Hello Fellow Readers!
Once again, I'm giving a fair spoiler warning. My story includes a lot of information straight from the MHA manga. Given this, we are learning a lot of new information on the Todoroki family in the latest chapters. I'm adapting my story as it goes to the new info we're being given, so minor changes will happen throughout this story, including past chapters. Prior to posting this chapter, I made some changes to Chapter 19 in the dialogue between Enji and Touya during the flashback of them meeting Akira. It was minor but important in terms of knowing Enji's decision to stop training Touya and keeping the timeline in mind. I hope to update more chapters soon as I've already written past Chapter 30 at this point. But again, I want to wait for more info from the manga - so please bear with me!
Hope you're enjoying my story nonetheless.
Thank you!
-D
I run to the center of a base that sits on a small island. Much of the infrastructure is destroyed, a lot of it due to my quirk. I jump over some concrete as enemy soldiers shoot at me. A bullet manages to pierce through my shoulder, causing me to grimace in pain. I slide down a slab of concrete, making my way to the open middle of debris. A number of soldiers surround the area. I glance around through my helmet, seeing them everywhere as I pant and hold my bleeding shoulder. I raise my hands as guns are aimed down at me.
"Proceed with the objective," I hear the Commission President speak in my earpiece. "Blow it all to hell."
I take in a deep breath after hearing my orders. The soldiers watch cautiously as I take my helmet off, revealing my shoulder length white hair.
"She's...a girl," one of the soldiers realizes.
"Prepare to shoot!" an injured commander yells.
The soldiers hesitate after seeing how young I am.
"I said shoot!" the commander yells again.
"She's just a teenage girl!" a soldier yells.
I catch my breath, surprised at the mercy some of these enemy soldiers have.
'Even though they're hesitating…' I think to myself. 'Remember...they're villains.'
My body then begins to charge energy, glowing a faint gold.
"I said shoot her!" the injured commander orders again.
The soldiers stare down at me, beads of sweat rolling down their foreheads. Once I'm ready, I decide to complete my objective.
"Shoot!" the commander shouts.
The soldiers steady their aim at me. I stand still, my body surrounded in a gold aura.
"You're too late…" I mutter.
Nuclear energy explodes from my body. Due to my exhausted state, I black out for sometime, later waking up to the aftermath. While on my stomach, I gaze around with a haze. I've completely destroyed the surrounding area, flattening most of the ground of the small island. The villain base is no more. With the little energy I have left in me, I absorb the radiation in the area, clearing it of any danger. Once again, I'm too exhausted that I collapse on my back and black out. Not knowing how much time has passed, I'm woken up by the echoing sound of helicopter blades. Barely opening my eyes, I see a figure with bright red wings descending toward me, a glare behind their shadowy figure.
I open my eyes, staring into the darkness of my bedroom. My eyes blankly stare up into the ceiling as I recall my dream. I then remember I'm laying naked in bed with Touya, now early morning after his birthday. I slowly sit up in my bed, rubbing my face.
"What's wrong?" Touya wakes as soon as he feels me move.
"I...I had a dream…" I tiredly reply.
"What was it?" Touya sits up next to me.
I have a fixated stare in front of me as I recall the dream.
"It was a memory of a mission," I explain. "It was a mission the Safety Commission had me go on some years ago...The objective was to destroy a base owned by a villain-terrorist group."
I stay quiet again, remembering the lives I ended that day.
"I was seventeen…" I continue. "I was seventeen when I ended the lives of those enemy soldiers… I, a pro hero, killed people."
"Those were villains," Touya says. "They weren't ordinary people."
"A hero is supposed to keep the oath to never kill…"
"What's the point of being a hero if you can't do what you have to in order to save lives?"
Touya's words resonate with me, but I still feel guilt.
"That wasn't the first time I'd taken lives…" I admit. "Yes, they were villains. It was the fact that I killed them so coldly that made me feel bad...I did it with no hesitation, no remorse. I'd become just like them."
Touya stays quiet.
"That mission was some years after your alleged death…" I say. "I'd become somewhat of a cold person for a while...until I slowly started to remember who I truly was. The person I truly am today."
"Like I said, you're truly a kind person," Touya soothes me. "Not everyone is perfect...You were just born into a position that wasn't fair. You were forced to commit those things."
I glance down at the scar on my shoulder from that bullet wound I received on that mission, along with the rest scattered on my body. Touya also sorrowfully gazes at the scars.
"These scars are a reminder…" I say. "Of the things I'd committed… and why I want to continue being a pro hero...To save lives in order to make up for the ones I'd taken."
I see my scars in a positive light, using them to push me in a better direction. I've come to realize that Touya, on the other hand, sees his scars as a bitter reminder of the vengeance and hatred he harbours, further pushing him into the dark.
