Chapter 9
== Never Expect Pity ==
IS THIS STORY COVER GOING TO UPDATE PROPERLY OR WHAT.
Enjoy
Try to spot the obligatory Undertale reference.
"Ooh, you bumped into them while they were eating, eh? Tough luck kiddo."Koma chuckled at the distressed Kaneki.
"Yeah… To think I'd see that scary sight from the girls…" The eye-patch wearing waiter replied solemnly, while looking down.
"Oh cheer up man, they aren't gonna hold any grudges against you." Koma reassured. "You should probably apologise to them though. Most ghouls don't like sharing the details of their meals, especially the ladies."
"I get that but... even Ruby was eating as well…"
"It's no big deal, really! You can start by making a cup of coffee for them. They'll appreciate it." Koma looked over Kaneki's shoulder as someone new made an appearance by the door. "And speaking of Ruby, she's right behind you."
"What?" Kaneki turned around to see a nervous Ruby holding two jars of coffee beans.
"H-Hey there, Kaneki."
"Oh, um. Hey."
The two of them stood awkwardly at each other for a few moments, both unsure of what to say.
"S-So, um…" Kaneki muttered out in attempt to break the silence. "Sorry for barging in…"
"It's no big deal, really." Ruby reassured him. "I'm fine with it, since it was just an accident and all…"
"Well aren't you two cuties acting so innocently. Just kiss already!"Koma teased, causing the two of them to blush profusely.
"Koma!" The half-ghouls said in union, their cheeks glowing red with embarrassment.
"Gah Haha! How adorable..." The senior waiter chuckled heartily. "Anyway, can I have those coffee beans yet?"
"Oh, right sorry… Here." Ruby apologised as she gave the coffee beans to him.
"There we go. Now Kaneki can make that coffee for Hinami. Convenient, isn't it?" Koma proclaimed, placing the jar onto the counter.
"Oh! You want to make coffee for her? That's great!" Ruby exclaimed. "You should spend some time with her like I did, like letting her try those red cookies!"
"I'll try…"
With all that done and done, Kaneki went to brew a coffee. Ruby looked up to the clock on the wall. The hands of it showed the time currently being 6:55pm.
"I think it's about time I went home, isn't it?" The huntress asked her fellow waiters.
"I guess so. I'm going home after I make a coffee for Hinami." Kaneki replied, carefully heating the coffee he was making.
"If you want to. The great Devil Ape also needs to have a shut-eye too, you know." Koma humbly boasted. The half-ghouls could only sigh, amused by his confidence.
"Hmm." Ruby hummed as she thought about it. "Well in that case I'll head home now. I'll see you all tomorrow!" Ruby said as she made her way to the exit.
"See ya." Kaneki smiled gently as he waved her goodbye.
"Don't get yourself into trouble, or I'll be forced to have the Devil Ape save you!" Koma teased once again, waving to her as well.
Ruby could only giggle at the playfulness of her co-worker. "Trust me, I won't!"
The dim lights of Beacon always felt joyous, and no matter how many times Ruby strolled through the courtyard, she always felt alive doing so. The evening sky's soothing wind cooled down even the most agitated people, and the peaceful atmosphere never failed to make one just take a relaxing walk. It was just so calm to be here.
Ruby silently wished that the calm would last forever. All the happiness the huntress had during her time at Anteiku was simply unforgettable. All of the staff was very fun to interact with. She had grown fond of serving customers their orders, her politeness being acknowledged by many, and most of all they felt like a family to her, as Hinami had said before.
Her train of thought was interrupted when she spotted a familiar blonde student walking aimlessly around the courtyard. Jaune Arc looked down to the ground, his mood seeming unusually solemn. Concerned for her friend, Ruby walked over to him.
"Hey there, Jaune." Ruby said as she approached Jaune, his gaze now directed towards her. "What's up?"
"Oh! Hi Ruby. Didn't think you'd be around here at this time." He replied.
"I just came back from work. You know that Anteiku place I've been talking about? It was quite an eventful day. Did you know one of my co-workers got the shock of his life?" Ruby almost began to ramble about the things that happened there, when she noticed Jaune exhale deeply.
"It must be really nice, having such great people to hang around there, isn't it?" He murmured sadly.
"What's wrong Jaune?" Ruby asked, concerned with her friend's current mood. Jaune wasn't always the greatest fighter so to speak, but he normally wasn't this depressed about it.
"It's… It's nothing." The blonde mumbled, still solemn as ever.
"Come on. There has to be something going on? You can tell me."
"No, it's none of your business, really!" He shouted uncontrollably to Ruby, making her jump back. Jaune quickly realised what he did, and apologised sincerely to her.
"L-Look. It's a very personal matter so I'd rather not go telling everyone about this okay…" He explained
"Oh… Sorry for bugging you then." Ruby muttered while feeling somewhat guilty. "I'll just get back to my room then…"
"No, wait hold on." Jaune stated, causing Ruby to look back at him curiously. "…I'll tell you."
"One of my sisters..." Jaune paused, took in a deep breath, and continued. "One of my sisters was attacked by a ghoul. She's in the hospital right now."
Ruby put her hand to her mouth in shock. "Oh my… That's…!"
