Natsuo screamed, "How the hell did Shouto get kidnapped?"
Uncharacteristically pale, Endeavor said, "The culprits took him from his bed last night. It appears the mansion's security has holes. We don't even know exactly when he was kidnapped. Because of the lack of a ransom note or a revenge broadcast, the police suspect quirk traffickers."
That had been a rhetorical question, but Natsuo couldn't even muster up the will to shout at his old man about it. Fuyumi sat in an armchair before the living room fireplace, staring at her hands. Her eyes looked as empty as Mom's when they'd carted her off to the mental hospital. This filled Natsuo with terror, because Fuyumi had always been the rock of the family.
"Why isn't this all over the news?" Natsuo asked, his voice sounding thin and desperate even to his own ears. "We need everyone looking for Shouto. Use that damn fame of yours for a good purpose for once."
Endeavor swallowed. He refused to raise his eyes from the ground. "The Hero Public Safety Commission believes that it would cause the public to lose faith in heroes if they knew that the son of the number two hero got kidnapped so easily. They requested silence for now. The police are doing everything in their power to find Shouto."
"That's bullshit!" Natsuo screamed. Tears streamed down his face. Whirling around, he punched the wall. This couldn't be happening. Little Shouto was only six years old. "What use are you as a hero if you can't even protect your own family?" Then Natsuo fled the living room and ran out of the house, trying to run from the truth—that Natsuo himself was even more helpless than Endeavor to do anything to save his little brother.
The hospital room was silent except for the beeping of a heart monitor. Inko Midoriya lay still on the bed. Bandages covered her arms, her chest, and her entire face. The doctors had only managed to save one of her eyes. After she'd woken up an hour ago, she'd asked where Izuku was, then gone completely motionless ever since the answer.
Hisashi Midoriya pushed open the door. In a voice barely above a whisper, he asked, "Are you awake?"
At first, the answer seemed like no. The silence became heavy. Then Inko croaked, "Don't look at me. My face, it's…one of the traffickers was a fire user."
"I'll get you the best doctors in the world for the reconstruction surgery." Hisashi took a seat next to the bed. "But even if you have scars, Inko, they'll be beautiful to me, because you got them protecting our son."
"I failed," Inko said, her tone merciless toward herself. Although Hisashi opened his mouth, she quickly spoke over him. "I know that you're involved in some sort of shady business, Hisashi. I never asked any questions because you always provided well for me and Izuku, and because you saved me back when I was young and needed your help. I don't need to know now, either. Just promise me that you'll do whatever it takes to get our Izuku back."
Hisashi, aka All for One, took her bandaged hand and said, "I promise."
Dabi scowled and slouched down the darkened stairs, trying to look older than his teenage years. Then he realized that slouching made him shorter, so he straightened instead. It had only been a few months since Dabi had run away from that creepy orphanage where he'd woken up covered in staples and scars. A few months since he'd returned home, only to find no place left for him because he'd already been replaced by his perfectly quirked little brother. He'd starved on the streets. Although he'd mugged a couple people, he'd yet to work up the nerve to injure anyone. He knew he needed to become a proper villain…he was just waiting for the correct opportunity, that was all. The staples on his face ached. He needed painkillers and a night's sleep off the streets. No matter what, he needed to succeed at this job, even if he suspected he'd been hired for his desperation and expendability.
Two men led the way, one a giant with a gecko head and the other a scrawny, tall man with flames dancing from his fingertips. (Dabi knew his own fire was hotter. Even if he no longer considered himself son of the number two hero, he still had that much pride.)
At the bottom of the stairs, the giant unlocked the padlock on a metal door. The scrawny fire-user said, "Keep an eye on the kids for a few hours while we finish our preparations to flee the country. It's an easy job. They've already been beaten too badly to fight. In fact, our pickup team got a tad overzealous. We mainly need you to watch and let us know if it looks like one of them might die."
Kids? Dabi felt a flicker of unease, but he pushed it down. He was a villain now. The world didn't care about him, so he didn't care about anyone else either.
Dabi also pushed away his concern about why he was being paid so much money just to keep an eye on a pair of kids for an hour, or why no one else had been willing to take this job. He knew there must be a catch. His empty, growling stomach didn't care.
