother, and they disappeared as soon as we both blinked.
Strange. Very, very strange. Meeting those two brought up another thought in my head concerning Shouto's family, but I pushed that thought away. Right now, only Endeavor was important, and nothing else.
"Ochako." Shouto suddenly said, his posture straightening and his voice turning cold. "He's here."
I squared my shoulders as soon as the door slammed open. Endeavor, in all of his flamey, fiery glory was standing there, in his hero costume as I expected. The fire that almost engulfed his entire face was more energetic than I remembered, it seemed to be bursting and moving about, as if it was alive.
"Shouto. What are you wearing?" He asked in a deep and booming voice. So, the first thing he would consider was our appearance, so step one was clear.
"This is normal for me." Shouto replied; his voice ice cold and if the sunglasses weren't covering his eyes right now, I could tell that he would be glaring. I cleared my throat, directing both of their attention to me.
"Hello, Hero Endeavor, it is a pleasure to meet you." I tried to mimic a British accent. "Please, have a seat." I gestured to the space across from the both of us.
He raised a fiery eyebrow. "And who are you to assume that I would sit, and not incinerate you on the spot for meddling with my son?"
Shouto growled, but I continued on, unfazed. "Very well. Then I shall stand." I stood up and stretched out a hand towards the 'hero'.
"Uraraka. Uraraka Ochako. The most fantastically awesome girl in the universe." I introduced myself. I gestured to the boy who was still sitting in the formal Japanese way. "And this is my best friend, Todoroki Shouto. Now, Hero Endeavor, I have a few questions for you, and I would be very glad if you answered them. Please do not worry, it would not take much of your time, and if you ever run out of patience, you can cook me in oil or whatsoever as you please." My eyes glinted, and an unnoticeable smirk almost took over my face.
He studied me in silence. I didn't lose my composure as I felt his eyes raking all over me, but I prayed that he would heed to my calls in desperation. If he decided to burn me right here, right now, there was nothing I could do to stop Shouto from lashing out.
Calm down, Ochako. Heel.
…Wait, I'm not a dog, what the hell.
For whatever reason, Endeavor nodded and crossed his arms. I retracted mine and breathed inwardly, relieved as humanly possible. But then I remembered that this was Endeavor, and I raised my guard again. He could be faking for all I know. I gestured to Shouto to stand with my head, and he followed, his posture rigid and guarded.
"Now, question number one, why do you think Shouto should be confined to this manor?"
"He is my son. I have full custody of him, and he is to become the number one hero in my steed."
That wasn't an answer you bastard. I held my tongue.
"Question number two, why are you so bent on being number one?"
"Only the weak would settle for number two. The strongest is always number one."
As expected. Now… I ripped the beard off my face, trying my best not to wince. I stuffed it in my pocket, and Shouto took off his sunglasses, his eyes showing no emotion even though his fists were trembling.
"Final question," I dropped my voice, my emotionless façade melting away to reveal my narrowed eyes and deep frown. "Why do you think that my 'meddling' would hinder Shouto's growth?"
His eyes narrowed. I continued, dropping the accent and not caring about his reaction. "To be honest, your methods of training my best friend are cruel, and really bothersome. Beating him up every day to the point of trauma is not a very efficient way. Do you know why Shouto hasn't broken down in hysterics like his mother? Do you know why Shouto is still sane and strong-willed, why he doesn't cry in front of anyone in this place?" I scoffed.
"I bet you don't. You don't care about his feelings when psychological problems are usually the reason of human growth. Do you honestly think he would care about what you want him to be? Do you truly, and honestly think that he would blindly follow you after this, 'rebelling phase' of his?"
I slung an arm around Shouto, who was frozen as stiff as a board, but relaxed as soon as he felt my touch. "He is here and strong because of his mother, and because of his best friend who is always by his side." I gripped his shoulder in comfort, and he shakily exhaled, his hand coming up to grip my hand in response.
A grin far too prideful formed on my face. "And even if you drop me to the deepest ends of hell, nothing can tear us apart."
I tapped his shoulder and whispered in a voice only Shouto could hear.
"Now."
Ice spiked out of the ground and froze the surroundings as flames burst out from Endeavor, accompanied with a roar full of rage. I rolled to the side as the hellfire blasted between Shouto and me, Shouto dodging to the other side while the fire almost brushed my side.
