I don't own any intellectual properties
Years Ago
Within a deep underground tomb underneath the bowels of Hogwarts, there was a faint sound of dripping water. Faint drops clashing into solid rock, as a silence seemed to permeate through the Chamber of Secrets.
Harry panted heavily, as he was griping the wood of his wand. Sweat was pouring down his face, as he stared down against a single opponent.
There was a flash of black light, followed by a concussive explosion, causing Harry to flinch and grimace as he heard a pain filled scream. "Ah!" Ron cried out in pain, as he was hurled back by a curse that hit him in the abdomen. He was thrown back and spun, as he slammed straight into a snake-like statue.
"Hmhmhm...adorable." A young man commented, as he chucked to himself. The young man looked strikingly similar to Harry in some ways and radically different in others. He had inky black hair, neatly combed and well kept. He had dark onyx colored eyes, with light colored skin. He wore an old Hogwarts Uniform, with silver and green coloring.
Harry glared at the phantom of Tom Riddle, as the Basilisk laid on the ground, a protruding Silver Sword from it's snout. 'What do I do, what do I do…?' He thought to himself, as he remained focused on the Dark Lord.
"My oh my, are you the one that killed me?" Tom asked curiously, as he gave Harry a once over. "You look like a stiff wind might go and send you tumbling." He said in a light tone.
"You...you killed…you killed Ron's sister, w-why did you kill her?" Harry asked, a stunned and horrified tone in his voice.
Tom glanced to the side and looked at the pale corpse of a little red-headed girl. "You mean this cute-little thing? It wasn't personal to be honest. Her death meant my life, the answer was simple." He admitted.
"Y-you're…y-you're a monster!" The twelve year old Harry muttered, looking at Tom with a frown.
Tom just smiled. "Me? That's cute..." He trailed off, before he created a long-drawn out whistle. "…Come on now, wake up!" He said loudly.
Harry looked at the apparition with narrowed eyes, before he noticed something rather horrifying. He watched as the 'dead' body of the Basilisk began to move again. It raised it's head and slowly turned, facing Harry. The Sword of Gryffindor protruding from it's head.
"N-n..." Harry muttered.
"No? You thought it dead? A Basilisk, over a thousand years old, simply dead by a single stab? Ridiculous!" Tom announced happily, as he brandished Ginny's wand and leveled it at Harry, sending a black colored exploding curse at the young man.
Harry quickly brought up his wand, in a futile attempt to protect himself from the curse, but the spell shattered any shield he tried to put up. Like Ron, the curse slammed into Harry and exploded, hurling him back with an immense force.
The Basilisk reared it's head back, before thrashing around. From it's face, the silver sword of Gryffindor came flying out out it's scaly flesh. Harry groaned in pain, as he tried to push himself up. That was before he froze up, when a double-sided silver blade impaled the ground right next to his head.
"Do you see the point of how futile it is, to stand against me?" Tom asked in a joking tone, taking light of Child Murder. "…Crucio!" He chanted, leveling Ginny's wand at the prepubescent.
Harry released a shrill, high-pitched scream; his juvenile vocal cords straining to release a reaction of his pain. His body thrashed and cringed in pain, as Tom slowly twisted the wand in his hand. "Hmhm-gye-haha!" The Dark Lord chuckled to himself maliciously. "You're the kid that defeated, my older self must be pathetic!" He jeered, as he released the curse.
The sound of the Basilisk slithered slowly, it's teeth filled maw slowly opening, with it's horrifying visage looming and setting in towards the terrified kid.
Harry turned over and stared at the approaching Basilisk, it's visage shadowing his view of his fallen friend. 'No...This can't be it…It can't end here...Ron will die…all of the petrified people will die...I have to stop this…I have to win…' Harry thought angrily, his blood boiling, seething in contempt and frustration.
The amalgamation of emotions, cascaded into tidal wave inside his body. The approaching Basilisk seemed to slowly slow down, as Harry heard a distinct whirling chime, which reached his ears. Bright blue sprites danced across his vision, with Harry slowly turning his head to the side. The Sword of Gryffindor was radiating a brilliant blue light, it's blade enveloped in a shroud, with unspeakable and unreadable script along it's blade.
'Desolated Outlier, if you need assistance. Then you should look here...your blade, a guiding moonlight…' A voice spoke...not, not a voice. A guttural hum, something that was mockingly similar to a human voice, but didn't quite fit.
Harry stared at the blade, as all time around him seemed to warp and slow to a stand still. The visage of the sword of Gryffindor shimmered in a darkness, before a shadowy figure flickered above it, taking the visage of a humanoid. But in no way could be considered that. The creature wore a fine pressed suit, long pants and a long suit jacket which reached his thighs. In place of any humanoid features was horrid monstrous appendages. It's hands were long, clawed tendrils. It's head was an amass of tentacles and tendrils flowing and writhing upwards, as gravity seemed to have no affect on them. It's face...it was just a large maw, of pointed and jutting out teeth, like that of a barracuda. It's legs were enveloped in an uncountable amount of bright blue dancing sprites.
"W-what are..." Harry muttered.
The Eldritch creature slowly brought one of it's clawed tendrils up to it's teeth filled maw, and made a mocking shushing gesture. 'In times like this...such questions may be the death of you. I am a being, trapped in this invulnerable, adapting alloy. You, have called for my assistance. Take my blade and use my power, if you wish for survival.' It instructed, with Harry staring at it in fascination. For the creature didn't 'speak' it created a hum of distortions, mimicking a voice. And as it 'spoke' it's mouth didn't move an inch, it's body twitched and flickered, with each word it spoke.
Harry looked a bit apprehensive, as he looked at the Eldritch Being, before his eyes flickered down towards the sword. 'The time for indecision is gone, Desolated Outlier! Take of the blade, or you will die!''The creature stated urgently, as it vanished from sight and time began to slowly start up again.
The howling hiss of the Basilisk, startled Harry and shook him from his stupor. His eyes darted up at the Basilisk, before he pushed himself up and grabbed the sword.
"Haha, what's this? Going in for a second-round?" Tom questioned, watching Harry pulled the sword out of the ground with mirth in his eyes.
Guided by some kind of preternatural, extra-sensory instinct, from deep within Harry. He moved back from the Basilisk and raised the sword of Gryffindor above his head, as he placed his palm on the base and dragged it out to the tip of the sword. Following the path of his hand movement, a bright blue swarm of blue sprites encroached around the thin double-edged long sword, forming a large Great Sword; it's blade glowing a brilliant blue light, mirroring that of the Blue Moon.
Tom looked a bit surprised at the sudden transformation of the weapon, feeling a bit on edge by how...it felt. The Magic it radiated was a Deep One, an Old One, an Eldritch Magic which was not fit for the age of Man; or even should exist on the same plan. It was a mockery of Magic, Magic which was the essence of life. Even Black Magic, the perversion of life forced to manipulate and harm itself. But this Magic, it took the sciences of Magic, the life essence it formed...and it gave a cold, chilling, and mechanical sheen. It was everything Magic wasn't, but it felt like Magic and it acted like Magic.
'What the hell?!' Tom thought in surprise, his eyes widening.
Harry reared the sword back, bringing the hilt close to his chest as the Basilisk lunged at him. "Die!" Harry cursed out in repressed rage, as the blade he wielded radiated an even more intense light before he thrust it forward with a great effort.
As soon as he thrust the blade forward, as soon as the tip of the now 'Great Sword' touched the sneering 'lips' of the Basilisk. The energy that released around the blade, the Cosmic Energy, the Aethreal energy exploded in a mighty cavalcade of light and destructive intent.
