𝗥𝗲𝗱 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗳 𝗙𝗮𝘁𝗲 ★ 𝗢𝗖 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗖𝗵 𝟱

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Red String of Fate

Word Count: 3373

Character Count: 18969

OC wiki here.

TPL made by: Tess :heart:

Read previous chapter here.

This story is also posted here.

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:: RECAP ::

"Chise? What are you doing here?"

Recognizing her voice, the large man turned around to face her, his face growing visibly hard as they made eye . Why? The stern look was enough to halt her steps, creating a gap between them. Sure, Endeavor was known for being a harsh man, and he never was very friendly with her all those years ago. But . . .

"What happened to you? Why did you . . . stop visiting me and mom?" It was a question she's been wondering all these years. It bothered her so much, not knowing why he had distanced himself so suddenly. It also hurt her mom, seeing as how the two had been friends back in their days in U.A. Even after her mom became bedridden . . . He never once came to visit her. It was always, only, All Might.

Despite her question, Endeavor showed no sign of answering her. Rather, he turned around yet again and began heading to his room again, as if she wasn't even there at all. He wasn't going to answer her. She knew that, and yet . . .

"You stopped showing up . . . after my dad disappeared." As if that was the trigger, the man once again stopped at his tracks and glanced back at her. Chise was looking down this time, her hands trembling into fists at her side. What she was to say next, she was unsure of the response, but she wanted─ no, needed─ to know. "Do you know anything . . . anything, where he could've─"

"It'll be best for you to simply think that he's dead."

What? What did he mean by that? However, just as she reached out to him, desperate for consolation, meaning behind his words . . . The door was slammed in her face, leaving her standing there motionless, her gold eyes filled with tears.

'I don't understand . . . Why won't anyone give me a straight answer?'

▬▬▬▬▬▬▬【☪】▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

Ever since that day Chise did nothing but mope and sulk, sighing countlessly throughout the day as she worked. She couldn't get out of her head, how Endeavor had brushed her off that day. What was he hiding? Why did his voice sound so harsh, so cold, when he spoke of her father? It has always been like this; the two never saw eye to eye, they absolutely hated each other's guts. But as to why, Chise couldn't begin to fathom why . . .

"Chise! Chise!"

"Huh? Mirio . . .?" The purplette looked over her shoulder to see the tall blonde jogging towards her, and she slowed to a stop and turned to face him with a small smile. "What's the matter?"

"What's the matter? I'd like to ask you the same thing." Oh . . . That's right. Ever since her visit at the Todoroki's she hadn't had the will to see her friends, including Mirio. Can you believe that? Though she had responded to his daily text messages, she hadn't been in the mood to answer his calls or meet up with him in person. She was too consumed by memories of her father, whether he was alive or not, and the fact that Endeavor refused to tell her anything - it all began to weigh her down. "Did I . . . do something to upset you?"

'What . . .? Was he worrying that he had done something wrong?'

Chise looked down at her shoes with a sigh as they walked in silence, neither one saying a word for a while. Mirio glanced down at the girl at his side, his eyes filled with concern over her as he could only wonder what was wrong. He didn't want to force her to open up to him if she wasn't comfortable, after all - they have only been together for a month now. He refocused his eyes back on the road in front of them and shoved his hands into the pockets of his jacket. It wasn't until they were standing outside Chise's condominium did she finally look up to meet his eyes again.

"I'll tell you tonight . . . okay?"

❍❍❍❖❍❍❍

That night, as they slept soundly in their own homes and their own rooms, they succumbed to slumber and escaped into dreams. Hours ticked by as night expanded, in their minds created threads of light that burst forth constellations before there was darkness. Amidst the darkness was nothingness; cold and warm, prickly and serene all at the same time. It produced goosebumps upon their bare skin as they sought each other in this vestige world of nihility, calling out.

"Chise!"

". . ."

