Author's Notes: Chapter edited and corrected by Vongrak.
Izumi POV.
"Try not to overwhelm her, understood?" Aizawa asked seriously as we stood outside Eri's hospital room door in Musutafu. I gave Aizawa a dry look, as he stared at me.
"I suddenly feel singled out." I said dryly, Aizawa just kept staring at me.
"I'm glad you can read between the lines," Aizawa said easily. I returned his gaze before clicking my tongue.
"Fine, I won't throw a party, I'll just keep things in my shadows." I said with a pout.
"You were going to have a party?!" Izuku exclaimed in shock. "You have a party in your shadows?!" he added quickly. I shrugged.
"You have to be prepared for any eventuality; you never know when you'll need a spontaneous party," I said wisely, closing my eyes and nodding. Aizawa just sighed wearily as Mirio laughed heartily and punched me in the shoulder.
"I like the way you think, Kohai!" Mirio said cheerfully.
"Don't encourage him," Aizawa said curtly. Then he sighed once more. "Now go inside, Eri's waiting for you." He said simply, and we became more serious and nodded. Aizawa nodded and walked over to the door, knocking gently. "Eri, you have visitors," Aizawa said simply before opening the door and stepping aside.
When we entered, we stopped to look at Eri. She was lying in the middle of the hospital bed, completely enveloped by my summons. Like, completely. Orochi was draped over her shoulders like a scarf, its head floating against Eri's cheek. My Divine Dogs were surrounding her, lying on the hospital bed. Nue was on her lap, sleeping as if it were a nest. And Rabbit Escape had multiplied, covering Eri in white rabbits, leaving only her head exposed.
""Cute!"" Mirio and Izuku suddenly exclaimed as they staggered backwards as if they had been physically hit. I took out my scroll and quickly snapped a picture.
"Hi, Eri." I said softly, putting my scroll back in my pocket.
"Eri-chan!" said Mirio, approaching.
"Those are your summons?! What are they doing here?" Izuku asked, surprised, looking in my direction. I just smiled slightly.
"I thought Eri would feel lonely, so I've been sending them here. I hope they've kept you company." I said gently to Eri, and she nodded.
"They're good," Eri said softly. I nodded contentedly. Then I looked at Rabbit Escape, the original. The rabbit simply looked at me before all the clones dissolved into the shadows. The rabbit jumped in my direction and landed on my shoulder.
"Yes, they are." I told Eri, now free from the animals, well, from the horde of rabbits, the others were still around her.
"It's good to see you, Eri-chan, we're sorry we couldn't come sooner." Izuku said gently while smiling.
"I brought food!" I announced cheerfully before pulling a food basket out of my shadows. I could see Eri staring at the basket, mesmerized, a thin thread of drool starting to trickle from the corner of her lip. I chuckled, secretly winked at her, and opened the basket, handing her the food I had prepared before coming.
Eri ate quickly and with great care. The three of us simply watched her with smiles as she devoured the food in front of her. At some point, the three of us pulled up a few chairs and sat down across from her, and she finally seemed to notice and stop. She left the small, half-finished sandwich on a plate on the hospital bed.
"It was delicious," Eri finally said. "...thank you," she said, and I nodded contentedly.
"I'm glad you like it, I'll be sure to make more for you." I said playfully, and Eri nodded enthusiastically. Finally, she stopped and looked at me.
"All the time I was in your... shadows, even when you sent your shadow animals to keep me company and gave me food, all I could think about was that I didn't know your name," Eri said, looking at me sadly. I smiled gently at her.
"Izumi, Izumi Miyamura, it's a pleasure to meet you. You can call me Izumi." I said softly. Eri looked at me intently before nodding. "These are Mirio and Izuku." I said, pointing to the two of them beside me.
"I'm Izuku Midoriya! My hero name is Deku, you can call me that, it's shorter." Izuku said quickly with a smile.
"I'm Mirio Togata! And my hero name is Lemillion ! You can call me whatever you feel most comfortable with!" Mirio said, giving a thumbs-up.
