Eraserhead and Scribe III

Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Kohei returned their call with information about the boy Masumi. His father, Kaidi, had a copy quirk also. He was not on either the hero or villain registry, having taken a job in middle management for a tech company. He made a comfortable living for himself, his wife, and his two remaining daughters. However, the local police reports gave a different picture. One of a father driven mad by grief over the loss of his only son. A father who haunted the police station, demanding action and poring over police reports.

Scribe listened to what Kohei said, her heart aching again. It was so easy to forget that every villain started out as a fresh new life, full of promise and ability, usually with a family that cared. Even Tomura had that. She'd glimpsed hidden memories of his family. His mother with her gentle touch that Shigaraki still remembered. His sister who'd been an ally. Even his father, who'd been stern and sometimes cruel, but strong and, in the child Tenko's eyes, worthy of respect, though not love.

What had driven Masumi away from a father who loved him so much? Why had he joined the League of Villains? The questions haunted Scribe. She went about her day at the bookstore, leaving Aizawa upstairs researching while she went downstairs to cover the store. It was fortunately a quiet afternoon with only a few intrepid readers coming in to browse the shelves, mostly leaving her alone to wonder and worry.

When a shadow fell over her as she was deep in thoughtful regret, she looked up and half rose when she saw Cameron standing there. He looked over his shoulder as if afraid someone would overhear him, though there was no one else in the store at the time. "Where's Eraser?"

"He's upstairs. I can call him—"

Cameron raised a hand. "No need. He's undoubtedly doing exactly what needs to be done. I was hoping to speak to you alone, anyway."

She nodded. "Have a seat." When he did, she said, "I've been meaning to ask you...my...our parents. Are they well?"

"They are. Mostly. Mom was sort of broken up when you left. She's been keeping up with you, though." He answered almost absently.

"She has?" Scribe blinked at him in surprise.

He raised his eyebrows, sitting back in the chair across from her. "Of course she has. Both she and dad are very proud of you." He smiled a little as if the thought pleased him. "They've always wanted you to come home. Always believed you would."

His words woke a longing in her that hadn't been there for some time. She gulped back the emotions. She had to stay on track and Cameron needed to clear something up for her.

"I...I have to ask you something, Cameron. When Joey's quirk was activated by accident." She hesitated.

He nodded. "I remember."

"He told us it was a big-headed man who did it. We obviously thought it was you because of—" She gestured at his curly mane.

"Ah. Yeah. The hair." He patted it thoughtfully. "Probably time for a cut."

"And you said it was you." She paused.

"Of course." He shrugged. "I told you it was an accident. I'd never mess with a kid like that."

"No." She looked up, her gaze sharp. "So why did the Shigaraki impostor turn into a big-headed man when he realized I didn't believe he was Shigaraki?" She stood slowly. "Who are you?"

He tilted his head and smiled a little. "I'm your brother."

"I don't think so." She came carefully around the desk to stand in front of him. "I think you are Kaidi Masumi, the father of the teenage boy Tomura Shigaraki killed in front of me. I think you are here for revenge and since you couldn't kill me as Tomura, you decided to do it as my brother."

For a moment he was silent as if considering, then he nodded, bowed his head and lifted it again. The pretense was gone. In place of her tall, white-haired brother was a short man with a very large, balding head. He inclined his head to Scribe. "You're much more intelligent than I gave you credit for." 

As he spoke, he gestured and suddenly the Dabi creature stood nearby, tossing a fireball from one hand to the other. Kaidi gestured and Dabi took up a spot near the bottom of the stairs. "You might want to think twice about calling Eraser, Scribe. My puppets can't take much damage themselves but they can inflict a fair amount."

***

Aizawa picked up his phone, answering it absently even as he paged through the reports Kohei had emailed that morning. "Aizawa."

"It's not him, Aizawa."

Aizawa frowned. "All Might? What are you talking about?"

"Cameron. Scribe's brother. It's not him. I found him and he's a government agent, but he's not there. He's in Alaska investigating some environmental crimes. He doesn't deal with quirk-based crimes at all and that's why Kohei's never heard of him."

Aizawa nodded. "That adds up. I knew there was something suspicious about him. And then he called me while Scribe was in the hospital but he said it would be dangerous for her if he came. I think he knew I didn't believe he was who he said he was. So all he could manage was a phone call. But that means he's—"

"All the evidence points to Kaidi Masumi. Age 58. Father of three. He recently disappeared and his family is concerned he's gone on a solo mission to avenge the death of his teenage son, a runaway who had fallen under the influence of the League of Villains. Evidently the son was killed by Shigaraki not long ago. According to the intelligence I could get, Kaidi's quirk is copy. He can take on the appearance and quirk of anyone if he can get a small amount of their DNA. He can also use this DNA to create what he calls 'puppets', which are inferior copies, which nonetheless have the quirk of the person whose DNA produced them. Kaidi can control these puppets, make them do what he wants for as long as they last."

"Any idea why my erasure didn't work on him?"

All Might was silent for a moment. "Maybe it's because you were aiming for Shigaraki's decay quirk? And since that's not his quirk, you couldn't erase it? And maybe you did erase his quirk. His quirk is the ability to copy someone else. To be honest, that's kind of a difficult thing to know you've erased, isn't it?"

"Maybe." Aizawa rubbed his eyes wearily. He'd been up for hours reading reports, searching for clues. "Thanks, All Might. I'll let Scribe know immediately. If her brother touches base with her, we'll be ready."

He hung up wondering how Kaidi had found out about Scribe's involvement with the murder of his son. I didn't even know and I was there.

Then he remembered what All Might had said about how Kaidi's quirk worked. He needed DNA from the person he copied, whether it was as a disguise for himself or to make a puppet. He's made copies of both Shigaraki and Dabi. We can be pretty sure Shigaraki didn't provide him with DNA. Dabi, though. He might have done it if he thought it could be beneficial to him. Would he betray his boss this way, though?

He needed to talk to Scribe. He started for the door but thought better of going downstairs without his capture scarf. He turned and snagged it from a barstool, looping it around his neck. Then he started for the door again. Just as he touched the knob, he felt Scribe's presence. Don't.

Don't what? He frowned. I just heard from All Might. Cameron's not—

Not Cameron. I know. She paused. Don't open the door. He's here and he brought a Dabi puppet with him. He's at the bottom of the stairs.

Aizawa froze and cursed. Then he looked around. His gaze landed on the front windows. If he couldn't leave through the door, he could find another way. He backed slowly away from the door. In his bare feet, he didn't make much noise. He started for the window, pausing to snag a small fire extinguisher from the kitchen. He looped it over his arm and reached for the window lock, ducking through the open window.

Be right there, love.