“So...let me just get this straight.” Yui almost winced at the tone Aizawa’s voice held. He sounded so done yet there was an undercurrent of anger there too. They were standing on top of a rooftop after they told Eraser what had happened with Siren. “Null was strangled, and you did not take him to a hospital? Yui, we’ve been over this, you didn’t even call me!”
“Y-You can’t yell at her...I-I’m fine-” Izuku interrupted, his voice was still rough and he still sported fading blue and green bruises around his throat.
“But what if you weren’t?! Kami, I swear you two are trying to die. Your esophagus could have collapsed or been damaged. There’s a reason we went over so many drills with the throat attacks, Yui’s methods are a bit...too vicious.” He pinched the bridge of his nose, letting out a sigh.
“I could breathe okay though...a little wheezy but it mostly hurt to talk. The suit absorbed a lot of the attack.” Izuku argued, taking a step forward as if he was going to shield the older girl.
“No, he’s right. I should have taken you to a hospital or called him...I-I wasn’t thinking about that. I just wanted to get you home.” Yui’s voice was soft as she looked down, her shoulders hunching up a bit.
“But we weren’t even in Musutafu. It would have taken him hours to get to us-”
“That’s not the point, problem child. I’m an adult, I’m supposed to keep an eye on you. Why were you in Kyushu? Did you go there just to hunt down Siren?” Black eyes almost shot them daggers as the two vigilantes looked at each other, silently communicating even though any facial clues were hidden behind masks and goggles.
“You know what, fine, don’t tell me, I don’t want you to lie. But even if you were in Kyushu, you could have called me. I have connections that you two don’t and people who owe me favors. You two are not alone anymore. You can depend on me.” Eraser’s deep voice was still gruff but they could hear the softness to it, the underlying warmth. It didn't quite crack, but the deep-set exasperation and light desperation were apparent and Yui seemed to shrink even further within herself hearing it in the gruff hero's voice.
Yui nodded softly, “You’re right...I’m sorry I didn’t reach out to you Eraser. I’m so sorry Null...I should have been thinking more about you and your injuries.” Her shoulders were tense as she looked up at them, her voice wavering through the voice modifier.
“You don’t have to apologize, Nee-chan… it wasn’t your fault and I’m fine!” Izuku touched her shoulder gently, leaning against her in a show of comfort.
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Yui gulped as she reached up to squeeze his hand gently before she looked up at Eraser, steeling herself for what she was sure was coming. She had failed, badly…and failure was always met with punishment.
The tired looking man was watching them intensely, those black eyes always seemed to pinpoint on any weakness. Aizawa finally let out another sigh, “Okay, here’s what we’ll do. You-“ He pointed at Izuku, making him straighten up, “Two months no vigilante work. You need to heal.”
“Whaatt? No fair! I’m fine, Eraserhead!” They both heard the whine in his voice, could imagine him pouting.
“You know what, for complaining, it’s four months.” He crossed his arms over his chest as he glared at the kid.
“You can’t just tell me what to do, I’m a vigilante! I’m going against the law anyway-“
“Six months. I’ll keep adding.”
“But-“ Yui covered his mouth quickly, wincing a bit. She really didn’t want to fight, and a break wouldn’t be bad for him. He could bulk up at home with weights or something.
“He has a point, Null. There’s things we can do at home anyway to help.” She said quickly, relaxing a teeny bit when Izuku nodded glumly.
“Good, now that that is settled. Yui, same thing. No going out for vigilante work for six months. And then you two are only allowed to go out on patrols with me. Or at least keep to Musutafu where I’m close by. So, you can contact me. And I want you to make me one of those communication devices you have.” He pointed at her, and she blinked.
“You...that’s it? It’s just like we’re grounded...aren’t you going to put me through drills, or I don’t know-have me do hacking for you or have me spar?” Her voice came out in a ramble, stepping closer as she counted off on her fingers. It was never this easy, punishment always involved pain. The scars on her body was testament to that. “Or-or would you use knives-"
“Yui.” Her jaw snapped closed with a click as she straightened. Eraser looked down at her, his forehead creased as a soft frown pulled his lips down. His movements were slow, his gaze never leaving where hers as he wrapped his arms around her. Yui couldn’t help but stiffen against the hug, a memory of Miyu pulling her into a hug just for a sharp blade to dig between her shoulder blades flashing through her mind until Eraser's gruff voice pulled her back to the present. “I’m not going to hurt you just because you did something stupid. Look, I’m disappointed you didn’t reach out to me for help. But you’re a child-teenager, whatever- you're going to make mistakes. And I’ll try to be there for you both. So you won’t have to fall without a safety net.”
Yui blinked, staring at the man in shock before pinpricks stung her eyes, glad for the goggles covering her eyes. She gave him a nod, taking a deep breath before her arms wrapped around him to return the hug. “Thanks, Eraser...I-I really appreciate that. I’ll strive to do better.”
“Me too...thank you, Eraserhead. Um...can we still come over for Sunday breakfast?” Izuku asked, fiddling with his fingers as he looked up at him.
Aizawa snorted softly as he let her go, “Like I’d live it down with Mic if I banned you. You two can come over more often if you want to, you know. Mic wants to do movie nights or something too.”
“Really?! That’d be a lot of fun!” He smiled wide as he turned to Yui, almost bouncing in place from excitement, his gloom over being grounded forgotten for now.
Yui couldn’t help but chuckle, “Yeah, we can definitely come over for movie nights, just tell us when.”