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Shoto sat silently at his desk, surveying the rest of his class with a quiet intensity few could hope to match.

While some tried to ignore the growing pits in their stomach, all Shoto could see was the ever-increasing level of discontent in the eyes of most of his classmates. Iida had not spoken all weekend, locking himself in his room as he tried to make sense of the situation. Unfortunately, this action proved fruitless if the look of confusion and furrowed brow on his face was anything to go by.

Ochako... was distant.

Almost like how she was when the traitor business had first started, shutting herself off from the world as she came to terms with the betrayal of her best friend. Shoto could still feel the sting of it himself. Not a day went by when the thought of the green-haired boy who had dragged Shoto out of the pit of delusion and self-hatred kicking and screaming on live TV didn't cross his mind. Izuku had been one of the most precious people in Shoto's life, the catalyst for Shoto to get out of his shell and be a better hero and person. But now? All those good memories and precious moments felt tainted, as if they were calculated and done for Shoto to lower his guard around the boy who was planning their downfall. It made him sick to think about it.

But like so many times before, Shoto now didn't know what to think or how to feel.

He was surrounded by people he called friends, feeling almost as alone as the first day of his first year of school, the same scared little kid who clutched his All Might action figure to his chest whenever he heard his mom and dad argue about Shoto and his training.

Ochako was much the same way as he was. For a while, they took comfort in their mutual loneliness. But while the rest of the class moved on with their lives, Shoto felt himself step backward. He didn't blame Ochako for getting together with Bakugo; she needed to get over Izuku the same way they all needed to.

But then Dabi, the pyromaniac of the League of Villains, tried to burn Izuku's childhood home to the ground, with the boys' mother locked inside.

It didn't make sense. None of it did, and despite the best efforts of everyone in the class, Shoto could begin to see the same thoughts he had in his head drift into the faces of all those around him, student and teacher alike. Why would the League attack a family member of one of their own? Especially when said family member had been vocal in supporting her imprisoned son?

None of it made sense. It also had the unfortunate consequence of several members of his class reevaluating what they knew and what they didn't know about the situation they had been so sure about just a few weeks prior.

"You guys are crazy!" he remembered Jiro say, her eyes not meeting any of their own for more than a second as she spoke." So why bring this up now? Haven't we been through enough because of what he did?"

"It's just... why would they attack Izuku's mom?." Momo said one day. Still, Shoto knew enough of the class vice president to know that while she tried to keep a calm front for her friends, internally, she was in a storm of paranoia as Momo went through every piece of information she could gather about the case against Izuku with a renewed vigor." I know he's a villain... But his own mother?"

"Villians do fucked up shit!" Bakugo shouted, mentioning the boy who had sold him out to villains enough to transform the bombastic blonde into the same antagonistic asshole he had been when Shoto first met him." That's what makes them villains!"

Ochako, however, had been silent. She had been for a long time, and not just to Shoto. He tried not to pry regarding his friends' interpersonal relationships. God knew he wasn't an expert in romantic relationships. That ship had sailed long ago. But even so, even with his limited understanding, he could tell that the class couple, Ochako and bakugo, were on the outs, despite the explosion user's refusal to see what was in front of his own eyes.

They had been fighting a lot more these past few days, the difference in their personalities splitting the once "happy" relationship from its seams. The stress of these new questions and the League's actions only accelerated that fact.

Bakugo was even more upset than usual, a distinction he would seemingly make everyone else's problem today. After all, he had known Izuku's mom his entire life. Despite his opinions on the son, his views on the Midoriya matriarch hadn't changed since he was four, or so he said. But even he didn't know what to think about the idea that Izuku played a part in the attempted murder of his mother, right?

Shoto watched as the last members of his class filtered into the classroom, an annoyed and angry looking bakugo, a concerned and regretful looking mina, a defensive and protective looking Tsu, and Ochako, who looked as if she was only holding in her tears out of spite.