"Hero name?" Eri asked, confused, as she tilted her head.
"It's like a nickname," Izuku said quickly, and she nodded.
"Lemillion-san, Deku-san." Eri finally said, then looked at me, almost expectantly. I smiled slightly.
"Just Izumi, it's also my hero name." I said gently.
"Izumi-san." Eri finally said, and I smiled at her before giving her an apologetic expression.
"I'm sorry for leaving you in my shadows all that time," I added, Eri shook her head.
"Your shadows... were warm," Eri said softly. "Like shadow animals, they're... warm, they keep me company," Eri said as she stroked one of the wolves. I nodded.
"I'm glad you think so," I said with a smile. "I hope they were great company." I said as I stroked the rabbit on my shoulder, and Eri nodded firmly.
"Yes, they were," Eri said before looking at me. "Do they... have names?" Eri asked, almost expectantly. I blinked.
"Names?" I asked, confused. I hummed softly. I mean… did they have names? Orochi, Nue, Rabbit Escape, and the others weren't really names, not like Agito or Mahoraga. "No, they don't," I said gently. Eri looked sad, and I chuckled. "Want to help me name them?" I asked playfully. Eri's eyes widened slightly.
"Can I?" Eri asked, surprised. I nodded easily.
"Of course. But I have a lot of animals, nine in total. We'll have to think about it a lot." I said seriously, and Eri's eyes widened.
"Nine?" Eri asked, surprised, before looking at the animals around her and noticing that some were missing. She looked at me almost sadly. "They're not here?" Eri asked sadly.
"They're big. Very big. There's a deer and an elephant. I can't summon them here; you need to recover. Once you can go outside, I'll show them to you." I promised Eri. Eri looked at me intently and nodded firmly.
"I will." Eri promised, and I nodded contentedly.
"Okay, in the meantime we can think of names," I said playfully. Eri nodded quickly. Finally, she calmed down, paused to look at us one more time, and then looked down.
"I'm sorry for putting you through so much trouble to save me," Eri said sadly.
"Nobody thinks you caused all this!" Mirio said immediately with a smile. "Everyone's thinking something more like, 'Thank goodness Eri-chan is safe!'" he added cheerfully. Izuku nodded firmly and seriously.
"Besides, it wasn't a problem at all. I could do it all day, and nobody got hurt," I said confidently. Eri looked at me cautiously.
"You fainted," Eri finally said.
"Spontaneous narcolepsy." I said without hesitation.
"Izumi!?" Izuku exclaimed in shock and confusion, I chuckled.
"I mean, I wasn't hurt, I was just really, really tired." I quickly corrected myself. Eri finally nodded.
"Like I was saying! There's no point in apologizing, it wasn't a big deal, so let's just take it easy. Everyone was fighting because they wanted to see you smile! Especially Miyamura, that's why he was so tired!" Mirio said confidently. I raised an eyebrow slightly at that. Eri stopped and looked at us.
Then I try to smile shakily only to fail, then I grab her hands and pinch her cheeks and pull them up trying to smile once more. Finally, I look down, almost crying.
"I'm sorry... how... how can you smile?" Eri asked sadly. I shuddered slightly. I clenched my fists so tightly my knuckles turned white.
I knew how to fix it; I knew what it would take to make Eri smile. A song, a performance, everyone dancing, everyone laughing, and… could I do it? A song, I could sing it, right here and now, try to make her smile. But would it be enough?
Should I do it? I stopped at that thought.
Why shouldn't I? That was the right question.
I'd never cared about the future. No, that was a lie. I did care. This world was ridiculously dangerous, to the point that I honestly didn't know where it would lead. The merging of so many worlds changed so many things that it was impossible to know what might happen.
So I had stopped trying a long time ago. I had decided to take a more relaxed approach to the changes in this world, not thinking too much about the future and reacting to whatever happened without really committing myself in any way.
But… I had trained so hard for a reason, to stop anything that happened, no matter where it came from, and something like canon wasn't going to stop me. Not now, not ever.
