TW for suicide attempt and sexual assault (it's not graphic, promise)
-x- Keigo -x-
Keigo smelled the smoke before anyone else. He was just getting prepped, with his feathers in the duffle bag by his feet. He jerked up, and then the fire alarm went off, startling all the make up people and actors in the dressing room. They shared one, which was fine since Keigo liked watching the others get their prosthetics and make up done.
He jerked up and ripped his wing cover off and let them return to his back. He ran to the door, and opened it to find the hall pouring with smoke. His hero instincts, long buried, kicked in and he ran through the hall. He went low to the floor and flew as low to the ground as he could, thankful for the wide hallways.
There were so many people still inside. And the main exit, the main hall, was on fire. They were all trapped upstairs. Keigo kicked open the backroom and went inside, slamming the door shut smoke drifting through the cracks. He created is longest primary as a sword and shoved it into the wall, standing on the sink, to rip out the base of a vent. He then sent most of his feathers into it, hoping they weren't caught on fire.
He closed his eyes, awakening his old training that he hadn't used in over three years. "C'mon," he murmured to himself. "Find them, find them… c'mon Keigo."
One, two, three… he counted 106 people, and had his feathers feel them each, hooking through their clothes and pulling them out of the windows he knew the location of. Some were dragged through the smoke, but he kept it quick. Once he felt no more inside, he used his sword again and sawed a window out of the wall and jumped out, landing hard on his knees. He called his feathers to him, and just now noticed there were police and firetruck sirens going filling the plaza.
Firemen hurried over to him as he coughed out some smoke, but it wasn't bad and he'd stayed low and with his shirt wet and covered to his mouth. He ran over to everyone who were being seen, all of them covering in smoke, coughing. When they all looked at Keigo, their eyes were wide.
"Is everyone okay?" he asked in worry.
"You saved us."
Those words felt almost as good as when Dabi told him he loved him. It all clicked, then.
-x-
"I want to be a hero again," Keigo bluntly told his friends while they were roasting marshmallows in the backyard, celebrating Keigo's bravery and how his reputation was fixed in an instant with his coworkers. "I know last time it ended poorly, but saving them felt really good."
"You know how stressed the job will make you. You'll have no free time anymore," Shuichi said bluntly. "Besides, you'll need to start over-"
"I'm not looking to be Hawks again," Keigo interrupted. "I'm not going to be a hero under the Commission. I'll be a sidekick, not have my own agency as a top hero. Maybe Jeanist will take me back. He told me he wanted me to be a hero again." He looked to Dabi, who was giving him a blank look. Keigo didn't know what to make of it.
"Birdie, do you think you can manage that stress?" Dabi finally asked kindly.
"Once I get more therapy, I think I can. I'm not looking to do it immediately. After shooting both of the Engraved sequels. Then I want to renew my license."
"Well, your heroism is all over the news. I'll support you whatever you choose to do." Keigo teared up a bit, and Toga cooed over it. Keigo scooted closer to Dabi, who put an arm around his shoulders. "It'll be a pay dock if you become a sidekick, though."
"We can still afford this place, but I have a lot in savings," Keigo said, really not wanting to worry his friends and room mates. Shuichi looked uneasy, and Keigo understood that. But he really wanted to be a hero again. At least he had some time to really figure out if that was what he wanted to do. He had a contract to complete the movies, so there was required time before he could act.
He would not be a hero like Hawks was. He wouldn't torture anyone, and he'd take no such orders. Never again.
Indeed it was all over the news, with multiple perspectives talking about how in the smoke, they were suddenly being pulled out of somewhere, down the smoky halls or through windows and then lowered to the ground outside. Hero news stations jumped on it and there was a whole new side of publicity for Keigo. One he hadn't had in over three years.
Fuck, it was three years since he'd done somehing heroic.
He was on his phone in bed, Dabi sleeping behind him, leg thrown over Keigo's, his wings released and not in the way. He couldn't sleep. He worried about his relationship with Dabi if he became a hero. If he'd be too busy. Though, it wasn't like Dabi was a lonely spouse, he wouldn't be left alone at home all the time. He had three other people to talk to and see.
Glancing out the window and to the starry night, he smiled, feeling thankful Dabi was a busy person with work and school and hobbies. He wouldn't be alone and sad with Keigo working. And he would be a sidekick, not everything would rely on him. Yeah, it would be fine. And he had time until then.
-x- Dabi -x-
"Dabi, what do you think about Takami-san's heroic endeavor?" Midoriya asked Dabi between sets. "It was incredible! He's not even a hero and he saved 106 people!"
Dabi wiped sweat out of his eyes. "Dude, where do you get all your fucking energy. Even the Gym Bros are getting tired. Not that they're very impressive for having strong stamina."
"Fuck off, Todoroki!" Dabi's eye twitched.
"Don't make me sic daddy dearest on you!" Dabi shot back.
"Your dad's in prison!"
"Then you should be even more worried, now, shouldn't you?!"
Midoriya was still waiting for an answer, despite his face and shoulders being bright red from exertion. It may be getting cold outside, but in here it was hot as fuck. "I'm proud of him but not surprised. He always wanted to be a hero, it looks like those instincts aren't dead like his hero career was," he finally answered, wiping his sweaty forehead with his shirt.
Dabi then asked, "Why'd you never try? You wanted to be one, didn't you?"
"Well, I can't…"
"Could have at least tried. Though hero schools are expensive as fuck." Midoriya nodded, and didn't comment on Dabi's unintentional jab. They had another match, and Dabi was a lot more fit than he was at the start of the semester. Keigo deeply enjoyed his leaner frame. Still lanky and tall, but with some muscle.
Nothing compared to his boyfriend's abs, though. Nuh uh, Dabi would never reach peak perfection like those babies.
After class, he showered in the gym showers so he could go to work clean. He gave Tenko to drive the car back since Dabi drove his friends to school, because his workplace was opposite of the direction where they lived. He'd just fly there. It dried his hair immediately and he kind of wished he had a warp quirk, but he just didn't.
When he arrived and brought his things inside, he found a group of execs waiting for him. He put his things in the usual place, keeping his phone in his pocket. "Dabi-san-"
"Whoa, not a 'san' kind of guy. Just call me Dabi," Dabi interrupted.
"Right, well, Dabi, due to your useful abilities, we want to expand your work environment. The company has many titles under its belt and we'd like to use you for those, too."
"I still need to work part time, though," Dabi replied. "I'm a full time student."
"Yes, yes, that's fine."
"Am I still gonna be under Daiburu Company? I'd like to stick to them."
"Yes, here's a packet of information regarding any changes." They were kind of flippant, but Dabi didn't really care much. They were high up dudes, they of course would look down on a college student working part time.
"Will I get a raise?" They looked surprised at his question. "I mean, I'd be doubling what I'm doing - or times however many gigs I'm going to be working at. I think more money is plenty reasonable given the kinds of time and resources my quirk will be negating." He wasn't afraid to ask for more money.
"Oh, well, I'm sure that can be negotiated."
"Alright, cool. I'll look it over when I get home," and he was hanged the thick packet. He put it in a marble with a new sizing quirk and stuck it into the pill pocket of his jeans. "What am I doing today, Boss-man?"
All of the execs left until all there was was his current boss left. This guy was nice enough, so Dabi wasn't in trouble for speaking to him so casually. But, of course, he was very useful. Maybe that was part of it.
"Stunts. As the characters, we want you to do mocap for them a well as reference for our animators and programmers." Dabi nodded, and stuck his phone to the wall, putting it on vibrate of course.
