Chapter 39: Is this a date?

A/N: This is a slice of life chapter. If you don't like this, then I have nothing else to say. 4.05k words chapter not including author's note. Enjoy!

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"Shido...wake up..." An energetic voice sounded from beside him. He slowly got up and rubbed his eyes.

Soon, he laid his eyes on a girl lying next to him on his bed. "Eri? What are you doing here?

Two years ago, Shido decided to separate his and Eri's sleeping area since he felt that it wasn't appropriate for a girl and boy to sleep together on one bed. Too bad, it didn't work on Eri. She didn't care about all those things. If she wanted to sleep next to Shido, she would do so. Whenever Shido fell asleep, she would then sneak into his bed and sleep with him. Even Toshinori's words fell on deaf ears.

Eri didn't say anything and just looked at him.

Shido saw her stare and just sighed. He gave up trying to convince her to not sneak into his bed after multiple wake up calls similar to this one. Not that Shido tried really hard to convince her. He also felt that sleeping with her was warmer and more comfortable than sleeping alone.

"Are we going out today?" He got out the bed and asked as he got dressed.

"Yes. You promised me last week that we would go out today." Eri replied as she also got out of bed. Shido looked at her and realised she was already fully dressed up and ready to go anytime.

"Wow...someone sure is excited to go out today huh?" Shido smirked.

"Of course! It has been a long time since we last went out together." Eri snorted and walked out of the room. "Hurry up and get dressed. I have a lot of places to go today."

"Yes, yes."

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Today was a weekday, so many people were at school or at work. However, Eri and Shido were exceptions. They were twelve, but they didn't go to school. Speaking more accurately, they didn't want to go to school.

Shido was quite intelligent and could be compared to the top university students, so elementary school was useless to him. Furthermore, he wouldn't be able to fit in with other children his age since he had matured much faster than others from the sight of various criminal organisations and their deeds which includes experimental subjects, torture victims, and many others.

Eri didn't go to school for one simple reason. Shido didn't go to school, so she had no reason to go either. Although her intelligence could not compare with Shido's, was still much higher than her age group, thus Toshinori didn't force them to go to school since they were much helpful to society doing their 'hero' jobs anyway.

The train they were on was pretty much empty apart from some elderlies and mothers. In the midst of the silence, Eri and Shido could be heard conversing with each other.

Though they were together most of the time, they could keep their conversations going on and on without stopping from lack of topics. Being in a society filled with quirks and heroes and villains definitely made each conversation different from past ones.

Today, they were going to Nagasaki. Although the train couldn't reach there as it was on another island, they still planned to Yamaguchi first for lunch and some shopping before flying over to Nagasaki for some sightseeing. Eri has been on the mainland ever since she was born, and had never travelled anywhere else.

Shido wanted to take a plane or boat over to Nagasaki to let Eri experience new things, but ultimately decided not to. Taking a plane or boat takes up a lot of time and requires all sorts of identifications, but it wasn't worth the effort.

On the other hand, flying is free, and although some authorities would question it, his more commonly used identity, Phantom, would negate all questions and the authorities would just claim that it was for hero work. After all, not everyone knew how and where Phantom would work as he would just appear and disappear mysteriously whenever there were major troubles. Eri also preferred the freedom of flying in the boundless blue sky, so the idea of taking transportation was scrapped.

They left the house at around ten in the morning, and sat down in the train for an hour before finally reaching Yamaguchi station.

"We still have a bit of time before lunch, let's buy some things first!" Eri said excitedly as she looked around the place. It was the first time she was here and she could not contain her curiosity.

"Sure." Shido didn't mind her enthusiasm too much. He was used to it. Plus, it was nice to see her being so happy and free of worries. "Where should we go first?"

Yamaguchi was a very traditional prefecture. Despite the emergence of quirks, it was one of the few places in the world which did not change much apart from enhancing the buildings and structures so they would not be destroyed so easily from heroes' or villains' attacks.

