Chapter Text
With shuffling steps, Eris' feet moved across the carpeted floor. She was far too tired and drained to lift them properly. The training was hard, especially in Izuku-sensei's classes. It demanded so much more of her than the occasional training sessions she had with Mirio for fun. Which was probably also because he could never really fight her, having already taken an absolute shine to her on the first day. And as much as she appreciated being loved so much, she still wished that he would be more serious about it from time to time. That he would finally challenge her so that she could prove what she was capable of. Because on some days, she found it hard to believe in herself and her quirk. In what she was able to achieve with it. Because that's exactly what she wanted to do. She wanted to make a difference. She wanted to be a hero, just like Lemillion and Deku. Just like Yagi and Aizawa were. She wanted to accomplish great things. Save people, just the way she herself had been saved.
But that should be thought about another day. Even if it was tough to leave those feelings behind. After all, her time had not come yet. But it would, she was sure of that. She held on to that. Eri gripped the handle of her backpack tighter and huffed. She didn't want to worry Aizawa if she continued to arrive at his place with these gloomy thoughts, feeling down. After all, today was supposed to be a happy day. The one day a week that she went to Aizawa's room, ate together and talked about school and work. Almost like a real family. And even though Eri had broken with that tradition some time ago, moving into her own room and living her own life, Aizawa was and remained the most important person to her. After all, it was he who took care of her when no one else did. Who gave her a sense of love in one of his warm and protective embraces. This person, who was like a father to her, even if Aizawa would certainly shy away from that thought. That's why he didn't have to know what he actually was to her. It should remain her own little secret. It made her giggle briefly. Because, it was far too obvious to be a real secret. Even others could see what connected them. Even though Aizawa would snort defensively whenever someone referred to her as his daughter. At the same time, she could see the brief glint in his eye, which disappeared as quickly as it had appeared. And that was more than enough for her.
“You've lost your mind!” – Eri stopped abruptly. She knew the voice that was so upset and echoing loudly through the hallway, even if she had never heard it in that tone before. – "Me? I've lost my mind?" – What the hell was going on here? Another voice, which she knew only too well, sounded and gave her an uneasy feeling. Whatever it was that she heard, it couldn't be good. Even worse was the fact that these voices were coming from Aizawa's room. And for a fleeting moment, Eri struggled with herself, wondering whether she should slowly move away from the door she was standing in front of, certain that this conversation was not meant for her ears. But something in her moved. It made her take the last step forward and take the door knob in her hand. As unnoticed as possible, she opened the door a crack to take a quick look inside. And indeed, her ears had not deceived her. In this dark room, with the closed curtains and the little bit of light coming from a floor lamp in the corner, she saw Aizawa. Clearly upset, he had his back to her and his hands in his hair. – “I don't think you realize how serious the situation is!” Aizawa almost shouted. His voice trembled as he stood in the middle of the room. In front of him, hunched over and leaning on a cane, stood Yagi. Eri almost couldn't breathe when she looked at him in the dim light. Sick and emaciated, he stood there. So much thinner than just a few years ago. In the good years he had after his injury. The years in which he was able to regain at least some of his old self. To gain some weight along with the will to live.
