#psychic medium!reader

You heaved a sigh as you turned over in your soft, pillowy paradise in hopes of getting more rest.

Those hopes were crushed when your phone began to ring. Letting out a grunt, you snatched your phone from your nightstand.

"Hello?", you spoke into the phone, attempting to sound even somewhat awake.

"Detective Onee-chan!"

You immediately recognize the voice. You practically fling yourself from bed, already grabbing a sweatshirt.

"Akemi?! What's wrong? What happened?"

"We need help!"

After tugging on the sweatshirt and grabbing your wallet and keys, you slip on your sneakers,"Okay. Just stay on the phone. Tell me where you are. What happened? Is anyone hurt?"

"We're outside your house! Shouto's hurt!"

Huh?

"What?..."

"Haruka's Shouto plushie! Some boys came by and tried to take him from her! They pulled his arm off and ran! Now she's refusing to go to school with him like this!"

Oh.

You stared dumbfoundedly at your front door, simultaneously filled with relief and frustration. Ultimately, you had to understand this was a big deal for a kid. Especially when they had already lost everything that mattered to them once before.

You took a deep breath and steadied your voice into something softer, "I… Okay. Okay. I'll be out there very soon. Don't go anywhere."

You ran back into your room and grabbed the old sewing kit you kept around. You also ran into the bathroom to pluck a box of colorful adhesive bandages and wet wipes from the cabinet before rushing out to find the two young girls sitting on your front step. The older girl, nine-year old Akemi, stood from her seat and gave a polite bow, her baby blue hair swung about in her ponytail and her golden eyes shone brightly in the morning light.

"Good morning, Detective Onee-chan."

"Good morning, Akemi. Good morning, Haruka."

The younger girl, six-year old Haruka, remained seated in her spot on the step. She tightly hugged the plush, she quietly sniffled as more tears streamed down her face. Her tawny hair was tousled from her usually neat pigtails and her lavender eyes were blurred from the tears.

Both girls lived just across the street in a foster home with a few other children. You were familiar with all the children since you've known their foster mother, Manami, since she was an old family friend of yours. She ran the foster home with another friend of hers and, just for the record, did an amazing job with the kids. You even helped out some days if their schedules got a little too busy, thus the children knew you pretty well and had you as a contact in their emergency phones Manami provided them.

You crouched down in front of the younger girl, trying your best to meet her height.

"Hey Haruka. I'm here to help fix up Shouto for you. Is it okay if I take a look at him?"

Haruka was a particularly special case. Her parents died about a year ago. A fire had broken out and spread through their apartment complex. It claimed her parents and put her older brother, who had protected her from the raging flames, into a coma from the severe burns he sustained before a hero had managed to save them. That hero being Shouto, himself. Since then she's been selectively mute.

Unfortunately, this has made her a target for some unruly children who liked to tear up plushies for fun.

Haruka sat still for a moment and wiped her eyes before giving you a small nod. You gently took the plush and the severed arm from her small hands, quickly getting to work stitching the arm back onto the plush, being as neat as possible.

If you had one yen for every time you had to help fix up a Shouto… you'd have two yen.

Which may not be much, but it is weird that it happened twice.

You chuckled to yourself for your stupid joke as you presented Haruka with a variety of adhesive bandages.

"Which one do you think Shouto would like?"

The young girl looked at the bandages, a serious look crossed her face, like this was the most serious decision she had to make in her life. You had to refrain from chuckling at the adorable look.

Haruka finally pointed at a Princess Elsa bandage. You peeled the protective paper from the bandage and applied it over the stitching.

"Alright, there we go! All that's left to do is to give him a kiss to make it feel better!", you hold out the plush to Haruka.

The six-year old eagerly takes it back and gives it a kiss on the forehead. You chuckled, grabbing a wet wipe from the packaging.

"Now. If anymore boys try to take him away from you, kick them in the shins! Got it?" You lightly cupped the girl's face as you began delicately wiping her tear-streaked cheeks.

Haruka nodded firmly, a determined look in her eyes. A real woman on a mission.

"Detective Onee-Chan! You can't just tell her she can hit people!", Akemi gasped.

"Okay okay! Fine. No kicking shins… if you can help it."

"Onee-Chan!"

"Look. If she can't use her words then I'm sure a nice, swift kick to the shins will get the point across that they can't mess with her!"

Akemi's face scrunched up into a puffy-cheeked pout.

"Okay, okay fine. Don't hit people. Now let's get you two to school before you're late… again."

You took the girls' hands and walked off, unaware that a very distracted Haruka is staring in awe at a very familiar dual-colored figure standing in your apartment window.

You returned to your apartment building after dropping the girls off at school, only to catch the distinct smell of something burning and the blaring of a smoke alarm.

Your initial thought was,

Pfft, some dumbass is burning down their apartment.

Until, upon closer inspection, you realize,

Oh shit! That's my apartment!

You swear you sped faster than Ingenium himself as you climbed the steps of the staircase, aside from nearly face planting a few times. The moment you unlocked the door, nearly tearing it from the hinges. Smoke fogged up the hall and swirled around the entrance hall, stinging your eyes and nose.

You swerved around the corner, nearly tripping over your lovely potted monstera in the process, only to find a wide-eyed and bewildered Todoroki donning your cat pattern apron and holding a now frozen frying pan.

The two of you stared at each other for a moment, both of your faces adorning similar shocked expressions.

…

"Pffft…"

The silence was broken by an abrupt snort from you. You bit your lip in an attempt to conceal the grin tugging at your lips.

"Don't laugh." Todoroki wasn't amused as a tinge of red spread across his cheeks as his face scrunched into a pout.

