Izuku made his way to the student box, and talk to Todoroki about what happened. He carried the files with him, on top of a couple of forms he filled out shifty before searching for the dual quirk user.

He entered the box, and looked around. No student noticed him yet. He saw a couple of students missing, but he was sure they went to grab some lunch before their one on one battles.

He noticed Kaminari staring at him. Smiling, he walked over to him. "Hello Kaminari, I hope you're ready for the upcoming battles." Ignoring the baffled expression of the electric user, he looked around. "Have you seen a student who goes by Shouto Todoroki? I have to speak to him." He tapped the file. "Urgent business."

Kaminari nodded in understanding. "Well, he didn't say much, as usual, but I think I saw him head for the bathroom. He's been in there for the last twenty minutes." He finished as he watched Izuku already on his way.

The first thing Izuku noticed walking into the bathroom was that it was unbelievably cold, which was a dead giveaway that the student was in there. The ice was thick, but he took out a torch from his cloak and started melting some of the ice. When he melted enough, he heard a sniffle. He noticed Todoroki in the corner, head in arms.

His gaze softened significantly. He approached the boy, careful not to slip on any ice. "Hey kid. You're not holding up so great, huh?" He sat next to Todoroki, hand on the dual users shoulder. He just stayed there, silent, waiting for the dual user to speak.

Meanwhile, in Todoroki's mind, everything was a mess. There were feelings of relief, pain, happiness, but most unusual of all, sadness and worry. He had a heroes heart, so he was worried about his family, his mother, and he was a bit worried about his father coming after his family. He noticed when Izuku sat next to him, but he was afraid to speak. Fearful of the emotions he might let loose.

Todoroki was never the most emotional, even out of his family. He was afraid of what might happen if he let everything out.

"Hey, Shouto, take all the time you need. I'll be right here."

"But what about the other students?" Todoroki's voice was a mere whisper, but Izuku heard it all the same.

"What about them? My job is counselor and Dean of students, and if I just left you, I'm straight up not doing my job." Izuku had an amused glint in his eyes, smiling softly at the ice and fire user.

Todoroki remained his usual stoic self, not responding to what Izuku had said. Ten minutes went by, and the two hadn't said anything since Izuku's response. And now? Todoroki was the one to break the icy atmosphere.

"Izuku?" The man in question arched a brow. "Will you promise not to tell anyone what I'm about to say?"

"Yes I do. I won't tell a soul."

Todoroki sighed slowly, heavily, as if he's throwing a planet sizes burdern off his chest. it was almost like he had kept what he was about to say for a long time.

"I-I." He started crying. Izuku rubbed the small of his back, helping him let it out. After a while, Todoroki's tears lessened. He looked up, twin streams still flowing. "I had thoughts, of ending it. Ending it all if my father was to keep going with...with his plan."

Izuku froze to the core, and not by Todoroki's quirk. This...this was new. A tear leaked out of Izuku's right eye. He looked at Todoroki, who struggled to keep himself stilled. What happened next, Izuku couldn't stop himself.

He wrapped Todoroki in a hug. A hug, that broke the dams Todoroki had placed. The dams that he had built up for years, only to be demolished by a single action. Todoroki felt something foreign, a feeling of warmth, of trust, of brotherhood. A connection had started to form.

What he didn't know was that Izuku felt the same way many years ago, when his mother died, when the nightmares could not be contained and repressed. He felt the same before he became a vigilante.

Izuku needed to let the student know that he wasn't alone, that he will never be alone.

All of this was communicated through a single hug.

Izuku knew he was crying, yet didn't stop himself. He needed this, as did Todoroki. He knew the student was touch starved, as evident from the stiffness of Todoroki. Izuku was the same way. Izuku felt that what he meant to say was said nonverbally, and the dual teen received that message.

"Hey Izuku?" The voice was still timid, untrusting of itself. Todoroki looked and felt like glass about to break by a feather.

Izuku smiled softly. "Yes, Shouto?"

"Is it natural that I feel...happy about what happened to my father?"

Izuku paused, not sure of what to say, entirely. He had to word his response carefully. "Well, it's different for some people. it's a hard topic to discuss, but my conclusion is that it is natural. I've seen the evidence of your life long abuse, and I've seen the scars, and your psychological results of your father's actions." Izuku looked at the ceiling, voicing his lost thoughts. "But for some people, it's a way of life. They are subject to conditioning that forces them to rely on the abusers. It's why so many women cannot easily leave a lost marriage, or an abusive relationship. Does that make sense?"

Todoroki nodded, digesting the information.

More questions just kept popping up, and he didn't seem to have all the answers at the moment. He decided to think on what was said later. He checked his watch. He frowned, seeing he has only five minutes of lunch left.

He looked towards Izuku. "One last question."

"Shoot."

"Whats going to happen to my family? We're not exactly independent."

Izuku smiled, his grin brightening the room. "That's a surprise."

Todoroki supposed that was all he was going to receive, and brushed off his knees. He nodded to Izuku, smiling. "Thank you for talking with me. I...needed it."

Izuku walked up to his shoulder and patted it. He internally cursed that Todoroki was just a little bit taller than him. "It's my pleasure, Shouto. I'm always here if you wanted to talk. Now, go rejoin your class. The next session is coming up."

Todoroki nodded and ran off, leaving the vernadette alone.

Slowly, Izuku slid back to the floor, his visage crumbling like sand. Just hearing what Todoroki thought about destroyed him internally. He needed to know how the other Todoroki kin felt, and he wasn't ready. Not at all.

For the first time in seven years, Izuku wept, completely alone.


"Hey kid, you alright?"

Aizawa noticed the vigilante didn't even register that he was there. Based on his body language, he knew the kid just went through something, and found it best not to pry.

Aizawa wasn't feeling all that great either. On top of his arm being in a cast for the next two days, his pride of being close to unbeatable had shattered. Be took in stride, pledging that he won't make the same mistake again.

The eraser hero looked at the youngest staff member, watching his movements carefully, glancing at the boy's eyes as they quivered. This wasn't normal for the usually spunky kid. For a minute, he contemplated checking up on him, but elected to leave him alone, allowing him to have a moment alone.

Unbeknownst to the teacher, a moment alone was the last thing the vigilante needed.

Izuku wanted to go on patrol right now, to clear his head, to just move. He couldn't though. He promised his apprentice he'd watch and see how much he improved against his fellow students.

After a few minutes, he decided he needed to be with people his own age.

He had forgotten that he was only fourteen, and he was still growing. He started walking to the student boxes.

For the first time in three hours, he genuinely smiled.


Pretty short filler chapter. The next one will be big.