(A/N: Thank you to Inuyoiushi, One-Shot King Z, and kibagaaralover18 for your reviews! And to everyone who followed, favorited, and added this story to their alerts. :) I kind of feel like this isn't one of my better chapters, but hopefully you all still enjoy. There will be a lot more action in the next one. ^^)


Tossing and turning, Izuku found that he could not sleep. It wasn't that the futon he had been provided with was uncomfortable-it happened to be one of the most comfortable beds he had ever lay upon-but because he felt strangely restless. The tension at the dinner table still weighed on his mind. More than that, Izuku may not have been able to see his reaction, but he had felt sadness, more than anger, emanating from Todoroki.

Having that fight with Dabi must have greatly affected him. That was why Todoroki had exited the dining area the moment his plate was bare...

Fuyumi had been the one to show Izuku to the guest room, apologizing on be-hath of her brother's while trying to assure him that they didn't normally fight like this. Yet Izuku had the strange feeling that wasn't the case. Fuyumi looked like she was on the verge of tears, and the green haired male felt guilty he hadn't said or done anything to try and comfort the slightly older female...

Then again, perhaps he would have only made things worse. He hardly knew anything about the small family, and it wasn't his place to butt in...Still, he couldn't deny that book and Dabi's words did make Izuku curious to learn more about the Todoroki's. More so on the youngest sibling...

Unleashing an exasperated exhalation of breath, Izuku flung the covers off of his form. Why was he thinking such things? He still wasn't even positive if Kaori and him were safe here...If he should even trust Shoto Todoroki. And yet...

Shaking his head, Izuku decided maybe going for a night walk might clear his mind. Wandering around the Japanese manor most likely wasn't the smartest move on his part, but wearing himself down might be the only way he'd ever get any sleep. Truthfully Izuku wouldn't have minded a bit of fresh air, but he also worried he would come off as ungrateful if it appeared like he was trying to escape if he was discovered outside...

Doing his best to be silent, Izuku's tabi covered feet pattered down the polished wooden floors. Most of the doors were shut, and he couldn't bring himself to look behind them despite the small part of him that wanted to. It wasn't every day someone got the chance to explore an authentic Japanese mansion. Although this mansion was filled with yokai like some sort of scary ghost story.

At least, that's what Izuku previously would have thought if he hadn't seen for himself that the residents here were completely different from what people, including himself, believed they were supposed to fear...

"Huh?" Izuku whispered to himself when noticing one room wasn't shut completely. If he recalled right, this was Todoroki's dwellings. His heart beat might have increased, but Izuku found that he couldn't help himself but to peek inside.

The red and white haired male was laying curled up on his bed in a position that made Todoroki look strangely innocent and perhaps just a little fragile...Such a sight made Izuku's breath catch in his throat as he watched him. Moonlight streaming in through the open screen hitting the kitsune's face, making him appear as if he was glowing, wasn't helping the peculiar emotions that had abruptly overcame the freckled faced male either.

Not only that, but Todoroki wasn't wearing his mask...This might be the only chance he'd have to see what the fox yokai fully looked like without his guise...

Feeling the hairs standing up on the back of his neck when Izuku went against his better judgment, the teen slowly made his way for where Todoroki peacefully slept. It was true he couldn't see his eyes, but he was shocked by what was before him. The way Dabi talked about a scar, he figured Todoroki's face was on par with his older brother's horrible burn marks. This wasn't the case.

There was indeed a large burn mark on Todoroki's face, and moving his bangs tenderly away, Izuku saw the scar started at his hairline and went down to his cheek. Obtaining it must have been painful...but Izuku couldn't understand why he was hiding it. There was no reason for Todoroki to feel ashamed. He was probably one of the most handsome individuals Izuku had ever laid eyes upon. It almost made sense why he was considered a king here.

Wh-what in the world am I thinking Izuku scolded himself while patting at his warm cheeks. You sound and are acting like some sort of weird creep right now...

Deciding it was time he headed back for his own bed, Izuku let out a startled yelp when he was grabbed firmly by the wrist. Had Todoroki woken up? What was he going to do to him after discovering Izuku just leaning over him similar to a stalker?!

Yet Todoroki was still fast asleep, this causing Izuku to blink multiple times. He was about to try and pry Todoroki's firm grip away, only for another cry to leave the green haired male's lips when he was tugged down to lay in the bed beside the fox yokai. What was worse, Todoroki was cuddling him like he was some sort of stuffed animal!

O-oh gosh! Wh-wh-what do I do?! If I try to squirm away, it might wake him up! If the heat coming off my body doesn't do so first!

Izuku felt like he was on literal fire right now, and he wouldn't be surprised if he passed out at any moment. He had never been held so tenderly like this before...And what made the timid male more flustered was the small content smile that formed on Todoroki's lips. It made him almost not want to try and break free from the unexpected and uncomfortable position he had found himself in.