"Nonono! I'm just…pffft… I'm just… ahem… I'm sorry, but the look on your face took me off guard." You tried to cover your curled lips with your hand as you strode across your living room to slide open your balcony door to filter out the smoke, thankful that the spring weather was agreeable this morning.

"So… I'm guessing you were trying to make breakfast…", you walked back to prop one hand onto the kitchen counter while the other was planted on your hip. You shot him a playful smirk, "Unless, you were trying to burn down my apartment, then I'd say you are going about it in a less-than-convenient way."

"...It was fish…" Todoroki looked back at the pan with a small, dissatisfied pout at the frozen pan he was slowly thawing in his left hand.

"What exactly did you do anyway?" You raised an eyebrow in question.

"I poured oil into the pan, then put the fish in the pan."

You take a glance at the bottle on the counter, quickly recognizing the contents of said bottle.

"Well, first off, you used too much oil. You should have brushed it on the fish, not doused it. Secondly, you probably had the heat way too high. Thirdly…" you stand from leaning on the counter to point a finger at the defrosted pan, "That's Mackerel. Unless you were to marinade it overnight, I would have just used sake and salt, then put it in the fish grill."

You pulled open the drawer containing a waste bin, gesturing for the man to dispose of the charred and soggy fish. The duel-colored hero complied, tilting the pan to allow the inedible bits of fish to slowly slide out of the pan and land into the waste bin with a splat.

"Well… wanna try again, Peppermint?", you slid the drawer closed again and directed your attention to the man who started washing off the dirty pan.

He quirked a brow as he scrubbed the char from the pan's surface, "Do you really want me to nearly burn the place down again?"

You opened the fridge, scanning for ingredients,"You won't. You just need a little guidance. Plus, practice makes progress."

Todoroki paused his scrubbing to turn to you, "Isn't the saying 'practice makes perfect'?"

You collected your remaining Mackerel along with a few other ingredients from the fridge and set them out onto the counter, "Not in this house, it isn't. I'm not perfect, why should I expect others to be? Perfection is a ridiculous expectation to put on people. We're human. We make mistakes."

The pro hero stared at you for a moment, brows scrunched slightly in contemplation before huffing out a small chuckle and relaxed, suddenly feeling much less bothered over the burnt fish incident.

You turn to him with your hands on your hips,"Alrighty! Let's get started, shall we?"

Cooking breakfast went much smoother this time around. The two of you worked in unison to put together a meal from what you had stored away in your kitchen. Todoroki had moved on from the fish to making rolled omelets with your instruction while you set the dining table that sat between the guest bedroom and the living room. You watched as he looked like he was defusing a bomb and not rolling up cooked eggs. It nearly gave you whiplash remembering that the oh-so-serious and stoic hero that you saw every once in a while on the news was the same man who struggled to fry a fish this morning. You couldn't help but let out a giggle.

"You certainly seem to be in a better mood than last night.", Todoroki said as he plated the second omelet.

"Huh? Oh. Yeahhh… A good night's sleep does wonders.", You gave a small smile, you didn't want to talk about last night so you did what you always did- Pretend you were fine, "Since we are on the subject, how did you sleep?"

"Ah. Not well, truthfully."

"Hmm, was your side bothering you? I should have left the painkillers out for you in that case."

"No. It wasn't that."

"Oh really? What was it then?" You tilted your head a bit to look at him from the dining table.

"I felt like I was being watched all night. It was unnerving…"

"Oh, that was probably Suzume-chan. She likes attractive men and she's been a little too excited since you've arrived. Don't worry though she's harmless. She has a huge crush on Shinsou and she'll be over you in a few days. I'll make sure to tell her to leave you alone."

You swear you could see the math equations pass by the hero's head as his face subtly shifted into a look of bafflement as he processed what you said. He set down the plates holding the rolled omelets, trying to restrain the small blush after you had suddenly and blatantly admitted he was attractive. Of course, he was told by many he was attractive at this point, but the way you had said it so casually made him ever so slightly flustered. You said it like it was a solid fact. Like the sky was blue. Like grass was green. Like Midoriya is All Might's secret love chi- He shook slightly to regain his train of thought.

"Suzume-chan?" He tilted his head as his bafflement grew into concern.

"Yeah she's one of the spirits." You spoke casually until a realization dawned on you.

"Oh shit! I didn't warn you about the spirits in the apartment!"

The two of you spent breakfast talking about your friendly neighborhood apartment spirits. The conversation fortunately seemed to quell his concern. In fact it seemed to spark a curiosity in him. He asked questions about the spirits and you answered what you knew. You talked about the boy-obsessed Suzume-chan, the ever-protective Ryuji, the mysterious figure that just stands in the hallway sometimes, and a few other spirits that haunt the place.

The conversation devolved from spirits to anything that came to mind. Todoroki didn't speak much at first, but grew more and more invested. He talked about how his friends threw him a surprise birthday party at his favorite soba shop after a week of hell. How a young fan gifted him a very wonky, handmade Shouto plushie, yet it's one of his favorite things. Even how he was concerned how his mother and siblings were doing and if they heard the news of what happened.

And like that time flew by. Seconds turned to minutes and minutes turned to hours. Neither of you noticed until your cat, Kuma, decided to make himself known by nipping at your ankle mid-conversation.

"Ah! Ow! Cat, why?!"

You jumped from your seat and watched as your large tabby cat waddled over to his bowl that sat on the floor at the end of the kitchen's island counter. His big green eyes stared up at you with his tail swiping from side to side.

"Ah crap. I forgot to feed you. I'm sorry, Bud."

You followed Kuma over to his bowls, grabbing the bag from the cabinet, and crouched down to pour the kibble into the bowl. You give your now satisfied feline friend a quick pet before glancing at the clock on the wall.

