I'm standing at the train station with Keigo early this morning. I adjust my jacket now that it's getting colder this late December.
"Thanks for walking me to the train station," I say.
"No problem!" Keigo smiles. "Are ya ready for your visit to the Todoroki estate?"
"Ah, I'm nervous…" I scratch my head. "I really wish you'd come with me…"
"Nah, wouldn't feel right intruding. You'll be fine," he reassures me.
Keigo's smile is enough to give me confidence. The train I'm supposed to board arrives.
"That's your train," Keigo says. "Text me when you get to Musutafu."
"I will!" I nod.
I board the train and take a seat at the window. Keigo smiles and waves as the train doors close. The train begins to take off as I smile and wave back. I lean back against the seat, staring down in thought.
'I wonder if they even wanna see me…' I think to myself. 'I don't wanna be a reminder of the past.'
I fiddle my fingers as I gaze out the window.
Keigo lands on top of a tall building, gazing down below. His phone vibrates, and he pulls it out of his pocket.
"Yeah," he answers.
"Did she make it?" The President asks.
"She just got to the Todoroki estate," Keigo confirms as he watches me.
"Anything of concern?"
"No, everything's fine," he reassures.
"Keep me posted."
The President hangs up. Keigo receives a text from me confirming my arrival. He watches as I approach the front door of the Todoroki abode.
"Seems you're facing your past," Keigo speaks aloud. "Something even I can't seem to do."
Keigo watches as I appear to hesitate while at the front door of the estate.
"To be honest, I'm a bit afraid," he stares down at me. "If you end up liking it here, I'm afraid you'll drift away…but in the end, I just want you to be happy."
Meanwhile, I'm standing in front of the abode, staring up at its traditional Japanese exterior. I hold my hand up to the door, frozen in thought.
'Is this really a good idea?' I think to myself. 'Should I just leave? Would they even want me here? Should I just turn around?'
As I'm thinking, one of the doors opens, and a familiar young woman is walking out. She looks up in surprise at seeing me, both of us staring at each other for a moment in silence.
"A-Akira?" she's in disbelief.
"Fuyumi…" I say.
"Akira!" she practically pounces on me.
Fuyumi squeezes her arms around me.
"Akira! I can't believe you're here!" Fuyumi exclaims. "My goodness! Look at you! You've grown into such a beautiful young woman!" she studies me.
"Uh…" I have a blank face. "I hope I'm not disturbing…"
"We were just heading out…"
"Let's get something to eat after visiting…" a tall teenage boy walks through the door.
The white spiky haired teen closes the front door. His eyes widen a bit at seeing me as we stare in silence.
"Akira?!" the young man exclaims.
"Natsu…" I can only mutter.
"Akira!" Natsuo exclaims again.
"Uh…" I can only seem to awkwardly wave.
Natsuo practically picks me up in an embrace.
"What the hell are ya doin here?" Natsuo hugs me tightly.
"You're gonna squeeze the life outta here, Natsu!" Fuyumi scolds.
"Sorry!" Natsuo puts me down and rubs his neck with a sweat drop.
"It's okay," I nod with a smile.
"It's just been so long since we've last seen you!" Natsuo says.
"Ah, sorry to intrude," I rub my arm.
"Nonsense! You made it in time to catch us before we left!" Fuyumi says.
"Do you want me to come back?" I ask.
"No, come with us!" Fuyumi insists.
"Yeah, I'm sure mom will be happy to see you!" Natsuo says.
"You're visiting Rei?" I'm surprised.
"Mm hm," Fuyumi nods. "Will you please come along?"
I stare at her for a moment before giving her a small smile and nod.
After checking in at the psychiatric hospital, Fuyumi and Natsuo lead me down the hall.
"I'll save my number on your phone," Fuyumi types away. "That way we can stay in touch!"
"Save mine too!" Natsuo takes my phone from her and types his number in. "Don't be a stranger!"
"Thanks," I get my phone from Natsuo and put it away.
"This is her room," Fuyumi says.
We arrive outside the door of a room with a name plate that reads Himura T. Natsuo and Fuyumi head in and I stand outside in thought. Fuyumi sees I'm hesitating and gently takes my hand, her smile encouraging me to follow inside. As we head in, I see a familiar woman sitting at the window as she stares outside through it. Her attention turns to us as we approach, her expression turning into a surprised one upon seeing me.
"Akira?" she's astonished.
"Hello, Rei…" I shyly say.
She gets up and immediately embraces me. Her warmth is all too familiar and brings me back to when I was a child.
"You've grown so much," Rei pulls away and studies me.
"How long has it really been?" Fuyumi asks.
"About six years," Natsuo replies.
"Has it been six years?" Fuyumi is surprised.
