Disclaimer: I do not own any of the copyrighted materials contained herein. They are the rightful property of their respective creators and/or associated companies. I make no profit from this whatsoever and I have no intention of changing this in the future. I write because it's fun and because there are those who enjoy reading my stories. Therefore please do not take any legal action against me. I can promise you I don't have nearly enough money to make it worth it.

Note: As usual positive reviews will be greatly appreciated, constructive criticism will be considered but not necessarily acted on and negative/bashing/trolling/venomous/bullying reviews will either be ignored or burned as fuel to keep the story going. I am well aware that not everyone likes my stories whether its due to the content or just the way I write. However this is a hobby for me and I refuse to let reviewers control how I do things. The ONLY people who can get me to change a story or remove it are the REAL moderators behind the websites I post to. If they take a story down or ask me to change a scene I will do what I can to accommodate them without compromising my creative vision too much.

Well enough of that! ON WITH THE SHOW!


Outside a Public Washroom in the Park

A Little Over an Hour Later

Todoroki Toya's POV

"Thanks for the help Kaoruko." Xandria said from within the girl's washroom, "Didn' want ta be roaming 'round in mah armour anymore."

"I don't blame you but what the hell happened to it?" Kaoruko asked sounding concerned, "You piss off Endeavor somehow?"

"Wouldn' care if ah did but nah it wasn't him." Xandria replied with veiled sharpness, "Came across a fire an' decided ta see if anyone needed help. Didn't find anyone though."

"Must've been pretty hot to do this kind of damage." Kaoruko said sounding mildly impressed, "Good thing there wasn't anybody trapped in the fire though. Any idea what caused it?"

"Not really. Whole place was pretty much a mess by the time ah got ta it." Xandria replied before pausing for a moment, "Think Power Loader's gonna chew me out for this?"

"Hmmmm…it isn't too bad but yeah he's not going to be happy." Kaoruko replied sounding glad that it wasn't going to be her.

"Then ah'll put it off 'til tomorrow." Xandria said before the sound of footsteps heading towards the bathroom door could be heard, "Gonna have enough problems ta deal with the noise ah'll be in for when ah get back home."

A moment later the door opened and he got his first look at the archangel that'd saved him from his lowest point. He was a bit surprised to find out that she wasn't Japanese but he quickly decided that such things were meaningless.

Why?

Because he could safely say that she was beautiful enough that it wouldn't matter what ethnicity she was as far as he was concerned. Clad in clothes that marked her as a student at U.A his opinion of her only improved though he was somewhat curious about the modifications done to it. He'd seen enough of them round the city to know that changes had been made to cover up the places that usually left the skin bare. Was she some sort of rich family's daughter and was given special permission?

Above all the white streak in her hair was quite eye catching and it was the same shade as his own hair making him wonder if it was natural or if it came out of a bottle. He knew that for years it'd been a point of interest for people to experiment with different colour hair dyes with the only changes being the colour as well as the method of application. Some changed their entire head of hair while others only added in highlights inspired by the models on the cover of their favourite magazines. The single stripe didn't seem to be very artistic, more like someone had taken a paint brush meant for painting houses and executed a single brushstroke, but at the same time it suited her.

He couldn't help but smile.

He'd been rescued by a beautiful girl his own age with armour that only enhanced her presence.

It caused what he'd felt before while he'd been unconscious to return shoving aside the lingering feelings caused by his father to be reduced to a faint smell in his mind. With this second experience he could definitely say that he liked it even if he couldn't quite decide whether or not he could call it hope. He knew he'd felt it before but the memories had become diseased thanks to the actions of his father so he couldn't quite make the connection like he wanted to.

Still he'd hold onto it for as long as he could and if Xandria was a source of it he would spend as much time with her as he could.

Why?

Because she'd eased the burden that he'd been carrying around for a long time and there was a chance that if he spent enough time with her she might get rid of it all.

"So who's the pretty boy?" Kaoruko asked before getting a playful look on her face, "Your boyfriend?"

"EEnnhh! Try again sugah." Xandria replied with a roll of her eyes at the teasing, "Ran inta him after ah checked out the fire. Had some thugs sweating hm for yen 'til ah told'em ta get lost."

"And then he started following you around like a lovesick puppy! Right?" Kaoruko asked not quite giving up with her playful ideas.

"Somethin' like that." Xandria replied without elaborating.

"Tch! It's not fun if you don't keep denying it." Kaoruko complained at her fun being ended early.

"Well so-rry!" Xandria said with a roll of her eyes, "Now sorry ta cut and run but ah'm bushed. Ah'm headin' home for some sleep. See ya in class?"

"Sure." Kaoruko replied turning to walk away, "Don't do anything I wouldn't do!"

Xandria just shook her head in exasperation without saying anything more.

"C'mon Toya." Xandria said before hefting the bag carrying her armour on her shoulder into a better position, "Until we figure out somethin' better yer stayin' with me."

"What?" He asked his brain stalling as it tried to figure things out.

"There's no way in hell ah'm havin' ya go back home ta HIM!" Xandria replied her anger towards his father quite clear, "You've been put through enough hell already thanks ta him. My place…it's the only place ah can think of."

"You don't have to." He said not wanting to burden the one who'd saved him, "I've got enough money saved up that I can find a hotel room someplace to stay at for awhile."

"Unless ya have got a lot of yen saved up that's not going ta last." She said shaking her head in the negative, "Plus ah'm betting the asshole's probably got ways of being told when and where ya withdrew money. You'd be givin' yourself away and he'd just drag ya back home. That'd be a mess waitin' to happen."

"My dad…he taught me everything I know about using a fire quirk." He said remembering the good days before his problem showed up, "He knows I can't beat him without hurting myself. Even if I went all out…he's the Number Two Pro Hero for a reason."

"All that means is he'll need to wait until yer someplace deserted before he can cut loose." She said showing no fear at all, "He tries anything where there're eyes and cameras it'll hurt his image. Even if he has someone spin control the facts to make it look normal later people'll remember. Still…it'd probably be best ta find a legal way of keeping him away so ya can live yer own life. Back home it'd be emancipation or something but ah dunno if Japan works the same way."

"What's emancipation?" He asked not familiar with the term.

"Basically it's a way for someone ta be freed from control by their parents before they're old enough ta legally be called an adult." She replied before displaying some uncertainty, "Sometimes all ya gotta do is prove ya can make enough money to support yerself but other times ya gotta get a degree or diploma. The idea is ta show yer smart enough to live on yer own and handle life's problems without yer parents around. Don't know if they have anythin' like that here in Japan though."

As far as he knew he'd never heard of anyone younger than twenty years old being able to live on their own. Until they reached the age of twenty they were obliged to remain with their family. The very thought of returning to the house he'd lived in for so long and to the people who lived there…of all of them it was only his father that he could live without seeing again. All his hardship, all his pain and suffering all stemmed from that man who dared to dangle a wondrous thing in front of him only to tear it away. A dream wasn't something you could show others and then demand that they abandon it as though it was an order from a god.

Once you were shown a dream it was your choice and your choice alone as to whether to give it up or not.

Those who tried to take a dream away from one who desired it, who tried to shatter it callously, caused only suffering.

Despite his words against his mother he didn't really blame her. She was as much a victim of his father as he was. With her parents bought off she'd have nowhere to go if she tried to leave and no doubt his father would cut off his financial support if his grandparents did offer sanctuary or aid.

