HELLLLOOOO! Let it be known that I changed the summary of this fic - plot is the same, I just wanted a better summary LOL (peep the new cover art too). Also, please read the note at the end for Q&A that some readers asked on the previous chapter if you're interested. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: Boku no Hero Academia characters and plot events belongs to Horikoshi Kohei.

To Be a Hero

life curries on

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Shiro's stomach growled as the clock ticked to two in the afternoon. She had been left to her own devices since Aizawa was busy working on sorting out agency requests with the other Pro Hero teachers after the sports festival, so she'd decided to eat some food before she starved herself. One look in their fridge and then her wallet had left her scowling, and thus, she found herself going to the cheapest supermarket she could find.

The entrance jingled as she walked in. Despite it being a weekday, there was still a good amount of people. Shiro grabbed a shopping basket and bee-lined to the produce section first.

"Let's see..." her ruby eyes scanned over the vegetables before picking up a bundle of carrots and two large potatoes. She remembered seeing onions at home, so she headed towards the meats to grab a pack of beef stew meat. She also grabbed a carton of eggs before directing her attention to the dry foods and package isle.

Looking high and low, Shiro searched intently for the curry sauce mix. She'd never went to this supermarket before, so the product organization was completely foreign to her. She furrowed her brows. It's not even in alphabetical order...

She didn't have much luck until she neared someone standing in front of a section that looked promising. The person didn't seem to notice her arrival so he made no move to step aside. Thinking of giving the guy a heads up rather than butting in front of him, she reached over and tapped him on the shoulder. However, the sudden contact caused the male to jump and knock into the row of preserved plums and it came tumbling down on him.

"I'm sorry!" she immediately apologized and tried to help with cleaning up, only to be stopped as the male threw his arms up to prevent her from coming closer.

"I-I got it!" he told her and quickly picked up the packages to return them on the shelf.

Shiro watched the male with confusion and bewilderment. She noticed elf-like ears peeking out from his dark, messy hair, giving him an unique appearance. He was tall, but that could masked by his hunched form. Despite having the feeling that he was older than her, she couldn't believe how shy he was.

"Look, I'm sorry for scaring you," she said, her voice causing him to turn to her with an nervous blink. She felt kind of bad for him. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," he said as he looked to the side. Did he cause a scene? Did he look too incompetent? Gosh, he must have. "I should go..."

However, Shiro was looking at something behind him that caugt her eyes. She lit up and without thinking, she reached over him to grab the item. "Ah-ha!"

If the male was startled before, he was positively mortified now. To onlookers, it appeared that a 5'9" male was being forcefully caged in by a girl who was almost a head shorter. One had to wonder if he was being bullied, or perhaps this was some type of reverse roleplay?

The interaction barely lasted a few seconds, but to the male, it felt like an eternity. She was so close that he could smell a hint of citrus from her hair. He was nearly at the point of bursting from anxiety when the girl stepped back with a small box of curry mix in her hand. She looked really happy with her find and turned her gaze back at him with a small quirk of her lips.

"Sorry, what did you say?"

"Oranges!" he blurted, not all aware of her question as he only managed to say the first thing that came to his mind.

Shiro gave him a puzzled look. "Oranges?" she repeated before her brain clicked and she pointed to the left side of the store. She had just walked past the fruit isle. Figuring that he probably didn't know his way around the supermarket, she offered her assistance. "Follow me."

"Um, actually..." his voice was left unheard as she was already walking away. The only thing he could do without being rude was, of course, to follow.

Once they reached the fruits, she took him to where a variety of oranges were displayed and even handed him a plastic bag for his convenience. The male didn't know what to do other than to pick up two and putting it in his bag.

"Do you need help with finding something else?"

At her question, he immediately shook his head to prevent her from trying to help further. "I only wanted some... Oranges..."

"Okay then," she gave him a short wave, thinking nothing of this weird individual. "I'll be going. See ya!"

He also waved back meekly and watched as the girl left, only to be distracted briefly and made her way towards around isle. It was just around the corner from the dried foods isle where he was originally intending to get some snacks at, but he couldn't risk going back and seeing her again. It would be too embarrassing to explain.

