"Star."
You stir a little at the hushed voice, but remain asleep, burying yourself deeper into the sheets.
"Starlight."
That gets your attention a little more, and you groan sleepily as a reply, still remaining curled up with your teddies.
Cool fingers try pulling the blankets away from your face, but this just makes you grumble even more, and squirm away from the touch.
"Make room for me, little Star?"
You groan again, but move to the edge of your bed while still clinging to Star. Jr while your large duck plush, the teddy with the moon on its chest and your small duck all fall onto the floor, where Zero was sleeping.
Zero sits bolt upright, head snapping towards you. His stitched-up fingers move your hair out of the way of your face, and you scowl in your half-asleep state.
"Go 'way." You grumble.
"I'm sorry, Star." Zero replies quietly, and then looks at Tomura as he lifts the covers on your bed.
"It's fine. Lie back down." You hear Tomura order.
"Of course, sir." Zero replies, slowly lying back down amongst the fallen plushies, but keeping his eyes on you.
"'Mura?" You ask groggily, turning around and trying to blink awake.
"Sleep." Is the response.
"Why aren't you with Dabi?" You ask, yawning and rubbing your eyes.
"I can't be with him right now." Tomura replies dryly, moving his hair to one side as he lays down.
You pause, your sleep-addled brain struggling to piece together the words, and when it does, your blood goes a little cold.
"Do you not love each other any more?" You ask quietly and fearfully.
His eyes flash neon once more, even in the dark, making Zero sit upright again, his smile gone for once and his eyes stern as he stares at Tomura.
Tomura seems to compose himself quickly, though, his eyes going back to normal within moments.
"It's fine, Star. Zero, I'm in control."
You're unconvinced, and apparently so is Zero, because he stays sat upright, his faint smile wavering as he looks at Tomura.
"If it's fine, why aren't you in your room?" You question sleepily, but cuddle up to his side anyway. "Did Dabi have a bad dream and burn you on accident?"
"No, Star." Tomura replies. "Let's stop talking now. Go to sleep."
"But I'm worried." You pout as Zero begins inching back down to the ground again.
"No need. We're fine." Tomura says, but it sounds strained. "My body just isn't letting me do certain things. That's all. Like you with food."
"What things?" You ask curiously, with the full intention of trying to help.
Tomura huffs in amusement. "Full of questions as always. I'm glad they didn't take that perk from you."
"Tell me?" You ask, looking up at him, trying to make out his features in the dim lighting from your new nightlight.
"Well you know. Any kind of affection with anyone mostly. But mostly when I want to kis-"
You groan and cover your ears with your hands, and Tomura's teeth flash a little as he chuckles in response.
"Gross!" You whine. "Stop!"
"Go to sleep then, otherwise I'll carry on." Tomura replies. "Brat."
"Meanie." You say as a rebuttal, and then pause for a minute and then add quietly: "Love you."
This earns you the gentle scratching of your scalp from Tomura, but he doesn't say it back again. You can't even see his face really, so you just choose to trust him and cuddle up as close as you can to his side while he rubs your head gently.
It's strange just having Tomura in your bed instead of sharing the space with him and Dabi, but this was just fine too.
You're asleep by the time Zero speaks up again.
"You're not meant to be alone with her." He says into the dark.
"And I'm not. Go to sleep. That's an order."
*•*
You wake up to yelling.
And for a second, you're disorientated enough to question whether all your time with Dabi, and everything that had happened within the months you'd been with him had been dreamt. That actually, your mom was alive and well, and was arguing with one of her boyfriends again.
You sit up and rub your eyes with a frown, seeing Zero sat on the floor watching you, though. So you know it was all real, but you'd never woken up to yelling here before.
"Good morning Star." Zero greets with a smile, acting oblivious to the yelling. "Did you sleep well?"
"Why's there yelling?" You ask, frowning sleepily.
Zero hums, getting up from the mattress on the floor now you're awake and begins placing your soft toys at the foot of your bed neatly.
"Shigaraki wasn't meant to stay with you last night." He says simply. "Don't worry, I wouldn't have let anything happen."
