Chapter Text
If it were up to Shoto, he would have stayed at the dorms during the extended weekend.
He hated being home during these times. The empty home only reminded him of the harsh life he had lived, and the childhood he never truly had. True, his sister did her best to make it feel homely whenever he came home, but there was only so much she could do given her busy school schedule. She had tried to decorate once, lining the walls with family photos that had been taken before their mother was committed to the mental hospital, but Shoto could remember hearing his father's angry voice as he tore down all the photos. He would never forget the forlorn look Fuyumi carried for the rest of that day.
There was not much that Natsuo could do for him either as he had decided not to return home until their winter break in a few more weeks. Shoto could not blame his brother. Natsuo detested their old man with a fiery passion. He just wished that Natsuo could be here, even if he was just a distraction from what he knew was going to happen.
Currently Shoto was the only one in the house. Fuyumi had gone out a few hours ago to handle some grocery shopping. Fuyumi wanted to make a large meal for them to enjoy together since it had been a while since he was last home, and Natsuo was supposed to be visiting later that night. While Shoto loved the sentiment behind the gesture, he knew how it would turn out. Their family meals were never very joyful. Either their father would pick a fight with Natsuo over something stupid, or he would end the meal early without another word. The latter was the scarier of the two as it often led to long training sessions that ended with burns and bruises.
Shoto glanced at the clock that hung on the wall. It was nearly 6 in the afternoon. His father would be home any minute now. Just the idea of it sent his heart racing. Endeavor made him train every other day unless he became angry during a family meal. Yesterday had been a rest day thanks both to that schedule, and a late day at the office. That meant that today was going to be a training day.
The sound of the front door sliding open pulled Shoto out of his thoughts. He looked up from where he had been sitting reading a book to eye his father as he came into the house. There was a tension in the air around him as he hung up his coat and kicked his shoes off. Something had bothered him today, and Shoto knew it was going to come back to bite him.
He rose from his seat, his book left forgotten on the small table beside the chair.
“How was work at the agency?” Shoto asked, hoping that such a question may break the tension that was building. Instead, his father glared at him, teal eyes seeming to look right through him. Shoto found himself rooted to the spot, unable to move even if he wanted to. That stare was all he needed to see to understand that he was not getting an easy training today.
“I expect you to be in the training room an hour from now. I won’t accept tardiness.” Endeavor stated in a hard tone before stalking off to his office. The sliding door slammed shut behind him, and Shoto was once again alone.
Shoto fell back into his chair, a shaky breath escaping his chest. He had been afraid of this. It was a bad day. No doubt he would end up burned after today's training.
---
It was a relatively quiet evening.
Aizawa was seated on the couch of his small apartment that he shared with his husband, Yamada, just outside the UA grounds. So far, things had been quiet since the extended weekend began. Even his patrols were quiet, which was a surprise given the time of year. While he appreciated it, it also left a foreboding feeling within him. It was like the calm before a raging storm.
He glanced up to the TV in front of him. There was an American Christmas classic playing for the young occupant of the apartment, young Eri. Despite being a few weeks away from the holiday, Eri had been begging to watch the movies, so he had given in and allowed her to watch them. Aizawa and Yamada had decided to fully adopt the child once she had gotten settled and comfortable around them. They wanted her to have a safe home, one where she could make choices for herself instead of the hero commission making them for her. She was seated on the floor in front of the coffee table. She was coloring while watching the movie, her eyes darting between the screen and her coloring books strewn across the table. Every now and then he could hear her humming along to the songs in the film. It was nice to see her so at ease.
Aizawa glanced at his cellphone, noting that it was nearing 8 o'clock now. It would be time for him to leave for his patrol soon.
Aizawa and Yamada had decided on a schedule for their patrols, as they often cased the same districts when on patrol. They would trade off every other night to handle the patrols. Yamada had taken the last patrol a few days ago, so this time it was Aizawa’s turn.
Aizawa heaved a sigh as he stood from the couch, fatigue drawing at his bones despite having gotten plenty of sleep that day.
“Is it time for you to go again?” Eri asked in a soft voice.
“Yeah, it’s that time again.” Aizawa said. He moved closer to the young girl, kneeling so that he was at eye level with her. He raised one of his hands to her head, ruffling her hair in a way that caused her to giggle. “You be good for Papa ok. I’ll see you in the morning.” He spoke.
“Ok.” Eri said in a soft tone. “Good luck fighting the bad guys.” She added.
