A/N: Hi guys! I'm so sorry this chapter took so long ?, i swear IRL has been crazy! But luckily the next chapters won't take too long since i have them partially written already hehe. Anyway this is the last child that will be appearing and the next ones we'll finally get some answers hehe. I hope you all enjoy~!
—
Finral and Vanessa slowly made their way to the Wizard Kings office, the two of them had been pretty surprised when the Wizard Kings assistant Marx had contacted them directly and told them that the Wizard King would like to see them. The two had been confused at first, especially since Captain Yami wasn't there, but they knew better than to refuse an order such as this. So, the two followed the guard silently as they made their way to the Wizard King's office.
" Hey Vanessa," Finral started sheepishly. " Why do you think the Wizard King asked to see us instead of asking for Captain Yami?" Finral had a gut feeling he knew why, but he didn't want to say it out loud and jinx it.
" Hm, I'm not 100% sure but I have a feeling it has to do with the kids suddenly appearing and, if I were to go off what's been happening the past week, then I would guess that what's behind that door is our future child." Vanessa explained in a hushed voice, as though she didn't want to say it too loudly. Finral frowned a bit.
" Scared if you say it too loudly it'll come true?" He asked her with a sheepish laugh, Vanessa turned to look at him and gave a small laugh.
" Yeah a little bit." She admitted, Finral laughed a bit as well.
" Same here."
Soon the two were standing in front of the Wizard Kings office, neither one could remember ever being here before so they were very nervous. Finral let out an audible gulp, not only was he nervous about who was beyond that door but he was also nervous as to what Captain Yami would say when he found out. Just the thought of it made Finral pale.
" Y-Y'know what? I think I left the stove on back at the Hideout. I'll just go back home and check." Finral said as he opened up a portal to led back to the Hideout, but before he could even think of walking through it Vanessa grabbed the back of his cloak.
" Yeah you're not getting out of this one that easily, besides I'm with you so there's nothing to be afraid of or nervous about." Vanessa told him with a warm and confident smile, Finral groaned and reluctantly closed the portal. He had to admit whenever he was with Vanessa it did make him a bit braver and more confident.
The guard opened the Wizard Kings office doors and announced the Black Bulls had arrived before exiting the room. Vanessa and Finral looked at each other briefly before turning to look at the Wizard King, his Aide Marx, and a pink haired boy who stood slightly off to the side.
" Finral, Vanessa, welcome! I apologize we called you here without Captain Yami but we figured he would like a small break from all of this." Julius said with a small laugh, Finral and Vanessa nodded almost robotically as they just stared at the pink haired boy. He couldn't be any older then 15, his pink hair was shoulder length and partially tied into a ponytail, he wore a Black Bulls robe and underneath was a wine red suit and boots with a black shirt. He also wore a pair of dark red earrings. His purple eyes finally looked to meet theirs.
" A-Are you," Finral stammered slightly, he looked as white as a sheet as he turned to face Julius and Marx. " Are you sure he isn't just Vanessa's kid? I-I mean, he looks almost identical to her." Finral added, maybe they had the wrong guy for his father?
" Oh no he's definitely your son." Julius said with a small laugh, causing Finral to frown. What did that mean? Suddenly Finral and Vanessa felt themselves being hugged tightly by the young man.
" Mom, dad, thank the gods you came to rescue me!" The boy cried as he held them tightly. " I don't know what they would have done to me if you hadn't shown up! I think I even saw my life flash before my eyes!" He continued to cry before pulling back to look his 'parents' in the face.
" W-Wait," he said suddenly as his eyes widened in surprise, he looked back and forth between Vanessa and Finral. " What the hell?!" He shouted as he sprang back and landed flat on his butt, he pointed a finger as he looked at them.
" W-Who the heck are you?! You look like my parents but you're way too young to actually be my parents!" Ezio said, his voice steadily getting higher. Finral looked over at Vanessa and he could see the complete surprise on her face.
" I thought you had a feeling this is why we were brought here?!" Finral asked her incredulously, his voice suddenly being high pitched as well, Vanessa blinked and looked over at him.
" I did. But it's one thing to think it and another to actually see it." Vanessa pointed out as she shook her head, trying to clear the surprised look off her face. Finral opened his mouth to argue but quickly closed it as he realized she was right, there was a difference.
" As we already explained to you," Marx said, addressing the pink haired boy. " you are in the past so your parents are younger now than they were in your original time. Didn't they explain this to you already?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.
