Hello crazy, beautiful world! Sorry if you were expecting this update yesterday! I actually had this written up by Friday, but my beta reader was busy, so Monday update it is!

So here we are, at the end of the Sports Festival arc, well sort of. The next chapter is going to be a minisode set in it still, but after that we will be getting into the internship arc which I CANNOT wait for!

Also, did you hear?! A new Borderlands spinoff game is in the works! Tiny Tina's Wonderlands! Hopefully it turns out great!

Reviews: Engineer4Ever: Maybe she did, maybe she didn't, you will have to wait and see, mwahahahaha!

Oh yeah, one last thing. This chapter contains an alluding to suicide/suicidal thoughts. I'll leave a little warning at the beginning of the scene, hopefully that'll work for you all. If you've played BL2, you probably saw this coming. You've been warned.

Borderlands is owned by Gearbox and 2KGames and My Hero Academia is owned by Kohei Horikoshi and Funimation. Please support the official release.

Please rate and review!

Now, lets get this festival wrapped up!

"This means someone is talking."

'This means someone is thinking to themselves.'

This means it's a flashback.

*This means it's a sound effect!*

{This means I'm speaking in a different language!}

Angel in a Gilded Cage

It was the scent of antiseptic that woke her up. She wrinkled her nose at the artificial, burning smell and one by one her other senses started back up.

Immediately, Angel's body was bombarded with aches and pains, with an especially large one on her right arm.

"Ugh…" She groaned, lifting a hand up to her head, where it pulsed with a steady rhythm, as if a ghost was punishing her for fighting too recklessly, bopping her on the head while going "Bad! Bad! Bad!".

She slowly cracked open her eyes and immediately squinted from the light, the world a mirage of bright colored blurs.

"Morning sleepyhead." A familiar voice called.

"M-Moxxi..?" She mumbled and turned her head to see a blob on her right.

"Hey, hey. Not too fast. Pace yourself Sugar." Her guardian gently chided, softly putting a hand on her shoulder while the world continued to sharpen around her until it came into focus.

She was laying on a padded hospital bed in a small windowless room. A large curtain had been pulled back, revealing a mirror and a desk with various medical supplies on top. Sitting next to her on a stool was Moxxi, bereft of her sun hat and glasses and wearing a warm smile on her face.

"W-Where am I?" Angel asked, hissing as she propped herself up.

"The nurse's office. You collapsed from overusing your quirk again." Moxxi answered.

"I...I did?" She blinked and suddenly everything flooded back. Her fight with Todoroki, getting trapped in the ice, breaking free and losing all feeling in her body. Besides pain that is.

"Then that means…" Her face fell and she felt like she was encased in ice again. "I… I lost…" Her voice cracked.

"Yeah, you lost. So what?" Moxxi answered simply.

Angel looked up, bewildered. "So what?! Wasn't the point of this whole thing for me to win?! Everyone put their hopes on me… You, Roland, Lilith, Brick and Mordecai?! Midoriya, Iida and Uraraka?! I let you all down and-!"

Moxxi then proceeded to poke her on the nose, making her sputter. "You really need to not be so hard on yourself. Sugar, winning the entire Festival is an unrealistic expectation. Not to say that it'd be impossible for you to do so. Rather, what Roland and company, myself and even your friends I'd wager, wanted was for you to do your best. Isn't that what you said earlier? To aim for the top?"

"Y-Yeah…"

"And did you?"

Angel paused for a moment, then nodded.

"Then you can walk away from today with no regrets. You fought with everything you had and you got third place. Third place Angel!" Moxxi smiled. "Out of more than one hundred students, you were at the peak!"

Angel blinked and looked down. Moxxi was right. If she had told herself a month ago that she'd be in the top three of the Yūei Sports Festival, she would have called herself a liar.

"Still… I was so close to being first." She mumbled in disappointment.

"Look at it this way Sugar: out of all the people you lost to, it was one the most promising hero candidates this year and even then, you gave him a real run for his money."

