Warnings:discussion of child abuse. needles, mentions of that one doctor

Part Five - Do You Want Answers to Your Questions?

All Might got a lot of fanmail. Usually it was by email, but sometimes there was the rare gift, that was always scanned. Sometimes there were handwritten letters. Sometimes there were ransom notices for citizens that he sends to the police because that is more helpful than rushing off on his own, even if it is much more fruitful in his humble opinion.

Since being back in Japan, it has been a bit much. More than usual at any rate.

Sometimes, however, he gets different mail. Cries for something, some for autographs, some for gifts.

Occasionally he gets the ones that are on his desk. Cries for help on something that isn't simply punching. He doesn't know if he can quite answer them, in their messy penmanship.

"My cousin's Quirk is messed up because of her mom, huh…?" he muses, looking at the words with concern. "It's a quirk beaten into dormancy perhaps?" That did happen, the quirk either exploded in power or vanished all together until a change in life circumstances gave the child a chance to develop and grow. Love, of course. Or something similar. Something something strong emotions impacts health and quirks. Something of that nature anyway. Still, there isn't much All Might himself can do about that. She needs to see a specialist, and potentially a therapist, though the latter would be hard to come by in Japan even now.

Well… in fairness he does know a few. Perhaps he can write back and strike up a correspondence? Yes that should not be too hard. The younger cousin seems to have a good heart and the mother might appreciate it…

Yes, a visit would be in order. He just has to tell his agents not to fuss about it when he goes out.

Besides, a small break would be nice.

It's not like All For One is going to fall out of the sky on top of him. He's much too cunning for that most of the time.

Still, well, he can at least ask for help. He hadn't grown up with a Quirk, so the idea of him understanding this was definitely unlikely.

Good kid, though.

Aizawa is still asleep at one in the afternoon when he finally wakes up to five separate voicemails from the Symbol of Peace himself.

He, simply put, is not pleased.

"You're gonna answer that right?" Hizashi grumbles from his tiny table.

Some things are convenient. Hizashi is convenient. A roommate to take most of the rent, someone who can cook, a classmate who can mourn.

That's all Shouta needs, or so he tells himself.

"Yeah, right, sure." His response is groggy, half-hearted. He'd only gotten five hours of sleep and getting out of his work uniform into actual pajamas had been a troublesome idea at best and a waste of sleeping time at worst. "Sorry, I guess."

"Eh, it's fine. You were pretty out." Hizashi's bad tone is only there to belay his good humor. "Just don't want to wake up the kid, ya know?"

"You've gotta work on not picking up strays," Shouta informs him. He doesn't protest the kid living here, of course. It's not like there's not at least one person in the apartment at all times and people like seeing a kid kept safe as opposed to… whatever happened to him. He hasn't asked and the kid's not interested in talking. So that's that really. He'll let Hizashi work it out and then tell him.

"You have to stop picking up cats, first, dear listener," Hizashi tells him teasingly, blissfully out of uniform and lacking speakers to bloody his eardrums.

Shouta's face still colors with embarrassment, splotches of pink on pallid skin. "Right. Fine. Whatever." He turns on his phone and puts it to his ear-

And promptly pulls it away as the booming voice of All Might indeed does blare through the speaker, asking for his advice regarding a strange child's quirk, or at least a second opinion regarding specialists and if he would not mind messaging this person any advice he may have, he would be very grateful.

There's a loud thump as someone's head hits the back of the wall. Hizashi clearly doesn't mean to, judging by the way his eyebrows have met in the middle and risen high on his head, but he's laughing at him, and the phone and everything else.

Shouta cuts off the message with a grunt and a much too forceful push of the thumb, but he doesn't care. His ears are ringing. Of course that stupid man doesn't know how to handle Quirks and their complication, the over optimistic nimrod. How he had even gotten Shouta's number was a mystery.

"I'll get the kid," Hizashi offers, still laughing at him, now at an unreasonable raucous guffaw as Shouta debates slamming his head into the table. He almost wants to text him back to look into it himself, but he knows it will only lead terribly. Ultimately, this kid does need help. The Quirk isn't described as dangerous, but it easily could be.

… He's going to have to go out today, isn't he?

He's going to need a drink.

Still, he resigns himself to it anyway. You likely can't trust All Might with these things, seeing as he can't go to meetings on time.

Chise sits obediently on the stool. The sight of the needles makes her shadow ripple but that's all. After her mother, nothing really hurts anymore. Besides, this is supposed to help her. Maybe not feel good, but help her.

The needle is quick. It takes her blood. Blood isn't the only way to identify Quirks and analyze. There's X-rays and stuff too, she's spent the past few days reading. She has little else to do with Izuku back in school and Auntie at work on and off (she doesn't say if she likes or dislikes this, and Chise takes to cooking a little, if only to distract from the monsters floating around the small apartment. They don't do much, so she doesn't bug them in turn. They just seem to… watch her.

Why don't people see them?

Today she might find out.

She isn't sure how to feel. What will it mean if no one can?

Her shadow ripples and quakes, rising from the stool, only to be clamped down at the image of her mother, who could see, with her hands over her throat, eyes wide and then stepping back, slipping and falling and no more.

Had mama really died only a few days ago? Was it only a few days ago that her mother had hated her and now couldn't hate anyone?

The thought shutters her heart and her shadow shrinks back into herself, if a little fuzzy (furry) around the edges. She sees none of this.

Auntie Inko and Izuku watch all of it in silence, Izuku fascinated and Inko unreadable. She looks at them, puzzled and even a little heartsick. She thinks she misses home, until the doctor comes in and chases the thought away with his clipboard and shiny badge and balding head.

"Well," he says, in a soft, creaky voice. Chise doesn't miss the way that Izuku is starting to wilt at the sound of his voice, leaning into his mother too much. (she doesn't blame him, something about this man hurts her in her bones and guts and something even deeper.) "We are still scanning your blood. You do not have the toe joint, alas, but that shadow of yours indicates you do have a quirk, yes, though possibly a late bloomer…" He falls off into his notes for a moment, before passing her a flower, still alive and freshly picked. "Here, little one, hold this for me, will you?"

Chise takes it. It wilts at first, until her eyes widen with horror. At once it blooms, roots stemming all over her hands and then bursting into soft, harmless flames.

The doctor's eyes are wide. The Midoriya's eyes are even wider.

The black box has shifted in her head. It's gained paws and a snout, a rough and ragged tail. "It's almost time," it says, red eyes staring into her own as if in a dream. "Dearest Child of Night, it's so close. That is your Quirk, calling your magic. Call me. Please. It's been so long. Call the name of the Grimm."

Then she's staring at the ceiling and everything hurts.

The arm with the branch has no wounds but she is so very tired and her shoulders ache like they've been hunched up by her ears for a day. And yet…

Something in her head is quite clear.

Her shadow quivers and warps in the light.

"I..." She swallows. "I'm calling it Shadowbox."

That isn't the quirk. That isn't all of it, but she thinks half of it is enough. Half of the story is enough.

The rest is in the magic.

The rest is with the Grimm. She's going to find the Grimm.

Chise almost misses the elderly doctor's eyes begin to shine with delight and hope, but she doesn't.

She is not a stupid child, after all.