"Damn… it's eleven already?", you stood and stretched your arms with a groan, back cracking from sitting at your less than comfortable dining chair for hours, "Welp! I have some errands I gotta run today. I'm gonna go get dressed."

"I'll come with you." Todoroki stood from his seat, collecting dishes as he did so.

You released your arms from a stretch and planted your palms on your hips, you arched a brow at the man gathering your dirtied dishes. Todoroki looked up at you, noticing your questioning expression before something seemed to click in his mind.

"The errands. I'll come with you for the errands… not with… getting dressed…"

"Pfft- No that's not-" you couldn't help but laugh at the hero's clarification. Todoroki cupped his hand over the back of his neck as an embarrassed blush bloomed across his cheeks. He watched you clutch your stomach at the genuine laughter spilling from your lips.

"I-I knew what you meant, don't worry. I didn't think you were some pervert.", you struggled to regain your composure and catch your breath.

You finally calmed down with a sigh,"It's just… people are probably looking for you as we speak, and you did get hurt last night. Are you sure you want to go out so soon?"

Todoroki nodded, "We have no way of communicating securely. If something happened to one of us, we would have no safe way to inform the other."

"Hmm that's fair. I suppose we are better off sticking close for now."

You pressed your curled forefinger to your lips, a little, devious grin stretched across your face.

"Then this calls for a little makeover!"

"Alright, hold still for me."

You make a mental note to thank Shinsou for the emergency supplies again. You had let Todoroki choose amongst the few wigs and fresh colored contacts that were stored away within the duffle bag. He chose a simple, but charming combination of light brown eye contacts and a short dark brown wig in a side-part style that left some locks resting over his left eye. With the contacts in and iconic white and red split hair carefully tucked away under the wig, he was, once again, seated at the dining table as you prepared the makeup.

"Just let me know if you feel uncomfortable."

You lightly held his chin, gently guiding his face in one direction or another while you applied primer, foundation, and concealer to his skin. The concealer and foundation(although slightly off from Todoroki's skin tone) worked like magic, seemingly making his scar disappear.

Damn. I need to ask Shinsou where he got this stuff.

Moving on you continue on to brush the lightest bits of contour and blush so Todoroki would look more natural and not look like a member of the walking dead. You contemplated plucking his eyebrows, but they were surprisingly well groomed; most likely done for his occasional public appearances, you guessed. So you let them be, settling for a quick shaping before applying the dark brow coloring and swiping a thin layer of mascara on his lashes. Finishing up, you pat on a layer of setting powder and finally the setting spray that seemed to snap the hero out of his almost meditative state.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you enjoyed getting your make-up done."

Todoroki gave a bashful look, but didn't respond, only rubbing the back of his neck. In truth he did enjoy it, far more than when he had public appearances. Perhaps he was so distracted dreading the event itself, he had no time to actually appreciate the process. This time there was no rush, blaring lights in his face, or the incessant shouts of people clamoring for his attention. Just a gentle spring breeze wafting through the apartment, the morning sun illuminating the space, and a set of surprisingly gentle hands pampering him. For a brief second he forgot about his less-than-fortunate situation.

He shook his head when you turned to store away the make-up supplies, hoping you wouldn't notice his internal dilemma or at the very least bring it up.

You turned back to him, hand on your hips and admiring your work. Just as he managed to finally ground himself again… you threw him for another loop.

"Damn. Maybe I did too well… someone might just mistake you for an actor or pop idol." You chuckled.

There it is again. That casual tone.

"Let's add a face mask for extra measure. If anyone asks I'll just say you're a germaphobe."

You turned back again to rummage through your closet for your supply of face masks, leaving a very confused Todoroki in your wake. When you faced him again with a mask in hand, you recognized the confused look on his face, staring down at his clenching and unclenching hands.

"Hey… are you sure you're good to go out today?" You strode over to him with a mask in hand, "Don't get me wrong, I know you're plenty capable, but… what you went through last night could mess with anyone's head. Hero or not."

That seemed to snap him out of his train of thought, blinking his eyes before looking up at you.

"I'll be fine. Thank you.", he stood from his seat and gratefully took the face mask from your hand, ignoring the fact his finger twitched when brushing against your own.

"Right then…", you shrugged with a pursed smile, not willing to argue.

Whatever you say, Peppermint.

You grabbed your bag from the table and spun around to face the front door,"Let's get going. Watch out, Nibetsu City! Here we come!"

With a sigh, you pinched the bridge of your nose. It was already late by the time you received the call from the shop owner, Mr. Masuda. The conversation over the phone was frantic and garbled, enough so that you had rushed out of your apartment in pajamas and gray peacoat. Rookie mistake. Seeing how you had nothing to lose, you may as well try.

"Fine. Alright. I'll try, but there's no promise that if there is a spirit or that it will want to talk. On top of that, I can't promise I'll be able to get them to cease activity. If that's the case, I do have the contacts of some people who may be able to help you."

"Oh thank you! Thank you! You are a lifesaver!"

Mr. Masuda bowed even lower as you sidestepped around him. You took in the shop's atmosphere. The place was brightly colored, various walls painted pastel blue, pink, and yellow. The tables and seats were covered in similarly-colored patterns; while the walls were decked out with signs, photos, art, and flourishing plastic plants. You thought it would have been a nice place to wind down after a day of running errands. Unfortunately for you, today was not that day.

"Now, where did you say the activity occurred most?"

Mr. Masuda rose from his bow and clambered to stand on his own two feet.

"The ice cream display! We've had customers feel nauseous or even faint due to a sudden difficulty in breathing."

