Trails of water run down Midoriya's jugular, dripping from his chin. His shirt's plastered against his chest, as drenched as he is, and his hair flattened by the water obscures his vision. He scrambles to his feet, the revolver slick in his hands. His earpiece, linked to his three agents, is emitting a faint screeching sound, making his head throb.
"Still alive, Judge?"
Stain's voice is more grating the low pitch in his ear. Midoriya nods, then shakes his head as he remembers no one can see him. He wanders around, searching for a shelter from the rain.
"I'm fine," he pants, his eyes sweeping the area.
The Todoroki family's house is located in a quaint neighbourhood, far enough from Tokyo's bustling but easily accessible by subway... or rather by personal taxi since Midoriya can hardly picture them riding the metro. It's a traditional Japanese house built among modern houses, as if belonging to another era. Midoriya's ready to bet there's a nice Japanese garden in the backyard and he's dying to see it since his objective, actually, is to get behind the house while Stain blocks the east exit and Dabi, the west.
He damns them, the two of them.
"How do you enjoy your little stroll in the rain?"
It was Dabi, this time, and Midoriya can practically hear the smirk in his tone. The latter is certain his three agents are all indoors, safe from the rain, and laughing at his incapability of doing the same.
"It's pleasant," he retorts through gritted teeth. "I absolutely adore being rained on."
"Judge, I'm about to get in."
Midoriya chokes and stumbles, one hand on his heart. He knew it was Toga talking with Todoroki's voice since the Hero was very much unconscious in his apartment, and the tone was too cheerful to belong to him, but hearing this word with his voice...
Judge.
It sounds so wrong.
"Wait for my command," Midoriya replies after finding his breath.
He can't believe he's stumped over something as futile as trespassing on someone else's house while he already did far worse. Closing his eyes, he imagines he's been called on an emergency case, that he actually has a warrant, that it's a matter of life or death. In a way, it is, since if he doesn't block the south exit, then the whole plan is endangered.
After taking a deep breath, he barges on the Todoroki's neighbours' lawn, well aware that his shoes are leaving mud footprints on the grass that will be washed away by the rain. There's a stone wall separating the two properties, but his eyes pinpoint the quickest, easiest way to get over the obstacle. He's been trained for years, barked at for his slowness, mocked at because of his skinny frame compared to the block of beefs training beside him, pushed over his limits countless times to prove to everyone that he was enough.
For the first time in four years, he's finally sent on the field.
Getting over the wall is nothing he can't manage; falling without hurting himself, however, is another story. He's heard many times that rolling when he falls prevents injuries and it does, but only if the motion is carried out correctly. Midoriya rather tumbles over the wall and scrapes his elbows as he tries to ease his descent. He dives headfirst in yellow grass, grunting as small rocks prick his body.
"You alright there, Judge? I've been waiting for so long that I think I'm rotting," Dabi groans.
Midoriya swallows back the urge to snap, rather ordering, "Go, Toga, and remember that Todoroki doesn't show a lot of emotions and that—"
"Yeah, yeah, I know. I'm going in."
Midoriya breathes out. His hands are quivering and it's not from the cold.
It's going to be fine.
Before going to their position, Stain and Dabi took out any police officer within a mile radius so ensure they won't be interrupted during their operation.
Everything will go smoothly.
His agents will not address him as 'Judge' but as 'Deku'. Should they fail, Midoriya's face won't be recognised since he's wearing a mask. Much to his dismay, he can't do much about his unruly hair, but he tells himself pair of scissors can do marvels.
We're not going to fail. We can't.
Stain is a competent fighter who possesses speed and intelligence. He needs an opening to reach Endeavor and activate his Quirk, and if his skills aren't enough to allow him close to the Hero, then Toga and Dabi will back him up. Toga's weapons of predilection are a couple of knives and her own bare hands. Despite her petite stature, Midoriya knows just how strong she is. As for Dabi, his flames will counter the Pro Hero's and screen his colleagues as they attack furtively.