The heat was blazing, I hissed in pain even if the embers didn't actually touch me. If it weren't for Shouto freezing the entire room and lowering the temperature, I would have felt burnt. My clothes were a little singed, but I was safe. I glanced to the front to see if Shouto's ice attack had hit Endeavor, but the adult had dodged it as well.
I cursed and tried to gain some distance between us, but the hero had appeared in front of me in a flash. Before I could even blink, his hand reached out and grabbed my neck, cutting off my oxygen.
I coughed and wheezed as he slowly brought me up into the air. Shouto spotted us, and his eyes widened as a furious growl was released from his mouth.
"OCHAKO!"
"DO NOT MOVE, OR I WILL BREAK THIS GIRL'S NECK IN HALF!" Endeavor roared, his blue eyes glinting furiously in his flames. "Little girl, you speak too arrogantly, and you are too stupid to have provoked me. You should have run away when the letter arrived at your house, and listen to my demands. Instead, you come all the way here to negotiate, poorly, and you have failed. You are not worthy of being near Shouto, things like you are the reason why Shouto is being tainted."
Shit, this was bad. My vision was clouding, and I felt sick. My hands wouldn't move; I couldn't muster the energy to touch him and use my quirk. The villain I faced back in town was nowhere near Endeavor's power. I couldn't do anything against him.
This is a hero's strength, huh?
Shit, shit, shit. I don't want to die, I don't want to die. Tears welled up in my eyes as my mouth flapped open and close, a futile attempt to try and take in as much oxygen as possible.
Shouto, my eyes dimmed as my gaze averted to the boy that was across from us. My vision was blurry and I couldn't see well, but I tried my best to give him a smile.
Hell was I going to die without a smile. I may not have the Will of D, but I was going to fucking pretend I had it anyway. I wasn't going to part ways with him with anything but a smile, and that was something I decided a long time ago.
Shouto, I'm sorry. I don't know if I was much of a help after all, haha.
XXX
Shouto felt the world stop.
No, this couldn't be happening. Why was Ochako smiling at him like that? Why wasn't she resisting? Why wasn't she mouthing off at Endeavor? Why was she just hanging there?
In that moment, Shouto felt his surroundings turn into white. He couldn't think straight, he couldn't see anything but Ochako hanging by her neck. The girl who was always by his side, the girl who tried many times to pull him out of hell. The girl who was his first and only best friend, his most precious person.
He had to do something. He had to move.
He let out a ferocious roar and blasted his father with fire, but every shot was directed away. He made ice erupt from his feet towards him, but a single blast of molten heat melted it all away. Endeavor did all of this without batting an eyelash, and his grip on Ochako was not loosening.
He couldn't do it. He was too weak. He didn't have the power to get Ochako back.
What could he do? What could he do?
He opened his mouth.
"SHE'S THE REASON WHY I DECIDED TO USE MY FLAMES!" Shouto shouted, desperation coating his words heavily. "SHE'S THE REASON WHY I COULD FACE MYSELF, SHE'S THE REASON WHY I DECIDED TO FIGHT FOR MYSELF!" He could feel tears spilling from his face, and his voice cracking, but he couldn't stop now. He couldn't lose her, he needed her.
"I'LL DO ANYTHING YOU SAY, I WON'T REBEL AGAINST YOU ANYMORE, SO PLEASE, LET HER GO! DON'T HURT HER!" He yelled in desperation and anguish, both of his powers going out of control, ice bursting from every direction as his flames erupted and exploded.
He broke down sobbing, his knees touching the charred floor as his head pushed against it. "Please… Please… She's too important for me to lose…"
Shouto.
He raised his head, his face all scrunched up and wet with tears, when he saw her arms twitching. He hiccupped, and her eyes opened slightly. There wasn't any light reflected in them, but he swore that he could still see her smiling.
Shouto, don't lose. Don't give up. Don't break down.
He sucked in a deep breath. He clenched his fists tightly, and he pushed himself up with shaky legs, stumbling.
"Shouto," Endeavor started. He bit his lips hard enough to draw blood, and tried to block out whatever he said.
"You're just being ridiculous. This girl had too much influence on you, she's better off dead. You can live without a measly thing like her. What is important is that you follow my rules, and my orders. I'll get rid of her so that you would not think of rebelling against me ever again."