"Who first?" Dabi asked. He became the desired character.
"Are you good at acting with faces? As a reference."
"Never tried before. Don't be surprised if I suck at it," the teen said bluntly. He had a head piece with a camera on a stick a few inches from his face. He would have appreciated some time to prepare and practice in front of the mirror, but they were doing this now, apparently. He was going to be doing the physical stunts and basically hope he made the right faces.
He started at one end of the foam set, and sprinted across it, trying to summon the expression of being chased by the monster. He summoned how he felt when Enji stole him from his foster home, running from someone who would kill you. He wouldn't have killed Dabi but his soul and spirit by forcing him to stay in a place he hated, that he'd run from.
The plan was to crash on his landing on a mat. It was plush but would probably hurt if he landed on the head piece wrong. He jumped and crash landed, rolling a bit painfully a few times until he slammed into another foam set piece. He tried to exaggerate the pain of the hits, given the character would be landing on rock, not a foam pad. Luckily, he didn't ruin the camera thing.
He sat up, and rubbed his face a bit. "How was that?" he asked.
"Great! How many times do you think you can roll?"
"Until I can't anymore. I'll do as many as I can, though."
He did that characters a few more times, and then was doing the lone female character. "It doesn't feel weird… being in the body of a chick?" the mocap guy asked while he refitted the helmet on Dabi's head. The hair was short to not get in the way. It wasn't like his longer hair would be accurate with the helmet on.
"Dude, it's so much weirder in the body of a non-human. Woman have sacks of fat on their chests, that's literally the only difference. And no bouncy junk below," Dabi said, though it was in a more joking tone. The guy looked a bit sheepish at the stupid question. He was slowly building a good relationship with his temporary colleagues.
He was far, far younger than the vast majority of everyone he was working with. Barely of age and only living out of a family house for a few months. It was tiring four hours, but they got a lot done again. When his time was over, he really hated that helmet. Maybe he could just stick the thing to his ear or something so he didn't need to wear the whole helmet.
When he was leaving, he was once again asked to get some drinks. He rose a brow, knowing the guys knew his answer already. Were they trying to mess with him? He looked over their faces closely, looking for any lies, any ulterior motives. He found none, but shook his head. He was going grocery shopping and then home.
When he flew away, he then turned into a bird and doubled back, hopping onto the building ledge to listen in. "Damn, he keeps saying no. Little shit thinks he's so important. All because of a fucking overpowered quirk."
"I don't know, he's just a kid," the one who asked him about being in a female body said. "And he's seriously saving us a lot of money and time."
"Yeah? How do you feel if he gets paid more than you?" Ah, that was the issue.
"Well - he should be compensated for his work," he said. Dabi needed to actually remember their names.
"You're new, too, you don't get it. You can't let newbies come and think they can outshine the veterans. We'll teach him a fucking lesson eventually."
Dabi flew away once they all dispersed, grinning madly. Oh, this would be fun.
-x- Keigo -x-
Keigo landed in front of Best Jeanist's agency, not having been here in years. He didn't have fond memories of it based to when he was there. When his world crumbled around him. He stood in front of the double doors, having made an appointment to speak to the hero. He wondered what their relationship would have been like had Keigo continued on his hero path, and buried the story of Touya instead of revealing it to the country. Would they have teamed up? Would Hawks have gone anywhere, or would he be another fresh faced youngster that just didn't fit?
He walked inside, and went to the front desk. He smiled, amused, at all the side kicks and their slicked up hair. Keigo would rather not need to do that, but he wouldn't be boss. Maybe he'd need to.
"Takami-san, Best Jeanist-san will be out shortly." It was the same receptionist from three years ago. She smiled at him fondly, proudly. Keigo flushed a bit and went to sit down on the padded bench. He watched heroes bustle around the first floor, busy and stressed. But the feelings of saving someone would outweigh the negatives.
It wasn't like becoming an actor and being shunned as a hero erased his true dream that he was sure he'd lost. His entire training period of nine years had reinforced how to be a competent hero. He smiled to himself, thinking of how proud he'd make his friends. He was sure Dabi would be there at the end of every day to listen, maybe to sing to him to ease any stress, relax him with a quirk, make him feel good. He put his hands to his flaming face.
"Keigo-kun," Jeanist said, gaining Keigo's attention, the blush fading. The man didn't comment on it, and Keigo followed him to his office. He saw some of the people who'd been in the dorm with him, and they gave him smiles. He was no longer hated. He'd cleared his name. When he went into the office, it looked the same as last time, even down to the houseplants in their pots on the windowsill. "It's been too long. Congratulations on your successes since then."
"Thanks! It has been too long, really," Keigo said brightly. "Well, you probably heard about the fire a week ago." Jeanist nodded in affirmation. "Well, it's been a long time since I did any hero work. When I saved the people, it felt right, y'know? Like, that was what I should be doing."
Despite his face being mostly covered by his high neckline, Keigo could tell the man was smiling. "You want to return to hero work?" Jeanist asked.
"Yes, I do. But, not as Hawks, and I'm not interested in my own agency. I was - well, I wanted to ask if you would take me as a sidekick after I renew my license?" he asked in a hopeful but hesitant tone.
"Alright," Best Jeanist said simply. Keigo's face lit up. "When do you think you can be starting?"
"Well, I have a contract for one more movie in the series, so it would be after that. So by next year for sure."
"Plenty of time for you to figure out your new hero name, then." Right, he had to find a new name. He couldn't think of any off the bat, but he did have a lot of time. "As a sidekick, you'd be on the same level as everyone else. No more celebrity status and perks."
"Yeah, I don't want to be a boss or anything. I'll follow orders, as long as they're not morally bankrupt like they were at the former Commission."
"Yes, I will never have you torture someone, no need to worry about that." Keigo nodded. "How is Dabi? I saw all the hubbub about your relationship with him." Keigo flushed.
"Uh, we're good."
"Good. I'm glad all parties have moved forward." Keigo nodded. His therapy was helping a lot with moving on from what he'd done to Touya. There would always be deep guilt inside of him, but it wasn't overpowering when he thought about it. He tried not to usually, but he wasn't broken over Touya anymore. "Do you feel you will have the deep guilt if you do not save someone? If you have to hurt somebody?"
Keigo thought for a moment. "I don't think it compares to what I did to Touya. Because he was a child, and because he was innocent. I will never torture an innocent person again, so I will hopefully never feel the same again," he settled with. "But I will go to therapy still. It helps a lot…"
Jeanist looked pleased with his answer. "Then I look forward to working with you." Keigo beamed and bowed in thanks.
"Do I have to have my hair combed to the side, too?" he asked, though more like joking.
"No, you're already a well known figure and I doubt it would look serious on you," Jeanist replied. Keigo snickered. The hero stood up first, looking at his watch. He handed Keigo his card with his hero phone number on. "Keep in touch and tell me once you start your journey back to your true profession."
Keigo beamed, and thanked him one more time before he hurried outside and flew away, beating his wings hard, doing twirls and dives.
He'd be a hero again!
When he got home, he found them all working on homework. Typing away on midterm assignments. They had a very long kitchen table now so they could all work or study together. Yeah, they wouldn't be lonely if he took long work hours. He went to the kitchen and made hot chocolate for them all, and then went to the couch to read a book.
Looking over the back of the couch, Keigo had a brief thought that this would have never happened if what he did to Touya hadn't. If he hadn't had him escape, Dabi wouldn't exist and Touya would be dead or brainwashed into working for the Commission. Though, knowing him, he'd have fought back hard. Never would have become an asset, only an issue. Touya would have been killed for sure.
