It was an early morning, the sun was peeking out the cold cool colored mountains and the mourning birds began to do their daily chimes and chirps. The park should have been a tool for joy, but today, things were different. Usually, Keigo would sleep on the slide and wonder about how things could've gone differently if his father didn't beat the shit out of him every day, shielding himself from the cold with his wings and hugging his teddy bear. Now, the playground was the only witness to violence.
Keigo's body fell to the ground, pushed by hands much bigger than his own. He felt something wet on his hair, and realized that one of the kids had spat at him.
"Weird ass bird. Homeless one, at that. How old are you even? Carrying a stupid teddy bear like you're five years old is embarrassing." One of the big kids snarled behind him.
Keigo's eyes were tightly closed, not daring to look up at them as he clinged to his bear as he felt his nose prickle with the strong urge to cry. Daring to take a peek was asking for trouble, but he knew that just laying there and not even bothering to defend himself was pathetic too, but what was he supposed to do against six people? They had already ripped off too many of his wings for him to be able to fly away.
One of the boys snatched the plushie from his hands. The sound of ripping was heard, which finally got Keigo's eyes widening. He had used what was left of his wings to cover himself up as protection, but it was to no avail. His body began to be kicked relentlessly, feet stomping his eyes, crotch and chest, as they laughed, venom dripping off their voices.
Keigo just wanted a well rested sleep and a day to go well for once. Maybe luck would have been granted to him and would have a grand feast of food he'd hope to scavenge for. This was his new life, ever since he decided to run away from home.
Touya wasn't used to getting outside of his home. He was normally busy training with his father, but it had been a couple of days since Endeavor had forbidden him from training. It was ironic. The same person who had awakened his fire was trying to shut it down. Now, he barely paid attention to Touya. It seemed like his father was waiting for Shouto to grow up.
The idea of getting replaced made his heart sink, so he kept training secretly, sneaking out of the house to be able to do so. As he did his usual walk towards the Sekoto park, he found something unusual.
A bunch of kids were crowding something or someone. Touya wasn't able to see, but out of curiosity, he got up the playground structure and observed what the kids were looking at.
A large kid was beating up a kid with wings. There was a ripped teddy bear on the ground. Touya frowned. What kind of hero in the making wouldn't help others in need? Surely the group was big, but there was not a chance they wouldn't be scared of getting burned.
"Hey!" He shouted from his spot on the playground, earning looks from the kids. "Pick someone your own size!" He decided to throw the classic movie quote, as he jumped out of the playground, landing on a kid who yelped upon the impact. Touya lit his palm on fire, waving it around and causing the rest of the kids to back up. "Leave him alone! You good for nothing, pricks!" He put a foot on the kid's head, who was laying on the floor.
Endeavor would be proud of him. His smile widened upon seeing the kids begin to run away.
"Run away, guys!" A kid, who seemed to be the leader, yelled, and everyone followed him.
As they left, he walked towards the child with the wings. He looked the same age as Touya.
He offered him a hand to stand up.
"You don't look well." Touya frowned. "I have a kit!" He stopped offering his hand and pulled out the first aid kit from his hoodie's pocket, showing it to the other kid as if it were a trophy. He carried it around to treat his wounds.
The dirty blond had heard the kid shout from wherever he came from. His feathers picked up the loud call, making it easier to tell where it was coming from.
Watching the young being about his age scare off the others beating on him. To him, he was amazed by the hero that saved him, but he had flinched afterwards to see him offer a hand out. His wings sheltered him a littlemore, however to his curiosity, he had peaked out to see him hold the small first aid kit so happily in his possession. The way the kid looked so proud of himself while holding it to him. Keigo had looked up to him with his bruised eye and busted lip. He wiped the bloody nose with the back of his hand, while his golden eyes still stayed on the light eye kid.
He didn't know how to talk much, But his expression showed he was at least grateful for the other. His timing couldn't be better, but he was all the more happy to get help from someone.
Touya stared at the kid. There was a small smile on his face, but he was quiet.
"Are you like... mute or something? I can speak ASL" Touya grinned, proud once again. When Endeavor didn't like the sounds of laughter echoing inside his home, Touya and his siblings had to learn a way to communicate silently, so ASL came in handy.
Perhaps this guy was scared shitless and that's why he was so quiet? Touya frowned, looking away from him to stare at his own shoes, then stared once again at the boy with wings. Touya decided to do some mannerisms, signaling his own ear as a question: "are you deaf?"
To which Keigo had perked upwards to hear the white haired kid speak to him. The questions made him giggle, but it was rather thoughtful of this stranger to ask, he decided, slowly getting up and shaking his head.
"No...I can talk…" There was a pause after he spoke. And soon mustered up another response. ''Thank you.''
Keigo was still in awe of this boy. He was so strong. Keigo had always wished to be stronger. Keigo's golden eyes darted to Touya's hands, his head tilted to the side, like a confused dog, trying to analyze the other's fascinating quirk. Was it blue fire he saw? It looked so cool. And the other was signing to him! Though his own hands were dirty. He was dirty in general from being in the streets and feening. "..blue fire..?" he questioned a little shyly, looking over to the other boy. Blinking owlishly.
Touya smiled. So the winged boy was probably just shy. He was able to understand the words, much to his own delight.
"You know those kids?" He said, not bothering to sign, since he knew the other boy could just hear him alright. "You're welcome. I'm going to be a hero in the future, so you can say Touya saved you! " He spoke, his confident voice cheerful as ever. "It's blue because of how strong it is!" He explained. "My dad gave it to me." The thought made his chest ache, considering his father had been ignoring him for days now.
Touya had to prove to him that he wasn't a failure, that his birth meant something. Helping people like this kid would be the first step, right? He tugged at his nail, clenching his fist. Since Shouto was born, things have changed.
"I'm training my quirk on my own." Touya kept on saying, trying to push these thoughts away. "I'm weak right now, but if I keep training hard enough, I could be able to surpass All Might one day!" He said, trying to keep his tone cheerful. He didn't want this boy to think there was something wrong.
