A/N: Thank you SO much to everyone reviewing! Every time I get that notification, I just want to update immediately - and so I then spend ages editing, mulling things over and end up rewriting almost everything. Basically with every review, know that I edit for a good couple of hours (yes, it takes hours :') )
But with every edit we get closer to an update, and that motivation is ALL you guys! Thank you so much!
I'm sorry for the longer than usual wait guys. I've been stuck writing up applications, running tests and writing cover letters all week; why is applying for internships so hard? Plus, my dad decided to whisk our family away on a road trip for over half the week, so that took up some time as well :P
Also, due to several suggestions from you guys, I made an AO3 account and posted this story there, under the same title, so yeah, that's a thing. But this version on fanfiction will remain a step ahead than on AO3, cuz Fanfiction is my home xD
But anyway, without further ado, here's the next chapter! (A really long one, to hopefully make up for the slightly longer wait)
And apologies in advance for Jiro's potty-mouth xP
The Fifth Fault - Secrets
"Your father is having an affair."
Momo gaped. The apple fell from her hand. "…Huh?"
"He came home late last night," her mother continued.
Slowly, finally, the gears started turning again and her body unfroze itself.
"A…And?" she asked, finding her voice.
"That's it."
"Oh for the love of-" Momo couldn't contain the heavy sigh that escaped her lips. She bent over to pick up the apple, walking over to the sink to give it a quick wash. "Mother, that could be due to any number of reasons."
This was so classic of her mother. A person could have been perfectly honest, followed everything to a T, and yet luck would lead circumstances in such a way that her mother would latch onto it, like a starving dog to prime-rib.
"It could be," her mother stiffly agreed. "But your father has no reason to leave the house in the first place."
That was true. Mr Yaoyorozu ran a hero-gadget lab attached to the side of the house. His quirk was similar to hers, although not as powerful or specialized. He'd used it as the baseline to build an organization centralized around supplying weapons or gadgets heroes may need. He almost never left the lab, not even for dinner. Any groceries or errands were left for the women and servants to handle. In fact, the last time her father had left had been for her high school admission interview.
So for him to have not just left his lab, but the house entirely, was quite surprising.
"Still, it could be anything. You've got to make sure."
"That's what I plan to do," the Yaoyorozu matriarch said, resuming her task of glaring a hole through the opposite wall.
Momo sighed again.
Satomi Yaoyorozu possessed the nitpick quirk. Easily explained, her mother had the ability to examine anything to its finest detail. This included everything from a crime scene to a simple, guilty tick, no matter how intricate. It wasn't the quirk a superhero could use in battle, and she was immediately denied admission into any superhero courses. But her mother hadn't been swayed, and her passion for justice remain strong. She decided instead that it would be her who sentenced the guilty, her who would find the facts, and her words that would have them locked up for good.
It had made her into an unparalleled lawyer.
However, justice aside, Momo's life had been very tedious as a result. Whether it be leaving her glass of milk only half finished, not completing her homework or performing poorly on a test, she could never get away with anything.
Back when she had been in preschool, Momo had insisted on being allowed to walk home alone. After her first tantrum (Mrs Yaoyorozu had no tolerance for screaming children) she was granted the request, on the condition that the little girl come straight home. On that very same first day, Momo had ventured to a playground that lay on the way home. It was there that Momo tripped while traversing the jungle gym and got mud stained all over her dress. That alone was enough for her mother to find out she had broken her only condition, and no matter how many tears she shed, never once was Momo allowed home alone after that.
The first time this changed was after her admission into U.A. high. All those failed attempts at trickery had taught her to learn how to tell half-truths instead of lies. Even then it wouldn't always work. So Momo had resigned herself to just being particularly quiet and exceptionally perfect. Being perfect meant no need for lies, and no need for scrutiny.
"Just, give him a chance to explain," the young heroine said passively, not sure if her mother would listen, and added as an afterthought, "And let me know what happens."
But her mother didn't seem to have heard anything, engrossed in staring at the wall. Momo began walking away, sparing a final glance at her mother from the doorway, before walking to her room.
Needless to say, Momo was distracted.
Her parents were all she could think about.
Mrs Yaoyorozu had never gotten back to her last night. Not that Momo had been too surprised. Her mother wasn't the type who involved her children in anything; independent and strong to a fault. And Momo hadn't heard her father come in either, although that probably meant he'd gone straight to his office - which had an outdoor entrance, for clients.
She had stayed awake that night, staring unseeingly at the ceiling's flickering shadows as the curtains fluttered in a gentle trickle of air, an endless stream of memories and thoughts gushing through her brain. Thoughts whirled around her mind, grinding against her skull, loudly and roughly, and she only realized how straining they had truly been when she woke up the next morning after a restless two hours of sleep, with a pounding headache.
The following school day crawled by at a snail's pace. Momo felt herself deteriorate as time passed; she'd read the same line over and over again in her textbook, she barely put up a fight in the exercise class, and didn't raise her hand to answer any questions asked in lessons. Instead she spent the hours staring out the window, ignoring the world entirely. Her head just wasn't in the game. She'd speak only when spoken to, and even then with just curt, direct answers, nothing more. Iida came up during third period, reminding her about a student council meeting next week for the upcoming end of term tests, and the thought of having to focus on studies overwhelmed her. She had to take the following math class off and go to the nurse as her headache reached crushing levels.
Momo spent that lunch break alone on the roof.
In the end, she decided to just go home and skip her afternoon training session. With the day she'd had, getting any proper training done was out of the question. Just thinking about hurling herself around the room made her nauseous and quite honestly, this frustrated her.
Why was she having to suffer for something her parents started? She was losing valuable opportunities.
It was time to rip this toxic weed from the source, roots and all.
She decided to just sit in the kitchen and wait for her mother to come home, all day if she had to; the creation heroine would be getting her answers. And though the wait would be long, Momo decided she could use it to catch up on the extra course she'd been putting off, to help alleviate the burden of exams (there was only slightly less than a month left, after all). Feeling alert for the first time that day, with a goal clear, she nodded resolutely to herself.
As the final bell rang, signaling home time, her eyes scanned over the classroom, in search of the trademark shock of red and white hair. But Todoroki, it seemed, had already left for the training rooms. She debated for a while whether or not to let him know she wouldn't be joining him this afternoon, but then she decided against it.
It was just one day, and Yaoyorozu doubted he'd notice anyway.
It had been two hours.
Two hours she'd have usually spent productively in school. Two hours in which Momo had barely made any progress in her work. The vice president had managed to finish her homework, but the extra studying, now piled up in quite daunting amounts, she'd hardly done at all.
The clock ticked on, each click like a small whack to her temporal lobe.
Her mother usually came home at 6-7pm. It was currently 5:30. Todoroki would be locking up soon, after what must have been another productive workout. And knowing her luck, the half-n-half prodigy had probably made astonishing progress today, a breakthrough of breakthroughs, a revelation, since, of course, the one day she missed out on something, everyone but her ended up moving further ahead.
And knowing him, he probably hadn't thought twice about her not being there. Yaoyorozu sighed in irritation, her crossed leg dangling in the air, leaning back into her seat. Her thoughts were suddenly swarmed with cursing the half and half hero and his genius, for reasons she didn't care to think about nor have the mental strength to delve into.
The door swung open and Momo was instantly wrenched back into reality, watching as their housemaid came for her final stop in the kitchen. The middle-aged woman ended her shift by cooking dinner and leaving a portion for her father in his lab.
Rosa-Marie came in every day, usually leaving as her mother came home, just doing light housework. They had a full-time staff as well, of course, but Rosie had been working for the Yaoyorozus before their breakout into riches, and hence, they kept calling her over, because the poor lady needed it and because they appreciated her work.
