So, a half naked woman walks into a bar...

I was the punchline.

Who wouldn't stare at a scruffy looking woman, wearing nothing but thin summer pyjamas and fuzzy socks, skulking towards the bartender?
"Uh...excuse me, Miss...but we kind of have a dress code..." The elder man started, gesturing to my lack of attire.
"Look, I get that. I really do, but I need a drink, man." I sighed, raking a hand down my face. He was about to insist I leave, but then he was struck by a realisation.

"Wait a darn second! You're Songbird, aren't you?!" He exclaimed; a little too loudly for my liking, and I nodded once in confirmation. "Well, in that case, I suppose I can let it slide just this once. You look pretty rough, though. Tough night?"

The worst...

Sitting myself down on one of the bar stools, I shrugged my bare shoulders, my nails clicking against the surface of the counter.
"You could say that. If I'm allowed to stay, could I please get a drink? Anything strong will do. Surprise me." With an enthusiastic salute, my wish was granted, and in no time flat I had a glass of some sort of rum in front of me.

Left to my own devices, I thought over the last hour. I knew that, maybe, I had been a little too harsh on Hawks. Even so, I didn't exactly regret it. He had had the chance to tell me the truth, but he had decided to just hit me with cryptic bullshit instead of the straight up facts. What hurt the most, though, was his indirect admittance to her end.

Accident or not...he was involved...I can't just forget that...I'm not sure I even want to know anymore...I did what any normal person would do...

"Making a statement?" Glancing to my side, I immediately recognised the bundled up figure beside me, leaning upon the bar.
"Oh, Kohei..." I raised three fingers from the curve of my glass in a pathetic attempt at a wave. "No, just...felt like a drink." Even under all of those bulges of material covering his being, I could tell the man wasn't buying it.

"Trouble in the aviary?" It was more of a statement than a question, but I didn't answer him. "I won't pry. Just thought I'd keep you company for a bit." Humming, I felt kind of strange. Hawks had warned me about him, and he had seemed pretty serious. Despite him seeming like a normal, kindly fan, maybe there was something to be wary of.
"Appreciated, but I'm not exactly in the mood for company, Kohei..."

I was, kind of, but I just couldn't shake that feeling now. It could have been due to my emotional state, but I wasn't going to chance it when I felt so drained.
"That's fair...I should probably head off, anyway." I noticed Kohei's head tilt upward, as if he was watching something. "If you're ever in need of a chat, give me a call. I'm not too far away from your agency." The man slid me a scrap of paper, a number scrawled across it in red ink.

"Thanks...I'll see you around, I guess?" I shoved the paper into the pocket of my (F/C) pyjama shorts, nodding to him as he seemed to hurry off. Before I could even start to ponder why that could be, I heard somebody clear their throat from behind me. Pivoting on my stool, I came face to face with a young man. He had fluffy; almost spiky, white hair, and a rather buff build.

"Uh, sorry to intrude, but there's a group of guys sitting over there, and they've been staring at you since you came in. If it wouldn't bother you, would you mind if I sat here? I just don't like the way they're looking at you..." I was taken aback for a moment, but the second I followed the direction of his point, I knew he wasn't just trying to make an excuse to talk to me. A cluster of greasy looking men were, indeed, gawking at me, and they looked unsavory.

"Well shit...so they are. Um, sure, thank you." The boy took one last glance over his shoulder before sliding in next to me, keeping a respectable distance.
"Sorry, again." He laughed awkwardly, placing his bottle of drink on one of the printed coasters, which immediately began soaking up the condensation.
"Nah, it's fine. Thank you...uh..?" I prompted him to introduce himself, and he immediately straightened up.

"T..Todoroki! Natsuo Todoroki! Damn, I should've started off with that, huh?" Natsuo rubbed the back of his neck, his smile kind of boyish, despite him looking to be in his early twenties. The moment I heard his name I put two and two together, and once I had, I felt like an idiot for not recognising him sooner.

Lifting my drink to my lips, I studied him closely, watching as he became more and more uncomfortable.
"Ah yeah, I forgot you were doing work placement here. How's Fuyumi?" It was my intent to scare him. Maybe it was my horrendous mood, or maybe I just wanted to stir him a little. Either way, it was kind of amusing watching his eyes grow wide.

