Sei’s Magic Brew - The Saint’s Magic Power is Omnipotent fanfiction
I’ll just go ahead and dedicate this to my friend @mostlovedgirl-writes who got me hooked on this show in the first place. It can also serve as an early little birthday gift, too. ;) :D
It wasn’t her idea to move here. It was her stupid, faulty car’s.
It had stalled out while she was driving to another city on a business trip. She’d had to have it towed, then call her company and explain what had happened, only to get fired when she told her boss she couldn’t make it to the meeting on time and she was sorry.
After being so quickly let go by a job that clearly never cared for her, she’d ended up in a coffee shop after that while her car was getting fixed. The man behind the counter, Jude, had been kind enough to sit with her and strike up a conversation. He’d lifted her spirits when she’d felt trapped and hopeless.
That had been three months ago. It had been an impulse, but with nothing to lose, she left the city and moved into a quaint little apartment close to the café where Jude also happened to live. He’d been the one to recommend the place. On top of that, despite not knowing her well, he put in a good word with the owner.
Jude had also put in a good word with Johan, the owner of the coffee shop, and he’d hired her right away. Though, Sei learned later that Johan had eavesdropped on a conversation over coffee she’d had with Jude and that was truly what had convinced him to hire her.
She’d worked extra hard to prove herself but ultimately found she hadn’t needed to. Her coworkers had welcomed her into their ranks and had been willing to assist her as much as she’d needed.
But three months later, the tables seemed to turn because she had somehow picked up everything almost tooquickly.
“You’re experimenting with drinks again.”
“We have time,” Sei said, putting the final touches on the drink. “And Johan said I could.”
Jude rubbed the back of his neck with a sigh. “I mean, yeah, but tell me: how many drinks have you made today?”
Sei froze. “Uhhh…”
In an instant, Jude was smirking at her. “Over your allowance today?”
“Well…”
“And it was slow enough today that you were able to experiment with pastries earlier, too,” he continued, his smug smirk growing. “Now, we have another set of unsellable experiments that we’re gonna have to find other ways to get rid of. Johan’s gonna yell at you again.”
With a groan, Sei slumped forward, hiding her face in her hands. “Sorry.”
“Not me you gotta be apologizing to,” Jude said, taking the drink and taking a sip.
Curious as to what he thought, Sei spread her fingers to peek between them, only to see Jude glaring at the cup. Her heart sunk. “Is it that bad?”
“As if you make anything bad!” he huffed. “It’s toogood is what it is. You’ve only been here three months. I can’t just make things up like this, nevertheless making them look as perfect as you do. It’s not fair.”
With a giggle, Sei gave him a light punch on the shoulder. “Stop, you’re plenty proficient.”
He glared at her as he took another sip of the drink. “Yeah, but not like you.”
Sei simply shrugged, unsure how to respond to that.
Jude just sighed, taking yet another sip of the drink. “Anyway, I heard you and Johan had a little chat recently.”
Sei brightened. “Yeah. Apparently, he wanted to promote me to assistant manager.”
“You’re certainly good enough for it,” Jude said. “But don’t get too excited.”
Sei’s expression fell. “Huh? Why not?”
“Because ‘Assistant Manager’ is just a fancy title for ‘Person who runs the red-eye shift’.”
Sei blinked once. Twice. Three times.
Jude smirked over his coffee. “He didn’t tell you that, did he? Well, good luck, Sei!”
…
Before moving to the city, Sei had grown up in the suburbs, so the town didn’t feel like too large of a culture shock to her. Honestly, she could say that she actually preferred living in a place without skyscrapers or constant bustle, and while she’d once thought she wouldn’t be happy living in a place like this, she’d gotten to a point in her life where she could really see herself settling here.
Even if it meant she ran the midnight shift at a small little cafe.
Sei really didn’t mind. She frequently pulled all-nighters at her old job, so she fancied herself a bit of a night owl. However, she hadn’t expected things to be as busy as they were. Johan had warned her that the café was a hopping place, even when the moon was up, and he hadn’t been lying. Apparently, it had all started when Johan allowed his close friend to linger in the café after hours, which had turned into said close friend and his colleagues. Before Johan knew it, the place soon became the go-to spot for police officers, firemen, and the occasional EMT crew to get their caffeine and sugar fill to sustain them through the ungodly hours of the night.
But that wasn’t all.
“There’s an elite private boarding school, Salutania Academy, just down the street, you see,” Elizabeth, a regular night visitor who Sei had become fast friends with, explained. “This place has the best coffee and is a generally quiet place to study. So students come here frequently.”