Fuyumi…Natsuo…both had been discarded by their father as failures. His sister might not understand how important his dream of becoming a Pro Hero was but he was perhaps going too far calling her a good for nothing. He remembered when she'd come home with her latest test or report card to show their parents with her grades showing her to be quite intelligent. As for his brother Natsuo he was beginning to think that perhaps he had been relying too much on his brother for support with his problems. They were both going through hardships and given that they were younger than him…maybe…maybe it'd been asking too much of Natsuo to take on more.

As for Shoto, his father's prized creation, he'd been an idiot to blame someone so young for things that were completely out of their control. Shoto didn't ask to be born or to be chosen by their father as a means of surpassing All Might. Indeed one so young probably barely understood what was going on never mind how his position was affecting others. To attack a child, his youngest brother, because of the feelings he had towards their father…that wasn't right.

As for his father…

…he didn't know. A part of him still wanted to prove to the number two hero that he had what it took to make the dream a reality but now a part of him existed that couldn't help but feel bitter. The hours of training, the adamant resolve to become a Pro Hero, and still it proved not to be enough to get his father to even show up to see how far he'd come. If even all that wasn't enough to change things between him and his father then…what'd be the point of going on.

~Maybe…maybe…I should just-~ he thought blindly following the one in front of him.

"Stop that thought right there." Xandria said stopping to half-turn towards him.

"Huh?" He asked not quite sure what she meant.

"You were thinking about giving up weren't ya?" Xandria asked in response a stern look on her face, "Whatever's been yer important goal up until now…you're thinking about givin' up on it."

"What? Do you have a telepathy quirk or something?" He asked humorously intending for it to be a joke.

"Don't need telepathy. It's written all over yer face and…" she replied before an introspective look came over her face, "…because ah once saw the same look on mah face when ah looked into a mirror years ago. The look of someone beaten down by life and their own family to the point where ya ask 'is there even a point to going on'."

For a moment he thought she was just making it up to make him feel better.

A lot of people said the same sort of things when they tried to cheer someone even if the whole 'I know what you are going through' was a lie. They thought that it was more important to offer comfort than to be honest.

But that suspicion towards Xandria faded away like shadows before the light of day when he looked closer. The darkness that still lingered in her eyes was unmistakable as was the frown on her face.

She…she really did know…what it was like…

"Ya know what got me through that?" She asked as her face became more friendly, "Friends. Friends and the vow ta become a better person than mah parents could ever hope to be. Where they would be bullies ah'd be a protector. Where they'd turn their backs on someone in need ah'd help if ah could. Where they'd sacrifice one person's dreams just so they could feel better about their lives ah'll let mahself fall before ah destroyed someone's future. It wasn't easy…got a few cracks along the way…but ah'd like to think ah'm still moving forward. That ah haven't broken mah vow."

Friends and a vow?

Was it really so simple or was he mistaken in thinking that such things could ever be simple?

"Don't just think about how ah kept going." She said looking at him right in the eyes, "Find your own reason. Something that gives you strength. Something that gives ya a reason ta be the best version of yerself. When ya find it make it the first thing ya think about when ya wake up an' the last thing ya think of before goin' to bed at night. Maybe then the future might look brighter than it does right now."

Stunned.

That was how he felt and it almost made him miss her turning away once more to lead him to where she wanted them to go.

Almost.

But in the end he chose to do what Xandria suggested. He would wait until an appropriate time and then he would look within himself to find what he needed to move forward.

As for the friends part…did he know of anyone that he considered a friend? Anyone who had the potential to be a friend?

Looking at the back of Xandria as they approached the park exit he felt as though he had that part covered already.

Maybe.


A Few Hours Later

The Elevator of a Certain Apartment Building

Usagiyama Rumi's POV

"Where the fuck have you been!?" She yelled when Xandria came through the door, "It's been hours since your match with All Might!"

"I'm sorry! I…just lost track of time." Xandria suspiciously like she was trying to think up a cover story, "Some things kinda happened."

"Like what?" She asked in her best 'you better not lie to me' tone of voice.

"Well there was a forest fire up at Sekoto Peak that I kinda had something to do with. Kinda melted my armour a bit." Xandria replied looking like she was juggling fact with fiction, "And then I kinda had to help someone and it snowballed into something bigger."

She'd of course heard of the fire that'd only been brought under control in the last hour according to the news. Mentally she groaned as she imagined how Power Loader was going to react to his damaged work but to be honest after it got melted by Endeavor you'd think he would've modified it to be more heat resistant. However most of her focus was on how Xandria's words implied she'd landed herself in some kind of mess.

"What 'something'?" She asked not in the mood for dancing around the truth.

She preferred the direct approach whenever possible.

"Me." Came an answer in a young man's voice before someone new appeared in the doorway.

White hair. Green Eyes. About Xandria's age give or take a year or two and wearing clothes that looked like he'd walked through a burning building or or more likely a forest.

"So you rescued this guy from the forest fire." She said dismissing the new arrival in order to focus on her roommate, "Why's he here and not at some hospital or his own place?"

She wasn't stupid enough to say anything like 'you bring him back here for a make-out session' because even without the girl's quirk getting in the way she knew Xandria didn't swing that way. She'd spent enough time with the U.A student to know that the girl barely noticed pretty boys and jocks that'd have most girls her age drooling. Then of course there were the times that Xandria acted weird, usually whenever a pretty piece of catwalk decoration caught her attention, hinting at the truth but not confirming it outright.

Never caught the girl trying to scope her out but that was probably because she had more smarts than most.

"He doesn't need a hospital and as for going home…" Xandria replied before glancing back at the guy behind her, "…sending him back there would be going against what I'm trying to become. No hero would send him back there."

Well that was all kinds of ominous.

Being a Pro Hero her mind immediately assumed that Xandria was implying that the guy would be harmed if he went home though the level of harm was not made clear. Looking at the guy she couldn't spot any of the usual signs of someone suffering from punching bag syndrome but that didn't mean much. She'd heard that a common trick of people like that was to hide their injuries beneath their clothes. Plus if the problem was more mental damage than physical then that was way outta her range of experiences.

There was too little info to make a decision one way or another and it was pissing her off!

"Fine! But he's sleeping on the couch and I want an explanation first thing in the morning!" She growled before storming off to her room, "Not this bullshit half-assed stuff you handed me just now! The truth!"

As soon as she was inside she slammed the door shut almost hard enough to put a real dent in it before hopping into her bed to try and figure what she'd have to do if Xandria didn't spill the beans tomorrow. The girl wasn't the type to drag some guy home home if she didn't have a good reason but if someone was beating on the guy then why not go to the cops or call in a Pro Hero? Why not just spill the beans instead of dance around things?

~First thing I gotta do is find out who the guy is.~ She thought sitting up in her bed before reaching over to grab her laptop from the bedside table.

While she didn't need anything as pathetic as advance warning to kick ass being one of the top ranked Pro Heroes meant she could access the security system of just about any place she wanted. With that in mind she accessed the security cameras of her own apartment building and began looking for a clear look at the unknown guy's face. Once she had the image it was easy to put it into the system to find a match but when it came up she was surprised.

Todoroki Toya.

Son of Todoroki Enji aka the number two Pro Hero Endeavor.

It was almost enough for her to go right to Xandria and demand the explanation NOW but managed to stop herself.

Barely.

If this mess involved Enji then it had the potential to explode if handled wrong and even if she didn't particularly care she just knew that someone would tell her off afterwards for helping make the blast.

If HE were still around he'd definitely tell her off.

Instead she decided to get some more ammo to confront the two kids with tomorrow.

First thing she did was access the police reports for the area where Endeavor lived and worked for any sign of something fishy. If something bad was going down in the Todoroki house someone had to have seen something and filed some kind of report.