Keigo shook his head, and then Dabi walked over. Well, a double of him. "How was your meeting with Jeanist?"
"Are you the real Dabi? Or a double?"
"Wouldn't you like to know, feather boy," Dabi smirked. "You know… have you ever had an urge for a harem? Multiple of me, having my way with you? You wouldn't know what to do with yourself."
"Teenagers shouldn't be so good at sex talk," Keigo stuttered, hiding his beet red face in his hands.
"I can be mature when I want to be." He leaned down and sucked his earing and earlobe into his mouth. Keigo was getting hot and bothered fast, and on the couch with all their roommates in the other room. He took a few deep breaths, and then darted up the stairs.
"You broke him!" Toga accused.
"Not yet," Dabi drawled.
"You're nasty," Tenko said.
Keigo splashed water on his face in the hall bathroom. God, Dabi was good at turning him on.
-x- Dabi -x-
"Got the camera quirk all ready?" Toga asked conspiratorially. She was the only one Dabi told his plan, as Keigo would likely try to persuade him not to. Dabi nodded, and gave her a salute and a nasty grin. She gave him a thumbs up and he flew away to his job.
Everything went normal, but he knew that all the politeness was fake, nobody respected him here but maybe Enrei, and that was for Dabi's usefulness. He already spoke to Todo, asking for a new assigned role but to let Dabi handle quitting this branch of work. He wanted to ruin it for the "veterans" that wanted to teach him a lesson.
Well, he'd let them. After the time was up, he once again was asked to go out for something to eat. He pressed the record button he had stuck to his belt, and turned on the camera quirk, which would record anything he saw. He could then upload it onto a device and watch it from there. He found that quirk on a website about the most publicly damaging quirks so far. The dude who used it (there was video of him activating it) had brought down a regime by showing the public every little dirty thing he'd witnessed from their government leader.
Dabi wasn't interested in that much, he just wanted to play for a bit. He'd been through a lot in his life, but he was not yet above being a vindictive little shit, as Keigo would so eloquently say. "I can go out with you guys, but I won't be drinking," Dabi said, and hiked his backpack up more. "Where were you thinking?"
"We can go to my place." Hmm. Interesting play. They didn't want it to be in public, then. But Dabi wouldn't act out of character. He wasn't stupid and didn't go to places he knew nothing about.
"No, I'm not comfortable with that. We can go someplace public." They looked surprised. "Dude, I've been kidnapped two times already. I don't go places I know jack shit about." They recovered quickly, and ended up agreeing to go to a restaurant one of their wives owned. "Address?"
"Why?"
"So I can tell my friend where I'm going." He was given the address, and sent it to Toga.
On my way to the crib. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
Good luck!
"Then I'll meet you there," Dabi said. They didn't protest, and Dabi took off, following the GPS on his phone to the place. It was a diner. He landed outside, and walked in. Shit, it smelled good in there. There was a bar area, but it was not open yet since it wasn't even dark out yet. The sun was setting, but it wasn't time to drink - at least for most people.
"How are you doing?" the patron asked.
"Good. I'm meeting some guys from work here. One of them is the husband of the owner."
She looked surprised, and looked Dabi up and down. "Don't fit in with their image?" Dabi asked with an amused grin.
"Oh! I'm so sorry-"
"I am a bit much to look at," Dabi said. "There's no problem." She looked humiliated by it. "Can I just get a drink while I wait?"
"Of course," and she hurried away, glad to end that interaction. He went to the bar counter and sat in one of the wheely chairs. It squealed a bit. He was still recording, and thought this quirk would have been so much more efficient for many things in his life before now. Man, he could have filmed his torment of Geten and showed his friends. What a missed opportunity.
He got a lemonade, and spun around in the chair before the guys came. The diner was empty right now but for Dabi and the few employees as well as the chefs working in the back. A Door-Dash person came to pick up food and then hurried back out.
"Ah, Dabi, you got here fast."
"Yeah flying is a lot quicker than driving."
They got into a booth, and Dabi sat across from them before he was more boxed in. He grew stiff, starting to grow uncomfortable. Well, he could beat the shit out of them and burn the diner down around them if need be. They were all bigger and older than him, but not stronger. Not faster, smarter, even.
"So what do you think of the job so far?" Kaito asked, the one who badmouthed Dabi the most - that he'd seen at least. He was in his fifties.
"It's fun. More engaging than the clothes model gig. I hope I get a big raise." He made sure to watch their reactions. "Got bills to pay." They looked a bit irate. Anyone would see it, but Dabi didn't comment. The patron came over, and Dabi ordered some food. He was hungry, sue him. Besides, the guys had invited him to eat/drink.
They ordered some drinks, all alcoholic drinks. He watched the husband of the owner give the patron a warning look, and after she brought the drinks, she didn't return. Dabi watched it all. After his food came, he didn't eat it, pretending like he was waiting for it to cool. "So, do you plan on working here for awhile? There's new projects every few months."
"Maybe. It would be nice to rise in ranks, though there's not really someone in the same position as me."
Come at me, bitch.
"You're what, 18? What makes you think you'll rise so fast?"
"I didn't say it would be fast. I might be there a long time, and I only work part time. Not like I can become some big wig in a few months. Besides, eventually I'll leave to work more on music with my bandmates."
"Being a musician will get you nowhere." Dabi shrugged it off casually. "What's Hawks like? You think you're big by dating a celebrity?"
Dabi rose a brow. "'Hawks'? Haven't heard that name in awhile. I don't see how my gay relationship would be of any interest. I don't ask about your wives, despite her very nice taste in decor." The diner was very nicely furnished. Very American style.
An eye twitch.
"You need to take a step back and stop thinking so highly of yourself in the work place." They said it as if it was good advice. "Maybe that's why the last place fired you."
"Nah, they fired me because they knew I was fucking the guy that tortured me." They were all startled by the admission that he so bluntly said, so casually, too. "You won't need to worry about me having any interest in daughters or some shit."
"You disgusting little fag." Hah! Dabi schooled his expression to be annoyed and unimpressed. Dabi called the patron over, and she hesitated to come.
"I'd like to get my food to go."
"No, you're staying right here. You need to learn a fucking lesson."
"Oh, wise teacher. Tell me, what is your lesson?"
He slammed his hand down on the table with a furious look on. "You don't get to show up to a place and pretend you're hot shit, and ask for a raise when we haven't, despite working there longer. You need to earn your goddamn place like the rest of us. Just because you have some fantastical quirk doesn't make you any better than us. You're unwanted unless you have your quirk."
Dabi looked mildly interested in his words. "Is that all? I came all this way for that?" He was grabbed by the front of his shirt and yanked forward. "Just because you're jealous and insecure of your mounting age doesn't give you the right to be a prick. I've been nice to you this whole time. Just because you're an old fart doesn't mean I'm any less than you are."
"No wonder you were tortured, you're annoying as fuck."
"Anything else? Or can I leave now?"
He was shoved out of the booth and landed on his face. Ouch. He stood up, and grinned. He stopped filming. "I hope you enjoyed your little tirade, because you're all going to get fired for that."
"Pft, as if anyone would believe you. You're a sketchy, teenage, newcomer."
"I sure hope your tenure saves you. Well, this was enlightening."
"Did you expect us to be nice to you?"
