A/N: Content warnings in the bottom A/N, as well as a brief summary for people who want to follow the story but not read the chapter. Also, for people more here for the comedy etc., maybe give this one a miss; next chapter won't take so long, I promise.

Everything in Enji's life had been going wrong as of late.

Ever since he had lost his masterpiece at the USJ- no, even before that, the boy's insistence on denying his power had sent everything spiralling. That loss within U.A.'s apparently incompetent hands – no doubt overestimating that oaf who believed himself fit to teach – had been an unfathomable blow to Enji's goal of surpassing the number one Hero.

He had briefly considered the possibility of adopting another child to mould into the future number one. He wouldn't allow them such freedoms as to think they could do anything other than what he deemed appropriate, and the fact there was no blood relation would prove a motivating force to ensure they wouldn't disobey. However, he soon decided such a solution was a poor one. If it were not his creation standing at the top, there would be no point raising them there to begin with.

He had toyed with the idea of siring a new progeny, but that too was potentially problematic. Even if the child were delivered today, he would be fast-approaching the latter half of sixty by the time they were finished with their initial training. By the time he had finished grooming them to take over his agency? He didn't intend to retire any time soon, but the idea of retaining his top Hero rankings until his 70s seemed rather far-fetched. And that was ignoring the issue of Rei. He had no doubts his wife was incapable of mothering another child, and his media team had informed him divorcing his mentally ill wife so he could give rise to more offspring was considered something of a 'bad look'. Clearly the press would spin anything negatively if it boosted sales.

But then even those plans seemed all but impossible after that day. After Enji was injured so severely he wouldn't be able to continue Hero work for months at best. After All Might was so terribly wounded he wouldn't be able to continue Hero work period. After most of the top ten Heroes of Japan weren't even granted that.

After All for One.

And while Enji was out of commission, while that monster was allowed free reign over the society he'd spent his entire life defending, the came the next blow.

Dabi.

He refused to refer to that thing as his son. Or, if it was, then it was the unhinged child that refused to listen to his father. Refused to stop the training Enji had forbade. Refused to acknowledge the simple fact that his Quirk wasn't suitable for Enji's goals. He'd paid for that stubborn rejection of reality with his life; Dabi was but the dregs left behind. The charred embers of a child's impossible ambitions.

But his words left many in agreement. Suddenly, the past three decades Enji had dedicated towards being a great Hero weren't relevant. Suddenly, all that mattered is he couldn't stop a self-destructive child from using a Quirk which couldn't be stopped. He'd call them sheep if the term weren't so dated even he recognised it as such. No, they were simply desperate. Desperate to find someone to blame for the nightmare their lives had become, and the injured Pro with a blood-descendent on a rampage was far safer to blame than the self-proclaimed Demon Lord that had brought that nightmare to pass, or even the descendent themselves.

But Enji refused to let this be how the Todoroki's name was remembered. A bloodthirsty lunatic and a failure of a father. They would be remembered as the Heroes who brought this world back from the brink. They would be remembered as the greatest Heroes of all time.

And while he was unable to perform the work himself, he would train the next bearer of that legacy.

"Fuyumi." Enji limped through the simple house towards the dining table at which his daughter had already seated herself. Using the crutch he was bound to had proven difficult, but another few weeks and he should be able to walk without it. Another month after that and Hero work was within reach.

"Hi, Dad." she nodded politely towards him with a smile, going to assist Enji in sitting before he waved her off. He may be crippled, but he wasn't an invalid. Though her sympathetic efforts only reaffirmed his decision to have her become the next Hero of the family.

Ideally, of course, the position would have gone to one with his own power, his own flames. But reality was not so kind; Touya and Shouto were the only ones that had inherited his power, and now neither one was a possibility. The only options were Natsuo or Fuyumi. From there, the choice was obvious. Enji was not one to simply ignore past errors; he would learn from them. While he was confident Shouto's pathetic rebellion would've faded, and Natsuo could similarly be made to see his spiteful defiance with enough time, such was a resource Enji did not possess. Furthermore, even if he did, that time could've been better spent elsewhere. Fuyumi was a good child. She was calm. Caring. And her friendly demeanour would work wonders for PR. But most importantly?