Shouto closed his eyes.
No, you're wrong. You're wrong.
I'm sick of being fed lies. I'm sick of being someone's machine. I'm sick of listening to you.
I'm Shouto. I'm my own person. I'm the son of Fuyuka, I'm the best friend of Uraraka Ochako.
I'm not your son. Not anymore.
He felt his left side grow hotter. His blue eye burned. The entire left part of his body felt like it was on fire, but it didn't feel like his fire. This fire was harsher and stronger, and more merciless. Not warm and inviting. He took in a deep breath, and clenched his fist. The feeling in his stomach grew hotter and tighter, and he felt a huge warmth engulfing him. He let out another breath, feeling smoke come out of his nose and mouth.
Breathe. When you're using fire, you need to breathe. Feel the fire in you, feel the burn that dominated your body and soul.
Do not be afraid of change. Change will make you stronger.
He raised his left arm, and this time, dark blue flames; blue flames with black tipping the edges flickered to life harshly on his skin.
"Shitty Endeavor." He breathed, black smoke leaving his mouth. He directed his arm at the taller man, and forced out his next words.
"Let her go."
Endeavor's grip slackened, and Ochako fell to the ground. She landed on the tatami with a thump, and Shouto moved forward. Before the taller man could even blink, the girl at his feet was gone and in the arms of his son, who was standing at a distance from him.
Shouto set Ochako down gently, careful that her body didn't touch the flames on his left side. He put his right hand over her neck, and confirmed her pulse. It was weak and fragile, but she was alive. She wasn't dead.
He breathed a sigh of relief, before his eyes hardened and he turned back to face Endeavor.
"Shouto…Your fire." Endeavor looked astonished, impressed even.
Shouto looked at his arm. The warm fire that used to be his was gone, replaced by a blue fire that seemed to sear his entire being. It was extremely hot, hotter than his orange, and he could feel the fire burning his skin. He hissed in pain, and coated his arm in ice immediately, using his right arm. The chill of the ice stopped his arm from burning, but the ice was melting rapidly.
He tore his gaze away from his arm to see Endeavor grin, a grin that sent chills up Shouto's spine.
"Excellent! Shouto, your fire is far more superior to mine now! I can feel the heat of those flames even at this distance, and they are much hotter than any fire I have ever encountered! Shouto, come to me. I will teach you how to wield your fire, I will teach you to burn your enemies to the ground without hurting yourself, I can-"
"Shut up." Shouto growled out, a low voice unfitting of his age. "I am not your son. This fire, whatever it is, I'm going to learn to control it myself. I'm not going to listen to you anymore." He inhaled and raised his palm, facing the hero.
"From this day onwards, I am no longer the son of Todoroki Enji."
Shouto remembered the conversation he had with his mother on the phone. He remembered her kind voice, her warm hugs, and her gentle smiles. He exhaled this time, his eyes focused and his palm heating up.
"I am Hibiki Shouto, the son of Hibiki Fuyuka."
The devil's fire erupted from his palm, and seared everything in front of him.
XXX
I woke up with a bleary mind, and I found myself staring at a wooden ceiling.
Where was I? I tried to let out a groan, but my throat was sore and it hurt like shit. I tried to push myself into a sitting position, and after much trial, managed to succeed.
I looked around as my vision slowly cleared. I was lying on a futon in a Japanese style room. I felt the ground, and confirmed that it was tatami. I wore a plain white shirt and black shorts, and the clothes I received from Fuyuka were folded neatly beside the futon. Everything was quiet and peaceful, and I almost felt my eyelids closing again.
Until the memory of what I had been doing hit me, and I woke up, my mind completely clear.
Shouto. Endeavor. What the hell happened? Why was I here, where was Shouto?!
Panic taking hold of me, I scrambled to my legs and headed towards the shoji doors, pulling them open forcefully. I opened my mouth to shout even if my throat bled, and my voice died in my throat.
Because in front of me stood the very boy I was searching for, with huge blinking eyes and a bucket of water in his hands. He was no longer wearing the suit, trading the formal look for a casual one with a red shirt and white shorts.
"…Shouto." I croaked out. "…Ey."
He threw everything he had onto the ground, water spilling all over the wooden floor and some seeping into the tatami, and threw his arms around me. I stumbled at the sudden contact and fell back onto the futon, my butt making contact with the pillow.
