Silence followed. There was something more there still. Those arms tightened around him, holding on as if he were about to fade away.
“Y-You almost died. There w-was footage. A-All-Might had to r-retire. It-It wouldn’t have h-happened if-”
That was all Tsunagu could take. He leaned back, moving one hand to tilt Katsuki’s face up towards his own. Red eyes refused to meet his, shame burning on his face.
“Katsuki, I need you to listen to me. Yes, I was injured. Yes, I could’ve died. And even if I had, I would have died proud to have been doing my job. I would have been proud to die to protect my allies, and I would have been proud to die to help rescue you. That is our job as heroes. We all made the choice that day to do our jobs, and you cannot take the blame for our choices.”
He paused to let that sink in, but he could tell Katsuki wasn’t hearing him. So he tried a different approach.
“Do you think it would be better if All for One were free?”
Now that got a response; instantly Katsuki’s face furrowed and finally his eyes looked up.
“Of course not!”
The indignation made him smile, there was that fire again.
“If you hadn’t been kidnapped, we wouldn’t have caught him. Yes, All-Might is now retiring, but the world’s most dangerous villain has also been put behind bars. If anything that happened that day was a result of your actions, it is the fact we were able to subdue a villain who has evaded justice for decades. You had no choice in being kidnapped, but you had choices in how you reacted that you made well. You rejected the villains and fought back against them, allowing All-Might to focus on his own fight. The moment you had the chance, you escaped the situation to allow All-Might to fight at full power. Because you did, he was able to take down All for One and force the other villains to retreat. Do not blame yourself for other people’s choices. Take pride in your own, and know the world is a better place because of them. Am I understood?”
It took a moment, but eventually he was given a shaky nod. Katsuki was not entirely convinced, but it was a start. Sometimes that’s all you could ask for. The silence was back now, but it wasn’t a bad silence anymore. Time ticked by slowly as he moved back to combing his fingers through soft blond hair and allowed the boy to cling to him tightly. He let himself focus on this. Focus on breathing and reassuring the child in his arms that he was still here. He wasn’t going anywhere.
A buzz sounded and broke the silence. Tsunagu glanced at his phone and weighed the pros and cons of ignoring it. In the end Katsuki made the choice for him, releasing his grip and pulling back to rub at his new bandages. So Tsunagu gave Katsuki’s hair one last ruffle, squeezed him gently and let him go to grab his phone.
Aizawa’s name popping up on the call screen was unsurprising. This was going to be a long phone call. He glanced back at Katsuki, unsure now. Leaving the teenager alone seemed like a bad idea, but he also didn’t trust himself to keep his cool during this call. Katsuki didn’t need his anger right now, it’d only encourage him to blame himself.
“It’s okay, go answer it in the other room. I’ll be fine.”
