Chapter 1: The Third Todoroki
Fire cracked across the training yard like a living thing.
Shoto Todoroki stood at its center, his left side burning bright, his right side frosting the ground beneath his feet. Steam hissed where heat and cold collided. Endeavor's presence loomed behind him, sharp and immovable, like the sun itself had learned how to judge.
"Again," Endeavor said.
The word struck harder than the flames.
Shoto inhaled, jaw tight, and moved. Ice surged forward this time, too fast, too thick. Fire followed, uneven, delayed by hesitation. The balance Endeavor demanded never lasted more than a breath.
I watched from the corridor.
I was not supposed to be here.
No one had told me to leave, but no one had told me to stay either.
That was normal.
My name is Kido Todoroki.
I am the youngest child in a family built on fire and ice.
Shoto was the goal.
Everything before him was preparation.
Everything after him was… excess.
The air trembled as Shoto's attack collapsed in on itself. Heat surged, cold recoiled. The temperature twisted wrong, like a song played out of tune. Endeavor scowled, already opening his mouth to criticize.
Before he could speak, I stepped closer.
I didn't raise my hands.
I didn't focus on Shoto.
I focused on the space between.
The clash softened.
Flames dimmed without smoke. Ice dulled without cracking. The violent edge of both simply… disappeared. The training field fell unnaturally quiet, as if the world itself had paused to listen.
Endeavor stiffened.
Shoto blinked, confused, glancing at his hands. "What just—?"
I stepped back.
The moment broke.
Fire roared back to life. Ice hardened. Endeavor's attention snapped instantly to Shoto, irritation blazing brighter than his quirk.
"Don't lose focus," he snapped.
Shoto bowed his head. "Yes, sir."
No one looked at me.
Good.
________________________________________
I learned early that being unnoticed was safer.
In this house, attention was never gentle. It burned or it froze. Silence was the only place where nothing hurt.
Mother understood that once.
Before the hospital. Before the shattered teapot. Before her eyes started looking through people instead of at them.
She used to brush my hair back with trembling fingers and whisper, "You're quiet like falling snow, Kido."
I didn't know then that snow could suffocate.
________________________________________
Dinner passed the way it always did.
Endeavor spoke to Shoto about training schedules and improvement metrics. Shoto listened without expression, nodding at the right moments. The table felt too large for three people and too small for the tension that filled it.
I ate quietly.
My soup cooled faster than it should have.
No one noticed.
________________________________________
That night, I lay awake in my room, staring at the ceiling. The house creaked softly as it cooled, the walls releasing heat from the day. I focused on that sensation—the invisible movement everyone ignored.
I reached out.
The warmth faded.
Not cold.
Not frozen.
Just… still.
The air lost its bite. The room settled into a neutral calm that felt wrong in a way I couldn't explain. My breathing slowed. My heartbeat followed.
For a moment, my thoughts did too.
This was my quirk.
Not fire.
Not ice.
Something quieter.
I couldn't make flames rise or frost bloom. I couldn't destroy buildings or impress cameras. All I could do was erase the difference—pull extremes into balance until nothing moved at all.
When I pushed too far, something inside me dulled. Emotions softened at the edges. Fear became distant. Joy thinned until it barely registered.
I learned to stop before that happened.
I had to.
No one would notice if I didn't wake up.
________________________________________
At school, teachers forgot my name. Students mistook me for background. Even bullies lost interest when I didn't react.
I let them.
Noise attracts attention.
Attention attracts pain.
Shoto carried the weight of expectations heavy enough to crush him. I saw it in the way his shoulders never fully relaxed, in the way his eyes stayed sharp even when he thought no one was watching.
I didn't envy him.
I just didn't want to disappear completely.
________________________________________
One evening, I stood outside the training yard again, hidden in shadow. Shoto trained alone this time. No shouting. No commands. Just controlled movement and quiet frustration.
His fire flared too strong. Ice lagged behind.
I stepped forward.
The temperature shifted.
Shoto froze—not his quirk, but his body. Slowly, he turned.
For the first time, his eyes met mine during training.
"Kido?" he asked, unsure.
The silence stretched.
I nodded once.
He hesitated, then looked back at his hands. "Did you… do something?"
I opened my mouth.
No words came out.
Behind him, the door slid open. Endeavor's presence flooded the space, hot and oppressive.
Shoto straightened instantly.
I stepped back.
The moment vanished like it had never existed.
Endeavor didn't notice the temperature change. He didn't notice me. His eyes were fixed on Shoto, as they always were.
I walked away without being dismissed.
________________________________________
I didn't want to surpass my brother.
I didn't want to fight him.
I just wanted to exist in a world that had already decided I was unnecessary.
One day, they would notice the silence.
And when they did—
It would already be too late to ignore me.
------------------End Of Chapter 1-----------------