(A/N: If you would like a reminder of the BC version of the Todoroki family, you can look back to the start of part 2 when Shouto visits Rei.)

...

"Get in," Dabi ordered as he practically threw Izuku into the room.

He stumbled but quickly righted himself and took in his new surroundings. The room was quite bare having a futon on the floor and not much else furniture wise other than a low table and some cushions to sit on. There was also a lamp next to the futon but that was about it. Not even a window though he wasn't really surprised by that. Shigaraki may have called him a 'guest' but in reality, he was a prisoner who they didn't want to escape. It didn't take him long to take everything in so Izuku turned to face the Villain who was glaring at him.

He didn't know why but the scarred man seemed to hate him for some reason. The others welcomed him warmly more or less with varying degrees of excitement or at the very least mild interest, but not him. Piercing blue eyes scowled down at him clearly pissed off about…something.

"So, you're the one to take down Stain," Dabi sneered as he kicked the door closed behind him. "You don't look like much."

There was a tension that chilled the room despite the fire lingering under the other's scarred skin.

"I-I am," Izuku said, standing as straight as he could but his fear slipped out in a stutter. "What's it to you?"

The Villain ignored the question and instead said, "You think you're quite the little Hero, don't you? I don't really see why Shigaraki thinks he can persuade you to join us. Seems kind of pointless to me. May as well consider other possible recruits."

Dabi really did see it as near impossible for them to convince this kid to join them. Too much of a Hero streak in this one. But he had a duty to at least try even though it was by way of a threat to those the boy cared about.

"What do you mean by that?" Izuku asked, his voice quieted in sudden concern for others.

"Let's see…Shigaraki said you were pretty protective of Bakugou," Dabi pondered with a cruel smirk. "Seeing as he's here too, might as well try and convince him. Of course, there are your little friends as well. It would be pretty sweet to have the ability to brainwash anyone we wanted. Surely Shinsou Hitoshi could be interested."

Izuku breathed in sharply at the threat to his brother.

"Or have someone to make such useful and intriguing 'babies' for us. Hatsume Mei comes to mind."

Dabi stalked towards him standing tall to be more intimidating and had his hands out ready to ignite as he sneered at Izuku's angered expression.

"Then there's your precious Todoroki Shouto. He in particular has a very good reason to hate this world that accepts false Heroes."

Green eyes widened at the hint to Shouto's problems with Heroes. But how did this man, this Villain, know? As far as he knew, the only ones aware of the Todoroki situation were those involved in the investigation. Other than Chizome who was in jail, his mom in the hospital, and the family themselves. Which only left one person who was another piece to the puzzle and he finally connected the name.

Could it be?

"Wait…you're Dabi?"

The tone caused the scarred man to pause, smothering the flames itching to escape.

"…yes?"

The Villain's voice came out sounding unsure though a bit confused as he had already told the kid his name.

"The one that gave Chi-Stain the information on Endeavor?" Izuku pressed, wanting to be sure. "That Dabi?"

"Yeah…wait," Dabi paused before crowding into the kid's space. "How do you know about that?"

Izuku found himself backing away from the scarred man until he was up against the wall.

"Because Stain…because Chizome told me himself," the Quirkless teen breathed out, basically experiencing kabedon with the Villain. "That you were a potential ally."

Dabi froze, staring down at the kid. What the fuck?

"But why are you here?" the greenet asked, head tilted in confusion. "Why are you with the League when you helped Stain?"

The question broke him out of his stupor as Dabi growled, "Because someone stopped Stain from completing his mission. Leaving him to rot in jail while that bastard is still out there doing whatever he pleases."

It was clear the scarred man cared about what was happening in the Todoroki household though the reason why was not. They didn't even know how this supposed ally knew about what was going on. Didn't know how they had gotten the damning information that was helping strengthen their case. So why did this stranger care so much?

Izuku looked at him, really looked. The scars were prominent and covered his body like patchwork. His eyes were as blue as the flames he could fire off whenever he pleased. His hands had been rough on his skin when he had been dragged around by the man. Then there was his hair. It was black like an abyss threatening to swallow him up but there, at the roots, was that…white?