As for Midoriya himself, he is armed. While Endeavor is a formidable opponent, he's still human, and a clean bullet between the eyes won't save him.
I'm enough.
Midoriya dashes across the garden and takes cover on a small wooden balcony, wiping his brow. The neighbourhood is silent, lulled to sleep by the rain's lullaby. In the distance, thunder rumbles and its echoes make Midoriya's bones quake alike. Lightning flickers, tearing the sky apart.
"Endeavor let her in," Stain confirms. "Seems like he didn't even question her presence."
"Perhaps he was already expecting his son?" Dabi reflects aloud.
"Impossible," Midoriya ripostes. "Now silence."
He can't perceive with clarity what Endeavor tells Toga but it's along the lines of surprise with hints of satisfaction. Had Endeavor spoken to the real Todoroki, Midoriya would've barged inside to grab the younger Hero by the neck and drag him away. The Number Hero Two's voice is booming, full of confidence, full of arrogance that makes him want to puke.
"I'm not here for pleasantries," Toga replies to an unknown sentence with Todoroki's voice, and Midoriya has to admit Toga has excellent acting talents. He can attest it since he spent the last weeks with the Hero.
Faintly, Endeavor's gruff answer can be heard. "Then why are you here?"
"I want to catch the Judge."
"So you want to be my sidekick?"
Midoriya knows the real Todoroki would deny the statement instantly, and he's glad that Toga read the notes he took concerning Todoroki's habits and manner of speech. He hears the sharp click of her tongue and has no trouble imagining her brow wrinkling.
"You're insulting me. Being your sidekick is akin to being your slave. Wouldn't you like that?"
"I want," Endeavor pauses and the floor creaks, "to have my son back. Let me be clear, Shouto. The Judge is mine, but you can observe me in action using the flames that are rightly yours."
"This is a generous offer that must have a price."
"Of course. How about a training session?"
Midoriya curses under his breath, hissing, "Toga, it's a trap. You have to refuse."
"Answer or he'll suspect something," Stain urges.
"Let her breathe," Dabi mumbles, rolling his eyes.
"You must be rusty since your Hero office is always empty," Endeavor continues. "I heard you never get any calls but that you manage to survive because of that friend of yours, the girl Yaoyorozu."
A sharp intake of breath well-timed, then Toga is heard seething, "Leave her out of this."
"A Todoroki is strong on his own and doesn't need anyone."
Todoroki's voice is firm, infused with disgust. "Then I don't want to be a Todoroki. I should've taken my mother's surname."
"If you want it so, then you should've followed her to the grave."
"Maybe I should've."
Midoriya's breath hitches and he reminds himself it's not Todoroki but someone wearing his face. "Toga, that's enough. You have to move him away from the door."
"I'm not using my flames as your son or even as a Todoroki and they're stronger because of it."
Endeavor takes the bait. "Are they? Let me remind you just who gave you those flames."
The earpiece is silent, except for the light fall of footsteps. Midoriya holds his breath, stalking towards the window sill under which he crouches down, holding the gun close to his chest.
"They're moving," Stain confirms. "How do we proceed?"
"As you go in, I'll shoot him from behind as a distraction. Toga will hold him off until you arrive."
Dabi whistles, "You sure your aim is good? You won't have a second chance."
"I know," Midoriya sighs, wiping his gloves on his pants. While the rain wasn't making his gloves wet and his grip slippery, his palms confined inside were clammy. "I'll aim to kill."
He peruses down through the window where he catches familiar silhouettes becoming more definite, colours blooming from the previous darkness and features getting clearer. Then they stop in the middle of the corridor, neither Endeavor nor Toga daring to break the sudden paralysis. They might be speaking but to Midoriya every sound is muted by the steady rhythm of heartbeat.
"They stopped in front of the north exit, Judge," Stain informs. "We're waiting for your signal."
