My Hero Academia – Under Pressure – Season 3 – Episode 10 – Fallout and Introductions

"…why do I feel like you were listening to someone else talk for a while? Oh well, I guess it doesn't matter…"

Tonen Keitomo and the rest of Class 1-B were enjoying their final hours of summer camp before they headed back to UA High.

Their week of hard training had bolstered them in more ways than one. They had a better appreciation for teamwork, for pushing themselves in various ways, and for trying to level up their Quirks to new heights.

While it wasn't easy for them by any means, and some of them, like Azujima, were happy to be returning to more standard teachings, they wouldn't deny that it was a necessary course of action. They needed a push, and they got it.

As they awaited the bus that would take them home, Tonen enjoyed a chat with Azujima, Eri, and Ebirima.

"I often think about that final morning at the camp. The elation that we all had after making it through the week. Talking with an odd sense of nostalgia at the things we'd endured during the trials, and how much stronger we all felt."

While he and the others talked, some of the other students showed off their Quirks to one another to showcase their improvements. Some even tried to show off how much better they had gotten in little contests to pass the time.

"It was a happy moment. One I wish we could've reveled in the entire way back to the school. But it wasn't to be."

For a small point in time, no one realized that something approached them from afar. Soon, though, Azujima's ears picked it up, and he immediately alerted the others once he pinpointed the object in question.

It was a helicopter. At first, they felt they were under attack, so the students rallied to one another and prepared to strike.

Then, they saw their teacher, Angel Wings, rush into the sky after the helicopter. To their surprise, she didn't go fully to the helicopter. Instead, she went half the distance then raced back.

With haste she landed on the ground and motioned for the students to disperse, "It's ok! It's not hostile, it's the school's helicopter."

"Wait, we have a helicopter at the school?" asked Oshibu, stunned by the revelation.

"Another time, now please, get back so you don't get hurt by the gusts!"

The students adhered to the teacher's request and spread out.

The helicopter soon touched down in an open part of the area. It was then that the students saw the "UA" symbol that was attached to their school. It didn't dawn on them who would have access to such a ride until the door opened and Principal Ayatsune emerged from it.

Tonen and Kuroda shared a look as they knew there was no reason she'd be there if it wasn't an emergency or something bad had happened.

Principal Ayatsune looked out at the group and saw Tonen. She pointed to him and motioned him to come closer.

Hesitant, but with a knowledge he couldn't refuse the request, he slowly stepped forward.

When he was within earshot and could be talked to over the loud helicopter, Principal Ayatsune said, "You need to come with me, something's happened!"

"What happened?" he shouted back. "Is my family ok?"

"They're fine, this has to do with The Deck. You deserve to know. I'll tell you more inside."

She didn't wait for a reply, and got inside. Tonen quickly turned around and locked eyes with Azujima. He motioned to his own eyes then gave a quick signal to him. Azujima nodded in a worried way.

Tonen put on a brave smile for him and the others then got on the helicopter. Once inside, Principal Ayatsune ordered them to take off.

As the helicopter went back into the sky, the others in Class 1-A turned to Azujima. Kuroda was the first to ask the question, "What did Tonen say?"

"Something bad happened, really bad," he replied sadly.

The helicopter flew above the nearby forest and toward a city, but not one that Tonen immediately recognized. He looked at the principal and saw a mix of emotions on her face. Sadness, anger, grief, and more. It was almost as if she couldn't bring herself to just pick one state to be in.

"Principal Ayatsune told me everything about what happened in the district. The Deck, Mythical, the Dominator, everything. At first, I couldn't believe it. All I had been told about The Deck was that they preferred shadow games, attacking from afar, not getting attention. Yet here they were, attacking in broad daylight as a unit, trying to take a district. What was he planning? I didn't know…not at that moment…"

As they approached the city in question, Tonen looked for clues as to where they were. While he was born and raised in Japan, he didn't know every city by heart, and this was one of the few he hadn't visited. It was a major metropolis with multiple buildings adorned with symbols of various Pro-Heroes. It was then that it clicked. They weren't going to where the attack was, they were going to where the Pro-Heroes were meeting to discuss what to do next.

Tonen asked if he was right, and got the confirmation from Principal Ayatsune. Her brief response made him not push things further, as he could tell she was in a lot of mental and emotional pain.

Eventually, the helicopter landed on the roof of a tall building, one with a symbol that Tonen recognized. It was the home base of Mythical.

"Follow me," Principal Ayatsune said as they got out of the copter. "Once we get inside, let me do the talking first, some of them won't recognize you and I don't want them to get spooked."

