A/N: Geez. I actually have nothing to say for this one. Erm... quippy joke?
…
Holding for laugh.
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..
…
… okay. I get it. I know what you're all here for. Enjoy, the chapter!
Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY or My Hero Academia. They belong to Monty Oum, Kohei Horikoshi, and their respective publishing companies. Please support the official releases.
I do not own the cover image.
Chapter 48: Pull Punch
Sun lurched awake as he gripped at his chest protectively, his labored breaths turning to deep gulps of air as he remembered just where he was. He was on a ship to Menagerie. It was... dawn. He wasn't about to-
Sun shook his head as he rose from the bed he'd been provided, moving to the mirror on the wall as he further awakened. Balancing himself with a hand on either side of the mirror, he stared into the eyes of the reflection. Alright. This was it. This was where he'd meet his "destiny." Where he'd atone for failing them.
Urgh. Sensei, why do you always have to be so damn cryptic with these things?
But he quickly shook those thoughts away with a few quick turns of his neck. "Happy face, Sun," he told himself. "Can't let the others down."
And his face shifted into a mixture of feelings. One of genuine happiness, built on a foundation of guilt and self-loathing. But the latter two didn't show. This was his problem. His and no one else's. His pain and no one else's.
That was how it had to stay. The others needed a friend, so he'd be the friend they could rely on. The friend that they had needed.
The friend who would've been there to save them no matter what.
(one hour later, the same ship, Bakugo's POV)
The ship pulling into port was punctuated with the sound of the ships horn briefly cutting across the silence before, as though prompted, a church bell rang out three times over twelve long seconds. Bakugo sighed to himself as he lifted himself from the floor of his room and gave himself a brief once-over in the mirror.
Geez. Still can't believe I'm finally here. Thought I was gonna go stir-crazy from the trip.
He then glanced to the bed in the admittedly barebones room, which held the only bag that he'd packed for this trip: a black, rectangular suitcase with a crimson direwolf head emblazoned across it. The blonde picked up said suitcase and examined it closely, knowing just what this symbol meant for him and people like him. At least, now he did.
A knock then came from the door of his room, causing him to roll his eyes and sigh heavily as he was brought out of his contemplative mindset, his arms returning to his sides as he quickly opened his door.
"You good?" Sun asked with his hands behind his head, while Neo stood in front of him with her arms... wait...
"... what's with the costume change, Minty?"
Bakugo was, of course, referring to Neo's hair, which, while still in the same style, had been changed to black; her eyes, which were now the same green as when he'd first met her; and the addition of ram horns, sprouting from her forehead and curling inward, then downwards, lining her jaw.
Neo gave a bit of a pout as she typed, "What? Not impressed?" as Bakugo left the room and shut the door behind him, falling into step with his other two companions as they made their way above deck.
"No, that's not the point. You know there are humans on Menagerie, right?"
"Those same humans are also few and far between. This disguise won't freak people out."
"That's fair, but why'd you change the hair and eyes? Wouldn't the horns be enough? Actually, how would you even be able to pull this off without getting outed by someone with really good senses?"
Sun gestured to Bakugo with a grandiose wave, indicating that he'd probably asked her a similar question not long earlier. It was also around this point in the conversation that they'd finally made their way above deck, the sky just as clear as it had been the day before, with brief spots of puffy white clouds to give it some variety. Man, this place was hot. Perfect for his heat meditation.
Neo then sighed to herself as she continued, "I'm pretty sure information usually comes secondhand around Menagerie, but I don't want to take any chances. I know that me and my uncle made the national news at least once or twice in the last few years, and I'd rather lie low while I'm here."
"You got everything?" Blake asked them, leaning against the railing of the ship as she did so. Her eyes flickered to Neo for a few moments. "... I don't even want to ask about the horns."
"All set!" Sun said with his signature smile and an almost instinctual thumbs up while Neo pouted in mock-disappointment, putting her hands, which held her grey suitcase, which the blonde direwolf was almost sure had pink of some sort on the interior, behind her to emphasize this. Bakugo simply raised the hand that held his luggage, and Blake nodded to herself as she said, "Alright. I guess I'll start showing you around."
