The festive lights of the city blurred into streaks of mocking color as I stumbled through the alleyway. Christmas. Another year, another charade of forced cheer, another brutal reminder of the gaping chasm that separated me from anything resembling a normal family. At seventeen, I was familiar with the bitter taste of disappointment, but this year… this year was a new low.
My cheek throbbed, a dull, insistent ache that echoed the hollowness in my chest. The argument, or rather, the one-sided lecture from my father, had escalated quickly. Words became accusations, accusations became shoves, and shoves became… well, I didn't want to think about it. I just wanted to escape. To disappear.
That's how I found myself in this dingy alley, the scent of stale garbage and rain clinging to the air. I was running blind, fueled by a desperate need to get away, when I collided with a solid form.
"Watch it, kid," a raspy voice growled.
I looked up, my vision swimming with unshed tears. The figure looming before me was shrouded in shadows, but even in the dim light, the scars were unmistakable. Patches of raw, purple skin, like melted wax, marred his face and neck. It was Dabi.
My breath hitched. A villain. Someone I should be fighting, not weeping in front of. But the pain inside me was a tidal wave, and the dam had finally broken. I didn't care anymore. Good, bad, right, wrong… all the lines blurred into a meaningless mess.
"I… I can't go back," I choked out, the words a broken sob. "He… he hit me."
Dabi's expression didn't change, but I saw a flicker of something in his eyes, a flicker that wasn't entirely devoid of surprise. He tilted his head, considering me.
"Endeavor, huh? Figures." He scoffed, a harsh, humorless sound. "Well, come on, kid. You can't stay here."
And just like that, my life took a turn I never could have anticipated. Dabi, the scarred villain, took me in.
He didn't offer platitudes or false sympathy. He just treated my wounds, both physical and emotional, with a gruff kind of care. He gave me a place to sleep, food to eat, and, most importantly, he didn't ask questions I wasn't ready to answer. He gave me space, a sanctuary away from the suffocating expectation of my father.
He even, occasionally, let me tag along with the League of Villains. Not on the front lines, never when there was real danger. He said I was too young, too… fragile. I knew it was because he was worried about me, in his own twisted way.
He taught me things, not just about fighting, but about the world outside the rigid confines of my hero training. He showed me the cracks in the system, the hypocrisy of the heroes, the suffering that often went ignored. I started to understand his anger, his rage, even if I didn't condone his methods.
Being around Dabi was… complicated. He was a villain, a murderer, a destructive force. But he was also the only person who had ever truly seen me, the only one who didn't expect me to be something I wasn't. He accepted me, broken and bruised, without judgment.
Time passed. I trained with Dabi, honed my powers, and learned to control the volatile mix of fire and ice that raged within me. I even started to feel… something akin to happiness. A fragile, tentative feeling, like a seedling pushing through concrete.
Then came the war.
The League of Villains mobilized, their plans finally reaching fruition. Dabi and the others prepared for battle, their faces grim and determined. I stayed behind.
"You're not ready," Dabi said, his voice low and firm. "This isn't your fight."
I knew he was protecting me, but I couldn't shake the feeling that I was abandoning him. As they left, a sense of dread settled over me. I watched the news, the images flashing across the screen a horrifying kaleidoscope of destruction.
The heroes were fighting back, but the League was relentless. Buildings crumbled, flames engulfed the city, and screams echoed through the streets. I couldn't stay put anymore.
I pulled on a black hoodie, obscuring my face, and headed towards the battlefield. I had been avoiding this moment, the inevitable confrontation with my family, with my past. But I couldn't hide any longer.
As I approached the epicenter of the battle, my heart clenched. The scene was chaotic, a maelstrom of clashing powers and desperate cries. And then I saw them.
My mother, Rei, her face etched with worry. My siblings, Natsuo and Fuyumi, fighting alongside the heroes, their expressions strained with fear and determination. And then, him.
Endeavor, my father, his face a mask of grim fury, battling a figure engulfed in flames. It was Dabi.
But it wasn't just Dabi. He was shouting, ranting about a past filled with abuse and neglect. He was Touya.
I already knew.
The moment I saw the pictures while searching for dabi on the internet I had a sinking feeling. The way Dabi spoke about his past, the way he held himself, the sheer intensity of his rage... it all pointed to one horrifying conclusion.
My brother, Touya Todoroki, was a villain. A broken, vengeful force of nature. He had spent years planning his revenge, fueled by the pain and trauma inflicted by our father and that was something I can't let happen.
Dabi unleashed a torrent of fire, a raging inferno that threatened to consume everything in its path. The heroes struggled to contain it, their powers strained to their limits. My father, his face contorted with a mixture of anger and desperation, fought with all his might.
But Dabi was too strong. He was consumed by his rage, powered by the years of resentment and pain. He was about to explode, literally.
I acted without thinking. I unleashed my ice, a wave of freezing energy that crashed against Dabi's flames, suppressing them. The sudden surge of cold air sent shivers down my spine.
The fire subsided, leaving Dabi gasping for breath. The heroes paused, their eyes widening in surprise. I stepped forward, my hood falling back, revealing my face.
Dabi stared at me, his eyes wide with disbelief. "Shoto?"
I knelt beside him, ignoring the shocked gasps of the heroes and the stunned silence of my family. I reached out, gently touching his scarred face.
"Touya," I said softly, using his real name for the first time in years. "Stop. Please."
He flinched at my touch, his eyes filled with a mixture of pain and confusion. He recoiled. He didn't stop me.
"You…" he whispered, his voice hoarse. "You shouldn't be here."
"I know," I said. "But I couldn't let you destroy yourself."
I pulled out a roll of bandages from my bag. He let me tend to his burns. The silence was broken by a strangled gasp. It was my mother. She staggered forward, her hand reaching out towards Dabi, towards Touya.
"Touya… is that really you?" she whispered.
My siblings followed her, their faces etched with shock and disbelief. My father, however, remained rooted to the spot, his face a mask of stunned silence.
The heroes, my classmates, were equally stunned. I saw Midoriya, Bakugo, Uraraka, their faces a mixture of horror and confusion. They had never expected to see me on the villain's side, let alone tending to Dabi's wounds.
The truth was out. The carefully constructed facade that I had maintained for so long had shattered, revealing the messy, complicated reality beneath. It was terrifying, but also… liberating.
I looked at my father, his face finally betraying a flicker of emotion. It wasn't remorse, not yet, but it was something. It was recognition. He finally saw the damage he had inflicted, the pain he had caused.
I was ready.
"I'm not your tool anymore, Father," I said, my voice clear and steady. "I am not who you want me to be, I will never be. I am my own person, and from now on, I will choose my own path."
The battle was far from over, but in that moment, something shifted. The dynamic changed. The truth had been revealed, the secrets exposed. The past could no longer be ignored.
I didn't know what the future held. I didn't know if Dabi could be saved, if my family could be healed, if the world could ever truly be at peace. But I knew one thing: I was no longer afraid.
I had faced my past, embraced my truth, and found my voice. I was ready to face whatever came next, on my own terms. And perhaps, just perhaps, that was the first step towards a future where the Todoroki family could finally find peace.