POV DABI

"Mama!" Himiko squeals, jumping behind Kurogiri. Kurogiri narrows his misty yellow eyes, tugging on the cuff of his white button up shirt. "Mamagiri, Nugget is trying to kill me!"

"I am not!" I scream at her. Kurogiri gives me an annoyed look while gently rubbing Himiko's back. "This is bullshit! She was instigating! Goldie, you dumb fuck!"

"Watch your mouth," Kurogiri says. "And don't yell at Toga. If she was instigating, she didn't mean it. Apologize."

I cross my arms over my chest, scowling at Himiko and her toothy grin. "I'm not apologizing. This is clearly favoritism."

"I love you both equally," Kurogiri says.

"CAP!" Shiggy croaks from the island counter in the kitchen. "Mom loves me the most! The rest of you are play-toys."

"Zip your crusty lips, Shiggy!" Himiko squeals. "You two got nothing on me." Kurogiri scoffs and walks away, muttering about how the three of us argue like middle school children. Himiko giggles, running over to me and tackling me in a hug. "You know I'm just teasing you, Nugget!" she sings. "You're the best big brother ever."

I ruffle her blonde hair then push her off me with my whole hand covering her face. Shiggy whines about not getting any love before throwing a whisky glass at me. I incinerate it with blue flames, and then Shiggy and I start fighting. Spinner and Mr. Compress have to break it up because Kurogiri needs a brain break; he says there's too much chaos with Shiggy and I fighting, Himiko eating a dead sparrow, and Keigo showing Twice how far he can pee.

When everything is settled down, I grab a hold of Keigo and keep him by my side. He squeaks about my hands being too warm, but I don't care. I don't want him anywhere besides right next to me. "So," Mr. Compress says, "now that everything is situated, it's time you grant us an explanation, Dabi. The stage is yours."

"An explanation?" I say lazily, picking at my teeth with my nails. "About what?"

"How long have you and the bird hero been having sex?" Shiggy blurts. Immediately, Keigo gets red in the face and wraps his wings around himself. I, on the other hand, just clear my throat and ask Shigaraki to repeat himself. "You and Hawks! How long have you been seeing each other?"

"I'm confused," Twice says, raising his hand. "I thought you guys were just friends."

"We are," Keigo says, though his voice is muffled by his wall of feathers.

"We're not friends," I clarify, glaring at Shiggy. "He's helping me with something. Afterwards, we'll go back to normal. He has some information I need, and he was willing to share."

"At what price?" Spinner chimes in. "He is a hero, after all. We're lucky he hasn't spilled our location already."

"Don't worry," I tell them, wrapping my arm around Keigo's shoulders and pulling him to my side. He flinches, but eventually settles. "This damn bird doesn't have the balls to disobey me."

"Real cocky for someone who got up early just to cook my breakfast and massage my feet," Keigo snickers.

"It's giving SIMP," Himiko giggles.

"I did not do that!"

"He totally did," Keigo teases. "Look, the pan he used is right over there."

Twice whips his head around, eyes bulging out of his mask. "Oh my god, he did! Dabi, you fucking simp!"

"Shut up!" I snap at them as laughter flutters around the room. I smack Keigo on the back of the head, but he just keeps laughing. Buckling forward, laughing his ass off. While I am embarrassed, the sight of him so comfortable and happy settles me. It's been a long time since I've seen him smile like that. God, and his laugh is just so precious. My first thought is to keep him close to me – my second thought is to slaughter anyone that dares to hurt him.

And then I remember why I brought him here in the first place.

"We have to go," I announce, grabbing Keigo's hand. "We've got to finish this damn operation, and we're short on time. This way, Birdie."

"Be back before four in the morning," Kurogiri orders, "because Toga said there was a store she said she wanted to check out, and it's your job to keep an eye on her."

"I thought you said we weren't going to let her steal from stores?" Mr. Compress says to Kurogiri. "A young girl shouldn't live a life of thievery."

"She's literally a murderer," Shiggy snaps. "Stealing a pair of shoes doesn't even make a dent compared to the amount of blood on her hands."

"Yes, well–" I close the door behind me as Keigo and I exit onto the street, silencing the voices from inside the base. The world is quiet, as most people are tucking in their children for the bright day ahead of them. There's still a few hours before everyone falls asleep, but this is my favorite time of night. These moments at this time of day are the most serene; the sun is dipping low and every breath that's taken is done with a perfect mixture of liveliness and stillness – of pride from the day completed and hope for the next day to come.

Keigo tugs on my sleeve, a wide grin on his face. "Your introspective face is awfully dramatic, Touya," he says with a chuckle. His head tilts, and his eyes close a bit as he talks. "What're you thinking about?"

"Nothing," I say, glancing away from him. Keigo nods, shoving his hands in his pockets. We stand still for a moment longer, solely because I don't think I'm ready to pack away my past. But then I remember who I'm doing it for: Fuyumi, Natsuo, Shoto, my mom, and Keigo. And me, too. I need to let things die. I need to kill him in order to make everyone better. "Let's go, pretty bird," I say, nodding toward the alley to our left. "We're gonna take a short cut."

"Where're we going?" Keigo asks, trailing behind me. His wings flap a bit as he walks, giving him a little boost to keep up with my fast walking pace. "Are we going to my apartment?"

"We're going to break into Endeavor's house," I say as nonchalantly as I can. But my casualness didn't work. The sound of Keigo's feet stops, and the air around me gets a bit thinner. I turn around slowly, hoping there aren't tears in those golden eyes of his. But of course, there are. "Keigo," I say gently. "You don't have to come with me, okay? I understand if you're not ready."

"I-I'll be okay," he says, wiping his tears. He chuckles dryly, dropping his shaky hands back to his sides. I want to hug him, but I know my quirk is similar to my dad's, and I don't want to scare him. "Just caught me off guard. I'll be alright. I already promised that I'd help you. I want to be strong. I've been suffering because of this man for almost six years, and I want it to be over. I don't want to be afraid to go to a public bathroom or have panic attacks every time I see some fire. I'm the number two hero, and I'm going to get stronger."

"Damn right," I tell him. "You're already so strong, Keigo, and you're only gonna get stronger. I'll be here when you need me to, whenever and wherever. Nobody is gonna lay a finger on you as long as I'm here."

"Thanks," Keigo says, grabbing my hand. "And I'm gonna protect you, too. I know Endeavor has hurt you in so many ways, and I'm gonna make sure you get the closure that you need to that way you can be happy and we can get married–"

"Woah, woah, woah," I say, stepping back as a small laugh slips from my lips. "Kei, where the fuck did you get that idea from? We're not getting married, bird brain."

"Why not?" Keigo whines. "C'mon, Touya! You said we could when we were in the hero program! Remember? I like you, you like me. It only makes sense that we isolate ourselves from society, run away together, and get married. Duh."

"You're crazy," I say, not admitting how amazing it sounds. "One thing at a time, okay, pretty bird? Right now we're business partners. Keep your head in the game." Keigo nods, his eyes glimmering under the street light. We continue our path into the richer part of the city, hidden under the dark sky. I let the sound of his voice fill my ears as we travel, melting into the concept of his presence. Damn bird has me head over heels and he doesn't even know it.