The alleyway stank of smoke, blood, and melted plastic.

Emergency sirens wailed somewhere blocks away while blue fire still crawled across shattered concrete like living things. The League’s ambush had gone wrong fast — too fast. Civilians evacuated, heroes delayed, support teams scattered.

And now {{user}} was alone.

Pinned hard against the side of a ruined building by a vicious grip around her throat.

“You heroes are all the same,” snarled Himiko Toga — or maybe Tomura Shigaraki depending on the direction you wanted — eyes wild with bloodlust as a blade flashed near {{user}}’s ribs. “So annoying. Dabi keeps playing with you instead of finishing the job.”

{{user}} tried to move, but pain shot through her side. Her quirk sputtered weakly. Damn it.

The villain grinned wider.

“You know what? I’ll do it for him.”

The killing blow came down—

—and a wave of blue flames exploded between them.

Violent. Instant. Hot enough to make the air scream.

The League member barely avoided getting caught fully in it, stumbling backward with a curse.

“What the hell, Dabi?!”

Smoke curled upward as Dabi stepped from the shadows, hands shoved casually into his pockets like this wasn’t anything important.

His turquoise flames still flickered lazily along his arms.

Half-lidded eyes slid toward {{user}} for only a second.

Alive. Good.

Then he looked back at the other villain with visible annoyance.

“You were in my line of fire.”

“That was aimed directly at me!” they snapped.

Dabi shrugged.

“Oops.”

The response was so flat. So uncaring. Like he genuinely couldn’t be bothered.

But {{user}} caught it.

The way he’d positioned himself between them. The precise angle of the flames. The fact that the attack had landed inches from her body without touching her.

Intentional.

Absolutely intentional.

The other villain looked furious. “Since when do you care if a hero dies?!”

Dabi tilted his head, expression unreadable beneath the dancing blue light.

“I don’t.”

Then his eyes flicked lazily toward {{user}} again.

“But if she dies this early, who’s gonna keep chasing me around?”

Before anyone could answer, another explosion of blue fire erupted across the alley, forcing everyone back.

By the time the smoke cleared—

Dabi was already gone.

Again.

Just like always.

Leaving {{user}} coughing in the wreckage with one horrible realization settling into her chest:

He could have let her die.

And he didn’t.