Rei begins to tear up.
"Sorry for dropping by so suddenly…" I feel bad.
"No, I'm fine…" Rei smiles as she wipes her eyes. "I'm truly happy to see you!"
Rei takes a hold of my hand in reassurance.
"Please, have a seat," Rei gestures to a chair.
We all settle in and gather around Rei who's sitting at the edge of her bed.
"My goodness, you've grown into such a beautiful woman," Rei compliments.
"That's what I told her!" Fuyumi says.
"I'm not the only one who's grown up," I turn to Natsuo. "Natsu has gotten so tall."
"Yeah, I turned 14 this past summer," Natsuo chuckles.
"You were always the tallest," Fuyumi teases.
We all laugh together a bit.
"So how have you been?" Rei asks me.
"I've been doing alright…" I rub my arm while looking down.
"You're still with the Commission, right?"
I keep my gaze down and nod.
"You're 18 now," Rei figures. "Aren't you able to be on your own?"
"The President won't allow me to just yet…" I reply. "Until I get my quirk under control."
Rei stares at me for a moment with a look of sorrow.
"I'm so sorry, Akira…" Rei begins to tear up.
"For what?" I'm surprised.
"For leaving you…You were so young…"
"It wasn't your fault," I hold her hand.
"I tried to convince Enji to keep you…but…"
"But he was so focused on Shoto," Natsuo bitterly says. "He abandoned you like the rest of us."
"Natsu…" Fuyumi scolds.
"Maybe if you'd stayed, Touya would've…." Rei trails off.
"Mom…" Fuyumi worries.
"No…it was my fault...I should've been a better mother…Enji and I failed as parents."
Rei sniffles as she wipes her eyes.
"Really…" I continue to say. "I don't hold anything against you…I forgive you."
Rei looks up at my warm expression in surprise.
"Thank you, Akira…" Rei wipes her eyes. "I'm relieved to hear that from you."
I give her a warm smile as I feel a sense of relief after sharing my feelings.
"What about Shoto?" I ask.
"I'm still not able to see him," Rei replies. "Not after what I did to him."
"It wasn't your fault, mom…" Natsuo reassures. "Shoto doesn't blame you… He blames that good for nothing father of ours…"
"Natsu…" Fuyumi scolds again.
"What? I'm not gonna sit around acting like he didn't cause this rift in our family…"
I stare at Natsuo and see how upset he is. It seems their family situation is still complicated even after my separation.
"Have you seen Enji?" I ask Rei.
"No…the doctor says it's not a good idea…" Rei replies. "I'm still scared."
"I'm sorry…" I say.
"It's alright. I'm getting better," Rei gives me a small smile.
"I'm glad to know," I gently hold Rei's hand.
Rei gives me a small smile as she appreciates my presence with Fuyumi and Natsuo.
Fuyumi leads me into their home with Natsuo closing the door behind us. We take our shoes off at the entrance and head into the living area. Natsuo is holding our take-out food we picked up on our way back from visiting Rei.
"You're staying for dinner, right?" Fuyumi asks.
"Um, I don't wanna intrude," I glance at a clock nearby. "It's close to six in the evening…"
"We bought enough food for us all!" Natsuo insists. "Of course you're staying!"
"Alright," I lightly laugh.
Fuyumi and Natsuo lead me to the dining area through the traditional style interior of their home. As I glance around, I have a brief memory flash of Touya and I running through the halls.
"Have a seat at your usual spot," Fuyumi gestures to the seat adjacent to her.
"Shoto! Hurry and come eat dinner!" Natsuo calls out.
Shortly after, one of the sliding doors opens and a familiar boy walks through. His half white and half crimson hair falls above his dark and turquoise eyes. He's surprised at spotting me.
"Akira?" he smiles.
"Shoto," I smile back at him.
I notice the large burn scar on the left side of his face that reaches from his hairline to halfway down his cheek. I walk over to Shoto and gently embrace him.
"I'm so happy to see you," I tell him.
Shoto is surprised at my hug but returns it. We then separate to join Fuyumi and Natsuo at the dining table.
"You remember Akira, don't you?" Fuyumi asks.
"I do," Shoto nods. "She was big brother's best friend."
"How old are you now?" I ask.
"I'll be eleven in January."
"That's coming up soon. You're growing up fast."
Shoto gives me a small shy smile. Fuyumi begins to serve everyone the noodles we ordered, handing everyone their own. I notice Shoto happily eating away at his soba noodles and can't help but smile.
"Zaru soba is still your favorite, huh?" I ask.
"Huh? Uh, yeah…" Shoto shyly smiles. "You remember."
I give him a nod and he happily smiles.
"How was school today, Shoto?" Fuyumi asks.
