Chapter Five: Eclipse
An unlikely pair made their way down Hosu General's halls, neither of the two particularly enjoying the other's company. The one being suffocated by his unique scarf of sorts still didn't understand why he extended an olive branch out to such a disrespectful brat; the one in cuffs had no clue why she grabbed onto the branch from a man who clearly hated her in the first place. Tension was the only thing the two had in common at that moment, putting both parties in rather agitated moods. The cuffed girl tailed the older man cautiously with her gaze averted to the bare walls, trust not particularly her strong suit. However, the man leading her onward made it extremely apparent that comfort zones were meaningless to him when he ushered her out of the room in the first place, forcing the cuffs onto her wrists. Her left wrist was still bruised from her previous episode, leaving the sour taste of disgust in her mouth for hours after. The brunette was hurt to know her self destructive tendencies hadn't relented, but found some strange sort of comfort in the man who could erase her quirk in the blink of an eye. Unknown to her, buried deep inside the man was a growing soft spot for the lonely girl, most likely the root of the olive branch he was presently extending out.
The stabilizer pills rattled in Ayumi's pocket, the girl slowly becoming more ticked off the farther they made it down the hall. She hated the constant reminder of her lack of strength, as it was humiliating, really, to have to need a special batch of pills just because she didn't have a handle on her quirk. She scowled, only able to feel sour after the events of the previous week continued to play on an endless loop in her mind, seeming to be her latest form of self inflicted torture. Avoiding such torture was usually Ayumi's specialty, as she preferred the sweet kiss of any stimulant or depressant to emotional pain of any magnitude.
Kinda pathetic that I have no control over my useless quirk.
Ayumi was lost in her melancholy flavored thoughts as her and the older man reached the parking structure of the facility. Although it was early morning, the structure was rather dim and damp, turning their shared silence into a rather eerie one. Once again, the girl's nerves went on the fritz as she realized the two were headed straight for a four door sedan parked in the back of the almost empty lot. Ayumi didn't like the idea of not knowing where the two were headed, so she abruptly stopped in her tracks.
The man sighed and turned around once he heard, his patience wearing extremely thin. Sending the girl a glare, he demanded, "Keep walking."
"Not until you tell me where we're headed. For all I know, you could be kidnapping me and I wouldn't even have a say in it." The dead look in her eyes told the man she was being completely serious.
"Just follow me. You're not going to regret it." The rugged man slowly plodded forward, heading to the vehicle seemingly without the slightest care whether Ayumi followed or not. Ayumi hated that about some people - how they could pull off such nonchalance and still completely have a handle on the situation. Either way, Ayumi continued forward, irritation evident on her features.One foot in front of the other, I guess. She kept her eyes glued to the floor, wishing she could just block her fearful thoughts out for a second. The brunette decided to do what she did best: distract herself. Focusing on her greenish legs, Ayumi admired how her skin looked in the dark lighting. But then again, she always looked better in the shadows.
"Buckle up."
Before Ayumi knew it, she was in the car, buckling herself in. Everything about the car made her antsy - the tinted windows, the coffee stains scattered all over the rug, the loose papers in the back seat. Ayumi wished she had her bag or at least something familiar to keep her grounded, but exposure was the best medicine for those who needed curing.
The wide eyed girl sat shot gun while the still relatively 'suspicious' man took the wheel. He blankly looked forward, hands on the wheel but gear still in park, as he said, "The name's Aizawa, but I'm sure you'll be referring to me as Eraserhead in the near future."
"As in you think I'll take up your offer?"
The man smirked, putting the vehicle into reverse as the two made their way onto the busy Hosu streets. "Did I imply that?"
Ayumi scowled, embarrassment setting in. "I don't know. Did you imply that when you erased my quirk the other day?" Quickly, the brunette averted her gaze, her inability to hold banter and brush things off obvious in the small space of the well lit car. Then again, the sunlight did bring out Ayumi's worst features - grotesque bruising, dead brown hair that was cut in jagged layers, whites of eyes turned red by burst blood vessels, and now apparently her cold heart. Ayumi's eyes softened when she caught Aizawa's smirk tighten and fall in the reflection of her window, the mood reverting back into the uncomfortable silence they had before. The man couldn't help but sigh and look back to the road; the girl couldn't help but notice this was a norm for him.
