"I don't like these," Gray said with a sigh as he held up a small round shield and a hand ax. Gray was once again standing in the clearing behind Raven's tent. The wolf Faunus had been sparing with Neo, well attacking while Neo was ordered to parry instead of dodge. "It just feels so slow, so awkward to use," Gray said as he did a few practice swings.
Raven, who was sitting on one of the logs, sighed as she looked at Gray. "You don't like those. You don't like the sword, the mace, or even the spear. What do you like?" Raven asked. Raven had been training Gray for close to a month now. While he excelled in his agility, semblance, and physical training, he still couldn't pick a weapon to use. "Just pick a weapon already."
Gray let out his own sigh as he tossed the weapons away. "Can't I just use my hands? I told you I'm not looking for fair fights. I know I can't win with actual skills and sword techniques. No, I need to fight dirty. Tricks and tactics are what I need. I don't need an actual fighting style. All I need is to know how to kill the person I'm after." Gray said. He quickly threw a punch at Neo, hoping to catch her off guard, but the short girl smacked his hand away and lightly smacked his hip with her parasol.
"I thought you said you wanted me to train you on how to be an assassin? You need a weapon. A blade. Those noodle arms of yours are nowhere near strong enough to kill anyone barehanded."
"Pfft~ you love these noodle arms," Gray mumbled. "What about a hidden blade," Gray said as he tapped his chin in thought.
"A hidden blade? What do you mean? A small dagger in your back pocket or something?" Raven asked.
"No, no, like… Hold still, Neo." Gray said as he walked up and around the short girl. He brushed her hair aside to expose her neck. "Just imagine Neo here is the person I want to kill. I just walk up to her, and bam!" He shouted as he pressed his hand to the back of Neo's head. In Gray's mind, he imagined the signature weapon of the popular assassin games from his old world. "Just pretend I was wearing a gauntlet, and like a blade shot out from under my wrist and pierced through Neo's neck. A perfect assassin weapon." Gray said with a smile.
Raven just looked at him, unimpressed. "Right… And what do you do when your target steps away from you and doesn't let you get close enough or stand behind them?"
Gray stared at his hand as he tried to imagine the weapon he was describing. "Well, it would basically be a sword on my wrist, and I could fight with that? I could also have guns attached? Oh, or maybe a flame thrower, or like a small grenade launcher?" Gray started listing off possible ideas. He knew weapons in the RWBY world were all complex and always had a gun, but he just couldn't figure out what kind of weapon he wanted. But the more he talked, the more he added, and the more Raven wanted to smack him.
"That's enough." She said as she stood up. "You two come with me." Raven started walking away, forcing Neo and Gray to follow.
~R~W~R~M~
Gray looked around as he and Neo followed Raven through the camp. The show didn't do the camp justice. It was far larger in person. There were more people too, but Gray spoke only to Neo, Raven, and sometimes Vernal. The other bandits in the camp gave Gray looks, but no one approached him. Gray assumed they didn't want to piss Raven off. Which Gray was thankful for. He wasn't lying when he said the bandits in Raven's camp were ugly. But he did appreciate the fact that since this was a world where women were the males, the women would walk around shirtless, and men were expected to be modest. So while their faces were less than appealing, most of the bandit women kept in shape. It was a natural by-product of fighting both people and Grimm.
Neo whacked Gray on the butt when she caught him staring at a topless woman with breasts the size of Neo's head. "Oh, don't be jealous," Gray said with a smile as he turned to the petite woman next to him. "You know no woman could ever compare to my precious little Neo. My beautiful, sexy, and delicious little Neo." Gray said as he pulled the short girl into his arms, lifting her up and holding her in a 'princess carry' except in this world, it would be called a prince carry since women carried men this way. There was a slight embarrassment in Neo's cheeks. Even if she didn't care about what people thought of her, she was still a woman in a woman's world, carried by a man.
