Hello! Welcome to the last semi-happy chapter before things get oof. Enjoy the ride.
Humming happily to herself, Amari opened the locker to her left before taking out her duffle bag and placing it on the bench next to her. Everything felt like a dream, one she never wanted to wake up from.
She then reached into her pocket before taking out her official hero licenses for the hundredth time today, staring at the glossy finish with a slight giggle. Amari still couldn't believe it, she was an actual real hero now, just like she always wanted as a little girl.
Thinking back to her hospital bed as a child, that same burning desire had then left her, not even once. Sure it may have gotten twisted along the way but even still, she could now rest easy. It felt nice, to not have to worry about anything for once.
Amari slowly unzipped her bag before rummaging through in order to find her phone to call her parents. They must have seen the exam on TV but she really just wanted to gush some more. What could she say, the girl was just so utterly happy that she wanted to share the news with the world.
Although as she moved her hand through the bag, the girl frowned. She swore she left her phone in here somewhere, and yet after emptying all the contents, she found nothing. Huh, maybe she left it back in the training room or didn't even bring it at all.
Yeah, that must have been it. To be completely honest, the girl was immensely frazzled and stressed about the whole exam so it wouldn't have surprised her if she did leave it back at the dorms. The girl even almost put two different shoes on this morning.
Doing one last check in her locker, Amari opened the creaky door and felt around only to find a small note taped to the bottom of the object. That wasn't there before.
Carefully unsticking the glue, the girl then tore off the paper before unfolding the contents and reading the perfectly printed words on the surface, mocking her as she did so.
This is your last chance Little Bakugo
Go back to him or you're going to regret it
Usually these suspicious notes with vague threats on them would've terrified her into a panic attack or state of terror but this time she could only narrow her eyes.
All for One had been sending these kinds of things for months, hoping that it would scare her into submission, but that's all they ever were, just words.
They were a scare tactic and Amari wasn't going to let them terrorize her anymore, now crumbling up the paper before throwing it away with slight glare.
Then she quickly threw her duffle bag over her shoulder before heading out the door to meet Katsuki and the rest of her friends.
Nothing could ruin this day for her, she wouldn't allow it.
Raising a glass high into the sky, Hawks flapped his wings proudly as he spoke to the crowds in his office. "I would like to raise a toast. To Todoroki and the Bakugo twins for passing their exam and becoming real heroes, I congratulate you!"
A loud shout overtook the space as all of their friends cheered loudly and clicked their glasses together before taking a sip of their soda happily.
It was a giant party, custody of Hawks himself, filled with all the students in the hero course along with a couple familiar faces including Aziawa, Eri and Shinso as well, who were now chatting among the crowds.
Endeavor was invited as well but unfortunately his hero work could only keep him away for so long. The man had already missed some of his meetings for the exam so that meant he couldn't stay long after the results.
Although Amari never really saw Todoroki's father as a party type of person so maybe it was for the best. He probably would've stuck out alot.
Laughing to herself, the girl suddenly felt someone grab her hand before spinning her around in a dizzy circle, almost causing her to drop her own drink and trip over her own feet. "Whoaaa."
The male voice began to laugh before Amari re-focused her eyes on a very familiar shape. "Even though you're a real hero now it seems like you're just as clumsy as ever short stuff."
Scoffing at his words, the girl only stuck her tongue out in response. "Shut up Shih tzu. That was your fault. You didn't even give me enough warning. You better watch yourself next time."
Shinso didn't really seem intimated though, lifting his hands in defense as he cooed sarcastically "Oh, do I? That's some scary talk for someone that scrunches up her nose like a rabbit when she's angry.."
Almost immediately, Amari blinked in surprise before trying to relax her face in embarrassment as the boy laughed in her stead. "I'm just kidding. Although for the record, you do sometimes do that."
This earned the boy a slap on the arm. "Oh yeah? Well where are your cat ears this time? Maybe you and Eri could show everyone your cute little routine."
At that Shinso's cheeks began to heat up before turning his face away. "That never happened, you didn't see anything that night, okay?"
Laughing at his response, Amari replied. "Aw there's no need to be embarrassed. But don't forget, if you wanna tease me then I can do it right back, Shin Shin.."
The boy couldn't help but grumble at that before noticing something in the mirror next to them, tapping the girl on the shoulder once. "Hey, look over there."