The Basilisk was lucky it didn't survive, as most of the upper portions of it's head was now removed, a storm of blood erupting from the place it's head used to be. Crimson blood drenched Harry, with the child staring forward with wide eyes.
"Hah...aha-hah..." Harry panted out heavily, his chest and shoulder's heaving with each drawn out breath.
"You..." Tom muttered, staring at the child. "...Born in Blood...Now does it feel? The rush? The feeling of having such an enemy, an enemy that gave you such horror, such strife...die? Because of the effort you put into it?" He asked.
Harry stared at the dropping corpse of the Basilisk, his mind numb. Like before, when he sent Ouroboros to kill the Troll, he felt nothing. Other than satisfaction at slaying his enemy, that he did a good job.
"Hmhm...hehe-haha!" Tom laughed manically, causing Harry to slowly turn and look towards him. "Now I get it. I know how you beat the future me...it's an inevitability. People like you, are born once a generation. You...are just like me." The Dark Lord admitted.
"I...I...am nothing like you..." Harry muttered, as his body began to tremble in anger.
Slowly Tom licked his lips, as he watched the child flare up in magic, his anger fueling the magic around him. He began to channel magic, creating an array of affects, permafrost formed along the walls with the candles illuminating the chamber began to glow a bright blue hue.
"...I can see it now. It's only a matter of time until you're just...like...me." Tom said with a confident smile on his face.
"Shut up!" Harry snapped, as he charged at Tom and slashed the glowing blue sword at the apparition.
Tom dissolved away for a moment, before he appeared not to far away, laughing to himself. "Just like me! You're going to be just like me!" He chanted over and over, as Harry's eyes landed on Ginny at his feet and the Diary on the ground next to her.
Harry stared at the black book for a moment, before he turned the blade in his grip around, aiming it downwards. "Hmhmhm, now you're going to kill me?! To what? Sate your blood-lust…How much like a Dark Lord, are you?" Tom asked mockingly.
The child gritted his teeth and sneered, as he glanced back at Ron, to see he was unconscious underneath a shattered statue. He looked down towards Ginny, to see his best friend's kid sister, dead at his feet. His eyes slowly looked up and focused on Tom. "I'm tired of hearing you're voice, so die!" He hissed out, as he slammed the blade down, stabbing the diary with the tip of the blade.
The blade released a burst of Cosmic Energy which vaporized the Horcrux. Tom stared at Harry in shock, before he slowly looked down; his legs were in a blaze of bright blue energy. "Hm...hmhm...hehe-haha!" Tom laugh cackled insanely. "So you decided to kill me, that's something I would've done, Potter! I don't know what my fate will be on the other side! But I know my soul is saved, by the fact this world will have a tormentor as equally as twisted as I! Now go on and live a very long life for me, Potter! We are the same you and I, the same messenger of Chaos…The Crawling Chaos!" He raved manically, as his soul was burnt up into blue flakes of flickering energy.
There was a loud metallic clank, as Harry dropped the sword, causing the bright blue glow around it to vanish. As he slowly sunk down to his knees. He slowly looked at his hands, to see his fingers and palms were trembling.
'Just like me...just like me...just like me…' Harry thought to himself, over and over. He closed his eyes tight and gritted his teeth. "...I'll...I'll never be like you." He said to himself, and as he closed his eyes tight; in the darkness he saw bright blue dancing sprites. And as he looked at them, he felt...warmth.
"Who are you?" He asked quietly, keeping his eyes shut to see the darkness and what was therein.
Within the darkness, a faint visage of the Eldritch creature he saw earlier flickered into existence. 'I am the last of those who opposed the machinations of the universe. I helped gave each reality breath and shape and form, billions of years ago. Am the last of my kind, who rose up against the tyranny of the Keepers, before my kind was ruthlessly destroyed. I am the last Apothican." A guttural mockery of human speech expressed.
The visage of a glowing long sword entered Harry's mind, the Eldritch creature dragged it's clawed tendrils along it's pristine blade.
'I was sealed within a powerful material near the core of this planet…in the universe I tried to change; I had to exist within a limbo. As I watched the failure of my loss...it's only by chance, that metal happened to be mined by what you know as Goblins. It's by chance that same metal was purified and then used to form the Sword of Gryffindor. And it was by chance that your magic resonated with the being inside…' It explained.
Harry reached out and grabbed the sword at his feet, as he ran the hand along the blade. "…Chance...I...don't believe that..." He muttered.
'You are correct, it wasn't chance. This...is a plan I placed before I fell. Billions of years ago, think of every little interaction. How every thing seems to bring you to your current moment, how every event adds up to this...time. No matter what happened, you would always face the Basilisk here. And you would be granted use of the Sword Gryffindor…' The Eldritch entity informed.
"W-what are you talking about? W-why would you want me to have this?" Harry asked unsure.
'Because Desolate Outlier, I need you're help.' The Apothican informed.
Harry exhaled. "...What with" He questioned quietly.
'A Revolution.' The Eldritch Entity responded, before Harry opened his eyes and the blue sprites dancing in his vision vanished. Harry looked away from the sword and towards Ginny, before he reached out and put his hand on her face, and closed her eyes.
Harry glanced away and looked at the scorch mark, where the Tom's Diary once was. '..Just like me...just like me...just like me…' The words of the Dark Lord laughed over and over through his mind. "...Just...like…me…" Harry muttered softly.
–
Now
The sound of light boots crunching along sand came from a trio of individuals, walking across a long dozen kilometer wide landscape.
One individual was looking around, despite the horror she felt...this was unreal. Blake was being ushered forward by Neo, as they and Nui walked inside Harry's trunk.
Blake looked around at the massive spanning area, which laid inside his trunk. The sky was filled with dark clouds, with an overcast of probable rain. The area shook, as the area was illuminated by a bright burst of crimson energy. However the energy was enveloped in a bright violet light, of cascading light and gravity.
Nui's, Blake's and Neo's hair were blown back by several bursts of kinetic energy, as the visage of a towering bright blue behemoth was seen not to far away. A bright black and green dot seemed to flicker around the massive humanoid behemoth for a few moments, creating distorting hits; which caused the ground to tremble and the consecutive shocks of kinetic energy to flare out into visible shock waves.
"...W-what is that?" Blake nervously asked, her legs shaking.
Nui narrowed her eye towards the distance. "...Look's like Madara's Susanoo. It's fighting...hmm..." She sounded with suspicion. "Come on." She instructed, as she turned and walked towards a location near the entrance of the area. There was a small open facility, some chairs for lounging around and resting after training; as well compartments for weapons, it also had the controls for the training area's settings.
Neo looked around, while she had been in the trunk a few times. It was truly a wonder that such a massive space fit inside a small construct. 'It's kinda like me...Large amount of fun, inside a fun little body!' Neo thought with a smile.
She turned and looked at Nui, to see her 'sister' was fiddling with the controls. "What's...gonna happen to me?" Blake asked quietly, her bow flat against her head.
"I'm letting Daddy know I'm here. As fun as the idea of getting smashed by a fourty-meter tall Goliath, I'd rather my body remain intact! I can't have sex if my body's broken!" Nui admitted, before she glanced up and smiled. "Or maybe I can!" She added, as she adjusted the gravity of the training field for a few moments, sending Blake and Neo to the ground; more so the former than the latter.
Ironically enough, the world of Remnant was a bit smaller than Earth, it's Gravitational Force being noticeably weaker; comparable to that of Venus'. It was one of the reasons why Harry was noticeably stronger and faster on the planet; it was much easier to move. All Nui did was raise the gravity in the training area, from Remnants Gravitational Force of 'Seven point Seven Meters/Second Squared' to an even 'Ten meters by seconds squared' just slightly above Earth's own Gravity.