"I really can't leave you two alone for more than a few minutes, can I?" Raven's voice asked. The bandit leader was standing next to serval ATV-style buggies and motorbikes. There was even a small one-man helicopter that was nothing more than a seat attached to propellers. There were also two large trucks. Gray assumed they were for collecting the stolen loot.
Gray had seen the vehicles before. Whenever he trained outside of the camp by the river, he'd seen bandits come and go in them. "Sorry, I can't help it. My little Neo is just too adorable." Gray cooed as he hugged the girl tight. Neo happily hugged him back.
"Knock it off, and get over here," Raven ordered. Gray quickly lowered Neo until her feet hit the floor, then the pair walked over to Raven. Raven turned towards the line of vehicles. "You two can take this one," Raven said as she pointed at one of the smaller buggies.
Gray studied the ATV buggy. It was nothing more than a pipe frame with two seats, some wheels, and a motor attached. "Uh, what?" Was all Gray could ask as he turned back to Raven.
"Take this, and drive up to Mistral. It will take a few hours, but if you follow the road, you'll reach it before lunch." Raven explained.
"What? Mistral? You'll live close to a road that leads to Mistral? That doesn't sound like a good idea for bandits trying to hide from the law. Also, what are we supposed to do in Mistral?" Gray had so many questions, he didn't know which to ask first.
"Who said we're hiding?" Raven asked back with a raised eyebrow. "The Branwen Tribe does not hide. If anyone wants to attack us, they are free to try. And you're going to Mistral because you can't decide what weapon you want to use. So maybe while you're in Mistral, you'll be inspired by what you see. There are a lot of Huntsmen and Haven students running around. Maybe you'll like one of their weapons enough to want to use it." Raven said with a shrug. She wasn't sure if the plan would work. She just wanted to do something other than sitting around and watching Gray try a weapon and throw it aside over and over.
"Well, I guess I wouldn't mind going to Mistral," Gray said as he thought about it. Being stuck at the camp was starting to get a bit boring. He turned his head to Neo, who stared back at him. "Can you drive one of these?" He asked, remembering all the times Neo was the pilot in the show. Neo replied by giving him a thumbs up. "Alright, let me grab a weapon and my money," Gray said. The more he thought about it, the more he was actually looking forward to going. He was hoping to have a peaceful ride to the city.
~R~W~R~M~
It was not a peaceful ride. "Neo! They're gaining on us!" Gray shouted as he stared at the pack of Beowolfs chasing the buggy as Neo sped down the dirt road. Neo gripped the steering wheel tighter as she pressed down on the gas. Even though Neo was a skilled fighter and deadly killer, she knew fighting a pack of Grimm in a forest is a losing battle. Fighting a pack of Beowolfs would make too much noise, and that noise would draw more Grimm to fight. A cycle that would only end in their deaths.
The Alpha Beowolf leading the pack was getting closer and closer. The vicious Grimm saw its next meal trapped in a slow-moving cage. But Gray didn't sit idle. As Neo sped up, Gray turned in his seat and stood up. Gray stood in his seat and braced himself against the buggy's roll cage. He pulled out the weapon he brought, a 1911 style pistol, took aim at the Alpha, and pulled the trigger.
Unfortunately for Gray, shooting at a moving target while in a moving vehicle on a bumpy road was not as easy as it looked in the movies. Every shot Gray fired went wide, missing the Alpha. "Damn!" Gray shouted as he quickly reloaded and started firing off more flame Dust rounds. This time Gray did manage to land a shot, a shot he fired at the Alpha but hit a random Beowolf in the pack.
'Shit, this isn't working!' Gray thought as the Alpha was now only a foot away from slashing at the buggy. One strike from the Alpha Beowolf would be enough to break the scrap metal ATV, so Gray knew he had to do something. He racked his brain trying to think, and as the wind blew through his hair, an idea fill his mind. 'Well, this works in movies, doesn't it?' He thought as he quickly slid the pistol into the holster attached to his belt. Once the gun was secure, Gray pulled his shirt off, held it up, and let it go.
