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“…This is so boring,” Shosuke’s cousin groans.
Shosuke kind of agrees with her. Because – they’ve just been standing there, watching as mum and grandma and Uncle Haru greet various adults he doesn’t really know. Most of them are probably relatives, he is aware, the sort they have not seen in forever and only meet at weddings and funerals; Great-Uncle Isamu was not really very social. Or friendly.
But then Shosuke glances down at his Red Riot figure and feels bad, cause – yeah, he was kind of a grouch, but Shosuke liked Great-Uncle Isamu and is going to miss him now he’s dead. Plus it’s probably not very manly to be bored at funerals. At least Shosuke thinks it isn’t; he doesn’t think Red Riot said anything on that particular subject.
Great-Uncle Isamu would know. Great-Uncle Isamu knew loads about what chivalry truly meant.
His cousin flounces off, but Shosuke stays put. Partly because he’s pretty sure it would not be very manly to abandon mum, when she has to worry about grandma, but also… Shosuke is kind of upset himself.
He’s just considering saying something to mum (cause there’s nothing unmanly about being upset and asking people for help, Red Riot said so), when he hears grandma exclaim. She shuffles as fast as she can to greet someone, and both mum and Uncle Haru exchange relieved smiles before following her. Confused and rather curious, Shosuke trails after them.
“Thank you so much for coming!” grandma is just telling the stranger. “Really, I can’t thank you enough. Isamu would be so touched that you came!”
“Thank you,” a familiar voice replies, and Shosuke’s breath hitches. “But – of course I had to come. I’m just… grateful for the invitation.”
Shosuke tells himself – it’s just his imagination. He’s just being dumb. He steps between mum and Uncle Haru to confirm that it absolutely is just some random cousin, and almost faints from shock.
It’s Red Riot.
Shosuke’s favourite hero came to his great-uncle’s funeral.
Shosuke is standing LESS THAN A FOOT from RED RIOT HIMSELF!
“OH MY GOSH, YOU ARE SO AWESOME!” he blurts out, like the total idiot he is.
All four adults turn to stare at him, and Shosuke wishes he could melt into the floor.
“Right, of course,” grandma is the first to recover. “Let me introduce you – my son, Haru Sato, and my daughter, Hana Suzuki. And this is her son, Shosuke.”
“Shosuke’s a big fan of Red Riot’s!” mum adds with a smile.
Shosuke moves past wishing for the ground to swallow him whole. He’s already embarrassed himself, after all, and there is no coming back from it. So instead he bows politely, mind already trying to puzzle out – would it be rude to ask Red Riot for an autograph? The hero is here to attend a funeral, and is probably sad, so – it would probably be rude, right?
“Hey, Shosuke!” Red Riot grins as he crouches down. “It’s always great to meet my fans!”
Once again, Shosuke is reminded why Red Riot is absolutely, hands down, no question asked, his favourite hero of all time. Because yeah, he’s cool, yeah, he’s brave, but above all else, he always seems so nice. And Shosuke needs to at least check with his mum whether it would be rude to ask for an autograph, because if there is even the slightest chance it would be fine, he is never, ever going to forgive himself.
Actually, now that he thinks about it, Great-Uncle Isamu would probably never forgive him either, because Great-Uncle Isamu was always a huge fan of Red Riot’s. (And would be absolutely stocked to meet him, but that is a path Shosuke is not going down, because manly or not, he doesn’t want to cry in front of Red Riot!)
“Mum!” Shosuke hisses. “Can I ask him for an autograph?”
All four adults laugh at him, which Shosuke takes umbrage at. He was trying to be responsible! Mum always said to check with her when he wasn’t sure of something, and he didn’t want to upset grandma, or make Red Riot think he’s rude…
“I don’t have anything on me, but…” Red Riot glances up at Shosuke’s relatives. “Could I borrow a pen and paper?”
“Of course!” grandma agrees easily. “Shosuke, go introduce Red Riot to your aunt. And, sir… I hope you don’t mind, but… we thought it fitting you sit with us, in the front row.”
Uncle Haru moves to put his arm around grandma as she clears her throat.
“It’s what Isamu would have wanted,” she finishes softly.
Red Riot swallows, his own eyes gleaming. “…Thank you.”
Shosuke feels kind of bad for him, as the hero stands up. But he still can’t help his curiosity, so as they enter the main room, he asks, “How’d you know Great-Uncle Isamu? Is it from your fanclub? Do you go to all your fans’ funerals?”
That makes sense. After all, Great-Uncle Isamu was a huge fan of Red Riot. He always recorded his interviews (and, more importantly, let Shosuke watch them as often as he wanted). He had an entire album for all the articles he found about Red Riot. He always seemed to have the latest Red Riot merch (although he didn’t really keep it – he gave a lot of it to Shosuke, which is why Great-Uncle Isamu was and always will be the greatest). He even went so far as to compile a second album about Crimson Riot!...
“What fanclub?” Red Riot asks.
Shosuke frowns, confused. But then he realizes that Red Riot clearly doesn’t understand just how much Great-Uncle Isamu admired him, and since Great-Uncle Isamu’s no longer around, Shosuke owes it to him to explain it to the Sturdy Hero.
