Chapter 9
Detective Tsukauchi sat behind the wheel of his car. He was heading back to the city. The engine of his Toyota was running smoothly. The detective reached into the console and pressed the speakerphone button.
"Call Nezu."
A moment later, the UA director's voice echoed through the car.
"So early, Detective? I thought you were going to stay there all day? Has something changed?"
Tsukauchi sighed heavily.
"Everything has changed."
"In that case, I'm listening."
"Eron... is dangerous, Nezu."
"Dangerous? You mean...?"
"At the beginning of our conversation, he attacked me. He used that 'Power' of his to demonstrate his dominance. He started choking me and wouldn't have stopped if Mandalay hadn't stopped. She stopped him at the last second."
"Are you hurt? Did he attack anyone else?"
"No. He didn't hurt anyone except me... but if anyone had reacted... I think Eron was ready to attack even All Might. He doesn't trust anyone."
"Do you have any idea why he attacked you?"
"It was a test. A demonstration. He did it with cold precision. He wanted to show that he was the one deciding who had power over his fate. Nezu... that boy has severe symptoms of PTSD. Inside his head, he's still at war. I'm no psychologist, but that's what it looks like to me."
"And what did he say afterward? Did he show remorse?"
"He said he did it because he had to. That he wouldn't let anyone take his freedom. Nezu... it wasn't an outburst of anger. It was a declaration... Only at the end of the conversation... did he admit he got carried away."
"So he was aware of what he had done?"
"Completely. But he didn't regret the attack per se. He only regretted that he did it impulsively. This isn't an easy case, Nezu. This is someone who knows how to kill. And he's not afraid of it..."
A heavy silence fell on the other end. Nezu was typing something on his computer.
"This is a very serious observation, Detective."
Tsukauchi nodded, even though Nezu couldn't see him.
"If someone presses him, he won't back down. He won't run. He'll go on the offensive. He'll fight, because that's what he's been trained to do."
"I understand. I'll call a meeting of the teachers' council. Aizawa, Hound Dog, and Recovery Girl need to hear about this. Thank you, Detective."
The call was cut off. Tsukauchi stared out the windshield, seeing the first skyscrapers of the city.
.
.
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Eron sat cross-legged in solitude. He found a small clearing among the trees. He wasn't far from the Wild Wild Pussycats' residence... but he needed to clear his mind.
The morning sun's rays filtered through the leaves, creating a dance of light every time the slightest breeze picked up. The air was cool and smelled of rain. He couldn't remember... when he had the opportunity... to simply meditate in peace... without feeling anger... aggression... guilt...
Eron breathed slowly, deeply. He didn't try to control anything. Instead, he tried to sense the living creatures around him... unfamiliar birds, small mammals, insects... he could feel them all. He felt the ants waging a battle known only to them with the termites... he felt a bird swoop in, eat a few struggling termites, and then immediately fly away to avoid being attacked by the small insects... life and death... a constant dance that was everywhere... on every planet he visited...
The image of the suffocating detective flashed before his eyes again. There was darkness in the back of his mind... a darkness he must learn to control. After a moment, fear entered his mind. Fear that someone would take his freedom away again.
He focused on the new source of life... it belonged to a human... to the girl who was currently watching him. She wasn't hostile... he sensed she was curious... frightened...
"You can come closer. I won't hurt you."
From behind the tree to his left, the silhouette of a girl with brown hair, obscuring her eyes, emerged. She stood motionless for a moment before taking a timid step forward.
"Sorry... I didn't mean to disturb you."
Eron didn't move. His voice remained calm.
"You're not disturbing me."
Kinoko looked at him from under a curtain of hair. She sat down on the grass a few meters away from him. Close enough to be present. Far enough not to invade the space. She waited for the boy to say something... anything....
"I remember you... Kinoko Komori."
Kinoko's eyes widened... and she nodded, surprised that the boy remembered her.
"Um...yes...it's me..."
"How are you feeling?"
"What... Me? Um...I'm fine..."
Eron nodded. His eyes were closed. He could feel the girl wanting to say more, but he didn't rush her. He felt her hesitation.
"I...I was so scared...and then you came...and then you hurt those villains...why did you do that? Heroes shouldn't kill..."
Kinoko put her hand over her mouth. She felt like she'd said too much. She was afraid she'd offended him and now something would happen to her...why had she come here...
"I'm sorry."
Kinoko jerked her head up at him...Eron had just apologized...
"I could have done it differently. I didn't think my actions through. I allowed anger to dictate my path. You and your friends from this camp saw things I shouldn't have done. You have every right to be afraid of me and distrust me."
Kinoko stared at him wide-eyed. She didn't know what she'd expected... but not this. An apology... sincere and calm... as if he truly felt he'd done something wrong. She'd been afraid Eron would be like any other boy with a powerful quirk... arrogant, overconfident, and arrogant... but he wasn't. She thought of the first time she'd seen him... when he'd cut a hole with that strange, luminous sword...
