Face Me Like An Idiot

43

"Sir," Anna went up to Izuku and bowed politely, "Toga Himiko of the League of Villains has requested to meet you. Her intentions are unclear, but her physical condition implies that she is unable to fight." She then glanced at Izuku, "Should I allow her to meet you?"

Izuku raised an eyebrow, along with a half-filled wine glass. He tilted the cup upwards briefly and took a sip. A smirk then graced his lips, "Bring her in," he commanded.

Bowing once more, Anna rushed to the front door and opened it, revealing a blindfolded Toga Himiko on the other side. Her hands were cuffed to her front and judging by her unusually empty attire, she had already been stripped of her items. 

With the assistance of Anna, who watched her extensively closely, Toga was brought to Izuku's front. The blindfold wrapped around her head was then yanked off, and Izuku finally noticed the state she was in. The infamous Toga Himiko looked exhausted, to say the least. The eyebags below her eyes were proof of that. Her dull pupils made her look detached from the world, and that nearly made Izuku feel a tinge of sympathy for the girl one year older than him.

"Well, well…" Izuku crossed one leg over the other, smirking devilishly at Toga. He then grabbed her face and pulled her near, until their noses were inches apart. She squinted her eyes and twisted her lips, but did not retaliate. "What do we have here?"

"…" Even with his face so close to hers, Toga did not even blink or open her mouth. She did not complain, and that was what made Izuku raise a brow. He had caused much misfortune to the League; disposing of their valuable members left and right and ruining their operations as much as he could. 

Toga… should be akin to a rabid animal, as of this moment. She should be baring her fangs at Izuku, threatening to tear him to pieces. Yet, she seemed so compliant.

"Strange," Izuku muttered, slowly moving his eyes to look into hers. "…Are you not bothered by your friends' demise?" 

"I'm bothered, alright," Toga spoke up, her voice slightly hoarse. It held a hint of malice, but it was… restrained. 

"Why have you come here?" Izuku furrowed his eyebrows in distrust, his eyes calculating as he attempted to figure out her intentions.

"…I can't take it anymore," Toga lowered her head, her shoulders shaking. Izuku was wrong, earlier. Perhaps her comrades' deaths affected her a lot more than he had expected. "Tomura changed… he…"

Shigaraki? Why would she be bringing him up?

"He doesn't care about us anymore," Toga sniffled, tears slipping from her eyelids. The way her voice cracked sounded so foreign in Izuku's ears, even if he didn't know her very well. "All he wants is to rule the world… The freedom that he promised us is just bait to make us work for him."

"…" Izuku hummed in acknowledgement. It seemed like a very Shigaraki-thing to do, but something seemed off. "That's… That doesn't answer my question."

"…Let me join you," Toga lifted her head, and he saw her resolve burning in those golden eyes. "I won't let Tomura have his way."

"…" Now, this is an unexpected predicament. Izuku never expected to have someone from the League transfer to his side, especially Toga Himiko. He had heard that she cherished those close to her, and the members of the League suited that category. He found it difficult to believe that she would come to him of all people in her time of distress.

"You're the only one who can combat Tomura…" Toga gritted her teeth, her fangs digging into her bottom lip. 

The only one? 

Izuku sighed and waved his hand dismissively. "Very well. But don't expect me to trust you so early into our relationship. I have no intention to get close to those involved with the League."