Ashbel: Hello Fanfiction readers! Ashbel Longhart back for some more RWBY!
Seth: This chapter took longer than the last one. Got an excuse?
Ashbel: Just that one of my many readers asked me to finish up something which I cliffhanged a while ago so I went and did just that. But then I went on a trip with my family which lasted a few days. It's been a string of events, not to mention I had a little trouble making this one, but I got something I can be happy with. Now that everything's out of the way, I can return my focus to this. Cue the disclaimer!
Seth: On it.
(Disclaimer: Ashbel Longhart does not own RWBY, Bleach, any songs, any anime elements, or anything else that may appear familiar to you. They all belong to their respective owners. He just own this story and his OC's)
Ashbel: Alright, seems like most readers enjoyed the chapter which pleases me. I will admit that Seth seems a bit too OP right now but who wouldn't be when you have multiple Semblances and can summon your Inner Grimm? Of course I'll try and dial this down so fights can be a bit more enjoyable. Just so that Seth's future fight with Grimmjow doesn't look one-sided.
Seth: I wouldn't mind, actually.
Ashbel: Yeah, well, people don't like to see one-sided fights most of the time unless it's written in a way that seems enjoyable. Anyway, enough talk. Time for Seth to finally get some answers to his missing memories! How will he react to his past? Let's find out!
"Talking"
'Thoughts'
"Grimmified"
"Kuro"
"Shiro"
"Crescent Rose"
EP 46: The Answers
(Beacon Academy, Dorms)
"I see you made it in time. I'm surprised you showed up at all. I half expected you to not show up, but I'm not complaining. Now then, why don't we get down to business? What do you know about me? Name, birth date, family members, are there any known achievements I've accomplished over the year, do I have any friends? Tell me now!"
…
…
…
"How was that?" Seth asked Ruby and the rest of RWBY.
Ruby and the girls looked down at the piece of paper that had multiple lines crossed out as the only one that was untouched were the exact same words Seth just spoke.
"Um…I think you may have gone a little too demanding at the end." Ruby said.
"Plus you still sound really desperate." Yang pointed out.
"I can't help it!" Seth exclaimed. "This is my past we're talking about here! Something I've been trying to regain for an entire semester!"
"We understand that, Seth. But you won't be getting any answers to your missing memories by doing what you're doing." Weiss said.
"Or what you're going to do." Blake added as she looked down more lines for Seth to say, created by said amnesiac himself.
"Ugh…" Seth groaned as he crouched down and hid his face in his legs.
"I can understand why you're making this such a big deal, but why are going through the trouble of what to say to them?" Crescent asked.
"I have to agree. I mean, you're just going to talk to them, even if the subject is about your past."
'But those guys said something about my father.' Seth thought as he thought back to what Byakuya said.
-I'm sure your father will be looking forward to tomorrow.-
'The only memory I managed to regain of something involving my father was shunpo training. Nothing else.' Seth thought.
"It has been a while since you've had flashes of memories suddenly appear out of nowhere unlike before." Kuro spoke. "There must have not been enough events during your time here to trigger your lost memories."
"That or you no longer care about getting your missing memories back."
'Well, I will admit that getting my missing memories has been the least of my worries on my mind as of late.' Seth thought.
'Um, I'm not sure what you guys are talking about to Seth, but whether or not Seth gets the answers to his missing memories, it doesn't change the fact that his dad might be there.' Ruby thought.
"You know, she has a point." Akoúo̱ said.
'Who has a point?' Seth asked since he couldn't talk with Ruby via through his soul.
"That despite everything, there's still a chance that you'll meet your old man." Ember said.
'Oh my god, you're right!' Seth thought as she suddenly spoke out loud. "AH! What am I going to do!? What do I say!?"
"Uh, are you alright, Seth?" Yang asked, confused as to what the amnesiac was talking about since she and WB were not connected to Seth unlike Ruby was.
"He's fine. Just…a bit worried." Ruby said, trying to cover up for her boyfriend.
"Calm down, Seth. If you continue to be this flustered then how will you confront your father?"
"He's right. I bet he's waiting calmly and patiently like an old man, waiting until the appointed time."
(With the Shinigami Group)
"AH~! What do I do when I see him!? What should I say!? Should I bring the girls!? I still haven't told my wife about this! How should I tell Setsuna about this!?"
The voice filled with dilemma belonging to none other than Takeru was starting to get on his kinds nerves a little as most of them said, as one…
"SHUT UP AND CALM DOWN!"
"But this is my son we're talking about! Someone who I thought was dead! How do I face him!?" Takeru said as he kept panicking.
The others sigh in mental exhaustion as they continued to look at the clock that neared the appointed time. They just wished time moved a bit faster.
(Insert After Dark by Asian Kung-Fu Generation)
(Intrumental) The song suddenly begins as we see the blade of Zangetsu, Yang's Ember Celica, Weiss' Myrtenaster, Blake's Gambol Shroud, and then Ruby's Crescent Rose. And then, the scene changes the lights of the Amity Coliseum being lit up as platforms moved until the stage was set and at the center was Team RWBY(S). And then, the scene changed to the outside, showing off the whole entire coliseum as the title appeared right in front of it.
(Senaka no kage ga nobikiru sono aima ni nigeru) Smoke and steam bursts from down below as crowds of people filled the stands as appearing one by one was Team RWBY(S). Ahead of them were their friends and opponents: Team JNPR, SNNN, RRIY, TRHK, and finally, Grimmjow who was smirking predatorily at Seth.
(Hagare ochita hana ni mo kidzukazu ni tobu) The scene changed again to show Cinder and her team surrounded by flames as Cinder's right eye glowed.
(Machikado amai nioi ryuusen tooku mukou kara) The scene changed to the outside to show a smirking Aizen with a small army of Arrancars before they were replaced with a small army of the White Fang with Adam standing in front of them.
