A Fantasy {KatsuDeku Au}

Strawberry Scent

We travel farther from the gate, and the guards retreat back to their stations. I look back to the road in front of us. Pinewood houses are distanced from each other with some of the land fenced off for animals. I can even see livestock grazing over the fields of grass.

On my left, there is this large pond that comes into view, and a small flock of Virion Geese, native inhabitants of the Virion Everglades, flies off the surface. Their take off leaves the surface disturbed and distorted. Not very angelic creatures, but they do have an impressive lifespan.

"We'll be coming across an affordable hostel as we get closer to the city. That is if it still is run by the Tsunotori family." I join Iida's side, offering to take the reigns. "I can take us there?" He shakes his head with a heavy sigh.

"I doubt you have learned how to guide horses and besides, we're almost there." A pair of small arms wrap around my neck and very chubby cheek squishes against my face.

"Aren't you excited, Izuku? You're back home! It's been like years since you've been here." Uraraka squeezes her hug on my neck, constricting off some air. I pat her arm, signaling to relieve some of the pressure so I can breathe freely again.

"Well, I guess? I mean, technically speaking its my old home, a place from my past." Her holding around my neck loosens, allowing me to breathe without any implications. I look up to see her chocolate-mahogany eyes staring off into the distance in front of us.

"You can see the palace from here." My eyes follow her gaze, skipping over the hundreds of rooftops to land on a pair of gleaming towers. An oversized kingdom flag bearing the crest of the Todoroki family flies in the wind. It becomes whipped and flaps unwillingly against the breeze.

"Of course you can see it." A gorgeous structure stands mighty in the distance, the center of the inner city. The palace is home to the king and his many heirs, along with the maids, servants, and loyal soldiers. "It's supposed to have been built to be a living symbol of peace for the kingdom."

The palace has a history just like any place around here, so maybe I can visit a library within the city to read about it. A most prominent feature would be how the gold accents made the whole palace glimmer in the daylight. It's structure held the two towers: one East and the other toward the West.

"It's pretty nice here." Her voice lays soft against my ears, despite being above me. The feeling of her chin comes down to reside on top of my head of curls. The fragrance of raspberries flutters into my nose. It smells nice and quite fruity. "I don't know why anyone would want to leave."

"Yeah," I downcast my gaze to my hands. I wish I could remember more about my past, but it almost makes my head hurt. I guess a seemingly endless fog continues to be a growing veil over my past. The joy returns to me after that solemn moment when I feel her hug me tight again. She lets go and pokes at my freckled cheek.

"Why don't you go talk with Bakugou? He's been a bit strange since we left the guild." She lowers her voice to a more hushed tone, so none can hear her but me.

I shift around to face the rear to see Bakugou has remained in the same spot since I woke up. He has been awfully quiet. Why didn't I notice this beforehand? I smile to Uraraka softly before standing. Carefully, I make my way over some of our stuff to reach his side. The carriage hits a bump almost tripping me up as I step over to take a seat beside him.

"It'll be more crowded here than the port." This is my sad attempt of trying to break the ice. "When we reach the hostel, I can stay behind with you. Ya know," I scratch under my chin nervously, "so you don't get overwhelmed."

"Are really that stupid?" He sits up from his side, a red mark dawning on his cheek. It happens to everyone when they lay their head on something for too long. "That dizzy spell of yours was only the first phase. They get worse."