Days passed and soon enough, it was Saturday. So far there had been no Palace visits since everyone decided that Sunday would be the day they return to Shido's Cruiser of Pride. It was a free day after all, and they agreed to meet up outside the Diet Building at exactly 7 in the morning. Shiina hated it, but she understood that it would be a busy day for all of them and that they needed the extra time. 

She was so worried about tomorrow that she could hardly focus on her sparring match against Bakugou. 

The sound of an explosion caused her to whip her head forward just in time to see him launching at her with that stupid mad grin of his. She didn't hesitate to raise her arm and swipe at his cheek, drawing blood. 

"Pay attention to the fucking fight, Milk Jugs!" He shouted before attacking her again. 

She hated the flames that came from his palm, hated the smoke it would emit and she especially hated the memories that came afterwards. She did her best to push them to the back of her head before summoning Tullia to cast Eigaon. She was ruthless but she could hardly care since her opponent was ruthless too. 

For their heroics class, All Might had them all duke it out like it was a Battle Royale. They were given enough time to scatter around Ground Beta—which was set up as a cityscape—before the loud alarm rang, meaning the Battle Royale had officially begun. 

Shiina managed to take down Jirou, Momo, Kaminari, Sero, and Hagakure—who nearly succeeded in a sneak attack, by the way—and stumbled upon Bakugou who didn't hesitate to engage in battle. 

"Are you tired? Your explosion's are getting weaker." She taunted before ordering Tullia to cast another Eigaon. It blasted Bakugou back a few meters away and she quickly ran after him, claws raised. 

In actuality, Bakugou didn't seem close to tiring out unlike her. The boy was quick thanks to his explosions, so he was able to dodge a good portion of Tullia's attacks that Shiina relentlessly threw at him. It backfired on her when she began to feel her energy depleting but she didn't dare show any signs of exhaustion. He wouldn't hesitate to exploit it. 

She hated to admit it, but Bakugou was strong. 

CLANG! 

Her claws struck at his grenade gauntlets and he swiftly smacked her hand away before punching her on the face, nose crunching under the force. She managed to balance herself and aim a round kick to the side of his head which he was too slow to block. 

"I'm gonna kill you for all the shit you said to me...! I'm gonna make you fucking regret it!" He growled, palm up. She could sense the familiar feeling of heat radiating from him and quickly dove to the side just before he could blast her away. 

She landed on her hands and knees and scrambled back up to her feet. Her whole body felt like it was on fire, her nose was most likely broken, and she was running out of energy fast. Bakugou wasn't faring so well either—there was a small cut on his cheek, a long laceration on his back from when she kicked him with the claws on her boots, and she was pretty sure she gave him a slight concussion from her kick on the head. 

"Can't handle the truth?!" She shouted over the explosion, grappling him from behind. Long legs wrapped around his neck and she quickly forced her body backwards, bringing him down with her. She tried not to feel so winded from when her body hit the ground and focused on tightening the choke-hold she had over him. 

With a grunt, he lifted his upper body up and threw her off of him. She landed ungracefully, cement skidding harshly against her palms and leaving a stinging sensation. 

"Everything that comes outta your mouth is shit anyways, why should I listen to you?!" He yelled, blasting over to her with the help of his explosion. His gloved hand was wrapped around her neck in an instant and she was tackled to the ground. The collision knocked the air out of her lungs and it didn't help that she was being strangled.

"That's...!" She wheezed. "The thing about cocky assholes like you...! You never... fucking listen—!" She kneed him in the gut, making him recoil back. She brought her leg and sliced at the front of his torso and jumped to her feet, kicking him under the chin. 

"I can practically see how things'll turn out for you. You're aiming for that number one spot right? Well you're never gonna get it. Society may be stupid as hell, but they'll never pick someone who's openly an asshole. No, they'll pick a better hero to be their Number One. It'll never be you." She didn't deny the fact that he would become a Pro Hero one day—the Heroes Association would just about accept anyone these days, hell, they allowed a villain like Endeavor to go Pro. For a second, she saw her father standing in Bakugou's place and couldn't keep the words from spilling out of her mouth. "No matter what you do, no matter how many lives you ruin, you'll never be number one." 