The wind caught the shirt as soon as it left Gray's hands, yanking it open and straight into the Alpha Grimm's face. "YES!" Gray couldn't help but shout as he watched the Alpha Beowolf flail around. The creature slammed into the ground and tumbled backward as it ripped the shirt to shreds. Once the massive Grimm hit the ground, it took a few of the smaller Beowolf's with it, and the ones that remained running couldn't keep up with the buggy.
~R~W~R~M~
Gray let out a breath as Neo slowed the buggy to the stop on the side of the road. The pack of Grimm was long gone, left behind miles back. "Good job, my little pet," Gray said as he patted Neo's leg. Neo looked at Gray, not his face, but at his bare chest. Since it was hot out, both Gray and Neo were wearing plain t-shirts and shorts. What they usually wore for training, but now Gray was down to the shorts.
Without a word, Neo pulled off her own shirt and held it out for Gray. It was Gray's turn to stare at Neo's bare chest. It took him a moment to realize why Neo was trying to give him her shirt. He remembered that no one gave a second look to a shirtless woman in this world, but a shirtless man was different. A shirtless man in this world was the same as a shirtless woman in his old world. In this world, only women with large breasts wore any kind of bra for support, while most men wore the equivalent of a sports bra for modesty. In this world, Gray was the odd one for never wearing the male bra, but Neo and Raven just thought it was because he was slutty.
"Uh, Neo, that shirt would rip in half if I tried to put it on. It's way too small for me." Gray said as he pushed the shirt back to Neo. The short girl frowned as she looked at him. Gray could tell Neo was thinking of what they should do. She turned in her seat, looking behind them, wondering if they should turn back. "It's fine Neo, lets head into Mistral. I'm sure I can buy a shirt there."
Neo looked at Gray with an unimpressed look, but she sighed and pulled her shirt back on after a moment. Once Neo's shirt was back in place, the girl pulled her scroll out and started typing. "They won't let you past the gate without a shirt on. They might even try to arrest you for public indecency." The robotic voice of Neo's scroll in text-to-speech said.
Both Neo and Gray stared at each other for a moment. They were trying to think of how to solve this new problem. "Why don't you use your semblance on me?" Gray asked as he recalled what Neo could do with her semblance later on in the show. He figured if the girl could turn a whole Mistral ship into an Atlas ship, surely she could make it look like Gray had a shirt on. But as Neo stared at him, Gray realized she had no idea what he meant. "Uh, you know, use your semblance to… Cast an illusion on me?" Gray said, but he didn't know the right way to explain it. Judging by the way Neo kept looking at him, she still didn't know what he meant. 'She must not have learned how to do that until after Roman died.' Gray thought.
So with a sigh, Gray scrapped that idea. "Forget it. Just know in the future you can use your semblance to extend your illusions onto other objects and people." Gray said, causing Neo to tilt her head. His cover story was time travel, so telling Neo some future knowledge only strengthens his story. But as he turned back to Neo, another thought filled his mind, and he started pulling at the bottom of Neo's plain blue t-shirt. "Your shirt is too tight for me to wear, but this bottom part is loose and stretchy. Cut it off, and I can wear that." Gray said. Neo looked down at her shirt then shrugged as she grabbed her parasol.
~R~W~R~M~
Gray's eye twitched as he stood next to Neo. He tried to fight down the embarrassment he was feeling. The embarrassment of being a man from his world, wearing the equivalent of a tube top across his chest. A tube top that Gray felt was unnecessary. The group of people guarding Mistral's entrance barely gave him a second look as they guided Neo on where to park the buggy. Once out of the buggy, Gray and Neo were led to the doors of a massive elevator.
"We're going to find a clothing store as soon as we reach the market," Gray said. He would rather be shirtless than in a tube top. Neo just looked at him and nodded.
