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In her short life, Eri had learned the hard way about Good people and Bad people.
Most of the ones she met were Bad. Overhaul was the worst. He hurt her, cut her, destroyed her body and rebuilt her. There seemed no end to the things he did. She didn’t want to resign herself to a life of misery. So she ran.
That was when she met Deku and Lemillion. They were Good. She clung to Deku, pleading with him to save her; he would have, she was certain, but Overhaul wasn’t willing to give her up that easily, and she returned with him to keep him from killing the two boys.
She hovered in a state of stasis, trapped between the Good and the Bad, as Deku and Lemillion and their hero friends waged war on Overhaul. She wanted to run, to hide in the safety of their arms, but Overhaul was too strong, too Bad, and she turned back to surrender herself to him. But Deku had saved her. And for the first time, her quirk, her curse, was used for something Good as she healed him.
But then her quirk had almost killed him.
And that was where Eraserhead came in.
He stopped her quirk. Shut it off.
Eri didn’t know what to think of him. He was a hero, and he saved Deku from her, so he was Good, right? But his quirk stopped others’ quirks. Overhaul used her Bad quirk to make the bullets that did something similar. So then was he Bad because his quirk was? Was he cursed like her?
Then he came to visit her in the hospital. He said he could use his quirk to help with hers, but he didn’t act like it was a chore. He seemed to enjoy being around her. And that scared her.
“I don’t want to hurt you,” she confessed one day when he asked why she looked sad. “My quirk could hurt you!”
He just gave her that small smile she never saw him give the others, not the hospital staff or the people who came with him like Deku and Lemillion. “You won’t,” he promised. “Don’t worry about me. My quirk will protect me.”
“What is your quirk? How does it stop mine?”
“It’s called erasure. I can temporarily take away someone’s quirk when I look at them. It comes back when I blink.”
Ah, so that was why he was Good. He didn’t steal people’s quirks permanently, not like the bullets did. He didn’t hurt anyone the way she did. He could be a hero with his quirk.
She got to visit the school and meet all the hero students. Her heart beat rapidly at the thought of so many Good people in one place. Everyone she met was so kind. Well, there was one boy that scared her a bit. Lemillion called him “the dark side of U.A.” But he wasn’t mean at all, and she wondered why he’d called him that. Why would anyone joke about someone being Bad?
She moved to the school to live with Eraserhead after the festival. He was her “new guardian.” She didn’t know what that meant. Was it like a dad? He certainly acted the way she thought a dad might act. He braided her hair and watched movies about kittens with her and always reminded her to eat her vegetables. He made breakfast, which tasted weird at first but got better (Uncle Mic said he was watching cooking videos to learn how). And he offered to buy her new clothes, but Aunt Midnight said that he had all the fashion sense of a colorblind sloth and that she would be doing the clothes shopping with Eri.
When bad dreams invaded her nights, Eraserhead was always there to hold her and wipe her tears away and sometimes even sing to her in his gruff voice. He looked so tired most nights, so she tried to keep from screaming when she woke up; but somehow he always knew and came anyway, and he never once made her feel like she was being a bother (not that she didn’t; it just wasn’t his fault).
He had nightmares, too. She heard him screaming once and went to help. He’d hugged her close and promised he was fine, that she didn’t need to worry about him. She never heard him again after that. If he had any more bad dreams, he was very, very good at hiding it. She wanted to ask if someone Bad had hurt him, but she thought he might not want to talk about it.
Despite that, he seemed to enjoy being around her. She had never thought someone would want to spend time with her just because. Overhaul and his followers had treated her like a disease, talking about how she was cursed and only good for what they could do with her quirk. Any kindness they ever showed her was just to make her stay put. But Eraserhead said he just wanted her to be happy and healthy. He said he wanted her to be able to have a normal childhood.
She didn’t deserve that, though. Eraserhead kept telling her that she did, but how could she? How could she deserve to be happy and protected and loved when so many people had gotten hurt because of her? Lemillion had lost his quirk! She had almost killed Deku! And that other man, the one in the suit, had been covered in so much blood… No one talked about him in her presence; when she asked, they only said he’d been taken to the hospital. And someone had mentioned Eraserhead had gotten stabbed! He told her it was just a scratch, though, and they were exax— Examin— overreacting.