(Dokoka de kitta you na nakigoe) Seth and the others were then seen as thousands of Grimm surrounded them. The team was not intimidated as Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang were surrounded by Aura before Seth held out Zangetsu and entered Bankai.
(Yokaze ga hakobu awai kibou wo nosete) Yang was seen with Chad, fighting against Nnoitra and Telsa. Then we see Weiss with Uryu fighting against Zommari as the Arrancar enters his Resurrección. Then we see Blake protecting Orihime and Nel from White Fang members and Grimm as Orihime held Nel protectively.
(Doko made yukeru ka?) We then see Ruby fighting against both Roman and Neo before the scene changes to show Seth fighting against Grimmjow, their blades meeting as they faced one another.
(Sore wo kobamu you ni sekai wa yurete) A spark appears as the scene shift to show a comatose Amber before everything goes dark as we see in a small container, the half of the Hogyoku.
(Subete wo ubai sara) Aizen suddenly appears and goes to grab the half until Ozpin suddenly appears and holds his Zanpakutō, Chronos, at Aizen's neck, stopping him.
(Yume nara sameta dakedo bokura wa) We then see each battle reaching its climax. Yang was on the floor, her right arming missing as a deadly aura surrounded Chad. Weiss was covered in blood as light surrounded Uryu. Blake was on her knees as Ulquiorra held his sword at her neck.
(Mada nanimo shiteinai) Ruby was then seen as light bursts from her eyes as Seth materialized his Grimm Mask and in response, Grimmjow went into his Resurrección form.
(Susume) Both Seth and Grimmjow roar as Grimmjow unleashes his strongest attack, Desgarrón, and Seth met his challenge by sending a full powered black Getsuga Tenshō before the scene changes to Tensa Zengetsu being stabbed into the ground as laying around it were other weapons before the song ends.
(Some Time Later)
"Okay, time to go." Seth said, having clam down somewhat.
"Where're you all going?" Nora, popping out of her team's room, asked as the rest of JNPR showed up.
"We're going to meet with a couple of people." Ruby said, trying to keep the meeting a secret.
"But what about the finals? Pyrra might get chosen next." Jaune asked as said red head was all geared up and ready to head to the coliseum.
"Yes, but there's also a chance that she might not get chosen today." Weiss said.
"If she does happen to get picked today, we'll try and be there." Blake said.
"But for now, we gotta go. This meeting's…important." Seth said before the team of five took their leave.
"I've never seen them look so serious in a long while." Pyrrha pointed out.
"What do you suppose this meeting is?" Ren asked.
Jaune simply shrugged. "Who knows? But it's their business. Right now, we gotta be there for Pyrrha."
Ren and Nora nodded in agreement while Phyrra smiled thankfully at her team before they all headed up to the coliseum.
(Meeting Spot)
Tension was high in the air as people wisely chose to either step back or avoid the two groups that stood right in front of the statue at the center of academy grounds. The first group, Team RWBY(S), stared down at the other group in front of them, the Shinigami though some of them were missing.
Seth was the first to speak. "I see you guys decided to come after all."
"You won our match fair and square. I do not plan to go back on the agreement we made." Byakuya responded.
"I'm surprised that you're already up after the beating Seth gave you." Yang pointed out as bandage wrappings covered his chest which couldn't be seen because of his clothes and wrappings around his head, making him tie his hair into a ponytail.
"We Shinigami have been known to be fast healers." Ukitake said.
"Bet not as fast as us." Seth chose to not comment to Shiro.
"Some of you seem to be missing." Weiss pointed out as the only ones with Byakuya were Renji, Rukia, and Ukitake. The rest were nowhere to be seen.
"Those with me are the ones closest to the Zero-taichou." Byakuya said. "Or would you rather be addressed by your current name, Seth Aberrant?"
"I'd rather be called Seth, thank you very much." Seth said while trying not to look nervous as he looked left and right. "So…"
"So…what?" Byakuya asked though he had a feeling what Seth was going to say.
"You said something yesterday about my…father." Seth managed to get the word out of his mouth. It felt weird to him as it wasn't a word he had used often.
"Yeah, you said that he might be here. So where is he?" Ruby asked the other girls also wondered where Takeru was.
"Ah, yes, about him…" Ukitake said as he glanced away, looking somewhat embarrassed.
"…" Byakuya and the others remained silent as they glanced away from RWBY(S), almost as if a bit ashamed about something.
The group all raised an eyebrow at the group's strange behavior.
"Why do you guys look like you're embarrassed about something?" Blake asked.
"Ah, well, you see…" Rukia began but got interrupted…
(BGM: Bleach OST 1 #6 Ditty for Daddy)
"OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOH!" By the loudest and mightiest shout ever heard as everyone on campus, and I mean everyone, turned towards the source as said source came from the top of Beacon Academy where Takeru is seen…jumping off the building!?
"GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!"
"MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORNING!"
"MAMORUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!"
Everyone's jaws dropped straight to the ground at the crazy man shouting at the top of his lungs as he was free falling without a care in the world.
'What…?' Seth thought.
"The…?" Shiro continued.
"Fuck…?" All the weapon spirits said at the same time.
Seth then noticed that Takeru was heading straight for him and for some reason, a wave of déjà vu struck him before he did what any man would do…step to the side.
*CRASH!*
With a sound akin to a miniature meteorite hitting the ground, Takeru let out a cry of pain as he crashed face first into the ground. Ruby and the girls had jumped back in surprise while the Shinigami group all facepalmed themselves, looking ashamed.
"Wasn't that the man who's daughters suddenly ran into you?"
'Hey, it is!' Instead of Seth responding, Ruby responded to Kuro.
"You were able to dodge that attack; you are truly my son!" Takeru groaned out as blood dripped down from his head but he didn't seem to notice one bit.