'His hair was white and his hands were rough from overuse of his Quirk.'

No…

'He was my father's first attempt at a successor, but he came out…flawed.'

…could it be?

'His Quirk was strong and fire-based, but he was susceptible to his own fire.'

But surely it couldn't.

'My father simply told us he died and left it at that.'

But what if it could?

'My brother…"

The different pieces fell into place as Shouto's words raced through his head before the possible completed picture came out in a whisper.

"Touya?"

The affect was instant. Dabi pinned him to the wall with an arm pressing against his throat. His other scarred hand was held close to the teen's face as blue fire ignited.

"How do you know that name?" the Villain demanded to know, his eyes were fierce.

"Shouto told me!" Izuku replied quickly, his own eyes flicking between piercing blue eyes and scorching blue flames. "About the older brother that was there for him. Rough hands that took care of his wounds. Until he was gone and he didn't know where. Was told he was dead."

The Quirkless teen was growing less certain he was right that this was the long lost Touya in front of him, but his gut was firm in his assumption at the same time.

"Why do you think this Touya is me?" Dabi asked, trying to play it cool and not admit to something if he didn't have to. It was too soon. "Seeing as he's supposedly dead."

"You have a fire Quirk," Izuku answered, hesitant but still very much sure at the same time. "Your eyes…they match Shouto's left side. Your skin is rough to the touch probably from your Quirk not being compatible with your body. You know a lot about what's going on in the Todoroki household more than a stranger would. That and…"

He glanced up at the Villain's hairline.

"…your roots are showing?"

The scarred man cursed as he pushed himself away from the teen. He ran rough fingers through his hair that he would have to dye again while he paced the bare room. Izuku watched him taking a step away from the wall but kept his distance. Didn't want to chance provoking the fire wielder's wrath.

Dabi suddenly stopped and glanced over at him as he asked, "How much do you know?"

"A lot but not everything," Izuku replied, frowning. "About the Quirk marriage, the training, the incident with his mother. How he hated that bastard so much he refused to use his left side calling it his 'father's' Quirk. That I had to fight him to even get him to use half of his power and realize that it was his own Quirk, not Endeavor's."

The Villain listened not sure if he could, or even wanted to, believe the Quirkless boy in front of him.

"He misses you, you know?" Izuku offered, cautiously looking into stunned blue eyes. "Still remembers you though only vaguely. He was still so young, but he does. Mostly the roughness of your hands being so careful while taking care of him. And his mother, Rei. Shouto started going to see her after the Sports Festival. Wants to reconnect with her even after all that's happened."

Dabi didn't know what to think about that. Rei, their mother, had hurt Shouto scarring him for life. Forever marked much like he was and both their scars were linked in some way to the sins of their father. Shouto's from Endeavor driving their mother out of her mind and his own from sheer defiance. Both hated the man for all he's done but reacted in different ways. Dabi wanted to burn the man to the ground while Shouto hadn't wanted to use the fire inherited from him at all. Only for this boy to convince him otherwise and make the Quirk his own?

Now he learns that his brother misses him even in vague memories, but how could he after what Dabi tried to do to him? Misplaced anger that had been corrected by their mother only after, but it didn't change what he did. Now he's being told that Shouto was able to seemingly forgive the woman that hurt him? Then what did that mean for him? He had tried to attack his youngest brother as well in his anger and jealousy. Did Shouto not know that he was thinking fondly of a brother who had tried to harm him?

Dabi never blamed her for any of it, not even once. Rei did all she could to care for her children while dealing with Endeavor's obsession. It was with her calm words whispered into the night as they held each other close that had helped keep his own mind together growing up. But what about her? Who did she have to talk to about all the troubles of her life? Practically no one but her own children who all sought her for help and could only offer so much back. All that stress with no outlet to lessen it caused her to snap.

But Rei hadn't lashed out at Shouto because she hated him or anything. Rather the reminder of their father on his left side. An instinctive act that led to her hurting her own child while mentally battling against Endeavor. Dabi couldn't say as much. He had been angry. Jealous. Felt abandoned by the bastard who helped bring him into existence only to toss him aside. He still tried his best to impress his father who begrudgingly agreed to still train him. That was until he was born.

