Birth of a Future Hero

A slim woman wearing a navy blue set of nurse scrubs made her way down a brightly lit hospital hallway. Her steps were short as she looked down at the tablet in her hand, skimming through the information that was on it.

Reaching a pale blue door, she gave a few knocks and after waiting for a few moments, she slid open the door, "Ms. Himura? Are you awake?"

The nurse continued in as a woman from within answered, "Yes, I am awake."

"It is good to see you up and out of the bed." The nurse looked over to the woman who was sitting up in a hospital recliner, "How are your stitches? Do you have any pain?"

"No, they're fine." The woman lifted up her hospital top to show the stitch closed line across her lower abdomen, "They itch already though."

The woman in the hospital chair had short pixie styled black hair that had a light wave to it. On top of her head were two bright yellow-orange fox ears that were tipped black. Her skin seemed bloodless by how pale she was, but this made her amber colored chatoyant fox eyes seem to glow on her face. Around both eyes were thin black innate lines that seemed to come to a point at the tear ducts. Even sitting the way she was, you could tell the woman wasn't very tall, though she was still the typical height of a Japanese woman. The only other feature that stood out was the tail that was the same color as her ears that poke out from under the blanket.

"They're waiting for me to make my decision, aren't they?" Himura asked, her amber eyes raising to look up at the nurse.

"Yes," The nurse nodded, "I know you've refused before, but I could still get a therapist to come in and speak with you. Maybe they can help with your fears?"

Himura watched as the nurse messed with the monitor that was attached to her through an I.V., "No and I mean no disrespect, but I don't think a therapist will be able to make me feel less guilty than I do." Her voice was soft, said guilt in the tone, "I didn't think this would happen, ya know? I was a sidekick and when he showed the slightest interest, I couldn't resist…" She lifted a hand to press against her cheek and eye, "But to get pregnant by him…"

"I wasn't here on intake for you, so I apologise if the question has already been asked, but does the father know you were pregnant with his child?" The nurse looked over briefly to her as she asked her question.

The chatoyant eyes became glossy, "No, I quit the agency before I started showing. I didn't need any bad rumors starting and he isn't exactly the most… reasonable person."

"Then you don't want us to contact the father to inquire about him taking the child?" The nurse came back to stand before the patient.

Looking away, the fox featured woman shook her head, "I don't think it would be safe." Huffing out a sigh, she looked back to the nurse, "I will put her up for adoption."

The nurse's eyes widened, "Are you sure?" When the woman gave a firm nod, she began typing notes onto the tablet, "Then I will contact the local adoption agency to send in the baby's application for adoption." Scanning the tablet with her eyes, she pursed her lips a little, "I just have to ask you a couple of questions about your quirk so they have it for future reference. With your permission, I will fill out the medical history from your files. Is that okay with you, Ms. Himura?"

"That is fine." Himura looked back out the window that was next to her chair, "I just want to get this over with so I can move on."

The nurse went over to a medical stood and plugged in her tablet and poised her fingers on the keyboard, "Please describe in detail about your quirk."

"My quirk is called Fox Fire. Outside of my enhanced fox qualities, I can breathe fire out of my mouth while also producing flames on my tails." She adjusted herself in her seat with a wince, "I can also, with my flames, transform into a large flaming fox beast that is best against larger targets."

It took a moment for the nurse to catch up on her typing, but when she did, she readied herself again, "Please describe your biological parent's quirks."

"My mother died when I was very young, so I don't know much except what my father told me." She started, "She had the power of telepathy. She could manipulate the mind, cast illusions, and turn invisible." She brought her hands to her lap, "My father is also gone, but he had a fox quirk and used fire like I do, just not quite as strong." Her ear twitched, "I obviously gained my father's quirk."

The nurse was still typing as she asked the next question, "Lastly, you don't have to give a name, but could you describe the child's father's quirk?"

Himura's eyes narrowed in thought, "I cannot. Even the most basic information about his quirk would give away who the father is."

The nurse glanced up without moving her head. "Are you sure? This is only to help the potential future parents of the baby."

"I'm sorry, I can't." Her ears laid back against her skull.

The nurse looked back down at the tech in her hands, "What age did your quirk manifest?"

"Four, like the other kids' quirks. I obviously have had the fox features since birth though." She held up a hand to show clawed fingers, "Though I couldn't transform into my fire beast until I was a late teen."

The clicking of the keys was oddly soothing in the quiet room, "Alright then, I think I have everything." The nurse stood from the seat, then moved it back to where it was before turning to give a look towards the fox woman, "Do you have any questions or requests?"

"I don't want to know what happens to her." She winced slightly at her harsh tone, "I know I sound harsh, but..."

"It is actually quite normal for a parent to not want to know about their child after the adoption process." The nurse attempted to reassure her, "I'll get this paperwork filed and then I'll draw up your discharge papers so you can go home."

"Thank you." Himura whispered.

The nurse bowed, her low ponytail falling over her shoulder, then left the room to make her way to the nurses' station. She placed the tablet on the counter for a second while finishing typing things on it, a sigh building up in her chest.