"What the hell, old man! What is wrong with you!?" Seth exclaimed loudly until he realized what Takeru said. "Wait, you were trying to attack me!?"
"But of course!" In an instant, Takeru got back up and wiped all the blood away. "A man must always stay vigilant, not matter what! You never know when you might be surprised attacked! Now, prepare yourself!"
With a mighty battle cry, Takeru threw a punch at Seth who raised an arm to block the attack before throwing his own punch, striking Takeru across the cheek and sending the man flying while spinning like a top and crashing into one of the lamp posts.
(BGM End)
"That was a nice…punch!" Takeru groaned as he struggled to raise a thumb up. "Your skills haven't rusted…one bit…my son!"
"What! The! Hell!?" Seth shouted angrily. "Why do you always do this, old man!?" Seth then stopped and blinked at what he said. "Wait, always?"
*ZZZZZ!*
"Gh!" Seth gritted his teeth as a spark of pain shot through his head, making him kneel down and grab his head.
"Seth!" Ruby and the girls immediately went to the amnesiac's side, asking what was wrong but Seth didn't hear them as for the first time in a long time, memories were flowing through his head.
(Flashback)
"I'm home!" A young, thirteen year old Seth called out as he entered his home…
"You're late, young man!" Only to be roundhouse kicked right in the face by none other than Takeru as Seth landed on his back while Takeru landed on his feet. "You know dinner time is always 7 'o clock every night!"
"Damn you! Is that how you greet your son after a long day of school!?" Young Seth shouted as he threw his bag before he and Takeru started throwing punches that soon escalated to defy the very laws of physics…somehow.
There was a flash as a different memory played this time. Seth is seen sleeping in bed when all of a sudden…
"GOOD MORNING MAMORU!"
"DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
Young Seth pushed Takeru down to the ground. "Dammit, old man! Is that how you greet your son in the morning!?"
"Of course! A man must always stay vigilant! And also, your grip is weak!" Takeru said as he reversed the positions between him and Seth.
Another flash happens to show a different memory. Seth, now fourteen, is seen leaving the house way early in the morning when suddenly…
"GOOD MORNING MAMORU!"
Seth didn't even blink as he stepped tot eh side to allow Takeru to crash into the ground. Not even looking to see if his father was okay, Seth started his walk as Takeru groaned.
"That was a nice dodge…! I have…nothing left…to teach you…Blegh!"
(Flashback End)
Once the flashes of memories faded and settled in his mind, the pain in Seth's head slowly faded as well.
"Are you okay?" Looking up, Seth was met with the face of Takeru who looked worriedly at Seth.
Seth said nothing at first as he got up to his feet. He then faced Takeru, noticing the man stood about a head taller than him. Had the man always been that tall? He never noticed but he was getting off topic. Seth took a deep breath in before letting it out. Once he was done with that, Seth raised his arm…and punched Takeru right in the face!
"GUH!?" Takeru grunts in pain and surprise as Seth's punch pushed him to the ground where his head was slightly embedded.
"That's what you get for attacking me all the time!" Seth exclaimed as RWBY all looked at him in surprise. "God, could you be any more embarrassing?"
"You…" Takeru instantly recovered from Seth's punch and removed his head from the ground, looking up at Seth in surprise. "You…remember?"
"Bits and pieces, really." Seth said as he scratched his cheek. "What I do know now is…you're my father, right?"
Takeru could only stare wide eyed before a simple, small smile appeared on his face. He then straightened up, got up to his feet and looked at Seth who stared back at him. Silence surrounded the two as both RWBY and the Shinigami group kept their distance to allow the two a moment.
The silence was then broken when Takeru placed his hands on Seth's shoulders, making the amnesiac tense up as he wondered what eh man was going to do. He certainly didn't expect the man to pull him into a hug!
"Eh?" Was all Seth could say as he didn't know whether to return the hug or not.
"…You're alive…" Takeru muttered as he tears appeared in his eyes. "I…I never thought that you were actually…I thought we lost you, that you…" Takeru kept fumbling up his words as he tried to say something to his son who he hasn't seen in years. But he was nowhere no close to forming proper sentences.
As for Seth, he felt weird. He's been hugged before so he was no stranger. When he hugged Ruby, he felt great happiness well up inside of him and it made his heart race a little, resulting in a blush. The hug he was having now felt similar to how he hugs his friends, yet different. It was strange. It felt like he was…home.
"I…" Seth began, making Takeru stop talking and listened. "I'm sure you've heard…about my condition. And I know what I just said earlier but…are you really my father? My…dad?"
Takeru removed himself from Seth and simply looked at him. That's when Seth saw it, the resemblance between them.
"Yes." Takeru said, speaking strong and firm. "I am your father."
A flood of unknown emotions flowed through Seth and struck him like a tsunami. He didn't know how to feel. Should he feel happy that he finally got to meet his father? Of course he should, but without his memories, the man felt more like a stranger to him than someone he knew. Yet that didn't change the fact that the confirmation brought a swirl of emotions over Seth that he didn't notice tears falling down his cheek.
"Seth…" Said amnesiac turned to his girlfriend where she wiped away the tears on him, letting him see the tears as he hurriedly wiped them away.
"How you feeling, King?"
'I'm…not sure what to feel.' Seth thought as he wiped away the last of his tears.
"No doubt you have a lot of questions. And we'll answer them for you." Ukitake stepped in and spoke for Takeru before looking around. "But how about we go someplace more prevent?"
"S-Sure…" Seth nodded before turning to the girls. "You girls got any idea where we could talk?"
"Well…" Ruby began as all four of them hummed in thought.
(Academy Dorms)
"I asked you girls for help so why did you all vote for the dorms, specifically our room?" Seth asked, the girls, and the Shinigami group all walked through the halls of the dorms.