Had it been foolish to tell the boy with wings that? Touya was just a kid with a fire quirk that made him hurt himself.
No. His father said his fire was stronger than his own, after all. He was created for this. His sole existence was to make these words come true.
Touya should probably keep going. There was no time to be wasted… but then he eyed the boy with a critical eye. Not only were his clothes dirty, but he had a busted lip and a bruise on his face which looked old.
He kneeled next to him, opening the kit.
"I got ice for your lip." He had packed it for himself, but it would be selfish not to share it. "There is not much I can really do…" he trailed off, avoiding the boy's golden eyes. "But have it!" He smiled, trying to ignore the voice in his head that told him that this was just dumb and that Touya would never amount to anything. He couldn't even help a boy of his own age.
Keigo watched Touya carefully, But hearing the first question, The birdboy shook his head. He didn't know who they were at all.
"N-no… but they like to come around this… time...''
He had listened to him explain how he was going to be a hero one day, and that made the blonde kid admire him even more. The way he explained that his dad gave him the quirk he had inherited made him chirp in awe.
Before replying to him, his small wings flapped in glee.
''Your dad must..be really cool!.. I had this figurine my dad once gave me..and he had cool fire powers too..! I don't have it anymore..'' referring to his endeavor figure, to which he was saddened a little by the loss of the item, but since he had his stuffed bear with him, he felt less lonely.
The young bird had then looked for his stuffed toy that was already in ruins. However, holding the remains, it made him feel more at ease. He noticed the other eyeing him, which made him all the more nervous. He knew he was being judged. to which, he eyed down a little to his dirty feet. It was new to him, meeting other kids his age. and he never thought of him as weak, I mean, c'mon! He scared away the big scary kids! Keigo had taken the ice pack, pressing it to his bruises with a small wince. In honesty he was thankful. it felt nice and cool to his body that burned with anger and pain from the adrenaline pumping in him.
His eyes widened ever so slightly upon hearing the boy say that he had a figurine with "cool fire powers". That was without a doubt an Endeavor figurine. Should he bother to say that he was his father? If he didn't say anything, he could have a semblance of normalcy. This person probably had to live nearby the area, which meant he probably could become Touya's friend.
He shouldn't be thinking about friendship, though, he realized. Endeavor wouldn't be impressed if he heard his son was wasting his time playing around instead of training. He wouldn't seem worthy of his attention if he didn't take this seriously. But… would it be so bad? To interact with another kid of his age that didn't know anything about his family situation? Kids at school either treated Touya like trash ( calling him "nepo baby" and more) or they were just afraid of him. There was no in between.
As he kept listening, he smiled bitterly. Of course he didn't seem weak to this boy, not at first glance. His burns were covered by bandages under his long sleeves. He couldn't blame this person for thinking that Touya was somehow hero material.
''I don't think you're weak, I think you're really cool!" Keigo paused a little, looking at the ice pack. ''A lot stronger than me... I'm still learning my quirk." The young dirty blond said as he looked back to his rather fucked up wings now. Keigo couldn't bear moving them. His attention guided back to Touya again. "Touya?" he questioned, as if trying to register as his name. "I'm Keigo.''
Keigo gave a warm smile despite the aching he was going through. wanting to try and be friendly by offering a hand to shake, but stopped himself: he didn't want Touya to shake dirty hands..
Touya frowned as he was kneeling next to him, upon hearing this kid imply that this was just a normal day for him. Some kids were truly evil.
Touya smiled softly at the mention of his name. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if he had someone to speak to? Even though it wasn't guaranteed Keigo and Touya were going to cross paths again. He was probably just overthinking.
"I have to go train" Touya explained as he stood up, offering a hand once again towards Keigo. Keigo's physical state seemed sort of worrying. His clothes were really dirty and worn out. Perhaps the kid was poor, Touya thought. It wasn't really a kind thought, he mused, but, what kind of boy went out looking like that? "Your clothes are really dirty." Touya stated, blunt as ever, ignoring the fact that he had just said that he had to keep going. After all, the dirt didn't look recent at all.
Keigo's head tilted to the side momentarily before his eyes had widened. Did he register what Touya said correctly? The mention of his clothes being dirty made him look down on them, feeling a little embarrassed about such. He knew he was dirty, he had planned to look for a fountain or something to bathe in. But, he had no luck, and rain wasn't on his side.
"i..I know..it's all yucky.. I was going to look for a bird bath somewhere" he chirped to the kid, unaware that tubs exist. Keigo's nervous hands picked at the scabs that laid on his arms, his wings sheltering him barely now as comfort. It wasn't like he had clean clothes to change to, if he did, he'd be clean right now. Besides, the kids already picked on him for his ragged clothing.
Touya felt his neck burn once he realized he had just embarrassed the boy with his insensitive comment. Of course it wasn't kind to point out someone's dirty clothes! What would Touya's mom say?
Keigo tried to brush it off with the training he mentioned. Hearing that the other needed to train, the boy gasped a little "train?" He was interested, Keigo wanted to watch Touya do cool tricks with his quirk, his eyes fixated on the other hand that was offered out. He wasn't too sure why the frosted hair boy was offering it, so he shook his hand confused. "Can… I watch?" he asked innocently, his eyes reaching up to look at Touya.
He seemed to really enjoy the other's company even if he didn't show much of it with his expression.
Touya stopped himself from bursting out laughing. With a contained smile, he spoke instead.
"I just wanted to help you get up." Touya said, trying not to sound mocking, as he helped Keigo to his feet anyways. "Yeah, I train on my own because..." he trailed off. He couldn't exactly say 'because my father no longer believes in me at all so he doesn't even bother to look my way.' That would be awkward to say. The silence would be deafening. "I need to be strong to be a hero." He finally said.