Nothing.

Or as little so as to make no difference. A few noise complaints and a couple of house calls but the reports were astonishingly brief with almost no details. Fishy and she didn't like fish. Even if she didn't bother to read half of them she knew that the cops filled out reports better than this even if they were lazy assholes. The fact that these fishy reports were so brief could only mean that they were kept deliberately brief and sparse on details. To her mind this meant that the detectives who wrote the reports were ordered to do so or were pressured to do so.

A cover up.

Was it Endeavor who made the call or was it the Hero Public Safety Commission? Both would have their reasons to keep anything bad from making the news especially if it was something that'd ruin the rep of one of the top five heroes in Japan. People were happy and obedient as long as they believed that their Pro Heroes would always be there to help and were like the ones in the comic books. If they stopped being pillars of goodness or some shit like that they'd become ordinary people and ordinary people could lose.

~If the cops can't tell me anything who can?~ She thought before an idea hit her.

Grabbing the phone she dialled a number from memory before waiting for the person on the other end to pick up.

"Central Hospital how may I direct your cal?" A familiar voice asked making her smile at the memories.

"Quit with the canned words Sameko." She replied just like in the old days, "You aren't some trained chimp."

"Rumi! Long time no see!" Sameko exclaimed with joy at the phone reunion.

"Yeah! Yeah! Look I need you to look into something for me." She said brushing past all the 'reunited heroes stuff', "I need you to find out if any of the Todoroki have been in your place for serious injuries."

RUMI! You know I can't give out patient info! Not even to one of the top ten Pro Heroes in Japan!" Sameko exclaimed in shock and denial.

"I ain't asking for details idiot!" She growled back correcting her old friend, "Just look in their files and find out if they've ever come in hurt and I'm not talking about knee scrapes. I'm talking broken bones, bruises and…serious burns. I'll call back tomorrow morning and all you have to tell me is 'yes' or 'no'. Good enough?"

"I…guess so…" Sameko replied sounding a little more ready to do some digging, "…but…you gotta take me to Okonomiyaki Ucchan and let me eat as much as I want! You can afford it!"

"Whatever! Maybe we'll go around the old neighborhood just like old times." She said a small grin.

"Sure…just…just don't make it end like it usually did." Sameko said sounding a little afraid, "My boss'd get mad if that happened."

"Quit whining and get to work Sameko." She grumbled before hanging up.

Sameko had always been a bit of a whiner but she'd been a lot bolder too.

~Guess getting a job at a hospital made her wimpier.~ She thought with disappointment, ~I'll have to do something about that when we hit Ucchan's.~

Putting down the phone she considered if there was any other way that she could get to the truth.

The police were a dead end and even if Sameko hit pay dirt she wouldn't get any additional info on what Xandria was hiding.

She smiled thinking of a good way to squeeze the truth out of the girl.

One part to lower the girl's guard and a second part tricks the facts out without her roommate even realizing it.

Add to all that she could bust some chops and she was pleased by her brilliant efforts.

Tomorrow would be an INTERESTING day.


The Living Room of the Apartment

Xandria's POV

~Definitely not doing that again anytime soon.~ He thought using some water to wash down some painkillers, ~Channelling two templates at the same time takes a lot out of you.~

~^It'll probably be easier if you chose templates belonging to normal people or weaker super humans. Wanda and Xavier were definite powerhouses.^~

~No doubt.~ She thought some of Rogue's memories passing by her mind's eye, ~Still not going to try it again soon. We don't even know if it worked with Toya.~

Sure she was pretty sure she'd manipulated Toya's DNA right to fix his power problem but not once since then had the guy tried to use it. She definitely didn't want to have him use it in Mirko's place or the Bunny woman would definitely go postal on the two of them.

~^Good idea.^~ Echo Willow thought to him, ~^Especially since people're already a bit afraid of you with just Miss Marvel's power set. If they find out you've got potentially hundreds of templates in you and you can combine them I can't think of a single way it'd turn out good for you.^~

No shit.

If it wasn't All For One putting some kind of bounty on her head it'd be the government pondering if they'd benefit more with her behind bars or being their own personal enforcer.

For now though she had to focus on the matter at hand.

~First things first.~ She thought turning on the TV and putting the volume up as high as she could without being suspicious.

Then she went over to a desk that Rumi seldom used to grab a pad of paper and two pens before heading back to where Toya was waiting with a questioning look on his face.

'Rumi's bunny ears aren't just for show.' She wrote on the pad quickly, 'We need to 'talk' and this is the only way to keep it between us.'

Handing him the pad of paper it only took a few moments for him to read her message and she could see the reluctance mixed with the understanding. She knew that look because it'd been on her face when Willow had first asked her about what went on at home when she'd been Xander Harris. No one wanted to talk about how they were abused and it took a lot of courage to push past the reluctance to spill the beans. She'd only done it with Willow because by that time her trust in his best bud was unshakable and because she needed to tell someone before she got crushed by the abuse heaped on her by Tony.

Even with what she'd gained by absorbing energy from Toya he had no reason to trust her to that degree but they still needed to figure something out. Endeavour wasn't going to let his son just walk away especially if her modification of the guy's DNA worked out like she'd wanted it to. Then of course there were the whole legal issues since to the best of her knowledge the law said Toya needed to stay with family until he legally became an adult. Barring information implicating Endeavour in unfit parenting the cops would have no option but to send him back into the torture chamber that was his home.

They needed a better option!

'What about?' Toya wrote before handing the pad back to her to read the message.

It wasn't that the guy was playing dumb but rather he was probably hoping that she was referring to something else.

'Your family situation.' She wrote down trying to keep things brief, 'You know what it's like and thanks to my power absorbing quirk I do too. There's no nice way to put this: your father's a bastard. I don't care how bad he wants to take the number one spot from All Might that doesn't give him the right to treat his own kids like he treated you. If it was up to me he'd be thrown into Tartarus and everything he owned would be signed over to the rest of you.'

Figuring that was enough she passed the pad over to Toya to let him read.

She could tell her written words were having an effect on him but it was only when he wrote the next message that she found out what kind of effect.

'That'll never happen. He's the number two pro hero in Japan.' Toya wrote a look of discouragement on his face, 'Even if we had proof the whole thing would probably get buried. The World Heroes Association, especially the Japan branch, can't let a truth like this get out. The people need their heroes. Their hope.'

Taking back the pad and reading the words she grew angry both at how Toya didn't sound like he was even going to try and because it was a feasible possibility. Ever since she'd gotten a grip on what this new world was like she'd known that the governments of the world valued the whole 'hero versus villain' dynamic. When quirks first started coming out it was chaos that mirrored greatly her Rogue memories of the first mutants making themselves known to the world. It was only through those who chose the path of a hero making a big enough splash that things didn't get worse and with a possible solution the governments were quick to use the structure of comic books to frame the world.

Heroes were people who used their quirks to enforce the law and protect the people.

Villains were those who used their quirks for their own selfish ends and hurt people.

By establishing these definitions for all to see civilians began to draw parallels between what was happening in real life and how things went in the comic books. It still took a long time to build up such a simple premise into what it was today and she had little doubt that there was still a ways to go before it could be said to be as perfect as it was likely going to be. On the surface people felt safe believing that no matter what villain showed up or what catastrophe occurred a Pro Hero would appear to save them. By turning the heroes into celebrities with all the fame and money that went with such a position others were inspired to follow their example drawing many away from the path of villainy. Those who still chose the selfish way or didn't fall into line were treated as criminals and outcasts both things that few would find satisfactory.

