The Silencer

by aurorazure

Summary:

Shinso is attacked late one night in his apartment by a villain named The Silencer. Unable to use his quirk and still inexperienced as a fighter, he has to desperately search for a way to stay alive.

Notes:

Trying my hand at writing some action scenes. Let me know what you think! Have fun and good luuuuuuck ;)

Chapter 1

At first, he thought he was hallucinating.

It was well past 3 A.M. and Shinso still couldn’t sleep. He sat on the edge of his bed with his head in his hands. Dim gray light filtered in through the bedroom window, casting flickering, shifting shadows across the walls. If he hadn’t been used to it, he might have thought it was eerie. But eeriness came with the apartment, apparently. He’d grown accustomed to the creaking floorboards, the loud pipes, and the odd neighbors. He had learned quite fast where not to step and who not to cross. Overall, it wasn’t the worst place to live — he was just grateful that he could afford a roof over his head. Still, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d gotten a decent night of sleep.

Shinso pushed himself to his feet – his body still ached from training with Aizawa – and slowly walked out of his bedroom. Apart from his bedroom and the tiny bathroom, there was only one other cramped room in the apartment. It was just big enough to hold the bare essentials of a kitchen, a makeshift table that also served as a desk, a couple lamps which were both broken, and an old couch that he’d gotten from a neighbor after they passed away. He went to the kitchen, grabbed one of the glasses lying on the counter, and turned on the sink.

The water spurted out silently.

He blinked, then turned the faucet off and back on again. Still silent. He watched as the uneven stream of water fell into the metal sink without a sound.

“What the—” He stopped again, unable to hear his own voice.

Shit, am I that tired?

He held the glass up to his right ear and tapped on it – nothing. He snapped his fingers next to his left ear – also nothing. He frowned, too exhausted to be anything more than confused.

It’s official. I’m losing it. Shinso Hitoshi loses his mind at age 16. Was bound to happen eventually. Tragic.

He closed his eyes and let out a long, silent sigh.

“Hello, Hitoshi.”

The raspy voice echoed in the silence; every muscle in his body tensed. Shinso spun around to see a man standing just barely an arm’s length away. He wore ragged and torn jeans with a thick leather jacket and a hood covering most of his face. He was tall and muscular — nearly twice Shinso’s size.

A long blade rested lightly in his hand, glinting in the flickering light from the street.

“Stay back!” Shinso yelled silently. He stumbled backward into the corner of the kitchen, glancing back and forth in front of him, trying to figure out an exit strategy. He could feel his heartrate spiking and the adrenaline burning through his veins.

The man just laughed… But a laugh was enough of a response. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Aizawa’s self-defense lessons surfaced. He took a deep breath, grit his teeth, and stared the villain in the eyes.

“Get the fuck out.”

“Ohhh… how cute.” The villain smiled, baring his darkened teeth. “You actually thought your quirk would work on me, didn’t you? That’s adorable.”

A sickening sense of dread flooded his body. Before Shinso could act, the man lunged forward, knife flying through the air toward his throat. Without even thinking, Shinso shifted his body and managed to dodge the knife. It missed him by barely a centimeter. In the same movement, he reached out and grabbed the glass he had been about to use and smashed it full force against the side of the man’s head.

“You piece of—”

The villain pulled back just enough to give Shinso an opening to run. He tucked his chin to his neck and shot under the man’s arm. He felt the man move to catch him — fingers suddenly latched onto his forearm, yanking him around in a circle and then forcing him back against the sharp edge of the counter so that he was facing the man again. The blow jarred his whole body and the shards of glass on the floor cut into his feet.

A small trickle of blood dripped down the side of the villain’s face, outlining the edge of his crooked grin. He grabbed a fistful of Shinso’s shirt, pulling him close, and swept the knife toward his jugular.

Shinso’s eyes widened as he leaned back and twisted his head away as much as he could. A silent gasp escaped him as he felt the blade razing into the skin of his throat just enough to draw blood. A hot flush of pain and dread swelled up in him but he didn’t have enough time to think. The villain had overshot, creating a small opening. He grabbed the man’s wrist with one hand and twisted the man’s thumb with his other until the knife dropped to the floor. Simultaneously, he kicked his knee upward into the man’s crotch, then kicked the knife off under the couch. As the man yelled curses at him, he used the opportunity to propel himself forward and slam his shoulder into the man’s torso — the blow caused an aching pain to throb through his body, but it knocked the villain backward two steps.