The gecko-headed man pushed open the thick door with a creak. In the darkness, Dabi could barely make out two tiny figures crouched together in a barred cage. As his eyes adjusted, bright green hair stood out in the darkness. Both boys looked around six years old. The green-haired boy had been beaten so badly that his entire face had swollen up and turned purple. He lay limp on the ground, eyes closed and breathing shallowly. A metal collar had been fastened around his neck. The second boy cradled the unconscious one in his lap, silent tears streaming down his cheeks. He glared up at his captors through red and white bangs, and Dabi stared at the scarred face of his youngest brother.
Pure shock erased all other emotion from Dabi. How was it possible for Shouto to be here? Shouldn't Endeavor have protected his precious perfect masterpiece better? Was this all an illusion created by a strange quirk? Had these men brought Dabi here because they knew he was a Todoroki? Nothing made sense.
"Watch out for the green-haired one, he bites. Well, not anymore without his teeth." The scrawny man laughed caustically. "We nearly held the red-and-white haired brat for ransom, but we found a buyer willing to pay more than his father's entire net worth. The green-haired one is our real prize. Supposedly he can give and take quirks. He's worth the GDP of a small country, so you'd better keep a careful eye on him. Don't worry, he can't use his quirk with that collar on. Just toss some water on his face every so often. Our doctor said we should wake him up periodically because he has a concussion. We can't let the merchandise die on us before the big auction day."
Shouto looked up and growled. A spark ran down his collar. It must be programed to stop him from talking. He cried out in pain, which made the collar shock him again. Tears ran down his left eye. The other eye was too swollen to open. Hatred burned in his stare, as hot as the blue in the center of a flame.
"I don't like how you're looking at me, brat," the scrawny man said, his hands lighting up as he reached into the cage. Shouto cowered away from the flame, trying to cover the other boy with his body.
A deep, primal rage sparked to life inside Dabi's chest. The most ancient and sacred sibling instinct in existence ignited: no one hurts my brother except me.
"Don't you dare touch my little brother!" Dabi screamed, then flames exploded from his body and blasted both men into the wall.
All Might paced in front of the window of his tower office. "It must be All for One."
"I don't know who else would have such far-reaching power," Detective Tsukauchi agreed. "But why would All for One declare war on quirk traffickers across Japan?"
The savagery of the murders had shocked the nation. In just the space of half a day, over a hundred quirk traffickers had been found dead, mangled, and impaled on spikes. They'd formed a chain long enough to line several major highways. All Might muttered, "He's sending a message. This feels personal. But what angered the King of the Underworld so much?"
"Someone didn't sell him a quirk he wanted?" Detective Tsukauchi shrugged.
This felt a lot more serious. The ancient villain rarely got his hands dirty personally but now he seemed determined to spread blood from one end of Japan to the other. All Might briefly wondered if the traffickers had taken someone important to All for One, then discarded the notion. He couldn't imagine the villain having a family, much less caring about his family. "Surely some of the quirk traffickers must have turned themselves in for police protection by now. Can we interrogate them?"
"We can't even find a single one alive!" Detective Tsukauchi shook his head. "The last time we followed a lead, we found five more suspected traffickers dead in an abandoned basement, encased in a block of ice. We presume All for One already had enough bodies for his big display."
"Frankly, a power struggle among criminals isn't my primary concern at the moment, not with young Todoroki still missing." All Might looked at his hands, feeling old and tired. He'd offered his condolences to Endeavor, who hadn't even gotten angry at him. That more than anything told All Might how broken Endeavor must be. The investigation had been going poorly. "Please, don't we have a single clue?"
"Another boy of a similar age was kidnapped by traffickers around the same time. His name is Izuku Midoriya. Strangely, he's registered as quirkless…but when I interviewed his mother and she said that he didn't have a quirk, it pinged as a lie to me."
"Perhaps she hid his quirk because she feared it would make him a target." All Might frowned. "Let it go. I have no intention of getting a bereaved mother into trouble. We need to find both boys fast, because quirk traffickers are fleeing the country. It will be much harder to save them if they're moved abroad. I don't like to think about what might happen to the children if All for One accidentally comes across them in his rampage. At best, he'd steal their quirks. At worst, he might not even notice that he's squashing the children as well as their captors. Give me every suspected location for the trafficker base, no matter how unlikely. I won't sleep until I've checked every last place."
