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makethiscanon · 11 months

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The Trouble with Trains: Ojiro x Fem!Reader [Part 1]

Rating: Mature (16+) || Word Count: 5,000 || Tags: Hurt/Comfort, Rescue, Tension, Eventual Fluff, First-meetings, Slow Burn, Modern AU, 99% Quirkless AU || Warnings: Moderate threat, crude language/cursing, attempted chikan, mentions of violent imagery, Dabi and Toga get their own warnings.

I don’t write whump/angst so please trust me this ends up fluffier than the tags suggest.

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The unpredictability of public transport meant you never knew who you were going to be sat by.

Sometimes it was a mother with a toddler on her knee; sometimes a middle-school kid with their headphones in, and sometimes it was absolutely no one at all. You liked those times, especially on longer journeys.

Today you boarded the train, hoping to get an empty seat beside you, but saw how busy the train was and let that fizzle out.

Today was the start of the summer holidays, after all.

With your luggage parked in the rack, you shuffled down the aisle, checking your ticket. Thankfully you'd booked in advance – three hours was a long time to have to stand.

“36-D… 36-D…” you muttered, counting the seat-numbers overhead.

Arriving at your row, you noticed someone in the seats adjacent to yours – a young, blonde man in a beanie, jacket, and ripped skinny jeans.

He was average by any stretch of the imagination, except he had a large, muscular tail. It was so large, in fact, that you wondered if the seat beside him was booked out just so his extra limb wouldn’t bother anyone.

You weren’t sure how long you were staring, but it was long enough for him to notice.

He looked up and you jerked in surprise, but offered him an awkward smile to say sorry. He actually smiled back so you went to apologise, but noticed the headphone wires protruding from his beanie and realised talking was pointless.

As you settled into your seat, you noticed that 36-C wasn't reserved. Someone was sure to claim it, but at least you had time to get comfortable before your travel partner appeared.

As the train got busier, you sat your handbag in your lap then pulled out your book and began to read, enjoying the hustle and bustle of background noise, until someone finally dropped heavily into the seat beside you.

“Nah, you should have seen his face when I said I wasn’t coming home this summer. Fucking livid. Funny though. Wish I could have taken a picture.”

Okay, you thought, shuffling as far into the window as you could, there was no need to panic. First impressions were first impressions; he could be nicer than he first seemed – you might have just caught him at a bad time.

You stole a quick glance, but barely long enough to spot the mop of black hair and what looked like scars across his face before you feared staring would draw his attention.

Your heart dropped when two other – and there was no other way to describe them but – ruffians dropped into the seats in front, before they knelt up and peered over the seat backs to continue their conversation.

“Do you still want to loot his holiday home this weekend? We could do it if he’s at that press conference?” Asked a man with straggly, white-blue hair and a very serious case of eczema, who didn’t seem to care one bit that he was announcing such devious holiday plans in front of you.

The girl beside him laughed, and it was so shrill that you flinched.

Catching your reaction, she caught your eye and her grin grew wider, like a predator preparing to kill, but then she returned her attention to her friends.

“I say we should still visit your dad. Don’t you think a little family bonding is a good thing?”

The man beside you clicked his tongue.

“This delusion that you’re going to sleep with my dad is commendable, Toga, but if you ever showed up on his doorstep he’d literally rip you in two.”

The girl laughed again, the messy strands of her blonde space-buns bobbing up and down.

“Hopefully, with his dic—”

You desperately tried to drown out their conversation. You knew your cheeks were red. You wanted to bury your face in your book, but it might be too obvious that you were avoiding them.

The only thing you could hope for was that their stop was somewhere early on in your journey. They didn’t seem to have lots of luggage so you couldn’t imagine they were travelling far.

You kept your head down, trying to focus your attention on your book. But try as you did, with the three friends talking loudly around you about robbery, sex and the ever increasing allusion to violence, it was hard to hear anything over the horrible pounding of your heart inside your ears.