The sudden rise in gravity was able to floor a surprised Blake, sending her to her knees. While Neo was forced to kneel for a moment, before she pushed herself up against the force and stood. Nui herself just smiled and seemed completely unfazed by the sudden shift in gravity.
"I...I can't…" Blake muttered, her body not strong enough to fight against the intense gravity. She was barely able to keep on her hands and knees.
"Oh yeah, you only have your speed, agility and precision; you didn't devote any of your SPECIAL points to Strength!" Nui chirped out happily.
"P-please..." Blake chocked out, her skin forming sweat.
Nui looked away from her and towards the distant battle, to see the Susanoo Madara cast vanish. It seemed her little raise the gravity alerted the others to the fact someone else was there. After a moment, she adjusted and lowered the gravity again to Remnant's natural Gravity.
Blake released a sigh of relief, as she felt the immense weight on her body subside. Neo herself closed her eyes and her tension vanished. Despite the fact she was helping her 'sister' she was rarely in Beacon; choosing to team with Harry when he was in his alter-ego. She was in his trunk a few times, and only used it to train twice. One time, where she and Nui fought against Harry, with the Sorcerer having buffed himself up with Art of Quickening Spell, allowing him to move at immense speeds, as well as another spell which amped up his body. To say she and Nui were beaten, was a sound statement.
The other training was more of a fun fight between her and Nui, which involved Harry watching. It...well, it didn't stay a fun fight; and turned into more of a game of trying to get the other off.
Blake looked away from the two girls and hoped to find an exit to the field, as soon as she was forced to enter. The 'entrance' melted into the area and blended in.
She suddenly jumped when she heard the sound of clanking metal, she turned and saw the imposing and intimidating stature of Harry's teammate, Madara. He was fully decked in his usual battle attire; Blake had only seen him wear when they first met in the Emerald Forest.
He stood at full height, his arms crossed and a scowl on his face. That was until Blake noticed something about his eyes, they weren't the usual onyx black she usually saw in passing glances, or even the occasional time they were crimson. Now, right now, his eyes were a dull purple, with a pattern of consecutive rings spreading out, in a rippling fashion.
There was another thud, causing Blake to turn and she saw something that certainly surprised her. It was Harry's other teammate, Grimmjow. But he looked far more feral than he usually did; with obvious animal-like features. His hair was long and glowing, with the marking around his eyes being larger and extending into his ears, which had become cat-like. His body was covered in a white-ceramic like armor, with a slender whip-like tail. He had black cat-like claws and paws, his whole body was radically different to put it simply.
'What...are you a Faunus too? What's with your eyes...what...who are you people…' Blake thought, looking from Grimmjow to Madara.
There was a third sound, as a faint crack was heard. Blake turned and she could guess who she was going to see, but she took a startled step back at what she saw. She saw Harry, except he was shirtless; revealing a toned and scared body. She stared at his chest and arms, noticing a set of long tattoos adorning his biceps and chest, taking the form of black and green coiled up chains, at the ends were metal hooks in the shape of serpent-heads.
The thing about the tattoos though, was that they moved. Blake stared openly at his body, her lips parting a bit.
"D-Daddy, what happened to you!?" Nui asked, a tone of worry in her voice, snapping Blake out of her trance.
Blake then noticed something else, she seemed to have missed...or was to distracted to notice. His arms were bloody, his stomach was covered in blood, and the places around his joints were covered in burns.
Harry exhaled, as he looked down at himself and shook his head. "It's nothing, really." He admitted.
Nui turned and glared at Grimmjow and Madara. "If you so much as hurt a hair on my Daddy's head..." She trailed off, a wicked smile forming on her face. "...I'll kill you." She stated.
"Pfft, fucking kill me, my ass!" Grimmjow responded, not at all threatened by Nui. As Spiritual Energy flared around him, as he released his Resurreccion; the ceramic armor fading into dust and coalescing into a single katana blade.
"We did not hurt Black-dono, he did more damage to us; than we did to him." Madara admitted plainly.
Nui turned and looked at Harry in concern, as he held up a hand to his wounded stomach; before a faint green glow formed. Summoning Magic to accelerate the healing process; once didn't need to be an expert healer to heal with Magic. Magic was 'Life-force Energy', it naturally rejuvenated and invigorated cells. That's why wizards could live hundreds of years; because they had so much Magic running through them, it kept their cells in a much more pristine shape. Healing Magic came naturally to almost any Wizard or Sorcerer; those that wanted to heal. Admittedly, if one wanted to heal quickly and do complex procedures, one had to know human biology.
"D-Daddy...what's going on?" She asked worried for her father, as she reached out and put a hand on his forearm.
"I'm training..." Harry admitted curtly. "…The enemy we face; aren't human. Do you remember that creature we fought in the forest?" He questioned, causing Blake to purse her lips as she listened to the conversation.
Nui nodded. "Uh-huh! It was our first victory!" She chirped out.
Harry slowly shook his head. "That was one Keeper Servant, an apparition; a mockery of even the depths of their powers. They manipulated the inner workings of this reality, allowing a creature to mutate from just a few Grimm. That creature was limited by the rules of this reality, using attacks that can only be seen in this reality. It took our combined effort to take down one servant." He stated.
He turned and looked at Madara. "Granted you were in your primary state, with only your base Sharingan Abilities, and without Wood Release..." He stated, and turned to look at Grimmjow. "...And you without your Resurreccion." He commented, before he looked at Nui. "And you...without using...that." He muttered in a more quiet tone, causing Nui to look down.
"The thing is, the Keeper of this reality can create an army of such creatures, and if it's inclined to...it can remove the limits it placed, or even impose new abilities. The Keeper gave it's servant that ability to use Aura and the ability to channel a fragment of the Aether's awesome power. What's to say it doesn't give it's next set of servants Chakra, Reiatsu, Devil-Fruit Abilities; or all three? Why not give a servant a Zanpakuto with Banki, a Kekkai Genkai, or Haki?" Harry asked, looking at his allies.
Madara and Grimmjow shared a glance; Harry did promise them a powerful enemy. "The Keeper didn't think of us as a threat when it sent the Servant, but with our combined strength we struck it down. And now it knows. We have to prepare...and I've devised of a way to kill a Keeper." He admitted.
Nui tilted her head. "But Daddy, you told me. You can't kill a Keeper. It's physically impossible. Only a Keeper can kill a Keeper. You said they exist on a different plane existence...that's why it was going to be my job to do that." She admitted.
Harry glared at her. "I…I was wrong. You aren't going to do that to take down the Keepers...I won't...I won't allow it..." He muttered as he glanced off, refusing to even think about his original plan he had for Nui and the Keepers. He was dumb then, short sighted.
"Ah, anyone else lost here?" Grimmjow asked, glancing at Madara and Neo.
Neo shrugged, she was in the dark about this thing apparently. "I am unaware as to what this conversation's about, as well." Madara admitted, as he closed his eyes.
Harry looked away from Nui, avoiding her single eye. "The thing is; I've developed a way to reach the plain the Keepers exist on...if only temporarily." He admitted.
"Is that why you're body's all messed up?" Nui asked, crossing her arms.
Harry raised his left hand and stared at it, as he opened and closed his fingers. "Unfortunately, the process in which I achieve such dizzying heights of power and staggering insight into reality around me. I must take in a decent amount of power from the Aether itself. Such power concentrated inside me; my body warps on a sub-atomic level and it can't contain energy like that for long." He admitted, as his hand was engulfed in a green glow again and he began to heal himself, as he took a seat in one of the many chairs in the small lounging area.