Shinso launched forward, heart pounding furiously in his chest as he sprinted through his living area, knocking chairs down as he passed them, and fled to his bedroom.

Can’t fight. Outmatched. Need help… Phone!

He could hear the man yelling behind him. He slammed the door to his room shut, knowing full well that it wouldn’t stop the man. But it might slow him down… just enough.

He dove over his bed toward his nightstand. The door opened. He grabbed his phone and the metal lamp. Ragged, wet breathing filled the air. A hand grabbed the back of his shirt. He spun around, shirt tearing, and swept the metal lamp toward the villain’s face.

The villain laughed and dodged easily. “Is this all UA teaches you? I thought you’d at least be a challenge!”

There was no time to be insulted. Shinso let the momentum of his swing continue and redirected the lamp toward the bedroom window. The glass cracked and shattered soundlessly under the force.

Without a moment’s hesitation, he tore himself free and jumped out the window. It was only a meter-long drop to the cold concrete. Shattered glass cut deeply into his feet and hands as he landed awkwardly. The impact jarred him to the bones, but he gritted his teeth and launched into a sprint.

He could hear laughter behind him as he ran.

Have to get help, He thought as he ran. He glanced down at his phone which he was still gripping tightly. Have to… who? The sound barrier…. Is it just here? Would a phone even pick up audio? Can’t get this wrong… can’t get this wrong… can’t get killed.

Aizawa.

— He couldn’t hear footsteps, but the sharp, raspy breathing was getting closer —

He resisted the urge to look behind him and sprinted faster instead.

Just buy time. Stay alive.

With shaky hands, he managed to unlock his phone. He pulled up his contacts and tapped furiously at the top pinned contact and hit ‘call’.

Come on, come on, come on.

He looked up to see where he was going — he was nearing the edge of his street. If he could get onto the main road, there might be a chance that some late-night driver or hero on patrol would see. The odds weren’t good though. Heroes rarely patrolled this part of the district. He shot a glance down at his phone again.

The call had gone though. Aizawa had answered. A burst of hope rushed through him as he ran.

“Aizawa!!” He yelled without being able to hear his voice. “Aizawa, I need help. If you can hear this—”

Suddenly, an arm wrapped around his stomach and another around his neck, wrenching him to the side.

“No!! Fuck—!!” The phone flew out of his hand as he lost control.

The man yanked him off balance as he was running and threw him against the ground. Sharp, cracking pain splintered through his ribs and his wrist. He cried out soundlessly as his whole side scraped against the rough ground. His head slammed against the brick wall of a building.

“Help…” He tried yelling again, but the pain in his chest cut him short. He could feel his voice break and choke. “Aizawa…”

Desperate and unwilling to give in, he planted his hands against the ground and started to push himself up. No sooner had he done that, when the heel of a boot smashed down against his back, stunning him and knocking the air out of his lungs. His chin hit the concrete ground and the rough surface scraped his body more. Hands grabbed his shoulders, pulling him up.

“Help…”

“Oh, please,” the villain said as he dragged him backward toward a side street. “They can’t hear you either.” He slammed Shinso into the corner between a dumpster and the brick wall. “Seems your luck has run out.”

Shinso could feel himself fading. His vision was blurring. Breathing was becoming more and more difficult. Sharp pain stabbed his chest every time he inhaled. His whole body burned with adrenaline, but adrenaline could only do so much.

“How should I kill you, hm?” The man hummed into his ear. “Any preferences?”

Shinso glanced to the left and then to the right, desperately look for some sort of opening or escape.

“Ahh,” The villain looked to the left and broke into a grin. “Good idea, Hitoshi!”

He struggled weakly — painfully — as the man started to pull him to the left. “No! No… no, no, no…”

“Oh please, enough with the fighting. Don’t you want your death to be pleasant? Just relax now.”

Never. Never, never, never….

He twisted and tried to bite the man’s hand. He ended up getting punched in the jaw.

“Fine,” the man said almost gleefully with a shrug. “Have it your way.”

The moment Shinso felt the man’s hand grab a fistful of his hair, he knew he was done for.

“This is for that little stunt you pulled earlier,” he said with a smile breaking across his face.

“No—wait!”

Next thing he knew, his head collided against the metal corner of the dumpster. White-hot pain turned to thick, black darkness, and he felt his body crumple to the ground.