Nothing. The blonde teen wandered in the dark as he became desperate, searching for the girl he meets every night. Would he finally get to speak to her? It became a nightly routine for them to meet together in this place, but for whatever reason . . . they could not speak. Though they were together there was still a distance between them, like they were stock-still, immobile. But it wasn't until lately, as they had united for the first time in the real world and have become closer, did they begin speaking the exclusive language of their eyes. It was something so intimate that could not be easily described in words.

But then, he found her. The familiar figure with soft purple hair and creamy smooth skin. Yet . . . as he neared her, his eyes softened in worry and concern as he took in her position. She sat there, hugging her knees as close to her bosom as possible. Her head was lowered until her chin rested weakly on top of her knees. Even from where he stood behind her, he could strongly sense the sadness from her as he gazed at her small bare back.

"What's wrong . . .?"

"Mirio . . ."

Chise slowly turned her head to look at him from over her shoulder, and when she did so ─ he immediately noticed the tears glistening her eyes, his frown deepened at the night and he gradually approached her until he was sitting down beside her. Mimicking her posture, he also laid his folded arms over his knees, his eyes never leaving the side of her face. His silence granted her permission to continue.

"When I was fourteen . . . my dad disappeared. He was ─ the closest person in the world to me. My idol. M─my best friend, ya know? I ired him more than anybody. He would always . . . call me his little d─daffodil."

She paused to hide her tear streaked face from him, burying into her crossed arms. For a few minutes she didn't say anything else, not even a single sound escaped her lips. But by the faint tremble of her body, Mirio could tell that she was crying. His hand reached out and gently caressed her soft short hair, hoping to somehow soothe her and comfort her. It wasn't until he was about to open his mouth to console her, did she continue. Her voice quiet and muffled from being hidden in the space of her arms.

"That day he disappeared . . . that same day, my mom lost her eyesight and became bedridden. She was a Pro Hero, but was forced to retire because of it . . . I tried ─ only All Might and Endeavor know what truly happened that day, but . . ."

Just then, Chise raised her head and looked up to meet his worry-filled blue eyes, her own golden ones quivering sadly as fresh tears rolled across her already damp cheeks. It was enough to render him speechless, his heart pained at her sorrow and he sucked in a breath. He had no idea she was hurting this much on her own . . . She was always smiling, laughing, always full of life. Now he could see why she has been distant lately ─ why she looked so sad now as she openly cried in front of him. In just the short time they have known each other, she's come to trust him more than anybody. She could open her heart and share her deepest secrets with him . . . knowing that he would not judge her, or abandon her.

Because they were soulmates.

Because they were, undoubtedly ─

Bounded by the Red Thread of Fate.

"B─but they won't . . . they won't tell me anything . . ."

Chise shut her eyes tightly and buried her face in the crook of her arms once more, pulling her knees impossibly closer to her chest, curling up into a small ball. Never once had she been as vulnerable as she was at this moment. Stripped bare with nothing or anywhere to hide. All her insecurities . . . weakness . . . imperfections . . . fully exposed, and there was nowhere for her hide.

But she told herself ─

That this was Mirio. Her soulmate.

That this was okay, and she relaxed.

It was in that moment, as he witnessed all of her in full, all of her secrets, her personality ─ everything, that he felt so much more closer to her than before. More than he even thought possible. Was it possible . . . to feel this much love and adoration ─ for one person? Mirio had been silent as he watched her, listened to her, and more than ever before . . . he felt this strong desire to stand by her and protect her forever. So he dropped his hand from her hair to her shoulder, gently pulling her close to him in a warm embrace. And they stayed like this for what seemed to be hours, as he stroked her hair until her crying gradually came to a stop.

"Chise, I promise . . . I'll help you find your dad. I promise."

❍❍❍❖❍❍❍

"All Might!"

"Huh!? Oh . . . It's just you, Togata. You're full of energy this morning."

The former number one hero looked over his shoulder to glance at the familiar blonde, slowing to a stop. The boney man had apparently gone out shopping, what with the brown grocery bag he was currently holding in his arms. He honestly didn't expect to see the boy so early in the morning, but he didn't think much of it as they now walked together in silence. But that moment of silence was brief as Mirio opened his mouth just moments later.