Momo stared discreetly at the unsuspecting lady's back. Not really the most attractive of women, and being a bit on the chubby side; her mother was far more physically fit. But then again, you could never tell with men. After a certain age, they stop being so picky-
'Stop it!' Momo cursed herself. And then cursed her parents again for making her think such…such incredibly inappropriate, degrading thoughts. She sighed, resting her forehead on her hand, realizing she was cursing a hell of a lot of people that day.
She hunched back over her books, trying to refocus, but her eyes wouldn't obey. As a hero, they were taught to never rule out any possibility, because anything could happen, for any reason. So if her father was indeed having an...an affair, and that too, with the maid... To think her father would drag their name through the mud that way was something that made her gut clench and her blood burn white-hot.
Momo jerked with a start as her pencil nib snapped off from being pressed with such intensity. Her dark eyes flitted back up to the oblivious woman, who had begun humming some foreign tune to herself as she cooked.
"Rosie," she called out over the sizzling of the fryer. "You have kids right?"
"Yes. Twins, Momo-sama."
"So where are they, while you're here? Who takes care of them, I mean?"
At this, Rose-Marie turned. "My husband," she chirped and gave her a beaming smile. Momo returned the gesture, albeit a bit weakly, not that the older woman saw, turning back to the stir-fry. Momo felt her gut clench in an entirely different way - with guilt. That wasn't the smile of someone who'd have an affair. That grin spoke of joy and happiness, in a way that someone knowing they were in the wrong simply couldn't achieve. In a way only someone who was fully happy with life could manage.
How awful these doubts were. How awful this suspicion was.
Surprisingly, the woman continued, ignorant to the inner turmoil that were Momo's thoughts. "Yesterday was payday, so they all came to pick me up, and we had dinner out. It was their birthday last week, you see."
And the forces above had given the lady an alibi.
The young heroine couldn't help the spread of relief bubbling within the coils of her heart, her gut unclenching for the first time as the much-sought-after relief washed in. "Oh, you should have told me! Hang on, I want to give them something as well."
As Momo hurried over to her room, gears changed and her mental mechanics whirred again at full throttle, mind moving a mile a minute. So it wasn't the maid, thankfully. That, however, opened up the rest of the world for suspects. A large problem would be solved if they could find out where her father had gone the previous night. Of course, her mother was the expert detective so-
Momo froze, her hands clamped around the packet of muffins she had grabbed from her bedside cabinet. Her mother. Her mother hadn't yet told her a thing. She didn't even know if this was an affair they were dealing with in the first place and yet already the young heroine had begun drawing up a list. The plastic crinkled loudly as her grip tightened.
When Momo returned to the kitchen, it was to see Mrs Yaoyorozu had come home. Rosa-Marie had set the tray of dinner, a Chinese chili stir-fry with garlic chicken, ready for Momo's father. But that wasn't what made Momo hesitate; it was the aura that had settled over the room during her absence.
Her mother was wearing that look, the one of broiling intensity, which no one could ever look dead in the eye. Her eyes were so precisely narrowed that someone who didn't know her on a basal level might mistake for kindness. But the effect was ruined with the harsh frown she always wore with it, and that alone was enough to confuse anyone. Her eyes flashed at intervals, so quickly that, again, the average onlooker would assume it was just their imagination.
It was Satomi Yaoyorozu's quirk in motion.
Every now and then, her mother would direct Rosie a question, which the woman answered with an awkward, rather reluctant smile, her eyes darting from Mrs Yaoyorozu to her dress, smoothing her hands down and then up again. It was then that Rosie spotted Momo standing stiffly in the doorway.
"Ahh, Momo-sama! Your mother just came home." The spell was broken. The housemaid quickly turned back to the tray, picking it up as Mrs Yaoyorozu folded her arms, her regular, bland look back in place.
"Rosie, let me know if my husband is in the lab before leaving please. Do not disturb him, just come back and tell me."
"Yes Ma'am."
Mrs Yaoyorozu watched as the maid left, more hurriedly than usual, towards the back door leading to the lab.
"Rosie was with her family last night," Momo said, her grip tight, knowing what her mother was thinking.
"Yes, I'm aware," her mother said, still staring at the back door. Momo leaned against the counter, silence dropping around them, both waiting for the other woman to come back. "What is that?"
Momo jumped at the sudden question. "H-hu- Oh," she leaned forward against the counter top, staring at the snacks in her hands. "I want to give these to Rosie."
"That is unnecessary."
"What?" the younger teen said. "I want to. It was her kids' birthdays last week, and I thought it would show respect-"
"Respect?" Her mother interrupted, with a sharpness Momo hadn't had directed at her for years. "What exactly garnered that; her ability to wipe tables?"
"She's a person, Mother," Momo snapped back. Her mother's tone was something that would have intimidated her before, but she was older now. "Maybe respect was the wrong word, however, It's a gesture I would make for anyone else, so I'm doing the same for her."
"There is an infallible barrier between employer and employee. It has been there for as long as humanity has existed, and is not about to fall with your childish idealism."
Momo didn't bother replying, biting her tongue, choosing instead to glare at her mother's back. A heavy, cold silence fell over the two Yaoyorozu women. Her mother was going through a lot, that much she knew, but Momo was tired of being understanding. Just once she'd like her mother to actually be a mother and show empathy herself. It was petty of her to be taking her frustration out on others.
Finally, after what felt like half an hour, the maid re-entered.
"He's there, Mrs Yaoyorozu."
"Thank you, Rosie," Satomi said. As said woman went to go get her coat and bag, the lawyer continued. "I heard it was your twins' birthday."
Rose-Marie smiled, ever cheerful. "Yes Ma'am."
"How old are they now?"
"Five, Ma'am."
"How wonderful. I believe Momo has something she wishes to give to them."
Momo didn't move for a moment, her body solid in shock. Her mother was unbelievable. The speed at which she had changed tune was disturbing. Not just that, but no one would ever know how insensitive her mother was being just moments ago. Momo remained silent long enough for her mother to shoot her a piercing look, and with a mental growl, the creation specialist handed over the small gift. Rosie thanked the young heroine, smiling softly, and Momo couldn't help but reciprocate.
"Wishes to them from my side as well, Rosie," Mrs Yaoyorozu's voice chimed from the side. "Take care."
The Yaoyorozu women silently watched as she left. The soft click of the door latching shut seemed to break the spell, and Momo slowly returned to her seat, waiting for her mother to say something. But she didn't, instead opening the fridge and taking out some juice for herself, as well as putting on a cup of coffee to brew.
"Mother," Momo couldn't hold back any longer, forgetting the entire dispute over Rosie. Such things didn't get discussed in their household. Everyone's points were made clear, in the most persuasive way possible, and if no consensus was reached, it was never brought up again. In any case, the teen had far more pressing issues to discuss at the moment. "What happened last night, if you'd please."
At her daughter's voice, the older woman's head turned. She didn't reply immediately, gaze unfocused, taking a sip of juice. "I spoke with your father yesterday," she said eventually. Momo stared at her expectantly.
"He is indeed having an affair."
The room dropped several degrees just then, she was certain. Momo's gut plummeted uncomfortably and her heart jumped to her throat. All around her, the room spun, a blur of dark, subtle colors, and if she wasn't leaning so heavily on the counter, she would have fallen over. Her blood ran cold and she felt sick. "He told you that?" Momo breathed out, so softly she wasn't sure if her mother heard her.
"No. He denied it quite heftily," the older Yaoyorozu drained the glass and placed it in the sink. Then, for the first time since her mother had come home, she met Momo's gaze, a quiver of something that might be fear twinkling in her eyes. "But I'm certain he was lying."
