Golden Memories (Kiribaku/Bakushima)

Chapter 2

Unlike the West, which was primarily made of rolling valleys and vast plateaus (and the occasional cliff face hanging over the ocean), the East was built for the wild that liked to hide. It's land rose up in the form of rocky mountains high enough to scrape the clouds, and forests almost too thick to settle in. Bakugou didn't bother with the scenery, though.

He hadn't placed his feet far into the Eastern Region for years–he hadn't wanted to–and he wasn't thrilled to do it now. Hell, this entire job had him writhing underneath his skin. A dragon halfling was practically unheard of. And the few that did know anything about them thought they were simple folktales from his home tribe.

Bakugou himself hadn't seen one once in his life. Whenever he'd ask his parents or ancestors about them as a child they'd say the same thing: Half-dragons were rare. Hard to conceive, and even harder to keep alive. He'd look at the stone tablets his people treasured, old and faded and carrying stories from the very beginning, and would find only small descriptions of what the rare hybrids were, accompanied sometimes by a small painting of a beastly human with horns and wings.

His tribe was the only community known to have ever had any ties with dragons, and even then it wasn't like they'd ride on their backs and play hopscotch with the damn things. So the idea that something so unknown, after years of the presumed extinction of dragons, existing and waiting for Bakugou inside the tyrant Endeavor's walls seemed nearly impossible.

A waste of time, the blonde reiterated.

It was colder in the mountains, and Katsuki found himself wishing he wore more than just a cape and leather padded pants. It would take weeks of travel to reach the Eastern castle, and even longer if he stayed away from villages and dirt roads to remain unnoticed by anyone working under the crown's rule.

He could just turn back; in fact his mind was screaming at him to do so. But 3,000 gold pieces was a fortune he couldn't pass up, not with his goals in mind, and in spite of himself his soul was burning with an untamed curiosity at the existence of a myth.

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Upon taking one look at him the guards lifted their lances away from the castle's entrance, placing them comfortably at their sides. One smiled at the short male as he walked past, and once he was behind them they returned their weapons to their original positions.

Izuku wrung his hands as he walked through the familiar great hall (he didn't think he'd ever be able to say that), noticing King All Might in his enlarged form sitting on the castle throne as he chatted with one of the many servants. Upon finding his disciple approaching, the king kindly led their conversation to a close and waved slightly as the young woman made her leave.

Midoriya stood timidly in front of the man, and All Might smiled in greeting. "Good morning Young Midoriya, it's been a while hasn't it?"

"Hey All Might, yeah it has. I've been training so much it feels like I haven't done anything else for weeks." He grinned sheepishly, shoulders slacking as he let himself sink into the comfortable conversation. The king laughed.

"Indeed, I understand the sentiment. How are things back home with Mrs. Midoriya?"

Izuku blushed and grinned, "Mom's doing all right! I think she secretly wants to have another tea session with you, even though she won't say it."

It was Izuku's hero's turn to blush, a light pink coating the man's cheeks modestly. "I'll make sure to try and save some time to visit! Her company's well appreciated." The young knight chuckled and All Might smiled softly. "Alright my young disciple, what is the real reason you came to visit? I noticed you looked a bit more anxious...than usual," He tacked on.