"I wanted to go to that café we went to the other day, but your girlfriend here argued that our dorm room would be the best place to have a private conversation." Weiss said as she reluctantly agreed with Ruby's suggestion.
Unlike most of Beacon campus which had security cameras placed in the most unexpected places, the dorms were the only place with no security cameras, letting students have their privacy as the dorms were, after all, co-ed. If there was any place to have a private talk without being watched, it was the dorms.
"And I'm right." Ruby said as she was walking next to Seth. "Plus, you showed your sister our room and Yang and I have shown our uncle our room. So I thought why not show Seth's dad our room?"
"I don't know about this…" Seth said, feeling uneasy.
"It'll be fine." Yang assured Seth, slapping his back which made the amnesiac tip over a little. Whatever training Yang did really increased her strength.
"Besides," Yang began as she pointed behind the group where Takeru had excited eyes so big, they were sparkling. "I think your old man is excited to see the place his son has been staying."
"I'm still pretty mad about the fact that you guys already knew about him." Seth said, sending a small glare to WBY.
"The news would have shocked you. We didn't want to bring you any sudden surprises." Blake said as she glanced back to Takeru. "Plus, I could tell that he was pretty nervous himself when he was talking to you. I guess you weren't the only one who was nervous about the meeting."
"Sure didn't seem like it." Seth said, talking about the attempted attack on him before he and the girls stopped, having arrived. "Well, here it is."
"So this is your room." Takeru said as his expression showed a cross between excitement and nervousness.
"Yep." Seth said, popping the 'p' as he didn't know what else to say. "Do you, uh…want to come in?"
"Y-Yes!" Takeru said.
'So awkward.' Everyone else thought as they watched the father and son.
Still nervous, Seth turned and reached for the doorknob…
"So this is the room the Zero-taichou's been staying in?"
"Is this some kind of doll? Looks like a weird lion."
When Seth stopped, hearing unknown voices inside the room. This put him and everyone else on high alert as they all placed a hand on their weapons. Once ready, Seth raised his leg and kicked down the door he rushed inside with Takeru following close behind.
"Not this time, robbers!" Both Seth and Takeru said at the same time as they rushed in, swords drawn at…
"Huh?" Takru blinked in surprise and confusion. "Toshiro? Rangiku? Ikkaku? Yumichika?"
"T-Takeru-sama!?"
Everyone else soon came into the room to see that it was indeed Toshiro and the other Shinigami's. Rangiku is seen looking through Blake's shelf of books, Ikkaku and Yumichika is seen messing with some of Weiss' Dust vials, and Toshiro is seen holding up Ruby's Kon plushy.
"Uh…hi?" Rangiku greeted nervously.
"What are you all doing in our room?" Weiss asked while snatching a vial from Ikkaku's hands.
"And looking at our stuff?" Blake added as she walked up and pushed Rangiku away from her books.
"Well, you see…" Rangiku began.
"Wait a minute, is this what you were all doing when you said you were, 'busy today'?" Renji asked. "So the whole thing about us being the closest to Mamoru was nonsense?"
"Yes." Toshiro said, getting a look of betrayal from his lieutenant. "But the part about you being closets to the zero-taichou was not a lie."
"Really? Then why are you holding that plushy that's obviously not yours?" Rukia asked as Ruby went and snatched her plushy back from the short, white haired boy.
Toshiro flinched before saying, "I tried to stop my lieutenant. But she then said some convincing words that dragged me along." He said those last parts with a look of shame.
"And that would be?" Ukitake asked.
"'Don't you want to see the kind of stuff the Zero-taichou has since living here,' is what she said." Ikkaku said as he held up Seth's bag.
"Oi! Who said you could touch my stuff!?" Seth said as he took back his bag before noticing looks from Renji and Rukia. "Are you thinking about joining them?"
"W-What! Of course not!" Rukia said with a small blush on her face.
"Your eyes say otherwise." Seth said before he pointed to the four intruders. "All of you, get out. Especially you." He said that last part to Rangiku.
"What!? What did I do?"
"You're the one who suggested to barge into my team's room! Now get out!" Seth demanded.
Rangiku pouted sadly before her face lit up, an idea popping up in her head before she went and loosened up her robes to expose a bit more of her bigger than average breasts.
"What the hell are you doing!?" Seth exclaimed as Renji noticeably blushed a little, getting a slap on the head from Ruki while the other males simply looked away or looked indifferent. "Don't think you can change my mind by loosening your robes!"
Seeing that move number one failed, Rangiku went for move number two which was undoing her sash, allowing her hakama pants to fall down a little. At this did Seth closed his eyes and covered them with his hands for extra measure.
"You won't change my mind even if you were to go nude! Seduction will not work on me! My will is that of steel!" Seth declared as he did not once try and peak, proving his point.
"Phooy…" Rangiku pointed again as she straightened her clothes, seeing her attempt to 'persuade' Seth failed.
"To not fall for Rangiku's seduction methods, he truly is the Zero-taichou that we all know." Yumichika commented.
As if god and Oum had heard the Shinigami and wanted to prove him wrong…
"Hey, Seth! Check out Ruby in her new swimsuit!"
In an instant, Seth lowered his hands, reopened his eyes, and turned faster than anyone could blink to see…a blushing Ruby who was still dressed the same way as Yang had a troll smile on her face. Realizing what he just did, Seth's face soon turned crimson.
"What's wrong, Seth? You look a little disappointed?" Yang asked, her troll smile still on.
"I…! You…! Grrr…!" Seth made a bunch of hand motions that suggested that the amnesiac wanted to strangle the blond brawler before he glanced over to the blushing Ruby and quickly turned away, embarrassed.
"As you can see people, seduction will not work on Seth for he is dedicated to my sister here." Yang said as she patted her sister's back.
