Eraserhead and Scribe IV

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"You and me both." Shigaraki moved past her and sat on the sofa.

"What did you do?" Himiko shot a look at the closed door to the bedroom, her voice coming out in a hiss. "She thinks she belongs here, that she's in love with you. How did you manage that?"

"I didn't." At her dubious look, he held out his hands in appeal. "Spinner brought her in, just like we said. He found her unconscious. When she woke up, she was...like that."

"And you've been shut up in your room with her all day? Guess I don't have to ask what that is all about." Himiko snorted derisively.

"It's not like that. I swear. I've been trying to figure out what to do for her. She's...not right. I wouldn't take advantage of that."

Himiko frowned. "Yeah...I guess. But, what are you going to do, Shigaraki? It's dangerous to keep her here. If Eraser finds out, we're all dead."

"Yeah. That's the problem. If I'm going to help her, I may have to contact him." Shigaraki made a face. "But I'll do it."

"Well, do it without bringing the entire hero community down on our heads, would you?" Himiko reached for the doorknob. "I like this place."

Shigaraki watched her go, then opened the door to the bedroom. Scribe stood by the window. Her brow was furrowed, as if in concentration. She was so deep in thought, she didn't turn when he entered, so he put a gentle hand on her shoulder. She whirled, striking out, shoving him backward with enough force to knock him into a chair. He recovered his balance to see her standing with her hand over her mouth, tears in her eyes.

"Oh, Tomura! I'm so sorry. I don't know why I did that."

He shrugged, dusting himself off. "It's fine. I probably deserved it."

"Don't say that!" Her expression turned angry. "You've said stuff like that all day. It's not true. It..." She trailed off, her face going blank for a second. Then she shook her head. "Sorry, what was I saying?"

Shigaraki took her hand and led her to the chair he'd nearly knocked over. She sat. "Wow. Guess that knock on the head threw me for more of a loop than I'd thought, huh?"

He knelt in front of her, taking her hands. "Think very hard, Scribe. Are you certain you can't remember anything at all about what happened to you?"

She shook her head. "All I remember is waking up here with you. Safe." She smiled.

"Yes. Safe." He lowered his gaze to their hands for a moment. "Do you remember anything from...before? What you were doing? Why you were on that street?"

"I..." She stopped. "It's like I can almost remember. Like it's right there and I reach for it, but then..." She shook her head. "Then it's gone. And it feels important. That's what I feel like I'm forgetting." Her hands tightened convulsively on his and he looked up, startled. Her eyes looked haunted and her voice came out in a hoarse whisper. "Someone is going to get hurt if I don't remember, but I can't remember who."

Eraser. Is she talking about Eraser? Before he could decide if he should mention the hero's name or not, however, her eyes rolled back and she slumped forward. He caught her and lifted her into his arms, placing her on the bed. He checked her pulse and decided she had just passed out. Still, he wondered if the stress of trying to remember was too much for her.

He paused in the act of letting go of her hand. Why can't Eraser reach her? He should be able to activate their connection. It's not one way. He frowned realizing he hadn't felt that connection with her either. He reached out to her thoughts and felt something strange. Tough but springy, it reminded him of the scar tissue on his own face. What's going on?

A light knock on the outer door of his quarters made him turn. He glanced at Scribe, then decided she would be all the better for a few extra minutes rest. He opened the door to find Spinner. He stepped back to let the other man in. "What did you find?"

"Nothing to tell us what your girl was doing out there or who attacked her. But..." Spinner reached into his pocket and produced a cell phone. "Don't worry, I disabled the GPS. And checked it for trackers. It's hers, though."

Shigaraki flipped the phone over and saw a cute picture of Scribe with a little girl. The girl was smiling into Scribe's eyes and playing with her hair. Shigaraki looked at the picture curiously. Scribe was beautiful but she didn't look like the woman in the bedroom or the woman in the forest or even the woman who'd married Shota Aizawa on a beach in America. In this picture, she was somehow both more and less than the hero he knew.

She looks...like a mother.

The child must be Eri, then. Shigaraki felt a strange ache in his chest at the thought that she must be worried about Scribe, too. He cleared his throat and stuck the phone in his pocket. At least now he had a way to contact Eraser.

Spinner watched him closely. "There was one more thing. I'm not sure it's important."

"What is it?" Shigaraki looked up sharply.

"She and Eraser had been there a week before. They cleaned out a gang of head cases."

"Head cases?" Shigaraki frowned.

"Yeah. Mental quirks. Some nasty ones from what I heard. But supposedly they got them all."

Shigaraki's hand tightened on the phone. He thought of the picture of Scribe with the girl. Something about what had happened to Scribe felt almost primal. Unplanned. And somehow that made him think of that picture. His frown deepened. "Poke at that one a little harder, would you, Spinner? I want to make sure they were all really rounded up. And if you can get any information about their quirks."

"You got it, boss." Spinner turned at the tap on the door and opened it. One of the kitchen staff wheeled in a cart with two covered dishes, a bottle of wine and various other small dishes. His eyebrows shot up. He looked at Shigaraki as the staffmember let herself out. His mouth quirked a little. "Have a good night, boss."

Shigaraki watched him leave, his hand still on the phone in his pocket. He glanced at the door to the bedroom and decided playing along...cautiously...with her delusions would do no harm to her. He needed time to plan for his meeting with Eraser, anyway. So he went to wake her with a gentle kiss on the forehead.