" Not really. They pretty much told me to just go through the portal, that they didn't have much time to explain." He said as he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. Julius placed a thoughtful hand under his chin, that was another common theme between the children, that their parents were rushing to send them through a portal and didn't have time to explain. As he thought about it he noticed the boy had stood up and Vanessa had walked over to him.
" Y'know, you really are a cutie." She said with a small laugh, causing the boy to blush a deep shade of red.
" C-C-Cutie?!" He stammered in surprise before she continued and wrapped an arm around his shoulders and pulled him close, you could tell by the look in her eyes that she was teasing him.
" I bet you're a real hit with the ladies, and maybe some of the guys too." She told him before she thought about it for a moment. " Unless you inherited your flirting skills from your father."
" What's that supposed to mean?!" Finral shouted before Vanessa turned to look at him.
" That means your flirting sucks." She told him deadpan, causing an almost outrageously surprised look to appear of Finral's face.
" Excuse me?! I'll have you know I'm an absolute hit with the ladies!" Finral began shouting in a high pitched and almost disbelieving voice, as Julius watched the interactions between them he noticed the pink haired boy began to relax and saw the slow realization that these were in fact his parents, just younger.
" Don't you think it's about time you introduced yourself?" Julius asked the boy after a few minutes, the pink haired boy blushed a bit in embarrassment as he realized he hadn't told them his name.
" Ah yes, sorry about that." He laughed before clearing his throat. " My name's Ezio Roulacase, it's nice to meet you!" He added, giving a bit of a dramatic bow. Vanessa and Finral frowned a bit before placing thoughtful hands under their chins as they looked at him.
" Hm, I think Ezio fits you perfectly, don't you think Finral?" Vanessa asked as she turned to look at him, who nodded in agreement.
" Yeah it really does fit him I think. Well, it's nice to officially meet you, Ezio!" Finral said with a cheerful smile.
" Now that introductions are out of the way, here are the directions to the temporary house you'll be staying at with the others." Marx told them before he began to explain where the house was that the others were staying at.
—
Yami pinched the bridge of his nose as he watched all the 'families' talk, mingle, and get to know each other outside. He had been a bit surprised when Noelle and Asta showed up with three kids and a devil, he had a small feeling that Noelle had a crush on Asta but he figured the kid was too dense to ever realize it. But as he watched Asta talking and doing a workout with his eldest daughter, while Noelle sat and talked with the two younger ones, he realized that they actually made a cute family. But then again, as he looked around at the other Black Bulls, he realized they all made cute families. Except for Zora, he and Nebra still couldn't seem to get along. Not even for their kids sake.
" What are you thinking about?" Yami turned at the sound of a familiar voice and smirked a bit when he saw it was Charlotte.
" Eh nothing much, just thinking about how weird it is to see all of these kids with kids of their own." He told her, nodding towards the younger squad members. Charlotte nodded in agreement.
" True, it is a bit jarring to see kids with, well, kids of their own. Especially considering how some of the kids are around the same age as them." Charlotte said, Yami nodded in agreement before the two fell into a comfortable silence for a moment.
" Y'know," Yami said suddenly, causing Charlotte to look at him. " As weird as it is to see them with kids of their own and seeing how happy the mini knuckleheads are, it kind of makes me feel like I must've done something right as their Captain." Yami finished as he rubbed the back of his head.
" You've done a lot right as their Captain," Charlotte told him firmly. " I may not always agree with your methods, but I think you're an excellent Captain. You gave those kids someone to look up too and admire, you gave them a home when they needed one, you gave them a family and friends that they can lean on and support. That's my honest opinion." Charlotte finished with a firm nod and a bit of a blush on her face, she couldn't believe she said all of that too Yami!
" Aw the Prickly Princess does have a soft side." Yami joked, causing her to turn an even deeper shade of red.
" O-Of course I do! Just because I don't tend to show it very often doesn't mean I don't have a softer side!" She told him as she glared at him slightly.
" Sheesh sorry I was just teasing you." Yami said as he held his hands up in surrender, he smiled a bit before bringing one of his hands down and placing it gently onto her shoulder. " But thank you for the compliment Princess, you're not a bad Captain yourself."
Charlotte blinked in surprise at Yami's compliment, she smiled a bit as she looked down at her lap somewhat shyly. She wasn't used to compliments let alone ones from Yami, but she had to admit it made her heart skip a beat when he acknowledged she was a good Captain too.