Aizawa had told her a lot about Yagi's past. About all his great fights and the sacrifices he had made. About the courage and devotion it had taken and about his smile. But there was nothing of that left in this man. Instead, his face was scrunched up. His forehead was deeply wrinkled and his lips were twisted into a narrow line. Eri didn't know what they were arguing about. But whatever it was, it was something serious. Something so serious that it made even Yagi raise his voice. Angry and hurt. With so much rage she didn't know him. – “I think I'm the one who understands it best!” – Yagi took a wavering step towards him. The hand that held his cane trembled. – “This is about me, after all!” – “And yet you're such an idiot! So much you don't even listen to what I have to say!” – Aizawa tried to reach out to him. To somehow grab him. To somehow shake him awake and convince him of what he was saying. But Yagi just raised his free hand in a defensive manner. No more than a simple gesture to show Aizawa that it was useless. – “I know exactly what you're trying to say. And the answer is no!” – Aizawa let out a frustrated sound. He knew that Yagi was stubborn. But this much? – “But she could-” – “Shota!” – Yagi's cane hit the ground with a loud stomp. – “Enough!” – “No, it's not! How can you say all that?” – Eri felt a lump in her throat when she heard Aizawa's voice. He was close to tears. Something that was rarely seen. And it hurt her so much to know that something in him was breaking right now. – “You're dying”
What? – “You're dying and act as if it were nothing. As if there were no way to stop it!” – Eri wished she hadn't heard the suppressed sob. She tried to repress it, soon on the verge of tears herself. – “And I've been doing that for many years, we both know that,” Yagi said, apparently untouched by his colleague's feelings. “Look at me!” – And Aizawa did. He looked at the man who had once been a symbol of peace a long time ago and of whom there was now nothing left but a bag of bones on a cane. – ”I am almost seventy years old. I have already lived longer than some heroes could dream of. Longer than many others ever have.“ – The tone of Yagi's voice sounded bitter. Almost regretful. Probably asking himself the question what made him so special that he of all people was allowed to experience this while so many of his comrades had long since passed away. – ”Dying is not the end of the world.” – It went quiet between them. Aizawa, struggling for composure, put his hands to his face, breathing heavily, only to wipe the tears from his face immediately afterwards. – “Not the end of the world?” he asked quietly into the silence, without receiving a reaction from Yagi, who returned his gaze. – “Do you think that's what the children were thinking when they found Midnight?” – Still no reaction. – “Or when Endeavor buried his son? When Todoroki lost his brother?” – Yagi couldn't help but now avoid his gaze. – “Do you think that was the first thing Bakugo thought when he learned what Edgeshot had done for him? Or when Midorya thought he had lost Bakugo?“ – "Shota" –”Because I can tell you, it's not what I felt when I saw Oboro die” – The name sounded familiar to her. She was sure that Hizashi had spoken of him. With just as much pain in his eyes as Aizawa carried in his voice. And at the same time with the request never to bring up this topic in front of Aizawa. Something inside her told her that it must mean a lot if Aizawa suddenly mentioned him. That there was something he was trying with all his might to get through to Yagi. But without success.
“I can't go through that again. Not if I can help it.“ –”Don't do this to yourself.“ –Yagi's voice sounded exhausted. Almost as if it wasn't the first time they had had this discussion. – ”It's the way of life. We all die someday and you have to accept that my time has come. Because the truth is that there is nothing you can do.” – "And that's exactly the point! I can! We can! Eri, she is-!" – "Eri is a child!" – Aizawa's words came to an abrupt halt. – ”And to drag her into this is perfidious of you! A girl who has already been through so much. Abused and locked up because of her quirk. We both swore, we swore to her that something like that would never happen to her again. That we would protect her. And I will. And that's why what you're trying to do is wrong. Let her be a child. A student learning to be a hero. Let her have the little peace we can give her.” – "But what if that's what's left?" – There was that suppressed sob again. And while it was still heartbreaking, it wasn't what was drowning Eris' thoughts in an endless vortex of questions. Instead, it was the 'how' that kept coming back to her. How could she help? How could she save Yagi's life? How could she? How? – “I know her quirk isn't fully developed yet. She still needs a lot of training, but I know she can do it. If she just rewinds your body to an earlier state, it might buy us some time. Just a few years. Just until we can find another way. Just until-“ – ”Until what, Shota?“– Yagi's gaze was hard and just as merciless. – ”Until time runs out again? Until we have this discussion again? Until you can convince me to make it even more years? And more and more and more?” – Yagi couldn't help but turn away from Aizawa. He couldn't look into those pleading eyes any longer. Bloodshot and watery. He just couldn't bear it. – “You're becoming irrational, Aizawa” – His cane dug deeper and deeper into the ground the more of his weight he put on it. He felt weak and tired. So much more than usual. He felt his muscles losing their strength, becoming shaky and likely to make him falter if he took even one more step forward. – “You're wrong. It's the most rational response to this situation. It's perfectly rational to want to save a person you love” – An unkind laugh rang out, unable to drown out the desperation that resonated within it. – “This is exactly why I told you back then that I can't return your feelings” – It was no more than a whisper after the laughter died away. – “You tend to lose your composure when you get emotional. And this is inevitable, you know that. Nevertheless, you have decided to throw yourself into an abyss rather than accept this fact. And not only that. You also have the selfishness to drag me down with you. Because you can't even let me die in peace.” – The hand around his cane tightened. Yagi's joints ached and his bones stood out uncomfortably due to the pressure.
