49. The eleventh commandment.

Color drained from Eri's face as she sat shellshocked in my arms, falling almost limp, and her eyes glazed over, tears forming at their edges.

Opening her book, I read her thoughts, just as she muttered, "No."

Over and over again.

Her book elaborated, showing me that she was reliving the memeories of her father disappearing, her mother calling her a monster, the beginning of her life of torture with Overhaul, like a film reel, shuffling randomly between her traumas, crushing her beneath.

All throughout two phrases echoed clearly.

"Cursed child" and "My fault".

Alarm bells rang in my head, as I grabbed her face, slapping her cheeks with such force that for a moment she returned to the present.

I grabbed her head, looking her in the eyes, and with my gentlest, most loving expression, explained.

"Eri, it's not your fault. You didn't deserve to be hurt. And no matter what, I'll never consider you a cursed child, because you aren't one."

"No." She struggled, pushing against me with a surprising amount of force, and went tumbling down onto the counter.

Right before she could hit her head though, I caught her, slamming my hand between her head.

I winced in pain, as her horn cut a gash on my hand, blood pouring over her face.

Eri looked at the blood trailing her face, touching it gingerly, as she began to shake.

"See. It's always like this. I'm cursed.....a monster. I don't want to hurt ...hic....anyone..." she sobbed, curling up into a ball.

I jammed my hands into her chest, parting her straight, before slapping her hard.

Pulling tears into my eyes, I acted.

"Don't! Don't you ever call yourself a cursed child." I shouted, pulling her into a hug.

"You're a cute, little, blessed child. There is no way you could hurt me." I said, caressing her back, "You hear me? You are not a monster."

Eri nodded, now sobbing louder, as her book displayed relief and joy, as I continued to pat her head.

Of course, this was not some miracle cure for her trauma, and I didn't want to risk using the Pen Of Fate to help her, in case her quirk reacted poorly to such change.

I guess this will have to be dealt with slowly, over therapy.

But then again, it was a small price to pay for a quirk that could functionally grant immortality.

Once she had calmed down, I repeated Himiko's request.

"Eri, will you be my daughter?" I asked, lifting her high.

Eri retreated into my chest, deeper this time, almost curling up into a ball, before she muttered a soft little 'yes'.

Yup. This is dangerous levels of cute!

I'm gonna get diabetes at this rate!

"You cute little munchkin!" I cooed, tickling her into fits of laughter, as she rolled on the counter, as Himiko watched from the back gladly.

Then, she realized something and pulled me back.

"Does she have clothes?! Daily necessities? Everything she needs?" Himiko asked, already acting like a mom.

"No. Actually, we were going to go get her stuff tomorrow, once you had left." I explained.

"And how would you know what a girl likes? No. We're doing this today. Come on, get dressed." She insisted.

"But Himiko, we can't b-" I reminded, only to be cut off.

"Yeah, I know. I'll change." She interjected, stripping right then and there, as goo ejected from her pores, wriggling over her body like a thousand thousand worms, shaping her into an attractive office lady.

Thankfully, I covered Eri's eyes in time else we'd be dealing with half digested nachos right about now.

"What are you looking at, darling?" She asked, leaning down, exposing her ample cleavage, teasingly, "Get dressed."

"You know, that would have been really sexy if I hadn't just watched your skin wriggle like an insect." I countered.

"That's not something you say to a lady!" Himiko pouted in protest, hands on hips.

"Yes, yes." I said, standing up, and plamting a kiss on Himiko's forehead, "My lady."

Himiko squealed happily, puffing up like a chipmunk.

"You get Eri dressed." I said, pointing to the balcony where her dress was drying as I made my way into the bedroom.

"Oh." I said, "by the way we're going to Hosu Central Mall. Don't want to be seen by your comrades around here do we now?"

"Even with my transformation?" Himiko asked confused, "It will last half a day you know? No need to worry."

I just shrugged, putting on a casual shirt and jeans.

Of course that wasn't the whole reason. If I'm going to waste time being the luggage boy for these two, I might as well two time with Stain.

As the US Democrats say, never let a good disaster go to waste!

Taking a cab to Hosu, we entered the Hosu Central Mall and began to shop, getting everything from dresses to hair brushes and moisturizers to tenderizers.

All through it though, I could feel something off, like someone had their eyes on me, on us.

I looked around, discretely, finding nothing.

It was midday on a Wednesday, so the crowd was rather thin, increasing my suspicions even further.

Where was the stalker hiding?

What did he want?

Which faction did he belong to?

My confusion only grew as the day passed, and I kept my vigil, using coded terms and non commital answers, until at last we finished shopping and sat dpwn for a treat in the food court.

That was when I saw it, flitting masterfully across the edge of my vision.

A red feather.

Chills ran down my spine.

I was not ready for this.

Too many witnesses. Too many hostages.

