"I saw some flyer and just… went in, you know? Said that I had a part-time job to explain why I suddenly had money. Well, after my uncle got a job offer and we moved here, I decided to just do the same here like I did back home."
...
This time, the man only nodded silently to urge Peter to continue instead of giving a verbal response. The clacking of keys finally stopped, filling the room with silence.
"One thing led to another, May and Ben ended up finding out after I accidentally left a flyer on my desk. So stupid…" The boy said, muttering that last part.
It had been, what? A year since he's had to relive that night? Well, at least willingly relive it.
He guessed that the occasional nightmare didn't count.
"There was a fight, and I ran away… Ben wandered the streets looking for me and ended up getting shot by some dude robbing a store." His gaze was downcast once again, his face contorting into a guilty expression.
"Do you bear any vengeful thoughts of the event?"
"What? Like, if I wanted vengeance on the guy?" The man gave a nod, Peter's eyes grew wide. "No! I-I just… can't do it, you know? If anyone was at fault, it's me."
Silence filled the room once more being broken by keys being pressed, Peter was starting to hate that sound.
"While I am sorry for your loss, could you please elaborate how this spurred you on to vigilantism?"
"I- Look, he always did tell me that 'With great power, comes great responsibility.' I wasn't always able to do what I can do, but now that I am, I have to do it."
"You have to?" The man questioned, his muzzle not being able to hide the confusion in his face.
"I… don't know if I want to be a hero if I'm being honest, I'm still having seconds thoughts about all this and how another career path would be easier or more beneficial. But the thing is, that this is how I can help the most people possible, so it doesn't really matter what I want, does it?"
That was… oddly satisfying. Just to talk about why you do it? Being able to open up and be vulnerable? It was a brand new experience for him.
It was also a nice one.
A pregnant silence fell over the office once again, Peter only sighed and dragged his hand across his face.
"Is that how you view your path in hero work? As more of a self-imposed responsibility rather than a choice?" The man sounded genuinely curious and uncertain, his voice was kind yet firm.
"I guess? For me, at least. I did some hero work on the side back when I did fighting rings, but after… it all happened, I just dove straight into it. Skipping classes for patrols, ditching chances to make friends, using all my money and time for a costume…"
Man, maybe he should've gone to a shrink sooner. It was nice to have someone listen to what you got going on.
"I got scars from it, most I can hide behind clothing, but they're still there even if I don't want them to be. I always wake up in the middle of the night out of force of habit cause of patrol, you know? It hasn't done me any favors so far."
The dogman gave a hum and a nod while typing away at his keyboard, the clock ticking on the wall filled the silence.
"Parker, do you believe that your physical and mental health is suffering from your time as a vigilante?"
While he would love to answer that, he had a bigger question that had been on his mind for a few months.
"Do… do heroes get nightmares?"
The man perked up in his seat at the question. "Excuse me?"
Peter sighed and ran a hand through his messy hair. "Do heroes get nightmares? Of like, stuff going wrong? Of them not being there? Of when they fail?"
Hound dog takes in the words the boy has said, his mind trying to understand what he'd been told.
"Yes, most do. This line of work can be hard on the mind. Are you saying that you suffer from nightmares, Parker?"
Peter felt a lump in his throat, he had realized his leg had been unconsciously bouncing for a while now.
"… Yeah, a lot of them. Sometimes it's about muggings and robberies, or burning buildings or hostage situations, they change all the time but one thing always remains the same." He started.
The room fell silent once again, the man in front of him leaned forward in his seat and propped his elbows on the desk.
"I fail. I mess up or get there too later or-or just don't show up at all, you know? I talk and tell jokes to try and distract myself from thinking about that but it isn't enough. The possibilities just always play in my head every time I go to sleep, and this should be more than enough reason to stop being a hero! But I can't stop even if I want to."
Maybe it was the lack of sleep or overall stress or just the general need to open up to someone, but Peter decided to continue.
"I'm tired, you know? I'm just tired and stressed a-and I just want a break. But I just… can't stop, cause I know that what I go through doesn't matter as long as other people are better off because of it. Cause I can help people, that means that I have to no matter what happens to me, and I can't do anything about it cause…" He said, his eyes stuck to the floor.
