Chapter Text
(Kaori’s POV)
“My name is Kayano Kaori. I was born on June 1st to an ordinary couple living in the Shizuoka Prefecture. My father was the CEO of an electrical company while my mother was a biochemist. When she wasn’t working in a fancy lab, she would be working as a doctor for a nearby hospital.”
“I wouldn’t say my life was perfect. What I will say is that I was incredibly privileged and fortunate. We lived in a good house, always had enough money, and even if my parents had very busy jobs, they always found time for me. They always ensured I was happy and kept track of how many times I would smile and laugh during a day. Life was going on great… and tragedy always happens to strike to those whose lives have been going on great. It was two months before my 10th birthday. I was peacefully sleeping in my room when it happened.”
✧✦✧
I opened my eyes and winced, immediately raising my hand to rup them. They felt strangely dry. I removed the blanket covering my body, realizing how warm I was. As I sat up, I smelt a strange burning. Then I saw it. Looking down, I saw a bright orange glow seeping in through the small crack between the floor and the door. “Fire!”
I jumped out of bed and yanked apart the curtains covering my window. A bright glow enveloped my face as I squinted, waiting for my eyes to focus. As they did, I felt them widen as I took in the sight before me. It was fire, and the entire neighborhood was covered in it. Quickly, I pushed my window as far up as I could. Instantly, I felt a wave of heat and smoke enter my room. “What’s going on?! Where are the heroes?!” That’s when the floor gave out below my feet.
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AAHHHHHHH!!
I slowly opened my eyes and pulled myself to my knees. Then I let the hell in front of me be ingrained into my mind. The flames were everywhere. I couldn’t see him, but I could hear him. I could hear my father’s screams as he burned alive somewhere in this mess. Then I started screaming. I Shut my eyes closed, and pressed my hands against my ears to try and mute the sound. “it’s too hot… I can’t breathe… someone save up…PLEASE!!”
Then I felt the heat disappear. Opening my eyes, I saw myself encased in a violet barrier forming a semi-circle around me. This was my mother's quirk. She was able to cover a subject in a barrier for as long as she was looking at them. I spun my head around trying to find her. “MOM!!” I screamed. “If this shield is up, mom is alive and can see me. That means I can see her too.” I screamed one more time. “MOM!!”
“K- Kao- ri.” I froze at the sound of my mothers weak call. Looking through the fire, in the direction of where my parents room should have been, I see her broken form lying among the debris. Next to her was the charred and barely moving form of my father. Once my eyes landed on them, I felt the need to vomit. Her upper body was on fire while her lower half had been crushed during the collapse. “Y- You have t- to f- fight, Kao- ri. I love you.”
What was left of the ceiling came down on her, killing her instantly. I felt the heat of the fire as the barrier disappeared, but at that point, I didn’t care. “M- mom, w- wait… please.” I stretched my right hand toward the flame, toward her, not caring about the pain I would receive and only wanting to try and save her… then I screamed. “GAHHHH!” I brought my hand to my chest and cried. “Where are you, heroes!” Then my world went black.
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…
“Sir, she’s responding.”
“Really? Ms. Kayano, can you hear me?”
I frowned. “Who are you? Leave me alone? Can’t you see I’m sleeping?”
“Her vitals are showing signs of activity. She might wake up soon.”
“Wake up? But I’m already awake.”
“Call him.”
“Call who?”
“Are you sure that’s a good idea, Sir? He’s not really the best with the media and will most likely-”
“Who are you weirdos calling?”
“You know how distraught he was when he learned of his sister’s passing. And besides, he is her only remaining family. Call him.”
“Yes, Sir.”
“What’s going on?! What are you guys doing?! Why are you keeping me here?! I want to go home! I want my mommy!!”
“What’s happening?!! The power just-”
“Go! Secure the other patients! Ms. Kayano are you al- Ms. Kayano… god, her eyes are... Nurse! Call Aizawa Shouta! He has to see this.”
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…
“Sir, I think she’s waking up.”
“Go away! Ugh… my head hurts” I scrunched my face up in pain. I knew my eyes were closed, but all I could see was white. I tried to turn my face.
“Hey hey… it alright. You’re safe here. Just open your eyes.”