"Terrible I know!" Jaune finished the sentence for her in a flurry. "I mean, out of nowhere your sister calls you to tell you your other sister was attacked while she was hanging out with your other sister while they were doing something for your other sister so…" He quickly stopped himself from rambling when he realised what he was saying.
Ruby looked down to the ground, unsure on how to comfort the poor guy. She couldn't just tell him that not all ghouls were evil, since hasn't seen a ghoul himself yet.
"Well, I'm sure she'll get better real soon…"
"Yeah, I hope so too…" Jaune sighed once again as he looked up to the night sky. "This is life with seven sisters, ladies and gentlemen…"
The two became silent, unsure of what to talk about at the moment.
…
…
…
"Hey, Ruby?" Jaune asked, breaking the silence.
"Yeah?"
"What do you think of the name Flower Power?"
"Um… I think it sounds both cheesy and cute." Ruby answered
"Really?"
"Yeah. It's kinda like someone bringing a powerful flower or something like that you know?" She explained "What's it for anyway?"
"Well, I'm thinking of a few names to use for team combo attacks."
"Oh?"
"Flower Power's the name for Nora and Ren's combo attack, and I kind of have a good idea for the other names I'll be using. There's just one problem though, I can't think of a name for a combo attack with Pyrrha and I. Do you have any good suggestions?"
Ruby thought for a few moments, putting her hand to her jaw as she pondered for a few possible names. Suddenly, a metaphorical lightbulb appeared above Ruby's head as she found out an appropriate name.
"Ruby, why's there a lightbulb on your-"
"I've got a name! Arkos!" Ruby exclaimed in delight
"Ark... Kos?" Jaune repeated in confusion.
"Yeah! It's your lasts names combined! Ark and Nikos!" Ruby explained.
"That's… That's…!" Jaune trailed off for a few moments, making Ruby silently squeal as the tension steadily rose.
"That's perfect!"
Jaune's face lit up in happiness as he accepted the name Ruby suggested.
"Thanks! I'm sure they'll love the combo names!"
"Yeah, I'm very sure they will." Ruby smirked. She had a few combination names herself, and she was secretly dying to use them soon.
"Well, I guess I'm done roaming about. I'll get back to my dorm. See ya Ruby." Jaune waved goodbye to her as he strolled happily back to his quarters. Arkos sure does seem like a good name to him.
"Bye!"
As Jaune eventually walked off into the distance, Ruby looked up to the night sky once more. The twinkling stars eased her soul, and with that, Ruby made her way back to her dorm as well.
The half-ghoul turned the knob of the door and pushed inwards. She was expecting to see her three best friends lying about doing whatever they would do. What she didn't expect is a bummed out Yang lying on her bed, her legs peeking out from the side.
"Yang, I'm back! Where's everyone?" Ruby asked.
"Huh-w-what!?" Yang groaned. The blonde clumsily fell from her bed, landing in the middle of the dormitory with a loud thud. She slowly got back up, while scratching the back of her head.
"Sis, whaddya doing?"
"What? I was just taking a nap, that's all." She explained. "When I came back it was lonely, so I just did some training, punching target dummies and whatnot. After all of that I took a nap! Simple as that."
Ruby looked at her scroll to check the time. "It's 7:43 right now. Where's everyone?"
"Right behind you?" The elder sister replied.
"You really like using that phrase, don't ya?"
"No really, they are!"
"Hah, well I'm not falling for your scares this time. I'm positive that there's absolutely no one behind me right now!"
"Says the one without depth perception…" An irate voice spoke from behind the confident huntress.
"Whoa!"
Ruby toppled over in a shock as she heard a new voice tell her off. She looked up to see Weiss and Blake by the doorway, a particularly irritated expression on the former's face.
"H-Hey guys! I didn't see you there!"
"You have your back turned to us; of course you didn't see."
The two entered and walked over to their beds, putting down their equipment by the shelves.
"So, what's up?" Ruby asked.
"Blake and I were discussing some things just now, about the White Fang." Weiss explained.
"What about them?" Yang asked.
Weiss looked to Blake, and the fanus nodded in acknowledgement.
"The White Fang has Ghouls among their ranks now." Blake told the two grimly.
"WHAT!?" The sisters shouted in union upon hearing the news.
"Yes. It's something to be worried about indeed…" Blake trailed off, looking to the floor.
"How do you know this?" Ruby questioned, eager to know the answer.
"I saw a ghoul with a White Fang mask fight an Ursa earlier today. She used her ghoul powers, those red tentacles things, to kill the Grimm." The fanus explained. "Although there was something to note about…"
"What is it?"
"The ghoul was eating the flesh of the Grimm."
Ruby didn't even mutter anything in reply this time. Ghouls eating Grimm flesh? That was news to her ears, definitely.
"Ruby, we've got to do something about the White Fang, now more than ever." Blake urged. "If not, who knows what they'll do now that they've got the ghouls on their side!?"
"Indeed." Weiss agreed. "The sooner we deal with them, the better."
Being the leader of her team, Ruby was authorised with the final say in matters like this. They had previously planned to deal with them on Friday, and since today was a Monday, they had 5 days remaining to gather to prepare before they set off with the plan. However, with it being made apparent that they couldn't waste time, Ruby had to do something about this.