“That makes sense, then,” Sei said, handing Elizabeth her caramel latte. “But I’m a little surprised. I would have thought there’d be a curfew or something of the like, since you’re all still underage.”
“You’d think,” she said with a smile. “And there technically is. However, ever since this place began staying open all night, some of the upperclassmen started sneaking out to come here, which turned into this whole debacle among the students trying to outsmart the staff and the staff ratcheting down on the students and the whole school suffering for it. Something had to be done, so the headmaster and Johan struck a deal. Now, the curfew is still instated, but if you have solid enough grades and no active demerits, you can put your name down on the list and campus security guards will escort us here to study and grab a coffee or just chat. They don’t monitor us too severely; they’re just here to make sure everyone is accounted for.”
“That’s incredible,” Sei said, able to talk freely since Elizabeth was the last student that had to be served that night. “You’d think the school would try to create a similar atmosphere at their own library.”
“Oh, they did,” Elizabeth said. “But turns out that one of the students who snuck out was the headmaster’s son.”
“What!” Sei whisper-hissed, her eyes wide in shock.
With a giggle, Elizabeth nodded. “I’m not at liberty to discuss everything, but there was a discussion between the two that ended with him getting banned from going out on these outings but the headmaster deciding to let other students have the option.”
“Wow. That feels kinda harsh.”
“It might be, but Kyle knew what he was doing and knew he was going to serve to consequences of his actions. Don’t judge him too harshly, please. He’s actually a good man.”
“You’re close to him?”
“He’s my boyfriend.”
Sei’s eyes widened again.
“Maybe I can figure out a way to bring him sometime so you two can meet. We’ll have to work around your work schedule and our curfew, though. Coffeeshop curfew may be midnight, but regular curfew is eight.”
Sei hummed in thought. “Maybe before I start a shift, then. I’ll have to come early.”
“That would be great! Now, as much as I want to keep talking—”
“You have to go study?”
Her sunny expression vanishing, Elizabeth sighed. “Why do finals have to be so hard?”
“Because the teachers want to kill you all, obviously.”
“Obviously,” Elizabeth mournfully agreed, sipping her drink.
Sei giggled, reaching over the counter to pat Elizabeth’s hand. “Best of luck.”
“Thanks. I’m going to need it.”
…
Before the clock could strike midnight, the campus security guards began to collect all the students, and by quarter past, the café had become a ghost town. That was the transition from hosting mostly students to when the red-eye emergency servicemen began appearing.
Of all the people she did serve, very few lingered, most only swinging by on a break. However, there were a few police officers that came in between two and three every night that liked to chat.
And their arrival was punctuated with the ringing of the bell by the door.
“Good evening, boys,” Sei greeted with a smile.
“Seeeeei!” One of them whined, playfully stumbling up to the counter and leaning against it. “I need your magic potion!”
She laughed. “Coming right up. The usual for everyone?”
“Please,” came the chorus.
With a smile, she got on brewing a strong pot for the officers. They occasionally grabbed pastries, but normally, they brought full meals to eat.
“The night going well?” Sei asked as the officers all gathered around the counter.
“As well as always,” one of the officers, Wolf, said.
Sei always took that as “It’s been generally quiet” while knowing better than to utter that cursed ‘q’ word in the dead hours of the night. “Glad to hear.”
“Nah, boss,” his partner spoke up, slapping Wolf’s chest with the back of his hand. “You gotta tell her about the bar fight.”
“Oh geez.” Grinning, Wolf shut his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. “With the guy who thought he was a dragon?”
“Didn’t he say he was a Salamander?”
“Yeah, that.” Wolf chuckled. “So Sei, let me tell you about this nutjob.”
…
Sei couldn’t lie, she was growing fond of her night shifts. It allowed her to experiment in the back during the super dead hours, which already resulted in two new pastries being put on the menu.
And she was in the middle of creating her third when the bell rang, signaling a customer.
She quickly bounded to the front, eyeing a stoic man with glasses and such light blond hair it looked white. “Hello,” she greeted with a smile. “What can I get for you tonight?”
“A double shot of espresso,” he said, voice wrought with exhaustion. “Of whatever is your strongest blend.”
“Long night?” she asked, trying to make conversation as she punched in his order.
He sighed, letting his eyes close for a moment as he collected himself. “Very.”
She gave him a sympathetic smile. “Anything else to go with that?”
“No. He can pay for his own drink,” the man muttered, already sticking his card in the reader.
She didn’t know how to respond to that, nor did she feel like she needed to since it sounded very much like he was talking with himself. “I’ll get your drink out in a minute, Mr…”
“Hawke,” he answered. “Erhart Hawke. Forgive me for not introducing myself. It’s been a long night. I forgot that while I’ve heard about you from Johan, it was unlikely he’d talk about me.”
