Toshinori didn't think that he would feel like this. Honestly, when he had first seen her, he felt something stirring in his heart. A feeling that he had thought had died long ago. The feeling that he had thought to have been lost to him when he had lost so much. His family, his teacher, he didn't want to feel such a feeling anymore but at the same time he craved it.
To feel a connection to someone.
Though, at the time, when he had first met her, first laid eyes on her he wanted to learn about her but at the same time he was scared. Scared that if he made any kind of connection with anyone that it would only hurt him in the end if he lost them.
It was already hard having Hizashi and Shouta being as close to him as they were but they could easily defend themselves so he didn't have to worry about anything.
Yet, what confused him was how close Zuko had gotten close to Inko. It didn't sit well with the man, it bothered him how someone could get so close to Inko and it was a nasty feeling. A bitter feeling in the pit of his stomach and it bothered him in more ways than words could ever hope to describe to him. It didn't help that he had made Inko go to clean up the grand hall just to get her away from the masked man.
It wasn't that he hated the man, far from it. Zuko was a great guard, there was no denying that but, what he had noticed was that his quirk… it was very familiar to him. As if he had seen it before but he just couldn't place it. Maybe he was over thinking it, he wasn't sure. Though, he knew one thing he just wanted the man to stay away from Inko. Inko was too good for that man.
Inko… it hadn't clicked into him that she would be so concerned about him. She went out into the pouring rain to try to convince him to leave the rain. The woman was concerned about him, tried to get him to leave the rain but he was stubborn. But, would she understand that he only did that to wash away his own pain? To wash away the tears that overwhelmed him to the point that he could have broken apart at the seams?
The feeling of her arms around his though, it made his heart thud quickly in his chest, even now just by thinking about such a thing. Why though? Why would he feel such a thing in his chest? In his heart for that matter?
Though, it was what happened after the rain that had him even more confused about the woman. He knew that day, he wasn't feeling good as he struggled just to leave his bed. Just too even get himself dressed for the day was painful for him. Yet, when Inko saw him, she knew something was wrong without him having to say much of anything. Falling though, that was something that made him want to hide away. Him, a strong and powerful king falling over on a woman because of a simple cold.
Having to be carried to his room was another thing that he hadn't even live down either.
But… Inko, she went out of her way to make sure that he was taken care of. Even though he was rather clingy while she treated him. Afraid that she would leave him alone, being alone was a dark, cold and lonely place to be. Being around her though, it filled him with a warmth that he never knew that he could feel again. He hadn't felt that kind of warmth in years, not since his family anyway. Or even since his master, a feeling that someone cared about him. Not because they had to simply by his title but, because they were honestly concerned about him.
It warmed him up all the more at the feeling that she brought with him. Inko, she was pure, innocent and filled with so many feelings.
Feelings…
Something that he hadn't really displayed in a long time. He thought, that it was better this way. If anyone tried to hurt him, he wouldn't show it. Did it as a means of protecting his heart and other's. If he never showed any emotions while around someone, they couldn't be used against him. Then, he, his heart, and those around him would be safe for the most part.
With Inko though, he found himself allowing himself to feel emotions again. He didn't feel as lonely as before, or even as sad as before. But again, why was that? It felt odd, but it was such a welcoming feeling in his heart.
But he also knew that he was lying as well.
Everyone, all the slaves, but two people, knew his secret. The world, only knew him as 'The Emotionless King Toshinori Yagi'. The Quirkless King so to speak. Which, to the world is true, he is nothing more than a quirkless man but his other-self? He was also known by one other name, one that only his two most trusted friends knew.
He was also the captain of the guard. Captain All Might.
It was a secret that he has held onto for years, years of training, and years of trying to know what it is like to be someone else, someone who wasn't a 'king' but just a normal man so to speak. He had wanted to prove, that those with quirks weren't going missing, that they weren't being hunted down but, it seemed that in the last few years, those with quirks have been disappearing.
Toshinori knew that he had to do something. He had to make sure that he had to keep them all safe, but he wasn't sure what it was that was even causing all of this yet. But, he knew that he would somehow. He just had to keep searching, had to keep looking for any kind of clues as to what it was that was happening to those with quirks.
"Toshinori." Came a tired voice, causing the blonde to look up in confusion.