"Yang~!" Ruby groaned, mad and embarrassed at her sister for putting her on the spot when suddenly, Takeru walked up to her.
"Your name is Ruby, correct?" Takeru asked, his face serious.
"Um, yeah. That's me." Ruby said before jumping up a little when Takeru placed his hands on her shoulder.
Then, with his face still serious, he said, "You have my permission to marry my son in the future."
…
…
…
"HUH!?" Ruby's face had then reached the peak of redness as one could see steam exploding out of her.
"DAD!" Seth exclaimed, also red faced.
"Well, that escalated quickly."
'Shut it, Shiro!'
"At least Ruby received your father's blessings."
'Shut it, Kuro!'
"Now you just need to get Ruby's father's blessing and you're good." Crescent said.
'Shut it, Crescent!' Both Seth and Ruby thought at the same time.
"Don't worry, son! It's perfectly normal to want to see the girl you love in a swimsuit! I even have pictures of your mother in different kinds of swimsuits, both cute and sexy kinds! And much more!" Takeru said as he held up his Scroll.
"Shut up, dad!" Seth exclaimed, his face getting redder by the minute, if that was even possible.
"Well, she certainly made faster progress than you, Rukia." Renji said only to get slapped by said girl.
"Shut up, Renji!" Rukia exclaimed.
"How did things end up like this?" Weiss asked. One moment things were serious and then the next, everything's comedic.
"I don't know, but I'm not complaining." Yang said as she laughed while Blake simply sighed.
After about a good couple of minutes or so, everyone finally calmed down as it was decided to let the rest of the Shinigami stay so they can say their piece about Seth's past.
"Well, now that that's out of the way," Ukitake began as he and everyone he taken a seat somewhere around the room. "Where shall we begin?"
The was the big question for Seth: Where to begin? What should he even ask?
"How about what your real name is? I heard your dad and those guys call you Mamoru from time to time." Ember suggested.
'Well, it's a start.' Seth thought as he did just that.
"What your name is?" Ukitake repeated, tilting his head a little in confusion.
"Well, I mean, I've always been going by the name 'Seth Aberrant' because I don't know my real name." Seth asked a bit nervously.
"I can answer that for you!" Takeru said as he spoke proudly, "Your name is Mamoru, Mamoru Go."
"Mamoru…Go…" Seth said, testing the name in his mouth and feeling a sense of nostalgia from the name.
"So Mamoru's your real name…" Ruby said as she looked at Seth. "Hmm…I like Seth better."
"You're the one who gave me that name." Seth said, feeling Ruby's choice was a bit biased.
"Well yeah, but we've all been calling you that since the first day we've met." Ruby said as she gestured to the team.
"She's right. It'll feel weird if we start calling you by a different name." Yang said.
"Then I guess I'll stick with that." Seth said. "Having been called 'Seth' for a while has got it stuck with me."
"So should we also call you 'Seth'?" Ikkaku asked.
"I'd like that, but you guys call me by my real name. I just need some time to get used to it." Seth said as he thought of what next to ask.
"How about asking about your family?" Crocea suggested. "You've only met this man and his daughters so why not ask if you have any more family members?"
"Hm, now that I think about it, wouldn't those two girls technically be your sisters?" Magnhild pointed out.
'Oh my god, you're right!' Seth thought as the realization that he was, in fact, a big brother! Suddenly, he felt his shoulders get a bit heavier.
"What's wrong? You've gone quiet." Toshiro pointed out.
Snapping out of his thoughts, Seth spoke quickly. "Um, well…d-dad?" Seth bit his lip at how he stuttered with the last word. He's never used the word 'dad' before so saying it now felt like a new experience.
"Yes?" Takeru said.
"Those two girls that were with you when we met that day, they're your daughters." Seth did not ask, but stated.
"That's right, I said so myself." Takeru said, seeing where Seth was going with this.
"Then, that makes them…"
"You're little sisters, Yuki Go and Sakura Go." Takeru said with a smile as he took out his Scroll and opened it up to show Seth and the others a picture of what appeared to be a younger him smiling next to Takeru and his wife, Setsuna, who held two baby twins in her arms.
"Well would you look at that, you're an older brother." Yang said, patting Seth's back until she saw the stunned expression on his face. "Hey, you alright?"
"Y-Yeah, just…trying to process all this." Seth said as he let out a breath he had been holding as he continued to look at the picture.
"They miss you, you know." Takeru said as he swiped the screen to show a different picture of Seth, Takeru, and Setsuna celebrating Yuki's and Sakura's birthday as said girls were blowing out the candles of a cake big enough for the whole family. "You were a good brother them."
Seth licked his lips, feeling them to be a bit dry, before Yang tapped his shoulders to get his attention.
"Hey, as one older sibling to another, let me give you a piece of advice." Yang said as Seth listened closely. "As older siblings, it's our job to protect those that come after us. Always remember that, got it?"
Seth stared at Yang in a bit of amazement before he nodded firmly at her words.
He then turns back to Takeru and asks, "So, what's my mom like?" He then points to Setsuna in the photo. "That is her, right?"
"That she is." Takeru said, smiling a smile that was both goofy and loving, as if he was remembering sweet memories which he probably was. He swiped to screen of his Scroll a few times to bring up a photo depicting her smiling.
"This is my wife and your mother, Setsuna Yamamoto Go." Takeru said as he smiled happily at the picture.
"She's beautiful…" Ruby complimented.
"That she is!" Takeru said as he laughed proudly. "Some say I was insane for trying to date the Head-Captain's daughter yet I faced the risks and here I am, a proud married man with three wonderful kids!"
"Head-Captain?" Seth repeated in confusion before he winced, getting a flash in his mind that showed what appeared to be an old man.
"Are you okay?" Ruby asked, worried.
"I'm fine." Seth assured his girlfriend before turning back to his father. "So what's this about a Head-Captain?"