Picking up a phone, she quickly dialed a number and put it to her ear, "Hello, I'm going to need you to contact a social worker to process adoption paperwork for Himura Hikaru's child." When she hung up the phone, several of the nurses shook their head, "It is better to adopt out a child that you don't want than keep the child you don't want and possibly abuse or neglect it."

"True." A nurse agreed, still deflated, "It is still a shame."

"Yes, I know..." The original nurse grabbed a different tablet and began to make her way down the hall, "I'm going to go down to the nursery to update the information on the baby."

It didn't take her too long to reach another door that opened up to a small room with sanitized gowns and baby equipment. Changing into one of those gowns, she pulled on some gloves and went over to another door that was on the side of the room.

Entering the connected room, she walked over to a small basin labeled 'Himura' in pink to look down at the small infant inside.

The small female babe was pale, like her mother, and already had a full head of black hair. Also like her mother, she had two little fox ears, but they were a much darker red matching more of a rosewood color with the tips being black. Unlike her mother, her eyes were a bright cyan chatoyant color, but were still fully lined in black like her mother's. A small tail at the base of her spine poked out of the specially made diaper, matching the color of her ears but with a white tip.

She had been checking over the small fox child, taking her time to give the baby attention at the same time, when a knocking sound on the window to the nursery startled her. She looked towards the viewing window to see a social worker that she recognized standing with two men in suits that she didn't recognize. Looking down at the baby that was now in her arms, she sighed quietly to herself before laying the baby back in her basin. She looked at the time before she reached the door, mentally noting that she had been with the baby for a little less than two hours.

Leaving the room and throwing away her gloves, she walked closer to the three beings then looked over to the social worker, "Is there something I can help you all with?"

"I was processing the adoption request with all the information you submitted and these two men responded with two minutes of the submission." The social worker waved a polite hand over towards the men.

The nurse looked over and eyed the men, "You're interested in adopting the fox child?"

"Yes." The man closest to her answered his.

The man was much taller than the average Japanese male and his body, despite being hidden under a suit, looked well built. He had mahogany red hair that was long enough that he kept in a low rat tail at the base of his skull. His eyes were a ruby red that seemed naturally narrowed, giving the man a constant irate look. His skin was quite tan, giving the image that he worked out in the sun a lot.

The second man wasn't quite as tall as the first, but he was close, and he had a lean build compared to the first. His hair was long and golden colored, reaching his mid-back area and was held back as well in a low ponytail. His eyes were a bright royal purple and wide, giving him a kind look. His skin tone was much lighter than his partners, yet she wouldn't consider him pale.

"I think this is the fastest I've seen for a response for a child and even then, normally they make it to an orphanage before anything." The social worker said in a susceptive tone.

The first man raised a hand seeming to want to explain, "I am Takao Reiji and this is my partner Kanda Osamu." He cleared his voice, "We work for a special agency and as soon as we got the notification about this baby, we submitted an application."

"What are you going to do with her?" The nurse narrowed her eyes.

"I cannot give out that information, only know that we plan to adopt this child directly and take care of her." The man called Kanda Osamu answered for his partner.

"How do we know you are not villains?" The social worker was now defensive.

"If we were villains, I don't think I'd be adopting the baby…" Takao answered with an annoyed sigh as he pulled out a wallet of sorts and flipped it open to show a badge, "This is all I can show to explain."

Looking over the badge, both the nurse and social worker shared a look, but the social worker's shoulders slumped, "He isn't wrong when he says villains wouldn't bother with the adoption process more than likely. It does take time, money, and there is a background check." The social worker looked over to the nurse, "It is very difficult to find homes for children with quirks due to the fact that most parents wish to adopt a child with a similar quirk." Her lips ticked downwards for a moment, "I haven't heard of many fox related quirks in the area and we don't know what else could come up with her quirk." She looked through the glass at the child in the basen, "This would be her best bet…"

The nurse, looking conflicted, frowned, "I don't make these decisions, but I only wish that she would be safe and happy."

"The fox child will want for nothing, Miss." Kanda attempted to pacify the distrustful woman.

The hall became quiet for a moment as each of them processed the current situation, but the social worker looked over to the two men once more, "I will get the paperwork together for you."

She swiftly went down the hall, leaving the nurse with the two men, "I'll take you two to the family room so I can introduce her to you both." She raised a hand to gesture the way they were going, "You will be able to fill out the rest of the paperwork there as well."

Her gait was rather stiff as she led them down the hall to a door labeled 'Family/Conference Room'. Opening the door, she turned on the lights and held open the door for the two men to enter.

Going over to a counter at the end of the room, she motioned to a tea maker ther, "Tea?"

"Yes, please." Kanda answered kindly for the both of them.

She went to work on the tea maker and after she had it brewing, she opened the cabinet to pull out a couple of cups, stir sticks and napkins, "I'm going to go down and get the baby." She set everything neatly on the counter, "Please, help yourselves to the tea once it is ready."

It didn't take quite as long as she wished to grab the baby, but soon she was returning to the room with the basin being pushed in front of her. When she entered, she looked inside to see the social worker already with them and pointing out important information on the paper that was before them on the coffee table.