And when her mother said someone was lying, they were lying.
"You weren't in the training rooms yesterday."
Momo looked up from her book. It was the next morning. She was in her seat, and it was still before U.A.'s first bell.
Todoroki was stood, looming over her, standing between their desks, his gaze like a stormy sea; a petulant, cloudy grey with a tumultuous, deep blue. The muscles of his jaw kept bulging, like he was biting his tongue, holding back on some sort of torrent of words, possibly because he knew they would last too long for his regular speaking-only-when-necessary quota.
She looked away, not able to handle the half-n-half hero's intensity just then. "Well observed."
A pause.
"Iida says there wasn't a student council meeting either."
"There wasn't."
Silence.
"You appear to be healthy enough."
Again no response.
"Although you look awful."
A vessel throbbed visibly at her temple.
"And you're clearly not dead either-"
Momo slammed her book shut. "I went straight home yesterday, Todoroki," she said rather snappishly, quite different from her usual composure and she instantly felt that, crossing her arms tightly, refusing to look at him. It was a tone she had never used, let alone with him, and it increased her already pulsating headache to a steady throb. Just then, it didn't occur to her that he was asking where she was because he had noticed she wasn't there - something she had been agonizing about for quite a while the previous afternoon. Because just then, Momo was not in the mood to talk to anyone.
Especially not a fickle, fiery tempered pre-hero whose patience had clearly been worn thin.
Todoroki's stare had turned piercing, and a sudden onslaught of anger burst through his pores, making her skin crawl. Ah, so it was rage he'd been holding back.
The girl turned her chin the other way and she heard rather than saw him throw his bag roughly on his desk, scraping his chair as loudly as he could against the floor (his attempt at petty spite, she assumed), pulling it out from under the table and heavily collapsed onto it.
'What an absolute child', Momo thought to herself with a scoff, simmering as well, his anger contagious. Her eyes were trained forward, barely noticing as the rest of the class milled about, waiting for homeroom to begin. Unseeingly, she watched as Bakugo rocked back and forth in his seat, mud-coated boots perched on the table top, staining the polished surface. Without hearing anything, she watched as Iida came up and began lecturing the sandy blonde about the etiquette of sitting. Her finger traced the rim of her book absently. Her every sense was fine tuned on the boy to her right, waiting for anything from him to dissect, interpret and hyper-analyze.
This was so unfair. He was being so unfair. None of this was her choice, and yet he was making her feel bad, like she had done wrong against him, like his bad mood was all her fault. As if everything he was feeling just then could have been prevented if she had only been considerate.
Her neighbor's moody aura spilled over her in waves and she internally huffed. Why was this boy so high maintenance?
They sat like that, in heavy, undulating silence for a while; him leaning back heavily in his seat, arms folded sternly, radiating 'Do Not Disturb' in all directions. Momo sat rigid, back straight, flipping idly through her book's pages, the picture of poise, betraying none of her inner turmoil and yet her eyes remained unmoving.
It was then that Aizawa came in and homeroom finally began.
Slowly, as her teacher's monotonous voice droned on about how 'he had been told to tell them this was still a school and just because they were becoming heroes didn't mean they should stop studying and let their brains rot', her anger started to subside. As the deep, baritones wafted through her brain unprocessed, like hypnosis, the harsh frustration left and the guilt started to kick in.
She imagined Todoroki, at 6pm yesterday, waiting for her and not knowing where she was, not knowing if she was coming back or not…he may have even waited there, by the doors, thinking she'd gone to the library. And obviously he couldn't go looking around the school for her either, in case he missed her when she came back. She'd probably be just as mad if he'd done that to her. In fact, she'd have definitely been mad. And letting Todoroki know wouldn't have taken more than a few minutes. Minutes she'd spent in grueling agony waiting for her mother to come home anyway.
The young heroine sighed.
When Aizawa finally stopped speaking ('So please at least try and score decently on the upcoming tests. Let the other teachers know I'm not running a zoo of gorillas'), and the class erupted into chatter waiting for the first class bell to ring, Momo swallowed her pride and turned to address the still-glowering teen next to her.
"I suppose…" she began. "Next time I'll let you know. Before leaving." Her voice was formal and clipped, but it was the best she could manage just then. She studied him out of the corner of her eye. Todoroki didn't say anything, eyes remaining closed, but the repellent aura had faded away, and she thought maybe his eyebrows weren't so harshly knit anymore. He remained largely motionless. Seconds ticked by, and yet he remained silent.
Momo sighed. She probably deserved it anyway, and decided to just let it go. It was the best she could offer in her current state.
But just when she'd given up on him replying, he spoke.
"That'd be helpful," he said rather gruffly. He wasn't smiling or looking at her, but his eyebrows had relaxed and the lines at the corners of his mouth had disappeared, and she decided that was the best he could do as well.
The young pre-hero managed a small smile at that. Good to know that even though it felt like someone had picked up the snow globe that was her life and dropped it after shaking it roughly, some things hadn't changed.
"Oy Jiro."
The girl in question turned, and her previously blasé expression was wiped clean.
Kyoka blinked in surprise as she saw the ice specialist looking at her in the hallway. She looked to her left and right, certain she'd see someone else conveniently standing behind her also called Jiro, because surely the resident ice king himself wouldn't want to talk to her. But the hallway was empty (which was surprising, considering Mina had been right next to her. That little deserter). The short girl turned finally, meeting his gaze full on.
She pointed at herself, raising an eyebrow, as if confirming it was her he was talking to.
Todoroki nodded, crossing his arms across his chest, chin raised and eyes lidded, seemingly annoyed that this had already taken as long as it had. She made her way over to him, still dazed.
"I need you to fix Yaoyorozu," he said before she could get a word out.
She blinked. "Come again?"
"Yaoyorozu," he repeated. "Something's not right with her…" he drifted off here. Kyoka observed him as he stared off to the side. Now this was quite the development.
As far as she knew, him and Momo weren't especially close. In fact, their only solid interaction had probably been somewhere during the sports tournament. Although there had been that time with her bloody nose. Not to mention how Kaminari claimed both elites were now sharing the training rooms after school. And then there were those pictures...
Scratch that, something was definitely going on between the two of them.
The small heroine smirked. This was getting interesting. Suddenly realizing she'd been quiet for quite a while, Kyoka looked up only to see his expression had turned livid in impatience.
"Oh?" was her airy reply, as if she was none the wiser. She had obviously realized something was off with Momo yesterday. It was practically stamped across her forehead in giant neon letters. Not once had the creation specialist smiled, or tried starting a conversation or intervened in their daily scuffle (Bakugo had once again picked yet another fight with Deku and yet, only Iida had arrived to the scene). And not once had she raised her hand to answer a question in class.
But for Todoroki, infamous lone wolf, to have noticed at all, and then bother so much as to come call her out…
Definitely interesting.
"She's been exuding depression all day," he elaborated, slowly, trying to find the words to explain himself. "It's starting to drain my energy as well."
Jiro held in a snort of laughter. Mismatched eyes snapped to hers, as if sensing her mental scoff. Needless to say, all nonsense was instantly wiped from her face, and she was at full attention.
"Well, why don't you try talking to her?" the small girl asked.
"I did."
That honestly surprised her and she blinked. He had unfolded his arms only to stuff them into his pockets, staring off into the distance laid beyond the hallway windows. It irked Kyoka to no end how she was unable to read his expression. In comparison to someone like Kaminari, who was as pathetically decipherable as an open book, Todoroki was an entirely different species.
For one, it made planning her course of action quite difficult. And if there was one thing Kyoka loved, it was being in control. Well, there was nothing more exposing than a person while flustered.
