Blind man says: Only fools rush in

Moving day

“Ah, Young Koda! I’m terribly sorry to call you to school so early, particularly with the big move into dorms, but I’m afraid there was no time to wait.”

The Principal’s words didn’t exactly set Koda’s nerves at ease as he signed his response.

“Am I in trouble for something Sir?”

The look of alarm from the other man made Koda’s gut twist… did he not know sign? Did Koda do something wrong?

“Not at all, not at all! It’s quite the contrary actually… But I’m getting ahead of myself and forgetting my manners, allow me to introduce an associate of the school’s; Detective Tsukauchi.”

The man, Detective Tsukauchi, smiled wearily as he stretched out his hand to greet Koda, who returned the gesture politely as he spoke calmly.

“Hello Koda. I’m afraid I don’t have time to mince words here, so pardon my bluntness; My colleges and I have been working on a case for quite some time and while we’ve accumulated a decent amount of evidence, it might not be enough to hold up in a courtroom; the perp was very thorough with his clean-up and there wasn’t a human in sight to testify as a witness… there was a family pet however and if I remember correctly, you have a quirk that let’s you communicate with animals, yes?”

As Koda listened, his nerves died away and he found himself nodding in affirmation before signing.

“Well, yes and no. My quirk itself allows me to command and control animals, but only when I think about it… otherwise, I can just passively converse with animals. When I talk aloud, animals feel the need to find me and talk, which is partially why I sign, aside from the… anxiety.”

Detective Tsukauchi nodded thoughtfully before speaking once more.

“I see… so your quirk is to command animals, but if you don’t think about it, then you can communicate with them… Do you know the extent of your quirk? For how long are you able to do this, if I may ask?”

“Well, like I said… the communication is passive; as long as I talk, I can communicate. I think I understand what this is about now; there were no human witnesses, and you need someone to get statement and answers out of a non-human witness, correct?”

Before the detective could respond, the principal demeanor brightened significantly as he spoke.

“That is indeed the case! Detective Tsukauchi has been talking with me for quite a while about this case and I felt this would be an excellent learning experience for you, as well as insightful for those working this case! Would you be willing to help, Koda?”

“Of course! That’s what a hero would do, right? What kind of animal is it, sir?”

Tsukauchi was surprised by the sudden turn around of the boy before him; in just a few minutes his demeanor had turned from shy and worried into confidence and earnest.

“Uh… it’s a dog… a Saint Bernard if I remember correctly.”

The boy thought for a moment and nodded firmly, his eyes shining with confidence as he opened his mouth and a small voice spoke.

“T-Thank you sir… Dogs are usually very forthcoming when questioned… I’ll do everything I can to help sir!”

Tsukauchi couldn’t help but smile and let out a small chuckle, the boy’s enthusiasm seemingly infectious. Even Nezdu was grinning like a mad man, although Tsukauchi wasn’t sure if it was due to the Koda boy’s response or if the principal had thought of something completely different. Either way, he knew the case at hand had just taken a turn for the better and, with the hero-in-training’s help, they would finally have enough evidence to convict the perp.