…Okay, what in Davey Jones locker is going on here?
"Ochako." His voice cracked and his arms tightened around me. "You're alive."
Hell yeah I am, I wanted to retort, my arms going up to hug the trembling boy back. A strangle from Endeavor can't take this bad girl down. Who do you think I am, some kind of advanced wimp?
"No, you're the most fantastically awesome girl in the universe." He retorted, and I blinked. Huh, he can read minds now.
"No, I can't. Stop trying to brush things off lightly, you almost died."
Fine, fine. I pursed my lips and tightened my arms around him. You win this round, my dear bestie.
I buried my face into his shoulder, and he did the same to me. We just sat there, arms around each other as we both silently cried, various emotions, mostly relief and fear mixing together. To be honest, I had thought that I was going to die. The run in with that villain was a close call, but with Endeavor choking me I had thought I was gone for good. Why do you think I smiled?
I was so glad Shouto was safe. I was so glad I was alive, and we were both okay. Albeit, a little burnt up, but okay nonetheless. We were living, and that was the only thing that mattered.
…That reminded me, said Endeavor was nowhere to be seen. How long had I been out?
"Shouto." An amused voice cut between our silent crying. "I brought drinks."
Shouto let go of me slowly, and I did the same. We both turned our heads up to meet the gentle eyes of a young girl, probably around thirteen, who seemed similar to Shouto. It hit me that this was probably Fuyumi, Shouto's sister. Like she said, in her hands was a tray with two cups and a bottle of water.
"Thanks, sis." He replied, standing up and taking the tray from Fuyumi. He averted his eyes to the wet floor and carelessly thrown away bucket. "Sorry about that." She smiled.
"No problem, little bro." She ruffled his hair gently and kneeled down, sitting in the seiza position next to me. "Hello, my name is Fuyumi. I'm Shouto's sister. It's nice to meet you."
I held up a hand as Shouto passed me a cup of fresh water. I drank it slowly, careful not to take big gulps as to damage my sore throat. After drinking an entire cup, I cleared my throat softly, confirming that my voice was back, although pretty raspy. I held out my hand this time in the form of a handshake, a cheeky smile forming on my lips.
"Uraraka Ochako." I whispered in a soft tone. "The most fantastically awesome girl in the universe."
Fuyumi laughed and shook my hand. "It's an honor to meet you, lady Ochako." I grinned in response.
Shouto passed me another cup, and I gratefully drowned it down my pipe. "Ochako, I bet you're wondering what happened to our father, right?" Fuyumi asked me and I nodded, making sure every last drop of water was gone from the cup before passing it back to Shouto.
"He got burned, and had to go to the hospital." Shouto's words didn't register first. A moment passed, and I whipped my head around to face Shouto, my mouth gaping open.
He silently closed my mouth with his hand. "It's a long story."
Fuyumi chuckled at our interaction, and stood up. "Well, I'll be in the room next to yours. If you ever need me, feel free to call." She waved and exited, leaving the shoji doors open and picking up the bucket Shouto had dropped.
"Come on," Shouto stood up and grabbed my hand, pulling me up. "Let's talk in the garden. I feel better there." He ushered me out of the room, and I got a good look at Shouto's house for the first time.
Right outside of the room was a huge Japanese garden. The white rocks covering the ground were beautiful, as were the bonsai trees that were planted around. They were a calming shade of green that swayed with the breeze, and I could faintly hear the sounds of birds chirping. There was a small pool of water surrounded with slightly bigger rocks, and the shishi-odoshi clunked as the running water pushed down the bamboo to hit the rock, the sound echoing throughout the garden.
No wonder Shouto wanted to bring me here. He was right, it did feel relaxing.
He led me down into the garden, and hopped onto a big rock that had many others of its kind surrounding the small lake with the shishi-odoshi. I followed him, pushing myself up and plopping myself down on a rock next to him.
"So, what happened after I fainted?" I questioned him, swinging my legs as my voice gradually went back to normal, though it was still faint and raspy.
"…Do you remember what happened to my flames?" He hesitantly asked me, and I shook my head. I had no memory after Endeavor grabbed my throat and I smiled at Shouto. He took a deep breath and faced me seriously.
