Matt's meeting with The Horrible Thing in the Basement

He had a terrible night. What with being ran over by an anti-protesters truck and the entire abnormality of the whole vacation, he was feeling everything but comfortable. But he still had to wake up and get on with continuing to raise that "Joy Counter", or whatever it meant.

It definitely did not spark joy on him, if you'd ask.

He went over to the door and scanned the card. It did not even react. At this point, Matthew began to notice the entire room was under a blackout. One good thing about his 'characteristics' would be the natural eyeshine felines are entitled to. Trying not to trip over, he'd go and pick both phone... And find it dead. So as a replacement, the catman takes up the spear returning to the door.

"H-hey!" He's outright banging on the door. "Guys, I'm locked in! Is anyone there?!"

No response. He stepped back, raising his spear, his mind racing through his options. This was ridiculous. But his spear was a blunt instrument: surely he could... Stab at the door and get himself out like that, right? "One, tw-"

"I wouldn't do that if I were you. Good morning, Matthew. ♡

Did you sleep well? You look a little tense!"

He was about to contact and smash at the door, but if someone else was in the room, that was an entirely new reason for concern. "You?" He takes a step back, making his back hit the wall. How did he corner himself this easily?

"How did you get in here? The door's locked."

"It's locked for you, silly! I have a key." The lights turn on, just enough for him to make out who this. BB Lily, the weird guide lady from the airport...

But she's holding nothing, wiggling her fingers like the key is a joke he's supposed to get. "House rules! Guests aren't supposed to wander before their scheduled itinerary time, and you, Matthew, are very much not scheduled yet!"

Sshe had probably been in the room the whole time? Or at least, found a way to bypass any protection he had put in place, which, admittedly, were shoddy to begin with. Kazuradrop took a small step towards Matt, looking briefly to the spear with open amusement.

"Where's everyone else? Is this..."

"Oh, come on! They're fine! Probably having fun at the beach or at the Dress Showcase BB Dubai has arranged... But this isn't about them.

This is just a little chat. Just you and me. Isn't that nice?! One-on-one time, very exclusive, very VIP!"

"Cut the act. I nearly got flattened by a truck yesterday and now I’m locked in my own room. Is BB... Is she angry at me? What did I do this time?! Is it because I said I didn't want to help her out at Odaiba?!" He did refuse to help 'set up the glorious BB Studio Office's new location', because he wanted to go to the Hot Springs Singularity in the Kumano Inn. Sure, he could've met with friends in Tokyo too, but his priority was...

Alterego's smile gets wider. He couldn't be any more wrong, yet there he is.

I just wanted to see you. Properly. You're BB's Chaldean Errand Boy #1, aren't you? I've heard so much!"

The word boy sits wrong in his chest: he's a man. Getting over his complexes has taken a lot and having someone that small call out on those hurts. Matt takes a small breath. "... I'm her Master, yeah. But right now, it doesn't seem to be something she cares about."

"You're taller and hairier than I expected. I was expecting BB to get her hands into someone a bit cleaner..." She tilts her head, much like a child questioning an adult's decisions on a dessert. "But that's fine! I'm just here for your safety, Mister.

Dubai is very strict, and I wouldn't want you causing trouble. What if you got hurt? Especially with that big, sad stick of yours. If your aim slipped... you might crash right into the door."

"... It's a spear. Not a stick. And it's just not working properly at the moment, that's about it."

At this point, she's crossed some lines that he wouldn't even allow BB to cross. But BB Lily's ruthlessness has only just started. He frowns, fur getting on edge...

"There's the spirit! That's the eyes I wanted to see! Flickering lights, like an animal!" She claps delighted, and it's disarming to the beastman who has gone back to flinching his way against the wall. "See, this is why I wanted to meet you. You have some spine. Most people do not and get quiet and boring."

Without the absurd reserves of the BB Studio to draw from, his Imaginary Space Magecraft and most of any type was severely limited. He couldn't force an opening to slip through or even use his weapon. Even getting Tametomo to unleash his Noble Phantasm was a questionable option to take.

"I have three Command Seals," Matthew said, his voice low, defiant despite the cold sweat running down his neck.

"And I'm stupid enough to burn one just to put a hole through this door with this spear."

Command Seals were his only real source of raw, concentrated power left, given Chaldea had been cut off. Matthew’s mind raced. He needed leverage, anything that would make this enfant terrible back off, even if it was a bluff.

That same type of rage, viscera... It was not too different to the one he had felt towards Plan C.

"If I don't show up later today, people are going to start getting worried."

"But, will they? I've already told them that you're feeling a bit under the weather from yesterday. And they're having so much fun! You're perfectly safe and most of all, not even missed. I promise on the first, at least.

I'm not here to hurt you, Matthew."

"Then let me out."

"In a minute! I'm not done looking at you yet..."

She stepped closer, her eyes dropping to the partially concealed red seals on his right, gloved hand. She didn't touch those, but her glare... It was enough for Matthew to instinctively pull his hand back.

"Go ahead, if you want. Use up one of your Command Spells and burst out into the hallway! I just think it's funny you'd rather break a door with a magic stick that doesn't work than just ask me nicely. Me, who is so very nice, all the time!"

She clasped her hands together. "Here's an idea! You could call for daddy to help you! He's so nice and reasonable all the time, isn't he?"

"Do you mean... BB's... Husband?"

He said it. Just naming that BB had a husband felt abnormal, hearing him called as daddy felt even more uneasy.