He runs the palm of his hand down the back of your hair fondly and closes his eyes as he smiles. "Would you like to see your Uncle today?"
"Yeah, I always wanna see Uncle Giran." You reply, beginning to grow anxious at the sound of Dabi's raised voice. "But why are Tomura and Dabi arguing?"
"I'm sorry Star, I'm not allowed to tell you." Zero says apologetically. "It will be okay, though."
"You promise?" You ask quietly. "'Cause Dabi said he'd never yell, and when mom and her boyfriends used to yell, someone would end up getting hurt..."
Zero's face goes blank for a moment, but the soft smile soon returns and he sits on the edge of your bed, encouraging you to come to him for a hug, which you oblige him with, wrapping your arms around his torso and pressing your face into the side of his chest.
"That won't happen, because they aren't in an abusive relationship. It's simply an argument, everyone argues from time to time." He explains, wrapping an arm around you. "They're your parents. They want to protect you, but have different ideas on how to do that."
You listen intently, knowing that Zero is smart from when he has explained things to you before.
"I understand your upbringing was tough, and it made you fearful of raised voices, sudden sounds and conflict, but you need to understand that everyone is different. Not everyone will think and feel the same as you, and sometimes that will lead to arguments." Zero explains evenly, then tilting your head upwards using your chin. His mismatched eyes are soft as he looks down at you with a soft smile. "You can't change your opinions just to avoid conflict. If you believe in something, it's worth arguing for from time to time. It doesn't always end in violence."
"So they're not going to break up?" You ask quietly.
"I don't think so." Zero replies. "They seemed... happy, before the war."
"What war?" You ask with a frown.
Zero's eye twitches, and his smile falls. "Ah."
"There's a war?" You ask, worried.
Zero is quiet for a second, and his face is blank for a moment before he speaks again.
"I'm sorry, Star. I misspoke."
He groans in pain immediately, and grips his head in both hands, curling in on himself a little. You panic, kneeling next to him and you rub his back sympathetically.
"Headache?" You ask softly, patting his shoulder. "They're being loud..."
Zero doesn't reply, he just straightens himself out slowly while still holding his head with both hands, long, silver strands of hair falling between his fingers.
"Are you okay, Uncle Zero?" You ask worriedly.
He doesn't reply, but slowly lets go of his head, his expression going from blank to a small smile again as he slowly turns his head to look at you and addresses you once more.
"Why don't you get ready for the day? I'll see if Spinner will make you one of those shakes." Zero says, patting your head a couple of times before standing and walking off as though nothing had happened.
You blink as you watch after him, confused by his behavior. You were confused by everyone's behaviour lately.
Spinner and Himiko seemed as normal as ever, but Dabi was pretty grumpy all the time lately, and although he was still affectionate towards you, you could tell something wasn't quite right. And Tomura kept not being very loving like he used to be, and kept looking off into the distance and ignoring people when his eyes went all funny.
And now Zero...
You begin to feel nauseous again with worry, even though the yelling has stopped, replaced with heavy footsteps and slamming doors.
You get dressed slowly to not make yourself sick from too much movement, and when Zero comes back with a shake you refuse it.
He looks disappointed for a split second but doesn't push it, just giving a curt nod and placing it on your bedside table.
"Is something the matter?" He asks, crouching in front of you, and tilting his head.
"I feel sick." You mumble.
Zero presses the back of his hand against your forehead, humming to himself. "You feel fine."
You reach for him, and he lifts you up wordlessly like youre a toddler, holding you close.
"We'll go to your Uncles, I think that'll cheer you up, little Star." Zero says, walking you out of your room.
"You just want to see Aunty Aiko." You grumble, clinging onto him.
"I could take it or leave it. What I want is for you to smile, Star." He says factually. "Hello, Shigaraki."
Your head perks up as you hear Zero greet Tomura as he passes, and you catch a glimpse of him watching you both as he stands outside his and Dabi's bedroom.
"Hi pa." You greet softly. "Are you okay?"