"I mean, like, you must have had a really fun time. You must have been playing around the woods or something." He smiled awkwardly, then his smile fell upon hearing Keigo request to watch. Maybe Touya had made the whole quirk training like a fun or cool activity, but it really wasn't. While he was alone, he didn't really need to pretend that the burns didn't hurt. But if he took Keigo with him, things would be different. The shame he would feel from acting like "a pussy", (an expression his father used to say) would be unreal. Yet, he took a look at Keigo's hopeful eyes and his stomach twisted into a knot.
"Sure, come with me." He grinned instead, as he panicked internally. Was Touya being stupid by letting this boy come with him? Why did he say yes despite all of these thoughts? It was too late to ponder about this. "We've got to hurry!"
"Oh.''He said, a little disappointed that he read it wrong. But as he got up, he grinned at the other. His eyes filled with life as they widened to what he was hearing. Woah, he trained himself? man he was so cool. However, his ass was still embarrassed about the clothing comment. He had to cover it up somehow,.. he needed to think smart. ''mm, Yeah! these are just ..my dirt clothes! i have my own sets of things to wear for..parktime or comfy ones.." that was a blatant lie. He had nothing else to do, and even for running away and not having a home, he didn't want to go back.
A big smile was on his face when he heard that he was able to join him. A chirp was let out, joy. The bird child has quickly followed the other. Time to time his wings would flap. Wanting to try and fly, but there were only a few seconds long or gliding for a moment. Did he just make a new friend? maybe! Today was good despite the morning beat. his hand reached wanting to grab at touya's sleeve to hold, but he didnt and just held one of his feathers. He was curious about where they were going. but he didn't dare question him in fear of possibly annoying him with too many questions. but, he couldn't help it. "can..i ask..where are we going?"
They walked silently to Sekoto Peak. It felt strange for Touya to have someone beside him. He didn't have friends at school, and he mostly avoided social interactions, as Endeavor had deemed them as a time wasting activity. His heart pounded with insecurity, until he told himself that Keigo wouldn't really stop him from training. He wouldn't tell his father anyways. No one would know he made a new friend… someone who acted much like a bird, which Touya found sort of funny, because, why did Keigo expect to find a water fountain to bathe in it, just like a bird would? He was already calling him a bird in his head.
"Sekoto peak." Touya had explained. "There is no one who would bother us there for illegal quirk use." He smiled.
When they arrived, Touya felt sort of sheepish, but quickly told himself to just roll with it.
"Well, I'm just gonna train…" he said awkwardly, and then began doing a set of exercises as a warm up, doing a plank.
When he finished, he closed his eyes for a moment and sighed. It was time to use his quirk. And god, did it hurt to sustain it for a long period of time, but he pretended otherwise. He wasn't going to look weak in front of his new friend.
Touya and Keigo had been training for hours. While Touya didn't have a watch, it was a certainty, as the sky was now orange, the sun having disappeared a long time ago. They were both sweaty and Touya had already had a lot of burns from the training. The last exercise was a plank, and Touya's arms had given up, his body sprawled on the floor.
"I think we did enough." Touya's tired voice broke the silence, and he rolled over, sending a look towards Keigo, who had been silently copying all of his routine. Touya pulled the ice pack to his chest;where it burned, without a bother to get up. "There is no way dad won't notice my efforts." He said, half scared and half wanting. While he did wish for his father to notice his training, he knew the man wouldn't be happy about it. After all, he had banned his dreams away.
Should he bother to tell Keigo the truth about his family? How broken it was. What if he was a fan, just like some of the kids at school? Or he began to treat him differently, perhaps with pity?
The Feathered kid was tired, During the progress of learning and putting his heart more to the moves Touya had expressed, this was the first he had ever physically trained like this. It was tiring, but he felt strong already! The bird boy sat on the floor, slumped a bit and out of breath. He was very hungry. Training on an empty stomach wasn't all that great of a feeling. As they finally took their break.
His tired eyes looked over to see how tired Touya was. How sprawled on the floor, It made him giggle just a little and he got up to peer over to him from above. He sat to his knees, Looking down to him, the other was upside down to him as he was laying on the floor. "if he doesn't then he's pigeon poo!" Huffing out, the kid flapped his wings a little. If anything he thought Touya was even cooler than the big pro hero of Endeavor. He took note of the other ice pack resting to his chest. He was pretty smart when it came to conclusions. So he had figured the fire was hot for him so he needed the ice pack to cool down. But, he didn't dare question it.
"You mention your dad a lot.. Do you look up to him?"
Touya's eyes widened upon the playful insult towards his father. Mocking Endeavor at home wasn't allowed, not really, and he found himself gasping. He then laughed, once the surprise went away. When he heard his question, the laughing came to an abrupt stop. Did he look up to Endeavor? He definitely did. He knew his reason to live was to be a hero, and he couldn't help but hope that his father saw how wrong he was for assuming Touya wasn't hero material, just because of his skin weakness. Endeavor was everything Touya wanted to become. His approval meant everything and his disapproval meant the end of the world. Yet, he couldn't just tell this kid the full truth. Just how would he react if he knew Endeavor was his father? Would he be one of his fans? Their relationship would change. Perhaps hanging out with Touya would only be cool because of him. Endeavor being mentioned could ruin everything. Yet, as he opened his eyes to meet Keigo's curious gaze, he knew that his new friend didn't mean any harm by asking that.
So, he said a half truth instead.
"My dad believed in me, before." He explained, his voice sounding bitter to his own ears. "Ever since he found out that I am prone to burning myself, he thinks I can't be a hero, but he is wrong. We trained before... I was happy. He gave me the ambition to be a hero."
Hearing the other laugh, He'd laugh a bit too. But hearing him stop after his question made him tilt his head. He wondered what he was thinking about, was it what he said? shouldn't he have questioned it? He waited for his reply, being patient with Touya. But his expression softened to hear what he was saying 'Before?' He had then perked to hear what else he was saying. ''I think he's wrong too." looking down to him, a grin on his face ''A real hero believes in themselves! and" he paused for a minute to think " and..you are training! even when your pa thinks you can't save others.. '' he thought again, and looked back, his wings flapping as he chirped to him. "you saved me!"