"Oh, no, actually. I was counting on you all being abusive assholes. And I've got my proof. Now all I've got to do is show it. Have a nice night, pussies," he said, and practically skipped out of the diner with his leftovers. Once he was out, he started to laugh, and flew home. By the time he got there, his food was very cold.
Dabi immediately typed up what happened and attached the footage and recordings to his personal boss, and then the higher up in the company, claiming he was quitting.
An hour later, his phone blew up from the main asshole. "Good evening!" he asked brightly.
"You recorded us! I should sue you!"
"I have proof you assaulted me. I'd have a lot of fun in court. Go ahead. But, you got what you wanted. I quit. Is that why you called? Is Boss-man angry? I found your wife online. I think I'd like to send her the video, too. I'm sure she'd want to know how you treat her employees and customers."
"You better not fucking dare-!"
"Man! I really was tortured for a good reason, wasn't I? I'm annoying as fuck. A filthy little faggot. Well, you won't have to see me much anymore regardless on if you're still employed tomorrow. Have a nice night, Boomer."
He hung up, and leaned back in his recliner. Life was good.
He got an email from his boss, begging for him to stay and that he'd fire them all. That the main guy that berated and grabbed him was fired. But Dabi had his fun there, and that time was over. He declined, and thanked the man for being understanding and engaging. He was quitting, and had another place lined up to interview at.
-x-
"Ice skating?"
"Yeah. It's getting cold, I figured we could go to an ice rink," Dabi said, rubbing Keigo's back, always pleased by the reactions to the stimulation his wing bases made, betraying him by really showing just how good it felt. Dabi heated up his hands, rubbing a bit deeper. "What do you say, Birdie?"
"Sure. I've never done it before, though," Keigo said, sighing and relaxed into the bed a bit more under Dabi's hands. "Why are your hands so perfect?" he asked.
"Mm, I'm perfect, so my hands are, too," Dabi soothed. Keigo snorted. Dabi trailed a hand along the bones of Keigo's wings. "So pretty. I'm so lucky, baby bird." Keigo smiled, and Dabi returned to rubbing his back. "There's gonna be a lot more knots in there when you're a hero again."
"It'll be worth it. Is it wrong that I feel so much more secure with you there to fix me up?" Keigo asked, sounding a bit worried.
"Not at all," Dabi answered. "If my presence makes you feel secure, then that makes me happy. I was the reason you stopped being a hero, I'm happy to support you, now."
"I never blamed you," Keigo said, rolling onto his side, his wing arching up to switch sides and rest behind him. Dabi ran his warm hand down Keigo's bare chest.
"I know, pretty bird. You only ever blame yourself for things." Keigo nodded, at least knowing that about himself. "A lot of people tortured me that night. But you're the only one that set me free. I wish people would focus on that. You just gave them a recognizable target to funnel their hatred and blame at." He laid down on his side next to him, one arm underneath his head. "You'll be a fantastic hero, Kei. And I'll be here to clean up the bits if you have another mess."
"If you hadn't healed me then, things would be so different."
"Maybe not. You could have gotten a prosthetic leg. Things would be harder, yes, but not everything would be different," Dabi replied. "You look back at the past too much, Birdie. Sometimes it seems like it's all you can focus on, that you're scared of thinking about the future. You don't need to be so scared." Keigo sighed through his nose, and nodded, closing his eyes.
He sent a feather to turn the lights off and Dabi pulled the blankets up over them.
In the morning, Tenko had made breakfast for once, and Dabi was very hesitant over eating it. "I didn't do anything to it," he said in annoyance. "I followed your damn recipe."
"It's only eggs, dude. You didn't need a recipe."
"Fuck off." Dabi snickered and ate the plain scrambled eggs. He was tempted to play a mean prank, but decided against it. Tenko looked at him for approval of the food.
"It's fine. Not too runny. Next time you should try and add some more to it. Experiment," Dabi said. "Level one cooking unlocked." Keigo snickered and Tenko rolled his eyes. "I had a song idea in my head. We've not done one in awhile."
"Fans are annoyed with that," Shuichi sighed as he took a serving from the massive plate of scrambled eggs.
"The music is a hobby for now, they can be patient. Not like they're paying us money," Dabi grumbled. After they ate, Dabi showered and got dressed, Keigo doing the same. It was chilly outside, so they put on heavy clothes. Since they needed to go shopping, they took Dabi's car instead of flying.
"You drive like an old person," Keigo teased.
"I've been in a flipped car, don't really want to do that again," Dabi replied and smirked when Keigo went speechless. When they arrived at the ice rink, it was packed. Neither wanted to go into that. "Hmm. I have an idea."
"Good idea or bad idea?" Keigo asked.
"We'll see, I guess. We have to go buy our own skates to do it."
"We can always just come back later when it's less crowded."
"No, I want my idea to work. We're rolling with that," Dabi said stubbornly, and pulled out of the parking lot. So they went and bought some skates in a cheap store, and Dabi drove them to the empty airport parking lot. He parked the car and got out, using his mother's ice power to coat the parking lot in multiple thin layers of ice. Keigo watched from the hood of the car.
"Alright, shoes on mister," Dabi said, and they both took their boots off and put the new skates on. "This is far less romantic than I was hoping," he mumbled. "In a fucking airport parkinglot."
"I told you we could have waited-"
"No, now we have to prove my version is better than the ice rink," Dabi said stubbornly. Keigo just laughed, and told his phone to put on some music. Keigo was surprisingly graceful with the skating, and helped Dabi figure it out.
"Here, try this," Keigo said, and sent out one of his longer feathers, and had Dabi hold onto it, the feather floating around as a mobile stabilizer. Dabi praised him for the quick thinking, and they were eventually good enough to skate around the car in lazy loops. "Is this our new hang out when we can't find anywhere else?"
"The dragons liked it here, what can I say?" Dabi shrugged, and lost balance until Keigo steadied him. After their feet were sore, Dabi said, "Let's try and pretend we went to a really romantic ice rink."
"Illusion time?"
"Bingo."
Eventually, they were satisfied with the false selfie, and Dabi melted the ice, and they made the drive back to the nearest supermarket and got groceries before returning home.
"Sorry it was so underwhelming…" Dabi apologized.
"I had fun, it's all good," Keigo replied. Dabi smiled in relief.
CHAPTER 24
-x- Keigo -x-
Keigo was beyond shocked to see Enji sitting outside the studio. Keigo knew he was there for him, and didn't waste time trying to run through reasons why he was there. He walked out, and the former hero looked to the future hero with a look of sadness. Had something happened? If so, why would it be Enji to give him any news? This was weird.
"What - what are you doing here?" he asked, backpack on between his wings. He had a baseball hat on, too.
"I figured I wouldn't be set on fire or screamed at if I came to you."
"Dabi could do many more interesting things than set you on fire."
"Right. Well, I've come with all the medical history I've gotten. I asked family that Rei's side doesn't have access to, and asked for as much information for them as I can. Will you tell me if Dabi is ill?" He sounded concerned.
Keigo took the bag he was handed of neatly filed documents. "No, Dabi isn't ill. There was something weird with his quirk is all. He's fine." The bag was very heavy with a ton of paperwork. "Why didn't you give it to Fuyumi-san?"
"She isn't speaking to me anymore." Enji looked like such a hollow man. He'd lost everything. His family, his title and profession, his reputation, his way of life. While Dabi would find deep joy in that fact, Keigo just felt pity for the husk of a man. "I asked about Dabi too many times, and not enough about Natsuo or Shoto."
