Revenge Doth Not A Hero Make

Prologue: Shoto Todoroki

Shoto's heart pounded as he followed his hooded leader through several alleyways. 

He snuck out.

He shouldn't have done that.

Father would be mad.

Father would yell.

And get violent.

Shoto's footsteps faltered for a moment before he broke away from his anxious thoughts. 

He looked up from his feet and towards the back of the person he was following. 

He should've stayed home.

Should've been obedient.

After all, that's why he always got yelled at and hit, right? 

He clenched his fists.

He hates Father. 

Which is why he's being led by someone else who shares that hatred.

"Touya, I told you I didn't want to go too far." He tried to say quietly, though it came out louder than expected. 

The figure in front of him spun and angrily smacked a hand over Shoto's mouth, hood falling off from his head revealing some spikey white hair. 

"Shut up." He whispered, barely more audible than a breath.

Shoto flinched at the sudden movement, immediately freezing like he always did when Father turned at him like that. 

Touya glared at his youngest brother with his piercing blue eyes until Shoto nodded. He nodded back and turned, flipping the hood back up. 

They continued on for a few more blocks until they came across an abandoned warehouse. 

Touya led him inside and up a few flights of very rickety stairs until they got to a sort of lived-in hideout area. It had a pretty good view of the city though, Shoto will give it that. But everything else about it, the rats he could hear scurrying, the burnt and moldy food on the nearby table, and the abundance of dust in the air already starting to clog his lungs, maybe that stuff wasn't all too great. 

Touya went over to the torn up futon mattress on the floor and sat down.

"I fucking told you to call me Dabi when we're outside." Touya pointed out, annoyed at having to explain this again. 

"Sorry." Shoto mumbled, just kinda standing in the middle of the room awkwardly. He took a breath and spoke hesitantly, "I shouldn't have come here--"

"Sit down." Touya ordered, motioning towards a nearby half-empty beanbag chair. 

Shoto nodded and shuffled over to sit down. 

"Listen, this is our chance to get back at that fucking asshole of a father." Touya began, eyes meeting Shoto's, "I can see it in your eyes, Sho. The way you walk. The way you refuse to use your left side in battle," Touya cracked a devilish smile, "Reminds me of myself." He breathed, sending a chill up Shoto's spine. 

Shoto looked away, eyes fixing on a cockroach scurrying in the corner.

"So how about we show the world how awful Father's Hellflame is?" Touya said, repeating the pitch he'd gave earlier through text. 

While Touya had been absent from the Todoroki's lives since his "suicide" years ago, he was never truly gone. Just watching from the background. It just pushed him further into his absolute loathing of his father and all that man stood for. 

After all, how could such an evil man become the number two hero to be praised by all of society?

It was disgusting.

Shoto sucked in a nervous breath, nodding as he turned back to look at his brother, "And how should I do that?" He asked softly. He's never really done something like this before. Not many people have, probably. Ya know, scheming with your thought-to-be-dead older brother who's now an actual murderer to get back at your abusive father. 

"You'll be starting at UA next year right? In by recommendation?" Touya asked, leaning back and tilting his head. 

"Most likely, yes." Shoto answered. 

"You'll get a lot of prestige and coverage being there. Not to mention the in's with pro heroes and future heroes-to-be," Touya continued, devious smile only getting bigger. He looked at his brother only to be disappointed that he didn't share in this same glee. Touya rolled his eyes, "Do I fucking have to explain everything to you?" He grumbled under his breath. Guess that's what he gets talking to Father's masterpiece who always got everything handed to him and told what to do every second of the day. 

It still turned Touya's stomach to be cooperating with Shoto. 

Every fiber of his being wanted to burn this little sheltered baby to a crisp.

Wanted to march back home and stand in front of Father's bedroom door and make the man watch as his finest creation died begging to any sort of relief. 

But alas.

Touya wanted something more......dramatic. 

Something more public.

Something more expository of the filth this society held. 

So he will show some restraint until then.

"You'll get in, become the most powerful student in your goddamn class, make some contacts with other, equally-powerful, classmates, recruit those other powerful classmates to our cause giving us double agents in-the-know, blah, blah, blah, we expose the world to Father's true nature and Hero society crumbles." Touya explained, holding his arms out wide. 

Shoto looked down and fiddled with a loose thread of the beanbag, "I don't want to ruin society..." He mumbled, getting an annoyed groan from his brother.

"Fine, you can just spite Father and I'll handle the society ruining business." Touya stated with a wave of his hand. 

"Touya, I just want to prove to Father that I can be a hero without his Hellflame. I-I hate him and his quirk with all my will, but, I don't hate Hero society." He said, looking down at his left hand, "He is the only one I want to ruin because he isn't a good hero." 

Touya leaned forward quickly and pointed a finger angrily, "There are no fucking good heroes, Shoto!" He yelled, "Father is fuckin' proof of that! He's a byproduct of a society that only cares about the façade of a hero without any of the true heroism. So what we need is to burn it all to the ground and start over," He leaned back again, scowling, "And that flame starts with Father." He spat. 

Shoto swallowed the building lump in his throat and nodded slowly. 

"Good. Now go home," Touya said, pointing towards the door, "I'm sure you don't want our dear father realizing you're gone." 

With that, Shoto stood and left.

He couldn't help but feel a pit in his stomach. 

He still wanted to be a hero.

To do good.

But could cooperating in a broken system be considered good if he knows how broken it is?

Wouldn't that be inadvertently reinforcing the bad that society produces? 

So wouldn't doing a short-term bad create a long-term good?

Isn't that what the concept of "the greater good" all about?

Shoto nodded to himself as he looked down on his phone for directions back home. 

This is all for the greater good. 

He took a deep breath as he repeated that thought in his head. 

This is all for the greater good.