So, walking to the cash register with the two plump oranges dangling in the plastic bag, he quickly paid for it and walked out of the supermarket.

"Yo, it sure took you long enough!" the blonde male waiting for him outside of the store called as he walked over. "Eh? Didn't you say you wanted to get some dried squid to practice later? What's with the oranges?"

The male in question looked away with a sigh. "Don't ask..."

The blonde laughed, knowing that he'll find out soon enough. As his best friend, he always got answers.

Shiro looked at the time as she left the supermarket; it was nearly one. Deciding that it would be faster for her to get home by cutting through a neighborhood, she made a detour to her right. The buildings in this neighborhood were older and more traditional, but it had an air of timeless style.

She looked ahead of her as she hurried along the edge of the road to avoid any incoming bikers or cars. Something in the distance caught her eye, and when she squinted to focus better, she saw a familiar symmetrically split head of red and white. She knew the male didn't live around here, but she was fairly certain of who it was. Isn't that Todoroki?

The male seemed to also notice her after her gaze locked on him.

Todoroki didn't let his surprise of seeing her slip too much as heterochromatic eyes looked at the plastic bags in her hands before trailing up to her face again. He hadn't recognized her from far away because the usually contained locks on her head seemed to roam wild outside of its binds. He realized this was the first time he's ever seen her without her silvery-blue hair in pigtails.

"Good afternoon."

"Hey, Todoroki-san," she greeted back, checking out his getup. Unlike all the times she's seen him in class with the U.A. uniform, today he was wearing a white tee under a deep navy button-up. He also had a small over-the-shoulder backpack on him. "Are you heading somewhere?"

"Actually, I just came back from visiting my mother," he revealed.

Shiro blinked in surprise. It was no wonder he looked like he's been liberated of a burden in his heart. "Midoriya-san's words must really have caused you to think differently about your situation, huh?" she offered him a small grin, being genuinely happy for the male. "I was getting worried that you'll never realize it."

"It wasn't just Midoriya."

"What do you mean?"

It might have taken him a while to realize, but after Midoriya's trigger during the sports festival, it became as evident as ever. Todoroki was just blinded by the anger he felt for his bastard of a father to actually sit and think about what people around him were trying to say. Meeting his mother today proved it all—if it wasn't for Shiro and Midoriya, he thinks that he wouldn't even have the courage to visit his mother. But today... It was his start line.

"Back in USJ, you reminded me that I can be the hero I choose to be. I never forgot that. Midoriya gave me the final push," he said sincerely. "I never went to visit my mother before today because I thought my presence would put pressure on her. But in order to become my ideal hero, I had to talk to my mother. There was so much that I needed to tell her... And she listened to everything I had to say. I have to thank you and Midoriya for believing in me because after today, I feel... relieved."

"Your mother sounds like an amazing person," Shiro remarked. "And hey, I'm glad it helped."

"Yes. I also told her about you and Midoriya. She hopes she can meet you guys one day."

"Ah," she said and scratched the side of her face, the bags hanging on her arm crinkling. "I'm nothing special."

Todoroki stepped towards her with conviction shining in his eyes, "I disagree."

For someone who always acted cool, he was being so warm today. This Todoroki is different... She was not sure how to properly take in his praise, but lucky for her, her stomach chose this moment to growl again.

"Sorry, I must be keeping you," he stepped aside to let the girl pass. However, his own hunger decided to make its presence known as well. Consumed by the resolve to make amends with his mother, he had skipped breakfast to leave early and visit her... It was no wonder his stomach was complaining now.

The two blinked at each other for a few seconds before Shiro spoke up in a sheepish drawl.

"Want some beef curry?"

Meanwhile, on the other side of town...

Bakugou had awoken past noon into an absolutely foul mood. He was kept up all night by his anger at the results of the sports festival, and when he finally went to sleep to forget about it, he still woke up angry. He just felt that something was off, like something he didn't like was happening without his knowledge.

Maybe it was that blasted Deku being a nerd like usual and telepathically pissing him off, or perhaps it was the Half and Half Bastard...!

Stomping to his bathroom to brush his teeth, he imaged the germs in his mouth were tiny versions of Midoriya and Todoroki and scrubbed as hard as he possibly could. It even pissed him off that he was so pissed off.