"Oh," was all Keigo could say to that, because he didn't feel and didn't have the right to feel sorry that Fuyumi cut ties. "Well, thanks for this. I'm sure on some level, Dabi will appreciate it." Enji sighed softly and nodded. "What's your plan for the future, if you don't mind me asking?" Keigo questioned curiously.
"I don't know."
"Are you still working-"
"Thank you for taking care of my son. Goodbye." He turned and left, leaving Keigo with the bag of document and a sad face. Enji truly lost everyone with Fuyumi cutting contact, at least for the present. Keigo watched him drive away, and went to his car to drive home himself. It was raining that morning, and he loathed flying in the rain.
Again, he didn't feel sorry for Enji as Todoroki Enji, he deserved his children leaving him for safe freedom. But he looked so damn pitiful it was hard not to feel sorry for him. Keigo didn't care enough about him to do anything. Maybe it was the part of him that wished Endeavor had been a beacon, not a source of destruction to his family.
When he got home, he parked at the curb and put the passcode into their gate, and walked inside, through the accepting bubble forcefield. He unlocked the front door, smiling at a stray cat that was enjoying the catnip plant Dabi planted because Toga loved cats, so she wanted to see more since they weren't allowed pets there.
He saw Dabi cooking in the kitchen with headphones on, and set the bag of papers down on the counter. He went to the phone that he'd stuck to the wall and pressed a button to turn it off, lowering his headphones to rest around his neck. "What's up, birdie?"
"Enji came to work to see me. Did you know Fuyumi-san cut contact?" Apparently not, as Dabi looked surprised. "Well, he came to give me a bag full of your paternal side's medical history." Dabi immediately glowered. "He asked if you were ill, and I said no. i asked him what he planned on doing from now on, but he didn't answer and left.
"You should digitize all of these documents and share them with your siblings. Scan them all." Dabi nodded, silent, and went back to cooking.
"...Did he say anything else?"
"No, and I'm kind of concerned he's planning on killing himself." Dabi looked up sharply. "I mean, he lost communications with the last person in his 'family', came to give me some papers, thanked me for taking care of you, and then left without saying anything. Pretty suspish."
"He thanked you?" Dabi asked with a scoff, no concern in his face that Keigo could see.
"Yeah, it was pretty weird," Keigo admitted. "Can you check in on him? I know you don't haunt his place anymore."
"Maybe later," Dabi said dismissively, closing off, and put his headphones back on and continued cooking. His face was closed off, though, and Keigo went upstairs to put the papers in the closet of Dabi's mostly unused bedroom.
But Keigo was getting a really bad feeling. Would 'Endeavor' take his own life? Was he that miserable? It didn't seem like it could happen, but Keigo knew how he felt in a way. Being alone and hated, losing everything you worked for. While Keigo would never forgive him for what he inflicted on his wife and children, he didn't want the guy to die.
Keigo slipped out the second floor balcony and flew away, leaving a note that he'd be back soon. They did not live too far from the Enji estate, as the Todoroki's really had moved to a new home, the majority somewhere else to be called the Todoroki estate. Keigo flew there quickly, and got a call from Dabi on the way.
Keigo answered. "Where are you?" Dabi asked in confusion.
"I want to check something."
"Kei, I was going to check. It would be a lot faster than you flying there," Dabi said, sounding mildly exasperated. "I'll check now, okay?"
Keigo smiled that he wasn't angry that he was worried over his abuser. "He's sleeping on the couch. Breathing fine."
"...I still have a bad feeling. I'm gonna check anyways."
"Alright, I'll put your serving in the fridge."
"You're not upset? That I'm concerned over him?" Keigo asked curiously, the wind probably beng obnoxious for Dabi on the other end.
"It's the hero in you, dove." Keigo smiled wider, and thanked him for that. "Of course. I'm gonna eat dinner, now."
"Okay, Dabs. See you later." And the call was over. Keigo beat his wings faster, and arrived at the estate. He knew the address from Dabi given it to him, and landed over the wall. There was no forcefield here, no protection like their home. He went to a window, and peeked inside, every light off. He sent some feathers inside, searching for any breathing. He found none.
Keigo pulled open the flimsy paper doors and entered, running through the estate, there being no noise. He ripped open the door to what he assumed was Enji's room. The man was laying on the bed, the room reeking of chemicals. Keigo used feathers to yank open the window, and pulled Enji off the bed, and started CPR.
Using a feather to dial 119 for an ambulance. After 30 seconds of pumping Enji's chest, he started to breathe. Keigo opened the gate to the garage, and heard the ambulance arrive, people rushing inside. Enji was breathing but still unconscious. Keigo was starting to feel light headed from the chemicals and dragged his body out before medics came in, shocked to see the former number two in the state he was in.
They hurried to get him on a stretcher, and leave. Keigo had to go with them for an explanation. He'd probably be gone for awhile. He needed to tell the Todorokis, really wondering what their reactions would be.
-x- Dabi -x-
He couldn't believe Enji tried to fucking kill himself. Well, he succeeded. He was dead when Keigo got there. He seriously couldn't move on from what happened? It was pathetic and pitiful. Dabi was standing outside his hospital room, with his siblings inside the room already. Rei was getting food for them. Dabi hadn't gone inside to see him yet.
Toga was with him, rubbing his back, knowing it was hard to feel these things other than hate. He didn't feel guilt, even if he was the reason Enji was caught and his downfall started, he went to jail, lost everything. Literally, everything but his house.
Mei was with Rei getting food for them, who had come in support. Dabi was really happy to see her, and be proven he still mattered to her. When they came back, Rei went inside, taking a deep breath, while Mei sat on the bench with Toga and Dabi. His best friend was silent, looking concerned, a rare expression. She didn't usually look serious.
"How do you feel, Dabi?" Mei asked, handing him a bag of chocolate chip cookies. Dabi shrugged. "It's okay to feel sad. You aren't betraying yourself for that."
"It's just pity, really. It's pathetic. If it were anyone else, I'd be a lot more sympathetic. He's weak. How could he commit suicide? Just because he lost shit? It was always going to come out some day. He should have had a plan. Moved to another fucking country or something. He was supposed to be strong," Dabi said bitterly.
Fuyumi came out, sliding the room door open. She was teary eyed, and blamed herself for this, the last straw that caused it. Dabi wondered if Enji would try and manipulate them with pity and guilt. Fuyumi would be the most susceptible. She looked at Dabi and then away. The older brother stood up to hug her.
She hugged him back, and started to sob. Dabi ran his fingers through her mostly white hair. Her glasses were smooshed into Dabi's shoulder. He'd come so far with his relationship with his bio siblings. Rei came out, and both of his mothers looked proud of him. Rei looked fine, really. It had been a long time since she broke free of her abusive ex-partner. Dabi was… he was proud of her. And he was proud of his siblings.
"You should go see him," Fuyumi said.
"Why? He probably hates me, and I hate him," Dabi replied, and ended the hug. "I can pity him from afar." He was glad nobody pressured him. Dabi did look through the small window on the door. Shoto looked exceedingly uncomfortable. The 18 year old wondered what his two youngest siblings were thinking of what happened. Did Shoto even grasp suicide? He was still so young.
Dabi turned and left, Toga coming with him. She took his hand. "Do you think I should see him?" he asked.
"No. You don't have any obligation to talk to him or anything," she answered with a shrug. "Let's go get smoothies." Dabi nodded, and they did so. When they got back home, Keigo arrived around the same time, looking tired.
The tallest of them all went to hug him, and then wrapped his arms around how waist. "Hey, Dabs. How was today?"