Blake then led the three off of the ship and down to the port of the faunus Kingdom, Menagerie. The first thing that Bakugo thought was that the place was simply stunning. The architecture that surrounded them, while simple, was quite pleasing to the eye, and the way that it seemed to come from a place of respect for the nature around it made it all the more beautiful. The second thought that he had was that it was, again, hot. Really damn hot. It wasn't even summer yet, and he was already guessing that most people stayed indoors if they couldn't take the heat.
And the third and most overpowering thought that he had was that it was crowded, to the point that he could barely see the street in front of him. Faunus of all kinds were going about their business, either bartering with the vendors or trying to get to somewhere else in particular, and a few people were trying to get the body of a palm tree to Oum knew where. In short: it was chaotic, loud, and absolutely brimming with life.
Given how his mother had spoken about this Pull Punch guy, he probably loved it here. Or hated it. Or both. Probably both.
"Okay, everyone hold hands," Blake said as she held her own out for Sun to grab.
"Erm... not that I mind, but... why exactly?" Sun asked.
"Do you want to get separated by moving through a crowd like this is an adventure novel?" Blake asked in turn.
"Fair enough," Sun said as he gripped her hand and held his other out for Bakugo to grab onto. Rolling his eyes, the blonde direwolf complied with their plan of action, holding his free hand out for Neo to grab. Once they knew everyone was secure, Blake led their way through the crowded street, bodies bumping against them with half murmured apologies all the while.
By the time they managed to push through it all, Bakugo actually had to stop to catch his breath for a quick moment. How long had they been in that crowd? A few moments? A minute? Either way, it was way too long, and he did not want to experience that again anytime soon.
"Is it always so damn crowded here?" Sun asked voicing the question that was probably on everyone's minds.
"Unfortunately, yes, it is," Blake said with a heavy sigh, continuing to lead their walk as she continued, "When you're given an island that's two-thirds desert, it would almost certainly be this crowded. And it isn't like the desert in Vacuo. The Grimm and wildlife on that part of the island are a lot larger and way more dangerous than most of what you find there."
"I wouldn't be so sure about that. There's always the occasional Molduga," Sun said, shuddering as he did so.
"Wait, you guys have those too?!" Blake exclaimed.
"Yeah, but they're few and far between, and even when they do show up, they get hunted down pretty quickly because of 'the glory.' Some nomad tribes make a whole festival out of it. If you kill one, you're given the title 'Sand Dragon.' At least, that's what I've heard. I could be wrong," Sun explained with a shrug.
"... I thought Moldugas were a myth," Bakugo admitted, Neo giving a few sharp nods behind him in agreement.
"Trust me, they're anything but myths," Sun and Blake synched, causing them to briefly look startled for a moment before moving on.
Neo briefly bounced and waved to get everyone's attention before typing out, "Then why aren't there more stories about these kinds of Grimm? Something like that would definitely make the news."
"Not really. Scroll signals out in Vacuo were pretty spotty even before Beacon, and the relay tower in the central city is the only way to reliably communicate with... well, anyone, so news can get pretty choppy sometimes," Sun said.
"Okay... but wouldn't a place like this have a decent relay tower?" Bakugo asked.
As though it were the most obvious thing in the world, the cat faunus gave her eyes a wide roll as she pointed to the group's left, drawing their attention to the barely seen, thin pike of metal that just barely cleared the trees and the rooftops. It was likely their relay tower.
"... that's it?" Bakugo asked in surprise.
"Yeah. Information usually comes secondhand from passing ships and diplomats. The latter of which are usually more reliable, but especially rare for this place," Blake answered.
"So, now that that's out of the way... why are you guys here? If you're here to find something specific, maybe I could point you in the right direction," Blake offered.
"Well... I don't suppose there's an old temple styled with a bunch of jade monkeys, is there?" Sun asked with a straight face.
"Not to my knowledge. Why?" Blake responded.
"Oh, just wondering... well, guess I'm sticking with you guys, then. Maybe it's out in that desert or something," the blonde monkey faunus said, muttering the last part under his breath.
"I can't tell whether or not that was a joke, Gunchucks," Bakugo said.
"I'll leave that up to you guys," he said with a cryptic wink, though the blonde direwolf had a hunch that he wasn't telling them everything. The fact that the question was so specific yet also so vague was something that Bakugo took note of.
"How about you, Bakugo?" Blake asked, turning the group's attention to him. "I think I should've asked this a day ago, but what exactly was that, at the end of the fight? You looked... kinda like a Grimm."
.
..