"Proceed," he orders, infinitely relieved that his voice doesn't shake.
His grip on his gun doesn't loosen as he takes aim, targeting the back of Endeavor's head. Glancing over his shoulders, the garden is empty and the streets, as silent as a mausoleum. He almost grimaces, his stomach sinking. He doesn't know what he was expecting by looking back.
Midoriya should know better than to look back.
He narrows his eyes, volutes of mist escaping his mouth as he breathes out. His fingers graze the trigger, their caress teasing. Then the shadows shift and he doesn't hesitate. The bullet leaves the chamber in a deafening silence, the gun shaking from the blast.
"Did you get him?" Stain asks him while Dabi confirms he's inside the house.
For an exhilarating second, Midoriya is certain he did. His hands didn't waver, thus the trajectory didn't deviate from its course. However, he couldn't have predicted that Endeavor would burst into flames at this precise moment, the fire engulfing even the back of his head as it flares to life.
Midoriya startles and ducks under the window, convinced that he's been spotted, but the doom he awaits never comes. The heavy pitter-patter of the rain, his own quivering breathing and Stain's urgent voice are the only sounds he hears.
"Judge, did you get him? I won't go in without a diversion."
"Don't tell me you didn't shoot?" Dabi shouts in his earpiece. "He's going to realise I got in!"
"But I—"
But I shot him.
From behind the Number Two Hero's bulky frame and flickering flames, Midoriya catches Toga faltering, her eyes darting across the room yet never meeting his. He almost drops his gun as realisation dawns on him. Endeavor didn't activate his Quirk to melt the bullet. He activated it to intimidate his son, or who he thought was his son, to begin the training.
Alright but what did his father do?
What did he do? The answer can't be clearer than the scene he's witnessing.
Yaoyorozu's voice had been withdrawn, her eyes cast downward. He… He didn't act like a father.
Midoriya stands up and cocks his gun, aiming this time for a flaw in Endeavor's armour. The latter's whole back is an unprotected area, his spinal cord practically begging to be severed. But the bullet ejected from the weapon, once again, doesn't hit the bullseye as Endeavor spins around, one hand afire that closes around the projectile and destroying it. Midoriya remains petrified where he is as two blue eyes glare at him.
"And just who are you, boy?" Endeavor inquires, his voice echoing in Midoriya's earpiece.
If he adjusts his stance a little to the right, then he could hit the Hero in the heart. As entertaining as it is to even imagine this scenario, Midoriya knows it's unconceivable as long as fire separates him from his target.
There had been no emotion in Todoroki's voice as he revealed one of his heart's darkest desires. My mother was infinitely better and she deserved to live. I can't say the same for him.
He ground his teeth and does it anyway.
He fires once, twice, thrice, his arms jerking from the recoil. His knuckles are white and his eyes, narrowed down while fire equal to the one surrounding Endeavor blazes bright within his orbs. The bullets all vanish in the flames but Midoriya keeps on firing until his gun is empty.
"What," Endeavor snorts, cocking an eyebrow, "is this all you've got?"
Before Midoriya can answer, Endeavor whirls around and unleashes flames towards Toga. The latter leaps back in a graceful arc, using one arm as a support to propel herself to jump farther once more. Midoriya curses, fumbling to take new cartridges and to put them in his gun.
"I knew it," the Hero growls, eyes still riveted on Toga. "You're not my son."
He didn't take even one step forward that Midoriya fires again, the bullets all melting away. Even if it didn't cause any damage, Endeavor turns around to focus on him and Midoriya spits at him.
"Eyes on me, you monster."
"How did you call—?"
Midoriya makes the mistake of eyeing Stain jumping behind Endeavour and ready to slice his neck, which causes Endeavor to stop abruptly, sensing the presence behind him. The Hero catches the blade with a hand engulfed in flames, the metal heating up at an alarming rate. Midoriya's heart lurches at another failed attempt. They need to retreat.
"Dabi!"