"We'll deal with them sooner than usual, I get it. I could even get some help too…"
"Um, sis. I don't think what your thinking is a good idea right now." Yang voiced out to her.
"I don't know, really. We'll deal with them soon, I promise. I'm just not prepared to fight well, ghouls…"
"I'd hate to berate on you like before, but you should really be prepared to fight those savages." Weiss advised in a sharp, piercing tone. "Those monsters…"
Ruby could only look down in dejection. Weiss still hated the ghouls as much as she hated fanus from before. As much as Ruby would want to, now wasn't the time to reveal her secret. The additional tension in the air would just make things worse for all of them.
"We have to stop them as soon as possible. I've got a couple of connections that could be rather… eager… to fight them." Weiss said.
"It's the ghoul investigators, right?" Yang asked.
"Correct. With their help, I believe we'll be able to put a stop to them. Torchwick won't continue his plans any longer." Weiss looked over to Ruby. "So, what will it be Ruby? Are you willing to stop them sooner or go with the usual plan?"
Ruby continued looking to the floor for a few moments before rising up. "We'll stop them soon, I'm just not... It's just that..."
"What is it, Ruby? Say it!" Weiss yelled.
"My weapon… It's not really usable now…"
"What?"
"Crescent Rose was dented a while ago. I somehow manage to break the blade or something, heheh…" Ruby nervously replied, scratching the back of her head.
The heiress sighed and rolled her eyes. "Expect no less, they say… especially from a dolt like you."
"Y-Yeah…! Heheh, I'm an idiot… I'll get it fixed, soon no problem really!" She tried to joke about it to ease the tension. "Besides, you've got your um… Dove things to do, right Weiss?"
"Perhaps…" The heiress mumbled. Weiss looked at Ruby's eyepatch. "Are you gonna do something about your eye?"
"Oh, this?" Ruby took off her medical eyepatch and pointed to her eye. "It's just itchy every now and then, so the doctor um… said to just leave it on for a while…"
Weiss seemed slightly suspicious of Ruby's explanation, raising an eyebrow as she placed her hands to her hips. "I don't believe eye problems last this long. I've had a first-hand experience of one I'll have you know."
"Yeah, but…" Ruby stuttered, putting her hands behind her back nervously.
"Guys!" Yang cut in, allowing Ruby to sigh in relief as all attention was turned to her. "Friday isn't far from now, so there's no need to rush. Once Ruby's weapon is repaired, we'll take them on."
"But… Ghouls in the White Fang…!" Weiss exclaimed. "If we don't do something about them they'll…"
"…They'll attack us all, we know." Yang ended in her stead. "But how can we stop them when one of us can't even fight?"
"Y-Yeah I'm pretty bad without my weapon…" Ruby added in.
"Ugh… Fine…" Weiss groaned in dismay, folding her arms while looking to the side. "We won't rush, but your weapon better be prepared by Friday, Ruby!"
"Will do, oh beloved Queen of Ice!"
The early hours of the Anteiku were relatively quiet. All of the staff was idling about, cleaning up the shop before customers arrived. Most of them however, were busy listening to a human's interesting story.
"…And when we were just about to kiss, I punched him in the face and sent him flying across the club!" Yang boasted to her co-workers sitting casually by the bar stools.
"Nice! The Devil Ape approves!" Koma applauded.
"What happened afterwards?" Irimi asked curiously.
"I went up against all of his goons, pieces of cake really. There were these two sisters that were quite challenging, but I still beat them all up in the end!"
"And then sis punched a hole through entire club." Ruby commented while a table.
"Oh, right! Almost forgot about that part. The man had it coming when he messed with my hair!"
"How brutal…" Kaneki muttered. "It kinds of reminds me of Touka when she's angry…"
"Hey, knock it off eye-patch!" The ghoul in question retorted
"S-Sorry!"
"You should never mess with sis's hair." Ruby advised.
"Yeah you shouldn't! If you do, you might find yourself in a… hairy… situation!" The blonde joked.
The room suddenly went dead silent, and everyone did a face palm at the exact same time.
"What? Couldn't help it…"
"Nah it's nothing serious." Koma reassured. "Maybe you should try ditching the bad puns though. They're Terribad!"
Ruby suddenly went stiff and dropped to the floor, as if she was suddenly frozen solid and Yang suddenly choked on her own spit, coughing madly. Everyone else just cringed horribly at Koma.
"…What? What did I do?" He said with perhaps the most puzzled look he could muster.
Everyone then broke into laughter, leaving the poor Devil Ape even more confused.
As the laughter eased, the doorbell chimed as two familiar faces appeared by the entrance. A mother and her daughter.
"Hello, everyone." Ryouko greeted, a friendly smile among her features as she waved to the friendly faces of Anteiku.
"Good morning Kaneki! Good morning Ruby! Good morning Touka!" Her daughter, Hinami, was much more enthusiastic, constantly repeating her words to everyone individually. "I hope you all have a great day!"
"Hey there, Hinami!" Ruby greeted, having quickly recovered from her dramatic frozen state. "How you doing?"
"I'm great, sis!" The child replied. Yang's ears perked up when she heard the girl call Ruby her sister. "I have a present for you!"
"Oh?"