Aizawa cracked a smile at her comment. He brushed some stray hairs behind her horn before standing up. He was quick in changing from his simple loungewear into his hero costume. As he was wrapping his capture scarf around his neck, he heard the door to the bedroom open. When he glanced over to see who it was, he spotted Yamada standing there. His hair was down compared to its normal pencil straight up style.
“I thought you were still recording for the next radio show.” Aizawa muttered.
“Just wanted to see you off.” Yamada said. “And I didn’t want to leave Eri alone while you’re out. I know she can get jumpy at night when she’s alone.’ He added.
“It’s just a patrol. Nothing special.” Aizawa said.
“I know.” Yamada said with a laugh as he approached the man. He leaned forward, pressing his forehead to Aizawa’s. “Just be careful ok.” He spoke.
“I always am.” Aizawa said.
The two men back away from each other before going their separate ways, Yamada returning to the living room to sit with Eri while Aizawa leaves the apartment to start his patrol.
The start of his patrol was no different to what it normally was. He started by going roof to roof through the district, eyes watching the streets for any signs of trouble. He had an earpiece on that was playing the local police radio, something that many heroes had access to in case the police needed their aid. So far, the line was quiet, save for small talk and little disturbances that did not warrant his attention.
An hour passed like this, quiet and simple just like his last patrol.
That was when things changed.
Aizawa felt a buzz coming from his pocket, alerting him to an incoming call. He had put his phone on vibrate to help keep his cover while on patrol. The last thing he wanted was to give himself away if he needed to stay in the shadows. He grabbed his cellphone, noting that the number was not one he recognized. He knew most of the police officers' numbers at this point given how many incidents he had been asked to help with, so this was new to him. Who was trying to get ahold of him?
In the end Aizawa pressed the answer button. For all he knew, it was a new officer who he had not met yet.
“This is Eraser head.” He spoke.
“Please, help me.”
Aizawa’s blood ran cold at the sound of the voice.
He knew that voice clear as day.
“Todoroki, is that you?” Aizawa asked, doing his best to hide the worry and concern that was racing through his mind.
“I... I need help... Please.”
“What happened kid?” Aizawa asked.
He rushed to the edge of the roof he was standing on, jumping as he flung his capture scarf out to grab onto a nearby pole. He used it to propel himself towards the next rooftop. By the time he landed he was already preparing to do this same thing again, knowing that he could not waste any time.
There was silence from the other side of the line.
“Talk to me Todoroki. What happened?” Aizawa asked in a louder tone.
“He’ll hear me... I can’t.” Todoroki whispered, so quiet that Aizawa barely managed to hear him.
Aizawa cursed low under his breath. Someone was after his student, and it was clear that he was in a bad situation. Todoroki had been one of a few students who decided to go home for the extended weekend to be with family, which left Aizawa with a horrible feeling. He hoped that he was wrong, but deep down he already knew the truth.
“Who is after you Todoroki?” Aizawa asked. “Is it your father?”
“Yes.”
“Where are you now?” Aizawa asked.
“I’m in the closet in my room.”
“Ok. I’m on my way now. Just stay where you are, ok.” Aizawa explained. “Are you hurt?” He asked.
Silence filled the line.
“Todoroki, are you hurt?” Aizawa asked in a louder tone.
“We... We were training... H-He burned me a few times, and I think my arm might be broken. I ran after that... I don’t know where he is now.”
“Ok, just stay quiet for now. I’m going to stay on the line until I get to your house. I will be there in ten minutes.” Aizawa said.
“Please hurry... He’s so angry I’m worried he will do something to Fuyumi to.”
“Fuyumi? Who is she?” Aizawa questioned.
“My older sister. She had stepped out earlier to do some grocery shopping. She’s due home any minute now.”
Things just got more complicated. Not only was Todoroki in harm's way, but now his sister could be walking straight into it. He had to find a way to prevent her from getting wrapped up in this mess as well.
“Ok. Is there any way that you could warn her to stay away?” Aizawa asked.
“No, she-”
A loud crashing sound filled the air. Aizawa could hear something being thrown on the other end of the line.
“Todoroki, are you still there?”
There was another crashing sound which was followed by a cry of surprise.
“WE WERE NOT DONE TRAINING YET SHOTO!”
“No, don’t-”
A crackling sound filled the line, followed by a scream of pain, and then he was cut off.
“Todoroki!” Aizawa shouted.