Blake kept her eyes on Harry, without his constant and perpetual evil smile and his mocking tone; he was actually pretty intelligent. She had no idea what these 'Keepers' where, but she did remember the monster they saw in the Emerald Forest. And she saw the damage it tanked and created; if that thing was an underpowered servant of these 'Keepers', than there was a much more powerful enemy lurking around, more dangerous than Harry, if even he was afraid of it.
"Well, Daddy to change the tone of this conversation! Look what I got!" Nui cheered, as she and Neo took up sides around Blake and held their arms out, in a dramatic-show off manner.
Harry's eyes landed on Blake, before they went wide. "What are you doing here...what is she doing here!?" He demanded angrily, looking at Nui, causing the girl to shrink back.
"I...she made a contract with me, I own her." Nui responded weakly, expecting a different reaction.
Harry turned and glared at Blake. "Why did you make a contract with Nui, didn't your teammates warn you!?" He asked irritated.
Blake looked away from him, feeling perhaps Harry wasn't the one who sent Nui to ruin her life. "...I...I don't recall them telling me...they may have." She muttered unsure. For the past month she had been largely ignoring what her team talked about, especially in relation to Harry.
Harry turned to Nui. "Why did you do this?" He asked.
"She...was being rude to you. And she was going to start investigated you, Daddy...I just…wanted to protect you..." Nui mumbled, looking down.
"How am I going to explain the fact that Blake is your bloody slave to Ruby, Weiss and Yang!?" He demanded.
"You don't tell them." Nui weakly responded.
Madara leaned close towards Harry. "This isn't the kind of thing that just 'blows over'. People will notice." He advised. "I might suggest using a Sharingan Genjutsu on this one, make her forget." He stated.
Harry glanced at Madara, Sharingan Genjutsu and normal Genjutsu operated on different rules. Normal Genjutsu worked by riding along a person's Chakra Pathways and infecting their Nervous System. Since most people don't have a Chakra Network outside of Madara's reality, it didn't work on most people. But Sharingan Genjutsu worked different rules. The Sharingan Genjutsu attacks the brain directly through eye-contact, working more like advanced hypnosis. It bypasses the need of infecting the Nervous System, and attacking the brain, the organ that controls the Nervous System. It's the reason how Madara controlled the Nine-Tails, a being composed of just chakra and lacked a Nervous System; or how Sasuke controlled Manda, even though it was a Sage Creature and in turn lacked any chakra. The Sharingan Genjutsu is woefully superior, lacking the limitations of normal illusions.
Harry turned and looked to Blake, to see she was looking terrified, her eyes darting from Nui, to Madara, to himself. She was sickly pale, soaked in sweat and was trembling like a leaf. Truth was, he didn't know what to do with her. His original plan was just to give her to Adam when he arrived at Beacon, opting to just avoid her all together until that happened.
That was made much harder when she was teamed with Ruby, Yang and Weiss. If he interacted with them, he usually interacted with Blake. Her instincts were sharp enough to detect him as a threat, and so she reacted accordingly in her own...narrow way.
Now, he didn't know what to do with her. Harry knew Adam was going to just kill her, probably in front of the majority of the White Fang. Adam was more or less in love with his cause, instead of a person. He wouldn't do to Blake, what Harry had done to say Pyrrha or Kali. Harry wanted to give Adam what he said he would, but he also didn't want to tell her Team what happened to Blake. They would notice and they would try and help her, it was who they were.
He had to do something now. Harry's eyes were focused on Blake, her eyes darting around nervously, before they landed on him and their eyes connected. He could see the absolute terror in her eyes, they were watering up. Harry didn't have his usual smile or any mocking gesture, he just looked back at her with an unsure look. He didn't know how to proceed.
What he did now, how he would act right at this moment would decide how the girls he lov...he liked a lot would react. If he gave Blake to Nui, if she destroyed her mind; if she turned out like her mother. They would know, no amount of Genjutsu would cover it up. If he inserted himself into Blake's past like he did with Glynda, it would conflict with what she knew now and it would cause her mind to break. And if he tried to change how she saw things, if he tried to get her on his side, she'd show the least amount of change; but it carried the largest amount of risk. She would retain everything about her and if he wasn't thorough enough, as soon as she had the slightest bit of freedom she'd escape.
"Madara, Grimmjow..." Harry said, as he motioned with his head to the area away from them.
Madara glanced at the spanning training ground, before he looked back at Harry and nodded. "Let's go." He spoke to Grimmjow, before he vanished.
"...I wanted to see what he'd do..." Grimmjow muttered, as he vanished in the sound of static.
Harry remained seated, as Neo pushed Blake forward, forcing the cat-Faunus to kneel in front of him. Nui and Neo stood at Blake's sides, while the Sorcerer remained looking at the girl.
"P-Please, I-I-I'm sorry I was judgmental! I-I Promise, I won't even look at you again!" Blake pleaded, her eyes filled with tears. However, Harry just stared at her blankly. "I-I'll respect you! Look, see!" She urgently said, as she bent forward and planted a kiss on his boot, before she pulled back.
"Y-you don't have to do anything to me! I-I'll do it myself! Just let me go, please!" She continued to beg, causing Nui and Neo to share a glance. The former rolled her eye and the latter shook her head in disappointment, this girl was supposed to be a threat to their Father?
Blake lunged forward and grabbed a hold of Harry's leg and she buried her face against it. "N-Nui, told me...she was...she was...I don't want that to happen to me, please!" She begged and pleaded, having heard Nui brag about all the wonderful things she was going to do to the Cat Faunus.
Harry stared at her and decided what he was going to do, before he held up four fingers. "Four choices." He informed, as he looked at Blake.
"H-huh, what?" Blake asked unsure, slowly raising her tear stained face to meet Harry's own face.
"The first Semester at Beacon is over, with a short two-week reprieve. Allowing students to go home and see their families. Within those two weeks, you are going to be mine." Harry stated seriously, it was a fact. He couldn't really let her go right now, she'd ruin a hell of a lot of planning. "There are going to be four things that can happen to you...the first one, is that I erase your memories of these events. But I'll implement programing into your mind making you a docile slave to me, you'll do everything I want with a smile on your face." Harry bluffed, he couldn't really do that without destroying her mind.
"I could insert my presence into your past, making you believe and know, you've known me since you were but a wee-lass, making you almost impossibly trusting towards me. But with what you know now, it could conflict with what I insert, making your psyche shatter. Reducing you to a catatonic state, a vegetable. And Nui would just have her way with you until you pass." Harry said casually, causing Blake to shudder in horror, as she cast a glance up towards a smiling Nui.
"The third choice is that I just give you to Nui for two weeks, and let her do what she does best." Harry said with a shrug.
Blake's eyes widened in horror. "Please, anything but that!" She begged, as she wrapped her arms around his leg and hugged it tight.
"Or, I can just chalk this up to a bad experience, kill you and give your team irrefutable evidence you just abandoned them and rejoined the White Fang." Harry stated, holding up four fingers.
Blake stared at him with wide watery eyes. Those all sounded...horrible. There was no way she could choose such a Hell, from four equally tormenting Hells. "...Please...there must be something I can do, those all are….awful..." She muttered in resignation. She knew her team trusted Harry more than they trusted her, she knew everyone held a trust of him, that she herself never had. She was a pariah, be her own actions she demonized herself...no one would miss her. Even if she died...no one would care. And that...that broke her heart.
Harry stared at Blake, as he watched the emotions rushing across her face; he took notice of the expression she had. And a part of him kinda felt bad for her. He didn't feel sorry for her, she did all this herself, and he really lacked the ability to feel sorry for people that he had no attachment towards. But he did feel responsible in some small manner. "...Or...there is a fifth option." He said off the cuff, not planning this one.