"I...uh...D..do I know you..?" Instead of leaning back like most people would, he moved a touch closer, trying to place my face in his brain.
"I work with your old man sometimes." I revealed, completely monotone even though I found it pretty funny.
"Ah. Why would you willingly work wi...Wait, you're Hawks' missus, aren't you?"

Maybe not for much longer...

Tensing at the sound of his name, I took another long swig, reaching the bottom of my hard liquor.
"I would prefer it if you didn't mention his name right now." I groaned, slumping further down upon the bar. Natsuo quirked a brow, kind of lowering himself to match.
"Alright, as long as you don't mention my asshole father."

Scoffing, I turned to face him a little more, my cheek squishing against the forearm I rested it on.
"Aw, why? He talks about you a lot when we have our little luncheons." Finally, and surprisingly, my typical teasing tone came back, though it was a little lacklustre. A loud snort blew from Natsuo's nose as I waved me off, sipping at his beer.
"Bullshit! That man doesn't think about anyone but himself!"

I'll ease off for now. Kind of.

"Then how do I know that you ranked second in your last theory exam in your health and welfare class? Oh, and first in the physical. Go you." The white-haired boy's mouth popped open as he blinked down at me like a spooked owl, but then he clenched his fist, shaking it slightly.
"Fuyumi..." He growled his sister's name, realising that she must have been relaying information about his life to their father.

My smirk was small and tired, but it was there. Natsuo was proving to be a decent distraction, and I felt just a touch better than I had upon arrival. I still didn't want to speak to Hawks that night, but now I felt like I could try to talk things through, eventually.

I still stood firm when it came to the separation side of things, however.

"Anyway, I thought you were underage? Weren't you a year younger than me, or something?" He seemed relieved to veer the conversation away from his dad, and he perked up.
"Legal as of forty eight hours ago." He grinned, and I lazily reached over and gave his shoulder a congratulatory punch.

"Well, happy belated birthday to you, old man. Welcome to the world of wanting to perish more often than usual." I half-joked, watching the drips race down the side of my empty glass.
"Hey, I didn't want to seem like an ass, but are you okay? I mean, you look like you were in bed like five minutes ago..." Natsuo pointed out the obvious, and I thought I may as well be somewhat honest with the guy.

"Pigeon dick and I are...taking a breather, so to speak..." I admitted, huffing out a long sigh. "Doubt it's something that can be fixed, but I don't really want to think about that right now..." I tried to ignore his pitying gaze, but it was hard when he was such a large guy. He really did resemble his dad in a way, not that I would ever dare tell him that.
"Man, I'm really sorry about that..." Natsuo murmured, looking to be regretting his question.

"Well, it was bound to happen sooner or later, the way things have been going." I explained curtly, focusing on the spiked ends of the boy's white hair instead of his eyes. "I should probably get going soon. It won't be long before he starts looking for me..." The bar keep wandered back in our direction, nodding at my empty glass.
"Another?" He questioned, and I shook my head, already feeling the effects of the one I had drank.

"No thanks, one is more than enough." I responded. Smiling, the bar keep took the emptied glass and tucked it away under the counter.
"That will be eight hundred yen, please."

Oh fuck.

How could I have been so daft? my wallet, my keys, my everything, was back at the condo. Suddenly, I felt like my old, penniless self, and it didn't feel good at all.
"Oh, uh...well, y'see, I-"
"Here, Sir." My (E/C) grew wide as Natsuo piped up, pulling a card out of his pocket and handing it offer to the man. "For my two beers, too."

For some reason, I wanted to cry. Of course, I knew it was because I was already in such an erratic mood, but his kindness was overwhelming. Once he had his card back, he turned and gave me a bright smile.
"Y..you didn't have to do that...I'll totally pay you back, I swear..." Instead of the flat tone I had been using until that point, my voice sounded a little shaky, and I didn't like it.