I really didn’t want to, but whatever it takes to make this guy shut up I guess. Slowly, I let them open, immediately regretting that decision as they were quickly assaulted by light. I close them again.
“It’s okay Kaori, just take your time.” Another voice said, but it was different from the doctor guys earlier. This voice was deeper. Slowly, my eyes finally adjusted to the blinding light of what looked to be a hospital room. Looking around, I saw three people there. One was the doctor who had been talking to me while the other was a nurse. Then there was the third man who looked to be in his mid-20s. His hair was long and black, and he was dressed in simple clothes… and he looked familiar. I wanted to say he looked like my mom, but I feel as if I have seen him from way before.
“Ms. Kayano?” The voice of the doctor brought me back to reality. “Could you please tell me your name and how old you are?” I open my mouth to speak, trying to get the words out, but it was surprisingly hard. “Don’t force yourself. We don’t want you to get hurt any further.” The man in black spoke.
“You’re sweet… but I can do it.” Painfully, I let the words flow. “My name… is… Kaori.” “This isn’t my voice.” “Kayano Kaori,” “My voice doesn’t sound like this.” “and I’m turning 10 next month.”
“Good job Ms. Kayano.” The lady nurse said excitedly. “Now this next thing is going to be hard. Can you please tell me the last thing you remember?” I look at the doctor dressed in white and nod. “I remember waking up in my room and seeing-” I tried to think back to before, but I couldn’t see anything. Hesitantly, I looked the doctor in the eyes. “I’m sorry, everything is just a blur.” The staff gave a soft smile. “That’s okay, I’m sure you’re memories will arrive in-” I brought my hands to my mouth to try and keep the vomit from leaving my lips as I felt a wave of nausea that I had never felt before wash over me. The staff around me reacted quickly and placed a bag in front of my face. I began to empty whatever was left in my stomach into the bag.
“It’s okay,” The man dressed black whispered as he began to rub my back. “Just let it all out.” At first glance, you might think he was being kind. But you see, I had no idea who this person was. So the only thing going through my mind was this.
“Who is this creep and why is he touching me?!!!” I slapped the man’s hand away and scooted as far away from him as the bed could allow. He seemed to realize the reasons for my actions and didn’t follow me. I sat there and stared at him, looking him up and down. “I swear I have seen you before!” I pushed the thought out of my mind as I yelled. “Who are you?!”
“Ah, I apologize.” The man said softly, still looking me in the eyes. “I should have introduced myself. My name is Aizawa Shouta.” “Aizawa? That’s my mother's maiden name.” I stare at him disbelieving me. “Are you a relative of my mother?” The man smiled. “Shion is my sister.” “Sister, no wonder you look familiar… but my mom never spoke of a brother… and I swear I’ve seen you before.”
“My mother never mentioned having a brother. How do I know you aren’t lying?” The man gave a gentle smile. “I have a certain type of job that might put people I care about in danger. That is why I told your parents never to tell you about me.” I slowly nod, taking in his words. Looking around me, I begin to notice just how bare this room is. It’s so white, and not even an off-white, just pure white. I look down at the blanket covering my legs, spotting the bandages around my right arm. Then I remembered exactly what had happened that night.
I remembered everything. Images of the tragedy flashed through my mind. The fire… their screams… their bodies… and something more.
“MOM!!”
“MICHAEL!!”
“K- Kao- ri… Y- You have t- to f- fight, Kao- ri. I love you.”
“Kayla! you have to get out!”
“M- mom, w- wait… please.”
“Michael! Wati!”
“GAHHHH!”
“MICHAEL!”
I jerk my hands to my ears, screaming, trying anything to get the images out. Not only can I see the bodies of my parents, but it’s as if another set of memories is overlapping them, showing me something else, something similar. I frantically look around the room, trying to convince myself that this is just some sick joke. I felt my breathing begin to accelerate.
“Sir. her heart rate is spiking!”
“No!”
“She’s going into shock!”
“There is no way!”
“Will she be okay?!”
“There is no way this is real!”
“Everything must have come back.”
“Bitch! What do you think!”
“We have to sedate her! She could hurt herself!”
“NO! Don’t touch me!”
“Hold her down!”
“LET ME GO!”