"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU KNOW?!" He screeched, delivering an explosion that sent her rolling back. She jumped to her feet and lunged. 

She knew just what type of person Bakugou was. He was exactly like Endeavor, though while Endeavor liked to unleash his rage at home, Bakugou unleashed his rage everywhere. They were both selfish, terrible, and greedy. 

"A HELLUVA LOT MORE THAN YOU!" Her claws sunk into his arm just as he sent another explosion her way. 

Just then, a loud alarm rang. 

"Fifteen minutes are up! The Battle Royale is over! Please return to the gates students and good work to everyone who made it up to here!" All Might's voice echoed from the speakers. 

Shiina and Bakugou locked eyes. They're both glaring and none of them said anything until they heard the faraway voices of their other classmates. Finally, they quietly parted ways. 

While Shiina headed out for the gate, she was joined by Ken who jogged to catch up with her. Kala-Nemi was floating not too far away.

"Who did you fight?" The brunette asked as he took in her injuries. He had Kala-Nemi heal her right away. 

"Thanks," she sighed with relief. The pain had been bothering her. "And I was fighting Bakugou." 

"Explains the burns," he muttered. "Who'd you manage to take down?" 

She only needed to rack through her head for a brief moment. "Uh, Momo and Jirou, then Kaminari, Sero, and Hagakure. I ran into Bakugou and we've been at it since the training session ended. You?" 

"Tokoyami, Aoyama, Uraraka, Tsuyu, and Ojiro. I ended up having a three way battle against Midoriya and Todoroki." He replied, showing her the little pieces of ice over his suit. She also noticed how his body shivered. His skin was also a little blue. 

She grimaced. "Who won that?" 

He shrugged. "The session ended before we could find out. Though, I'm pretty sure Midoriya would've beaten me... There was no way I could take another punch from him." He admitted, shuddering as he cradled his left cheek. It didn't look injured, but it must've been because he healed it. Either that or Kala-Nemi got hurt and he had to deal with the pain of it. 

"Anyways, our presentation's next period," he swiftly changed the subject. "You ready for it?" 

She nodded her head. "Yeah, I just hope Midoriya doesn't point out any mistakes on it."

Thankfully, she, Ken, and Shouto were able to do their presentation in the next period without any mistakes. Midoriya looked pleased with their presentation, and that was all she needed to know that they got their facts right. 

She was still mulling over her last conversation with him. His words wouldn't stop echoing in her head. She wasn't mad, she was more confused and disappointed in herself for letting his words get to her. So what if she didn't have anyone to look up to? She never wanted to be a hero anyways. They were no good. 

And she was reminded of just how terrible they were when she and Shouto arrived back home. Fuyumi wasn't there. But Endeavor was. 

The twins tensed up when they entered the living room, the previous lighthearted atmosphere now completely gone just from his presence alone. From the corner of her eyes, she could see Shouto inching forward so he would be closer to the herculean man and not her. For once, she didn't stop him. She could understand his actions. She was the one who got Endeavor hospitalized after all. 

She eyed the room cautiously, analyzing her situation. There was enough ceiling space to summon Tullia, but she doubted that the house would be spared should a fight break out. She'd have to use her gauntlets, but Endeavor could easily surround her in a sea of flames before she could get near him. She could use her gun, but the bullets weren't real. 

She started to grow nervous and her stomach churned painfully. 

She tried not to look so frightened and hopeless. What do I do?

Endeavor stepped forward. 

"You can stay there." Shouto said sternly, and she was glad that her brother was at least with her. 

The man did nothing but scoff. "Don't order me around, Shouto. Now step aside, I need to speak with her." His glaring eyes locked with Shiina and she had to bite the inside of her cheek to keep from shrinking. 

