"Ouch, how did you get this one?" You questioned the dual haired child sitting before you on his kitchen counter, his legs swinging back and forth over the side while you carefully examined his scraped elbow.
"Oh, I fell on the concrete playing with Fuyumi." Shoto said calmly. His eyes however were alight with happiness from said memory. The fact that he was granted to play with his siblings again felt like a dream come true. To see the young boy in good spirits immediately lifted yours and you gave his elbow a quick kiss before you swept him into your arms. He laughed as you did so, his tiny arms quickly wrapping around your neck as you held him in a loving embrace.
"Awwww was that a smile Shoto! You look so handsome when you smile!" He looked up to you with sparkling blue and grey eyes, his face slightly red from your compliment. He smiled again shyly, and you grinned in return, awarding him with a kiss on the cheek.
"Man, I've never treated you in your kitchen before. This place is huge!" You exclaimed as you backed up from your spot near the counter and turned around, fully taking in the professional kitchen that was worth more than your entire house. You let out a little whistle as your eyes swept over the marble island and countertops. The crystal chandelier hanging above you gave ample amounts of light, along with the large windows giving you sun as well as a perfect view of the giant garden on the estate.
"Oh," You quickly looked around to make sure no one else was in the area and then leaned closer to Shoto. "did you do your homework?" Shoto's happy aura visibly dampened at your words, his head hanging a little lower as he rested his forehead on your shoulder.
"..no. I couldn't ever get to the kitchen and be alone." He mumbled out, ashamed that he was unable to complete the simple but seemingly bizarre task you had given him.
"Ah, perfect then! Now I can watch your reactions because it's pretty cool!" You gave the top of his head a small kiss before you set him back down on the countertop, opening your briefcase that sat discarded next to him. Shoto watched with curiosity as you pulled out five different vials and set them neatly on the counter.
" this is actually better anyways. While the random objects I recommended would work, having the elements in a concentrated powder is honestly the best way. Okay, give me your left hand." He complied and watched as you dumped a mysterious white powder into the palm of his hand.
"What is it?"
"lithium chloride. Go ahead and light it on fire, a tiny flame though. And only if you want to, but I promise it's gonna be really cool if you do!" Shoto looked down at his left hand and back up to you hesitantly. After a moment of thinking he let out a sigh and closed his eyes.
"Oh no, keep your eyes open kid! Trust me, it's gonna be pretty!" Reluctantly Shoto opened his eyes and used his quirk, creating a tiny flame in the palm of his hand underneath the lithium chloride. His eyes widened immensely at the beauty of the bright magenta flame, touches of red weaving in creating a stunning light that illuminated him as well as you. Once the powder had burned away completely his flames went back to normal in their color, but for some reason he didn't want to put the fire out just yet.
"Wasn't that cool! Your so amazing Shoto, you're literally my little firework!" You grinned as you ruffled his perfectly parted hair, causing the red and white to overlap. He looked up at you with pride in his eyes, a dark blush over his tiny chubby cheeks at your praise.
"You wanna try another color?"
"Yes!"
You ended up using all of the powder that you brought with you, even mixing some of them to see if you could get the colors to combined. It made you so happy to see Shoto enjoying the use of his fire quirk, and you hoped if you continued to encourage him like this, he would start to fade away from the idea that using his quirk fully meant that his father was in control.
This was your fifth time visiting Shoto within the last two months, and this was the first time he ever kept his flames going for longer than what you had asked. You were honestly besides yourself with happiness. You were also incredibly happy because he could now play with and bond with his other siblings, a factor that you may or may not have contributed to by arguing with his dad.
"Are you done?" Endeavor sneered as you walked up to him with a scowl on your face, your medical briefcase clasped in one hand while your other swung loosely by your side. You had just finished a random check in physical that caught Endeavor at a bad time, but you could honestly care less.
"I told you, you didn't have to be present for the physical. I actually would have preferred it that way." you mumbled the last part to yourself, but the flaming hero had still managed to hear your remark.
