Greater Together (Chainsaw Man X Venom Fan Fiction story)

make way your escape

The orphanage had no shortage of kids to shelter,especially since most of these children have lost their families to devil attacks,that or they've been abandoned,there are many reasons a parent would abandon their child,not logical ones,but reasons nonetheless...

Asa Mitaka is one of the many kids who lost their parent in a devil attack,her mother to be exact,she watched her die with her very own eyes,she believes it was her fault for saving a cat that was In the way,the memory always haunts her,the feeling of the rough fur of the stray Cat,the weight of said Cat,down to the rock that made her slip and fall,and the look on her mothers face as the devil devoured her.

Obviously,she didn't take it well,who would? A little girl lost the only family she had left to a devil,and she blames herself to this day,moving on is not a simple thing,assuming it's even possible in the first place...

"Hey,Asa...don't you wanna play with us?" One of the kids pokes his head out of the door leading to the playground that the orphanage had,kids of all ages were outside,continuing to find something to look forward to and have fun with despite their unfortunate lives
"I don't wanna..." Asa mutters,sitting down on the floor,her back against the wall while a cat sat on her lap,it's purrs vibrating against her legs while Asa stroked it's soft and furry head,the cat had its eyes closed,but it still looked at Asa,occasionally letting out the softest of meows while it relaxed on Asa's lap,"I'm staying with crambon"
"Okay...suit yourself" the kid shrugged,making his way outside to the playground
"I don't need friends..." Asa huffed,looking back at Crambon,"you're my best friend,Crambon..." Asa sighs,continuing to pet her feline friend
Crambon yawned before opening its eyes,it's gaze landed on a pile of a books,cats like books,not because they can read,but because they like to sit on them for whatever reason,Crambon got off of Asa's lap and crawled slowly towards the small pile of books,the cat stretching it's limbs after sitting on Asas lap for too long