You hummed in response and wandered over to the casing, your eyes flickered to and fro; searching for even a single speck of dust out of place. You quickly slip on a rubber glove from your bag, swipe a finger over the surface of the casing, and rub two fingers together, searching for any unusual substances. 

Nothing. No grainy or oily texture from a foreign substance. Still, that doesn't rule out foul play from a neighboring business, competitor, or even just a particularly upset customer.

Some people are real fucking crazy…

"You clean and wipe down every surface at the end of the day, right?"

You strip off the glove, shoving it into your pajama pants pocket to dispose of later.

"Of course! I wouldn't dare leave the place filthy!", Mr. Masuda was obviously offended by your speculation.

"Alright! Okay! I'm just making sure. You'd be surprised with what some businesses cut corners on…", you crouched down to inspect the ground around and underneath the display case as you continued to ask questions.

"Do you know anyone who could possibly hold a grudge against you or profit from the shop closing?"

"Wh-what?! No! At least not that I know of. It's not like we are in a prime location and I haven't had any encounters that I can think of that would cause such a response.", Mr. Masuda wrung out hands at the thought of someone wanting to hurt him and his business. "Do you think someone may have cursed me?!"

You hummed in thought.

"Hmm perhaps… if it really is a spirit that is.", you rose from your place on the floor and turned to face the frantic shop owner, "You said an employee saw a ghostly form when she was locking up earlier tonight?"

"Yes! Miss Kimura! She's a very hard working girl and very kind too! She does well with the children who come in! It broke my heart hearing how terrified she was over the phone after she saw it."

"Did she describe it to you? Have you perhaps seen a similar figure yourself?" 

"I haven't seen anything like she described, but she said she saw a pale white figure, small like a child. She said it looked like it was looking into the display case, standing where the incidents keep happening."

You dug your hand into your messenger bag, one you bring to on-site investigations, and pulled out a UV flashlight. 

"Mind hitting the lights for me?"

"O-oh! Of course!", Mr. Masuda rushed over to the light switches near the shop entrance. As soon as the lights flickered out, you clicked on the flashlight and passed the shining purple light over the display case surface. Quickly, you find something interesting. Two small handprints make themselves known in the ultraviolet light. 

"And you said you wash the display case every night?"

"Yes! We clean the place thoroughly after closing! Kimura said she only saw the figure when she was locking up.", he perked up a bit, prideful of his shop's cleanliness.

"Well… either she missed a spot or these prints are fresh…", you flashed the light over the handprints again to show Mr. Musuda, who quickly looked shaken over the find.

"I… I'm sorry…"

A voice called out, sounding meek and guilty.

"Mama always said I shouldn't touch the glass, but the ice cream looks so good…"

You turned slightly towards the voice that came from right beside you. Your eyes landed on a ghostly figure of a young girl, looking no older than six years old and wearing a hospital gown. Her head hung in shame, clearly guilty of her actions. You slowly descended into a squat, careful not to scare the spirit girl. 

"Hey…", you spoke softly as if she were a lost child looking for their parents ,"It's okay. We can clean up again. May I ask for your name?"

The girl looked spooked at the fact I acknowledged her at all. Her eyes went wide with surprise.

"M-mama said I shouldn't talk to strangers… but I don't think anyone else can hear or see me…" 

"You're a smart girl to listen to your mama. She's right afterall. I understand if you're nervous, but I just want to ask you a few questions. Only if you're okay with that, of course, but I'd really like to try and help you."

The girl tugged at her gown nervously, looking down like she was contemplating whether you could be trusted or not.

"...Okay…", She whispered, "I'll answer your questions. My name is Chihoko Konuma."

"You have a very lovely name, Miss Konuma. My name is Y/N L/N, I'm a private detective," You turned to Mr. Masuda and gestured toward him,"and this nice man is Mr. Masuda. He's the owner of this shop."

"I know Mr. Masuda!", she perks up at the name

"Oh? How do you know him?"

"Me and Mama would come here every sunday! He's very nice! And Miss Kimura too!", and as quickly as it came her happy attitude disappeared. 

"I… I scared Miss Kimura,didn't I? Can you tell her I'm sorry? I really didn't mean to."

"I'm sure she will be fine. It's okay. She just… didn't understand." You trailed off.

You inhaled and clasped your hands together, tucking them under your chin.

"Do you remember what happened before you found yourself here?"

"I… I was in the hospital. Mama said my lungs didn't work right, that the doctors were going to help me… It hurt. It hurt a lot. And Mama was crying. I was so tired. All I wanted was to see Mama happy again. I just wanted to go out like before. Then we could get ice cream like we always did."

You could feel your throat tighten at the sight of tears welling up in the girl's eyes, hands in her gown tighten even further. 

"... Miss Detective… I'm not going to wake up, am I?"

Your heart dropped and you couldn't bring yourself to look her in the eye. This was the part you hated most. There were plenty of spirits who didn't understand what had happened to them. Many went on believing that they were still among the living, going about their day confined to a certain space or attached to a certain object. But, being the one to break the news never sat right with you.

"... No. I'm sorry, Chihoko." Your voice stayed steady and firm, yet gentle.

There was a heavy silence that settled. One that felt like it could drag you to the deepest depths of the ocean and never let up. From the corner of your eye you could tell even Mr. Masuda was affected by the intense wave of sadness in the room as he cupped his mouth to keep himself from choking up despite only catching half the conversation.

"...You said you wanted your Mama to be happy, right?" You started, forcing yourself to look at her again, "Well… I'm sure the thing that would make your Mama happiest… would be knowing that you were happy… that you don't hurt anymore…"

Chihoko looked up at you, ghostly tears fell from her eyes, but disappeared before they ever reached the ground. Her hands loosened their grip on her gown.