"I'll followed your lead," Tonen replied simply.

They went through a nearby entrance to the building and descended some stairs before they approached a large room. The glass in the walls in front of it was tinted, but you could see the silhouettes of many individuals inside.

Principal Ayatsune took a deep breath as she put her hand on the doorknob, then gave a confident smile to Tonen right before she opened it.

The two entered the room and were immediately met with the gaze of all inside. Tonen did his best to see who the people were. Three immediately stood out. The top three Pro-Heroes in Japan: Mythical, Interface, and Athena. Others he saw were clearly officers from various precincts. Some in the room had military uniforms, and others were dressed in expensive suits, which told Tonen they were government officials.

"Sorry I'm late," Principal Ayatsune said with a quick bow, "had to make a pickup."

"You brought a child here?" asked one of the government people.

"He's not a child, he's a student at UA High. His name is Tonen Keitomo, he's the one The Deck kidnapped previously, and who stopped The Deck from killing one of their targets…for a time, anyway. Given what's happened, he deserves to know what we plan to do next."

"I have no objections," chimed in Mythical, though his eyes scanned Tonen intently. "He has firsthand experience with The Deck, and The Dealer, something very few can say."

Many of the others in the room wanted to speak on this, Athena included, but they held their tongues. That alone showed the influence that Mythical had in the room.

Principal Ayatsune cleared her throat to get their attention, "Now that that's settled, can I get a full update on the other Pro-Heroes in the attack?"

One of the police officers stepped forward to address her, "Ma'am, many of the heroes are recovering nicely. Only a few had severe injuries, and Star Child was the sole hero who needed surgery. But we're told that she'll be fine in a months' time."

"Thank goodness."

"Yeah, can we talk about that?" asked Interface with a very animated pose. "I'm not saying I like dead Pro-Heroes, that'll get me lots of sad comments on my streams, but why let us off easy when they had us dead to rights?"

Athena grunted at the question, "They didn't want a martyr, Interface. If they killed even one of us, they would've rallied the nation against them in an attempt to avenge them. By only injuring them, the media can paint a picture that they are cowardly, or that they lack the nerve to go all the way. It makes them seem weaker than they are."

"I agree with Athena," noted Mythical as he strummed his chin while deep in thought. "This is the boldest attack that The Deck has done, ever. They held back intentionally to keep us from rallying everyone else. They're playing it safe."

"No, they're playing their game," corrected Tonen bluntly.

The eyes of the room turned on Tonen, many with skeptical or disrespectful looks, as though he didn't know what he talked about. Mythical kept a straight face about it, "Go on."

"I'm sure you read the report about my kidnapping. The Dealer told me he doesn't want to take over Japan, or the world. He enjoys his niche in villain society. The Deck fulfills a role, and he wouldn't blow that by having his people kill Pro-Heroes unless he absolutely had to."

"He's right," Principal Ayatsune said, face full of confliction, "The Deck has a high body count, but less than a handful are Pro-Heroes. The attack with Dominator served a different purpose, we just don't see it yet."

One of the government officials scoffed loudly at this, "Just because that boy was kidnapped and heard a rant and you have a personal beef with these people doesn't make you two—"

Before he could finish, Principal Ayatsune shined brightly. The blinding light eclipsed the man and those around him. Tonen and the other Pro-Heroes were quick enough to shield their eyes from the attack.

"Don't you EVER speak about my sister like that again. Do you hear me?!"

"Yes, yes, please stop!"

She held firm for a few moments, and then shut down her Quirk. Many in the room had to rub their eyes to get the blinded sensation out of them. While they did, the Pro-Heroes focused on more important matters.

Athena held a smile on her lips as she gazed at Principal Ayatsune, then focused back on Mythical, "What of the task force you said you'd assemble, is that still the plan?"

Mythical nodded, "Yes. After consulting with those in the know, I'm going to make a task force composed of some of the Pro-Heroes who were in the attack, along with others like yourself and Interface. We we'll keep it small for now, a dozen at most, and then expand should we need to."

"I can make recommendations of skilled warriors if you wish."

"I would appreciate your input."

Interface made some sound effects via his costume screens, "Excellent, I love a plan. So what do we do, stake out their potential bases and then raid them."

"I'd advise against that," interjected Tonen. "When my classmates did that, and we got caught, The Dealer brought the whole place down with one of his crew. They all got out safe long before we did. That's why none were captured by you all."