The elevator came to a stop a few moments later. The doors slowly opened, and Gray winced as the bright light hit his eyes. But when Gray's eyes adjusted, they widened. "Whoa," Gray said as he walked out of the elevator. Gray and Neo were now standing next to a railing. They were a little over halfway up the mountain overlooking Mistral's marketplace. Gray looked out to the rows and rows of stores, stalls, and people. But beyond the man-made stores and structures, Gray could see the forest for miles. "Not a bad place. What do you think, Neo?" Gray asked as he placed a hand in Neo's black hair. The short girl was using her semblance to hide her usual appearance. She didn't know if the Mistral government knew about the numerous crimes she committed against it.
Neo took a look over the edge then raised her scroll to Gray. "It's only nice up here. It sucks down below." The robotic voice of Neo's text-to-speech said. Gray looked back down to the marketplace. Neo's words caused him to recall what he knew about Mistral from the show. He remembered Mistral was supposed to have a dark under-city and the lady who leads the spiders, whose name Gray couldn't remember.
Gray's thoughts were interrupted, and his eyes widened in surprise when he saw someone he didn't expect to see. 'Wait, is that?' Gray thought as he leaned over the railing. He squinted his eyes to get a better look. 'Is that her? What is she doing here?' The person Gray was looking at wasn't wearing the outfit she wore during the show. Instead, she was wearing an oversized black hoodie and pants. The hood was up as she was trying to blend in. Gray would have looked past her, but she captured his attention when he saw a lock of her vivid red hair. "Follow me," Gray quickly said as he turned and rushed down the stairs leading to the market.
~R~W~R~M~
After a few minutes of searching, Gray found the girl he was looking for. The hoodie-wearing redhead kept her head low as she stood at a stall selling what Gray assumed was knickknacks for tourists. Postcards, key chains, and even a cheaply made t-shirt that said 'Mistral Champion' and had an out-of-focus picture of Pyrrha Nikos.
Gray watched the girl as he stood in an alleyway across the street. A smile slowly appeared on his face as an idea formed in his head. "Hey Neo, do you see that girl, the one in the hoodie?" Gray asked as he pointed towards the girl. Neo tilted her head but looked at the person Gray was talking about. Neo nodded when she had eyes on the hoodie-wearing girl. "Alright, here's what I want you to do," Gray said as he looked around.
He picked up a small rock lying on the floor. "I want you to take this, throw it, and hit that girl in the back with it. Then hide." Gray said as he handed Neo the rock. "I'm going get her to give me that hoodie. Maybe something else." Gray said but muttered the last part.
Neo watched Gray, confused as Gray pulled off his makeshift tube top. She didn't understand what Gray was doing, but she did as he asked. Neo lined up her shot and threw the rock as hard as she could. Neo couldn't help but grin as she watched the rock slam into the back of the hoodie girl's head and bounce away. "Go, go," Gray said quickly as he patted Neo's shoulder. Neo just rolled her eyes, and using her semblance, she vanished as she jumped away.
Gray watched as the girl in the hood rubbed the back of her head as she quickly looked around. But when the girl turned around and faced Gray, he couldn't help but smile. Now that he could see her face, Gray confirmed that the girl in the hood was Pyrrha Nikos.
Gray quickly waved the redhead over once they locked eyes. Pyrrha couldn't keep the shocked look off her face as she stared at a shirtless Gray, who was using one arm to cover his chest. It took her a moment to snap out of her shock, but when she did, she looked around to make sure no one was watching. Luckily for her, everyone else was too focused on their shopping and didn't notice the shirtless Faunus boy.
Once Pyrrha started walking towards him, Gray started to back up. He led her deeper into the alley and out of sight of the street.
~R~W~R~M~
"Um, h-hello," Pyrrha couldn't help but stutter as she walked up to Gray. She tried her best not to look at Gray's chest.
Gray, on the other hand, put on his best 'embarrassed girl' look. "S-Sorry to bug you, but I lost my shirt, and I was wondering if I could borrow your hoodie," Gray said in a voice so shy and sweet it caused Pyrrha to shiver. Gray's time in the camp wasn't only spent training his body. He also trained his seduction skills.
It took a moment for Pyrrha to process Gray's words, but she quickly started to pull her hoodie off when she did. "O-Of course!" Pyrrha said as she held out her hoodie for Gray to grab.