I felt their hands holding down my arms and legs. I felt the nurse placing a needle into my arm. I grit my teeth and shut my eyes. “LET GO OF ME!!” immediately, I felt a wave of power surge through me as I felt their hands let go. Opening my eyes, I found myself surrounded by a violet barrier. “Kaori!” Aizawa yelled, his eyes flashing a bright red. The shield around me disappeared. “STOP IT!” I screamed those words repeatedly, but I don’t think they were listening. The lady placed the syringe in my arm. “No please!” She pushed the drug in. “Please don’t put me to sleep!” None of them were looking at me. “I swear I’ll be good!” I felt my eyes beginning to close. “I just don’t want to hear them again.” My voice began to falter. “I don’t want- to see- them- again.”
“Please don’t- leave me- with them.”
“Not… again…”
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“Kaori?”
“Go away… and that’s not my name… … … wait, you’re Aizawa.”
“Kaori I know you’re awake.”
“Goddamint… why did it have to be Aizawa.”
I open my eyes, turning my body so I was facing him. The Pro was sitting in one of the small hospital chairs. “Wait, I’m not supposed to know that.” I sigh before turning around to face the wall, lying on my side. “My name is not Kayano Kaori, it is, or was, Kayla Gold. In that life, I had died after getting trapped in a house as it caught fire. And the most shocking part, I had been born in the world of one of my brother's favorite mangas. He held it so dear that he was the reason I began watching the anime. And now I had been reincarnated in its world, the world of My Hero Academia. I mean I knew Aizawa looked familiar… heh… what a sick joke.”
We didn’t speak for a while. He just sat on the chair as I stayed quiet on my bed. I mean, what would I say? In another circumstance, I would have been delighted to mean one of my favorite members of the MHA cast. On the other hand, I just remembered that I had burned to death, been born again in an anime, and just lost my parents to the same fire that brought all my memories back. Now that I think about it, I died at 19 in my past life, and now I’ve been thrown into the body of a 9-year-old.
“How long has it been?” The words left my mouth before I could stop them. I heard Aizawa straighten in his chair. “It’s been two weeks since you were brought to the hospital.” I grabbed the railing on the side of the bed and tried to push myself into a seated position. Noticing my actions, Aizawa got up to help. After ensuring I was comfortable, he knelt in front of me. “Are you sure you want to be moving around this early? No one will blame you if you want to take it slow.” I choose to ignore the question. “Have I been sedated for two weeks?”
Aizawa raised an eyebrow at my deflection but decided to answer. “You arrived at the hospital in a fragile state so the doctors choose to put you in a medically induced coma. You woke up yesterday before they had to sedate you again.” I thought back to when I first woke up, back when I was still the oblivious Kayano Kaori, a 9-year-old who had just lost her parents. I mean I am still Kayano Kaori, I’m no stranger to reincarnation after all. The only difference is that I have all my memories of my past life as a 19-year-old Kayla Gold who just happened to be born into a world of pure fiction. Guess it’s not fiction anymore.
I look at Aizawa, keeping my voice down. “Sorry about that. I guess I did freak out a bit much.” Then I remembered activating my quirk. “I didn’t hurt anyone did I?” He shook his head. “That’s good.” I let out a sigh of relief. “Do you mind if I sit here?” The man asked, gesturing to the empty part of the bed next to me. “Not at all.” Aizawa got up and sat next to me. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t tempted to lean onto his shoulder, but I had just started coming to terms with the fact I was in an anime.
“Kaori,” I turned my head to look at him. “Can I ask you a question?” I nod. “What can you recall about your quirk.” I let my head fall down as holding it up for this long was getting exhausting. Quickly, I think back on Kaori’s memories trying to find a suitable answer. “I think my quirk is a mix as I was able to create my mother's shield as well as pull electricity like my father.”
“So you do remember draining the hospital of power.” Heh, I let out a small laugh. “Mr. Aizawa? I’m pretty sure I was quirkless as I know I couldn’t use my ‘quirk’ before.”
“That’s true. Most kids awaken their quirks at the age of 4, but you happened to awaken yours a the age of 9, almost 10. And while late-bloomers aren’t impossible, awakening this late is rare.”