Dabi's hands shook as he stuck a key into the truck ignition. He'd killed a man to get these keys. His first murder. He hadn't even meant to—he'd been in a rush to escape the pursuers on his trail and used a bit too much fire. He felt shaky and sick. This hadn't been planned. He had no idea how to get out of here alive. But he had no time to freak out. Glancing over his shoulder, Dabi asked, "Seatbelt on?"
Shouto nodded. He sat in the passenger seat, holding the unconscious green-haired kid in his lap with the seatbelt over both of them. Dabi hadn't planned on bringing the spare brat along, but Shouto had carried so Dabi figured why not, as long as it wasn't any extra work for him.
His stupid little brother looked pale but was holding up better than expected, even with the roasted flesh of the dead man still lingering in the air. Dabi hadn't found the set of keys to remove the collars, not that he'd had time to properly look. He'd considered burning off the collars, but the miniature Fuyumi living in his head shouted that melted metal and delicate children's necks made a bad combo.
Dabi had never driven before, but it couldn't be too hard. He'd always beaten Natsuo at racing games. He slammed his foot down on the accelerator, shooting through the open garage door. A mesh fence topped with barbed wire loomed overhead. Dabi turned the steering wheel, but too far, spinning in a complete circle. The truck struck the fence and, thanks to the armor on front, plowed through it. Uh, Dabi had totally meant to do that.
Behind him came shouting and motors starting. Dabi maneuvered the truck back on the road and pressed the accelerator pedal to the floor. Shouto clung onto the handle next to his seat for dear life.
A man on a motorcycle pulled up next to the truck and fired stone pellets from his finger. Dabi met them with a blast of fire, burning straight through the truck window because he didn't have time to unroll it. The motorcycle and rider fell over. But another truck pulled up alongside Dabi. He spun the steering wheel away, accidentally running into a tree. The armor on the truck saved him again, but then more motorcycles and vehicles surrounded him. One of his front wheels had slipped into a ditch, bringing him to a painful stop. His seatbelt left bruises across his chest.
Looking around at the surrounding enemies, Dabi hissed. They hadn't shot him yet for fear of killing their merchandise, but traffickers were getting out and approaching. Dabi glanced sideways at Shouto and the green-haired boy. His eyes lit up as a brilliant idea occurred to him. "Shouto, give me that green-haired kid. The traffickers said that he was their prize. If we throw him out of the truck, then it will distract them long enough for us to escape."
Shouto clutched the boy closer to his chest, hissing and baring his teeth. Dabi contemplated trying to wrestle the kid away, but then green ooze started to eat its way through the side of the side of the truck. He had no time.
If he went out, at least it should be with a bang.
Unleashing a massive blast of blue flame, Dabi screamed, "I'll show you the fire of the man who would have been number one hero if his dad gave him a fair chance!"
The surrounding forest ignited. Trucks and trees alike burned. The distraction gave Dabi time to drive out of the ditch. He aimed at the group of motorcycles, a weak link compared to the trucks, driving through them. Then he was back on the road, approaching a bridge. Yet another stunning success for the future greatest villain!
Unfortunately, Dabi's fire had spread to ignite the bridge. The front half was burning away. Oopsie. Dabi didn't dare glance behind him, not when he heard the howls of angry men in trucks approaching.
He could probably jump over the gulf if he drove fast enough. People did it in movies. Dabi increased his speed until the needle wouldn't move any further over. Shouto clamped a hand over his mouth to stop his screams.
The truck soared over the gap. The wheels hit ground on the other side. But the back of the truck hung in open air, then started to tip over. Shouto moaned in terror. His collar shocked him. He trembled.
Leaning over, Dabi burned off the back of the truck.
It worked. The remaining bits of truck did not fall, and somehow lurched down the road despite the flames rising up from the open-air back. Shouto rocked back and forth, his mouth open in silent screams of terror. Tears streamed down his cheeks. The green-haired boy in his lap twitched.
Coughing from the smoke, his old injuries throbbing, Dabi kept pressing down on the gas pedal like his life literally depended on it. Through the ash-stained windshield, he saw buildings up ahead. If he could just make it to the city, he might find help. Or at least a hose to put out his flaming truck. He very much didn't like that sound coming from the engine. It sounded sorta like something might be about to explode.
Dabi, the kids, and the truck crashed straight into the outstretched arms of the Number One Hero.