Takeru, while looked worriedly at his son, explained. "Before we got married, your mom was known as Setsuna Yamamoto: the granddaughter of Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto, our Head-Captain who is basically our leader and is the oldest Shinigami to ever live."
"How old is he if he's supposedly the oldest Shingami to ever live?" Yang asked.
"Would you believe us if we said he's over a 100 years old?" Toshiro said, getting surprised looks from RWBY(S).
"Over a 100 years old!?" They all exclaimed in surprise when Seth suddenly winced again and grabbed his head.
*ZZZZZZ!*
They were coming to him again, more memories.
(Flashback)
It was a beautiful spring day as the cherry blossom trees swayed against the gentle winds that blew. At a house of eastern design and built to show off important status, one old man was sitting by his lonesome, enjoying a nice cup of tea as he looked at the beautiful sight that was his garden. All was peaceful and quiet…until the voice of a young boy changed all that.
"Grandpa!"
The old man that was none other than Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto, made no attempt to move as a weight suddenly flung itself onto his back. His once serious and stern looks were replaced by a relaxed one which was accompanied by a small smile that would not be out of place on an old man like him as he turned to see who was on his back despite already knowing who it was.
"Hi." A young 4 year old Seth or rather Mamoru as he was called back then smiled like the child he was as he grabbed onto Yamamoto's haori to keep himself from falling off the old man.
"Well, if it isn't little Mamoru?" Yamamoto said, setting down his tea before reaching behind him to grab the boy off of him. "If you're here, then I can guess your parents are here as well."
"That's right." A female voice spoke up. Yamamoto turned to see the sight of his daughter, Setsuna, along with her husband, Takeru.
"Ah, Setsuna, my little girl." Yamamoto smiled before frowning a little when he turned to Takeru. "Takeru…"
"Hey, father-in-law. I see you're finally deciding to call me by my first name instead of calling me 'boy'." Takeru said as he and Setsuna sat down next to him. "Have I finally grown on you?"
"It would be a lie to say you haven't." Yamamoto said as he set Mamoru down next to Setsuna. "The years of you treating my daughter with the upmost respect and care have helped, I will admit. You've kept your promise to take care of my precious daughter."
"Of course! A man never goes back on his word!" Takeru said as he pounded his chest and Yamamoto nodded in agreement.
"Hey, hey! Guess what!" Mamoru spoke up. "Last night, I had a dream about this man in black! I think he may have been my Zanpakutō spirit!"
"Really now?" Yamamoto raised an eyebrow at this before looking up at his daughter for confirmation.
"He's been having this dream about a man in black for about a week now. The signs match. It's definitely his Zanpakutō spirit trying to communicate with him." Setsuna said as she picked up her son, getting a laugh out of him as she sat him down on her lap.
"When I grow up, I'm gonna be a great and powerful Shinigami like mom, dad, and you, grandpa! And then I'll work hard to keep Soul Society safe!" Mamoru declared.
"Is that so?" Yamamoto laughed a little as he placed a hand on the boy's head and messed with his hair a little, getting a laugh from the kid. "Then I look forward to you growing up. Who knows? You may even be a Captain once day?"
"I'll definitely become a Captain so I can help you keep Soul Society safe!"
(Flashback End)
Once the flashback had ended did Seth shake his head, slightly dizzy.
"Seth, are you alright?" Ruby asked, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"I'm fine, just seeing more memories again." Seth said as he let go of his head.
"You sure you're okay? We can do this another time, if you'd like." Ukitake said, looking worried for the boy as well as others.
"No, I'm fine." Seth assured the man. "I want to know and remember as much of my past as possible."
"But, Seth…" Ruby spoke up, worried for the boy she loved for she and everyone can see that with each new information came more memories that were taking a toll on the amnesiac.
"I'll stop if it gets too much for me to handle, I promise." Seth said before asking, "What else can you tell me about…mom?" Again, another word he was not used to saying.
"Are you sure you're fine?" Takeru asked, getting a nod from the boy before continuing, albeit a little reluctant. "Well, despite being the daughter of the great Head-Captain, she's not related to him by blood. She's actually adopted."
"Adopted?" Blake repeated, she and the others raising an eyebrow at that info.
"She just showed up at the Soul Society one day, unconscious and covered in injuries." Toshiro explained.
"Captain Yamamoto, who happens to be my master, found her when he and I along with a fellow friend were doing some training for old time's sake." Ukitake took over the explanation. "We took her in and patched her up. She slept for a good week before she finally regained consciousness. Captain Yamamoto was the one she first saw when she awoke and combined with how gentle he treated her, she stuck with him, acting nervous around others and sticking close to him."
"Because of her time constantly staying close to the Head-Captain, he grew fond of her and eventually decided to adopt her." Byakuya added.
"Your mother and I then first met at the Academy we both were enrolled at and because of her reputation of being the daughter of the Head-Captain, not a lot of people approached her." Takeru said. "In fact, I was the first guy she ever spoke to at the Academy. We kicked it off, so to speak, and eventually grew to appreciate each other's company until we realized that we were in love with one another. The rest, as they say, is history."
"Wow…" Seth said, amazed at the backstory of his mother and wanted to learn more. "What is she like?"
"She's the best! You won't find a greater woman than her!" Takeru declared.
"I'd like to challenge that." Seth said as he interlocked fingers with Ruby.
And of course, Ruby blushed because of this. "S-Seth!"
Takeru smiled at this, happy for his son, before speaking. "When I first met her, she was a shy girl who only hung out with girls that were brave enough to speak to her, not caring if she was the daughter of the great Head-Captain. Once I met her and got to know her better, she was kind, caring, and easily embarrassed, something we both had in common back when I was younger. But despite her shyness, she was not afraid to stand up and fight for her friends and what she believed in. It's that part of her that made me fall in love with her." Takeru smiled, reminiscing about the good old days. "She's still like that too, but better now. You were quite attached to her too."