Not really understanding, the girl turned towards the mirror before staring back at her reflection with confusion. "Yeah I know I look like crap, but I did just survive a cave in. Cut me some slack…"
Although Shinso only shook his head at her words before carefully reaching his fingers up and touching a couple strains of her long hair. "Shut up, I didn't mean that. Your hair, it's back to how it was before you cut it.."
Widening her eyes, Amari immediately hurried over to the mirror before placing a hand to the surface in disbelief before touching a few strands herself. He was right, her hair had gone back to the way it was before Endeavor had agreed to train her, the strands now reaching her lower back.
It was the smallest thing, but the girl couldn't help but feel a little emotional about it, remembering the reasons and feelings behind why she had done the action in the first place.
Shinso rubbed his arm which had become sore with her hit and sighed. "I still don't understand, why does cutting your hair have to do about being a hero?"
Thinking back for a minute, Amari smiled, now touching the strands. "A long time ago, a little girl wished to be a hero for the wrong reasons, refusing to love herself because the world didn't give her what she thought she wanted. That girl was a fake."
Then she looked down for a moment before continuing. " Right now, I still don't fully love myself but in the time it takes for my hair to grow back, I want to finally be proud of calling myself strong. This time not for power or strength, but because I want to show others that anyone can be a hero, even me."
Recalling the past conversation, a small smile made its way to her lips. Back then she felt useless without her pills, weighted down by the lies that those villains and All For One had forced on her.
That Amari from the past hated herself and thought so low about her power, her strength wasn't enough to become a hero. She forced herself to be better, to mold herself into something different even if she disregarded her own wellbeing.
But looking at herself in the reflection, she now saw a girl that could take on anything, a girl that could stand on her own and call herself strong.
That's right, she was strong.
Bringing her hand away from her face, the girl then turned to Shinso before he saw her eyes light up with unsaid happiness and understanding. "Yeah, you're right. I didn't even notice it until now."
The boy took in her words before thinking about the meaning all at once. To anyone else it would've seemed strange for the girl to get all emotional over something as simple as hair.
But he was probably the only one that truly understood how much this meant to her. It was like their little secret, and Shinso was silently proud to be the one only that fully knew just how happy she was.
Reaching a hand up, the boy then placed a strong hand on top of her head before smiling softly in response. "I'm proud of you Amari. You really did it., you became the hero you wanted to be."
Amari felt tears rise into her eyes but quickly swept them away with her hand before nodding back proudly. "Yeah, I guess I did. Thank you Toshi. I couldn't have done it without you."
Although the boy had other feelings, fully knowing that he didn't really do much. It was all her, everything was all her. Yes he may have offered some words of encouragement but it was Amari that made this possible. She always made everything possible.
Shinso then pushed his hand forward as Amari fell into his embrace, the boy resting his head on top of hers with a small smile. "Anytime short stuff."
Just then the boy felt a large tug on his pants only to find Eri pouting her lips in his direction. "Shin Shin! They have a big plate of candy apples and I want oneee! Can I have one, pleaseee?"
Looking down, the boy sighed before detaching himself from Amari and leaning down. "Alright Alright, I'll get you one. Give me one second."
She then nodded her head happily as Amari finally looked at the girl for the first time since her exam. Back then she only heard her little voice but on further inspection the girl couldn't help but gasp. "Your costume.."
Grinning widely, the little girl then did a little twirl before lifting her hands up in order to mimic Amari's explosions. "I wanted to be just like you Sissy! Shin Shin made this for me, do you like it?"
Amari stared down at the costume before gasping internally. In fact, Eri was wearing an exact small replica of her hero costume, complete with a gold and black jacket with matching pants. This girl, she was so sweet for wanting to be just like her. It almost made her want to cry again.
Laughing to herself, the girl then quickly picked up Eri before twirling her around in a circle happily. "Oh Eri, I love it! Thank you for helping me in my exams by the way. You were my hero back there."
At the word hero, Eri's face lit up immediately. "I was a hero?"
Amari nodded back before placing the small girl back on the feet at once. "Yep! In fact, I'm pretty sure I'm only going to be the first of many people that you save in the future."
At her words, the child gasped with joy before immediately running over to Shinso with a slight skip in her step. "You hear that Shin Shin?! I was a hero to Sissy!"
Pulling down his pant leg aggressively, the boy shook his head in exasperation before gesturing to the desert stand in the corner. "Yeah yeah I heard. How about we get you a candy apple to celebrate?"