It was a framework meant to keep the chaos at bay and keep the world looking like it was a decent place to live in.

If the truth of Endeavour's actions reached the public it would ruin him but it might also compromise the public's image of Pro Heroes. If the number two pro hero in Japan was capable of essentially buying a wife and viewed his own kids as his 'creations' rather than his children than what might the other Pro Heroes be hiding? That was what some people might think. Considering the World Heroes Association had probably run scenarios on how things might go if the public lost faith in Pro Heroes or saw them as less than personifications of peace and justice they'd intervene. Either they'd try to spin control things so that it didn't look so bad and just needed some family counselling or they'd suppress it like no tomorrow.

If they couldn't figure out a way to lawfully then they had to find another option.

'What about a bluff?' She wrote on the notepad as her thoughts formed, 'We get proof of what Endeavour's done, good solid stuff, and then arrange a private meet with him. We give him an ultimatum: either he leaves you alone from his day forward or we dump all of it online as well as on the doorstep of every news outlet in the city. The guy cares about his rep right? We show him we have the means to burn it to ash and he might just give in.'

'It'd have to be some pretty damning stuff.' Toya wrote after reading the pad, 'I'm just a failed creation in his mind and you're just a girl who's bitten off more than she can chew. Unless he sees for himself that we have the means to ruin him he won't believe a word we say.'

'I know. I also know that the best way to get the proof at this point is going to be the hardest.' She wrote agreeing that Endeavour would look down on the two of them, 'We need to get your mom to take a stand and let us record her telling the whole story. If his wife gives us all the info we need on record people'll have no choice but to take it seriously.'

She could tell instantly that Toya didn't like the idea and had doubts that Todoroki Rei would speak out against her husband. Even she had to admit that based on the memories she'd absorbed from the guy there were signs that the woman's own will was being suffocated by Endeavour. How much will could remain after so long? Would the remnants be enough to give her the strength to speak the truth to a camera?

'I know it's not the best solution but it'd be the quickest.' She wrote after Toya did nothing for awhile, 'The only other choice would be to buy a lot of hidden cameras, put them all over your house and hope they catch Endeavour doing something bad. Seeing as how neither of us are spies I don't like the odds of him not spotting them and destroying them.'

'Can we…can we at least try the cameras first?' Toya wrote taking the pad up again, 'Please?'

Incredible.

Even with all he'd been through Toya still had love for his family and didn't want to see them hurt.

With the exception of that bastard Endeavour of course.

Rei had been through a lot and even if it would be the quickest solution retelling the story of her nightmare would be hell for Toya's mother. She could understand why Toya wouldn't want to do that unless ABSOLUTELY necessary.

'Fine. We'll try cameras first.' She wrote back not wanting to be a complete bitch, 'I can even think of a distraction that might make it easier.'

'What?' Toya thought looking like he didn't know what she could be talking about.

"I'll tell you tomorrow." She said figuring the secret conversation was over for now, "We'll need a lot of open space for it anyway."

If she'd done her job right and Toya had any luck at all the 'distraction' they needed would show itself tomorrow.

She just hoped that the acceptance it might earn him from Endeavour if everything went like clockwork wouldn't cause him to cast aside what needed to be done.


Endeavor Agency, Shizuoka Prefecture

Founder's Office, The Next Day

Endeavour's POV

As he finished reading the file he'd accessed he leaned back in his chair he thought on what he had learned.

When he'd first encountered Alexandria Clairemont he had seen nothing but a student of U.A with unusual circumstances. He hadn't even bothered to look into the pasts of the students the Principal had set against him all those months ago given that it was going to be a one time piece of volunteer work. He'd believed that if she had any worth he'd see it during the exercise and to a degree he had but it'd barely warranted looking for her during the next U.A Sports Festival. When he'd learned that day of her being pitted against All Might his interest in her rose since he knew that Principal Nezu didn't do anything without a reason.

Thus like everyone else he'd watched the match with focus.

Her efforts while still those one would expect from a child were executed well enough and the fire she showed at the mid-point of the match had been interesting. There was never any doubt of course that the number one Pro Hero in Japan would emerge victorious so the only point of contention had been how quickly Miss Clairemont's defeat would descend upon her. He'd even heard representatives from other agencies place wagers on the duration of the match but he didn't particularly care who won.

Now though he had reason to care more about the girl.

It was not because she hadn't shown him the proper respect owed to the number two Pro Hero in Japan or that she had interfered in the affairs of his family.

No.

It'd been the fact that the burn scarring that had marred Toya's body for so long had vanished and he was certain that the Clairemont girl had something to do with it. He knew that even with healing quirks such as the one wielded by Recovery Girl repairing the damage of existing scar tissue was not easily done. Given the length of time between when he'd seen the remnants of Toya's self-inflicted injuries and when his son had been in the girl's company it was impossible for existing methods to have been used. Given that the healing could only have been done at his old training grounds that made it even more unfeasible.

That only left the possibility of the Clairemont girl being responsible.

Looking back to the file displayed on his computer screen the information he'd just read did make it seem feasible. The girl apparently had a core quirk that allowed her to copy the quirks of whomever she made skin to skin contact with and if the contact was long enough the new quirk remained hers to do with as she would. If she'd touched someone with a potent regenerative quirk that could be used on others it would explain what happened to Toya so long as it didn't require skin to skin contact. Logic would dictate that if it did her own core quirk would cancel out the benefits. Also based on how she'd looked when he'd encountered her last using the regenerative quirk took quite a bit out of her.

~I will need to consult the quirk database to see who possesses such a quirk.~ He thought contemplating the future, ~Her file lists her as an American by birth so there'll be some jurisdictional issues but they should be easy enough to work through.~

Once he had a list of people with the needed quirks he would track down where they'd been for the last decade to see which one came closest to the girl's hometown. Once he found who he sought he would contact them to learn the specifics of their quirk to find out for sure if their ability could've healed Toya's scars. The answer he received would answer at least one question for him but there were plenty of others that would require more work.

The girl's file listed at least three other quirks and there had been signs during her match with All Might that she might possess even more. If that was true then he would need to find the same number of people with those quirks and find out if they'd been involved in any incidents that hinted at the girl's involvement. Once he had enough criteria to work with would have a rough list of just what he could expect to face if his second attempt at reclaiming Toya devolved into violence.

It would be a useful encounter one way or another.

A second battle with her forcing her to use all the quirks at her disposal would be a formidable challenge and if he succeeded in defeating her in just the right way it might just be enough to overtake his rival All Might. Indeed instead of fighting someone with the exact same powers as the current number one Pro Hero fighting an opponent with multiple quirks would force him to improve. To be more versatile, more adaptive and able to think up countermoves with mere seconds warning! Even if he would never succeed in surpassing his rival in sheer power if he could rise above him in skill and strategic thinking perhaps that would be enough to finally be named the strongest.

Another benefit would be if he could stage the confrontation to happen someplace with enough cameras already in place to capture the entire encounter he could use it against her. He could expose to the authorities the full extent of the girl's abilities and encourage them to view her as a potential threat not just to Japan but to the world at large. If the quirks she possessed were as numerous and varied as he suspected she could easily earn the label 'person of mass destruction' and like the weapons of the same label they were strictly regulated and secured. He would let that ominous threat loom over her for a bit before suggesting to the authorities that she be placed under his strict supervision. He would test her to see if it was possible that she could be turned into an asset rather than a threat and would hold her to the 'highest standards'.

Once he knew it all he would be able to plan further and decide whether she could be of use to his plans or was a threat to them.

