Author's Note: Thank you to AstroLibra, hinatayvonne, bbymojo, NamelessDude 13, Terrence Johnny Stanford, and Justtryingnameshere. Thank you all so much for taking the time to share your thoughts and for continuing to read the story. Favorites and follows are always appreciated as well so thank you for that.
Buckle up, Buttercups, this is going to be a bumpy ride. I did my best to catch all errors but this was an excessively grueling chapter not only in length (I know, but it's long to me) and content. Please forgive any typos or grammatical errors I missed. I'll admit some content might be hard to handle. You'll understand when you get there. I swear there is a method to my madness.
All Might, Detective Tsukauchi, Aizawa, Principal Nezu, and Endeavor stood in the middle of the street in the mock up city training ground. The detective glanced at his watch. Aizawa leaned against the wall of a nearby building as if preparing to take a nap standing up. Principal Nezu conversed with All Might about organizing the sham 'meet the hero' event. Endeavor paced impatiently, occasionally glowering at one of the men around him.
Suddenly a canister hit the pavement with a metallic clang in the center of the wide circle they had created. The pin ejected itself from the rigged handle on contact releasing the smoke. Four of the men quickly retreated a safe distance away knowing what was coming next. One stayed behind, left clueless and alone.
"What the hell?!" Endeavor bellowed, turning in circles.
A small figure in grey burst through the smokescreen to deliver a flying kick to Endeavor's chest below his breastbone. With a back handspring, the figure disappeared back into the smoke.
The powerful kick made his diaphragm seize up which prevented him from breathing momentarily as he stumbled backwards from the momentum of the kick. Unable to inhale enough air to fill his lungs, he grew dizzy, dropping to his knees with a hand pressed to his upper abdomen massaging the muscle while he wheezed like an asthmatic waiting for his lungs to inflate.
"The Magician has arrived," All Might announced in his booming voice.
He called her by the nickname given to her by her students due to her use of smoke and trickery when fighting. Detective Tsukauchi did a double take of his friend, noting the expression on his face was not unlike that of a proud father.
There was something satisfying about seeing the massive, arrogant man down on his knees, struggling to breathe. Melina stood still, waiting for the smoke to disperse, and Endeavor to regain his breath.
Endeavor stood to his feet, raising his hand with all four fingers pointed toward her. Thin lines of fire ejected from his fingertips as if each one was an individual miniature flame thrower. He only administered a two second blast as not to kill her, only to scare her. She was just a little girl pretending to be a hero after all.
To his surprise and disappointment, she did not even flinch. The flames surrounded her but did not burn the suit. Within seconds the fire burned itself out having nothing to fuel it. There was not a single scorch mark on the grey material.
Melina stomped forward, obviously angry, kicking at his hand to prevent him from shooting another firestorm at her. Snatching one of the batons from its holder at her waist, she extended it, smacking him across his large square jaw with it. The length of the baton adding to her reach assisted her greatly when attacking a target much taller than her like the mountain of a man standing in front her.
Endeavor's head wrenched to the side hard enough to almost give him whiplash. For a moment, everything went black and stars appeared. He swayed from side to side before regaining his balance. The shocking power of her strike almost toppled him like a skyscraper.
"Damn!" he yelled, swiftly swinging his head back to her. "That hurt!"
"Oh, holy shit," gasped Aizawa, awed and slightly amused by her pulling no punches in the most literal sense. He wasn't sure at the time, not knowing her true strength or fighting prowess, but now he knew she had been taking it easy on her students.
Without allowing Endeavor time to fire back up, Melina held the baton with both hands, using the weapon like a bat to deliver a punishing wallop to his wrist as if striving to send a baseball over the fence. She didn't care if she broke it. He was so fucking tough he could deal with the pain and get a cast, healing the old-fashioned way.
She pressed the end of the baton to his upper abdomen. For a second time, she attacked his diaphragm, sending a jolt of electricity through the muscle to make it spasm disrupting his ability to breathe. She had been careful with her positioning of the weapon as not to affect his heart and upset its rhythm.
"Grrrr, dammit!" Endeavor growled, his flames leaping away from body as his fury fueled the fire.
The number one hero raised his other hand, unleashing his wrath upon her in a hellish explosion of flames. With a conceited sneer on his face, convinced he had gotten the best of her, he intensified the flame, turning it blue.
"Enji, stop!" All Might yelled. "You'll kill her!"
Melina was unable to move, hypnotized by the sight of the blue flames. God, Dabi really was his son. Although she already knew the source of his patriarchal heritage, seeing tangible proof firsthand was like a jarring slap in the face.
Mei had added a cooling system to the suit that circulated liquid nitrogen through a network of tubes installed between a layer of fabric against Melina's skin and the outer material of the suit. Despite the cooling mechanism, sweat ran down her face and back. She had to act to save herself before he boiled her alive in her own sweat.
Calmly moving forward, Melina walked through the concentrated inferno to face the man who she would swear meant to kill her. Her walking through the wall of flame on par with the fires of hell stunned him.