That tidbit did lighten her up a little. "I guess." She shrugged.

"Besides, you know what they say Angel, there's nothing better than getting to third!" Moxxi said.

Angel stared blankly.

"Base?" Moxxi hinted. "It's a sex thing."

"Eww! Stop it!" Angel whined, grabbing her pillow and pitching it right into Moxxi's face, making the woman stagger back in a fit of muffled laughter! But despite her disgust and embarrassment, Angel couldn't stop the smile growing on her face. She was still worried and confused with other problems, but she was relieved that she had accomplished the main thing she had set out to do. Moxxi just had to remind her of that fact, in her own raunchy way.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything." Both women turned as the door creaked open and Recovery Girl shuffled in holding a clipboard. "Long time, no see Hodunk-san. I see you are still beating boys away with a broom."

"Just the way I like it!" Moxxi winked. "Good to see you still stitching these kids back together. Love what you did with your hair."

Recovery Girl chuckled. "You're forty years too late to try that on me. I'm just glad that you didn't rub off on your young charge here. Speaking of…" She turned to Angel. "How are you feeling dear?"

"Sore all over, but I've felt worse." She groaned, rolling her shoulders.

"You don't know the half of it. A bruise and some ice burns I can heal easily, but quirk induced nervous system fatigue can be very serious if not treated right, especially with this being your third time in recent memory." She scribbled something down on her clipboard. "I'm prescribing you sugar tablets and two day's bed rest. Thankfully you will be getting a couple days off after the Festival is over. Still, at least you saved the damage for that lad Todoroki." She muttered, making Angel freeze up.

"R-Really?! I didn't hurt him that badly did I?!"

"Try a bruised larynx and three cracked ribs but don't worry too much dear. I patched him up as best I could and besides, he's probably going to take more punishment from that Bakugo hooligan." She assured her.

Angel let out a sigh of relief. She had been too caught up fighting that she may have done more harm then she had meant to. Thank goodness for all the time she had spent practicing her control on balsa wood targets, otherwise she may have gravely injured her classmate.

"Well, you're awake now. I'd recommend getting a bit more rest before you get called up to receive your medal." Recovery Girl mentioned, making her perk up. "But first, there's someone who wants to see you." She said, stepping over to the door and pulling it open so three individuals could pile in!

"Angel-chan!" They yelled simultaneously as they ran to the side of her bed.

"Guys!" She beamed at their sudden entrance.

"Are you okay?! You blacked out again!"

"That fight was incredible! Did you plan those maneuvers from the beginning?!"

"I thought you could only project energy from your hands or back! What was that weird glow at the end?!" They all said at once, overwhelming her with questions!

"Woah, jeez! Calm down guys! I'm fine! I'm fine!" She waved her arms about.

They all seemed to relax, noticing her battered, yet mended state.

"Whew… that's good to hear." Uraraka sighed.

"Yeah." Midoriya nodded. "We were pretty worried when you fainted, we thought you hurt yourself."

*Whack!*

"OUCH!" He yelped as Recovery Girl smacked him on the head with her walking stick!

"That is very rich coming from you, you reckless fool!" The elder scolded as she walked out the door and closed it behind her.

"Did she really have to hit me?" He whimpered, rubbing the bump on his skull.

"She does have a point, what with how wrapped up your are." Moxxi admitted drawing her friend's attention.

"Y-Yeah, I guess she does-oh wait, sorry, I don't think we've… we've… wha… wha…" The verdet's jaw dropped as he finally noticed the extremely beautiful and voluptuous woman sitting next to the bed.

Moxxi, who had donned her sunglasses and hat again, giggled at his reaction.

"Better close that before something flies in, Hon." She said, reaching over and closing Midoriya's mouth with a click, the contact making his face flush.

Off to the side, Angel spied an odd look in Uraraka's eye.

"I think I'll leave you four alone." Moxxi announced, her tone rife with amusement as she stood up from her seat and sashayed towards the exit.