“You mean, as selfish as it is of you to just want to die and leave those who care about you behind?” – With more strength than Yagi actually possessed, he turned to Aizawa. With so much anger in his eyes that it made Aizawa take a step back. – "That's what you think? That I want to die? That I want it to be like that?” – As if to emphasize his statement, Yagi opened his arms. Stretching them out, standing on his own for a brief moment. – “Do you think I like being just a shadow of my former self? The last, withered remnants of the great hero All Might? Walking with the help of a cane, isolated in this school because I can't manage to walk a mile straight? Feeling so ashamed of being so weak on some days that I have no choice but to use this damn wheelchair that was handed to me with pitying looks?” – His lungs hurt. All that talking only made him more and more drained. It sapped even more of his already limited energy. But by God, he would prevent himself falling into a coughing fit that would do nothing more than drench his own hands with blood. – “I don't want to die! But it's happening! Because none of us can stop it! Because it's what I chose when I took this injury upon myself! It's the life I chose. And it's the consequence of that! I'm dying! It's happening, Shota!” – "Don't say that" – "It's happening!" Yagi repeated with more emphasis. He wouldn't let Aizawa look away. – ”Maybe not today. Maybe not tomorrow. But maybe next week. Next month. Because it will happen!” – "Not if Eri-" – "That's enough!" – Aizawa flinched in fright. – "You just don't want to understand. That's why this discussion is over here" – That was it? Aizawa was supposed to just give up? Admit defeat and wait for Yagi to just drop dead one day? He couldn't do that. Everything in him refused to just accept that and silently watch. – “Toshi” – Aizawa tried to reach for him. To stop him from walking past him through that door. Because if he left now, he was sure that it would be too late for everything else. – “Stop it! I hate it when you say that” – As soon as Aizawa had grabbed his sleeve, he shook him off again. For the last time, Yagi caught his eye. Warningly. – “We're done here” – Yagi raised his cane threateningly a few inches above the ground in Aizawa's direction. As if he wanted to point a finger at him. – “And don't you dare say a word about this crazy idea to Eri. Do you understand?” – Without waiting for an answer, Yagi stormed off. At that moment, Eri also remembered that she had to get out of the door as quickly as possible if she didn't want to be caught eavesdropping. So she ran as fast as her legs would carry her down the hallway, completely forgetting to close the door she had opened, until she finally reached the end of the corridor and disappeared around the corner. She breathed heavily, clutching her backpack and trying to process what she had just heard. Yagi is dying. Aizawa is trying to prevent it. Eri could help.
Eri could help. Eri could help. And Aizawa believed in her. He trusted that she was the only one who could still stop this. And the realization of that sat in her stomach as heavy as a stone. It pulled her down. It tore her off her feet and violently made her slide along the wall to the ground. Her chest ached and it felt as if she was running out of air. Every possible thought flooded into her mind all at once. Her vision blurred and she felt dizzy. But however clouded her mind was by these things, there was one thought that repeated itself over and over again. Eri could help. Her time had come. This was the moment when she could show what she was capable of. And more importantly, it would save a life. Not just any life. Yagi's life. The life of the man the world adored. The one person Aizawa cared about most. And she couldn't risk disappointing him. Never again would she want to see that look in Aizawa's eyes. Never again hear that choked voice. Because if that was what it did to Aizawa, watching Yagi die, she didn't want to imagine what depths it would plunge him into if the day actually came. She had to stop it. Whatever it took, she wouldn't let Yagi die.