But they were heroes, they kept telling her. They were okay getting hurt if it meant she was safe, if it meant she would learn to smile. It was what they did. She thought that was very Good of them. But it wasn’t fair that they would get hurt for someone who was cursed like her. They should be okay so they could rescue people who were Good too, who needed them.
But she had needed them. Could she become good, like Deku, like Eraserhead? Could she become someone worth protecting like they thought she was? She wanted to. Maybe she could even become Good enough to become a hero one day! She would use her quirk to help people, not to hurt them. She would prove that she had a reason to smile.
~~~
“Bro, just wear the scarf.”
“No.”
Eri peeked her head around the corner. Eraserhead was arguing with Uncle Mic. The heroes hadn’t noticed her; they still thought she was in her room.
“Why not?” Uncle Mic demanded. “It’s not safe out these days! You’ve never had a problem wearing it all the time before; plus, now you’ve got the little listener to think about!”
“I’ve got my knife,” Eraserhead growled as he pulled his hair into a ponytail. He didn’t do that often. He’d also traded his black jumpsuit for jeans and a t-shirt with a black jacket. “Besides, I am thinking of Eri. That’s why I’m leaving it.”
“That makes no sense.” Uncle Mic crossed his arms and flopped on the couch.
“She’s surrounded by heroes and hero students all day every day. It’s all she really knows at this point. It’s hard enough for her to remember to call me Aizawa instead of Eraserhead. She deserves a normal night. We’ll get dinner, go see a movie, and get ice cream or something later. She needs this.”
“You’re such a dad.”
“I am not a dad!”
“Mm, smells like denial in here! Quit fighting it. Just adopt the poor girl and give her a family name already!”
“Family na—do kids care about that kind of thing?” Eraserhead’s eyes widened. “Has she been wanting that this whole time? Crap, I should’ve asked!”
“Calm down! She probably hasn’t even thought about it. And besides, she probably does have one. What was that old yakuza boss’s name? She’d probably have his.”
“You want me to call her by the name of a yakuza boss? No. If anything, I’ll let her pick a name.”
Eri twisted a strand of her hair. Uncle Mic was right; she hadn’t thought about it. If Eraserhead let her pick a name, she might pick Aizawa. Aizawa Eri sounded nice, she thought.
But what if he didn’t want to share a family name with a disaster like her?
Uncle Mic shook his head. “You’re an idiot, but your heart’s in the right place. Call me when something bad happens.”
“I thought I was supposed to be the pessimist.”
“It’s you. Something bad always happens.”
Eraserhead whacked him on the back of the head. “Don’t you have somewhere to be? Ah, Eri, are you ready?”
She stepped out of her hiding place.
Uncle Mic stood and scooped her up, spinning in a circle, and she shrieked happily.
“My littlest listener!” he yelled. “Have a good time, keep Mr. Grumpypants out of trouble, and make him buy you lots of snacks!”
“We’re getting food beforehand,” Eraserhead huffed.
“It’s about the experience!” Uncle Mic argued as he set her down. “You gotta get lots of candy and stuff it in your pockets to sneak it in!”
He rolled his eyes. Then he glanced down at Eri. “What are you wearing?”
She looked down at her coat. “Deku got it for me! He said he wanted to get me my first All Might hoodie!” She gasped. “Is it bad?”
“No, no!” He waved his hands frantically. “It’s not bad. It looks wonderful!” To Uncle Mic, he mouthed, “First?”
Uncle Mic snickered. “He’s just jealous because he doesn’t have one. We should go shopping and get him one!”
“I will kill you. Not you, Eri-chan.” He pointed at Uncle Mic. “But you’re on my hit list. Come on, we’ll be late if we don’t leave now.”
She put on her shoes—also All Might-themed, again courtesy of Deku—and followed him.
~~~
Eri stuck another piece of apple candy in her mouth. Era—Aizawa held out his hand to take the wrapper, shoving it in his pocket. It had only taken one “please” from her for him to cave and buy her candy. The movie theater was only a few blocks from the train station; the sun had just started to set, and the child nestled further into her hoodie as the breeze picked up. Her guardian walked slow enough to let her keep up with him.
Happily skipping along, she almost didn’t notice when Aizawa froze. When she did, she turned to look, seeing him looking down an alleyway. She turned back, only then hearing what he heard.