After he dropped his hand, she removed the mask, pushing the hood back so he could see her face. The air cooled the sweat on her face, offering her relief from the intense heat that had been like baking in the late summer sun. She waited for his eyes to meet hers. They glared at each other, waiting for the other to say something first.
"Are you all right?" Endeavor asked her.
"Huh?" the observers grunted in unison. Was Endeavor actually concerned for her well being?
"I'm fine," she replied tersely.
"You're one tough bitch," he said in a manner that hardly sounded complimentary.
"Thank you," she responded, taking his statement as a compliment no matter how he meant it.
"Will you have dinner with me tonight?' he asked.
"What the hell is happening here?" muttered Aizawa.
"I have no idea what's happening here," Principal Nezu responded to Aizawa. The legendary strategist, a master of predictability, had not foreseen this bizarre development.
"Did he just ask her out on a date?" All Might asked his friend, hoping he had heard wrong.
"I think he just asked her out on a date," Detective Tsukauchi helpfully confirmed even though All Might didn't want to hear that answer.
"Aren't you a married man?" Melina questioned the flaming hero with the conceited smirk.
"It's not a date," he assured her. "Think of it as an apology dinner for going a little overboard today."
Melina knew he was not one to apologize - EVER - no matter how wrong he was about anything.
"You did get a bit out of hand. We all know how powerful you are. There was no need to use excessive force like that," she casually admonished him.
"So about that dinner...what do you say?"
What the fuck is this fresh new hell?, Melina thought to herself.
This man never did anything without having ulterior motives. Despite being a hero, he never did nice things for other people at all unless it shed a positive light on himself. How would dinner with her benefit him? Her unhealthy inquisitiveness spurred her to accept the invitation to find out exactly what trick he had up his sleeve.
"Sure. Why not?"
~\..'../~
"YOU'RE DOING WHAT?!" Shoto shouted at the top of his lungs.
Birds took flight from their roosts in the trees around the dorm building after being scared away by burst of noise from the rooftop.
"Shhhh!" she hissed in his face, clapping her hand over his mouth. "I'm going to dinner with your father."
Shoto seized her wrist, pulling her hand away from his mouth.
"I heard you the first time," he growled through his clenched teeth. "God, it sounds twice as worse the second time around. What the hell, Melina?"
"It's not a date," she clarified. "I'm curious to see what sinister plan he has running around in that big, hot head of his."
"You know what they say about curiosity, right? I really wish you wouldn't do this," he murmured, placing his hands on her hips.
Melina backed away from him, crossing the roof to the other side. She did not really want to do this either, but there were important questions she wanted to ask that man. There was a conversation she wanted to have with him that could only take place in a more private situation away from the school.
"I can only imagine what awful, obscene thoughts are in his head," Shoto muttered behind her. "At least you're aware my father never does anything without knowing it will benefit him in some way. Everything he does, he does for himself. So you're not being completely stupid."
"I'm only being a little bit stupid," she said jokingly, attempting to add a tiny bit of lightness to the heavy conversation.
"It's not funny," he sighed in exasperation.
"I know. It's not funny at all," she agreed.
Melina turned around to face him. She ran her fingers through his red hair as his eyes held hers. Her fingers gingerly brushed over the scar, trembling as she traced the ragged edge of the permanent mark. Pushing herself up on her tiptoes, she pressed a kiss to the damaged flesh that was silky smooth under her lips.
Lowering herself back down to the soles of her feet, she smiled up at him, holding on to the lapels of his school jacket. She wanted to tell him her very big, extremely important secret - all of them actually.
Melina was acutely aware that it wasn't fair to him for her to continue to hide such vital information that could effect his emotions so adversely. He had experienced the disappointment and betrayal that comes with secrets suddenly being revealed too many times in his life.
"Shoto, you and I need to have an extremely important conversation soon. Okay?"
"Okay," he agreed, not exactly sure what he was agreeing to.
"I've got to go get ready."
~\..'../~
Melina was stepping out of the shower when she heard a knock on her bedroom door. Hastily toweling off, she pulled on her robe. There was a second knock on her door while she wrapped a towel around her head to keep her wet hair from dripping everywhere.
"I'm coming!" she called as she walked to the door to avoid a third knock.
"There was a delivery for you, Miss Zusa," Momo returned.
A delivery of what?, Melina wondered, opening the door.
Her belly twisted into knots of apprehension when she saw Momo standing there cradling a bouquet of a dozen orange roses. What an interesting color choice. The color of fire, signifying something intense, consuming, hot, and burning. She knew orange roses symbolized fierce passion and fervid desire.
Goddamit.
The fact the seemingly shallow, inconsiderate Enji Todoroki knew what they meant astonished her. He was right when he said this wasn't a date. It was a seduction. Otherwise why would he not only send her flowers but ones of such an uncommon color choice?
"What the fuck?" she muttered, staring at the flowers as if they were a live snake.
Melina spotted the small white card nestled among the orange blossoms as big as her fist. Once again, her curiosity pushed her into action by snatching the card out to read it.