"Another fight." Shoto thought to himself somewhat bitterly. The telltale signs of a fractured relationship are as straightforward for anyone, let alone Shoto, to read as a printed piece of paper.

"Now, class. I know we are all concerned with the news over the weekend." The HPSC representative said with a dull and monotone voice. The same voice the man seemed to use whenever one of them asked for information regarding the investigation into Izuku's criminal activities.

There was little he could discuss with them, he always said. Only those who were "in the know" needed to know, after all. But lately, Shoto had seen the same look of frustration etched on the faces of the administration, none more annoyed by the HPSC's lack of transparency than their former home teacher turned temporary headmaster, Eraserhead.

But even after so many months since the traitor investigation was put to rest with Izuku behind bars, the man that acted as the HPSC liaison and representative in UA never really left. He stayed in the tiny office he had been given when gathering information about Midoriya's guilt, his presence doing little to improve the school's morale. On the contrary, too many associated him with the worst times of their life. They avoided his presence whenever he spoke to them regarding their future employment when they left UA. Most wanted to forget about Izuku and continue their schooling. It was difficult with the HPSC lingering so close to home.

" I assure you that the hero commission is investigating this crime, and the villains involved will be brought to justice and..."

"But Miss Midoriya is okay right?" Ochako said, not even bothering to raise her hand to ask. For once, Aizawa sensei didn't move to reprimand his student for speaking out of turn, turning to look into the eyes of the committee representative for the answer.

Their teacher still needed to give them the details of the crime when he announced it to them Saturday evening, something he may not have been supposed to do if the look on the HPSC rep turned temp principle was anything to go by.

"Inko Midoriya is fine. As many of you know, a similar incident occurred some weeks ago. We at the commission had decided it would be in the best interests of everyone involved to move to a safe house until things cooled down." The man said, his tone of voice not changing despite the horror etched onto the faces of the students in front of him." I assure you we have things under control..."

Shoto noticed something off at that moment, a shift in how their homeroom teacher stood and a look of panic and confusion crossing the stoic man's face. It made Shoto feel uneasy as the HPSC officer continued speaking. Did their teacher know something they didn't? Was it something they couldn't say? Or was it something they knew they shouldn't say?

Whatever the reason was, it fueled the questions that commanded Shotos mind for the rest of that day and into the long sleepless night ahead of him. No one in his class was vocal about it, but Shoto could tell they were all thinking about it.

What else was The HPSC not telling them?

Shoto felt his throat go dry as he stared at the glass of amber liquid before him. He wasn't a drinker, only occasionally when in the company of others and no more than he had to. Nevertheless, despite the social drinking he had done in the past, he could count the times he had bypassed his sobriety in the rare times he drank and still had fingers left over.

He mulled over his thoughts as he waited for the bartender to set the drinks of his companions down, a warm bottle of his father's favorite sake and lone cup acting as a familiar and firmly needed port in the storm of emotions that Shoto felt he was going through at the moment.

His father had taken him to this bar, a small establishment in the middle of Tenkaichi Street called Serena, when Shoto had graduated from UA to share his first drink. The fact that Shoto had been the first son who had done this despite being his youngest son was not lost on Shoto. But despite everything his father had done in Shoto's life, the number eleven hero could tell that his father had changed since Shotos first year as a hero student.

He was trying to improve, and while it may not be enough for others, it was enough for Shoto to give him a chance to improve. But every ounce of pettiness and annoyance, the hatred and bitterness he once held for the man, the ones he had tried so hard to squash and move on from, seemed to rise back to the surface.

Like some greedy shark just trying to take one more bite out of a surfer who had started to bleed to death long ago.

Because his father had decided, without bothering to ask Shotto for his opinion or his blessing, he took it upon himself to try and mediate Shoto's fractured relationship with the third member of this sad little drinking party.

"It's custom never to pour your own sake when drinking with someone." his father said, pouring the warmed sake into one of the three small cups placed in front of him before placing it in front of the impassive face that had haunted Shoto for the past six years. Izuku Midoryia, the friend and brother he had thrown off to the side like he had been a piece of trash, hadn't said a word since the three men had entered the establishment. The man silently sat down, not even looking in Shoto's general direction. The half-and-half quirk wielder froze up, numbly following his father's motion.

