POV DABI

"What the hell happened?!" Shigaraki booms as I burst through the front door. The door smacks against the wall, knocking over a coat rack. Himiko, who's on the bottom stair leading up the second floor, squeaks and glares at me. The coat rack knocked over her block tower. "Where's your hero friend?"

"Shut the fuck up," I growl. "Not in the mood to fight with your dumb ass right now, Shigaraki."

"Don't be a brat, Nugget," Himiko says, standing to her feet with a pout. She kicks the blocks out of her path and wraps her arms around my torso. "What's wrong? Did the birdie do something bad?"

I push Himiko roughly, making her fall back and trip on one of the blocks. She freezes up on the floor, staring at me like I'm a monster. She starts to tremble, but before the tears spill out of her eyes, her expression neutralizes. Her golden eyes dull, and the muscles in her face relax. She stands up and walks out the door. Shiggy just scoffs at me, pulling on his gloves as he chases after her.

"What's all the noise for?" Compress asks, rushing down the stairs. "Am I missing a show?"

"It's nothing," I grunt in response. Compress stares at me, not believing a thing. I sigh, pressing my hands to each side of my head. There's a dull ache in the center of my brain, and I don't think I have enough alcohol to nullify it. "Got any bourbon?"

"Don't let him drink," Spinner jumps in, pulling on his weird scarf thing. He heads to the door, stopping to pick up the coat rack. "I suggest you keep an eye on Twice to make sure he doesn't have another nightmare while I go out and get Shigaraki and Toga. Kurogiri can handle Dabi the best."

"Nobody is 'handling' me!" I scream at the lizard bastard. "What do you think I am, a hormonal, mentally ill teenager?! I'm fucking fine! I can take care of myself!" Compress and Spinner exchange a glance I can't decipher, making the rage in me intensify. I need somebody to blame, somebody that isn't me because I know if I take this anger out on myself, I won't be alive to see the results. My fists are flaming with a blue inferno, and my vision is a blurry red color. Mr. Compress heads back to Twice's room while Spinner exits the base. I stand frozen in my spot, a scream building up in the back of my throat.

"Dabi," Kurogiri says softly. The sound of my heart thumping fights with Kurogiri's voice, but I manage to separate them, hearing them both. "Are you doing alright?"

"I'm fine," I choke out. But I can feel my legs buckling beneath me. Keigo really betrayed me, and I'm really taking it out on the people I care about most. How am I any better than Enji? I hate the pain that I'm feeling, but I know I deserve every last drop of it.

But jesus fucking christ, it hurts.

I let a few days roll by. I don't know what I'm doing, if I'm doing anything at all. The news is talking about Keigo, saying he's been missing for three days. They're trying to blame the league, but it wasn't us. Quite frankly, I don't care who it was. Just another scumbag off the planet. Anti-pollution, per se.

I haven't left my room in three days, either. I haven't eaten or slept. My body feels like it's decaying– well, it is, but it feels like it's decaying more rapidly. And it smells awful. I'm in the middle of counting my stables when there's a soft knock on my door. It creaks open, but I don't bother to look. "Touya," Kurogiri says, stepping inside and closing the door behind him. "You haven't left your room in days, and your face is covered in blood. I think it's time you talk about what's happening."

I roll my eyes. "There's no avoiding it now, I guess." He pulls my desk chair out to sit down while I roll over on my bed with a bottle of bourbon I stole from Spinner. I take long sips while Kurogiri cleans the blood under my eyes. "Don't you think it's fucked up," I say, throwing the almost empty bottle to the side, "that you're the best parental figure I've ever had?"

"Well, on your end, sure," Kurogiri says, "but I take it as a compliment. For some reason, I feel like I have to protect all of you morons. Whether it's because as a type of nomu I'm wired to, or because the dead human within me wishes to, I'm not sure. But either way, I will protect you and care for you like you're my own son because you deserve it. Sure, you're a villain with blood on your hands, but before all that, you're a human. Humans deserve love, patience, and a shoulder to cry on."

"I fucking hate you," I say, failing to hold back the smile on my face.

"I love you as well, Touya," Kurogiri says, smacking me upside the head. "And I'm proud of you for having such a strong heart. Now tell me what's happening with this winged hero of yours."

"He's screwing my dad."

"Wow."

"I know. It fucking sucks." I run my fingers through my hair, tugging at every strand. "Stupid fucking birdie. He lied to me about it, too! He told me Endeavor raped him, and... and I believed him. He just looked so scared, and I hadn't seen him like that since we were kids. Maybe his lies were obvious and it was my personal bias that clouded the whole situation. I don't know. But Endeavor said Hawks did it all to move his infiltration job forward. That damn bird played me!"