When the train set off, you prayed it found the next stop quickly. The girl, Toga, only seemed to get louder and giddier with excitement, and both times you glanced at her, you found her staring directly at you with a wicked grin. It was unnerving, to say the least.

You finally had a moment to breathe when the ticket warden came through the carriage. Your three new companions shrank in their seats when they saw her coming. Toga and the flaky-skinned man disappeared from view, then the one beside you shut his eyes and stretched out his long legs, very much pushing his knee into what little personal leg room you had left, then had the audacity to pretend to be asleep.

If he didn’t unnerve you so much, you might very well have laughed at the cheek of him.

When the ticket warden reached your cluster of seats, she checked the tail-guy’s first, and you spotted with the utmost jealousy that the only occupants of his two-seater space were he and his tail.

The warden cleared her throat to grab your attention.

“Tickets, please.” She said, eyeing you and your unwelcomed travel buddy suspiciously, like she thought you were actually travelling together. To nip that thought in the bud, you pulled out your ticket and smiled with the friendliest and most reassuring smile you could muster.

“Here you go.” You said, doing everything you could to sound cheerful and polite. What you didn’t notice was how the man opened one eye to look at you after he heard you calling out like an innocent little bird.

He was wondered how easy it might be to break your wings.

Oblivious to his predator-like stare, you continued to smile as the warden handed your ticket back, now with a notably softer expression. She nudged her head towards your travel buddy, who had shut his eyes to complete his sleeping façade, and mouthed: he with you?

You shook your head vigorously, hoping to get across just how horrified by that idea you were, so the woman nodded then kicked him in the shoe. You gulped, spotting a strained vein appear on his neck as he clenched his jaw from the assault, before pretending to wake from a peaceful sleep.

“Mm?” He asked in a deep, groggy voice.

“Ticket.” The woman demanded, and you could tell she dealt with his kind at least twice a week. He wasn’t fooling anyone.

“Single to Ninohe.” He said, sitting up properly, blinking away the fakest of sleeps. The woman put a hand on her hip as you let the information stab you in the gut. Ninohe was further down the line than where you were headed. It seemed you were stuck with him for the long haul.

“You were meant to buy the ticket at the station. How’d you get past the guard?”

Unfazed by the warden’s glare, the man shrugged and reached into his pocket for his wallet.

“We were running late. Would have missed the train if we’d stopped to get tickets.”

“I’m gonna need your full name and address. Travelling without a ticket gets you a fine. And you need to pay for a ticket immediately or I’m kicking you off at the next stop.”

You sucked in your breath, watching how his jaw tensed up as the vein stood more prominently on his neck.

“Fine.” He said in a way that definitely didn’t sound fine, but pulled out his credit card none-the-less. “Touya Todoroki.”

As he told the warden his address, he handed over his credit card to pay for the ticket, telling the warden in an almost-merry voice that she could send the fine to his father, and while she was at it, those of his friends. You heard Toga erupt into fits of giggles before she announced loudly and proudly that her name was Himiko Toga, followed by a lazy announcement from the white haired male that his name was Tomura Shigaraki.

An uncomfortable tingle ran up the length of your spine as soon as the warden’s attention left you. You tried to focus on your book but the harder you tried, the heavier the air around you became. In the end you had to admit defeat. You met Touya’s gaze. When he saw that he had your attention, his stapled lips grew into a grin.

“Well now, you’re a pretty little bird. What’s your name?”

He didn’t sound charming, rather downright lecherous, but you didn’t think he cared when he knew he had you trapped against the window. You pursed your lips together and looked out at the fly-by landscape, hoping he would take the hint.

You lamented your decision to doll yourself up today – the skirt was a definite mistake – but in your defence, you hadn’t expected to be hit on by a random creep on you journey to see some friends.

The tingle in your spine turned into a downright jolt of fear when you felt the man’s hand fall onto your leg. You sat bolt upright and looked at him in pure disbelief.

“Please, don’t do that.” You said in what was meant to be a stern voice, but in the face of such an out-of-the-blue and personal-space invading move, it rather sounded more like a squeak. His grin widened. He asked again,

“What’s your name, little bird?”