"... Chihoko, would you like some ice cream?"

She stayed silent, but nodded. You finally rose from your squat and held your hand out to Chihoko. 

"C'mon, you can choose where we sit."

She nodded again and took your hand. You felt a cold and wispy feeling envelope your hand as she began to lead you to the table in front of the windows.

"Mr. Masuda, you can go ahead and turn the lights back on. We're going to have ice cream if you don't mind." You smiled at the man who looked absolutely baffled by the situation.

"O-oh… yes! Of course!" He flicked the lights on and rushed back behind the counter.

"Is… is this part of the process?" He paused for a moment, looking for some clarity from you. 

"Uhhh yeah! Yes! Absolutely! The spirit demands an offering! And the offering must be ice cream!" You gave off a silly dramatic flare to your little speech and you heard a little giggle from the now seated ghost girl. 

"Psst, what do you want?" You leaned over slightly.

"Hmm… birthday cake ice cream with two scoops…"

"The mighty spirit demands two scoops…"

"No! Wait! Three! Three scoops!"

"Wait! Three scoops of birthday cake ice cream!"

"I also want rainbow sprinkles! Oh! And a cherry on top!"

"And make that with rainbow sprinkles and a cherry on top! So does the mighty spirit Chihoko demand it! All hail the mighty spirit!" You flare out your peacoat dramatically in emphasis, "... and uhh throw one in for me too, please."

You heard giggles erupt from the girl as Mr. Masuda quickly began putting together the orders, looking even more puzzled than before. Once finished he rushes over with two cups. You took one of the cups from his hands and raised it high above your head. 

"Dear mighty spirit! Please accept our offering!" 

You sat the cup in front of Chihoko, leaning slightly, you said softer, "May you find peace and happiness."

Chihoko smiled brightly and kicked her feet in her seat, "Thank you, Miss Detective."

"Anytime, Kiddo."

As you sat in the seat across from her and propped your head with your hand, you noticed a daydreaming look in her eyes. As if she were somewhere else completely. Where the sun was shining, the flowers were in bloom, and the beautiful birdsong rang through the air. Soon enough the ghostly girl's visage had dispersed, the seat she once occupied was once agin empty.

That knot in your throat appeared again. You bit the inside of your cheek and took slow breaths. With a hefty sigh, you rose from your chair and turned to Mr. Masuda. 

"So… so that's it? Is it coming back?" Mr. Masuda stuttered out, still very much confused.

"No. She most likely won't be coming back. If the events occur again, just call me up again and I'll take a look at it."

"Ah! That's good! Thank you so much, Detective! And uhhh about the payment-"

"Don't worry about it right now. It's late. I'll call you tomorrow and we can work something out. For now just worry about getting your business back in order." You take your ice cream cup in hand, "But I wouldn't mind taking this and a few more pints of ice cream home, if you don't mind…"

The plastic bag rustled as it swung into your leg with each stride. Mr. Masuda gladly agreed to give you some ice cream and sent you on your way with a promise of payment in the future. 

The ice cream shop may not have been far from your apartment, but each step felt heavier than the last. The streets weren't empty, but it was certainly quiet enough for your thoughts to ring louder than the idle chatter of the people on the street.

 You hated this feeling. The emotional exhaustion that came with interacting with spirits was sometimes too much to bear. All you wanted to do was have your tea and fall asleep while cuddling your cat. Maybe cry a little. Or cry a lot. Who knows? 

The thought of home was enough to will the energy to make the trek back. You felt your feet quicken the moment you saw your tiny apartment building come into view. 

Your hand blindly dug into your bag for your keys as you made your way up the strangely steep and uneven steps you have learned to navigate. The moment you pushed in the code and the door opened you heard whispers in your ears. 

Yes. Your apartment building was also haunted. 

Lucky you.

It was the reason you could afford a decent apartment for so cheap. You made a deal with the landlord to keep the spirits in check for a more affordable price on rent. Especially since the spirits were quite lively.

 They weren't aggressive exactly, but more curious and sociable. They especially liked to give you all the apartment building gossip. You can't lie, it was pretty entertaining. Like your own personal reality tv show.

And this time they came to you with news of someone breaking into your apartment.

Oh goodie. 

Your mood soured and you began to march up the stairs of the building. Of all nights some random asshole had to choose tonight. If someone was going to die tonight it certainly wasn't going to be you. You would be personally adding a new spirit to the apartment building's collection. 

It wasn't until you had reached your door had you caught the feeling of a familiar aura. Your sour mood lifted into a mix of relief and confusion.

You unlocked the door and let it swing open.

"I know we are friends and all, Shinsou, but at least give me a heads up before you go breaking into my apartment."

You reached the end of the hall and flicked on the lights to reveal the pro hero, his indigo hair tucked away under a black, slicked back wig, dark brown eye contacts over his natural purple, and heavy make-up distorting his natural features. He sat on your couch with your cat curled up in his lap, who clearly didn't seem deterred by his drastically different appearance.

That little traitor.

"Long time no see, Miss Nancy Drew. As always you are no fun to surprise."

Despite the lax nature of his words, there was a seriousness in his voice and a hard look in his eye. An uneasiness settled in your stomach. You closed your door and slipped off your shoes

"Something happened."

It was less of a question and more of a statement. He nodded. It was then you sensed a second presence. One unfamiliar to you.

"So… who's your friend hiding in my bathroom?"

You didn't like this. You had never seen Shinsou look so hesitant. Guilty almost. 

"Look. I need you to do me a favor…"

"First, I need you to tell me who the hell is in my fucking bathroom, Shinsou." Your voice had cut him off. Quick and angry you whispered. You were not in the mood to play these games. 