"DIE...! Damn germs!"

"Katsuki, don't wake up past noon and start yelling!" his mom yelled from down the stairs.

"AGHHHHHHH!"

"Sorry for the intrusion," Todoroki said softly as he walked into the humble home of Aizawa and Shiro.

Immediately he was met with unfamiliar sights after taking off his shoes. In his own house was much bigger since he had an older sister and two older brothers, not to mention his father was filthy rich from being the number two hero. Because of his family circumstance and how Endeavor forced him to train everyday, being home never felt like home. Shiro's place was small, but it felt surprisingly homely... Vastly different from his large and traditional, dojo-styled residence.

Shiro set down the groceries in the kitchen and brought her attention back to the male. She could tell he was politely checking out the place but she felt self-conscious about it because she's never really had friends over before. "You can watch T.V. in the living room or something... The curry won't take long," she said.

However, Todoroki was already besides her with his usual neutral expression. "I'll help."

"Eh? You don't have to..."

"You're offering me a meal. It's only right."

"Alright then," she shrugged. Todoroki was indeed really warm today; seeing his mother really did him good. She went to grab a large pot, knife, vegetable peeler, and a cutting board. After setting up the stations, she handed Todoroki the peeler, "Wanna do the honors?"

The male nodded wordlessly and got to work as Shiro heated a separate pan with oil to stir-fry the meat and onions first. The room was quiet saved for the sizzling in her frying pan and chopping of vegetables. While timing the meat, she snuck a peak at the male and found that he was already done peeling and wasn't having much trouble at dicing. He didn't seem like the type to cook often, but she supposed that being as great as he was, using a knife was more than easy for him.

"My sister cooks for my brothers and I, but I help out sometimes," he answered her unspoken question. She reddened slightly when she realized that he caught her staring and immediately looked away.

"I see," she mumbled. "Eraserhead and I usually just make whatever's edible."

"Aizawa-sensei cooks?"

"Surprising, right?"

"A little," he nodded, and she didn't blame him. Although most people would never peg Aizawa as someone to give an investment to take care of another human being, Shiro was the living proof that the man knew how to be a guardian, and a good one at that. He always acted indifferent, but he certainly was far from uncaring. Despite not having real parents, Shiro knew she had it good especially having the unfortunate luck to meet Todoroki's father.

"By the way," she trailed her ruby eyes towards the male. "I encountered Endeavor during the sports festival."

Todoroki stopped cutting the carrots and lifted his heterochromatic eyes to meet with hers. "I apologize if that old man said anything offensive. Please ignore him."

"It's nothing I can't handle," she shrugged with a slight smirk. "I told him off the same way I did when you offended me." Todoroki blinked as he remembered his rude comment to her early in the sports festival

"Again, I'm sorry about that."

"No need to apologize. Despite everything, you're nothing like him... And as a friend, I told Endeavor to stop treating my friend like an object."

That caught him by surprise. Her words made his heart warm. "You really said that to him?"

"Yeah," she nodded nonchalantly before giving him a confused gaze. "We are friends, right?"

Of course they are. "Yes," he had made sure of it because he didn't want to lose what they had from him being an ass. "Thank you, Aisaka."

"Just 'Shiro' is fine," Shiro told him with a reassuring grin. Though, as they talked, she had neglected the pan that was now smoking with charred meat. "Oh shoot—" she reached over too fast and ended up burning a finger, "Ouch!"

"Shiro!"

The pan continued to smoke, making her cough and stumble right into Todoroki's chest when he came up from behind. He reached across and swiftly grabbed the pan and threw a lid over it to stop the smoke from consuming them, and then he used his ice to cool down the overheated pan, letting it drop to a simmer. With the potential fire evaded, his focus immediately went the girl's injury.

"Let me see your finger," he ordered, though he was already holding it and walking her over towards the sink to run under cold water. When he was finished with the water, he held the finger gently in his right hand to continue cooling it down with ice.

Shiro could only allow him to do so wordlessly, acutely aware of how close she was trapped between his body with his arms around her. He felt warm on one side and just slightly cooler on the other, just like his personality. Maybe it was odd, but she decided that she liked him just the way he was... But of course, the close contact didn't make it any less embarrassing for her.