Eri seemingly nodded her head in excitement before turning back to Amari and waving happily. "Okay, See you Sissy!"
Amari waved her hand back in response before watching the two leave her sight with a slight bounce in their steps. Those two really looked like siblings now. She was thankful for it.
Laughing to herself, the girl then lifted her up in order to take a sip of her drink only to meet the eyes of Toya's old ring staring back at her. If only he could see just how much things have changed around here. Perhaps then he'd be happier as well.
Bakugo lowered her eyes at the thought before sighing heavily in her drink as she muttered. "See that Toya? People really do change.."
Although just as she said that, a familiar voice entered the conversation, seemingly confused. "Who's Toya?"
Widening her eyes, Amari felt her grip loosen on her cup before quickly grabbing it before it dropped to the floor. Who in the hell, she thought she was alone.. "H-Huh?"
Yet that's when his familiar red wings came into her vision as Hawks turned his head. "You always look so sad when you talk about him. I guess I was just curious."
She hadn't expected Hawks to have heard her whispers, although his feathers did like to pick up on the most annoying things most of the time. She supposed it wouldn't hurt to vent a little. "He's just someone really important to me, that's all."
Humming in response, the hero leaned against the nearby railing before continuing. "That ring has something to do with it, right?"
Almost spitting out her drink, the girl stuttered back. "W-What are you talking about?"
Yet the hero only looked up in reply. "Don't give me that chickadee, I'm a pretty observant guy. I've noticed you staring at it during training during the last four months."
Absentmindedly, the girl glanced towards the ring before sighing heavily. "It's a promise that I gave myself. I'm holding onto it until he comes back."
Her words were incredibly vague, causing Hawks to turn his head. "Comes back, where did he go?"
Although Hawks could only watch as the girl quickly saddened her eyes. "It doesn't matter. It's just a stupid wish in the first place, even he says it's pointless. But still, I can't convince myself to give it up."
Sighing heavily, Amari then curled her fingers into a ball before dropping her hand. She knew she couldn't tell Hawks everything but it felt nice to not have to hide for once. To finally show someone a little bit of her fears. "But I guess that's the kid in me talking, right?"
She seemed very closed off about the topic, causing Hawks to immediately retract. He didn't want to make her uncomfortable with his prying like before so he knew it was best to leave it be for now. She'd talk when she was ready.
Although, he couldn't help but feel terrible about making her sad, now settling for a new topic. "You know chickadee, I've never been great with the whole domestic thing. You know, a wife and kids, the whole nine yards. It was never meant for me, you know?"
Lowering his eyes just slightly, the man continued. "I wasn't born into the best environment. My mom left when I was really little and my dad cared more about the bottle than his own son. That's how the commission found me, just a small kid that was broken and lonely. I never really had a family, so I just told myself that I wasn't deserving of one."
Amari listened carefully as the bird poured out his life story to her, one that was always so hidden before now. "And when I took you on as a trainee, I was really scared kid, scared that I would mess it all up, that I would somehow force you to break, just like how I was. I didn't trust myself not to ruin you."
Feeling his own wings twitch in anxiety, the bird's voice then turned warm. "But to my surprise you didn't run away from me. Even if I wasn't the best role model or trainer, you still stuck with me, through everything. It sounds so crazy that I almost don't believe it."
The girl couldn't help but choke down a hard ball of emotion at his words, knowing just how much he had probably longed for someone to stand beside him. It was the same for her. All he wanted was someone that didn't run away.
And that's when the man brought his lips into a small smile of his own. "You know, I never wanted kids, but I think if they turned out to be like you, then it wouldn't be so bad."
Widening her eyes, Amari's head whipped towards the bird before Keigo chuckled under his breath. Yeah, that's right. Perhaps he was wrong about this all along.
All those times the commission told him that he was worthless, that he was nothing, perhaps those were all lies as well.
That maybe, just maybe he was also capable of being loved.
Noticing the thick tension around the room, the hero then decided to laugh in order to break the atmosphere. "Ah well, first it looks like I gotta find a new job since I might've just gotten fired from the commission."
Bakugo blinked in surprise at that before recalling what he did for her during the exam. Of course the president wouldn't have allowed him to do something like that. She was probably really pissed about it actually.