After that, we just sat there. From what I knew about Aizawa from the anime, he seemed like the quiet type at first and always spoke with short answers. But it’s thanks to the anime, I also know how caring Aizawa is with the people he cares about. “I know he hasn’t really been a part of my life because of his job as an Underground Hero, which I should not know. But I’m wondering if he’s staying silent for my sake. After all, to the outside world, I’m just a traumatized 9-year-old who just lost her parents in a horrific accident… To be fair, I’m still pretty traumatized. Let’s see… just how much my anime knowledge can help me here.”
“Oji-san…” I felt Aizawa tense beside me. “What’s going to happen to me now?” The man took a breath before he answered. “I have a plan moving forward, but I have to wait for it to be approved before I can tell you. Is that okay?” I give a small nod before finally gathering the courage to do something had always wanted. Gently, I lean my head against Aizawa’s shoulder. Slowly, he brought his arm around me and gave a small squeeze.
✧✦✧
This action made me realize that I had to stop thinking about these people as characters from a manga. I don’t know how or why, but I had been born in their world. Everything, and everyone, was real. And this man was my only family left.
Sometime later in the day, Aizawa left saying that he had to do something for work and I was left alone in my hospital room, fully accepting my situation. I had 5 days left before I turned 10 and even though it sounded so short, I knew it would seem like forever. Aizawa made sure to visit at least once a day. Even with a busy schedule of a workaholic hero like him, he stayed for at least an hour. One day, the creepy evil quirk doctor Garaki Kyudai came at the hospital's request. I didn’t know what name he was going under at the time. All I knew was that I needed to play cool and not let AFO’s pawn notice anything, so I just stayed quiet the entire time he was there.
Later, when Aizawa got to the hospital, I told him about Garaki… well obviously not everything. I only said that I got bad vibes from him, that he was creepy, and some other stuff a 9-year-old would say. At first, he didn’t take me seriously. I didn’t know what else to do at that point, and I really wanted to get him sooner than season 6, so I might have let out a little lie. I told him that I had asked Garaki what his favorite thing was and he said that it was creating black fog out of white clouds. Aizawa still didn’t take me seriously but said he would look into it. I’m pretty sure he said that just to try and appease me.
Soon, the day of my 10th birthday arrived. And I awaited Aizawa’s decision.
✧✦✧
As soon as I felt the warm rays of sunlight land on my eyes, I pulled the blanket off of my legs and took a walk around. Even though only one week had passed, I had gotten accustomed to the feeling of being young again. I opened the door to my room only to be immediately greeted by a nurse standing in front of the door. “Hello,” I say, looking up at her. “I wanted to ask if I could take a quick walk around.”
“Of course,” The lady said cheerfully. “Let’s just get you changed.” She let herself into the room and began showing me some options of what she had brought for the day. The nurse laid out three kinds of hospital wear on the bed. “Which one would you like the wear.”
I tried not to leave a curt smile on my face. “I may be 10 in this world but don’t think I don’t know what you’re doing. It’s my birthday after all.” I looked over the options. One was a vibrant pink gown, another light blue, but the third option definitely called to me. Not only was it purple, but it had pants. I pointed it out to the nurse. She smiled. “Good choice.” She said, helping me to put it on. Once I finished, I ran straight for the door. “Wait!” The nurse grabbed my arm as she caught up to me. “Damn, these 10-year-old legs!” I stared at her.
“Can I please go outside? My uncle said he’d be here today and I want to wait for him.” I wailed in the most adorable voice I could muster. I knew why she was stalling me, but I couldn't help it. The nurse held her hands up in surrender. “Of course, you can go outside. Let’s just play one game first. You get to pick.” She smiled.
“Oh, you poor unfortunate soul.” I grinned. “You have no idea what you have unleashed.” Laughing, I answered her. “We should have a race.” The nurse looked confused. “A race?” She looked around. “Are you sure we can have a race in h-” “Race you to the cafeteria!” Immediately, I jumped for the door and swung it open. Summoning a small violet plate I could stand on, I held on and began to send myself flying through the hospital halls. Leaving a screaming nurse behind. I knelt on the circle and held the edge. “ God this is amazing!”
