forum Deeper Than the Surface || MHA/BNHA || Tododeku || O/O || Closed!! Feel free to stalk

Started November 04, 2020 by @Cloudy_is_trying_her_best

tune

I can work with that! We could start with Izuku confronting Shoto about what's going on or something?

Yeah, probably. It should be like, after classes let out for the day. And actually let’s do it when they’re all living in the dorms for simplicity’s sale.

Alrighty, do you want to start or do you want me to?

You please?

(Aight! Also I'll change the name pretty soon lol, I just wanted to have an idea of where we're going with this)

"…Yes, father. Goodnight." Shoto hung up and sighed, sitting down on his bed. Since…everything that had happened, his father had been calling him about twice a week. Not because he cared about his son, mind you, but because he wanted to make sure that his prodigy wasn't slacking in school or in training. Being compassionate was apparently for the weak in the new #1 hero's mind. Shoto's right hand absently carded through the snow-white hair on his right side. He was going to visit his mother soon. Endeavor would be furious if he found out, but he didn't particularly care. It wasn't like he could force him to run laps around the house until his legs wouldn't move anymore, not while he was in the dorms.

A knock at his door drew him out of his thoughts. Ah, right. Midoriya had asked if the two of them could meet and go over some literature homework. Shoto had thought it unusual, since Midoriya had never seemed to struggle in that class before, but agreed anyway. After quickly checking to make sure his hair was tidy–no red or white on the wrong side–he opened the door to let his classmate in. "Hello, Midoriya," he greeted.

(Fine by me! And also, could you describe the extra (mental) wounds that Shoto has, and say whatever new ones pop up later?)

Izuku smiled when the door opened for him, his backpack slung over his shoulder. His eyes showed worry though as his eyes dragged over the new wound Shot had. He had never actually told the class he had another quirk other than One For All, because it would have raised suspicions since his two quirks were wildly different. “Hi, Todoroki! I hope I’m not too early!” He readjusted his backpack strap on his shoulder as he studied the new wound, seemingly studying Todoroki’s flawless skin in that area.

(The things in brackets are why he has his "injuries, I felt like I should explain them. I'd say he looks like he gets beat up pretty badly on a daily basis[verbally of course]. Plenty of bruises, cuts, and scars, especially on his right side[I imagine Endeavor berates him pretty regularly for being "dependent" on his mother's quirk], but there's still a noticeable amount on his left too. One that sticks out is a shape that's a lot fainter than the others, a large handprint on the left side of his face. It looks like a burn(not from fire or boiling water, but from touching something hot), but it also looks like it may have a chance of healing relatively well[it's from when he was a lot younger, when Endeavor hit him. There's no actual mark bc it was just a slap, but it left an impact on him mentally]. His wrists and ankles always look like they're being rubbed raw, as if by handcuffs[feels like he's chained to his family])

"You're fine. Please, come in." Shoto didn't fail to notice Midoriya's concerned gaze, or how his eyes seemed to linger on a particular spot on his face, but didn't comment on it. He'd noticed that look on the other boy's face several times when looking at other people, especially when things were bad for them. It almost seemed like Midoriya had some kind of sixth sense, but Shoto knew that was ridiculous. Midoriya's quirk was a strength-enhancing power, not an emotion-reading ability. Either way, he didn't bring it up as to not draw more attention to it.

Midoriya came in and unslung his bag, unzipping it as he asked, “Where should I sit?” He asked politely, pulling out not only his binder and the book they were working on but also snacks and drinks. He kept glancing at Shoto worriedly though, out of the corner of his eye. Something had happened just now which had led to a fresh injury, but also the handprint wasn’t as transparent as it was when class had let out.

(Oh yikes. I'd get a wig personally, but I hope you can get you hair dyed soon!)

"There should be enough room on the bed for both of us and our materials," Shoto replied. He had set out some snacks as well–pocky that he'd picked up earlier, strawberry for himself and chocolate for Midoriya since he didn't know what kind he preferred, and some carrots "Pocky?" he offered, grabbing the box of chocolate-covered treats and turned around, catching Midoriya looking at him like that again. It looks like not bringing it up isn't doing anything… "…Midoriya? Is something the matter?"

(I was already gonna get my hair dyed, so it just fit well and on time, and my boyfriend [he’s dying my hair] already has the bleach and dye, so it’s free for me, and I don’t have any money to spend on a wig.)

