Just A Myth | Shota Aizawa

Chapter 24

Third person pov

Recovery Girl was so distracted by Atlantis' quirk throughout the day that she forgot to get the young man's head checked entirely. Watching him move through the hospital floor with excitement was vaguely astonishing. They had until lunch. Recovery Girl had told him this. Dr. Aito, wanting to see more, had told him to go wherever he wanted. If he could heal Naka-san, there was a good chance he could heal just about anyone else on the floor. They both wanted to know the limit to his quirk. When would he get exhausted? What happened when he did?

The rain turned softer as he bee-lined to another room. Looking at the chart, it turned out to be a man also in critical condition. Not as bad as Naka had been, but close enough to be in danger of possibly dying. Atlantis struggled with the window, clapping like a happy child when he got it open and humming to himself. The man, previously asleep, woke up in a bubble of water feeling good as new. Even his back pain was gone, he'd claimed. Aito had immediately called for x-rays, seeing as the man had scoliosis. If Atlantis could fix something like that, they had something more than just another healing quirk on their hands. Atlantis could be a game-changer.

Atlantis took his time. Some things took longer to heal, but he never had to ask questions about the injury. He'd just walk over and assess them, looking them over like his eyes could somehow tell him exactly what was wrong. The pressure in the room would change entirely when he began to use his quirk. Recovery Girl swore she started to smell salt after a while. The ocean was too far away for the scent to be wafting into the rooms when Atlantis opened the window. She didn't know where it was coming from or if she was imagining it. All she knew was that Atlantis' quirk was truly something else. A phenomenon. It was almost otherworldly in its work.

The way the water would softly glow as it twisted through the air, almost as though it had a life of its own. Recovery Girl could feel the soul Atlantis poured into his work, his eyes warm and alight with sea-green light. Dr. Aito seemed torn between being awed, overjoyed, and maybe even crying. Atlantis didn't seem to notice the stunned stares he was getting from the two medical professionals. He just happily bounced along to the next person in need, content to help in any way he could.

Half the floor had been healed before Recovery Girl realized they needed to head back if they wanted to make it back in time for lunch. Considering how clingy Aizawa was with Atlantis, the older woman decided it would probably be best not to risk it. Besides, Atlantis looked like he was maybe starting to feel it. And that was a strong maybe, because it was really hard to tell. It could just be that he was hungry, Recovery Girl deduced. Or maybe he missed Aizawa. Either way, he wasn't showing any serious signs of fatigue. What was the drawback of his quirk? Every quirk had to have one.

"What are you and Aizawa having for lunch?" Shuzenji asked as they took a seat on the bus. Atlantis seemed chipper now that they were heading back. He'd started to sag a little before. She wanted to ask why, but it didn't seem like her place. She and Atlantis weren't exactly close yet, and that question could be viewed as personal. Not that Atlantis seemed like all that private of a person. If she asked, he'd surely tell her. Something about it just felt... she just had a gut feeling she wouldn't get an answer, or at least wouldn't receive one she understood. 

"I'm not sure!" Atlantis answered in a chipper tone. He seemed to get more lively the closer and closer they got to UA. It was nearly electric to watch, and Recovery Girl couldn't help but smile. 

Atlantis was happy to be getting back to Shota and to Hitoshi. Atlantis' bond with his new husband was still fresh, so they couldn't be extremely far apart for long. The hospital wasn't far, but it was far enough that after a while he started to feel the drain. That mixed with using his powers so extensively when he couldn't derive power directly from the ocean... he was feeling rather tired. Not too bad, but there was a subtle ache in his bones and an urge to lay down and take a nap that even he couldn't ignore with his upbeat attitude.