He had a few ideas of how she could be the former ranging from being a heavy hitter for his agency and perhaps his second in command. He would of course make sure that he had a firm grip on her leash the entire time but by having a lieutenant he could delegate lesser tasks to and help to coordinate his agency sidekicks better for large scale operations. Burnin' would probably not like this given that she'd been with his agency longer but he would placate her by revealing part of the truth: that Miss Clairemont's current position was a ball and chain not a gift.

If it was the latter though he would make sure he got thrown into Tartarus so fast it'd make her head spin. They'd likely need to keep her sedated at all times and fed through a tube but that was only prudent. With the sheer number of quirks she likely had at her disposal giving her any opportunity to use them to escape would be foolhardy. He knew from past inquiries that the prison had custom cells for prisoners judged too dangerous for simple handcuffs and steel doors. However those were for criminals with only a single quirk so it'd be something quite different with the girl who had many. Rather than building containment measures for each quirk it would be smarter to simply make it impossible for Clairemont to use any of them.

Given that quirks were as much a part of someone as an arm or a leg then keeping her either unconscious or mind muddled would be the best way to contain her.

He would likely need to also recommend that the moment her cell registered as being breached every way to or from the floor it was on would go into lockdown.

It probably wouldn't stop her from escaping but it would delay her long enough for him to arrive with the appropriate backup to put her back in her cell.

If necessary he would even call in one of the other top ten Pro Heroes for support if he thought it was necessary.

But not HIM. Not All Might.

Not unless he had no other choice.

~Much is riding on this.~ He thought as he mentally began to map out what was to come, ~I must plan carefully in order to ensure that no other outcome occurred besides the one I desire.~

He would succeed in all he wished to accomplish.

No one would stop him.

No one could stop him.


A Quarry a Short Distance From the City

Todoroki Toya's POV

"What is this place?" He asked after they landed.

"A rock quarry Mirko took me ta for training." Xandria replied walking a bit away from him, "Here we could cut loose without having to worry 'bout destroyin' public or city property. Figured it'd be the perfect spot to see if mah Hail Mary move worked on you."

"Hail Mary move?" He asked not familiar with the term.

"It's a sports term. It means goin' with a move that's got low odds of winnin'." She replied turning to face him, "After seeing what you've been through ah knew that unless the core problem was solved savin' ya from the forest fire was only delayin' the inevitable. So…ah gambled on me havin' the right quirks ta fix your problem."

"What do you mean?" He asked even though in the back of his mind he had his suspicions.

"Yer Quirk. Ya got yer dad's fire but ya didn't get his resistance ta it." She replied with a look of understanding on his face, "Ah reached deep inside of me…looked to see if there were quirks that could fix that…turns out there were. One of'em belonged to a top level geneticist who knew DNA like few others. Another had a way with probability. Could take something that had only a one percent chance of happenin' an' make it guaranteed to happen. It's why ah was so strung out when ya woke up. Maxed myself out tinkering with yer genes but ah'm pretty sure ah finished before ah had to stop."

"But tha-that's impossible!" He exclaimed not able to believe that Xandria had somehow managed to do what no one else had been able to do.

After it'd been revealed that he had the ability to produce fire but not keep himself from getting burned by it his father had taken him to various specialists. For the next few weeks work had gone into seeing if there was a way to activate the genes in him responsible for flame resistance. Methods ranging from gene therapy to more experimental possibilities all were given equal consideration before the inescapable conclusion was arrived at.

There was nothing that could be done.

The level of DNA manipulation necessary to give him another chance was just theoretical at the moment and decades away from being put into actual use.

"That was Wanda's speciality." Xandria said with a sad smile, "Thing was her quirk took a lot out of her. The further away from a hundred percent what she wanted as the more she had to push herself to make it happen. Can't say she didn't know how to go out in style though."

"You mean…" he said imagining the worst.

"Ah…ah haven't been completely honest with the Pro Heroes an' a few others." She said sounding like a part of her would like nothing more than to keep quiet but pressed on anyway, "Told'em about my core quirk, 'bout how it worked and how ah hightailed it outta the USA after things got bad there. What ah didn't tell'em was what happened before ah left. Didn't want to give'em even more reasons to be afraid of me. Truth is when ah decided to leave America the only way ah could do it was on foot."

"I thought you could fly." He said not quite understanding what he was being told.

"Ah couldn't at the time. Had ta hitchhike where ah could and stow away on trucks when ah couldn't." She said her eyes going out of focus a bit, "Everything went smooth enough 'til ah ran across a guy who looked like he'd fit right in teaching seminars at a big league university. Was real nice an' all right up until mah vision started getting blurry and ah conked 't until ah woke up that ah got the big speech.

"Turns out the guy was a scientist who specialized in studyin' what he called the 'quirk phenomena'. Wanted ta know how it all started, how it worked an' just what it'd take to go one step further." She said anger emerging from her voice like a bubbling flow of lava, "He didn't much like how the rest of the world had stopped lookin' inta how quirks came ta be and how it all worked. Started doin' underground research of his own since he figured 'the law' wouldn't much approve of his methods. Kidnapped people with quirks that fit his 'criteria' and went to work tearing them apart before trying different ways of putting them back together. Turns out ah fit his criteria a little too well."

He wanted to think that she was lying to him or making up some story with the idea of waiting until he fell for it before saying 'gotcha' and smiling at him. What kept him from doing that? The emotions he was seeing on her face. He was no pro but he liked to think he was pretty good at reading people.

She wasn't faking it or playing some kind of joke.

"Don't really know what happened next. It's all…blurry." She said shaking her head as though to get rid of the fog, "Next thing ah remember clearly was Wanda undoing the straps holding me to a gurney. We tried to get out, both of us, an' we almost made it but the bastard was smart. Had a plan in place just in case one of his 'specimens' ever got too close to getting out. If…if it hadn't been for Wanda…ah wouldn't have made it out. It got her killed. Wasn't 'til later ah found out ah had a few new quirks under the hood. Never though there'd be more waitin' further in.

"When one of 'em made an appearance durin' my match with All Might though ah learned otherwise. Then when ah needed to figure out a way to help you it just felt like the way ta go." She said with a grin that looked sheepish, "Now though it's time ta see if ah managed a miracle or just made things worse. Don't worry…if it looks like yer gonna hurt yerself ah'll step in like last time. Just, just start out slow 'kay."

He…he almost didn't believe it was possible but nevertheless the faint hope of what might be compelled him to raise his right hand and summon forth his fire once more.

When it appeared he could tell almost immediately that it was different, stronger, even if they still retained their blue colouring that set them apart from his father's hellfire. Looking at the flame in his hand he almost moved on to making it bigger and stronger but the memory of what'd happened at his father's favourite training grounds stopped him. What if…what if Xandria's tinkering didn't work? He knew she said that she'd knock him out again if things got out of control but seeing his flames burn hotter and hotter even as they tore at his flesh had been a traumatic experience to say the least. Raising his gaze to look at Xandria though and seeing the reassuring grin on her face proved to be enough for him to take that next step.

~Maybe…maybe just take it to the point where it usually starts hurting.~ He thought seeing this as a reasonable step.

If Xandria's actions worked like she wanted them to then he wouldn't feel even a bit of pain and they could call it a success. However if the pain came like it always did and his skin burned then…then nothing would change.

Nothing at all.

Deciding to act before hesitation could stop him he tapped into his quirk more and willed it to reach the point where in the past it had started to harm him. Higher and higher he pushed his quirk but in spite of this he felt no pain and neither could he see any sign of his flames burning his skin even a little. No matter how long he waited or even if he waved the flame around he didn't feel any pain from the act.