"I-I'm fine now," she told him, attempting to pull away from Todoroki's hold. Noticing her discomfort, he released her but continued to look at her with worry.

"It's still red. I should keep cooling it."

"It's fine," she reassured and waved the hand around. "Besides, it's just a small burn."

Todoroki looked dejected at her response. Maybe he overreacted, but this was the second time her hand got hurt on his watch so it was weighing him down some. "I don't want it to leave a mark."

Shiro finally realized that getting burned probably reminded him of what happened to himself when he was a child, making her feel extremely bad for being so careless. "Sorry... I should be thanking you," she apologized awkwardly.

Ever since she was little, she only had Aizawa to show her this level of concern and even then the hero always showed it in such a way that sometimes she had to question if she was simply hallucinating or not. She just wasn't used to it and it wasn't Todoroki's fault. Thinking of a way to divert his mood, she lifted the pan.

"Hey! On the bright side, at least the meat is oka... Oh," her words trailed off when she realized whatever was left in that pan was charred beyond edible. Her face scrunched with a blush while she tried to move the pan from view. "Nevermind...!"

Seeing the girl so flustered, Todoroki's worry dissipated and he felt a small chuckle bubble at the base of his throat. It was enough for Shiro to catch it and she couldn't take the humiliation. "Don't you dare laugh," she scowled. "Or you can starve."

But of course it was her stomach that growled once again in response and Todoroki had to cough behind his hand to keep from laughing.

"Todoroki-san, I'm serious!"

While Shiro shot him a stubborn look, there was an oddly satisfied feeling growing in his heart. There was just something about her that allowed him to let his own emotions free in unpredictable ways. Even when she was blaming him... He'll willingly take the fault every time.

"Of course... I'm sorry," he calmed enough to stop like she asked. He took the pan from her and made her sit while he did the work. "Let me make it up to you."

By the time Todoroki step foot into his traditional styled home, it was almost evening. Hearing his arrival, Todoroki Fuyumi rushed towards the hallway wear the male was putting away his shoes.

"Shoto, you're back!" Fuyumi's gray eyes were still as wide as this morning when she found out that he was going to visit their mother.

Todoroki was calm as the young woman paused to look him over. She had been anxious ever since he left and wondered how the visit went since it took so long. From the looks of his expression, it didn't seem particularly bad... Rather, was that a softer than usual look her stoic little brother sported on his face?

"So... How..." she continued as mix of concern and curiosity clearly showed in her eyes. "How did the visit go?"

Ever since the incident that sent their mother into the hospital, contact between Todoroki and the woman had ceased to exist. Fuyumi knew it was the fear that prevented Todoroki from seeing their mother, the fear that she would become even more unstable. Fuyumi had hope that things between the two of them could be rekindled, because their mother always looked so sad with guilt each time she went to visit.

"It went well," Todoroki told her. There was an unreadable look in his eyes, so she could only rely on his reassurance.

"That's good," she said before perking suddenly, "Ah, you must be hungry! I'll go and make something!"

"It's okay, I ate already."

"Really..." Fuyumi couldn't help but blink in surprise at the lift of her brother's lips. Is Shoto... Smiling?

Story will be back on Hero Killer Arc next chapter ~ now to the Q&A!

Shiro and Shigaraki: as of the last chapter, it's confirmed that they are blood siblings. In this story she is about 4-5 years younger than Shigaraki (so he may not reflect his canon age if it ever gets revealed and of course that changes some details in his childhood). They were both in the orphanage that burnt down 11 years ago - other details (like how they got into the orphanage) will be revealed in due time :)

Why doesn't she look like Nana: all I can say is that a lot of times grandchildren don't look like their grandparents (genetic relatedness = 0.25). It's the same with Shigaraki canonly - except he does have a similar mole under his lips like Nana. Shiro shares more traits with Shigaraki as they are siblings (genetic relatedness = 0.5).

Also remember, in canon Nana put her son (Shiro and Shigaraki's dad) in foster care as a child and never had any contact with him.

Hope that clears it up! Please feel free to ask more :)