“Cat,” they spoke in unison.
“Sounds hurt,” Aizawa said with a frown. “I’ll see if I can help. Wait right here.”
He started off into the alley. She waited obediently, shuffling her feet nervously. She didn’t like alleys. Too dark, too long. Absentmindedly, she reached for another piece of candy. Aizawa had warned her not to eat it all before they got to the movie. Tonight would be fun, she knew. It was a movie about hero kitties. And if Aizawa found a kitty in the alley, he may keep it! He might even let her name it if she asked nicely.
A shout of pain echoed through the alley. Eri whirled around, all thoughts of cats and movies forgotten.
There were three of them, all of them bigger and bulkier than Aizawa. He ducked around their outstretched arms, punching and kicking, but he was holding one arm to his side. One of the attackers raised his hand, but Aizawa’s eyes glowed red, and he froze in surprise as nothing happened.
Eri brought her hands to her mouth to keep from screaming. Deku said that Aizawa had fought off dozens of villains at once before. He would be fine against three, right?
She should run and get help. Maybe there was another hero patrolling nearby? Aizawa didn’t have his scarf or goggles, but he didn’t technically need them. But he was hurt! What if something happened while she was gone?
A scaly tail lashed through the air, whipping against the back of Aizawa’s neck. He stumbled, twisting around to activate his quirk, but it was too late.
And Eri cried out in shock.
Four sets of eyes locked onto her. She stepped back.
“Eri, run!” Aizawa shouted. “Get out—” He was cut off as one of the villains tackled him.
Before she could obey, a tugging sensation dragged her forward, towards the villains. Her feet skidded over the ground. Halfway down the alley, she dropped to the ground. The villain huffed and whirled on Aizawa, whose eyes glowed. “Didn’t think the great Eraserhead was the family type. Cute kid. Who’s the mom?”
The hero twisted and slammed the villain holding him to the ground. “Eri, go!”
She couldn’t move, petrified, staring as her dad continued to wrestle the thugs. He had slowed down, his movements lacking their typical aggressiveness, as whatever venom was inside the one villain’s stinger worked its way into his bloodstream.
Like Kurono.
Knife in hand, he slashed as they drew closer to him, hemming him in. Leaping up and kicking off one to dodge out of reach, but he hit the ground wrong and fell. Shooting back up, he drove his blade towards the biggest thug as he reached for him. A giant hand caught his wrist.
Wrenching the knife away from him, the villain spun it and drove it into Aizawa’s side.
Then again.
And again.
His body fell to the ground, a muffled groan tearing from his throat. The villain ground his heel into his back. “Pathetic. So many rumors about you, Eraserhead, and yet you’re nothing. I’m surprised anyone would pay as much as they’re willing to for your sorry carcass. You’re nothing but a second-rate hero with a villain’s quirk.”
Eri saw red.
“He does NOT HAVE A VILLAIN’S QUIRK!” she screeched. “LEAVE HIM ALONE!”
They turned to look, apparently just noticing she was still there. The villain standing over Aizawa motioned to one of the others. “Grab her. Eraserhead’s spawn oughta be worth a bit on the black market.”
One of them strode forward. A familiar pressure built up around Eri’s horn. As the man reached for her, it grew worse. Her feelings twisted around each other, a serpents’ nest that hovered just under her skin, eager to strike. Fear, panic for herself and for her hero; anger, that they would do such a bad thing to him and say what they had said. She thrust her hands forward, grabbing the man’s arm and letting her quirk loose.
He shrank before her eyes, his screams mangled and piercing. Then he fell silent abruptly.
Feeling the pressure shut off just as quickly, she looked up to see a mass of clothes in front of her. A few meters away, Eraserhead watched her with glowing eyes. The other two villains stared at the pile of clothes where their companion had been.
Eri took a shaky step forward, hands outstretched.
They ran.
She looked down at the clothes, noting a slight wiggling. Pulling them away, she gasped as a tiny face peered up at her. “Oh,” she whispered in surprise. “You’re alive!”
She wrapped the now-infant up in his own shirt, lifting him gently into her arms the way Aunt Midnight had taught her when one of her friends had come to visit and brought a child. Then she stumbled over to Aizawa.
He had managed to push himself up against the wall in a seated position, holding his good arm to his side. He smiled weakly up at her as she approached. “Not bad, kid,” he rasped.