I had my pride, my arrogance in my abilities, it had to be good for something, and there was no way I was going to let something like canon or knowledge of the future stop me from doing what I wanted.
Especially to make a little girl in need smile. So screw everything else, let's make Eri smile.
"Aizawa-sensei!" Izuku suddenly exclaimed before standing up and looking at Aizawa, who was leaning against the doorframe. "Can Eri-chan go out, even just for a day?" Izuku asked quickly.
"It's not impossible." Aizawa finally said, looking questioningly at Izuku.
"So, can Eri-chan come to the university festival!?" Izuku asked excitedly.
"University festival?" Eri asked, confused.
"Eri-chan! That's a great idea! It's a festival that's held at our university! Students put on events and make food for other students!" Mirio said excitedly.
"We're going to perform too," I said to Eri mischievously. "I'm going to sing," I said directly, and Eri's eyes widened.
"Sing?" Eri asked, confused.
"Do you want a demonstration?" I asked Eri with an expectant smile.
"A song." Eri murmured before staring at me, but she didn't say anything. I simply smiled, glancing sideways at Aizawa, who looked at me intently before sighing and nodding. My eyes sparkled. I mentally reviewed all the songs I knew.
It couldn't be anything really upbeat, not here in the hospital. I didn't want to scare Eri either, so I needed something slow, something meaningful, something to comfort her. Several songs came to mind, and I started to narrow them down before settling on one. It's… this might be a good idea.
I swallowed audibly before selecting the song from my scroll bar. The soft notes of an acoustic guitar began to play. Gold by RWBY, the acoustic version, was slower, calmer; I liked it more than the other version, and… it was perfect. I just quickly made the changes and started singing it in Japanese; I seriously doubted Eri could understand it in English.
Take a deep breath and stare at Eri, slowly sitting down next to her on the hospital bed as I begin to sing.
♫Dream of anything;
♫I'll make it all come true.
♫Everything you need
♫Is all I have for you.
♫I'm forever
♫Always by your side.
♫Whenever you need a friend,
♫Never far behind.
♫If the stars all fall,
♫When there's no more light,
♫And the moon should crumble,
♫It will be alright.
Eri's eyes opened wide and stared at me, I just smiled as I continued singing to my mesmerized audience.
♫Don't you worry about the dark,
♫I will light up the night with the love in my heart.
♫I will burn like the sun,
♫I will keep you safe and warm.
♫Like the smell of a rose on a summer's day,
♫I will be there to take all your fears away.
♫With a touch of my hand,
♫I will turn your life to gold.
♫With a touch of my hand,
♫I'll turn your life to gold.
I extended my hand in her direction, Eri jumped and looked surprised, her hand moved slightly before stopping and she looked at me almost panicked, I just smiled widely, gently withdrew my hand and continued singing before I began to move my hands while singing.
♫Let's have everything,
♫Nothing we cannot do.
♫Every heart just beaming,
♫Every sky turns blue.
♫I'm so happy
♫Just to have you here.
I smiled broadly at Eri as I looked at her fixedly.
♫Smiles bringing sunshine,
♫Worries disappear.
I used my index fingers to press the corners of my mouth and stretched my smile wide. Eri blinked in shock and awkwardly tried to imitate me. I smiled broadly.
♫When the days turn dark,
♫And we start to fall,
♫I will pick you up and
♫We will fix it all.
♫Don't you worry about the dark,
♫I will light up the night with the love in my heart.
♫I will burn like the sun,
♫I will keep you safe and warm.
♫Like the smell of a rose on a summer's day,
♫I will be there to take all your fears away.
♫With a touch of my hand,
♫I will turn your life to gold.
♫Gold.
I extended my hand toward Eri again, this time letting it linger as long as needed. Eri seemed hesitant before gently placing her hand in mine. My eyes flashed with intensity. I gripped her hand tightly and pulled her toward me, freeing her from my spells and making her squeal in surprise. I gently hugged her and placed my hand on her cheek, looking into her eyes just inches from hers.
