AN: Welcome back everyone, and thank you for sticking with this story so far. So far this story seems to be doing well in my opinion, aside from my first negative review which was also taken as a light correction I wanted to thank you all. I don't have much to say but now it's time for reviews.
GrimmKingOfAtlas: Thanks man. I wanted to have them somewhat like us, because if they weren't susceptible to the wilderness then I would feel like they're too powerful. The delivery of the time skips felt... somewhat off but I'll try not to do so many; I had to advance the time somehow and I'll continue to do the time skips but at a lesser extent. A tip for writing for you, just keep doing what makes you feel comfortable; you're amazing at writing and I've enjoyed your story so far so keep up the good work man.
Striker Energy: It's one that I use too.
XCOMHEAVY12: Not going to lie that is a badass review, I think you might have become my favorite reviewer. I'm actually really grateful you've taken the time out of your day to make these reviews and to be honest I feel that you would make an excellent author with creating a story. Anyways, thanks for reviewing and keep up those badass reviews while I try to keep your attention.
Now that all the reviews are out of the way, LET'S ROLL ON WITH THE FUCKING STORY!
Spring:
The winter had passed in a slow yet comfortable pace. It passed with a little difficulty and made the group rethink on how to overcome the hardships but still overcome it nonetheless. There wasn't much to do right now, the hunting party had come back with enough food to last them a few days, the air was warm and somewhat moist, and the children were doing their own things. Today would be considered a lazy day for most but some individuals were still doing somethings, one of these individuals was not Ares, who decided to take a lazy day while the others did their own activities. The room was cool yet warm at the same time, which gave it a comfortable feel and made it the perfect time to take a nap. Despite what others thought about him not being lazy, they would be dead wrong because he's the laziest monster around when the time came. His nap only lasted two and a half hours before he was groggily woken up when the children decided to use him as a jungle gym, something he usually wouldn't mind but now wasn't the time. It was nap time dammit!
"Ares! Wake up, it's breakfast!" Rei shouted while batting his head side to side.
"No, it's the afternoon and it's nap time." He said.
"You've been asleep for the past few hours though." Rei whined. His body was shaken from all sides as the children began to shake with as much strength as they could muster.
"Ugh, fine..." He groaned.
"Yay!" They all cheered and hopped off. He groaned before slowly getting up and walking out of the room, brushing a hand against the cave walls in a gentle manner, he made his way towards the dining hall to see everyone there eating while the children were making something. He sat next to Michelle and nodded his head in appreciation when Mathias handed him a ceramic plate of cooked deer.
"Ares, I have a task for you and Brock." Mathias said.
"Is it taking out another Grimm that's getting to close to home?" He asked, stuffing a piece of venison in his mouth.
"No, I need you to deliver this message to the headmaster at the hunter school." Mathias said. Ares stopped eating and looked at Mathias before looking at the envelope made out of animal fur before looking back at him for a minute.
"Why?" He asked.
"I know that you don't want to go back there but if you don't then he'll keep sending his damned drones to spy on our home." Mathias explained.
"Language!" The children shouted in unison making Mathias shake his head.
"Wait, so that creep has been spying on us this whole time?!" Arachne exclaimed, covering her chest.
"Yes, I just found out about it this morning." Mathias said while reaching in a nearby bag and throwing a dismantled drone on the table, it clattered against the stone table before skidding a bit and stopping right in front of Ken and Rei. The former picked up the drone with great interest before turning to Mathias with a curious expression.
"Do you mind if I keep this?" Ken asked.
"I want to know why first." Mathias said.
"I want to make something." Ken answered while separating the components of the drone in different piles. Mathias just sighed and nodded before turning back to Ares who just scowled before taking the folder and placing it on the table.
"When do we leave?" He asked.
"Tomorrow, and when you get there have Brock translate for you. I still don't understand why you won't learn how to speak like a human." Mathias wondered.
"Because I don't bother trying to integrate into their society and I don't want to become those genocidal degenerates known as the white fang." Ares answered.
"Fair enough, but there is a Grimm near the keep that needs to be handled. So you four take care of it." Mathias said pointing to Ares, Brock, Arachne, and Michelle. They nodded before going to their rooms and getting out of their shorts and shirts before returning with their hunting gear on. Over the past few months with the help of Arachne, the children had made hunting clothes like the one Ares had on. Brock had dark cargo pants on made out of some animal skin and fur with the same type of boots as Ares, while his shirt and coat was made out of the skin of an Ursa, his coat was black from the Ursa fur and it still had the Ursa head acting as a hood. Arachne had a a tan pair of pants that would slightly hug her legs and a toxic green tank top made from some animal skin and her poison, she had a knife holder on the back of her hip with a radioactive design on it with spider webs surrounding it. Michelle had a pair of blue jeans (which she requested Mathias buy for her) that would hug her legs with a pair of boots that was the same type as Ares also, a hoodie made out of a Beowolf pelt but was blue in color from the berries Ken collects for paint, and a necklace made out of Beowolf teeth and claws.
"See you in an hour." Ares said walking out, followed by the rest. Once all of them left the keep Mathias turned to see the children looking at him with smug smiles on their faces.
"Children no..." He said in a warning tone.
"Too late!" Rei laughed and bolted out of the dining hall followed by the rest of the children while giggling loudly; Mathias sighed in annoyance before slowly getting up and following the children.
"Getting too old for this shit" He grumbled.
Spring was always a favorite for many, its wonderful feel of the air, the sunny sky, the warm water, and especially the green flora. The quiet trek through the forest was peaceful and comfortable that would make anybody feel at home if you lived in the forest. The group had found the Beowolf that was getting to close to home and took cover behind a fallen tree to see that it was currently sleeping in the middle of an open space, though something didn't fell right. Brock saw something beneath the Beowolf which looked like a piece of metal and tapped his hand into the ground, making a small rock appear before picking it up and throwing it at the piece of metal. The metal suddenly sprang up and closed in a triangle formation to reveal that it was a cage of some sort. The Beowolf inside suddenly woke up and started to thrash around inside the cage for a minute; Ares looked at Brock.
"How'd you know?" He asked.
"If I concentrate enough then I can feel a foreign object on the ground, like metal." Brock explained.
"Hmm, that's kind of cool." Ares said.
"Well thank you, I do try to be." Brock flexed.
"I said it's cool not you." Ares joked.
"You wound me brother." Brock said, putting a hand on his heart and giving a mock hurt expression.
"I do try." Ares said. Michelle rolled her eyes at the banter while Arachne just giggled in response before the two looked back at the steel cage. They looked back at the two boys who had climbed the tree without them noticing and talked before looking at each other and climbing also. Arachne climbed the tree in a frighteningly quick manner and plopped next to Brock who almost fell out of the tree if Ares had not grabbed him while Michelle slowly climbed up and sat next to Ares. She looked at Ares who was talking to Brock again and pondered how long it had taken them to become close, it really only took a couple of months for him to view Brock as an older brother. Her thoughts were cut short when they suddenly stopped talking and stared ahead at the bushes moving, she followed their gaze and saw a burly man with a thick mustache tap on cage before giving a hearty laugh and drag the cage away. Ares scowled at the sight of someone from the hunter school but then sighed in annoyance when realizing that tomorrow was the day when Brock and him had to go there to deliver a message.
"So what do we tell Mathias about the Grimm? Because I'm assuming that't the one that was close to home." Arachne said.
"We tell him that it's been handled and go about our day." Ares said and jumped off the branch and creating a spiderweb of cracks in the ground, followed by the rest. Michelle was the last to fall and when she did her feet was suddenly wrapped in a rope and she was hoisted up in the air; she yelped in surprise when she was taken airborne before her shirt suddenly dropped and covered her face. Brock sputtered when he saw Michelle's bare chest and Arachne giggled before turning as well, Ares just stared at her chest for a minute before snorting out of his nose and throwing a shard. The rope suddenly snapped as the stone shard went through and Michelle was airborne once again but before she hit the ground a pair of hands caught her; she looked to see Ares hold her in a bridal position before she blushed and quickly stood up. Arachne laughed at Michelle's embarrassed face before recoiling in pain when Michelle walked faster than everyone and let a branch hit Arachne in the face.
"Ow! Michelle come on, it's not that bad. Everyone has their embarrassing moments." Arachne laughed.
"Fuck off and leave me alone before I find some snow and throw it at you." Michelle threatened.
"Jokes on you because there is no snow." Arachne laughed in triumph.
