Chapter Text
Akira was sat on the floor, a textbook propped open in his lap with a highlighter in his mouth. Sister Enno watched him from the kitchen, a wrinkle in her brow as she held a now cold cup of tea in her hands. Slowly making her way closer, Enno sat on the couch and swallowed.
“My mother was a villain. In the eyes of the government, she is a perfectly functioning member of society and was deemed as reformed. She married the man who caught her, and had three children with him. Her quirk had made her an outcast in society and from her peers. So, she wanted to change the world to accommodate her. In the end, it blew up in her face, and she ended up being the one of conform. She raised me and my siblings to never let people see the true us, and to hide our quirks lest we face the same backlash she had.” Enno paused as Akira closed the textbook. “That’s really all there is to know about her.”
“She just wanted to be accepted? Like you?”
“No, I am accepted. Because I don’t let people see underneath their own ideas about who I am.”
“What if she’d tried to change the world as a hero instead of a villain?”
“Time is a circle. I’m sure we’ll see that come to pass.” Enno laughed, a breathy thing as she leaned back into the cushions. “But you were curious, I thought I’d sate your appetite as a break from studying.”
“I have more questions, about your family.” Akira said, his eyes earnest.
“Finish what you’re working on while I make lunch, and we’ll see.” Enno stood, pulling her vibrating phone from a pocket as she left once again for the kitchen.
Enno placed her phone on the counter softly, face down as she looked out the closest window. The glass reflected Akira in the background, once again bent over his work.
Change the world as a hero, she thought, a fond smile on her face as she shook her head. He’s just like those two.
Pulling leftovers from the fridge, Enno flipped her phone over and quickly tapped out a reply.
“What are we doing here?” Akira asked, tugging at the collar of his button up.
“This is what I do, as a job.” Enno smiled, knocking on the apartment door of the Fujioka family. “I provide counseling and guidance to families in need.”
“Like a crisis worker?”
“Not exactly.” Enno laughed, watching the door open to see a rather worn Mrs Fujioka. “Good evening, Mrs Fujioka.”
“Evening.” The mother smiled, the bags under her eyes highlighted by the artificial light. “Haruhi is in her room… Oh, hello.”
“This is Akira, he’ll be shadowing me today as he has an interest in the clergy.” Enno lied, not even flinching as Akira raised an eyebrow at her.
“Interest in the clergy?” He hissed as they followed Mrs Fujioka into the home.
“Haruhi, the people from the church are here to see you.”
There was a loud crash from inside the child’s bedroom, followed by a long scratching noise.
“It’s been getting worse lately, and I can’t figure out why.” Mrs Fujioka said, a hand pressed to her mouth. “Who did we anger?”
“No one, of course. That’s why we’re here.” Enno said softly, a comforting hand on the woman’s arm. “Now, Akira and I are going to have a chat with Haruhi, why don’t you go get some rest or make yourself something to eat.”
The woman nodded, warily looking at the bedroom door as there was another scratching noise. Enno looked back at Akira, nodding towards the door before knocking once and letting herself in.
“Excuse me.” Akira mumbled, slipping past the distraught mother and closing the bedroom door behind him.
The entire room was a mess, drawers of clothes scattered across the floor. Even the bed had somehow been pushed onto its side, the frame empty. In the center of it all was a child, barely ten years old. She had a long tail covered in spikes, as well two slightly curved horns at the top of her forehead. The exact depiction of demons from the days before quirks.
“Hello, Haruhi, I see you’ve gone through another growth spurt.” Enno smiled, carefully making her way around the girl and dropping the bed onto it’s frame. “Are you having difficulty moving around with your tail being bigger?”
The girl stared at Akira, blinking once before turning her head to Enno and nodding.
“Hmm, well that just won’t do. You could snag yourself with one of those spikes of yours. They’re terribly impressive. Don’t you think so, Akira?”
“Very pointy.” Akira nodded.
“Can you feel them?”
“Feel them?” The girl frowned.
“Yes. You know how you can feel when someone touches your arm? Well, if someone touched your spikes, would you feel it?” Enno asked, and the girl shook her head. “That’s good. We can get some caps for the very ends, so you don’t end up poking anyone.”
“Really?”
“Oh, yes. They’ll be like sword holders, but for your tail.”
“My tail’s like a sword? That’s so cool!” The girl gasped, her tail wagging slightly as her eyes widened. “Do you really think so, Sister?”
“Who was she?” Akira asked, as they began walking home having left the Fujioka family in the hands of local quirk counselors.
“A child in need of some help.”
“Did you steal her blood?”
“I thought about it, on the first visit. How I would convince them to give it to me.” Enno smiled. “But that girl is terrified of needles.”
“That’s the only reason?”
“Yes. Can’t have her screaming bloody murder every time I wanted her blood.”
“I think it’s because you secretly like kids.”
“No one actually likes children. We’re all just programmed to want children to continue the species.”
“So, you’re soft for kids.”
Enno rolled her eyes. “She received an unfortunate combination of her parent’s quirks. Her father has the physical trait, he has a similar tail though the spikes are less pronounced. And her mother was gifted with super strength.”
“So Haruhi has a giant tail that has super strength.” Akira said. “It’s a miracle the apartment building’s still standing.”
“I wouldn’t call that a miracle, but yes, they’re very lucky.”
“Then what counts as a miracle?” Akira laughed.
“UA moving to a dorm system this year, which means you’re moving out for the school year.” Enno smiled.
“No killing people in my room.” Akira wrinkled his nose. “It’ll make it smell weird.”
“I am very good at cleaning up after myself.”
“It’s not a physical smell. It’s like… the vibe of the room.”
“That makes absolutely no sense.”
“It’s just because you’re old.”
“I’m twenty-three.”
“Exactly. You’re practically an old spinster.”