Chapter Seven: Vlad's POV
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A/N: Behind the scene of Chapter 73. Aizawa and Mineta's 'talk.'
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-Vlad's POV-
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"Heh, Eraser, I think you've got two incoming."
The blood hero, Vlad King, quirks an eyebrow as his coworker's face morphs from surprise to realization to disgust and anger before quickly wiping clean.
Interesting.
The erasure hero stands, fists stuffed into his pockets, and joins him at the door. They both watch in silence as a tall, dark-haired boy near frogmarches a purple, ball-haired child in front of himself. He can't help his amusement when he notices the state of their clothes. Or rather, the lack of them. Heh.
Seriously, they couldn't take five seconds to get dressed?
"Shit."
Vlad snorts.
"You look ready to murder. I'm guessing we have a pervert?"
"If he got over that wall, I'll expel him," Eraser says sharply. He pitches his voice low enough so the two boys won't hear, especially with all the noise that they're making. "I may expel him anyways. He's been warned once."
Vlad scoffs and crosses his arms.
"If my Li Li were in that hot spring, I can't say I'd be thinking about this too hard. It wouldn't be a question of if I expelled the kid, it'd be a question of if he could still use his body parts when I was done."
He doesn't miss the dour man's glare.
"This is a school affair, Vlad. Punishing a student based on my personal feelings would be irrational."
He says nothing as the two arrive, but inwardly he laughs. Irrational my ass. Don't think I don't see that father instinct. Instead, he takes in the scene, watching as the tall one, Iida he recalls, all but flings the shrimp forward. Iida's face twists in disgust, Vlad instantly approves.
"What is going on?" Eraser asks sourly, eyeing the short boy with a bored expression. The glimmer in his eyes is telling though as is the sharp tick in his jaw.
"Mineta attempted to cross the barrier to the girls' bath!" Iida snarls, fist swinging to his sides. "Kota-kun stopped him. But when he did, the child nearly fell over! Hoki-chan managed to save him but reacted badly. She was extremely upset when I left, though Yaoyorozu-chan and Uraraka-chan were assisting."
Eraser's nostrils flair and his eye ticks.
Vlad takes pity on the man.
"Thank you for bringing it to our attention," he says gruffly to the taller teen in clear dismissal. "We'll take it from here."
He's not really sure if it's his tone, the situation finally setting in, or if the kid just has a case of the dramatics, but the moment he speaks, the small boy, Mineta, breaks out in loud, ugly tears. Nobody looks particularly moved. Iida doesn't even hesitate as he turns around and leaves, and well, damn.
That's what happens, he thinks rather callously. You reap what you sow little pervert.
"Mineta. Explain yourself," the dark-haired man snaps, eyes narrowed on him.
The boy snivels and sobs and, several seconds later, descends into a hysterical mess. Vlad grimaces and barely keeps from wrinkling his nose in disgust. How degrading.
Have some pride kid.
Eraserhead sighs, blowing air out loudly through his nose, and Vlad watches in amazement as he steps down from the porch area and into the dirt to kneel by the boy's side. One hand reaches out, grasps the kid's shoulder, and the other pushes his head forward.
"Ten deep breaths, in through your mouth and out through your nose."
The sheer boredom the man manages to put into those words tells him this is more instinctual than anything. Unsurprising considering all his girl's been through. Just the thought of it, of his Li Li, of his baby girl, being kidnapped, stalked, and drugged by some creep in a mask… It makes his blood boil.
He grits his teeth.
This boy doesn't know how lucky he is.
Mineta's breathing slows, his hiccups disperse, and he stares up with puffy red eyes and a bright, snotty nose. Eraser steps back then and frowns.
"Mineta-"
"I fucked up!" the boy screeches.
Vlad raises an eyebrow and Eraser glowers.
Sexually harassing women. Cussing at his teacher. This one's a real keeper. Psh.
"I was being selfish!" the boy shouts, clearly not taking note of their expressions. "I was selfish and stupid and I didn't think and- and-"
"And what?" Eraser snaps.
"And I made her cry!" the boy sobs, bending forward and dissolving into hysterics again.