"Sorry to wake you on such a depressing note," I lightly laugh.
"It's okay…" Touya holds my hand.
Touya leans his head on my shoulder, lightly planting a kiss on the bullet scar. I remember all the things the Commission put me through from such a young age, the things he doesn't even know about.
"It only serves as a reminder…" Touya says. " Of the suffering the Commission and hero society in general bring….A reason to put an end to it."
I lower my gaze at hearing his words, holding his hand a bit tighter. Touya's intentions are becoming clearer to me.
It's been over a week since Touya's birthday, not having seen him since then. Now early February, the UA students returned to their school schedule, winter break having ended. Aside from Touya, Keigo also hasn't contacted me in quite a while.
'I hope they're doing alright…' I think to myself.
I'm sitting at my desk, completing some paperwork for the day. I recall the conversation I had with Fuyumi the night we had dinner at their abode with the boys. The conversation about my parents.
'The last time I questioned about my parents…' I think to myself. 'I was still a child...The President simply said that I was an orphan and they took me in. That was that.'
Despite the President's plain answer, I've always felt there was more to what she really knew. Even Keigo knows about his past, which he shared with me growing up. That's how we grew close, both of us having tragic childhoods, if they could even be called childhoods.
'Even if Keigo's parents had a dark past…' I continue to think. 'The President never ostracized him like she did with me, even holding him to a high regard...Meanwhile, I had no parents from the start, yet she still treated me differently…'
There's something missing in me. Not knowing who my parents were has always made me feel incomplete. Enji and his family became as close as possible to being a family to me, but it still doesn't change the fact that I'm not their blood. I've always wondered just what made Enji accept me as one of his own. I then stop typing at my computer for a moment before getting up and heading to Enji's office. I knock on the door and peek in.
"Akira…" Enji waves me to come in.
I close the door after entering and steadily make my way to the chair in front of his desk. Enji notices my pensive gaze lowered to the floor, setting the papers in his hand down. He waits patiently as I sit quietly in thought.
"Enji…" I finally say. "Do you...know anything about my parents?"
This surprises Enji, taking him a bit off guard.
"I don't…" Enji responds.
"Anything at all?" I ask. "Not even names?"
Enji stares at me for a moment before shaking his head. I lower my gaze again in disappointment.
"What's wrong?" Enji asks.
"I just feel incomplete…" I reply. "Like something's missing...I've always been shut down by the President whenever I questioned her about my parents. I never really reflected on it, but...I feel like she has some sort of grudge against me."
Enji's brows rise at this.
"I don't know...maybe I'm just overthinking…" I shake my head.
"Are you having doubts about something?" Enji asks.
"I just wonder why the President has always treated me so harshly. Despite all I've done for her and the Commission, she still doesn't trust me. What did I do to deserve such judgement?"
Enji stares at me for a moment. I see that he's about to say something but stops himself.
"I'm just thankful that you came into my life," I say. "If you hadn't done so...I don't think I'd be the person I am today."
"That's not true," Enji says.
"It is true. I would've grown up a cold heartless person without you, your family...without Touya… I don't think I'd be the hero I am today."
"Don't doubt yourself. I know there's a lot you don't know...I only hope that you find the answers you seek someday."
I give Enji a hopeful gaze and nod.
I enter my bedroom after a long day at the agency. After sitting on the side of my bed, I lean my elbows on my thighs, letting out a deep sigh. It's been weeks since I last heard from Keigo. I've been thinking about his involvement with the League and Liberation.
'Just what is he doing?' I think. 'What did the Commission assign him to do exactly?'
I worry about the danger Keigo is put in because of the Commission. They assign him duties that could end up killing him. At the same time, he chooses to take on these duties for the sake of achieving peace. I then reach for the drawer of my nightstand, pulling out a black zippered album. Inside are yearly ID tags of Keigo and I when we were younger under the Commission. I gaze down at my younger self, seeing the emotionless expression I had when I was a teenager. These were the dark years of my life after losing Touya. I then recall a mission I was on with Keigo.
A man scurries through a damaged warehouse. He pants as he desperately seeks a place to hide. Blood drips down his forehead as he runs with a limp. His black uniform is torn in various parts. He finally stops behind a shipping container in a yard full of them. He leans his back against the container, holding a gun as he heaves. I crash land on top of him, my feet stomping at his back.
"Please! Spare me!" he shouts. "I'll give you any information you want!"
I stare down at him, an emotionless expression on my face.
"You seek mercy," I say. "When you slaughtered hundreds… You have no right asking for it."