In the hopes it would at least convince him to free your leg, you told him your name.

He let go of your leg.

“And where are you headed?”

Telling him your name was one thing. Telling him where you were going was another. You scooted yourself as far into the window as you possibly could, not wanting him to put his hands on you again, but kept your mouth shut. You opened your book and did all you could to engross yourself in the pages.

He made a move towards you but his actions were broken by the sound of his friend, Toga, as she popped up from the seat in front.

“Dabi, Dabi, Dabi,” she said with a teasing grin. “Your dad’s gonna be so fucking pissed. I can’t wait. Let’s get in more trouble, get more fines, and send them all to him.”

“So loud…” grumbled Shigaraki, who seemed content to face forwards for now.

You didn’t want to meet Toga’s gaze. She was intimidating, much more so than Touya… Dabi… whatever his name was. But at least for now, she seemed more focused on her companions.

Until.

“Oh, are we making new friends?” She said, hushing her voice with the widest grin yet. She glanced between you and Dabi, who had yet to take his eyes off you. “Dabi, hun. You’re staring.”

“Me and my little birdie are getting to know each other. Play with Shigaraki for a while.”

Despite the obvious threat in Toga’s direction, she ignored Dabi and smiled hellishly at you.

“I love your outfit. Where did you get your skirt?”

When it was a choice between answering where you were headed or where you got your skirt, you knew who you would much rather have an awkward conversation with.

“Oh, uhmm… I got it a while ago. I’m sorry. I don’t remember. But I like your top.”

You couldn’t see much of her top because of how she was draped across the seat backs, but you hoped flattery would, if the moment came to it, put her on your side against Dabi, whose hand snaked closer to you.

Toga giggled gleefully.

“Oh, this old thing?” She brushed her hands over the shoulders like she was dusting it for lint. “Thank you. You can’t believe how many times I had to bounce the girl’s head off the pavement to make her hand it over. The blood didn’t come out for weeks.”

Your face went pale. You couldn’t tell if she was joking, but honestly weren’t sure you wanted to know the truth for certain.

“You’re scaring her.” Dabi warned, daring Toga to say one more word. “Eyes front.”

She looked at you, looked at Dabi then looked at you once more before rolling her eyes.

“Fine, fine. Nasty… Hey, Shigi. Let me play that game on your phone.”

She disappeared back into her seat. You weren’t totally sure you were happy she was gone. Her presence had at least put Dabi’s advances on pause. Now she was missing, you could feel him staring at you, and you had never regretted your skimpy clothing choices more. Your hands shook as you held onto your book, and you wondered how much of your journey was left. Time seemed to go much slower today, never more so than while Dabi kept his eyes trained on you.

He had you trapped.

Brushing the backs of his fingers over the top of your thigh, he smiled as you flinched from the contact.

“Are you meeting anyone nice when you get off the train?” He asked, the deep hum of his voice rattling through you as he traced your thigh with the back of his hand. He was getting closer and closer, his hand finding the hem of your skirt on today of all days when you had skipped out on a pair of tights.

“M-my friends.” You squeaked. “I-I’m meeting my friends. A big group of them. We’re having a big reunion so there’s a lot of us going and they said they’d pick me up from the station.”

“Oh?” There was a note of amusement in his voice. You were sure he could hear through your lie. You actually were having a reunion, and a lot of you were meeting up, but you were getting a taxi from the station to meet them at the Airbnb. No one was coming to get you. Even if you wanted them to come meet you, you were staying in a luxury cottage in the middle of nowhere and it was at least a half hour drive to the station. What was more, by now everyone would almost definitely have started drinking and it wouldn’t be safe for anyone to drive.

You were on your own.

“Don’t look so frightened, little bird.” Dabi murmured, leaning close enough for you to catch the hint of leathery musk in his cologne. “I won’t hurt you.”

As long as you do what I say, the warning rang in your head. He gripped your thigh more firmly, snaking his fingers under your clothes.

