Withered Flowers

Chapter 19

Heroes are admired for their courage, noble qualities, or achievements. A villain is a cruelly malicious person involved in or devoted to wickedness or crime. To be a citizen is a legal status that grants a person certain rights and privileges in a country, in exchange for their obligation to obey the law and defend the country.

I never knew much about myself, which is strange. People are supposed to know themselves, but I didn't. I didn't know much about my childhood. I just remember sitting in that cold apartment alone, the walls thin and peeling, like the memories I tried to grasp but could never hold onto. The only things I had were some old blankets and a lumpy pillow. Each day felt like a blur, punctuated only by the dull sounds of life outside my door. My world was Black and white with different shades of grey.

Every day, someone would come by and drop off a box of food. I didn't know who it was, but the package always showed up. Sometimes, I would sit there for hours, just staring at it, wondering who cared enough to feed a girl like me. It was both a blessing and a curse—an anchor in the chaos of my lonely existence. I would occasionally go outside and watch the kids walking home from school, their laughter echoing in the air like a melody I longed to hear. I had never been to school, never experienced the joy of learning alongside others. They always looked so happy coming back from school, their backpacks bouncing with every step.

I didn't have a reason to be outside, so I mostly stayed in. But it was suffocating. The walls were thin. I could hear the screaming and shouting from next door, the arguments spilling into my solitude like poison. I dealt with it for four years because they had moved in four years ago. I couldn't do anything about it; I didn't care enough to. But a year ago, I found out that the couple next door had a son. One day, he peeked out the door while I was outside, and I caught a glimpse of him.

Those golden eyes stood out against the bleakness of my world. I didn't see a reason to speak to him. But somehow, I envied him. In my mind at the time, I thought, at least he had parents. Sure, they were bad, but I hadn't seen my father since I was born. I disliked him for unknown reasons, a deep-rooted resentment that I couldn't articulate. So, I frowned at him before retreating back into my silence.

That was the last time I saw him until a year later when a hero found him and took him away. It wasn't very comforting. I should have gone with them, but my hatred for Shigaraki, my brother, only grew. I thought about why he was chosen and not me. I was his blood. I was his daughter! I lost my god to someone who had been given one. The thought twisted inside me, fueling a dark flame of anger and bitterness that threatened to consume me.

So, I spent years trying to gain the attention of one of the most dangerous villains. My father, All For One. I would do anything to make him notice me.

"Get her!" The voice echoed in the dim alley as I sprinted away, my heart pounding with adrenaline. The fourteen-year-old girl laughed as she carried a bag of stolen jewels, slipping seamlessly into the shadows. It was a thrill like no other—a rush of power that momentarily drowned out the suffocating loneliness.

I was something. Some would say I was the best at what I did—stealing things, destroying things. It didn't matter; I wanted to be a villain, all for my father. I was blinded by my idiotic ways, desperately trying to gain that satisfaction from him.

I got put in jail so often that I knew every scrape on the walls, every crack in the concrete. The cold metal bars became a familiar prison, a constant reminder of my failures. Each time, I escaped. Each time, I returned to the streets, fueled by a burning desire for recognition that never came. I was trying to get his attention, but nothing worked. So, I tried harder.

I pushed my limits, and took risks that others would shy away from. I threw myself into chaos, thinking that one day, he would see me for who I truly was—his daughter, a reflection of his power and ambition. But as the years passed, the walls of my childhood grew thicker, my heart hardened, and the darkness inside me deepened. I was lost, spiraling into a void I couldn't escape.