Chapter 302- The Wrong Way to Put Out a Fire
"Why, we never dreamed that the great Endeavor would reach out to us! How fortunate! What an absolute honor!"
Enji had arrived at the Himura family's villa, the traditional home being clean and quiet upon his arrival. His purpose at the home was already known to its residents, but they all carried on as if this were a regular business meeting.
He had been searching for about a year now for somebody who could help produce a strong child that would inherit a mix of quirks that could push the limits he never could. He had received many requests from other families who were suffering from financial crises, and offers from well-off families who were just seeking to advance their influence. None of them compared to the request he had received from this family.
"We would be honored to give you a Himura as your bride! A prestigious and powerful man like you deserves an equally dignified wife!" Her father continued. Feh, as if this family were equal to him. They could barely hold on to their titles by selling out brides, like traditional marriages from a time long ago. But he was hardly one to judge; he was here to buy, and knew his dream had a chance with this woman.
To him, Rei was a lot like ice itself when they first met. She had been silent the entire meeting, only staring down at the table and speaking up to introduce herself. She had known it was a quirk marriage, but she was willing to go through with it for the sake of her family.
After settling the deal with her father, he had recommended they go through the garden together to get to know each other a bit more. Enji didn't really want to do such a thing, given the nature of their new relationship (he would've felt awkward and no doubt she would too), and he also felt he should be doing other things, but he didn't want to upset the family either in case they would attempt to pull out of the deal. Not that they were in a good position to do so, but it was a possibility.
So there he was, walking through the Himura family's massive garden with Rei, walls of flowers and bushes everywhere around them. The architecture of the buildings was old-fashioned, much like the house was. Neither of them spoke a word as they stalked through the garden. Enji would glance at Rei every so often, but she only ever stared straight ahead as she led him around the garden.
Eventually Rei turned her head away from him. That was the first motion he had ever seen her do outside of walking and sitting. He had wondered if she caught him glancing, but it didn't seem like she was reacting. Rei suddenly stopped, continuing to stare away from him. Enji stopped with her and followed her line of sight over to a patch of blue flowers near a pond.
"You… like flowers, right?" Enji spoke, breaking the silence. It was probably a dumb question, but this is the first time Rei had done… anything around him. She was silent for a moment.
"Yes." She spoke, her voice soft. Enji could see a ghost of a smile gracing her face, her nearly empty gaze from earlier replaced with a soft look as she observed the flowers. "They're very pretty."
Yes… she was like ice. Strong, cold, but prone to melting at the slightest touch… or shattering altogether.
Enji stared for a moment at that same woman now. She had entered the room, and their children and moved out of her way so that they could get a clear look at each other. Natsuo kept staring Enji down, as if at any moment Enji would stand up and do something to her. Fuyumi gave her father a more compassionate look, but she too seemed to be vigilant. Only Shoto had broken contact from either of them, choosing to stare down at his toes quietly.
"Rei…!" Enji choked out as he shot up on his hospital bed. She was marching over to him, a hard look of determination set on her face. "Should you be here? Are you okay-"
"No, I'm not." She spoke plainly. Her voice didn't betray her at all. It too was rigid and determined. "That's why I'm here."
In the Gunga Mountain villa, Dabi laid on a couch in his own temporary room. Before they had left Tartarus, All for One had given Shigaraki a list of safehouses and old facilities he and his allies had once used (as well as some bento boxes). Dabi reached his arm into the sky, observing the fresh new burns from his recent battle against Shoto. He knew it was even worse now, but he couldn't feel a thing.
'I know pops won't die yet. Not that easily. Even if he wants to go curl up and die, the world's not gonna let him. He's gonna give some public statement sometime soon.'
"I can't wait to see it…" He whispered to himself. He didn't notice the blood leaking from his eyes. "I've been waiting so damn long for this. Enji, Rei, Fuyumi, Natsuo, Shoto… You can take a good look at me when we're all in hell."
"You got a day off, right?! So you gotta do some quirk training with me!" Young Toya scolded his father. "Why'd you change your mind all the sudden, huh?!"
"Don't make me say it again, Toya…" Enji grumbled as he took his business suit off. He had just told him a day ago, hadn't he? It was for the boy's own good…
Even still, Toya was given his father a determined look that nearly rivaled his own when he got serious. The bandages on his face and arm didn't even faze the young boy; it was like he couldn't tell what was underneath them.
Enji and Rei had just returned from a visit to the doctor. After a more intense training session with Toya, they noticed some burns on his skin; that wasn't supposed to happen. Enji's quirk was twofold- he had the ability to generate fire and manipulate it, and his skin was immune to burns from it. He could walk through a firestorm of his own making and come out unscathed. Toya had seemingly inherited his quirk, but he was easily burned by his own flames.
