The Search
Estelle was out in some random woods when she realised that the search was getting nowhere. Deciding to switch things up a bit, Estelle turned to Pirate Pete and offered the chance to explore the city for anything abnormal. She knew the spirits resided in the woods, but the breach could be anywhere. If Estelle searched in other area's, there was a slim chance that Pete could recognise something he had seen previously.
Unfortunately, that plan failed miserably.
"What is this? Ah! Why be it making noise?"
"It's a pedestrian crossing, it lets you know that you can cross the road."
"Arr! But why be it making noise?!"
"Have you found anything? Pete? Pete!?" Estelle shouted out, looking for the ghoul who disappeared in the blink of an eye. Walking down the path, Estelle sighed at the excited grin on his face when she found him.
"Estelle! 'tis magical! It's a map o' the whole world! Imagine travellin' the sea's wit' this bugger! The lads would be o'er the moon! The loot we would find!"
Shaking her head with a tiny smile, Estelle allowed the ghoul to revel in his findings. She knew that he was having trouble comprehending this world. So, she allowed him to blissfully take in the things he found joy in.
"Ye seem a lot less tense here. Are the scallywags treatin' ye right?"
"Yes, Pete, they are."
"Good! It saves me from slicin' some throats!"
"Pete..."
"Ahoy, Estelle! Scallywags are natterin', but nobody's thar!? How can that be?"
"It's called phones; they can talk to people around the world with a small plastic thing."
"This ship be scary."
"I know, Pete. Ignore the scary stuff; you'll be out of here soon."
"Ye always 'ave me back."
To Pete's surprise, he heard her mutter as she walked away. He brightened up as he was enveloped in warmth. He never thought he would see the day that she would say it; granted, he knew it wasn't intended for him to hear. But, he was glad to know his attempts weren't in vain.
"What are crewmate's for?"
Estelle! Look at this! Thar's no wind 'n the ship be movin'!
Later that evening, Estelle arrived back at the UA Height's Alliance with the ghoul at her side. The class surmised that Estelle and Pete left really early in the morning since they didn't see them at breakfast. Their happiness spiked when Estelle strolled through the doors with a hint of a smile. Estelle mood seemed to have been better the last day or so, and It appears that whatever had caused her emotional downpour was eased for the moment.
From the outside perspective, it looked like Pirate Pete gave Estelle some comfort. They could understand why since they were now aware she was thrown into a new world with nobody to turn to. She had struggled a lot and had persevered; they admired Estelle for that; she was strong.
The uncontrolled laughter of Pirate Pete belted out behind her as he shuffled into the room. Holding a wide grin, he shook his head at the girl before glancing up and giving the students a broad wave. "Ahoy, scallywags! Did ye know this ship had boats that move without the wind! Arrr!"
Estelle shook her head at his excitement, the hidden smile tilting into view briefly. "It's called electricity, Pete."
"Electricity! Facinatin'!"
Estelle's chuckles simmered in the background as she strolled towards the dining table to join the class for their meal. Before she took a seat, Estelle grabbed an extra chair from another table and placed it next to her. Pirate Pete nodded to her in thanks as he sat down, a happy grin on his lips.
The class were momentarily surprised at her gesture. Her expression showed that she never gave it a second thought like it was a habit she did with Pete around. It just showed that there was more history than she let on.
Pirate Pete sat and listened quietly to all the student's ramblings throughout dinner. It was odd for him to see people eating. Ghouls were dead, they didn't need sustenance, and Estelle would usually eat in private once she joined his crew.
He couldn't remember the last time he had eaten something, but he was sure that it must have been his darlings cooking. His face plummeted at the thought. The stare was caught by Estelle as she gingerly ate her food, quickly finishing it to ease Pete's uncomfortableness. When she was growing up, she had noticed that ghouls hated when she ate in front of them. It was like a constant reminder that they were dead, and she was alive.
Hoping to distract himself, Pete asked, "Ye ne'er told me wha' happened t' the young'un? Where did she go?"