"It's about Chise."

"Oh?"

Toshinori raised a brow at the boy from the corner of his eyes, wordlessly edging him to continue. Sure, he was aware of the relationship between the two, who wasn't? Shamelessly, the two had made their status public in more ways than one; telling all of their friends, wearing matching clothes in public ─ which also came with creative forms of PDA ─ and even randomly announcing it to strangers. As weird as it definitely was, it was hard to ignore and at some point it spread like wildfire. It wasn't long at all until Toshinori caught wind of this, and though he was initially concerned by the odd lengths they went, he was happy enough. To the point that he even spilled the beans to Chise's family, um . . .

It wasn't until they were nearing U.A did Mirio finally ask him the dreaded question. When he did, he didn't at all expect Toshinori's sudden reaction.

"Do you know anything about Chise's father?"

'Of course he would ask . .' Toshinori tensed slightly and looked at the ground, his head turned away as he desperately thought of a lie. He took a subtle step away from Mirio, his eyes wandering the streets and erbys. For the life of him, he couldn't come up with a believable lie. Which made sense; Toshinori wasn't one to lie, in fact he hated doing so. But this time, how could he tell the truth?

Doing so would only hurt Chise.

And Toshinori was too soft-hearted to witness that, to be responsible for it.

"It . . really isn't all that important. He left, it's as simple as that. Chise," The skeleton of a man paused to gather his words, his gaze still glued to the ground. "She just needs to accept that and move o─"

"'Accept it and move on'? How can you say that?"

Mirio balled his fists at his side and furrowed his brows, his eyes hardened as he looked at the man in front of him. He wasn't angry, but he was getting there. How can he possibly expect Chise to do something like it was so simple? Mirio knew, more than anyone, how impossible that would be for her. The image of the girl crying for her father all night replayed over and over again in his head. Toshinori wouldn't understand that, that much was clear; he was oblivious to the pain Chise so expertly hid from everyone.

Unbeknownst to Mirio, however, Toshinori was very much aware. He knew that Chise needed her father, just as any child would, and how much it hurt her that he was gone and she knew nothing. But that was all the more reason why he couldn't just up and tell her the truth; the last thing he wanted to do was distort her image of her perfect, loving father. That would be too much for him to bear . . .

"There's just some things . . that are better left unsaid. Chise will have to learn to understand that. Her father ─ isn't going to come back. That's all she needs to kn─"

Once again, Toshinori was cut off mid sentence, but this time he wasn't expecting Mirio's booming voice. He shot his head up to finally meet the boy's eyes, slowly turning his body to properly face him. He watched Mirio's blue eyes blaze with something identical to anger. But it wasn't violent or aggressive, rather it was more so hurt.

He was hurting ─ for Chise.

"How insensitive can you possibly be?! Chise is hurting, because no one tells her anything! She cries every night because she doesn't know where her father is. And you want to lie to her? You're not protecting her; you're just adding to her misery. Don't you even care for her at all?!"

". . ."

That was it. Toshinori felt his eyes begin to water slightly before he pushed it back right away; he was truly a softhearted man, he felt nothing but sympathy for Chise even if he did his best not to show it often. More than being soft, he was also weak. It didn't take much for him to want to spill the beans and tell him everything. For Chise's sake and his own peace of mind. But . . . he couldn't. After making a promise to Chise's mother to not say anything yet, he couldn't find the courage in him to break it.

So he stepped backwards, almost in slow motion as he turned away from Mirio and faced the road again. His grip on the brown paper bag in his arms felt incredibly heavy, and it took every ounce of strength in him to walk away and not look back.

"All Might..!"

'I'm sorry . .'

❍❍❍❖❍❍❍

"Fujiyama."

Chise looked up from her clipboard and turned around to face whoever it was that was addressing her. She had entered the hospital as early as usual, being among the first to arrive for the morning shift. She was looking over her tasks for the day as she quietly walked along the halls, when someone suddenly called out to her from behind. As soon as she saw who it was, she nearly dropped her clipboard.