It was a pretty isolated place, and many structures and tourist spots before the era of pro heroes still exist till today.

"Let's visit the Kintai-kyo Bridge first!" Eri pointed towards a certain direction and headed off immediately, pulling Shido behind her.

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"Woah, it's so ancient!" Eri exclaimed loudly as she saw the entirety of the bridge. It was mostly made out of bricks, which was a rare sight now since it wasn't durable enough to withstand the usage of quirks.

"How do the bricks make the bridge arch?" Eri being Eri, was curious about how the entire structure was made. And so, for the next fifteen minutes, Shido patiently explained about the reinforced metal that was present under it to support the weight and how it made the shape.

"That's amazing! Too bad bricks aren't strong enough as a material, otherwise the bridge would have looked much better as a traditional place." Eri sighed as she

"That's not true. Sometimes, technology can help improve the overall 'feel' of a traditional place." Shido thought about her statement and disagreed.

"Really? How?"

"I'll tell you later on, if it still exists today and we return late..." Shido didn't say anything more and just smiled mysteriously.

"Moo...tell me now!" Eri pouted and kept bugging Shido for the answer, but Shido kept his mouth tightly sealed and did not say anything else.

Without any choice, Eri was forced to drop the topic and moved on to another.

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After an hour or so of touring the entire place, including climbing Mt. Yokoyama and Iwakuni castle which lie at the top of the mountain, Orahara lake, and the ruins of Hagi Castle, they decided to have lunch since they became hungry after walking all this time.

What was the Yamaguchi prefecture famous for? Fugu dishes! Or more commonly known, pufferfish dishes.

Fugu dishes have dated back to 200 years ago, before quirks even came out. Nowadays, with the increase in immunity people have against the poison, the risk of dying to fugu dishes has significantly decreased, resulting in the fugu business booming. But it was still not easily found, and still required professional chefs to cook it, otherwise, no matter how good one's immunity was, unless his quirk was related to poison immunity, an ordinary person wouldn't be able to withstand more than one grams of fugu poison before dying.

Fugu dishes remain a delicacy even after time has passed, and Eri was very interested in trying it.

Shido was no different, and was anticipating trying a new dish as well.

They found a restaurant nearby which sold fugu dishes. They entered the restaurant after changing their appearances since the restaurant probably would not accept them if they went in with their twelve year old looks.

Since it was a weekday, there weren't many people here. Their orders were quickly delivered, and needless to say, they enjoyed it very much.

Fugusashi, or fugu sashimi was one of the more common ways to eat a fugu fish. The fugu flesh was sliced paper-thin, much thinner than other varieties of fish sashimi, and the slices are elegantly arranged in a circle to resemble a chrysanthemum. The plated sashimi was then garnished with finishings such as edible flowers, sprouts, daikon and sudachi citrus, and served with ponzu to enhance the flavour of the raw fugu.

The meat was very thin, and was almost transparent and fully see-through. Despite it being a fish, when Shido and Eri tasted it, they almost thought that they were eating chicken rather than a fish. But it didn't matter. The dish was as delicious as it could be, and both of them were very satisfied with the taste. Although the design looked big, due to the meat being paper-thin, it wasn't very filling.

They ordered many other fugu dishes such as fugu karaage, fugu no tataki, fugu ojiya and fugu shabu shabu. They all came in small portions, and it was just enough for two people to finish eating.

"Ahhh...that was nice, although I am slightly worried about the poison present." Eri let out a small burp after swallowing her last bite, and blushed in embarrassment.

Shido didn't mind, and just assured her,"Don't worry, the chefs here are professionals, and they have their license to cook fugu. Besides, both of our quirks can deal with the poison if worst comes to worst."

Eri thought about it and realised it made sense, so she didn't think more about it anymore.

"So where should we go now?"

"It's time to see some historical sites now." Shido grinned happily. He really liked history as it is really interesting, and always has something for him to learn from, whether it was good or bad.

Eri didn't mind as she was also slightly interested in the history of Japan after seeing Kinai-kyo bridge.