"See you after the Festival Sugar. Remember! I'm proud of you!" She called over her shoulder and left.

"Angel-chan…" Iida mumbled in awe. "Who… was that stunning woman? Was that your mother?"

"Hah…no..." She groaned, completely abashed with a hand on her head. "That was my guardian, not my mom. I'm living in her apartment while I go to school as a favour from one of our mutual friends." She explained.

"She kind of reminds me of Midnight-sensei." Uraraka noted as she shook Midoriya back to his senses.

"So… I guess we're all out of the tournament, huh?" Angel gave her friends a sad smile. "Sorry I didn't win it for you guys."

"You don't have to apologize, Angel-chan. You did amazing!" Midoriya promised her.

"Yeah, you did better than the rest of us, getting to the semi-finals like that and you almost beat Todoroki there at the end! You blew everyone's minds with those crazy moves you had, shooting around then dive bombing him like WHOOSH! BAM!" Uraraka agreed, dancing back and forth with her arms out before lashing at the air with a kick, making her friends laugh.

"Thanks you guys, seriously." Angel said. "It takes a load off my mind knowing you aren't mad at me for losing."

"I wouldn't worry about it too much. Todoroki got in by recommendation for a reason. I would be more proud of how close you got to defeating him." Iida offered in consolation.

"I am a little confused however." He continued, holding his chin in thought. "You mentioned you had a trick up your sleeve, but was it the new flight techniques you employed or that shockwave and enveloping glow at the end?"

"Oh… that. I was referring to the flying. I had been practicing on improving my mobility and midair strikes for the past week. As for the other thing… I don't actually know." She answered quietly, lifting her marked hand as she remembered the sensation of her power that was normally confined within her body or expelled from her fingers and back coursing all over her, pulsing and shifting as if it was alive. She had never seen Lilith's power used in a similar way so she had assumed it wasn't possible. "I didn't even know I could do that."

"Guess that teaches us that there's always something new our quirks can show us." Midoriya nodded sagely, his tone a little off.

*Knock! Knock!*

Then all four teens jumped as there was a rapping at the door! They all looked at each other in confusion. Recovery Girl would have just let herself in if it was her.

"Angel-chan, were you expecting anyone else?" Uraraka asked.

"No. Maybe it's someone else from our class?"

"Should we let them in?"

"I guess?" She sat up a little. "Hello? You can come in?" She called.

A second later the door slowly pushed open and a purple haired boy stepped in.

"Shinso?!" Angel and Midoriya blurted out at the same time.

"The mind control guy?" Uraraka questioned.

"Yeah, hey Hodunk-san." He greeted in a low tone followed by a halfhearted wave.

"Wait, Angel-chan, you know this fellow?" Iida asked.

She nodded. "Do you guys remember when we got separated in the lockdown? He was the one who saved me from a panic attack, using his quirk to calm me down."

They all turned to look at the newcomer in surprise, who was awkwardly standing at the end of the room, an unreadable expression on his face.

"Yeah… that's uh… that's me. Look, I wanted to talk to you about something, but, um…" He glanced between her friends. "I think I'll wait till you're alone." He said and turned to excuse himself.

Angel frowned. It felt like he was trying to run away from a problem and she had an idea of what it was. She was too curious to let him get away now.

"Whatever you have on your mind, I want to hear right now, Shinso-kun." She called after him, making him freeze in place. "Anything you want to say to me, they can be here too."

He hung his head and let out a deep sigh. "Fine." His hand slipped from the door knob and he turned back to face her, his purple eyes looking at her with sadness and regret.

Then, he bowed his head.

"Hodunk-san... I wanted to apologize." He admitted.

Angel's brows rose. On either side of her, her friends exchanged looks of puzzlement.

"In the hallway that day, I said some… hurtful things." He swallowed dryly. "I thought that because you had a powerful quirk, that that meant you didn't put in the effort that I had, that the only reason that you had gotten into the hero course was because you had gotten lucky. I said that with a quirk like yours, even a quiet, timid girl could get first in the entrance exam."

