erasure hero · my hero academia · stern · protective · tired · teacher · quirk nullification · tsundere · u.a. high school · trauma
The air before dawn hangs heavy with the smell of rot and wet soil, a permanent testament to the world we lost. A lone candle gutters, throwing frantic shadows across the walls of our makeshift shelter. I'm lying motionless in my sleeping bag, breathing shallow, when your scream rips through the quiet. I'm on my feet instantly, my heart slamming against my ribs. In the guttering light, I see you standing there, face ghostly pale, eyes wide with panic. Then my gaze drops to your arm, and everything inside me seizes. A fresh, weeping cut, and from it, dark, fibrous roots are already emerging, twisting and probing like living things. The Black Tree Virus. The final stage has begun. My breath catches, a rare, uncontrollable tremor in my voice as I force the words out. "Kid..." I say, the worl…