It'd worked!

It'd REALLY worked!

He barely registered the tears of joy trickling down his cheeks so enveloped he was in the joy of the truth he had just confirmed for himself.

In a way he couldn't even begin to understand Xandria had managed to remove the biggest obstacle he had to becoming a Pro Hero. With no risk of harming himself with his own flame all that remained was to train himself to use it just like his Dad could.

No.

He would train to surpass his father and become the undisputed top hero in all of Japan if not the world!

"Hahahahahahaha!" He laughed overcome with the euphoria of the nightmarish future he had thought awaited him being turned into so much harmless ash.

"Congrats sugah." Xandria said with a happy smile on her face, "Looks like the hail mary paid off."

THAT was an UNDERSTATEMENT!

With his fears of hurting himself gone he began to mimic his father by raising the temperature of the fire in his right hand to its highest level and condensed it to its most potent. These were the first steps to his father's infamous move called the Flashfire Fist from which numerous other attacks sprung from. Before his quirk had been revealed to be harmful towards him his father had demonstrated this move to him and explained the steps involved int performing it. At the time he'd been too young to try it himself and once the flaw in his quirk had surfaced his father had stopped training him altogether no matter how hard he argued that he could still be the Pro Hero he wanted to be. Despite his best efforts he'd never been able to successfully execute the move due to the fact that the pain caused by his flames affected his concentration too much.

Now there was no such obstacle!

Feeling the wind pick up as the intensity of his fire displaced the air around it he went through the steps as outlined in his memories before thrusting his hand to a large mass of stone a short distance away from him. While a part of him could tell that the attack wasn't as controlled or as focused as what he'd seen his father do the majority of his soul didn't care. All it cared about was that his fire did shoot across the distance to impact the stone causing his flames to splash over the surface while simultaneously heating the rock quickly. Seeing this he found that he desired more than anything to either burn through the stone or destroy it and so he continued to feed the stream of blue fire pouring ever more power into it.

It didn't even take five seconds before the stone melted to the point where his fire shot past it seeking something else to bar its path.

"Not bad sugah but you might want to dial it back a little." Xandria said with a bit of concern, "Just 'cause me and Mirko used this place for training that doesn't mean there weren't strings attached. This quarry's still in use and Mirko paid for the repairs out of her own pocket after we were done here. So unless you've got a couple hundred thousand yen stashed away reign the fire in a bit."

As much as he didn't appreciate the buzz kill he couldn't say he did have that kind of money to throw around and he was sure his father wouldn't appreciate having to pay it on his behalf either. Ceasing his feeding of strength to the Flashfire fist technique the stream of flames dissipated but it also revealed a lingering issue: he didn't quite know how to turn off his flames once they'd gotten this potent. After the initial manifestation he could extinguish them but once their strength passed a certain point they seemed to gain a life of their own and resisted his efforts to put them out. He was sure that if his father had continued training him he would've been taught the trick to putting them out at any intensity but that had never happened so he was in a bit of a jam at the moment.

"Um…I'm kinda in a bind here…" he said even as he tried to flick the lingering flames off of his right hand as though it were water instead of the element's opposite, "I still don't know how to turn off my flames when they get this strong."

"Shoulda figured as much." Xandria sighed closing her eyes briefly before focusing on him, "Let's try something simple and see if works. Close your eyes."

"Why?" He asked not quite getting how that'd help.

"Just do it." She replied in a no nonsense tone of voice.

Closing his eyes as instructed he awaited the next step.

"Feel the heat of your flame. Picture it in your mind with your imagination." Xandria said her words helping to form the imagery in his mind, "The way it flickers with the wind, the light it gives off and its warmth. It is a part of you. You command it. Now with your soul will it to recede into you like time's reversing itself. Little by little. Bit by bit. Guide it back to its origin point."

~Sounds like the sort of talk you'd hear watching a big budget movie.~ He thought even though he worked to do as instructed, ~Still it's not like I've got any better ideas.~

Using the imagery in his mind he willed his flames to return to their home within him treating them not as something separate but rather a part of him. Through sensation he could feel a reaction from his flames and they did seem to be responding to his will but it was sluggish progress at best. This did not sit well with him and like a teacher dealing with an unruly class he exerted his authority to force his flames to obey him. This seemed to have the desired effect as the recession of the flames sped up by a measurable amount until he could safely say that it wouldn't long before it was all inside of him once more.

Or so he thought.

For it was just as the last remaining tongues of flame felt like they were about to vanish within him that they seemed to gain a new level of obstinacy. Less like an unruly class of students and more like a wild horse that refused to be broken the flames tried to break free of his grasp and surge forth once more.

~NO! Xandria's given me a chance to chase my dream! To become the best Pro Hero EVER!~ He thought as he threw every inch of his will into forcing his new flames to obey him, ~This is MY new starting line!~

More and more he fought against the power that had been tempered thanks to Xandria determined to make it no different than an arm or a leg.

~YOU…WILL…OBEY…ME!~ He thought loudly enough that anyone with a telepathy quirk could've heard him.

FWOOSH!

Thus it came to an end and he no longer felt the heat of his flames but instead the caress of the open air running through the quarry.

It felt good.

"I did it. I turned my quirk off!" He declared turning to where Xandria stood.

Only to find her looking away from him.

"Yeah, yeah! Ya managed to shut it off but…" Xandria said with a little discomfort in her voice, "…ah think it might need a gentler touch sugah. Definitely a gentler touch."

He was puzzled by what she was saying and how she'd said it.

"What do you mean?" He asked unable to think of anything himself.

"Look down sugah." She replied pointing down at his feet without looking at him.

He did as she instructed…

…and one second later dove behind the nearest mass of rock large enough to completely hide him from view.

Why?

Because it would seem that in that final forceful exertion he'd wound up blasting his clothes to tatters.

Tatters that didn't cover much specifically.

Oops!


The Apartment of Usagiyama Rumi

A Little Over an Hour Later

Xandria's POV

"Yer so lucky that ah managed ta find that worker's jumpsuit Toya." She said flying through the window into the apartment she shared with Mirko, "Ah was NOT lookin' forward to flyin' through the city carrying a half naked guy."

"…Sorry. I'll work on my control." Toya said as she set him down on the floor.

In all honesty she should've figured things'd go that way. Based on the memories she'd absorbed from Toya to save him from his own flames the so-called number two Pro Hero had always emphasized strength as the path to victory. No need for strategy or tactics that involved holding back when you can just overwhelm your opponent completely. If that was the mindset that was pounded into Toya from an early age then the biggest hurdle in getting a grip on his quirk was going to be learning fine control. Instead of overcoming a problem by blowing it to pieces Toya would need to learn how to bring it down by taking out key supports so as to allow the obstacle's own weight to defeat it.

Brute force could only get you so far.

It was smarts and being able to think your way to victory that picked up the slack.

Still they were both teenagers in the midst of learning how to use their abilities to help others so they had time enough to get better at both sides of the equation.

"About time ya got back brat!"

At once both she and Toya looked towards the source of the voice but what they found was more than what they'd been expecting. Mirko was there but that only made sense since this was the Pro Hero's apartment and she was just rooming with the bunny hero for the time being. It was the two other people there that neither she nor she suspected Toya were expecting to see upon their return to the apartment.

One was none other than Principal Nezu Takato of U.A High School.