Kinoko blushed. She lowered her head, covering her face with her hair.
"I don't know you. But when you stood there... between the fire and us... I felt safe. Even so... what you did next was terrifying."
Eron's eyes remained closed... he pondered her words... Her words struck deeply. Not like a blade... more like light piercing through a heavy fog. The girl continued.
"I want to understand why you did this... who forced you to do such terrible things, to... to do something like you did in the camp..."
Eron bowed his head. Her world didn't know war... didn't know the 'Clone Wars'... how can you explain something to someone who knows nothing about his world? It was best to start from the beginning.
"When the war began... along with others who had... a quirk similar to mine... we were forced to fight. We were trained as peacekeepers, but we became soldiers. I guess... I guess I've grown accustomed to brutality..."
Kinoko's eyes glazed over slightly... somehow... she believed him that he was telling the truth... no one would lie about something like that just for fun... She moved a little closer, but still cautiously, as if any movement she made might frighten the boy lost in his memories.
"Eron... what happened..."
Eron slowly shook his head...
"I was betrayed... by our brothers... our soldiers... three years I fought alongside them... I tried... I really tried, Kinoko..."
Kinoko held her breath. Her heart beat faster when she heard the boy's words. His voice trembled with a mixture of anger and pain... and the weight of memories he could no longer bear alone.
"You don't have to... say more if you don't want to..."
Eron sighed softly. He looked up at the leaves moving in the wind, as if searching for answers… or the courage to continue.
"I shouldn't have burdened you with such knowledge... I'm sorry..."
Kinoko shook her head and brushed her hair away from her face. Her voice was quiet but firm.
"Don't apologize. If it helps you... if it makes you feel any better... then I want to listen. I may not understand everything. But I'm here."
Eron was silent for a moment, as if the girl's words had struck a place he could no longer protect. A fragile place, hidden behind a wall of anger, pain, and hatred.
"A few years ago, where I come from, a terrible war began. People like me... Jedi... became officers in the army... often without training... I made many... so many mistakes... Many soldiers lost their lives because of my inexperience and pride... In the end... I don't know why, but my own soldiers started shooting at me..."
Eron shook his head weakly... Kinoko stared at him in shock. Her hand tightened on the grass... She believed him... she believed he was telling the truth... at the same time, she couldn't believe anyone would send children to war.
"It's... terrible... You were left alone, weren't you?"
Eron didn't answer immediately. His gaze was distant... The memories were heavy, and he couldn't shake them. Kinoko understood... PTSD... she moved slowly closer and placed her hand in his.
"It wasn't your fault, Eron... you survived... and I'm very happy for that... otherwise you wouldn't have saved us."
Eron flinched slightly when he felt her hand. He didn't pull it away, though. He stared at their intertwined fingers for a moment, as if he didn't understand how it had happened... how someone who had only just learned his story could be so gentle.
Her hand was warm... it was addictive... Eron didn't want to let go... He felt this girl sucking the anger out of him...
"Can... can we... hold each other like this..."
Kinoko blushed slightly, but didn't pull her hand away. She smiled softly, hearing the boy stutter. Her thumb gently explored his hand... he had a few scars on it.
"You don't have to ask... if it helps you... then hold it as long as you want."
Another idea struck her... which made her blush even deeper... slowly... very slowly, she began to move closer to Eron... expecting some kind of rejection of... what she was about to do... but she saw nothing of the sort...
Slowly... and gently... she embraced him with her other arm...
Eron froze. For a split second, his body tensed instinctively. He expected a blow... But he didn't pull away. He didn't say a word.
The embrace was awkward, quiet... and precisely because of that, so real. Kinoko nestled lightly into his shoulder, her head resting next to his neck. Eron had never felt such warmth...
Kinoko's every movement was cautious, as if she were afraid of breaking something that could never be mended.
"Kinoko... what are you... doing?"
Kinoko didn't pull away. She spoke calmly, quietly... as if she were afraid to destroy this fragile moment with too loud a word.
"It's called a hug.... Don't you like it?"
Eron was silent for a long moment. He felt the warmth of her body. He felt the trembling of her breath against his neck.
"No.... This is... new. Strange. But... I don't want you to stop."
Kinoko leaned a little closer and whispered.
"That's good... because I don't want to stop either..."
For a moment, neither of them moved. The world seemed quieter, as if the forest itself were holding its breath. Eron allowed himself to close his eyes... he was trembling, but not from the cold... he didn't understand the feeling... he couldn't name it... he didn't know what was happening... but he didn't want to stop...
Kinoko felt his body slowly relax. His breathing become more even. She also felt the gentle touch of his hand on her back. Her heart beat faster, but not from fear. There was something incredibly fragile about this boy that she had managed to bring to light.
Kinoko closed her eyes. Her head was still resting on his shoulder, and her cheek felt the rhythmic beating of his heart... still uneven and restless... but real.
End of Chapter 9