Without hesitation, I heat up the soles of my feet with energy. The man shrieks in pain as I continue to raise the heat, his body melting. His cries become silent as his body is now completely melted under my feet. I stare down at the mess for a moment, glad to have put a stop to this monster.
"Akira!" Keigo flies in.
Keigo lands some feet away, clutching his bleeding arm. He stops in his tracks, realizing the man we were chasing is now melted under my feet.
"What did you…" Keigo stares in shock.
"He won't be a danger anymore," I say.
"We were supposed to bring him in for questioning."
"There wasn't anything new he would've told us."
"But you weren't supposed to kill him."
"And he wasn't supposed to kill innocent people with his terrorist organization."
"Akira…"
"He shot you, Keigo," I gaze at his bleeding arm. "He would've killed you if I hadn't intervened. I wasn't going to lose you...not after losing…" my fist clenches.
Keigo stares at me as I keep an emotionless expression.
"You've gone cold…" Keigo admits.
My brows rise a bit.
"Ever since Touya died…" Keigo continues. "You've gone cold."
I gaze at his worried face, turning away from him at the mention of Touya's name.
"It's been at least a few years since he died…" Keigo says. "You can't keep on like this."
I stand in silence, my back towards Keigo.
"It's one thing to lose you physically," Keigo continues. "But to lose you as a person… You've been killing people the past few years without any remorse."
"They were villains," I state.
"But does that make you any different by killing them with no remorse?"
"Don't compare me to them."
"You're becoming just like them… the people who you seek to stop. This isn't the Akira I grew to know…I'm losing you."
I listen to his words.
"What would Touya think?" Keigo asks.
"Well Touya's no longer here," I coldly reply.
With that, I emit energy at my feet to fly away. Keigo eventually catches up to me, flying some distance behind.
I stare down at my ID tag at the cold expression in my picture.
'Keigo pulled me out of the dark…' I think. 'He reminded me of who I was...of who I wasn't.'
After Touya's presumed death, Enji had changed for the worse at this time, putting his family through turmoil. His fatherly influence wasn't there to guide me as he was going through the dark himself. I'd been separated from his family for some time. I was in the dark for some years but eventually came back to my senses. I realized my mistakes and swore to atone for the lives I had taken so coldly. That's why I left the Safety Commission, to get away from those memories.
'I'm glad I was able to come back from that dark mindset…' I think to myself. 'Even though it was tragic... I was able to learn more about myself.'
I flip to a photo of me and Touya in the album. The photo shows him and I laughing while at his family's abode, just before Shoto was born. Shoto played a big role in Touya's demise, but it wasn't his fault. Enji only became consumed in his ambition, pushing it on to Touya and leaving him to desperately seek his praise, to prove himself worthy to Enji. This is what led to his hate and resentment toward his father. I begin to remember the day I first met Shoto.
I'm sitting in the black limousine with Touya in the back and Enji in the front with Untenmaru.
"How was school today, Touya?" I ask.
"Lame as usual…" he grumbles.
"Did you make any friends?"
He doesn't answer, only keeping a grumpy expression. I feel sad for Touya because he hasn't made any friends at his school.
"I wish I could go to a school like you…" I say. "At least there you're able to make more friends."
"Tch. What's the point if they don't understand me?" Touya says. "Besides...you're the only friend I need...You actually understand me."
Enji meets my gaze from the front seat, as if apologizing to me. I study Touya's arms and see burnt marks on them. Despite Enji's attempts to stop him from training, Touya continues to use his flames secretly.
"Are you excited to celebrate your birthday?" I ask.
"I guess…" Touya plainly replies.
"You're eight today! But you still look my age…" I refer to Touya's smaller stature. "Oh! And I get to meet your baby brother!"
"Yeah…" Touya keeps his gaze lowered.
I stare over at Touya, seeing he's in thought at the mention of his newborn brother. The expression on his face seems bitter.
'He's not excited for his new brother…' I think.
Touya keeps his bitter expression, tugging at his hair that's all white at this point. We finally arrive at the Todoroki abode. I'm about to run to the door as Touya and I usually do, but I stop in my tracks as I realize he's not running with me. Touya walks slowly with his gaze lowered in thought. I walk to him and grab his hand, wondering what he could be thinking. He should be as excited as I am for his baby brother or even for his own birthday. His eyes look up at me for a moment and I give him a small smile. He tries to return it, but his eyes lower again. We eventually enter the home.
"Akira!" Fuyumi greets me with a hug.
"Fuyumi!" I hug her back.
"Ready to meet my little brother?"
"Yeah!" I nod.
Fuyumi leads me away to the living room. Rei is sitting on the sofa with Natsuo next to her. As I approach closer, I see a baby in her arms. I gaze down at the baby boy, noticing his hair is half white and half crimson. He's sleeping soundly in Rei's arms in his striped onesie.