You shot up like a bolt of lightning, out of your seat, dropping your book in the process. You snatched up your handbag then made a move to get past Dabi, into the aisle. He didn’t budge and he certainly didn’t look amused by your defiance. You saw that same vein appear on the side of his neck as he clenched his jaw, his glare asking whether you understood the consequences of your actions should you carry on. Very loudly and very sternly, you said,

“Excuse me. I need to use the restroom.”

This caught the attention of many other passengers. Good. Even though your face was red and your eyes felt glossy with a mix of shame, embarrassment and fear, grabbing everyone’s attention was just enough of a threat to make Dabi move. He kicked his legs out to the side, into the aisle, giving you just enough room to escape. It didn’t stop him from trailing a finger up your thigh as you moved past him.

Oh God, you felt sick. You felt wronged. You couldn’t sit next to him for another second. Under the guise of heading to the bathroom, you inspected the rest of the carriage for somewhere else to perch. You considered your precious book abandoned, but it was a small price to pay to avoid Dabi’s groping hands.

Unfortunately, though, whether a seat or simply somewhere else to stand, there was a spot for neither when the train was so densely packed with people.

Unsure of what else to do, you made it to the bathroom and went inside, needing it for no other reason than a place to think. At least while you were locked inside the cubical, you didn’t have to worry about sneakily texting your friends to tell them you were turning on your bSafe tracker. They might not be able to come get you, but at least you would feel safer knowing they would get your location if something bad happened – Lord forbidding.

You took a moment to splash water on your face, humming a tune to calm yourself down, then decided to have one last look along the carriage for somewhere else to sit. You felt more confident.

But when you opened the door to get back into the aisle, you immediately saw Toga and paled at her smile.

“Hi, Girlfriend. I wondered where you’d got to. Wait for me outside and we can walk back together, kay?”

She had you blocked in. It was all you could do to agree in case she pushed you back into the cubical and did something to make sure you understood her. Honestly, you weren’t sure if you were blowing this out of proportion in your head, but you couldn’t help but notice speckles of pink on the collar of Toga’s top, like a red stain that just wouldn’t wash out.

“O-okay. I’ll wait.”

Toga grinned and stepped aside, letting you out.

“Good girl.”

She skipped past you then waved before shutting herself in the cubical.

You weren’t waiting. You reasoned, if you couldn’t find somewhere else to sit, surely going straight back to where she could harass you anyway wouldn’t upset her. Or so you hoped.

Clutching your handbag to your side, with a nervous shake in your step you made your way back through the carriage, looking for a spare seat. But for the fact you had to weave past so many people standing, the thought of a free chair was nothing short of a miracle.

All too soon you saw the black spikes of Dabi’s hair and the way his long leg jutted out into the aisle, blocking people’s way past him. His gaze locked on to you as soon as you were close enough, and just from the way he sneered, you could tell he wasn’t happy that you’d tried to run off. You felt yourself start to shake. You clutched your handbag, feeling a tight knot in your stomach that made you want to throw up.

Two hours or so, that’s all you had to endure. You could do it. You had to.

You stopped in front of Dabi, hearing your heartbeat ringing in your ears.

“E-excuse me.” You said, looking at your feet out of fear. “Pl-please could you move into the window seat?”

When Dabi didn’t reply, you had to look at him but instantly wished you hadn’t. He was smiling up at you, but it was nothing short of demonic, like you had fought against the devil himself and now it was time for your punishment.

“Aren’t you being selfish, little bird? Asking for the aisle seat when my legs are so much longer?”

You caught the threat.

“N-never mind. That’s okay. I’ll stand in the aisle. That’s okay. Please don’t worry. I’ll stay here.”

He sneered, talking to you like you were already his property.

“That’s rather selfish of you, little bird. Blocking everyone’s path.”

Before you could stop him, Dabi gripped your hand and yanked you in beside him -- only something wrapped around your middle, pulling you out before he could trap you.