"Ares, when you go to that fucking hunter school tomorrow pick up some snow crystals for me." Michelle said making Arachne blank.
"You mean dust crystals?" Brock asked.
"Yes Brock, I mean the fucking crystals. Sue me for not knowing about the name." Michelle growled making him put his hands up in surrender.
"Whoa easy there. I was just asking." He said. She just glared at him before marching ahead and leaving everyone to look at each other confused. Arachne rubbed her nose and laughed before hopping on Brock's shoulders and humming a tune to the irritation of Ares; Brock just stayed silent and hummed along with the tune which made Ares scowl even more. After a few minutes of humming they both reached a high note and made the male Goliath of the group scowl even more before growling and marching faster than them. He quickly caught up to Michelle and walked next to her in silence making her raise an eyebrow and snort before staring straight ahead.
"They annoying you too?" She asked.
"Yes. It's bad enough that Arachne was humming that song but what made it even worse was when Brock joined in and started humming with her. He knows I hate that shit more than anything." He growled.
"Yeah... why did you glare at that man back there?" She asked.
"You noticed?" He asked.
"Yeah, if I didn't notice certain things then I would be dead." She answered.
"You didn't notice that rope on the ground." He mused then winced in pain when she punched him in the arm.
"Shut up! That was embarrassing!" She shouted with a red face.
"Fuck, calm down. It was a joke... jeez." He mumbled.
"Whatever..." She huffed and walked in silence for the rest of the trip, swaying her tail and accidentally hitting Ares in the leg. He looked at her to see her look back before entering the cave. They saw Mathias on the ground and the children running around the halls giggling while carrying the stick. Mathias groggily looked up and sighed in relief when he saw two of the more responsible teenagers look at him with curious expressions.
"You mind telling us what happened?" Ares asked.
"Hide and seek. Children won't stop. Don't have enough tea for this. Tired." Mathias said in a choppy sentence before getting up slowly and walking to his room. Both of them looked at his retreating form and sighed before Ares picked up a running Rei, Ken, and Andy who were panting before struggling in his grasp. Michelle did the same to Mimi, Lilith, and Kyla who did the same actions as the previous three. The six children struggled in the older monsters' grasps before eventually giving up and calming down, nuzzling into their arms. Frost and Orka looked at the two before calming down themselves and walking over to the two older ones.
"Alright, since you all exhausted Mathias we need to put you all down for a nap." Ares said which made the children whine in protest except Mimi who just fell asleep. Ares looked at her then at Michelle who was busy trying to keep Mimi in her arms since she had become dead weight all of a sudden.
"Mimi loves naps more than anything." Michelle said.
"I can tell. Alright since you all won't go down without a fight I'll just have to make you." He smirked at them. Frost and Orka blanked before quickly bolting to their rooms and getting under the covers as quick as their little bodies would take them, which was surprisingly fast. Ares laughed but then slumped down when Rei, Ken, and Andy became dead weight and slept, he turned to his right to see Michelle laughing at him while trying to carry a sleeping Mimi, Lilith, and Kyla.
"Let's just get them to in the bed." He said quietly and went to Andy's room before gently lowering him into bed and walking out, Michelle did the same to Kyla and Lilith before standing next to Ares and looking at him.
"That's the fastest I've seem all of them fall asleep, what's your secret?" She asked.
"Lot's of practice with these two." He said while bouncing up to push them up further. Michelle just smiled a bit before reaching up and lightly tapping his face while walking away with her tail swaying. He just stood there for a minute before reaching up and brushing a hand against where she touched it, her hand was soft despite how much abuse it's been through. It was as soft as a baby's yet had the appearance of an adult.
"Damn, that's the tamest I've ever seen Michelle. Usually the only form of contact someone gets from her is punches." Arachne's voice rang out from behind, startling him.
"Dammit Arachne, Don't do that! They're sleeping!" Ares growled quietly making her cover her mouth.
"Sorry." She apologized and rocked back and forth on her heels as she followed Ares to his room and looked to see him tuck Rei and Ken in gently. He kissed Rei on the forehead while ruffling Ken's hair, making him tiredly bat his hand away, and close the door behind him before turning his attention towards Arachne who had a smile on her face.
"What do you want?" He asked her.
"Where'd Michelle go?" She smiled.
"In her room with Mimi, where's Brock?" He asked.
"Outside being a dumbass as usual." She shrugged and brushed past to enter the room down the hall. Shaking his head and walking outside he saw Brock heft a large rock over his head and throw it over the cliff's edge and whistled before making a mock explosion when the rock hit the water below.
"The hell are you doing?" Ares asked.
"Makin some explosions." Brock said and picked up another rock.
"Why?" Ares asked.
"Dunno, I'm bored" Brock said.
"I can tell." Ares said and stood next to Brock in silence. They both stood there while looking at the horizon for a few minutes while rotating their arms every so often; Brock picked up another rock and threw it the pond making a large splash. Ares found a nearby rock and threw it further than Brock and made a huge splash that scared a nearby squirrel that was nearby the shoreline of the lake.
"I can throw a lot further than you." Ares said.
"Bullshit... It is I who can throw the furthest." Brock laughed and bent down to curl himself as tightly as possible and conjured up numerous rocks and making them latch onto his body, effectively forming himself into a giant rock ball.
"Brock, no." Ares warned.
"Yes." Brock's voice echoed from within the rock ball before speeding forward and off the cliff; gravity took control of his mass and made him plummet faster and faster into the lake before colliding with the water and creating a large explosion. Water splashed high up into the air, splashing the tip of the cliff before falling back down and filling the lake back up with water. The sound had woken everybody up and made them rush outside to see Ares look over the cliff's edge and look down.
"What was that?!" Michelle exclaimed; she looked around to see Brock nowhere in sight. "And where's Brock?!" She asked again.
"Judging by the water on the side of the cliff, the huge explosion, and the large rock over the edge... I'd say at the bottom of the lake." Ares quipped.
"So that equals that... and gravity on this planet is..." Arachne said quietly.
"Are you seriously thinking about this?" He asked.
"Huh? No, I'm just calculating how much of a dumbass Brock is for rolling off the side of the cliff." Arachne waved and continued to think. Mathias just shook his head to the side before putting energy in his wings and levitating over to the side of the cliff and looking over to see Brock slowly climbing up, completely covered in water and had a large fish in his mouth. Smiling like an idiot.
"Brock, you never cease to amaze me." Mathias sighed.
"Thanks, glad I can amaze someone with these... rugged good looks of mine." He flexed making the children laugh and Mathias and the rest roll their eyes. Ares noticed the giant fish in Brock's mouth and quickly grabbed it from him, feeling its weight before slinging it over his shoulder.
"Oh sweet a trophy for my room, if only your brain was as big as your muscles." Ares said and brushed past him. Brock beamed in pride for a second before realizing what Ares said and followed him inside.
"What the fuck? Hey, that's my fish!" He said and chased the other monster inside. Everybody just laughed at the banter between the two and followed them inside, except Mathias who just stood at the edge of the cliff and stared at the falling sun before laughing lightly and shaking his head.
"Those boys..." He chuckled and walked inside.
Morning:
"Brock get up." Ares said kicking him.
"No fuck off, it's early in the morning." Brock groaned while kicking.
"Exactly, now get up so we can get there and get back as soon as possible." Ares said and began kicking him again. This process went on for a few minutes before Brock snarled in agitation and started flailing around while kicking the blankets off of him and getting up. Ares didn't waste any time and walked out of the keep, staring at the early morning sky and sighing in relief at how beautiful it looked despite it still being early in the morning and most of the wildlife was asleep. Speaking of wildlife it would appear that they hadn't thought about food for the trip and that would be a problem since they had to leave today and-
"Before you get in your thinking mode and everything, dad packed us food for the trip." Brock said while handing Ares a bag of cooked meat.
"How'd you know I was thinking?" Ares asked.
"You have this little look... let's go so I can go back to sleep." Brock said, throwing his hood over his head while Ares did the same. They both started the journey in silence while listening to the various wildlife waking up from the night before; on the way they noticed a camera near a log and stared at it before it was suddenly disabled when a stone shard implanted itself into it. The camera sparked and sputtered before slumping down and tossed when Ares picked it up and threw it into a pile of shit from a nearby animal. The minutes of silence eventually grew to an hour, then the hour grew to two, and finally the two hours grew to three as the two continued towards the 'prodigious' hunter school that trained only the best. It was ten in the morning and the sun still wasn't fully at its peak in the sky which made the morning all the more enjoyable for the two. They stopped on a nearby rock to eat a portion of the meat Mathias had packed for them; they sat in silence before noticing that the sky started to darken for some reason and looked to see clouds in the sky and further ahead of them. Ares sighed while Brock just gave a snort in amusement at the random weather appearance.