...
… shiiiiiit.
The blonde direwolf sighed heavily before he answered her. "It's... a really, really long story that I don't want to get into right now. I'm here to find some guy that my mom recommended I study under. She didn't give his actual name, though. Always called him Pull Punch. Must've annoyed the hell out of him, cause she usually laughed after she said it," he explained.
"Wait... did you say Pull Punch?" Blake asked.
"Yeah. Why? You know something about him?" the blonde direwolf asked.
"Well... not exactly, but I did hear my dad mention the name once or twice, when I was a lot younger. Maybe he knows something about them?" she responded with her hand on her chin.
"It's a start," Bakugo said.
"Alright. Guess we're... going to my parents' house..." Blake said before she sighed heavily, as though she were dreading this encounter. The cat faunus gave Neo a passing glance before she turned around and said, "Alright. Let's get going."
Neo seemed a bit disappointed that she wasn't included in the reason sharing, but made no move to make it known, and she joined the others as they made way for the biggest house in Kuo Kuana, the name of the town in which they now stood. It was at least three stories high, lavishly decorated in the style of Anima with some tints of the island architecture surrounding it, and a smooth stone stairway that led up to two massive rather intimidating wooden doors, with old-school knockers on the front of each.
"You live here?!" Sun exclaimed while Neo's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates, briefly taking the time to type out something on her scroll. "You never told us you were a princess."
Blake rolled her eyes at Neo's statement. "Not a princess. Just... daughter of the chieftain."
"Prin-ceeess," Bakugo said in a sing-song tone with a devilish smirk on his face, causing Blake to briefly glare at him before facing the double doors once again, a nervous look in her eyes the whole time.
"... well? What's up?" Sun asked.
"It's... the last time I saw my parents... I didn't exactly leave on good terms," Blake explained. Her breath was shaky, even as she tried to steady herself and gain some form of confidence, it seemed as though the anxiety simply wouldn't leave her.
A tap on her shoulder alerted her to Neo's presence, giving her a bit of a glare before the currently disguised girl shook her head, and typed, "I don't know... anything about your relationship with your parents. But you're here now. If it's not gonna go smoothly, might as well get it out of the way now."
"... I didn't expect you to be this optimistic. Or nice," Blake replied.
Neo simply shrugged, as if to say that she didn't either.
"Don't think this means you're off the hook. You still tried to kill me," Blake said with a single finger raised ever so slightly.
Neo moved her own back and forth, as if to say 'not you.' Well, Bakugo could get why Blake would think that. It would be a bit hard to take advice from someone who you'd previously fought against. He trusted her, though. Somewhat. He could count on her, and at the moment, that did count for something.
But, as Blake turned to the doors once again, there was a flash of jealousy in Neo's eyes for the briefest of moments. Before Bakugo had enough time to wonder why, Blake was already reaching for the knocker, and using it for the intended purpose, sending a loud, poignant, and ominous knock throughout the house.
"... okay, that was intimidating as hell," Sun pointed out, causing Bakugo to turn and give him a 'no shit' look in response. And so, they waited. For five seconds. For ten.
And then, the door opened ever so slightly, letting them see the interior of the house for the first time, and a woman who looked to be Blake's mother. With black hair and yellow eyes, she shared several physical features with her daughter, although her ears were noticeably larger in size. Her hair was chin length, and she had three gold piercings on her cat ears - two on her right, and one on her left. She wore a black hakama and sandals with white tabi socks. Over her outfit, she wore a black shrug with a long right sleeve and a short-left sleeve, gold leaf trim adorning the opening on the front. She also wore long, black arm warmers that extend to her middle finger. The left warmer had a purple band tied around the top and a pair of gold bangles around the wrist. Around her waist was a black and gold sash that trailed behind her, with a gold flower-shaped buckle at the end.
Her eyes then widened as she recognized the person at the forefront of the group, bringing her arm up to her mouth as she uttered beneath her breath, "... Blake?"
…
"... hey... mom..." Blake said hesitantly, as though waiting for her mother to scorn her or yell or scream or do anything but approach her.
Instead, her mother rushed forwards and wrapped her arms tightly around Blake, causing the girl's eyes to widen in surprise and mild discomfort as she hugged the life out of her daughter.