She was loyal.

Enji wouldn't have to waste time calming foolish ideals, waiting out poorly thought-out bitterness, or allow mis-aimed rage to simmer down. He would instruct her how to be the next greatest Hero, capable of reaching the number one spot regardless of whatever idiotic braggards came about. If the colouring of her hair way anything to go by, maybe there even was a hint of Enji's Quirk mixed within. A small spark merely waiting to rise up into a glorious blaze. Only time would tell.

Time. And training.

"Have you made arrangements with your school?" while he hated to delay training her any more than necessary, Fuyumi couldn't be expected to simply walk out on her job. Their name was already dragged through the mud as it was; no need to add 'unreliable' to the list of insults being hurled at their family.

"Arrangements-?" Fuyumi glanced at him curiously, before finally realising the meaning. Evidently they'd need to work on her memory and observational skills as well. Being caught unawares, even in conversation, could have dire consequences. "Oh. Well, about that…" she looked away.

"Yes?" Enji stated harshly. He may have been injured, but that didn't mean he was on holiday; Fuyumi's hesitation was wasting time.

"I was thinking about it, and…" Fuyumi's nervousness could be an issue they had to work on going forward. Then again, it never presented itself as an obvious problem before, so perhaps it was simply a more extreme form of politeness towards Enji? "I… Don't want to quit being a teacher." one of Enji's eyebrows rose but a fraction. "I- I mean, with everything that's going on the kids are scared and they need a sense of stability in their lives and having a teacher who really cares-"

"Hero work is not something so casual you can pick and choose your hours." Enji stated the truth simply. Even if she reduced her teaching to part-time, even if she only took on specific years or classes, the amount of admin time alone would be incompatible with Heroing. Marking, commuting, dealing with idiotic parents that believed they could monopolise her time? Still, never let it be said that Enji was not sensitive to the wants of others.

"Perhaps there will be the opportunity to hold two-hour study sessions every fortnight or so for the children that desire to learn. After your introductory Hero training." achieving a balance wasn't completely impossible, but obviously for her first few years or so she'd need her attention solely focused on her new career.

Fuyumi's gaze drifted to focus around Enji rather than on him, her face morphing into a strange smile. Awkward? Strained? Nervous? Something along those lines.

"Ok, maybe I'm not phrasing this right." she shook her head – and hopefully any needless hesitation with it – and focused on him properly. "Dad. I don't want to be a Hero."

"… I understand." Enji nodded slowly, his eyes closed in contemplation. How could he be so blind as to his own daughter's needs?

"You do?" but with the understanding, her smile turned more genuine.

"Of course." he took a sip of the lovely tea Fuyumi had prepared. "The path of a Hero is a daunting one. Long hours. Dangerous missions. And as we've seen recently, often thankless work." the public had made that more than obvious. "The retirement of so many former so-called Pro's is evidence enough of the difficulty all Heroes face."

"I'm so glad to hear you say that." she laughed lightly, relief blossoming across her face.

"Of course." Did she truly believe him so heartless as to not hear her reservations? "But you needn't worry. Your path may prove challenging, but with my guidance, I have every confidence you'll be Japan's next number one." Perhaps the coming months would serve as useful 'bonding' time.

"I-" Fuyumi blinked in surprise. "What?"

"Indeed; that spot may seem impossible now- ludicrous, even. But with time, hard work and determination, I have every confidence you will reach it." Clearly she hadn't realised her own potential.

"No, I mean- You just said you understood-"

"Of course I understand your fears." what aspiring young Hero hadn't worried about whether they'd be good enough? Enji hadn't, but then again he hadn't become a Hero in such troubled times. A little hesitancy was only to be expected. "But it is imperative that you do not let your fears control you. Why, if I'd let my anxieties regarding my apparent inability to surpass All Might, you and your siblings may never have been born." of course, considering the thing Touya's existence gave birth to, perhaps that wasn't the best example to use. "So you must not let your fears hold you back. It will be difficult, yes, painful? Of course. But as I said, you will not face this task alone. I will teach you all I can."