"Thought it was supposed to be sunny today?" Ares asked stoically.
"Guess we were wrong, might as well stop lolly gagging around and get there." Brock said stoically also, while holding out a fist.
"Then let's get there." Ares bumped his fist before throwing on his hood again as the rain started to come down lightly. Rain started to come down at a more rapid pace and harder as time progressed, making the two hasten their pace towards the academy. Ares recognized this area from the scent of the trees and blood stains on the ground from either an unfortunate hunter or Grimm, not to mention there's another camera in the inside of a tree. It later found a stone shard in the lens before being ripped out and crushed underneath Brock's foots; the shard was collected and they continued their trek.
"Rain's picking up." Brock said.
"Mhmm." Ares hummed finally arriving at the cliff.
"How're we getting up?" Brock asked.
"Simple, we cli-" Ares stopped when he heard shuffling behind him and slowly turned to peek over his shoulder. He looked at Brock who nodded and disappeared into the brush for a few minutes; he quickly turned and picked up a rock before throwing it into the bushes.
"OW!" He heard someone scream. His body went stiff when he saw Rei, Lilith, and Kyla on the ground rubbing their heads when they dodged the rock and land on the ground. He looked at them before slapping his face and sliding his hand down it and snorting in irritation.
"Girls... what are you doing here?" He asked slowly. Each of them shuffled in place while turning their gaze away from him and mumbling.
"W-well... we kind of heard you were going somewhere and..." Rei trailed off.
"And?" Ares asked.
"We wanted to come with you on the adventure." Lilith said meekly while kicking a pebble on the ground.
"You didn't bother telling Mathias did you?" He asked them.
"...No." Kyla answered.
"You three do realize that you're in trouble when you get back right?" He asked.
"What?! Why?!" Rei shouted.
"You three went out without any supervision, followed us to deliver a message, and walked right into a hunter school." He scolded making them blank, Rei froze at the thought of the place she didn't want to come back to.
"I-is it too late to turn back?" Lilith asked.
"Yeah it is... so you three might as well come with us. Where the hell is Brock?" He asked looking around.
"Right here. This little scamp thought she could hide from us." Brock said, carrying a struggling Frost in his left arm.
"Frost, not you too." Ares groaned.
"H-hi Ares. Lovely weather we're having right?" She laughed nervously but gulped when she saw him scowl at her then at the other three. They turned to Brock for assistance but saw him give the same disapproving look at them and shake his head, which made the four of them shrink down.
"We're in trouble aren't we?" Frost asked nervously.
"Big time." Brock answered, making them shrink even further.
"You four are going to be the death of me... Rei, Frost hop on my back and don't let go. Lilith and Kyla, hop on Brock's and hold on tight." Ares ordered and bent down so they could hop on his back; Brock did the same so the other two could hop on his before both looking at each other and began to climb the cliff with the girls holding tightly on to prevent slipping as the rain poured down with even greater force.
Blake was in the library alone and just listened to the sound of rain hitting the windows, it was quite relaxing. Her quiet time was interrupted when the librarian had decided to close up shop for the weekend and ushered her out; she sighed and nodded before stepping towards door. She opened her umbrella and stepped out into the pouring rain while staring into space as she walked back towards her dorm. Something bumped into her and knocked her over as well as the book and let them both get drenched in the rain.
"Next time you should watch where your going." She huffed and picked up the book and umbrella. 'Some people are so indecent.' She thought. A growl interrupted her thoughts and made her eyes widen as she slowly turned around to see a hulking figure with a Grimm's pelt for clothing staring at her but she couldn't see their face; she then saw two more figures wearing masks on the figures back stare at her. One stared at her with slight mistrust while the other stared with curiosity.
"Hello?" She asked making the figure growl at her then turn away before walking away with an even bigger figure walking close behind with smaller ones on its back as well.
"Bye Blake..." A small voice echoed out from afar, she turned to a familiar sight of three tails swaying in the wind. She stood with the umbrella over her head and just stared at the spot where the six figures left, then it hit her. The spiked tail and spikes on the back, carrying little ones on their back, three tails on the smaller one, and a voice that addressed her name.
"Rei? Ares?" She asked herself. It couldn't be though; they disappeared months ago along with that giant monster that ripped Neptune's arm off. She shuddered at the sight of that... thing, it still gave her nightmares after hearing that feral roar and Neptune's scream as his arm was chewed from the socket but what got her the most was Rei and Ken's faces. They had the face of absolute betrayal and hurt on them that broke her heart. It wasn't a Grimm since it didn't have any bone armor, last time she checked a Grimm would never eat another Grimm and last but not least, a Grimm couldn't grow to that size without hundreds of years of time and battle on its hands. Shaking her head and pulling out the scroll in her right pocket, she called everyone. The scroll buzzed for a second before Yang picked up.
"Hello?" She asked.
"Is everyone there?" Blake asked.
"Yeah, why?" Yang asked.
"I think I found Ares and Rei." Blake said. The line went silent for a minute.
"Are you sure it's them?" Yang asked.
"I don't know maybe. What other person carries someone on their back?" Blake asked.
"Fair point... did you see where they're heading?" Yang asked.
"It looks like... Ozpin's tower." Blake said.
"Alright, we're on our way. The big man has some questions that need to be answered." Yang said, cracking her knuckles.
"I'll see you three there." Blake said, hanging up and following the six towards Ozpin's tower.
Ozpin was sitting in his office with a lighthearted expression on his face, while most would see this as a gloomy day he saw it as a fortunate one. Rain always calmed his nerves when he was stressed along with the coffee in his mug, both of those made his day worry free and relaxing. Glynda stood to the side with a relaxed expression as well as she tapped on her scroll, contacting someone then stifling a laugh and typing something.
"Sir?" She asked.
"Hmm?" Ozpin hummed.
"What do you think happened to Ares and his siblings?" She asked.
"I don't know, but what I do know is that someone is taking out cameras in Emerald Forest." He said.
"Is it Grimm?" She asked.
"Grimm don't typically care about the cameras. But Peter had told me that every time he went to investigate them, he always found this." Ozpin said while reaching in his drawer and pulling out a stone shard. Glynda went up to the desk and picked up the sharp shard, observing it with great interest.
"Who do you think made this?" She asked.
"I hope to find the answer to that-" He stopped when the elevator suddenly dinged. They stared at the elevator as it opened and revealed a large figure with a Beowolf's pelt acting as a hoodie, silently stare at them before another large figure came up from behind with a Ursa pelt and stared silently at them. Ozpin's eyes narrowed as he stared at the two figures while Glynda did the same, their expressions softened when four little figures peeked out and stared at them with curiosity but their faces were concealed by stone masks.
"Can I help you?" Ozpin asked cautiously.
"Yeah, you can." The larger figure with a small tail said, walking up to the desk and taking off his hood.
"Do I know you?" Ozpin said.
"No, but you know him." The figure gestured toward the other in the back who walked up and slowly took off his hood.
"Mr. Ares?" Glynda gasped. He looked at her with a neutral expression before turning back to Ozpin and throwing him an envelope made out of animal skin and fur.
"What's this?" Ozpin asked.
"A note from my dad." Brock said and lowered himself down to let Lilith and Kyla down to explore the room while Ares did the same, except Rei latched onto Ares' leg and stared at Glynda. Glynda lowered herself down to stare into Rei's eyes.
"P-please stop staring at me like that." Rei pleaded nervously.
"Rei?" Glynda asked, not believing it was the same little girl that disappeared months ago.
"Hi..." Rei replied sheepishly while lifting up her mask.
"Where's Ken?" Glynda asked.
"He's at-" Rei stopped when she looked at Ares to see him have a warning face. "Sorry, I'm not allowed to tell." She said before she was pulled by Frost and towards the window where the rest of the girls stared at the rain hitting the window with curious expressions. Kyla rubbed her finger across a raindrop but looked at her finger and saw that it was still dry, Frost did the same and scratched her head. Ozpin looked at the children and laughed before turning back to the letter and frowning a bit when he read the rest.
"I didn't realize I was invading your home." He said.