Her friends gasped in shock and indignation, Uraraka herself looking like she was about to strangle Shinso, judging by how she kept clenching her hands.

"Going through the events, I expected that you would fall behind with how I perceived you. That someone with power but no spirit would lose. But…" He took a shaky breath. "...as I watched you, seeing how hard you were fighting… how you pushed yourself to win... and the desperation in your eyes when it looked like you were going to lose. I learned that I couldn't be further from the truth.

It was only after you collapsed that I finally realized my hypocrisy. I had judged you solely on your abilities while presuming that you didn't have troubles of your own, that you hadn't worked your heart out or made sacrifices to get to this point. In a weird way, I was like every person who had ever looked at me as a villain because of my power. Knowing how that feels..." He trailed off, taking another breath and clenching his fists.

"Knowing how that feels and you wanting to be friends, makes the fact that I spurned you the way I did cut deep. And for that, I want to make things right. You don't have any reason to forgive me, but I just want you to know that I'm sorry."

Shinso's apology hung in the air as the room went silent. He stayed in his bow, as if the idea of meeting Angel's gaze would kill him. Her friends were torn between regarding the prostrating boy with uncertainty or anger and looking to her to watch for her reaction in suspense.

Angel however, only continued to study him with a pensive frown, slowly processing what had just happened and how she would respond.

True, what Shinso had said back in the hallway had hurt her, but what she had concluded that day still applied. With a childhood like his, being judged solely on the kind of quirk he had and how he'd use it despite his noble aspirations, she could only imagine how horrible that would be. It didn't excuse him for what he did, but she understood why he acted the way he had.

What was more important was that he had realized his mistake and had come to make amends. She could tell that he was being completely honest with her, even going so far as to not even ask for forgiveness, leaving himself completely at her mercy.

If she was the vindictive sort, she would tell him off for the pain she had felt back then, then banish him from her life forever.

But that wasn't the type of person she was. With all things considered and the time that had passed, she didn't resent Shinso for what he said, knowing full well that people make mistakes.

Rather, she was glad. This had been one of the goals she had set out to accomplish after all, proving him wrong not in the hopes of throwing her success in his face, but to win his respect.

After the moment had passed, she opened her mouth to speak.

"Okay. I forgive you."

Shinso's head tipped up and he looked at her in disbelief. "What?"

"I forgive you." She repeated.

His brow twisted, regarding worryingly like he was expecting there to be a catch or trick. "But… why? I acted like an angsty jerk."

"Shinso-kun… I never hated you for what you said. Sure it hurt, but I could tell that you were hurting as well." She said, looking down and fidgeting with her fingers.

"For a long while I was forced into a box, a role to play. No one asked me what I wanted, what I aspired to be. I just… walked along the path laid out for me." She recounted somberly, earning looks of uncertainty and sympathy from her friends as they had no idea what she was talking about.

"It took an... intervention from some friends of mine to finally snap me out of it and get the chance I needed to find my own way, to chase after my dream to be a hero." She lifted her head. "What I'm trying to say, Shinso-kun… is that I understand what you went through, to an extent at least and well… I'd rather just be your friend at this point."

His eyes widened and he looked away, visibly unsure of himself.

"Really?" He muttered.

"Mmhmm. My invitation for lunch is still open." She smiled.

He stood there in silence, hesitancy on his face as he scratched his head. Then he snorted.

"If you're sure. I mean, if your friends will have me." He pointed out.

"Oh! Yeah, um, one second! Guys, he can join us for lunch right?" She asked her companions eagerly.

"I-I mean, Shinso seemed like a decent enough guy after we fought, so, um, no argument from me!" Midoriya shrugged.

"If he is cordial, then he is free to join us anytime." Iida nodded.

"Hmpf!" Uraraka pouted. "While I don't like what you said about her, if Angel-chan vouches for you I guess you can't be too bad. But I'll be watching you!"