I suppose it wouldn't hurt to stay here. J-just for a little while...I mean, Todoroki-san's bound to let go of me eventually. Right...?


"Hey..."

Letting out a small moan, Izuku grabbed the nearby pillow and pressed his face into it. "Just give me three more minutes, Mom..."

"I'm not your mom."

Izuku's eyes shot wide open when he comprehended that the low voice wasn't his mother's at all, and he let out a small noise that sounded similar to a mouse's squeak since he was met with a brilliant turquoise eye and a grayish-brown one staring indifferently at him.

"AYAAAAAAAGH! WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!" Izuku screamed out in a mad panic, jumping up out of the bed and fleeing to the other side of the room. He pulled his knees up to his chest and huddled against the wall, his form shaking. Just what was the demon planning to do to him?!

"What do you mean? This is my room," Todoroki murmured, letting out a small yawn while he rubbed the sleep from his left eye.

Staring at the yokai with an incomprehensible expression, Izuku wasn't sure what he meant. And it took him a few moments to recall his steps from last night; realization making Izuku's fair cheeks turn a blotchy red. How could he have forgotten? Todoroki had pulled him into his arms, and somehow, Izuku must have fallen asleep. Despite having planned to leave the moment the kitsune released him.

"I-I'M SO SORRY!" Izuku apologized in a much louder tone than he needed to, shifting onto his knees where he bowed over and over again.

Todoroki's fox ears twitched while he tilted his head a little to the side. This small human male could be rather confusing at times. "You don't have to apologize...I was just surprised to find you beside me. That's all..." His eyes shifting to the door when he heard it being flung open, Todoroki rubbed at the back of his head when seeing a breathless looking Fuyumi and Natsuo.

"A-are you alright? We heard a lot of shouting and-Oh!" Fuyumi stopped herself, covering her mouth while her cheeks dusted pink seeing Shoto's red haori hanging off his shoulders where it exposed a good amount of his pale skin. What was more shocking, Izuku was flushed, looked a little sweaty, and his own clothes were disheveled.

"Wow, little brother! You certainly work fast!" Natsuo chuckled out, sending Shoto a grin and a wink.

Not seeming the least bit embarrassed by his siblings insinuation-unlike Izuku who was stuttering like mad-Todoroki quietly shook his head. "That isn't it. Izuku merely rested with me last night," Turning his attention on Izuku, Todoroki said in a more questioning tone, "Did you have a nightmare? Or was the bed we provided not comfortable enough?"

Izuku gulped at this, knowing he couldn't just tell Todoroki he had come into his room to snoop around. This would probably be an unbelievable lie, but it was the only thing he could come up with on the spot. "I-I must have been sleep walking. I do that sometimes...A-and your room just happened to be the one I came into..."

Natsuo and Fuyumi shared glances, this causing Izuku to chew on his gum. He knew they wouldn't believe him...He figured it would be the same with Todoroki, that was why he almost toppled over at the words the red and white haired male spoke.

"So that's it. We might need to secure your door at night. It could be dangerous if you ended up going somewhere you shouldn't,"

"Or you could just keep Izuku in your room when you sleep. It'd be a good way to keep an eye on the kid, don't you agree, bro?" Natsuo mused with a knowing smirk.

"I suppose that would work, too."

Noticing Izuku looked rather wobbly, Fuyumi smiled sheepishly before saying, "Why don't you take Izuku to the bath's, Shoto? It would do you both some good."

Todoroki contemplated this for a moment before nodding his head in agreement, waiting for his siblings to leave before he was standing up, straightening out his clothes and heading over for the desk in his room. Noticing that Todoroki was reaching for the kabuki mask, Izuku found himself walking over to stand beside the taller male.

"Um, you don't really need to wear that. I mean, you shouldn't hide your face..."

The King of Yokai slowly blinked his heterochromia irises for he felt shocked by the human's words. "Your not frightened by my appearance?"

The truth was he had been intimidated by the male in the beginning, and he did still feel nervous around the demon, but seeing such a handsome face that held a loneliness to it, Izuku no longer felt fear. Maybe Kaori was rubbing off on him because he was finding himself more interested in yokai. Well, at least this particular one...

"No. I'm not." Izuku declared honestly. Being truthful had it's advantages. The smile Todoroki sent him told Izuku he had just received something extremely rare from the quiet fox apparition.


When Fuyumi had mentioned the bath's, Izuku thought she had meant a private one in their home. He assumed Todoroki and him would be taking turns. Instead, he was being led to an outdoor bath house where Izuku couldn't help but feel a tad nervous seeing the other yokai completely nude. Most of them might already be relaxing in the water, but still...

Not to mention he could hear the girls on the other side of the wooden wall...

"Kyaah! Where do you think you're grabbing, you weirdo?!"

"So human's are actually busty? I remember you used to be a lot smaller back in the day...Not that you beat Momo-chan or Nejire-chan, or myself, but like, I'm totally surprised!"

