Hunted or Busted: A Side Story
Dusted 13: The Fox and The Hood: Welcome Wagon
So Cristina Vee is coming up in the next volume. Winter Maiden? Willow Schnee? Who do you think the Miraculous Ladybug will be voicing in our little world of Remnant?
I'm getting more and more excited for November to come around.
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Yang casually flipped through her Scroll as she waited for the ship she had been sitting around for to finally arrive. It was nearly an hour past the expected arrival time now and she was getting super annoyed now. She had grown much more patient and calm following her graduation from Beacon, but there was still a limit to just how long she would be willing to wait.
It certainly didn't make things easier that she was getting some looks and nods from people that were also waiting at the airport for their arrivals.
Yang always knew she was attractive, even though she tried not to let it go to her head too much. But her father was a looker, and her mother was gorgeous, and she was proud to say that trend carried over to her as well. Plus even while she was good looking when she was still a kid, growing up into an adult with a leaner body and deeper curves just made it all the more true.
And of course that meant that she got looks and glances from those around her that were interested to see if they had a shot.
Sometimes she wore clothes that covered a whole lot of her figure, and then sometimes she wore stuff that left very little to the imagination. So they could look because she couldn't stop their eyes from wandering. But she did get a little annoyed when people came over asking if she was looking for a good time while she was obviously sitting here waiting for an arrival. Usually she could ward them off and tell them no and they would listen, even if they were insistent and pushy to an unbearable degree. She had recently had someone pull her arm and say she shouldn't have been leading him on if she didn't want the attention.
She wasn't allowed back in that bar after the commotion she caused. And to be fair she didn't think the bar deserved to have so many broken tables and an imprint of a douchebag in its wall.
The blonde sighed and realized that if she didn't get some news soon she'd have to start thinking about lunch or even dinner in an airport. And that was not how she had planned to spend her day. If her plans to welcome them back were ruined-
Fortunately Yang heard a ding go out through the intercom and she sprung up in her seat with excitement. The Huntress quickly jumped to her feet and ran over to the window to see the Airship come down for a slow landing. As it lowered its hatch and let the people it carried out, she stood ready with the sign she had prepared.
Little Red and Bid Bad Fox
It was the simple things that made her laugh.
After the first few passengers stepped off the ship Yang finally spotted the duo she had been waiting for.
And balked in horror when she got a look at them.
"Yang!"
"Hey, been waiting long?"
Ruby quickly dove at her sister as Naruto casually walked up with their bags in hand. Yang let her little sister squeeze and nuzzle into her after being gone for over a year on a trip around the world. And now that they were back...
"Why do you two look like a pair of scruffy hobos that just emerged from under the bridge?"
Naruto tilted his head in confusion as Ruby pulled back and looked up at Yang. She stepped back and looked herself over, "I don't think I look that bad? Do you?"
"No way." Naruto said, "We just came back from a huge fight in Vacuo where we fought off Grimm for nearly a day. I think we're permitted to have some scruffy looking clothes."
"Yeah!" Ruby nodded triumphantly.
"Oh really, heroes?" Yang said with hands on her hips, "What about the dirt marks on your face, the mud in your hair, and the fact it looks like you haven't had a haircut in ages?"
Like she said they did have roughed up clothes, muddy boots, and their hair was messy and longer since they had left. In all honestly they did look like they had just come out from living under a bridge. through a storm. And only woke up halfway through the flood washing over them.
"Um..."
"Yep," Yang nodded with resolve, "We're going back to the apartment."
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"Why are we doing this?"
"Because I can't take you seriously when you look like you've got a drowned badger sitting on your head."
"And why am I first?"
"Because I know Ruby won't fight me and you'll be the more difficult one to convince." Yang said as she pulled out a pair of scissors and wrapped a towel around Naruto's neck. The Faunus looked displeased arriving home and immediately having to get a haircut. He shuffled in his chair anxiously, "Relax. I've cut Ruby's hair a ton when we were kids. I know what I'm doing."
"Have you ever cut the hair of someone with ears sticking out of it?"
"Honestly no, but it's pretty much like every pair of ears when you cut hair. Avoid and make sure not to make a mess." He still didn't look convinced, but Yang quickly started to snip the extra layers of gold hair off. She hummed a little tune as she got into the groove and spoke over her shoulder, "So how was the trip?"