"You're here... you're home... my baby girl is home..." the woman said with a shake to her voice, tears falling from her eyes as she somehow pulled Blake even closer. Bakugo decided that it would be best to let the two of them have their moment in relative privacy, so, as quietly as he could, he turned away from the two, though he was more than certain that Blake was hugging her mother back just as tightly now that she'd regained her bearings.
It was in doing this that Bakugo saw Neo staring down at the stone ground with her fist clenched behind her back. Why was she... oh. Okay, her relationship with her parent(s) was either super neglectful or she didn't remember them all that much. Considering the way she often acted around everyone, either was likely, but...
Wait, why was he even thinking about this stuff? If she wanted to tell him, she'd tell him.
That doesn't mean you can't be concerned.
His attention was then brought back to the door of the house, where the man who was presumably Blake's father stood in similar shock. He was a tall, muscular man with black hair, a thick beard, and yellow eyes. He wore an open dark violet coat with white fur trim, exposing his rather hairy chest. Over his beige pants was a matching sash that wrapped around his waist and was secured with a large, silver metal buckle. On the shoulder of his coat was a silver metal spaulder, which through a pair of curved strips across the chest attached as a clasp on the opposite front panel of the coat. The white toes of his black leather boots had a shape reminiscent of paws with claws at the tips. His physique was in general quite hairy, as what little could be seen of his bare arms and the backs of his wrists were shown to be covered in thick, black fur.
While Bakugo didn't want to interrupt the moment, especially seeing as the dad was now joining in on the three way hug, but alas, the heat was once again making itself a factor. An annoying one at that.
"*ahem*"
That turned all of their attention towards him as he continued, "As much as I hate to do this, we can't exactly stand around outside all day. So... yeah, we should probably talk."
.
..
…
"... Blake, who are they?" her father asked with a slightly suspicious tone.
"Oh! Erm... these are the friends I dragged in. Can we keep them?" Blake said with a shaking smile.
…
"Okay, that was one of the weirdest icebreakers I've ever heard, and that's coming from me," Sun said with a confused arch to his eyebrow.
"Yeah, it made more sense in my head," the cat faunus admitted. "Maybe I should work on the delivery?"
"That's not all you need to work on..." Bakugo whispered.
When Bakugo looked back to Blake's father, the man was giving him an analytical look, as though he were trying to place something that he recognized about the blonde direwolf. However, a warm smile soon replaced it, as he continued, "Ah! Where are my manners. My name is Ghira Belladonna, and this is my wife, Kali," he gestured to the elder of the two women, who gave them a cute little wave before he continued, "And you're quite right, we really should be getting inside. But might I ask your names?"
"I'm Sun," the blonde monkey answered with both a smile and a thumbs up.
The currently disguised thief then did the same, typing out, "Name's Neapolitan, but most people just call me Neo."
Ghira's eyes narrowed ever so slightly as Neo introduced herself. Crap. Did he already suspect her? Well, if he did, he didn't make it known, as he then turned to Bakugo with an expectant glint.
"... Katsuki Bakugo. I'm supposed to find a guy called Pull Punch, and Kitty here told me you knew 'em. So?" he asked, laying his intentions plain for all of them to see.
He did notice, however, that when he said the person's nickname, something seemed to cause Ghira actual, physical pain, causing him to grip at his chest as he leaned against one of the nearby support pillars as Kali, Blake, and everyone else present looked at him with concern.
"... no... no... NOOOOO! I THOUGHT I WAS FINALLY FREE OF THAT OUMDAMNED NICKNAME!" he said as he fell to his knees in anguish.
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..
…
After several seconds of silence, Bakugo finally put all the pieces together. The last leader of the White Fang was named Ghira; his last name was never released publicly; a pacifist. Ghira was also Pull Punch, a pacifist. Who learned how to control his berserker side to...
"Pfft! Hah! Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!" the blonde direwolf exclaimed as he slowly doubled over with laughter! "I-h-it all makes sense now! Haha!"
"Not you too..." Ghira let out in seeming fear.
"... so... are we heading inside, or what?" Blake asked the others, Neo responding with, "Just a bit longer. I want to watch the carnage."
(ten minutes later, the Belladonna household, Bakugo's POV)
After taking a few minutes to calm down, and not piss off Ghira any further (for a pacifist he had one hell of a temper), the six of them now sat at the main table of the Belladonna household. Well, the smaller one, at any rate. The actual main table was so large it was likely meant for very large events, and this event, while this may have been a momentous occasion for the family in question, was not one of them. Kali was currently sitting next to her daughter while Ghira sat at the 'head' of the table with a warm smile on his face, while Sun sat to the left of the dark-haired girl with Bakugo and Neo seated right next to them, directly across from Kali.