Their answers filled Angel with joy. "Thank you so much you guys! Shinso, you can join us in the cafeteria in two days!"

"Heh, yeah, I heard." He chuckled.

"Well come here and meet my friends!" She waved him over.

"Sure, why not?" He shrugged and stepped over. "I already know Midoriya though."

"Yeah, we-" The verdet started, only to pause mid sentence, a completely blank expression on his face.

"Deku-kun?" Uraraka questioned, giving him a poke. He blinked and shook his head.

"Hey! You did it again!" He pointed indignantly.

"Can't believe you fell for it again." Shinso gave a teasing smirk.

Angel couldn't help herself but laugh.

After talking some more with her friends in the nurse's office, Angel was given some time to recover further, taking a short nap, sleeping through the rest of the fights. When Recovery Girl knocked on the door to bring her to the award ceremony, she was feeling quite a bit better, her head in particular.

A short walk later, she was led out into the bright stadium. The sky thundered with the sound of colored fireworks. The crowd was cheering wildly from the stands, once again filling Angel with disbelief at the idea that their adulation was for her. On one side of the arena a fence had been set up for the press to take pictures and film the scene. On the other side of the fence were all of the contestants, several familiar and friendly faces among them as they stood before the raised podium.

It appeared that she was the last to arrive, as the champion and the other runner ups were standing on the raised dias. On the lowest platform stood the person she had tied with, Tina Baha. Despite being covered in a thick layer of soot and dust, she looked like she couldn't be happier, waving at the crowd with both arms above her head, a wide, satisfied smile on her face.

On the next platform up was her last opponent, Todoroki. He sported fresh sets of bandages on his arms and throat, the latter of which made Angel flinch from guilt. He seemed to be in deep thought, his head inclined slightly as he stared off into space.

And that left the champion and the last finalist, which of course led to the current moment with Angel standing on the podium below him, mouth agape at what she saw.

"MNNNNRRRRGH!" Bakugo snarled furiously through the thick muzzle over his mouth! He was fastened to a concrete pillar, his arms bound in a set of bracers and his hands shackled in a large set of anti-quirk cuffs that were chained to the platform. He pitched to and fro, looking like a rabid animal as he tried to pull out of his restraints.

"Holy-?! What the heck did I miss?!" She gawked, completely lost. Bakugo had won first, which should have been exactly what he wanted, right? Why did it look like he was about to murder the entire stadium?

"Wow…" Baha sighed breathlessly next to her, looking up at the feral boy all mystified. "Isn't he so adorable all chained up like that? What an absolute dream!"

Angel looked at her nonplussed and a bit disturbed.

'A dream? More like a nightmare, jeeze.' She thought to herself.

"Now, without further delay… we will now award the Yūei Sports Festival freshman year champions!" Midnight announced as she pranced out onto the field. "Time to hand out the medals, but before we do that, let us welcome a very special guest!" She said as she gestured to a shadowy form perched on the top of the stadium roof, standing against the sun! "Put your hands together for the symbol of peace, the number one hero and today, our prize bearer, All-Mi-!"

"I AM HERE! WITH THE MEDALS!" The titular hero crowed as he flipped through the air and slammed down to Earth! There was a bit of an awkward silence as he realized he had interrupted Midnight mid sentence. She just sighed as she let him take the stage.

Angel could only chuckle at her teacher's antics as he approached her and Baha's podium.

"Congratulations, Baha-san!" He said, addressing the other girl first, who curtsied low enough for him to drape the bronze medal around her neck. "You sure made an explosive spectacle today!"

"Thanks for the medal, mighty-man! I didn't get first, but I found my reaaal prize, teehee~!" She giggled with a blush. She twirled one of her bangs as she gazed yearningly up to the boy thrashing about at the top.

"Uh… I see. Well, just keep in mind to try not to get carried away next time! Wouldn't want to fall asleep in the line of duty!" He laughed, giving her an awkward hug and a pat on the back before turning to Angel who straightened herself nervously and tilted her head forward.