Shinsou let out a frustrated and defeated sigh. Your cat jumped off his lap as he leaned forward to press his intertwined hands to his mouth. 

"Shouto."

Huh?

"Number three pro hero, Shouto."

…

"WHAT?!"

"It was supposed to be kept under wraps. Todoroki was the one who contacted me for help. He believed there was a connection to a previous incident that he dealt with and he needed someone with more experience in this field." He continued as you gathered two cups and a tea container, bringing them to the counter. You placed the tea bags into the cups and poured the hot water from your dispenser.

"Of course, he insisted on coming as backup. No one was supposed to know except us and a few informants. Then… shit hit the fan." Shinsou went silent, still slumped in his seat. The look in his eyes made it look as if the stress from tonight alone took a few years off his life.

It was unnerving to see your usually snarky and straightforward friend beat around the bush so much.

"Shinsou, what happened?"

Your voice and eyes softened at the fact he looked so distressed. There was still a sharpness there, emphasizing that you wanted answers. Then his exhausted eyes finally met your's.

And a part of you wished they didn't.

"He found a body." Frustration and failure swirled in his contact covered irises.

You were silent. Frozen in shock. Your eyes locked onto him as if staring at him would somehow pry the information out of him faster.

"He was supposed to wait in the van. He heard a scream and went to investigate. That's when he found the body… and so did an officer on patrol. He wasn't wearing a full disguise so the officer recognized him. Officer dumbass immediately called for backup and decided to fire first before asking questions." His sweaty hands repeatedly clenched and unclenched into fists.

You leaned onto the kitchen countertop in your disbelief, your forefinger pressed to your mouth. Did you accidently collapse from exhaustion in the street coming home? This seems all too surreal.

"And knowing the police chief here… he doesn't trust heroes as far as he can throw them. The number three hero is now a wanted criminal… the headlines will be everywhere by morning." You added in a breathy mumble, still trying to fully understand that this was your reality.

Shinsou only nodded solemnly.

"... What else is there?..." You knew there was something he hadn't told you.

"He described the body to me… He said it looked like she drowned in nothing. Her skin was blue and water poured from her mouth. Yet her lips were severely chapped and in certain areas the skin cracked , there was nothing around that she could have drowned in. The area around her was bone dry and there was no sign of struggle…"

A cold chill shot down your back.

You heard this before. You've obsessively read over reports with similar autopsy descriptions. Now you really couldn't believe the situation you found yourself in.

"They're back… after ten years of silence and all of a sudden they're back…" your jaw clenches as your gut fills with a mix of emotions; anger, frustration, sadness… dread.

Shinsou stood quickly, taking large strides to the other side of the kitchen counter.

"We don't know that…" he spoke firmly, silently begging you not to jump to conclusions.

"How can you say that when you know just as well as I do that this method of murder is unique to one person…" you bit back.

Shinsou pursed his lips with a stubborn look in his eyes.

"I don't think you should look into this case… but I also know you are the best bet we have to solve this, whether it is them or a copycat killer."

You smugly took a sip of your tea as a smirk grew on your lips, "You're stupid if you think there was even a chance in hell I wouldn't be working this case."

The corner of Shinsou's lips perked as he chuffed and took his own tea in hand, "I wouldn't have told you if I knew you were going to work on this alone…"

You paused as he took a sip of his own tea. What the hell was that supposed to mean?! Was he planning on working on this case with you? You didn't have anything against that. You've worked well with him before, but you had a feeling he wasn't talking about himself.

"You're not the only stubborn, little shit that's interested in this case." He nodded his head toward your bathroom door.

"No…" Your brows furrowed in defiance as you stood straight.

"Yes." A satisfied smirk grew on Shinsou's face.

"People are going to be crawling over the entire city for this guy and you want me to work this case with him?!" You set your cup down much harder than you had intended as Shinsou continued to casually drink from his own, having visibly relaxed since he first entered.

"Well then I suggest you better get him a good disguise and hope your make-up skills are up to par." He challenged looking lazily at you through his tired, half lidded eyes, finally coming down from the adrenaline high with the help of the tea.

"Right…" You gave him the most deadpan look you could possibly conjure.

"Don't worry too much about it, you can use the emergency supplies I hid here." Shinsou swirled his cup as if what he just said was the most casual thing in the world. 

"You hid shit in my house?! When did you even have time to do this?! Shinsou, what the fuck?" Your face scrunched in frustration at the fact he used your home as some sort of storage.

He just nonchalantly shrugged as he set down his cup and leaned away from the counter, "I'm an underground hero. I can never be too prepared and tonight was a perfect example of that." 

You followed as he strode over to the living room coffee table and swiftly tugged it from its usual spot to reveal a storage hatch. 

You looked up from the hatch and back at Shinsou. He smirked at your perplexed expression, "...You forgot this was even here didn't you?"

"Shut up…" You crossed your arms in a small act of defiance.

He only chuckled when he unlocked the hatch to reveal a large duffle bag as well as emergency disaster supplies. He tugged the duffle bag out of its place in storage space and plopped it onto your couch.

"It's honestly shocking how perceptive yet oblivious you are. I even left some disaster supplies for you in case of an emergency."

"Awww, you do care." You teasingly drawled out.

Rolling his eyes, Shinsou closed the hatch and returned the coffee table to its rightful place. You turned your attention to the bathroom door again.

"So… there's really no getting rid of him?" You perched your hands on your hips, looking up at him with a pleading look.

"He may look level-headed and stoic, but once he has his sights on something, he's one stubborn bastard." He shook his head.