"Here you are!" Hinami showed Ruby a Rose from behind her back. It wasn't the most outstanding of roses, it looking obvious that it was bought from a nearby flower store, but it was the thought and kindness from Hinami that made Ruby beam up.
"Thank you! This means a lot to me!"
"You're welcome!"
With that, Koma led the two upstairs to the staff quarters, giving thumbs up to his fellow co-workers as he closed the door. The staff quickly began to work, with Touka yelling at Kaneki immediately. Yang approached her sister and grabbed her attention by tapping her shoulder.
"Hey, why did she call you sis? Am I not good enough for you?" The blonde mused in a casual tone.
"No! It's not like that!" Ruby quickly defended." It's just that she considers everyone at Anteiku to be like a family to her. You should try to get to know Hinami. She's really nice!"
Yang folded her arms with a confident smirk on her face. "So that's how it is, eh? Well maybe I'll need to be a better sister than her!"
Ruby smiled back at her sister when the entrance opened up once again. "Welcome to Anteiku!" Ruby instinctively greeted the newcomer.
She was met with the sight of a tall, handsome looking young man. His bright blue hair reflected the sunlight's rays, giving it a shiny look, and his crimson red suit made him look even fancier. He stretched his arms as he took a deep intake of oxygen as he strolled into the café, intent on enjoying as much of the peaceful environment as he could.
"What a wonderful aroma." He commented, pinching the bridge of his nose in pleasure. "All of a suddenly, I feel much more…"
The staff of Anteiku suddenly had stern looks on their face; Touka's glare the most poisonous of them all.
"…relaxed."
"State your business, Tsukiyama." Touka questioned harshly, her gaze unwavering with hostility.
"Now now, my dear Touka. That's no way to treat a guest!" He said casually, flicking stray dust off his suit. "Then again, I can't expect much from you now, can I?"
"…You're lucky I'm at work right now." She replied. The elegant man simply chuckled at her threats. He looked around the coffee shop and spotted three new faces. Two of the waiters, wearing out-of-trend medical eyewear, were standing in place looking at him with uncertainty, while the blonde one glared at him with aggression not unlike Touka's.
"What's this? Anteiku's added more members to their family! How adorable…" The gourmet teased. He walked up to first eye-patched waiter, ignoring the uninteresting blonde woman, and circled around him. "Aren't you a sight for sore eyes? What's your name?"
"I'm… Kaneki…" He answered nervously. Tsukiyama suddenly began to sniff at Kaneki's neck, making the poor half-ghoul jump back instinctively.
"Gusto seducente…" He muttered unanimously. Ruby's impression of the man dropped ten-fold, putting her hand to her mouth while Yang's unrelenting gaze became even sharper, clenching her fist on the table.
"Leave him alone. Take your scheming sideshows somewhere else, will you?" Touka berated, flicking her wrist to him.
"Oh? Haha, you still have no sense of tact after all these years." Tsukiyama put his hand on Kaneki's shoulder and whispered to him. "I'll look forward to seeing you, dear."
Kaneki could only shiver in discomfort.
"How about this dear morsel?" The gourmet commented as he turned to Ruby and walked up to her. "I'm sure you're just as sweet as Kaneki over there."
"Um… Hi… I'm… um… Ruby Rose… um…" The huntress stuttered uncontrollably. Tsukiyama's presence made her spine shiver in both embarrassment and uncertainty. He leaned down to look at her features much more closely. "Ruby? What a refined name, reserved for only the most beautiful of gems, such as yourself my fair lady…"
"That's enough." Yang interjected, getting up from her seat. "Don't you dare do anything to her."
"Oh my, aren't you the protective one?" The gourmet commented, turning to her. "Who are you supposed to be dearie, her sister?"
"You bet I am!" Yang boasted proudly. "If you even lay a finger on her, your face is gonna have tea-time with my fist."
Tsukiyama simply took a deep breath and chuckled. "Aren't I the guest here? Why must you treat me with such hostility? I assure you I only want to leave a good impression on these refined waiters…"
He calmly strolled towards the exit, not a speck of hostility present within his pacing. Yang's stern look continued to eye him, uncertain of this mysterious man.
"…but if you insist, I shall take my leave. However it would be rude of me to not at least know your name, brave one."
"Yang." She answered. "Yang Xiao Long."
"Yang…? You must be in a dilemma." He stated. "Perhaps the reason you're so angry is because you've lost your other half?"
"Watch it." The enraged blonde gave him a look that could sharpen even a pen, further making Tsukiyama chuckle in pity.
"Oh don't worry. I was just taking a stroll around the ward and I couldn't help but visit this fine establishment."
The gourmet made his way to the door, strolling casually while ignoring the irritated faces the staff gave him.
"I don't intend to cause any trouble" He snickered. "At least for now…"
"You'd better not you damn creep…" Touka threatened venomously.
Tsukiyama opened the door and took his leave. "Send Yoshimura my regards. Goodbye."
With the gourmet gone, the tension in the room slowly eased, allowing the staff to sigh in relief.
"Who was that guy?" Ruby asked, still somewhat uncomfortable from his antics.