~

Aizawa was sitting at his desk, head down, half asleep, surrounded by a pile of student essays he had been trying to finish grading. He was still wearing his hero uniform from his night patrol shift, and his capture weapon hung loosely around his neck.

His phone suddenly started blaring out an emergency ring tone. He bolted upward in an instant and looked at the number — Shinso.

He had only begun mentoring Shinso about a month prior. On the first day, he had given the teenager his emergency contact number.

…

“Memorize it,” he had said. “Save it in your phone. Emergencies only. Don’t call me if you get injured and need a ride to the hospital. I’m not your personal ambulance, got it?” He had started to move toward the training gym exit. “Oh, and don’t call me for homework help.”

“Uh… sure… I guess?” Shinso mumbled while rubbing the back of his neck.

“I trust your judgment,” he had said, clapping him on the shoulder as he walked out the door. “Don’t make me regret it.”

…

Aizawa answered the call immediately. He was already standing and moving toward the door.

“Shinso? What’s wrong?”

Silence.

“Shinso?” He said again, listening more carefully. “If you’re there, I can’t hear you.”

Still silence.

Several thoughts flashed through his mind in an instant.

Given the time of night, the probability he called by accident is low… he knows better than to prank call. Assuming it wasn’t an accident, why can’t I hear him? Or anything, for that matter?

His phone could be damaged… Or he is in a situation where he can’t speak (thus, why he called me and not Emergency Services, perhaps?). But then why didn’t he text? Is he rushing? Injured?

If it’s not that… Is it a quirk? A villain… someone who can block audio signals? No… someone who can block sound itself?

The Silencer.

Images of the case files and news articles flashed through his mind. Serial killer. Seven kills spread over the last two years. Only ever targeted individuals with voice-related quirks. Methods of killing always related in some way to the victim’s neck… strangulation, asphyxiation, a clean cut through the jugular, etc. Witnesses in the surrounding area reported a severe dampening of all sound within a quarter kilometer of the crime scene. No one had ever seen him. His last kill had been five months prior in a different prefecture.

The call disconnected.

Fuck.

He was already sprinting out the door to his car. Shinso’s apartment was located in the same district where Aizawa lived. At this time of night, he could make it there in under five minutes, assuming he ran a few lights.

In the back of his head, he knew he might already be too late.

As he got into his car, he also put in his earpiece and connected to the local hero network.

“This is Eraserhead, requesting immediate support.” He started the engine, shifted gears, and slammed on the gas. “Suspected villain activity in northeast district, Musutafu.” He gave Shinso’s apartment address. “Track my location, I’m en route.”

“Copy, sending nearby on-call heroes now,” came the quick response of the emergency dispatcher. “All available back-up approximately three minutes away.”

“Not fast enough.” He took a sharp left turn, pushing the car even faster as he sped along the empty streets. “Connect my feed to theirs.”

“Connecting you now…” She said calmly.

A second later, the comm came to life again.

“Mountain Lady, on my way! Should be there in five!”

Aizawa bit back more swearing as he took another sharp turn.

“Kamui Woods, en route, three minutes ETA. Any details, Eraserhead?”

“Suspect is The Silencer.” He said shortly. “If my audio cuts out, that’s confirmation. Establish a perimeter surrounding location. No one in or out until I give the all-clear.”

“Yes sir!”

“Send an ambulance.” He turned onto the main road near Shinso’s apartment. “Could need immediate onsite healing. If you see—”

Suddenly, deafening silence filled the air. His voice, the engine, the comm… everything completely dropped off.

And for a brief moment, a little bit of impulsive hope flared alive in Aizawa’s chest.

He hasn’t lost. There may still be time.

Fifteen seconds later and he was sprinting away from his car toward Shinso’s apartment. He’d driven him home after several of their training sessions, so he knew the apartment was on the first floor and facing the street. Two windows were broken — one to the living room, the other to the bedroom. Glass covered the concrete sidewalk by the broken bedroom window and a metal lamp lay to the side.

There was a trail of bloody footprints leading away from the apartment.

He was running again. As he ran, he scanned the streets with his goggles for any heat signatures or signs of Shinso. The trail stopped just before the intersection. From the corner of his eye, he glimpsed a broken phone lying in the gutter. He looked around, jogging into the nearby side street. A sickening dread welled up in his stomach when he saw a small pool of blood covering the bricks near a dumpster. Splotches of blood — no longer footprints — trailed further down the dim street.

