PHOENIX: A Pro Hero Toya Todoroki AU

Chapter 13: Boring Patrol (August 22, 2118)

"TONIIIIIIGHT, I'M GONNA HAVE MYSEEEEELF, A REAL GOOD TIIIIIME..."

I groan as "Don't Stop Me Now" starts blasting from my phone, signaling that it's four in the morning, and I need to get up so I can eat breakfast and get ready for patrol by six A.M.. I roll out of bed, letting the music continue to play and grabbing my phone as I sling off my grey boxers before walking to the connected bathroom. I cringe as my bare feet hit the frigid linoleum bathroom tile, and I turn the shower on as I wipe the sleep from my eyes. I set the phone on the bathroom counter, and the music sounds even louder with the acoustics. Present Mic must have designed this bathroom because the acoustics sound professional level. I yawn and stretch, flexing my muscles in the mirror before swinging the curtain aside and hopping in the shower. The water is absolutely freezing, but the feeling is comforting against my skin. Warm showers were great and all, but my body was designed for the cold. I take a deep breath and stand in the shower, taking in the purple splashes that are on my body from years of training without proper support gear. The most notable purple scar is the one that serves as the background for my dragon tattoo, but my right ankle, my left knee, and my right shoulder sport purple splashes as well from improper bandaging. Completely my own fault, but I always wore long pants and T-shirts anyway, so no one ever knew about the others. Except Keigo, of course. I grab the bottle of shampoo from the ledge in the shower and pour it in my hair as I zone out...

..,

"Toya... how did you know?"

"He's in jail. That's all I'm going to say. If he ever tries to contact you or if you ever see him again, just let me know. And I'll make sure he never lives to see another day," I whisper into the phone. Fuyumi had called me when I got back to my dorm after I left Keigo a voicemail. She finally made the connection of why I came home freshly sobered up and bleeding profusely from my knuckles.

"Toya... That's..." She starts, but I interrupt her.

"Not what a hero would do, right. But it's what a big brother would do. And I'm your big brother, first. Alright? I love you, Yumi. You're my baby sister, and you always will be no matter how old we get. I'm fine. I got into the field course. I'll be living in Hosu for the next month, so let Nats know that I won't be eating lunch with him every week for a while."

"Oh wow, Toya. That's great! We're all so proud of you. I hope you know that."

"How's Sho?"

"He's...alright."

"Is something wrong?"

"He's.... He's stopped talking to everyone. He's starting to close himself off. I'm getting worried about him."

"I'll come visit as soon as I'm back from Hosu. I won't let him isolate himself from us. I don't want Dad to get into his head. I won't let it happen if it's the last thing I do. I promise, Yumi."

...

SHIIIK!

I turn off the shower water as I step out and shake the water from my hair like a dog. As I dry off, the song ends, and my phone starts ringing. I look at the name on the screen and click the speaker button.

"Hey, Fire Hazard! Your field course makes you wake up at the crack of dawn too?" Rue's voice splashes through the phone, and I hear Ryuko yawning and muttering something in the background.

"Were you just gonna wake me up if that wasn't the case?" I yawn as I grab a new pair of boxers from my duffel. She laughs in the background, answering my question.

"Did Kei show you all the cute dogs he saw last night? I must've gotten like fourteen pictures of the same two dogs," She mutters.

"Jokes on you, CottonTail I got to see the doggos live, so get fucked," I smart, pulling on my Hero suit.