"Yeah, so this is a message saying stop." Brock said crossing his arms. Ares just snorted in amusement making Ozpin turn in his direction.
"Is there something funny?" Ozpin asked.
"No, just that it's a bold face lie." Ares snorted and walked towards the girls and knelt down, talking to them.
"What'd he say?" Glynda asked.
"He said it's a bold face lie that you told, you all knew you were invading our home. I know this because you send a team of hunters after us every year during the winter." Brock said.
"That's just routine mission for all students." Ozpin said.
"Bullshit. Every year or two you send a team of hunters to try and get us to 'join' you." Brock huffed. Ozpin didn't say anything and just stared at Brock, who stared right back with a neutral expression; the silence grew too silent and Frost blew a stream of fire which made Glynda jump back in surprise. Frost looked around to see everyone look at her before sheepishly laugh and blush in embarrassment before placing her mask over her face, Ares just sighed and knelt down in front of her.
"Do you know how you did that?" He asked.
"No, I've been trying to do it more often but I always mess up." She said.
"It's easy." He said while opening his mouth and let out a gentle stream of fire. Her eyes widened and she clapped quickly before opening her mouth and trying to repeat the same process but ended up letting out a breath of nothing, she pouted before Ares lightly flicked her forehead.
"Just suck in some air and hold it for a second before blowing out from your lungs." He instructed. She did what was instructed and let out a gentle stream of fire before stopping when she got dizzy from doing it too long.
"Thanks Ares!" She thanked.
"Remember though, don't do it too long or you'll get dizzy from not getting enough oxygen." He said making her nod then turn back to the window. Brock just snorted in amusement but then winced when thunder and lightning could be seen in the sky and the rain started to come down even more forcefully. Ares saw this too and scowled at the though of being here even longer than needed; he didn't want to leave now since there could be the possibility of one of the little ones being injured on the way back home.
"Damn, so much for leaving right away." Brock muttered.
"You were planning on leaving in the rain?" Glynda asked.
"Oh yeah, dad didn't want us to stay very long but it seems we have no choice." Brock sighed.
"Why can't you just go in your original form and take us back?" Ares asked.
"Are you kidding? They'll know we're monsters then and hunt us down even further." Brock said.
"Dammit... I didn't want to do this. Ask him if they have any rooms available." Ares said.
"Why?" Brock asked.
"Do you really want to take the children out in the storm where they could possibly be injured or worse, killed?" Ares asked, gesturing towards the girls who were playing with their hunting knives. Brock sighed and turned towards Ozpin and Glynda who were staring at them with curious expressions.
"I hate to say this but... do you have any rooms available until tomorrow?" Brock asked.
"Not at the moment-" Ozpin said before he was interrupted when the elevator door opened to reveal RWBY standing there.
"Professor Ozpin! Blake thinks she found Are-" Ruby stopped when she saw Ares standing near the window with Rei and three other girls who had stone masks on their hips. His expression darkened the longer he stared at her and her team before Weiss stomped up to him and stared at him.
"Do you have any idea how long we've been looking for you and your siblings?" She poked his chest.
"Uh, ma'am?" Brock asked when he saw Ares' eyes turn to slits.
"Stuff it!" Weiss snapped.
"Got it." Brock gulped. Jesus Christ this woman is scary, almost as scary as Michelle. Weiss turned back to Ares and glared at him while he did the same but at a greater extent; the two were locked in a deadlock before Yang stepped up and pulled Weiss away from him while staring at him with slightly red eyes. A loud growl interrupted the tension and Ares' eyes reverted back to normal as he turned around to see the girls sheepishly. He looked back at the team before walking over and kneeling down in front of them, he reached inside a bag on his hip and pulled out pieces of meat that had blue leaves wrapped around it and gave it to the girls. They accepted the pieces of meat and began to chew on it slowly; they sat down on the floor and huddled in a group while talking as Ares just stood up and walked next to Brock. Brock reached inside his bag and pulled out a jug of liquid while getting out a piece of meat and handing it to Ares, who nodded and stuffed it in his mouth before taking the jug that Brock had drank from.
"Was that raw?" Yang asked.
"Oh yeah... well not entirely. More like medium rare." Brock shrugged and placed the jug of liquid back on his belt. Blake looked to see Rei look at her from the corner of her eye before turning back to the group and finishing the meat.
"So about that room." Brock said.
"Ah, yes. Well we don't have any rooms available so-" Ozpin was cut off when Yang answered.
"They can stay in our room. We have a lot of 'catching up' to do with Ares." Yang cracked her knuckles making Ares crack his neck. Ozpin was about to deny that request but went wide eyed when Lilith took his mug and drank his coffee before passing it to Kyla, then to Frost, and finally Rei who drank the rest of the liquid.
"Is that uh... coffee?" Brock asked.
"Yeah, why?" Ozpin asked.
"Oh this isn't good." Brock mumbled as he stared at the girls who made disgusted faces at the taste of the coffee before their bodies started vibrating and they bolted towards the elevator.
"Dammit!" Ares shouted, chasing after the children before slamming into the elevator door when it closed on him. Everyone could hear hyper giggles resonate from inside before a loud crash which made the room silent.
"Uh... what was that?" Ruby asked.
"That... is a prime example of what happens when you expose those four to something with lots of caffeine for the first time." Brock sighed and pushed the elevator button. Ares stood next to Brock while stretching his arms and legs for the chase that would probably last for hours; RWBY stood to the side shuffling uncomfortably.
"Is there anything we can do?" Blake asked.
"Oh yeah, you can go with Ares to help find them while I get a room booked." Brock smiled but then flew into a wall when Ares punched him in the face. "Ow! What the fuck Ares, I was kidding!" He cried.
"No you weren't you fat bastard." Ares growled and walked into the elevator with the team close behind. Glynda gaped at Ares then at Brock who twisted his neck and cracked it in a painful manner before standing up and dusting himself off.
"So about that room." He said.
"You're not even going to get mad that he attacked you?" Glynda asked.
"What? No, he does that all the time. Him and I beat each other up pretty much everyday; whether it be from him throwing me off the side of the cliff or me throwing him into a Nevermore's nest, oh and there was one time where he tied me down to a rock and threw me in the lake because I accidentally ate his share of venison. Man, good times... even though most of that happened this week." Brock reminisced. Ozpin and Glynda sweat dropped at their abusive relationship towards one another, they weren't sure to call it roughhousing or attempted murder.
"I'll uh... see about that room." Ozpin muttered.
The elevator ride down was quiet to the point where even a pin drop could be heard. Ares stood close to the door while the girls were behind him with different expressions. Ruby had an uncomfortable expression, Weiss had a distrustful one, Yang had an agitated one, and Blake had a curious one. The elevator door opened and Ares threw on his hood, marching out while looking around to see if he could find any sign of the girls; he immediately found Frost face first down on the ground snoring and moving her tail every so often. He carefully picked her up and handed her to Yang, she buckled a bit at the sudden weight and glared at Ares.
"What the heck big man?" She whispered. She received no answer and sighed in annoyance before shuffling a bit and getting Frost in a more comfortable position, following Ares through out the school grounds.
"Hey Ares?" Ruby asked then shrank when he glared at her from the corner of his eye.
"Is she your daughter?" She asked curiously; he stopped in his tracks and snorted in amusement and shook his head. "Oh, she just looks like you with the spikes... and everything." She said quietly. They made their way to the cafeteria to to see Kyla and Lilith on a table with loads of meat on a plate, eating it quickly and throwing the bone over their shoulders or stabbing it into the table before picking up another piece and scarfing it down. Ruby tried to slowly approach them but stopped when they noticed her and stared with an unblinking gaze.
"Hi there..." She said nervously.
"..." They both stayed silent and just stared while chewing a piece of meat, they suddenly shot up and warped up to Ruby with neutral but curious expressions. Ruby jumped when they warped and barely had time to comprehend what they did next when they began to float around her and warp right up to her face, just staring into her eyes before laughing and warping back to the table.
"Nap time." Ares said, stepping closer to them.
"No we're-" They barely finished their sentence before smacking their heads on the table and falling asleep. Ares just sighed and gently picked them up, handing Lilith to Ruby and Kyla to Weiss, both looked at him with confusion then sighed when he was already out the door and into the pouring rain again.
"Big man, we're going back to our dorm. You can look for Rei by yourself." Yang said, walking off but stopped when she felt Weiss' scroll hit the back of her head and a message typed.