" By the way," Charlotte said after they fell into silence once again. " you've been sitting here watching Alistar and Hikari for a while. What do you think of Alistar?" She added curiously as she noticed the two talking by the side of the house. She heard Yami make a disapproving grunt and she couldn't help but chuckle.
" I think he's hiding something, his Ki and body language prove that. He's been trying his best to hide, or at least mask, it from me and Hikari. But I can still tell." Yami said as he pulled out a cigarette, Charlotte tilted her head.
" Do you think Hikari's noticed?"
" Probably," Yami said with a small nod before taking a drag of his cigarette. " whether she's acknowledging it or not is a different story. But I'm sure she's noticed." He added as he let the smoke from the cigarette out of his mouth, she noticed a protective look on his face and began to laugh softly.
" You're very protective of her," she said as her soft laughter began to stop. " but I think she'll be fine Yami, I trust her and her judgement." She began to laugh again when Yami blushed a bit and just grumbled under his breath.
" It's not just him I'm suspicious of though, I'm also suspicious of Princess Brooding Pants over there." Yami said as he nodded towards the dark haired girl, Miku Charlotte believed her name was, and she frowned a bit as well.
The girl had completely separated herself from everyone else, even her 'parents'. She sat underneath a tree with a book and just kept to herself. Charlotte wasn't too surprised seeing as her parents could be the same way, but it was still a bit odd, especially when the other kids had asked her to play or train with them and she outright refused without even looking up from her book.
" Do you think she's hiding something as well?"
" Oh I know she is, but it's not like Golden Boy, while he's actively trying to hide his Ki, she isn't." Yami said as he took another drag of his cigarette, Charlotte went to open her mouth when Gauche suddenly yelled.
" Hey heads up! Incoming!" When the Captains turned and saw three people on brooms flying towards them. As they began to get into a defensive position Yami realized he recognized at least two of them.
" It's alright, it's just Vanessa and Finral." Yami said with a sigh of relief as the three people landed safely on the ground and began to walk towards them.
" Hey Captain Yami!" Vanessa shouted happily as she waved at him and the others. " Looks like this is where everyone ran off too huh?" She added as she looked around at all the familiar, and some unfamiliar, faces.
" Who's the kid?" Yami asked as he pointed at Ezio, who almost instantly paled as Yami directed his attention his way.
" Oh, well, this is our son Ezio. Apparently he came from the future as well." Finral explained sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his neck.
" You all need to stop having kids." Yami muttered as he seemed to age instantly at Finral's words. Charlotte smiled sympathetically as she patted him on the back in a vain attempt to comfort him.
" Josslyn! My love!" Ezio suddenly shouted as his eyes landed on the pink haired girl that came walking towards him, without hesitation he ran and tried to capture her in his arms. Without missing a beat she dodged him easily, causing him to land flat on his face.
" And here I thought I would finally get a break from you." Josslyn said with a disappointed sigh and a shake of her head.
" You're so mean Joss." Ezio cried dramatically before he turned to see Hikari walking towards him. " Hikari! You're here too!"
" Hey Ezio," She said as the pink haired boy wrapped her in a hug.
" At least someone's happy to see me." He muttered as he glared at Josslyn, who only 'hmphed' in response.
Alistar looked around at the group of people that had gathered from his spot by the house. He began to count the children one by one, there was only meant to be 10 total but Miku suddenly showing up gave them a total of 11. He still couldn't quite figure out how, or why, she was here. Even after speaking with her privately he didn't get a clear answer. He let out a soft sigh before pushing himself off the side of the house and began walking towards the others. Since everyone was gathered now, it was finally time to tell them everything. As he opened his mouth suddenly a small portal opened up, a portal he recognized to be Marx's.
" Sorry for the sudden intrusion, and I'm sure Finral, Vanessa, and Ezio just arrived there, but we need all of you to come back to the Castle for an urgent matter." Marx explained quickly.
" Why? What's going on now? I swear if you tell me it's another kid-." Yami growled before Marx quickly cut him off.
" It isn't another child! But it is someone's parent, well, I think it's their parent." Marx muttered before he was suddenly pushed out of frame by someone.
" Hello Vanessa, it's been a while." The Witch Queen said with a small smirk as she watched the surprise flash across everyone's faces.