Inheritance: A My Hero Academia AU

Shoto Todoroki

I stared down at the meager breakfast I'd made for myself - a fried egg and burned toast - and, again, the events of the previous evening came to the forefront of my mind again.

The party had started out fine. I was talking to Midoriya, drinking and eating and having a merry time. But then Natsuo showed up, and he just had to remind me who the party was for.

All Might. One of the reasons why my childhood had been a living hell.

"I'm surprised that this was your idea, Shoto," Natsuo had said at the party. "Since All Might was one of the main reasons for Dad's cruelty."

Natsuo hadn't meant to upset me, and he had been a little tipsy at the time. But the words had still dug deep, and after that, I couldn't stay at the party anymore.

My scar tingled like it usually does when I think of Dad, and I tried to ignore it by stuffing my face with food.

Then, someone knocked on my door.

I stopped eating and stood up from the table. I turned the knob, opened the door, and there was Midoriya, looking surprisingly chipper for the morning after a big party. His face was still bruised and swollen from his fight with Bakugo.

"Hi, Todoroki," he greeted me. "Um. Can we talk?"

"Sure," I said, opening the door wider so that he could step inside. I led him over to the living room, and we both sat down on the couch. "What do you want to talk to me about?"

"Why'd you leave the party so suddenly last night?" Midoriya asked. "I could tell that it wasn't because it was late, and definitely not because you had a pitch today, because today's Sunday."

I winced. "I guess I should have thought that excuse through a little better."

"So what is it?" Midoriya asked. "I won't be hurt if it's because of me."

"It's not because of you."

Midoriya looked at me, expectant. He wanted more.

I sighed. "It's complicated."

Midoriya groaned. "Ugh, not this again."

"What again?"

"Nothing," Midoriya said. "Why can't you just tell me why you left? It can't be that bad."

"It's because of All Might," I answered.

Midoriya cocked his head like a puppy. "I don't follow."

I let out a long breath. "You probably know that my father and All Might were rivals in the business world."

"Yeah, everyone knows that," Midoriya said. "Endeavor Financial and One for All Industries was always fighting over investors and stuff like that."

I nodded. "Who came out on top in that rivalry?"

"All Might, of course," Midoriya said.

"My dad hated that," I said, wringing my hands nervously. I wished that I didn't have to relive those dark years. "He made it his life's work to beat One for All Industries. He married my mother to form an alliance with her family's company, which gave him an advantage, and he trained all of his children for it. From the age of five, all of the Todoroki kids were taught foreign languages and political science and economics and business strategy. My older siblings, Natsuo and Fuyumi, didn't live up to my Dad's expectations, so he set them free, for the most part. But I showed promise. I spent my entire childhood with my father or tutors, learning how to be the best businessman I could be. I wasn't allowed to have friends, or play with toys.

"My mother didn't approve of the way that my father was treating me," I continued. "When she tried to fight back, to argue with him, he...he hit her." My scar was tingling again, and my hands were shaking. "Eventually, my mom got fed up. I walked in on her talking on the phone with her mother, and she was saying how she couldn't take it anymore, and that she wanted to leave. She said that...she said that I reminded her of him. When she saw me eavesdropping, I think something snapped in her. She grabbed the kettle of hot water on the stove, and she..."

My hand brushed my scar, and Midoriya's eyes widened. "Todoroki, I'm so sorry..."

I shook my head. "There's nothing for you to apologize for. When my father saw that my mother had hurt me, he sent her away to a mental facility. I haven't seen her since."

"Todoroki..."

I clenched my fists in my lap, swallowing tears. "After my mom left, my dad buckled down. My training got even more intense. When the time came for me to start school, I was sent away to the beast boarding school in the world. After boarding school, I went to college. I was doing everything that my dad wanted me to, and I hated myself for it. I still do. So when my dad died and he left me his company, his house, and all of his money, I decided that I wouldn't use it. That I would make his company better than it ever had been before, and I wouldn't give him the satisfaction of using his things to make that happen."

As soon as I said it aloud, it all sounded really, really stupid. I was using his company. I was staying in the guest house that had once belonged to him. All of my education, all of my knowledge had come from him.

My fists clenched even tighter in my lap.

"Todoroki, you can't let the past restrict you like this!" Midoriya exclaimed, standing up quickly, green eyes flashing with determination. "The money, the house, the company, it's yours now. Yours, not his! If you really want to make your father roll in his grave, you have to show him that what he did to you isn't going to hold you back!"

I stared at Midoriya, surprised by his passionate words. They struck something in me, like a match strikes a box, and like a flame, I knew that he was right. I couldn't let my past hold me back from my future. I couldn't let my father's cruelty control me.

I stood up from the couch too. "I won't let my past control me!"
"That's the spirit, Todoroki!" Midoriya exclaimed, grinning widely.

"I have to make some phone calls," I muttered, walking over to my phone.

"You do that," Midoriya said. "Glad I could help you out."

"Yes, thank you, Midoriya," I said, smiling at him.

Midoriya smiled back. "Any time."

With that, he left the guest house, and I turned back to my phone. I picked up the receiver, dialed the number, told the operator where to direct the call, then waited.

"Hello?"

"Fuyumi, hi, it's Shoto," I said.

"Oh, hi, Shoto! How was the party last night?" my sister's voice crackled through the phone.

"Fine, fine," I said. "I want to come visit Mom."

There was a moment of silence on the other end, and for a second, I was scared that Fuyumi was going to react badly.

"That'll make her so happy, Shoto!" Fuyumi exclaimed, and I let out a relieved breath. "When can you come?"

"Can I come today?"

"Yes, of course!" Fuyumi said. "I'll call the hospital right away. This is so great, Shoto, but what inspired you to do it?"

"A friend smacked some sense into me," I said.

"Well then, you must have a pretty great friend."

"Yeah," I said. "I do."