"Nothing notable. Went to the hospital but didn't see him." Keigo nodded, and kissed him, biting down on Dabi's rough lip. Dabi hummed, pleased with the kiss. Toga giggled and walked into her room.
-x-
Enji's suicide attempt made it to the news, and the public all felt sorry for him, and news stations played footage of his most heroic moments. Dabi was irate with how his image was getting better because he tried to off himself. He was sure Enji was not happy with this, but Dabi hadn't spoken to him at all.
Rei said he hadn't asked to see him, which Dabi was glad about. Just because the guy tried to escape his problems didn't mean Dabi wanted to see him. Nope, nope. He was fairly sure Enji hated Keigo for saving him.
"Todoroki Enji's suicide attempt really has shaken the public on how harmful cancel culture can be. Going to jail shook him, and he was still hated. It took a deep toll on him. Perhaps we should all work to be less judgemental and-"
Dabi yanked his earbuds out, scowling, maybe that not being the best thing to listen to before his first day of his new job. He was outsourced to a studio that specialized in using animals for movies and TV. Dabi actually liked going to new places. Last place was fun until it wasn't, and he didn't suffer any consequences and was supported by the Daiburu company when he request to be moved somewhere else.
He didn't suffer a pay cut or anything. Dabi stopped thinking about Enji and schooled his expression to normal. When he walked in with his backpack, he saw the people working here were much more diverse. Women and men of seemingly all ages, with some mutant types. Meaning this place was probably a lot more welcoming than the last. Sometimes mutant quirk types were not accepted places. Just like Shuichi.
Keigo was different because his mutant traits all look aesthetically pleasing. The only things that "hadn't been" were his talons, but those were gone for good.
Looking around, an older woman maybe in her late thirties approached him with a smile. "Welcome! It's good to have you," she said, and Dabi bowed respectfully with a smile. "Come with me, I'll show you around."
"Thanks," Dabi said, and was shown around the place. It was bigger with more people. The locker room even had showers. The explanation for that was that some of the work they did brought out a lot of sweat, and workers wanted to clean it off, which made sense. He put his backpack away, making a code to lock it, keeping his phone in his pocket like always.
"My name is Shino Toki, I'm the main manager, so you'll be talking with me mostly." Dabi nodded, ands aid the place was a lot more diverse than the last place he'd worked. "Yes, we try to be as diverse as possible." Dabi liked that. He was to mingle and talk with his new coworkers, and noticed a few college aged people, too.
He approached them, and was immediately accepted. A few recognized him from his music, and he smiled. "When are you coming out with a new song?"
"Soon, actually. School and work keeps us busy and all," Dabi answered. Like usual, he was asked about his quirk, and he briefly explained it's capabilities. He had a lot of powers. Nobody but his friends and family knew that he was technically quirkless with a genetic oopsie. He still didn't know how Enji's quirk cuffs worked when they didn't the other times. Maybe it was something to do with his mental state at the time. Who knows? He probably never would.
He had a nice time talking with them, and approached the older people he'd be working with most, the camera crew and director. He didn't get his hopes up, though. His last job was nice at first and then turned shitty. At least he went out with a bang. He social media stalked the guy who he sent his wife the video and saw he and she had split. It was fantastic.
When he left, he was in a really good mood.
After undressing and getting into comfortable clothes at home, his hands and fingers started to ache a bit. He rubbed them, but mostly ignored them.
They got worse throughout the day, aching and burning. He didn't remember doing anything strenuous with them. Keigo saw him rubbing his fingers, and asked if he was okay. They were both on the couch, watching a cheesy horror movie. Toga was on the floor against Dabi's shins. Ochako on her stomach on the rug. The other two were on a movie date.
"They've been hurting ever since I got home," Dabi said honestly. "Don't know why." Keigo frowned, and got him an icepack. Dabi took it, not mentioning he'd been focusing all his cold power into his fingers. The notion was nice. Keigo scooched over to lean against his side, one wing behind his back and the other taking up the rest of the couch. Dabi took one of his hands and brushed them through his feathers a bit before returning his hands to the ice.
In the morning, his hands still hurt, and it was growing very annoying. He had school, the weekend over, and just holding the pencil was uncomfortable, let alone when they got to sewing, working on their final projects. Dabi had trouble, and decided to go to the doctor after work.
When he went to work, one of his older coworkers had brought donuts, and Dabi gladly ate one. He didn't show the pain in his hands and fingers, and he was to play a pet wolf, before his new boss had an idea. "Are you good at acting?" Jeez, did everyone want him to follow in Keigo's footsteps?
"I don't know. I've only ever acted out facial expressions."
"There's a project being filmed in studio B-6 that has a werewolf character. If you can become a different looking person, and shift into a werewolf form, it would be perfect."
"I'm part time, it would need to be a minor role," Dabi said, not declining the offer. It sounded fun, honestly. He wanted to try new things, new experiences. Shino said she'd keep that in account, and they moved on to normal interactions with Dabi playing a dog on a house set. He followed the directions as best as he could, but wasn't made to lick, thankfully. He didn't want to do that.
He worked to not lift his front feet off and on the floor to try and ease the ache. After the shooting was done, he left and flew to his usual primary care doctor, not that he used him much. He was a walk in, as this place was small, and not a hospital or big business, which made wait times low. He shared the guy with his friends, all taking his advice for using him.
"Dabi, what are you here for today?" Dr. Kirigaya asked as Dabi sat on the bed thing in the middle of the room.
"My hand hurt as fuck. They ache like I've been playing the damn piano until they bled," he said bluntly.
"I take it you haven't been playing the piano." Dabi shook his head. "How about guitar? Have you been practicing a lot?"
"No more than I always have. My fingers have never hurt. No part of me has ever hurt like this. I've never been sick or injured."
"Well, then let's do a few tests," he said, and they tried a few physical tests before he had his hands x-rayed. He was there a few hours, growing hungry so he made some food for himself, which wasn't too filling, but was good enough to tide him over for a bit more.
"Dabi, do you have a history of arthritis in your family."
"But, I'm not old," Dabi said in shock. Arthritis? Seriously?!
"It's not only elderly people or women who get arthritis. It can come at an early age as well. Do you know family history?"
"No, I've gone through all medical files for family members on both sides and none of them had arthritis. Not even the old ones," Dabi said. "Can you just make it go away?"
"There is no cure, but there is treatment. You having it diagnosed so early can help mitigate further deterioration."
"But… I can't have arthritis! I play guitar! I sew!"
"You can do both of those things. Some treatments dim the pain quite a bit," Dr. Kirigaya explained. "If we're proactive, its more likely to be treated well." Dabi looked down at his hands, glaring at them hatefully.
"If I cut them off, do you think it will come back? I can just grow them back, I grew back fingers before." He had, when Hawks cut them off during the torture.
His doctor looked horrified by the suggestion. "I do not recommend that, Dabi. No, not at all."
"So, then I have to live with this pain for the rest of my goddamn life?" Dabi asked sourly.
"...Yes." Dabi grinded his teeth together, scowling deeply. "I'm sorry. I'll start treatments right away. It was good for you to come in as soon as possible." He then explained all the treatment options, but Dabi wasn't processing it. Fucknig weakling… arthritis? Seriously? It was bullshit, he was only fucking 18! Was it from his genetic oops? He was angry at his hands. He'd never been hurt, and this would be chronic pain, or at least discomfort.
He was given a thick pamphlet, and left in a daze. Fucking weak.