"A momma's boy, eh?" Yang looked at Seth with a smile that he wanted to punch off.
*ZZZZZZZZZZ!*
Too bad he would never get the chance as more memories started to come to him.
(Flashback)
*THWACK-THWACK-THWACK!*
"Gh!" Young Mamoru of age 10 gritted his teeth as he guarded against his opponent's shinai with his own as protective kendo gear covered the both of them. Off to the side, small crowds of people watched and cheered for either side of the match,
'So…strong! I'm so…exhausted that I can…barely keep up!' Mamoru thought as he was breathing heavily behind his protective helmet.
"GO MAMORU!" Suddenly, a loud voice, louder than anyone suddenly shouted over the entire crowd. Looking, Mamoru saw his family: his father, mother, and his younger twin, two year old sisters. The one who had yelled was his mom and she soon shouted again.
"YOU CAN DO IT SON!" Setsuna shouted at the top of her lungs.
Somehow, his mother's words of encouragement seemed to empower Mamoru as he gained his second wind and in an instant, he disarmed his opponent and struck his head with a good, loud 'Thwack!'
"Stop!" The referee said as both boys pulled away and he waved his hand at Mamoru. "Winner, Mamoru Go!"
As the crowd clapped and cheered, Mamoru took off his helmet before turning his entire attention to his family who were cheering over the crowd. But his focus was mostly on his mother who smiled proudly at him. And in return, Mamoru showed off the brightest smile anyone has ever seen that was both happy and a bit silly.
(Flashback End)
"Seth? Seth? Are you okay?" Once the memories stopped coming, Ruby's voice was the first thing Seth took notice.
"I-I'm fine." Seth said.
"I'm not so sure about that." Blake said as Seth was breathing a bit quickly. He looked exhausted.
"Maybe we should continue this some other time?" Weiss suggested.
"Yeah, I have to agree with Weiss-cream here." Yang said.
"No! I'm fine!" Seth insisted.
"No," Takeru said, speaking in a stern voice that surprised Seth and the girls. "I agree with your friends. Getting all these memories back so soon in just one day is taking a toll on your mind. You need time to process all this."
"But-!"
"We can tell you more some other time." Ukitake said. "We won't be going anywhere as long as the Festival is on so you don't have to worry."
Seth still wanted to protests when Kuro spoke up.
"Seth, he's right. You need time to process all these new memories coming back to you. They won't be leaving as long as the Festival is still going on so you can pick up where you left off next time."
"…okay." Seth sighed reluctantly.
"Then it's time we leave." Byakuya said as he and the rest of the Shinigami group got up and left through the door.
Seth and the girls watched the group leave but just as Takeru was about to go through the door, Seth spoke up.
"W-Wait!"
"Hm?" Takeru stopped and turned to the amnesiac.
"U-Um…" Seth had an embarrassed blush on his face as he struggling to get the words out.
"What is it?" Takeru asked.
"W-Well…" Seth scratched his cheek as he looked away nervously before finally asking, "Wh-What about…you?"
"Huh?"
"I mean, you've told me a lot about mom and grandpa, but what about…you?" Seth asked. He still didn't have every memory of his father so he wanted to know what he's like before he left.
"I'm pretty sure you already know he's an idiot." Rukia commented from behind.
"Gh!" Takeru flinched as an imaginary arrow pierced his heart. That had hurt.
"Well, yeah, I know that." Seth said. "But I still don't know you very well."
Takeru, recovering from the arrow, blinked at Seth before he too looked away, blushing. "Well, I mean, I guess I'm alright? I've been told how much of an idiot I can be from time to time. Setsuna says I'm as stubborn as I am kind and I can sometimes be temperamental though people say I've gotten better at controlling my emotions better. So I guess that's one good thing about me?"
"I'm starting to see how this man is your father now." Myrtenaster said.
"And I know I can sometimes be weird when I attack you and all but that's because I want you to be a better man than I am who can protect his family." Takeru said.
"Wait, you don't think you can protect your own family?" Yang asked.
"I thought my son here was dead for years." Takeru said, gesturing to Seth. "I gave up the search for him two years ago. If I had known he was alive, I would have searched harder."
"Dad, you couldn't have known." Seth said.
"Plus, there are a lot of people I failed to protect." Takeru continued as he seemed to be on the verge of trailing on.
"I've failed to protect people too!" Seth spoke up louder, getting Takeru to stop.
"What?"
"I've…also failed to protect some people." Seth said, glancing back to Ruby who knew what he meant and instinctively touched Scarlet's Heart Jewel."
Takeru saw this but didn't ask. He had heard bits about the Blank Incident and he planned to ask the others more details later tonight after seeing this.
"So…don't doubt yourself." Seth said, looking back at Takeru. "You may not be the best dad…but you're not the worst."
"…Thanks, Mamoru." Takeru said, using Seth's real name as he placed a hand on his shoulder, getting a smile which he returned. After sharing smiles did Takeru and the group finally take their leave.
"He's a good man albeit a bit weird." Strom commented.
"Makes you wonder how his mom is." Mors said.
Once everyone had finally left, Seth let out a tired sigh when his felt his coat getting tugged. Looking, he saw Ruby with a nervous expression.
"What is it?" Seth asked.
"Um…" Ruby fidgeted a little as she gathered up her courage to say, "About earlier…do you want to see me in a swimsuit?"
"Uh…" At this did Seth go red. He looked away, embarrassed and Ruby thought he wouldn't answer when he did answers seconds later.
"Maybe…?"
"Maybe?" Ruby tilted her head in confusion, feeling like Seth just answered her question with another question.
"No! Not maybe! Um…" Seth scratched his head as he struggled to get his words out before he finally managed to force them out…somewhat. "I…I would like to…see that someday."