“Yours! Great-Uncle Isamu was your biggest fan!” Shosuke insists, and then, because he wants to make sure he gets that autograph, adds, “…I’m your second biggest, though. But he watched all of your interviews, and he was the first ever member of your fanclub! I saw his membership card! And he always got me your merch!...”
He did keep some for himself, but he always got really weird whenever Shosuke brought it up.
“Oh,” Red Riot swallows again, clearly moved by Great-Uncle Isamu’s dedication, and Shosuke feels a warm glow of pride. “…Say, Shosuke… Have you ever heard about Crimson Riot?”
“Yeah!” Shosuke nods, pleased at an opportunity to show off his familiarity with trivia related to his favourite hero. “The Chivalrous Hero! Great-Uncle Isamu had a bunch of articles about him, too! He was your inspiration, wasn’t he? That’s why you chose the name Riot!”
Clearly, Crimson Riot was an incredible hero, to inspire someone as brave and kind as Red Riot. Shosuke guessed as much the moment Red Riot first mentioned him in an interview, but it was only later that he realized how important a figure the Chivalrous Hero truly was. Because Great-Uncle Isamu had shown him an old interview, and – Shosuke recognized those words. Chivalry. Manliness.
A life without regrets.
And Shosuke remembered when he was five, and crying over his teacher’s unconscious body, sure they were both about to die. And then – that moment. Looking up, seeing a back, as a hero, a true hero, put his life on the line to protect them. As Red Riot (as Shosuke later learned he was called) stood there, between Shosuke and that villain, and refused to move even an inch.
And even as he was loaded into a waiting ambulance, as mum pulled him into a hug the moment he arrived at the hospital, he didn’t cry. Not anymore. Because he could close his eyes and picture ever so clearly that back that became an impenetrable shield, that refused to break no matter what was thrown at it. And knowing there were heroes like that out there, ready to protect him…
How could he be scared after that?
And knowing that Crimson Riot inspired a hero as brave as that, as strong as that, as… as… chivalrous as that? Shosuke knew right away that he must have been truly incredible. Reading his words, seeing the familiar thread just reinforced that, and so he finally decided – Crimson Riot was his second-favourite hero.
Great-Uncle Isamu got weirdly choked up when he told him that.
“Shosuke…” Red Riot clears his throat. “…Your great-uncle was Crimson Riot.”
Shosuke stops and turns to stare at the man, aghast.
Then he promptly bursts into tears.
“Oh, Shosuke!” he hears his mum, and turns and flings himself into her arms. “It’s alright, dear – what’s wrong?!”
“I never told him!” Shosuke wails.
“Never told who what?”
“Great-Uncle Isamu!” Shosuke bawls. “That he was gre-eat!”
It’s not just that. It’s the realization – Shosuke’s favourite uncle is gone. They’ll never watch another Red Riot interview together. Shosuke will never get to listen to Great-Uncle Isamu read another article in his raspy voice. He’ll never again make Great-Uncle Isamu laugh, never share another pizza, never again see him sneak into the back row to see Shosuke in some dumb schoolplay.
Great-Uncle Isamu is gone, and he’s never coming back.
“Oh, Shosuke,” mum reassures him. “You told him plenty of times. He knew you thought so.”
“But that was Great-Uncle Isamu!” Shosuke insists. “Not Crimson Riot!”
“Shosuke,” grandma chuckles as she joins them. “You were his favourite because you didn’t know.”
“That doesn’t even make any sense!”
“…Shosuke…” grandma clears her throat. “…Inspiring Red Riot was Isamu’s proudest achievement. And… Seeing how much you admired him… It made him so proud.”
None of them acknowledge Red Riot’s hiccup.
“And then you found out about Crimson Riot, and…” grandma sniffs. “He called me that night. Crying. Because… You didn’t admire Crimson Riot because he was family. You thought he was incredible because of what he did. For inspiring others. That… That was the legacy he wanted. And it meant so much to him, to hear you say that. In fact…” she glances over at the Sturdy Hero. “…He said it was his second proudest moment. Right after seeing Red Riot on the news for the very first time.”
Uncle Haru hastily hands the hero a handkerchief.
And in that moment, Shosuke knows the best way he can honour Great-Uncle Isamu.
Several years later:
Shosuke takes a deep breath and stands up. He can’t help his nerves as he shuffles to the front of the classroom, and once he’s there, he looks out at the rest of the classroom, and announces,
“I’m – I’m going to be The Valiant Hero: Emerald Riot!”
"Oh - Riot, huh?" Chronos perks up. "Wouldn't happen to be a reference to the Sturdy Hero: Red Riot, now would it?"
"Yeah," Shosuke acknowledges. "But also - the Chivalrous Hero: Crimson Riot. I... want to keep his memory alive."
"...That's a lot to live up to," his teacher warns him. "Tying yourself to two heroes? That won't be easy..."
"I know," Shosuke nods, but as he looks at his teacher, he catches sight of the door, and - for just a moment, he feels like a little kid again, excited, waiting for Great-Uncle Isamu to limp in. But he's not a little boy anymore, and so he takes a deep breath and squares his shoulders.
Great-Uncle Isamu is gone, yes, but - Shosuke is still here, thanks to him. And once Red Riot finally retires...
...Shosuke will be ready to take up the Riot mantle.