Severe injury… likely head injury. Unconscious or incapacitated. He’s being dragged somewhere…. Where?

He started carefully following the trail, ready to jump into a fight at any moment.

First time, he cut the victim’s neck, next was strangulation, then suffocation, snapped neck, crushed lungs… different method each time, always related somehow to breathing or the neck…

He looked up from the trail, suddenly realizing where the side street led to.

The river.

He stopped following the trail and rushed full speed ahead. Every thought in his head fell away as he concentrated on the singular goal.

Before he knew it, he was jumping the metal fence that blocked off the river and was sliding down the steep riverbank to the murky water down below. It was darker by the river — barely any light from the streets made it there. Just a thin silver sheen glinted across the surface of the river. The water was rough, large boulders jutted out, making it difficult terrain to navigate.

He looked up and down the river for any signs.

There was movement.

Maybe sixty meters away, the dark shape of a man loomed over something in the river — pinning it down in the cold water.

A sense of fury filled Aizawa to his core and he launched forward with no hesitation. He chose not to activate his quirk… not yet. Silence may have been the villain’s weapon of choice, but it was also his weakness. He would never know what hit him.

Aizawa was ten meters away when he grabbed his capture weapon and prepared himself. Eight, when he saw Shinso’s arms, which had been weakly grasping at the man from under the surface of the river, fall limply into the water. Five, when he hurled his capture weapon forward and yanked the villain backward so hard that the impact against a nearby stone knocked the air out of his lungs.

And zero, when he punched him full force in the face and knocked him unconscious.

The silence broke.

…and was replaced by the quiet sound of placid water with no movement stirring beneath it.

Without even waiting a breath, Aizawa turned from the villain and launched into the river until he was waist deep and plunging his arms into the cold water, trying to find something… anything. After what seemed like an eternity, his hand brushed up against fabric and he lunged forward, finally grabbing ahold of the boy’s body.

Sirens blared in the distance as Aizawa pulled Shinso’s body to shore. He could hear police calling orders on the nearby streets as he started performing CPR. His own heart pounded in his ears as he checked Shinso again for a pulse. And finally, everything else seemed to fade away as he heard the first sounds of Shinso coughing and sputtering back to life.

“That’s it, Shinso,” he said as he moved Shinso into a recovery position and checked his weak pulse again. “You’re going to be okay.”

Floodlights suddenly illuminated the riverside as the other heroes and police finally showed up. In the pale light, he could see the deep gash on the side of Shinso’s head and the trickle of blood mixing with the river water in his hair and along his neck. He could see the thin cut on Shinso’s throat, the gashes in his clothing, the road burn along his body, the deep bruising on his wrist… the pale, almost lifeless expression on his face.

“Just hang in there,” Aizawa said as he pressed a cloth against the wound on Shinso’s head; EMTs were running toward them. “I’m going to stay right here with you, okay? You’re going to be fine.”

There was no sign of a response. Shinso’s pulse was growing weaker again when Aizawa checked. His breathing was becoming shallow and strained.

“Hurry up!” Aizawa turned and yelled to the EMTs. “He needs immediate healing!” He turned back to Shinso, still pressing the bandage against his head.

“Stay with me, kid. Stay with me…”

Chapter 2

An alarm was going off beside the bed, but it was way too early to get up.

Shinso groaned and tried to slap away whatever the sound was – he did not succeed. After a couple of seconds, he gave up and turned over, covering his ear with his arm. Something tugged at his wrist, but he didn’t pay attention to it either. The beeping was obnoxious. The one time he actually slept decently, some stupid alarm—

“Shinso?”

—and now some stupid person was also bothering him. He rolled over onto his stomach and buried his face in the pillow.

“Is everything okay in here?” There was another distant voice.

“He moved and the heart monitor clip must have fallen off of his finger…” Came the reply. The voice sounded familiar.

“Oh,” someone laughed quietly. “Don’t worry, happens all the time.”

A moment later, Shinso could feel someone hovering nearby and trying to pick up his hand. He groaned and pulled back. The beeping continued, which only made him groan more and rub at his ears.

“Make it stoooop,” he slurred quietly. His voice felt strained, and his throat stung when he spoke. He decided not to do that again.

“Sweetheart,” the female voice said — someone tapped gently on his shoulder. “I have to put this on your finger again to make it stop.”

