Chapter Text
"HEY DABI!!" He cringed at the volume of Toga's voice. How was she so loud from the other side of the base? And why couldn't she just come to him when she wanted to talk instead of screeching from the depths of the building?
"WHAT?!" Dabi answered, oblivious to the fact that he was just as loud as his younger counterpart. Shigaraki groaned and shriveled in on himself from where he was sitting on the couch playing games, like he was trying to hide from the sound. The other members of the league were used to the noise and barely registered it, though Twice probably would have commented if he wasn't busy stuffing his face with the last packet of Doritos.
"WE'RE OUT OF FOOD."
"THEN YOU SHOULD GO SHOPPING."
"BUT DABI!" Toga whined back, "I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO BUY!"
Shigaraki whipped his head around to stare in the direction of Dabi and Toga, "WOULD YOU SHUT THE FUCK UP AND COME SPEAK IN THE SAME ROOM LIKE NORMAL PEOPLE?!" Dabi rolled his eyes at his outburst. Normal people? They were probably the furthest thing from normal.
Toga came skipping into the room and flung herself onto the counter at the bar. "So-" She cleared her throat to get the attention of the rest of the league, a satisfied smile stretched onto her face when all heads turned her way, "Right, we are out of food, and I nominate it Dabi's turn to go on a grocery run." She smirked at Dabi's glare and continued, "Why do you ask? Because firstly I have no clue what to get and second, last time we went shopping he stayed behind-"
"That's because I had 3 broken ribs and a sprained ankle, so I literally couldn't go!"
Toga held up a hand to shush him, "It has been decided, now who has ideas for a grocery list?" And the room erupted in a chaos of yelling and shouting.
Going out in public was never really a pleasant experience for Dabi.
Trying to hide his identity as the A-rank villain Dabi was difficult due to his easily recognisable features; he had to layer up on excessive clothing to hide his scars and staples. His current disguise consisted of a mask, sunglasses, long sleeves, a turtleneck (to hide the damage on his neck) and a hood for extra security. Sure, he looked a little dodgy, but compared to the reactions he'd get without them, this was nothing.
Maybe it was best that Dabi had been nominated to go on the grocery run for the League; everyone knew grocery runs rarely ended in purchasing any healthy food when the others shopped. At least he made an effort to add nutrition to their diets. After adding some vegetables to the cart, Dabi added all the junk the league had requested, Toga's chocolate, Twice's Froot Loops, an ungodly amount of Poky sticks for Shigaraki, marshmallows for Kurogiri (Can he even eat food? Like where does it go, he's made of mist? Whatever, he's not one to judge) and a wide variety of chips and ramen noodle flavours.
He felt rather proud to say that he had politely paid for the items at the counter, like the totally (not) law-abiding citizen he was. Dabi was now walking to the subway with his shopping packets when a white bundle crashed into him, sending him to the pavement as a bright light engulfed him.
"Fuckin' ow!" He complained as he pushed himself up by his elbows (Shit, he hoped this hadn't ripped any of his staples out) and stared down at the small girl who lay atop his legs, tears in her eyes. He was about to speak when he felt his entire body freeze.
His staples.
They didn't hurt.
His eyes shot down to his arm, his entire head snapping to the side as he stared at the only unclothed part of his body, his hands, which were no longer adorned in the ugly purple scars he had grown accustomed to but were now smooth and skin coloured.
Dabi's brain buffered. How did this happen? Was it because of the bright flash from earlier? Did this girl cause his scars to go away? What kind of quirk makes years of severe burn damage just disappear? The skin on his hand looked as good as new, like nothing had ever happened, like Sekoto had never happened, like Endeavor had never happened.
He felt rather conflicted, no scars meant he could finally live life as a normal citizen. He had learned pretty quickly that people dislike those who are different or villainous looking, so no one would ever hire him for work, that's why he had turned to villainy while plotting his father's death. But now that the scars were gone he couldn't be Dabi anymore; he had lost the evidence of Endeavor's abuse, so what was he supposed to do about his vendetta now? His scars were a vital part of being Dabi; they caused caution and fear in the people who looked at him, and they were a permanent reminder of what Endeavor had caused. Could he still be a villain without them?
On the bright side, now that Dabi was free of his scars, his whole body felt lighter, he wouldn't need to worry about accidentally ripping his staples out or the pain they caused him for just existing. His mind also felt clearer, like someone had put water on the flames of his hatred -don't get him wrong, he was still pissed, but it felt calmer now, more manageable-. Dabi supposed this might not be the worst thing to happen, while his edgy aesthetic might be ruined, he felt almost human again.
The girl let out a sob, effectively bringing Dabi back to Earth. She was shaking and her whole body tensed as if preparing to be hit. Dabi's face softened beneath the mask and glasses that were still propped on his face. He saw his own childhood reflected in this child, in her tense body, flinches and clenched eyes.
"Kid, it's ok, you didn't do anything wrong." He said in the most gentle voice he could.
"I'm sorry." The girl whimpered, Dabi's heart broke as he sat up fully and gently hugged her.
"There's nothing to be sorry for, look-" Dabi stretched his arm out and rolled up the sleeve to reveal a perfect, unscarred arm, "You fixed me, thank you."
The girl's eyes brightened as she looked up at him like he was her hero (Rather ironic considering he was a well-known villain).
"ERI!" A worried voice rounded the corner, and both Dabi and the girl turned to see a purple-haired boy with the deepest eye bags he has ever seen sprinting toward them. "I am so sorry, please excuse my sister." The boy said as he scooped the girl, Eri, out of Dabi's hold and cradled her to his chest while eyeing Dabi up and down suspiciously. To be fair, Dabi did look kind of like a drug dealer with those stupid sunglasses he was still wearing.
Dabi debated on removing his disguise but decided against it as he vaguely recalled the purple boy as Eraserhead's son -not that the boy would recognise him without his signature Dabi scars, but still, it was the underlying principle that counts- instead he nodded to the boy, dusted himself off, grabbed his "groceries" and headed back to the Leagues base.
Catching his reflection in a glass window, he winced, knowing the League was gonna make a huge fuss about this.