Everyone had a cup of steaming tea in front of them. It smelled exotic, yet simultaneously kind of like coffee. Bakugo would never claim to like tea, but this blend did prove to be rather soothing.
Huh. I never thought I'd use that word to describe... well anything, really.
Then, Kali began the conversation with, "We were horrified when we heard about what happened to Beacon. Vale was never perfect, far from it, but it didn't deserve what happened."
Understatement of the fuckin' century.
The three family members continued speaking as he and the others tried to look for a way to get a word in edgewise. They spoke about how worried they were about Blake, and that was the time that Sun thought it would be a good time to interject and reassure Blake's parents that they had nothing to worry about. It was also the moment that he chose to put his own foot in his mouth and imply certain... things, with very unaware innuendos.
"Erm..." Sun said as he realized what he just implied, trying to save himself as he explained, "I mean, she's one of the best fighter's I've... ever..."
As he suddenly realized there was no getting himself out of this particular situation, he instead picked up the tea in front of him and gave it a big sip. "... this is good tea."
When he then turned to Bakugo and Neo for assistance, the disguised girl was currently giving this a good and hearty silent laugh, actually falling onto the table for support while Bakugo just gave him a knowing smile, saying, "Oh no, by all means, keep digging that grave of yours. It's very entertaining."
"... I like him," Kali whispered to her daughter, suddenly causing Blake to turn a rather telling shade of pink as her head whipped back to face her mother as she chided her, "Mom!"
Ghira then regained their attention as he said, "Well... now that that's out of the way," he said with a warning glare to the blonde monkey faunus, "I must ask why the three of you are in Menagerie in the first place. If you're looking for a particular place, we might be able to help you find it."
"Oum, he really is Blake's dad," Neo typed out to Bakugo, causing him to chuckle as he responded, "Obviously. They have the same eyes."
"Not what I meant."
"Guess I should start," Sun said as Ghira gave him a semi-hostile glare, a silent warning to watch his words before the blonde monkey faunus continued, "So, I kinda came here to find an older temple that I was told about. They say a lot of monkey faunus went there for religious purposes before this place got abandoned about a century earlier."
Ghira then gained a contemplative look and answered, "There are a few places like that throughout the island, but most of them started fading before Menagerie was recolonized. And the ones that might remain are too far into the desert to safely travel to."
"How far?" he asked.
"About ten miles," Ghira said with a serious tone in his voice.
…
"Seriously? Just ten?" Sun said in surprise. "I thought it'd be harder to-"
"The Moldugas are also quite fond of the deeper sands out there."
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..
…
"... uurrrrgh, you're right," Sun said as he buried his face in his hands.
"We'll continue this later?" Ghira asked.
"Yeah. There's gotta be a way to get past them, right?" Sun said with a bit of optimism, though it definitely felt somewhat forced.
"Let's hope. Now, on to you two," Ghira said as he turned to Bakugo and Neo, the latter snapping to attention when she realized the earlier conversation was over. "I understand that you have your own reasons for coming here. I believe I already know young Katsuki's reason."
"You already knew about the training plan?" Bakugo asked in surprise.
"No, but there only could've been one of two reasons that she sent you here. Seeing as she's not dead, you're definitely here for training. And to make my life hell again, if you're anything like her..." Ghira said with dread.
"... okay, that's it! I'm lost, and you two definitely know something we don't!" Blake said as Sun nodded with her, equally confused, and Neo just sat back and watched.
"It's... well, it's complicated. I'll try my best to explain it later. Now then-" Ghira said before he was interrupted by a hand from Neo, likely already knowing what he was about to ask, and then began to rapidly type something out on her scroll, taking a full ten seconds to finish. It read, "I'm here to find whatever's left of a particular tribe. They were desert dwellers and hardcore Grimm hunters. I don't know their name, but all I really have besides that and some other vague information is this symbol."
After Ghira had ample time to read it, he then examined the black, triple tomoe sigil that she'd managed to find. Actually, wasn't that sign on some of her clothes? Was there some kind of a personal connection or did she just really like the symbol?