"You keep them safe." The scroll read. Yang looked at Ares only to see his figure already a couple feet away, she huffed in annoyance and made her way back to the dorm with Ruby and Weiss in tow. Blake looked to see Ares still search around and decided to follow him; she quickly caught up to him and walked silently alongside while staring ahead blankly. She saw him glance at her but otherwise ignore her presence and continue to walk forward in search for his younger sister, who could be anywhere by now.
"Hey Ares?" She asked, tilting the umbrella up a bit to get a good look at him.
"Hmm?" He hummed, to which is all she understood.
"Why did you leave?" She asked. He gestured to her scroll in her hand and grabbed it when she offered it before typing something in and handing back, she had to wipe the excess water that had accumulated on the screen.
"I found people like me, and have accepted me. The only reason I left was because you four and those two ass wipes attacked me and tried to take my siblings away." She read with wide eyes.
"So you're the one who ripped Neptune's arm off?!" She asked.
"Yeah, it was so refreshing to hear the scream of a human." He typed, which made her scowl.
"Just like the White Fang now." She mumbled then yelped when she found herself pinned against a wall and drenched by the rain. She struggled for a minute but gagged when his hand tightened on her throat and made her look up to see his orange eyes peek out from beneath the hood, they were full of a mild rage you would only see on a pissed off animal. He snatched her scroll from her hand and a loud tapping sound could be heard.
"Don't you dare compare me to those degenerates! All they are is a bunch of dumbass terrorists that want to kill because of personal problems. I only kill to protect my family." The message read. His grip tightened immensely which made her claw at his arms before he let her go and leave her as a heap on the wet ground; she saw him kneel down in front of her and glare at her before snorting at her surprised face.
"Just another nosy hunter." He said and walked away, leaving Blake a wet soggy mess on the ground.
"Note to self... don't compare him to the White Fang." She breathed and picked up her umbrella, walking back towards the dorm.
Hours had passed and he still hadn't found Rei; he searched in the gym, in the combat room, Ozpin's office again, the armory, the cafeteria, and even the bathrooms but still no sign of Rei. He just huffed and made his way back to the dorm rooms to see Brock standing outside pacing before he caught sight of him.
"Why're you outside?" Ares asked.
"Well, the girls are changing and told me to get out." Brock said.
"What about the room?" Ares asked.
"The headmaster said he doesn't have any available and get this. He tried to get me to join the school along with Michelle and Arachne." Brock laughed.
"You said no right?" Ares asked, making Brock stop.
"Was I supposed to?" He asked.
"Brock... please tell me you're joking." Ares pinched the bridge of his nose. It was silent for a minute before Brock's face turned red from holding his breath to long and burst out laughing.
"Yeah I'm joking! Oh my god. You should have seen the look on your face. You were all like 'Please tell me you're joking'. Ahahahahaha." Brock laughed while doing a mock impression of Ares, who just scowled and knocked on the door. The door was suddenly opened to reveal a damp Blake who's hair was disheveled and had a tired look on her face; he heard familiar giggling and brushed past her to see Rei roll around in the blankets, giggling loudly.
"She's been like this the whole time, and it doesn't look like she's stopping." Blake sighed. Ares snorted and sat on the bed next to Rei until she noticed him and tried to tackle him while laughing loudly, he laughed too before engulfing her in a hug and stayed like that until she eventually calmed down.
"H-how?!" Ruby shouted. Ares didn't say anything while Brock just laughed and pulled out a sleeping roll, lying it on the ground before pulling out another one and repeating the process. All was silent before Weiss stood up and marched over to Ares, who was busy rocking Rei to sleep, and stood over him.
"Okay, before you start tearing into him... at least let him get his sister to sleep." Brock advised.
"And who are you?" Weiss asked.
"Someone who knows Ares more than you do." Brock said. Weiss' face grew red with anger as she glared at him.
"Why you-" She started.
"Hey Ares?" Rei asked.
"Hmm?" He hummed while rocking.
"Where did mom and dad go?" She asked tiredly, making him stop rocking. The girls all looked at his expression and slightly softened their look when they saw it; it held pain that said he didn't want to remember it.
"I... don't know." He sighed and started rocking again. Rei nodded and closed her eyes before falling asleep shortly after. When all the girls were asleep he gently placed them on one of the fur rolls before taking a blanket off of Ruby's bed, much to her dismay, and covered them. RWBY didn't know whether to gush at the sight of the sleeping children or be irritated at the sight of Ares. Yang shook her head and walked next to Ares, glaring at him with red eyes while he just gave an impassive look.
"You've got a lot of explaining to do." She said while crossing her arms. Brock on his stomach while laughing at the scene in front of him, wagging his tail side to side; he heard a high pitched muffled squeal before yelping when somebody squeezed his tail.
"This is so cute! Just look at this little tail, it's like a little worm!" Ruby gushed and pulled at his tail some more.
"Please don't pull my tail." Brock pleaded. It fell on deaf ears though and he started to grow more uncomfortable as she squeezed, pulled, and even stroked his tail while gushing. Blake's ears flattened as she looked at the man in front of her in pity, she had been victim to one of Ruby's random spurts of affection once and her ears still hurt from the petting.
"Sis, I'm pretty sure he doesn't want his tail pulled like that." Yang said, making Ruby stop and look at Brock who sighed in relief.
"Sorry." Ruby laughed nervously.
"It's alright, the little ones usually do that... except they pull... and bite... and sometimes stab..." Brock mumbled rubbing his shoulder making the girls reel back and look at the sleeping children.
"They do that to you?" Weiss asked looking at the sleeping four.
"It's mostly the boys, we take roughhousing a little too far." Brock laughed.
"I'm not sure whether to be happy that you boys do that or concerned that they try to kill you." Yang said.
"Eh, it's both really. Ares joins in too." Brock said, making the Goliath scowl at him.
"What does he do?" Ruby asked.
"There was this one time where I accidentally took his piece of deer meat and he tied me down to a boulder and threw me at the bottom of the lake." He laughed.
"That's horrible!" Ruby gasped.
"Bah, it's alright. I got him back by throwing him into a Nevermore's nest... didn't hear back from him for two hours." Brock chuckled making Ares emit a growl.
"Brock... shut the hell up." Ares said.
"Oh come on man, where's your happy expression I saw this morning?" Brock asked.
"In the deepest parts of hell. Where you're going to end up if you don't shut up." Ares threatened.
"Alright alright, I'll stop telling the embarrassing stories... except that time when Michelle beat you up." Brock said the last part to the side. Yang completely ignored Ares' presence and sat in front of Brock, as did the rest of the team, and listened closely to hear the tale of how Ares lost to Michelle. Over the course of the story they laughed numerous times and gasped before laughing again when he told them how Michelle threatened to castrate Ares and him bowing underneath her to save his family jewels.
"I want to meet this Michelle." Yang said.
"Well maybe one day you will, but now I do believe it's... what time is it?" Brock asked.
"1:30." Weiss informed.
"Well goddamn, it's not even dinner yet. Hey Ares-" Brock stopped when he saw Ares curled around the girls and fast asleep with them huddled against him. Ruby pulled up her scroll and took a picture but frowned when she noticed something missing.
"Where's Ken?" She asked.
"He's uh... at home." Brock rubbed the back of his head.
"Are you hiding something?" Yang asked.
"No... okay, look. Ares doesn't like me telling personal stuff so just leave it at that." Brock pleaded. Weiss was about to push further but when she looked in his eyes she could see that he really didn't want to tell them. They nodded and looked back at Ares before looking back at Brock.
"By the way, what's your name hotstuff?" Yang winked, making Brock's face grow bit red but not as red as when Arachne flirts with him.
"Brock. What's yours bombshell?" He winked back making Yang's face go from cheeky to embarrassed in a second. She's always been the one to flirt and make people stutter, she's never been in this position before!
"Y-yang." She stuttered. Everyone recoiled at the sight of the most confident member of the group reduced to a stuttering mess.
"Wow. That's the first time I've seen Yang embarrassed." Ruby commented.
"Well hot damn, I knew these good looks would pay off one day." He laughed. Yang laughed along while RWB just rolled their eyes but with smiles on their faces; lightning cracked from the sky making the children whimper but then fall back asleep when Ares curled tighter around them and glowed a bit.
"That's really adorable... I can't even be mad about him disappearing months ago." Yang said.
"Actually he's with us." Brock said.