Smiling to herself, the girl then pushed Hawks' arm playfully before replying. "You know, Katsuki and I could use some help getting our agency off the ground. It would be great to have someone with experience on the team."
She wiggled her eyebrows only for the man to pick up on what she was saying. "You want me to sponsor you?"
Amari couldn't help but turn her lips into a sly smirk and his words before lifting her hand out. "I'll pay you in chicken nuggets.."
And to that Hawks was sold, immediately shouting back happily. "You got yourself a deal chickadee!"
The two then looked to each other and laughed before Amari felt a tap on her shoulder, causing the girl to turn around. "If I may cut in.."
Blinking once, Amari then met the eyes of a very curious Todoroki, staring back at her with question. Of course Hawks was the first one to speak though. "Oh yeah, no problemo Todoroki! You go sweep your girl off her feet. You know, she couldn't stop giggling the last time you two spoke. Isn't that cute?"
At that, Bakugo immediately turned red before slapping the hero in the stomach roughly, already moving away from him in case he wanted to bring up anymore stories. "Hawks I swear one day I'm going to pluck out your feathers.."
Grabbing onto Todoroki's hand, Amari then saw that her threat only made him chuckle even more. "Aww come on, don't be like that. I'm your wingman, remember? Get it, wing man.."
He flapped his wings at the joke only for Bakugo to quickly groan, placing a hand to her face in exasperation. This bird was impossible. "That's the worst thing I've ever heard."
She then turned Todoroki as he began to lead her away. Although before she fully left, Amari seemed to remember the ominous letter from All for One and paused.
Perhaps it was a force of habit but her eyes then saddened before turning back to the hero silently. "Hey Hawks. No matter what happens in the future, please make sure Katsuki's okay. I know it's a lot to ask but help him achieve his goals for me."
Hawks raised his eyes at her words, noticing the serious nature of them immediately and not understanding them. "What are you talking about chickadee? I already said I was gonna help ya out, you and your brother both."
At the sound of her mention, Amari only smiled sadly before nodding her head once. Todoroki couldn't help but turn away as well, knowing why she had asked that of the hero. It meant she was trying to set up a world without her.
The very idea broke his heart in tiny little pieces, knowing that she truly didn't believe that she'd survive long enough to see their agency dream come true. He hated that she did this, setting seeds so that others would be okay after she was gone. Although, that only made him want to protect him more.
Not wanting to think about this anymore, Todoroki then tugged on Amari's hand to pull her away from the conversation of her own death. He didn't want her to think this right now. This was a time to celebrate. "Amari, there's something I'd like to do.."
Raising an eye, the music suddenly turned slower as the boy led her to the center of the dance floor, his arm raised in question. "May I have this dance?"
The girl's eyes immediately softened as Todoroki placed his hands on her waist before hoisting her up onto his shoes, just like they did when Natsuo kidnapped her a couple months ago.
Grabbing her hand, the two then began to sway to the music, ignoring the slight cheering and whoo-ing from her classmates and Hawks in the corners of the room. No, the only thing they could focus on was each other.
Amari smiled softly as Todoroki gazed at her hand in question before pointing something out. "You still wear this, I'm surprised."
Looking down, she found him staring at her gold bracelet, the one that he had given her on her birthday after she kissed him in a drunken breakdown. "Why wouldn't I? You're the one that gave me it after all.."
The boy then began to turn her wrist around before running a finger across the gold coating. "It's just, you wear it everyday. Why is that? I imagined it wouldn't be a pleasant memory for you."
Recalling her drunk cries, Bakugo shook her head. "I don't know, I guess it feels like you're always with me. I guess that's kinda silly though, right?"
Todoroki only pushed his lips together in thought at that. "I wouldn't say that. Although if I knew how much you valued it then I would've gotten you more. I must be honest, it was only a passing thought when I saw it in the window."
Although the girl could only laugh to herself as he stewed about his gift of choice and whether it was "good enough". "Silly boy, it's not about the gift itself. Honestly you could've gotten me a piece of string and I would've loved it."
It was obvious he still didn't understand her words, the boy frowning in response as Amari smiled warmly. "You may think I'm crazy for wearing something that symbolizes that night but it meant so much to me. That was the first time anyone had stayed by my side. You didn't run away, that was the day you saved me Shoto."
Todoroki thought back to that night, the one where Amari had cried in his arms and fully poured her heart out to him. That was probably the first time she had ever done something like that, even back then he knew how much it meant to her.