"One of them can pull people through any mirrored surface," added in Principal Ayatsune. "I've seen it multiple times."

Mythical sighed at this, "At the Shoza District, they disappeared into thin air once the battle with Dominator was done. There was no mirrored surface within that immediate area. That means that they have at least two Quirk-users with escape potential. We can assume they have at least one in every base, we'll have to be careful."

Some of the officers stepped forward at this, "But we can't be too cautious, else we'll never catch them! They already attacked once on a large scale, they'll do it again!"

This time it was Tonen who scoffed, then shouted "Stop thinking of them as typical villains!"

This time Principal Ayatsune gave him a look that he was out of line, "Tonen, please…"

"No, I'm not going to listen to this if there's nothing worth listening to! I told you everything The Dealer said to me when I was kidnapped, you're acting as if it's all lies. It wasn't! He had no reason to lie to me! Everything I learned, everything you all know, is because The Dealer wanted it to be that way. He's playing us all, even with this attack. We know…nothing. Maybe we know a few more of his Deck, sure, but how does that help us? It doesn't, not in the overall. He said it himself, he's a power broker. He works for those who can pay or give him something valuable. It doesn't matter if they're civilians or heroes or villains. He'll strike when he's dang good and ready, and nothing we do will provoke that."

"Do you have a suggestion then on what we should do, young man?" asked Athena, very curious.

Tonen shrugged, "I don't, but fearing the next move he makes is pointless, because we likely won't predict what it is until it's too—"

A knock at the door came and they all turned to see who it was. An attendant nervously entered the room and approached one of the military officials, "Sir…I…"

"Speak up, man, what is it?" ordered the official.

"It's, um, sir, it's The Dominator…he…uh…"

"He's what? What happened to him?"

A laugh filled the room, they turned to see it was Tonen. He tried to contain it, but he couldn't.

"What's so funny?" wondered Mythical.

"Oh, he's gone," Tonen answered with a smile.

"Who?" followed-up Interface.

"The Dominator. The Deck broke him out, right?"

He gazed at the attendant, who quickly nodded his head, "There was an attack on the holding facility we had him in until we could transfer him to the supermax. A trio of villains came in and busted him out with no effort at all! It was over in just a few minutes."

"And there's your purpose," pointed out Principal Ayatsune angrily. "The attack on the district? That was The Dominator's goal. But The Dealer? He wanted The Dominator in his group. The Dealer played the long game…and just got more powerful as a result."

A somber feeling came over the room, they had been played, hurt, and embarrassed in some ways, and all by a group that they couldn't immediately retaliate against.

The next two hours were filled with discussion about how to deal with The Deck. Tonen did his best to not let his own anger cloud the proceedings. He offered advice where he could, but he let Principal Ayatsune and the top three Pro-Heroes lead the discussions.

By the end of it, a type of plan was in place. But whether it would work or not, no one could say, not yet.

Once they were done, Principal Ayatsune took Tonen back to the roof where their helicopter ride awaited.

Before he stepped into it though, he looked to the principal, "I'm sorry, Principal Ayatsune."

She turned to him in surprise, "Sorry? What for?"

"I had some outbursts in there, I should've kept my head level, it's what I'm known for after all."

"Oh, Tonen, between the two of us, you kept your cool better than I. I almost blinded that official."

"He deserved it."

"Yes he did."

The two shared a laugh and went quiet.

"Look, Tonen," she began with a kindness in her voice, "You and I were the only people in that room to have been personally hurt by The Deck. Even Mythical wasn't affected by them like we are. We have more skin in this game than they do combined times ten. Despite what those pencil pushers said, we have every right to be emotional about this. To make sure our voices are heard and to get The Deck caught by not treating them like common villains or ones of the past. I'm proud of what you did in there, and I'm glad I brought you."

That got Tonen to smile, "Thank you, Principal Ayatsune."

"Not a problem. Let's get you back to UA. Classes begin tomorrow for the next semester, and I want you to be rested for it. Now come on!"

She extended a hand to him, and he happily took it and got into the copter. After a signal from the principal, they took off once again.

"Sometimes you need to talk with people who truly 'get you'. I have a lot of friends in my class at UA, but none of them went through what I did with The Deck. Having Principal Ayatsune there was important. And just like before, I needed something to focus on to get me through this period. Classes would do that. As would a certain something else…but I'll get to that."

Tonen soon returned to UA. He barely beat the other members of his class back to the dorm. He relaxed on the couch in the lounge as he waited for them to return. Naturally, many of them swarmed him for information about what happened with the Principal. He told what he felt he could without getting them too involved.

