Ethereal ◆ Shoto Todoroki x Reader

Traitor

◆ Part 2: Chapter 28 ◆

Traitor

◆

Izuku Midoriya

◆

Midoriya opens his eyes, covering his head with his hands.  He's encased in rock, in what he had mistaken for the walls caving in. He lets out a breath, thankful the castle didn't collapse or anything. But what is this?

"Hello?" He shouts, cupping his hands around his mouth. At the sound of his voice, Misaki lowers her guard, and the earth encasements fall away.

"Sorry guys," she mutters, shaking her head, "I . . . I thought I saw someone. They were running at us, and screaming, and I didn't know what to do because none of you noticed-"

"No," Ito sighs, "It's fine. We're safe."

"Uh," Mirachi mutters, "Where's the prisoner?"

The guards all glance at each other, eyes darting around the room. 

"What the french fries?" Ito barks, "Where'd she go?"

Midoriya spins around, searching the corridor. It's no use; the blonde killer is gone.

"The King is gonna kill us all," Mirachi sighs, slumping down.

"Shoot," Misaki grumbles, "Shoot, shoot, shoot! I'm sorry guys, I messed up. I don't know what made my quirk go crazy like that."

"No one blames you, Misa," Mirachi assures her, "we'll just have to find her."

"Come on, she couldn't have gotten too far!" Midoriya smiles at them, clenching his fists. 

◆

The split up, searching the halls for the escapee. Midoriya, however, stumbles upon a man in dirty clothes sneaking around the palace.

"Who are you?" He asks him, wondering if he should call the others. The old man is sweaty and looks suspicious; a suit that looks familiar, but he can't quite place it.

The man only mutters something incoherent, bumbling forward as if drunken. Midoriya takes a step back, cringing. "Are you okay?" He asks the stranger.

Not sure if the man is a threat or not, the green-haired guard whistles, calling his comrades. 

"Kill," the man mutters, "Kill . . . m-my . . . "

Midoriya, getting a little nervous, backs up some more, the word "kill" not giving him any comfort. The other guards start to appear, looking as confused as him.

"Who's this guy?" Ito wonders aloud.

"Not sure," Mirachi says, "but he doesn't look like he belongs here."

They grab him, realizing that he must be very drunk. His movements are slow and hesitant, and the guards can smell the booze on him. 

"Gross," Misaki mutters, taking his arm.

As they escort the man down the hall, not exactly sure what to do, he keeps muttering the same thing over and over: "kill".

"The King won't care about some drunken nobleman," Ito suggests, shrugging, "we should leave him to someone else and find the prisoner."

"How about this," Mirachi stops, everyone stopping as well; "Misaki and I will go look for the execution while you two bring this man to the king."

Midoriya glances at Ito. They both nod. "Okay."

As Mirachi saunters off with Misaki by his side, Ito grumbles to himself. "Alright, let's go."

"What's wrong?" Midoriya asks, grabbing the drunk man's arm. Ito only sighs.

"Mirachi probably won't even look for the girl for long," he admits, "he only wants to be alone with Misaki, not that she even likes him anymore."

"Are you jealous?" 

"Why would I be? I'm just mad," Ito whisper's, "that the murderer is gonna get away because of him."

Izuku is silent; Ito has a right to be mad, after all. His brother was murdered, and it's her fault. 

They trudge through the halls, passing some other guards, keeping the drunk man upright. Neither of them speak, they aren't exactly friends. 

"So," Ito suddenly says, "why'd you become a guard if you're quirkless? What's the story?"

"Oh," Midoriya stutters, "Oh, well, I guess that it just happened."

Ito laughs, lifting a brow. "Nothing ever 'just happens', we've all worked hard to get here."

"I don't—"

The drunk man they're holding lunges forward, randomly swinging his arms, cutting off Midoriya's sentence. 

"Woah!" Ito shouts, grabbing him again, "What's wrong now?"

The man screams, alerting the guards posted at the throne room door. They eye Midoriya and Ito, confused as if why they're bringing a drunk man to the king. 

"The King and Queen are inside," one guard says, "they are discussing with the pirate's advocate. Now is not a good time."

The other guard, however, widens his eyes. "No, I think this is important. The King will want to see that man."

Midoriya glances at Ito, and Ito shrugs. The guards open the door, and they drag the drunk man inside.

The King, Queen, a pirate advocate, and one of the king's advisors are inside, huddled over a table. Ito clears his throat, and they both bow, clutching the trembling man.

"Your Majesties," he starts, "we found this drunken nobleman stumbling around the palace, muttering strange things. We do not know who he is, nor do we recognize his face."

Midoriya notes how Ito's speech becomes more refined and polite while in the presence of the royals. 

The queen's eyes are wide, and she drops the glass she's holding. The pirate advocate grips her shoulder, and the king looks angry.

"Get that traitor out of this room," King Todoroki growls, waving his hand, "throw him in the dungeon until I decide what to do with him."

The one-armed pirate advocate nods to some guards, and they tie up the drunk man. 

What is happening? Midoriya wonders. And how does a pirate have such authority over the guards? Should Midoriya recognize this man?

As they drag the muttering man out of the room, Izuku takes one last look at the throne room.

The pirate looks enraged, and King Todoroki hugs his wife, who looks terrified.

◆

A/N: 

please comment if you find mistakes I typed this with one hand