Glowing eyes snap to yours, but you don't get a reply before Zero's quickly made his way down the stairs with you in his arms.
"I wanted to talk to pa..." You complain.
"Sorry, Star, but you can't right now." Zero replies, rubbing your back.
Your feeling of nausea returns, but you allow Zero to carry you to the car and strap you in with the promise of going to Uncle Girans for the day.
*•*
"Ah, hello Zero." Giran greets when he opens the door, before looking down at you, looking a little forlorn. "Aw Star, wha's the matter? Not excited ta see ya grandpaw?"
You are, you just can't help the worry on your face.
"Wha' about yer Uncle Jin?" Giran asks, leaning in the doorway with a big grin.
Your head perks up immediately.
"Uncle Jin?" You repeat. "He's in hospital."
"Naw, hon. He's right here, in Aiko's old room." Giran explains with a casual shrug.
You try pushing past to get to the room to see for yourself but Giran drops to a crouch and stops you with two big hands on your frail shoulders, a serious look behind those usually soft pink eyes.
"Darlin', ya need to be very careful wi' your Uncle Jin, 'kay? He's still a lil' hurt an' recoverin'. A small bump could really hurt him. So if he asks for a hug, ya gotta say no. Alri'?" He says, his eyes searching yours.
"Okay!" You agree, just to make him let go so you could see Jin even quicker.
"I mean it, Star." Giran insists. "Don' like gettin' all stern with you darlin' girl, but this is very serious."
"Okay grandpaw." You agree again, bouncing on the balls of your feet in excitement.
"Good girl. Love ya." He says, ruffling your hair carefully like Dabi does now and then moves out of your way so you can run up to Aikos old room.
You're so enthusiastic that you don't even care about what Zero's doing, or how far he is behind you. You're just trying to get to your Uncle as soon as you can, but it feels like it takes forever to get up the staircase.
You don't even bother knocking on the door before opening it, throwing the door open to the sight of Uncle Jin sitting up against the headboard all bandaged across his bare torso.
You beam at him, but he just looks confused and a little startled.
"Hey?" He greets in confusion gruffly. "Go away! I'm thinkin'!"
You giggle and rush to the side of the bed, wishing you could throw yourself at him in a hug. "Uncle Jin, you're okay!"
"Star?" Jin asks, his eyes going wide. "The hell happened to you?!"
"I got taken by the heroes when you were hurt!" You explain. "I got hurt too, look!"
You lift your sleeve to show him the colourless scar as well as the scarring around it proudly. "I got burned!"
Jin seems to go through a range of emotions, choking on his words awkwardly, but you're not done talking to him yet.
"You were hurt worse though! I thought you might be dead, so I couldn't think about you for very long. I was really angry at Hawks for making you hurt. I bit, scratched, kicked, headbutted and yelled at him." You tell him enthusiastically. "I even tried making him sick but they took my quirk, so I couldn't... Oh, and I bit Endeavor because he was mean to Dabi and he tried to touch me."
"He did what?" Jin asks, his voice the lowest you've ever heard.
"I told him to go away but he tried to touch my arm instead so I bit his hand like chomp!" You say, gnashing your teeth to reenact the situation.
Jin blinks in utter confusion and surprise at the whole monologue before chuckling a little, despite the slight wince of pain as he does so.
"Good job, ducky! High five!" He encourages, lifting an arm weakly.
You high five him more carefully than you did Spinner, conscious of what Giran said, and then gently pat his messy blonde hair which had gotten longer while you'd not seen him.
"Love you Uncle Jin. I missed you." Your lip wobbles and you add: "Stupid Hawks."
Jin's face melts into a look of sympathy and it doesn't take much of his non-existent strength to pull you onto the bed with him.
"I'm not meant to hug you." You tell him tearfully.
"Tell the old man to suck it!" Jin exclaims as he carefully wraps his arms around you, and then quietly adds: "Don't tell Dabi I said that in front of you."
"Why? Suck what?" You ask innocently, sniffing away the tears that hadn't been able to escape.
Jin shoves his face into the top of your hair as the deep voice replies, making the answer muffled, but you don't want to be rude by asking again so you just let him do it without questioning him.