"Congratulations Hodunk-san!" He said as she felt the cool fabric of the strap on her shoulders and the sudden pull of the coin's weight. "It's good to see you back on your feet and how! You didn't quite fulfill your pledge, but you came very darn close!"

She looked up and gave him a nod. "T-Thank you All-Might." She stuttered. "I-I thought hard on what you said that day."

"Mmhmm? And what conclusion did you arrive at?"

"I… I found that… if I want to make my dream come true, I was going to have to fight for it and like you told me, I couldn't let any setbacks or… that, stop me. And you were right."

"Oh?"

"My friends did support me, no matter what." She parroted his words back fondly, taking a glance behind him to scan the crowd, spotting Midoriya, Uraraka and the newly reconciled Shinso smiling and applauding for her. She couldn't see Iida from where she was standing though.

All-Might's grin broadened at her words as he reached in for a quick hug. "I'm very happy to hear that. Just keep in mind that the road to heroism is a tough one and you will face many trials along the way. Promise me you will keep strong and push through even when things look bleak."

"I promise." She answered resolutely.

He gave her one last pat on the back and let her be. As he moved around the side to address Todoroki on the end, Angel grasped the medal around her neck, running her thumb over it's polished surface that was emblazoned with the Yūei logo.

She had never understood the notion of winning awards. From her perch behind a computer monitor, she had watched athletes cry their eyes out on the podiums, making an utter mess of themselves all for a fancy coin or a large empty cup. 'What was the point?' She'd ask herself. 'What's so important about some bauble?'

But as she stood there, a bright smile stretched across the face of her reflection in the bronze, she felt like she finally got it. It wasn't about the award. It was the knowledge that everything she had worked for, all the time, effort and pain had not been wasted. That it had all meant something, that she had prevailed when so many others had not, in a real contest, not an empty achievement.

She cradled the medal to her chest, right where a warmth began to rise.

To her, it was a feeling so utterly foreign that it took a moment for her to realize what it was.

Pride and accomplishment. She wiped at the glittering tears falling from her eyes.

"NO!" She jumped at the sudden yell! "I DON'T WANT YOUR SHITTY MEDAL!"

"Now, now Bakugo-san, just let me put it here!"

She glanced up to see All-Might struggling to loop the gold medal around the "winner's" neck, who defiantly growled and snapped at the pro hero, who settled on hanging it from his mouth.

"And that's it!" He turned to the gathered students and the crowd. "I present to you, this year's freshman champions! But all of you, take these words to heart! Each and everyone of you had the potential to stand here today! You gave it your all and brought out the best in yourselves and each other! I couldn't picture a more promising next generation of heroes than the ones before me! Keep pushing yourselves and the future will be ever brighter!"

He valiantly pointed to the sky! "And with that! There is only one thing left to say! Everyone with me now!"

Angel and the rest of the stadium sucked in a breath!

"THANKS FOR COMING!"

"PLUS UL-what?!"

"Boo! All-Might!"

"That was totally a plus ultra moment!" The crowd groaned and jeered!

"O-OH! Really?! I could have sworn…"

"YOU RUINED IT!"

"WHAT A F***ING WASTE!" Torgue screamed.

Warning! Small alluding of suicidal thoughts ahead! You have been warned!

After All-Might's faux pas, the first year students were bussed back to the main campus. There, they got back into their school uniforms and received an address from Aizawa, informing them of their two days off and that they will receive their upcoming hero internship offers when they got back.

It was in the classroom that she noticed a clawing absence. Iida's desk was empty. When she asked her teacher if he was okay, she only learned that he had been called away by a family emergency. She left the room rubbing the medal around her neck in worry.

Walking through the hall, she started making her way to the gate where she would wait for Moxxi to pick her up, feeling too tired to take the train with her friends.

'I hope everything is okay.' She thought, her eyes lowered while her shoes clicked off the floor.