With that he smiled more, it was dumb of him, but, he would be his Number one supporter. He believed in him. "I don't know if I will be a hero one day..but I know maybe you will!" Claiming out, the tired kiddo slightly yawned, he had to return back to the park to fix his nest.. let alone scavenge for food later too. Noticing it was getting late, he hand scuttled over, offering a hand, a small sign of friendship. "dark soon.."
Touya's face lit up. Finally someone could understand his desire to be a hero. Everyone at home refused to do so, but Keigo even motivated him. His eyes widened upon hearing Keigo say so confidently that Touya would become a hero. Someone believed in him.
"You get it. No one in my family wants me to be a hero. They think I'm too fixated on it... but you understand me!" Touya smiled wide. "Are you going home?" He asked, curious.
Touya thought of asking him if he wanted to eat dinner at his house, but then he realized that would mean to make Keigo meet Endeavor. He would find out the truth and probably treat him differently, just like the rest of the kids at school. Although, something told him that Keigo wouldn't be judgemental... should he listen to that part of himself? He frowned. Too many possibilities. It felt good to just be Touya and not Touya Todoroki.
"That stinks... most..people would want to be a hero.. the big hero's were..like us once..?" he paused, scratching his head. Was there a difference when a kid wanted that dream? He saw the smile on the other person's face, which made him smile. However the question he gave about him going home..made his ass nervous. the hell was he supposed to say? 'oh no, i ran away because my parents are nuts and hurt me'? tch, no.
"um.."
He tried to think, He didn't want to think about home..he hated it there. The light in his eyes washed away with a bit of fear with the word mentioned. No, he wasn't going home. So, he shook his head no. His new home was wherever he thought would be safe for him to sleep for the night. Maybe he can walk with Touya home so he was safe!
"I can walk you home!"
he exclaimed, the thought of just being around Touya was delightful enough to light up his eyes again with life and joy. It felt safe being around him, and that comfort was more than enough to keep the kid from pushing.
Touya's smile didn't falter upon hearing that. It somehow brought even more joy to him to know that he wasn't just about to part ways with Keigo. That was so immature, though... but he ignored these thoughts. He had already set his mind on befriending Keigo, despite any possible opinion from his father.
Maybe the old man wouldn't even bother to disapprove. After all, Touya knew he didn't care anymore, not if being a hero was out of the way.
"Sure, just follow me." Touya said, far too cheerful, knowing that this was his first real friend, one that he chose with his own will.
As they walked to his home, Touya enjoyed the comfortable silence, until curiosity came.
"Do you live nearby?" He asked.
After all, Keigo probably wandered the park because it was close to his house, wasn't it?
The kiddo followed the other closely. It was quiet, real nice, it made his thoughts and panics lessen. "mm..Kinda!" He called out, jumping over branches and such that were in their path. He was happy to have a new friend.
It was new to him, Touya was his first ever friend. He had never gone to school, so he was self taught with everything. Pretty smart to be learning the way he was. He'd try to use his wings from time to time. He wanted to get the hang of using his quirk. Even if he struggled to keep high most of the time. Maybe it was his lack of feathers; he was still growing out. Clipping wasn't the greatest thing he dealt with.
"Do you live near the park?" he questioned the other, his hands fiddling with the hem of his dirty shirt. Realizing he was walking him home all dirty. It wasn't like he was going to meet the parents or go inside or anything. He already felt a bit embarrassed thinking about such. He wondered if he had nice parents, or if he had a nice home, how lucky he must be. But then again, he remembered how his dad was.
"what..do you like to do at home?" Keigo grew curious, did the other have hobbies besides training? He wanted to learn more about him. "What's your favorite food?..Is your favorite color blue?"
"Yeah, the park is near my home." Touya answered, tone light hearted. "Well, at home I just sit and watch TV and do my homework…" he trailed off, aware of how boring these activities must sound to someone like Keigo, who played in the park by himself until his clothes were dirty. "I love soba!" He said, raising a fist in the air dramatically for no other reason than the lame hope of keeping Keigo entertained.
It was strange to have a friend. Now, Touya needed to make sure he didn't bore out his new friend. Sure, Keigo could make that decision on his own, but it felt good for Touya to have someone to train with. Plus, his new friend was understanding, unlike his entire family and the kids at school, who were always angry that Touya rejected them and attributed it to his dad being the number two hero and a sense of ego from Touya. They were so wrong. Even when he had bothered to explain that he simply didn't have time for friendships since he needed to train, they just mocked him.
"Such arrogance!" One of the kids had spat out as the rest of them had agreed.
After that, they hadn't spoken to Touya again.
Keigo and Touya arrived at the Todoroki home. It stood tall and imposing. As Touya opened the door with his key, he glanced at Keigo.
"Aren't you hungry?" He asked, a small smile playing on his lips. "You could come inside!"
Was Touya being foolish? His father was always pissed off. Would he ruin dinner? Or even disapprove of his new friendship?
No… Endeavor probably wouldn't even care, Touya mused, which made him wish for Keigo to accept the offer even more.
Keigo's eyes sparkled to hear him say he got to sit and simply watch TV, or do homework. He didn't experience school. So his life style was far different from his own. Afterall, he was the first friend.
"Ouu..soba? I don't think I had soba before.." He wasn't gifted to have such home cooked meals. He seemed interested in what it was though.
As they approached the home, the kids' eyes lit up amazed. It looked so fancy! He looked at Touya with a glimmer in his eyes.
"Your place is big!" His home was pretty small so this was fancy to him.
His wings flapped a little while he stayed near Touya. Even though he was curious to look around, he felt safer being near instead.. He felt so out of place. Maybe he did understand how Touya may have felt, being here without knowing it.