The room is filled with smoke in a matter of seconds, enveloping them. The last thing Midoriya sees before he's shrouded is Endeavor's enraged countenance.
"Cowards!" He roars, exploding in flames that sweep away the smokescreen and revealing Midoriya's three agents circling him. "Fight me!"
"You are Pro Hero Endeavor, aren't you?"
Stain steps forward, detaching itself from the trio. One of his katana has its edge blunted since the melted metal got distorted by the fire. Still, the agent looks as confident as ever with his eyes narrowed to slits. Endeavor stiffens, his flames flaring and pulsing in a threatening manner.
"I am. Are you the Judge?"
"I am not. My name is Stain."
Endeavor huffs. "Then I have no interest in you. Who among you is the Judge?"
Midoriya feels a tad insulted that the Hero doesn't even bother considering him, examining his trio. While Toga and Dabi exchange an amused glance, Stain beckons Midoriya standing still on the balcony with his rather nonexistent chin.
Midoriya stands straighter as the Hero glances over his shoulder. "I am."
"You?" Endeavor bursts out laughing and Midoriya's face burns as the sound reverberates in his ears. "Is that a joke? You can't be the Judge."
"I am," Midoriya repeats without raising his voice, "and I've selected you."
He nods at his agents and the three of them lunge. Endeavor dodges with agility, his motions fluid as if he learned a choreography beforehand and was rehearsing it. The attacks don't connect, and while Midoriya empties yet a third set of bullets, he approaches him dangerously. His voracious smile is splitting his face, one gigantic hand closing around his neck and squeezing.
Midoriya gasps as his feet leave the ground, kicking in the air as a desperate measure to free himself. He's being dangled like a doll as Endeavor defends and attacks, his head spinning like a whirligig. He claws at the hand yet refuses to drop his gun, using the weapon's butt to thwack Endeavor's hand repeatedly until it's wrenched from his grasp. He splutters and blinks to clear away the black spots dotting his vision, but he distinguishes Toga's disguise melting like wax.
"That's enough."
His world narrows to those few words.
Midoriya screams as fire singes his fingers, but the hand around his neck releases him and he crumbles on the ground. He kneels on the grass, doubled over as his stomach heaves. Nothing but saliva leaves his mouth but his throat is scorching. He chokes again, kneading his neck, and looks up someone standing in front of him, as if to shield him from Endeavor.
He's definitely hallucinating.
His eyes sweep the area but don't catch a glimpse of his three agents. The only person present beside him and Endeavor is this newcomer who should be knocked out miles away from here.
But Todoroki Shouto is here, putting a garbage bag over his head, grabbing him by the waist and hauling him in the air before running away.
He hears distinct hiss of teargas being released before he's tossed in the air like a potato sack. Yelping, he crashes on a soft ground, his back against a wall, as his hands try to latch onto something. A door slams followed by two similar sounds, and it's not until an engine roar that he understands he's on a car's backseat. The car swerves and he's thrown against the window, groaning.
"Todoroki, you better explain everything to me."
Midoriya tenses, identifying the female voice as Yaoyorozu's. Of all the people Todoroki can ask for, he chose the one person who might recognise him behind his mask and under the plastic bag.
"Did you deal with him as I told you?"
"Yes, I did, but who—?"
"Focus on driving please."
Todoroki's voice is soft, weary, and Midoriya focuses on breathing, while whispered words he doesn't grasp are exchanged between the Heroes. The drive lasts a few minutes before the car halts, a front door opening and shutting back. Midoriya's already perking up when one hand grabs his forearm and all but pulls him out, letting him stagger blindly instead of catching him.
"Go now. I'll contact you later."
Yaoyorozu's only answer is the car tires screeching before it drives away, leaving the two men in silence. Midoriya hastily removes the plastic bag as well as the mask, throwing them in the dirt. Todoroki led him in what appears to be a disaffected warehouse, with scraps of metal and pipes littering the floor as well musty, overthrown crates scattered across the open space.