"No." Shouto stood his ground. There was no reaction whatsoever when Endeavor narrowed his eyes at him. For a brief second, she wished she had his courage but then she remembered that he had to live his whole life being abused by him. That was where his courage came from. 

She felt worse after realizing that. 

"Don't make me hurt you, Shouto." Endeavor threatened, and that was enough to get Shiina moving. Just as Shouto said 'no', she stepped forward so now she would be in front of him. 

"What do you want?" Shiina demanded, glaring at him with all the hate she could muster. 

"What do I want?" He repeated with a dangerously quiet voice. It scared her more than when he was yelling. His voice started to rise to a familiar level. "All I want is for you to stop acting like petulant brat! You're so out of control and your Quirk shows it! How dare you attack me! You think you can get away with it?! Well you're mistaken! I won't have a child of mine think she could harm me without any repercussions!"

"I think you surviving the attack is enough of a repercussion." She said, and suddenly she was seeing stars. It didn't register in her head that she had been punched in the face by him until she landed harshly on her knees. 

She looked up just to see Endeavor shoot a burst of flames at Shouto's direction to keep him at bay and immediately scrambled to her feet. Before she could even do anything, a burning hot hand clamped around her throat. 

Both siblings freeze. 

"...Stop it..." Shouto breathed out, eyeing the scene with wide eyes. His mind ran through scenarios of what could possibly happen should he attack. Endeavor could get hit with his ice, but Shiina could get hurt too. Or Endeavor could dodge and hurt his sister as punishment. What were the chances she could get out of this unharmed? 

The entire left side of Shiina's face throbbed with pain and she could feel heat from the blow. She could also feel heat from his hands that were slowly tightening around her neck. He was lifting her up, feet dangling. He was treating her like a goddamn ragdoll. 

Before he could snap her neck, strangle her, or burn the flesh off her neck or anything, her gauntlets appeared on her hands and she didn't hesitate to claw at his forearms. The attack had the desired affect: he released her. Quickly, she willed her gauntlets to disappear and grabbed Shouto's arm, sprinting down the hallway. 

"SHIINA! GET BACK HERE!" She could hear Endeavor yell. 

She didn't know where exactly she was running, simply allowing her legs to take her to whichever safe haven she could find. She reached a certain room and burst inside with Shouto. As the door slammed behind them, she promptly collapsed to her knees, absolutely exhausted. 

She was used to being hurt by Shadows or her classmates during their hero training. But was always reduced to a feeble little girl whenever she was up against Endeavor. It was like his glare could sap away her strength. 

"Shiina, your cheek." Shouto said with alarm, dropping to his knees in front of her. He placed a chilly hand over her bruise and she winced. 

Of course Endeavor would leave a noticeable mark. She may have a strong 'Quirk' now, but she wasn't his prized masterpiece. Even better, nobody would ever suspect him of hurting her if she were to go around in public with a battered body. Nobody knew he was her father, only some of the teachers in UA but they would never think that the Number Two hero would lay a hand on his own child. No, he was a hero after all!

He could get away with anything, she thought darkly. Nobody batted a lash with what happened to Touya. It was all 'oh, I hope Endeavor feels better!' or 'he should take a break, he and his family are still grieving'. Nobody bothered to question it! Or when mom was banished to a mental institution! Why didn't anyone wonder what brought her to that state? Or why she's still there after ten fucking years! 

He was just that good with covering up the truth.

He covered up the abuse he put her mother through. He covered up what really happened in the training room with Touya. And he covered up her entire existence. The second he realized she was Quirkless, he went to every magazine and news company and ordered the extermination of any articles with her name on it. Years passed and soon enough, everyone had completely forgotten about her existence. 

Todoroki Shiina no longer existed in Japan. She was completely forgotten. 

"WHERE ARE YOU?!" Both teens flinched as his voice roars throughout the entire estate. There was the sound of a door slamming shut, followed by angry footsteps. "Where did you two hide off to?! Come out RIGHT NOW!" 