Gray gave the girl a bright smile as he reached out to grab the hoodie. Pyrrha's breath hitched as Gray moved his arm, exposing his bare chest to her. "What are you looking at, pervert?" Gray taunted as he pulled the hoodie on. His words caused Pyrrha's face to turn red as she quickly looked away. "You can look if you want," Gray said as he left the hoodie unzipped. Gray stepped forward and gripped the waist of Pyrrha's pants. "How about I give you a reward for being so nice," Gray said in a low voice.
Pyrrha turned to him and gulped. Her breath grew heavy, and she quickly started to look around. In Pyrrha's mind, what was happening was a prank, so she was looking for cameras, or this was some sort of ambush, so she was looking for hidden attackers. She was quick to believe this was a setup because what was happening was not normal. This would be the same as a beautiful and sexy naked woman calling a random man to an alley to get a blowjob and maybe more in Gray's world. But when Gray started to undo her pants, Pyrrha reacted by pushing him away.
Gray was surprised when his butt suddenly hit the floor. He looked up to Pyrrha with a confused look as she stared down at him with wide eyes. "I-I'm sorry!" Pyrrha quickly said. She quickly turned and rushed out of the alley.
As soon as Pyrrha left the alleyway, Gray could hear people gasp in surprise. "Look its Pyrrha Nikos!" Gray heard someone shout. "Miss Nikos! Can I have your autograph!" Another shouted. Gray could hear Pyrrha apologize as she kept walking away.
~R~W~R~M~
"Whoa, what was that about?" Gray asked as he listened to Pyrrha run away. Gray didn't get to wonder for long as a sharp pain filled his side. "GAH!" Gray shouted in surprise. He turned to see Neo standing over him. Gray opened his mouth to speak, but Neo kicked him in the side once more. The harsh kick caused Gray's breath to hitch. He quickly scrambled to his feet but was backed up to the wall. "N-Neo!" Gray stuttered as he held up his hands.
Neo stood in front of Gray, holding her parasol and glaring at him. Gray's legs started to shake as he looked Neo in her eyes. The short girl pulled out her scroll and started typing. As Neo typed, Gray's eyes flicked to the end of the alley. The idea of running briefly filled his mind, but he couldn't move. "You were going to fuck her?" The robotic voice of Neo's scroll asked. While the scroll's voice was robotic, Gray could feel the anger in Neo's eyes.
"W-Well, y-yeah?" Gray said with a hesitant stutter. His words caused Neo's eyes to narrow. The short girl pulled the sword out of her parasol, turned on her heel, and started to walk away. "N-Neo! What's wrong?" Gray started to panic. He quickly stepped forward to stop Neo but froze when Neo turned and pointed her sword at him. Gray could only gulp and hold up his shaky hands. "Why are you upset? I-I thought you were okay with me having sex with other women? I mean, I have sex with Raven every day." Gray said. He tried to keep his voice steady.
Neo's thumb quickly started tapping on her scroll. She raised the small device once she was done. "Sleeping with Raven is different! That red hair girl is a complete stranger! You were about to sleep with some random girl you met on the street!" Neo's scroll said.
Oddly enough for Gray, this isn't the first time an angry girl held a weapon to him for cheating, but Neo was far more deadly than the last one. "Neo, please, put that down," Gray said softly. He was trying his best to keep himself from becoming a stain in the alley. "Put it down, and come here," Gray said as he held out his arms for a hug.
Neo's kept her glare, but after a few moments, she let out a sigh. Neo lowered her parasol, letting it fall to her side. She lowered her head next and took a step forward. Gray's arms wrapped around Neo as she buried her face into his bare chest as the hoodie was still open.