He groaned again but didn’t pull away when she took his hand and placed the clip on his finger again. The beeping stopped and the woman eventually went away after trying to talk to him again. He lay silently for a minute, almost going back to sleep, before he slowly started to realize what was going on.

People… ah fuck.

He slowly rolled over and finally squinted his eyes open.

He was lying on a white bed, slightly propped up, with a thin white blanket over his legs. There was a heart monitor clip with wires attached to his finger, and an IV line in his right wrist. Beside the bed were several screens and monitors, and nearby were a few chairs…

…And Aizawa.

Shinso blinked a few times and slowly — painfully — tried to push himself up a little. He didn’t get very far and ended up lying on his side again, slightly more angled toward the chairs. Aizawa looked up at him and set aside whatever papers he had been reading.

“Hey kid,” he said in a soft voice.

Shinso groaned in his general direction.  

“Are you really awake this time?”

He closed his eyes and sighed again.

There was a low chuckle. “Take your time. There’s no rush.”

Shinso opened one eye again. Aizawa was already carefully flipping through a handful of papers, seemingly ignoring Shinso’s presence. It gave Shinso time to slowly prop himself up again and to get his bearings properly.

“How, uh…” He swallowed and cleared his throat, whispering in a raspy, strained voice. “How long have you… been here?”

“I’ve had to come and go a few times. You’ve been out for about fourteen hours.”

“Wh—” His muscles tensed in shock at the knowledge, but then he dropped his head back onto the pillow and let out a rough laugh. “Well, shit. I guess that’s what it takes to get a decent night sleep…

At that, Aizawa glanced up at him again, eyes narrowing. He shook his head but didn’t comment on that. “You had to go through several rounds of healing. That’s at least part of why you were unconscious for so long.”

“Mm.”

“Do you remember what happened?”

Shinso fell silent for a moment. Blurry memories were returning to him in pieces. He sighed.

“Yeah. I think mostly.” It was quiet for a moment before he sighed again. “I guess you could hear me. Sorry to scream at you like that… it’s embarrassing…”

“I couldn’t, actually.”

“What?”

“I couldn’t hear you. I put the pieces together. I knew you wouldn’t call without a reason.”

Shinso stared openly at his mentor for several seconds before collapsing back in bed and staring at the ceiling.

“Well fuck.”

There was another quiet chuckle from Aizawa.

“How the hell am I still alive?” He whispered. “I can’t believe how lucky… I should… I should be dead right now. I didn’t do anything right…”

“That’s not true.” Aizawa interrupted. “Most fights are over in under a minute, but you held out against a known murderer for over ten minutes. You were outsized, outmatched, couldn’t use your quirk, couldn’t communicate with anyone, and you’ve barely had any training, but you still managed to survive. You kept your cool, thought logically, and that’s what saved your life. It wasn’t luck.”

Shinso stared at Aizawa before shaking his head and going silent again.

“Believe what you want,” Aizawa said curtly. “But in my opinion, you handled the situation properly. I’m proud of you.”

He almost snorted at that – it was ridiculous, after all. But there was a tightness in his throat and a slight sting in his eyes as he found himself fighting back emotion.

They were both quiet for a few minutes before Aizawa once again broke the silence.

“While you were asleep, I opened your UA file to look for an emergency contact.”

Shinso groaned and dropped his head back on the pillow, draping his arm over his eyes.

“Imagine my surprise,” Aizawa continued dryly. “When I found out that your emergency contact was someone who died twenty years ago, and the phone number you included was for a funeral home.”

He did snort this time. “I forgot I did that,” he grinned a little as he said it.

“Don’t smile like that,” Aizawa said with a glare. “Only I’m allowed to smile like that. Stop it.”

Shinso grinned more, snickering under his breath until he started coughing and had to stop. Aizawa waited until he settled back down.

“Apart from calling the dead… is there anyone you want me to contact? Relative, friend, classmate?”

He shook his head silently.

Aizawa sighed and picked up his phone. “Fine. In that case, I’m adding myself as your emergency contact.”

“Wh—”

“Unless you’d prefer Nezu. I would not recommend that though… Nezu treats hospital patients like they’re his captive audience. It’s exhausting.”

“O…Okay?”

And that was that, apparently. Aizawa finished typing on his phone just as a doctor entered the room.

The woman bowed and introduced herself as Dr. Nakamura Mio. She quickly glanced over Shinso’s charts before turning to him.