His stomach growled the moment Touya had questioned his hunger. The unexpected sound made Keigo grow embarrassed of himself. His wings moved to cover his stomach.
Moving his attention away for a moment his eyes locked on the pictures and decor of the home. Looking more, fixating his eyes on each being. The big fella looked familiar. Like the Hero of his figure! However his eyes then looked for Touya, a small smile on his face as he continued to follow the kid in front of him.
"I bet you get to eat yummy food and stay all warm and cozy in bed at night!" As if saying that wasn't normal.
He was too fixated on Touya to care about who his father was.
Touya felt goosebumps upon the realization that getting food and staying warm was a privilege in Keigo's eyes. His smile dropped just slightly, still wanting to keep his appearance a happy one. There was no way Keigo lived in this neighborhood, was it? He knew that his family lived in a place only rich people could afford, that many kids had pointed out at school.
If Keigo didn't live in this area, then he must be far away from home: the thoughts rushed his mind all at once. Was Keigo abandoned? Or did he just happen to want to explore far away from home and Touya was being paranoid for no good reason? He had said that he lived nearby, though.
Maybe he wants to hide that he is not disgustingly rich? Touya wondered. Maybe Keigo wasn't poor and Touya was just being a classist and not always having food to eat didn't mean that one was poor. Blood rushed to his cheeks as he debated himself on whether he should ask Keigo about his economical situation and risk making his only friend uncomfortable, or just let it go.
"You don't eat often?" Touya finally asked, his voice small and the smile in his lips vanishing into a worried line. "We have plenty of food here!" He assured Keigo, his voice wobbly, much to his embarrassment. "You don't have to worry about not eating, you know?"
Touya was seriously screwing this up, he thought, his heartbeat pounding on his ears, as he carefully avoided looking at Keigo's face. What if Keigo's clothes were dirty and worn because he didn't have access to new ones? Touya's mind was sent to his closet, always so full of clothes.
"And also, if you want to, I got some t-shirts that are pro-heroes merchandise…" he continued saying.
Touya's rambling was cut by a plate shattering as it hit a wall, making him startle.
"You good for nothing woman!" Endeavor's brash voice echoed the walls, as Touya froze up. "Why did you let Touya go to Sekoto Peak again? You're supposed to stop him, you're his mother! I'm busy with work. He can't be thinking he can go around playing hero, when he got your frail genes."
Despite the kids being in the hallway, Endeavor's voice was loud and clear. Touya felt tears building up and he fought for them to go away. It wasn't fair to his mother, the way his father expected her to act as his accomplice.
So what if mom doesn't want to stop me? Touya wondered, bitterly.
"Stay here, Keigo." Touya spoke, his hands growing sweaty and trembling against his will.
The blond gulped. This all took him back to his own parents. That fight or flight kicked in, and the moment he heard Touya tell him to stay, he reached for his shirt. As if not wanting him to go, or least, not go alone.
His eyes were filled with worry, He needed to make sure he was safe too.
After all, Touya did save him.
"You're not..going alone.. I'm coming!"
Touya stared at Keigo, wide-eyed. He hadn't expected this.
"What? Don't be dumb, Keigo!" He urged him to let go of his t-shirt as he batted his hands away. "My father is Endeavor!" He confessed, voice slurring words faster than he could process. "The guy in the kitchen…" he trailed off. It was strange to place himself in Keigo's shoes and view his father like the man he was to a stranger: he knew his father wouldn't appreciate a random kid stopping the fight. "He won't like you barging in." He finished, hurrying himself. It wasn't time to ponder about justifications. His mother needed his help.
Touya stepped forward.
But Keigo had grabbed at his hand again. He knew it all too well. Touya was going to get in the way, and have pain inflicted on him. The kid got up quickly, the small red bundle of feathers on his back flapping his way to get in front of him. He needed to think.
"I don't think he would like you barging in either! You will get hurt too!"
The small bird chirped out in a scolding yell.
"You can't go out there! It will be bad!" Keigo couldn't have his friend get beat down, he couldn't bear to know the possibilities that Touya was also getting beat down.
"Don't tell me what to do!" Touya felt his chest rise and fall way too fast, as he struggled against Keigo's hold in his hand. "Let go! I'm the one supposed to help. I have a strong quirk, remember?" He attempted to pour some sense into Keigo through that logic. "You… you're a bird !" He shouted, stupidly, he realized. That was obvious, and therefore, a weak excuse. Something twisted in his stomach at the idea of insulting Keigo, but it was the last resort to get him to stop nagging at him, he thought. "You will just be a BBQ chicken." He finally could get rid of his hold in his arm, and attempted to walk past Keigo.
Keigo gasped, offended to hear what came out his mouth. The boy shook his head and let out an annoyed yell. Making the move on tackling his knees to keep him from going.
"No!" his throat squawked out while the two hit the floor. Keigo wasn't afraid to throw hands with his friend, that's if it meant protecting him too.
His hands patted and slapped at the other in a weird bapping manner.
He wasn't going to let Touya get into this mess.
"God! Keigo, let go!" Touya screamed, and struggled, until he remembered the martial art technique his dad had teached him, and quickly took hold of Keigo's arms and twisted his own body to flip the positions, trying to get up now that he was on top of his friend. "This doesn't concern you!" He insisted, but the words felt empty.
Keigo had squirmed on the floor as he quicked his feet from the uncomfortable feeling he was getting with his arm being twisted behind his back.
"YEAH, BUT WHAT CAN YOU DO BESIDES BURN.."He Yelled out his wings flapping at him before his legs locked with the others for a while and rolled to the side. The way he had struggled to get on Touya's back and hold his arms behind his back. "This is a bad idea! And you know it"
"My mom needs help. I'm not a coward." Touya wasn't about to give up, but the hold Keigo had on him was too firm, and as they trashed on the floor, he shouted at Keigo again. ""I can't just stand by, that wouldn't be hero material."