~R~W~R~M~
The couple stood that way for a few minutes as Gray slowly rubbed Neo's back. "Neo," Gray said in a whisper. Gray had a chance to think in these last few minutes, and he now knew how he wanted to handle Neo's sudden outburst. "Neo, I thought you understood the kind of person I am. I thought you understood that I like having sex, that I'm going to sleep with other women. I thought you were okay with that." Gray said. Neo just looked up at him with a frown. "And that wasn't a stranger. That was Pyrrha Nikos. She's a friend, you just haven't met her yet, and I'm the only one that remembers… Listen, Neo, I'm sorry I'm not a normal guy. I'm sorry that even though I love you, I'm addicted to having sex… If you can't accept that if you can't accept me for who I am… Well…" Gray grabbed Neo's wrist and pressed the sword she was carrying to his chest. He tried to stay calm as he looked Neo in the eyes, but his heart was beating a mile a minute inside.
Neo frowned as she stared back at him. Her hand trembled, and a moment later, she let out a sigh and lowered her sword. When she did, Gray let out a breath and pulled Neo back into a hug. 'I'll have to deal with this later.' Gray thought as he patted Neo's back. His fear of Neo killing him one day slammed back into his mind. "Come on, Neo, let's go shopping," Gray said. He wanted to avoid making Neo angry. If the short girl wanted to, she could kill him and vanish without a problem. That's why he'd wait until he was back at camp, where he would at least have Raven back him up.
With one last pat on the back, Gray pulled away from Neo. He zipped up his new hoodie and grabbed her hand. Gray led her out of the alley and into the market.
~R~W~R~M~
After nearly an hour of walking around, seeing the different weapons carried by huntsmen and in the stalls, Gray sighed as he and Neo took a seat. They were now sitting in an outdoor food court. Neo was slowly chomping on what Gray assumed was RWBY's version of funnel cake. While Gray had bear meat on a stick sitting in front of him. "I don't know Neo," Gray said as he tapped the table. "I mean, all these weapons are cool, but I can't really see myself using them." Neo tilted her head as she looked at Gray. She didn't say anything, just slipped another piece of powdered fried dough into her mouth.
"I mean, I've never been the sword type. Even in games, I never picked the melee class. I always pick the archer or mage." Gray started muttering to himself as he got lost in thought. "I could go the archer route, but I have a horrible aim, and having to carry a ton of arrows would suck… But how would the mage route work? I don't have a semblance like Glynda Goodwitch, but there is Dust." Gray closed his eyes and tried to remember everyone in the show that used Dust to fight.
Gray ignored everyone that just used Dust bullets. Instead, he thought about Cinder. Cinder used Dust she weaved into her clothes. According to the show, it was a lost art that not many people used. He also thought about Hazel, who would inject Dust straight into his veins. Gray quickly tossed that idea aside. He saw the damage it did to Hazel, and Hazel also couldn't feel pain. So Gray kept thinking about other ways he could use Dust and the different types of Dust. From wind Dust to even man-made Dust like hard light.
"That's it, Neo! Forget weapons. What I need is Dust! That's how I'll win fights. Quick, you're fast. Go get me a notebook and something to write with." Gray said. His sudden outburst startled Neo, and she quickly did as he said. The short girl rushed away to a nearby store to get Gray what he wanted. 'Dust weaving? Gauntlets that fire Dust? Dust gadgets on my belt?' Gray thought as he ran through all the different ways he could fight with Dust.
Now that Gray knew what he wanted, he only had a few more months left to become a Dust expert. It was a difficult task, but Gray didn't want his new happy life to be ended by Cinder, so he would get it done. He refused to let Vale be destroyed.
A/N: I just wanted to give another thank you to everyone reading. This story has nearly doubled in support since the last chapter I've released. Also, I wanted to give an update on my original works. I created my own world that's a mix of dieselpunk and fantasy. So with this world I created, I'm putting the scrapper on the back burner while I rewrite it to fit in this world. But I also shot off writing the story that inspired this world, and I'm 19 chapters into that. So I've been thinking about making a Kofi or something to support my original stuff. But besides that, I'm going to keep writing this story. I'm also thinking about writing some other one-shots I've been kicking around in my head(mostly smut, probably). But all and all, thank you to everyone that's been reading, following, rating, and just being interested in the stuff I put out. ~Improv