That smile quickly curled into a smirk, and he flipped the card around between his middle and index fingers.
"No need! This isn't coming from my pockets!" I deflated when I read the name; Todoroki Enji, on the retangular plastic, but I still forced a smile.
"Well...still...thanks..." I fiddled with my hands in my lap, looking down at them so he wouldn't see me getting all emotional. "You're a really nice person, Natsuo..."

Standing up, I gave his shoulder a quick pat, trying to stretch without lifting my arms too high to avoid bringing attention towards my chest.
"Are...you heading back to your hu...uh, to where you came from..?" He asked, the darkness of his cheeks more noticeable thanks to his pale aesthetic.
"I don't want to deal with him right now, so I was just gonna fly on home. Anyway, I'll catch you later, Natsuo."

I ignored the chatter of the other patrons as I walked towards the doors, a shudder slithering up my spine as I saw the creepy men from before pointing and whispering, their eyes hungry. I wasn't exactly too worried about them. I was a pro, after all, but a fight was the last thing I needed. It was too much effort.

The chill of the air hit me like a tonne of igloo bricks when I reached the outside, and I really regretted not accepting Hawks' coat. I began my slow walk down the footpath, my socks making for an uncomfortable journey to somewhere with less awning and telephone wires. I soon became hyper aware of the multiple footsteps following behind me, but I didn't make it known.

It's fine...If they try to touch me, I'll just screech at them, or fly away...

"H..hey, wait up!" Before I had the chance to turn around, a large arm came down over my shoulders, and I was pulled into a brawny side. "Didn't I tell you to wait for me outside, babe?" Automatically, I went to bombard Natsuo with a slew of 'what the hell's and 'are you good bro's, until I realised what he was doing. Those extra footsteps had stopped, and I could see Natsuo glancing over his shoulder, warding the scum away.

"Sorry, honey...I just thought I'd get a head start..." I replied, meeting his soft, grey eyes. We continued on, and after a while we could hear our followers turn back the way they came. Puffing out a sigh, Natsuo immediately removed his arm, laughing awkwardly.
"I couldn't think of anything else to do without picking a fight, so..." He explained, pushing a bundle of white and blue towards me. It was his sweater, and it was only then that I realised he was now only wearing a t-shirt.

I felt bad, but it was too cold out for me to refuse, so I accepted with a tired smile, pulling it on and nearly getting lost in its far greater size.
"Be honest...I look like a whacky waving inflatable arm flailing tube man...don't I?" I chuckled weakly, flopping the sleeves around, showing how they dangled far past my hands. Natsuo covered his mouth as he snorted, shoving his other hand in his pocket as he walked along.

"Honestly? You look like a turtle too small for its shell." He admitted, referring to how I was nearly drowning in the turtle neck of the attire. "Hey, look, I don't think you're in any state to be flying anywhere, let alone all the way back home. Why don't we share a cab? I'm supposed to be heading back to visit Fuyumi and Ma tomorrow, anyway. They'd both kick my ass into next story arc if they found out I left a woman alone in the middle of the night."

Blinking up at him, I tugged down the neck of the sweater, tilting my head.
"I'm sorry, into the next what?" Waving off the question, Natsuo pulled out his phone, unlocking it with his thumb.
"Whaddya say?" I pondered his offer for a few moments, scratching the back of my calf with my opposing foot. It was obviously the best thing to do. He was right, I wasn't in the right mindset to be flying such a distance, and a warm shower and a bed to myself sounded like a dream.

"I'd appreciate that, Natsuo." I finally responded with a more genuine smile, watching as he perked up and dialed the number for the cab company. As he ordered one, I looked up into the night sky, watching the cloud of dragons breath spread out from my parted lips.

I'll go and talk to Tsunagu tomorrow...and he can help me figure out what the hell to do...

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***📣I SAID NATSUO RIGHTS‼‼‼

Some super rough sketchy sketches I did last night before *heavy breathing* I love him.

Also, uh, I'm honestly kind of confused as to some of the reactions about how (Y/N) handled things in the chapter before last? Like, wouldn't that be a normal human reaction to hearing that your partner had something to do with the death of your child? Even if it was an accident, he lied about it and refuses to elaborate, or even admit to it straight...? I'm just genuinely confused at the people calling (Y/N) an idiot and stuff xD Anyway...

Next time: There is no taking sides***