The green-haired man said nothing, his eyes never wavering even momentarily as he held Shotos' gaze. The number 11 heroes' eyes faltered and drifted downward slightly to avoid the dark thoughts that Izuku's eyes reminded him of. Before he, too, filled the empty cup in front of him with alcohol, pushing the cup and warm sake bottle towards Shoto.

Shoto said nothing as he filled his father's cup, half expecting six years of anger and resentment to pour from Izuku at any moment, tensing up with a twitch of movement that passed through his features. He hadn't seemed angry, but Shoto knew from experience what that kind of anger does to a person.

Like a house fire burning everything, it touched into blackened cinders.

"Allow us to drink to a promising partnership!" his father spoke, his deep baritone filling the room even more so than the flames had. He raised his sake cup to his lips and sipped the liquid.

Izuku followed soon after, raising his cup in a token action of a toast before downing the alcohol in a single practiced gulp. He drank like someone used to the feeling of alcohol burning down his throat, but someone who took no enjoyment from it. Shoto didn't know how to feel about that.

Shoto raised his glass to his father's words but did not drink. The fear that he wouldn't be able to stop if he started was far too precarious for him to risk.

"While I have to say I'm a bit... surprised to be invited out for a drink by two top heroes," Midoriya said, his tone even as he stared at the two generations of Todoroki before him. "Honored but still surprised. I feel this isn't about getting to know the newest hero around the corner, huh?"

"Very perceptive of you." The flaming hero Endeavor said, the flaming facial hair dispelled the moment they entered the establishment allowing his faint facial scars to shine like a billboard in the midday sun." As much as I would like it to be."

Shoto watched as his father took out his phone, opened the latest email from the president of the HPSC, and placed it directly in front of Izuku without even uttering a word. Shoto bit his lip, silently cursing his father's bluntness regarding their delicate situation. Shoto wanted to say something but found the case far too precarious to attempt. His father was never the best with words, but at least he was putting some effort in. Far more so than Shoto had, anyway.

"So the boy already has made arrangments for his work-study." The number two hero said from his desk, the flames of his hellfire quirk looking somewhat subdued as he spoke to his son." That's rather disappointing."

"Yes." Shoto lied, silently thankful for his normal emotionless tone of voice to control the tremor he felt rush through his body when he spoke the single-word response. "He told me several days ago that he had already chosen where to spend his work study. Though he was somewhat hesitant to tell me who."

"Seems odd." his father responded his disappointment at not having Izuku under his wing alongside Shoto visible on his face as he returned to the paperwork that resulted from running one of the largest hero agencies in the world. "He seemed like the type not to be able to keep a secret to save his life, far too honest for his own good."

If only you knew, Shotto thought, biting his tongue to keep himself from responding to his father's words. Whatever hesitation and misgivings Shoto might have had regarding His former friend's guilt had long since been eroded as fact after the fact had been thrown in his face. He felt sick to think that Shoto had almost become an unwilling pawn for Izukus' machinations and schemes.

To think that the boy who broke Shoto out of his shell and had reinvigorated his desire to be a hero had been a double agent this whole time. It didn't make any sense, but there it was, staring him in the face, mocking him with fake smiles and spiteful laughter.

"I'm sure he has his reasons," Shoto said, looking away from his father out of fear that the passive mask he wore to hide his contempt would be found out. However, the HPSC had a plan for Izuku, which would be jeopardized if anyone like his father learned about it. "He has a lot on his plate, after all."

"Yes..." Endeavor said, stopping the constant writing as he turned to look directly at his son, the young hero student shifting and shuffling in his seat as his father stared heavily at him." He's been through a lot these past few months."