"… That's…" Fuyumi was clearly overcome with emotion; sentimentality. She had to take a few deep breaths to fully accept Enji's fatherly compassion. Such inability to process emotions in a timely fashion was evidently another thing they'd have to work on.

"Thank you, for that." she spoke calmly. Measured. "But what I mean…"

Fuyumi tried to reiterate her concerns regarding taking up Enji's profession. But no matter what reassurances he gave, regardless of any calm logic he put forth, she remained unconvinced of her ability to take up the mantle. She kept repeating the same flimsy excuses. The more he thought about it, the more blatant those excuses became. As if anyone would actually want to be a teacher; ridiculous. The long unpaid hours, the sudden influxes of work around exams, the need to deal with insufferable brats day-in and day-out, and all for what? Forcing education down their throats where they'd only thank you long after you ever had the displeasure of seeing them? While he could admire her steadfast commitment, she could've at least come up with an excuse which was in some way plausible. The calmer, softer approach wasn't working. So he switched tactics. Made clear that he'd move the 'choice' out of her hands.

"But you can't-!"

"Can't I?" Enji put his foot down. It was evident that she needed the firm push. "I may be temporarily out of commission, however, I am still one of only three surviving Top 10 Heroes. The oaf is out of the picture completely now, while Hawks' injuries will take far longer than a mere few months to heal." he leaned forwards, "Do you honestly believe my connections so lacking that I can't have you removed from your position?"

"W-" Fuyumi's eyes widened. Clearly understanding was reaching her. Any semblance of the excuse was slipping "But that's- You're not- I'm a teacher-"

"Whom answers to a school, which answers to its headmaster and governing board." Enji narrowed his eyes. "I repeat myself; do you honestly believe my connections so lacking I'd be unable to demand one teacher without even a full year's experience removed from office?"

"But-" she took a step back, slowly recovering as she began to recognise the true lengths his influence could go, should he decide it necessary. "T-then I'll find another school-"

"And I will put similar pressure on their management." Enji realised he'd need to drive this home, lest she try to rationalise it away with faulty logic and a clear denial of his power here. "And the next, and the next, and the next. If you truly prove so uncooperative, I can simply go one step higher to the board of education. Have you blacklisted entirely." her eyes widened further. Evidently that was a more effective route to take."In fact, that may be easier. The HPSC's influence- my influence, extends into education quite substantially." he nodded towards the phone. "Shall I call them now? Have your current and all future positions invalidated to save time? Or will you cease your pointless rebellion?" it was like Shouto all over again. Maybe Natsuo would've been the better option…

"B-" Fuyumi was caught at a loss, mouth moving silently as Enji's words slowly settled within. "But I-"

She still didn't give in; once more, Enji couldn't help but commend her commitment to the excuse she'd given. Asked for a transitional period, tried to bargain for still being able to work part-time. It was pointless, of course; he'd already explained why such an arrangement would be impossible, but he still repeated those explanations to humour her. It took time, but by sticking to the firmer, more hard-line approach, it became clear that she was beginning to wind down. Eventually, she accepted the truth.

"You won't change your mind." Fuyumi's words were little more than a whisper, muttered in the same breath as defeat. Enji gave his response as a clear silence with a firm, but fair, glare. He did not take pleasure in Fuyumi's face falling from desperate to defeated, and Enji did wonder if he'd perhaps been too harsh. But it was a necessary sacrifice. For the good of their family. For the good of the world. For a better future.

"I'm needed at the office." he thought it best to give her some time to properly process her destiny. "When I return, we shall go over the initial plans for your training. I suggest you use today to set your affairs in order."

"Ok." Fuyumi's monotone response was barely audible. The lack of enthusiasm, of drive, could be a problem. But Enji was confident they could find a motivation for her taking up the mantle while they trained. Perhaps to keep children safe given her apparent fixation on them, or something equally marketable.

As he made to leave for his agency, he heard Fuyumi call out softly behind him.

