A Fantasy {KatsuDeku Au}

Master Mei

It was just the two of us now standing before the door. Neither one of us seem to go for the handle. I could feel the sweat accumulating on my hands as I grasp it. "Let's get this over with," I say. He doesn't respond, but I never needed a response to push the door open.

"Eh?" A girl covered in smudges and grime was hunching over a mechanical contraption. She seems deeply interested as she whistles and tosses away random parts. "Now where did that explosion come from?"

"Um, excuse me?" I manage, trying my hardest not to inhale the majority of the toxic air. The atmosphere felt, still feels, ashy and was similar to a blacksmith's forge. She didn't even peek up when she heard me. Her hands and eyes were trained on the metal pieces.

"Ah, it seems we have new travelers in our wake, my baby!" She squeals, ripping out some sort of tubing, finally giving the tinkering a rest. She stands proudly above the scrap at her feet, which is what I assume to be scrap from some of the apparent rust.

"Actually, I'm already registered, but my friend is needing to be," I explain. Her expression was hard to tell from the goggles protecting her eyes. However, a huge smile presented itself quickly.

"Yes, yes, I see." She lifts the goggles over her eyes and slides them up. Her pink hair was pushed aside, and the yellow residing within her eyes sparkle with interest. "You boys look super fine!" She steps over the scraps, treading over to her desk covered with blue papers and letters. Some, but very few, carry the seal of the king.

"Take a seat, any seat!" She sputters, shifting through drawers here and there. The more she messes around, the more the desk gets dirtier. I look around for seats only to find two chairs resting against the wall. They are not the cleanest, but they seem to provide comfort. Bakugou is the one to get them and place them directly in front of the desk.

"First, I'll need a name, date of the birth, and so on. Later, I'll need to have you take a magic test downstairs." She slams a drawer closed and plucks up a paper.

I sit down, and Bakugou follows in suit. The chairs give a loud creak, putting me on edge. However, when I glance at Bakugou, he is completely fine. Just glancing at him calms my nerves a bit.

"Is that all then?" He speaks up, his voice sounding deep. It was rough and carried well in the room. A smile remains on her face, even her eyes glowed with positivity. "Give me the damn paper and something to write with," he demands.

"Bakugou, she's trying to help us. Can you be a little lighter in your tone?" I say. He glares at me instantly, yet no words follow. I silently watch as he collects the needed materials into his hands. He uses some of the available desk space and starts to write. The handwriting is slow, but he eventually picks up pencil.

I have a few questions for her. While Bakugou writes quietly, I slowly attempt to grab her attention. "Hey, miss?" She hums and gives me partial of her attention. "Your name? Could you please tell us?" That was my first question. Well, it was more like two, but it meant the same.

Her hands clap together as sudden realization strikes her facial features. "That's right! I'm so sorry, I knew something slipped my mind." She readjusts her goggles a little higher and gives me a big smile. "As master of this fine establishment, you may know me as Mei."

"I see. Nice to meet you, and thank you for sharing your time with us. By the way, that machine there," I point at the scrap on the floor. It sits idly on the floor, probably awaiting for more of her tinkering.

"Ah, yes, my baby!" She basically jumps with pure excitement. "It's merely needing new wiring. However, it is a messaging bird I have invented. No more real birds or mail people who take forever to just deliver a single letter." She lifts up the scrap and extends her arms out. Her hands hold onto metal pieces and wing-like extensions reach out. They seemed to be wings on both sides of the main body frame. There was only one flaw. This looked nothing like a bird. Plus, how could it fly if it's made of heavy metal? Wouldn't that weigh it down?

"I plan on taking it out for a test run after handsome over here finishes up," she laughs. "By the way handsome, are you finished yet?" He sets the pencil down and lazily gives her the paper. Her eyes travel down the paper, examining it closely. For a second, her smile falters. I want to question it, but she returns to her happy self. By setting the paper down, she motions toward the door. "Okay boys, let's head downstairs!"

Bakugou does not protest as we move downstairs. The buzz down here was definitely more lively than before. The music was more upbeat, and more people sit at the bar. They keep Tsuyu rather busy as she goes from one side to the other. I don't wish to bother her while she works.

Mei walks ahead of us to direct us towards another room. Her hands sway by her hips, and I could hear her hum to the lively beat. This room was smaller in comparison to hers upstairs. All around us were shelves stocked with old and new books.

I would love to look around and poke my head in some of them, but I do not think she will let me. I sigh solemnly as she reaches high above the shelve searching for something.

"Well, isn't that a bummer," she pouts. Then she looks over at Bakugou. "Can you reach up there for me? It's a small hard object. You'll feel it." He groans and willingly walks over. With his height, it was no doubt an easy task. He brings down a wooden frame with a mirror centered in the middle. "Thank you, handsome! I'll have to invent something later to help me next time." She holds the mirror, and it faces Bakugou. I could see his reflection clear as day.

"Place your hand here," she motions toward the glass. "If you house any magic, it will analyze it." The mirror-like glass was held out for his hand. Like instructed, he places his on it. To my eyes, nothing happens. Then as we wait, it lights up a magnificent red. She brushes away his hand, and he retracts it back to his side. The glass is no longer reflective.

"What was that," he says. He crosses his arms and does not break his gaze from the glass.

"Simple," the mirror is placed on the shelf, but not at the very top. "You have magic and a lot of it." A crash resonates from the the door, and I can hear loud, angry voices chipping in. "If you can excuse me, it seems momma Mei needs to teach some children a lesson on manners." She stretches her arms out in front of her and a chilling crack comes from her hands.

She starts for the door, almost too happy to calm the storm that lies outside the door. I take a step, catching her attention. She pauses, propping her hands behind her head casually. "Is that all?" I ask.

She cracks a smile, "yep, he's all done." She did not hesitate to leave us behind and let out a sort of war cry. I didn't expect her to be so outgoing. I guess being a guild master is best suited for her.

"Gah! Finally It's over. Does it always take this long to get things done nowadays." Bakugou complains.

"I mean, you do need to have patience too," I retort.

"Watch your tongue. With a tone like yours, you'll be dead before we leave this room," he threatens. He glares at me, sending a chill down my spine. The noise outside quiets down, and a very familiar sound can be heard.

Before I could think of anything else,  another explosion goes off. It sends the place into a plume of smoke. I cough and sputter from the black, thick smoke. My lungs burn, and my eyes tear up. People are coughing, the older gentlemen are cursing here and there.

Bakugou grabs my wrist, and he pulls me out of the room. I am amazed that he feels fine through this ordeal. The smoke begins to clear, and I can see broken chairs followed by a table.

A rough-looking man steps away, using his shirt to cover his mouth. "God, that woman is crazy!" He rushes to the door and pushes it open. The smoke billows out, and the room is almost clear of toxic air. Mei is standing on the bar, goggles down over her eyes, with a box in her hand. However, the box is smoking. Clearly it was the source. Does everything she scrap together explode?

"That was not what I had expected. I'll fix it up later," she pushes her goggles out of the way up into her hair. Her face is smokey, and the area around her eyes was spotless. "Now, who started this ruckus?" Her expression is not angry, but her smile is enough to create silence.

"It was him and that witch," a young man points put. All eyes land on a couple of adventurers covered in grime. Mei does not seem pleased and hops down from the bar.