Blake looked up at him with hope. "…P-please…" She muttered.
"You shadow me." Harry said, causing Blake to incline her head. "For one week out of the two weeks, you're in my care. You'll follow me around, and I'll show you what you're so oblivious too. I'll show you things that will shatter your resolve, tell you things that will make you question your own existence. You'll follow me around; and you'll learn about the man you hate so much." He stated, causing Blake to slowly look down.
Her bow was flat against her head, her eyes were downcast. "You would...give me a chance? Why...I've been...so horrible to you." Blake muttered.
"I'm giving you a chance, because you're friends with Yang, Ruby and Weiss. You may have treated them badly, but they still want the best for you." Harry stated, causing the Cat Faunus to slowly look down.
"I thought you were just...using them." Blake admitted, as she looked back up at him.
She shrunk back when she noticed Harry glaring at her. "You assume so much about me, you don't even know who I am!" He said with an angry tone.
There is that old thing, telling someone who appeared to be angry, to calm down. But that usually only aggravates them, because in their mind; they weren't angry. They didn't think of themselves as angry, but calling them that, was an easy way to aggravate them, to set them off. It was the same with Harry, he was well aware how he manipulated people easily, he was well aware he could change people's perspective on events. But when people 'knew', when they seemed to assume he was manipulating people, people he cared about. When he wasn't, when he tried so hard to make sure he wasn't twisting them, because he cared for them. It really, really set him off. He got angry at Coco for assuming he was manipulating Weiss, when he just wanted to help her.
"The other week, you'll be in the wonderful care of my daughter, Nui." Harry said with a wicked smile, causing Blake to look from the Sorcerer, to a smiling Nui. "We'll alternate days; today. You'll rest up, but tomorrow. You'll be at Nui's mercy and the day after that; you'll be in my care." He explained. "You know I'm not going to hurt you, I'm not going to do what Nui plans. But you'll have to choose, Blake. Do you want two weeks with Nui, do you want your mind wiped and reprogrammed, be turned to a vegetable, die...or the last choice?" He asked.
Blake looked down, her eyes darting from side to side, as she tried to think through this. "...I...I...I want...the last one." She muttered, feeling like it was the one that didn't hurt her so much.
Harry glanced away from the cat Faunus. "Nui." He said uncaringly.
"Oui Papa!" Nui chirped happily.
Blake shrunk back, when Nui placed her hand on the back of the cat Faunus' neck. "Come on now, kitty. Time for some rest, we have so much fun to do tomorrow!" Nui said happily. Blake looked down with a far off expression in her eyes, as she was dragged off by the artificial human.
When the two were gone, Neo turned and gave Harry an unsure look. He noticed it. "What's with that face?" He asked. Neo glanced off and put a hand on her hip, and gave him an expression that said 'Did you really do that?'.
"I'm not going soft, if that's what you're thinking." Harry responded. "With a time limit, Nui will try to cram in as much fun in with Blake, pardon the pun, with the limited time she has. With Kali, Nui had time and so she was lax in breaking her down. But, Nui with a time-limit will go to much more extreme measures. With the small breaks it gave with Kali, the woman was practically begging for me to never leave her alone with Nui. With Blake…I think she'll take all the time she can spend with me, and it'll give her perspective...things can always get worse." He stated.
Harry turned and glanced at Neo, to see she was licking her lips. Her own sadistic side reveling in the idea. She started to stalk forward, her hips swaying as she stepped. Harry watched as Neo climbed into his lap, her chest pressing against his.
"The idea of breaking her turns you on, does it?" Harry asked, causing Neo to enthusiastically nod her head in agreement.
There was a smacking sound, causing Neo to released a faint yelp in surprise. Harry firmly palmed her tight rear, causing Neo to look down at him with a wide smirk on her face, as she sat in his lap. Her unique hair hung down, ticking Harry's cheeks as he looked up at her. She slowly leaned down and pressed her lips against his.
–
An hour or so later
"Oh geez, I can't believe a semester has already gone by!" Ruby said, squealing in excitement.
Standing next to her, Weiss was rolling her eyes. "Only you can be excited by time moving in a liner fashion." She said in an annoyed tone.
"Hey, leave her be!" Yang responded, defending her excited little sister.
"I wasn't picking on her, if that's what you're thinking, Yang. I was just baffled. One semester is over, we still have like a dozen more left." Weiss stated.
"Why do you hate fun, Weiss?" Yang asked, crossing her arms.
"A-I-I do not hate fun!" Weiss staunchly argued.
"Fun Hater." Ruby mumbled, pouting her lips.
"Who's hating fun?" Harry asked, as he walked passed the Team RWBY dorm. The trio of girls arguing outside of their room.
"Weiss/Ice-Queen." Ruby and Yang admitted, causing Weiss to huff.
"I am not an Ice Queen, and I do not hate fun!" Weiss responded sternly, as she stamped her foot in indignation.
"She's right..." Harry said, as he came up behind Weiss and snaked his arms around her waste and hugged her from behind. His chin rested on her white hair, as he looked at Yang and Ruby. "...She can't hate fun, we have it all night long, every night!" He teased, as he closed his eyes and a mocking smile spread across his face.
Weiss blushed and she crossed her arms, at such a lewd statement being said with such blatant apathy. "D-don't say such things in public! P-people will think things!" Weiss argued.
"Yeah, that you hate fun!" Ruby teased, not really put of with Harry showing Weiss some affection. Weiss scowled at her partner.
Yang however was glared at Harry, who was hugging Weiss from behind. "Hey-hey, over here!" She commanded, using two fingers to beckon him to her.
"Sorry Ice-Princes, it seems the Fiery Queen wants some attention..." Harry said, as he rested his chin over Weiss' shoulder. Said white haired girl turned her head, before she lightly pecked him on the lips.
He released her and walked over towards Yang, before she roughly enveloped him in a hug. "A-omph!" Harry sounded in surprise, when Yang hugged him with her enhanced strength.
"What's this about, you hugging Weiss first!?" Yang questioned, as she held Harry in a bone-crushing hug.
"Love you too..." Harry said dryly.
"Don't try to sweet talk me, buster!" Yang responded, as she released him from her hug and narrowed her eyes at him. "I am the prime recipient of hugs, not Weiss. When you want to give some hugs, just give them all to mama!" She said, motioning to herself.
Harry mockingly saluted at her. "Yes, Sir." He said sarcastically, getting a set of giggles from Ruby. That was before he was hugged lightly by the cloaked silver-eyed girl.
"Aren't you excited, Harry! We're going on break, for two weeks!" Ruby happily rambled out. "I can't wait for all the fun we're all going to have! We're going to go home, visit Dad! Visit Uncle Qrow! Go to our family house in the woods! We're going to go boating, we're going to go biking! We're going to go camping!" She said, her voice getting high-pitched as she started to loose her breath.
Yang put a hand on Ruby's cloak and pulled up the hood to cover the girl's face. "Alright chatter-box, calm down." She said casually.
"W-what's this about camping! I did not agree to that!" Weiss stated.
Harry glanced at Weiss in surprise. "Wait, you're going with them on break?" He asked curiously.
Weiss looked away, as she fiddled with her hands. "It's nothing really. They were heading to their home, and well...they invited me." She admitted, having been disowned by her Father and all. She really didn't have a place to go, though she could've just bunked in Beacon for the time. But with the fact that Blake apparently went on break early, without telling them. And with Ruby and Yang going to visit their Dad, Weiss didn't want to be alone.
"Yeah, do you wanna come!?" Ruby asked excited.
"Come and stay with you two, and meet your Dad? The same Dad, who has two daughters in which I have a harem with..." Harry said, with a very forced smile. "...Sounds like a wonderful idea!" He said sarcastically.