“It’s nice to meet you, Shinso. Ah,” She turned and reached out her hand to Aizawa. “And you must be his guardian.”

“Uh…” Shinso blinked. “No…”

Without hesitating, Aizawa nodded and shook the doctor’s hand. “That’s right. Let me know if I can help with anything.”

“Uhhhh…” Shinso continued blinking absently. “No?”

“I was granted temporary legal guardianship over you,” Aizawa calmly explained, turning to Shinso. “It sometimes happens in cases like this when a minor is the target of a crime and their parents are either unreachable or no longer have legal custody. Don’t worry about it right now. It’s not important.”

“……it sounds kind of important……” He whispered under his breath.

Dr. Nakamura walked around the side of the hospital bed until she stood beside him.

“My quirk allows me to sense any current or underlying medical issues. I’ll be able to determine your rate of recovery or if you should stay here for another night. To activate my quirk, I’ll need to place my hands on the sides of your head. You may feel a slight tingle like an electric current, but it won’t hurt. Is that alright with you?”

Shinso quietly nodded. The doctor glanced over to Aizawa – he nodded as well.

“Alright, then, just take a deep breath and relax. It shouldn’t take too long.” She gently reached forward and placed her fingers lightly against Shinso’s temples. Her touch was cold at first. He could feel her quirk in his head – it was slightly uncomfortable, but not painful, like she had said. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, waiting for her to finish.

About half a minute later, she removed her hands and quickly began writing notes on his chart.

“Okay, looking good,” she said as she wrote. “The healers concentrated on treating your concussion and major injuries first. There are no current signs of the head trauma, and your throat and lungs are healing well. I’ll give you quirk-enhanced medicine for your throat to help with the discomfort you’re probably feeling when speaking. The fractured ribs and your fractured wrist have both healed very well, too. The aching you feel should decrease on its own over the next few days, but you can take over the counter pain relievers to help in the meantime. The healing drained your stamina, and it will take several days to regain your energy. I want to see you again in three days to check on your recovery progress. Until then, you need to rest. No classes, no training, no exercise. Light activities only, understood?”

Shinso nodded. With the way he was feeling at the moment, he didn’t particularly care to argue those points. A part of him wanted to sleep for three days anyway.

Nakamura looked down at her notes again. “Do you have a local doctor?”

“Uh…” Shinso looked over to Aizawa. “Does Recovery Girl count?”

The teacher shook his head, clearly holding back a sigh.

He turned back to the doctor. “Nope.”

“Alright, in that case, I can connect you with one.” She wrote more before glancing up again. “And I assume you haven’t seen a psychiatrist either then?”

“…no…” He glanced over at Aizawa again, this time out of self-consciousness, looking to see his reaction. Aizawa remained neutral. He hesitantly turned back to the doctor again. “Do I need one?”

“Based on what I’m sensing, yes, it would be a good idea for you to see a psychiatric quirk specialist. You seem to have several underlying conditions, likely contributing to any mood and sleep-related symptoms you may have been experiencing. There’s a chance they could give you a quirk-based treatment to permanently heal an underlying neurochemical condition. I highly recommend at least going to an initial evaluation.”

Shinso nodded slowly, glancing again at Aizawa out of the corner of his eye.

“I’ve been through that kind of treatment myself,” Aizawa said, unprompted. “It’s best to directly address the issue, rather than to ignore it.”

“Okay…” He agreed somewhat reluctantly.

“Alright!” The doctor slipped her pen back into her pocket and smiled. “I’ll set up those referrals now. I’ll have a nurse come by with your discharge papers and the medication for your throat in a little bit. You’ll rest better at home, but I want you—” she gestured to Aizawa. “—to keep a close eye on him. Do either of you have any questions for me?”

Shinso shook his head even though he felt like it was spinning with everything that was happening. Aizawa also waved away the question.

“Alright then, I’ll see you back here in three days’ time. Take care – oh,” She turned to Aizawa. “And please get some rest, too. I don’t need to use my quirk to know you need it.”

Both of them sighed as she left the room.

A moment passed.

“I had Yamada retrieve some clothes from your apartment this morning,” Aizawa started, pulling up Shinso’s own backpack. “When you’re ready, get dressed and we can head out after the nurse comes by with the paperwork.”

Shinso took the bag and nodded slowly, still adjusting. “So… uh… how long is temporary?”

Aizawa shrugged on his way out of the room. “At least three days.”