"Alright!"

Shido didn't bother using any other transportation now. He just directly hugged Eri and started flying towards Nagasaki.

As he faced forward and focusing on his flight, he didn't notice Eri blushing slightly with a small smile on her face. But the smile was different from when she was happy to discover new things. It was a smile because of love...

[A/N: Yeah, a bit cringed I know, but what can I say...don't judge me]

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"This is nice, right?" Shido smiled as he looked at the various statues that were propped up.

"Yeah, this was much better than what I had expected." Eri replied absentmindedly as she followed Shido's gaze towards the multiple statues present.

There weren't many places here in Nagasaki for beautiful scenery, but nonetheless, it had significant historical value.

From the 20th century all the way to the 24th century, from the time where the US bombed all the way to where the first hero was recognised, from technologically-dependent society to quirk-based society. All the significant events that helped shape Japan to where she is today was present here.

Despite these tragedies, Nagasaki, has overcome and rebuilt itself as one of Japan's most intriguing and attractive tourist destinations, where visitors can get a taste of a different side of Japanese history.

"This is fantastic. I can't wait to explore more of what Earth has to offer to us." Shido exclaimed.

After an hour or so of touring around the place and snacking on some food available, they decided to go back. Nagasaki was truly deserted, and apart from the locals, there was really nobody around. Despite Eri's interest in history, she quickly got bored and decided to return to the mainland for some actual shopping.

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Shido and Eri flew back towards Yamaguchi before taking the train back to Musutafu. Eri had already planned on what to buy later on, and without any other choice, Shido was forced to accompany her on her shopping spree.

After a few (tiring) hours of shopping, Eri was finally done dragging Shido around. Shido let out a sigh of relief as he could finally relax his sore legs.

However, good things would always be interrupted. On their way to a restaurant for dinner, they were engaging in small talks and enjoying each other's presence when suddenly, a villain suddenly rushed towards Shido and grabbed him.

The villain had one arm around his neck, and another arm holding what seems to be a weapon that came out of his hand.

'A type of material-transformation quirk?' Shido didn't panic and the calm expression never left his face.

"Stop it, heroes! I have a hostage now! You better stop chasing me, otherwise...hehehe..." The villain laughed evilly as he brandished his knife-hand near Shido's neck.

The multiple heroes, who originally wanted to capture the villain as fast as possible had no other choice but to step back. One of them, whom Shido presumed as the 'leader' amongst the heroes gritted his teeth and shouted angrily at the villain,"What do you want?! Let go of the hostage now! Otherwise, we would resort to force!"

Eri stood at the side and just quietly observed everything. She didn't know what Shido was planning, but she knew that Shido was just pretending to be a hostage, and no actual harm would ever come to him. She knew he was strong, but there was still a bit of worry present in her heart. After all, nothing is ever absolute. Anything could happen, no matter how small or low the chances are.

The villain and Shido both just stared at the hero dumbfounded. 'Who on Earth asks stupid questions like that to a villain?!' Shido just rolled his eyes at the stupidity of the hero while the villain just laughed out loud.

"Hahaha! You think you have the right to negotiate with me? Let me tell you, give me a working vehicle within the next five minutes! Otherwise, the little pretty boy can just say goodbye to his pretty little head~"

Shido just continued his act of being a hostage while observing what the heroes would do. It was already dark, so Shido hoped the heroes would use their brains and thi...

"Fine! But you better make sure that the kid remains safe and sound, otherwise, your offence will become even more serious than it already is." The hero struggled for a while before ultimately deciding to give the villain the vehicle he wanted.

The hero's first priority was the child who was taken as a hostage, and ensure that he does not come into any harm. The trauma in childhood is the hardest to overcome, and he was hoping that the child wouldn't have any major trauma in the future.

'Sigh, this bunch of heroes are stupid...why are they all just standing there behind the hero like idiots? Why is no one trying to circle this guy, or ambush him in the darkness?' Shido complained inwardly, but his facial expression never wavered.