Guilt clawing at her for smashing Aizawa's attempt at conversation, Ayumi turned to him, and quietly spoke: "Look, I'm trying, okay? I've...just never really had people around, much less do things for me." She was met with silence, but supposed she deserved it. Pulling her lips into a thin line, Ayumi grimaced, choosing to focus on the fascinating task of tugging her lip rings, which she was still (for the record) surprised she had.
The thick silence might've been better than more words turned blows.
—
The disdainful duo had been walking for about half an hour, and Ayumi was beginning to think that Aizawa really was kidnapping her. The older man had parked the sedan in the middle of a recreational park's lot and had just begun to was from there. Although they passed several large intimidating office buildings and various stores with equipment, Aizawa just kept walking, eyes on whatever his "prize" was, eyes like dead bats still hanging on, almost listening even when in the afterlife. Actively keeping up a neutral look, it was hard to tell whether Aizawa was still hurt by Ayumi's sharp comments earlier that day. His hands were shoved into his pockets, giving the usually dark looking man the appearance of being at ease - one might venture and say he was enjoying himself. Yet, the man being at ease and others feeling at ease in his presence were two different things; one was a hero's job, and the other was a hero's ultimate struggle.
Ayumi didn't pay much mind to the rugged man in front of her, however, as instead her wide eyes took a field trip, rapidly focusing on one person then switching to something entirely different. She had forgotten the sensations being in public sober brought, her last time having been long before she was caught by the feds. Touching, smelling, seeing, thinking, and - on occasion - tasting, Ayumi wanted to experience the moment in its fullest, the way she never could when she was younger. It might've seemed like just a normal day for civilians on their way to do routine activities, but to Ayumi, this day radiated a type of glow that made it special to her.
"Hey, we're here," Aizawa barked out, holding an arm out to stop Ayumi from continuing further in her daze. The brunette let out a soft gasp as she took in the scenery - creamy stone walls followed by a tealish set of thinner walls, four connected, glassy towers with an appearance so striking it was as if they had just erupted from the ground, and a small blue arch that beckoned people to come in, the letters 'UA' at the top. In front of the pair stood UA, the top hero school of East Japan in all its glory.
Ayumi thought her day had a glow to it previously, but was now convinced it was shining, blinding her in a way that told her it was all to good to be true.
—
Two brunettes made their way through the crowded Tokyo streets, one shoving others out of the way, the other being dragged along helplessly. Ayumi was shocked that her mother was touching her, let alone actually taking her somewhere. She was unfamiliar with anything outside of the motel room's four walls, having been sheltered for the majority of her life. The seven year old couldn't help but smile, wondering if her mom had finally accepted her and the brown haired boy the two left at home. Was her mother kind under that cigarette decorated scowl? Even if it were just for a moment, Ayumi ignored the mother that left them nightly, the one that let them starve while she partied, and focused on the mother that was dragging her through the Tokyo streets with a grimace on her face.
Her mother remained silent during the trip, yet her grip on the girl progressively tightened as they got farther from the motel. Ayumi didn't pick up on the slight change, however, because the girl's quirk was making her go into overdrive in that moment. Five senses weren't enough for all of the stimulants rushing through her blood stream, the young girl's nerves ablaze like they never had been before. She enjoyed the waves of excitement her brain was sending through her body; the girl was beginning to hallucinate as well, vines and flowers creeping up the sides of buildings and encasing them in greenery. Ayumi giggled, as she began to foam at the mouth unknowingly.
She thought her mother might appreciate the view, so she called to the brunette in front of her, exclaiming, "Look, Mama! The flowers make it all look so pretty!" The woman turned and saw the state her daughter was in and scoffed, managing to pull the young girl harder than she already was. With a roll of her eyes, the older woman focused back on the road, making sure to put her green colored kid behind her.