“Wh—Oh, and you’re just gonna walk away like it’s nothing. That’s great. Really helpful, Aizawa. What the fuck…”

Shinso stared at the door for a moment once he was alone. It felt like his mind was barely processing. On one hand, he felt… normal? Like he was just automatically going through the motions, getting dressed in his own clothes, nodding, speaking, existing like normal. But at the same time, everything felt… surreal. He felt odd, almost detached, like he wasn’t quite sure things were real.

He didn’t want to be alone.

After he finished getting dressed, he cracked the door open and saw Aizawa waiting nearby, filling out some paperwork with a nurse.

“Ready to go?” Aizawa asked.

Shinso nodded. The nurse smiled at him and handed the paperwork to him, pointing out where to sign. She must have explained the documents, but he barely listened and quickly signed the papers and pushed them back to her.

A few minutes later, he found himself walking out of the hospital with Aizawa beside him, hand on his back guiding him through the doors. The moment he stepped outside, he hesitated.

“Are you okay?”

Shinso looked up at Aizawa. His mentor. His… guardian? It’s not that he didn’t trust him. He just maybe didn’t understand him. At all. Whatsoever.

“I… why?”

“You stopped walking, I wanted to make sure you were okay—”

“No, no. Just… why are you doing this?”

“Why am I helping you?”

“Yeah. That.”

“You called me. I answered. I’m not going anywhere until you’re safe, healthy, and the situation has been resolved.”

“But you did the hero thing already. You… you know, you beat up the villain and saved the day or whatever. Why are you here?”

Aizawa looked him in the eye. “You still need help. Plus, your emergency contact was a bust.”

Shinso almost laughed, dropping his gaze. They were both silent for a moment, standing outside of the hospital.

“We should get going—”

“You’re not normally nice.” Shinso stated bluntly. He didn’t move from the sidewalk.

Aizawa was quiet, letting Shinso continue.

“You don’t think I can handle this. You’re being nice because you have to be. Or you pity me… Or you think I’m just… some helpless kid.”

“You’re not helpless. Not by a long shot. Like I said earlier, you held your own. You weren’t winning, but you survived long enough to get help. That’s pretty damn good considering the circumstances.”

Shinso forced down whatever mess of emotions was building in his chest.

“The fact of the matter is you can’t handle everything. That doesn’t mean you can’t handle anything. Right now, you need support; there’s nothing wrong with that. Every hero needs support during different situations. Everyone needs someone they can trust, someone who has their back, who supports them in times of crisis. I’ve been in your position plenty of times before. It’s not a shameful thing. It’s part of the job. Part of life. Okay?”

He gritted his teeth and nodded a little without looking up.

“I want to provide you with the support you need. It’s not because I pity you or look down on you. You’re my student. I care about you. So if you have a need that I am capable of supporting, I want to provide that support.”

Tears started falling from Shinso’s eyes. His throat felt tight.

“You’re a good kid, Shinso. I’m honored to help you.”

Shinso stepped forward and pressed his forehead into Aizawa’s chest. Aizawa seemed surprised but gently pulled him in closer and held him. Shinso wrapped his arms around Aizawa’s back, gripping the fabric of his hero suit tightly.

“It’s okay…” Aizawa said softly as he rubbed Shinso’s back. “You’re going to be okay. I’m going to make sure of it.”

Shinso wasn’t sure how long they stood there. He wasn’t even sure what had made him step forward like that in the first place. He barely ever cried, let alone allowed himself to cry in front of another person. But the tears had a will of their own, apparently. And Aizawa was surprisingly gentle and welcoming.  

A few moments later, they finally stepped apart and Shinso took a quick breath, wiping tears from his face.

“Are you okay?”

He nodded quickly.

“Are you ready to head out?”

“Yeah, yeah. I’m ready.” His voice was still a little raspy.

Aizawa nodded and patted Shinso’s shoulder. “Let’s get out of here then. You need to rest.”

They walked to Aizawa’s car parked nearby and got in. Shinso glanced over at his mentor.

“So… just three days?”

Aizawa smiled slightly and gave a half-hearted shrug as he turned on the car.

“Or however long you need.”

Notes:

Thanks for reading!! I hope you enjoyed it. The first chapter I was experimenting with writing more action scenes and then the second chapter I wanted to have some more dialogue and comfort after all the hurt. It's a bit short, but I've wanted to complete this one for a long time, so hopefully you still liked it!