"So you trusted Hawks, correct?" Kurogiri says.

"Yeah, I guess," I grunt back, feeling my face heat up a bit. Stupid fucking bird boy. "Don't see why it matters now."

"And you've always hated Endeavor for how he treated you and your family," Kurogiri continues. I nod, not really catching on. "So why are you trusting Endeavor's word over Hawks'? Endeavor most likely lied to you to keep his own plan afloat, and you walked right into it. Have you talked to Hawks at all? He's been missing since you guys left that night."

After a few beats of silence, the realization kicks in. Enji was up when I entered the house, after Keigo had turned off the security system. Keigo was waiting for me to save him... "I left him alone with Endeavor!" I blurt out, jumping to my feet. I pull on my jacket, feeling a pulse of electricity run through me. I let out a string of curses while Kurogiri just watches me as if I'm a lunatic.

"I'll warp you over there, dumbass," he says. "Be careful."

#

"Damn," I say as I approach the house. It's mid afternoon and humid; the low sun still somehow heats the gate around the Todoroki household. I race around to the front of the house, not worrying about being seen. The front gate is wide open, as is the front door, but I don't take the time to assess why. I race through the gate and up to the front steps, slamming the door behind me as I enter. "Keigo!" I scream, hurrying up the stairs. I catch the sound of a cabinet slamming and pivot back down. Someone's in the kitchen.

"What the hell did you do to him?!" Natsuo screams at Endeavor. Enji just pauses, probably processing what's happening. He sees me approach behind Natsuo, and his eyes grow a bit wider. "Answer me, damn it! Why was Hawks tied up in our basement?!"

"What?" I growl, resting my hand on Natsuo's shoulder. Rage consumes me, but it's only my blue flames that show, burning on my shoulders. If I don't regulate my emotions correctly, my entire body is going to end up in flames.

"Get out of my house, Dabi," Enji growls. "This doesn't concern you."

"The fuck it does!" I say, feeling the intensity of my fire increase. "What the fuck did you do to my bird?!"

Endeavor doesn't speak at first. He just stares at us, his two sons, the ones that could never live up to his standards. We're the angriest of his children, the most violent if you look close enough. We were the ones who wanted to be heroes, not Fuyumi and definitely not Shoto. Yet look at how things turned out. Even with all the pain and suffering put towards the cause, there isn't a single hero standing in this room.

"He burned Hawks' wings off," Natsuo says. "The guy's whole back is ruined, and when Shoto found him in the basement, he had practically given up on living."

"Before you attack me, my sons," Enji says. He lets his head drop, his shoulders slump, like he knows he's already been defeated. The sight is like music to my ears. "Just know that I've always wanted the best for our family. In order to provide for us, I have to be the number one hero. In turn that means I can't have people running around trying to ruin my reputation."

"That's a bullshit excuse," I hiss at him. "You're nothing but an abusive, manipulative liar. The whole world is going to know what you did, Enji. You're not a father, not even a man. You're a perpetrator who deserves nothing, not even the blood in your body."

"Touya," Enji pleads. "I'll give you anything you want. Money, information, anything. Just please don't make a scene out of this."

"Touya?" Natsuo echoes, turning to me. "You're..."

"Sorry we had to meet under these circumstances, little bro," I say, not taking my eyes off of Endeavor. "We can catch up after I disintegrate our dear old dad."

"Not happening," Fuyumi says, stepping in front of Natsuo and me.

The both of us roll our eyes immensely. "Really, Fu? Now? Couldn't you play the mother role after dad is buried?" Natsuo groans.

"The police are on their way," she says. "Dad is going to prison, so there's no need for you to fight him."

"I wasn't gonna fight him!" I exclaim. "I was gonna fucking kill him!"

"And that's any better?" Fuyumi says. She spins around, glaring at Endeavor. "And you. Don't think I'm on your side just because I protected you from my brothers. All faith I had in you is gone. You're no longer my father, Enji. I'd rather burn alive than be your daughter."

"That's fine. You've always been very hard-headed," Endeavor says. "Thank you for stopping the conflict. But I hope you know, it's not me who's being arrested. It's the villain who's flames are a thousand times hotter than mine. They're not going to believe you children over the number one hero."

The sound of sirens fills our ears, and panic floods over me. "Go," Fuyumi says to me, pushing me to the back door. "Get to X hospital where Hawks is. He was asking for you. Shoto will be there to defend you if there's anyone who stops you. Hurry!"

I sprint out the back door, nearly tripping over myself. Damn bird. Once again, I broke a promise. And once again, he welcomes me with open arms.