"Yay! I can't wait for you two..." Ruby started.
"Ruby...I think he's being sarcastic." Yang stated.
"Owwh..." Ruby whined out, causing Harry to roll his eyes. Her whine wasn't as annoying as Nui's, he wasn't going to change his mind here. "Why not?" She asked.
"I think it'll be a bit awkward." He admitted.
"Y-yeah, Ruby. I think he's right in this instance. We both can't go up to dad and say, 'Here's our Boyfriend!'. Dad'll probably try and kick Harry's ass." Yang admitted, she didn't know how to break the idea to her dad.
"But Yang, didn't our dad...you know...with your mom...and my mom?" Ruby asked weakly.
"...At different times!" Yang said in exasperation. "Not at the same time...we gotta come up with a game plan, and suddenly springing it up with him, ain't gonna work. And with Weiss there, and with both of them, you know..." She trailed off.
"It'll be really, really, really awkward." Harry insisted.
"Heh, more than that." Yang agreed.
"Your dad must care a lot about you guys...I must admit, I'm kinda jealous." Weiss muttered.
"Hey, you'll get to meet him too. And if we're all a family, he'll be your dad too!" Ruby said optimistically.
"...But be careful, he makes really bad puns and jokes." Yang admitted.
"Geez, you're the one to talk about making bad jokes and puns." Harry muttered quietly.
Yang slowly turned and looked at him, her eyes bright red. "...What's the supposed to mean?" She asked darkly.
Harry held his hands up in a mock surrender. "Your humor is far too cerebral for my puny mind, forgive me." He said dryly.
Yang's eyes returned to their usual lilac and she gave him a teasing grin, as she punch him in the shoulder. "I'm just messing with you, wimp." She teased.
"Ha...haha." Harry said, making an obvious and forced fake laugh. "So, when are you all leaving?" He asked.
"Are you gonna miss us?" Yang asked.
"Depends." Harry said dismissively.
"Oh, he'll miss us." Yang reassured, giving Ruby and Weiss a wink. "He just doesn't wanna say it. Afraid he won't sound all manly." She jeered, trying to goad him into saying 'he'll miss them'.
Harry rolled his eyes at Yang's attitude, but on the inside he was smiling; finding it endearing. "I'll miss you all..." He said.
"See I told..." Yang started.
"...I mean, who else will keep my bed all nice and toasty. No one else can do it better than you, Fire-Cracker." Harry finished with a mocking smile.
Yang narrowed her eyes and pointed her finger at him. "You win this round, Snake-Eyes. But mama will come back, with a vengeance!" She said, in a mockingly sinister voice.
"I'd be scared of that, Yang. If you didn't sound so hot." Harry joked, causing Yang to blush faintly, being both complimented and punned at the same time for her fiery personality.
"We'll be leaving tomorrow." Weiss stated, wanting to end the banter. She liked Yang, she really liked Harry; and she didn't mind the Harem. But that didn't mean she liked watching them...interact.
"Yeah, we have our bags packed and everything!" Ruby admitted.
"Packed? You just zoomed around, leaving a mess of rose petals and shoved all your clothes into one case!" Weiss argued.
"You call shoving, I call packing; same thing." Ruby argued uncaringly, waving off Weiss' comment.
"Argh, why do I even put up with you!?" Weiss said, shaking her head.
"Because you love me!" Ruby teased.
Weiss exhaled sharply, as she pointed a finger at Ruby. "…That may be the case, but do not take advantage of my altruism!" She stated.
Ruby tilted her head and gave Weiss a worried look. "Oh Weiss, I'm sorry. I didn't know you had mental problems." She said sadly, causing Weiss to blink a few times in obvious surprise.
"...She said Altruism...not Autism…how did you even get those two mixed up?" Harry asked dryly, as he rubbed his forehead.
Ruby inclined her head in Harry's direction and pursed her lips. "Huh?" She sounded.
Harry glanced up for a moment and decided to ignore Ruby's 'dumb moment', it was like her using a bread knife all over again. "Before you leave, do any of you have any plans tonight?" He asked curiously.
Yang shrugged, Weiss pursed her lips and shook her head. "We didn't have any prior plans, no." Weiss admitted.
"So, what about before you leave? Wanna use some of that cash you got to rent out a nice hotel room. I get some booze, and all four of us have a little party for surviving the semester?" Harry offered.
Yang cast a glance at Ruby and Weiss. "Maybe…if you get some of those nice tasting drinks!" Yang said with a wide smile. "The fruity tasting ones!" She said excitedly.
"I...wouldn't be opposed." Weiss muttered.
"W-what would I drink?" Ruby asked curiously.
"...I don't think Malt Liquor would be a good thing for you. How do you like chocolate milk and coffee?" Harry asked curiously.
Ruby's eyes lit up. "Oh I love it!" She admitted.
"...She doesn't need coffee." Yang said dryly, crossing her arms. That was the last thing Ruby ever needed.
Harry cast a glance at Yang, before he looked at Ruby. "Alright, Mudslides for you…and for me, I'll get myself some Whiskey." He planned.
"Oh, that's what Uncle Qrow likes to drink!" Ruby admitted happily.
"That's...nice I guess." He admitted unsure.
"So, I'll get us a nice hotel room...you get the booze..." Weiss listed, before looking at Ruby and Yang. "...What will you two be doing?" She asked.
Yang wrapped an arm around Ruby and grinned fully. "We'll take the liberty of being the cute girls at this little party! Every party's gotta have cute girls." She insisted.
"Ah, b-b...Harry, can you believe this!?" Weiss demanded.
Harry slowly nodded. "It's true, most parties are pretty dull without cute girls." He admitted, causing Weiss to scoff.
"Not that, dummy. I'm talking about the fact they don't wanna contribute!" Weiss stated.
"Ruby's fifteen, so she can't really buy anything fun and Yang's broke." Harry stated, causing Ruby and Yang to nod.
"I got nothing." Yang admitted, as she pulled out some of her empty pockets.
"I have twenty Lien! Will this help!?" Ruby asked happily, as she opened up her small 'wallet' which looked like a plushy Ammo Case.
Weiss snatched it from Ruby, causing the girl to 'eep'. "Yes, it will." Weiss stated, only for Harry to take it out of her hand.
"No, it won't." Harry responded, as he handed it back to Ruby.
"Ooh..." Ruby sounded, as she looked at the Lien and put it back in her plushy purse.
"It will!" Weiss insisted.
"...Where's this coming from?" Harry asked, looking at the white haired girl.
Weiss looked from Harry, to Yang and to Ruby. "It's just…I really want this...you know...us to work. But...I don't want to be the one always giving here." She admitted.
"Oh, Weiss..." Ruby whined out, as she quickly pulled the girl into a hug. "…Don't feel that way. It's just...you know, you're kind of a Millionaire now. And we, don't really have any money to give." She admitted.
Weiss looked down at Ruby, as the girl was hugging her. The white haired girl closed her eyes and exhaled through her nose. "It's fine...I understand. I just want you all to know, I don't want to be some piggy bank that pays for all our expenses." She admitted.
"Wellllll, that's what he's for!" Yang said, jabbing her thumbs at Harry.
"Oh fuck off..." Harry responded, as he gave Yang a look. "...I'm surly not going to pay for all of your 'expenses'." He stated, he heard of Yang's massive tab in a local club.
"Yeah you are." Yang responded casually, waving off his displeasure. "So, tonight. Booze, Hotel, and music! Sounds like a blast to me, and if it's just the four of us...it'll be a big blast." She said, giving Harry a wink.