Estelle froze in her place, the spoon stopping midway on the destination. Her head slowly tilted to the spirit as her heart dropped. The class was unaware of the conversation as they talked, enjoying their meals.
"It doesn't matter", Estelle muttered. She had hoped to avoid that topic of the conversation entirely. Pete was horrible with this type of stuff initially, and honestly, she just didn't have the will to go through with it, though she most likely will be forced to with how the conversation was going.
"O' course it matters! Where be she? Did ye do somethin'?!" Pete shouted, his frustration automatically rocketing at the nonchalant response. His evident uncomfortableness from watching those around him eat made him more irritable. The class immediately silenced at the sharp yell and turned to the duo.
Estelle's spoon clattered into her bowl; the noise caused those around her to wince. Her eyes turned fierce as she turned to glare at the pirate next to her.
"What do you mean 'did I do something?'"
"Let's nah dance around the topic. Estelle, ye know wha' ye're like. Did somethin' happen between ye two?" Pete barked back, his face in Estelle's personal bubble.
Her annoyance only increased from his words. His tone emphasised the fact he had thought she had made this happen. Granted, Estelle has made mistakes in the past. But this was just insulting.
"Stand down."
Pete moved back instantly from the order, his scowl still present. Estelle took a large sigh and stood up. Estelle left the room with one last disappointed glance towards Pete.
"What was that about?" Kirishima asked, eyeing the door.
"Do ye lot nah know? Estelle wasn't alone when we met. She was travellin' wit' a young lass. Nah seen her in a long time. Estelle has a habit o' distancin' herself from scallywags. I wouldna be surprised if she pushed the wee poppet away."
"A spirit?"
"T'was a ghoul"
"Why does she push people away?" Kaminari asked before he was hit on the head by Jiro. "Ow! What was that for?!"
"We shouldn't pry", The musically inclined girl scolded.
Pete gave a soft smile to the curious students and responded, "Nay it's alright. I can tell ye lot care fer the wee scoundrel. Estelle be pretty secretive. She's had t' be wit' the life she's lived."
"I remember the wee lass would chase Estelle around the ship! Wouldna leave her alone ahaha! Estelle eventually gave up fer a while, but she's always lookin' fer a way t' disappear."
"What do you mean?"
"Estelle was always on the move. The scallywags in her life are temporary, so why would she stick around t' make friendlies? That's jus' nah her, Estelle be like t' wind. She's thar one minute 'n gone the next!"
"That sounds sad."
"No, that's jus' how she be! Most o' the folks she knows are dead. It's a bit difficult t' build a bond with somethin' like that. I'd like t' reckon we 'ave made a difference in Estelle, but she's stubborn. Stuck in her ways. Maybe ye scallywags could do wha' we couldn't."
"Can you tell us more? It's just...Estelle is always tight-lipped, and we don't know what to do!"
"Hmm. I'm sorry, Estelle did tell me to keep my mouth shut."
"She did?!"
"Aye! She knows I have a habit of runnin' my mouth."
Understand ripped through them when they realised this was a personal boundary they shouldn't breach if she had explicitly asked Pete to keep quiet. Instead, they asked, "Oh, well, can you at least explain what a ghoul is?"
The tension was evident during the rest of the evening between the cambion and ghoul. The class had no idea what to do and left the two be. Their curious eyes flicked to the pair as the hours progressed, wondering who would make the first move. The class had left Pete alone earlier as they didn't want to continue overwhelming him with questions. The guilt had begun to settle in the more he talked, so they decided it was enough and let him be. The students were in various pockets around the living room when they saw Estelle leaving for patrol.
To their surprise, when she took a step out of the door, she turned around to look at Pete. She observed the male staring perplexed at the television with a hint of fear. Sighing to herself, she said, "Pete, why don't we take a walk?"
The ghoul turned from the television with a scowl; he was still annoyed at her from her response during dinner, but he knew deep inside that he could never hate one of his crew. Standing up with a nod, the class watched as the slightly glowing male strolled out of the dorms.
Estelle lay on the couch, it was the middle of the night, and she found herself struggling to sleep. The conversation with Pete rang out through her head, and she used the nature shows in hopes of escaping the thoughts.
