Hello, reader. I know some are curious why Toga is much younger.
Well, I wanted both Toga and Toji to have the same age so as not to completely confuse the readers.
Anyways, back to the story.
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As I sat across from Toga, who was currently munching down on the meals Mother had prepared, I thought of what I could ask her without triggering anything.
I know she doesn't like the police or the hospital, I know that much, but what else could cause such trauma in a girl?
As I continued to stare at her, predictably she quickly caught on to me and gave me a wide smile.
"What are you looking at?" she said, smiling and grinning at me.
"It's nothing. I just wanted to ask you… whatever happened to your parents? If it isn't too much."
Her smile quickly faded and she began looking down at her plate. She opened her mouth to speak, but… no words ever came out.
"Hey, it's okay if you don't want to talk about it. Just enjoy the meal for now, and when you're ready we can talk some more," I told Toga.
Her smile slowly returned, and her appetite just as much.
Smiling at the girl's antics, I started chowing down on my meal, and after about ten minutes we finished eating.
Grabbing the dirty dishes, I took them to the sink, where I would clean them later when Mother finally got back and ate.
But while she's gone, I needed to find out more about Toga.
Walking towards the living room, I sat on the sofa, and looking towards the dining hall I saw Toga following behind.
"So… what do you wanna talk about?" Toga said before sitting dangerously close beside me.
Moving back a bit, I spoke.
"So, Toga… what exactly happened to you? You seem pretty well fed, but the moment you got an actual meal you ate like a starving animal," I asked.
"Well, I was kinda hungry. I haven't eaten anything for a while, but I was eating a lot of blood from those nice men who would always approach me! Though they always reeked of alcohol."
So she's been surviving on blood alone, and from pedophiles no less. Well, that explains her hunger. Now I need to find out what happened to her parents.
"If you're okay now, would you like to talk about what happened to your parents?" I asked.
She looked away from me before speaking.
"Could you… pat my head… while I tell you?"
This caught me a bit off guard, but I needed to know more about her if I wanted to help her properly.
"Sure… go ahead."
She quickly looked back at me with a smile before laying her head on my lap.
And once more, I was caught off guard. This girl is really something.
"Well?" she said, looking up at me.
"Yeah, yeah." Placing my giant hand on her head, I began to slowly caress and pat her head.
"Is this okay?"
"It's perfect!" she said, getting more snug on my lap.
"And your story?" I asked.
"Oh, right! Well, my story's not really that interesting, but since you've been really nice to me, I'll tell you," she said, snuggling more into my lap.
"My parents… they thought I was a monster. Ever since I was young, they always told me, 'Himiko! Don't drink blood! Act normal!'" she said, her body trembling a bit, "and I tried my best to do what they wanted! But every time I see people being happy, showing others how much they care for each other, I kept thinking, why? Why can't I care for people like that?"
"And then one day, I met this boy, and he was just the cutest thing I had laid eyes on. I wanted to tell him how much I liked him, to drink his blood and show him just how much I liked him!" she said, gripping herself and shaking a bit.
"Until one day… I saw him get into a fight, and there I saw it… his blood. I just couldn't take it anymore, so when I had the chance I took a box cutter and slit his throat!" she screamed.
"And then I drank his delicious blood! I drank and drank and drank until I had my fill and finally showed him just how much I loved him… but as I looked down on his lifeless body, I… I…" She couldn't finish what she was saying as I felt her tears falling onto my lap before she quickly wiped them away.
"Anyway, when I got home, Mom and Dad had already left and left me, and ever since then I've been living on the streets, drinking the blood of anyone who offered it."
"Have you… killed anyone recently?" I asked Toga.
"Not really. I wasn't that desperate yet. Maybe if you didn't find me, I would have done something like that… but you did!"
Toga said, moving her head a bit to look at me.
"Hey, Toji… do you think I'm a monster?" she asked.
"Do you think you're a monster?" I asked her.
"That's not fair, I'm the one asking here," she said, pouting.
"Heh. Well, you did kill a man. That's not good. But from what you've told me so far, you've been carrying something pretty heavy for quite a long time, and not everything is your fault alone," I told Toga.
"So you don't think I'm a monster?" Toga said, looking up at me expectantly.
"No," I told her straight.
She smiled wide before jumping on me and grabbing hold of me. Her eyes were looking at me intensely before, and before I knew it, she bit down on my neck.
As she sucked blood out of my neck, I simply patted her back, allowing her to continue.
From what I've gathered from her story, her mind is greatly affected by her quirk, and seeing as her parents barely taught her anything about it, this may be the result of that.
As she continued to blissfully drink my blood, I thought about calling Sir Nighteye, since he might know a thing or two about helping her, but I pushed that thought away.
He'd most likely arrest her rather than help the poor girl.
Getting up from the couch, I walked to the kitchen to grab a beverage to drink, all the while Toga continued to drink blood from me.
Once in the kitchen, I opened the fridge and grabbed a bottle of ice-cold water before drinking it and going back to the living room to think.
But the moment I got there, the door opened and Mom saw Toga attached to me, and with wide eyes she slammed the door shut.
"Sorry for bothering you, son! Make sure you use protection!" Mom said from behind the door.
Great… just great.