"Dad." he paused with a slight turn of his head. Fuyumi's face had adopted a slight smile; of resigned acceptance. "I love you." he stopped completely for a moment, before a similar small smile came to his face, one of equal parts pride in his daughter for accepting the reality of the situation, and relief that they could begin post haste. Perhaps the future truly would be better than he'd feared.

"Likewise." he gave a slight nod back, before finally leaving for the agency.

Walking through the streets nowadays was a sobering experience. Where once citizens had looked to him with expressions of excitement, surprise, awe, even nervousness, they now all wore hostility on their sleeves. They'd been goaded into misplacing blame for the actions of psychopaths and manchildren on those who had done everything in their power to stop them.

Did they lay blame at the feet of the lack of public funding for new Heroes to fill the ranks? At the needlessly critical regulation preventing support equipment extending beyond the realms of glorified crutches? At the barren landscape which constituted the JSDF's response? No, clearly the Heroes, the ones on the front lines, the ones who'd lost the most from all this, were the ones at fault.

Imbeciles. Cowardly, craven, desperate imbeciles, each and every one of them.

Thankfully, the Endeavour agency was still in working order despite the best efforts of what felt like the entirety of Japan. The suggestion they be 'Shut down pending background investigations' was one his sidekicks had to fight against each and every day just to keep the lights on. Their focus should be fully on trying to restore some semblance of order throughout Japan, yet instead they had to deal with the threats of idiotic politicians scoring points in the court of public opinion. Sometimes he felt the League of Villains weren't even necessary for Japan's imminent downfall; the country was managing that all on its own.

Still; giving statements, calling in favours, running interference, were all things Enji could do despite his handicapped state. At this point Burnin' was more the face of the agency than he was, but better her than no face at all. And once Fuyumi was prepared, things could settle down. Maybe rename it the Todoroki agency instead, give it a sense of continuity beyond a single (tragically mortal) pillar.

The day passed by in but an instant; before Enji knew it the sky had turned dark and most had already left the office. After giving his regular goodbyes he, too, began to make his way back to the family abode. With any luck Fuyumi would have fully accepted the new state of things.

"I'm back." Enji called out as he closed the door behind him and slipped into some Uwabaki. He called out "Hello?" after a few seconds with no response, only to be met with yet more silence. Heading deeper into the house he soon passed by the dining room, noticing a sealed envelope prominently displayed on the dining table. Walking over to investigate, he dearly hoped Fuyumi hadn't done something foolish like running away… Chasing her down would be as time-consuming as it was damning for their reputation.

Opening to find a letter, Enji quickly scanned through.

'It's hard to write this', 'I know you think this is for the best', 'But I can't go down this path', bla bla bla, some (painful) reminiscing about Shouto-

His heart froze.

Unable to accept the words before him, he dashed out of the dining room, sprinted through the hallway, raced to Fuyumi's room; he threw open the door-

Everything in Enji's life he'd done wrong.

"I can still-" Endeavour, the fallen Hero, Shouto's so-called father, the thing given human form had the audacity to lower his head with a face full of exhaustion. "Whenever I close my eyes…" he did so while rubbing the bridge of his nose, as if to pretend he gave a damn. "I can still see her…" Shouto struggled not to respond. "Hanging there…"

Shouto's world felt like it was slowly peeling away. As if somehow death itself had been but a pleasant fantasy and now he was forced into a nightmarish reality. One in which his sister had-

"What about Natsuo?" he hadn't been especially close with his older brother, but even still-

"He missed Fuyumi's funeral." every word felt like being beaten by the damned Noumu all over again. "I spent all day searching for him, wondering where he was hiding." he smiled wryly- he fucking smiled- "Then I got home, and found him in his old bed. Not moving. Not breathing. If it had been at his own house, I would've thought it was an accident, but no… he wanted me to find him." he sighed deeply. "Thought it some last act of spite."

"What-" Shouto could hear ringing in his ears, but that wasn't important right now. "What about mom?"