“Please,” came a kind but rather desperate voice behind you, “Take my seat.”

Dabi’s jaw clenched, a threatening blaze flickering into his eyes.

The thing around your middle jerked you further back, away from Dabi, like it knew you were still in danger, until you bumped into someone standing in the aisle – someone who had not been there seconds ago.

“Please, I insist,” they said, holding you by the shoulders to steady you, then moved aside to let you into their seat across the aisle. To your surprise, it was the tail-guy, his tail wrapped tightly around your middle to pull you to safety.

“It’ll be okay.” He murmured close to your ear, blocking Dabi from getting into the aisle with his whole body. “I won’t let him bother you.”

Not that you didn’t believe him, as his tail was a set of muscles all in itself, but when you sat down, you shuffled across the seats and as far against the window as you could go, just in case Dabi was the type to start fights on busy trains.

“Oi, brat,” you heard Dabi say, and you were sure if you could see his face you would have whimpered, but the threat in his voice did nothing to faze the tail-guy, who looked much more concerned with your state of wellbeing. He ignored Dabi completely, jamming himself half way into the seat beside you with an ironclad stance that not only blocked Dabi from seeing you, but could hold back anyone who tried to get close to you.

“Are you okay?”

You felt sick and stressed, but compared to what you had just been faced with, you were touched by his concern and nodded so that you didn’t trouble him further.

Thankfully he didn’t say anything more, but held himself in place for your benefit, which gave you a chance to calm down. You pressed your hand to your heart and breathed, subconsciously flattening down your skirt as you replayed the events of your journey so far. You were never, never wearing a cute outfit again if you had to take a train—or bus—or plane—anything. You didn’t normally, and this was proof never to do it again.

It took you a while, but eventually you calmed down, slumping in your seat.

What a way to start your time off, you thought. Only you could start it off with something so dramatic.

Trying not to be rude, but rather wanting to take a proper look at your rescuer, you stole a glance at the tailed-guy while he stood his ground, looking along the carriage. He seemed older than you, not by much, and gave off the relaxed vibe of any typical beanie-wearing, skinny-jean wearing hipster. He looked quiet, like someone at peace with his own company. You appreciated the calming effect he had on you when quite likely, there was a screw-loose sociopath glaring daggers into him on his other side.

You wanted to thank him, but felt silly and embarrassed if he didn’t know the extent of the ordeal he had rescued you from. You would thank him, but maybe once it was your stop.

That was…

…unless he got off first.

Sneaking in amongst the calm, a seed of worry formed in the pit of your stomach. That was right. There was no guarantee this Good Samaritan needed to stay on the train for as long as you. You wondered what the chances were of Dabi and Toga leaving you alone if he alighted before you. The very least you could pray for was that he stayed on the train past the first stop, so maybe Dabi had a chance to either calm down or set his sights on someone else.

You pulled out your phone and messaged your friends’ group chat:

‘LOL having the train journey from hell. Get a stiff drink ready for me if I’m not abducted first x x x’

Perhaps now wasn’t the right time for humour, but it was all you could do to calm your nerves at the thought of being hunted around the train by two creeps and their clearly just along for the ride friend.

You were so caught up in a web of worry that you didn’t notice the psychotic blonde skipping her way down the busy carriage, not caring who she shoved out of her way to get back to her seat. You might not have noticed her at all, except your guardian swished his tail up to block her view as she got closer, drawing your attention to the top of her head before she disappeared into her seat.

“Where’s she gone?” You heard Toga ask. There was clear accusation in her voice, like you had no right to be anywhere else but under her torment. Hopefully though, that was the end of it. If they weren’t ready to harass the tail-guy in order to get to you, it was likely they would lose interest and move on. They didn’t know which stop you were getting off at. If tailman left before you did, you could follow him down the train, pretend it was your stop then find another place to perch, out of sight.

At least you could close the lid on this chapter of your trip.

Toga’s sudden and shrill laugh made your skin crawl, but that still did not prepare you for what she said afterwards.