"Oh Yang it was so much fun!" Ruby joyfully exclaimed, the young lady having just finished her shower and coming out to join her sister and friend in her PJs, "I knew Remnant was a big place but you can't believe just how huge it is until you start to see it for yourself! We were gone for a year and we still didn't see all of it!"
"Not like we didn't try." Naruto chuckled as yellow locks started to litter his towel, "Vacuo is a much bigger place than we anticipated. Kiba and the others have settled down there pretty well for themselves. Of course the big Grimm horde we fought wasn't a very appreciated change of pace."
"How'd you handle that?"
"My eyes did that thing they do. The thing Uncle Qrow told us about." Ruby answered as she pulled her knees up to her chest, "I'm still not totally sure what causes them."
"Well hey, at least they worked when you needed them." Yang smiled, "So did you see any of the other old crew on your trip?"
"Oh everybody. We met up with Blake, Sasuke, and Weiss in Atlas and Menagerie. It was so fun to see them again! Weiss acted like we still weren't the best of friends but I still text her every now and then."
"Cool. And have they~..."
"Sasuke wants to prove himself by establishing his ability as the SDC's new head of security. They have a lot of judgmental people and eyes sticking on them right now." Naruto snickered, "Doesn't mean they didn't have a few dates while away in Menagerie~."
"Keep your ears still." Yang said with a laugh as she could just imagine how utterly useless her capable friends would be outside of their comfort zones.
"Tenten and Pyrrha are doing really well in Mistral. They've helped start a new branch of Skyggen in Argus, and are really happy. Jaune's going to stay there for a little bit and..."
Yang looked back confused when they both paused in their retelling. She looked back and saw Ruby's lips had shut while Naruto clammed up entirely. With a quirked brow she looked between them, "What happened to Jaune?"
"He and Pyrrha..."
"Oh, did they finally work things out?"
"Something like that... they..."
"God," Naruto spoke, his voice hollow and eyes looking out farther than he could see, "The sounds. I close my eyes and I can still hear them. And my ears are better than others so I heard...like...everything."
"It was so loud." Ruby muttered in fright, "Oh god, we just left Tenten there to live with it. I mean I'm glad Pyrrha and Jaune are happy together but at what cost?"
Yang couldn't keep her laughter in check any longer as a snicker slipped out at their shaken responses. She had really missed being around them in the year they were gone. There was a big part of her that felt ashamed that she hadn't kept in better contact while they were gone. But...
"I went to Mistral a few months back." She said as she continued to cut Naruto's hair, "But I didn't go there to see the others or as a vacation. I...went there to find my mom."
Ruby sat up in surprise as Naruto looked back in the corner of his eye, "I finally got some solid information from Uncle Qrow about where she could be in Mistral. He said I could only go if I made sure to take him with me...but I just left the same night without telling him."
Ruby looked conflicted but showed a small smile, "I bet they weren't happy about that."
"Dad and Qrow are still super pissed at me." Yang chuckled before shaking her head, "But when I got there I made contact with your dad and his company for help. They used to be classmates so I thought he might know how to handle her."
"And did he?"
"Raven Branwen is...she's a bandit. She made a name for herself as a ruthless and cold criminal. The things she's done over the years...I can't believe I came from her." Yang stopped for a moment and laid her hand on Naruto's shoulder to steady herself. She felt her friend reach up and lay his palm on her knuckles before she continued, "I didn't believe those things until I saw her camp myself and saw just how...empty her people were."
Ruby whispered, "Yang..."
"They drew on me the moment I appeared at their gates. Being there with Mr. Minato was the only reason they didn't attack when they spotted me, and when Raven realized it was me she brought me in to talk. We just argued. We screamed and yelled and I threw accusation after accusation while she could only give excuses. She didn't regret abandoning us. She didn't want anything to do with us anymore. In the end whatever I was hoping to find I didn't get. So now I'm here and all I find myself wanting to do is bring Raven to justice myself. I guess it really was just a big waste of time."
Yang was surprised when she found herself being hugged tightly from behind. She looked over her shoulder to see Ruby burying herself in her back. Her little sister squeezed tighter, "I'm sorry I wasn't there to help you."
"I don't think I wanted you, Dad, or Uncle Qrow there with me. Being there with Raven was just so bleak and awful. And I didn't want any of that being near you or them. I wanted what I have to be as far away as possible from what she was."