He redialed his student's phone number, hoping that he would be able to get through to him. Sadly, each time he tried he was sent straight to voicemail. Aizawa cursed under his breath as he switched up tactics, deciding to dial his husband instead.
“Come on Hizashi, pick up.” Aizawa mumbled.
There was a click.
“What’s going on? You’ve only been gone an hou-”
“Hizashi, I need you to listen carefully to what I’m about to tell you.” Aizawa said, cutting the man off.
“What happened?”
“I need you to call the police and tell them to report to the Todoroki household immediately. I am already enroute to the estate. Tell them that it’s a domestic dispute, and that the reporting party has injuries.” said.
“You... You’re not joking.”
“No, I’m not.” Aizawa said. “Todoroki called my cellphone. I only gave my students that number for emergencies. Now my suspicions are proven.”
“Consider it done. Do you need me there?”
“No, stay with Eri for now. See if you could get ahold of Midnight or Ectoplasm. They might be able to help.” Aizawa said.
“Got it.”
The line went dead after that leaving Aizawa to his thoughts as he rushed towards his student's house.
All kinds of thoughts ran through Aizawa’s head as he ran along the streets now, having exited the city and entered a neighborhood lined with expensive houses.
Was Todoroki ok?
How long had this kind of training been going on?
If this was happening, then why had he decided to go home for the weekend? He could have easily stayed at the dorms, as many of the students had chosen to do since their families were busy. It would have been safe, and he would never have been harmed.
How could this have happened?
No.
How could he let something like this happen?
The remaining time seemed to crawl by despite Aizawa’s racing heartbeat. He ran as fast as his legs would carry him, swinging from rooftop to rooftop towards the house. He was not a religious man by any means. However, as he grew closer to the Todoroki household, Aizawa found himself praying that he would reach his student in time.
He could not let him down.
Finally, after what felt like years of running, Aizawa had reached the house.
As he reached the front gate, he was able to make out a female voice screaming for someone to stop. This had to be the sister that Todoroki had mentioned. Aizawa forced the front gate open and rushed towards the house.
Upon the first step into the home, he came across destruction and mayhem. There were burn marks along the walls leading down the hallway, and there was a hole in the wooden floorboards. He could smell burnt hair heavy in the air, setting his nerves on edge.
Aizawa ran forward at the sound of glass shattering. He could hear more screams from Fuyumi, followed by a cry of pain that sent chills down his spine. That was Todoroki’s voice, without a doubt. The sounds led him into the kitchen of the house, and what he found was something he did not expect.
Endeavor was standing over Todoroki’s form on the floor, one foot pressed hard into his side to keep him from crawling away. Todoroki was laid out on his side, his face covered in blood. His right eye was swollen shut. He could just make out the broken arm that was pinned underneath him, and judging by the angle his left leg was at it had to be broken as well. There was glass on the floor from some broken glassware, but he could not tell if the glass had injured him from this angle. Fuyumi was knelt on the floor a few feet away from them. She was watching in horror as she gripped a wound on her head. Some of the hair around her hand appeared burned, which was the cause of the smell.
Aizawa’s eyes flashed red as anger coursed through his veins. He reached for his capture scarf, gripping it with white knuckles.
“What the hell are you doing!?” Aizawa demanded.
Endeavor’s gaze lifted to the pro hero. There was anger on his face as he snarled at the teacher.
“Just what do you think you’re doing in my home?” Endeavor snarled.
“I think I have a reason to be here now.” Aizawa stated before taking a step forward. “What do you think you’re doing?” He repeated.
“What does it look like?” Endeavor asked. “I’m disciplining my child for stepping out of line.”
With those words Endeavor began to put more weight on the foot that was pinning Todoroki to the ground. A strangled cry of pain escaped Todoroki’s throat at the action, his left eye scrunched in pain. Anger flared in Aizawa as he flung his capture scarf forward. The cloth wrapped tightly around one of Endeavors arms as Aizawa gave a harsh tug to the fabric. The force of the tug caused Endeavor to stumble backwards. In doing so he was forced off Todoroki. A painful gasp filled the air as Todoroki was able to take as normal a breath as he could given his injuries.