"Hello, Rei," I greet her.
"Nice to see you, Akira," she smiles.
"So this is the new baby," I peer down at him. "What's his name?"
"Shoto," Rei gives me a small smile. "His birthday is January 11th."
"Shoto…" I repeat as I stare down at him in awe.
Baby Shoto sniffles a bit in his sleep. This is actually the first time I ever see a newborn, in awe at how small he is. Touya and Enji enter the living room soon after.
"Hey, Touya!" I call to him. "Your baby brother is really cute…"
My excitement dies down as I see the look on Touya's face. He stands some feet away, his bitter gaze at little Shoto. I stare at Touya, wondering why he isn't as enthused as everyone else for his own baby brother.
"Hmph…" Touya turns and leaves the living room.
"Touya…" Rei calls after him.
"I'll handle him…" Enji heads out of the living room.
I keep wondering about Touya's reaction.
"Sorry, Akira…" Rei tells me. "It seems Touya is a bit jealous that Shoto is taking the attention away from him on his birthday."
"But…" I say. "Shouldn't he be happy for his baby brother?"
Rei stares at me for a moment and drops her gaze, not able to answer. It seems there might be more going on that I don't know.
"Big brother Touya can get upset sometimes…" Fuyumi says. "He's been getting lots of burns because of his flames…"
"Why doesn't he stop?" I turn to Rei.
"He's just…" Rei looks down sorrowfully.
I stare up at her for an answer but she remains quiet.
"Stop it!" Enji is heard in the hallway. "Why don't you understand?!"
I run to the doorway and gaze down at the hall. There I see Enji crouched down to Touya, his hands on his shoulders. Rei also comes to the hall carrying Shoto, and Fuyumi and Natsuo also come to watch the commotion.
"You're getting this burnt…" Enji says. "And you still don't realize?!"
I watch as Enji has his back toward us, Touya gazing up at his father in a daze.
"Touya!" Enji says. "You...need to look elsewhere. Play with Fuyumi, Natsu - or Akira when she's here! Make some friends at school! There are other worlds outside of being a hero… Don't you understand?!"
I'm not here at their home everyday but Touya seems to possess me as his only friend. Despite the times I encourage him to make more friends at school, he always shakes off the idea saying that I'm the only friend he needs. Recently, I've noticed his behavior has gotten worse.
"Eventually you'll forget all about it…" Enji continues.
"But everyone at school says they're gonna be heroes…" Touya responds. "There's no way you'd understand…"
My eyes grow a bit wide upon seeing the crazed expression on Touya, tears running down his face.
"Because I'm your son," Touya has a crazed smile.
I see that Rei, Fuyumi and Natsuo are gazing at Touya in fear.
"He needs to cool down," Rei says.
"Dad ignited it in me…" Touya continues. "It won't go away! I can't...get it out of my head!"
Flames ignite in Touya's hair.
"Look at me…" Touya says. "Endeavor...look at me!"
Touya suddenly turns around and lunges at Rei who has Shoto in her arms. My eyes go wide upon seeing Touya actually going to attack his baby brother with his flames.
I stare down at the photo of Touya's smiling face, remembering the pain he suffered deep inside. I knew there was tension in the family back then. Since I didn't live with them and only visited weekly or when the President permitted, I didn't fully understand the turmoil they'd been in. Touya only told me things from his perspective. When I got older, I began to understand the situation a lot better. Enji had arranged to marry Rei for her ice quirk in order to produce a strong offspring; one that would inherit both his fire quirk and Rei's ice quirk. Despite having three children who took mostly after Rei, he was still content with his family.
'Touya inherited Enji's fire...much stronger than his…' I think. 'But he also inherited his ambition to surpass All Might.'
Because Touya was so obsessed with the dream to surpass All Might, he continued to train his quirk even after his body was suffering from it. Enji thought it would be best to have more children to have Touya forget about his dream. As he got older, Touya began to understand his siblings were replacements. Things weren't as complicated when I first met their family. Once Shoto was born, that's when everything changed. I didn't realize it back then, but Shoto was the spark that reignited Enji's ambition, being born with both fire and ice. This is what led to the current circumstances of their family - of Touya's current state.
'To think Touya truly resented his own little brother…' I think sorrowfully of the time he lashed out at baby Shoto while in Rei's arms. 'Just what could he be thinking now?'
I worry that Touya's psyche is damaged beyond repair. Despite how gentle and loving he is with me now, I can't help but think that he's hiding his true intentions - his true self.
'I only hope his hate doesn't destroy him in the end…' I stare down at Touya's smiling face in the photo.