"He's one of the parasites of the 20th ward." Touka explained. "Just looking at his face makes my blood boil…"
"No kidding. My fist is eager to have a date with his face now." Yang added, raising her fist to the air. "When he comes back I'll make sure he…"
"Now now, everyone..." A calm voice interrupted. Yoshimura appeared by the staff entrance the door, a gentle look on his face. "He won't be causing any trouble, as long as the doves of the ward aren't focusing on our ward."
"I hope so…" Ruby muttered.
"Oh, and Ruby?" Yoshimura added. "There are two people who would like to see you."
"Alright, who are they?" She replied.
"Yomo would like to have your weapon. He's found a client to repair it and fit it with metal that… won't break on contact with skin."
"All right!" Ruby cheered. It was a good thing she brought it today. She'd just kept it in the broom closet, seeing that it wasn't the most interesting of places to search. "I just hope he doesn't change it too much…"
Yoshimura chuckled slightly at Ruby's comment, and continued. "You can hand it to me and I'll pass it to him. After that, go see Ryouko. She'd like to speak with you."
"Understood, mister manager!"
Ruby made her way up to the meeting room. She opened the door and saw Ryouko and her child sitting by the couch, Hinami lying on her mother's lap with her eyes steeled shut. The huntress couldn't help but admire the adorable sight of the napping Hinami.
"I'm here, Mrs. Fueguchi." Ruby greeted, closing the door behind her. "What did you want to speak with me about?"
"Hello, Ruby. Come, take a seat." Ryouko greeted.
Ruby took a seat on the opposite couch, putting her hands on her lap in a polite manner.
"So, what did you want to speak with me about?"
"It's about her dad." Ryouko stated, looking down to her sleeping child. "She threw a tantrum this morning before we got here, about wanting to see her father again."
Ruby looked to Hinami as her mother pat her child on head affectionately. She never did know her their past, nor the reason they came to Anteiku.
"Perhaps they can't hunt for food, so they come to Anteiku to have their meals. Well, it's good that they don't have to hurt anyone."
"My husband and I are from Atlas, where he did some shady things back in the 13th ward there. He put that past behind him once Hinami was born however, and we moved to Vale to live a more peaceful life."
"Isn't Atlas one of the more… safer places on Remnant?"
"Well, you can say that…" Ryouko said. "But it's not very safe for us ghouls. The CCG offices there are practically hunting us down round the clock, Even the general of the military leads some of the operations there."
"Oh…"
"Well, I don't judge my husband for his past. It's like they say, the present is a present to treasure!"
"Hinami doesn't go to school, so I give her books for her to read and learn. She also writes down whatever she learns about in her notebook." Ruby looked over to the notebook, and picked it up. She saw several notes that Hinami wrote, one of them being about a hydrangea and how to say it in another language.
Her attention was caught by a drawing of three adorable bears, all wearing different coloured sweaters. "This must be her family…" She mused.
"There's one thing I'd like you to promise me." Ryouko started.
"What is it?" Ruby replied.
"I have this… bad feeling. The doves have been searching for my husband and I, so we are at constant risk of being caught… I don't worry about what happens to me, but I worry about Hinami. If I'm gone, I can't imagine the pain she'll have to go through…"
Ryouko began to unwillingly shed some tears, but quickly wiped them away.
"If anything happens to me, promise me that you'll treat her well. Make sure Anteiku takes care of her."
"We will. We all will. I promise." Ruby reassured.
"Mom?"
Ryouko looked down to see that her child had woken up and was looking at her with concern in her eyes.
"Why are you crying?"
"Oh, it's nothing."
Ruby and Ryouko sat down in silence. They both have been through a lot, but in the end being born a ghoul is much more of a deal then transforming into one.
…
"Say, how about you follow me to get some books?"
"Oh?"
"Kaneki recommended her some books to get yesterday, and she's been begging me to get them for her." Ryouko looked down to her child. "Isn't that right, Hinami?"
"Yup! He even taught me how to read some words yesterday!" Hinami beamed. She then looked to Ruby with joyful eyes. "Let's get some books later, sis!"
Ruby didn't hesitate one bit towards the adorable little Hinami before giving her reply.
"Sure!"
Matching grey outfits adorned their skin, as they approached the said location of a notorious ghoul. They stopped by the sidewalk of the place, two of them held large briefcases while the remaining one held a rapier-like weapon.
"So this is must be the place…" Weiss commented aloud as they faced a rusty old tool shed right behind an apartment building.
"Indeed. An innocent looking tool shed in the 20th ward, how inconspicuous…" Mado muttered
"They should be here at this time from what information we recovered. He should be discussing his plans with the doctor right about…"
Suddenly, the steel walls of the tool shed was smashed open as a humanoid figure was sent flying all the way to the Investigator's feet.
"…Now." Amon finished.
"D-D-D-Doves…!? Here…!?" The injured doctor cried, his chest having sustained a grievous wound.
His cries went on deaf ears as the three looked up to the culprit of the mess.
"Well, look who it is!" Mado chuckled as the fingers holding his briefcase twitched. "One of the 13th ward's big cheeses caught meddling in the 20th ward!"
A large muscular man in a bright suit walked out unfazed by the old man's yapping, a confident smirk plastered on his face as he looked to the side.
"Get through the flunkies and you find the boss. What'd I tell you? Patience does pay off!"