I can't afford a conflict with the commission's top agent here, not at the risk losing Eri and Himiko.

Rage bubbled within me.

Trying to ruin my plans?

Invading my privacy?

Hawks should be ready to die!

"Eri, Himiko." I whispered, getting up, "Follow me."

Seeing the gravity of my expression, Himiko stood up with urgency, grabbing Eri with her.

"Act like you're going to toilet." I added, leading them to the lavatories.

"You'll know what to do."

Himiko nodded, and picked Eri up, exclaiming.

"Let's go to the toilet before we leave. Darling, why don't you go settle the bill in the meantime?"

I nodded, opening a portal in the women's toilet, before walking back to the table.

I certainly had something to settle.

If I don't turn this hawk into a plucked chicken today, I'll change my name!

Walking out of the mall, I summoned a book, Hawks' book.

He was hiding on the roof of the mall, using his remote control of his wings to spy on me.

No wonder I couldn't find him!

But now, with him following me into the Hosu Central Crossing, he was in plain view.

Hiding his feather under a thick baseball jacket, some junior league team's baseball cap, with dyed black hair and nerdy glasses, he weaved through the crowds like natural born spy.

This was some eleventh commandment shit right there.

He even stopped to watch a koushien game replay in the nearby electronics store, keeping to his part.

Method actor too.

Too bad he met me.

I knew exactly how to break his jason bourne ass right down.

Slowly and steadily, I led him across town, srarching for the right location on my phone until I found it.

A police station not far from me.

Pulling out my wallet, I stealthily ducked into a side street, before chucking it onto the road ahead of me, out of Hawks' sight.

By the time he turned the corner, all he saw was me picking up a wallet, before removing a card from it and pocketing it.

I looked around, acting like I was looking for it's owner.

Finding none, I made my way to the nearest police station, still holding the wallet in clear view of Hawks.

I really needed him to focus on it. Hard.

Opening his book, I confirmed his thoughts, of trying to pin the wallet theft onto me to pull me into custody among other ideas.

As I neared the police station, he picked up his pace.

But he wasn't the only one.

I broke into a sprint, dashing into the station, and slammed the wallet onto the table of an officer.

"Hello there, officer. I uh...found this wallet, two streets over. Figured I would hand it in, so that you guys might help return it to it's owner." I said, panting.

"That's... very admirable young man." The middle aged officer praised.

"Thanks, but that's not all." I added, "There's one more thing. You know that elementary school, a block that way?

Well, I saw this guy, in a baseball jacket, just peeping , just leering and drooling all over the kids. He had his hands down his pants and....and.....I mean, like a real pervert, y'know?"

"That's concerning. Thanks for bringing it to our attention. Kajiura, Muto, let's go!" he said, just as Hawks passed the station, trying to see what was going on.

I turned, seizing the opportunity, and pointed at him.

"That's the pervert, officer. It's him!" I cried out, trying to hold back my laughter.

"Hey you!" the officer shouted, startling Hawks, "Stop right there!"

Immediately, Hawks took to running, leading the officers on a wild goose chase while I slipped out of the station, and followed his location using the book, stalking him as the tables turned.

By the time he had escaped the officers, he was far from me and hopelessly lost.

Deciding he'd had enough, he threw off the cap and jacket, unfurling his wings in full, as he rose through the air, before spotting me on a nearby rooftop, smiling at him in a sinister fashion.

I waved him hello, before turning my hand snapping my fingers as suddenly a portal appeared at his waist before snapping shut as quickly, severing him in two.

Blood spurted from his waist as his legs fell off, and he stammered through the air.

He clenched his teeth and decisively shot off his feather into his waist, stemming the bloodflow, before turning back to me.

If looks could kill, boy, would I be dead a thousand times over.

Though he scarcely needed looks to kill me, as he shot grabbed three of his largest feathers, forming them into a sword.

Then concentrating the rest of his leftover feathers onto one shoudler, he rushed at me, trying to end me in one fell swoop.

But his book sold a different tale, as his feathers split suddenly, shooting at me from all sides, as he levitated his body using the feathers he stemmed his wounds with.

"You know Keigo, you could've just not fought me and saved yourself a dog's death." I teased.

His eyes widened at the mention of his real name, and he faltered, retreating a bit, cautiously.

"Who are you? How do y-" He said, when I teleported to him, forming a knife hand, as OFA crackled around my fingers, and stabbed him straight through his heart.

"Not telling~" I whistled, tearing his heart right out of his chest.

"Fatality!" I mimicked, raising it high, before crushing it in my fist, while he fell, straight into an open sewer.

Instantly, his feathers fell to the floor, disarmed.

"Goodbye, and goodnight, sweet prince!" I mocked, sending him a flying kiss, as the light drained from his eyes, "May your dreams be filled with rats and birdseed."