The same man who said that trademark sentence was the one raising a hand against his mom.
A scream cut their fight.
"That will teach you a lesson!" Enji roared, his steps so loud that they could be heard from the hallway. Touya's eyes widened, realizing he had been too late. His mom didn't need help anymore.
Touya had always begged for his father's approval, but moments like these made him lost and confused. He wanted his father to focus on him and make of his frail constitution a strong hero, but the thought of the man's figure in the kitchen, all too willing to hurt his mom, sent his thoughts into a spiral. If Touya could please him, none of this would have happened at all. His father wouldn't have been angry at Rei, since Touya's training would have been allowed. His mother wouldn't be blamed for her son's incompetence and weakness, he thought, as tears finally spilled. He was no longer fighting against Keigo's grip. He was just an useless burden, he realized. Just like Enji had said about Rei, he was good for nothing. He made everything worse. His parents would both forget about him as soon as Shouto became five years old. He would be discarded, and if he would ever be brought up as a subject of a conversation, it would be because of his own foolish failures.
"I'm worthless." Touya whispered to Keigo, and couldn't bear what he would find if he looked at his friend, so he covered his crying eyes with his hands, as his body shook with tremors.
His words pained the young boy. To see his friend break down like this made his heart ache. He did his best to spit out words to help. But, he figured they wouldn't help much for this situation. But he still wanted to try..
"Youre..not worthless..touya..mm I heard.. other voices..siblings?'' His voice was in a soft whisper. He for the first time, was witnessing his friend break down.
"This is all..not okay.." Even if he didn't like to see him like this. It was good to see him cry it out. He knew the hurt and how this all felt. But, to think the whole family was going through this.. The kid sadden more.
"Do you want a hug..?"
Touya nodded, enveloping his arms around Keigo's torso as he kept sobbing. When things got like this, Touya never had anyone hug him, and he dismissed any worries from his siblings, since every problem in the Todoroki's house was often his fault, and it wouldn't be fair to let his siblings preoccupy him. It would be pathetic, he thought, since he was the eldest. He ought to know better.
His mother was always too busy with Shouto or just locking herself up in her room, so when he heard Keigo offer him comfort, he just let himself cry harder on his shoulder.
Minutes passed as Touya clinged to his friend, until he heard Fuyumi's voice.
"What are you doing on the floor?" She asked innocently, her eyebrows raised.
I'm so pathetic, letting my little sister see me like this, Touya thought as he separated himself from Keigo's arms, still not facing her, just so she wouldn't get to look at his tears.
The blond jolted to the girl's voice and looked over only to see Touya turning around. His eyes made way to look at Fuyumi for a second and then to Touya again. He grew protective, his wings opening to shield his friend.
"He just wanted to lay down for a moment!" He would call out, his back now facing the girls. The odd sense of knowing Touya didn't want to be seen as a mess like this.
"He's okay!" He didn't think such was really working. His words. So he grew quiet, still Behind Touya, covering him.
"Oh, alright." Fuyumi spoke, then simply took off, a teddy bear in her hands. "Mom told me she left dinner on the table." She then took off to the kitchen, but not without sparing a last confused glance towards them.
Touya stayed in his sitting position, looking at Keigo, who still had his wings shielding him.
"Thanks…" he said, wiping his tears from his cheeks with his sleeve. "I don't know what I would've done if she saw me crying." He admitted. "I don't want any of my siblings to worry about me. I don't need their pity." He paused. "I'm not sure if you would want to stay for dinner after that mess… my dad must have left already. He always does when things get like this." Touya played with a strand of his white hair, suddenly shy. "I'm sorry you had to see that." Shame made his neck burn.
The way Touya grew shy after all this was too cute, he thought. Keigo had listened to him talk. It was understandable.. But he chose to still stay. It's not like he had a better place to be. Besides, he found comfort in Toua. And he knew Touya was going to need company after this. Moving to be in front of him, his wings rested low to the floor. With a soft expression, he had used the sleeves of the shirt given to him to help clean the stained tears to his face.
"Imma stay here with you! We can go eat together!"
He would then lend his hand to the other. A soft smile plastered to his face. "We can go together! So you're safe too"
Touya, for once in a long time, felt what comfort was like. He accepted Keigo's offered hand and got up with his help, a small smile in his lips to match his friend's.
They walked silently to the kitchen, which was empty. Fuyumi must have eaten already. Touya sat in the chair, finding instant noodles on a pot. He served Keigo and himself, noticing then how dirty the kitchen was. There were at least seven dirty plates on the kitchen's sink, but no trace of the broken one, at least. However, there were bloodstains on the floor. It seemed like his mom had tried to wipe them off, but left a few spots. Endeavor hadn't hired any domestic employees, probably to avoid them witnessing what happened in the Todoroki's home. Yeah, that would be it, Touya thought bitterly, as he ate the noodles. He probably was too much of a coward to even attempt to buy off people's morality like that.
Touya ate silently, until he noticed that Keigo hadn't begun to eat. He was just staring at his plate with something akin to wonder in his eyes, at least for Touya.
"You can eat, you know." Touya commented, raising an eyebrow, trying to ignore the goosebumps in his arms as he remembered Keigo's words about not being able to eat often. "I can give you more if that's not enough." He quickly added, getting up before Keigo could reply and adding a lot of noodles to his plates, to the point it was a mountain. "No one will notice." He promised Keigo with a shaky smile.
It was only till Keigo's eyes caught the large noodle pile. Snapping from his dissociation, he got too lost on thinking how to save it. However his eyes light up to see the amount given.
"WOAH!" was this okay..? He didn't want to take all of it. The way his eyes glanced at Touya's plate, It made him feel a little greedy.
"We can share?" referring to sharing the mountain of noodles he was given. Did Touya figure out about his eating situation already? Besides, this was a new meal to him. He grabbed the chopsticks and began to slurp up his noodles. Man was he eating up the food. He expressed his thank you's with happy wing flaps.