He also remembered the utter gut wrenching feeling as he quietly stole his fathers credit card in order to pay for that surprise dinner the next day. He didn't know why but the boy wanted to see her smile, he wanted her to know that he cared.
Beginning to understand her thought process, the boy nodded back. "I suppose I just wanted to see you do something other than cry. You deserved more back then."
Amari listened to his words before humming back in response and placing a light hand to his cheek with a smile. "And now I have it. You're more than everything I could've hoped for Shoto. I guess you could say that you're my hero."
The boy couldn't help but roll his eyes at that, groaning at her cheesy line. "Amari.."
Placing her hands up in defense, Amari gushed. "Whaaat? It's true! I don't care if it's cheesy. You know, you should just take the compliment."
To that, Todoroki sighed in exasperation before lifting up and placing his own hand on top of the one holding her cheek. "Alright, thank you."
Smirking at her victory, Bakugo's eyes then saddened just slightly, thinking about All for One and that future that awaited her.. "It's funny, but standing here with you, it just feels perfect. Don't you think so?"
This caused Todoroki to close his eyes before nodding back silently. "Yes, I think so as well. I hope we can have more of these moments in the future. I would like that."
His last words were said a bit softer, causing Amari to blush in silence before replying. "What you said about our future, I really want that Shoto. I want everything with you. Is that alright? Is it alright to want to be selfish for just a little longer?"
The amount of sadness in her last sentence was immeasurable, the boy recalling her possible demise. She wanted to live so badly, he could feel it. So much so, that he wanted to give it to her, he wanted to give everything to her.
Using his fingers to pry her hand off of his cheek, Todoroki then lifted the surface up before kissing the back of her hand in a silent promise. "It's perfectly alright, because I want it also…"
This caused the girl's face to turn a whole new shade of red as the crowds began to cheer and heckle in their direction, causing Amari to pull away with embarrassment. She had forgotten there was anyone else here. "Uhh I..umm…good, glad we're on the same page…"
Covering her face with her hands, the music ended as Amari tried to ignore the fact that all of her friends were probably staring at her right now. She needed to calm down as the girl hadn't expected Todoroki to pull something like that so out in the open.
Just then Hawks called above the crowds, the girl silently thanking him as she did so. "Does anyone want to go pick up the cake from the bakery? They just called and said it was ready."
The crowds began to mutter to themselves before Todoroki of all people stepped forward with his hand raised. "I'll go. I was planning to visit my father after the party anyways."
Widening her eyes, Amari heard Endeavor's name before quickly forcing the boy to turn towards her in question. "Whoa whoa whoa you were going to visit Endeavor, willingly?! Do you have a fever or something, do I have to call a hospital?"
Although Todoroki only looked down before unhooking his arms from her. "I was just going to ask him if he wanted to stay for dinner this weekend."
That didn't bring down the girl's disbelief in the slightest though, twisting her brow in confusion. "Why would you want to do that?"
Thinking to himself, he then looked at his hands before replying. "I don't know myself. I suppose I'm just curious. Besides, Fuyumi would like it."
Amari couldn't believe what she was actually hearing. It almost sounded like he was actually giving Endeavor a real chance. Not just out of training, but as an actual dad.
It was overwhelming to say the least, Amari finding herself glancing at Toya's old ring before smiling back. "I think that's a great idea."
Todoroki felt her warmth as well, knowing how much this meant to the girl before quickly throwing on his jacket. Truth be told, he still didn't know why he was giving his dad this chance but there was something about his exams that didn't sit right with him.
And because of that the boy wanted to learn more about his father, about his reasons and what compelled him to do such awful distasteful things. He could never erase the past that much was clear, but maybe Amari was right.
Maybe there was something else there that he couldn't see.
Moving towards the bakery, Todoroki pulled his jacket up to his neck before taking in the chilly night air and the quiet streets. It wasn't super late but he could still see the street lamps flicker in the distance.
Just then, his phone began to ring in his back pocket as the boy quickly dug it out and looked and display name with confusion. It was Amari. Huh, did she want to tell him something, why was she calling him right after she just saw him?
Although knowing her scatterbrained mannerisms, Todoroki wasn't overly surprised with the call. She probably just wanted to tell him to pick something else up while he was out. Typical Amari behavior.
