Red Ink

Part 1 - Introductions

Y/N was no stranger to uncomfortable social events.

She didn't mind most of them, especially with a drink or two in her— but these parties, the ones hosted by those in the underground, required her full attention and sobriety. There were years of practice under her belt at handling the unsavory characters that might approach her.

Not everyone there was unsavory, just like not every event sucked ass. In fact, most people there were quite nice. The underground was home to tens of thousands. It was a sort of safe haven for those who weren't exactly friendly with law enforcement, which meant a whole range of professions conducted business here, from refugee relief all the way to arms dealers.

Luckily, Y/N—or as everyone here called her, 'Red'— wasn't here for anything like that. She was rather good at minding her own business. Minding her own business was how she kept her reputation, and even more importantly, how she stayed out of legal trouble.

As dimly lit and musky as it was in the Underground Commons, the layout was rather lavish. Bright, colorful lights hung from the high rafters and soft jazz bounced off the walls through the hazy cigarette smoke. The atmosphere was lazy, almost casual... it was meant to draw you in. The longer you stayed, the more you drank, ate, and bought from the locals.

Which is why Red kept her strict sobriety rule while here in lower society.

On the fifth of every month, she made an effort to show her face. That was how reputation worked in the Underground— word of mouth was everything, as was consistency. Her clientele would know when and where to find her. It was her system of 3 years now, and considering her business was booming, it must've been a good one.

It was unfortunate that the 5th landed on an event for the Underground this month, and hence, the overcrowding. Most of her clients had canceled their consultations because of it. It was annoying, but understandable; the Underground was frustratingly busy tonight.

"Didn't think I'd see you today! You usually ditch when an actual event happens."

Y/N looked up from her mug of tea and sighed with relief at the familiar face. Mei was here, goggles on the top of her head and manhandling a briefcase so large it almost looked like a moving box instead. "Ugh. I would, but it's the 5th. Have to be here," Red grumbled.

Mei slipped into the circle booth next to her and unceremoniously slammed her giant briefcase on the table in the middle. "You're so cute with your little office hours." Her voice was babying, but that was normal for her, so Y/N was unsure if it was condescending or not.

"Don't make fun."

"I'm not!" Mei exclaimed in earnest as she flipped open her case, clearly hyper focused on her work. "It's a savvy business tactic, Y/N."

"Hey, you can't call me that here," Y/N begged in a voice just above a whisper.

"Right! Sorry, Red. Anyways, check this out!"

Before Red could protest, Hatsume pulled out a stack of round objects. Upon further inspection, Red realized they were masks— completely blank masks with only eye holes and small antennas attached to the side of them. Realization struck.

"Hey, you finished your next batch!" Red enthused. "No way. Didn't you still have months to go?"

"I did indeed, but guess what?"

"What?" Red took another swig from her tea. She was used to Mei's antics, as well as her love of gushing over her 'babies.'

"I made a mass production line of them in my workshop. Now I can make dozens in the time it used to take to make one. You know what that means?"