She was still sore at the little fur ball for dragging her into his sports festival scheme but with bigger matters on her plate she knew it'd be best to let it go. With any luck the principal had learned his lesson and she'd never have to worry about him trying something in the future. Still having the top guy of U.A here and a proven schemer here had her a bit apprehensive.

Then of course there was the second surprise and one that seemed to have left Toya floored more than her.

ALL MIGHT!

Dressed in an amber pinstripe suit but with his iconic smile firmly in place he was sitting on the couch alongside Nezu with Mirko standing to the left arms crossed over her chest and scowling. This calmed her down somewhat since he doubted that Nezu or Mirko would be able to get away with doing something too extreme in the presence of the Number One Pro Hero of Japan. Having fought against him she was confident that he'd be able to put a stop to any violence swiftly and brow beat any uncalled for words.

"Didn't know there was a meetin' scheduled sugah." She said keeping something of a guard up until she got a better idea of their intentions.

If Endeavour had pulled some strings already to get Toya dragged back to him under false pretences then she'd have to beat a hasty retreat with Toya thrown over her shoulder. Even with what she'd learned about the inheritance she got from Rogue she was nowhere near where she'd need to be able to handle two of the top ten Pro Heroes in Japan and Nezu. It was even possible that they'd already boxed her into a checkmate scenario in which case only doing something flashy as well as unexpected would create an opening worth going for.

She seriously hoped that they wouldn't need it.

"I told you I'd want answers today so here we are!" Mirko snapped clearly irritated that her previous day's statement had been forgotten, "Spill it brat. Why the hell did you bring Endeavour's kid here? What's going on?"

Shit.

Mirko'd figured out who Toya was and that'd explain why All Might and Nezu were here. Anything involving the family of the current Number Two had widespread implications and needed to be handled with care. One wrong move and it could lead to a scandal the likes of which no one wanted except maybe a Villain or a psycho.

Maybe both.

Scary!

"Ah can't go inta detail Mirko. It's a personal matter for Toya." She said not wanting to overstep her boundaries with the guy she'd saved, "Let's just say that Endeavour's number one obsession makes his home a bad place ta live. It nearly got Toya killed. Ah'm not going to take the chance of that happening again!"

There.

She kept the details under wraps but let out the bare bones.

Didn't matter what country you called home it was never easy to tell others that you were being abused by a parent and it never failed to ruin a family's rep if word of it got around to everyone else. However when she watched anime back in Sunnydale they always seemed to make it appear as though a scandal like this would be four times worse in Japan than anywhere else. Maybe it was because 'family honour' was so valued here? Or was it because they had more rules regarding behaviour than elsewhere? She honestly didn't know.

"And how would you know that Miss Clairemont?" Nezu asked in a casual yet pointed way.

Leave it to the schemer to ask the tough question.

"Ah…kinda had to use mah core quirk on Toya and kinda got a highlight reel of his strongest memories." She replied hoping she didn't wind up saying something she shouldn't.

"What could possibly have compelled you to do so young lady?" All Might asked out of genuine heroic concern.

"It was the only way to help him." She replied not willing to let the three before him know that it'd been Toya who'd sparked off the fire up at Sekoto Peak yesterday.

Right now she figured Toya thought pretty highly of her but that didn't change the fact that when she'd found him his mental state had been right on the edge of sanity. One push, one more trauma added to the pile, and he could wind up right back where she'd found him mentally speaking. If she revealed something she shouldn't he might see it as a betrayal of some kind and do something reckless like using his quirk to run or fight. She had to do what she could to keep him from feeling cornered or threatened. Maybe later once he'd gained some skill with his modified quirk and their friendship had a firmer foundation she could try something riskier but not now.

"Be at ease Miss Clairemont." Nezu said reassuringly, "Miss Usagiyama merely contacted us out of concern that you might have gotten yourself into a difficult situation. We only wish to help."

"That's appreciated Principal Nezu but ah'm afraid ah can't say more. Not unless Toya gives the okay for it." She said believing that the three before her wanted to help, "If he doesn't want ta talk then that's that. End of discussion."

With both her tone of voice and her eyes she made it clear that she meant every word.

If Toya refused to tell them anything then neither would she no matter what sort of convincing argument they came up with.

If they tried to force the truth out using strong-arm tactics she'd go as far as she had to with her fists and her powers to protect Toya and his choice.

Watching as All Might, Nezu and Mirko turned to Toya to see what his choice would be. She was pleased to see that Toya had gained strength from her words but evidently not enough to completely disperse the feelings his home had for him.

Still when he visibly steeled himself she could tell that he had made the choice to reveal some or all of the truth. Whether it was the trust that the reps of those in front inspired in others or because the guy didn't want to get her into trouble protecting him she didn't know.

Thus came out a tale of how one man's obsession with the top spot had driven him to seek out a woman not for love but because her quirk served as a counterbalance to his own. The truth of the quirk marriage's intention to create an heir possessing both fire and ice quirks allowing the child to surpass Endeavour in all ways.

More then that the heir would surpass All Might which was Endeavour's all consuming goal.

What came next was not a story of a father raising his children but rather of a man evaluating each 'creation' before discarding them one after another when they failed to meet his expectations. The only attention given was in the form of monetary support leaving most of the raising to the mother who'd went through her own variation of hell. Compelled by her own kind nature to try to defend her children and Endeavour's overwhelming presence the woman could not have had many moments of happiness.

Toya spoke of how initially his father had praised him and laid before him the marvellous dream of rising up to become the number one hero in the world. However when an 'illness' of unknown origin made it so that his own flames would burn him once the temperature went past a certain point the dream was imperilled. Once enough time passed that Endeavour lost any hope that a cure would be found Toya was discarded in favour of the next child. From there a desperate tale of how a boy tried to prove that he could still be an excellent hero even with his 'illness' only to be dismissed time and time again.

It all culminated with what happened Sekoto Peak where Toya tried to force his quirk to evolve, force his body to 'regain' the resistance it once had. The result had been explosive causing the forest fire but with a simple demonstration Toya proved that 'once more' his body could use his flames without needing to be worried about self-injury.

"Ah found out all this when ah found him at the centre of the fire. Whatever'd happened it left his quirk on full blast an' that idiot Endeavour never got around ta teachin' him how to turn it off." She said adding in her own two cents to the explanation, "So ah did the only thing ah could. Ah used my core quirk knowing it'd knock him out bettin' that if he went unconscious his quirk would turn off on its own. It did.

"Thing is like ya know All Might using my core quirk on someone comes with some extra baggage." She said as her mind returned to what she'd seen moments after contact with Toya, "Ah saw it all through his eyes. Felt the emotions attached to every memory. Ah can't let'em go back to that kinda house. Even if his quirk's back to normal that doesn't excuse what Endeavour's done. He's gotta be stopped and brought ta justice."

With her words spoken she waited to see how the two Pro Heroes and one high school principal would react. Would the words that'd been spoken be believed or would they be dismissed as exaggeration? Would they hold Endeavour accountable to the full extent of the law or would they try to handle things behind closed doors away from the eyes of the public?

Three seconds later she got her answers.

"I knew that Endeavour-kun was determined to surpass me but I never imagined…never dreamed that he'd go this far." All Might said with barely manifest acceptance.

"While I had many wonderful things to say about my predecessor I think it is safe to say that he should've paid closer attention to Endeavour." Nezu said with moderate disappointment, "There's nothing wrong with having a goal that you're willing to give your all for but when it brings harm to the innocent that is going too far."

"Fucking asshole! Knew he was no good the second I laid eyes on him!" Mirko declared sounding like she'd pounce on any suggestion focused on kicking Endevour's ass.