Picking up his phone, the boy answered the call shortly. "Amari, what is it?"
Yet what he received next was the sound of heavy running and quick breaths, almost like she was afraid of something, like she was trying to get away from someone that was closely approaching. "S-Shoto…!"
This caused his mind to immediately panic, pushing the phone closer to his ear as a sharp breath of terror rang through his chest. "Amari? What's going on, are you running..?"
He was met with more breathless gasps before the girl cried out rushed and rather muffled. "A-All for One, he found me! I don't know what to do, I don't...please Shoto….help me…"
At the sound of that villain's terrible name, Todoroki's heart dropped in his chest before immediately running back towards Hawks' agency, wanting nothing but to save her from that terrible man. "Hey, it's okay...it's okay...I'm coming to you...where are you..."
A loud gasp suddenly echoed through the phone as Bakugo whimpered out a choked sob. "S-Shoto, I'm scared, so scared. I can't run...he's going to find me…"
It was obvious that she was panicking, causing the boy's mind to run at a million miles a minute. She probably couldn't even think straight. That's usually how her panic attacks went. "He's not going to find you, I won't let him. Tell me where you are Amari, I'll come right to you. Go ahead and text it if you can't say it right now, just take a deep breath, you're going to be okay.."
Amari then whimpered before he heard her typing a short message and shortly after received a notification about her location. It was all she could do but Todoroki was glad for it, now racing off to his love as fast as possible.
He didn't even know how this was happening but Todoroki knew he had to calm the girl down, now rushing attempting to sooth her as he ran. "I'm almost there…"
Quickly following the instructions, the boy was soon led to an inner street alley way, listening until he heard her broken cries echo through the walls with devastation.
On closer inspection, she looked to be turned around, balling herself into a small ball as she rocked back and forth. This was bad, he had only seen her distraught once before. Something must have really scared her. "Amari?"
At his voice, the girl then seemingly jumped to life before wrapping her arms around Todoroki's neck in a suffocating embrace. "Y-You came! Shoto, you came..!"
Nodding back, Todoroki accepted the hug before rubbing calm circles on her back in order to get her to tell him what happened. "Yes, of course I did. What happened, what are you doing all the way out here?"
Although, almost immediately, Amari's shakes stopped before her voice grew less scared before turning overly curious. "Oh Todoroki, you are so easy to read. You would do anything for me, wouldn't you?"
Twisting his brow in confusion at her strange tone and use of his last name, Todoroki opened his mouth to speak before pulling away from her. "What do you.."
Although his words were quickly cut off as Amari smirked before pulling a syringe out her pocket and jamming the needle right in the middle of Todoroki's neck with a sick laugh. "How sweet. Now let's see if she does the same thing for you."
The boy couldn't help but gasp in shock as the sharp pain overtook his body before Todoroki collapsed on the ground with a heavy lifeless thud.
Giggling at the display, Amari then stood up before her features and face melted away into a grey mush before humming and taking out a knife. "Pity, and you were so cute too. Ah well, I already know you'll be fun to play with."
After stepping out from the goo, Toga then swirled the knife in her hands before looking down at the boy's unconscious form with a smile. Part one, completed.
After chatting and dancing with a couple of her classmates, Amari happily took a sip of her drink before one Hawks' sidekicks moved up to her quietly. "Bakugo, there's a phone call for you. They said they already tried your cell phone."
Twisting her brow in confusion, the girl then put her drink down before thinking about her lost cell phone. She felt kind of bad about not answering as it wasn't really the strangers fault. At least they knew to call the agency though.
Amari then nodded her head before following the woman out of the room to one of the sidekicks phones as she hummed. "They are on line one. Just hang it up when you're done."
She quickly thanked the woman before staring at the phone for a moment in confusion. She wondered who could be calling her. Of course it could've been any number of people given that she had lost her phone. It was probably just someone wanting to congratulate her.
Although when she picked up the receiver, she wasn't prepared for the voice of the other end, or the intent it had. "Hello Little One…"
All for One's voice immediately made the girl want to shrink inside herself as Amari audibly gasped in response. It didn't matter if she had made his power her own, the girl was still utterly terrified of the man. "H-How…"
Hearing his distress seemed to bring him great joy though, the man continuing proudly. "I know, we haven't gotten the chance to speak to each other for quite awhile. Are you having fun? Did playing pretend hero bring you joy?"