“It’s fine,” she assured, already starting in on his drink. “That happens to the best of us. I’m Sei Takanashi. It’s nice to meet you.”
Suddenly, the door to the shop flew open, the clanging bell drowned out by the crash of the door. “Erhaaaaart!” a voice cried, a man practically stalking over to him with a dramatic pout. “You left me! I told you I wanted to try the magic potions here, too!”
Erhart pinched the bridge of his nose, right where his thin glasses sat. Suddenly, Sei understood why he wanted the double espresso.
“Yuri, for the love of—”
“Everyone’s been saying how good her drinks are, and I wanted to try them. You told me when I got out of the hospital, you’d bring me by here. But my first day back on the job, and you wouldn’t let me out of the office to get some.”
“That’s because you had too much work you needed to finish first.”
“But if I had a coffee, I could have worked faster.”
Again, Erhart pinched the bridge of his nose. Sei sympathized with him. She was sure she’d lose it if she had to deal with a guy like him frequently.
“Anyway,” the newcomer chimed, turning a mega-watt smile her direction. “I finally get to meet the Saintess of the Night! What’s your name?”
She quirked a brow at him. “Saintess of the Night?”
“Yeah!” he cried. “Everyone talked about how your coffee is magical. Which, we expect from this place, but for some reason, people say there’s something about the way you can make a drink that makes it extra special. I wanted to try it for myself.”
“O-oh,” she said, turning her head away from him, pretending she was watching the last bit of the second espresso shot drain into Erhart’s cup instead of trying to hide her blush. “I never heard such a thing.”
He nodded vigorously. “They say you’re the only reason they’re still awake and kicking throughout their shifts. So I wanted to try it for myself!”
Something told her he had no problem keeping awake during his shift, considering his current energy level.
“So, you’re Sei, right?”
She nodded as she handed Erhart’s cup off to him. “That’s right. And you are?”
“Yuri Drewes,” he piped, beaming grin on his face. “Night-time fire chief at the station down the street. I would have come earlier if I’d been able but I was tied down in a hospital bed after getting knocked out on a job a few weeks back. I’m glad to finally get a look at you!”
A nervous giggle escaped her. “I’m nothing special.”
“Anyone who keeps this shop open throughout the night is special!” he insisted. “Especially if you can make a magical cup of coffee.”
“Ah ha… er… I don’t know about that,” she stuttered with a shrug.
“Then I guess I’ll just have to see for myself,” he said. “One mocha, double shot, please.”
“Decaf,” Erhart mumbled.
“But I need caffeine!”
“He does not,” Erhart insisted, looking Sei dead in the eye. “I can confirm this as his second-in-command who runs shifts with him three nights a week, he does not.”
Feeling herself almost cowering under that intense expression, Sei decided she was more willing to take his word as law over Yuri’s. “One decaf mocha, double shot.”
Yuri shot another pout over at Erhart. “You’re so cruel.”
“You won’t even notice.”
…
It was getting close to six in the morning, meaning it was almost time for Johan to appear to take over. This was when the early birds began coming in, snagging a coffee on their way to work.
Today, the first early bird who stumbled in right at the crack of dawn happened to be a girl who looked beyond lost and hopeless.
Sei put on her best smile. “Good morning!”
“Hi,” the girl said with a shy wave. “Um… I… could you help me? I’m lost and my car died.”
Immediately, Sei sympathized with the poor girl. No wonder she looked super tired. “I’d be glad to help. Tell you what, why don’t you take a seat for a minute while I make a call to the repair shop. I happen to know it by heart because my car did the exact same thing recently.”
That at least got the girl to relax a bit. “Thank you.”
“No problem,” Sei assured. The girl didn’t look to be older than in her teens yet seemed to be on her own. Sei could only imagine that this was overwhelming for her. “What’s your name?”
“Oh, uh, Aria.”
“Aria.” Sei extended her hand out to the girl. “I’m Sei. It’s nice to meet you.”
Although hesitant, Aria did accept Sei’s hand to shake. “Nice to meet you.”
“Before I go make the call, would you like a drink while you wait? The tow truck guys will probably be another fifteen minutes to get here.”
“Oh, uh, no, thank you,” she stuttered out. “I don’t really drink coffee.”
“Then a hot chocolate maybe?” Sei offered. “Or some tea?”
For a moment, Aria pondered her words. “I… I’ll have a hot chocolate, please.”
Sei grinned, not bothering to punch it into the machine. But when Aria reached for her purse, Sei wave her hand dismissively. “It’s on me today.”