At that did Ruby go red again and started to fidget again as she found the floor interesting while Seth looked away and covered his mouth to hide some of his blushing face while cursing his dad.
'Dammit, dad! This is all your fault! You and Yang's!'
"Hey," Ruby spoke up again. "After the tournament is over…how we all go to the beach?"
Seth looked at Ruby in surprise before thoughts of the beach and what he would see entered in his mind.
"Yes! Let's!" So caught up in his thoughts that Seth spoke without thinking before reining in his feelings. "Uh, I mean…that sounds nice. Let's do that."
"Heh, nice save."
'Shut it.' Seth thought.
"What's this about the beach?" Yang asked.
"I've decided that we should all go to the beach once the tournament is over." Ruby said.
"Oh? Do you want to show off your sexy side to Seth that badly?" Yang asked with a teasing smile.
"I-It's not like that!"
"Really?" Weiss looked at Ruby in disbelief.
"Really!"
"I wonder how Pyrrrha's match went?" Blake suddenly spoke up, changing the topic.
"Oh yeah, Jaune did text us that she had a match today." Seth said, the leader of JNPR having texted them earlier that the red headed Spartan had been picked today.
(Ozpin's Office)
Through the window of the office, the setting sun casted an orange light all over the room as in said room were Ozpin, sitting at his desk, Qrow who was leaning against the wall, and finally, sitting right across from Ozpin…
"Thank you for taking the time to come here today, Miss Nikos." Ozpin said as the red headed Spartan sat across from him.
"Oh it was no trouble, really." Pyrrha said. "I was just surprised that you wanted to talk to me. Your call was a bit sudden."
"I'm sorry if my call was so sudden." Ozpin apologized. "And may I say congratulations for winning your match today. Your performance was exemplary. It comes to no surprise why you were chosen to represent your team in the final rounds."
"Thank you, professor." Pyrrha said. "But I can't take all the credit. It's only thanks to my teammatyyes that I made it this far."
"Personally, I think it's the other way around." Qrow spoke up.
Pyrrha turned around to face the man, having never met him before.
"I'm sorry, but I don't believe we've been introduced."
"Name's Qrow." And that was all he said.
"Qrow here is a trusted college of mine." Ozpin said.
"I see." Pyrrha said before she turned back to the headmaster. "Professor, if you don't mind me asking, why have you called me here?"
Ozpin gave her a look that made her nervous before the man asked an unexpected question.
"Miss Nikos, tell me. What is your favorite fairy tale?"
(Insert Believe by Kalafina)
(Instrumental) The song starts as we see Seth's Grimm Mask on the ground. The camera moves closer and closer towards the mask until it seems to go through the eye holes and everything goes dark.
(Mada nani mo shiranai futari data) The time is night as we see Seth and Ruby sitting side by side. Ruby was laying her head on Seth's shoulder as the two stared up into the sky, looking at the stars and the shattered moon of Remnant.
(Hidarite de hakanaku kyomu wo masagutta) The scene changes to Uryu and Weiss who were enjoying cups of tea, small smiles adorning their faces as they simply enjoyed each other's presence as the morning light rose from the window.
(Wazuka na kattou ga kimi no te wo shibatte) The scene changes to Sado and Yang who were currently sparing. Flames surrounded Yang as smiled, throwing a punch at Sado who caught the punch with a small smirk as the sun rose at noon.
(Mirai no sugata wo azamuku) The sun began to set as sitting outside under a tree was Blake reading a book as usual.
(Mamoru koto sae shiranai kedo) The scene changes to Seth who is standing alone in the stadium, eyes closed as he was deep in thought.
(Itsuwari no omoi demo kamawanai) Seth then opens his eyes before he grabs Zangetsu, draws him out, and black Aura enveloped him before dispersing to reveal his Bankai state.
(Ikite mitai) Seth then turns around as he was in fact not alone. Across from him was Grimmjow who was smirking predatorily at him with his sword in hand.
(Jibun wo) In an instant, the both of them charged at one another and when their swords clashed, a bright light blinded everything.
(Megurikuru toki no naka de deatta) The scene changes to show the stadium filled with people cheering as they all watched the exciting battle of Seth and Ruby vs. Renji and Rukia.
(Kimi to ita boku wo shinjiteiru) The scene changes as a different battle was being fought, this one being Seth charging through the million petals of Senbonzakura as Seth set his eyes on his opponent, Byakuya.
(Kono yume ga yasashiku hateru made) The scene changes again to Seth vs. Grimmjow. They were both in a desert as Seth with his Grimm Mask on swung Tensa Zangetsu covered in black Aura while Grimmjow in Resurrección struck back by throwing a claw hand at him.
(Kirihirake aoi hibi wo) Ruby is seen running towards the arena as she smiles when she sees a bloody, but an alright Seth who smiles when he sees her. Ruby jumps towards him, arms thrown out as Seth opens his arms and catches her in a hug.
(Fight your fate) The last scene shows Crescent Rose stabbed into the ground as Ruby's cloak was tied to it and blew in the wind while Zangetsu was stabbed into the ground next to the scythe as the blade was stabbed through Seth's Grimm Mask.
Ashbel: And…done! Wow, that went a bit better than I thought.
Seth: Oh my god, that was nerve wracking…
Ashbel: Walk it off, Seth. You got to meet your dad for the first time in forever. You should be happy!
Seth: With how he acted, I'm not so sure.
Ashbel: Suit yourself. Anyway, sorry this took so long to do. Sadly while I was away, I didn't have time to do another chapter. I'll try and get the next chapter up but how fast I'll do it remains to be seen. I'll be honest, the reason this took so long the first time was because I wasn't that motivated until I got to the second part. Anyway, this has been Ashbel Longhart here, signing out. Till next time/chapter.
