Age: 13
The cashier at the 24/7 convenience store looked at us like we were the main characters in a low-budget horror movie.
And I didn't blame him.
On the counter sat three items: a bottle of mineral water, a pack of mint gum, and a pound of raw chicken livers.
"Is this... for a pet?" asked the cashier, an exhausted college student with dark circles who clearly didn't get paid enough to deal with this.
"Yeah," I said, pulling out my wallet with a scowl. "A very picky cat."
Beside me, Toga was practically vibrating. She had latched onto my arm like a barnacle and was staring at the package of meat with the same intensity other girls reserved for pop idols.
"Katsuki-kun is so sweet!" she squealed, resting her chin on my shoulder. "He's treating me to dinner! It's our first date!"
The cashier paled. He looked at the livers. He looked at me. He looked at Toga, who had a bit of dried blood on the corner of her mouth (my blood) and a smile showing way too many teeth.
"That'll be... 800 yen," the man stammered.
I paid and grabbed the bag.
"Let's go, Toga. Before he calls security."
"Bye-bye, Mr. Cashier!" Toga said, waving her free hand as I dragged her toward the exit. "I hope you have lots of blood today!"
"Stop saying that to people," I grumbled as the automatic doors slid open. "It sounds like a death threat."
"But it's a good wish," she countered, skipping along beside me. "Blood is life! It's love!"
We walked to an isolated bench in a park, far from the streetlights. I handed her the package. Toga tore it open with her nails, not waiting for me to give her utensils.
I'm not going to describe what happened next. Let's just say biology is complicated and repressed hunger is nasty. But as she ate, I saw her shoulders relax. The frantic trembling disappeared. Her eyes stopped darting around like a trapped insect and locked onto mine.
When she finished, she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and sighed. A long, deep sigh, like she had just broken the surface after holding her breath underwater.
"I feel... calm," she whispered.
"It's the iron and protein," I said, handing her the mint gum. "Here. Unless you want to smell like a slaughterhouse when you get home."
Toga took the gum and smiled at me. This time, it was a soft smile. Almost normal.
"Thank you, Katsuki-kun."
"Come on. I'll walk you home."
"Huh?" She tensed up. "You don't have to. I can go by myself."
"It's eleven at night. You just came out of a mild psychotic episode. I'm walking you. End of discussion."
Toga didn't protest, but her mood shifted drastically. As we moved away from the commercial district and deeper into the upper-middle-class residential neighborhoods, the vibrant, quirky girl began to fade away.
It was a terrifying process to witness.
First, she let her hair down and redid her buns, this time with meticulous precision. Not a single hair out of place. Then, she smoothed out her skirt. She buttoned the top button of the blouse she had previously been wearing loose. Finally, her face changed. The fanged smile vanished. Her curious eyes went blank, lifeless.
She walked with her back straight, her hands clasped in front of her. She looked like a porcelain doll.
"It's right here," she said. Her voice was no longer high-pitched or sing-song. It was flat.
We stopped in front of an imposing house. Pristine lawn, white picket fence, a family car in the driveway. The picture-perfect Japanese dream.
"Alright. Go inside," I said, staying on the sidewalk.
"Goodbye, Bakugo-san," she said, using my last name and a formal honorific. It was as if the Toga from twenty minutes ago had never existed.
She walked to the door and pulled out her keys.
I stood there. My instinct told me to leave, but my heightened hearing (an adaptation so I wouldn't go deaf from my own explosions) caught the sound of the door opening. And the voices.
"You're late, Himiko," a female voice said. Completely cold.
"I apologize, Mother. I was studying at the library and lost track of time."
"You smell strange," a male voice said. A voice laced with disgust. "Have you been... doing those things again?"
"No, Father."
"Look at me when I'm speaking to you. Did you take your suppressants? Your eyes look... abnormal."
There was a pause, thick and heavy.
"Yes, Father. I am normal. I am a normal girl."
"You better be. We don't want another incident like the one with the bird. You embarrass us all. Go to your room and don't come out. It makes my stomach turn to look at you like this."
"Yes, Father. Goodnight."
The door closed.
I stood on the dark street, my fists clenched in my pockets. My knuckles cracked.
That house wasn't a home. It was a maximum-security prison disguised as suburban bliss.
I thought about my own house.
I thought about my old hag of a mother yelling "Turn down the volume!" while chucking a slipper at my head. I thought about the old man asking if I wanted to try his new spicy curry recipe. In my house, there was constant noise, insults, and explosions. But never, not once, had they ever looked me with disgust.
My parents were loud, but they accepted me. They accepted my violence, my ego, and my destructive Quirk without hesitation.
Toga's parents were slowly killing her. Erasing the person to keep up the social farce. And if they kept at it, the porcelain doll was going to shatter. And when she did, there would be real blood, not chicken livers.
I looked up at the second-floor window, where a light had just flicked on.
I have to get that girl out of there, I muttered to myself.
I couldn't just take her to the beach to live like a stray. That wouldn't solve anything in the long run. I needed adults. Adults who weren't afraid of living with monsters.
The image of Mitsuki Bakugo flashing a fierce smile crossed my mind.
If there was anyone in this world capable of looking at a blood-covered teenage vampire and saying, "Sit down and eat, you're too skinny," it was my mother.
I turned around and started walking back home. I needed a solid plan. Himiko Toga was not going to become a villain. Not while I had anything to say about it.
And heaven help the poor bastard who tries to stop me.
Author's Note: Before I'm declared missing.
A lot has happened since the last chapter. I got sick again (who would have thought that going out partying right after recovering from being sick would make you sick again?).
Besides that, my boss got sick, and basically, I had to cover for him. It was a constant headache.
On the plus side, I owe you at least six extra chapters. I'll see when I can get them done.