Shouto. The golden child. The perfect balance of their parents' Quirks blessed by the grace of genetics. Dabi had not been so lucky. Strong fire in a weak body intended for ice. Only luck and a little something else allowed him to live this long. But at the time, he had tried to make do with what he had. Training himself hard as he watched from the sidelines until he was replaced completely when Shouto's Quirk manifested. Now that he had his 'masterpiece', Touya wasn't needed anymore.

It had happened in an instant. Shouto had turned away, whimpering about the training like an ungrateful brat. Complained about something Touya had wanted from the beginning. For their father to pay attention to him. To see him for more than his flaws. To be a son to his father and follow in his footsteps. But Touya wasn't good enough, wasn't perfect like Shouto. Touya was worthless. A failure.

He…snapped.

Endeavor laughably overpowered him though he was the Number Two Hero. While he was no All Might, he was still a powerful man in Quirk, money, and more. But Touya had fought against the man that refused to acknowledge him or his hard efforts to be the Hero he was born to be. Let out all his rage built up over the years and was only stopped when some of it slipped past the bastard towards his mother. Giving the shitbag an opening and ending the fight with a sucker punch to his gut.

That night Touya had let it all out. All his hatred and resentment for Shouto who was given everything he had ever wanted but had been denied. Ranted and raved until he had dissolved into tears that he couldn't even shed now. Not with the tear ducts he had burned away. Dabi would shed no more tears for that bastard. But his mother talked him through it and he had learned it wasn't Shouto he should be mad at, but their father. Everything had been Endeavor's fault.

Perhaps…perhaps Shouto could forgive him? No, he shouldn't. Couldn't. Touya was the one to try and hurt Shouto, but Touya was dead. There had come a time after Rei was locked away that he couldn't take it anymore. No longer had her words to calm him and emotions built up driving his fire hotter. Growing so wild it went out of his control burning everything around him.

How he survived the fire he didn't exactly know. Well, he sort of did but chose not to think about it. Focusing instead on taking Endickvor down for all that he's done while the ignorant masses praised him. In the beginning, Dabi had even played around with the idea of taking Shouto away certain that their father wouldn't stop training him, but he ultimately decided against it. Endeavor's reach was far and he feared them getting caught would just land Shouto back in that bastard's hands while he was carted off to jail. Better to be free so he could do what needed to be done to show the world who Todoroki Enji truly was.

An abusive flaming trash bag of a man posing as a righteous Hero.

Turns out that was easier said than done. There wasn't much a homeless teenager like him could do except gather information. A lot coming from before he had left and kept just in case it became useful. Which it could have been in the Hero Killer's hands if it wasn't for this brat. The reminder reignited his earlier anger that had been dowsed momentarily by his past identity being figured out so quickly. Perhaps he was seeing why Shigaraki wanted him so badly. The kid was fucking smart though that still didn't change the fact that he messed with Dabi's plans.

"If you know," the fire wielder seethed as he rounded on the teen who cowered under his fury. "Then why the fuck would you stop Stain from taking Endeavor down?"

Green eyes blinked in confusion as the boy straightened while he tilted his head and said, "I…didn't?"

"Yes, you fucking did, you asshat," Dabi growled. "You captured him in Hosu and now Stain can't stop Endeavor."

"But he can?" Izuku lilted.

The Villain stared the boy down with his head full of questions and blue eyes searching for answers, but couldn't find any.

"The fuck are you talking about?" Dabi questioned, confused.

"That flash drive, the one you gave Stain," Izuku answered. "Chizome gave it to me after saving me from that Noumu."

"And why the hell would he do that?" he pressed further, trying to understand what the fuck was happening.

"Because I…I was the one to send Chi-Stain after Endeavor in the first place," Izuku revealed, wringing his hands nervously.

Dabi froze yet again at the revelation. This boy, this child, this…Hero. He knew about Endeavor, the Quirk marriage, training, practically everything. He also personally knew the Hero Killer and had been given all the information Dabi had given Stain. Now he was saying he was the one who sent the Villain after the Number Two Hero?

What the actual fuck?

"You…you did?" the Villain breathed out in disbelief.