"Where?" Blake asked.
"Somewhere in Emerald forest, that's all I'm going to say." He said, shocking the four.
"You all live out there?! Why don't you move to the city o-or a nearby settlement?!" Ruby asked frantically.
"Eh, don't feel like it. We used to be nomadic but we finally settled down somewhere comfortable to raise the eight children." He shrugged.
"So that means you and Ares are..." Yang trailed off. It took Brock a second to realize what she was implying.
"Oh no! No no no no no no no. We aren't like that! We're closer to brothers more than anything. No; him, Michelle, Arachne, my dad, and I raise the eight little rascals that live with us." He explained.
"Hehehe, sorry about the whole... you know." Yang said rubbing the back of her neck.
"It's alright. A little misconception." Brock reassured. They sat in silence before Blake asked a question.
"Hey Brock, how come you can understand Ares but we can't?" She asked. He thought about it for a second.
"Well it has something to do with our kind." He said.
"So a faunus?" She asked.
"Eh, something along those lines. But we're a certain species that has our own language as well as yours that we're speaking right now." He said.
"Do explain." Weiss said.
"I don't really know how to explain it... it's more of a natural feeling more than anything." He surmised.
"That's cool... what's that?" Ruby asked pointing towards his hunter's knife on his leg.
"This is the knife Ken made us" He said. It had a planet in space with a giant hand gripping it from the bottom. The blade itself was jagged with tips of bone acting as a serrated addition, making the knife even more deadly than what it already was.
"That's quite the interesting design." Blake observed. Everybody else silently agreed to her and took turns observing it before handing it back to Brock.
"Hey, Brock. What's Ares like when he's with you all?" Ruby asked, making him laugh.
"When he's not being a scowling sarcastic asshole he's actually a calm collected caring individual." He described.
"Really? He's always scowling at us when he resided here." Weiss said.
"He's not very fond of huntsman and huntresses. But other than that he cares about the kids' well being more than all the adults combined; he even saved Michelle's little sister from getting eaten by an Alpha." He said.
"What's wrong with us huntsman and huntresses?" Weiss asked.
"I don't think it's necessarily you four, it's just in general. He's never really told anybody but apparently he's had bad experiences with them in the past." Brock guessed. It was true, aside from telling them all how they ended up on Remnant nobody knows Ares and his sibling's past.
"I wonder what it is." Blake wondered.
"I don't know, but I do know he gets angry when someone asks about his parents." Brock said.
"What happened to them?" Yang asked.
"I think they're-" Brock stopped when a knife flew past him and embedded itself into the wall, startling Ruby. All five of them turned to see Ares have his hood up but could see a single eye that held controlled but unhinged unadulterated rage. Yang's semblance would look like a temper tantrum compared to the look Ares was giving Brock, who remained unfazed about it but held a bit of guilt.
"Brock... you know that's a touchy subject." Ares warned.
"Sorry man. Didn't mean to bring them up." Brock apologized. Ares looked at him before slowly getting up and walking out the door, making Brock lower his head down.
"He's uh... really touchy about that isn't he?" Yang asked carefully.
"Yeah he is... I'll be right back." He said before grabbing Ares' knife and walking out the door. Yang followed up and peeked out to see his muscled figure walk down the hall before a seductive look appeared on her face and she closed the door.
"That right there is what I call a man." She said, making Ruby groan.
"Yaaaaaaang stop." She groaned while covering her face with her hood.
"Come on Rubes. Admit it, he is like the perfect guy in one bundle. Muscular, hot, funny, and most likely smart. I would love to get a piece of him." Yang said.
"Okay, I'm with Ruby on this one Yang. Stop." Weiss said.
"Come on Weiss, he's as muscular as Ares. It's no wonder they're brothers." Yang said.
"He said that Ares is more of a brother to him not his actual brother." Blake said.
"Come on Blake, who would you rather have Brock or Ares." Yang asked.
"I'd rather not discuss it." Blake said. A smug smile appeared on Yang's face when she knew what incident she was thinking of.
"Is it about that time-" She stopped when Blake slammed her book shut.
"Fine Ares, you happy?" She hissed.
"Yes." Yang smiled cheekily. The door opened to reveal Brock with a slight limp before lying down on the roll next to the sleeping children.
"What happened to you?" Ruby asked.
"Uhhhhhh... Ares happened. Shit this hurts." Brock winced.
"What'd he do?" Yang asked.
"Hurt me as always. But at least he's calmed down now." He said closing his eyes.
"So where is he?" Blake asked.
"On the roof, it'd be best not to disturb him though. He looks ready to level this place." He said tiredly. The team gulped at what he said and waited patiently for Ares to return while Brock was asleep. After a few hours of doing nothing they heard the door open to see Ares come in soaked in water, he got on all fours and began to shake his body and spray water all over the place.
"You big brute!" Weiss exclaimed.
"You icy bitch." Ares growled at her and sat near Blake's bunk. He really wished this storm would be over soon, he didn't want to be here anymore and the mere presence of the four hunters in front of him made him want to kill something. His eyes turned to slits when he caught sight of all of them looking at him with suspicion.
"The hell are you all looking at? Fucking bitches..." He snarled at them. They all recoiled a bit at his sudden outburst before Yang stepped up to him.
"You want to start something?" She growled.
"Maybe I do, you blonde cunt." He snarled. Yang was about to do something but Rei groggily woke up and tiredly walked up to him before sitting in front and leaning back, gazing at Yang tiredly. His gaze softened as he stared at Rei's tired form before hardening again when he saw Yang still in front of him.
"Hey Ares? When are we going home?" Rei asked tiredly.
"Tomorrow. After that we won't have to come back here again." He reassured, patting her head.
"Good... I'm sorry." She apologized.
"For what?" He asked.
"For following you and Brock... it's just that... I just wanted it to be you, me and Ken like it used to. But Ken was asleep." She said.
"Rei... no matter how much our family grows in members, you two will always be my one true family." He smiled at her.
"Thanks Ares. Can we get something to eat?" She asked.
"Yeah, come on." He stood up and offered her a hand. She took it and climbed up on his back with a small smile on her face; RWBY just stood there in silence and Weiss was about to say something but was stopped when Blake walked past them and shut the door behind her.
"Girls..." Brock asked tiredly.
"Yeah?" Yang asked.
"Leave em." He said.
"Why would we do that?" Weiss huffed.
"It's been a while since Ares spent any time with his actual family... I may be like a brother to him but Ken and Rei are his one true family and it's been a while since it was just them. So let him have this moment with just Rei." He explained.
"What if he tries something?" Ruby asked.
"Then there's a reason. Ares only attacks if he's provoked by a threat either to himself or his family and half the time he doesn't care about himself, other than that he'll keep his head." He answered and turned to see the children still asleep.
"Wow, you really know a lot about Ares." Ruby said.
"Heh, not in the slightest. Like I said before nobody in the group knows about his past." He said.
"He's not here so might as well tell us." Weiss said.
"I never said I actually knew because I don't. If he's not going to tell then I'll respect that." He said.
"But-" Yang started.
"Look if you want to know so much about Ares then just ask him. I'm not saying anymore because it's not my place to tell but if he doesn't want to tell then just leave him alone." Brock instructed.
"He's not going to." Weiss huffed.
"Then leave it at that." He said and looked up at the ceiling in silence for a minute before scrunching up his nose. "You all have a bath?" He asked.
"It's a shower and a bath but yes. Why?" Ruby asked.
"I need to give these three a bath and-" He stopped when the sleeping girls were gone from their spots and in front of him with eager faces. The team looked at him with a confused expression before laughing when he patted each of the little ones' heads and lead them to the bathroom.
"Care to explain?" Yang asked.
"These three love baths. Each of the little ones have their own little quirks." Brock chuckled.
"I wonder how Blake's doing." Ruby wondered silently.
"Eh, who cares." Yang shrugged.
Both the siblings sat at a table in the cafeteria by themselves and had a plate of food each. Rei wanted to see if she could try anything else other than meat but ended up failing when she vomited the mashed potatoes up on the floor, they moved to another spot to make it look like someone else did it. The whole cafeteria seemed to evacuate the moment Ares walked in and sat down at a nearby table, it seems everyone remembers who he was since he's pretty much the only one to defeat the blond brawler of RWBY.
"You like chicken yes you do, nobody loves chicken quite like you." Rei sang while eating a chicken strip.
"Where'd you learn that song?" Ares asked.
