NeonHorizon: Here's Hawks trying to carefully win Kaere's trust...
A hero. There's a hero standing in front of my apartment. Why? Why is he here? I didn't do anything. Not recently…right? So what is he doing here? Is he looking for Dabi? Does he know that Dabi stays here sometimes? What am I going to do? Should I talk to him?
Kaere lowered her head, picking at the skin around one of her fingernails and trying to decide what to do. She had never been face to face with a hero before. She had so far managed to stay out of trouble, despite treating the wounds of criminals and villains. Police never questioned her or even looked at her twice on the street.
Fear made her stomach feel like it was twisting in violent knots, the taste of bile rising to the back of her throat. She lifted a hand, chewing at the loose skin around her thumbnail, and she chanced a glance in his direction. The winged hero was still smiling gently, but now he was approaching her.
"What's your name?" he asked, using a light and friendly sort of tone.
She hesitated, but determined it would be better to answer. It would be less suspicious. "M-my name is Kaere," she mumbled.
"Kairi?" The blond hero stopped about two feet in front of her, cocking his head to the side. Behind him, the sunlight caught his wings in a way that made the feathers a brilliant shade of red.
"No…um…it's Kaere." She peered up at him through her bangs and felt her breath catch in her throat. He was only a few inches taller than her, but it felt like the number two hero was practically towering over her in this moment. "Y-you're…?"
"Hawks." His smile grew a little sheepish and he rubbed the back of his neck. "So you're probably wondering why I'm here."
Kaere realized that she was staring and quickly dropped her gaze, trying to focus somewhere else. She felt like a rabbit; cowering from a predatory bird that had just cornered it. Even if he was being nice, her heart was racing and she was so frightened that she was afraid she might vomit.
Dabi. He's here because he must've seen Dabi come here after they met up. What am I going to do? I don't want to go to prison! I haven't technically done anything, but he could probably take me in just for associating with Dabi. I'm aiding and sheltering a serial killer! What am I going to do?!
"Are you okay?"
Her eyes lifted again and she took a quick step back as she realized that he was closer than before. "I-I'm fine. Sorry. Um…I don't know anything about what you want to know about so I can't really help you. I'm sorry."
Hawks tilted his head and quirked an eyebrow. "What?"
"You…probably have questions about something that happened in the area or something, right? I'm sorry, but I mostly stay in so I haven't seen much and I haven't heard anything so-"
"Did you already eat dinner?" When the girl's eyes widened, he offered a warm smile. "I mean, I haven't had dinner yet. You want to grab some food with me, Kaere-chan?"
"K-Kaere-chan…?" She felt blood rush to her face, but she was still fearful. Even if he was addressing her like a friend, he was still a hero and he was still probably there to get information on Dabi.
His smile faltered. "Sorry. Too casual?"
"N-no. I just…no one calls me that. No one's ever really called me that. It's usually just "Kaere" or…" She bit her lower lip and shook her head, ashamed that she was about to blurt out her surname. The less he knows, the better!
The hero's smile brightened once more. "So are you hungry? I know a good place. Great food, not too crowded." He offered a hand and leaned in a bit.
She took a moment to consider her options. If she refused, he would definitely suspect something. If she agreed, that meant delaying her mission for the night; getting supplies for her medical kit and stocking up on food for the apartment. So far, Hawks seemed moderately nonthreatening. Though he had yet to tell her what his intentions were and that was what really scared her.
Finally, Kaere shook her head again. "I c-can't. I'm sorry, Hawks-san. I have…work." She bowed and tried to edge around him without brushing against his left wing. "It…it was nice to meet you, though. Please take care."
Walking at a brisk pace, she neared the corner of her building. Her heart was hammering in her chest and she planned to sprint the second that she was out of his line of sight. If Dabi knows that the number two hero was at the apartment, he'll want to know why and he'll blame me for him knowing where we live. I don't want to think about what he'll do if he finds out. Hawks-san is nice, but I just…can't have Dabi mad at me. Not to mention…if he told the rest of the League…
She was torn from these thoughts as a hand grasped her arm and slammed her against the side of her building. Kaere's teeth closed on her tongue, hard, and it gushed blood. She trembled and looked up at the man now gripping her neck.
"I need you to patch up my buddy. He got real messed up doing a job so you're gonna come with me and fix him," the tall, muscled stranger commanded.
Kaere's glasses had slipped down when she was thrown against the wall, sitting low on the bridge of her nose. She stared up at the man through her bangs, a sick feeling settling in her stomach. "Th-this isn't…how you ask for help."
"I'm not asking for anything! I'm telling you that you're gonna help! Maybe if you do a good job, I'll let you go afterwards." He grinned and leaned down so his face was inches from hers.
"That's not cool." The voice came from behind the man and made him tense in surprise, the hand around Kaere's neck tightening. A pair of bright red wings spread out behind the man as Hawks issued a warning. "You should let her go. I'm not on the clock right now, but you're messing up my dinner plans."
She was released and the girl slid down the wall, shaking so much that she could no longer stand. Kaere quickly curled up in a ball and closed her eyes tightly, anticipating a fight or at least some sort of struggle. Instead, she heard the attacker fleeing. Footsteps approached her and the hero crouched down.
"Hey. Are you okay?" Hawks waited for her to look at him before he cocked his head to the side curiously. "What was that about?"
"I-I'm a medic. So…I get a lot of requests. It's usually not like that…but…he was probably desperate." Kaere was stumbling over her words, slurring with a mouthful of blood from where she bit her tongue. Thankfully, her quirk soon had the bite healed.