Shouto and Shiina were hugging each other tightly, scooting away from the door until their backs hit a corner. Both were shaking but for different reasons. Shiina was shaking out of fear—cowering, while Shouto's whole body shook with pure rage. 

The sounds suddenly stopped, but his voice didn't go away. He sounded close. As if he was standing right outside the door. 

"The UA Sports Festival will be a week from now. Everything on there will be broadcasted in live television. I hope you both know what that means. I expect an excellent performance, especially from you, Shouto. Do not disappoint me or else." 

They listened to him leave and Shouto quietly resumes to tending to her injuries. As he cooled her face, his eyes trailed downwards to the nasty bruises around her neck. Endeavor's hand marks. 

"They'll heal soon," she assured him, only to regret speaking. It made her throat ache with pain. 

He only nodded in reply, but she knew that wasn't what he was worried about. 

"This room..." He spoke up once more, looking around. 

Shiina didn't realize it, but the room she practically threw herself in wasn't her bedroom. Nor was it Shouto's or Fuyumi's. It was completely bare, but it wasn't Natsuo's either since he still had stuff left over before leaving for college. Her gaze drifted to a closet with a familiar dent on the door and her eyes widened with surprise. 

A strong cough escaped Shiina's weak, four year old body. She turned her head to the side since she could no longer breath in one nostril and locked eyes with a fourteen year old Touya. 

"Touya-nii..." She croaked. 

"Do you want more water?" He asked her quietly. 

"Please." She nodded. The red haired boy helped her sit up before reaching out towards his bedside table where the glass of water was. She took greedy sips until all the water was gone and he made a mental reminder that he'd have to sneak back to the kitchen to fetch her some more.

More coughs racked through her little body and all Touya could do was watch as his youngest sister was reduced to nothing. It had been a little over a month since the family found out she was Quirkless, and she wasn't allowed out of her room since. Endeavor couldn't stand looking at her anymore, and there would be hell to pay should she ever leave her bedroom. 

Her 'banishment' didn't just keep her locked in her room. It kept her from being fed. Of course, Touya would occasionally break into her room to feed her, but he couldn't do that all the time. Not when Endeavor was roaming the house. He couldn't risk it. Getting caught could possibly bring punishment to his sister and she was already being punished enough for something out of her control. 

Because Touya couldn't feed her three times a day, it led to her being malnourished. Her silky red hair now felt dry and straw-like, her skin paler with grey undertones, and all the baby fat in her face was gone. 

Her fever only made the situation worse. He wasn't able to feed her the day before, so he was shocked when she personally came to his room for help because she 'didn't feel good'. 

A fever. It was like the world wanted to be rid of her. 

They didn't have any medicine for that. The only thing in their medicine cabinet was a few pain relievers and a bottle of cold syrup that had expired long ago.

He was at a loss at what to do. 

His mother was continuously being beat for interfering with Shouto's 'training sessions', his younger siblings were too young to go out on their own to buy medicine, and while he was old enough to leave, he didn't have any money. Just when he contemplated on stealing from the nearest pharmacy, Shiina's croak brought him out of his thoughts. 

"Touya-nii. Water, please." She begged, handing him the empty cup. 

He smiled weakly at her. "Okay. Just lay back do—"

"—TOUYA!" 

He froze. No. 

Next came the angry, heavy footsteps.

No!

He whipped his head to his bedroom door. He was coming closer. If Endeavor found out that Shiina left her room—if he even caught a glimpse of her—!

"Shit!" He cursed under his breath, setting the cup down and scrambling to his feet. He quickly gathered Shiina in his arms, ignoring the sharp and pointy bones that poked against his body, and hastily looked around for a hiding place. 

"TOUYA! DID YOU NOT HEAR ME?! WHERE ARE YOU?!" 

He spotted the closet. It was the only place they could hide. He sprinted for it, hiding behind all the coats and jackets and sat down on the floor, squeezing himself as far back as he could. He held Shiina tightly, too scared to let her go. 

"Touya-nii... Why daddy mad?" She asked him. 