Shoto knew in the back of his head that his father didn't mean for his words to sound like an accusation, but Shoto couldn't help but feel that his father was implying something. It was almost typical for the hellfire hero to look at a delicate situation Shoto had found himself in and choose to stand up for someone who didn't deserve the benefit of the doubt to be given to him.

Shoto balled his fists at the thought of it but controlled himself. He needed to keep his father in the dark regarding the HPSC plans. Midoriya had already fooled their entire school for this long before their eyes opened. He could only imagine what kind of chaos the outside world would fall into if the teen managed to get professional heroes on his twisted side.

Some would call them cruel, and in some ways, they indeed were, but they needed to do what needed to be done. But they knew the truth. Despite how many sleepless nights Shoto had had since this all started, despite how many times he had almost broken down in tears about what he needed to do. He needed to do this to be the hero he promised his mother he would be.

"Shoto..." his father started. His grizzled voice was never something Shoto could describe as soft, but it was undoubtedly quieter now than it had been in years." Is there something you want to..."

The pro hero paused as if the weight of the words were too much for him to ask, to the point where Shoto felt his heart race at the implication. If his father knew...

"Son..." Endeavor spate out, like the words he was speaking, were physically painful for him to say." If there is something, you want to talk about...I want you to know..."

"I have to go." Shoto finished, cutting his father off as he went to the large, ornate doors leading out of his father's spacious office." I'm due for a patrol in five minutes."

Shoto paused the moment he touched the door handle. The weight of his father's words and their implications and what he needed to do regarding Midoriya made his knees buckle and strain. He closed his eyes tight as he willed the feelings to stop, feeling a numbness overcome him that seemingly froze his unshed tears before they could fall from his eyes.

"We can talk about this..." he said, his even tone breaking slightly as he left the room."...soon."

"Well, that certainly explains a lot." Izuku said, his voice tired as he slid the phone back towards the oldest man at the table." My first weekend on the job isn't even over, and they're already putting me on blast."

"It is rather... distasteful." Endeavor spoke, pausing to find the right word to describe the situation that wasn't a string of curse words." Especially after everything that has happened to you regarding my...son."

Shoto stilled, his father's words almost making Shoto feel like he was about to break into a million pieces. He had spent these five years wrestling with his actions, replaying questions of what ifs and what should have been on repeat until those words stopped having any meaning. Thoughts and daydreams of him not falling for the lies and falsehoods he had been given used to be the only thing he could think about.

But you can't change the past, and learning to live with your actions was far more difficult than living in a fantasy where nothing bad ever happened.

"I dont blame you for what your son did." Izuku said as he drank the cup of sake Endeavor had refilled, "Dabi was a villain. It's not your fault."

Shoto stilled. Were they not talking about...

"My son firebombed your home."Endeavor growled, his voice returning to life momentarily before it died back down." It almost killed your mother."

"Whatever your son did has nothing to do with you."

"My son's road to villainy was paved with my mistakes and failings as a hero and a father." Endeavor said as he downed another cup of sake, looking far more pensive than he did a moment ago. His eyes grew solemn and sad, and his entire body seemed to deflate the more he spoke. The ghost of Toya Stretched long and deep into the wounds of the Todoroki family, his memory and deeds doing little to bring the famous family peace. "I hold myself responsible for my children's actions, especially after I failed them."

Shoto felt a tremor travel up his spine at his father's words, his jaw clenching to stop the words from escaping at every reminder of Shotos own failings.

Dabi... Toya's attack against Midoriyas home had not been the first time he regretted what he played a part in. It wasn't the first time he thought that the whole thing didn't make any sense. But it was the first time he noticed that everyone he knew started questioning what was happening behind the scenes.

The HSPC chalked it up to internal fighting between the League. A power struggle after Shigaraki had been placed in Tarturus all those months ago after Kamino.

Dabi is a sociopath. Shoto remembered someone saying that a man like Dabi didn't need a reason to do what he did. So, like a rabid dog chasing a car and not knowing what he would do if he caught it, Dabi just did things.