"Sir… is that…?"
"Jason." Mado finished for her. "A proud member of an organisation of ghouls and, perhaps even the most sadistic of them…"
He clicked a button on his briefcase and it transformed into a turquoise rapier-like Quinque. Mado's eager grin never faded as he got into a combat stance.
"He's S-Rated, Weiss. The 13th ward's Jason. Don't take him lightly." Amon advised the young heiress. He himself activated his Quinque, and it transformed into a Red Club-like weapon.
"Jason… You'll pay for what you've done." Weiss stated as she also prepared herself. She spun the barrels of her rapier Myrtenaster, the blade now fitted with Quinque steel, and setting off Red dust within it, creating a crimson red glow from the blade.
The culprit named Jason simply continued to look to the side, show not an inch of care to the threats before him.
"I HAVE YOU KNOW JASON!"
Mado charged towards the aptly named ghoul, slicing and dicing with his Quinque over and over. The muscular ghoul simply dodged backwards with uncanny ease, amused by the investigator's petty attacks.
"JASON JASON JASON JAAAAAASSOOON! BWAHAAHAHAAAAA"
The investigator went into a mad frenzy, slashing back and forth as Jason continued to backtrack into the building. The interior of the room was completely torn apart by the Quinque. Cupboards smashed, Medical beds broken, walls torn apart, all in attempt to strike at Jason.
"I GOT YOU NOW! HAHAAHAHAAAA!"
Eventually Jason hopped back to the opening in the wall. Amon took the opportunity to strike, slamming his Quinque down onto his back.
To no avail, Jason vanished from sight quicker than their eyes could catch.
"You guys aren't half bad." The ghoul taunted by the side at a doorway, taking a glance at his watch. "I'll give you a minute or two to entertain me."
Jason then stepped backwards into the doorway, disappearing in the darkness altogether.
"Here. This will help." Weiss raised her hand and created two glyphs under the investigators, clock-like symbols spinning their hands wildly about.
"Much appreciated, young heiress!" Mado thanked. Amon gave a polite nod as his way of showing gratitude. "Now, let's hunt down that Jason!"
As Mado was speaking, Weiss caught the sight of the ghoul appearing behind Amon, and instinctively aimed her weapon towards him.
"Amon! Duck!"
The man in question did as he was told, crouching swiftly as Weiss fired dust crystals at the threat behind him, aimed directly for his grinning face.
Jason moved his head to the side, and avoided all of the fire.
Now vulnerable to attack, Amon was punched in the chest by the ghoul. He was sent sliding towards an abandoned car.
"Amon!" Weiss called out.
Leaving no time to react, Jason quickly appeared behind Weiss and grabbed her by the chest with his big meaty hand.
"Hahaha! A dove with a semblance!" He taunted as the grin on his face slowly turned into a sadistic one. "I haven't encountered one like you in months!"
Weiss struggled to break his grasp, but to no avail the ghoul was simply too strong. Jason's gaze was fixated on the young girl's face, showing his teeth in a psychotic smile.
Despite the crushing grip of his grasp, Weiss found that he was too engrossed in seeing her suffer. Without many options, the heiress did a risky move. She created a glyph under the ghoul with a free hand, and quickly detonated it.
The two were sent far apart from each other. Jason landed steadily, his hand gripping onto the ground as he slid towards the gaping hole. Weiss tumbled backwards and slided across the ground onto the fence of the sidewalk.
"Oh!? A feisty one we have here!?" He roared, enraged at being sent back by the young girl. He quickly regained his composure however, and his confident smirk returned to his face. "No matter. Semblances aren't that great anyway…"
"Which is why I have this!"
The old man slashed at the taunting Jason, making him jump back once again.
"How you holding up, Weiss?" Mado asked as he stood valiantly against Jason.
"Ugh… I'll be alright…" She muttered in pain, clutching her shoulder. "Get the bastard…"
"Without delay! Hahahaha!"
Mado frenzied at Jason with his Quinque. Jason hopped backwards to avoid the continuous attacks.
Mado, in his fury of strikes, took too much of an offensive, lost his balance. Jason ducked under the blade easily and moved forward to counterattack.
"What a shame!" He taunted as he approached the unbalanced Mado.
He simply grinned as he fell right into his trap. "Right, for you that is!"
The Quinque suddenly split into three different blades, encasing Jason within it. At his command, the blades converged back together, about to divide the ghoul into three.
Jason simply chuckled at this futile attempt.
From his back, two red and purple thorn-like tentacles appeared from his back, and stopped the Quinque from converging together. The kagune spread itself, breaking the Quinque as a whole.
"Is that all?" He taunted with an unamused look on his face.
"No! Get away!" Amon shouted as he rushed over to his mentor's side. He slammed his Quinque down to the ghoul, which only met the ground once again as he dodged the strike.
He quickly used this opportunity to jump high into the air and onto an abandoned truck.
"Looks like I've got to head back." He taunted as he glanced at his watch again. "Better luck next time."
Jason escaped, jumping up onto the highway above. The three doves regrouped and looked up to where he went, distressed at their loss.
"Darn it!" Weiss cried out, as she regrouped with the doves. "We lost him…"
"Is everyone okay?" Amon asked concerned for the well-being of his teammates.