You groaned, this is going to be a hell of a lot harder than you could have ever imagined. You may have dreamed of getting a chance to find this murderer once and for all, but never having to babysit the framed number three hero while doing so.

"...This better go well or I'm haunting your ass.", You folded your arms and glared at Shinsou who only looked smug as it became clear he got you to fold.

"I expect nothing less." He gave you a small half-smile.

You planted your hand to your hips, and looked at him more directly, "Well, since I'm gonna be busy solving this case and babysitting, what's your plan?"

He shoved his hand into his pockets as he sat on the arm of your couch.

"As far as the police know, Shouto was the only one there and I was miles away from here. I'm going to continue keeping an eye out for any drug dealing activity. I'll also find a way to get any new case information to you. He should have a burner phone on him, just text if you need anything."

"Thinking you're going to infiltrate the police station are you?" You quirked a brow at him with a knowing look.

"Are you sure your quirk isn't telepathy?" He rolled his eyes at you.

"Are you sure your quirk isn't 'Smart Mouth'?" You shot back.

Shinsou tilted his head with a smug grin,"Is that the best comeback you have, Nancy Drew?"

"Shut up. It's late and I'm tired." Your eyes narrowed in annoyance.

"Fine. Fine. I'll get out of your hair. I'll see you when I see you." He stood and made his way to the balcony parallel to the living room. He slid open the door and turned to some pipes bolted to the building. You watched on from the balcony door as he gave you a playful salute and climbed down the pipes, descending into the alleyway below.

You stood in the balcony door for a moment before retreating back into your apartment. A heavy sigh was ripped from you as the weight of the situation finally seemed to sink in. 

You were so fucked.

"I'm okay. This is fine. You can deal with this. You deal with bullshit everyday. This will be nothing. Most of the police around here are stupid anyway."

You mumbled away, wandering over to your bathroom door, figuring you should at least introduce yourself to your unexpected guest. After knocking on the door you introduced yourself, resting your hand on the doorknob.

"May I come in?"

"Yeah. Come in.", his low voice resonated from the otherside of the door.

You turned the knob and opened the door to find Todoroki, sweat-soaked hair falling messily from his ponytail, with the top half of his hero suit unzipped, hanging from his waist, and his undershirt ripped to reveal his bare chest. He winced slightly as he used a cloth to dab at a wound on his side.

Oh. You were SO fucked.

You immediately averted your eyes to the floor, now noticing a few drops of blood that had fallen to the ground. 

"Ah… Sorry. I wasn't expecting… that.", You glanced up quickly and made a quick swooping gesture at his person, clicking your tongue, "Then again I wasn't expecting a lot of things tonight yet they happened anyway."

"Sorry. I should have warned you." He leaned, propping himself with one hand using your sink countertop.

"About which part? You, half-naked and bleeding in my bathroom or you and Shinsou breaking into my apartment?"

Todoroki looked away as he pursed his lips and his bi-colored brows furrowed in a clear look of guilt. How this grown ass man managed to look like a kicked puppy was beyond you.

"Sorry… I…", you pinched your nose with a sigh and looked up at him, "I'm sorry… It's been a long night… for both of us. Just… if that wound isn't too bad, go ahead and take a shower. There's towels and a med kit in the cabinet. I'll get you some clothes to wear. If you need help with anything, just call. We can talk after."

His eyes flicked back to you as he graciously nodded.

"Thank you." He breathed out along with a sigh.

You gave him a quick nod in return as you turned and left the bathroom wondering which higher being you could have possibly pissed off for you to deserve this strange form of punishment.

Luckily, Todoroki's wound was just a graze from a bullet. Simply a flesh wound and was easily patched up. He did end up needing some assistance wrapping up the bandage, in which you did everything in your power not to touch him too directly. Now, he sat at your dining table nursing his own cup of tea, hair tied back once again and dressed in a black v-neck and sweatpants.

"So," you start as you sit down across from him after refreshing your own cup of tea, "I know for a fact that you heard our conversation earlier. These walls are thin. But right now I just want to know what Shinsou told you about me, because if you're going to be staying here there's things you're going to need to know about me. Plus, I think it would be kind of unfair since I know more about you than you do of me since well… you're famous and all."

He seemed to take a moment to consider your reasoning and nodded.

"Shinsou hadn't said too much. Mainly, you were reliable and could be trusted. He also made a comment about having a very peculiar quirk. His words, not mine."

You internally cringe as you roll your eyes. Of course he would leave you to suffer explaining your quirk. Reactions varied, but it was usually a fifty-fifty chance between immediate skepticism or over-enthusiastic belief. Both sides were irritating to deal with in their own ways. One thought you were insane and the other thought you were a tool to be used.

"Right. Well. How should I explain this?... I can see auras, residual energy, and… spirits."

His eyes widened in surprise.

"Oh." His exclamation almost came out as a whisper.

He was silent as his forefinger rested on his lips, seemingly lost in thought. You waited for a reaction. Any reaction. You purse your lips and tapped your fingers on the table.

"This… is usually when people start bombarding me with questions or call me insane." You drawled out, cautiously trying to gauge his reaction.

Todoroki's train of thought was cut short at your statement.

"People have accused you of being insane?" The way he sounded concerned almost caught off guard but you quickly shook it off.

You shrugged, "Well, I can't really blame them. I thought I was crazy too when I first manifested my quirk. I thought there was something wrong with me when I saw transparent people everywhere and a shadow figure staring at me through my window every night, trying to convince me to play outside."

"That… must have been terrifying for you." He said with what you couldn't quite tell was pity or sympathy as his hand tightened slightly over the cup in his hand. 

