Aster doesn't really like the heat, it hurts. He doesn't like fire either 一it doesn't like him much either, he knows. It doesn't like Dad or Papa, but it still holds them, tears them down. Makes them fall from grace. He's older - he's eleven, he can run on his own, but Dad is still holding his hand as they run from the house一the house that's up in flames, flames that are neither his, they aren't Dad's either, because he wouldn't set the house on fire, and the fire is red, not blue. It's not white either, and that's what Aster's fire is like, he knows that, even if he never sees it often.

It hurts when he sees it. He thinks that's why they're running, because the house is on fire, and that hurts .

Dad doesn't stop running. His stitches are tearing against his grafts. He got them a while back一when Aster got his and the doctor said he didn't care that Dad had a record. Aster doesn't know what a record is, but it doesn't matter, because Dad came out of a room two days after Aster and the purple of his face was lighter, pink. Like Ru-chan's hair.

(Ru-chan is the same age as him, they're cousins, but they can't meet each other very often because when he was younger he tried to bite her. He doesn't remember it at all, but it happened.

He doesn't bite Ru-chan now though. He reads to her instead一Ru-chan has glasses and she doesn't like reading, and she's got a mean punch.)

His legs hurt a lot. Like when he fell out of that tree and forgot to catch himself. Casts suck.

Dad's gripping pretty tight and Papa is running behind them一Papa's usually super fast, because he can fly and dive really well. Aster isn't that good at flying or diving, but Papa says he never wants anyone to be as good as him, because something bad made him good一Aster doesn't really get that. It made Papa sad though, so Aster just went to try and fly again after. Ko-chan was there (Ko-chan is so little, but Ito-chan is smaller, so small that Aster is allowed to hold him).

The streets are narrowed and slim一Aster tries not to trip on the rocks. He's gotten really good at it, like reading and maths (though he isn't that good at maths). The numbers make his head hurt, like it does when it's too warm. Aster doesn't like the hot weather like Papa does, that's why he's happy it isn't summer. It's october now. The flowers are dead, though 一

Aster doesn't like it when the flowers die. It makes baasan sad. He only has one baasan, and he doesn't have any jiisan's, he asked why once, and Papa and Dad said that his jiisan's were bad, and Papa's kaachan was also very bad. So his baasan is the best baasan! Even if Ito-chan's jiisan tried to talk to him once, Ko-chan's Papa got him to leave; Aster doesn't like Ito-chan's jiisan much. He's creepy.

(Izu-oji said that he killed his brother, and nobody caught him.

Izu-oji doesn't like Ito-chan's jiisan either.)

He isn't here, though, now Aster's running. It hurts to breathe a little, like his heart is being squeezed一he's better at flying. Flying is always better (even if he spews his guts out after, sometimes).

Aster kind of feels like throwing up right now, too. Like his stomach is in his mouth, and it burns一he can't remember the last time it hurt this much.

"C'mon," Dad wheezes. "c'mon Angel一we, we gotta get out."

Dad says it quietly, like someone is watching them. He says that if he doesn't take his medicine, Aster might feel people watching him, too. Still, it doesn't mean he has to like it. Actually, he likes taking his medicine as much as he likes that ashy taste when things burn. When things burn.

The house is on fire, they're running from the house. The house that's on fire.

The flames roar behind them, bright red; Aster's hair used to be bright red, like spider lilies. Like fire. When his quirk came in, though, his wings burned white一and his red feather burned away black and grew in white. His hair regrew too, white spilling over slowly, like snowfall, like winter over spring. Aster likes winter. It wasn't quite winter一it was october, like he said before一 and it was a Tuesday. Aster doesn't like Tuesdays much.

He thinks they're a sham, it's like a second Monday. Aster doesn't see the need for second Mondays.

"You've made it then, Dabi. " She says, softly, her eyes are red, like Ko-chan's left one. She looks a lot like Ko-chan's Papa.

"Shut the fuck up, I don't go by that'ny more. You should know that best, Eri-chan. "

"'Course, you helped your beloved out of the commission, and nobody even knew who I was一"

Aster doesn't know what a commission is . "What's that? A c'mssion?"

Eri-chan looks at him. She looks like she ate a lemon, but only on her eyes. "I can only do one, Touya, you know that."

"Him." Dad says. "Do him, he'll save you."

"Sure, he'll have to kill someone. Or一" Eri-chan looks at him. "一save Eraserhead."

"Who's that?"

"You'll know. Save him. One year after Bakugou Katsuki wins the sports festival in his first year一that's what sets it off. Try whatever you can to stop that if you can, but if you can't, kid. Tell him Deku's quirk is one for all. Okay?"