"…yeah," the boy admitted, picking at his fingers.

"You…why?" Dabi asked, brows furrowed in bewilderment at this enigma of a kid.

"Because I wanted to protect Shouto," Izuku stated, standing more confidently and looking him in the eye proper. "Shouto isn't safe in that house and if anyone is a false Hero it's Endeavor for how he treats his family."

Falso Hero indeed.

"Then in Hosu…why?"

"I had to and Chizome understood that," Izuku declared, clenching his fists. "Stain is a Villain. He needed to be stopped, but so does Endeavor. He is no Hero. We plan to take him down and you can help if you are the ally Chizome said you were."

Dabi pondered the offer for a moment before asking, "An ally, huh? You said 'we plan to take him down'. Who exactly is this 'we'?"

"Lots of people," the teen said. "Nezu, Eraserhead, Detective Tsukauchi, my mom, me, and even Chizome played his part by passing on his information to me. We're all working together and will do everything we can to bring that bastard to justice."

The scarred man rolled his eyes at that last word.

"Pft, justice," he sneered with a shake of his head. "You sound just like the others. There's no justice to be had here. Not with their precious Number Two Hero."

The Villain moved to lean against the wall and then sat down on the ground in slump of defeat.

"Not necessarily," the greenet countered, relaxing his hands as he followed sitting beside the man. Not too close but not too far either. "Not if the public slowly became aware of the corruption of the current system."

The seeds of which were already being planted. The ongoing investigations into Aldera and Hitoshi's foster center and past homes. There were also the lower ranking Heroes being held accountable for their actions. Not to mention Nezu was leaking out the dirty laundry of those targeted by Stain. Of course, with some sense of tact for those he had actually killed. They had tended to be the more monstrous of his victims but some of them still had families. While it was prudent to inform the public, Nezu knew at least to not be insensitive though at times he did need a guiding hand.

The Villain just stared at him for a while trying to size the kid up. Sure, Dabi had done and given up a lot in his own pursuit of tearing down the flaming shitbag, but so had this boy. Going to such lengths, doing all he could and teaming up with whoever he could to protect Shouto. But why? That was a lot of work for just one person who wasn't even directly involved.

"Why are you doing all of this?" Dabi asked in a tone softer than before, genuinely curious.

"Because I…"

…love…

"…care about Shouto."

Izuku changed the word that sprang into his head at the last second, but that was as far as he got explaining why. Because this was the first time his like had turned to love. Or at least his first time thinking of it as that, but when did that change? When did his like turn to love? Was it the nights spent cuddled close together? Bonding over past trauma and recent wounds? Becoming more aware of the boy he had been crushing on for a while now? Honestly, he didn't know and left the explanation at that. It wasn't like he could do anything about it right now anyway.

But Dabi caught the momentary pause and narrowed his eyes in scrutiny. There was a slight blush on the boy's freckled cheeks hinting at an answer. Perhaps Shouto was more precious to him than they thought. The scarred man smirked in amusement but said nothing. He didn't want to reveal anything that could put a target on his baby brother's back in case All For One was listening. His threats from before were mostly empty anyway.

They sat there in silence for a while. Shigaraki was probably wondering where he was but Dabi didn't give a fuck. They could survive without him for a gods damn minute while he processed all that he had learned in the short time of meeting this boy. While Izuku had his own revelations to considered. Namely how or even if he should tell Shouto that his brother was alive and…relatively well. That and he became a Villain. That was an even closer connection to Villainy than Izuku who had befriended one and earned the attention of another, but family was so much closer than that. Learning that Dabi was Touya could be devastating to his friend.

After a while, Izuku bravely asked a question that had been burning in the back of him mind for some time. Really ever since Chizome had handed him the flash drive before changing back to Stain forcing Izuku to take him down as Edge.

"Dabi," he said after a moment deciding what to call the man. "What exactly did you give to Stain as evidence?"

Blue eyes peeked over at him but he didn't fully turn his head.

"Pictures, anecdotes," the scarred man answered. "Really anything that I thought would be useful and damning. At one point I managed to snag a copy of his financial records related to some troublesome lawsuits, but pictures mostly."