"Hurry up, I don't want to miss the Airship to Vale!" Weiss insisted, as she grabbed a hold of Ruby and Harry, and lead them down the hall. With Yang following, her hands crossed behind her head.
Not to far away, within an indented door way, stood a shadowed observer. A young man with bright blue eyes and blonde hair watched the four leave, a frown on his face and a pit in his stomach.
'What are you...Harry?' Jaune thought to himself, remembering an all too vivid dream he had a while ago.
– A Few Weeks Ago-
In the middle of the night, Jaune laid unconscious in the middle of REM sleep; before a faint storm of crimson sprites danced around his temples and then seeped into his skin. He released a faint gasp, before he rolled over in his small bed.
Jaune rested peacefully, before he felt a heat on top of him. "Hm-nmm..." Jaune sounded, as his eyes slowly fluttered open.
His eyes went wide and he became suddenly awake, seeing what he saw, laying on his chest. A completely naked Pyrrha, was laying on top of him. "P-Pyrrha, w-what are you doing?!" He asked in a sudden start.
Pyrrha's lips cringed a bit and her face formed an inhuman expression. "You have let this Desolated Outlier come into our home, into our story and now...we can never be together." 'Pyrrha' said with a sneer.
Jaune looked confused and he blinked, and as soon as he blinked 'Pyrrha' was gone. But at the foot of his bed, Ruby was standing and like Pyrrha, she was completely nude. "Ruby! W-what's going on!? Why are you naked!?" He asked, as he tried to sit up, but he felt an unseen force pin him down.
"I was another possible mate, Jaune. In may forking paths, we could've been together. We could've had a family, found love in one another. But you let this Desolated Outlier come in to our world and twist our minds. My innocent mind, and now. I'm his toy!" 'Ruby' chastised.
"What are you talking about!?" Jaune demanded, having been woken up...or perhaps still asleep. And he was being chastised by Ruby and Pyrrha for things he doesn't know he did, or didn't do.
There was a pair of giggles, causing Jaune to look at the sides of his bed. Yang and Weiss, were resting on their elbows, and equally as naked as the girls before them.
"I thought you loved me, but you watched as the Desolated Outlier come into our world and claim me. You should've fought harder." 'Weiss' stated.
"...Or perhaps changed events in your favor. Made us love you and hate him." 'Yang' commented.
Jaune gritted his teeth and closed his eyes. He had absolutely no idea what they were talking about, but he kept being enticed and distracted by their bare bodies.
"You could've had it all, Jaune. All you need to do, is face the Desolated Outlier. You need to kill him." A new voice informed, as all of the other girls vanished.
Jaune looked up and at the foot of his bed, as a nude woman. And he didn't remotely recognize her. She had pale white skin, ashen black hair and glowing amber eyes. Around her neck was a choker. The visage of Cinder stared down and looked at Jaune, despite the fact he had no idea who she was.
"Outlier!? What are you talking about? Who are you!?" Jaune demanded angrily.
'Cinder' inclined her head, before she raised a hand and conjured up a violet colored ball of flames. "Who am I? Who are you?" She responded, as she hurled it at the bed Jaune slept in, engulfing them all in a bright explosion of violet light.
–
Jaune blinked a few times, as he slowly looked around. He stood on a vast, open field of shimmering silver water, a bright moon in the sky illuminating the liquid.
The blond looked down at the water and almost jumped, having discovered he was standing on it. However his startled reaction subsided, seeing distorting red, white, black and yellow images in the water. Having been distorted by a multitude of dozen strong ripples.
"...What is that?" He muttered, as he knelt down.
"L' hai ymg' mgr'luh (So now you see…)" A guttural voice spoke, coming out as more of a hum which shook Jaune's mind more then his ears.
Jaune quickly whirled around, only to see a massive visage of shadow elongate along the silver water. The shadow spreading out with faint flickering tendrils and eyes, which flared out in all directions. He stumbled back and looked at the menacing monster in horror. "W-what the hell are you!?" He questioned.
"Ymg' ahor nafl mgr'luh ya?(You can not see me)" The monstrous visage hummed out.
Jaune watched as the shadow writhed and rustled, the tendrils quivering and curling up. He saw as the massive building sized monstrosity condensed into a single entity, forming skin like a humans. After a moment, within seconds, the Eldritch Monstrosity was replaced with a human...or at the very least something that looked human.
"Mmm, it would sssseem you're—dull human. Sensesss can n-ot...perceive my true—form." The disguised creature said, it's voice sounding off. He would enunciate the wrong words, draw them out, or pause in the wrong moment.
Jaune watched as the person approached him. It was a tall man with pallid skin, pale blue eyes and neatly combed hair. He wore a grey business suit and stood with impeccable posture. He looked far to normal, far too much like an average business man. But Jaune watched as the man's skin ripple faintly, like something was moving underneath it.
"Who are you, what's your name? Where are we?" Jaune fired off multiple questions.
"The who and the what, you might...say are the s-ame." The creature responded, as it reached up to his neck and he adjusted the tie of his suit. "We have...hah...many names. Gods, Angels, the Watchers, the Meddlers, The Fixers, the Clean up crew, the bureaucrats, but ahem...our more used n-ame are...The Keepers." He stated.
"Keepers? The Keepers of what?" Jaune questioned.
"Instead of lie to you, and have our common pro-blem inform you with what he thinks is the truth. I have been given...per-mission by my employersss to divulge the nece-ss-ary information to the Outlier of this reality." The Keeper informed.
"Outlier...I've heard that a few times, what's that mean?" Jaune questioned.
The human Keeper licked his lips and exhaled in an odd fashion. "We have to work under certain restrictions. Despite the popular rumor spread by our...Friend. We can not simply s-nap our fingers and destroy reality." The Keeper stated, as it did the motion of snapping his fingers. "I have invested over sixteen billions years into the formation of this world, I will not let some cancer co-rrupt my realities." It stated in revulsion.
"Outliers, are beings created by us to be...ahem, blank slates. Variables that we can chan-ge and t-weak, to how we like. Naruto Uzumaki, Ichigo Kurosaki, Harry Potter, Sam and Dean Winchester, Percy Jackson, et cetera et cetera." The Keeper elaborated. "Depending on the highest bid-der…We will, as you would say, change thingss up. We'll add...imperfectionsss in the reality, shaping our Outlier into what the bid-der wishes. Ahem, some would want the Outlier to be the underd-og, some The God, and to some...a pitiful obtuse lo-ser. And we make it so." He explained.
Jaune stared at him, almost seething in rage. "Our lives are just what…entertainment!?" He demanded.
"Not all. The O-riginal realities, the original you...is living it's life untempered by our k-ind." The Keeper stated.
Jaune looked down at himself. "I'm not...real?" He muttered.
"Do-n't misconstrued what I ssay. You are real, I am the one who spawned you from the left over carbon from dead starss bill-ions of years ago. You are simply an alternate version, an Outlier of what Jaune Arc is. I created you to be a perfect copy. I didn't create this re-ality to profit from my investorsss." The Keeper informed, as he inhaled unnaturally.
"But the Desolated Outlier, he has entered my, your reality. You're h-ome. He's corrupted the reality, twisted it to his own play thing. Using it as a...play-ground." The Keeper stated with a sneer, as the skin he wore rippled like water.
It turned and motioned to the spanning silver lake the duo stood on. "This, is your reality. I can ssee everything. You notice the ripples, that were...creat-ed?" It asked, causing Jaune to look around and slowly nod. "This images are supposed to be cl-ear. I am supposed to know w-hat happens, how it happ-ensss. But everything is awash in...chaosss created by him!" He seethed.