"Hodunk-san." She halted and looked up to see Todoroki leaning against the wall. Strangely enough, she felt oddly calm in his presence for once.

"Yes? Can I help you?"

He nodded. "I'd like to speak to you. In private. If you want to."

She blinked in surprise. He wanted to have a talk with her? He'd never done that before, obviously due to the strangeness that had permeated their classmate relationship. Why did he want to talk now?

A part of her wanted to say no, that she probably shouldn't follow a person she barely knew somewhere remote. It was drowned out by the rest of her completely overcome with burning curiosity, sparked by the unfamiliar tone in his voice.

"O… Okay? Where do you want to talk?"

With that, he led her outside. He kept walking and she kept trailing him until they were on the outside of the forest park surrounding the campus. He glanced about, looking for bystanders. Satisfied that they were alone, he set himself down on a bench on the side of the path. Not sure what else to do, she sat down on the far end.

"So… what did you want to talk about?" She asked hesitantly.

Todoroki was silent, taking a moment to study her from the corner of his eye. "It's about you."

She blinked, caught off guard. "What-what do you mean?"

The boy stared out at the afternoon sky, unreadable, as per usual.

"It started on the first day of classes. Ever since I sat myself down at the desk next to you… you would look at me…" His bicoloured eyes flicked back to her. "It was like you saw something… something that frightened you."

She swallowed nervously. She knew exactly what he was talking about. The flashes of a different face whenever she saw his mismatched eyes or the scar on his skin.

"At first, I thought nothing of it. I'm used to people getting intimidated by this." He gestured to the blemish. "But… then you kept giving me that look, every time we'd meet. I tried to ignore it, but the more I saw the way you'd look at me, with the terror in your eye, the more it bothered me and for the last month, I didn't know why.

Recently though, I brushed it aside for my goal, focusing on the Sports Festival. I'll admit, I wasn't in the right mind today, what with me being so antagonistic towards Midoriya. It wasn't until my fight with him that I could think clearly for the first time in… years I think." He said, his brow furrowing in thought.

"After that, I thought back on some things. It was only after you collapsed in the arena that I finally put it together, why I feel the way I do when you look at me."

Angel continued to listen, held captive as Todoroki told her of his past. How his father sought to surpass All-Might through a successor. How the man had bought his mother's hand in marriage for the sole purpose of creating an heir with the perfect combination of their quirks. How he was put under intense training since he could walk. How it left a toll on himself and his mother.

It all came to a head when he told her how he got his scar. She had to stifle a horrified gasp as she processed what she heard. The idea of one's own mother, pushed to the brink, could break down and scald their own child with a boiling kettle. She had imagined it was from a combat exercise or an accident with his own quirk, but that?! Suddenly, the mystery of Endeavour's strange actions and Todoroki's refusal to use his flames was solved.

"After that, she was committed to a mental ward. I haven't seen her since." He concluded, his face completely unchanged despite his somber tale.

Angel didn't know what to say. All she could do was just sit there in shock, bunching the bottom of her skirt in a tight grip.

"I'm… I'm so sorry…" She started, only for him to shake his head.

"Don't be. You have no reason to. I'm working through it all one piece at a time. But that's later. I didn't bring you out here to talk about my problems."

"Then… why are you telling me this?"

He affixed her with a serious and concerned glare.

"It's because I'm worried for you."

"W-What? Me?" She sputtered, confused as to why the focus of the conversation was suddenly on her.

"I told you what happened with my parents in order to make this whole thing make sense for you. The reason why the faces you make when you see me bother me, that look in your eye… it's the same as my mother's that day."

Her breath hitched. "Sorry..?"

"Whenever I saw the way you looked at me, it reminded me of how terrified she was of me. Of how she saw my father on my left side. I just didn't know it yet." He elaborated before shifting over a couple inches. "When I made that realization, I knew that I had to find out if I was right and more importantly…" He took a breath.

"Hodunk-san. Is there someone in your life who you are afraid of? Someone who has you feeling trapped and… desperate?"