"He's always mad," he whispered. "Now be quiet okay? Nii-chan needs you to stay silent." 

"But—" 

He heard the door open and placed a hand over her mouth to keep her from speaking. 

"Touya!" He heard the madman bark. "Dammit, Touya, are you in here?!" He could hear Endeavor storm in. 

Shiina was beginning to breath heavily. Having his hand placed over her mouth was making it difficult to breath, but he couldn't risk letting her go. Not yet at least. He needed to wait until Endeavor was completely gone. 

He heard the man click his tongue in annoyance. "Damn thing is trying to get out of training again, isn't he...?" He growled, before releasing an angry cry. 

Both siblings flinched as the door to the closet shook. Through the darkness, he could see the wooden surface cave inwards. Endeavor had dented it. 

The angry footsteps were heard again, followed by a loud slam. Then Endeavor's voice came, but it sounded muffled. "Touya! You're late, you worthless brat! Where are you hiding?!" 

Touya waited a few seconds before finally letting Shiina go. 

"Are you okay?" 

He felt her nod before she rested her head against his chest, nuzzling closer to him. She felt cold. 

"I'm sleepy now." She said softly. 

He cradled her against him before he stood back up, quietly exiting the closet and glancing at the door. He was right. Endeavor had definitely broken his closet door. 

As he laid Shiina back down on his bed, she muttered to him: "You go train. Daddy mad now." 

"Nah," he shook his head, running his hand through her damaged hair. "I wanna stay and take care of you." 

"I wanna sleep though." She insisted. 

He crawled into bed beside her, resting on his side with his back to the door as if to shield her. "I'll sleep with you then." 

"Okay," she replied. There was a pause before she asked, "Will I be better when I wake up?" 

"I hope so." He said quietly, praying to any god that would listen that Shiina would be alright again. 

"Why daddy so mad at me?" She asked, frowning. 

"..." It took a while for him to find the right words to say. "Because you don't have a Quirk." 

"I wish I had a Quirk." 

"There's nothing wrong with being Quirkless," he soothed. "He's supposed to love you, Quirk or no Quirk. But he doesn't. So he's a bad man. A very bad man." 

"Daddy's not bad..." She argued, trailing off as she broke into short coughs that only made him more worried. 

"Go to sleep, Shiina." He said. He didn't want to talk about him anymore. 

She nodded, scooting closer so she could be sleeping against his chest. He placed a comforting hand on her back, wishing he had a Quirk that could take her sickness and pain away. 

Instead, he was stuck with a fire power more destructive than their father's. 

"Do you love me, Touya-nii?" She asked hopefully. 

"'Course I do," he said automatically. What a stupid question, he inwardly chuckled. If he had to pick a sibling that he loved most, he would pick Shiina. He couldn't pinpoint the reason why. Maybe it was because she was the youngest. Maybe because she was so innocent and he wanted desperately to keep it that way. Or maybe it was because she too understood how painful it felt whenever their mother flinched upon seeing them. 

Touya didn't know why. He just knew he loved Shiina with all his being. 

"Very very much?" 

"Very very much." He confirmed with a tiny smile. "Now go to sleep." 

Shiina moved closer to him, her eyes slowly fluttering shut as she thought about how warm Touya felt compared to the unbearable heat their dad radiated. 

"This... This is Touya's room." She breathed out. It had been years since she stepped foot in it. It was all empty now. Every single thing he owned had been thrown out after the incident. But she recognized the closet door. Or the dent, more like. 

"Touya...?" Shouto said. 

"Yeah," she nodded sadly. "Do you remember him?" It wouldn't surprise her if he didn't. Endeavor had completely isolated Shouto throughout his childhood. 

"I remember that day."

"I'm sorry," she said empathetically. "You deserve better memories than that one." 

"It's okay..." He trailed off, turning towards the closet door. "What happened there?" 

