Aesthete

Chapter 41 - Izuku 3

Two hands gripped mine, shaking me lightly as I snapped out of the nightmarish trance, staring into Izuku's eyes that looked beyond horrified, there was terror and grief in them.

What am I doing? I shouldn't have said that.

I leaned back, giving an awkward laugh as I looked to Mirio who was glancing at me in pity.

"It's okay, guys. I'm fine, the thing is, I'm here now right? So don't act all sad over what happened." I insisted, looking away in embarrassment.

That's when I saw her frame.

A whiplash of deja vu overtook me, leaving me stunned as I stared at the white-haired, small girl wrapped in bandages. She was running towards us, eyes widened in a look I knew all too well.

My stomach dropped, she was so recognizable. Where have I seen this little kid before? What mortified me was the expression she carried.

It was like I had stared into a mirror of myself all those years ago. The same little girl that got beaten into the ground, the one who got used and manipulated, the girl that needed saving.

I crouched, arms opening to catch her immediately. She launched into me, gripping my hero costume so forcefully as she whimpered.

What did they do to you?

"Hey, hey, it's okay. We're here, what's wrong, baby? Are you okay? You need help?" I whispered to her, running my hand over her head as I scanned her over. She was littered with white gauze that was slightly tinted, her clothes looked ragged, and she had bags under her eyes, sniffling every so often. She looked like she had seen the devil, eyes darting around as she clung to Izuku, too, who was now beside me as we attempted to calm the girl.

"Can you stand? Are you hurt?" Izuku asked her softly, but he paused when he realized that she was shaking like a leaf.

We heard a low voice, "You can't go around causing troubles for the heroes," I snapped my head up, instinctively pulling the girl close to me as I flicked my new mask on. The man had short brown hair, he was tall and had a beak mask, covering the lower half of his face as he waltzed towards us with odd apparel.

Who wears a scarf of feathers like that?

Something about him nagged on me, I didn't need to see all his face to know that he was a cruel bastard, he carried that same harshness my father had. I squeezed the child's arm sympathetically, and she shuffled closer while Izuku kept one arm around her and the other on me.

Wait, isn't that Chisaki? Bubble Girl showed us a picture of him.

"I'm sorry about my daughter, hero." Overhaul spoke, eyes flitting to the girl while a look of annoyance settled on him. Mirio shuffled nervously behind us while Overhaul explained that his child liked to roam about and that's why she had the bandages because she got hurt.

That's bullshit. I glared, body already hardening as I wondered whether I could knock him out in a few simple blows.

I saw Mirio move from the corner of my eye, slapping Izuku's head but he secretly slipped on the boy's mask, covering his eyes.

"Your mask fell off again, Deku." Lemillion spoke, forcing a fake grin towards Overhaul while I cupped the girl's face, giving her a warm smile but wanting to cry when I noticed how she flinched from my touch.

I should kill Overhaul.

The thought crossed my mind briefly, but I dismissed it, knowing that it would prove futile.

"It's my first time seeing you three, are you new?" Chisaki questioned, eyes lingering on mine for too long. I scowled behind the mask, "We're new."