"Ahh," Kyoka sang. "You did something."
His eyes snapped back to onto the small, black-haired girl. "No, I didn't." His eyes swam with something she realized with a start were emotions. Irritation. The young prodigy's gaze was piercing, and it suddenly dawned on her how much taller he was. It made her uncomfortable.
Kyoka decided she hated being around him.
"Or at least, I don't think I did," he mumbled, and then looked away again. For a moment, Kyoka stared, transfixed by the blatant display screening across his irises. There were so many feelings, so suddenly, that she didn't have the chance to recognize even one before Todoroki switched it off. When he turned back to look at her, his eyes were blank yet again.
"Just fix it."
And with that resonating command, he walked away, leaving Jiro still mulling through what had just happened.
"Yo, Momo." The vice president looked up from her lunch, watching as Kyoka grabbed a seat, sliding it up to her desk. "So I know you've been giving off vibes to leave you alone, and I've been respecting that. But I just wanted to clarify; I'm here for you, a'ight?"
Momo gave her friend a look. "...Thanks."
The sound expert leaned forward. "And guess who else was worried." The taller girl offered a mild half-glance, as if she was only paying attention because she had nothing better to do, popping a bite of lunch into her mouth. "Shoto Todoroki."
Momo swallowed. "Oh?" she said, shooting her friend a leveled look, eyebrows drawn together and mouth pulled in a frown.
"I know right!"
"What makes you say that? Have you been speaking to Kaminari again?"
"Hey, I resent that!" the short-haired girl straightened up. "I come up with my gossip through actual fact! Mr Frosty came up to me himself and asked me to help you."
Instead of blushing or squealing or having any sort of normal reaction, Momo instead hunched over, frown intensifying. "He's still angry," she muttered, and scooped some more rice into her mouth.
"Dude," Kyoka couldn't believe this. "I said 'worried' not 'angry.'"
"I highly doubt he said anything of the sort," Momo said aimlessly.
Kyoka paused at this. It was true that the ice user hadn't specifically said the words 'I'm worried' but that was beside the point. "Well, just trust me, I know worried from pissed. And what do you mean 'still'?"
The creation specialist shot a highly nonplussed expression in Kyoka's direction, indicating that she'd greatly appreciate a topic change. But Kyoka simply stared at her expectantly, knowing that it was only a matter of time before her friend relented. It was their thing, ranting about school and their peers. Of course, this meant that whatever Momo wasn't talking about was probably personal and family related. It also meant that telling Kyoka all about whatever had happened between Todoroki was fair game.
And sure enough, with a sigh Kyoka knew was more frustrated than what she felt, Momo put her box down. "He's upset because I didn't tell him I wasn't coming to the training rooms yesterday. He must have waited five extra minutes at the most," she added defensively, something Kyoka had learned meant she didn't fully believe what she was saying. Momo glanced at the unoccupied seat next to them. "He needs to get over it."
"Oh, finally I hear about your after school shinanigans from the horse itself!" The creation specialist shot her a look at the less-than-flattering description. "Do you know how frustrating it is having Kaminari and Kirishima go on about how the bro-code is faultless, and how I might as well accept it, since I'd never get anything out of you, because girls were too occupied deciding who would go with who to the bathroom." Momo gave her friend an incredulous look. "I know. Don't worry, I made sure the only thing either of them heard for the next two hours was a dull ringing."
"I didn't know my training was some sort of huge secret I was keeping," Momo said. "The only time I see Todoroki is when he kicks me out to lock up."
"That's not what the rest of the class thinks," Kyoka said matter-of-factly, finally opening up her lunch as well.
"And what, pray-tell, does the class think?"
Kyoka took that as her cue to smirk. "That you two are hooking up."
For the first time, what would be considered a normal reaction flickered across the creation heroine's face. Her eyes widened, mouth parted ever so slightly, and then she looked down to stare, hard, at her half-finished lunch, thick eyelashes fluttering with each blink. She swallowed, and a delicate touch of color dusted her cheeks. After letting out a small breath, Momo closed her eyes.
"Everyone needs to focus on the more important things in life," the vice president responded, levelly, as she readied herself another bite with her chopsticks. "For instance, studying for the upcoming midterms."
"Oy, I have my life fully in order, thank you very much. It's just nice having a distraction from it sometimes. Besides, seeing our two rigid elites crushing on each other is-"
Momo shot her a tight-eyed glare at this. "That's not what this is." Kyoka opened her mouth, but the black-haired girl cut her across. "I'm serious Kyoka. I'm not in the mood for baseless rumors right now."
The short hair girl dragged her chair closer and leaned over. "Baseless, eh? I wouldn't call these baseless." She pulled out her phone and held up a picture. "Taking a leisurely trip downtown doesn't quite count as baseless does it?"
Momo snatched the phone out of her hand. It was a picture of her and Todoroki in the bus, her looking spaced out, while he was bent over, probably in the midst of signing something, so you couldn't see his face, although the signature hair erased any doubt.
"Where in the world did you get these?" she breathed.
"U.A. was tagged, as well as you two, so it automatically came up on my feed. Probably everyone else's as well," Kyoka leaned back, arm draped lazily over the back rest, satisfied her detective work was having the right effect. "Scroll right, there's more."
There were, indeed, more pictures, from different angles, and even a video of her telling off that one irritating kid. Momo groaned, her head falling into her hands. "This is not what I need right now."
Jiro plucked her phone back from the vice president's limp hand. "Yeah well, forgive me if I don't sympathize all too much. I mean, last time I checked, we were on the same side, but then I learn from public trending topics that my closest U.A. bud is hanging out with Mr Hands-Off, and I know nothing. So I have no choice but to put a bunch of two's together."
"Kyoka-"
"I want to be on your side, Momo. But you have to let me be."
Momo sighed. "I'm sorry. I really didn't mean to keep you out of the loop, believe me. I just forgot about it completely."
Kyoka laughed at this. "Harsh. Poor Snow-King."
"A lot happened right after that," Momo said, indicating the pictures. "So it was kind of...pushed to the back, I suppose."
"Yeah, I can tell. So what's been bothering you, if not Todoroki? I'm all ears."
Momo gave a long, close-mouthed sigh. She began aimlessly playing with the food in her bowl, pushing the grains from one side to the other, lost in thought. "Thanks Kyouka," she finally managed. "It's just family stuff." Kyoka smiled slightly at being brushed aside. But it was expected. At the very least, she was glad she'd been able to read correctly assume it had been private issues keeping her friend silent. "I'm not mad so much as I am distracted. I'm sure I'll be fine soon."
"Family stuff can be rough," Kyoka said, taking her first bite. "I remember you mentioning your mom being seriously anal."
Momo let out a breath of laughter at that. "That's a way to put it I suppose," her eyes acquired a distant, hollow look. "Although this time, it may not be her fault..."
She looked up to see Kyoka looking at her, with an honest expression, all traces of teasing and jokes gone. It was a face that reflected an honest determination to listen and help. Right then, at that moment, Momo realized just how good of a friend she had, and an honest, pure smile graced her lips for the first time in days.
"I'd tell you Kyoka, I would, but I'm not too sure myself what's going on," she reached over and squeezed her friend's hand, hoping her sincerity would follow through. "Once I do, I'll be dumping it all on you, so prepare yourself."
"Surprise attacks are what heroes need to be ready for, so don't you ever worry about the time or place," Jiro pulled out her hand and fisted it. "Kyoka Jiro is always ready for anything, especially for Momo Yaoyorozu-san." It took a few seconds where Kyoka had to give her several large hints and shake her fist a few times. But finally, Momo made a fist of her own and bumped it against her friend's, sharing a giggle.
