(L/N) rubbed at his eyes. The cotton fabric of the blindfold was itchy, and his eyes burned from behind his eyelids. The people at the police station told him it was a side effect of his quirk manifesting. They guaranteed it would stop after a few days. Until then, he had to keep his eyes closed and the blindfold on, otherwise he risked hurting someone else. Like he had his parents.
The news called it a tragedy and society looked upon him with pitiful eyes. A man he did not know assured him that what happened wasn't his fault. That he shouldn't blame himself. It didn't mean much. After a few days of observation, he was released into the custody of his mother's parents. As both his mother and father had been only children, they were the only family he had left.
The first few days were uncomfortable. His grandparents collected him from the scientists and offered him a somber smile he could not see. On the ride home, his grandmother, just like the man in the suit, said they didn't blame him for what happened. The rest of the trip was spent in silence. They gave him a room in their house and three meals a day, but other than that the time they spent together was limited. They didn't play games like they did when he visited with his parents. His grandmother didn't smother him in hugs and kisses and his grandfather watched none of their favorite shows with him. One night he asked them to read him a bedtime story, but they claimed they were too tired.
He asked them about it once. If they were mad at him.
"Of course we're not mad at you." They said. "You didn't have control of your quirk. It's not your fault."
As he lie in bed that night, he heard them arguing from the kitchen.
"He's our grandchild. We can't send him to live at some orphanage." His grandfather said.
"I know." His grandmother whispered back. "It's just, every time I look at him... I don't see my grandson anymore. I just see the thing that killed our baby girl."
"I understand, but it's our job to look after him. We love him... right?"
"I-I... I don't know."
A wisp of smoky light escaped from beneath (L/N)'s blindfold as his quirk evaporated his tears. He rubbed again at the burning pain in his eyes. All he wanted was for the feeling to go away and for his parents to come for him. But his parents would never come for him ever again.
Shonien Chilren's Home was established in 1899 by Shonien Jindokai after she had lost her son to the Global Cholera Pandemic earlier in the decade. Grief ridden and left with a sense of emptiness, Shonien bought an old warehouse in Musutafu and spent the next three years and most of her savings renovating the condemned building. Ten years after its doors first opened, Shonein Children's Home was amongst the most acclaimed and well-respected orphanages of the country. Its reputation brought it with more funding, which in turn lead to improved staffing and better living conditions for the children. The children loved Shonien, and she loved each of the children as if they were her own, seeing in their eyes the son she had lost years ago. Until they could find a family of their own, it was a good place for the orphaned to call home.
That was a long time ago. Before the wars. Before the collapse of the global economy. Staff was laid off, government funding cut, and upkeep injured. Shonien Children's Home suffered at the hands of the Great Depression and had been trying to recover ever sense. The once pearl white walls began to chip, leaks in the ceiling left unpatched, and with the emergence of quirks came more inevitable repair expenses, and the orphanage was unable to keep up. The once welcoming building was left in shambles, marching steadily towards the day Shonien Jindokai's legacy would come to an end.
But until that day came the rundown building would continue to house those with no other place to call home. And despite the outside appearance, the atmosphere remained as Shonien had always intended. A family. At least that's what it was supposed to be. But (F/N) (L/N) hadn't had a family in over ten years.
(L/N) had first arrived on Shonien's doorstep when he was four years old. To their credit, his grandparents' consciences had held out for nearly three months before they came to terms with the realization they could never love him after what he'd done.
She had been waiting for him at his grandparents' house earlier that morning before he'd woken up. A short woman with grey hair and a kind face, sitting with his grandparents in the living room. His bags were already packed and waiting for him by the front door. No one explained what was happening. Not as his grandfather helped him into his jacket and not as the black car pulled out of the driveway.
"I know you must be feeling incredibly confused right now. But your grandparents are just trying to give you the best life possible. I hope you understand that." The kind elderly woman said from the driver's seat of the black car.
Her voice was gentle and reassuring, but he wasn't really listening. He just pressed his forehead against the cool glass of the window, his mind swirling with so many complex thoughts and emotions that a four-year-old had no way of processing. It wasn't his fault. That's what everyone had told him. His parents' deaths were an accident and it wasn't his fault. But if that were true, why didn't his grandparents want him? Why were they sending him away? There was only one answer he could think of. Only one thing that made any sense. It was his fault.
"I know it doesn't look like much." The elderly woman said to him as they drove up to the rusting iron gates. "But give it a chance. This place could be a new home for you. If you let it."
A gravel driveway led to a loop that was positioned just before the front entrance of the orphanage. The car slowed to a stop before the front stairs, at the top of which stood a balding man in a pressed black suit who peered at him through half rimmed glasses. He was flanked on either side by a woman in a dress and blouse and a muscular man wearing all white. The man in white approached the vehicle and opened the door.
"Good luck to you, dear." The old woman said.
Taking a deep breath, (L/N) grabbed his luggage and stepped out of the car.
"Welcome to Shonien's, (L/N)." The man in the suit greeted. "My name is Mr. Nakaumra. I run this establishment with assistance from Ms. Sasaki and Mr. Saito."
With that brief introduction, Mr. Nakamura turned and began walking inside. He took pause and looked at (L/N), waiting for him to follow.
"Come along, dear." Ms. Sasaki said, placing a gently guiding hand on his shoulder. "That's it. Watch your step."
From behind, he could hear Mr. Saito grabbing his luggage and dragging it behind him. He was led through the front entrance down a hallway which opened into the actual house. A clock chimed from somewhere in the building, signaling a new hour. Mr. Nakamura rolled up his sleeve and looked down at his watch.
"I'm afraid I must cut our time together short." He said. "But don't worry, I will be leaving you in the more than capable hands of Ms. Sasaki."
"Well, how about a tour?" Ms. Sasaki said cheerfully as Nakamura walked away. "Through there are our classrooms where you'll spend your days learning. Would you like to take a look? No? Well, you'll see it on Monday I suppose. This is our common area where you will spend your free time and socialize with the other children."
As she gestured towards the common area, two young boys came running out of the room, one chasing the other.
"Now boys, what have I told you about running indoors?"
"Sorry, Ms. Sasaki." The boys said in unison. They slowed to a walk, but as soon as they were out of eyesight (L/N) heard their footsteps quicken again.
From there he was shown the dining area and bathrooms. They stopped briefly for him to change out of the clothes he was currently wearing and into one of the standard uniforms. The fabric was cheap and scratchy. He rubbed irritably at his arms as they continued.
"And this," Ms. Sasaki said as they walked down one of the upstairs hallways, "is where you'll sleep.
It was a long but narrow room, beds lined next to each other on either side, headrests pushed up against the wall. Each bed was separated by a few feet of space and a single identical wooden nightstand.
"This one here will be yours." She said, leading him to one of the beds nearer the back. "You can keep your clothes underneath your bed. And look at this. You can keep all of your things in this little drawer here."
Ms. Sasaki smiled at him before remembering the blindfold. He wasn't able to look at the drawer she had pulled out and was instead looking straight ahead. It would take some time before she remembered he couldn't see her.
"Well," she said, "I'll leave you to get adjusted with your room. Dinner will be in just under an hour. I'll send someone for you when it's time."
(L/N) waited until he heard the door close and her footsteps faded. He took a step forward and bumped into something. His hand recognized it as his suitcase. Mr. Saito must have brought it here in advance. Unsure of what he was supposed to do, (L/N) sat down on the bed, the cheap mattress sagging beneath his weight with an irritating squeak. Home, sweet home.