"Hm." He stood and looked off in the direction the man had run, a frown settling on his face briefly before he half-grinned. "Okay, then that settles it. I'll be your bodyguard for the night. If he comes back, I'll scare him off again."
"What…?" Kaere stared at the hand he offered to her and reluctantly accepted it. His skin felt warm against hers as he pulled her to stand and she felt a flicker of disappointment when he released her. "Bodyguard? I'm just…I'm getting some supplies and coming home after that," she protested.
"You've got time for dinner, right?"
She was amazed by the cute, pouting expression he made and bowed her head, trying to keep him from noticing the rush of blood to her face. "I…I guess, maybe," the girl conceded. "I can't stay out for long, but…just a little while…?"
Walking beside him down the street, she felt even more self-conscious than usual. Keeping her head lowered, anxiously chewing at the skin around her right middle fingernail. Of course, people recognized Hawks and greeted him. He was the number two hero, after all. He was quite popular with civilians.
Having dinner…with a hero. Walking with a hero. If anyone in the League of Villains knew I was doing this, I'd never live it down. They'd all tease me about this and tell me that he's using me for information. Is he using Dabi? Does anyone else know that Dabi's been talking to him?
She was confused. Dabi was definitely the reason for Hawks approaching her, but he had yet to even mention the villain. If anything, it seemed more like he had just wanted to ask her to hang out. This was even more confusing since they had never met before. Whatever the case, he seemed to be having a good time.
Kaere was a little envious of his carefree attitude. He greeted other people with a smile that settled so naturally on his face that she could tell he never had to force it. He talked without stumbling over his words or blushing. He never seemed to feel awkward when talking to someone that approached them.
I wish…I could be that confident. She tasted blood and frowned, realizing that she had inadvertently bitten too deeply into the skin around her nail. Licking the blood away, she stopped her quirk from healing it. The pain was a good distraction from her nervousness.
Sitting across from him at a table, in a private room, she was starting to feel scared again. Kaere was too anxious to even look at him. She was sure that he would tell her that she was going to prison or that he would start asking questions about Dabi. Instead, he surprised her with a different question.
"So what kind of food do you like?"
She jumped a little when he broke the silence in the room and looked at him through her bangs. "Um…I-I'm not really picky when it comes to food, but…uh…I like spicy stuff a lot. When I make cup ramen…I always add sweet chili sauce to it. Honestly, I could…probably eat it straight…the heat never really bothers me and I like the mix of flavors and…oh. S-sorry; I'm probably boring you."
Hawks beamed, leaning his chin in his hand. "Not really. I think it's kind of cool. You really like sweet and spicy stuff, then?" He saw her timidly nod and he tilted his head a bit to the side. "Do you usually cook?"
"Ah…well, sometimes. I usually make cup ramen…if I do cook. Most of the time, I eat meal replacement bars…or snack food. Just because it's easier to eat while I'm working or…while I'm doing research."
He nodded, appearing genuinely interested. "There's not enough time in a day, right? I feel like I never have any free time."
"No, but…what you're doing is important, though. You're a hero. At least your time is well spent." Kaere bit her lower lip and realized that she had been leaning toward him, both hands on the table. The girl lowered herself so she was sitting down again and lifted a hand to push her glasses up. "I'm sorry."
"What're you sorry about?"
"I invaded your personal space."
"I don't mind." Hawks flashed her a grin, his wings tucking against his back a bit tighter. "You help people, right? So your time isn't exactly wasted," he pointed out.
She slouched and ran her fingertip along the right side of her glasses frame. "I'm…not a doctor or even a nurse. What I do really doesn't matter much. I help people, but they're not always good people. And I don't help good people often enough to even justify this as good work. I wouldn't say my time is wasted, but it's just…not as helpful as being a hero. And you're the number two hero so you're really a pretty big deal."
The hero heard her voice growing softer as she continued to talk and he leaned toward her a little to try to hear her more clearly. "You're not a villain." It was a statement, but it sounded more like he was saying it to himself than to her. As if he was confirming it to himself that she was not a villain.
Her cheeks burned and she shook her head. "No…I'm not…I mean, I'm not officially a member. Not like Dabi." Kaere forced herself to look up from the table's surface and she found him watching her intently. "I-I know that you only wanted to talk to me because you saw me watching…a few nights ago. I don't know why you were talking to Dabi or…what your relationship is, but…I'm not an official member like he is."
"You're not?" He cocked his head to the side in a curious, innocent sort of way. "So are they making you help them?"
She bit the side of her tongue and gave a tiny nod. "I-I was asked to help once and…when they found out about my quirk…well they want me to join, but I haven't given them my answer yet. I'm n-not good at dealing with people for very long. I get fidgety and I start to…withdraw pretty quickly. I'm not good enough to join them, but they want me to so I said I'd think it over and I just…don't know."
Hawks leaned his chin in his hand again and frowned. "You feel pressured."
"Yes! That's…that's it, exactly! I feel pressured to join because…I don't really feel like I fit anywhere, but they're offering me a place with them. I was told my quirk can really help them and when they said I'd be helping…"
He saw her seem to slouch further, withdrawing away from him as if she intended to curl up into a ball. The hero offered her a warm smile. "You don't have to be scared, okay? I'm not going to arrest you. I mean, I'm working with him."
"You're…working with Dabi?" Her voice was just above a whisper as she stared up at him through her long, dark brown bangs.
The hero nodded, still appearing cheerful. "Yep. So we'll probably be working together at some point. That's why I wanted to meet with you; I want to get to know you better first. You seem pretty trustworthy, though."
He's working with Dabi? Is he spying on the heroes for the League? I didn't even realize. Kaere attempted a half-smile, but it was difficult. "I…look forward to working with you, Hawks-san."