Aria’s eyes widened. “What?”
“Yeah.” Sei gave her a sympathetic smile. “Four months ago, my car really did do the same thing, deciding to break down when I was driving through town. I ended up here, and someone was kind enough to offer me a drink and call a tow truck for me. I know it can be overwhelming, but sometimes, something really simple like someone being understanding or a hot drink can help a lot.”
Aria looked on the verge of tears as she put her wallet back in her purse. In that moment, she seemed very young and simply overwhelmed. “Thank you so much.”
“You’re welcome.”
Mere minutes later, the tow truck was called and the hot chocolate was made. Balancing a plate of pastries and two mugs, Sei made her way over to where Aria had settled herself in a winged back chair by the window.
“Here,” Sei said, setting down the dishes in her hands. She scooted the hot chocolate mug, one completed with a whipped cream swirl and chocolate drizzle, over to Aria while the other mug with Sei’s preferred coffee drink stayed by her side of the table. “And I didn’t know what you liked,” Sei continued, pushing the plate of various pastries she’d brought over into the middle of the small table. “So I brought over a couple.”
Aria looked between the cup and the pastries, and her eyes got glassy again. “Thank you. You’re really kind.”
“You’re welcome,” Sei chimed. “So Aria, are you just passing through town?”
She shook her head. “I just transferred over to Salutania Academy, actually.”
“Oh!” If she was that young yet able to drive on her own, Sei reasoned she was likely only sixteen or seventeen. “I know several people who go there. The students frequent this place a lot.”
“Oh?”
Sei nodded. “Yeah. If you’d like, I can introduce you to some people.”
The conversation continued on for another ten minutes, and Sei watched as Aria slowly came out of her shell. She seemed to be a sweet girl, and Sei couldn’t help but think that maybe she and Liz could become friends.
The bell above the door rang, and Sei looked up, fully expecting to see the tow truck guy.
Instead, there was a man with fiery red hair that she would recognize anywhere, along with his closest friend.
“Good morning, boys,” she called out. “I’ll be right with you.” She then turned back to Aria. “Excuse me.”
“No no, you’re fine,” Aria assured with a smile, one that was now relaxed instead of super shy. “Thank you for all this.”
“You’re very welcome. The tow truck should be here shortly, so don’t worry.”
Aria nodded. “Thanks.”
Grabbing her empty coffee cup, she scurried back to the counter. “Ditching school again?”
“We had good reason,” Kyle said.
“Good reason to be up and out before six in the morning?”
“One of your unusual experiments and the usual drink,” Kyle answered.
“Got it,” she said with a grin, ringing up his order. Once he paid, Sei then turned to his friend. “Do you want the same, Damian?”
The young man nodded. “Thank you, Sei.”
“Of course.”
In a jiff, she rang up Damian’s order, then quickly began getting their coffees ready. “By the way,” Sei began. “The girl behind you that I was sitting with earlier, she’s currently waiting for a tow truck, but she’ll be starting at the academy next week.”
“Oh?” Kyle said, turning around to look at Aria.
“Would you mind helping her out around campus?” Sei asked. “I remember going to see Elizabeth a couple times and almost getting lost.”
“We’d be glad to,” Damian said with a grin.
“Of course,” Kyle agreed.
“Thank you. I’m sure she would appreciate that.”
As Sei started making the boys’ drinks, she caught sight of the two approaching Aria, introducing themselves if the handshake was any sort of indication, and then starting up a conversation.
By the time she’d put the lids on their drinks, the bell to the door rang, and she caught sight of a tall, brawny man striding through the door.
“Sei!”
“Hey, Leonhardt,” Sei greeted with a smile. “Good seeing you again.”
“Same. You don’t come ‘round a whole lot anymore.”
“Guess I don’t have much reason to between my car not being there and my night shifts.”
“True. Wish that wasn’t the case, though. Nice seeing your face every once in a while, ya know?”
“I get it. By the way, you have coffee yet?”
“I was just ‘bout to brew a pot when I got your call,” he said with a grin. “Which was on off-hours, by the way.”
“I know,” she said, already starting up a drink for him. “But I know you’re up at this hour anyway because you like the mornings too much.”
He laughed, loud and hardy. “You remember that?”
“You mentioned it frequently,” Sei playfully retorted.
“Ha, fair.” He then leaned against the counter. “Now, much as I’d love to chat, guess you didn’t call me up for that. So, where’s the car? Was it that little gray one on the side of the road I saw comin’ here?”
“Yes, that’s it,” Sei said. She then pointed towards the group gathered in the corner of the café. “The young lady over there, Aria, is the driver.”