The first time I had been left alone, I checked all over the room for security cameras. After I was sure there were none, I spent any free time I had trying out my new quirk. Pretty soon, I got really good at creating a small disk, and I grew it throughout the week. I couldn’t make a full-on barrier shield like my mom, but this would have to do.
“Aizawa’s not gonna let this down once he finds out.” I thought to myself. But you see, with the wind blowing in my face and the looks on people’s faces, that talk might be worth it. I raced around a corner and look straight ahead at the doors to the cafeteria. “If my calculations are right… there should be a surprise party right behind those doors. If I could just-” Next thing I knew, the disk I was flying on disappeared below me. “Speak of the devil.”
I braced myself for the hard crash onto the floor as I had been going a little too fast. Instead of hitting the tile however, I found myself falling into the arms of a very confused, and potentially angry, Aizawa Shouta. I let out a small gulp as I stared into his red eyes. “Hi… oji-san… you look… well rested today…” I said sheepishly. “Damn, you!! You know Aizawa never sleeps!!” He gave an unconvinced look. “Now what is an injured girl-” His eyes flashed bright red. I inhaled sharply. “-Doing flying around a hospital.”
“Heh…” His eyes lever left, waiting for an answer. “Well… I was only racing my nurse to the cafeteria.” Behind us, I started to hear a certain lady's panting and heavy breathing. “Mr. Aizawa Sir, I apologize!” The nurse gave a low bow as both I and Aizawa turned to look. “I underestimated her determination to get to you.” He looked back at me. “Now what exactly were you planning to do?”
I have a nervous smile as I crawled out of his arms. You know, for a 10-year-old, I was tiny. “I only wanted to surprise you at the cafe.” I said, grabbing his hand as I pulled the both of us toward the door. “But I also wanted to see if my deduction was correct.” I placed my free hand on the doorknob. “Because if I am-” I opened the door.
“SUPRISE!!!” Multiple voices rang out as several confetti cannons blew into the air. I smiled at Aizawa. “ -there should be a party right behind these doors.” He gave a small smile back before picking me up and placing me on his shoulders. “Okay, little Ms. Detective. Let’s go enjoy your birthday.”
Now Aizawa was 183cm, or 6’0ft, in height. From his shoulders, I could see everyone. I gave him a small pat on the head to get his attention. “Let’s go over there,” I said while pointing toward the doctor I had met when I first arrived. As soon as he saw me, I yelled. “Hi, Mr. Asato.” I waved. The man gave a big smile and waved back. “Are you excited Kaori-chan? You’re getting discharged tomorrow after all.”
“I am,” I say grinning. “But I am a little concerned about where I am going to stay.”
“About that,” I felt Aizawa place his hands on my waist, bringing me back down. “Do you remember the plan I told you about a few days ago?” I nod. “I spoke to a few people about it and asked a few of my connections and they approved.” He knelt down to my level. “Kaori, how would you like to live with me?”
I felt my heart start to race at the idea of living with the Pro Hero. I fold my arms together. “I have a few questions to ask first.”
“Go ahead.”
“Are you going to act as my caretaker or is this a full-on adoption?”
Aizawa hesitated for a bit. I mean, I can’t really blame him. What kind of ten-year-old asks a question like this after a traumatic experience? “Think of it like this. It will be a niece living with her uncle.”
“So like Peter Parker’s parents.” “Okay, second question. What do you want me to call you? Should I keep calling you Oji-san… or…” I hesitated a bit. “Would you prefer a more familiar term?” “I know that Aizawa will basically be taking on the role of a father, but I can’t help but call him one so close to the death of my biological parents. Even if I recently got my past life back, I still have memories of before.”
“You can call me whatever you want.” He didn’t hesitate this time, understanding my conflicted thoughts. I take a deep breath. “One more question. Are we going to change my surname?”
I watched the man think it over before answering right away. “That is also up to you to decide.
“I suppose the reason he had to get permission is because of his job as an underground hero. If he wasn’t ‘underground’ and just a regular hero, I might change my surname. But since he doesn’t like media attention, if people think I’m directly related to him, that might be a problem.” I place my left hand on my scar, suddenly self-conscious about it since many people were staring at me while waiting for my answer. I look down. “I hope it’s okay with you, but I think I want to keep my name the way it is for now.”