"There were rumors of a tribe who was lost out in the Sea of Sands. Some say they're still roaming, hunting down most of the manageable Moldugas. Most believe they were either wiped out a long time ago or are a myth, and for good reason. The last time anyone remotely like that was seen here was almost thirty years ago, and those reports are shaky at best," Ghira explained.
Neo then gestured to him, and then pointed to her own head, probably asking him what he thought of it. The large man then answered, "I have seen evidence that they were around at some point, though I have never managed to learn an official title for the tribe, but whether or not they're still around is honestly up in the air. I assume you know their given title?"
Neo nodded, at which point it was Bakugo's turn to be confused. "Okay, what the hell are you guys talking about?"
Neo glanced at him for a moment before sighing and giving him a sympathetic smile, typing, "To make a very long and very complicated story short, we're talking about a tribe most call the Sand Wraiths. And they might-"
Bakugo never finished reading the sentence, however, as their long conversation was then interrupted by a sudden knock at the door.
"Dammit!" Ghira said as he pounded his fist on the table, though given his structure it was likely just a tap as far as he was concerned. "I forgot about the meeting."
"No need for that, dear. This was all rather sudden. Just reschedule it for a later time," Kali said as she comforted him. Apparently, Ghira took his job quite seriously, an attitude that was practically required to run a place like Menagerie. Ghira then thanked his wife and rose from the table, excusing himself before making his way to the entrance of the house once more.
"A meeting?" Blake asked as Kali poured herself another cup of tea.
"Oh, yes. Don't worry, things have gotten a bit more hectic now that they have more of a presence here," Kali answered as she blew over her steaming drink.
"... who?" Sun asked. Bakugo's eyes then widened at the possibility of them being here. If they were, there was no guarantee that was going to be able to keep himself from-
As Kali finished her sip of tea, she glanced at all four of them and answered, "... the White Fang. Who else?"
CRACK!
Bakugo's breathing suddenly sped up, his fist clenching the still tea-soaked shards of the clay used in the cup. His hand was shaking, and he could feel his eyes beginning to dilate, felt the red start seeping into his vision-
No. Breathe. Stay calm. Do not destroy anything else. I'm sure wouldn't appreciate having to replace more than the cup.
With those thoughts, while Bakugo was far from content, he managed to calm himself down. They were here, huh? Funny. Rumor had it they weren't allowed here. At least, their military sectors. He didn't doubt that they might have weapons, though. The White Fang was on par with a cult in terms of fanatics, after all.
All five of them then rushed to the front door, though Kali did so out of confusion and worry, and found Ghira speaking with a pair of brothers. Their clothing and overall appearance were practically identical: red hoods that functioned partially as cloaks, made of two pieces held together by yellow buttons and string. They also wore black tunics with two sections extending farther down than the rest at their fronts. Both the hoods and tunics had white trimming. They also wore detached white sleeves, bound at the mid-bicep and the wrists. Black gloves clung to their hands and were attached to their middle-fingers. Their white pants were pleated. They wore black open-toed sandals with fabric extending up to their knees to complete their outfits. Their skin was heavily tanned, and they each had small but piercing hazel eyes, something that unnerved Bakugo almost the instant he walked in their line of sight. However, that was where their similarities seemed to end, as seen by their difference in height. The one to the left was the taller of the two, being nearly as tall as Ghira himself, with a bushy grey dog tail hanging loosely from a modified hole in his robes, while the one on the right was almost shorter than Blake, and had a pair of long, orange ears that weren't quite canine but still gave off a similar impression.
In short: they looked like religious recruiters. The blonde Berserker already didn't trust them.
"Blake? Is something wrong?" Ghira asked as the group marched onward to the door with looks of both pure, unbridled rage, disappointment, or confusion.
"Ah. It is good to see you again, young Blake," the taller greeted with a slight bow, his brother mirroring the action as he then continued. "We were not aware you had returned to Menagerie."
"Were we informed we would have welcomed you personally," the shorter added.
"... dad, what are Corsac and Fennec doing here?" Blake asked as Bakugo opened and closed his hands in anticipation of a brawl, Sun's hand reaching ever so slightly for his gunchucks just in case. Neo, while not as tense as the others, narrowed her eyes and her stance, her finger hovering just above Melodic Cudgel's trigger.