The Quirkless teen nodded at that before he said, "Yeah, my mom did the same with me."

It hurt to talk about her but it was true. She had also told him she had been doing the same for Shouto too. Not anymore though.

"Your mom?" Dabi prodded.

"Yeah, she tried her best to help me growing up," Izuku replied. "Taking pictures, recording everything she could. It wasn't much growing up Quirkless like I did being bullied by everyone, but it's helping now. Nezu and Eraserhead have been working with a detective to investigate my past schools. Because it wasn't just the other students bullying me but the teachers too."

Izuku didn't have to tell him all that, but he knew so much about the scarred man's tragic backstory he might as well share his own.

"She sounds like a good mom," Dabi commented, only to cringe at the scowl the boy shot at him.

Right. They hurt the kid's mom. Or rather Muscular did. The Villain let out a sigh as the room grew quiet again though with an underlying tension. What can you say after that? Sorry, we hurt your mom? Yeah, no.

"You know, she sounds like a woman I met once," the scarred man offered as a change of subject to hopefully alleviate the tension. "I needed time away from that house and hid in a park. Well, not as well as you probably could, greenie."

He mussed the kid's hair who smacked his hand away. It was childish and way too familial for the situation, but he didn't care. After learning all this damn kid has done for his family, Dabi couldn't help but feel closer to the boy. And if his suspicions were correct, this Midoriya Izuku might be family one day anyway.

"She found me and saw my scars," Dabi continued as he held up an arm. "Not as bad as these but still noticeable. I told her it was from training my Quirk which was true but she could somehow tell there was more to it than that. Though me refusing to go to a hospital might have given that away."

'Are you sure, sweetie?'

He could still hear her kind voice in his mind even though he couldn't remember what she looked like much.

"Anyway, she called me out, in a motherly way, and offered to help me," the scarred man said, recalling vague memories of that day. "I refused that too of course. Even back then I knew there wasn't much that could be done to stop that bastard. But she sensed my reluctance and didn't push. Instead, she told me about her son."

The woman, her features hazy in his memory, slowly sat down on the ground near him. Not too close to scare him off but not too far away either.

"My boy is training too," she said with a fond but sad tone. "He wants to be a Hero one day but he's…well, he gets picked on by the others."

She stared dejectedly down at her lap.

"I do my best to help him, but there's only so much I can do."

The world around them is green with the grass and the leaves of the trees. It contrasted with his patchy red hair that he knew was fading to white.

"But hopefully someday something can be done to help my son. So, I'm putting together a secret weapon."

Her voice turned almost playful at those last two words. She gave him a calm grin as she held a finger to her lips. The green surrounding them seemed to settle on the woman as well.

"What is it?" young Touya had asked quietly, curious what this secret weapon could be. Maybe he could use it against his father.

The woman, now with an aura of green, smiled at him for feeling comfortable enough to talk to her.

"I'm collecting evidence," she said, her hands neatly folded in her lap. "Taking pictures and recording whatever I can of what they're doing to my son."

He had stared at her thinking. That was it? Her secret weapon? Pictures and whatnot? How would that take down Endeavor? That man could just blast all of that away with his Quirk.

"How do you know that will even work?" he sneered, angered that it wasn't something stronger.

"Honestly, I don't," the green woman replied, her smile slipping for a moment before she schooled her features. "But I still hope that one day that will be enough. I have to at least try, right? I want what's best for my son."

She once again smiled at him, green seeping into her features more solidly. Green hair, green eyes.

Green, green…green. Wait.

Blue eyes snapped to curious green eyes under green hair. Stared at the boy sitting not too close but not too far. At the budding Hero who was already going after the real Villains of this world. Who reminded him of a woman who had once tried to help him.

No fucking shit.

"Fuck," Dabi breathed, eyes blown wide. "I think I met your mom."

"W-what?" Izuku stuttered out, just as shocked.

"That woman…I think she was your mom," the scarred man muttered, his head reeling. "Green hair, green eyes, super mom vide, kid who was picked on and wants to be a Hero, and telling a traumatized random child to gather evidence? I could go on."

The greenet thought over his list before nodding with a small smile as he said, "Could be. Sounds like her."