“Kaori,” He placed a hand on my cheek, making me look at him. “I’m happy as long as you are happy. Let’s go enjoy your birthday.” Aizawa looked at me with a gentle smile. And while I knew the sight before me was rare, I wished It would happen all the time. I knew about Shirakumo and the impact of his death. A death caused by the main antagonist AFO. Just the thought of him brought back many memories of hatred I had for the character. “Damn my brother for spoiling that.”
“Kaori!!” I turned to the caller, spotting a nurse holding a cake. Without hesitation, I grabbed Aizawa’s hand from my face and began dragging the both of us. I may be 19 mentally, but I haven’t been able to eat a single sweet during my time here, and I was craving. Just before I got to the cake, however, Aizawa picked me up and placed me on a chair on the other side of the room. “Oji… why!” He didn’t answer as I had to wait for the cake to get to where I was.
Placing the cake on the table in front of me, I began to notice all the details it had. Of course, it was purple. I had mentioned to the staff that it was my favorite color. But what I began to see was that they took note of other things I liked. Lilies and Lavender littered the cake as white icing droplets and swirled filled in any unnecessary space. On the top was a single candle. Below it was a chocolate oval with my name written in gold icing. “Thanks everyone.” I smiled as a guy holding a lighter lifted his arm to light the candle.
The smile I had on my face disappeared as I felt my body freeze. Time seemed to slow as I watched his hand approach the candle in front of my face. I could hear every click of the lighter as he tried to get it to work. “Great, I think I have an absolute fear of fire…. Aw man, what about Shoto?”
The guy finally managed to get the lighter to work as a small orange flame burst from its tip. I tried to hold back a flinch, squeezing onto Aizawa’s hand as I tried to fight the urge to get back. He immediately noticed my discomfort and was about to wave the guy off before I stopped him. “Wait,” I said, just as he raised his hands to get the lighter away. “Light the candle… I can do this.”
The man holding the lighter seemed to realize his error and gave a small apology before lighting the candle. I stared at the orange flame, so small, so seemingly harmless. “Give it enough fuel, and it can destroy your life.” I knew it was stupid, especially for someone whose mental age is 19, but I thought of a wish. I pressed my hands together and bowed my head to the flame. “I wish to be a hero who can forgive, save, and heal.” Raising my head, I looked at the small flame once more, an image of my burning mother flashed in my mind, but I pushed it down. Being scared by fire is fine but being scared but one as small as this is not. Quickly, I blew out the candle.
Cheers erupted from the staff afterward, as if I had accomplished a legendary act. I looked up at Aizawa who asked, “What did you wish for?” Normally, I would have told since I didn’t believe in the whole ‘A-wish-doesn’t-work-if-you-say-it rule’ but since I had been reincarnated into an anime and anything was possible, I couldn’t take that chance. I gave a bright smile before saying. “If I tell you, it won’t come true.” “Plus I’m sure if I did, you would try everything in your power to stop me.”
✧✦✧
I remember the rest of the day going a little something like this. After eating the cake, I decided to show Aizawa and the rest of the staff what I could with my quirk. I had to admit that I had been practicing whenever I was left alone which didn’t sit well with my uncle but hey, what could he do about it? Anyways, it was fun zipping around the cafe on a transparent violet disk. I think I might have given Aizawa a few extra grey hairs that day.
After I landed, a staff member came up to me and told me that the color of my shield was a color called Electric Violet. I laughed at the irony considering the two quirks mine came from. At the end of the day, Aizawa said bye one last time and told me to get enough sleep. He explicitly told me not to use my quirk, and I obliged. He said he would come back the next morning to pick me up and take me to his home.
And while I didn’t use my quirk that night, I might have stayed up thinking about what I would do in this world. Obviously, I knew I would do everything in my power to join the Hero Course of U.A. But I didn’t only want to save the heroes, I wanted to save everyone. And that included the LOV. Just thinking about some of their backstories made me realize how much of a flaw this society had.
I went to bed that night thinking about how I could make a brighter tomorrow. You know, like every other 10-year-old in the world. And while my knowledge of this world is limited to only what has been shown in the anime, I think I’ll do just fine. After all, I would do anything to save this world of heroes.