You lazily shrugged again as you leaned back in your chair to fold your arms over your chest, "Eh, I got used to it. It got easier when it was confirmed to be a part of my quirk. Turns out it was something that came from my mother's side. She couldn't see spirits, but my grandmother could. The biggest difference being the fact I have no choice over whether I see them or not. I don't have a 'veil', as they call it. A separation between the world of the living and the dead. After that, I was sent to live with my grandmother until I went to Junior High."

"They sent you away?" Todoroki's brows furrowed, looking disturbed at the thought as he crossed his arms.

"Ah! Well… when you say it like that it sounds really harsh. Though, it's true my parents really didn't know the first thing about spirits and kind of dumped me on my grandmother. It was either stay with her to learn to cope with my quirk… or potentially be on suppressors for the rest of my life. I like to think they chose the lesser of two evils. It's not like I never saw my family. In fact, my older sister practically lived with us too when she was going to high school in the area. My parents would at least call once a week if they couldn't visit. Plus, my grandmother was and still is a wonderful woman. So it wasn't so bad.", your voice softened when you spoke about your family, more specifically grandmother as memories of your time at her house boiled to the surface.

"Though, I do often wonder what my life may have been like if they decided to just put me on quirk suppressors. I definitely wouldn't have found myself in our current situation," You chuckled a bit, but it came out as a bit hollow and fake with your dimming smile.

Looking back at Todoroki, you noticed a somewhat distant look in his eyes. He was taking this pretty well so far. He even zoned in on facts of your story that nobody ever seemed to notice or care for. Yet, here he was looking potentially even more distraught than when he was bleeding.

"Uh… H-hey. Todoroki? I know it wasn't the most ideal childhood, but it's all in the past now so don't worry about it if that's what you're thinking."

This seemed to finally snap him out of his thoughts and his heterochromatic eyes met yours. A shiver ran down your spine at an intensity simmering just under the surface. 

"...I must apologize again for breaking in. You seemed… already distraught when you arrived."

"No, I…," you sighed, "I admit the comment earlier was unnecessary. Although, I think I reserve the right to be a little miffed after having my home broken into, especially in our very unique situation, that doesn't mean I should act like a bitch the whole time if we will be working together."

Todoroki shook his head, "As someone who often works with Dynamight, I know a thing or two about 'Acting like a Bitch'. You were only reacting as anyone would. In fact, I'd argue you were quite graceful with your reaction to two men breaking into your home."

"Wasn't the first time and it probably won't be the last.", You chuckled and rolled your eyes at the unfortunately true statement.

Todoroki's brows furrowed in concern again, but seemed to dismiss it for another thought he deemed more important.

"If you don't mind me asking, where were you before arriving home? What were you doing so late?" Todoroki leaned on his elbows on the table, his cup empty of tea and discarded to the side.

"Ah, I don't mind. Even the detective needs an alibi. For all you know I could be the killer. Now, that would be a real plot twist... Anyway, I was called by a Mr. Masuda around 10:30 pm tonight. He told me about the strange happenings going on in his ice cream shop. They've been having customers feeling sick, light-headed, and even faint in their shop, but found nothing that could logically explain the sudden incidents. It was clear that this was costing them severely and Mr. Masuda called me as a last resort. Admittedly, a wise choice since there really was a spirit haunting the shop and I was able to appease it."

He nodded, but continued digging for info, "Was there something about this case that made you upset?"

You felt yourself stiffen. How the hell was this guy able to pinpoint shit like this? Then again, you shouldn't underestimate the number three hero like this. 

You pursed your lips and looked down to pick at your nails, "Yeah. If I'm honest, I'm surprised you caught onto that…"

Todoroki leaned further in, slightly tilting his head as if he was trying to catch my eyes again.

"May I ask what happened?" His smooth voice spoke softly.

You were silent, contemplating telling the truth. You had to remind yourself that this wasn't something you needed to hide and if you wanted the case to go well, you needed to be as honest as possible.

You swallowed the knot in your throat.

"The spirit… She was a young girl. Six years old, if I had to guess…", you willed yourself to remain neutral as possible, "I can only guess she died recently since she was familiar with Mr. Masuda and another employee. She said her name was Chihoko Konuma and, from what I could tell with the information she gave me, she passed away in the hospital from a lung issue. Her final wish was for her mother to be happy, thus she was attached to the place where she must have had her happiest memories with her mother…"

You roughly picked at a hangnail on your forefinger, "I told her that what would make her mother happiest now was for her to no longer be in pain…She was a smart girl. She even understood her situation to a point… to look a bright, young girl in the eye and confirm that her life has been snuffed out far too soon… it's a difficult thing to do."

A large, slender hand cupped over your own. All of a sudden, you remembered where you were and who you were with. You sucked in a breath and cleared your throat. As you gently pulled your hands away from his, you noticed your forefinger had started to bleed from the nervous picking. 

Shit.

"Right. I think that's enough questions today.", you quickly stood up from your seat and swerved around the table, speeding to your bedroom. 

"The guestroom is there, just left of the bathroom. Goodnight."

You slid the door closed before Todoroki could even reply and flopped onto your bed. Stuffing a pillow to your face, you let out the most agonized groan in an attempt to ease your embarrassment. You knew sleep wouldn't come easy tonight, not with everything that happened. 

For a while you laid awake, watching as a singular white butterfly perched itself on one of the potted plants you placed out on your personal balcony. Yet, the sight seemed to help ease you into a dreamless slumber. 

Your busied mind finally finding respite. You no longer cared for your grief, your embarrassment, or your frustration. You couldn't find yourself to care that you hadn't asked him some questions like you had intended, nor could you find yourself to care for how pleasant his hand felt on yours. You only thought one thing as you fell asleep.

'She always did love butterflies.'