Izuku snapped out of his thoughts, startled. “O-oh, no! Nothing! Sorry, I was spacing out there for a second!” He laughed nervously and held out a hand for a few pockys and said, “Yes please, thank you.”

Shoto wasn't quite sure about that, but decided not to press things any further. They had homework to do, after all. He handed Midoriya the box of pocky instead of just a few sticks. "I got chocolate because I wasn't sure what you prefered, but if you'd like strawberry then feel free to take some." Then, the two got to work on their assignment.

Midoriya whizzed through the assignment as usual, munching on his cookies, occasionally discussing something with Todoroki, doing his best not to pay attention to the injuries covering the other boy.

When they finished, Shoto checked the time on his phone. It was much earlier than he'd expected to be done. It was…strange, for sure. Midoriya had almost had a better grasp on the concept than he had, so why had he asked for help…? Shoto certainly appreciated his company, though. Aside from the looks, he felt much more at ease around Midoriya than he did around the other students. It probably had something to do with the sports festival and what he'd said to him, or their shared experiences with Stain and the League. Though, the latter was less likely–he didn't feel nearly as comfortable around Iida, though he wasn't necessarily uneasy around the blue-haired teen either. "That took less time than I thought it would," Shoto remarked. "Are you sure you even needed my help? You seemed to fly through it."

Izuku flushed and made up the excuse, “Well, I thought it was going to be a lot harder than it actually was… Aizawa-Sensei made it seem really difficult, so I thought it would have been best to ask for someone else to do it with me…” He fidgeted with a pocky, breaking it up into tiny pieces and nibbling those. He glanced at Todoroki with a mixture of worry and nervousness. He wasn’t sure what to do now….

(Ack, busy weekend…Also, can we not use honorifics? I'm not really used to them since I usually watch dubbed anime. Idk, just a preference. Looking back I probably should have specified that lol, sorry. ^^')

Shoto looked away. He wasn't exactly the most social person in the world, but he wasn't inept; Midoriya was uncomfortable, for whatever reason. "Ah. Sorry." After a moment of consideration, he said, "You seemed like you wanted to say something. I know you said nothing was wrong, but you look troubled. If you don't want to talk about it, it's fine, but…" Shoto trailed off, unsure of what to say. Don't feel like you have to hide things. That was rich, coming from himself. "…If you need to get something off your chest, I won't judge." That didn't quite feel right, but it was better than just leaving it. Right?

(Oh, I’ve only ever used the -sensei honorific because that’s in the dub. If you don’t want me to use it though, I won’t.)

Midoryia sighed. “If I tell you something that needs to be kept a secret, will you promise to stay silent about it? Only the teachers know and I don’t want any of our classmates to know because it could cause a lot of trouble….” He fidgeted with a pocky nervously, wondering if he should really tell Todoroki this…

(I didn't even realize it was used in the dub. I just remember "Mr. Aizawa" being used a lot, but I guess it doesn't matter. Thanks! Also aaa sorry this isn't super long, no thoughts head empty)

Shoto replied with, "Of course," almost immediately. He had more than his fair share of secrets, what was one more? This one isn't like those, though. Hopefully, he thought.

(It’s fine, as long as it furthers the plot, I don’t care how long it is.)

“I-uh… I have another quirk than the one you know about…” Midoryia fidgeted and turned his eyes back to Shoto, his irises now glowing a radioactive green. This happened when he transferred his ability to one other person for a few minutes to allow them to see as he did, but in consequence, his own wounds became visible.

(Alright, I just feel a little bit like a hypocrite lmao. I try to make longer responses bc I don't like ridiculously short responses, so I feel pretty awful when I can't come up with something longer than two lines.)

Shoto blinked, then drew back a little bit from the initial shock of what he saw. The fact that Midoriya had another quirk was surprising, sure, but Shoto was more startled by the wounds on his friend's body. There was no way they'd been there before, they were far too noticeable. "Wh–Midoriya, you're hurt…?" He sounded unsure, because he was unsure. It didn't seem like there was any way for Midoriya to hide whatever these were, but again–they weren't there a second ago. What was going on? "I don't understand, is this your other quirk?"

(Don’t worry, I feel the exact same way in a ton of my RPs…)

Midoryia nodded, transparent blood trickling down from his temple but most of the ghostly blood soaking his shirt over his heart. “I’m not really hurt. Here.” He took Shoto’s hands and placed it over his heart, none of the blood coming off on Shoto’s hands or allowing him to feel it. Todoroki would just feel the soft dryness of Izuku’s shirt. “I can see the mental and emotional damage someone has in the form of these wounds.”