"Blake, just because some of the Fang have become more militant doesn't mean there aren't good people with the aim of peace among them," Ghira explained.
"That is true. We were rather shocked to learn of your departure, but we understand why you may not wish to support our new... methods any longer," Fennec further explained.
"Methods? METHODS?!" Bakugo asked with literal smoking anger to his tone. "We saw people from the Fang killing people firsthand in Vale! Don't feed us that 'methods differ' bullshit, you ignorant fuck!"
"... what is he talking about?" Ghira asked as his own gaze narrowed, Kali suddenly taking her own defensive stance as the tension between the parties continued to grow.
"... wait, are you kidding? How the hell do you guys not know?!" Sun asked with genuine surprise.
Ghira's face told them that he did not, and wanted answers as soon as he could get them. Blake then took over with a hesitant shake in her voice, explaining, "The White Fang was there during the Fall of Beacon. They were hunting down students. They released Grimm into the school."
"That's not even mentioning everything else," Bakugo began, his voice steadier than it had been, though his rage had yet to be quelled. "A lot of people we know got hurt. Some of them might not be able to fucking walk anymore. You took out half a fucking air fleet! That's not freedom fighting, that's just plain terrorism!"
Sun gave a sigh before he began his own tirade, saying, "That wasn't even the first time you guys had shot up Vale. Smuggling stolen Dust, stealing the Dust in the first place, various attacks on normal fucking people-"
"If we could have a chance to explain," Corsac said with a firm tone, stopping everyone in their rage-induced tracks, including Neo, who'd been slowly typing something out before stopping as he continued, "This is exactly what we came here to speak with the Cheiftan about."
Bakugo personally wanted to call bullshit and shove this guy's words back down his throat, literally if he had the means, but Ghira's slightly raised hand told all of them to stand down. The leader then turned to the brothers and asked, "Is what they said the truth?"
"... unfortunately, your grace, it is," Fennec answered. "It was actually what we were originally going to discuss in the meeting that was rescheduled."
"Then why the hell weren't you doing anything?" Bakugo asked.
Then it was Corsac who answered. "We'd had suspicions of a potential splinter cell long before Beacon fell, but until this incident we could prove nothing."
"Incident? It was a fucking disaster!" Blake exclaimed. "People are dead."
"And it is a tragedy. But-" Corsac began before he was once more interrupted.
"A lot more are probably injured permanently, or maybe even crippled," Bakugo chimed in. "'Tragedy' doesn't even begin to describe what happened."
"And a few people are in comas that they might not wake up from," Sun said, Bakugo not quite having time to notice the very specific nature of Sun's statement before Ghira once more stepped in.
"Alright! Alright! That is enough!" the large man said, now putting himself fully between the two parties before they gained half the mind to slaughter each other. "Everyone here wants the same thing. For those responsible for unnecessary suffering to see justice. But clawing at each other's throats will accomplish nothing. So please, stand down."
…
"... should I even ask who was leading this splinter group?" Ghira said, as though he were expecting the exact answer that the others were about to voice.
"It was lead by one Adam Taurus. I believe you're all well acquainted with his... extreme philosophies?" Fennec asked in turn.
It was at this point that Bakugo, now thoroughly infuriated to a point that he didn't think was possible after all the meditation, turned and went back inside in order to avoid any more sudden bursts of anger from something the Fox or the Hound might say. Fucking Oum, he was so angry he just wanted to kill-
No Oumdammit. I did not go through four months of training just to lose control now. Get it together you dumbass. Breathe. Breathe. Breathe...
(a few hours later, the Belladonna home, Bakugo's POV)
That stars looked so unnaturally peaceful that night. Like they always had, long before the possibility of Beacon had ever entered his mind as a child. It was simultaneously reassuring... and honestly quite terrifying. They were like the eyes of unbiased observers. Simply... watching. Waiting.
But, the blonde direwolf was brought back down to Remnant by Neo, who'd taken the liberty of sitting herself down right next to him on the rooftop. She made no move to type anything, and instead tilted her head upwards to watch the sky with him. After a few short seconds of a questioning look, Bakugo relented and joined her. The silence that passed between the two was a comfortable one. It went on for several long moments, possibly even a few minutes. Bakugo wasn't entirely sure. But, of course, it had to be broken eventually.
