Chapter VI: The Prince of Ignis
They flew to the east side of the mountain and through the mist of the cloaking spell. Izuku peered down once they were clear of the mist to see six knights in shining armor standing behind a man. His clothes were dark blue and white, the colors of Ignis.
They landed in front of the man. Now closer, Izuku could see that half of his hair was red and half of his hair was white. Under the red side of his hair lay a large burn around his eye. The blue of his vest and shoes a sharp contrast to the white of his shirt and pants. He stood tall, calm yet a bit intimidating upon first glance. Bakugo hopped off of Scatha and walked over to him.
"What are you doing here Todoroki?" Bakugo asked, a slight growl to his voice.
"I came to collect the shipment you promised my father." He said, slightly glaring at Bakugo.
"I always send it via messenger, why is it now that Endeavor chose to send a party to collect it?"
"My father was hoping that I may be able to persuade you to change your mind from your and his previous conversation. So he sent me to pick up the shipment in person." Prince Todoroki said, looking indifferent to the matter.
"Well talk all you like, I am not changing my mind." Bakugo said, crossing his arms across his chest.
As they spoke, another dragon landed next to Scatha and made Izuku jump. Kirishima was riding on the back of a large green dragon. The dragon was similar in size to Scatha but had eyes the same color as the ocean, with blue at the base of its scales along its face.
"Didn't mean to scare you Izuku." Kirishima said, rubbing the back of his head.
"N-no problem. Hey how do you know my name?" Izuku asked.
"Recovery Girl told me. Bakugo likes to give people nicknames when he initially meets them. I think it also gives him time to learn their real names. I was Shitty Hair when we first met" He smiled brightly, pointing to his long red hair.
Izuku smiled as well, "I don't believe it looks bad at all." His gaze went back to the prince and Bakugo, "They aren't to fond of each other, are they?"
"You noticed huh? Yeah, they can be civil, but King Endeavor sends his son when he either doesn't feel like talking about an issue or thinks Bakugo just needs to hear it from young man's point of view. It is quite patronizing."
"Sounds like it."
Kirishima pulled a small bag from the back of his dragon, "When Bakugo asks for the shipment, hand him this. I think the Prince may ask for it."
Izuku nodded and took the bag, opening it up and peering inside. Inside were hundreds of small to medium jewels. Rubies, sapphires, emeralds; all glittering in the sunlight. In the small bag must have been hundreds, no thousands of gold coins worth of jewels. Izuku almost wanted to throw it from his hand, not feeling worthy to hold such valuable goods.
"A-a shipment for what?!" Izuku exclaimed, looking at Kirishima. Kirishima smiled.
"They sent us some supplies to make stronger weapons and some food when our harvest was low. We promised them the jewels in return."
Izuku nodded slowly, his eyes falling back to the bag as he closed it.
"Bring me the shipment!" Bakugo called behind him, finally having enough of what the prince had to say. Kirishima took off and Izuku slowly got down from the large dragon and handed him the bag. Bakugo handed it to Prince Todoroki.
"It is all there." Bakugo said, "I had my men double check it. You may check it yourself if you feel so inclined"
Prince Todoroki handed it to one of his knights, who began checking it. Though the prince's eyes wandered to Izuku.
"Have I met you before?" He asked
Izuku swallowed slightly, "Y-yes your majesty. My name is Izuku Midoryia, I am a apprentice of All Might. I have traveled with him to meet with King Endeavor before and stayed in your castle."
Prince Todoroki smiled, a softness showing in his eyes, "Now I remember, you were the one that tripped when you and he approached the thrones. You nearly broke your nose."
Izuku averted his gaze and rubbed the back of his neck, his cheeks glowing red. "Y-yes, that was me."
The prince eyed him up and down, "Though that is not the typical attire seen in Ignis." He said, and turned to Bakugo, "You made it very clear to my father that no outsiders were allowed in your village, thus why we always have to meet at the base of the mountain. Has that tradition changed?"
