Chapter 1

Dabi looked up at the treetops where rays of sunlight pierced through the leaves. He squinted, not being accustomed to the brightness.

He had been sitting on the grassy floor, in the forest surrounding the prestigious hero school just outside the gates, for hours. He hadn't told anyone he'd be there. Who was there to tell other than the League, his closest allies? Even they were not told of his personal life, his life outside of villainy.

Closing his eyes, he returned to his thoughts, going through in his mind what he was planning to do when night fell…

After notifying Mr. Aizawa that he'd be leaving campus for the next few hours to visit his mother in the hospital, Todoroki grabbed his small bag and put it over his shoulder. He waved goodbye to his peers and headed out the door.

After exiting the gate, Todoroki began descending the hill UA was built upon while mindlessly looking around, observing the scenery. His eyes fell on the pair of another, the same hue as one of his own, staring at him from the trees.

His eyes were locked onto Shoto. The villain had seen the spilt-coloured haired boy before on the TV during the school's Sports Festival and the League's attack at their training camp, but Dabi felt a sudden tension upon seeing Shoto this time, knowing he was going to confront him.

The two had stared in silence for an uncomfortable amount of time, each passing second becoming more awkward. Shoto had recognised the villain in the first few seconds of staring, seeing the distinguishable scars that looked stitched underneath Dabi's face and eyes.

A ball of blue fire was shot at Shoto, who swiftly dodged, only to find the villian darting off into the trees. Wanting their meeting to be more private and knowing the hero would chase him, Dabi stopped after a few meters of running, watching Shoto catch up to him.

Shoto knew that chasing a villain into a secluded area of the forest wasn't the wisest, his mind had long been elsewhere, an encounter with a villain was not something he was ready for at that moment, having survived a laborious week at school and only planning to slowly walk down that hill.

Seeing Dabi standing in a small clearing, Shoto had caught up, a confused and tired look on his face.

"I don't wanna fight you." Dabi said in a monotone, yet stern voice.

"Sure didn't look like that." Shoto replied in a similar manner.

Ignoring his remark, Dabi continued,

"I wanted to-" he stopped, realising what he was about to do.

He suddenly began to sweat. He looked tense and weak. Shoto loosened his stance, watching the villain closely.

"Shoto-" he managed to utter, Shoto leaned in slightly, intrigued,

"It's me," Dabi looked up at the familiar face, "Toya."

His blood ran cold, he was so shocked at the claim this villain had made that he'd stumbled backward a little. He struggled to speak,

"W-what? How- how can I... bel- believe you?"

Dabi regained his composure, he looked at Shoto with a slight tenderness. He began to recite a distant memory,

"Enji was never kind to you,"

Dabi refused to refer to the bitter old man as his father.

"He only saw you as his masterpiece, training you hard everyday, to the point of almost breaking you. But he never did break you, because he knew you'd end up like me."

Shoto examined the man who had claimed he was his brother, his dead brother, covered in scars that seemed present all over his body. Shoto remembered Toya with red hair, which was now black, probably dyed to conceal his identity. His eyes were the same however, a bright cyan, however it looked as if they'd lost some life, vibrant yet dull.

"You came running into my room one afternoon, a few days after you'd gotten your scar. It was one of the first times we'd interacted with each other since Enji kept you away from us."

Dabi seemed fond of this memory,

"Despite not knowing me well, you crawled into my arms, wanting... Affection."

"You cried in my arms for a while and eventually fell asleep. Enji was furious when he found you, and he led his masterpiece away from his first failure."

A slight smile crawled upon Dabi's face, the thought of himself triggering any negative emotion in the old man was satisfying to him.

Shoto's breathing quickened and his eyes welled up with tears that streamed down his face. He has been hit with a wave of emotion, remembering the painful memory confirming Dabi's - Toya's claim.

The smile on Dabi's face had turned to concern. He's just told his brother heavy information, the very reason he hadn't approached him long ago.

For Shoto it was a lot to process. He'd just found out his brother, the red-haired boy from his foggy memories of when he was younger, the red-haired boy who'd apparently died many years ago from an unknown accident, was alive. Scarred mentally and physically, but alive. Alive as a villain, a dangerous villain, a villain he'd encountered before, a villain who barely resembled that young red-haired boy, who was often bruised and battered like himself.

Shoto was looking down at his trembling hands while thoughts raced around in his head. He looked up at Toya, who was trying to give off the friendliest smile he could muster. Although the brothers had been on opposing sides for the past few years, Toya obviously felt sympathy for this hero, knowing what he'd been through.

His body began to move on its own, seemingly gravitating towards Toya, his distant brother. Shoto felt himself wrapping his arms around the villain, yearning for affection, for comfort, alike to how he felt on that one afternoon after escaping from his father's harsh training.

As soon as Toya felt Shoto's arms around him, he stiffened up, unfamiliar with the warm embrace he was feeling, the first show of affection in a long time. He hesitantly hugged his brother in return. If he were able to cry he would've. He wasn't one to show much emotion, desensitised to violence due to the many crimes he committed. However anything of his 'past life' seemed to stab him in the chest and brought the most emotion out of him. Reuniting with his brother being no exception.