“Got it,” he said with a thumbs up. “I’ll take care of her.”
“Thank you. I’ll have your drink done for you in a minute.”
“Thanks,” he said, tossing a couple bills on the counter.
“You want change?”
“Nah, keep the tip.”
“Thanks!”
…
After the car incident was settled and Sei waved Aria off with a smile, Johan appeared.
“Good morning, Sei.”
“Good morning!”
“Night shift go well?”
“Yeah.”
“How much experimenting did you do?”
“Actually, not too much tonight.”
Johan gave her a dubious look. “Really?”
“Really!”
“How much is ‘not too much’?”
Before Sei could answer, her boss already was heading back into the back.
“W-wait!” she cried, scampering to follow.
Once in the back, Sei simply hung her head as Johan stared at the rack stuffed to the gills with three new kinds of pastries.
“Seeeeei,” he strung out before shooting her a tense smile.
Sheepishly, she smiled back. “Uhhh, ah-ha.”
“Keep this up, and I’m banning you from the kitchen.”
There was nothing she could do other than hang her head in shame. “Yes, sir.”
…
Despite being kicked out of the kitchen, she knew Johan wasn’t angry angry. He never got truly mad at her. It was more a warning of “please don’t overdo it”.
Which… she still had to learn how to temper.
She was never punished for these incidents, sans the occasional ban from the kitchen. Today, however, she was tasked with running an errand before she could go home.
“Take some of those pastries and an iced coffee to an old friend of mine, will you? He normally comes in, but since he’s recovering from an injury, he’s stuck on desk duty.”
Sei was more than happy to serve such a light sentence, and hopefully, she’d be able to bring a smile to his friend’s face. Looking at the name on the paper he’d given her, she recognized part of it.
Hawke. Wasn’t that Erhart’s last name? Was it a relative? Or just coincidence. Johan hadn’t said.
When she got to the police station, she followed the crude map that Johan had drawn for her to where she could find this Mr. Albert Hawke.
“Are you Sei?”
Before she could even reach her destination, a uniformed man called out to her, and she froze for a moment. Blonde hair, stunning blue eyes, tall with broad shoulders…
Oh, he was so her type.
Eventually, her head caught up with her, and she realized he’d asked her a question. “Yes, I’m Sei. You wouldn’t happen to be Albert Hawke, would you?”
“That I am,” he said with a smile. He then took a few steps away from the wall to walk over to her, limping all the way. “Johan said he would send you over with a coffee and breakfast.”
“Oh, I’m glad he told you to expect me.” Sei extended the coffee and bag of her treats to him. “Here. I know he said you usually order a different pastry, but he also wanted to get rid of some of my… er… experiments.”
Albert laughed, and Sei’s heart did a funny flip in her chest. “He’s told me all about that. But I’ve also heard your ‘mystery pastries’ are popular sells. I’m glad I get to try one.”
She shrugged. “I’m just glad people are enjoying what I make. I’m very thankful to have this job. It’s fun.”
“Fun, you say?” he asked with a grin, opening up the bag to look at the pastries inside. “Even though you work the night shift?”
“I’m used to it by now,” she dismissed. “And there’s some great people I get to meet in those off-hours that I wouldn’t cross otherwise. What’s there to complain about?”
Was it just her, or did his smile get brighter? “That’s one way to look at it. I usually work night shifts, but my schedule was thrown off due to a work injury. I’m hoping to get back on the beat, soon. Then maybe I’ll be able to see you more frequently.”
Yes, please! She thought. Thankfully, she had just enough tact to hold that in. “That would be nice. I’ll be sure to prepare whatever you’d like.”
“I’d like that,” he said, his smile turning even warmer for a second. “And as much as I’d like to keep talking, I’m sure you’re tired, and I have a stack of paperwork to attend to.”
“Then I’ll let you go. Sorry for keeping you.”
“Don’t be,” he assured. “My sleep cycle’s been thrown off so badly that I don’t know how I’d keep going without ‘Sei’s Magic Potion’.”
She felt heat rush to her cheeks. “You’ve heard about that?”
“Of course, I have. It’s the talk of the town.”
Sei didn’t know how to answer that other than blush.
“Thank you for the delivery, Sei. Maybe next time, I’ll come see you instead of you having to make the trip.”
“Oh, it was nothing. Don’t worry about it.”
He gave her a smile that had her going weak in the knees. “Still, thank you. Have a good day.”
Her heart was fluttering by now, her stomach in knots and mind a mess. “Y-you too.”
As she spun on her heel and headed home, she couldn’t help but think herself lucky to have her job. Particularly if she got to meet tall, blonde, and handsome again.