"I don't remember it clearly, but Touya-nii was taking care of me while I was sick. I think it was around the time da—Endeavor wouldn't let me out of my room. When Touya-nii heard him coming, we had to hide in the closet. Endeavor was mad that he couldn't find him and hit the closet door out of anger." She explained. It wasn't the greatest memory, but unfortunately, it was one of the clearer ones. 

Her memories of Touya were slowly fading away now. All she could clearly remember was the day of the incident, but it wasn't something she liked to remember. Her mind couldn't take it. Whenever she felt like she was forgetting how he looked like, she would go to a drawer on her table where she had a family picture of all them besides Endeavor. 

But every time she looked at his face, she'd be reminded of blue flames, burning flesh, and the remains of ash. 

She stopped looking at the picture because she couldn't handle it. 

She turned back to Shouto, who was still icing her cheek before she got drawn in by his left side. 

He noticed where she was staring and he instantly felt as if his heart had stopped. "Do I remind you of dad?" He asked quietly. 

"No," she replied. She reached out to cup his left cheek. "You remind me of Touya... Always so caring..." 

Shouto let a tear drop from his eye because for once, somebody looked at him and didn't see a monster. 

— ❤ —

Fuyumi came home an hour after the incident and instantly took in the tense atmosphere. Endeavor was also home, and she a had a feeling she knew what transpired. She wisely kept her mouth shut and went off to make dinner. As she was setting the table, she looked up to see Shouto enter the dining room. 

"Shouto," she smiled, relieved to see no injuries on him. "Can you call Shiina over? Dinner's about to start." 

"We'll be eating together in her room." He said, and her smile dropped. 

"But—"

"—He hit Shiina. I don't want to her to be around him, and I don't want to be around him either. Please, Fuyumi..." He pleaded. 

She nodded, feeling terrible that she wasn't around home when Shiina had been struck.

But then again... What could I do? She asked herself bitterly. I never once stood up to him... 

Shiina looked up from her lap when Shouto came back with two plates in hand. 

"Your cheek still isn't healed..." He said, setting the plates down on her table. 

"It'll be fine," she assured, rubbing his shoulder. "Tomorrow I'll be out with my friends. I'll have one of them heal me." 

"Which one of them has a healing Quirk?" He asked. 

She paused, feeling too tired to lie. "Ah. Never mind. I think I'll just go to Takemi for help." 

"The doctor that removed the bullet from your thigh?" He inquired. 

She nodded. "Yep. She's a cool chick. Midoriya should probably visit her." 

He chuckled. "No doctor in the world could stop him from breaking his bones." 

They continued having idle chatter before falling asleep. Neither of them felt like leaving the other's side, so they slept together. Only Shiina's sleep didn't last long. It was around one in the morning when she woke up with cold sweats due to her nightmare. Though it was more like a memory of that fateful day in the training room. Except some roles were switched. Instead of Touya being burned it was Shouto, and instead of Shouto cowering behind his brother's back, it was Shiina. Endeavor stayed the same. He was hurting her brother. Punishing him for the last time for interfering with a training session. 

Shiina had woken up as Shouto's scream finally died out. 

She sat up, wiping the tears from her eyes as she looked down at Shouto. He was just sleeping. Unharmed. 

She didn't want Shouto to end up like Touya. She didn't want him to get hurt for protecting her. She wanted to be the one protecting him. But how could she do that if she was so unbelievably terrified of the person who harmed him the most? 

She slowly crawled out of bed, a shuddering breath escaping her lips. She felt suffocated. Any second she burst into tears and she was scared that the whole house could hear it. She quickly went to her closet and threw on the first thing she could find.

She grabbed her phone and left the house, quickly tapping on someone's phone number. 

"...Hello...?" The groggy voice spoke, clearly having just woken up. 

"Akira?" She said, voice tiny and threatening to break. "I'm sorry... But please... I need you. Please help." 

"I'll be right there," he said instantly, now sounding more awake. "I'll—I'll be right there, okay, Shiina? Just stay safe... Don't worry, you'll be okay. Don't cry... I'm here for you." 