"Good. We went on a field trip to the museum," Shoto responds.
"How was it?"
"Interesting. I enjoyed it."
"Do you have homework?"
"I'm almost done with it. I'll finish after dinner."
"Sounds good," Fuyumi smiles. "How are your studies, Natsu?"
"Lots of reading but not too bad," Natsuo responds.
"Natsu wants to study in the medical welfare field," Fuyumi tells me.
"Oh, is that so?" I'm surprised.
"It's gonna be a lot of work, but I'm determined to make it," Natsuo replies.
"What about you, Fuyumi?" I turn to her.
"I'm studying education," she replies. "I wanna teach!"
"I'm sure you'll do great," I nod.
"You told us you became a pro hero," Natsuo tells me.
"Oh yeah," I reply.
"A pro hero?" Shoto perks up.
"Shoto wants to become a pro hero, too," Fuyumi tells me.
"I want to save people," Shoto says.
"I'm sure you'll be a great hero," I give him a smile.
Shoto looks up at me with a slight blush as he gives me a small smile. After finishing dinner, an elderly woman enters the dining area through the sliding door.
"Time for your studies, Shoto," she tells him. "Hurry before your father gets home."
"Don't worry about cleaning up," Fuyumi tells Shoto.
"Alright," Shoto gets up. "Thanks."
I watch as Shoto heads for the sliding door. He stops and turns to look back at me.
"It was nice seeing you, Akira," he says.
I give him a small smile and he returns it. The sliding door closes after them.
"Why did he have to leave so quickly?" I ask.
"Dad doesn't allow him to spend time with us," Fuyumi says.
"That bastard keeps Shoto separated from us," Natsuo explains. "Our nanny sometimes lets Shoto have dinner with us before he gets home… Otherwise, Shoto stays in a separate section of the abode…where he's trained by him."
"He still…keeps you separated?" I'm surprised.
"Ever since the incident with Touya all those years ago…" Fuyumi adds.
I recall the incident when Touya had attacked Shoto when he was an infant. It seems things are still complicated indeed.
"I'll start cleaning up," Fuyumi gathers the plates.
"Let me help," I offer.
"No, you're our guest! Just relax," Natsuo insists.
I stay seated while Fuyumi and Natsuo head off into the kitchen with the plates. I'm thinking about how things are with the Todoroki family.
'Has Enji changed at all?' I think to myself. 'Is he still driven by his goal? The same goal that led to Touya's demise?'
After some time, Fuyumi returns with Natsuo.
"I'm heading to my room," Natsuo says. "I got some reading to do."
"Alright, good luck," Fuyumi says.
"I'll see ya, Akira," Natsuo waves. "And seriously - don't be a stranger."
I blink at him a few times as he waves at me and leaves.
"He's right," Fuyumi says. "You're welcome anytime here."
"Thanks…" I shyly smile.
"Come on…I wanna show you something…" Fuyumi takes my hand.
She leads me down the hall to a room. She slides the door open and we head inside. Upon entering, I see an altar setup with Touya's picture.
"This is where we pray for him," Fuyumi says.
I'm in awe at the altar, feeling a bit of sorrow as I stare at the picture of a young Touya.
"Has he changed at all?" I ask.
"Hm?" Fuyumi is surprised.
"Enji…has he changed?"
Fuyumi thinks for a moment.
"It seems he hasn't…" Fuyumi finally says.
I stare at Touya's photo, saddened to hear her say that.
"He prays here everyday," Fuyumi adds. "Ever since setting up this altar, he's prayed here."
I stay silent, wondering if Enji must feel at fault for what happened to Touya.
"Perhaps there's still hope," I say.
"Hm?" Fuyumi perks up.
"I've seen a softer side of Enji when I was a child… He hasn't been perfect, but I know he has the potential to change for the better…"
Fuyumi stares at me in thought.
"He just needs time to realize it," I continue.
Fuyumi gives me a small hopeful smile.
"I'll give you a moment to pray," she tells me.
I nod and she heads out of the room, sliding the door closed after her. I kneel in front of the altar, palming my hands in front of me as I close my eyes for a moment.
'I'm glad to finally visit again…' I pray in my head. 'It's been six years or so since I was last here… I wasn't able to say a final goodbye to you… Although you're not here with us, we all miss you dearly… I love you, Touya… I hope that wherever you are, you're at peace.'
My eyes remain closed as I exhale a bit. I open them and stare up at Touya's photo, feeling a sense of relief at being here. Just then, the door slides open. I turn to it and am surprised to see a familiar man of large stature. My eyes meet his turquoise ones as he too is surprised to see me.
"A-Akira?" he says.
"Enji…" I almost whisper.