Ayumi ignored it all, her warped reality keeping her attention. It seeped into her movements, the girl staggering down the street much like she'd seen her mother do the nights she flew the coop. She halted suddenly, however, when she laid eyes on four towers in the sky. The girl reached for them, wondering if she touched them she too could reach the sky. In that moment, Ayumi wanted to feel the clouds in her hands and see the buildings up close, but when she made a move towards them, her mother pulled her back roughly. The young girl's mind was brought back down to reality, as if it had slammed into the concrete ground along with her dream.
Her mother sent her a glare, the dangling cigarette somehow making her all the more intimidating. "Do you want to get us killed? Shut up and follow, brat. We're going to the doctor for you. FOR YOU. I'm doing this for you," the older brunette hissed at the younger one, making sure to squeeze the girls arm hard enough to teach a lesson. Ayumi nodded quickly, tears beginning to pour over the gate usually guarded by her eyelids. But with two broken dreams, Ayumi couldn't help but cry there, wondering why she could never just make her mother happy.
—
Ayumi's heart squeezed, old memories like bad cholesterol clogging up her vessels. Her baggage was the equivalent to such buildup; the memories never left, Ayumi forced to lug them around with her everywhere she went. As a result, Ayumi learned it was easier to ignore her heart.
"What's the purpose of this?" Ayumi demanded, unable think beyond the searing pain her heart felt. Moments like these usually ended with her taking a hit and maxing out, but that didn't seem to be possible with the quirk canceling man right beside her. "I don't appreciate being taunted with niceties."
Aizawa didn't tear his gaze from the school that towered over Tokyo. He softly said, "Just trust me."
With a huff, Ayumi followed the man once again, as both entered the facility. For what felt like the millionth time that day, the brunette tailed the black haired man as they took turns and more turns down the halls. Trust and comfort weren't meant to be broken at the same time; because of this Ayumi was weary in her place behind Aizawa. The girl knew
she couldn't guard herself when in heroic presence, her self preservation tactics seen as unethical. The girl wanted to be angry and mad at the world for restricting her, yet deep down she knew everyone was right. I'm...trying.
And once again, for what felt like the millionth time, Aizawa snapped Ayumi out of her daze, and brought her attention to a large door in front of her. The ceilings, she observed, were much higher than standard ones. Ayumi wondered if the air down where she was tasted the same as the air up at the top. Her eyes settled on the writing on the door, which read '1-A' in large, grand lettering. Ayumi began to pick up that 'grand' was a common theme among the school, a refreshing change of pace from the worn out way she lived.
"Let's speak hypothetically for a moment." Aizawa's deep voice cut the hallway's silence, bouncing off the ceiling and penetrating Ayumi's melancholy atmosphere. "Let's say, you accepted the offer. You'd be accepting the chance to work alongside many pros and learn from them, as well as receive an education from the top hero academy in the East. I teach here, if you didn't know, so you'd be in my class under constant supervision. Now, that's not to say you'll get off easy. You're still a high level drug dealer we picked off the streets, so you will have to exercise caution at all times around these kids. I believe they're around your age. Maybe you'll make friends..."
"Uhm...I don't really know how to explain this..."
Aizawa expectantly looked at the girl, putting an arm on her shoulder. "We know, Bubaigawara. We know. You weren't found in any school records at any schools. We'll still teach you just like any other student. It's not our job to discriminate here." And the man smiled. A genuine smile. Ayumi hadn't been on the receiving end of a smile like that since before...
So, the girl smiled back. The man thought he saw an eclipse - her dark joined with and was replaced by light, as the girl responded, "Okay."
"What made you say yes?"
"Maybe I'll try doing some good for a change." Thanks for caring, Aizawa.
Aizawa approached the door, and turned back to her. "Oh, one more thing. Your bag is by my desk."
Ayumi had the weight of the past pressing on her, but the temptation of the future dangling before her. She sighed, running a hand through the brown locks that never changed. "Keep it, sir." And with that, the girl followed the man as she had done all day, this time respect replacing the tension filled silence.
Ayumi decided the sunlight felt nice that day.
