Endless

6. Grief

Principal Nezu is an intelligent creature— rat, bear, mouse, dog, stoat, his species is unspecified and it shall remain that way. His quirk, High Specs, gives him predictive abilities akin to a soothsayer, only his predictions are based on science, on logic, not old magic. When it comes to young Nu, the child who's recently been returned into UA's custody, Nezu finds his quirk is mysteriously silent.

High Specs will tell him nothing of her movements. A child's movements are often difficult to predict but normally his quirk will offer a little more than the nothing it gives him on her. It's almost as if his quirk refuses to admit she exists. It accepts her existence only as something that affects the movements of others rather than a being in her own right who moves about too. It's never happened before, and (he has to say) he's intrigued.

He thinks maybe being around her more— allowing his quirk to get used to her— might help. So, on a day when both Aizawa and Yamada (Eraserhead and Present Mic) are going to be in a hero training lesson, Nezu offers to babysit. Nobody likes leaving Nu alone with Famine for too long unless they have to, it's not a trust thing or anything, Famine's just a bit odd, it's the same reason they don't leave Nu alone with Kayama (Midnight). So of course, Aizawa and Yamada jump at the idea of having someone else with Nu.

And Nu, who's been upset with the two men since Famine rescued her, jumps at the chance too. She doesn't hug their legs anymore, she growls when they get too close instead. It visibly breaks Yamada's heart every time she does it. Aizawa, meanwhile, tends to just look confused when it happens, and then he goes on with his day like it didn't.

Sitting in his office, Nu does very little. Famine ends up spending most of her time on her phone, but she tells Nu that if she needs anything she only has to tap her to get her attention— though of course, little Nu doesn't understand a single word of that; it's the thought that counts.

Nezu ends up sat on the floor opposite Nu. There's a child's jigsaw in front of them, one made of words. It's pretty clear she's matching the shapes together rather than the words though. He wants to help her learn language, or relearn language since she was apparently capable of it before the villains messed with her head. Poor girl.

"Famine, can you tell me any more about the people you asked me to look for?"

Famine sets her phone down, pressing two fingers against her lips as she hums. "War is an amputee if that helps."

"You know who the people we're looking for are?" Nezu was under the impression that the whole reason he'd been asked to assist the search was because Famine didn't know enough for a conventional search to work.

Famine's head tilts until she's leaning her whole body to one side. "Well, I remember things about them, but not their names, so I figured that wouldn't be much help."

It makes absolutely no sense but Nezu tries not to get frustrated with that now. "Alright, let's start with War. She's an amputee, what else? And what limb?"

"Left leg, she's got a prosthetic but it hurts a lot. She lost it as a child, IED, I think. She was born in a war zone, that's why she was chosen. Who better to become War than someone who understands it like she does?"

Nezu has to admit that he did not expect this. He knows there are things in the universe that present science can't explain, and some people fill that with the mystical. He isn't one to believe in religion but he's aware of many religions filled with aspects he considers problematic. So far, this odd religion that focuses around the ideas of light and life and darkness and death hasn't been quite so pockmarked. Maybe that's only because he doesn't know enough about it yet. "A logical idea, Eraserhead would approve."

Nu makes a noise, one that sounds less than pleased, before glaring down at the floor. She stops there so Nezu and Famine continue their conversation. "Last time I saw her, she had purple hair and it was short, but she plays with her hair a lot, she gets nervous about it." Famine hums again, this time biting into her index finger. "She looked a little over twenty last I saw her, so she must be around thirty now."