"I don't want to get into trouble..." You tell him as he rubs his cheek affectionately against your head.
"Don't worry about it, your Uncle Jin can tell when his baby girls need a hug." Jin says, squeezing you gently. "My lil' darling. I'm sorry you got burned caus'a me."
"Did not." You huff. "I didn't even feel it anyway! I can't feel anything in the big scar. Poke it!"
"Ain't pokin' you right now, ducky. My finger'll go through yer arm!"
"Gross." You concede reluctantly. "But no-one wants to touch it."
He kisses your head. "'Cause we love you, and don't wantcha gettin' hurt."
"But I won't be able to feel it even if you do hurt me!" You defend.
"That's the whole point, it could be dangerous, and I don't wanna get told off by your dad!" Jin exclaims. "He's scary!"
You giggle. "Is not."
Zero enters the room, pausing when he sees you curled up against Jin. One of his eyebrows raises, only visible because he'd tied his hair up while he was downstairs, but he doesn't offer a comment, just looks at you with that kind-of smile patiently.
"Don't tell Giran?" You ask quietly.
"If you're making an order, you need to be more firm. If you ask the order, I'll misunderstand and answer your question." Zero replies.
"Don't tell Giran." You repeat more firmly.
"Of course, Star." Zero agrees, smiling a little more and bowing his head, sitting on the floor with his back against the door like a barricade.
"So what else did ya get up to while I was asleep?" Uncle Jin asks, and then taps the tube attached to your cheek. "What's this all about? Ya on a hunger strike? Show 'em who's boss!"
"Oh, I stopped eating in the hospital..." You reply, touching it thoughtfully too. "I wanted to go back home really bad, so I thought that not eating would be bad and make them not want me anymore. But they still kept me even though I was really bad. And now food makes me feel sick..."
Jin looks saddened by this, his tired black eyes dulling a little more and his mouth turning downwards. He squeezes you again, a little more firmly this time, and rubs your back.
"I think Tomura and Dabi are arguing because of it..." You tell him sadly.
"Nah." Jin replies. "They never argue for long, and if they do, it's never over somethin' that silly."
He kisses your head again. "Don't worry your little head about it, ducky."
The door tries to open, but Zero blocks the way, his body glowing blue for a split second after the impact and then the door slams back on itself, making Giran startle on the other side.
"What the..." You hear the older man say, Zero tilting his head silently to tell you to get off the bed. "What're you doin' in there?"
You kiss Jin's cheek quickly before scrambling off the bed and settling down cross legged on the floor, Zero moves out of the way of the door the second you're settled, bowing apologetically to Giran, who opens the door with a frown.
He scans the room before looking back at Zero, who stands smiling at him, probably awaiting an explanation.
"Well?" Giran asks, crossing his arms.
"I'm sorry, I sat just in front of the door." Zero explains calmly.
Giran hums in suspicion, but drops it, looking at Jin, who's expression reads complete and utter guilt.
"Everythin' alright in here?" Giran asks Jin.
"Yeah, great!" Jin nods over-enthusiastically. "Catchin' up with the little princess!"
"Does it hurt still, Uncle Jin?" You ask curiously, fingers running along his bandages.
"Only when I move. Don't worry 'bout it!" Jin replies. "Ow! Ow! Geddoff!"
"Silly..." You mumble, but stop touching him just in case anyway.
After all, you had been certain that you weren't going to see Uncle Jin again, especially with how avoidant everyone had been about you seeing him. So you wanted to make sure that nothing happened to hurt him even more or put him in danger again.
You flop your upper half over the bed, laying your head gently on Jin's torso.
"I missed you so much." You tell him.
"Missed you too! Eh..." Jin's hand goes to your head, gently tugging his fingers through your hair as you lay draped over him. "We both gotta get better so we can play duck duck goose again, yeah?"
You nod against the blanket covering him. That seemed like a good incentive to try a little harder, too.
Get better for Tomura and Dabi, to get a cat and to play with Uncle Jin, too.
You could do it... You just needed time.