Aizawa wasted no time, running at Endeavor. He had no patience to spare for the hero at this point, not after what he had seen the man do to his own son. Endeavor stood to face him, rearing back to throw a punch towards the teacher. Aizawa saw this coming and managed to duck underneath the oncoming fist. He pivoted so that he was facing Endeavor once more before throwing his capture weapon forward. The cloth wrapped around the fist that had been aimed at his head. He then used the cloth to pull himself forward, propelling himself into the hero’s torso. He nailed Endeavor in the stomach with his elbow, using his other hand to grab the other end of his capture weapon. The force of the blow caused Endeavor to stumble as a growl of annoyance escaped his throat.
“You’re going to regret that.” Endeavor stated as fire burst from his body.
Aizawa was quick to erase his quirk once more as he threw the other end of his capture scarf to wrap around Endeavors free hand. He yanked hard on the capture weapon, forcing Endeavor to his knees. He then used both ends of the capture scarf to wrap around his arms, pinning them at his sides. Removing the scarf gave him enough length to wrap around his legs so that he had no means of escape. Endeavor did not go down without a fight. He kicked at Aizawa, managing to land a few blows. However, Aizawa refused to give in to the pain. He had to subdue Endeavor for the safety of the Todoroki children.
Finally, Endeavor was subdued on the floor with nowhere to go. He was glaring at Aizawa, his icy blue eyes filled with rage.
“I wouldn’t try burning through that. The material is fire-proof. You can’t burn through it.” Aizawa stated, his eyes faded back to their normal color and his hair falling back to its normal resting position. “I suggest you stay put, unless you have a death wish.”
Endeavor continued to glare as his body erupted in fire. True to his words, Aizawa’s capture weapon would not burn.
“Shoto... Shoto, look at me.” Fuyumi’s voice called out.
Aizawa turned his attention to the siblings on the floor behind him. Fuyumi had moved to Shoto’s side during the short brawl. She had rolled Shoto onto his back and was cradling his head in her lap. One of her hands was pressed to his cheek, the other tangled in his hair. Shoto was taking sharp ragged breaths, his eyes shut in pain. His uninjured arm was wrapped protectively around his stomach, the knuckles on his hand white from how hard he was gripping at his torn shirt.
Aizawa rushed towards the siblings, falling to his knees beside them.
“Todoroki, can you hear me?” Aizawa asked.
Shoto let out a painful cough as his unswollen eye cracked open.
“Is... Is he down?” Shoto asked.
“He’s tied down with my capture weapon kid. He isn’t going anywhere.” Aizawa assured.
“I... I tried to f-fight back, b-but he... He overpowered me and-” Shoto was cut off by another cough, followed by a groan of pain. His good eye screwed shut, and his grip on his shirt somehow grew tighter. He squirmed in clear agony, trying to fight through the pain his body was in.
“Shh... It’s ok Sho. You’re safe now, ok. You’re safe.” Fuyumi whispered as she ran her hand through her brother's hair. A soft whimper escaped Todoroki’s throat as he leaned into the touch.
“Todoroki, can you tell me what exactly hurts?” Aizawa asked.
“Y-Yeah... My arm and leg are broken... I think a few of my ribs are broken too... M-My other arm is burned and.... and my stomach hurts really bad.” Shoto explained.
“How bad on a scale from one to ten?” Aizawa asked.
Shoto whimpered in pain as he tried to move into a more comfortable position. Fuyumi, however, would not allow him to do so. It was for his own good that he stayed lying on his back so that he would not risk further injury. Another whimper escaped Shoto’s throat as he shut his eyes in pain. He had never seen his student act this way before.
Aizawa bit his lip, afraid of what this could mean. He had seen these kinds of injuries once before. That man had not survived the internal bleeding his injuries caused. Could the same be happening to Shoto?
There was only one way to find out.
“Todoroki, I’m going to need you to move your arm away from your stomach. I must check for injuries.” Aizawa said.
Shoto cracked a single eye open to gaze at his teacher. The utter fear and agony behind that gaze reminded Aizawa that, despite the brave face that Shoto often put on during school, he was in fact still a child. He was a child who was afraid and in pain.
“Please Sho, let him check you out.” Fuyumi begged. “If you’re hurt then he should know.”
Shoto let a shaky breath out of his chest. The eye he had opened shut, and the arm wrapped around his abdomen moved away. Aizawa was quick to move closer to his student. He gripped the hem of Todoroki’s shirt before gently lifting it up. He heard Shoto gasp in pain as he tensed under the touch.
That was not a good sign.