Vlad blinks.
Is he talking about…
"You have five minutes to get yourself under control," Eraser says, digging into his pocket and pulling out a timer. Why the hell does he have a kitchen timer in his pocket? "When it goes off, I will expect a full explanation of not only what happened, but also why."
The man doesn't even look as he sets the thing, and Vlad realizes with sudden clarity why.
Is he using time outs on a teenager? Like she's three?
He nearly chokes at the hilarity of it. What sort of nonsense parent manual had this guy been reading? This sounded like some of Midnight's psycho-baby shit. Really, you didn't need that shit to be a good dad. Just kiss and hug your kid, tell 'em you love 'em, and ground their ass when they act up. A week without a phone was like a hell on Earth for a teenager. Time outs. God, he hadn't put Li Li in time out since she was what… four? Five? And even then, he'd just give her a look and she'd pull that shit together.
Time outs…
He shakes his head and lounges against the side of the building even as Eraser leans on the foundation.
This is probably killing him.
He clears his throat, deciding to take pity on him.
"I can deal with this if you want to go to her," Vlad says gruffly. "I might not have your record, but I can write up the expulsion paperwork just as easily."
He doesn't miss the boy's flinch.
Good. Let him know what's coming.
"No," Eraser says sourly, every line of his body taut with annoyance. "It's more than likely another panic attack. If no one's come to get us, I expect she's fine. I'll deal with this first."
Vlad shrugs.
Another.
That doesn't sound good.
As they wait for the timer to run out, Vlad considers the girl. He'd only met her twice and both times she'd seemed timid. Just that morning, she'd looked every bit the little girl Eraser treated her as when she nearly hid behind his legs and squeaked at his arrival. He hadn't missed the way her eyes had roved over his muscles or the slight tremble in her limbs.
He supposed it was to be expected. He could infer enough of her backstory to know it hadn't been pretty. She showed some pretty clear signs of physical abuse if you knew to look for it.
He'd, admittedly, been a little disappointed. The pictures and stories Midnight and Present Mic were constantly sharing made her out to be a perky little thing.
That picture of her with her hair stuck up like Present Mic and an inked-on mustache had been a quick favorite among the staff. Thirteen had gushed about it for days, and Eraser, red-faced, had refused to eat lunch with them for a week when Snipe suggestively left some yellow goggles and a thick scarf on his desk. Hah! Now wouldn't that be a sight! It might be the only picture that got stuck to the man's desk that wasn't immediately removed.
Hell, he might even frame it for him himself.
Every dad deserved a little hero worship.
He twitches when the timer goes off and can't help the snort that slips through. Eraser sends him a dirty look, but he ignores it. Time out. Oh, he's going to tease him relentlessly later. Though, he probably should have known something was up when Midnight convinced the poor man to get her a freakin' dollhouse.
Children open up more with play.
Then go wrestle with them. Oh, his Li Li loved to rough house. He'd swing her around upside down and teach her all the best defensive moves. They get on the floor and she'd crawl all over him trying to find some weakness. Hell, the girl still did it and she was, what, twenty?
Best times of his life.
"Are you ready or do you need five more minutes?"
Vlad rolls his eyes.
To do what? To pull himself together to tell them he was a nasty perverted child. It wasn't like he hadn't already admitted that…
The man probably thought he was being thorough.
Ugh, what a waste of time. Just expel this kid and move on. It's not like there aren't thousands of kids that want that spot.
"N-N-No…"
"Very well, explain what happened."
The small boy takes a trembling breath.
"I… We were at the hot springs and I… I was so stupid! I was being selfish! I didn't- I didn't think! I should have listened, but I didn't. And I- I cl-cl-climbed the fence. I climbed it and this kid hit me in the face before I could get over the t-t-top. And- And- I fell, and God, I'm so dumb! H-Hoki was crying! She was c-crying and it was- it was- it was all my fault-"
"Breathe," Eraser says sharply, expression carefully controlled.
The boy sucks in another breath and thankfully remains in control.
"Did you not expect your classmates to be upset when you crossed that boundary?" the man asks after a moment. Vlad huffs.