She set the child down and knelt by his side. Another type of pressure pushed against her eyes. She started crying. “Era—Aizawa-san, I’m sorry, I know you said to run but I was scared and you got hurt and now you’re bleeding—”
“Hey, it’s okay,” he whispered. He started to reach his hand out to her but clamped it back against his side. “We’re okay. We’ll be okay. You saved me.” He shuddered. “I need your help, kiddo. Can you get my phone out of my pocket?”
She sniffed and scrubbed her eyes. Retrieving the phone, she typed in the ridiculously long password he gave her and dialed Uncle Mic at his request. She put the phone on speaker and held it up for him.
“SHOUTAAAAAA!” Uncle Mic yelled. “Thought you were supposed to be at a movie! It’s bad manners to have your phone on.”
“Shut up and listen,” he snapped. “I need help. Bring a med kit.”
“WHAT THE CRAP HAPPENED!? ARE YOU OKAY? IS ERI-CHAN OKAY?”
“Quiet! Eri’s fine, just a little shaken. I’m… less fine. Just come get us.”
“Alright, on my way! Send the location!”
Aizawa was paler than normal, and he wasn’t supposed to be shaking that much, was he? He caught her gaze and smiled encouragingly. “Don’t worry, Eri-chan. ‘Zashi will be here… any minute…” His words started to run together. “Jus’ gotta… wait for him…”
His eyes fell closed.
She shook his shoulder. “Eraserhead! Aizawa-san, please stay up! You can’t go to sleep!” Was it the venom? The blood? What should she do?
Think!
She yanked off her jacket, pressing it to his side. It was flowing too fast, soaking through the fabric, getting on her hands. And Aizawa still hadn’t woken up!
An eternity later, tires screeched at the end of the alleyway. Headlights lit up the gruesome scene. A car door slammed, and then Uncle Mic was by her side, setting down a med kit and giving her that bright smile. “Eri-chan! Smart thinking with the coat! Let’s see how he’s doing, huh?”
She scootched back and let him take over. He removed the coat and placed his hand directly against Aizawa’s side. He frowned.
Then his eyes widened in panic.
“Okay,” he hissed. “This is bad. This is really, actually bad. Think, think…” He glanced over to Eri. “Oh. Oh, that’s… we can do this. Eri-chan, I need you to come here.”
She hovered by his side. “Will he be okay?”
“He will be in a minute. Little listener, I need you to use your quirk.”
Use her… quirk?
On Aizawa?
She shook her head.
“Please, Eri-chan, he needs you! He’s lost too much blood already. I’m not an expert, but I think he’s severed an artery. He’s only got minutes left. I can’t get him back to Recovery Girl in time, and I don’t have anything in the kit that can help with this. I need your help. He needs your help.”
“I… can’t! He can’t stop me. I could kill him!”
“Listener.” He took her hand. “If we don’t do something now, he’ll die anyway. You won’t lose control. You’ll be just fine.”
He smiled, but his eyes were filled with terror. She had never seen him this afraid.
She looked down at Aizawa. He had stopped shaking.
Kneeling down, she placed her hands on his side as Uncle Mic moved his. The pressure started growing again. This time, it felt like worry.
He needed help.
Like love.
He’s my hero. He always takes care of me and wants me to be happy.
Like determination.
I’ll save him. I know I can.
Golden light poured from her horn, flitting over his side and arm and neck. The pressure grew, getting stronger and faster; behind her, Uncle Mic backed up.
It was enough, right? Had he gotten better? She didn’t want to stop too early or he might not be healed. But if she went back too far—
“I think that’s good,” Uncle Mic said. “Looks like his wound’s all patched up.”
She took a deep breath and moved her hands. Bringing her attention to the force in her horn, she focused on trying to slow it down.
It didn’t.
Her breathing quickened. It wasn’t slowing. It wasn’t stopping. It wasn’t stopping and it was still washing over him and it was going to kill him—
Just as quickly as before, it shut off.
She gasped and met Aizawa’s eyes. He smiled gently. With a sob, she tackled him in a hug.
“Thank you,” he mumbled into her hair.
She clung to him tighter. She didn’t want to let go, didn’t want to take the chance that he would somehow fade away and leave her.