"Oh, I'm fine." His mentor replied. He looked disappointed at his now shattered weapon. "But that bastard broke my Quinque…"
Weiss glanced over to the doctor that was sent through the wall before they fought. He struggled to get up, clutching his chest with one hand and held up a piece of paper in the other.
"Is he…" She muttered pitifully to the wounded doctor.
"A ghoul, no doubt about it." Amon finished for her. Weiss simply looked back to him, now unsure of how to feel about him.
The doctor got up to his feet, and held the picture tightly with his hand. A tail-like kagune came out from his back, making Mado look at it with awe.
"You… You are Doctor Fueguchi, are you not?" Weiss asked solemnly.
He nodded grievously.
"…As with… protocol. You must be taken down." The heiress stated. She barely held back a tear as she readied her rapier once again. The weapon glowed blue from the dust she now activated, and raised it towards the wounded ghoul.
The doctor shouted in determination as he ran forward to the heiress, intent on giving his last stand.
He sent his Kagune towards Weiss, which she parried with pitiful ease. The doctor was left defenceless and vulnerable.
"I'm sorry."
Weiss, felt a stray tear flow down her cheek as she made a downward slash with Myrtenaster.
The police showed up to examine the tool shed of the deceased ghoul. Amon and Mado were looking at the body of the ghoul in question.
"Ooh! I think that we can use this…" The old man said aloud, scanning his eyes at the corpse.
Weiss paid no attention to the two investigators, and instead held up a picture. It was the same picture that the doctor was holding onto.
A splash of dried blood covered the center of the drawing, so Weiss had to squint her eyes, to see it clearly. She found it was a drawing of three different coloured bears. The bear in the center was significantly smaller than the other two, and they all were wearing scarfs.
"He had a family…" She mused.
"So he had a family? That's interesting…" Weiss heard the old man chatter about with Amon, holding up a family photo.
"They're all ghouls." Amon pointed out, looking at the picture.
"So with the father dead, there's only the mother and the daughter left." Mado stated. He looked over to the blue bag where the ghoul was kept in. "I think I have a plan to catch them…"
"What are you all talking about?" Weiss asked as she approached the two.
"Oh, we're just discussing how to go fishing!" The old man stated casually. The heiress raised an eyebrow in suspicion, which led to him giving a chuckle. "I'm just pulling your leg, heiress."
"You fought valiantly against Jason and took down the maker of his tools." Amon stated. "You've done a great job, and I believe you deserve to rest."
"Thank you, investigators." Weiss replied, giving a curtsy.
"I don't regret hosting that ghoul program thing anymore. We'll call you if we need you for more investigations, heiress. You're dismissed!" The old man Kureo Mado genuinely smiled towards the young Schnee. A grin that wasn't one of Quinque addiction, at least.
With that, Weiss left the area in a joyous mood. She's proved herself capable, especially to the Ghoul investigators.
However, despite all that she still felt herself feeling somewhat guilty. Her consciousness berated her relentlessly for taking two lives now, and she felt herself regretting some of the things she'd had done with the investigators.
But she quickly ignored all the mental flashbacks she was getting. The ghouls deserved what they were getting, and she knew it wasn't like the fanus being misjudged. All ghouls kill people, and thus they're just getting what they deserve.
"Remember what Amon told me. What we're doing is right."
The clouds grew darker as water began falling from the sky. It began drizzling in the late hours of the afternoon, and Ruby was glad she and Ryouko brought an Umbrella.
After work, Ruby followed Ryouko her daughter to buy a book. Interestingly enough, Hinami bought a copy of one of Sen Takatsuki's works. The Monochrome of Rainbows.
"Oh, I know what this is called!" Hinami stated as her mother opened up an Umbrella. "It's called a cloudburst! It's what happens when it begins to rain all of a sudden!"
"Well aren't you a smart little girl?" Ryouko complimented, patting her daughter on the head. "How about you ask Ruby to see if you're correct?"
"What? I'm not that good in… those kind of… stuffs…" The huntress embarrassingly admitted. "I love reading too, but not ones with super smart words like that…"
"Aww…" Hinami muttered. "Well maybe daddy will know if I'm right!"
"Hehehe, I'm sure you are anyway!"
The three walked through the streets of the 20th ward, now rather crowded with everyone leaving work at the same time. Hinami hummed a small tune as they strolled back to Anteiku. Ruby coincidently had to take the same path back to Beacon, so she decided to tag along before they parted ways.
"Hey, Ruby? You're a huntress right?" Hinami asked as they walked through the streets.
"I'm a huntress in training, actually. I haven't graduated yet." She corrected.
"Oh, so have you fought those monsters before?"
"You mean those black creatures that wear white masks?
"Yeah! I forgot what they were called though…"
"They're called Grimm, and they take the shape of animals, mostly."
"Coooooooooooool…"
Hinami's eyes went sparkling with admiration as Ruby continued to elaborate on what the Grimm were and how they defeated them.
"…And so you think of ordinary animals like wolves or bears, and enlarge them to be several times bigger than an a human, give them red eyes and a white mask with markings all over and voila! A Grimm to behold."
"Woooooow…" Hinami commented, utterly awed by Ruby's description of the beasts. "How do they smell?"