He talked about the Pro-Heroes, who was there, and that The Deck had done serious damage to a district and some Pro-Heroes. The others noted that once they got their phones back on the ride home they caught up on those events.

"I still can't believe something like that happened," noted Azujima stunned. "We had a day of fun, and those Pro-Heroes almost lost their lives."

Tonen put his hand on his friends' shoulder and gave him a calm look, "We can't think like that Azu. Every day someone is getting hurt in this world, we can only prevent what we know, and what's close."

"Thanks, TK."

Kuroda and Eri weren't as comforted, they shared a look of worry before Eri asked Tonen, "Do you have an idea of their next plan of attack?"

"No. I certainly wouldn't have predicted them going after a district! I would guess they'll lay low for a few days, then resume as though it were business as usual."

"Scary…" The Twins said together.

"Yeah, something like that."

Chuya made a noise of displeasure, Tonen gazed at her, and noticed she clutched her arm tightly, "Villains like these are the worst. They know what they can do, and how to keep out of the public eye. My father had to lead an attack against a terror cell once, the siege of their base lasted for hours. All because they knew how my father and his troops would operate. If The Deck is playing such games…we're all in trouble."

Tonen sighed in recognition of that fact, "You're not wrong, Soldier."

"Neither were you, earlier," Kuroda said with a small smile. "We can't focus on The Deck, we need to focus on what we can do. And what we can do right now is enjoy our final day of rest before school starts tomorrow. Something tells me the teachers will try and distract us with more labors than usual, so be ready for that."

Hana clapped to get their attention, "Alright, you heard the class rep, let's break up and have some fun and relax."

With their No.1 and No.2 giving the order, the class dispersed for the most part. Tonen and Azujima remained at the couch and talked about lighthearted things. Kuroda took some of the ladies outside for a walk. Others, like Chuya, went to their rooms for self-contemplation.

The day rushed by as they enjoyed their activities, and soon they slept and tried to put the events of the last day, and the week, out of their minds.

Tonen was the last to sleep. Despite his own advice, he was worried. He didn't think The Deck would come after him, or his classmates, but like he said before, they were unpredictable. Plus, with his luck, he would find them before they came to him.

With a heavy sigh he closed his eyes and soon went to sleep.

The morning came and the class returned to their homeroom. It felt like an eternity since they had been there, yet they quickly fell into their routines as they got back to their assigned seats. Including how they greeted their teacher when she angelically arrived.

"Good morning, class," Angel Wings said with her usual smile.

"Good morning, Angel Wings," the class replied.

"I know the last week hasn't been easy, for a variety of reasons. But it was worth it, I hope you all can admit that. As for what comes next, we'll be doing a lot of focused training to get you ready for the next major challenges in your Pro-Hero careers! That includes the licensing exam that you'll do soon enough. But before we get there, today, I and the other teachers will be doing recap work over previous lessons and what you should have taken away from your summer training. So, let's begin!"

And so the teaching began, and with it came a familiar, yet welcome, school day. The students realized as they listened to Angel Wings, Armed Guard, Big Brain and the other teachers that this was by design.

They were reminded of how important certain lessons are, and how Quirks aren't the only things you can rely on in the field. But that wasn't the only thing they did. They did everything they could to avoid certain topics. Ones that they likely considered "triggers" for all that had happened the previous few days.

Students like Kuroda, Hana, Azujima, and Tonen appreciated it. They could tell their teachers cared for them, some more than others, and this was their way of shielding them from the feelings they may have been having. It didn't fully work, but the effort was welcome.

By the end of the day, the students remained in the classroom to talk with one another before they headed back to the dorm.

A knock on the door got their attention, and soon it slid open to reveal a surprising entrant.

It was another student at the school. But one look at the young lady and Class 1-B could tell she was an upperclassman.

She had red hair that went to her shoulders, and some of them could tell she had matching red paint on her nails. She was tall, and though she wore her UA uniform, they could tell she had muscles on her.

Once inside, she greeted the class with a smile, "Hello, I'm looking for a…Tonen…Keitomo?"

The young lady looked around the room for him. Tonen was at his seat, and immediately grew suspicious. He didn't know any upperclassman at UA High, and that threw him briefly.

He took the risk and stood up, "I'm Tonen, how can I help you?"

She gazed at him for a moment and smiled wider, "Oh, hello, nice to meet you. I was sent by your mentor to give you a message."

"My mentor? You mean…?"

"Sparky, of course!"