"I just can't stop… not now and not soon. I can help, so I do help, at least I try to."
It looked like the man in front of him was about to speak, but the bell signaling lunch rang before he could. Shuffling could be heard in the halls as students started to go to their destinations.
"Alright, I believe this was a constructive session, Parker. Would you mind coming back next week? I would hate for a talented student such as yourself to bottle up things like these." The hero asked, a soft smile being showed through the muzzle he wore.
Peter was about to answer, his mind weighing the pros and cons of coming back. Should he? He already opened up about all this stuff so he might as well, right?
"Uh, sure, yeah… I uh, don't mind. You're a good listener, McGruff." He joked, trying to bring his mood up as soon as he could.
"Well, I try to be." The man said, Peter only gave a small smile and a nod before leaving his office.
...
The bright noon sky showered warmth down at him, the sensation was… comforting, to say the least. And comfort was what he felt like he needed after his little vent session with Hound Dog, at least for now.
The roof of the school was barren, not many knew that students could access it during lunch but Peter wouldn't complain about it anyway, maybe it would've been better if he had some food with him.
Sadly, he forgot to pack lunch and get money go actually buy some, but whatever. These were the times where his slightly higher metabolism sucked.
But he could make do.
Because right now it was just him, the noon air and sky, and nothing at all.
Or that's what it would've been if the door hadn't swung open silently, and in walked in a boy his age with messy indigo hair and eye bags that rivaled his own.
He had his hands in his pockets as he lazily sat down on the wall on the other side of the door, closing his tired eyes as if trying to sleep.
Should Peter say something?
Yeah, he was gonna say something.
"Uh, hey!" He greeted with a small smile, the boy next to him perked up as if alarmed that someone else was on the roof with him.
Turning his head, his eyes widened slightly at seeing him before they gained a mask of disinterest as he looked away without saying anything.
Alright, Peter was used to leading a conversation.
"I'm Peter Parker, by the way. You got a name or do I have to give you a nickname?"
A scoff, then silence was his only response.
"Eye Bags?"
An annoyed grunt, then silence.
"Uh, purple man? I think I read that in a comic somewhere."
"Shinso, can you shut up? I came here to get some quiet." He grumbled, Peter saw how he rolled his eyes even as he looked away.
"Alright, Shinso. So… What class you in? Since you're not in mine. Oh, and I'm in 1-A by the way, you in 1-B?"
Peter saw how the boy reacted at the mention of the hero course classes. It seemed like spite, frustration, and annoyance.
The boy gave a scoff and murmured an answer. "1-C, general education."
The brunette's expression grew a bit sad at that. From what he understood, most general education students grew jealous and frustrated with the hero course.
"Do you… want to join the hero course?" He asked, only getting an eye-roll and a nod.
"Of course, the only reason I'm not there right now is cause of my quirk."
"Oh, not combat-related?" Peter asked, he only got a nod.
He'd heard of UA's habit of favoring combat quirks in the exam, that was just common knowledge at this point. But that didn't mean he didn't feel bad for those who just drew the short end of the genetic stick, you know?
From what he understood, the general education department was just filled with those who didn't quite make the cut at the exam, and he was pretty sure the only chance of them transferring to the hero course would be doing good in the sports festival.
Which was even dumber cause to have a good chance place at the podium you'd need a combat-based quirk since the last round was just a bunch of kids fighting on live television. As far as he knew only one person ever transferred that way.
Now that he thought about it, that was kinda messed up as a concept.
Who's idea was it to have high schoolers fight in a gladiatorial-type Olympic Games-level event?
It was probably the principal's.
That dude/bear/dog/mouse thing scared the hell out of him.
"I'm sorry to hear that, man. What's your quirk, anyways?"
Peter saw how Shinso became a bit stiffer at the comment, his eyes narrowing into an unreadable expression.
"… Brainwashing, a villain's quirk, huh? Guess I wasn't blessed with a better quirk like some of you at the hero course." He told him, bitterness in his voice.
Peter paused for a second, deciding to digest the information he'd been given.
...
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