Voodoo Doll [BNHA]

Chapter Sixteen

Hawks woke to the sound of a massive fist pounding on the door to his apartment. It took him a moment to register who it could be and he chuckled softly to himself as he looked to Doll sleeping soundly atop his chest with a small smile dancing across her lips as she hugged his Endeavor plush. He was amazed she was sleeping through the thrashing his door was taking and carefully maneuvered out from under her. He covered her back up with the blanket before letting out a yawn and stretching. The sofa was surprisingly much more comfortable with Doll on it than it had been when he'd started out his evening alone.

He pressed the button on his coffee pot for it to begin brewing and went to open the door. A small flurry of flames shot toward him as he opened the door and he curled his wings behind him to avoid getting his feathers singed, "whoa there number one, watch the wings."

"Where is she?! She didn't check into her hote-." Endeavor began violently.

"Careful or you'll wake her and I imagine she's quite tired from our late-night activities." Hawks noted with a mischievous smirk knowing it would get a rise out of Endeavor. His smile fell as Endeavor caught him by the neck, as he wasn't wearing a shirt he could grab, and fixed him with a very menacing glare.

"Care to explain yourself before I turn you into ash?" He growled, his voice very much indicating that he wasn't messing around.

"I had no idea the number one had such a dirty mind." Hawks chuckled trying to make light of the situation. He attempted to disentangle himself from the larger man's grip but found him completely immovable, "you like this with all your subordinates or is she special?"

"Of course, she's special, explain yourself." Endeavor growled.

Hawks laughed uneasily, "come on, I didn't do anything, she woke up in the middle of the night and seemed upset so we played in the snow a bit, got tired and fell asleep on the couch, promise." Endeavor slowly set Hawks back on his feet before stepping into the apartment causing Hawks to shake his head with a silent laugh, "sure, come on in."

Endeavor froze as he spotted Doll snuggled up on the couch hugging an Endeavor plush. His cheeks reddened and he turned away feeling embarrassed. She seemed to be doing alright and was sleeping soundly with a smile on her face. There weren't any bloody tears clinging to her cheeks, it was one of her first pleasant nights in a long while. He returned to the kitchen as Hawks poured two cups of coffee and slid one over to him.

"Not that I disagree or anything, she's quite special, but why is she so special to you?" Hawks asked curiously careful to keep his voice quiet so as not to disturb Doll.

Endeavor shot him a scowl before sighing and opening his phone, he found a folder he had saved, it had been a constant reminder to him, to find the child from the incident and make sure she had a better life. She'd gotten lost in the foster care system for years he didn't find her until society had broken her down and she was barely hanging on at UA. He opened the case file to the crime scene photos forensics had taken of that horrible night. He slid his phone over to Hawks with the image of Doll hanging from a noose in the living room, eyes wide open, mouth sewn shut and littered with strange occult carvings and tattoos. Hawks felt his stomach churn unpleasantly as he looked at the image on the screen. He set his cup of coffee down feeling like he was going to be sick.

"They thought she was dead, but her quirk kept her alive. When they cut her body down, she started to move once she was able to breathe again. She came to consciousness in my arms. Most children found me scary, they probably still do, but when she opened her eyes, she didn't look scared. She smiled at me though it clearly caused her pain. My own children had never even smiled at me, and I thought what the hell kind of demons could this little thing have faced to not be afraid of me." Endeavor reflected on that night with a heavy heart.