— ❤ —

Even at 1 AM Tokyo was still so busy. It was like the city never rested. As she roamed around under the night sky, she couldn't help but wonder what would happen if she were to run away. But the idea was quickly rejected just as quickly as it came to her. She needed to be there for Shouto. He and the rest of her siblings would be devastated if she were to be gone.

"Shiina?" 

She whirled around and saw Akira. He looked terrible made up. Wearing a simple tee-shirt and a pair of joggers. His shoes were even mismatched and his curly hair was in a disarray. He had clearly came to the meeting place in a hurry. She felt bad for making him panic, but the feeling washed away as he squeezed her tightly in an embrace. 

"Are you okay? What happened to your face? You look as bad as I did and I was interrogated..." He pulled back slightly to look down at her bruised face and felt something bubble up in his chest. Rage or concern. He couldn't tell. "Endeavor did this to you, didn't he?" 

"He came back from the hospital," she whispered. "Shouto and I didn't even know about it until we saw him in the living room. Fuyumi was gone too. Obviously, he was still pissed about me attacking him." 

"And your neck too," he murmured, his finger slowly tracing over the ugly purple bruises around her throat. "He strangled you... He strangled you...!" 

"I cut him before anything else could happen." She sent him a small smirk before hiding her face in his chest. "I hate him." 

"I hate him too." He whispered. 

"I'm sorry for bringing you out here so late. Was Mona pissed with you? 'Cause of your bedtime and all?" She attempted to joke. 

"He's still asleep. But I'm pretty sure he would've let me go if he knew you were asking for me." He chuckled. "Hey, you wanna go somewhere?" 

She blinked up at him. The question was so random. "Uh, sure?" 

He grinned and took a hold of her hand. "Come on." 

She had no idea where he was taking her but she soon realized where she was without needing a sign. The scenery made it really obvious. 

"Dude," she deadpanned. "The red light district? Really? You're lucky Sho-nii doesn't know about this..." 

He paused. "You're not going to tell him about our little excursion, are you?" 

"Definitely not." 

He squeezed her hand. "Thanks." 

"Where are you even taking me? Because, um, I don't think banging prostitutes is a good way for me to cope with my situation." She said bluntly. 

He just smirked. "Don't worry. There won't be any prostitutes where you're going." 

A few minutes later and she was met with a neon pink sign saying BAR CROSSROADS. 

She brightened up. "Trying to get me drunk huh? You sure know your way around my heart!" 

He rolled his eyes in amusement. "I'm not taking you out to get drunk." 

"But this is a bar!" She spluttered. 

"You're underage, Shiina." He pointed out delicately. 

She realized he was right. "Ah, fuck me." 

"I've been trying." He muttered under his breath. 

"Huh?" 

"Nothing, let's go inside." 

As they stepped inside the dimly lit bar, they're immediately greeted by a bulky woman in a silky kimono. "Haven't seen you in a while, Kurusu-kun," she acknowledged before her gaze is directed at Shiina. "Oh my... Are you okay?" 

"I'd be better if I had a drink." She said sweetly before plopping down on a stool. Akira sat on her left. 

"She's underage." Akira informed the woman. 

"Yeah, I figured. I'm Lala, by the way." She introduced herself. 

"Kiberi Shiina," she returned, and the woman's eyes widened for a second. 

Lala sent Akira a sly look. "So this is the girl you keep talking about, hm? She's gorgeous. A little too out of your league, though." 

Shiina tried not to blush at the compliment and gave Akira a teasing grin. "So you've been talking about me huh?" 

"I hear about you almost every time he comes in here to work." Lala chuckled. 

"He works here?" Shiina quirked a brow. 

She nodded. "I let him speak to the customers and serve drinks. Speaking of drinks... I'll get you a strawberry daiquiri—on the house. Don't worry. It's virgin, just like your boy over there." 

Shiina let out a laugh as Akira turned away in embarrassment. "I like her! You should've brought me out here sooner!" 

"I should've just taken you to McDonald's or something..." Akira mumbled to himself. 

