Kotetsu is ten when he decides he wants to be a hero, and is ten when he meets a little boy that reminds him of a sheep. It all happens on a chance vacation to Sternbild - something so different than the countryside he was used to. A place where he could blend in and pretend he wasn't a NEXT for a while, until that faithful day.
But now, Kotetsu wants to be a hero - wants to help people like Mr. Legend. He'd be a different person when vacation ended, that was for certain! But to be the new him, he needed to act now in Sternbild.
That's why he helps a boy with fluffy, sheep-like hair up. Kotetsu helps him wipe his tears, and makes sure the scrapes on his knees aren't too bad. He feels proud of himself, already, but he can take it further.
"Do you need help getting home?" He asks, trying to puff out his chest like a real hero.
"Ah, no, I should be okay," the boy replies, a bit timid but still quite sure. "Thank you, though."
"O-oh, uh, then be safe getting home!" Kotetsu says, hands on his hips.
He waits until the boy is out of sight, and then heads back to the hotel himself. That went… okay. Not amazing, but he's still pretty proud of how it turned out. Maybe he could do even better the next day!
But the next day, he just runs into that boy again. This time, it seems like he's waiting for Kotetsu.
"There you are!" The boy says, and Kotetsu realizes he's probably just a little younger than him. "I wanted to thank you for yesterday!"
"Hehe, no problem!" Kotetsu throws his hands behind his head with a grin. "I wanna do my best to help people."
"Oh, me too," the boy smiles. "I can't turn a blind eye to bad guys! That's what my Papa says."
"Your dad is really smart!" Kotetsu chirps.
"He is!" He nods. "Oh, uh, by the way. I wanted to ask your name, since you helped me out…"
"Kotetsu!" He holds out a hand. "Who're you?"
The boy takes it and shakes it. "I'm Yuri, nice to meet you."
From there, Kotetsu went to the street where he met the sheep-like boy every day. Of course, vacation wasn't going to last forever. Both he and Yuri knew that eventually he was gonna leave… But for now, it was enough for the kids.
Would be nice to have something to remember Yuri by when he left, though. He's thinking on that, browsing a convenience store for something matching to buy for them, when Yuri shows up.
"I found you," Yuri says, hands behind his back. "I thought I wouldn't see you before you left, thank goodness."
"I was gonna come say hi," Kotetsu says, trying to think up a little lie. "I, u-uh, just wanted to get a snack, first!"
"Oh, Yuri says, seemingly a bit embarassed. "Well, um, I have something I want to give you, so I had to find you first."
"Huh?" Kotetsu tilts his head to the side. "Did you buy me something?"
"Uh, I made it myself, actually," Yuri holds it out.
A lopsided tiger keychain, definitely made by the hands of a six-year-old. There's also a note of some sort, and when he reads it over, he realizes it's a phone number. The writing is nice, so Yuri's mom or dad must have written it down for him.
"Awesome!" Kotetsu grins. "I'll call you as soon as I get home, okay?"
"Okay," Yuri nods, and then shows he made himself a sheep keychain - probably because Kotetsu keeps comparing him to a sheep - that's really cute. Kotetsu doesn't know if Yuri likes being called cute of if he's too old for that, though, so he keeps it to himself.
"Oh, one more thing!" Kotetsu says. "Let's meet in person as heroes one day, okay?"
Yuri blinks a few times, but smiles and nods. "Okay. Yeah… that sounds fun. Let's be heroes together."
"Like Mr. Legend."
"Like Mr. Legend…!"
They part ways that day, and part ways for a long time. Kotetsu calls him on the phone when he gets home - does so once a week. Yuri picks up every time, always willing to talk. At least, he does for the first while. Up until Yuri probably hits his upper teens. Then, he just stops picking up.
Then, the phone number goes out of service. Kotetsu has nothing left connecting him to Yuri is the keychain. Still lopsided, but kept on his keys or phone or whatever else he has to keep it on at the time.
Tomoe talks about how cute it is, when they start getting closer. A tiger, just like the kanji in his name. He guesses that he must have been thinking about it - just like Tomoe did when she gives him the idea for his hero name.
From there, though, things kinda fade in his mind. Yuri still matters, but it's been a long time. Soon the charm just becomes a part of him and his look, like anything else. Nothing he thinks about, but something he's happy to talk on if prodded about it.
But less and less people ask about it as time goes on. And little Yuri starts to become nothing more than a distant memory. A fond one, but a distant memory nonetheless. One he can't just think on all the time - not when there's more to think about.
His new partner, Barnaby, changes that, though.
"What's with that phone charm?" Barnaby asks one day. "Did you throw it together on a whim?"
"From a childhood friend," Kotetsu replies, grin on his face. "I actually got it here in Sternbild - same year I decided I would be a hero!"
Barnaby rolls his eyes. "I'm sure that friend loves that you're still carrying it around."
"No clue, actually," Kotetsu admits. "I haven't talked to Yuri in years, haven't seen him in more."
"Yuri, huh?" Barnaby thinks for a moment. "Do you know his last name?"
"Uh… nope," he shakes his head. "Why?"
"I thinl that's Justice Petrov's first name. Any connection, you think?"
"Nah, no way!" Kotetsu replies. "Why would you even think of something like that?"
Barnaby smiles at him, one of those smiles that makes his skin crawl a bit. "It would be ironic if that friend of yours was the one sentencing all your fines, that's all."
Kotetsu sighs, not finding it nearly as funny. "I shouldn't have asked…"