But Shoto knew better than most about the why behind his brother's decision. Even before the truth had been revealed, Shoto felt off whenever he was around the blue flames or its wielder. A sinking suspicion that he could remember the sound of that voice or the look in his eyes.

Eyes that were full of hate but not irrational.

"Is that why you invited me here? "Izuku questioned, looking far and away the most aggravated he had looked since Shooto had seen him last." Invite me over for a couple of drinks and say you're sorry for the fucked up shit your son did to me."

Midoriya wasn't looking at Shoto when he spoke, but his words felt like daggers to his heart. How could Shoto judge his brother for what he did after everything Shoto himself had done? Shoto hid his eyes low, the fear of Izukus eyes looking at him with that same level of vitriol and disgust too much for the young man to handle.

Shoto reached out to his still-full cup of sake and took a swig, downing the warm beverage in a single gulp before he moved to pour himself another drink. He noticed his father look at him from the corner of his eye but said nothing about it. Only when Shoto's second drink was poured and drank did his father respond to Midoriya's question.

"No, I am here to offer you protection from what the hero commission is getting ready to throw at you," Endeavor spoke. Whatever moroseness and melancholy tinged his voice before was gone, replaced with the unyielding fire that had made his father a legend within the hero community." I'm offering to buy your agency from you and offer you a position working directly under me."

Despite himself, Shoto looked up to see Midoriyas reaction. It was his idea originally for his father to make this offer to Izuku, to have the number one hero in the country throw all of his weight and influence behind the freshman hero and dare the commission to even try to throw Izuku under the metaphorical bus.

His father didn't need much convincing, his rage at the accusations and implications the commission had thrown around regarding what would happen to anyone in the top ten offering the newly minted hero barely subsiding before they had managed to find Izuku at that police station less than an hour ago.

Shoto didn't like to think this was redemption for his past actions, nor did he think this would make them even. Of course, nothing Shoto could do would compensate for what he did, but this was a good start. Maybe it could even be the first step to returning to the good graces of the man he had betrayed.

Midoriya said nothing, looking less angry than he did a moment ago, almost like he used to when inspiration struck. Midoriya was either about to do something inspiring, completely dangerous, or likely both. Shoto felt a pain in his chest when he saw it. He had forgotten how much he missed seeing that look cross Midoriyas face. Like a memory from some long-lost moment suddenly brought back to the forefront of his mind by the smell of a newly opened notebook or the specific sound of a pen on a piece of paper.

He forgot how much he missed his friend.

"I'm flattered. Really I am, "Izuku started, his voice even and friendly but his expression never changing from the sad smile he wore nearly exclusively since they had met back up together."But I can't accept your offer.

Shoto sat stunned, unable to speak or formulate a thought to illustrate his feelings as Izuku politely but firmly rejected the offer. No one could have likely taken the proposal from his father, a personal invitation by the number one hero to work with him and as added protection against being railroaded and blacklisted by the entire hero industry by the Japanese governing body.

The world would be against Izuku, and still, he refused to look to Shoto for help.

"Why not!" Shoto said, almost shouting as he stood up from his seat, his harsh words enough to shock not only his father but the rest of the guests in the bar, every eye in the room staring at the wide eyes of one of the most recognizable faces in the country. "Why won't you let us help you?!"

As Midoriya stared into Shotos' eyes, the half-and-half hero felt the enormous weight of his past seemingly crash into him for the first time in a long time. A massive tidal wave was beating down on him as Shoto relived every bad decision and every wrong turn that brought him to where he stood, like some fucked up slide show showing his most significant failings. But, at that moment, he realized there wasn't any hatred or disgust in the eyes of the man staring at him.

No resentment, hatred, or even a hint of annoyance seemed to register on the man's features. It was the least Shoto deserved for the part he played, the bad guy that betrayed the hero's trust and turned his back on him.

The idea kept him up at night sometimes that no matter what he said or accomplished, he would always be the type of man who would sell out his friends and throw his loved ones under the bus if things got too onerous or complicated.