"Todoroki-kun," Midoriya murmurs, "what a pleasant surprise..."
Todoroki doesn't move away; he moves forward. He grips his shoulder and instead of steadying him, tips him over and sends him sprawling on the concrete. Midoriya lands on his rear, eyes wide as he takes in Todoroki's smouldering eyes.
"Don't move."
"Todoroki-kun—" He stops as ice creeps beneath him and spreads up to his waist. He felt like he'd been plunged completely tied into a frozen bath, unable to move.
"I said don't move." And Midoriya sees Endeavor in his glower, his towering stance and his words spoken with such imperiousness, and his neck stings. "So it is you."
Midoriya's lips curl in a crooked smile. "Was it so hard to believe?"
He shakes his head, his wet hair plastered to his forehead. "It's over."
Todoroki's voice was whispered, barely audible to even the most trained ear, but the fatal words course through Midoriya's thrumming bones. If he possessed the motion of his limbs, he would've curled his hands into fists. He doesn't dare looking up, preferring to smile at how low he fell.
"You know I was right, Todoroki-kun. You know they deserved it and if it wasn't me, then it would've been someone else."
"You killed people and destroyed lives. How can you expect me to agree with your method?"
Midoriya snickers, shaking his head. They never understand. Sending people in jail can never be enough of a threat since jails can be broken, people can be corrupted and the law system, flawed. Incarcerating Pro Heroes consists of giving them a second chance since they can hope of walking out of the four walls bounding them. Death, however, is eternal and the only capable judge.
And right here, right now, Midoriya's stuck with one foot in jail and the other in a coffin.
"If you want me to say I'm sorry then I will."
"I don't need an apology. You should've thought about the lives you'd ruin before killing the ones they care for."
Todoroki's jab makes his cheeks burn in shame but he refuses to let this sentiment overcome him. He doesn't regret what he did. He can't, not after spending so many hours selecting and orchestrating the murders, or else he would go mad.
"Justice was rendered, that's all that matters. Now go on," he taunts, finding the strength to stare at Todoroki as he licks his bloodied lips "Do it."
"Do you," and if Midoriya knew better he would say Todoroki's breath hitched, "prefer fire or ice?"
"As you wish."
Todoroki sighs through his nose, his brow furrowing. He doesn't move and neither fire nor ice menaces to burst from either of his palms.
"Do it," Midoriya rasps, his breathing coming in short pants. "Isn't that what you want? Bringing the Judge's head to the Police Force and flaunting it in front of Endeavor, so people see you as something more than his son?"
Todoroki's jaw clenches and he hisses through gritted teeth, "Do you want to die?"
"Not particularly, but if I have to then I'd be glad to receive my coup de grace by your hand."
Todoroki closes his eyes and unleashes his Quirk. Midoriya watches in awe as his right side freezes, a thin layer of frost spreading from Todoroki's fingertips and creeping up to his elbow, while his left side bursts with flames. While the two elements usually negate each other, they don't clash as Todoroki keeps them balanced, mastering them.
"You're beautiful," Midoriya gasps. Todoroki's bathed in two hues, the fiery orange glow making his eyes dance and the poised blue aura shimmering around him like a cape. "Beautiful."
And as abruptly as they came, the fire and ice vanish. Midoriya blinks, clearing off the dust falling in his eyes, but the scene doesn't change. The awaited fatal strike doesn't come. Todoroki stands before him with trembling hands, head bowed with the rain falling relentlessly on his drooping back.
"Why did you stop?"
The curiosity is genuine, for Midoriya was convinced the ice would stab his lungs and rob him of his air, pierce his eye sockets with the sharpest of edges and freeze his legs to hold him where he is. The fire would ravage his face and erase his features as well as devour his skin until nothing remains but bones. And Todoroki's eyes wouldn't waver as they'd watch the show, impassible.