"No, no, you can eat it all by yourself, it's fine!" Touya insisted, quickly waving his hands in dismissal. "I'm fine with this bowl. You need to eat more, so you can grow! My mom once said it's important to eat food for the bones to grow." Endeavor too. That's why he always gave Touya appropriate even had a chef, who he fired as soon as it turned out Touya was too weak to be a hero. Then, it became Rei's job to feed him and the meals' downgrade had been extremely noticeable. He pushed the thought away. "I don't want to be stuck at my height." He sighed. "Kids at my school kept calling me small." He said, but there was a grin on his face. "They even waited for me outside of school, but, you know, I just used my quirk and scared them off!" Not without being punched first, but he conveniently skipped that part. "I wish you were in my class. The kids in my school are so lame. They can't see past the fact that Endeavor is my dad." Touya frowned. "Not that I'm really lucky…" his voice faded. He suddenly wanted to say something more positive, but nothing came to his mind, until he looked up from his bowl, glancing at Keigo. "At least I have you now."
It had taken Keigo a moment to process what Touya was saying. And his eyes of gold gleamed to hear that Touya had him now. His face beamed with pure joy. "Yeah! You have me" Exclaiming proudly.
Boy was he happy to have someone like Touya. "I think you're way cooler than your dad.." Which, seeing the truth laid out, he didn't look up to the old man. And he hoped Touya would see and choose to become a hero on his own terms.
Touya's mouth was wide open. No one would say such a thing about Endeavor and his son. People would laugh at that statement at school. There was nothing that could surpass him… besides All Might, and that was obvious. Theoretically, what Keigo had said was dumb, but he couldn't help a shy smile.
"Thanks." Touya said instead, focusing on his bowl and effectively ignoring the tightness in his chest. He wanted his dad to look at him again, to be able to observe his proud eyes. It's so fucked up, Touya thought: he resented him for many reasons, and yet, he still wanted his attention. He hit his mom and he was still trailing after him. How desperate. He chose to keep quiet about it. Bringing it up wouldn't cause the ache in his heart to fade away, and he didn't want to ruin the moment either.
Keigo had slurped his noodles, almost finishing up his bowl till he got too stuffed to finish. He was very grateful for the fulfilling meal.
Touya rubbed his own hair, biting his lips.
"You almost ate it all!" Touya said, breaking the comfortable silence, his lips curved into a broad smile, which only fell a little when he remembered why his friend was able to do that in the first place. Hunger.
The image of Keigo on the ground as a kid lunged at him effectively made his smile disappear. The ripped teddy came to his mind. His eyes widened as an idea settled into his mind.
"I have a surprise for you!" Touya said, the words coming out way too fast. "Keep eating, I'll be back!" He announced, as he hurried to his room.
Only Keigo was in the kitchen, until the same girl from before appeared. She was likely hiding behind the door.
"Touya never smiles like that." Fuyumi spoke, her voice small.
When Keigo had heard the girl speak, his wings picked it up, the vibrations Caused him to lift up his head and over to where the voice was heard.
"Huh?"
He never smiled this much? Such kinda made his heart ache in a way, But to know he was part of that reason for his big smile made him happy. He was curious about the sister. His head filled with questions, but he kept them to himself before saying
"HI! I'm keigo!" to her, simply just being friendly with her as he waited for his friend's return. He didn't touch the rest of the noodles. He was too full to continue eating, but he had planned on taking the rest when the time came for him to leave.
Fuyumi's face was blank, but as soon as she heard Touya's footsteps, she went back to her hiding spot in the door.
"Look, Keigo!" Touya shouted, shoving an All Might figure to his face. "I want you to have my All Might figurine. I never played with it, so it's really clean as if it's new!" He always ignored his toys, as Endeavor had deemed them an unnecessary distraction (it was his mom who had bought them for him). Plus, now he was ten, way too old for toys, he thought.
"Who is this boy, Touya?" A stern masculine voice asked, making the mentioned boy's eyes widen. He hadn't heard him approach. "I see you didn't get rid of that childish possession." Endeavor spat, walking towards Touya, who couldn't help but wonder if he should feel threatened, because his father wasn't happy at all and things tended to get messy when he was like that, or happy, because after all, he was paying attention to him.
"Hey, dad!" Touya replied, his lips forming a shaky smile. "This is Keigo, my frie—" before he could continue, Enji snatched the All Might figure from his hands, with an aggressive yank. His knuckles closed around it, fingers tight until they became white with the pression.
The figurine turned to ashes.
"I see you're finally adapting to your new life, Touya." The man sneered. "Finally listened to me, boy, but you've gone soft. Inviting someone without my consent?" He smashed his hand against the table, but Touya didn't move an inch, his face and body frozen. "Gifting objects to another boy is disgusting." He paused, creating a tense silence. "Don't you know better than hanging out with a twig? Spend your time with someone who is worth your time, not… this." Endeavor pointed at Keigo, without even bothering to look at him.
Touya finally reacted, his entire body shivering.
"Don't say these things about Keigo!" He yelled, and grabbed the bowl of noodles Keigo hadn't finished eating.
He threw the bowl to his father's face.
Keigo was whole ass offended after being referred to as a Twig and a 'this' As if he was an object. He watched as it all play out, this was something he was familiar with, but to see Touya stand up to his dad like this sparked something in him.
The way the father treated everyone like they were peasants at his feet. So this was the Pro hero Endeavour. At the flesh. It was disgusting. His hands balled to a fist. Keigo could care less about what was said about him, but for his dad to speak disrespect.. He got off the chair he was in. He knew he was going up against fire. But he'd let his wings burn for his friend, just to protect him. He stood by Touya, eyes narrowed as the stared at the tall adult. It was an eerie feel to his stare. It was the Hawk stare he had. The one that pierced into the core of your body when something isn't sitting right.