His 'father' showed an emotion akin to anger for the first time since not believing Shouto was himself. "You're aware she was staying at a hospital?" he didn't respond; didn't need to. "It was burnt to the ground." Shouto's ragged breath caught; Endeavour's fists tightened. "At first we thought it was an accident, until we found a nearby security camera which caught some blue flames near the start." the ringing in Shouto's ears got louder. His breathing grew quicker. It was him- he'd SEEN- his own BROTHER- "There wasn't even a body left. Just piles of ash." Shouto tried to breathe quicker, but he soon failed to do so at all. This couldn't be happening- this wasn't happening-

"I'm aware nothing can ever make up for the harm I've caused." the self-awareness of this monster's statement didn't make it any less true. "But in the slim hope it may count for something-" nothing would ever 'count' towards making this thing's actions less reprehensible. "-within the even slimmer chance this is truly you." he turned to look Shouto in the eye. Shouto could only return the gaze by virtue of being completely frozen in place, and with way his vision was clouded and out-of-focus, he could scarcely recognise the look of sadness, of tiredness, of regret that haunted the man's face.

"I am sorry, Shouto. For how I forced my ambitions upon you. For how I treated you as a mere pawn. For the way I ruined our family. I'm sorry."

Shouto's blurring vision became an impenetrable red haze. The ringing in his ears reached an insufferable apex. He was left with naught but the emotions swirling through his soul. The hatred for the man before him.

The man who'd forced him to 'train', to push his limits to the point of almost unbearable pain and then Plus Ultra even further each and every day. Who'd done the same to his elder brother until he'd snapped, apparently pushing him to the point of matricidal villainy. Who'd tried to force the same on one of the only genuinely good people in Shouto's life, but instead only pushed her to the point of taking her own.

The man who'd done worse than half the Villains he'd put away and yet was heralded as a Hero. Who'd had chance after chance, day after day, to realise that Heroes could be better. But did the man change his approach when All Might proved a better Hero than he could ever be? No, he tried to force his own selfish goals on his child. Did he realise it was wrong when he pushed one child past the breaking point? No, he pushed it to another instead. And even then, did he change when Shouto had died, when his magnum opus was rendered moot? No. He kept going. He kept pushing.

And now. Now, that Tokyo was in ruins. Now that their living family consisted only of two psychopathic murderers. Now that there wasn't anything this man could even hope to achieve but watch the world burn.

Now.

NOW he was SORRY-?!

"That's enough." through the whirlwind of rage, an alien feeling began to grant Shouto form. A fuzzy warmth. An impossible mixture of a barely-contained inferno burning colder than ice. Focusing on the sensation, Shouto realised someone was holding his forearm. Focusing further, his vision began to recover; a pair of harsh and unrelenting red eyes, thin lips that were poised to become a snarl, white hair-

Cerberus. Shouto felt himself snarling instead. Of course.

"Let me-"

"An undead soul taking the life of a living mortal would be problematic." her words were neutral yet focused, and her expression didn't change. "That's enough."

"What-" are you talking about Shouto made to say, before the words caught in his throat. As his vision recovered, he began to take in the world around him. At the blurry, freezing, ice-covered world.

Around him, Cerberus and Endeavour was a tight circle of calm, the smallest blip of an undamaged concrete path in a maelstrom of destruction. But outside that, a bristling ocean of ice surrounded the three, all but isolating them from the outside world.

Part of his family home had been ripped open, great gashes of ice tearing through the walls and roof. Shouto could even see his old room, half of it destroyed but the rest remarkably intact. The kitchen, once the only room that could be said to have any life, was now ripped apart. Where there wasn't ice ripping through the old floors, crumbling walls and empty counters, there were splintered scorch marks as the only remnants of destruction. Whether the latter was recent or not, Shouto wasn't sure.

But looking to more urgent matters: His companions. Associates? He wasn't sure of the appropriate term, but they were at least people who had never done anything malicious towards Shouto. Certainly never done anything to warrant any violent response.