I will be sending a car for you. Be at the front gate at 7:30. She could hear his voice in her head giving her the order written on the card. What the ever living hell?
"Miss Zusa? Are you all right?" Momo asked, a deep frown of concern turning down the corners of her mouth.
"Throw those away," she croaked, clearing her congested throat.
"Ma'am?"
"Get rid of them."
"Well, okay, if that's what you want," Momo said, studying the flowers as she walked away if to try to see what her teacher saw that terrified her.
Melina closed the door, leaning against it. For a second time, she had accepted an invitation and gotten in over her head. History repeated itself too much in her life.
She glanced at the clock on her desk. 7:25. He can just fucking wait.
~\..'../~
Melina slowly proceeded toward the front gate at 8:20. Each step was deliberate, the heel of her gold Roman style sandal being carefully placed on the ground before she lifted her other foot to proceed forward. She wore a short, white, sleeveless sheath dress, a gold braided belt around her waist.
Shoto had given her a disapproving scowl as she passed by him to leave. He never said a word because his expression said everything. He was part of the reason she wanted to get his father alone to speak with him.
Ever since she met Dabi, there were questions she wanted to ask Enji Todoroki. As she continued to meet more members of the Todoroki clan, the number of questions she had increased. She thought her brain might explode if she didn't get answers soon.
Some people might believe it wasn't her place to ask such things, but she had become a part of this family in a permanent way whether she wanted to or not. Even if marriage was not in the future or contact ceased in all forms, she would always hold a part of them near and dear because of the baby.
Queasiness crept into Melina's gut but this nausea had nothing to with morning sickness. Placing her hand on her belly, she thought about the baby to find her courage.
"I have to do this," she told herself, taking slow measured breaths as she approached the gate.
A black stretch limousine sat on the curb complete with liveried driver in the customary black suit and tie standing beside the car patiently waiting for her. When he said car, she expected a taxi not a ride fit for a prom date.
The man stepped forward, opening the gate for her. After closing it, he moved quickly back to the car to open the door. His face was red from the heat. The rivulets of sweat coursing down his face had trickled down his neck and soaked the collar of his white shirt.
Poor guy. Melina felt guilty for leaving him out here to wait so long. She had accidentally punished the poor driver in her attempt to passively aggressively refuse to acquiesce to the strict orders of the fiery tyrant.
Melina looked around the interior of the luxurious limousine. All black leather, soft and smooth as a metaphorical baby's butt. There was a fully stocked bar and a refrigerator. Opening the refrigerator, she took out a chilled bottle of water.
Moving on her knees across the wide gap between the seat and the raised panel separating her and the driver, she knocked on the glass with her knuckle. When the man lowered the glass, she unscrewed the cap and passed the bottle through.
"Here. You need this," she said, pushing it at him.
"I can't ma'am," he returned, his body stiffening.
"You can because I'm giving it to you. Take it," she commanded him, waving the bottle at him.
"Ma'am, I can't," he insisted, his jaw tightening.
"Do you want me to complain to your boss that you defied a direct request from his guest?"
The man released a defeated yet relieved sigh. He took the water and immediately began to drink, chugging the whole thing in a matter of seconds.
"Thank you, ma'am," he said.
"I'm sorry for making you wait. This heat is unbearable already. Summer has arrived early this year," she remarked, making small talk with the man. "Where are you taking me?"
"Todoroki Manor," he responded in a professional clipped tone.
Manor? Holy Hell. So Shoto was a rich kid. She should have guessed by his father's attitude of entitlement. but she assumed that was all ego. Shoto hid the fact he came from a wealthy family.
Melina moved back into the seat, taking out a can of ginger ale for herself to settle her queasy tummy. There was plenty of wine and hard liquor, however, circumstances dictated she could not indulge in those to calm her nerves.
A tall, white stone wall surrounded the entire property. The entrance gate rolled back via a motorized system when the car pulled up to it. Once it was open, the car crawled around the semi-circular driveway covered in small stones to stop in front of the house that truly was a mansion: a two-story, L-shaped traditional home that appeared to have been in the family for centuries but also looked new at the same time.
The driver opened her door, holding out his hand to assist her with getting out of the car. Melina took a moment to stare at the sprawling mansion, allowing herself to be awed by its size and beauty - and the decadence it represented.
The front door slid back. An older woman bowed in greeting. Her gray hair was pulled into a tight bun at the nape of her neck. She was wearing a traditional kimono in the ostentatious colors of red, orange, and gold.
"Good evening, Miss. Welcome to our home. The master awaits you. Come, I will take you to him," the woman said, waving a gnarled hand to beckon her inside.
Although issued with the utmost politeness, she still recognized the woman's invitation as an order from the master of the house. Melina walked up the few steps, crossing the wide porch to the door where she paused to bow to greet the woman.
After stepping inside, she removed her sandals, placing them beside the lower step, toes pointed at the door. She expected to be given a pair of slippers or at least socks. The woman shuffled off, and she had no choice but to follow.