But did Endeavour care? Not at all. He had pushed the blond away and grabbed his kids wrist with a scorching grip. He was pissed. Beyond that really. He didn't care whether another kid saw this. What was he to do.
He threw the kid to the wall with a simple whip of his arm. So Touya thought he could win this battle and play the hero. "Stand down Boy. '' He spat out.
Touya yelled upon the brutal impact of his head colliding against the wall, but quickly stood up. He had learned to ignore pain and glanced at Keigo, his eyebrows shooting up when he saw him on the floor.
"You piece of garbage!" He shouted with all of his might, charging against Endeavor once again, palms lit up in blue fire.
"Your movements are predictable, boy." Endeavor easily kicked him in the guts, sending Touya's body to the floor. He then grabbed him by the collar, forcefully lifting his head up. "Don't even try that ridiculous thing again. It's pathetic. You're undeserving of carrying the Todoroki name."
Touya knew he should stay quiet, but he couldn't resist.
"At least I don't beat on weaker people than me. You're a cowa—" he was cut by a vicious punch to his lip, which immediately began to bleed. Endeavor gathered all of his strength and his left hand collided with Touya's eye, ruthlessly.
Touya refused to give him the satisfaction of crying out, but he couldn't help but gasp at the impact, which Endeavor smiled at.
"You're worth nothing, boy, acting like a crybaby. You can't back up your words. Talk to me when you become a real man!" Endeavor let go of Touya, who fell limp to the floor.
He was beginning to walk away when a weak voice spoke.
"If being a m-man means becoming like y-you, I would rather pass." Touya spat blood.
"𝑆𝑎𝑦 𝑎𝑛𝑜𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑑 𝑏𝑜𝑦. 𝐴𝑛𝑑 𝐼 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑚𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑎𝑠𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑑𝑜. "His tone was harsh like usual when he spoke such words.
It made Keigo's emotions want to explode out. He ran to Touya to help him up. A sadden and worry chirp was let out to him. He was never in the predicament. And he hated how he couldn't be much help to his best friend. But, he had pulled out a feather from his wing like a weapon. The feather sharpened like a blade. Something he didn't have control over. And he held it near.
He leaned down to whisper to Touya "we..need to go..touya.. " His eyes watered a little with concern. It was seeing the blood on him that made his feathers fluff in a pitiful drop. But, his adrenaline was going. He controlled his breathing to stay as calm as possible. He didn't want things to escalate more. So, he helped his friend back to the other room. Trying to avoid the big fella, while his feather stayed pointed to the Pro heros back. But far from him.
It was the only thing he knew with barely any knowledge on how his quirked worked. Besides flapping around.
"That was..really brave of you.." He whispered, sniffing a little "Do.. .where–" His mind was racing. He just wanted to help his friend. "Bandaids?" he finally asked. He figured he was only useful for tending the wounds anyways.
"In the bathroom." Touya said in a small voice, and he accepted Keigo's physical support as they slowly made their way in the hallway. "You know, I wasn't brave. I was just stupid. He is right anyways. I am a failure." He spoke quietly, his voice wavering as he felt his nose tingle.
As they got into the bathroom, Touya quickly locked the door and sighed out of relief.
"He just let us go like that…" Touya stopped mid sentence as he was met with a mirror.
His appearance was nothing but lamentable. Touya's right eye was half lidded and red, the pain rendering him unable to open it fully, and his bleeding lip was busted, a deep shade of red as well. Not only did he fail to protect himself and stand up against his father, but he also dragged Keigo into trouble.
"I'm sorry, Keigo. He was violent with you because of me. You're unsafe here and I brought you without thinking." Touya didn't dare to look at Keigo, as he opened the cabinets and looked through for ice packs. If dad knew I was good enough, he wouldn't lash out at us, he reminded himself, bitterly.
"But it's not your fault.." Keigo replied back to the bitter words that left his mouth. To be fair, Keigo was happy to see this side of things. Although it wasn't good. He knew the truth. Grabbing some alcohol wipes to help clean up the busts in his skin. His eyes stared with a sour look. His friend didn't deserve this either…
Touya sighed. It seemed like convincing Keigo that this was indeed his fault wouldn't really be possible, since the boy with wings was far too compassionate and kind to recognize a harsh truth like that. Touya knew him recently, but he could still tell that much.
Keigo had ramaged through his pockets, pulling out a string and picking one of his feathers to tie on. Scooting, he had set it over Touya's neck.
"You can run away? " Like himself.
"Run away where?" Touya opened his palms, tilting his head, looking at his partner in mischief questioningly when he gave him the necklace. "I don't think I can become a hero if I'm homeless, Keigo." He deadpanned. "This necklace looks cool." He smiled, but immediately dropped it because of the pain, and brought the ice pack to his mouth quickly. "Don't come near me with these alcohol wipes…" his tone was playful, although his eyes did widen when he realized Keigo wanted to clean his wound with that.
"But I have to! Else it will get dirty.. That's no good." Keigo replied back to the playful tone of Touya's. He could already tell that Touya didn't want the alcohol wipes on his wounds. The stinging pain. He was ready in pain as is. And with Touya's replies. He knew he may have been in some emotional or mental pain.
The young boy had lowered the wipes. His eyes stared at Touya before scuttling over to hug him. His wings limb on the floor to not be in the way. "You don't know that." It was a reply to his homeless comment he remembered. "I think if you put your mind to it. No matter the living problems.. You can be a hero.." His voice kinda broke when he whispered what he said. He had a lot of hope for Touya. Something he didn't have for himself. Being a hero wasn't something on the bird's life plans. But just maybe. His need to be a hero would grow. His sole reason for it would've obviously been to protect Touya. After all, who wouldn't want to protect their best friend?
Touya's eyes widened. A hug was a surprise. It was the second time Keigo had hugged him, and it felt as comforting as the first occasion. He allowed himself to clasp him, drawing his arms around his torso, as they held each other. Touya put his head on his shoulder.
If Keigo believed in him, then Touya also would believe in himself.