The dip in the couch was surprising to Estelle, and she turned to face the new arrival. She was surprised Bakugo would even visit her after their argument. Getting ready for another verbal brawl with the stubborn male, Estelle found herself taken aback when she discovered that it wasn't Bakugo but Shoto.
The two-toned male gazed at her with concern, raising a brow in question. She noted the evident sleep in his eyes; he had just woken up.
"Why are you here?" Estelle asked sharply, her eyes now back onto the screen in front of her.
"Because I heard the show and decided to find out what it was. Why are you awake?"
"I couldn't sleep."
"Oh."
Silence.
Estelle ignored the male in favour of watching the television, but she questioned why he was still in her presence. Her silent query was answered when he eventually spoke up many minutes later. "You know, my old man. He informed me that he wanted to change and be a better hero. But, he also wanted to be a better person. He expressed that he wanted to make amends for what he did, but I'm not sure what to feel."
"How do you feel?"
"Angry, but also sad. I feel a weird hope knowing that my old man wants to change. He showed up to the provisional training and stated that he would do everything possible. But, isn't it too late?"
"It's never too late," Estelle replied simply, a single person on her mind. Estelle knew that her guardian would never change. He would forever be a lost cause. But that doesn't mean she hadn't witnessed it before. It is possible, but only with hard work and perseverance; unfortunately, most people are happy to live in their own misery.
"Really?" The student asked with innocent eyes. Estelle felt a strange ache from the sight; he looked like a child that needed reassurance, and right now, she was glad to provide that to him.
"Yeah, Shoto. That's one thing I'll always stand by. There's always a chance," Estelle murmured.
"How can you be so confident?"
"Because I've seen change with my own eyes."
"So, there's real hope for my old man?"
"As long as he recognises that what he did was awful and he wants to fix it - I think so. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't give him hell in the process. If he really wants to, then he'll persevere."
"I think I needed to hear that, thank you," Shoto muttered gratefully as he gazed at Estelle.
"It's fine. Hopefully, you can stop tossing and turning now," Estelle commented dryly, noting how tired he looked.
"How could you tell?"
"Because we look the same."
"You can talk to me, y'know?" Shoto offered an olive branch for her to take. He, alongside the class, was well aware of the trouble she had been experiencing lately. It wasn't entirely clear on the cause, but nevertheless, he wanted to make it known that he would always provide her with an ear.
Shoto felt some kind of companionship with Estelle. He guesses it initially stemmed from the sports festival when Estelle revealed her rocky relationship with her guardian. It was the first time he felt like someone out there could understand what he had to endure growing up. He grew to like her blunt and thoughtful responses during their time together during the internships, but he couldn't help but feel like it fell stagnant after that. Shoto wasn't a great talker, nor was Estelle, so the conversation tended to run dry quite quickly. That didn't mean he disliked her presence; Estelle was firm and unwavering, like a rock, and it felt good to have that by his side.
Now though, he has made friends within his class. Shoto actually feels like he has broken through the haze his father brought him under. Izuku and Estelle were a significant part of that. But, how is it fair that she could help him by saying a few things, and Shoto couldn't do anything at all? He wanted to help in any way that he could. But, he couldn't do that with Estelle's stubborn outlook.
"You all are too kind for your own good," The dark-haired girl muttered back.
"But that's what heroes do, no?"
"...yeah."
"I said a bad thing, didn't I?"
Estelle chuckled, shaking her head. "No, you didn't. I'm just not a hero."
"You always say that, but why?"
"Because it's the truth. I've made a lot of mistakes in my life. I'm just trying to make up for that - however, I can."
"Well, no matter your mistakes. I know you aren't an evil person. " Shoto voiced, desperately hoping the words would get through the walls shuttered around her.
"And how can you be so confident?"
"Because I've known you long enough to know for sure."
it was not long after that that Shoto returned back to his bed. Unknown to Estelle, Shoto had bumped into a certain blonde on his way out. The two males shared a glare as they strode in the opposite direction.