And no matter how many people he saved, he'd still be the same weak little coward that didn't help his friend when he needed it most deep down inside.

He had gotten used to the idea that Midoriya, his first friend and the first person who believed in his dream, hated him, but the truth was far more painful to realize. All Shoto could see was the impassive stare of neutrality staring back at him. Like he was nothing more than a stranger on the street.

He didn't know what he was preparing for, but Shoto knew this was far worse than anything he could have imagined.

"You may not understand. I don't blame you for not understanding." Izuku started, his voice controlled and even a little kind as he spoke." But my agency is everything I built with my own two hands. It's not much, but it's mine."

Shoto sat down silently, his eyes drifting low as shame overwhelmed his senses. He deserved this. He knew that, but it still hurt to realize it.

"I know I'm gonna have to fight. I've been fighting my whole life to get to where I am now, and if that means I have to fight the hero commission, then I'm going to fight the hero commission." The young man said as he stood up from his chair, leaving a handful of clean and crisp bills to cover his third of the sake bottle. "I won't have someone else fight my battles for me."

Shoto said nothing as Midoriya walked away. What could he say that could have made this event better? I'm sorry. A sorry wouldn't fix this.

It couldn't. Words meant nothing if you weren't able to show your actions

Nothing could make it go back to how things were, but as Shoto stared at the money on the table, only one thing seemed to drift into his head.

"I can't believe you're flunking English," Izuku said at the lunch table, his food momentarily forgotten as he went through Shotos' pile of failed writing assignments." Present Mic doesn't even score Mina or Karisihma that bad."

Lunch was usually the time of the day when Todoroki could relax from the stress of the average school day. A time when he could just shut his brain off for a little bit and not have to worry about grades or training. But this particular lunch period had been particularly grading for the youngest child of Endeavor, especially when it came to a particular subject.

"He didn't like my creative writing." The two-toned hero in training said, more than a little miffed at his failure at writing a compelling narrative." He says I need to add more detail to my words. Whatever that means."

It was the one class he always struggled in. No matter how hard he tried, Shoto couldn't rise up to the standards he set for himself in his other classes. Testing was easy, and his technical skill in the language was above average, to say the least, but putting his knowledge into practice was always like trying to get blood from a stone.

"You are pretty bare bones. Not like that's a bad thing or anything. " Izuku said, putting the papers down on the cafeteria table as he gave Shoto a concerned smile." But I can see where Mic sensei is coming from."

Shoto watched silently as Izuku neatly put all of Shotos failed attempts at creative writing off to the side as he began to pull out one of the many notebooks he had seen on the boys' person. He always wondered why Izuku carried those things everywhere he went. Still, Shoto figured that was why he had the top marks in their English course.

"You know you don't have to help me, right?" Shoto said, somewhat embarrassed at needing help from his friend after everything the boy had already done for him."I can figure this out myself."

"Which means you'll figure it out faster if you had some help." The boy said with a smile as he pulled a fresh piece of paper and a newly sharpened pencil from his book bag. "After all, sticking your nose in other people's business, it's what makes a real hero!"

Shoto felt a tear roll down his cheek as he watched the young man leave, the hole in his stomach growing and growing until he thought he was going to fall into himself. His... former friend had given Shoto the world, and in return, he had thrown him into hell. He'll never be forgiven for what he did, but if he didn't do anything to help...

Then the voice in his head he heard during his darkest nights was right, and he didn't deserve to be a hero.

"That boy is going to need help." His father said, displeasure at being rebuked evident in his voice, but his respect for the man who did it was as clear as glass." Whether he likes it or not."

Shoto refilled his glass with the warm sake, passing it to his father as the two members of the Todoroki clan silently gulped down their drinks. A silent agreement formed between the two as they watched the young man leave the bar.

Even if it took the rest of his life, Shoto would prove, if not to Izuku, then to himself, that he had changed. A hero helps those who need help, even if they dont want it.

Hey, look, it's an update. That's it. That's the author's note.

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