That was the decision she made. She took a deep breath and reached for the horn that stuck out of her forehead. It was small. Just too tiny and not nearly enough to successfully carry out what she had in mind. She knew that if she wanted to give Yagi more than just a few months, she would have to gather her strength. She would have to summon the power and focus it, even if that would set back her own training. She realized that she didn't have much time left, which meant that she had to take care of her Quirk as much as possible. She didn't yet know exactly how she would do that. It would be difficult, especially regarding the classes with Izuku-sensei. But somehow she would manage. Because that wouldn't stop a real hero. A real hero overcame such obstacles. And now it was time to be a real hero.
“Eri-chan?“ – Snapped out of her thoughts, Eri looked in the direction the voice had come from. Only to see Yagi, who looked at her with a concerned expression. His head tilted and still heavily leaning on his cane. – ”Toshi" – I hate it when you say that. – "Toshinori" – Yagi's expression changed. His eyebrows twitched for a brief moment before relaxing again, thereby suppressing a thought that must have just come to him. – “What are you doing here?” he asked gently, still with concern. And actually, that was a good question. How many minutes had she been sitting here before Yagi had managed to catch up with her? – “I was on my way to see Aizawa-sensei” – With difficulty, Eri pulled herself up again. She tried not to show what thoughts were going through her mind. – “But somehow training with Izuku-sensei was more exhausting than I thought” – She tried an embarrassed laugh. – “My legs gave out somehow and I needed a short break” – Eri could see how Yagi's eyes flickered towards Aizawa's room door. It was in clear view and this fact raised another doubting thought in Yagi. – “Should I get him to accompany you the last bit?” – “No, no. I think I have enough strength now to walk the last part alone.” – For a much too long moment, Yagi looked at her until his gaze became almost uncomfortable. She felt caught. And for a moment, she thought Yagi would confront her with her lie. Tell her that it was not okay to eavesdrop on adults. Even more, tell her that she should forget everything she had heard. That there was no use in wanting to help him. – “All right” – Eri looked up, met blue eyes that were still observing her intently. And then the moment was already over. Yagi turned away and indicated to leave. – “You know, I'm very proud of you,” Yagi's voice sounded again. He gave her a gentle smile. – “You will be a great hero one day,” he added and raised one of his bony hands to stroke her lovingly over the head. – “So take good care of yourself” – Why did it feel like a goodbye to Eri? – “I promise,” Eri choked out. Tears stung unpleasantly in her eyes. Because this was a goodbye. Yagi had told her what he had to say and gave her words that every dying man gave his loved ones. And it suddenly hurt so much more now that she saw with her own eyes that Yagi had made his peace with it.
“You should go now. Aizawa is probably waiting for you.“ – One last smile from Yagi and the hand in her hair had disappeared. He turned away, turned his back on her and walked away. –”You take care too!” she called after him, which drew a joyful laugh from him. “Always,” was his reply, without turning around. With steady steps forward, until he had disappeared. Eri took a deep breath. Gathered herself one last time and then also left. Without noticing how she had covered the distance, she opened the door to Aizawa's room again. She entered and spotted him at the kitchen counter, apparently preparing dinner. — “Aizawa-sensei?” she asked quietly into the room to get his attention. Which she managed when he turned his head towards her, only to turn it away again shortly after. Which didn't stop Eri from noticing the redness on his face. – “Sorry, dinner isn't ready yet. Why don't you sit down and tell me how your training went today?” – His voice sounded hoarse, even though he tried to hide it with a clearing of his throat. And Eri said nothing. She took off her shoes and put her backpack down in the hallway.
But instead of doing what Aizawa told her to do, she approached him. She stood close, until she was leaning against him. Without saying a word and without looking up at him. She knew Aizawa wouldn't want her to see his eye swollen from tears. So she didn't. She just leaned gently against him and enjoyed the silence. Just as Aizawa did. Pausing in what he was doing, he tilted his head, laid it on Eris' and was silent. And when she felt something wet on her forehead, she didn't say anything. She waited, several minutes, maybe hours, until whatever was touching her skin had dried.