Frozen Wings

Chapter 45

I carefully landed outside of the psychiatric ward. It looked beautiful, compared to a lot of places I had seen. The outside had rose bushes that were blooming and carefully trimmed, as well as small trees on either side of the doors of the building. The windows were spotless and clear, the curtains on the inside of them fresh and bright. Something about this place still bothered me. I growled a little as the students hopped off, anxious.

"Storms, I know this probably reminds you of your time in captivity, but trust me, you'll really like the place. The people who work here are truly good people. They wouldn't harm a fly." Todoroki said. I blinked, focusing.

"You're right. I apologize." I changed into my human form.

"Don't worry, I didn't like this place either when I first came here." He said, leading the way. We went inside, stopping in front of a polished oak wood counter. My student spoke to the lady behind the counter, who smiled and nodded.

"You've been here plenty, so go right on ahead. I don't need to guide you." She said. Todoroki led us down a hallway that was brightly lit with windows in between the spaces where the rooms were. Eventually, we stopped. He softly knocked on the door, which was responded to with a friendly 'come in'. The three of us entered. It was a pretty room, spacious but not too big. There was a neatly made bed on one side, and a desk with a computer on the other. As well as the bed on one side there was a smaller room which I assumed was the bathroom. On the side with the desk there was a door to what must be the closet.

"Storms, Yaoyorozu, this is my mom. Mom, this is Storms and Yaoyorozu." Todoroki introduced us.

"Shoto, when you said you had a surprise I didn't think this was it!" She softly laughed.

"It's a pleasure to meet you both." His mother said.

"Likewise, Miss..." I didn't want to use her last name. It wasn't fair.

"Please, just call me Rei!" Rei smiled.

"Then please call me Winter." I returned the gesture.

"Winter, I've heard so much about you. Every time Shoto comes to visit he's got a whole book's worth of stories to tell. Did you really take on villains by yourself to save my son's life as well as three of his classmates?" She asked.

"I did. I would do it over and over again, if it came to that. I value the lives of my students more than anything in this world." I nodded.

"And did you really heal his paralysis? And save someone from a shark attack? And take them on vacation that you paid for? And play dodgeball with them while having something at stake?" I could tell his mother was eager to know everything.

"The answer to everything would be yes. I don't have a family of my own and I live on UA property so I spent much of my time with the students. They're the best." I said.

"Honestly I don't think I can thank you enough for all the things you've done. You... you really care for my son, don't you?" Her tone became more serious.

"I do. I like to think of him as one of my own. At least when he's under my care." I said, sitting down next to her on the edge of the side of the bed when she gestured me to.

"Winter... thank you." Rei said.

"Of course." I dipped my head respectfully.

"Shoto mentioned that you've been a little downcast this week because your boyfriend is hurt... I'm so sorry to hear that." She apologized.

"It's alright. I know it's going to take time but he'll be back on his feet soon enough." I said, already missing him.

"Who is he, if I may ask?" I looked into her gray eyes. They matched Todoroki's right eye.