All Might moved in a blur. He wrenched off the truck door and piled Dabi, Shouto, and the green-haired boy onto his back. Then he threw the truck into the air just before it exploded. The flaming ball soared through the sky like a shooting scar.
Gently, All Might placed the three boys on the ground. "I'll be right back after I handle the criminals on your tail. You're safe now. Fear not, for I'm here!"
"Shut up, you overly smiley windbag," Dabi muttered, singed and dazed.
All Might asked, "Are you related to Endeavor? I see a strong family resemblance." Then he shot off without waiting for an answer.
Dabi woke up in a hospital. The sound of a knife sliced the air. His eyes shot open.
It was only Fuyumi, sitting in the bed next to him and peeling an apple. Dabi's scarred lips smiled. Still groggy and under the influence of painkillers, he muttered, "You remembered that I liked my apples peeled."
"Touya!" Fuyumi threw her arms around him and hugged him.
"Ouch. Watch the bandages," Dabi grumbled. His stomach throbbed.
Standing on his other side, Natsuo ruffled his hair. "Why didn't you tell us that you were alive? You know what, I don't care! I'm just so happy to see you again!"
Fuyumi sniffled into Dabi's shoulder. "You saved Shouto. You're my hero, big brother."
In spite of himself, Dabi smiled. It felt kinda good to be a hero again.
Natsuo said, "You're getting a medal as soon as you can get out of bed to receive it. The police want to interview you, too. You're the only source of information about what happened older than age six. All the traffickers died mysteriously before they could reach jail. They got horribly mutilated, but I can't find it in me to care."
Fuyumi said, "Shouto and his new friend Izuku Midoriya are in the hospital, too. I'm sure they'll want to see you now that you're awake. I'll tell them." She stood up.
Before Fuyumi could reach the door, it opened. Endeavor stood in the doorway, twisting his hands.
A tense chill fell over the hospital room. Defensively, Dabi said, "It looks like I became a hero after all, Dad, even though you didn't believe in me."
Endeavor took a deep breath, then said, "I'm sorry. I'll help you become a hero if that's what you want, I promise."
A hard knot under Dabi's chest melted away. His shoulders heaved with sobs from the tears unable to fall from his damaged eyes.
Dabi's family left to bring Shouto. But before they returned, another guest appeared. One second, the room was empty. The next, the window was slightly cracked and a man wearing a black trench coat and a fedora stood before Dabi's bed. A cool red gaze examined Dabi's battered form.
Curtly, the stranger said, "I'll bring by Dr. Ujiko tomorrow for your medical exam. I confess that he didn't heal you as much as he could have the first time—but you weren't such a top priority back then."
Dabi stiffened. "You were the one who picked me up after I burned? Wait, were you the one who killed all the traffickers?" Instinctively, Dabi knew it. This man radiated murder.
The villain only smiled very slightly. "I have a gift for you." His hand shot forward to touch Dabi's forehead. A spark passed between them. "I gave you a heat resistance quirk. A shame, I was using it to wear suits in the summer, but I'm sure I can find another one."
The underworld had many rumors about the man who could give and take quirks. He was not known for his benevolence. "Why would you…?" Dabi stopped as he noticed a certain family resemblance. "Green hair is your kid?"
The villain shrugged. "You might as well know, since he's best friends with your little brother now. I could use a protector to keep an eye on my child when he comes over to your house to play. In exchange, I promise that you'll be able to succeed at anything you want, even something so worthless as a hero career."
Then the villain vanished, closing the window behind him.
Dabi stared at his scarred hands and muttered, "I guess if I'd dumped that kid out of the truck, then I'd be super-dead. I should be nice to Shouto from now on. I owe him big time."
OMAKE TIME:
Omake: The Mandatory Fourth Wall Breaker
Dabi: I think I did great as an older brother in this fic.
Author: …But you tried to throw Izuku at the quirk traffickers.
Dabi: That kid isn't my younger brother! He shouldn't count against my score!
Author: If you'd ditched your little brother's best friend then you would have ruined your relationship with him. Also, Big Brother Tomura wants a word with you.
#
Omake: Dabi's First Attempt at Crime
Dabi: Your money or your life!