"Yes Shouta? Hizashi?" answered the king.
Hizashi and Shouta looked at the king and saw the troubled look on the king's face. Had the king been so lost in thought that he hadn't noticed them come in? Or even heard them speaking for that matter?
"We've come to bring in our reports." Shouta grumbled.
"Okay, what did you find? Anything at all about the disappearances of quirks?"
"So far nothing. The only source of their disappearances seemed to be in the forests, and when the quirk user is alone." Hizashi answered with a frown on his face.
Damn, was that all they had really been able to find on their own? "How did you come across this anyway?"
"Zuko. He's still a little wet behind the ears when it comes to fighting but he isn't stupid. He seems to know more than what he lets on." Shouta calmly said, causing Toshinori to look at him in confusion. The man was still quiet the mystery, even his down to his quirk. Yet, he knew that he couldn't force such information from the man… at least not yet. Until the man had proven to be untrustworthy, then they will have to question him. For now, there was no reason for such a reason.
"Though answer me this Toshi, what were you doing snuggled up with your maid?" asked Hizashi with a wiggle of his eyebrows.
Toshinori's eyes widened a little but his face still stayed the same. Turning his gaze away from his friends, he mumbled "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Don't even try to hide it." Shouta said with a sigh. "We went to check up on you since we heard you were sick and we find you snuggled up with Inko. She was asleep too and just seemed to be rubbing her fingers through your hair as she slept."
"I was sick, you know how I am. I'm clingy." Toshinori answered before getting up from his desk and went to walk away until he felt his friend's capture gear wrap itself around him to stop the man in his tracks. "Shouta, let go of me."
"I will if you answer me this Toshi." Shouta whispered softly, the blonde turned to stare at his friend. "Do you have feelings for Inko?"
Toshinori blinked at his friend and looked away. Did he have feelings for her? Is this what it was like to feel something so strongly for another in anything other than friendship? He couldn't help but frown a little in confusion, it all just seemed rather strange, to feel something like this in his heart. Reaching up, he grasped at the cloth of his vest, right over his heart as he felt it thud painfully in his chest.
"I don't know. I really don't know what I feel for her, but I know that I don't ever want to lose the woman." Toshinori whispered softly before allowing his hand to drop to his side once again. The blonde felt his friend's capture weapon drop to his side, allowing him to relax before turning back to his friends. "I don't know what I feel for Inko, but I know that it can never be anything other than friendship. I'm a king, and she is a slave, it can never work like that." He whispered softly before walking out of the study and down the hall.
Really, what was it that he felt for the woman. It was a puzzling thing, he enjoyed her company. He loved being around her, loved her laugh. Loved her smile, her compassion. Her kindness. Things that he never knew that he could enjoy ever again from a simple woman. But, he loved those things about her, along with her eyes.
He had heard that eyes were the gateways to your soul. Her eyes, lead him to a beautiful soul. One that he feared that he would tarnish with his own darkness and problems. Such as those who tried to take his crown or believed that killing his loved ones was the key to his downfall. Inko, it seemed was another task at that. She was the key to his heart, she could save him or destroy him in some way or another.
As for how that was, he had no idea. But he knew that if she left him it would hurt. If he lost her due to death then he'd be crushed.
Even waking up, with his arms wrapped around her was enough to make his heart thump painfully quickly in his chest. He felt like, she completed him in some way. That she was the missing piece of his heart, to his very soul that he never knew he was missing but, was that love? He wasn't sure. But he knew that he couldn't allow that to happen again. He couldn't allow himself to get too close to her.
Reaching up, he grasped at his chest once again and frowned a little at the feeling. His heart didn't seem to like the idea of not being around her and that concerned him.
"King Toshinori?" came Zuko's voice.
Toshinori turned and looked up at the masked man. He just stood there, concern in his posture as he stared at the young man. "Are you alright King Toshinori?" asked Zuko with a frown.
"I'm fine, just rather conflicted is all." Toshinori looked away, about to walk on until Zuko's voice stopped him.
"There is nothing wrong with feeling or showing emotions my king." Zuko said with a frown.
"Huh?"