The highly polished dark wood floor was cool and smooth on the soles of her feet. She nervously wound the strap of her purse around her fingers as she almost tiptoed down the hall behind the woman.
The lights cast a comforting, warm glow in the corridor. The seemingly endless Shoji screens made of pristine white paper and lighter colored wood gave the area a lightness and sense of openness despite being closed. She had expected a dark, dungeon-like atmosphere in a house that was something akin to a prison to its inhabitants.
The woman finally stopped in front of a room, pulling back the screen. The woman bowed to her master, announcing the arrival of his guest.
Enji Todoroki filled the all but empty room, his presence oppressive and almost overwhelming. He had extinguished his flames. He looked like a normal man - just a really big, hulking mass of a man. He was wearing a plain black v-neck shirt and jeans, sitting cross legged on a pillow at a short legged table. A bottle of sake and a single cup sat in front of him.
Melina dutifully bowed, feeling as if she had to in order to adhere to the strict sense of traditionalism exhibited. She waited to be invited into the monster's lair.
"Hana, please bring more sake," he ordered her, his deep voice almost reverberating inside the room.
"Please, may I request tea?" Melina asked, addressing the woman directly.
She didn't know if that was subverting his role as master of the household. She wasn't sure about how staunchly traditional etiquette worked. Honestly, she didn't care. She knew she couldn't drink alcohol but was terribly thirsty.
"Yes, Miss," the woman named Hana answered, bowing to her.
Melina entered the room foregoing his permission which was implied since he invited her here. Despite the fact it put her closer to him, she down on the right side of the table to his left rather than facing him which would put her back to the door.
"I didn't think you would come," he said, picking up the cup to drink. He looked as if he was holding a teacup from a child's tea set.
"Why wouldn't I? How could I resist such an enticing invitation from the infamous and famous number one hero," she said, hoping the sarcasm didn't filter through her voice.
Enji chuckled, a low rumbling sound coming straight from his barrel chest. A smile looked good on him. It softened his turquoise eyes from rock hard circles to pools the color of the sea.
Melina studied the scar on his face since it was not obscured by his flames. What could have happened to him? Was it because of something he did due to his over-inflated ego, causing himself unnecessary harm? Or was it something done to him as a child, spawning a legacy of abuse that would mark all of the Todoroki men both physically and emotionally?
"Do I have something on my face?" he inquired, his deep voice startling her.
"What?" she gasped.
"You were staring at me. Is something wrong?"
"No. Nothing."
"You are a terrible liar."
"Your - " She stopped herself before blabbering that two of his sons had told her the same exact thing. At least they could all agree on something. "You are so right. I apologize for staring. I was just curious about that scar."
"Curiosity can be a dangerous thing, Miss Zusa. There are some things you're better not knowing," he stated cryptically.
Melina's entire body tightened with apprehension. His tone was threatening, warning her to not to pursue the matter. His eyes had once again turned to icy shards.
Hana returned with her tea and a refill for her master at a most advantageous time. Her quiet bustling prevented them from having to endure an awkward silence. Along with the drinks, she brought bowls of miso soup and steamed pork dumplings.
Melina didn't expect such simple comforting food, but she was glad for it. Eating presented her with a distraction as well as sustenance.
"I hear you have gotten yourself into a spot of trouble with the villains. So tell me, how did a sweet little thing like you manage to do that?" Enji questioned her bluntly, not bothering to tiptoe around the subject.
"How much did the Detective and All Might tell you?" she asked, pouring herself some tea from the small white pot decorated with bright red poppies.
"Only that Tomura Shigaraki is interested in your quirk. He wants to steal it from you no matter what it takes. He's willing to kill you to get it," he said.
"That's the gist of it," she replied without offering more details.
"Come now, my dear. I'm sure there's a whole lot more to that story."
His mouth lifted on one side into a provocative little smirk as if tempting her to tell him the story. Wow. He was indeed handsome and could be quite charming. Something else the Todoroki men shared in spades: looks and charm.
"Of course there is," she responded in a low, almost breathy voice. She leaned forward as if she meant to whisper her secret in his ear. When he leaned down, she spoke in her normal voice, "I'm just not going to tell you."
Melina smiled pleasantly at him when he winced away from her, irritation pinching his eyebrows together over his nose. She watched his lips compress into a thin white line in his face.
Loudly sipping her soup, she added an annoyance factor that successfully grated across his nerves like fingernails on a chalkboard. The muscle in his jaw writhed under his skin as it worked in desperation to keep his mouth shut.
"About your quirk. Is it really that special?"
The tone behind the question was definitely demeaning, clearly expressing doubt of her abilities. Too bad for him she didn't care what he thought. Unlike him, she did not find her identity in her power, not taking pride in her quirk at all. Coming to terms with her quirk, developing a tolerance to it, had been a recent development.
"I don't think it's that special," she answered after finishing her soup.
"Will you show me how it works?" His eyebrow jumped up almost imperceptibly as if his face had betrayed his salacious thoughts.