"I don't know. I just started singing it when I ate this." Rei said holding up a chicken strip. Ares took a bite out of it and smiled when Rei's face contorted to absolute betrayal as she stared at the stump of the chicken for a minute before throwing it at Ares' face and turning away with a huff.
"Come on Rei. It's a piece of food." He smiled.
"Yeah, my piece." She huffed and picked at some steak. Ares rolled his eyes and placed his head in his arms and basked in the silence while swaying his tail in a slow manner, his plate slowly slid from out in front of him before being put back. When he looked up at it he saw that it was clear of its contents before turning to Rei who had an innocent smile on her face, along with a little bit of meat hanging form her mouth. She slurped up the meat and burped before humming a tune while kicking off the seat, her legs dangled and she leaned back and forth while still listening to the storm outside.
"Why's this storm taking so long?" She asked, looking outside to see the rain hit the windows.
"I dunno, it should have stopped by now." He said.
"Maybe it's Mathias controlling the weather." She gasped. He couldn't help but laugh at her childish accusation and just ruffled her hair.
"I don't think that's it Rei but it would be cool if Mathias could do that." He agreed. They sat in the quiet room before Rei smacked her lips and looked at Ares who was tapping the table in a rhythmic manner.
"I'm thirsty." She said. He reached behind him and grabbed a jug of liquid before giving it to her; she grabbed the jug and started to drink the liquid slowly before handing it back to him.
"Thank you. What is that though?" She asked.
"Bitter drink." He answered.
"It taste sweet though." She said.
"Really? It taste like bitter water to me." He said.
"Nope, it taste like really sweet water. I like it." She smiled.
"Then I'll get Mathias to teach me how to make it so I can give it to you." He replied. The two sat in silence until they heard the doors open and then later saw Blake sit near them with a curious expression on her face. Rei scooted closer to Ares while he just held her protectively and kept a close eye on Blake, who sighed before addressing them.
"I wanted to say I'm sorry." She said. Ares didn't say anything and neither did Rei as they just stared at her, after a while Rei finally spoke up.
"Why did you follow us that night?" She asked.
"I didn't want to since I saw how much stress we were putting on Ares but since everyone else was going I decided too." Blake answered.
"So you mean to tell me that you only followed us because of everyone else?" Rei asked.
"Yeah, they thought he was killing people." Blake said.
"...I mean he has though." Rei said after a moment's silence making Blake look at him with wide eyes.
"You have?!" She asked. He looked at her with a neutral expression before nodding and looking out the window again but still looked at her from the corner of his eye.
"He doesn't do it for fun though, it's mostly to keep us safe." Rei said, tapping her talons on the table.
"Still... what was he doing then?" Blake asked.
"Killing those black wildlife creatures. That grey-haired man said as long as he makes it to those classes then he can hunt the wildlife every few nights." Rei explained. After that sentence Blake came to a realization, he wasn't covered in human or faunus blood, he was covered in Grimm blood. She remembered one night when he came back his mouth was covered in blood and there was a few clumps of flesh on his spikes, not to mention she swore she saw a heart in his hand before he scarfed it down; she ended up gagging when he ate it.
"Does he eat the Grimm?" She asked.
"Yeah, he won't let us eat it though. It's not fair." Rei pouted.
"You're not supposed to eat those though!" Blake exclaimed.
"Why?" Rei asked.
"Because it's... it's just not right!" She said.
"He's had no side effects from it. Aside from the black goo he throws up." Rei said, not realizing she just gave some information away.
"Wait. Black goo?" Blake asked. She thought about how Weiss said that he was vomiting black goo into the toilet and acted strange sometimes, he acted more like a wild animal than a faunus. She was interrupted from her thoughts when Rei went up to her and pulled her ribbon off, observing it for a second. She flattened her ears and covered them while looking around to see if anybody was looking but relaxed a bit when nobody was in here.
"Rei... can I have my ribbon back?" She asked.
"Why? You don't wear it in the room." Rei stated.
"I'm not comfortable with people seeing me like this, now can I have it back?" Blake asked.
"Okay..." Rei said handing the ribbon back before kicking her feet and rocking side to side while humming a tune that Ares enjoyed. It was one of the tunes she had hummed when she was still around, it was a soothing tune that always made him calm down and it was the same tune he used to lull Rei and Ken to sleep. His thoughts drifted back to her and her gentle embrace when he hatched, she didn't care that he wasn't hers nor did he care she was his. Size didn't make a difference nor did species, all that mattered was that she loved him either way; as did she Ken and Rei when they were born. She loved them as much as she loved him and that's what made her special even if she knew they weren't hers either, and although his father didn't show it very often he loved her to an extent. His father's focus was only to teach the three of them to survive but her focus was to teach them to understand and look out for each other, she said that family was put above all else... that's why he's so protective of Rei and Ken.
"Thinking about mom?" Rei asked suddenly, looking up at him.
"...Yeah." He sighed.
"...I still have dreams about her sometimes." Rei mumbled.
"I do too... what do you remember most about her?" Ares asked.
"I remember that she wouldn't eat the stuff dad got her." Rei laughed making him laugh also. Blake looked at the two curiously and was about to ask but decided against it.
"Pretty much all the stuff. Though she did come around to it eventually." He said making Rei nod before sighing and answering.
"I remember that she would sometimes sing to us when we were upset or wouldn't go to sleep while you and dad were out hunting." She said.
"I remember when she first saw all three of us together. She looked so happy and dad did too." He said. "Then she went missing for a minute... Never in my life had I seen dad so miserable." He added. Rei flattened her talons and leaned on him while sniffling.
"She came back though." She said.
"That she did, but she was different in a sense. Both physically and emotionally." He said.
"Please don't bring that up." She cried lightly.
"Sorry." He apologized.
"It's okay." She sniffled.
"She told me once that even if we weren't hers that she would love us the same." Ares said after a moments silence.
"She told me that too. She said that to dad too but he just brushed it off, I don't think he felt the same." She said.
"Believe me he did. While she was sleeping he would say it and he would say it before he left to go hunting." He reassured.
"Really? So all those hard moments where he didn't say anything were false?" She asked.
"Yep, he tried to be one of those 'I'm too cool to say I love you to my mate' type of dads." Ares smiled making Rei give a short laugh before she sighed and looked forward blankly.
"I miss them." She said tiredly.
"I do too." He sighed and picked her up. Blake was about to ask who they are but then remembered what Brock was talking about in the room, he was referring to their parents. She also remembered the look of rage that was on his face when Brock was about to finish his sentence; a knife to the wall that would have been lethal if it connected. If he likes Brock and was willing to do that then what would he do to her if she brought the subject up? Last time she checked, they weren't on the best of terms and judging by the looks he shot all four of them he was one that held a grudge, a massive one at that.
"I'm uh... just going to head back to the room." She said. He didn't say anything and shot her a sideways glance before walking out of the cafeteria and into the rain once again.
"So much for trying to make amends with them." Blake mumbled and picked up her umbrella, walking out into the storm.
"So Brock, how often does Ares go hunting?" Ruby asked.
"When we need it, so every couple of days." He shrugged.
"So you all go through that much food in the span of a couple days?" Weiss asked.
"Yep, the little ones eat a lot." He said. Frost was on his shoulders playing with his hood while Lilith and Kyla sat in his lap taking a nap.
"So what are their names?" Yang gestured towards the three.
"This little scamp is Frost." He gestured towards the small Goliath on his shoulders who turned towards them and glanced before going back to playing with his hood.
"Hi there." Ruby greeted.
"..." Frost didn't give a reply and just glanced at Ruby before growling when Brock reached up and flicked her forehead.
"Don't be rude. Say hi." He said towards her.
"Fine. Hi." She huffed then went back to playing with his hood.
"It's a start I guess. She said hi." He sighed. Ruby gave a slight hesitant nod and turned away from Frost who glanced at her from the corner of her eye.
"And these two are Lilith and Kyla." He gestured towards the sleeping two in his lap.
"They're cute." Yang complemented.
"Yeah, but they're little shits too." He chuckled.
"Why?" Weiss asked.
"Whenever Rei does something, these two follow shortly after. There was one time when they put everyone asleep to see if their sleeping mixture would work." He remembered.
"I don't know whether to be amazed or concerned." She wondered.
"I'm both. I seriously don't know how they make some of this shit, and to make matters worse I'm their lab rat." He shuddered making the girls laugh. He started to laugh too but stopped when the door was heard opening to reveal Blake with a wet umbrella, she shook it a few times before sitting on her bed and picking up a book.