Immediately, Angel's mind flashed back. To the days of false promises. Of bloodthirsty smiles. Of sealed rooms and starless ceilings.

Of dark thoughts of an escape from it all, hidden within a mattress in her old room.

"Yes." She finally answered, crossing her arms and shivering. "There is someone."

"Who?" He asked.

"My dad." She pulled her legs onto the edge of the bench and hugged herself. "At first… everything was good. My parents loved me, I loved them. We didn't have a lot, but we were happy. Then… we lost my mom... and dad… it was like he became a different person. He locked me away and did… things that scared me. He did a lot of things, never to me, but they were still horrible."

"I see."

She shook her head.

"No. The worst part…" She took a shaky breath. "The worst part was that he always said: "I'm doing this to keep you safe. Just trust me and do what I say and everything will be okay."" She recounted slowly. "The idea that the reason he was doing all of these bad things was because of me... it was too much. So much so… I almost did something drastic."

They went silent, the sound of the birds singing and the wind blowing through the trees being the only ambience.

"Do I look like him?"

"Hm?" She glanced at him.

"Do I look like him? Is that why you keep looking at me like that?"

"No. Not really." She shook her head. "He just had mismatched eyes and a scar on the left side of his face as well. Guess that was enough for my brain to connect the dots."

He hummed in understanding.

"But… you know…" She lifted her head. "...the funny thing is… when I met you in the hallway earlier, I didn't see him."

His eyes widened slightly. "Really?"

She nodded, a little smile growing as she turned to him. "Yeah. I think beating the crap out of you helped me… I dunno… fight back?"

"Ah." He exclaimed, then snorted lightly, the tiniest of smiles stretching across his face.

"Are... you smiling?" She chuckled, unbelieving at what she just saw.

"I guess I am." He admitted.

"It looks good on you."

"Thanks."

They both went quiet again. It was about another minute before Angel took another breath to speak.

"Well… thanks Todoroki-san. I appreciate your concern, but… I'm going to be alright."

"How so?"

"Some friends of mine got me out of that awful place, leaving him behind. I'm staying with a friend of theirs who has been taking care of me and also met people here who support me." She assured him and meant every word. The faces of the Raiders, Moxxi, Midoriya, Uraraka, Iida and All-Might flashing behind her eyes, her body becoming more relaxed.

"Point is… I'm feeling a lot better and I'm sorry for looking at you like that for so long."

He studied her face for a moment, eventually seeming to believe her. "You don't have to apologize. It was something out of your control."

"Even so, it wasn't fair of me to be scared of you like that. You're a good person and I can tell… you're nothing like your dad."

He seemed visibly taken back by that, eyes widening and with his mouth opening slightly before he closed it again.

"Thanks. Midoriya said something like that too."

"It's your power or something like that, right?"

"How'd you know?"

"I'm pretty decent at lip reading."

"I see. He's quite a strange guy isn't he, helping people like that."

"Yeah. He's one of a kind." She laughed a little, reaching into her pocket and checking the time on her phone. She winced.

"I've got to get going, my ride is going to be here soon." She slowly picked herself off the bench, Todoroki following suit.

As she got to her feet, she paused and looked at him. "I was thinking… it'd be nice to have someone to talk to about these sorts of things." She fidgeted with her sleeves. "Would you… like to be friends or something?"

Todoroki paused and thought for a moment. Then he smiled again. "Friends… I like the sound of that."

Angel smiled back, giddiness bubbling to the surface. "Great!" She said as they turned and began the walk back.

"Hey, maybe if we get some more people, we could start a "Crappy Father Support Group"?" She joked.

Todoroki didn't appear to catch on, looking like he was actually considering it. "Hmm… who do you think we could bring in?"

"I'm just kidding." She laughed again, stowing her phone in her bag, just as a news alert scrolled across the screen.

HERO KILLER STRIKES AGAIN! PRO HERO INGENIUM IN CRITICAL CONDITION!

To be continued...