"Hmmm," she murmured pensively, picking up one of the dumplings.
Melina placed the whole thing in her mouth, chewing with deliberate slowness to stall for time and vex him with the wait. He wasn't a patient man, but he was having to be one to keep up the facade of charm in order to complete his seduction. By the time she swallowed the dumpling, Hana arrived with the second course of the meal.
Melina studied the work of art on a plate set before her. Pickled radishes sliced so thinly she could see the pattern of the cherry blossoms on the plate through them formed a crescent around a sushi stack: a small square of rice covered with minuscule slices of avocado and cucumber then topped with a cube of salmon.
This was the kind of food she had been expecting. She hoped there was about half a dozen or so more of these to come. She was hungry.
"Wouldn't you rather me tell you about it than show you?" she asked after eating the tidbit that intensified her appetite rather than sating it.
Enji Todoroki inhaled a deep breath through his nose. She couldn't tell if he was being dramatic or doing his best to hold his temper. Probably both.
"I'm more of a show me kind of man," he said.
When he reached for the sake bottle, Melina picked it up, filling his cup.
"Maybe after dinner," she responded, deciding she would play his game. "Before or after dessert?"
Melina did her best to maintain her coquettish grin while he stared at her like he wanted her to be dessert. God. Poor Rei was all she could think as this asshole over here continued staring at her like she was something on tonight's menu.
The dinner seemed to last forever, a constant parade of tiny one bite dishes peppered with uncomfortable innuendos from the host. So many things about this felt wrong to her. By the time they reached dessert she was almost in physical pain from the covert flirting involving coy glances and sexually nuanced conversation.
Melina suffered under the burden of guilt. She felt the crushing need to apologize to Rei Todoroki despite having done nothing wrong with her husband and having no intention of doing anything wrong with him.
"Would you prefer tea or coffee with your dessert, ma'am?" Hana asked while gathering the dishes from their final main course dish.
"Coffee, please. Hana, where is the restroom?" Melina inquired, not wanting to ask Enji.
"The door at the end of the hall on the right."
Melina felt like her eyeballs were floating because she had drank so much tea. She rolled up onto her knees from her position of sitting with her legs folded to the side to maintain her modesty. If she had known he would be dressed so casually, she would have worn her jeans instead of a dress.
Enji surprised her by standing up. He moved in front of her before she could stand up from her position on her knees. Looking up, way up, she saw him bending from his waist like a tree bending in the wind from a typhoon.
He placed his massive paws under her arms. His hands were warm, soft against her bare skin as he lifted her like a child. He actually held her up, her feet dangling in the air, forcing her to look down at him.
She felt even more like a vulnerable child. She was at his mercy, and he knew it by the way grinned up at her. He could have killed her today had he made his mind up to do so. It was as if he was reminding her who was really in charge here. He held her life in his hands, presently quite literally, before setting her down on her feet.
"Th-thank y-you," she stuttered, looking away from him.
Melina all but ran down the hall to the bathroom. After completing her initial reason to be there, she stood at the sink washing her hands wishing she could splash the cold water on her face. Although the water would cool her off, it would ruin her make up, making her look like a raccoon as her mascara melted off.
After drying her hands, she leaned against the counter, closing her eyes. Being with Enji Todoroki was trying her nerves more than she expected. She could see so much of his sons in him in all ways both in appearance and personality.
Enji Todoroki had transformed into a completely different person when alone with her. He was polite, entertaining, showing hints of kindness and genuine concern amid the philandering tendencies and insinuation of her becoming his next mistress.
Judging by his actions tonight and the fact he locked his wife away in a hospital, Melina had no doubt he had many mistresses in the past and would have more in the future. She had no desire to be his present plaything, but she wanted him to think she did. The only way she would ever become a Todoroki mistress was if it involved one of his sons.
Melina inhaled deeply to steel her nerves. Upon exiting the bathroom, she saw Hana waiting for her in the hall.
"Miss, the master has retired to his private rooms and would like for me to take you there."
Private rooms? Oh, shit.
Melina followed the woman as she took a left to enter a completely different section of the house. The lights were dimmer along this hall. Mood lighting. Oh, god. Her heart slammed against her ribs.
Hana stopped several doors down, extending her hand as a sign for Melina to continue down the hall to the door that stood open.
Here goes everything including my dignity but hopefully not my convictions, she thought to herself, clutching her purse with both hands until her knuckles turned white and started to ache.
Melina entered the open door. There was a low couch that appeared to be made out of overstuffed bean bag chairs covered in a black microfiber material. She tossed her purse onto the couch.
A round table made of some kind of reddish colored wood sat in front of it. Tendrils of white steam rose from the cups of coffee beside the slices of spongy yet creamy looking cheesecake.
There were also bottles of water on the table. Just how long did he plan on them being in here?
The door leading to the porch was open, drawing her outside to find her host. He was leaning against a post, his back to her, smoking a cigarette.
"I've meet your wife. She's a lovely woman," Melina declared, deciding it was time to put all of her cards on the table in this game.