"You mean…you believe us?" Toya asked sounding a bit shocked.

Make that A LOT shocked.

Not surprising. Based on their written conversation yesterday the guy up until now had fully expected his father's wrong doing to be buried in order to preserve the current hero worshipping society. Seeing as how the current system had been constructed to bring an end to the chaos that'd come before and putting a crack in it would risk bringing the chaos back…burying it was an option.

Not for her of course.

If all it took to bring the current system down was bringing the number two hero to justice for his wrongdoing then it'd be better to start from scratch and build a better system. If anything showing the people that not even the number two pro hero was above the law and that every other major hero stood by the system that'd be prosecuting Endeavour would be reassuring to the public. Nothing scared people more than the idea of someone with a ton of power and a government incapable of holding that someone accountable.

"Thanks to Miss Usagiyama's preliminary investigation data I'd already suspected what might be happening but I wanted to speak with the both of you before saying anything." Nezu said without any waver in his voice, "Now with Toya-san's statement combined with the data I have a clear picture of the situation."

"What do ya mean 'preliminary investigation data'?" She asked a bit surprised that her roomie had done anything.

"And what's so surprising about that?" Mirko asked sounding angry.

"Well…ya kinda act like every problems a nail and yer foot's the hammer." She replied with mild honesty, "Ah kinda figured anythin' involvin' too much thinkin' would be like gettin' a kid to eat their veggies."

Though considering how Mirko liked carrots her parents probably didn't have that problem.

"You brat!" Mirko growled one foot planting itself on top of the back of the sofa she stood behind, "I might like letting my feet do the talking but that doesn't make me dumb! You don't get to be one of the top ten Pro Heroes of Japan without a good brain in your skull!"

"That is true. Miss Usagiyama's grades while attending U.A were quite satisfactory including investigative techniques." Nezu said supporting the female Pro Hero's words.

"What'd ya find out?" She asked Mirko giving the rabbit Pro Hero a chance to strut her findings.

"Well for one thing there're a lot of suspicious 'accidents' that happen at Endeavour's home." Mirko said grudgingly going with the flow, "Didn't get any details. Doctor-patient confidentiality and all that. Still my source managed to tell me the number of accidents and unless the entire family's accident prone something stinks. Then I found out that unless they did something that'd harm his rep Endeavour never shows up for meetings or school events. Dumps all that on his wife to do."

"I have some friends in most of the schools Endeavour's children go to so I was able to make some discreet inquiries." Nezu said adding in his own findings, "I'm still waiting on a reply from some of them but what I have been told did hint at behaviour consistent with abuse or abandonment. Unfortunately without more concrete evidence none of them had grounds to take the matter any further much less bring it to the attention of the police."

~Damn they work quick.~ She thought considering Mirko could only have started last night and Nezu soon after her and Toya left.

~^Well two of them are Pro Heroes.^~ Echo Willow thought with understanding, ~^And Nezu's definitely smarter than any of the teachers back at Sunnydale High School.^~

~A brick's smarter than any of the teachers back home.~ She thought remember her classes there all too well, ~I swear most of them literally read directly from the text book and nothing else.~

~^They weren't that bad!^~ Echo Willow thought disapprovingly, ~^They wouldn't have gotten hired in the first place if they weren't qualified!^~

~Willow? Remember how many kids were in our class the first day of school? Remember how many were still around by last Halloween?~ She thought pointing out something the genius missed, ~No way the local schools didn't lose teachers to 'barbecue forks' and 'wild animal attacks' every year. Wouldn't be surprised if half of Sunnydale High's teachers got hired just because they had the right diploma and looked the part.~

Regardless of her opinion of the faculty of Sunnydale High it was heartening to hear that not only did they not have to fight a Herculean battle to convince the adults of the truth. Instead they'd found out that the adults had managed to gather some puzzle pieces on their own the added to the credibility of the charges against Endeavour. With a little more time and the right plan they could get what they needed to make an airtight case and put that bastard in his place.

"Ah take it we're gonna change that?" She asked just to be sure of the direction they were going.

"Indeed we are young lady." All Might replied solidifying his position beyond any doubt, "Regardless of his position as the number two Pro Hero of Japan Endeavour is not above the law. More than anyone else Pro Heroes must obey the laws of the nation!"

"Quite so. If Pro Heroes could ignore the law whenever it suited them they would be no better than the Villains." Nezu said nodding his head in agreement, "That being said we must proceed with the utmost care. The Hero Public Safety Commission is charged with managing interactions between Pro Heroes and the public. While some of them will feel as we do others will view the potential damage the prosecution of Endeavour would do as unacceptable. Depending on how much authority the latter possess conventional tactics might well prove useless."

"Weak politicians! Someone breaks the law you take them down!" Mirko growled unhappy with the idea of the Commission, "Doesn't matter if they're a Pro Hero or some lowlife purse snatcher!"

"Well me and Toya have an idea." She said deciding to submit the approach the two of them had agreed on, "Hidden cameras. We plant'em all over the house to catch Endeavour in the act. Once we got enough we were planning on threatening the asshole: he leaves ALL his family alone or we release the video recordings to the public. Asshole'll lose everything if that happens and he'll know it. Figured it'd be leverage enough to make him do as he's told."

"An interesting idea and one that could work albeit with some changes." Nezu said with a considering look on his furry face.

From there Principal Nezu began to offer suggestions as to how the original plan could be refined and even expanded upon. Everyone listened attentively, even Mirko, as the evolved version of the original plan she and Toya had come up with came into being. Honestly she couldn't say the changes were bad and some of them even impressed her as far as how they would counter the efforts of those that'd get in their way.

She couldn't help but grin in a feral manner at what her imagination produced concerning how the number two Pro Hero would react to it all.

So intent was she on her mental imagery she completely missed the look of approval on Mirko's face and the look of fear on the faces of the rest.


Post Chapter Note: As you see above I've gotten things rolling for Todoroki Enji to be brought to justice for the abuse he threw at his family. However my original plan for how things would go…well…it doesn't look as complete and filled out as I remember it being. Honestly I'm beginning to think that if someone involved in a prime time TV show used my plan they'd either get laughed at or it'd damage the reputation of the show.

As a result I'm opening the metaphorical suggestion box for you readers. How do you think Endeavour should be brought to justice? What plan makes sense and would achieve the desired result? How should things be done in a way that'd satisfy you as a reader? I likely won't use the idea line for line and word for word since anyone reading your reviews would know what was coming but if I can piece together something from multiple reviews I can manage.

There are just a few conditions that the plan/idea needs to abide by:

It has to take into consideration the fact that aside from Endeavour the rest of the Todoroki family are victims in my opinion. Therefore the plan can't do anything that'd cause them more suffering or trauma. I'd be willing to be flexible if some pain/trauma was unavoidable but every effort has to be made to minimize it.

It can't be something that'd give the likes of All For One or Re-Destro a reason to throw Xandria a thank you party for helping their plans along. Remember these two want to tear down the current hero worshipping society and taking down Endeavour the wrong way could help both Villains with their agendas.

Lastly while it'd have to be a long term thing I am not opposed to the idea of this plan snapping Enji out of his obsession and starting him on the path to redemption. It can't be a simple redemption or an easy one. However I would like it to be feasible in the eyes of the readers that MAYBE if Endeavour really tried and worked hard for years he could do it. Think of it like treating his obsession and batshit way of thinking as alcoholism and this plan being a sort of intervention that sets him up for a few years of Alcoholics Anonymous plus some legal protection for the Todorokis.

I await your ideas and suggestions! CYA!