"... so, what brings you up to this lonely little rooftop?" Bakugo asked as casually as he could. Geez, it'd been literal hours since Tweedledee and Tweedledum had left and he was still pissed, even if it was more of a mild annoyance at this point.
Neo's response came quickly. "You were pretty quiet during dinner and basically disappeared once you were finished. Blake wanted to give you space, and Sun tried to find you and help you out, but he collapsed halfway through searching. He's exhausted."
"Huh. Didn't realize he cared that much," Bakugo observed.
She then further explained, "That's not what I meant. He's just... the guy's been tired for a lot longer than we've seen him. I'm guessing he's been having trouble sleeping or something, because it's going to be a problem if it keeps up."
"Gunchucks 'll be fine. If that guy can help beat down an entire dock full of Fang grunts, he'll get through this no problem," Bakugo replied, though they both knew that wasn't the problem. He'd been meaning to ask Sun about his team again, but after some reflection, he realized that might not be the best thing to ask, given that the last time he'd done that he'd seen the color begin to drain from the guy's face. Something had happened. Something bad. But that was Sun's story to tell, and it would be told in due time. He hoped.
"So... you and your uncle-" Bakugo began before Neo raised her hand to silence him and began typing out a retort.
"Yeah. We helped the Fang steal Dust. A lot of Dust. Drove the prices up to quite a pretty profit. Sorry about that. In our own defense, we only would've taken the money, and only the money, from only half the stores to keep a lower profile, but our boss had a different plan in mind. Seriously, if I ever see that bitch again, I'm going to stab her in the eye." When Bakugo looked back to her, he could see the pure anger that was radiating off of her in a dark pink Aura. He then took note to never make her seriously angry for the sake of his own life.
"So, what's your relation to these 'Sand Wraith' guys. They family or something?" Bakugo asked, having not been able to finish the message she'd typed out hours earlier.
"I guess you could say that," Neo responded. "I... didn't really have a stable childhood. It was a lot of moving around and getting by until Roman started the thief thing. I needed help, and we had almost no Lien. After that, we just wanted enough to secure our own lives. And then we fell in with the wrong people."
"... damn. Sounds like quite the story," Bakugo said.
"It is. And that's all you'll be hearing for the moment. If it's all the same to you, I'd rather not dig up any unpleasant memories right now," she typed.
"... alright. That's fair," the blonde direwolf said as the two returned to silence, the stars overhead ever bright and unchanging as a few streaks of cosmic light streaked across. If Neo had a wish to be made, she didn't voice it. Bakugo had one, but if some god or pantheon existed, they probably weren't going to listen to it.
Then, he felt a tap on his shoulder. The blonde then turned back to Neo, who then gestured to her head and back to his shoulder.
"... why?"
"Because the roof's uncomfortable and it's starting to get cold," she quickly explained.
Bakugo simply sighed and shrugged, giving his shoulder up to the pint-sized thief as she snuggled in with a silent, but contented, sigh. Oh well. It's not as though she weighed that much anyway. It was actually kinda nice.
And so, in somewhat more comfortable positions, the two stayed in that same spot for an unknown amount of time, the peace of the night sky calming Bakugo's uncertain heart. What a day. What a day indeed.
A/N: And that's it for this one! Hope you all enjoyed this one! I had a lot of fun writing out the humor and the interactions. And now:
Review Responses:
Thunder Dragon: Well, somewhat, but he's not quite as unhinged as Bakugo was at the start of the series. We'll just have to see how this develops as the series goes on.
Kaiser Dragon: Oh yes, yes they will.
Rune Dragon432: I'd disagree, but you're not exactly wrong. She has it coming.
Odin's Eye: Thanks! I did enjoy writing their interaction, even though it wasn't quite as lengthy as I wanted it to be. Which is a bit ironic, considering that the last chapter was over 10,000 words.
God-King Ghidora: I did try. I don't think I did a very good job with it though.
King Ceasar Jr: Well, I think she'd be initially frustrated, but eventually come to understand why. I'm trying to make Yang a bit more reasonable than her show counterpart. Doesn't mean she won't be mad about it though.
Midgardsormr Jr: That he just might, especially considering all the meditation and balancing he's been utilizing.
Enku: Nope, and thank goodness for that. While his recovery won't be instantaneous, I will promise now that he will get better. Eventually. And it won't be easy. Nothing worth earning or fighting for ever is.
Next Chapter: April 5th
Seeya in the next one!