"E─Endeavor?!"

This was odd; Endeavor never went out of his way to see her, let alone at her workplace. So, why . . .? Just as she was about to question him, he raised a hand to stop her.

"Let's talk in private."

"P─private? But I'm worki─"

"We got permission, it's fine."

He gestured behind them with his thumb and when she looked back she saw Dr. Sakisaka standing there with his arms crossed, giving her a simple nod when their eyes met. With furrowed brows Chise turned back to Endeavor, but yet again, she was cut off before given a chance to further question. This time he had grabbed her wrist lightly but firmly (VERY firmly um) and began to practically drag her to a vacant break room.

"Fujiyama? That's rather formal, isn't it? Why all of a su─"

"Listen. I have other engagements after this, so I'll do the talking."

Okay, he really needed to stop interrupting her . . . Chise sighed softly through her nose and sat back against her chair, where she was currently seated across from the big man who had his arms crossed over his chest. Gosh, could he look any more intimidating? Surely, it wouldn't kill him to smile, right? The nurse bit back the urge to tease him and instead waited patiently for him to continue.

"You want to know about your dad, right?"

". . ."

Chise opened her mouth, but no words came out. She just stared at him with her mouth slightly agape in a small 'o' shape, her golden eyes wavering just faintly. He was really going to tell her? A part of her doubted her ears, but she knew she had heard right. Was she finally going to learn the truth about her dad? Would she finally meet him again? A swarm of emotions overwhelmed her and she looked down at her hands, which were folded neatly on her lap. She felt them tremble and she had to carefully press them together to calm herself.

More than anything.

What would make her truly happy . .

Was to see her father again.

Even if it were just for a moment, she'll be happy. Just to see her father's face and know that he was alive ─ was all she could ask for.

"Y─yes."

". . . Fine. I'll pick you up after your shift and we'll talk."

Without giving her final say in the matter he was already out of his seat and out of the room before she could even let his words properly sink in. Finally . . . Finally there was a sign of hope. She clasped her hands together and pressed them against her heart, a small smile decorating her face.

▬▬▬▬▬▬▬【☪】▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

"Papa . . .?"

"Yes, daffodil?"

Five year old Chise slowly approached her father as sat at his usual desk in his 'office', which was in the basement, where he would always be. He didn't turn around to face like he usually would, rather . . . he remained stiff as he kept his eyes glued to the open notebook that lay on the desk in front of him. Several scraps of paper laid crumbled all over the floor, the trash bin beside him full of more as they have overfilled. For some reason, the sight of his back in front of her made her feet stop. From where she stood it was almost like she was staring at a stranger.

But, why?

His slender back was hunched over, shoulders drooping as if they had lost their strength. Chise stared on with big eyes as they shook vaguely, and she swallowed a lump in her throat before speaking.

"Papa . . . why are you crying?"

Choēi tensed visibly and reached up to touch his face with his scarred hands. The realization that his cheeks were damp made him suck in a breath. How did she notice? It momentarily puzzled him how a five year girl would notice him crying, without in fact seeing his tears . . .

Yet, instead of answering his daughter, the man hunched over further to the point where his elbows scraped against the wood of his desk. His hands shook as they trailed up his face, gripping the end of his purple short curls, his fingers trembling as they fervently pulled over and over again. His glasses fell and dropped on the desk as he squeezed his eyes shut, completely blocking off the outside world as he fought the sob inside of him.

"P─papa─!"

Before the young girl could approach her father, arms wrapped around her body from behind and pulled her back. Chise raised her eyes up to see her mother embracing her, and she whimpered softly in response.

"Mama . . .?"

"Go to your room, Chise. Your father needs to be alone for a bit, okay?"

Leaving no room to argue, her mother had already picked her up and was carrying her out of the room. Chise wrapped her small hands around her mother's neck and looked over her shoulder one last time at her father.

Why was he crying . . . ?

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