Aizawa tried to be gentler as he moved the shirt out of the way so he could get a good look at Shoto’s stomach. What he found was a mottled mess of purple, blue, and black against pale skin. The bruising covered the right side of Shoto’s abdomen stretching from his stomach down to his hip. Given the size and location, it had to have been caused by Endeavor kicking him in the side multiple times. The bruising alone was bad enough, but there was something else that worried Aizawa more.
Was Todoroki bleeding internally?
“Oh god.” Fuyumi whispered in horror as her eyes drifted over the wounds.
“It hurts.” Shoto said.
“I need to press on the area quick Todoroki. You could have internal bleeding.” Aizawa explained.
Shoto nodded, giving his teacher the go ahead.
Aizawa pressed his fingers in the middle of the bruise and gave a solid push against Shoto’s abdomen. The pressure caused Shoto to scream in pain as his back arched off the floor. Fuyumi did her best to hold him down, but there was only so much she could do. Aizawa immediately stopped what he was doing, returning Shoto’s shirt to cover the bruising.
Shoto’s breathing became shallow as he settled against the floor once again.
“Sho, what’s wrong?” Fuyumi asked.
“I... I feel dizzy.” Shoto whispered.
Aizawa cursed under his breath. He did not want to admit it to Fuyumi out of fear of scaring her, but he was now sure that Shoto was bleeding internally. How bad this could be, he did not know.
“You’re going to be ok Sho, just stay with us.” Fuyumi said as she ran her hand through his bicolored hair. “Help is on the way.”
“It hurts.” Shoto whimpered.
The two of them stayed knelt on the floor with Shoto doing everything they could to keep him comfortable. The tense silence that had fallen was only broken by Shoto’s pained whimpers, and angry snarling from Endeavor across the room.
Finally, after what felt like years of waiting, sirens began to ring out in the air.
“Finally.” Aizawa breathed as he pushed to his feet. “Stay with him.” He instructed Fuyumi before rushing towards the front doors to greet the authorities.
When he opened the door, he was greeted with the sight of police officers and a crew of Paramedics rolling a stretcher between them. Midnight and Ectoplasm, who had been discussing a plan of action with the police, were quick to look towards Aizawa when he stepped outside. Midnight was the first one to react, rushing towards her fellow teacher.
“We got the call from Mic. What happened?” Midnight asked.
“Endeavor beat the shit out of Todoroki, that’s what.” Aizawa said. “He called me using the emergency number I gave all my students. I’m not going to lie, it’s bad.”
“We need the Paramedics inside now!” Ectoplasm ordered.
“Endeavor is restrained now, but I think it will be best if you put him to sleep with your quirk before we try to move him.” Aizawa said.
A sinister smile spread on Midnights face as she moved towards the door.
“You don’t have to tell me twice.” She spoke.
While his fellow hero’s took control of the situation, Aizawa was taken aside to give his side of the story given that he had been the first one on scene. As he was doing this his gaze continually drifted towards the front door of the Todoroki estate. He watched as Endeavor was carried out by several of ectoplasms clones, followed by a few other officers guiding him to the waiting van. A few minutes later the paramedics burst through the door with Todoroki lying on the stretcher. There was an oxygen mask on Shoto’s face, but unlike before his face was relaxed, tilted to one side. The paramedics were talking fast as they rushed towards the waiting ambulance followed by Fuyumi.
“OK. We’ve got everything we needed from you. You can go now Eraser Head.” The officer taking his statement stated.
Aizawa was quick to rush towards the waiting ambulance. The paramedics had just gotten the stretcher inside and were getting ready to close the doors.
“I’m going with him.” Aizawa said.
“Get in. We have to get him to the hospital now.” The paramedics stated, clearly not wanting to argue for Shoto’s sake.
Aizawa climbed into the ambulance, the doors slamming shut behind him. He sat on the bench Fuyumi was seated on as his eyes drifted towards Shoto. He was paler than before, his skin nearly as white as the right side of his hair. The paramedic who stayed in the back with them was trying to get an IV started on his uninjured arm as the ambulance began to move down the road.
“Sir, is my brother going to be alright?” Fuyumi asked in a soft voice.
The paramedic gave her a grim look as he taped down the IV tube.
“We’ll do all we can.” The paramedic said.
Aizawa glanced towards Fuyumi. Her face was contorted with fear and sadness. It was clear that she was suffering having seen her brother so savagely attacked. No doubt she had seen this before. He watched as her hand hovered over her brothers, afraid to touch him now that the paramedics were working on him. He could see the fear grow in her eyes as they shifted to look at Todoroki’s face.
What had this family been put through?