"Just making sure. You can give the message here, I don't mind."

At this, the young lady grew nervous, but Tonen could feel something was off, "It's…um…kind of a personal message. I hope you understand. Can we do this outside?"

Tonen paused and weighed his options, then nodded, "Sure, lead the way."

"Excellent, pleasure meeting you all."

She left the room, Tonen made after. But right before he reached the door, he signaled Azujima with a motion to his eyes and ears. Azujima nodded and started to adjust his gear.

Iha was the first to ask the obvious question, "What did he say this time?"

"To listen in, just in case, he's suspicious of her," he replied as he honed in on the two in question.

"Something was definitely off with her," noted Eri, her own suspicion on her face.

"But she knew Sparky," pointed out Ebirima, "why would his mentor send someone bad after him?"

Fenella appeared next to her friend and patted her sympathetically on her shoulder, "Oh, lass, not everything is as it appears. It would've been easy to find out that Tonen was with Sparky. She could've used that to gain his trust!"

"Hence the signal to Azujima," finished Kuroda. "Glad to see you two are continuing with your sign language idea."

Azujima laughed a little, "It was his idea, glad to see it's come in handy. Oh, I got them! They're just heading out the front doors!"

Outside, the young lady led Tonen nearly to the gate of the school, but he knew the danger that would put him in and stopped, "That's far enough."

She stopped, but didn't turn to him, "Why not leave the school? It is a personal matter."

"I don't know you. It was clever to mention Sparky, but she has my cell number. She'd have alerted me if she sent someone with a message, or she'd just deliver it herself! She never talked about you, so who are you?"

"Well…that's not accurate, Tonen. She did mention her sister when you first met, and later on if I recall."

This disarmed him, "Wait, you're Sparky's sister?"

She turned around to face him and put on a happy-go-lucky smile, "I'm Mei, Mei Kayama."

He approached and extended his hand, "Tonen, but you already knew that."

Mei took his hand and shook it, "Yes, I did know that. But I doubt you know what's about to happen now…"

Before he could respond, she twisted around, maintained her grip on his arm, and threw him to the ground. In the classroom, Azujima stood up from his desk, concern ripe on his face.

Anno was ready for action, "What happened? Does he need a shark intervention?"

"Everyone get ready, I think she's going to…going to…" Azujima began, but then everything about him changed.

Instead of fear, his eyes went wide with disbelief, and his cheeks became beat red.

Everyone was confused by this, Chuya especially, "She's going to what…?

Azujima didn't answer at first, but instead sat back down and opened up a book to bury his face in it, "I think Tonen should handle this on his own."

Outside, Tonen's head rang from the throw he was subjected to. As things came into focus, Mei turned out to be correct, he didn't expect what was in front of him. Or in this case, on top of him.

Because while he laid flat on his back on the ground, she sat on top of him, her demeanor once again changed, this time to the flirty.

"Hi there," she said.

Tonen fumbled with how to react and spat out, "Get off me or I'll blast you!"

"Blasting a girl before the first date? Didn't realize you moved that fast."

"I…I didn't…that's not what I meant!"

"But that's what you said, you should say what you mean, Tonen."

Her teasing flustered him greatly, and every time he tried to get up, she carefully, yet forcefully, pushed him back down.

Mei wagged a finger at him, "I didn't say you could get up."

"Fine!" he yelled "What do I have to do to get you off me?"

"Simple, you agree to go on a date with me."

"Wait, what?"

"Don't you remember? Sparky wanted to set you up with me. Well consider this me asking you out."

Tonen couldn't comprehend what was happening to him. This was girl was nuts in his eyes, yet she was acting as though everything was normal. He could tell though she was serious about not getting off him until he agreed.

"Fine, I'll go out with you," he relented with clear exasperation.

"Wonderful!" Mei replied with glee. "I'll let you know when and where."

With that, she carefully got off him and walked toward the entrance. Before she went out of sight, she eyed the nearby rock wall and pointed to Tonen, who was still on the ground.

"Oh, one more thing, don't even think about backing out of the date. Because if you do…"

She reared back to punch the wall, and Tonen could see a surge of energy from her body focus into her fist. With a roar, she slammed her fist into the wall, and it cracked heavily, and a large indent could be found where her fist landed.

Mei gazed at Tonen with very deadly intentions, but it melted back into her flirty phase quickly, "See you around…"

As Tonen sat up she vanished, and all he could do was exhale heavily and ask to the winds, "What did you do, Sparky?"