Shido knew that if it was any other kid, the villain would probably have escaped already, with the child taken away. Permanently. It if was any other child, the child would have died.

But too bad, the villain chose Shido to be his hostage.

'Quite unlucky that this guy chose me as his hostage. How unfortunate. But playtime's over. Eri is still waiting for me to go for dinner...' Shido decided to end this farce as someone was waiting impatiently for him.

"Alright, can you let me go now? And Mr. Hero? You're not doing your job right." Shido said towards the hero who was now looking at him with confused eyes. He was not the only one. Everyone, except Eri, who were silently watching this scene nearby was also confused.

'Where did this child get his courage from?' This thought appeared in their heads.

"Haha! Where did you get your courage to talk to me like that? Are you not afraid that I'll kill you?" The villain spoke to him while laughing, his knife still brandishing in front of Shido's face.

"Then kill me right now." Shido spoke casually like he was just describing the weather.

"Huh?"

"You heard me right. Kill me now. If you dare." Shido continued taunting the villain. To further prove his point, he shifted his neck towards the blade, and a cut was formed on his throat, bleeding profusely.

Everyone who was watching this panicked, Eri was no exception. Even if she knew that he could not die, she instinctively felt worried for him. He was irreplaceable in her eyes, and if he truly died in the hands of the villain, she would have lost the pillar of support in her life.

"Shido..."

The villain saw his hostage killing himself using his blade, and he instinctively retracted his hands.

'This boy is crazy!'

He never truly planned to kill anyone. He was only trying to get some money for his own living, but was caught when he tried to rob a pro hero. In his panic, he took a hostage and hoped for the best that he could be let off. Hell, he had never ever killed anyone in his life before.

He quickly turned his blade back to his ordinary hand for fear of actually killing him. Shido realised this and he playfully said to him,"Don't do crime if you're not willing to commit to doing it."

Then, adding a bit of hypnotic sound into his voice, he said,"Now, turn yourself in to the heroes and stop making trouble." The villain's mental state was already disturbed, thus it was not difficult to hypnotise him.

The cut on his neck was still visible, but if one looked closely, he would be able to see a purple barrier-like substance blocking the blood from flowing from the cut. No one questioned his minor actions nor the villain's sudden action of turning himself in. They thought that the villain just had a sudden shock about a kid willing to suicide.

Shido was released from the villain's grasp and quickly took Eri's hand before running away. He didn't bother speaking with the heroes nor was he willing to speak to the reporters. He wanted to escape from all the troubles which would come after they saw a kid almost slashing himself with the blade.

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During dinner, despite the fragrant smell and aroma lingering in the environment, Eri remained silent and did not look up at Shido. He ordered the standard amount of food that they usually ate, but he realised that Eri had barely touched her portion of the food.

Shido felt a bit weird about her actions, and decided to ask her after dinner.

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"So what's wrong?"

Shido asked with worry. Ever since he rescued her, Eri would only go silent a few times. Most of the time she would talk enthusiastically, sometimes being silent while pondering, but very rarely keeping her head down and being silent in front of Shido.

They were currently at the park near their home which they often went after dinner, either to just relax outside and talk with each other, or just enjoying the peacefulness the empty park has to offer.

Eri slowly looked up at him, and he was shocked at the sight of Eri's face. He quickly jumped down from the swing and rushed towards Eri and hugged her.

"What's wrong? Why are you crying?" Shido asked again. Eri rarely cried, and the only time he saw her cry was when she first spoke about her past.

"Waahhh!" She bawled her eyes out and as if a dam broke, her tears quickly streamed down her cheeks. She hugged him back tightly, and started to cry even louder.

"There, there." Shido said nothing else and just gently patted her back in an attempt to calm her down. "I'm always here for you, so can you tell me what's wrong?"

"Sniff...you'll always be here, right?" Eri mumbled, but it was loud enough for Shido to hear.

"Yes."