♫Don't worry, I've got you;
♫Nothing will ever harm you.
♫I'm close by, I'll stay here;
♫Through all things, I will be near.
Eri's eyes shone brightly before small tears began to fall from the corners, but she continued to gaze at me intently, almost without blinking, almost unaware that she was crying. I continued singing softly, wiping away her tears with my thumb before resting my forehead against hers and closing my eyes.
♫Close your eyes,
♫Don't you cry.
♫Love's around you;
♫In time, you'll fly.
We both stood there in silence, face to face. I could feel her trembling as she clung to my clothes with all her might. I just hugged her tighter and held her gently. Finally, she opened her eyes, and I took Eri and lifted her into the air as I stood up. Eri let out a small gasp of surprise as she opened her eyes. I just smiled broadly as I started spinning her around.
♫Don't you worry about the dark,
♫I will light up the night with the love in my heart.
♫I will burn like the sun,
♫I will keep you safe and warm.
♫Like the smell of a rose on a summer's day,
♫I will be there to take all your fears away.
♫With a touch of my hand,
♫I will turn your life to gold.
♫With a touch of my hand,
♫I'll turn your life to gold.
Eria finally smiled. It wasn't a pretty smile, not a wide one; the corners of her lips trembled as she cried, but she tried anyway, it was still a smile. I smiled broadly before hugging her tightly.
Eri clung tightly, beginning to cry quietly as she held on. I just held her and stayed still, comforting her. I don't know how long I was there, but I didn't care. Finally, I could feel Eri's breathing slowing.
I barely had to check to realize that she had fallen asleep.
I smiled slightly as I continued to hug Eri, finally taking my gaze away from her only to look at Izuku and Mirio crying with a smile, Mirio raised his thumb excitedly, then I looked at Aizawa who seemed surprised and impressed, he even smiled slightly.
But ignoring them, I could see several nurses and the doctor crowded at the door, staring at me in surprise. I sighed, but ignored them, simply focusing on Eri. Carefully, I laid her on the bed, trying to pull away, but Eri's hands gripped my clothes.
"That was amazing, Miyamura!" Mirio exclaimed softly. Izuku nodded excitedly.
"I know I've heard you sing before, but I didn't think you had songs like this, that was... beautiful," Izuku said with a wide smile.
"Truly surprising," Aizawa said as he approached. He looked at me intently before his gaze fell on Eri and softened. "She seemed more tired than I thought," Aizawa said gently. I nodded.
"It seems so," I said simply, and Aizawa nodded.
"Come on, visiting hours are over." Aizawa finally said. Mirio and Izuku seemed about to complain, but a single look from Aizawa silenced them. They finally sighed and nodded.
"I'll try to free myself," I said softly. Aizawa stared at me.
"You're staying." Aizawa said simply, and I looked at him in surprise. "If Eri wakes up and notices you're gone, it could be bad news. Stay here until she wakes up. I'll send someone to get you later." He said simply, then with that, Aizawa left, dragging Izuku and Mirio along. I looked at Aizawa in surprise before chuckling.
I shook my head before summoning a comfortable sofa from the shadows, tucked it under me, and sat down to wait for Eri to wake up once more. I wouldn't do it any other way.
I stared at Eri for several minutes, feeling far more satisfied than I should have been—more satisfied than having fought Chisaki or All For One head-on. Making Eri smile… was far more important than any villain, and I was content to have achieved it, even for the small smile I'd managed to elicit. Nothing could compare.
I chuckled to myself before finally sighing, then pulled out my Scroll with my free hand and began searching for names. I would have to name my summons, which were already surrounding Eri and snuggling up to her.
Author's Notes : Uff, this chapter was harder to write than I expected, or rather, Eri is hard to write, a traumatized 6-year-old girl is complicated, but I like how the chapter turned out.
A/N: If you liked the story, join my patreon, patreon.com/Camellya_Addams, there are up to 10 chapters in advance, thank you. Or you can also visit my Ko-Fi, ko-fi.com/camellya_addams.