“Dabi’s gonna get you, Dabi’s gonna get you, Dabi’s gonna—”

It was so sinister that you spluttered and choked. You were probably naïve to think she wasn’t aiming the chant towards you, so you clutched your hands to your chest and sank in your chair, hoping with everything you had that the tail-guy would stay beside you for the rest of your journey.

You dared to look at him again, trying to guess his chances should the trio actually try to forcefully move him at any point, and it was then, while Toga continued to chant, that you caught him giving you a sideways glance, clearly uneased by the hostility pouring in from his far side. His jaw was set tight and his brows were drawn inward, then when he caught you looking back at him he opened his mouth to talk. But then, he shut it. You could see an internal struggle as he debated what to do.

The guilt that hit you was uncomfortable, to say the least. You couldn’t let this carry on; leaving a total stranger to defend you. You had put him in a difficult position and it was wrong to have him fight your battle. If he was staying on the train past your stop, you couldn’t leave him stood up there until you alighted. It was selfish and rude of you to use him as nothing more than a wall. You didn’t even know his name.

“Excuse m—” you began, but didn’t finish your sentence when the guy looked at you one more time before he slipped down into the seat beside you, leaving his tail up to keep the two of you hidden from view.

“Sorry,” he said, passing you a gentle, reassuring smile. “I wasn’t going to get involved, but I don’t like what’s happening.”

With perfect timing, Toga chimed in with a maniacal ‘don’t think you’re safe behind that tail~’

“My name’s Ojiro.” He said a little louder, hoping to cut over any more outbursts from the trio. “Sorry. You don’t know me. I know this is weird. But please stay sat with me for as long as you want. Please don’t let them intimidate you. I know I don’t look it, but I really won’t let them do anything to you.”

After his declaration, he let out a breath, like he had rerouted all of his energy into saying something so embarrassing but heartfelt, and now that it was over he could function like a normal human and breathe again.

You had a lot of questions. He was saying everything you wanted to hear, and for someone you had only just met, he seemed unusually committed to your protection, but there was just something in his eyes that put you at ease.

Unlike the ruffian trio who gave off nothing but the most sinister and repugnant of auras, it was hard to find a trace of malice in Ojiro’s expression. His entire presence, now that it was focused towards you, felt like one of the white knights of old, sworn by honour codes, chivalry and compassion. It felt almost criminal for him to be in a beanie and hoodie instead of paladin robes.

Never the less. You had to relieve this modern day knight of his duties before you took up too much of his time or he got himself in trouble.

“Thank you,” you said softly, feeling your heart wobbling giddily when he smiled in response, “But please don’t worry about me. As soon as the train quietens down, I’ll swap into a different seat somewhere. I’ll leave you in peace.”

You landed him with your most convincing ‘I’m okay’ smile but if anything, your words caused him to frown.

“It’s no trouble, honestly.” He lowered his voice and leaned in towards you. Realising he did not want to be overheard, you leaned in closer so he could say, “I saw what was going on before. I heard what was going on. Please. You can forget I’m next to you. But please don’t move seats.”

He seemed hesitant to tell you something, like perhaps he had overheard something while you were in the bathroom, but you were happy to respect the pleading in his voice without the whole story. You nodded, making a show of making yourself more comfortable.

“Okay, umm…”

“Ojiro.” He prompted again, smiling now that you were allowing him to keep an eye on you.

“Ojiro. Okay. Ojiro, glad to meet you, my gallant travel buddy.”

You held out your hand, genuinely happy to have stumbled onto such a knight in a floppy beanie hat. Though you couldn’t say your nerves were gone entirely, you faked a grin to show Ojiro that he had no need to worry about you.

These next two hours together seemed like they were going to be a breeze.

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[PART 2] Coming soon.

[WRITING MASTERLIST]

#Ojiro #Mashirao #x reader #Happy Birthday Ojiro #dabi #toga himiko #Shigaraki #the trouble with trains #chapter 1 #multi chapter #imagines #MTCfics

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