"Then why were you going to kill yourself earlier on?"

"This..."

"Don't say that you can't die! I also know that! But what if...just what if your preparation for death failed and you couldn't revive yourself?! What if you really left the world?! Then what am I going to do all by myself?!" Eri released herself from Shido's embrace and yelled at him.

She was feeling indignant. 'Why was he treating his own life so carelessly? Does his life mean nothing to him? Has he ever thought about my feelings?'

"Why are you so selfish?! What would happen if you truly die just because you wanted to play around?! Is your life so meaningless?! So worthless?!"

Shido said nothing. He could not retort to anything. He could not give any excuse or reason. Because Eri was right.

He was selfish. He had forgotten that there were people who cared about him. Yoshinon. Toshinori. And Eri. He had truly forgotten that his death would affect the three of them. Yoshinon might be part of his quirk, but Shido didn't know whether he could continue existing if he died, and he was not going to take any chances.

Shido walked towards Eri and pulled her towards him again. "You're right. I'm selfish. And I'm sorry about that."

Then, surprising her, he suddenly kissed her on her forehead, causing the crying girl to freeze.

"I'm really sorry, Eri. I made you worry about me. I promise I won't do that ever again, so will you forgive me?" Shido asked seriously as he stared right into Eri's dazed eyes.

Eri's eyes returned to their original clarity as soon as Shido stared into them, and she immediately turned red after remembering his bold actions.

"F-Fine! I-I'll forgive you this time. But there will be no next time, o-otherwise, I won't ever speak to you again!" She stuttered a bit, but stared back at Shido resolutely.

He knew from the seriousness of her eyes that she wasn't joking, and quickly nodded,"Yes. There will be no next time. But now, let's go home?" At the last question, he let out the familiar gentle smile that was specially reserved for Eri, and reached out his hands to her.

"Sure, let's go home." Eri took his hands and walked back towards the house together, hand in hand. But she didn't forget to remind Shido about his promise,"But don't you dare forget about your promise."

"Right, I won't." Shido smiled wryly at her warning, but he was glad that Eri returned to normal. He didn't like it when Eri was crying, and that was something he realised over the years. It made him want to protect Eri from anything that would make her unhappy or sad, and he was unwilling to let any harm fall on her.

That was a vow he made to himself almost six years ago when he first decided to take care of Eri, and he would follow this vow to the very end of time.

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At home, Eri was lying down beside Shido as she watched him sleep soundly. Once again, she decided to sneak under his blanket and look at his sleeping face.

'Does this count as an actual date?' Eri couldn't help but think that to herself. Perhaps it was not the first date she went with Shido, but it was definitely the first where she held hands and had a kiss. She rubbed her forehead gently at the spot where Shido had kissed her and let out a blissful smile. She buried her head in Shido's embrace before drifting off to sleep.

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Meanwhile, Yoshinon was on Toshinori's shoulder eating his apples. Toshinori had a tired expression as he turned to look at the rabbit gobbling apples like nobody's business.

'Those two decided to go on a date, but why did they leave this little rabbit here for the entire day?'

"Hey, Uncle Toshinori, do you have more apples?"

"It's already 9pm."

"And?"

"...Fine, just go to the fridge. There are still some apples left. But after that, go to sleep. Do I make myself clear?" Toshinori had strict rules about staying up all night, and despite it being a puppet, Yoshinon was no exception to this rule.

"Fine...I hope that they find me a female rabbit soon..." Yoshinon grumbled a bit before hopping towards the fridge and taking out some apples.

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A/N: For any inconsistency with the actual history of Japan, I apologise and readers will just have to know that 200-300 years have passed, and somethings would be different already.

And for those people who might think that the love was a bit forced, I'm just gonna say that five years is a long time for a relationship to develop.

And with Shido saving her when she was in her darkest time only helped to let Eri have a positive image on him. So the gratitude slowly turned to romantic feelings after a while. All in all, it was NOT forced so please don't complain that it was forced.

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