Instead he's facing the picture of defeat and while he's relieved he's been graced with more time alive, he can't say he's not disappointed. Dying by Todoroki's hands doesn't sound like such a tragedy.
"You're a Pro Hero," Midoriya reminds him since Todoroki remains immobile. "Do your job."
"Whatever happens to you, I'll lose. If I kill you, I'll be arrested as the Judge but your agents will resume killing after I've been taken out. If I don't kill you, then you'll continue sending your agents while I'll be on the run."
"Fantastic deduction, Todoroki-kun. Now, what's it gonna be?"
"If I have to choose between life and death, life is always the solution," he answers with a sense of finality, of certainty that irks Midoriya. While melting Midoriya's icy cage, he creates a dagger made of ice in his hand and aims it at Midoriya's jugular yet doesn't stab him. "Get up."
"If I make one step in your direction I could impale myself and bleed out."
"But you won't," Todoroki evenly replies without skipping a beat. "You're too scared of death."
Midoriya leans in until the cold kiss of the blade flutters against his neck, drawing pearls of blood, smirking, "Am I?"
Todoroki doesn't rise to the bait. Instead, he presses the dagger even deeper in his skin. "But you would die in vain. I'll just tell Tsukauchi you killed yourself and I'll be judged innocent."
In a way, Midoriya supposes, Todoroki is innocent in this mess.
Midoriya ends up drawing back, his jaw clenched. Todoroki removes the blade from his neck but doesn't pocket it, much to Midoriya's thrill. As virtuous as the Hero is, he doesn't hesitate to resort to menaces and to use his own methods to uncover the truth. If he acted reluctant to cut Midoriya to pieces, it would be expected albeit, well, utterly disappointing.
But there's a question burning his lips. "Why did you save me?"
"Would you prefer I didn't?" He counters.
"That's not answering my question."
"I don't owe you anything, Midoriya."
And he doesn't, really, so did he save me?
"Ah, I see," he mumbles. "You're going to hand me over to Tsukauchi."
"I'm not bringing you to him since I'm not done with you."
Midoriya lets out a low whistle. "So what? You're kidnapping me now?"
"It may be so." Midoriya opens his mouth to laugh when Todoroki clasps a firm hand over his parted lips, glowering. "You find this funny?"
Midoriya's eyes gleam with mischief, very much answering the Hero's question. Todoroki clicks his tongue and straightens, but still holds his blade of ice close to Midoriya's bruising neck, red marks representing Endeavor's fingers blooming like a collar.
"Does it hurt?" Todoroki asks, and Midoriya takes a second to understand the question is sincere.
"It does."
It's the truth. Midoriya's never been strangled before and it's not something he would enjoy occurring again. He cranes his neck as he remembers the grip tightening while he was swung around, his efforts to free himself rendered useless.
In front of him, Todoroki kneels to his level with one hand outstretched. "Do you trust me?" Midoriya nods, not sure what to expect, but he scrambles away as Todoroki's hand close around his neck. Instead of lashing out, the Hero sighs and raises his hand in the air. "I'm just going to use my Quirk to cool it down. Will you let me do it?"
If Midoriya has to be branded by a Todoroki, it better be the son.
He lets Todoroki sit in front of him, their knees bumping, as his hand curls around his neck. Instead of thorns pricking his skin, Todoroki's touch is cold water flowing from his fingertips and soothing the ache. At times the connection breaks, as if Todoroki's afraid that Midoriya will edge away again, testing the limit and setting it at the same time.
"You're not resisting much for an abductee," the Hero notes.
"I'm infinitely curious to see what the good Hero has in store for the bad Judge."
Todoroki averts his eyes and Midoriya has to strain his ears to hear his next words. "I'll do my best not to disappoint you."
The cool touch is gone with Todoroki's hand and Midoriya also misses the sensation. He shudders, massaging the tender skin although it doesn't hurt as much as before.
"But what are you going to do with me exactly?"
Todoroki shrugs, admitting in a low chuckle, "I really have no idea."