They both resumed their lunch after that, and soon, the genuine smile began to simmer down as Momo imagined what exactly that conversation would entail. Would she be crying when she eventually talked to Kyoka about this? Would her family be in shambles? Would some bloodthirsty reporter find out before they did? The squeeze over her heart was back, stronger than ever, and for a while, she wondered if she should just tell Kyoka everything right there, in the middle of a classroom full of gossip-hungry teens.
"So, Todoroki..." Kyoka's voice unknowingly cut through Momo's inner panic. "Do you like him?"
Momo had to swallow extra hard as her pharyngeal muscles froze up.
"No!" she said loudly, after recovering from a bout of coughs. A few of the kids in class turned to shoot the two girls curious looks and both girls waved their glances away, Momo apologetically and Kyoka with a harsh glare, before the former turned back to her friend and gave a much quieter, but much more vicious, "No."
Kyoka gave her a narrowed, suspicious look.
"Oh my gosh, no Jiro! He's just a training partner."
The calculating look continued. "Really? Because I swear, if I find out from someone else, or better yet online that you two have kissed or something-"
"Oh for crying out loud!" Momo said exasperatedly. "Does he honestly seem romantically available to you?"
Jiro shrugged. "I didn't think he was even able to hold a conversation. But you've opened up all sorts of doors, Momo."
Momo sighed. "I promise that if we ever make out, you'll be the first to know," she said, voice laden with sarcasm. The other girl leaned back, satisfied.
"Good enough for me."
Momo paused, a completely new problem coming to light. "You don't think this is why he's angry?"
"What, you guys kissing?"
She shot Jiro a pointed look. "The pictures."
Her friend scoffed. "If that's the reason, then he's a pussy."
Almost instantly, with freakish timing, Mineta (who had previously been on the opposite side of the room chatting it up with Aoyama, Oojiro and Toru) materialized out of thin air. "Did someone say pus-" Jiro sent him flying with a kick to his face.
"Freakshow," she muttered. The taller girl huffed and closed her eyes, taking another bite as response. Well, any possibility of bringing up her parents just then was thrown out the window. But perhaps that was a blessing in disguise. Such a private matter wasn't something she was really comfortable talking about, even if it was with Kyoka. Especially when it wasn't just the two of them.
"Oh, is Momo talking again?" a lively, pink moth-girl had appeared, drawing up a chair as well and seating herself down. "Finally!"
"Where did you go after second period?" Kyoka wasted no time interrogating Ashido, as if she'd been waiting on the furry girl's arrival the entire time. "I had to go through a seriously intense conversation thanks to your abandoning me."
Mina scoffed. "That's exactly why I high-tailed it out of there. That guy gives me the chills."
Jiro gave her an unimpressed look. "Pun?"
"No! Aw man, I hadn't even noticed! Such a waste."
Momo watched the exchange with a raised eyebrow. "Are you talking about Todoroki?"
The bubbly pre-hero offered her an apologetic grin, rubbing the back of her head. "Oh, sorry Momo! No offense."
Just as the taller girl opened her mouth to retort, Kyoka cut across. "Nah, apparently, she doesn't give two shits."
Momo sighed, just glad Kyoka was taking her side for once and resignedly joined the intense conversation about boys and how the modern generation lacked any foresight.
And for the remainder of lunch, she forgot about her family entirely.
It was early that afternoon when Momo found herself at the front doors of the training rooms. The bell had just rung, and she hadn't changed into her gym clothes, choosing instead to just walk straight there. The school grounds were still noisy as kids hung around the main entryway, stalling to go home for those five extra minutes with their friends. The sun still hung bright, its rays now feeling quite intense, the telltale sign of the start of summer. And yet Momo didn't feel any of it, lost in thought.
She hadn't spoken to Todoroki since that morning. While that was nothing unusual, Momo felt especially nervous seeking him out, still feeling as if the air hadn't quite been cleared between them. He had accepted her (kind of) apology rather quickly. Regardless, as she had promised, her intention had been to catch Todoroki and let him know she'd be going home that day.
But now, standing there, she was thinking of maybe staying. It wasn't like she had anything to go home to; her mother had basically confirmed her fears yesterday (her stomach gave an angry jolt at the memory). It might even be therapeutic to pound out the resentment. Besides, she'd already taken a day off. And they did say the first day of a schedule broken is the start of the end.
However, when she tried the doors, they ended up locked. Odd.
"Yaoyorozu."
She turned at the mention of her name to see the very object of her thoughts walking towards her. To her mild surprise, Todoroki was also still in uniform.
""There you are.""
They blinked as they both spoke simultaneously. Todoroki gave a sharp exhale she assumed was a laugh through his nose and she allowed a smile to dawn her lips. The young heroine watched warily as he approached, feeling a weird jumble of nerves quiver in her abdomen, realizing she hadn't the slightest clue of what to say to him.
"This is getting tedious, Yaoyorozu," he said, walking the final steps between them. "Give me your number."
"Huh?" she blinked, rapidly. Had she heard correctly? But his gaze was steady and unblinking.
"Your number," he repeated slowly, nonplussed. "You have a phone, I assume? I could've been spared the last 15 minutes of walking over the school looking for you."
'Oh,' she thought, the idea of Todoroki bothering to seek her out not at all processing, and now added with him wanting her number, her brain succeeded in stopping working entirely.
As if sensing this, the boy held out his hand. "I'll do it, just hand me your phone."
The assertive tone he took was almost calming and without a second thought, Momo pulled up her contact info on her screen and handed her phone to him, more than happy to have someone else do the thinking for a change.
"Wait," she finally said as her brain decided to catch up to reality. "Why were you looking for me? You didn't have to bother, I told you I'd let you know. I was going home again today, but…" she turned to look back at the training rooms. "I'm not sure anymore…"
Todoroki took a few seconds before he said anything as he copied down her information. "I added my details into your phone myself," he said, handing back her cell. She huffed. Presumptuous as always. "And no training today. I want to take you somewhere."
He began walking away, with the airs of someone who knew everything was right in the world; serenely, as if he hadn't just thrown her yet another curve ball. Momo recovered faster this time, though it still took a few moments to get over her surprise, and dimly wondered if someone had fried his brain overnight.
She rushed up to join him, a stream of questions pouring out of her mouth. "Wait, what? Where? You just randomly decided that? Why?"
He breathed deeply, looking up towards the sky as he did. "You took me somewhere that was special to you. I want to repay that favor."
Momo was speechless.
Todoroki was an anomaly, an impromptu irregularity in a life that had previously made sense, a life that had been calculated and thorough, whether that be the number of steps she walked to and from school to the number of pages she read a day. He boggled her mind, he messed with her stride, he effectively took anything she ever planned and crushed it without a second thought. The last she knew, he had been beyond angry at her. And if she knew anything about Todoroki, it was that he didn't really lose his temper, he just shoved it aside indifferently and carried on his way.
She blinked.
Wait, that was exactly what he was doing. There was no grudge, no residual animosity or frustration. He had approached her like it was any other day. She had spent so long worrying how she would fix things with him, adding on top of her already extensive cacophony of concerns, trying sorting out her thoughts, feeling like the world was collapsing. And yet, there he was, resident frozen prince with the personality to match, being... nice.
It was as if nothing had happened. It threw her off balance. She felt her throat clench uncomfortably.
It made her want to cry.
There were so many things Momo wanted to say to him just then, but words eluded her and she didn't know quite how to express the myriad of feelings she had swirling inside. She wanted to be left alone, and yet she wanted someone to talk to. She wanted to run away and let her world fall apart, and yet she wanted to stand and fix everything with her own two hands. She wanted to be with anyone but him, and yet being with him made her...calm. Such an extensive plethora of contradictions welled inside her and she was sure she would self-implode.