"I need to tell him Deku's quirk is one for all if Baku-if if. Bakugou Kaski doesn't win the sports festival first?"

"In his first year, kid."

"If Bakugou Kaski doesn't win the sports festival in his first year?"

"If Bakugou Katsuki. "

"Bakugou Katsuki."

"He's angry, explosive, boom, and he's blond like him," Eri-chan points to Papa. "okay?"

"Okay!"

_

Aster doesn't remember going to sleep, but he must've, because he's waking up now. It's warm, unbearably so, even if he's in the snow. He's in the snow. He doesn't know how long he's been asleep for, his hair is longer, though一his nails have grown out like they do when he doesn't take care of them, and his back aches, like never before. Like he's been flying forever.

Aster hasn't been flying since Papa said not to. It's illegal, not allowed, bad. Aster doesn't want to be bad. His jiisan's were bad, and they aren't allowed to talk to Dad and Papa, and Aster likes talking to Dad and Papa.

(Where were his Dad and Papa?)

He'll have to find them, he wants to tell them about the dream. It was a really weird one一it was a bad dream. Oh. Papa says those are nightmares. Aster wants to tell them about the nightmare, they'll make him forget about it.

"Dad! Papa!" Aster crumples up, his legs hurt, and the snow isn't very stable. "Dad, Papa!"

Nobody answers, maybe someone else is looking after him? "Fu-obasan! Ru-obasan! Izu-oji, To-oji! Tsu-oji! Ra-oji!"

Maybe they left him with一with一

"Atsu-san? Hi-chan? Ichi-kun?" He scrambles out of the alley. "Papa?"

Aster cannot cry, he is physically unable to, and if he ever did manage, there's a high enough percentage that he might melt his tear ducts shut. That's what happened to Dad, and it took years of therapy and a big expensive surgery to let his eyes back to normal.

(Aster still remembers how Dad got so sad, so sad and angry at himself when he didn't take his medicine and一he remembers Dad tried to set his eyes on fire. Even though his eyes were just as blue as the flames 一Aster doesn't remember much about being eight. He doesn't want to.)

"Hey, kid!" A woman says. She has blue hair and gold eyes一and Aster runs away. Because Papa said if someone comes up to you and you don't know them, run. They might take him and never bring him back. "I'm一"

Aster doesn't hear it, he's too busy running.

He doesn't stop, not until the panic wears off. It takes a while一

It burns to breathe一so he takes deeper breaths, counts to five before spitting them out. His pajamas are in ruin, his t-shirt is ripped in the middle and the sleeves are frayed一his shoes are burnt along the ends and his socks have holes in them, his shorts are tattered at best. Aster doesn't think about it. Papa isn't here, he doesn't know where he is, he has to get back一so he does what he does best. Aster flies, as high as he can. He flies, and then, without preamble, he falls.

He might've broken something, but he doesn't know. He can't stop now. He has to go . Find some place to recuperate and fix himself up. That's what Dad did! He said that he woke up real hurt once and had to find a clean place and a doctor so that's what Aster'll do.

(If trouble doesn't find him first.)

_

Wandering into an abandoned warehouse in Kamagasaki during the day. This place is awful at night一Dad said to never go here. Papa said to stay as far away as possible. They both said it was safer than Shinjuku. They said that Shinjuku一they said that people would take him and make him do things; things that no child, no person, should ever be forced to do.

(The thing about Aster, though, is that he isn't really human, is he?

He's got teeth sharp enough to bit through raw meat, raw meat he's got a penchant for一he likes to kill the bugs he finds on the street and eats them. Sure, it takes a while to find a sizable place to hide, but they're usually bug or rat infested; Aster can't kill the instinct to rip apart the fuzzy skin and eat the stringy insides. Papa used to tell Dad it was a good thing, he was growing into his instincts and all.)

The warehouse is falling apart and it's completely abandoned; it's ugly. It's perfect.

Aster fumbles in一his hands are scraped, but at least his leg doesn't really hurt anymore; the pain became a dull throb instead of something sharp. He wanders cautiously into the rooms. Scopes out the area. This turns out to be a good plan, because there's a half-dead toddler in one. Aster knows what he has to do一he runs out and steals some onigiri from the seven-eleven a couple blocks away (from outside the store; he has his feathers, after all).

The kid is blearily looking at the door一when Aster walks in, his pupils thin. It reminds him of Papa when he looks at a threat.

Aster smiles and he hopes it looks disarming.

"Hi, my name's Takami Aster!"

The boy looks down. Aster thinks, sadly, the boy might cry. "I'm.. Shinsou Hitoshi."