When he got home, he locked himself in his room, and read the pamphlet. After a bit, there was a knock on the door. "Dabs? Can I come in?" Dabi didn't want anyone to pity him. But he couldn't keep this a secret. He opened the door and stepped aside for Keigo to enter, folding his wings back a bit to fit through the doorway better. Of course he saw Dabi's face. Displeased and tight. "What happened? What did the doctor say?" he asked in a soft voice.
Dabi threw himself back onto the bed and stuck his face in the pillow, not wanting to see his partner's reaction. Keigo waited for him to speak. "I have arthritis in my hands."
"Oh…" Keigo said sadly, and ran his hand through Dabi's thick black hair. "Well, it's good it was diagnosed early, right?" he offered, though his voice sounded forced hopeful.
"I don't know. I play guitar, and sew. Those are things I need precision on my fingers for!" he shouted into the pillow, slamming a fist onto the mattress. Keigo laid on his side next to Dabi, draping a wing over his back.
"You don't have to stop those things, right?"
"I should just cut them off and let them regrow." Keigo ran his hand down Dabi's spine under his big wing.
"Last resort," Keigo replied softly. "Last resort if nothing else works, okay? Promise?" Dabi sighed, and turned his head to the side to look at Keigo. "If your healing power can't help this, maybe it's slowing down, and cutting your hands off could be, well, bad - risky." Dabi nodded with a disappointed sigh.
"'M sorry."
"Don't be sorry, it's not your fault." Dabi nodded, and let Keigo rub his shoulders and back.
-x-
Unlike Keigo, Dabi could not memorize lines. He had a very few, and not much time to do reshoots. He was just glad he was mostly a background character. He was already not enjoying it much. He was not an animal just following directions, he had to actually put a lot of effort into it. He was playing a child character. He could pretend to be in pain, he was good at that since he had a lot of practice. Maybe the torture could be useful.
His hands burned and he was wearing a splint when he could. His family was worried and upset, but his friends and room mates were treating him normal except offering to get him ice packs or some pain medicine if he made the involuntary faces.
He kept those faces only for being at home. His professor's knew since he now had a fucking disability. Volleyball didn't make it any worse, and his doctor said exercise and mobile joints were necessary. None of his classmates knew, and neither did anyone at work. He might get fired for it if it interfered.
So he kept it as secret as he could. He was glad for it in a sense, since it was a distraction from the Enji Suicide Situation. With people vying for him to get his license back since he'd received punishment already. Not all people agreed. He was obviously mentally unstable in the first place.
None of his bio family tried to convince him to do jack shit with the terrible father. Dabi hadn't spoken to him at all.
Dabi played the child crying, but wasn't Keigo and couldn't bring out tears. He was just given eyedrops before he started, and when he closed his eyes, it fell out of them like real tears. He was completely screaming, and when it came time for his character to become a werewolf, he screamed bloody murder, and slowly shifted to bring fur out, to change his teeth, his eyes turning yellow, and deforming his body into that of a wolf, laying on his side, panting.
"CUT!" Dabi shifted back into his real body, his clothes undamaged. He stood up, and everyone were impressed. He wiped the drops from his eyes. "You could absolutely make a living off of playing human-monsters."
"I don't know. Maybe. Not a great actor except for shitty situations," Dabi said, and got a drink of water from his waterbottle. "Do I need to do another try? I'm hungry as fuck." Nobody ever seemed bothered that he swore.
"One more try, but this time instead of a wolf body, can you turn into a more werewolf like body?" The director showed him an image of the prosthetics that would be used on the adult actors who were werewolves. Dabi nodded, and went back to the body of the child actor who was in the part full time. Dabi was just covering the transformation parts. There was only one of them for this character.
Maybe he could do it for the other cast members, too. He kind of enjoyed the last place more, too bad the people there were so shitty. Most of the workers in his manager's area were female, but none of them hit on him in any way. Maybe the gay rolled off of him if they already didn't know he was dating Takami Keigo.
He was nearly done filming the current movie, getting closer to being a hero again. He hadn't yet come up with a name, but Dabi was asked to make his costume. Dabi agreed happily. Sounded like a fun project.
The werewolf body they wanted that wasn't a wolf was more fun to create, and he played up the agony more. He wondered what the kid actually playing this part would think when he saw himself in this state. Might fuck him up. Well, it wasn't his problem.
Once CUT was called again, Dabi shifted back, and everyone really was in awe of his quirk. He unstuck his phone from the wall and shoved it into his pocket. He did dress appropriately for work. He didn't wear his spiked boots and heavy belts, or his ripped up - stitched up jacket. He wore dark clothes still, but not as extreme.
"That was great, really," he was praised by Shino as they walked back to the usual studio. Dabi smiled, and clenched his fingers in his pockets.
"Thanks. It was kind of fun. Bet it's gonna mess with the actual kid, though. Seeing himself like that," Dabi said, but didn't mention that it wasn't his problem. That was the truth, but he didn't want to seem heartless.
"Do you like children?" she asked.
"Not really," Dabi replied honestly. "Don't want them fucked up or anything, but they're not my cup of tea." He got his backpack and put his hoodie on. "Well, see you tomorrow."
"Have a nice night."
Dabi left to go pick up some prescriptions for the arthritis. So, so, stupid.
-x- Keigo -x-
He felt so sorry for Dabi, but never showed it. Dabi felt weak for the chronic condition that would be with him the rest of his life. So Keigo never showed any amount of pity for him, though he did help massage them gently. He hadn't kept it from playing guitar or sewing, even if his hand stitching had suffered a bit an he now exclusively used the sewing machine.
There was one week of school left for them and then it was a long winter break. They were planning on hosting Christmas for Dabi's bio family. His foster would be spending it with their own kids. Dabi was a bit sad about it, clearly, but he didn't protest in any way.
They had all already picked out their next classes. Dabi was taking another PE class. Tennis for his hands. Keigo was glad he was taking care of himself as best as he could. He had another math class and quirk politics/history, as well as a random elective that was robotics.
To stick with Dabi, apparently Midoriya chose the same tennis class. It didn't annoy his boyfriend since the guy was pretty positive.
Keigo was currently hanging out with Rumi and her girlfriend, out to coffee, Keigo's wings in his backpack so they wouldn't be bothered. "So, Boo, give me the deets on Dabi and you."
"No way. He'd be annoyed if I spilled anything." Rumi gave an annoyed pout, and Keigo laughed. "Okay, it's going good. I love him so much." The bunny grinned. "I've moved forward so much more with my problems from counseling. I should have started again a long time ago." She looked even happier for this, her foot thumping on the floor loudly. Keigo laughed, as did her girlfriend.
It was a nice time, hanging out with his former roommate and best friend. They kept in touch, texting almost daily, sharing memes. The age difference didn't matter.
"How's his job?"
"He likes it and it makes a lot of money for a part time job. We're not strapped for cash since all of us have a job. Dabi and I plan on putting money towards a car for the other three to share."
"Aw, that's so nice of you!"
"They deserve it. We can't get one for each of them. Well, I maybe could, but I know they don't like having me pay for everything. So Dabi contributing a lot would be easier for their pride. Well, Tenko and Shuichi's pride. I bet Toga would be ecstatic over it."
They talked and had drinks, Keigo with soda and her with rum, and then Keigo the designated driver for both of them. He took them to their home and walked them up the stairs, making sure they got inside safely. Then he got back into the car, and got a text from Dabi. He assumed it would be a meme about rabbits or birds, but what he saw was a photo taken from behind some sort of shelf of him kissing his boss.