"Well… um…" Ruby was caught offguard by the seemingly random question, and tried to think of a possible comparision. "Um… Like… burnt charcoal? No not that bad um… I kinda forgot…"
Ruby inhaled a large amount of oxygen in attempt to figure out exactly how to describe a Grimm's smell. All she could muster out was the smell of the raindrops falling around them.
Ryouko smiled at the cute attempt and also took a breath. "Maybe they smell like wet leaves?"
"Nah that's just the rain… I guess. Maybe they don't have any smell?"
Hinami then took in a deep breath as well to imitate her sister, when suddenly her eyes lit up with excitement.
"I smell… something!"
"What? There can't be Grimm here, right?" Ruby questioned curiously. Did Hinami really figure out how Grimm smelt?
"No… it's not that it smells like…" She took in another deep breath and shouted out her next words. "Smells like daddy!"
"Um… your daddy is a Grimm…?" Ruby blurted out, completely lost in the girl's train of thought… or smell.
"I smell dad! Ruby! Mom! Dad's nearby!"
"What? That can't be…" Ryouko muttered.
"Wait what you… Ooooohh…" The huntress finally figured out what the excited little Hinami was so pumped up about.
Before she could continue, Hinami began pulling on her mother's hand, as she tried to bring her mom along to the scent.
"Hinami! No, wait!"
"It's daddy's scent! It's him it's gotta be him!"
"Calm down, Hinami! We'll go see him, stop trying to-" Ruby was cut short when Ryouko lost her grip on her child's hand, and the little energy-filled ghoul quickly dashed towards the scent.
"Hinami!" Ryouko cried out as her child went through the crowds of people walking in the rain.
"I'll get her!" Ruby announced as she quickly dashed towards Hinami. The young girls went through the crowd, bumping into many people. Ruby had to use her speedy semblance in order to catch up to her.
As Hinami continued to run away, she zoomed by two tall men in suits and sunglasses with a picture in hand. The young ghoul caught their attention, and they quickly followed suit.
However, behind them was another young half-ghoul who tried to use her semblance to catch up to Hinami. In her attempt to get her, she accidently bumped into one of the men in suits. They both fell to the ground with a thud and a splash, as the floor they stood on was wet from the rain.
"Ack! Ow… my chest…" Ruby muttered, clenching her chest from the impact. She looked up to see one of the suited men was also knocked down, with his partner helping him up.
"Ahh! I'm so sorry I'm trying to catch up to someone bye!" The huntress apologised as fast as her mouth could spit out those words, as she got back on her feet and continued to chase. The two suited men still followed suit.
Hinami eventually turned a corner, as the scent she smelt continued to grow stronger.
"Daddy! Daddy! I'm here Dad…"
She stopped in her tracks as she faced the origin of the smell. Ruby and Ryouko eventually caught up to her, with the former having arrived earlier.
"Hinami! That's not a good idea to… run off…" Ruby felt her spine shiver as she came face to face with two familiar suited men, carrying briefcases and holding up umbrellas. They were the ghoul investigators that Ruby saw before. Even before she even discovered what happened to her.
"Hello… Investigators…!?" Was all the young huntress could mutter. Ryouko quickly stood in front of Hinami, who was completely shocked at what she was seeing.
"That's not… That's not daddy…"
"Oh? What do we have here?" The old man wearing a grey trench coat stated. His eyes were unusual, with one almost squinted shut and the other as big as an apple. "I guess the bait has hooked us a holy mackerel. A delightful catch, so to speak."
"Sir, the one in red." His partner wearing a grey suit and a muscular form asked his partner, pointing out to the huntress with silver eyes. "Haven't we encountered her before?"
"Why, perhaps we have…" Kureo Mado replied in a solemn tone, looking down to the wet puddles on the ground. Suddenly he shot up, and shouted to the girl in question
"Greetings, huntress in training, I believe we've met before!" The white-haired man shouted to her. "You'd better back away from these two if you value your life!"
"What!?" Ruby replied. "W-W-Why's that!? These are my friends!"
"Oh? Well I'm sorry to say that perhaps your friends happen to be what one of the most hated species in all of Remnant." He stated. Mado looked to the sky with a grin that could rival even the happiest person on Remnant.
"Rain. One of the most unusual things this world has to offer. It dulls people's senses, reduces their range of vision and is quite simply annoying to deal with. But even the worst things on Remnant have their good side. It fills our rivers, cleans out pollutants and most of all…"
Mado looked back to the Fueguchi family in a sadistic smile. "It allows us to kill off the scum on Remnant, without letting anyone hear their screams..."
Hinami hid behind her mother's back, as she stood valiantly against the doves. Ruby looked behind to see the two men from earlier had pistols in their hands, cornering the three of them.
"So, if I may ask this of you, Mrs. Fueguchi." Mado stated as he looked directly into her eyes, a killing intent forming from within.
"Do you want to have a bad time?"
End
This took 2 weeks, one week used for napping one week used for writing.
So originally I wanted to follow the Anime with the Gourmet fight first, but realised the Anime has like no details for me to improvise on so... YOU GET TO SEE TSUKIYAMA AS A DRAMATIC APPEARANCE YAY
Also I hope you spotted the Obligatory Undertale reference.