Trying not to interrupt them, she wheeled the basin over towards them quietly. She was surprised when the one called Kanda looked over and his face lit up slightly before he stood and made his way to look inside the basin.

"Here she is." The nurse cooed as she gently picked up the fox baby, "She is such a cute thing." Looking at the light haired man, she held the baby out, "You ready to hold her?"

"Oh, may I?" He asked, his arms rising falteringly from his sides.

"Of course, sir; you are adopting her after all." She chastised lightly.

He took the child from her and adjusted her as the nurse instructed him on how to hold her, "Is she always this quiet?"

"Yes, she is a wonderfully behaved baby." She nodded, smiling down at the infant, "She cried shortly at birth and she whines if she needs to be changed." She cooed again at the baby, unable to help herself, "She only whimpers when she is hungry."

The social worker's voice suddenly caught their attention, "Sir, you didn't put down a name on the birth certificate… You must have a name for her."

Kanda turned sideways to look down at Takao, who sighed, "We must have a name? We can't come up with one later?"

"You must have a name for her for her to leave the hospital." The social worker moved the certificate to where it was in front of him again, "I'm sorry for the inconvenience, but it is law."

"We really didn't think about this…" Takao groaned out, taking the pen back into his hand, "Any thoughts on a name, Kanda?"

Royal purple eyes looked down at the baby for a second before he sat next to his partner, "Shouldn't we contact the boss?" The question was whispered, but the women in the room could hear them, "She might have a preference."

"She is out of town until tomorrow." Takao eyed his partner before looking down at the babe in his arms, "How about…" Her eyes opened and connected with his and it was as if something clicked in his head, "How about Myobu?"

"Myobu? Like the messengers of Inari?" Kanda looked down at the infant again, "She doesn't have white fur, but it will work." He watched as Takao wrote down the first name, "What about a surname? Should we give the boss' name?" But when Takao continued writing onto the spot for the surname, his eyes widened, "You're giving her my surname??"

"Kanda Myobu." The ruby eyes gleamed as he smirked over at his friend, "I think it has a nice ring."

The fox child hiccupped in Kanda's arms, distracting the blond male from his concern, "Fine, but you're taking the blame if the boss doesn't like it."

"Okay. A couple of signatures here..." The social worker pointed at another line, "... and that's it."

"Do you have a car seat to transport the babe home?" The nurse asked.

"We picked up one on our way here though we seem to be lacking other supplies for our trip." Takao told her offhandedly as he finished up the paperwork, and then looked up at the nurse, "Can we have some formula samples for the drive?"

"Oh." The nurse nodded, "I'll get a baby bag together for you both with formula, bottles, diapers, wipes and other little things you can use until you can do official shopping." She walked over to the door, "Once I get that to you, I'll need to give her one more check over and then she will be ready to go."

A little under an hour later, both men were leaving with Takao holding the car seat with the fox child asleep inside. He handed the child over to his friend before running off to only pull up several minutes later in a dark car. Kanda loaded the child into the back, did a quick check over to make sure she was secure, and then got into the front passenger seat for the drive ahead.

A few hours later, Kanda, who was now driving, pulled into a private drive surrounded by a multitude of trees. It was several minutes longer and they finally came to stop in front of a large traditional Japanese estate. Thankfully, Myobu was as quiet as she had been at the hospital and only needed fed once and a change soon after that. They also had stopped once for food for themselves and to switch drivers since Takao was getting cramped.

Soon after opening their doors of the car, the estate gate opened to show a middle aged woman walking out then bowed to them in greeting, "Welcome home, Masters. I hope your trip was pleasant."

"It was, thank you, Aiko." Kanda gave a single nod her way.

Aiko was a curvy woman, but not overweight. She had long straight brown hair that was held back and low at the nape of her neck. Her eyes were a dark pink and framed by thick lashes and thin glasses. Wearing a yukata, she looked like she completed the feudal Japanese picture that seemed to radiate from the home.

Takao gave a short greeting before pulling out the car seat, "Please take her in and get her settled into her room. Were you able to get everything in time?"

"Other than some minor items that can wait until later, yes." Aiko walked closer to peer down at the child, a smile widening on her face, "The workers just left about twenty minutes ago after setting up the furniture." She took the car seat's handle from Takao's grasp as she looked up at him, "You have some paperwork that was faxed over about this little one..." She hesitated for a moment, "What have you decided to call her?"

Takao's face gained a smirk, "Well, for now she will be called Kanda Myobu." The smirk faded, but the mirth on his face didn't, "Of course, it will only be temporary since it will have to change when she gets older."

"I wonder what name they will grant her." Kanda came around to give a final look at the child before giving Aiko a kind look, "Will you need help getting her set up in her room?"

"Oh, no. She shouldn't be an issue." Aiko answered with a shake of her head, "It will be like raising my own babies all over again."

"We'll leave you to it then." Kanda told her as he continued on towards the house, Takao already almost through the door.

Aiko smiled, then nodded as she looked down to meet bright cyan eyes, "Welcome to the team, Kanda Myobu!"