A divine spirit who was normally an extremely asocial, shut-in recluse who wanted absolutely nothing to do with the world and to devote himself for work... Yet, for some incomprehensible reason, he had shifted to Full Moon Mode. He was even acting like a single man on a cruise, completely ignoring the tension in the air.

"Oh no. Don't call him that, it's weird."

"What, too far? But I'm only calling him what he is to me!" She offered an innocent shrug, her eyes sparkling with amusement. Matthew took a slow breath, trying to steady his voice to make the threat sound real.

"... You really want me dragging him into this room?"

"Go ahead, then! Papa has finally decided to touch grass, and he is absolutely, completely checked out."

She took a half-step back, her sweet demeanour cooling just enough to let the underlying threat show through. "He doesn't want to think about what BB is up to, as usual! And he certainly doesn't want to think about you!

I do not think he will, not on any of these seven weeks you have ahead."

"He'd still come.

... If I actually needed him."

"Maybe! Probably, even." Kazuradrop shrugs, unbothered. "But you'd have to actually call for him. Actually admit you need him...

And I don't think you're going to do that over a locked door and a chatty tour guide, are you, Matthew? That's an awfully big embarrassment to cash in for an awfully small problem!"

"...What do you actually want," Matt says instead, flat, tired of circling. "You didn't come here to talk about my daddy issues. Even though I understand you too, must have those."

"I told you. I wanted to meet you." She took a slow, deliberate circle around him. If she was anything but a filthy insect, it could be comparable to a cat circling a toy.

"You're important to BB. That makes you worth a look. I've had my look. It would be so easy to keep you here... But that might make you do something reckless."

She sighed, shaking her head with a touch of pity. "Admitting to being open to wasting valuable resources on a door is very wasteful.

You humans really don't know any better."

With a sudden clap of her hands, the room's lights went to full, bright capacity. Matthew winced and shielded his face with his hand. When he lowered his arm, Kazuradrop was standing by the door.

"I’ll let you out. On one condition. Answer a few questions about Chaldea for me. Honestly. Then you can go with the others again. BB Dubai is very busy preparing the next part of the celebration, after all. ♡

Does that sound fair, hard-working Master?"

His grip on the spear tightened for a moment... But his ears flattened. A long sigh later, he'd relent, looking utterly defeated. Sure, he can be smart and at times, have the guts to throw himself into trouble. But he wasn’t brave, he never had been in moments like this, even if his mouth would still keep up.

"...Fine," he muttered. "I’ll answer your damn questions. Just... get on with it."

"Wonderful! Good kid, good kid. ♡" Kazuradrop clapped her hands once more in delight. Then she glanced at the rumpled bed and tilted her head. "But first, sit properly, please. We can’t have a serious talk with you standing there like a startled cat."

Matt blinked. The room was still dim, curtains drawn tight. He hadn’t bothered making the bed earlier in his rising panic.

"... Are you for real. The room was dark when I woke up. And when I tried leaving, you came in. How was I supposed to...?"

"Matthew, if you would!" And as commanded,he fluffed the pillows and smoothed out the sheets. This was terrible. She didn't even manipulate him: all she had to do was command him!

"There! All better. Now sit, sit!~ This is much better than any box you've ever been!"

He sat on the edge of the now-made bed, spear across his lap. Kazuradrop, satisfied, settled into the armchair across from him like a therapist ready for session.

"Much better. Now then..." She leaned forward slightly, voice still honey-sweet. "Let’s start with something easy. The Sakura Five. What do you think of my sisters? Passionlip, Meltryllis, Kingprotea, Violet... Have you met them all? I know you at least met Protea and Melt"

"You're one of the Sakura Series."

"Guilty as charged! But that is not particularly relevant, is it? No, you and Dubai are!"

"I don't know about Violet. Passionlip is nice, I wish I could help her feel better at times.

Meltryllis scares me. Kingprotea is... She's nice, too. I wish the logistics around her weren't as painful."

"Good, good. And BB? What does she behave like back at Chaldea?"

"You're a Sakura Series. One of the Sakura Five, for sure. I could tell you she's horrible and you'd be satisfied." And judging from Kazuradrop's grin, it seems to be a right answer. But that's all the more of a reason for Matthew to steel himself.

"I trust her enough to believe she will give me a good explanation for this and that's it." And that was enough to make her frown.

"And Chaldea itself? The people there. The other Masters and their Servants. The staff, like that silly Rider who booked visits to the Dubai Aquarium.

Your other Servants. All the weird and unpleasant people who, somehow, also came here.

Do they trust BB? Why are you her only employee who came here? Weren't there a few more? Oh, and what about the prettier boy and the raggedy one? I'm talking about Saber's Master."

This feels like a trap. Going any further is going to be a betrayal. But at the same time, what can he really say? That not everyone trusts her. That some people upset her and that she upsets some other people. But that it's understood that she means no harm. When he finished, she stood up gracefully and clapped her hands again.

"Excellent! You really are a hard-working Master, at least fourth rate. I knew I could count on you!" She moved toward the door, then paused.

"Can I go now?"

"Of course, but one last thing...! You will not speak of this little tête-à-tête to anyone. And about calling Papa..." Her smile widened and eyes twitched. That was gross to see.

"... I wouldn’t recommend it. Daddy has finally decided to touch grass, after millennia. He doesn't need to be bothered by BB, for once!

You do not need to comprehend what he and I feel towards eachother, much less my feelings towards BB, and I will not allow you to drag him, or anybody into this.

This is not a family matter for the pets of the house to involve themselves with!"

The door was open by now. "Ta-ta! Don’t forget to make your bed next time!"