Shoto let out a breath that he hadn't realized he was holding when, instead of hot, sticky blood, his hand met with dry cotton. He held it there for a moment, in part because Midoriya's steady, persistent heartbeat was reassuring with the massive bloodstain that wasn't actually there, and in part because when had his heart started pounding so fast? When he drew his hand away, he took a deep breath. "That's… that explains why you stare sometimes, then," he said, then hesitated. "Would it be rude to ask what kind of wounds I have?"

Midoryia took Todoroki’s hand again and pulled him up and towards the bathroom of Todoroki’s room, turning on the light and pushing Shoto in front of the mirror. “It’s not rude because they’re your wounds… I think you have a right to know.” They both stood in front of the mirror, looking at their own wounds, a resigned look on Izuku’s face as he examined his own injuries.

Shoto gaped at his reflection. It was no wonder Midoriya was staring at him. He looked like a train wreck, and even that was putting it mildly. Gingerly, he touched the areas where he was "hurt," though he knew he wouldn't actually feel anything. God, he looked like he'd been mugged. Where had all of this come from? It couldn't have just been his father, right? Things weren't what most would call healthy, sure, but there was no way the situation was this bad… "Maybe that counselor had a point…" he muttered, not realizing the words had escaped his mouth as he ran his finger over a bleeding cut just to the right of his nose.

Izuku glanced at Shoto and said dryly, “That’s Ms. Cece’s job. Have you been ignoring her?” He sighed and instinctively reached out and hugged the red and white haired boy. “I’m sorry… I know what it’s like having that many and it’s… it’s not a good feeling…”

Shoto stiffened at first, not expecting the hug, but relaxed into it after a second. "…Yeah." Really, it was a response to Midoriya's question and his statement. He'd been pointedly ignoring their rather…eccentric counselor since their first appointment. He didn't get the impression that she took her job very seriously, and she almost seemed to mock him the last couple of times. After the incident with the song, his opinion of her had plummeted pretty low. His father had forbidden him from seeing anyone before, saying that he was strong enough that he didn't need anyone to help him work out his problems. In hindsight, that probably should have been a red flag. Either way, Shoto had never been to a counselor before and couldn't really be sure what they were like, but Ms. Cece certainly wasn't what came to mind when he thought of a mental health professional.

“I know she seems like she’s not really qualified but she has the degree and she’s already been helping several of the others. She’s even been working on Tamaki. Apparently he used to be way worse than he is now… She’s even made progress with Bakugo of all people!” Izuku squeezed Shoto a tiny bit before letting go and placing a hand on his shoulder. “I know she’s off putting but give her a chance. And if you think you’d be better with a different counselor, ask her if she could transfer you. But try to listen to her and talk to her. A lot of professionals are a bit eccentric, because they have to deal with many different patients.”

Shoto frowned. He supposed that made sense, but the thought of talking to Cece was still not too appealing. "Honestly, it doesn't feel like she takes things seriously," he said. "Once, she called me down and played some song–I think it was called… 'Daddy Issues'? It felt like she was mocking me."

Midoryia grimaced. “I heard the story from our tutor, Ms. Yua…. Apparently it was because you weren’t paying attention to your problems and Ms. Cece is not one to mince words, so she was trying to call your attention to the fact you have problems. Mainly in the form of a flaming pile of trash….” Midoryia crossed his arms and looked up at Todoroki, seemingly trying to figure out what he should do next to convince Shoto that Ms. Cece wasn’t someone to ignore, as annoying, blunt, and eccentric she was…

Shoto huffed at the "flaming pile of trash" comment. It certainly wasn't new and was commonly muttered under his siblings' breaths, but it was still amusing, especially coming from someone like Midoriya. Still, he had a point. Shoto hadn't even realized that things were nearly as bad as they were until now. Hell, some small part of him still didn't totally believe that was the case. "You aren't wrong there. I guess I just…didn't think it was a big deal, compared to training and schoolwork." Shoto failed to notice that perhaps there was a problem there, too. He brought a hand up to his chin. "Do you think it would go better if I was more open with her?" In honesty, he didn't particularly want to open up to the counselor, but he was starting to think that it might be the best course of action.