So Momo remained silent, hands gripping her bag strap, so tight her knuckles grew white.
The pair walked along in silence, him staring at the sky, expression of relaxed nothingness, eyes clear and gentle and open. And next to him, Momo, completely oblivious to such a rarity, staring intensely at the floor, a infinite loop of emotions clouding her eyes. The two recommendation students entered the throng leaving the school and the dense silence between them filled with the abrasive chatter of young teenagers.
It was after they left the campus, separating from the crowd and walking further away, that the silence crept back in like a shadowy cloud. It eclipsed over Momo's thoughts, and it rang louder and louder, buzzing at her brain incessantly and she felt watery pressure build behind her eyes.
'Momo, you have to speak,' she begged herself, biting her lip so hard she was scared it would split, the silence tightening its grip around her chest. 'You must. Is this how you repay kindness? He'll regret this! He'll ignore you, he'll hate you! He'll-'
"Yaoyorozu. Breathe."
His voice shot through her thoughts like a wrecking ball breaking glass.
Momo straightened on impulse and, before she could stop herself, stared at him. He returned her look with had an unmoving, blue eye, and suddenly, all she could think was about how beautiful a color it truly was. He continued, as if reading her thoughts. "I don't care if you aren't continuously blathering about something. Turn off your brain for once. Breathe."
And just like that, the pressure vanished.
"Here it is."
They had been walking for almost 15 minutes, in a gentle silence. It was surprisingly comfortable, once she'd stopped worrying about what he was thinking. He'd taken charge of conversation, surprising her yet again, passing a comment or two about a store he found useful in neighboring streets or a pedestrian with a rather flamboyant choice of hair color – not that he was one to speak, she'd pointed out, which had earned her an unamused glare.
Him starting the discussions for once, and telling her he didn't mind the odd silence, had calmed her in a way she didn't realize she'd needed. Without realizing, Momo had begun to think Todoroki only tolerated her presence because of her endless streams of facts. Him making the effort to converse, when he usually stayed quiet, meant more to her than he probably knew. It meant that, on some level, he wanted to keep her around just as much as she did him.
It hit the young creation user how warm a conversation could be, even without incessant speech. All that was fine sometimes, and came easy to her, but on occasion, just slowing down and appreciating the bigger picture with another person could prove to be just as satisfying.
And that was something that blew her mind.
Momo looked up to read the board. 'Playtime Rentals', it said. Confused, but curious as to what this place was (the place Shoto Todoroki had recommended), she followed his lead as he pushed open the door, a quaint little bell jingling to alert the owners of their entrance.
"Ah, Todoroki-kun, it's been a while."
The Yaoyorozu heiress turned to see a rather pretty girl greeting him behind a counter, whom he acknowledged with a nod. She was flashing him a wide smile, almost too wide, and her gaze lingered just a few seconds too long. But she was pretty. So pretty that her slightly strange actions could be overlooked. So pretty, in fact, that everything that had happened in the span of two minutes collided together in her brain into three main points; playtime, pretty girl, rentals.
Why would he bring her to a cabaret club? Had he no shame? Not that she minded (but she did) how he spent his free time, but how Todoroki thought watching girls serve him tea would pay back any sort of favors he thought he owed her was beyond her.
"Yaoyorozu, back here."
At the sound of his voice, her head snapped from looking at a corridor full of doors to him. Her classmate had his hand on a doorknob and was halfway through it, pausing as he waited for her to follow. Momo felt her mouth go dry. Did he want her to go in with him, alone? Just the two of them? And yet, despite her better judgement, her legs moved, and she followed him in.
And then blinked.
They were in what appeared to be a storage room, with shelves and a slightly messy pile of boxes in a corner and even more shelves. But what surprised her most about the room was that said shelves were lined with cages upon cages of animals; cats and dogs, of all sizes, making gentle noises, rubbing against the bars, or playing with a roommate.
Momo walked in reserved awe up to a random cage, and crouched down, finding herself face to face with a tiny black pug. It immediately nuzzled itself into the bars as if to get out and play with her. She smiled and reached her hand over to pet it, but it immediately backed away. Momo stuffed her hand through the bars into the cage, trying to beckon it over, when suddenly, it pounced and began nibbling on her hand.
"Hey!" she cried, the pain mostly due to surprise and limited to a dull clamping sensation, and she reached in her other hand to give the puppy a rough noogie. It backed up again, its head rocking back and forth, staring between each hand not knowing which new toy to attack.
"That one's still teething," she heard Todoroki say. Momo watched as he pulled out a set of keys, and dangled the leather key chain to the little puppy instead. It instantly grabbed it, and began shaking it back and forth so hard its little head became a black blur. The neighboring cages started getting rowdy, clearly wanting themselves a loud, shiny toy as well.
"What is this place?" Momo breathed in utter curiosity.
"In essence, it's an animal shelter," he said. "They find stray animals, and then let people come in and choose one they think they'd like to adopt. They can adopt one straight away, or pay by the hour to spend time with the animal, and see if they're compatible."
"How in the world did you find this place?" she asked, amazed someone like him would ever think of spending any of his time here. She noticed he was intently avoiding her gaze, and it suddenly dawned on her just how personal this place was to him.
"My brother owns it," he explained.
"Ahh," That made more sense. "Wait, and your sister owns that calzone place. How many businesses does your family own?"
"Just the two. Not including Endeavor's firm."
'Just.' "So that girl by the counter is…?"
"She's a part-timer. She started work back in December."
They both grew quiet after that, Momo not quite sure what to say next, instead content on mindlessly watching the little dog continue to growl and grapple with the keys.
"Todoroki?" she asked, a thought occurring to her.
"Hm?" He had busied himself with a kitten one cage down.
"…Are those Aizawa sensei's keys to the training room?"
He froze, the only thing still moving the end of his uniform tie as the kitten pawed it. They exchanged glances before both turning to look at the keys, which were rattling incessantly, slobber spraying every which way from the blur that was the pug's head. They were silent for a while.
"Maybe he won't notice," Todoroki said, the uncertainty giving his voice a certain innocence, and Momo couldn't help but burst into laughter. His lips twitched upwards despite himself.
"Um, excuse me, Todoroki-kun?" The pretty girl had come in. Momo felt her smile weaken. Why wasn't she surprised? "Can I speak to you for a second?" He looked at her expectantly, not moving.
"She means outside," Momo said humorlessly, raising an eyebrow with a smile. He blinked, eyes wide in realization.
"Oh."
He got up, and her eyes never left the little puppy. "Hey, can I open the cage?"
"Oh, please, don't do that," the girl appeared quite distressed at the suggestion. "The other animals get really agitated if you do."
"Oh, okay, sure, no problem. Sorry."
The girl didn't answer, and once Todoroki had left the room, the door clicked shut, leaving her alone with the animals. Momo sighed. She put her hand back into the cage. "Hey c'mon little guy, can I have the keys back?" she held her hand out expectantly, but all that led to was the puppy crouching over further, wagging its tail heftily, awaiting her next move.
She crouched low, lowering her head to its level, steadying her hand. Her and the dog stared each other down. And then she attacked, the puppy easily jumping over her outstretched hand, barking happily. "Oh come on!" she cried in frustration, trapping it in the corner and picking it up from under its belly, then swinging it around to grab the keys. That instigated a tug-of-war between her and the little canine hardly a foot long.
"You are...one…incredibly.. tenacious mutt…" she said. And then she had an idea.