"C-Cami-chan...I think you're scaring her..."

"Eh? But that's like silly. Girls always compare sizes, ya know...Her thighs seem pretty thick too. I'm like, super amazed!"

"D-don't touch there, either!"

Izuku couldn't help but look sympathetically over at the wall despite knowing Kaori couldn't see him, though when a body floated by him, and noticing the small amount of blood, Izuku felt the hairs on the back of his neck standing straight up.

"A-are you okay?!"

Mirio just laughed, easily lifting up an unconscious Amajiki as the blood Izuku had seen appeared to be coming from his nose. "Don't worry about him. He tends to pass out like this whenever the girls mess around. You should see him when we co-bathe together."

"I feel bad for your friend, though. Some of the girls don't know what personal boundaries are..." Ojiro, a sarugami, or better known as a monkey spirit, mentioned with an awkward smile.

"Kaori should be okay. Her aunt used to be a troublemaker in school and got into a lot of fights, so she taught Kaori how to defend herself," Izuku said, letting out a small chuckle since he could hear that Cami woman whining due to Kaori having apparently splashed her. Though from the sound of it, all of the girls seemed to have gotten involved in a water battle.

Kirishima laughed at this while nudging Bakugou, who was currently sunk under the water and blowing bubbles while he glared at Izuku. "Maybe it's a good thing you didn't fight Kaori, then," he mused, just grinning when the temperamental male turned to glower at him instead. "Though I'm still amazed Izuku here was able to take down my mate."

"The human bastard just got lucky!" Bakugou fumed as he shot up out of the water, his cheeks tinting lightly pink.

"Luck or not, he's more useful than he looks. I mean, he actually got Todoroki to take off his mask," Kaminari mentioned, leaning back against the rocks with a smirk. "It's been years since I've seen his face, I'd almost forgot what the guy looked like."

Feeling just a tad offended by Kaminari's comment, Izuku shook it off to instead wave his hands defensively in front of himself. "I-I really didn't do anything!"

"You are the one who told me I didn't need to wear the mask," Todoroki voiced softly, staring almost intensely at the freckled faced teen.

Izuku now found himself sinking into the warm water like Bakugou had been where only his eyes showed, but his was due to embarrassment and not vexation. It probably was a good thing he didn't notice Mirio, Kirishima, and Kaminari sharing knowing grins with each other to add further to his humiliation when Todoroki was swimming over to sit beside Izuku.

"Perhaps I am imagining things, but the water feels like its gotten hotter?" Iida brought up while scratching at his head in confusion.

"Nope. I have a good feeling it's not your imagination," Mirio said cheerfully after pulling a still unconscious Amajiki out of the water and laying his form across the ground where he could cool off.

Todoroki frowned noticing that Izuku did look awful red, and he placed a hand against the males forehead. If he wasn't so used to fire, he would have jerked his hand away from the heat that was pooling from it. "Maybe this high temperature is too much for you? Perhaps it would be best for you to get out,"

"N-no. I'm fine. Don't worry," Izuku stammered, scooting away from Todoroki's surprisingly gentle hand.

The fox yokai seemed like he wanted to say more, but his brows furrowed when he noticed a lightly panicked Tokoyami rushing into the onsen.

"We have a problem. Some of the Ayakashi have entered the village and are attacking the residents and buildings," the crow demon managed to address calmly despite the small bead of perspiration on the side of his head.

The other yokai stood up along with Todoroki, the once lively atmosphere having grown extremely tense.

"What the fuck? Those freaks have never just entered the village like this before!" Bakugou growled out. "So why are they attacking now?!"

"Maybe it has something to do with the human's?" Shinsou mentioned with a deep frown, half-closed lavender orbs turning to gaze at Izuku who instantly tensed up. Was the village really being attacked just because Todoroki was allowing Kaori and him to stay here?

Todoroki didn't respond to this, but he turned to look at the others with a serious expression. "I want you to focus on evacuating and making sure those who can't fight remain safe. I'd prefer to avoid casualties, but if you have no other choice but to kill, don't hesitate...I'll join the battle once I take Izuku back to my manor. Amajiki, bring Kaori there as well. Fuyumi can watch after them for the time being,"

"Alright." Amajiki, who Izuku hadn't even seen wake up, said with a firm expression that didn't match his normally socially awkward demeanor. And the indigo haired male disappeared on the spot along with the other yokai, leaving Izuku and Todoroki alone.

Normally Izuku would have been abashed having a naked Todoroki easily pull him out of the hot springs and rather close to his tall and muscular form, but he was too worried about what was happening.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Izuku asked. If these older beings were attacking because of him and his friend, he didn't feel right just hanging back while he was protected. Maybe he could use those charms Kaori had on her...? They had worked before.

"Yes. You can stay safe and remain in the manor." Todoroki said bluntly, covering Izuku's waist with a towel before he lifted the male up into his arms and was rushing off.