"I see how you look at Inko. You have feelings for her, don't allow it to stop you. Allow yourself to feel what you feel for her before you lose any chance at being with her." Zuko said with a frown on his face. Toshinori just stared at him, as if it confused him as to why the young man would speak about such a thing as if he knew more than he let on. It didn't make sense to him. But he knew that this had to be something that he was hiding. This man knew more than he let on.
"Why do you speak like that?" asked Toshinori.
"I'm just able to read people. My dad told me it was something my mom could do. Could read him like a book when she was alive."
"Alive? You mean…"
"My mom died during childbirth. Dad told me that she got badly injured long before she found out that she was pregnant with me. Dad told me, that if he could go back in time, he'd get his younger-self to confess to my mom earlier and try to stop that from happening. So, I'm just trying to make sure that no one feels the same way he did." Zuko said with a calmness to his voice.
Toshinori looked at the young man, feeling his own pain. The poor boy, never knew his mother. Having been raised by his father and hearing his father's regrets about not confessing sooner. Could he do such a thing? Could he tell Inko that he did care about her more than a slave?
No, he didn't think that he could.
Closing his eyes, the king turned away from the boy as he said "I don't think I can tell her any such thing. I don't even know what it is that I feel for her anyway. Besides, a boy such as yourself could never understand what I feel."
"You're right. I don't. But I've seen it with my father. That man, was so in love with my mother he would have joined her in death if he could. But he had a duty to her, to raise me, the last piece of her that he had. I reminded him so much of my mother that it hurt him but he still lived for me. Trained me until his dying breath."
"You mean…"
"My father's heart couldn't live on without my mother. Died from his own injuries taking its toll on him and the loss of my mother. I was sixteen when he died and I was raised by his friends, and my older brother who knew of his quirk and how it worked." Zuko calmly said before he started to walk away. Toshinori turned and watched as the young man started to walk away. "Don't live your life with regrets. Do what your heart tells you to do, listen to it. It never strays from the right path." Zuko calmly said before leaving Toshinori's line of sight.
The king couldn't help but frown at the boy, he lost both of his parents. In a way, they are the same but, he couldn't help stare in confusion. The boy had to have gone through so much training to have that much control over his quirk. Something that Toshinori himself could understand, but he knew that he had so much to learn himself, as did the boy.
But, his words did hit him.
He knew that he felt something for the green haired woman. But, could he take that risk? To allow himself to feel anything for the woman when he himself, was afraid to admit that he felt something for her? It hurt him yes, it hurt him not to be near her. He felt happy being near her but he knew that he still had to be careful.
After all, what more could he do?
Wasn't like he could just tell her 'Oh, Inko by the way I have feelings for you, but it is completely forbidden because of our statuses. Yeah, that would turn out great. Closing his eyes, Toshinori also knew that he had to listen to what Zuko had said. He shouldn't live his life with regrets, he would just have to find a way to tell Inko the truth. He wanted to tell her, that he felt a great deal of affection for her but could he do such a thing?
At least, without making a fool of himself? Dear god he hoped that would be the case.
Closing his eyes, the king knew that it wouldn't hurt to try to tell Inko the truth. That he did care about her but, then what would he do about the whole 'being the captain as well' thing? He'll have to cross that bridge when it comes, but for now he couldn't tell her anything. He wanted it to be grand, he wanted to make sure that everything that he did, and it was for her.
Along with keeping everyone else safe but… she was more special to him. That was for sure.
Running a hand through his long blonde locks, the king knew that he had a lot on his plate now. But, at least if someone bothered him to marry someone he could say that he had someone in mind now. Though, that was going to be easier said than done now wasn't it?
Meanwhile, a man stared at the king from the corner of his eye. He couldn't help but smile as he saw that he was really taking his words into account. It was the one thing that he wanted to ensure, that he made sure that the king lived his life to the fullest. It was the one thing that he wanted to do besides preventing the Great War.
A war that had taken everything from him. It was why he came here of all reasons and, to make sure that the king, started on his correct path sooner than later. As it would prevent the demise of the kingdom that would soon come to be.
Reaching into his shirt, he pulled out a necklace that had two rings on it. One, belonging to his mother and the other to his father. The man stared at the rings with a sadness in his eyes as he thought about his family. A family that he never should have lost in the first place. "I won't fail you dad, I promise that you and mom will be with me once again." He whispered softly before taking his leave to go work under Captain All Might.