"I suppose Shoto took you to meet her," he stated rather than asked. "I guess that's good. I'm glad the boy is trying to make amends with the psycho."
Melina stumbled backwards a few steps because his harsh words had been like a sucker punch in her gut.
"The boy is stronger than I thought. He might amount to something someday after all."
At last, the Enji Todoroki she knew arrived to the party.
"Both of them are stronger than you can even imagine. How dare you say such vile and cruel things about them," she snarled, glaring at his wide back.
"Just who the fuck do you think you are, Melina Zusa?" he questioned her in a disturbingly calm voice without turning to look at her. He kept smoking his cigarette as if they were discussing a trivial matter such as the weather. "What the hell do you know about any of it? You have no idea about any of the private matters of this family so it's best you keep your fucking mouth shut."
"I'm sure I know more than you think," she returned, her voice quivering slightly.
DAMMIT! She did not want to show weakness in front of him. Obviously, he hated weakness of any kind. He would prefer bullshit and bravado over anyone daring to show their true emotions especially if they involved a weakness such as fear.
"Here's something you don't know," she said, gulping to push down the lump in her throat. "I found your oldest son, Toya."
"Yeah. So what?" He still could not be bothered to give her his full attention, keeping his back to her and lighting another cigarette instead.
"Do you know who he is now? His present identity."
"No. And I can say that I don't care to know," he replied.
Melina stared at the muscled wall of his back, disbelieving he had so casually dismissed what was meant to be an earth shattering statement, rocking his world. He couldn't possibly care less and that stabbed her in the heart like a dagger.
"That kid left home ten years and never looked back. As far as I'm concerned, he's no longer my son. He hasn't been a part of this family for a very long time and never will be again."
"You are a piece of work. There's so many things I could call you, but I'm afraid you might actually take them as a compliment," she said.
Enji finally turned his head to look at her. He was actually smiling at her, a genuine smile.
"It's shocking how well you know me. Yet you're still here. What do you really want from me?"
"Honestly, I'm not sure anymore. I came here with a goal in mind, but I've lost it," she confessed, feeling like a steadily deflating balloon.
"Do you want me to tell what happened to my first son?" he asked, rotating his big body to face her.
"Why would you?"
He certainly would not offer the information out of the goodness of his heart. She was wary of his intentions. What payment would he demand in return? Since his subtle seduction failed would he resort to more aggressive measures of bargaining? Give and take of a special kind.
"There's something I like about you. I can't explain it. You're not afraid of me. You're not fawning over me or pushing your tits in my face. Not once have you tried gaining my favor by kissing my big, fat, flaming ass," he said bluntly, pausing to take a drag from his cigarette.
Melina didn't say a word. He rendered her completely speechless.
"In fact, you've done everything possible to show me how much you hate me. You even tried breaking my damn jaw and my wrist today. I think you would have enjoyed it had you succeeded," he said, dropping the cigarette into the container at his feet.
Melina quickly sobered from his truthful words. She would have immensely enjoyed causing him pain even if it was just physical. He seemed to know her pretty well.
"I planned to help you the whole time. The harebrained scheme is good press, putting me in the spotlight. I just acted that way to test you, to see if you would be willing to fight for it. You have the lethal tongue of venomous viper. Right then I knew I would do anything for you."
Although her knees were shaking, threatening to drop her to the floor, she was frozen to the spot as the human mountain lumbered toward her. She inhaled sharply when he dropped to his knees in front of her. In a kneeling position he came eye to eye with her. Her lips parted in her desperate desire to pull in more air to her starved lungs that couldn't get enough.
"Rei is my wife, but I don't love her. She was the perfect match for me physically and financially," he said.
Melina stared at him. Why was he telling her this? Maybe her true quirk wasn't the mind control through pheromones at all. She had a weird ability to get inside men's heads and make them confess their deepest, darkest secrets without laying a finger on them. Or perhaps that special skill only worked on men bearing the Todoroki name.
"So you're telling me you only wanted her for her quirk and her money?" she asked for absolute understanding.
"The quirk, yes. The money was unimportant. I had plenty of my own. I wanted to create the perfect child, the ultimate quirk user combining the opposing powers of fire and ice. But Shoto was weak and so was his mother."
Melina's knees betrayed her, buckling under the weight of his words. She felt his arms go around her to keep her from falling. He held her gently in his strong arms that were like two iron bars bracing her up.
"Rei wouldn't allow me to make him strong. She coddled him, making him weak, sensitive. So after she burned him, I put her in the hospital not only to protect him, but to protect her as well. What kind of woman harms her child like that?" he asked without expecting an answer.
How could he ask such a question after the damage he had dealt to his entire family?
She grew weaker, leaning more heavily on his arms. His hand opened up, supporting her back. His palm spanned the entire distance between her shoulder blades.
"Why are you telling me this?" she asked, her voice quivering as much as her body.
"No one ever wanted to hear my side of the story. I've kept it all inside for so long. I - " He stopped talking, reaching up to brush his fingertips across her cheek then run his fingers through her hair that streamed down in loose waves. "I've never had anyone listen to what I've gone through."