Shit, now there's a question for you. Obviously not.
The boy flinches.
"I… I didn't think-"
"Incorrect, you didn't care," Eraser snaps. Vlad scowls down at the pathetic boy. Isn't that the truth. "You will be honest, or I will expel you now. Your behavior tonight was irresponsible and demeaning. You owe that child a thank you. Because had you crossed that barrier not only would you be discharged from this school, you would be facing legal charges as well. What you attempted to do tonight is illegal, Mineta. It is sexual assault to attempt to violate someone's privacy. It's humiliating and offensive and there are six other girls in that bath beside Hoki that you could have hurt."
The boy's eyes widen.
Eraserhead glowers.
"I have warned you once already to control your impulses and the consequences of that failure. Your advances have not and continue not to be appropriate."
There's a quiet moment where the boy's expression seems to take on confusion.
And then Vlad sees the small, unholy light that enters them.
He looks ready to break into hysterics again.
"Y-Y-You're- You're Hoki's-"
"Guardian?" Eraser says scathingly. "Yes."
Vlad almost feels bad for the boy. The kid looks ready to piss himself.
Good.
"You are suspended for three days upon our return to school," Eraser says darkly. "You will not participate in the hero licensing exam, and you will submit to me by the end of the week a written paper detailing why I should allow you to continue this program. A person that acts so selfishly as to hurt others to reach their own desires isn't a hero. I will not be the one responsible for unleashing you onto the world."
"S-S-Suspended?" the boy cries.
The blood hero scoffs.
"I wouldn't complain," Vlad growls. "If you were one of my students and you did that, we wouldn't even be having this discussion."
"The only reason I am allowing you this chance is because you are clearly ashamed of your actions, though I find the reasons for that just as shallow." Mineta flinches. Eraser's lips thin. "I do not expel students that have potential. As of this moment, I'm not sure if you have any at all. You will spend the next six months proving you are worth my time. I will not keep a student that endangers others."
"En-Endangers?"
"Yes, endanger," Eraser says, eyes narrowing. "Do you think panic attacks are healthy? Your behavior today was attempted assault. You inflicted trauma on your classmate that could take weeks, months, and possibly years to undo. You broke a trust that isn't readily given and humiliated her among her peers."
The boy breaks down in tears again.
Vlad crosses his arms, thankful when the man doesn't pull out that damn timer again.
"Tch," the larger man says, looking down his nose. "And to think, she gave you the clothes off her body."
The boy's sobs take on a hysterical edge.
Eraser sends him a warning glare.
He shrugs it off.
It needed to be said. You wet your pants kid, and that girl straight up stripped for you and then defended your half-naked ass.
Of course, watching the nearly unflappable Eraserhead twitch in disgust had been hilarious at the time. Muttering about not again like this was a common occurrence.
Eraserhead squats down to eye-level with the kid and waits for the hiccupping and wailing to slow. Somehow, he manages to keep a straight face when the boy nastily wipes his arm across his nose. It smears a thick stream of slobber and snot against his arm.
Gross…
"I'm not done."
The boy flinches. Vlad swallows a rather sinister grin.
Get him Eraser.
"You are to have no further contact with my ward."
That, of all things, sends the boy over the edge. He coughs and cries and shakes.
Maybe there's hope for him yet.
"You are not to approach her again, you are not to text her, and when you do return to school, your seat will be changed. The other teachers will be informed as well. In the event that she should approach you, you will be polite. If I find out you've made a single perverted comment, joke, or action to anyone, you will be removed from this program and barred all access to a hero license. You make any more mistakes of this nature, and there will be no more warnings. I suggest you spend this time reflecting on why you want to be a hero."
The dark-haired man stands then, shoving his hands in his pocket.
"A hero is called upon to put the needs of others before his own. If you can't or don't have the willpower or strength of character to do it, then save us all the trouble and quit."
Eraser glares.
"Now get yourself together, get dressed, and go to bed."
Then the man walks off.
Damn! Now that was badass!
Vlad glances down at the sniveling child on the ground and scowls.
He shakes his head and walks off as well.