"How much do you talk about me here?" She asked, furthering his embarrassment. "What do you say? Come on, tell me!" 

"No way." 

"Pleeeeeaaaase?" She begged, jutting her lip out deliciously. Akira had to avert his eyes. 

"Nope." 

"I'll ask Lala." 

He grimaced. "Please don't." 

"Lala~" She sang, looking over at the woman who was busy making drinks. "Spill the tea! What does he say about me?" 

"Sorry, hun, but it's not my secret to share," she replied, a smirk dancing on her lips. She gave Akira a wicked look. "You're lucky Ohya isn't here tonight. She would've happily told your girl everything." 

"Ohya, huh? I'll have that name committed to memory in case I find her." Shiina grinned mischievously. 

"Oh god." Akira buried his face in his palms. 

Not even five minutes later, Lala returned with two glasses of strawberry daiquiri—virgin of course since they weren't allowed to drink. Shiina, having never tasted one before, took a cautious sip only to be pleasantly delighted. It was a lot like drinking a strawberry shake with added lemon. 

"This is good!" She beamed. "Don't be surprised if you see me here again. Ooh, maybe next time I'll meet this Ohya person." 

Akira dipped his head back and groaned. "I never should've brought you here." 

"Oh, but this place makes me so happy, Akira." She grinned. 

Lala nodded alongside her. "Mmhmm, and you want your girl to be happy, don't you?" 

Shiina's cheeks flared at being called Akira's girl. Shockingly enough, she didn't feel uncomfortable with the title and actually found that she liked it... 

"You two are menaces." Akira pouted. 

They shared a cackle. 

There weren't many customers around, only a handful left but none of them seemed to care about the minors so they were easily ignored. Lala told Shiina all about Akira's work life as an employee in the bar. He was a smooth talker,—a fact that Shiina was very aware of—always brought a cat to work, and was very popular with the older female customers (Shiina was dying from laughter at that point). They stayed at the bar for another hour and a half when Lala firmly told the two it was about time to return home. 

"You kids should get home now. It's already passed two o'clock." Lala ordered. 

Shiina hopped off her stool. "Alright, alright. Let's go, Akira! Thanks for the free drinks, Lala!" 

"It was no problem. You better watch over her, Kurusu-kun." Lala gave the boy a pointed look. 

Akira cracked a smirk. "Always do." 

"That was fun," Shiina breathed out as they exited the bar. "Thanks for bringing me there." 

"That's the last time I'm taking you there." He shook his head, but Shiina could see that he was smiling. 

"Right." 

"I mean it. You and Lala are a dangerous combination." He chuckled. He opened his mouth to add something when he was suddenly bumped in the shoulder. He glared slightly at the hooded man standing between him and Shiina only to freeze when he saw his face. 

"You kids don't belong here. Go home." The man said, staring coldly at Akira before he turned to steal a glance at Shiina, then down at the bruise on her face. His eyes hardened. 

He turned away so quickly that she could barely see his face entirely. All she saw was the surgical mask covering up the bottom half of his face and nothing else. 

But she swore she saw purple. 

After delivering the message, the man stalked off. 

"Wha...?" Shiina gaped at his retreating back. "What the hell was that about?" She huffed, crossing her arms. 

"Ah..." Akira blinked rapidly. 

"Akira? You okay?" She asked with concern. 

"Yeah, his face just startled me for a moment." He admitted. 

She rose a brow. "His face? What did it look like?"

He shook his head and grabbed ahold of her hand. "Don't worry about it, let's just get you back home." 

— author's note —

I'm so frustrated, does anyone know where I can find a list of Major Arcana meanings from other decks than the one the Persona series is currently using? I found a website that gives me the names of other tarot decks (like the Thoth deck, the Minchiate deck, etc) that contain more than the usual 22 major arcanas, the only problem is that it doesn't tell me what they are and what they mean. I'm planning on making more social links in the future, but I can't figure out what their Arcana should be since I don't have a list of choices...