We stare at each other for a moment before I quickly get to my feet.
"I'm-I'm sorry for intruding," I quickly say. "I'll be leaving," I try to walk past him through the doorway.
"Wait…" Enji carefully holds me back by the arm.
I keep my gaze lowered as Enji carefully holds my arm to keep me from leaving. There's a moment of silence between us as we don't move.
"I'm glad to see you again…" Enji lets go of my arm.
It's obvious he wants to say more, but Enji has always had difficulty expressing his feelings. I can only give him a nod.
"I was paying my respects…" I explain.
"Thank you for praying at Touya's altar…" Enji says.
"It's the least I can do," I respond.
"Are you leaving?"
"It's getting late… I've gotta be back at the Commission facility soon."
"You're allowed out on your own?"
"I've gotten a bit more freedom for now…If I get better at controlling my quirk, I'm hoping to be on my own soon."
"I'm…glad to hear."
"Oh…" Fuyumi appears down the hall. "You're home early, dad…" Fuyumi is surprised.
"It was a short day at the agency…" Enji replies. "With All Might handling everything."
I can still hear the bitterness in Enji's voice. It's the same bitterness Touya had when he spoke of Shoto.
"I'm heading out," I say. "It's getting late."
"I'll walk you out," Fuyumi says.
I give her a nod, turning my head slightly toward Enji, still not meeting his gaze.
"Thank you for visiting…" Enji says. "I hope to see you more often."
"I'm hoping so too…" I nod.
With that, I walk off to Fuyumi and she leads me out the front door after getting my jacket. I remain quiet as we stand at the front of the estate.
"Sorry about that…" Fuyumi says. "I didn't realize he was here so early."
"It's alright," I shake my head. "I'm glad to see him, too."
Fuyumi adjusts the collar of my jacket.
"Are you warm?" she asks.
"Yeah…" I nod.
"Thanks for visiting…you were really the highlight of our day."
I'm surprised to hear this but give her a small smile.
"Give me a call! We gotta spend more time together!" Fuyumi exclaims.
"I will!" I nod.
As I wave goodbye, I head off into the street. The streets are still a bit active as I walk through the crowd of people.
'It went better than I thought…' I think to myself.
I head to the train station and board the train that's about to leave. I sit at a seat by the window and stare down at my hands.
'Enji still hasn't realized it,' I think. 'He has so much potential for his family…but he's still driven by his goal.'
I let out a sigh.
'Touya got his stubbornness from him, after all…' I think.
Just then, I receive a text from Fuyumi.
"I haven't seen dad so gentle with you since we were kids," her text reads. "You're right. There's still hope."
I'm surprised at the text but smile to myself. After riding the train for a while, I get off at my stop. I walk out into the street while still staring at Fuyumi's text before replying to her.
"I'm glad," I text back.
"Welcome back," Keigo's voice surprises me.
I glance up and see Keigo approaching with a wave.
"Keigo," I say. "I didn't text you I was heading back… How'd you know?"
"Oh really? I got a good sense of timing, I guess!" Keigo shrugs. "I'll head to the facility with ya!"
"Sure."
"So how was it?" Keigo walks with me.
"It went better than I thought. I got to see everyone."
"Is that so? It would be pretty cool to hang out with Endeavor's family."
"Maybe you can meet him some time."
"Nah, he's awfully busy as the Number 2 hero. I'm sure he's got a lot on his plate. Besides, he and I have agencies to run."
"Oh yeah," I remember.
"But I'm sure I'll get the chance," Keigo nods.
"I also got to see Rei. I'm glad she's doing well. She'd felt so bad for my separation all these years…I got to tell her that it wasn't her fault and that I forgive her. And I also prayed at Touya's altar."
"And how'd that make you feel?"
"Relieved," I admit. "You were right, Keigo. This is truly a step toward healing."
"I'm glad," Keigo smiles.
I gaze up at Keigo smiling for a moment.
"Why do you seem to mask your feelings at times?" I say.
"Huh?" Keigo raises a brow. "What do ya mean?"
"You don't seem to be showing your true feelings…and I'm not sure why."
Keigo stares at me for a moment. I gently take a hold of his hand.
"If there's something bothering you," I say. "You know you can tell me. I'm here for you the same way you are for me."
Keigo glances down at my hand and then at me. I meet his gaze and see that he's about to say something but then he simply smiles.
"I'm fine," Keigo reassures. "I'm just really glad to see you happy."
I blink up at Keigo a few times before giving him a small smile.
"Maybe you need a break from all the hero work," I suggest as I let go of his hand.
"Crime doesn't take breaks," Keigo says. "But a day or two off would be nice."
I giggle as Keigo rests his hands behind his head as we continue to walk.