"Okay… Don't freak out." He froze his left arm with his right, and I cocked my head to the side. Why did he-
His left arm burst into flames. Not just your average, run-of-the-mill orange flames, no, it was nothing like that.
Blue flames. Blue flames with black tipping the edges of the ember flickered to life.
I recoiled from shock and the sudden blast of heat, nearly falling into the lake in the process. "Holy-"
Shouto deactivated his quirk, the flames fading as he reached out to grab my shirt, stopping me from falling and possibly from me catching a cold. I gripped onto his arm as he pulled me back, and I steadied myself on the rock again, panting in shock.
I shook my head and poked his left arm. The ice he had coated it with was completely melted, it had melted the instant Shouto activated those flames. "What the hell…?"
"I… I don't really know what it is either." He confessed, rubbing his arm self-consciously. "After you fainted, I tried everything I could against Endeavor, but nothing worked. I…I guess I was so desperate, I don't really remember what happened, and before I realized it, my flames changed."
This was strange. All too strange. What was going on? Canon Shouto never had any flames like this; he didn't even have the power to change his flames into blue ones yet. Okay, this wasn't canon, so maybe blue flames were acceptable, but the black at the edges?
My eyes widened as I remembered a certain character, a certain villain who was hinted to have a flames tinted with black.
Dabi.
God, this was too strange. Could Dabi's quirk have something to do with Shouto? Did Dabi hold answers? Did Dabi have some kind of connection to Shouto?
My poor head was very confused.
"Alright, okay, I got it." I rubbed my temples. "Maybe you got an upgrade or something."
"I don't know if this is an upgrade, or something more." Shouto clenched and unclenched his fist. "My right side is working fine, that means I still technically have 'Half-Cold Half-Hot'. Only my fire changed, it's stronger and hotter compared to before. I can't control it properly, and if I activate it I get burned." He lifted his sleeves to reveal his shoulder that was covered in bandages.
"That's why you froze your arm?"
"To keep my entire arm from getting burned to a crisp." He nodded. "It melts really quickly though, so I don't think it's much of a help in a drawn out fight."
"Can't you use your orange flames?" I asked him, furrowing my eyebrows.
"I tried, but the instant I activate my quirk, I feel like I have no control over it, and it becomes blue." He confessed, his eyes narrowing. "No matter how much I concentrated, I couldn't change my fire back."
This time, I rubbed my chin in thought. "So to sum it up, it's stronger than orange, but you have zero control over it and you can't change it back."
He nodded. "I blasted Endeavor with this fire, and he got burned. I didn't think it was possible for him to get burned…"
"…Alright, you badass motherfucker, let's think this through. You got a new version of your fire, you have absolutely no control over it, and Endeavor's in the hospital." I paused.
I stood up abruptly. "Let's shindig, hot men."
He pulled me back down.
This was the true turning point in both of our lives. I had no idea that in the future, Shouto was going to get caught up in something far larger than I thought, and I had no idea that at that time, I might not even be by his side to go through it with him.
But that's a story for the future.
Right now, if I can see the smiling face of my best friend, it didn't matter what hell I had to go through.
A freakishly long chapter. Eighteen pages, yeah!
Shouto unlocks a new power. Or, more like discovered that he can control blue fire, albeit, a little unique type of fire. Endeavor gets BURNED (In more ways than one), Ochako's happy, and Shouto is doing all he can to stop her from throwing a lemon pie at his face in celebration of getting rid of a pest.
And they're still eight year olds for god's sake. Geez, these kids have it rough.
Fun fact, I decided on Fuyuka's last name 'Hibiki', because it means 'echo'. 'Todoroki' means 'roar', and I wanted to show some similarity and difference between the two families, so I picked the 'sound' motif. 'Hibiki' is a lot quieter than 'Todoroki', I think it fits with the contrast between Fuyuka and Enji.
Special thanks to SaltyCandy, NeoNazo356 for reviewing every chapter! I also thank the reviewers who leave me reviews no matter the amount, and all my followers and fellow readers! I love to re read your reviews; they give me inspiration and a drive to continue writing.
Of course, the Todoroki family drama still continues, it just won't be as main focus next time.
Next one, let's get moving, Shimura Tenko! For those expecting a certain main character, I beg you wait a little more. They will meet somewhere a little farther along the line.
See you next time, my lovely readers~
~LunaricFairy12~