"What makes you think I care?" She threw his own hateful words back at him employing that venomous tongue of hers.
"Because you do," he insisted, placing his large hand along her jawline.
Instead of cupping her face, he held the entire half of her head in his hand. He could pop her head like a pimple if he wanted. His brute strength alone frightened her, apart from his fire quirk.
This wasn't supposed to be how this played out. As usual, her plans went awry making her wonder why she even bothered to have a plan in the first place. Her life had formed a disconcerting repeating pattern of failures. She had grown weary of bad starts and unpredictable people who completely destroyed her best laid plans leaving her bewildered and in a compromising position. This had to be the worst scenario yet.
"What did you do to your first son?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
Melina gasped when his arm tightened around her, pulling her closer to his massive, warm body.
"It was an accident, but Rei wouldn't believe me. I was training Toya, trying to teach him how to get control over his flames. I pushed him hard which made him push himself that much harder to please me, to make me proud. One day, he went too far because I kept hammering at him to keep going, to try again, to not be a pussy and give up."
Imagine that, she thought to herself, keeping the words locked inside her head.
"He lost control. I watched as my boy burned, the flames consuming his flesh, devouring him. I remember his screams of pain. The smell..." His face screwed up in revulsion as if he remembered the stench vividly. His tanned skin paled from the memory.
"Please, stop," she begged, nausea rising in her gut so violently she thought she might throw up on him. She closed her eyes in hopes the nausea would pass soon. "Yet you did nothing. You did absolutely nothing to save him."
"I-I c-couldn't," he rejoined.
His stuttering caught her off guard, prompting her to open her eyes. She looked into his eyes that were glassy as if he were drop dead drunk. Perhaps all that sake was the real reason his tongue had become so loose, confessing all of his sins.
But it wasn't the sake. A tear pooled in the corner of his eye before freeing itself to streak down his cheek that was just regaining its healthy color.
"I was scared. I was too scared to act. I was a hero. I had been the number two hero since the age of twenty yet I could do nothing to save my own child from being consumed by his power. He almost died because he couldn't control the quirk, my same quirk of fire, that I had given him," he said, holding her eyes hostage. "It was my fault."
His eyes latched onto hers as if they were a safety line, keeping his long lost soul afloat. Connecting to her brought his emotions up from the depths of the cesspool of his hubris to assert itself for one last gasp of air, possibly before dying.
Melina's arms that had hung limply at her sides until now, enclosed his wide neck in a comforting embrace. Closing her eyes, she broke the suffocating connection that had formed between them. She could not withstand his need for her to aid in helping him bear the crushing emotional weight of what he had done in his past.
Hearing the truth about all of it hurt her, obliterating her heart. Hating him had been so much easier before she pitied him from learning he had incurred his own emotional wounds that no one gave a damn about.
Her fingers combed through his soft, spiky dark red hair in an attempt to soothe him. There was something empowering about having the massive man, the number one hero, down on his knees and in her arms needing her comforting touch.
Earlier he held the power but somehow the balance shifted in her favor. Melina pulled back from him, holding his angular chin in her hand. The minimal amount of stubble there was scratchy against her palm. She pressed her lips to his which accepted her kiss without hesitation. Her tongue darted through the slight gap between his lips, testing his receptiveness.
Enji placed his hand on the back of her neck, pulling her head forward. Silently granting his permission for her to go further, he parted his lips a little more under hers.
Without meaning to, Melina moaned as she found his tongue with hers. Kissing him was like kissing Dabi. So tender, so sweet. She could feel his raw power, but he kept it under control as not to hurt her. She whimpered as he pushed his tongue against hers. The honey flavored pheromone flowed from her mouth into his which he gratefully accepted, swallowing every last drop she gave him with greedy desire.
"So that's the first part of it?" he asked, still holding her neck when she lifted her lips from his.
"Uh huh," she answered, unable to form real words.
"What happens now?"
Melina cleared her throat, thinking quickly. This was the moment she had come here for.
"Enji Todoroki, you'll forget the last two hours of this night. You'll remember dinner and our conversation. We've come to a truce in the battle of wills. We're friends who have agreed to work together." She kissed him again. "You will refrain from having anymore affairs. You will visit your wife in the hospital regularly, doing all you can to aid in her recovery. You will also work on mending your broken relationships with your children, Shoto in particular. The hurt and pain from Toya will begin to heal, ridding you of the crippling guilt, no longer shutting off your emotions. You will feel real emotion again."
Melina paused, stroking his cheek bearing a light smattering of red stubble along his jawline. Kissing him again, she wanted to make sure he received another generous dose of the pheromone so she could get through his thicker than average skull. Her words needed to push past his build up of anger, hostility, and guilt not only towards his family but himself to stick in his subconscious.
"You'll do your best to repair your relationships, bringing your family together again. By the way, congratulations, Enji Todoroki, you're going to be a grandfather."
"I'm a grandfather?" Another tear escaped his eye.