And yet, looking through slivers of clarity in the ice, Shouto found the girl with vines for hair. Rather, he found the girl who now had shards of ice cutting through those vines- vines which looked blackened and dying. She was trying to help Iida rise to his feet; a difficult task when part of one leg was stuck in an up-shoot of ice, and the other stuck to a wall of frost. From his position, Shouto couldn't even see Present Mic.

"I-" Shouto faltered, a leg barely moving to catch himself from falling backwards. He hadn't even registered using his Quirk. He couldn't even feel the frost enshrouding his right side, frozen from his snow-white hair to the tips of his toes. Had never noticed the frozen blood coating his fists. "I-"

"No…" his father, lip split, bleeding badly and face partially frosted over, spoke softly. "Don't… Stop him…" he looked towards Cerberus. Despite the apparent ability, he still failed to meet their eyes, nor even look in Shouto's direction. He looked over the man's battered, bloodied and ice-laden form- a crippled body, unable to even stand- a state Shouto had wrought in a barely-memorable haze. The realisation brought only the faintest feelings of regret to his mind. But his words?

"He… has the right…"

They made Shouto's soul churn.

A/N: Content warnings for reference to suicide and generally depressing events (if I've missed any big ones which people would like me to add, please let me know)

Summary of main events (for people who don't want to read the main chapter):

Endeavour did not react to Shouto's death well and instead pushed his sister Fuyumi to take up Hero work in his place. Shouto was not a fan upon learning this. Instead of this, Fuyumi (Assumedly, as this is in part second-hand descriptive inference) refuses to go into Heroing and, feeling trapped by Endeavour's pressuring and threats to have her blacklisted from teaching, instead takes her own life. Shouto is very much not a fan.

Endeavour reveals that Shouto's brother Natsuo also assumedly took his own life, and Dabi (confirmed by Endeavour to be his eldest brother Touya, though Endeavour does not recognise him as such) burned down the hospital that his mother Rei was staying in with such vehemence that not even her body was left. Shouto is not a fan of this either, but was still rather caught up being very much not a fan of the previous thing. Endeavour then apologises and says he is sorry for being so generally terrible.

Shouto is such a not-fan of this that he goes into a barely-cognizant rage, freezing their surroundings, injuring Iida and Ibara who were at least in the vicinity (Present Mic status unknown), demolishing part of his house, and beating Endeavour to near-death. Cerberus stops him from going all the way with the reasoning that a deceased soul killing a mortal could cause problems, but Endeavour tells her to let Shouto continue as 'he has the right'.

Shouto is not a fan.

A/N Pt. II:

It's done. The chapter… The nightmares… They're finally over…

I am sincerely sorry this took so long to get out. It was incredibly draining to write literally any of this for what should be obvious reasons, and work chose this time to become somewhat hellish and not in the fun way. Thankfully the next chapter won't take nearly as long; work's gotten a bit calmer (which is what actually gave me the motivation to bloody finish this already) and the next chapter will be much less depressing (I think. I'm like 99% sure.), so I'm expecting to get back to the normal fortnightly schedule from now on.

So yeah I knew this chapter was coming for a while but it was always in the back of my mind like 'yeah I'll just give it a thousand words or so, cover the major information, it'll be fine'. It was not, in fact, a thousand words. Nor was it fine. So now our favourite icy boi got a whole chapter dedicated to showing that he is in a very poor state in basically every sense of the word, but luckily there's nowhere to go but up, right?

Right?

But next chapter we'll be mainly be getting back to Izuku & co. for the fallout of that whole deal. I can't believe that cliffhanger(?) was three months ago now – we should be on like chapter 31; if the chapter counts fall in line with what I'm predicting there's a whole bunch of jokes that should be happening around now I've been looking forward to but instead we're still stuck in grief town.

I don't think there's much else to say; as usual feel free to comment with thoughts, predictions, constructive criticism etc. etc. you know the drill, though this time I'll give the caveat that I'm unlikely to utilise criticism unless it's grammar corrections, pointing out blatant contradictions, or something I really like better than what I've got because I just want to be done with this chapter now.

Hope everyone has a good weekend, see you in a couple of weeks.