Chapter Text
Aizawa groaned and stretched, trying to pop his back. The lingering soreness and various small scrapes kept the memory of his latest patrol fresh. Luckily he had something to take his mind off of things.
The microwave gave a shrill beep, breaking the weary silence in the kitchen. He grabbed out the cup of noodles and headed to the living room. As he settled onto the worn couch, Sock came trotting out from the back rooms, tail lifted in interest at the smell of food. She leapt up next to Aizawa as he turned on the TV.
The old thing flickered for a moment before coming into focus. A smiling woman appeared on the screen, midway through her introduction.
"-elcome a special guest to the show today. A recent graduate from the U.A. hero academy, and one of the newest heroes to hit the streets of Fukuoka. Shinsou Hitoshi!"
The camera panned over and focused on a very familiar young man.
A small smile lifted the corners of Aizawa's mouth as Shinsou gave a small wave to the camera along with his trademark, lazy grin. He was dressed in a formal suit and looked quite at ease.
Sock tried to paw at his food while he was looking away, eyes round and focused. Aizawa glanced down and pushed her to his side. By the time he looked back up, the camera had zoomed out again and was now resting with both Shinsou and his interviewer in frame.
"Welcome Shinsou, and thank you for being here tonight. You've been quite busy of late, haven't you?"
"Yeah, there's been a lot to do," he agreed. Sock turned to face the TV at the sound of his voice, ears up.
"I'll say!" the reporter laughed. "With the seven villains you've brought in this week alone, it seems that you've already made quite a mark here. Quite impressive for a hero just two years out of school."
"Well, U.A isn't the top hero academy for nothing," he grinned. "I have my teachers to thank for where I am now."
Aizawa's smile widened.
"It's good to see a hero with school pride," the interviewer complimented. "But taking down villains isn't all you've been up to is it? Would you please tell us more about your work with the quirk equality initiative?"
"Well that is what I came for," Shinsou replied, drawing a smattering of laughs from an offscreen audience.
"Equal treatment for people of all variety of quirks has been something that's been important to me all my life. As much as we don't like to talk about it, there are certain powersets that have a reputation for villainy, and their holders are often treated accordingly. The Tokyo Quirk Research Department actually published a very interesting study last year. It shows that about 85% of the villains that have been caught and interrogated faced some level of discrimination regarding their quirks. This ranged from job employment to school acceptance and even to abuse at home. As someone who has experienced this discrimination firsthand, I want to do what I can to close the gap here."
"So your quirk is one with a villainous stigma as well?" the interviewer clarified.
"You could say that. Brainwashing definitely has the potential to be dangerous to innocents. But because I had the chance to prove myself, I didn't go down that path. There are lots of others who aren't so lucky."
"The villains do seem to keep coming. What does the quirk equality initiative plan on doing to change the public mind?"
"Well it's not something that can be done overnight," Shinsou conceded. "The goal is to enforce laws that protect rights to work, equal pay, and education for all citizens. A lot of people turn to crime because they don't have another option. We aim to change that."
"Have you run into many problems with that?"
"Oh you bet. There are plenty of people that would rather keep their workplaces and schools free from those who they consider 'dangerous'. I can't even get to my apartment these days without walking past my own personal group of protesters."
"And do you have a message for these people?" the reporter asked, eyes shining at the possibility of controversy.
"I do. I would remind them that quirks are a completely random factor of one's birth. No quirk is inherently good or bad, and neither is any person. The influences and opportunities we give people can largely determine what they will become. Do you really want to continue creating villains by keeping them away from honest work?"
He gazed intently into the camera, silently asking the audience to consider his words. He seemed to be in his element, capturing the attention of the viewers and not letting go. Aizawa glowed with pride as the interview moved on.
As Shinsou continued to elaborate on his work with the quirk equality initiative, Aizawa ate his dinner, letting his voice fill the apartment. Sock eventually stopped trying to beg for food and leapt down from the couch. She sat directly in front of the TV, eyes focused on Shinsou. Whenever the screen moved from the reporter back to him, she gave a chirp of excitement and sat up a little.
It had been a long time since either of them had seen Shinsou in person. He hadn't been able to come up for a visit in months. Still, Aizawa couldn't complain. Shinsou called when he could, and Aizawa made sure to keep up his work in Fukuoka. An impressive of villains and criminals were now under his hero record.
But as Aizawa watched him smile and laugh over the TV, he couldn't ignore a little pang of sadness.
"Well thank you so much for joining us tonight Shinsou," the reported concluded several minutes later.
"Thank you for having me," he replied, nodding politely.
"We hope to see you again, and I'm sure I speak for all of our viewers when I say that we'll be following your career with a great deal of interest. The world is watching you now. Thank you and good night."
She and Shinsou shook hands. Just before the view changed to nightly news, Aizawa thought he saw a flicker pass over Shinsou's face at her parting words. It was so small and so subtle, he doubted anyone else noticed. But for a second there, Shinsou's smile looked fake and frozen. A carefully composed mask for the world.
But then the program moved on and Shinsou vanished from view.
Aizawa turned the TV off and collected the remains of his dinner. Perhaps he was overthinking it. He was probably just projecting his own discomfort with the press onto Shinsou. After all, he had been nothing but relaxed and personable throughout the entire interview.
As he headed for the kitchen, Sock gave a loud, whining meow. She was sniffing at the TV, searching around and behind it. Silence filled the apartment once again, heavy and empty. As Aizawa cleaned his dishes, Sock abandoned her search and rubbed against his legs. She chittered sadly up at him.
"It's okay Sock," he sighed, reaching down to rub her head.
"I miss him too."