The King is Dead

Barriers of Truth

Aizawa has gotten used to him now. He's less 'there's a murderer in my home' and more 'oh jeez, this kid I'm making hamburger steaks with killed someone.'

Todoroki wasn't allowed to cut veggies. Even for how much trust the three had built, Aizawa didn't want a knife in the hands of a teenage kid who has a bad history with sharp things. And he noticed the kid was tense whenever the knife lifted. Aizawa tried doing it slowly, he wasn't sure if it made it worse because Todoroki was that good at masking emotion. It was admirable, if not for the history behind it.

Hizashi was at the counter, scrolling through the agency admissions. "Looks like Endeavor Offices wants you, not sure why."

Aizawa expertly peels the skin off a potato off with the knife. "Nope. Don't want him near anything about that guy."

Hizashi agrees with a nod, deleting the request email. "Okay... how about Manual? He mentions here that he wants to show his stance on this whole ordeal. He's on your side, says that since you have an ice quirk and he has a water quirk you guys aren't so different." Hizashi looks up from the screen. "He's not very media surrounded too, could be nice."

Aizawa shakes his head. "Isn't that in Hosu? Too much tourist attraction."

Hizashi sighs. "That's the ninth one you've made me delete. We should let Todoroki pick."

Aizawa looks to Todoroki. "Do you disagree with what I'm saying?"

Todoroki looks up from the potato's he's peeling with a kid's peeler. Their eyes meet and then Todoroki's move to Hizashi's, stressing for the right answer. He'll offend one of them either way.

"It's okay, just answer with what you think."

"I'm not- sorry. You are were talking and I wasn't - I mean I heard you but it was- I was slipping so-"

"It's fine. We're discussing the agency you'll intern at. Surprisingly enough, there are offers for you."

Hizashi closes the laptop. "Let's do that later." He watches as Aizawa leads Todoroki to the pot of boiling water and they dunk the potatoes in. Todoroki watches the bubbling water a minute too long before Aizawa caps it. Then he brings out the ground meat and balls it up into his hand, explaining how to form a steak to Todoroki. He starts the main idea of it and then hands it to Todoroki, who follows the direct instructions.

Aizawa has been taking the lead with the whole Todoroki thing. He's sterner and Todoroki is already starting to realize he's not been treated normally.

Example:

"Hey kid, how much do you weigh now?" Aizawa slaps the ground beef between his palms until it forms a round shape.

Todoroki is used to his father asking it, and it was always a bad thing. But with Aizawa, he can say it without tensing as long as it's a good outcome. "123 pounds now."

Aizawa nods absently, wrapping the burger in plastic wrap. "And you understand that not good, even if it's better?"

"Yes."

"Okay. You're doing well, remember our first goal is 135, don't stress too much. Make it a normal routine." Aizawa takes Todoroki's burger and wraps it in the same wrap. "I'll do the rest of these, you get the boxed curry out."

Giving Todoroki an order calms him down. Whenever there's something sensitive to talk about, they'll tell him to finish a simple task after. Keeps the house clean too.

Todoroki reaches to the top of the cabinet and pulls the thin box of curry out. He opens it with his blunt nails, already going through the steps of unboxing it and grabbing the small pan. He's made it twice before and he remembers each step perfectly as if the recipe was ingrained in his brain.