Melina peeled his arms from around her body, backing away from him. She knew the grandfather knowledge would be nothing but a vague thought that would occasionally be triggered kind of like when a random quote comes to mind but you can't remember who said it.
"Get up, Enji," she commanded him, watching him rise to his feet. "Go inside. Go to bed. Get some sleep."
Melina watched him as he walked past her, bypassing the table still holding the forgotten desserts. She followed him out of the room, continuing to observe him as he went on his way to his room - alone. With Hana no where to be seen, she made a beeline for the door.
The driver was sitting in the front seat of the car asleep, his head leaning against the window. Melina lightly tapped on the window wanting to awaken him without giving him a heart attack.
"I'm so sorry, ma'am. I - "
"It's okay," she interrupted him. "Just take me home."
Melina stared out of the window without seeing a thing as he drove her. As they neared the school, she had a feeling of profound anxiety, a sense of foreboding, that something was terribly wrong.
Sirens blared in the distance, growing louder. Red lights began to light up the interior of the car. The driver pulled over to allow the fire trucks to pass.
Melina opened the car door, stepping out onto the sidewalk. Although they were still a few blocks away, she could see an orange glow reflecting against the dark sky above where storm clouds had gathered. The light flickered and moved on the clouds as if it were alive. That could only be one thing: fire - a big one. The location appeared to be at the school.
"Oh, no," she gasped, fear clamping down on her lungs and heart.
RUN!, the voice of dread screamed inside her head.
Melina took off, feeling as if she were flying from all of the adrenaline coursing through her veins. She ran the three blocks to the school without slowing down until she was stopped across the street from the front gate by a policeman. The fire trucks had used a back service entrance to gain access to the school grounds and get closer to the fire.
"But I'm a teacher!" she screamed at the uniformed man who refused to allow her across the street.
"Miss Zusa! There you are!" All Might yelled from behind the gate. "Let her come over!"
Melina stepped around the policeman and ran across the street to All Might who held the gate open for her.
"Is that fire where I think it is?" she asked, her heart beating so fast she started getting lightheaded.
"Unfortunately," he said, confirming her suspicion. "The kids were evacuated and moved to the gym. They're all fine. For everyone's safety, all of the dorms were evacuated."
All Might steered her toward the gym, placing his hands on her shoulders and turning her body as they walked at a slow, plodding pace.
"Thank god they're all okay," she murmured, stumbling forward and almost falling down. She would have hit the cement sidewalk if All Might had not been holding onto her.
"Do I have to tell you the origin of the fire?" he asked, putting a steadying arm around her waist.
"No. I already know. Do you have any idea who set the hive ablaze?" She leaned heavily onto his skeletal frame that was deceptively strong and supportive under the burden of her weight.
"Bakugo and Kirishima were doing their rounds. Kirishima saw a flash of blue light on top of the dorm building then they went to check it out. When they reached the roof, Dabi was there. He had already set the hive, the shed, and all of the flowers on fire. He said he had a message for you."
Melina pitched forward, her head spinning from hearing that name. She felt his arm tighten around her waist to get a more secure grip on her.
"Dabi said he would continue to protect you in his own way. He said he was willing to accept your hate, foregoing your forgiveness, if it meant you remain alive," he said.
Melina listened to the sounds of shouting voices and rushing water. The smell of the burning wood made her gag. She shoved All Might away, rushing to the nearby bushes to vomit.
"Melina, you have to tell me everything," he implored her. "I know something else is going on here, but I can't help you if I don't know exactly how deeply you're in trouble."
Melina's hand tremored excessively as she wiped at her mouth with the back of it. She stayed where she was as another wave of nausea swept over her then passed without incident. However, she did not move in case the next one brought about a revisiting of dinner.
"Dabi and I were lovers. I'm pregnant," she told him, confessing her two biggest secrets she had been hanging onto for a while. "I'm in pretty damn deep, Toshinori Yagi. I don't know if you or anyone can save me."
"Oh, Melina," he sighed, running his big hands through his thick hair. "Who else knows about this?"
"Dabi? No one but you. The pregnancy. Well, there's Recovery Girl and Bakugo...don't ask," she said when his face crumpled into an expression of bewilderment. "Dabi might know about the baby after my encounter with Himiko Toga at the train station."
"Your what with who? When did that happen?"
Oops! She had accidentally let another cat out of the bag. Dammit, dammit, dammit.
"We will have a private discussion sometime, but not tonight, please," she begged. She leaned back over to ride another wave of nausea which emptied her belly of more of her dinner. "I swear I'll tell you everything."
"I should hope so, young lady," he returned in a very dad-like manner. "For now, come on. They're setting up a temporary dorm in the gym. You need sleep."
Melina needed a hell of a lot more than sleep. She needed a fucking break.
Thunder rumbled ominously and the sky opened up pelting her with large, cold raindrops that stung her skin.
Not tonight, Melina Zusa nature itself told her. Lightning streaked across the sky as the raindrops fell faster and harder on her head. There will be no breaks for you tonight.