"You have us," Ruby hugged tighter, "We love you Yang."
She smiled softly and chuckled as she cut another strand before patting her friend's shoulder, "Okay, you're all good."
Picking up a mirror, Naruto looked into it to see his hair was much shorter and his ears were more visible now. He sighed, "I think this might be a bit too short."
"Quit your bitching and get up." She slapped his shoulder and patted the arms around her waist, "Your turn Sis." Ruby happily disentangled herself and sat down for her sister to do her magic. She wrapped a towel around her neck and let Yang get to work.
"So~..." Yang lifted a long stand of her hair to the side and snickered, "You two get over your little all skin incident yet?"
"Yang!"
She cackled as Naruto just sighed and slumped back into the couch, running a hand through his newly cut hair. And to think he had missed this over the year.
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"So what was the craziest place you guys went to on your trip?"
"I say Vacuo!" Ruby yelled. The PJ-clad Huntress was now sporting a more familiar hairstyle after her sister's styling. However her eyes were glossy and her speech was slurred after Yang had presented the multitude of beers she kept in their fridge for the celebration. Ruby and Naruto were slow to join but once they did they went in hard, "T-The weather was hot and I got sunburn! And the sand! It was coarse and rough and got everywhere!"
"No way!" Naruto said, equally groggy with some empty beer cans around him as he shook his head, "It was Atlas! Atlas was the toughest place! All those rules and regulations were such a pain in the ass!"
"What? You - you stupid or something? Vacuo was way too hot!"
"I can handle the heat! Atlas was cold! I-I'm not used to cold! I don't like cold! I'd rather take hot! Dress cool. Hydrate. Easy."
"No! Stupid! Dress warm and stay in with hot cocoa!" Ruby shakily dragged herself off the couch and frowned at the Faunus seated on the ground, "Y-You don't know anything!"
Yang laughed as she watched them argue. She was buzzed but she could handle her booze much better than these two could apparently, "Careful you two. You just settled things before, don't go drawing new blood."
"H-Hey, I know things!"
"No you don't!" Ruby groggily refuted as she sloppily crawled her way over to him. She slurred, "Y-You have no idea how tough it is being your partner! Always doing – doing things and taking time and stuff!"
Yang sighed, "Truly you are a natural and gifted speaker for the ages, little sister."
"Not like you're much better." Naruto retorted with a burp, "You do things and time and stuff too."
"One-in-a-million linguists the both of you."
Ruby slapped his chest and hiccuped, "You always rush into fights without a plan. You eat enough to nearly bankrupt us! And you snore in your sleep!"
Naruto's eyes looked to be wandering around the room, "Oh yeah~, well you never stop to rest between missions. You always need me to clean up after you – you would have forgotten Crescent Rose if I didn't tidy everything up! And it is impossible to wake you up on time."
"I get sleepy!"
"I know that now!"
"Oh yeah, well I – I…" Ruby placed a hand on his chest and leaned in towards his face, "I've been thinking about you a lot~."
Yang sat up in surprise as the inebriated Naruto just giggled, "Thank you very much."
"I think you're pretty cool. And nice looking. And I saw you naked~, hehehe." Ruby's little giggle fit made Naruto start to laugh harder before she slapped his shoulder, "I-I wish you would look at me like that too."
"But I'm looking at you right now."
…
"Oh yeah! Hahahaha!"
"Hahahaha!"
The two roommates went into an uncontrollable fit of laughter at whatever they found funny about their conversation. After a few seconds of them just losing their minds Ruby's eyes started to go heavy and she started to sway. She closed her eyes and fell asleep against Naruto's chest while he laughed.
And then he followed after, collapsing backwards and quickly falling unconscious.
Yang looked at the odd sight of the two drunks strewn across the floor. Her little sister sleepily muttered to herself while laying on her friend's chest as Naruto already started to snore.
Did she…
Had they…
A wicked smile slowly stretched over Yang's face as she snickered with glee. She took a sip of her drink, letting the sharp bubble run down her throat before she sighed and smiled, "I am so glad to have you two morons back."
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Done
There is just something I adore about writing these characters without the heavy weight of story or plot hovering over them. Just let them be people and do stupid crap. Get haircuts. Drink beer. Get drunk. Do things you'd regret the next morning when you're sober.
Love it.
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Thank You and Bye