Izuku began to sweat, worried that he would be the cause of a fight. Bakugo's eyes met the prince's.
"As he said he is a student of All Might. All Might aided our village a long time ago and was the only outsider we ever permitted. The great wizard came to my people and asked if his apprentice could live among us for a time. He is to learn and assimilate into our culture while he is here. Thus he needed proper attire. You and your father, like many other outsiders have attempted to exploit my culture and my people, thus the tradition remains."
The prince's eyes darted between the two of them, before he nodded his head, "Fair enough. Ida, is it all there?"
The knight stood at attention and handed him the bag, "Yes sir. All the requested jewels are accounted for."
"You have what you have come for, so now you are welcome to leave" Bakugo said, standing his ground, "Also tell Endeavor that my mind remains unchanged."
Prince Todoroki glared at him, "I will deliver your message." He said, and turned to Izuku, flashing another smile and placing his hand on his chest and bowing forward slightly, "It was very pleasant seeing you again Midoryia, hopefully we will meet again."
Izuku smiled at him and bowed, "O-of course you majesty."
Prince Todoroki and the knights turned and collected their horses before riding away. Bakugo waited to they were well out of sight before heading back to his dragon.
"W-wait Kacchan! Why did you lie to him about why I was here?"
Bakugo patted Scatha on the nose before turning to Izuku, "I didn't want him to know that we had been attacked. Knowing his father, he would use the opportunity to try to overwhelm us. This way, he believes we are in contact with All Might and won't try anything" Bakugo said.
"S-so it was true. All Might was the only outsider you let into the village?" Izuku asked.
"Yes, a very long time ago when I was a child. He came and assisted my family with some things." He said and turned to Izuku, "Now come on."
Izuku nodded and walked towards him. He grabbed his hand and pulled him against the dragon. His hands on either side of Izuku's head as he huddled over him. Izuku's back pressed against the smooth scales of the dragon. She lightly growled in protest, but didn't move.
"K-Kacchan what are you doing?" Izuku asked as his face began to get hot. He could make out every curve and crease on Bakugo's face and chest and feel his hot breath against his face.
"What did you call me?" Bakugo asked, with a slight growl to his voice. The nickname jabbed at him. He had no issues of him calling him Bakugo or even Kaksuki, but something about him addressing him so informally made him unspeakably pissed.
Izuku stood up straighter and puffed out his chest slightly, "Well, you keep insisting on calling me Deku, and I am certain that you were the boy that I played with when I was younger. So its all fair that I should be able to call you by your old nickname."
Bakugo sneered at him, "Are you forgetting your place?"
Izuku pushed forward from the dragon, his chest nearly touching Bakugo's, "You were my friend. At the time I knew you we were equals. Why should now be any different?" He didn't know what it was about Bakugo, but he brought out a different side of him. He normally hated conflict and confrontation, and avoided it whenever possible. However, Bakugo's abrasive attitude made him want to fight back, to push his buttons. Part of his mind wanted to see how far would be too far. He couldn't help but notice the flames that danced in Bakugo's eyes, and he wanted to feel that fire.
A harsh growl rose from Bakugo and he could see the wizard jump slightly. This damned wizard would be the death of him. He wanted to hit him, crush him for his insolence, but something stopped him. Being this close to him, he realized his hair smelled like evergreens and his eyes looked like a glittering lake on a summer day. Thoughts would drift into his head regarding how well his old shirt suited the young wizard. Even being in this position, a portion of his mind had other plans for what to do to him.
'Damn you Deku!' He thought as he backed off.
"Do whatever you want, you damn nerd." He said before hoisting Izuku up onto Scatha before jumping on himself. Izuku's arms settled around his waist, holding onto him for safety. A slight blush creeped up his neck. His brain was jumbled and he didn't know what to think. He lightly tapped Scatha and she reared up, taking off in a swift motion.
Scatha took the long way around back to the village, understanding that her master needed some time to cool off.
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