With a groan of annoyance he got up and went back inside. Thankfully for him, there was no one around to see what happened to him. What he forgot was that there was a whole classroom of kids wanting to know what happened to him, so when he rejoined Class 1-B, he was met with a bunch of stares.

When it dawned on him what happened before, he eyed Azujima, "Azu…? What did you say?"

Azujima very carefully shook his head in such a way that it would only be apparently to Tonen from his position, "I only said what happened, that you…got hit…"

Ueno's head wobble was in full force when he said, "Yeah, if I got hit where you did, my head wouldn't stop wobbling for days."

Oshibu rushed to Tonen and patted him consolingly, "It's ok to admit the pain man, many of us will get it. No one like us should get hit…down there…"

Tonen resisted a smile as he knew what Azujima did. Instead, he faked a pained face and raised his voice a few octaves to say, "It really hurt."

At this, much of the class laughed, mainly the ladies of the class.

"Oh, my poor boyo," joked Fenella, "what did you do to tick off that lassie?"

"I didn't do anything, Rune! She was Sparky's sister, and apparently didn't like the 'fawning' that Sparky had been doing about me being a great intern. I guess she doesn't like being overshadowed. Not that I know anyone like that, right, Soldier?"

Chuya glared at him, "Don't rope me into this or I'll add to your pain."

Kuroda gave Tonen her own look, but it was one that showed she didn't buy the explanation given. She shook it off though and waved the others down, "Alright, stop teasing, he's been through enough."

"Ha!" came a voice.

They turned to see Goya, who had leaned back in his chair and played with his spheres per normal.

"Something to say, Goya?" asked Tonen, voice filled with annoyance once again.

"Oh nothing, just wish I had been there to see it. The look on your face was no doubt priceless."

"Well, that's where we differ, Goya. If it had happened to you, I wouldn't have wanted to see it."

"Really?"

"Yeah, because of lack of satisfaction. After all, we know the only balls you have are those spheres you twirl."

The class reacted wildly at this. Tonen got Goya good, and they all knew it.

Goya got up to fire back at him, but multiple glares from Kuroda, Anno, Iha and others made him stop. With a scoff, he grabbed his stuff and left.

"With that settled…I'm heading to the dorm. Azu? Want to come with me?"

"Sure, TK!" Azujima said as he grabbed his own stuff.

"Don't forget to ice 'the boys'," called out Fenella as they left.

"Oh, Fenella," said Ebirima in mock anger, "that would be a…cold comfort…"

The class laughed, and Tonen let them. If this was the 'punishment' he had to endure instead of telling the truth, he would take it on the chin.

Once they were clear, Tonen looked at his friend with a smile, "Thanks for the cover story, Azu."

Azu laughed nervously, "It was the first thing that popped to my head. I felt I could sell that. Better than the alternative. I couldn't believe that she…uh…she…"

"Sat me on flirtingly? Yeah, I didn't expect that either."

"I know, I heard everything. I've never seen you that flustered."

This time Tonen laughed, "Well, I don't expect provocative behavior from a girl I just met. I didn't really think Sparky would set us up. And I would've told her 'no' if I knew her sister was like that!"

Azujima could see his frustration, "What will you do?"

"I gave her my word we'd go out, so we'll go out, for better or for worse. If I'm lucky, it'll end after one date."

"But…?"

"I saw the way she looked at me. It was like a cat playing with a mouse. She likes the hunt, and won't let me off that easily."

"I'm sorry."

"Not your fault, Azu, but trust me when I say I'd rather face The Deck a million times than have to deal with her for just one day."

The two went quiet, then burst out in laughter over the ridiculousness of the situation. If nothing else, this just added to the fact that the last few days had been eventful, and unpredictable.

"Let me guess, you want to know what happens next with me and Mei? Well, don't worry, I'll tell you all about her. What I will say now is…I never met anyone like her before or since, and that might be for the best."

*credits*

Writers Note: Hey everyone!

I haven't done this before, so please bear with me. I hope you all have been enjoying my stories so far, I really love writing this fanfic. If you didn't know, I'm also a writer of comics! In fact, I have one up on Kickstarter right now. It's for an anime comic I do, called Tokyo Blade Detectives.

We're on issue #6 right now, but you can catch up on the series via some of the rewards I offer on the platform! You can even get drawn into the comic and get advice from me on how to make your own comics! Even if you pledge $1, that'd be a big help.

Just go to Kickstarter and look up "Tokyo Blade Detectives #6" to find the campaign. I hope you'll consider pledging!