Not Yet

H o p e : XXV

Because what he did see changed the fate of many people, including his.

*****

Aizawa's eyes were firmly glued to the screen he hunched over, restlessly waiting for an explanation of the complex numbers and images he couldn't make sense of.

Dr. Matsuda didn't hesitate a minute when Shouta told him of what he saw, running several tests that were to either confirm or deny the plausibility of Aizawa's doubt.

"My God..." Came the wavering voice of the doctor.

"What is it?" The hero couldn't help concern dripping from his words.

Dr. Matsuda spun around his chair, to face away from the monitor he was so eagerly studying.

"These MRI and EEG scans...." He pointed at the screen. Aizawa followed his finger to see several images of a brain, some areas colored darker than others. "...show that there is brain activity..!"

Aizawa was no doctor, but he knew what Matsuda was implying.

"Is he waking up?" Something in Shouta's chest felt lighter, but he knew better than to celebrate too early, so he tried to force his facial expression into an indifferent one.

"I wouldn't call it waking up..." Matsuda didn't want to raise their hopes up too much "..but it is a good sign nonetheless," but he couldn't conceal his own new-found determination.

Yet he couldn't help himself from worrying about a single detail. He frowned slightly, turning back to the monitor to double check.

"What's the matter?" Aizawa, of course, caught wind of the sudden shift of mood and feared the worse.

"The thing is, most activity is located in the amygdala..." he pointed at two almond shaped parts of the brain showed on the screen. "It's this part that's placed within the temporal lobes of the brain's cerebrum" Aizawa ignored the medical gibberish that he just didn't understand.

"The amygdala is responsible for processing and storing up memories, especially when it comes to more emotional remembrances," the doctor said before falling into an unpredicted silence.

Aizawa eyed him cautiously, waiting for him to continue, still not seeing the problem.

"It's clearly hyperactive, those are definitely not normal numbers. I've never seen anything like this before," he leaned closer. Too close, his nose did almost touch the screen before him.

"I would almost say that it's swollen..." his face scrunch up, unknown if it's caused by the harsh light to his eyes or the realization of what this could mean.

"This must be putting enormous strain on his brain and body. It could even be the reason behind the organ failure," he let the thought sink in for a moment.

Dr. Matsuda sighed and leaned back in his chair, combing a hand through his hair.

"I'm just confused. I've never handled anything like this, so I'm not expecting an explanation I'm familiar with either." They fell into a tense silence, the only sound being the fiddling of folders the doctor was making.

"I'll go see the boy," Aizawa broke the silence, probably restless to go see any improvements....

Or to force out some.

That's a dangerous series of thoughts, Matsuda noted.

"Eraserhead," The young doctor's voice made the hero's hasty movements come to a halt, as he turned his head around with a short, impatient 'hmm?'

"You should know that the amygdala is also responsible for emotional responses, especially the primary ones including aggression, anxiety, stress and..."

He met the hero's eyes directly, knowing that concern and sympathy is what would be seen in his own.

"...fear."

Aizawa narrowed his eyes a tad, wondering where the doctor was going with this.

"Excessive amygdala activity is connected to post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety disorders, because it causes extreme reactions to emotional events, memories, emotional stimuli, and visual stimuli."

"What are you trying to say?"

Matsuda was only speculating from that point on, but he really felt the urge to tell the uneasy hero, before he did something he would regret.

"He must be trapped in an endless swarm of memories, with a sole feeling rushing through him."

It would certainly explain the catatonia too. Regardless, the whole phenomena remained a mystery as to why only the amygdala was hyperactive. What could be the cause?

"I know a nurse who can help us, her quirk is quite literally brain activity control."

Aizawa's stance shifted as he turned his whole body to face the doctor instead of the door he was just about to reach to.

"Are you suggesting we activate his brain forcefully?"

"The opposite actually. I'm suggesting we dampen the amygdala's activity, thus lessen the strain. I'm not sure it would work, but my hypothesis is that the rest of the brain will start working once we do that."