Keigo's eyes widened in horror. Something was very, very wrong. He jumped out of the car, and pulled his wings out of his backpack, and left his vehicle in the apartment parking lot to come get later.
It was late, and Dabi should have been home by now. Keigo pumped his wings to get to his job place, with Dabi not answering the phone, it just going to voicemail over and over. When he got to the place, Dabi's car was the only one still in the parking lot. He used his feathers to unlock the front door from the inside, and ran inside.
All the lights were off, and Keigo was terrified he was about to find Dabi's dead body or something, panicking. He'd never, ever cheat on Keigo, and he was gay. Keigo knew he was not bi.
He sent his feathers out through the dark building, unable to find the light switches, and found vibrations in one room. He sprinted there, and picked the lock to get inside. The room where the photo had been taken from. Running to the back of the room, he found Dabi, unconscious, and in the body of Touya. His hair white, scars gone.
"Dabi?" he asked, trying to wake him up, but he wouldn't. He was deeply unconscious. "Baby?" he gently shook him, but he stayed asleep. Keigo picked him up easily, grabbing his phone from the bench, and ran out, not bothering to lock the doors behind him. He went to Dabi's car, his keys in his pockets, and clipped him in, taking the driver's seat and driving them straight to a hospital. Rush hour was long over and he got there quickly.
When he arrived, he drove into the ambulance area, getting dirty looks until he jumped out of the car. "I need help!" he shouted, and an EMT came over, and immediately called for a stretcher. He got one, and Keigo quickly jumped back into the car and parked across the street, flying back to the hospital as fast as he could.
He ran into the ER uninvited and found Dabi being examined. Smelling salts were put under his nose, and he instinctively pulled away. He opened his eyes in confusion, and then pressed his hands to his eyes, looking like he was going to cry. "Dabi, what happened?"
"Nothing," he said in a hoarse voice. "I'm fine." The doctor and Keigo didn't believe him, but the other man asked him what caused him to be unconscious. "Quirk was used on me," he admitted.
"What kind of quirk?"
"I don't know." A lie. "I feel fine, now."
"Can you activate your quirk?" the doctor asked, thankfully not being impatient, even if Dabi wasn't fully cooperating.
Dabi came back, Touya's image replaced. He lifted his hand and lit a fire on it. "It's fine."
"I'd like to take vitals, just to be safe." Dabi nodded, finally cooperating. When it looked like nothing was wrong with him, he was free to go. Keigo drove and Dabi looked out the window with an empty expression.
"Im hungry. I don't want to cook," Dabi finally said.
"Where would you like?" Keigo asked, taking one hand off the wheel to squeeze Dabi's.
"Udon." So they went to an Udon shop, and ate in the car parked outside of their house. "I thought they were all nice." Keigo hoped he'd get an explanation, now. "I was in the locker room getting my things, and then I just couldn't move anymore. Shino and one of he girls I got along with the most came in and I couldn't do anything."
Keigo was growing pale in fear of what happened to him. "I thought she was gonna…" His face turned red and he pulled his knees up. But Keigo knew what he was referencing, and was so glad it didn't happen. "No fucking wonder no men work there. Bet she did it to the rest, too. And nobody said anything about it. I'm gonna quit Daiburu. Two strikes is two strikes too many."
"I'm so sorry that happened. Can you get in contact with the other men who worked there, and maybe take her down?"
"I just want to forget about it. I don't want anyone to know. I should have been stronger. I'm a guy, I'm bigger than she is and my power should be stronger. I hate feeling helpless." Keigo wasn't surprised Dabi didn't want anyone to know, even though Keigo really wanted to report her. "How did you know to come?"
"...They sent a photo to my phone from yours." Dabi looked away in shame. "I knew it wasn't legit and something was very wrong, so I hurried over from Rumi's place."
"...Are you gonna worry about me all the time, now? First the stupid hand shit…" he grumbled.
"I'm not gonna worry about you all the time, I promise."
"I feel like I can't trust anyone. They've all been playing me. Talking and plotting behind my back," Dabi said in a hateful voice. Keigo draped a wing over his boyfriend's shoulders. Dabi just leaned into the touch, the smell of Udon filling the car. Keigo felt very sorry for him. Would he trust coworkers anymore, at all?
They went inside, and Keigo promised not to tell anyone if Dabi didn't want him to. He didn't, so Keigo's lips were sealed.
-x-
The next day, Dabi called the guy that outsourced hin that he was quitting. Breaking the contract. He didn't say why other than an extremely toxic workplace. Dabi didn't care that he lost a nice paying job from this, he was done.
While Dabi destressed in the hot tub for a few hours, Keigo got to work with his own revenge. Surely a woman that sick and twisted had some skeletons in the closet. When Keigo was a Commission pet, he learned how to investigate things, and the kinds of "algorithm" in searching for information that gave the best results.
He was taking the bitch that sexually assaulted his boyfriend down. If Dabi wasn't going to do anything about it, Keigo gladly would do so himself.
He spent hours looking her up, looking through her socials and going to niche websites to search her history, how much money she made, and all about her work history. His roommates were confused by him being on his laptop all day, six cups of coffee downed. He was doing this, and he wanted to do it as fast a possible.
He found her tax information on an illegal site, but he had a VPN, so he felt safe enough. He also looked at her various accomplishments to get to the place she was in now. She was making bank with this job, no matter how bad the turnover rate was for her. She claimed the men were harassing the women, so that was the reason she mostly had women. Sick predator bitch. Keigo had never hated someone more. Making his confident, cocky and wonderful boyfriend back down in a fight out of shame fear of ridicule for "weakness".
Well, Keigo was right. She did have skeletons in her closet. Those being tax evasion and company embezzlement. He grinned, exhausted, and took screenshots of everything. He also looked into the other women that worked there, which took less time. They all had to know about what was happening. Why men kept leaving that part of the larger company.
He dug up dirt about them as well, and collected it all into a folder on the computer. He found the CEO of her company, as well as the Daiburu CEO, and the IRS. He felt glad when he pressed send on them. Then, he stared following all of them on their public Instagram accounts with his own fake one. He posted some pinterest craft shit on it to look legit as a female crafter.
He finally turned his laptop off, and crept up to the bedroom. He crawled into bed next to Dabi, who was curled up tightly. Keigo scooted closer and wrapped his arms around him. He didn't react with fear, and automatically reached his own arms out and snuggled closer. Keigo rubbed careful hands on his back, and his body slowly relaxed.
Keigo fell asleep looking at him.
In the morning, he checked on the womens' socials, and they all were ranting and crying about losing their jobs, and having partner's break up with them. Keigo had gone to their Twitters last night, too, and dug up any unfavorable tweets. He went scorched earth.
An email was sent back to Keigo's anonymous account asking for a reason he sent it. He didn't answer, and promptly deleted that email account. But he loved that that the boss had lost everything, and was currently being investigated by the IRS for her money issues. It was a job well done.
Really, no wonder Dabi liked the feeling of revenge. It felt fucking good.
-x-
Dabi sat next to him for breakfast, and said, "I got some texts from coworkers. Kei, what did you do?" he asked, but there was a grin on his face already.
"Did some digging. Found some skeletons in their closets. That's all." Dabi laughed.
"Thank you," he said sincerely. "Really, thank you."
"They hurt my lover, of course I'm gonna retaliate. Boss was evading taxes and mishandling company money. Reported her to the company and IRS." Dabi laughed again.
"That's better than anything I could have done. God, I love you so much." Keigo beamed, too, cheeks pink.
"I love you, too. So, so much."