She laughed to herself. "I am such an idiot. For goodness' sake." Her hand then began to glow, the telltale sign of her quirk, and the little puppy stood perfectly still for the first time since obtaining the keys, entranced by the glow. In fact, most of the animals had quietened down, as if hypnotized. She produced a small, simple, rubber toy, a bright, attractive blue, and held it up for the dog to see.
"Want this?"
It didn't need to be asked twice. Immediately, it dropped the keys and darted towards the little soft toy. Momo made it chase it for a little while - because nothing of value comes easy - before finally letting the puppy have it, and retrieved the keys as it was distractedly munching down on its newest prize.
"Oh, you got them back."
Perfect timing. Todoroki and the female manager had returned. Momo grinned in pride and jingled them for good measure.
"Can you try not to give them weird objects to chew on?" The girl directed her warning at Momo. "We don't know where they've been. They might get sick."
"I apologize," the half-n-half hero said, and Momo had to purse her lips in an attempt to stifle her snickers at the girl's contrite expression. Hadn't been expecting that little development, had she? Todoroki tentatively took the keys from Momo's hand, wincing at the slobber and tiny puncture holes. He turned back to the girl and spoke before she could say another word. "I'll be more careful."
"O-oh. No, I didn't...Um..Yes, Thank you..." Momo felt herself smirk as the girl tripped over her words. "W-well…please take your time." And she shut the door.
"Wooow, she really doesn't like me," Momo said.
"What makes you say that?" he said, wiping the keys on a random cloth lying around.
"What did she want to talk to you about?" she asked, dodging his question.
He pocketed the key-chain, deciding trying to fix it was a lost cause. "She wanted to ask who you were. Not everyone is allowed back here, you know." Momo mentally rolled her eyes. For someone so smart, he really was clueless. She gave him a smug grin.
"No. In no way does this support your argument," he said, giving her a look.
"Of course it does. But just for that extra hammer on the nail, I predict she'll come in again soon. Probably within the next 5 minutes. Maybe sooner, depending on how much she's actually into you."
"…Hah?"
Before he had a chance to interrogate her further, the door opened and the subject of her wager entered again. Todoroki immediately turned to shoot Momo his Todoroki-patented look (eyes wide and piercing, mouth barely ajar) and she bit her lip, struggling to suppress her laughter. The girl could clearly feel the intense way both teens were studying her, and (to Momo's utter delight) she suddenly appeared self-conscious. "Erm, Todoroki-kun," the girl spoke up. "Can I bring you and your friend something to drink?"
Momo was quite impressed at how stable the receptionist was managing to keep her voice. Todoroki looked at her and Momo shook her head with a smile. "No thank you," she chirped, almost too happy. The girl nodded rather sullenly, and then left again.
"Ohhhh my gosh, she's got it bad," Momo said in a loud whisper.
Todoroki shot her a withering look, folding his arms. "Lucky guess. The real test is you predicting when she comes in next."
"She's not coming back."
"You're giving up," he said.
"I am not. She won't, not after the warm welcome we gave her. But I bet we'll see her next when she's kicking us out. Probably 20-30 minutes later, when she can't tolerate you being alone in here with me any longer."
He scoffed. "You should become a story write with that imagination."
"Please. I could go on defending myself, using points like how she refers to me as 'your friend', how she doesn't speak directly to me, unless she's scolding me. I could go into the finer details as well, but you deny the obvious signs, so I think it'd be pointless."
"That's because this is pointless," he scratched a cat who was nestled up against the bars behind the ears. "And I'll have you know, she's two years older than me. Plus, if I remember correctly, my brother likes her. That's why she's working here."
Ignoring the slight twinge of irritation at him knowing any kind of detail about the part-timer, Momo continued. "Ohh a family love triangle." He shot her an impatient look which she responded to with a cheeky grin. "What's her name?"
"Mitsu…ha? Mitsu…ki- no wait, maybe it was Matsuha….?"
Momo erupted into laughter once again, any previous irritation evaporating at the sincerely stumped expression on his face. "Oh wow, now I actually feel bad for her! The poor thing." When she finally calmed down enough, she noticed he was looking at her with a strange expression and a barely visible smile on his face. "What?" she asked, wiping tears from her eyes, the grin still having not faded from her lips.
"Good to have you back," he said, almost warmly. Almost. He turned away from her, going to the next cage, leaving her gaping at his back.
'Where had I gone?' she thought dazedly.
'He was worried about you.'
Kyoka's words rang in her ears. She watched him go from cage to cage, giving each animal a pet, or a look over, as if it was his job to personally see to it that each of them were cared for. If their classmates could see him now…
"Which one's your favorite?" she asked suddenly. He gave her another small smile, like he had a hidden secret, before walking to the back of the room and crouched down in front of a large cage nearest the window, looking almost abandoned, with its surrounding cages all empty.
"Him."
Momo walked over and looked inside. Stretched out lazily was a large, beautiful Angora cat, with a pristine white coat. As soon as Todoroki sat in front of it, it got up and started rubbing itself against the bars, as if beckoning to be petted. The half-n-half hero obliged, reaching out his hand to give it a thorough scratch, although he was hindered every now and then by the cat profusely giving him lick after lick.
It was probably the most love she had ever seen a cat give someone. With a start, she noticed that the feline also had brilliant, mismatched eyes, one blue, one brown. Momo didn't think she had ever seen Todoroki look so content.
"Why don't you take him home?" she asked him softly, not wanting to break whatever spell had been placed. But his eyes seemed to glaze over, flashing with something she couldn't read.
"I'd never do that to him," he said coldly. "Someday, when I have my own place, maybe."
It was a reaction the young heroine had learned to expect from him whenever the topic of his home was brought up, and she chose not to press further. She noticed a beagle in a neighboring cage, looking forlornly at them, big brown eyes droopy and pleading, clearly begging for attention. Momo breathed out a smile before complying, leaning up to give the little dog a rub.
"I cannot believe I haven't asked this yet, seeing as this place practically screams for it, but; cats or dogs?" she asked, turning to him with a grin, already sure she knew what his answer would be.
Sunlight was filtering in through the window next to him, lighting up his hair and his eyes, softening every harsh edge, giving him a warm, soft look. Suddenly, he looked much younger; like the 15 year old boy he actually was. And then both corners of his lips twitched, and he smiled that smile he had back in the shopping center, and Momo felt slightly light-headed.
"It'd be close, but cats," he said, and she had to think a bit to remember what she'd asked him. The angora had settled against his hand, just content on having Todoroki rub his back. "Let me guess. Dogs?"
"All the way," she said softly, turning back to her beagle. There fell a content, lazy silence over the room. With the animals now quieted down, Todoroki's gentle presence nearby and the warm, afternoon sunlight pouring in through the window, Momo felt like she could stay in that small room forever.
"Thank you for bringing me here, Todoroki," she breathed, so quietly, she felt maybe he didn't hear her.
"…You're welcome."
The part-timer came in later, 30 minutes having passed, just as Momo had predicted, telling them it was time to leave. The creation specialist shot Todoroki a triumphant look, which he ignored entirely. Mitsuha's or Mitsuki's mood seemed to marginally improve when she'd come in, seeing them quietly petting the animals, not saying a word to each other. She had clearly interpreted the silence as uncomfortable due to a lack of conversation.
"I think I'm going to tell my brother," Todoroki said as they left the building, finally deciding Yaoyorozu's incessant self-pleased smirking had lasted long enough.
"What, that you want to go out with her?" she teased, cheeky grin on her face.
"No, to hurry up and confess," he snapped. Todoroki huffed, blowing some stray bangs out of his eyes. "Do I look like someone who takes random girls out to random places?" She gave him a pointed look, raising an eyebrow. He huffed and looked away. "This was different," he muttered.
