Lonely Rabbit

Chapter 6: Eraser meets Rabbit

A/N: Slightly shorter chapter, but getting there!

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(Aizawa POV)

It's been three months, and Aizawa still hasn't been able to come in contact with the vigilante, Rabbit. While it wasn't confirmed, Aizawa was 70% sure that Rabbit was young, maybe not even 18 yet. From the reports about the kid's attitude, he seemed more like a teenager, but at the same time, he could act professional and was very skilled. Something that was definitely not teenager-like. It was giving the hero a headache just thinking about it.

He groaned tiredly and rubbed his eyes, even Tsukauchi found it a bit strange that Rabbit hadn't been spotted by the hero yet. Usually, the vigilante would give heroes or policemen quips or snarky remarks, never too unkind, just sassy and playful, as well as leave biodegradable glitter bombs or some other small prank for them to find. But here Aizawa was with nothing of the sort having happened.

The hero would sometimes see a shadowed blur of movement of green and red which he could only assume was Rabbit. But he never stayed for more than a second, running off as soon as Aizawa arrived. Tsukauchi had joked that maybe he was scared or shy since Aizawa looked grumpy and 'scary'.

Whatever the case was, Aizawa wanted to at least see the kid once, the most he had was a few notes left behind at crime scenes with an R signature.

Sighing, Aizawa checked the time. His patrol was almost over and he was ready to go and get his morning cup(s) of coffee.

Aizawa walked into the warm café and hid a smile as the black-haired boy was cleaning and humming to some gentle music before turning to face the hero with a soft smile, welcoming him in. In response, the hero just grunted and sat down with the Rabbit file once again. There wasn't much new information, just a few extra reports and one blurry photo that didn't tell them much. It didn't even show his face.

The kid, Izuku, brought out his coffee and asked him if he has found the vigilante yet. Aizawa just shook his head and sighed, "I've been looking for over 3 months and the most I've ever seen is his shadow when he leaves and a note with his signature."

Frowning, the kid asked if the hero knew why since the file clearly stated he could be a prankster to heroes. Aizawa thought back to what Tsukauchi said and gave the kid a small smile. "Well, the detective that gave me this case thinks that maybe Rabbit is scared of me or something."

Izuku's eyes widened, and a small mischievous smile danced onto his lips. "That's a solid theory," Aizawa glared half heartedly at the kid, "but, he doesn't seem like the type to be scared of a hero just because he looks grumpy."

Aizawa rolled his eyes while the kid smiled, a mischievous look still gleaming in his eyes. The hero was glad that the kid was more relaxed around him than he had been when they first met, but he didn't realize that the kid could be anything but sweet as his usual demeanor suggested.

"I agree, but I can't think of any real reason" Aizawa looked back into the file, scanning information. Beside him, the kid hummed in thought before another impish smile appeared.

"Maybe he like you, like a fan."

Aizawa sighed and shook his head while the kid moved away, getting back to cleaning the tables. The hero smiled to himself as the kid began to hum to music once again, seemingly unaware that he was. It was a peaceful environment that Aizawa had come to love. Yes, the coffee was godly, but the café itself was clean and warm, inviting.

It made the hero feel calm after a long night of taking down criminals and villains, even when his patrols were rough. Aizawa slowly drank his coffee, and the kid was perfectly on time to refill it, as If he just always knew when the hero needed more.

Even though the kid was kind and gentle, he had a sarcastic and mischievous side to him, not to mention the few times that the manager, Yui, had told him stories about Izuku. Apparently, some kids were picking on one of Izuku's friends who had a 'villain' quirk, but the tiny kid just stepped in and scared them off.

And Aizawa wasn't dumb, the kid wore long sleeves, but he definitely worked out and had an air about him that he could take care of himself. Aizawa just hoped the kid wouldn't get into any serious fights or used his quirk illegally, not that the hero knew what it was, probably a mental one he guessed.

Either way, there was only one way he would describe this Izuku kid, 'Problem child #2', with Rabbit being Problem Child #1. Even though he wasn't sure about Rabbit's age, the vigilante was definitely not out of high school yet at the least.

With another long sigh, the hero went back to his peaceful morning before he had to teach a ton of overconfident brats at UA.

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A week later, Izuku finally decided to show himself to Eraserhead- as Rabbit of course. Izuku waited for the hero to finish handing the criminals over to the police and when Eraser saw him, he paused for only a moment before running after him.

'Perfect' Izuku thought, 'I'll just get him away from the cops real quick'.

Izuku would disappear and purposefully reappear in order to lead the hero away from the crime scene. Once they were in a quiet neighborhood a few blocks away, Rabbit stopped and waited. Eraser landed on the other side of the roof, both remaining silent in anticipation. Izuku had led him here and now he didn't know what to say, he really should have practiced something.

A sigh broke him out of his racing thoughts. "I don't want to arrest you, kid. You've never been seen using a quirk anyways so there's no point."

Izuku smiled under his mask, this was a good start. "Why do you think I'm a kid?" His voice was distorted and sounded like autotune gone horribly wrong, but it worked for him.

"Well you're shorter than most of my high school students and act like a sassy teenager... Unless you're actually an adult?"

Izuku decided not to answer and instead just sat on the edge of his building, watching the hero sigh before approaching to sit a few feet away from him. Since he didn't get an answer, Eraser moved on.

"Why are you out here doing this? You seem too young to and could've easily become a hero."

Izuku sat silently for a moment, he couldn't tell the hero that he was quirkless, not yet. That could give himself away, not many people are quirkless these days and Eraser might decide to capture him after saying something like 'it's too dangerous'. He may not seem like the type, but Izuku learned that not everyone was what they seemed.

"I want to help people..." he answered quietly.

The hero turned to him slightly confused before raising an eyebrow, "well like I said, why not go to a hero school or get a license?"

Izuku just shook his head sadly, "I can't be a hero."

Without waiting for a reply, Izuku hoped over the edge and landed in a roll on the ground. But before he could run away and disappear, the gruff hero's voice called out to him.

"If you ever need help, you can come to me."

Izuku looked back and noticed the hero was standing on the ledge, hands stuffed into his pockets, relaxed and non-threatening. It made Izuku smile under his mask. With a nod of acknowledgement, Izuku ran off and continued his patrol until it was time for him to head to work.