Social Worker: Oh, you poor thing. You look like you're dying. Here, take this money and get something to eat. I wish was carrying more cash so I could get you to a doctor. Here's my business card. Please come see me, and I promise I'll help you. Don't try to mug anyone else—I'm telling you this for your own good. You look like you'd die if a small child kicked you.
Dabi: When I later brag about my life of villainy, I'm going to leave this part out.
#
Omake: The Security at the Number Two Hero's Home Sucks
Detective Tsukauchi: We reviewed the cameras around your mansion looking for clues about your youngest son's disappearance.
Endeavor: We have cameras? Yeah, that does seem like something necessary to the residence of the home of a top hero targeted by numerous villains. I don't know why I never thought to use them before.
Detective Tsukauchi: Do you know this scarred teenager sneaking into your house?
Endeavor: Touya!
#
Omake: Not All the Bodies were Caused by All for One
All Might: We're not certain yet if the string of frozen corpses is related to All for One. We might have a three way underworld war on our hands.
Meanwhile:
Fuyumi: Tell me where to find my little brother or I'll freeze you from the inside out!
Natsuo: I've read medical books to prepare for my future doctor career. I know how she can keep you alive long enough for you to talk.
Endeavor: Imagine being burned alive and frozen at the same time.
Natsuo: Dad? What are you doing here? You can't stop us!
Endeavor: No, I'm here to help.
#Partway through, Rei busted out of the hospital to join the slaughter of quirk traffickers #Sharing a meal of soba is nice #But nothing brings a family together like a shared murder spree
#
Omake: Brotherly Blackmail
Dabi: Little brother, I need you to erase everything that I said during the rescue from your memory. In particular, never tell Izuku's father that I tried to sacrifice his kid.
Shouto: I take bribes in the form of soba.
Dabi: You were cuter when you couldn't talk.
#
Omake: Dabi's Version of the Story
Dabi: And then I found All Might lying injured in the ground and carried him away to safety in my truck, too. Naturally he begged me not to tell anyone about his shame, so the public never heard the full story.
Shouto: Lies! The truck was on fire! I have nightmares where it blows up and we all die!
Dabi: Jeez, are all younger siblings this whiny about being rescued?
Hisashi: Yes, they are. You should have heard my brother complain about his nice safe bank vault!
#
Omake: Aftermath
All Might: I'm glad that All for One didn't find the children first, because he would have stolen their quirks.
Dabi: Nah, All for One probably would have grabbed my little brother for his creepy orphanage of brainwashed children, like he tried to do with me.
All Might: Holy shit, I can't believe I underestimated how evil All for One can get.
Hisashi: (Chilling in his civilian disguise) You have to give the man credit for being the single most evil bastard around.
All Might: He's a total monster.
Hisashi: That's an understatement! He's the single worst monster in human history.
All Might: He's an irredeemable, murderous, despicable scumbag.
Hisashi: You forgot demonic.
All Might: We're completely on the same wavelength.
Hisashi: I know, it feels strange. Don't stop, tell me more.
#
Omake: After All for One's Fight with All Might
Hisashi: Darling, look, no face! We match!
Inko: …I know I promised not to ask questions about your business, but what the hell did you do?
#Actually there's a good chance All for One never fights with All Might in this AU #Because he's too busy eradicating every quirk trafficker off the face of the earth #All Might didn't see any reason to chase his archnemesis down until All for One was done with that
#
Omake: At Kamino
Shouto: Hi, Uncle Hisashi! What are you doing wearing that ugly skull mask? Did you get lost? You should leave, this place is about to get dangerous.
All Might: Uncle Hisashi?
Izuku: Haha, what are you talking about? We've never seen that villain before in our lives.
Shouto: Uncle Hisashi is a villain? Does Aunt Inko know about this?
All Might: It turns out that All for One is Endeavor's brother, how shocking!
Author's Note: This is yet another prompt from my sister. You can thank her love of Dabi-Shouto brotherhood for keeping this series alive. Dabi also demanded another shot at being a big brother after the disaster last fic. He did good this time, and got rewarded.
On an unrelated note, I posted a collaboration fic with Goofy_Boss over on Archive of Our Own called "Friendly Alien Invader." Summary: A young alien Izuku abducts All Might and All for One in the middle of their battle, in order to study them for his school research project. Earth will never be the same again. Delete the space to get the link:
archiveofourown.
org/
works/40988271