Next to the pile of books was the only kid who was in the same room as her,his face covered by the comic book he's been reading for the past minute,the cat got up on the pile of books,getting comfy,the sudden sound of movement and the soft chirp made by the cat broke the kids attention,making him look to his left,seeing a white cat looking at him curiously,causing him to tear away from the comic book for a second to look at the cat,the boy raised an eyebrow,unsure as to why the cat would choose his books out of everything in this empty room
"Um...hey,kitty..." the boy greeted the cat,the cat responded with a simple meow before purring,displaying its enjoyment in its new seat
"His name is Crambon" Asa says in a shaky voice to the boy from the other side of the room,a bit fidgety,feeling a little nervous about having Crambon so close to another kid,the orphans here can be...quite cruel,and she doesn't want anything happening to Crambon
"Huh...well...hi,Crambon..." the boy slowly puts his hand right in the cats nose,letting it sniff him,the cat moved it's head on its own against the boys hand,rubbing against it,the boy took this as a sign of granted permission from the cat to pet it,and the boy took the opportunity to pet its head,he smiled a little as he watched the cat purr in approval at the feeling of his hand stroking its soft fur
"He...likes you" Asa watches intently over the exchange between the boy and her feline friend,"I...I sure hope so..." the boy chuckles awkwardly,"most cats aren't easy to get close to"
"Crambon is friendly,it's just the kids here aren't..." Asa looks down on the floor,a small frown forming on her face,the fact that she was the only kid in the orphanage with a "pet" brought lots of unwanted attention to her and her cat,some kids would poke fun at her for being so protective of a mere cat,while other kids would intentionally bother Crambon,either pushing him off whatever table he was sitting on,or chasing after him to make scared,they enjoyed seeing his panicked pace as he ran across the orphanage,Asa always felt helpess whenever someone tried to mess with Crambon,feeling weak and outnumbered by the kids who toy around with Crambon just to upset her for their own enjoyment
"Oh...yeah...I guess they're not very nice..." the boy nods,continuing to pet the cat,"I like cats alot,I don't see why anyone would want to harm them..."
"Do you think devils view us as cats aswell?" Asa asks the boy,her tone curious,"what if...we're the same to them...small...weak...what if they find the same enjoyment in messing with us as some humans do when they mess with cats?"
The boy pondered,rubbing his chin,she had a point,if humans toy with cats because they know they can't fight back,devils must view humans in the same light,helpless creatures that display amusing and pathetic reactions to when they're being toyed with,"maybe...maybe we're just...toys for devils to play with" the kid shrugs,his hand letting go of Crambon
"Whats your name?" Asa asks,she doesn't remember seeing this kid before,much less remember his name,then again,the orphanage has alot of kids,it'd be hard to remember all of them...
"Uh...its Shinoda,but everyone calls me Shin-Chan!" Was the boys answer
"I meant your first name..." Asa narrows her eyes,not very pleased with the response he gave her
"Oh...its Ren"
"Ren..." Asa repeats his name,trying to figure out how the name sounds in her voice,"my name is Asa"
"Uh...nice to meet you,Asa" Ren says with a faint smile
"Nice to meet you too,Ren" Asa smiles back a little for the first time in a while,"What are you reading,Ren?"
"Some comic books,they were donated to the orphanage,no one actually wanted to read them,so I took them all" Ren points at the pile of books that Crambon was sitting on
"Donated? By who?"
"I don't know,but all I know is that there's a 'nice lady' that occasionally comes by to donate stuff to the orphanage every now and then,once the staff told her that  I was the one reading all the comic books,she decided to donate more,but i don't think she even knows who I am"
"A...'Nice Lady'? You've never seen her before?"
"Nope...i never had the chance,but oh well,she brings me nice comics to read" Ren shrugs,going back to the comic he was reading,Asa Got curious,standing up and walking slowly towards Ren,once she got close enough,she got on her knees and leaned closer to look at the comic Ren was reading,Asa could tell it was one of those American made comics,Asa narrowed her eyes as she eyed the panels,noticing the dialogue bubbles were translated in Kanji,"do you...like superheroes?"
"Yeah...manga is good and all,but there's just something about superheroes that's so cool,i mean...imagine if a real superhero existed? Someone to save us from devils or something..." Ren says with a smile,this made Asa think,a real superhero? That doesn't sound impossible,considering that devils of terrifying power already exist,so why can't there be someone out there that has matching strength,but instead of destroying the world,they save it,heal it,even...
"Hm...that'd be great...but i suppose it's too good to be true,only devils hold great power..." Asa murmurs In a defeated tone,"its not fair,why are the evil ones the strongest?"
Ren sighs,closing his comic and putting it next to the pile,not wanting to disturb Crambon,"it is unfair,isn't it?" Ren leans back against the wall behind him,the back of his head pressing against it,"but...devil hunters exist,right? They're the closest thing to...'superheroes',if that makes sense"
"Yeah,well...they kind of suck at being superheroes..." Asa chuckles a little,Ren chuckled right after her,"yeah...you're right,most of them do it for the money,a real hero would protect everyone without expecting anything in return...because they feel a...responsibility of sorts..."
"A responsibility?"
"Yeah,if you're capable of making a difference...its your responsibility to go ahead and...you know,make that difference"
"Hm...I guess you're right..." Asa nods,contemplating Ren's words,she thinks this Ren kid is very optimistic,despite his current circumstances,he's almost an opposite to her,she's pessimistic and cynical,but how could she not be? She lost everything,she's in a world that doesn't want her,and yet,there's Ren,who's most likely in the same exact situation as her,he still thinks there's a glimmer of hope in this dark world,no matter how small it may be,she admired him for his beliefs in a way,even if they're a little silly and naive,perhaps it's those comics he's been reading...
"Say...can I um...borrow some of your books?" Asa asks a bit hesitantly,however,she felt somewhat comfortable around Ren,"i mean...if you don't mind,of course"
"Oh,I don't mind,there's not much use to these books after reading them,you know...you can borrow them,i don't mind"
"R-Really? Thanks,Ren..."
"Dont mention it,there's no point in hogging all the comics,they're not mine to begin with..."
"Oh yeah,they're from the 'Nice Lady',hehe..."