"Damn," Dabi let out, slump back against the wall. "I'm really sorry she got hurt."

And he meant it. That woman had led him to start collecting his own evidence. He could at least try too, right?

The boy only nodded but said nothing. It was awkward again but not the same as before. More solemn than tense. Both left to their own thoughts as they sat there side by side. This was not at all what Dabi had expected when it came to the kid. Before he had been angry but that was long gone now. He had only truly known Midoriya Izuku for less than a day, but Dabi already found himself willing to kill anyone who tried messing with him.

'Your older brother vibe is showing.'

The teasing voice of Toga rang in his head. They had only been working together for a short while when she made that comment. Muscular had been giving the teenage girl a weird look and Dabi did not like it one bit. They were Villain's sure and she was fucking crazy but no way in fucking hell was he letting that fly. He had walked over and planted himself squarely between the two and shot a glare at the muscled creep. The man appeared miffed and stalked off after that. Which led to the blonde girl's teasing words. He had shoved her away dismissively in response.

The memory flustered him a bit because he couldn't exactly deny it. Especially not now with the kid. He huffed in annoyance and shoved his hands in his pockets. He expected them to be empty but was surprised by an unknown object until he remembered what it was.

Oh, right. That.

"So, you really do know him, huh? Stain?" Dabi spoke up, his hand still in his pocket. "And this must be one of his then, yeah?"

'This' being the knife he had picked up earlier. He hadn't had a chance to examine it closely but now in the lamp light he could see an 'S' carved into the handle.

"Hey, that's-!" Izuku exclaimed, instinctively reaching out to grab it only to draw back remembering the one holding it was a Villain.

"Yours? Yeah, I know," Dabi replied, lowering his hand holding the folded knife. "You dropped it when we were, um, tackled through the warp gate."

Izuku stared at the hand holding the knife. The piece connecting him to Chizome that he had thought was lost in the woods to never be found. But at least it didn't get destroyed along with his other gear. Not that this was much better with another Villain possessing it now. Guess Izuku would never get the knife back. Except he was surprised when the knife was offered to him on a scarred palm.

"Wha?" the teen choked out, his eyes brimming with tears.

"It's yours, isn't it?" Dabi stated, holding out his hand waiting for him to take it. "Stain gave it to you himself. I can't take that from you."

"But...I'm a prisoner," Izuku said, confused. "Don't the kidnappers typically not want their prisoners armed?"

The scarred man carefully reached out with his other hand and slowly, cautious took one of Izuku's hands in his. He then gently placed the knife in the teen's hand before closing his fingers around it. But he didn't let go just yet, encased the boy's smaller hands in his as he gazed into cautious green eyes.

"As far as us two are concerned, you're not a prisoner," Dabi stated, willing his conviction in his blue eyes. "At least not to me. You helped my family and even sent the fucking Hero Killer after my shitbag of an old man. Hell, even your mom helped me out in the weirdest fucking crazy random happenstance of this universe. I am not your enemy, Midoriya Izuku."

Green eyes overflowed with tears at his words. Guess that meant he had one ally in this den of wolves. Not even Bakugou was considered one even though he had run after him in an attempt to save him. This was different. The man before him may be a Villain but he wouldn't be the first that Izuku had bonded with. So, when scarred hands let go of his, the boy didn't hesitate to launch himself at Dabi and latch onto him as he cried.

Dabi was surprised of course but was quick to wrap his arms around the boy. This must be some stressful shit especially with all he's learned about the kid in such a short time. Shigaraki was going to have a hard ass time convincing the Quirkless teen to join them. Sure, he had been through some shit that would have turned anyone Villain and yet he still proved what Stain had seen in him despite all that.

Midoriya Izuku was a true Hero.

But in this moment, he was still a child. Still young and being forced to face the worst of this world head on. And Dabi helped with that. Guilt pooled in his gut making him hold the teen more firmly. After a while Midoriya…no, Izuku passed out. Dabi gently picked him up and then laid him on the futon.

"Sleep well, Izuku," Dabi whispered as he tucked the kid in and brushed the hair out of his face. "And I truly am sorry."

He then reached for the lamp and with a flick of the switch the light snuffed out.

...

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