"An unusual case to be sure." The doctor explained. "Your son has inherited an even more powerful form of your quirk, Endeavor, but physically he takes after you, Rei."
"So you mean…"
"He's not built to endure fire, only the ice that his mother's quirk would produce. If he continues using his quirk excessively, he'll only harm himself more."
Enji and Rei had both realized what this meant. They knew trying for a custom-created child was taboo in society… But Enji had long since discarded that worry. His head rang every day with that stupid man's boisterous laughter, his never-faltering smile plastered onto his vision no matter where he went… He couldn't stand that any longer. He needed to surpass him, in some way, any way.
He had told Toya time and again that he could be the one to do it, and Toya believed his words as though they were spoken by God Himself.
"Listen, Fuyumi…" Young Toya spoke with his baby sister, who was nearing 4 years old. They were both watching TV in the living room, but Toya wasn't paying attention. He was subjecting his sister to one of his rants again. "Yeah I get a little burned, but so what? I can take it! I know my own body better than anyone."
"But I dun like it when you get hurt." Young Fuyumi replied, munching on some chips. Toya didn't want to hear that.
"What do you know anyways?!" Toya fumed as he stomped off. "Girls wouldn't get it!"
"I'm juss worried!" Fuyumi called after him.
'Dad's the one who lit this fire under me… I can't ignore it…' Toya thought to himself.
When Enji and Rei had returned from the doctors, Enji had skulked off into his room, Rei following behind.
"We have to try again." Was all Enji could say.
"What? No, no, that's too cruel!" Rei rebutted. "Toya knows what you're after, he'll be devastated!"
"No matter what I say, he comes home with fresh burns every day. He's taken after my stubbornness… There's only one way to make him give up." Enji's eyes were in Rei's direction, both hungry and furious at once, but she could tell he wasn't seeing her. "He'll never be the one to surpass All Might."
Rei knew there was no more to be said.
Nine months later, a young boy joined the Todoroki family. Fuyumi had taken a liking to her new little brother Natsuo, but Toya would only stare at the boy, a look of devastation on his face every time. Natsuo wouldn't be the one to carry out his dream either; he had fully inherited Rei's quirk and body, like Fuyumi had.
Rei could tell Enji was getting more desperate. Every night he came home after Natsuo was born, he could see a fury in his eyes she had never seen before. Fury… and hunger.
It would be another four years until Shoto was born, but when he was the world of the Todorokis seemed to change forever.
Enji remembered feeling a massive wave of relief and excitement, years of fury finally having an outlet as his vision for the future began looking brighter.
Toya had become numb to it by now, knowing full well that his father's attention would forever be elsewhere. He would just have to work harder.
Rei couldn't even think anymore.
Toya continued his practice in the remote forest his father used to take him to, where he spent hours practicing his flames against the dummies. He had burnt each to cinders and ash, and although his skin stung from the heat, he refused to stop.
"I can do it too, dad… Look at how hot my flames are, I'm strong… Look at me."
When he had returned home, his father noticed the burns immediately. He gripped his son's shoulders tightly and shook him as he yelled.
"WHY CAN'T YOU SEE WHAT YOU'RE DOING TO YOURSELF?!" Enji screamed as Toya stared at him, a smile plastered on his face that didn't reach his eyes. The boy was most likely in shock, so Enji calmed down and knelt to his level. "Toya, you have to look beyond… this! Beyond me! Play with Natsuo and Fuyumi, make friends at school! There's so much more to this world than what I do, I know you understand that… Explore those options, please! Just take my advice, son, and put this far, far behind you."
"All the kids at school want to become heroes…" Toya's shaky voice responded. Tears were welling up in his eyes, but that smile never left his face. By now Rei and the children had arrived to see the commotion, baby Shouto in her arms. "But they don't get it… They don't know what it's like, having you for a father!" Even as tears flowed down his face, as his body shook with fear and rage, Toya still had his smile.
"Please calm him down!" Rei begged as she held back the young Natsuo. Fuyumi merely clung to her mother and tried to hide behind her legs.
"I'm not gonna calm down!" Toya yelled, continuing to stare at Enji. "You lit this fire under me, dad! It's not gonna go out, and I can't pretend it's not there! Look at me, Endeavor!"
Toya's body suddenly erupted into small flames. Toya looked past Enji for the first time… And his eyes fell directly on baby Shoto. Toya's smile disappeared. Enji barely had time to realize what was about to happen. "LOOK AT ME!"
Toya broke free of his father's grip, and charged directly at Rei, his hand coated in flames. Burning flames were erupting from his palm; eyes were locked on to the small baby who was made to replace him.
That was the last time Toya ever used his flames in Enji's presence.
"You don't get to claim you're hurting more than anyone else. You're not the only one who didn't see him."