Indeed it was. With a start, she realized she hadn't thought of her problems back home for the entire time she had been with him.
'He was worried about you.'
She could still hardly believe it, that he'd even think twice about someone like her. But here he was, walking her to the nearest bus stop, after showing her a place that was clearly very special to him. All in an attempt to cheer her up. Like any good friend would. Or maybe it was just the afternoon sun getting to her.
"My parents fought."
Todoroki glanced at her out of the corner of his eye as she suddenly offered this information, breaking the silence that had once again settled over them like a cloud of dust. He turned his gaze forward, figuring she didn't need the additional pressure of having eyes on her, saying nothing, waiting for her to continue.
"Well, they've fought before, but this other day was different," she was clenching and unclenching her fist around her bag strap, like she'd been doing earlier as they'd left the school grounds. "My mother thinks my father has done….something horrible. She probably won't forgive him if he has," Momo frowned, blinking rapidly, feeling her throat tighten, her nail digging into the leather. "I know I won't."
Todoroki remained quiet.
They'd reached the bus stop. Yaoyorozu instantly sped up, walking over to the stop sign post and leaned heavily against it, the only object nearby offering support; it was the textbook subconscious action of someone who didn't want to be seen. The surrounding area was quiet and empty, apart from the odd car that would drive past, the glow of the sun glinting off the nearby office buildings and throwing a dull glare on the sidewalk next to them.
Todoroki waited for her to say something else, but she didn't.
"What does your father think?"
Momo blinked at his question. Her brain processed his words. Her eyes widened. Then she turned to him, cheeks glowing as they did whenever her emotions spiked too high. Hope glittered brightly in her eyes. She stood straight, gripping the pole tightly as everything changed.
"I haven't asked him," she breathed.
A bus appeared around the corner, its pistons hissing as it came to a stop.
"This one's yours, I believe," Todoroki said, watching the doors flap open. She walked towards it, but just before getting on, turned to look at him, her eyes soft and swirling with an emotion foreign to even herself.
"Thank you, Todoroki."
And then she left, leaving him smiling gently, in a way that, he realized with a soft jolt, he was doing more and more often, recently. He watched the bus drive away, smile fading the further it got, and continued staring long after it had rounded the corner, lost in thought.
Finally, he turned around and began his walk home.
When Momo reached home, the first thing she did was make a beeline for her father's lab.
She couldn't believe she'd left this so one-way; her mother had spoken first and implanted the thought into her mind that she was the victim, and so Momo had automatically assumed it to be true, and yet, the first theory wasn't necessarily the right one.
The young heir walked through the swinging doors and made her way through the entry-way, scanning the room for her father. And there he was, sitting at the main desk, just as he always was. He motioned for her to wait a minute, as he was busy taking down what seemed like an order from a phone call. Momo waited patiently for him to finish, placing her bag on the counter and leaned against it, there being no other chair in the room.
Souma Yaoyorozu's lab wasn't the largest - the main was located in the city's outskirts and that actually was one of Japan's largest (it had to be for how many hero-orders he received, being one of the oldest and most trusted hero-tech companies out there). Here at home though, he had a few machines, for prototyping, but that was it, with a small crew of three trusted lab techs. His quirk was also that of Creation, but hers was slightly more advanced when regarding the necessity of her attention to detail. This meant his products were only those of pure material; he wasn't ever able to combine elements together or imagine the depth of the bonds to create something immediately usable. So he used machines together with his quirk in a synergy let his success boom.
Both of her parents were extremely driven, self-made people, doing what they loved, making the most out of typically less-than-satisfactory quirks. Their personalities clashed in the best of ways, and even though they hardly saw each other, the support for the other was always there. It had never bothered either of them before, how little attention one spared for the other, or that the other was so absorbed in their work. It was what made them work so well as a couple.
Or at least, she'd thought it did.
"Well, well, isn't this a rarity." Her father had put down the phone. "To what do I owe the surprise?"
"Dad," she decided to cut straight to the point. "Where were you two nights back? The night you weren't in your lab?"
Immediately, an expression almost like annoyance, flashed over his face, and it was one she had never seen her father use before. Especially not with her. For as harsh and rigid as her mother was with her, her father had always been the opposite, doting and loving, to the point of spoiling her (not that her mother had allowed that to happen). He turned away from her and began messing with papers.
"What is it with the women in this house? What, a man can't leave to get a breath of fresh air? Why do you find it so important to be in control all the time? Is a change of scenery so hard to imagine?"
"No," Momo struggled to keep the hurt and shock out of her voice. "Dad, it's not," her voice gave a pathetic wobble as she spoke, and she swallowed, desperate to remain strong. "That's why I'm asking you."
Mr Yaoyorozu looked over at her again, saw the hurt on her face and sighed. His features relaxed, and suddenly, he was her father again. "I'm sorry Momo. Of course." He swiveled the chair he was on towards where she stood. "It's just that you look so much like your mother…"
She smiled sadly and looked down, fiddling with the stitching of her bag. She had an idea of what he meant by that…
"I went down to that new place that's opened up. With all the food stuff? I really felt a craving for some chocolate. And none of that gas station stuff, I wanted something high-end."
Momo looked up, eyes bright, throat tightening so hard she could barely breath, hope making her chest swell. "Really?"
He looked back at her, with his soft, gentle brown eyes, and smiled that smile that had always been her father's special one, reserved just for her. And then he pulled out a fancy, half-eaten, personal sized box of chocolates from his drawer and showed her.
"Really," he said.
She let out a cry of happiness, and before Momo could stop herself, tears had started falling from her eyes. She clasped a hand to her mouth, muffling the sobs. The relief was so intense it shook her shoulders, and it was as if some massive weight had been lifted from her shoulders.
"Oh sweetheart," he reached over to wipe away her tears. Momo's happiness clouded her every thought, and she didn't notice the shadow that past over her father's eyes just then, or the slight dimming of his smile as he glanced back at the box of chocolates.
"N-no, it's just," she laughed thickly. "Next time, can you get me some as well? I gave the last of my stuff to Rosie."
"I will," he handed her a tissue and laughed lightly. "Want to see what I've been working on recently?"
She nodded enthusiastically, following her father as he got up from his seat and made his way over to the nearest machine. She didn't know why she hadn't asked him from the start. He was her father, and he loved her and nothing would change that.
And suddenly, she felt such enormous gratitude for the boy who had helped her realize this in the first place. She could have hugged him just then, that was how happy she was. And the next time she'd see him would be Monday. If only there was a way to-
A thought flashed through her head and, unable to dim the smile on her face, she pulled out her phone. She pulled out the number, and typed her message to Todoroki.
'I asked my father. I think things are going to be okay.'
And that was it. She turned back to her father, who was in the middle of explaining how he'd made the device water proof as well as elastic. And it would only be later that she would see his reply, which he'd sent within two minutes of hers.
'Glad to hear it.'
A/N: Well done for making it all the way!
A bit about Momo and her parents: I imagine Momo to be too trusting and quite innocent, taking whatever she's told from people she trusts at point blank, no questions asked. This by no means is the extent of the parental problems, but it won't distract from our main duo, since after all, this fic is about Todoroki and Yaoyorozu, and I'd like to stay focused on that. All I'd like to do is visit how everything would affect these two, whether it be home problems, or anything else.
But enough about that! If you're ever wondering what the status is of my next chapter, I'll have an update on my profile, so feel free to check that out if you're ever curious or wondering what's taking so long xP
OKAY I'm done eating your brains out. Please drop a review and let me know what you think! It was quite heavy after all, so I'd really like to know how I handled it xP