Silence Destroyed (MHA)

Chapter 21- A Storm?

The door to the apartment creaked slightly as it opened and Naoko edged inside. After spending the last few days with Chris and Levi doing some gentle training and patrolling that wouldn't overwork Naoko, she was genuinely scared to be coming home.

It had been so nice there, neither of the two seemed to care that Naoko had just been severely injured... That was just a part of a hero's life.

Hasame on the other hand... Well, that was a whole other can of worms that Naoko was genuinely frightened to get into. Just opening the door felt like she was stepping into enemy territory as a bomb was coming.

"... Hasame?" She asked, poking her head around the corner cautiously, "You here?"

To be honest, her saying that was more for Naoko than it was for Hasame. She knew her aunt was home, and Hasame knew she was here as well, but at least this way Naoko would be less likely to get pegged in the head with whatever object Hasame had on hand.

Not a moment after Naoko spoke, Hasame appeared... The woman stepped into the light, her raven hair shining as she glared at Naoko, her eyes sharp and arms folded... Her posture had Naoko flinching.

This was not going to be a pleasant conversation.

"Oh, you decided to come home in one piece?" Hasame's fingers twisted together in displeasure as she stood stiffly at the opposite end of the entrance hall, "It's funny, I thought you were trying to see how suicidal you could be."

Naoko said nothing as Hasame continued, she simply nodded as she slipped her shoes off and leaned against the wall.

She was like her aunt in more than one way, and her tendency to go on rants when she was frustrated or worried was one of them... And Boy, did Hasame have a lot to say. Everything from how hard it was to keep working when she knew that any moment could be her Niece's last, to how much she disliked coming home to an empty apartment was covered.

It would be rather humorous if the tangent wasn't being directed at Naoko.

As it was, she knew that there was no stopping Hasame, so instead she simply let her rant herself into exhaustion.

"Do you think your parents would want you to keep hurting yourself like this, Naoko? They were the most supportive people I ever knew, but this would kill them... Again. Heck, if they were still alive, I doubt you would be going through with this ridiculous quest to become a hero in the first place.

"It's not that I'm not proud of you, because I am, but if I had known how much this would hurt you, then I would have moved both of us far away from UA... Now that I think about it, UA is the only high school to be dealing with this kind of crap, isn't it? How did you end up in the one class that is a magnet for life-threatening situations? Naoko, are you trying to give me a heart attack?!"

All of Hasame's words were valid, which is exactly why Naoko was able to bear sitting there through the whole thing. It was painful to read at times, but she understood the reason for it. She wouldn't be the one to deny Hasame of her well-deserved venting time.

"I was hesitant enough to let you join UA, and look at what's happened! Despite their claims of safety, you've ended up in the hospital not once, not twice, but three times! THREE Times, Naoko! That's not normal!"

By this point, Hasame was red in the face and Naoko could see the tell-tale signs of tears beginning to show.

"What will happen next time? Have you thought about that, Naoko? You might not make it to the hospital next time!" There was no pause, which was a good sign that it was time for Naoko to take action.

She walked forward until she was right in front of Hasame, "Hasame?" She asked quietly before wrapping her arms tightly around her aunt. "What do you want me to do about this?" She said after a moment of silence, "What can I do to make you feel better? You know my reasons for wanting to be a hero, but if it'll cause you too much stress, then we need to figure out a solution we can both live with."