Light In The Darkness

Chapter 1: Memories

The sound of heavy footsteps faintly disappearing brought little relief to the teen that sat curled up in the corner of the room. It was until his quirk manifested on his fifth birthday that everything went downhill, everything he once had was now gone. Shouto sat there in silence, clutching his right arm gently as a dark bruise started to bloom from the tight grip his father had on his arm. Moving his aching and bruised legs, he lifted himself up using the wall for support as he started to make his way towards the door.

‘Fuyumi will probably be waiting in my room already,’ Shouto thought as he continued to walk down the hallway, the soft sounds of his footsteps the only thing breaking the silence in the darkness.

Each step caused small jolts of pain to go through his body wincing every now and then when he put too much pressure on his left foot. It only took Shouto a few minutes until he finally reached his room opening the door quietly the first thing seeing was Fuyumi sitting on his futon with the first aid in hand. Taking a few steps in, he closed the door softly behind him making a small tap on the floor to alert his sister that he finally arrived. She started to walk over dropping the first aid on the futon in the process to help him towards the bathroom making sure he didn’t add any pressure to his left side after taking note of his limping.

“I’ll leave some clothes and a towel on the counter, Shouto, I’ll wait for you.” Fuyumi left the bathroom to at least give privacy for the youngest as he took off the stained and dirty clothes, dropping them into the laundry basket in the corner. Hearing the door shut, he turned on the shower waiting for the water to adjust to the right temperature. The water changed from clear to a light pinkish reddish color from the blood of small cuts, making sure to be gentle with bruises as he washed his body with a small cloth. He washed the grime and sweat out of his hair, the tension in his muscles relaxing from the water slowly spacing out as he stared at the blank wall in front of him.

After a few minutes of standing in the shower spacing out, Shouto shut the water off reaching over to grab the towel from the counter. Wrapping the towel around his waist making sure it’s secured enough before getting out of the shower grabbing a smaller towel from the cabinet to dry off his hair. Using his left side, Shouto heated up his body watching the water droplets evaporate into thin air regulating his body temperature back again. Draping the towel on the drying rack, he changed into the clothing Fuyumi left on the counter wincing slightly as the fabric brushed against the bruises.

“Shouto, are you done yet?” Turning to the door, he could see Fuyumi’s shadow from under the door,”Yes, I’m done, let me just finish changing.” Lifting the shirt above his head, he slowly slid his arms into the sleeves being mindful of the bruises. Turning off the lights and opening the bathroom door, Shouto saw Fuyumi already back at his futon staring at a picture he kept upside down on his nightstand of his mother, Natsuo, Fuyumi, Touya, and himself before putting it back.

“Where does it hurt Shouto?” Fuyumi opened the first aid taking out only the necessary items waiting for a response from the other as he walked towards the futon.

Shouto stayed quiet for a moment before answering, “Left foot and right arm.” The feeling of cold hands touching his skin brought back memories of his mother, her cold yet warm touch always brought him comfort than pain. The feeling the safe and warmth his mother gave out would put him to sleep easily after she bandaged his bruises. It wasn’t until that dreadful night that all the warmth went away, all was left was the coldness of the training room.

“Shouto, I know you are hiding other bruises, please just let me-”

“I’m fine Fuyumi, the pain will go away tomorrow, I would just taking some pain relief pills if it doesn’t go away by then.” Shouto cut her off before she could go on, knowing she won’t stop until he gave in, and let her treat the other injuries his father inflicted on him in training. After his ankle was wrapped and iced over, Fuyumi left taking the first aid with her, and leaving some pain relief pills and a cup of water on his nightstand.

Stopping at the door, Fuyumi turns around giving Shouto a small smile, “Goodnight Shouto.” Shouto took two of the pain relief pills, leaving the other two for the morning, swallowing them dry before taking a large drink of water grimacing slightly at the taste. “Goodnight Fuyumi,” nodding slightly towards the door as Shouto laid down on his futon, lights going off, leaving him in the darkness where his demons come out to play.

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“Get up. You won’t even be able to defeat third-rate villains, let alone All Might, if you get knocked down by a hit like that…” His father’s booming voice echoed in the training room as Shouto sat on his knees vomiting whatever was left in his stomach. The sound of the door opening and frantic footsteps made Shouto look up slightly to notice his mother kneeling next to him resting a cold hand onto his back rubbing it gently as she pleaded towards his father.

“Stop it, please! He’s only five years old…” His mother pleaded with tears threatening to fall as she did her best to comfort him. “Yes, he’s already five! So get out of my way!” The sound of his father’s hand connecting to his mother’s cheek still echoed in his mind as his small form froze still staring at his father in fear and disbelief.

Shouto couldn’t bring himself to stop crying that day, the guilt and fear was too much for him to handle. “I hate him mommy...I...I don’t wanna be like daddy. Someone who bullies my mommy.” Shouto clutched his mother tightly as he continued to cry into her chest. The warmth and the heartbeat of his mother would have put him to sleep, but the tears continued to roll down his cheeks . Feeling a hand softly touch his head, he looked up to see his mother’s beautiful grey eyes, now dull and almost lifeless.

“But don’t you want to be a hero, right?...” his mother, Rei, asked in a soft tone as she combed her fingers through his hair.

He was born with both his mother’s and father’s hair, eye color, and their quirks. Grey and white on his right side having his mother’s quirk, ice. Cold and sharp, but beautiful nonetheless. His mother would turn the ice into something that helps take away the pain, and make beautiful things like toys made of ice. However, his left side, the side he grew to hate more than anything, was his father’s. Red hair and turquoise eyes, but born with the opposite quirk than his mother’s, fire. Scorching fire, something that will burn everything in it’s path unless water or ice puts it out. Fire was the thing that caused him pain, ice was the thing that took away that pain.

Shouto was the child that was his father’s successor, someone that will surpass the number one hero, All Might, his father said. He still wished his quirk didn’t manifest on his fifth birthday, everything would still be normal if his quirk hadn’t manifested. Failures he called them, his older siblings, siblings he didn’t even know about but Fuyumi. Fuyumi would tell him about Natsuo and Touya, and he wished he was able to see them than just from afar.

Shouto remembered that day, the day he saw his grandmother and older brothers for the first time, playing with Fuyumi in the backyard. They were smiling and laughing like the children he saw playing out in the park after school, something he wasn’t allowed.

Shouto watched them in silence until he felt a large hand grab his arm yanking him away from the window. “Don’t look at them Shouto. Your brothers...they belong to a different world than you,” said his father, dragging him to begin his afternoon training sessions, sessions he grew dreadful for. Each session grew more painful and longer, all depending on his father’s mood. If he messed up, then it was stretched longer. If his father got angry at something, then the sessions became painful. His mother or Fuyumi came to his aid whenever it was over, or his mother would step in to stop it if it got too out of hand. It wasn’t until after a few weeks that he lost everything, the warmth was slowly fading turning into a bitter cold dark storm ready to hit.

Shouto walked down the hallway towards the kitchen to grab a glass of water, but he could hear the sound of the kettle and his mother’s voice. His curiosity got the best of him, he walked slower and quieter towards the kitchen, making sure not to step into the light just yet.

“Mom...I know it’s not right, but I can’t do it anymore. The children, they’re...like him more and more every day. And Shouto...his left side. Sometimes I look at him and hate what I see.”

Shouto drew closer, just enough for his left side to be seen by the door noticing his mother clutching the phone tightly with her left hand as she waited for the kettle to whistle.

“I...can’t raise him anymore. I shouldn’t raise him…”

“M-Mommy?”