"So Blakey, how'd it go with Ares?" Yang asked.
"As good as your chances as getting with Brock." Blake said making Yang stop in her tracks.
"Wha-" She sputtered.
"Damn." Brock said under his breath. Frost snickered at the annoying blonde's incoherent sentence and stood on Brock's shoulders before leaping onto Ruby's bed and going in circles like a dog before lying down on the mattress.
"Uh, that's my bed." Ruby said.
"Forget it little rose, whenever Frost lies down like that it's pretty much hers until either she gets bored with it or someone forces her off. I wouldn't try option B since she's extremely territorial." Brock warned.
"Ruby, we'll just did what we did when Rei and Ken took your bed all those months ago." Weiss explained.
"Thanks partner!" Ruby shouted cheerfully and hugged Weiss.
"Yeah yeah yeah. Just try not to hog all the blankets this time." Weiss huffed. Brock raised an eyebrow and chuckled then looked to see Frost throw a pillow at his face and give a cry of triumph before laughing maniacally as she threw another one.
"Frost, stop." He warned.
"No, fuck you." She growled at him. He stopped suddenly and stared at her with a slightly angered and disappointed look.
"What did you say?" He asked quietly. RWBY saw his expression darken and backed away as he slowly put down Lilith and Kyla before marching up to the top bunk and staring into Frost's eyes. She looked at him with an angered look but showed signs of fear but quickly pushed them down and continued to stare at him.
"Run that by me one more time." He seethed.
"Fuck... you. And fuck this whole place." She growled at him. He didn't say anything and just ripped her off the top bunk before engulfing her in a bear hug and held her there, ignoring the damage that her spikes were doing when they punctured his skin.
"Where did you learn that word?!" He questioned.
"From Ares, now let me go!" She struggled.
"You know that you shouldn't say anything you learned from him!" He shouted. Frost grabbed his cheeks then reared her head back and thrust it forward, hitting him right in the nose. He stumbled back and dropped Frost before clutching his nose and kneeling down.
"Oh my Oum! Are you okay?!" Ruby shouted and knelt next to Brock, who just groaned in pain as blood dripped down. Frost turned and bolted towards the door but was stopped when Yang stood in front of it with a stern look on her face.
"Not going to swing kid." She said. Frost reared her head back and sucked in a bunch of air before blowing out a stream of fire at her; Yang dodged the flames then heard a loud crashing noise and saw a large hole in the door and saw that it was burning.
"Crap." She said before grabbing one of Weiss' ice crystals and throwing it at the door, putting the flames out before bolting out and following the small child down the hall.
Ares and Rei were walking through the empty halls at a comfortable pace, they decided to take the long way around ot enjoy each other's company before returning back to the room with Brock, the girls and those... hunters.
"Remember that time when dad fought that pack of trap jaws and gave us one to eat?" Rei said.
"Yeah, mom was so pissed when she found out that was the pack she was following for the past few weeks." Ares laughed.
"Oh yeah. Remember when dad found out she had taken us to the dam to look at the waterfall?" He asked.
"Yeah, he wasn't to happy. He didn't even find out-" Rei was cut off when she felt someone slam into her, she rolled a few times before stopping and looking up to see Frost sprawled out on her stomach.
"Frost? What're you doing out here? I thought you were with Brock?" Ares asked.
"He's mad at me and that blonde girl is chasing after me." She said.
"Why?" He asked with a serious expression.
"I said fuck." She said innocently making Ares give a deadpan expression.
"While I don't advise you saying that until you're older I don't get why he's upset about that." He scoffed.
"I also headbutted him." She added.
"Okay, now he's overreacting. God, I swear every time you all say or do something he doesn't like he throws a fucking hissy fit." He huffed. He then saw Yang stop when she was in front of him and stare at him then at Frost then back at him; she tried to step past him to get to Frost but was stopped when he moved in front of her.
"Big man, I'm not in the mood. She headbutted Brock, blew fire at me, and burned down my door. Move now." Yang ordered.
"I have to deal with this shit everyday Blondie. Brock deals with it too and why do you care about him? You just met him today." He snarled at her.
"You know I can't understand a word you're saying so try and speak like a normal person instead of a monster." She growled at him.
"Too bad bitch. I am a monster." He snarled before hitting her in the face and sending her flying down the hallway, back towards the room. Frost and Rei covered their mouths while Ares just stared down the hall with a pissed off expression. Was Brock serious? He was getting mad over a little potty mouth word and some roughhousing? After this little brawl with the blonde cunt he was going to have a talk with him.
"You two stay here, I'm going to deal with the blonde bitch." He said walking towards Yang's downed form. The dorm room suddenly opened to reveal Brock and the rest come out while Lilith and Kyla just peeked their heads out before yelping and ducking back inside when they saw Ares' pissed off face. Brock walked up to Ares and saw Frost down the hallway before trying to walk past Ares but was stopped when he walked in front of him.
"You're getting pissed off at her over a little cuss word? Are you fucking kidding me?" Ares growled.
"She knows damn well she's not supposed to curse. And what did she do?" Brock asked quietly.
"She cursed and headbutted you. I got the details already. What I'm trying to figure out is why the hell you're getting mad at that? Their going to do it in a couple of years anyways." Ares said.
"They're still children Ares, they're supposed to do what children do and one of those things is not cursing." Brock seethed.
"Oh spare me the what and what they're not supposed to do bullshit Brock. You think our little rules apply at home half the time?" Ares asked.
"Yeah they do apply. That's why they follow them." Brock said.
"They only follow them because Mathias makes them follow them." Ares said.
"Don't bring dad into this Ares." Brock growled.
"Why? You brought my parents up in that little conversation you had with the hunter sluts." Ares snarled making Brock give a slight wince, something he noticed. While the two were having their little conversation, Yang was slowly standing up with red eyes while glaring at Ares with hate in her eyes. He comes back after months of vanishing without a trace, made Ruby cry, and defends that little brat that headbutted Brock? She was going to kill him. She charged at him with a great amount of speed and punched him in the face, sending him down the hall and crashing through a wall, into the rain. Everyone stopped and looked at her angered form and backed away slowly while Rei and Frost glared at her with massive amounts of hate. Brock just stared at the blonde with a worried expression then looked at the hole down the hallway to see a hand slam into the edge then another one slam into it before all of them saw Ares' head slowly creep up. The hood covered his head while shadows masked his face, leaving nothing but a black void and two burning hate filled orange eyes to be seen. Brock wasn't sure what was scarier, Yang's blood red eyes or Ares' murder filled orange eyes, either way he didn't want any of this to happen. The whole hallway was silent with the exception of the everlasting rain that never seemed to end.
"Rei..." Ares' voice seemed to echo throughout the hallway, bouncing off every wall.
"Y-yes?" She asked timidly.
"Take the other three to that doctor." He said.
"G-got it." She stuttered and gestured for the girls to follow her. Once the four were clear of the way, he stood up from the ledge and stared down the hall at the five remaining occupants, clenching his fist.
"Ares, calm down okay? I'll admit I was in the wrong but don't put these huntresses in harms way." Brock said slowly. He was met with silence as Ares walked forward slowly; his tattoos started glowing and Ruby noticed this before backing away slightly.
"Ares, calm down. We won't try anything-" Blake started.
"Can it you little slut!" He barked, shutting her up. He turned to Brock who flexed his fist and hardened them while staring at him.
"Don't do this brother." Brock pleaded.
"You wanted to side with the hunters Brock." Ares laughed sadistically that put Arachne's to shame and crouched on all fours. "THEN YOU'LL DIE LIKE ONE!" He roared at them before charging with a speed that rivaled Michelle, all while snarling like a rabid animal.
AN: Wow, didn't mean for this to take that long and for that I apologize. Anyways, thanks for reading this story and sticking with it if you're already a reader and welcome if it's your first time and you just skipped to the last chapter (We've all done that in a fanfiction). So I wrote this chapter to give a more in depth look at how Ares would react if he was forced to go back to the place he hates so much already. Also it gave a closer look at their parents, but that's for a future time. It's funny how in this fanfiction the main character (Ares) hates the people that reside at Beacon while in my other fanfiction the main character loves them and does anything he can to keep them safe. Don't have much to say other than you all know the golden rule of reviews. Anyways, Happy Halloween and have a good one everyone. Take it easy now.