"And have you lie on your exam sheets so you can steal my kid? I think not." You frowned at the hostility in his voice, a tick mark starting to form on your forehead at his insinuation.
"While I would simply LOVE to steal your child and become his legal guardian, I would never do so unless it was absolutely necessary. To take him away from the home he grew up in and his siblings.. I don't know what you take me for, Todoroki-san, but his well being is always a first for me. If I can see that you feel the same way as I do, then there would never be a need for me to take him.
Well, other than him being incredibly adorable." You laughed at you own joke while he kept his frown, and you internally cussed him out because you thought that it was a pretty charming joke.
Actually scratch that, you joked about literally taking is child. Maybe that was a little to much.
"Shoto isn't permitted to play with his siblings, they serve as too much of a distraction." Your smile immediately fell at his words, a frown making way to your face that matched his own.
"To much of a distraction? He's six years old."
"Yes, and-"
"He's. Six. Years. Old. He is a child. If you deprive him of a childhood, I can promise you right here and right now, it won't matter how hard you train him. He will never listen to you when he becomes older and realize what you stolen from him. And he will most likely never forgive you."
"I don't need you to tell me how to raise-"
"I'm not telling you how to do anything. I'm telling you the consequences of your actions. Actions that not only will affect you negatively, but your son. Isn't that worth some consideration?"
You were waiting for him to blow up on you at any second, but to your surprise when your [e/c] eyes met his, there was nothing but exhaustion in his dull blue eyes.
"Alright, enough yapping. I'll think about it, are you happy? Now, is there anything else?"
"..Yes," you started hesitantly, feeling slightly unnerved by his abrupt calm appearance. " I would like to see your wife's place of residence as of now so I can ask her some questions."
Endeavor let out a tired and angry sigh, but you could tell that his energy was almost completely depleted. He honestly looked like shit he was so exhausted. Dark bags hung under his eyes, only being further illuminated from the shadows caused by his fiery facial hair. His dark blue hues looked glazed from lack of sleep, and the normal fiery anger and despise that radiated off him in massive waves was now no more than a mere ghost of its former self.
"And why is that?" His tired gravely voice brought you out of your trance, and you felt your face slightly heat up. You had been staring at his face so openly, and you hoped he didn't get the wrong idea.
Thankfully for you, he seemed too tired to care.
"I just wanted to clear the record with the incident. It was only a week ago, and while I know I originally insinuated a lot of the blame on you, I realize now that it wasn't fair of me to do so. I only have one part of the story, and I was hoping to learn more. I also want Shoto to have a positive relationship with his mom if possible, but I won't allow him to try if I know that Todoroki-san is a threat to him."
"Rei loves Shoto more than she loves herself, rest assured. She only injured him so gravely because in her shattered mind, for a split second, Shoto had become me, and her hatred came bursting out." Your eyes widened slightly at his response, but even more so from the tone of voice he carried. He sounded so...
Sad? But that wasn't the right word for it. Regretful? Possibly, but that didn't seem right either. Maybe it was just the fact that you were witnessing the number two hero in such a vulnerable state that made your heart twist so weirdly. It felt like you were out of your element, and you were sure that he felt the same way.
"Well, are you just going to stand there and stare at me?" Your face darkened in mortification and you shook your head immediately.
"Sorry! I uh, the fire, distracted me." You lied, causing the male before you to let out a heavy sigh once more. With a snap the fire decorating his face had vanished, and you were now staring at his bare face with surprise.
Your entire face had turned three shades darker. WHY THE FUCK WAS HE SO HANDSOME!? PUT THE FLAMES BACK ON! YOU DIDN'T WANT TO LOOK! You immediately tore your eyes away from his and brought your attention onto the floor; completely unaware of the slight amusement now dancing in his turquoise eyes.
"S-so, um, the address?" You stumbled out, cursing yourself internally while Endeavor silently pulled out his wallet, sliding out a business card.
"Here," He gently held out the card for you to take, his fingers brushing over your own as you took said card. "Call and ask for Rei's doctor, Hamasaki-san."