Already feeling her teeth click against each other, Amari's eyes hollowed before forcing herself to speak in a weak voice. "J-Just leave alone.."
Yet that only earned a chuckle from the man. "Yes, I have been leaving you alone, and my how you have surprised me. Your little rebellious phase was certainly amusing. But all things must come to an end. It's time to come back to me."
His voice was like honey to her ears and she absolutely hated it. She hated that some part of her wanted to listen to his orders, that his influence was still trying to overtake her even at this second. "N-No, I'm not going back. I refuse, you can't control me anymore. I'm stronger…"
And once again, All For One only found humor in her words. "Is that what you've been telling yourself? Oh Little One, we both know that's not true. You've always been weak, ever since I found you as a child. You would be nowhere without my guidance. Do you honestly believe that your brother would care for such a quirkless girl? I gave you the one thing you need for your brother to love you..."
Yet Amari wasn't having it, only slamming her fists on the desk as All for One took pride in watching her fall apart in seconds. "S-Shut up! You were wrong about everything. My brother loves me despite my quirk! My accomplishments have nothing to do with you and I'm sick of your lies. Whatever you tried when I was a kid, it's not going to work anymore!"
The line turned silent in response to her outburst, her breaths turning short before All for One's voice coaxed back. "Ah yes, you have had many accomplishments, haven't you? Like that Todoroki boy for example, you grew quite close to him…"
At the sound of Todoroki's name, the girl immediately tensed before hissing out darkly. "Don't you dare bring him into this.."
Although the villain was quick to respond. "I didn't, but you certainly brought him into this, didn't you? Even though you are a monster, even though you knew it was wrong to get close, you still did, didn't you?"
Balling her hands into fists, she remained silent as his words began to suffocate her. The fact that she had thought of these things before only made his insults worse, now forcing them down her throat as she tried not to gag.
He was right, she did think it was wrong to love him sometimes, but that didn't stop her from pushing on.
Knowing he had her, the man then continued cruelly. "I enjoyed watching it, I really did. You two grow closer, feeling safe with one another, foolishly letting your guard down. You know, you could have let him go, you could've saved him from so much hurt and suffering, but you just had to be selfish didn't you, little one? I almost feel bad for the boy."
One after another, each of his words dug itself into Amari's heart before she had enough, narrowing her eyes into a hard glare. "Listen, I don't care what you say about me but leave Shoto out of this! He doesn't deserve to be slandered by your bullshit."
Although her anger only seemed to fuel him more. "And you just proved my point. Because you see Little One, by staying close to that boy, you created a new weakness for yourself."
Widening her eyes, Amari felt her blood run cold before gripping the phone so hard that it turned white. She already knew, she knew something was wrong from the way he was speaking, but she didn't want to believe it. "W-What did you do?"
The line became silent once again before Amari felt her Nomu blood rise to surface as she growled loudly a moment later. "What the fuck did you do?! Answer me…"
All For One's laugh filled the line a moment later before he spoke plain. "I think the question you should be asking yourself is what did you do? None of this would have happened if you had let that boy go and obeyed my request the first time. Yet it seems you lead that boy straight to his own death…"
Feeling a strike of terror in her throat, the worst reality came crashing down on her all at once. He didn't even have to say the words but somewhere in her heart, she knew.
He had him, All for One had Todoroki.
Suddenly every terrible thing entered Amari's head at once with what that could've meant for the boy.
Oh god, he could've been hurt or tortured or injured by now. She knew this man's tactics, how he could break people with the small words, and just the idea of Todoroki having to go through that, it made Amari terrified.
No, please no. He didn't deserve this, she shouldn't have ever gotten involved with him, she shouldn't have been selfish. Every kind word, every false hope. This was all her fault...
Squeezing her eyes shut, Amari willed the sound of her own panic away before placing a shaking hand to her mouth. She knew she sounded pathetic right now, just like the weak little girl that he wanted but she couldn't stop it. "P-Please, don't…"
All for One seemed satisfied with her pleading, humming in response before answering smoothly, causing Amari to stop breathing completely. "Alright Little One, because I'm so kind I'm going to give you a choice. Either come back to me and I set the boy free, or you continue to disobey and I make your new love into my next masterpiece…"
And that was the moment Amari knew she had already sealed her own fate, whether she liked it or not.
Yep, I went there.
Next Chapter: Amari is out for blood.
