After dinner, we both made ourselves comfortable in the bedroom, cross-legged across from one another in our pyjamas.

"So...where do you want me to start..?" Dabi looked beyond nervous, his fingers fiddling with whatever he could reach, which at the moment happened to be the duvet.
"Wherever you're comfortable. I just want to know you better." I gave him an an encouraging smile, hoping it would ease him.

"I guess the beginning would be easiest..." Sighing, he lifted his chin, eyes training onto the ceiling fan. "So, everything was pretty normal for the first few years, I guess. Fuyumi was born a year after me, and we did everything any other normal kids would do...until I turned four, and my quirk manifested..."

He's so tense...

I shifted closer, giving him my full attention, ready to dive into comfort mode if called for.
"Endeavor threw me head first into training the second he found out, even though I couldn't even write my own name. Even before all that I'd been scared of him, but once he took an interest...it was weird. I feared him, but I guess I also...feared that I'd let him down..."

Dabi's gaze dropped down to the duvet, pinching it tight between his fingers, and I reached out to cover his hand with mine.
"I get that. He's intimidating." It was difficult to think of words to say. I didn't want to upset him any more than he was already.

"He didn't give a shit about Fuyumi or Natsuo. Barely even glanced at them. He'd drag me along to all kinds of stupid events, making himself look like a great father, even though he never even called me by my actual name...It was always boy this, boy that...but my mother...she was soft and gentle..."

Flipping his hand over, he held mine tightly, and I could feel his pulse beat heavy through his skin.
"Did you and your mother have a good relationship..?" I couldn't help myself. Despite being a villain, I knew that somebody in Dabi's life had been there to shape the kind side of him. I wanted to know who.

"At the start, yeah. I was a timid little shit, always running crying to her after training, making her kiss me better. After a while, though, I began to realise she was somewhat scared of me...That was when Shoto turned four..." The way he spoke his youngest brother's name was slightly spiteful, but I didn't comment on that.

Come to think of it...if Touya's hair wasn't dyed...

"Shoto was a frankenstein's monster of the two of them, stitched right down the middle...and I was the spitting image of that bastard. He began training him too, separately to me, and whenever the little shit ran to our mother...I could see what I hadn't before. Our existence made her sick."

I couldn't even begin to imagine a mother who hated her children. Already, it explained a lot, but still, so much remained a mystery.
"I'm sure she loves you..." I murmured, and Dabi lifted his eyes to meet mine.

"In a way. Simultaneous love and hatred. I can't blame her. Endeavor married her for her quirk. Bought her from her parents. She never wanted any of it." His grip around my hand tightened for a brief moment before it released, and he pulled his knees up to his chest. "Between beatings, and dealing with two normal kids and two monsters, she started to crack...and Shoto came whining to her at the wrong damn time..."

You're not a monster...

"I watched her pour boiling water over his face. He was barely five. Then she tried to cool it off...hence the scarring. She didn't think, then ended up in a mental institution. Darling husband didn't like the fact she risked his legacy..." The fear in his voice had warped to disgust, and I crawled across to him, reaching out and running my hand through his ebony hair, which was still damp to the touch.

"Touya...I'm so sorry..." I wasn't even sure if my words got through to him, because he just kept on going. His filter was completely gone.
"After she was gone, he lost his patience with me. Shoto was doing well, but apparently I was being lazy. Not working hard enough. He started training me less, and I felt like I'd failed. Kicked aside to make room for my prodigy of a baby brother..."

How can a man like that be the number one hero? It's horrific...

"Every now and then he'd give me a chance to try and prove my worth, or whatever. I made my flames hotter, wasn't good enough. I'd learn new techniques, wasn't good enough. Nothing was fucking good enough, and he kept pushing me...until..." Taking a deep breath, Dabi closed his eyes, somewhat flinching at his own memories. "One day, he took me out to one of his remote little training areas...and I pushed myself so hard I killed myself..."

Even though I knew he hadn't actually killed himself, I couldn't stop myself from throwing my arms around him, and he slowly reciprocated, fingers clawing into my loose shirt.
"Y..you don't have to say any more if-"
"It's fine. There's not much more to say, anyway. Besides, this is the short version..." He replied, voice muffled my my shoulder.

"Only if you're sure..." I murmured, allowing him to move me around so I sat with my back against his chest, his knees parting to accommodate me.
"I fucked myself up, and I ran away when the flames were still giving me cover. He thought I was dead, and I got out...My skin was literally melting off, but I got out...Some old couple out for a hike found me and took me to the hospital, but they couldn't tell who I was thanks to my condition. Countless skin grafts later, I was sent into foster care, then bolted as soon as I was able."

He began to stroke my hair, some catching in the staples of his hand and pulling, but it didn't bother me.
"I'm so sorry you went through that, Touya...I can understand why you hate Endeavor now..." I murmured softly, leaning back into him more.

"He took me out there about a week after I first met you...so at least that's a decent memory..." He allowed himself to fall back into the mattress, dragging me along with him. "When I was on the streets, I discovered Stain. Heard every man and his dog talking about him, and I started to actively seek him out. Never managed to meet him, but even knowing that a guy like him existed, bringing so called heroes to justice...It made me feel like I had something to live for again..."

The Hero Killer had been the talk of the school when he had been apprehended. I never mentioned it out loud, but I could see sense in his ideology. There were heroes who didn't care about people, and since joining the League of Villains, I realised it was the majority.

"Thank you...f..for telling me, that is...I know it's hard for you..." Squirming, I managed to turn myself around so I was laying along his torso, stretching so I could press a kiss to his chin.
"Well, you deserve to know who you'll be marrying. Still keen on that?" Squeezing me close, he waited patiently for my answer, though the way his muscles tensed told me he expected me to back out.

Wriggling out of his hold, I sat myself up, straddling him and staring into his ocean eyes.
"One hundred billion percent! As a matter of fact, I want to get married immediately!" It was a bit of a stretch, but still. I was sure of my decision. Villain or not, he was the man I loved.

Relaxing, Dabi snorted and held me by the waist, a small smile playing on his lips.
"A bit hard without a whatsit. Fuckin, officiant, or whatever." He pointed out, easing his head back into the pillow. Smirking, I leaned down to nuzzle my nose against his, wiggling my brows.
"Since when do we obey the law, huh?"

Rolling his eyes, Dabi rolled me to the side, smothering me in a warm embrace. His soapy scent, mixed with his natural smokey musk, made me feel at home.
"Since now." He nudged my chin with his nose to make me meet his gaze, and I melted into him, like every other time he opened up to me. "I wanna do something right for once. I'll figure something out, so you won't have to wait much longer."

I can wait for you...

Our lips met in a slow kiss. It wasn't filled with passion, but it was perfect. Something I wanted to experience every day for the rest of my life.
"Mmmmm...I'm so glad I met you..." I sighed happily, tangling my legs with his.
"Don't expect me to get this sappy all the time...but I'm glad I met you too..." He replied with a light chuckle, all tension from our previous conversation topic having been washed away. "So, what do you wanna do now? We could nap...or we could..."

Trailing off, he moved his hand to my rear, pushing me against him in a manner that made my cheeks flush. Giggling, I buried my face into his chest, my finger tapping against his side to the beat of his heart.
"Once is enough for today...Let's just cuddle up and enjoy each other's company..." I replied, even though I was highly considering a round two.

"Well, can't blame a bastard for trying..."

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***Can a human live without a bottom jaw? Asking for myself because I want to rip mine off. It hurts.

I'm redrawing one of the older illustrations for this, from the Summer Camp arc, because why not?

Next Time: Cut To The Chase***