"Thank you." Endeavors eyes widened slightly at your sincere thanks, completely caught off guard by such a display. That was the first time you had never thanked him, and he didn't think it would be so sincere. Perhaps he should be calmer more often, he thought, as he watched you give a small bow and walk out through his front door. And maybe he should stop using his fiery facial hair as well.
For some reason he couldn't comprehend, he wanted another repeat of that conversation. And he wanted it to go better than before. That blush on the apples of your cheeks and the stumbling of your words was too amusing to pass up again.
Fuck that reminded you, you still needed to call Rei's doctor and set up an interview with her. Maybe you could bring Shoto with you? No, you would talk to her first and see if she was a threat. Only then would you take the little muffin with you.
"So, how's training little one? Becoming the strongest hero in the making aren't we!?" He smiled at your words and softly brought his hands together, a sudden shyness taking over him.
"Good. I get more breaks now too. It's nice, but I miss my okaa-san. And I haven't seen Toya in a while, even though I can play with him again." Your smile twitched downwards at his concerns, and you opened your arms up to offer him a hug. He immediately embraced you, and you gently rubbed his back while you comforted him.
"I'm sure Toya-san is fine, and I know for a fact that your Okaa-san misses you too." His hands tightened around the fabric of your shirt at your words. "If I were your mom, and you were my son there wouldn't be a day that passes that I wouldn't think about you! I know she feels the same."
"...sometimes, I wish you were my mom. Does that make me a bad son?" Your heart thumped painfully against your chest at his words, your own hold tightening around him in comfort.
"Oh sweet boy, that doesn't make you a bad son. That's just means you've been hurt by someone you love, it's okay to feel that way. And don't you ever be ashamed of how you feel, because emotions are something we are unable to control. The fact that you miss your mom makes you a good son, it makes you better than good. It's okay to wish, and it's okay to want. Now, give me a smile, huh?" You lifted Shotos head up with your fingers and wiped away his tears, giving him a radiant closed eye smile that made the corners of his mouth twitch up.
"There we go, that's what I like to see!"
"Sorry to interrupt Midoriya-san, but Todoroki-san was wondering if you were done with your examination. Shoto has training today and he would like to continue it." You let out a sigh as you turned to the maid who addressed you, still just as surprised as you've been every single time to find them in a deep bow when addressing you.
"Ah, yes I'm just finishing up. No need to bow so low, no formalities are necessary. Just call me [f/n]." You were perfectly aware of just how informal just your name was, but you honestly didn't care for honorifics much, to the dismay of most. You tried your best when you could bring yourself to remember, but you normally don't find yourself needing to, as you didn't know many important people. Oh how things have changed, huh?
"Very well... [f/n]-chan, shall I escort Todoroki-san to his training?" eh, it was a start, you would give her that.
"Yes, you might as well. Alrighty squirt get all your hugs out right now." You laughed as Shoto buried his face in your shoulder and squeeze you tightly, you doing the same. Your cheek rested against the top of his head,and your arms held him close to your heart.
"Okay, you go and train, and make me proud! But don't overwork yourself, okay? Your health is important." You booped his nose with your finger at your last words and gave him one final kiss on his forehead before you set him down.
"Mhm! When you come back again I'll be even stronger than before!"
"I have no doubt in my mind!" With one final wave you watched as he was escorted out of site, and you quickly cleaned up all of the vials sitting on the counter top. You were glad Endeavor no longer watched your physical exams, so you could have more one on one time with Shoto. It made you excited for your next surprise drop in, which was in a week in a half. You started to hum as you packed, and when everything was finally ready to go the ringing of your phone stole your attention. You fished out your phone from your back pocket, and when your eyes glanced over the familiar contact name you felt your entire body freeze. You stared at your phone for a moment, listening as it vibrated and chimed in your hand. After three rings you finally accepted the call and brought the phone up to your ear.
"Detective Kida-san, to what do I owe the pleasure?"
"[l/n]-san," you felt yourself flinch at the use of your real last name. "We have a problem."