“Hey, umm…” Uncle Mic laughed nervously. “I hate to interrupt a tender moment, but anyone want to explain to me why there’s a baby here?”
~~~
“I’m fine. Don’t you dare bother Recovery Girl.”
“I texted her and told her we were coming,” Uncle Mic stated smugly. “She’s already waiting on us.”
Aizawa groaned. He’d already lost the battle to be allowed to walk on his own and had resigned himself to being carried on Uncle Mic’s back like how Deku carried her when they hung out. The blond pushed the door open with his foot and unceremoniously dropped Aizawa on one of the beds.
Recovery Girl looked up from her desk. “I expected a bit more theatrics. Screaming, crying, panicking. And I figured Eri-chan would be upset, too.” She stood and crossed to the bed. “I assume our little sweetheart here helped you?”
“She did, and I’m fine,” Aizawa huffed, standing. He immediately collapsed against Uncle Mic, who rolled his eyes and helped him back onto the bed.
“Mm-hm. And I assume you shut her quirk off as soon as you could, meaning you probably still have severe blood loss. Sit down and shut up. You’ll be staying here tonight so I can keep an eye on you and make sure you get plenty of fluids.”
“Yes ma’am,” he grumbled.
“Now. Why is there a baby here?” She motioned to the infant in Eri’s arms.
“He was a villain. Tried to snatch Eri-chan.” He shrugged. “Not sure what we’re supposed to do with him now. We can’t really send him to jail like this. I’ll talk to Nezu in the morning.”
“Well, I suppose that makes him your responsibility for now,” she informed Uncle Mic.
“Alright. I’ll leave the invalid with you for now. I’ll bring him back some not-nasty clothes. Oh, that reminds me, we need to get the little listener a new All Might jacket!” He took the child and left.
Recovery Girl bustled around, checking Aizawa’s blood pressure and handing him skeptical-looking concoctions to drink. Eri waited in a nearby chair. When the heroine was done, Aizawa grumbled something under his breath and turned to Eri. “Are you okay?”
She nodded stiffly.
“Hey. Come here.” He held out his arm, and she got up and stood beside him. “You can talk to me if something’s wrong.”
“I know,” she whispered. “I’m fine.”
His eyes were so sad. He nodded. “If you’re sure. And thank you again. I understand that must have been scary for you. I’m sorry you had to be a part of that.”
“Are you mad at me for not leaving?”
“No. I know you were scared. I’ve been there. Freezing when something goes wrong, it’s normal. You’ll learn how to not do that when you’re older.”
“Oh.”
He ruffled her hair. “I’ll be fine with Recovery Girl. When Mic gets back, go with him back to your room. If you need to stay with someone tonight, I’m sure either he or Midnight would be more than happy to watch you.”
She nodded again.
He patted the bed. “Come up here for a minute.”
She hopped up and sat next to him.
“I meant it, okay? I’m not mad at you. You didn’t know what to do. And besides, you saved me. Twice.”
She started crying again.
“Oh, crap, uh…” He patted her back. “Did I say something?”
Eri shook her head, burying her face in his (not bloody) side. “I hrmt smmn,” she mumbled.
“What?”
“I hurt someone!” She looked up at him. “I almost killed him! And then I almost killed you, and I couldn’t even stop it!”
“Hey, Eri-chan, no.”
“I hate my quirk! It’s Bad! I keep hurting people! And people keep getting hurt because of me!”
He cupped her face with one rough hand. “You listen to me, Aizawa Eri! Your quirk is not bad. People aren’t getting hurt because of you. During that raid, the only one who gets to take any blame is Overhaul and his lackeys. Okay? Not you. Don’t you dare blame yourself for what he did. And your quirk is one of the most amazing ones I’ve ever seen. You don’t know how to control it yet, but that’s not your fault. You saved my life tonight. I wouldn’t be here right now if not for you. You know what that makes you?”
She shook her head.
“That makes you my hero.”
Hero?
“You’re my hero, Eri-chan. And I won’t ever let you forget that.” He pulled her into a hug.
Another wave of tears struck her. She cried into his shirt until she couldn’t cry anymore. Exhausted, she slumped against his side, starting to drift off. Somewhere nearby, a door opened and a few people held a whispered conversation. She didn’t catch what they said; she didn’t care.
Aizawa thought she was his hero.
That was all she needed to hear.