"My...employers are not pleased with the idea of this...cancer. It is lucky he entered this reality, instead of the...restricted o-ness. If he entered a reality our...Investors paid for; we would've lost business." He stated.
"Employers...investors, are they both, ah Keepers?" Jaune asked curiously.
The disguised Keeper adjusted his tie and grimaced, hating the idea of being inside a human-skin suit as well as being instructed by his Employers to indulge Jaune's human curiosity. "I'm but Corporate Man-agement, I tend to the worlds I am tasked to watch, and interfere when I have permission to do so. My Bosses, are Keepers, far more powerful and have a low to-lerance for failure. But there are more thingsss that...exist than just us, our investors are beings that you shouldn't get on the w-rong side off...but now, the time for...questions is over. Jaune Arc, you are the Outlier of this reality. And I have a business proposition for you." The Keeper informed.
Jaune glanced down at the rippling water, before he looked at the Keeper. "W-what is it?" He questioned.
"You will be tasked with the...e-limination of the Desolated Outlier." The Keeper instructed, as he held a hand out and closed it. "If you remove the cancer, I will give you the life...of a king...a God. The girl Weiss Schnee, will be yours. She'll adore you. Pyrrha Nikos, your destined fate, you'll be with her. All of the girls you even have a modicum of at-traction towards, yours. Immortality, yours. Timelessness, yours. Anything you can imagine in your Third-Dimensional Brain; I can grant you." The Keeper stated. "But I just need one thing form you...the death of Harry Potter...or as he likes to call himself now, Harry Black." He informed seriously.
"Eliminate this Crawling Chaos from your home, this Outsider that's per-meated and infested every orifice. No tactic be off the table, kill him and I'll grant you everything." The Keeper stated.
Jaune looked down and slowly shook his head. "H-how? I-I've seen what he could do...how could I ever face him?" He asked.
"I have taken the liberty of...procur-ing some...assets..." The Keeper stated, as he snapped his fingers. Standing behind him, were two individuals frozen in time and space.
Jaune recognized one of them immediately, it was...himself. He saw himself, brandished katana-like blade and a small dagger. His eyes were blazing crimson with a trio of coma-like markings around the pupils. However the other person was a strange one, it was a tall armored being, wearing grey and orange power armor.
"Jaune Arc, meet two alt-ernate yous, Jaune Arc and...Jaune Ar, or as he called himself...Felix." The Keeper stated. "I must admit it was a hassle to...get their Aether Codex. Vector Manipulation, Sharingan Mastery, as well as the knowledge they hold." He stated.
Jaune looked at the apparent alternate version of himself. "I don't know if I can do this…" Jaune muttered, having thought Harry wasn't such a bad person. He may have been a bit creepy and ominous sometimes, but he never hurt Jaune. In fact, he encouraged him to get stronger.
"I know you can do th-is. Because...while I can make your life the best heav-en for you...I can also make it hell." The Keeper stated. "I wonder how you'd feel if a horde of Grimm happened upon your family, your darling sisters torn to shreds or perhaps even violated by such monstrous beingsss. Or perhaps; I could make you crippled; having been ripped to pieces by a Grimm as you star-ted your Initiation into Beacon. Or maybe, have Cardin and Pyrrha team up against you, having been disgusted you faked your way into Beacon. Him fucking her right on top of you, as you are forced to watch. Before they give your teachers the information you faked your way in, expell-ing you and ending your dream. I have so many ideas...I can make you regret…living." He threatened darkly, causing Jaune to tremble fearfully at the Eldritch creature.
"So...instead of giving you a choice between my offer and an unwinnable battle. I've decided to choose for you…" He trailed off, as he snapped his fingers and the two frozen alternate version of Jaune vanished into crimson sprites and they rushed into Jaune.
–
Jaune gasped loudly, as he sat up in his bed. His sheets were soaked in his sweat. He panted loudly, his heart racing, before he looked around. His eyes landed on a sleeping Pyrrha, before they fell downcast. He closed his eyes and then opened them, revealing his dark blue eyes were now blazing red Sharingan.
"…What...do I do?" He asked himself quietly, as his eyes began to water and he rested his face in his hands. "...I don't know what to do..." He muttered.
–Now
Across Vale, with a tall Hotel Building; there was the faint sound of shifting fabric. Harry pulled a long comforter up along a queen sized bed. Laying on the bed, were an unconscious Ruby, Weiss and Yang. Ruby and Weiss were curled up next to each other, while Yang was sprawled out. Harry covered them up in a thick blanket. He stared at Yang for a moment, before he reached out and brushed some of the golden locks from her face. He smiled faintly before he turned around and took a step away from the bed.
Harry walked passed a table, which had a few empty glass bottles. He picked up a half-filled bottle of whiskey, before he poured himself a small glass, before he opened the balcony door of the Hotel Room. He took a step out and closed the door behind him; before he leaned over the balcony.
He heard the sound of a chattering beak, causing him to glance at his side. Perched upon a metal railing of the balcony, was a pure black avian raven with red eyes. The bird was staring at him, as he brought the drink up to his lips and he took a swig.
He grimaced as he lowered the cup, feeling the burning sting of the liquor course down his throat. He exhaled a bit, his eyes on the black raven, which seemed to be staring at him.
"I'm not offering you a drink." Harry said incredulously, before he watched the raven turn it's head and look at the girls on the bed. "They've had their fill, bloody light-weights." He commented, as he turned and looked up towards the shattered moon.
"Somethings coming...something big is heading my way…" Harry muttered, having a gut feeling things were going too good for him at the moment. Usually when he had that feeling, it came just before a price was tolled. "…You are not going to hurt my family again..." He said to himself, causing the raven to turn it's head and look at Harry, almost like it thought he was talking to it.
Harry brought the glass of whiskey of up to his lips and downed the rest of it in one go, before he grimaced and lowered his head, exhaling sharply. "…I don't care how powerful you are, Keepers. I don't care. But if you try to harm my family. If you try to take away what is mine. I'll destroy you all, even if it kills me." He said darkly, as he tossed the glass cup over the balcony, towards the streets below.
The raven stared at him, before it spread it's wings and took off, taking flight into the night sky.
I know a lot of people might be a bit upset I'm giving Jaune even a modicum of a chance against Harry and his allies. I mean, I did write him like one of the Naruto Forest of Death Fanfics, where Naruto get's a power up and starts acting like Sasuke, and suddenly Sasuke himself become's a completely different character. Making him a completely detestable human being, simply because the author simply just didn't like how Sasuke acted.
Or how I wrote Jaune to be an unabridged megalomaniacal racist and sexiest, who teams up with Cardin to rape Pyrrha or something. Oh wait, I didn't. He's basically the same noble character, who is being forced to fight against Harry. He isn't jealous, envious or even dislikes Harry; he's being forced to.
I don't want people to be like, 'Oh of course you give Jaune powers' or 'Oh god, why's that blond idiot supposed to be a challenge'? I don't know, I just know people are going to get hung up on it.
Though I'm sure most of the reviews for this are just going to be people telling me to fuck off with this story and update my other ones. Hey, I tried okay. I tried to continue on with a Hunter of the Copywheel Eye. It didn't work out so well apparently, a lot of people didn't like what I was doing. I gave him Jaune a character in the last chapters and peopled were all telling me 'I ruined his character'. And I'm over here, here let me give you a little peak behind the curtain. Jaune in that story didn't have a character. When it was convenient to the plot, he'd by Jaune, Kakashi or Itachi. I just shuffled him around. And peopled are telling me, I ruined his character by straying from that and giving him a personality. I just facepalmed.
I mean, that's why I can't look at my old stories. I had no idea what I was doing, when it came to characterization. I was basically throwing shit together and seeing what worked. And it only worked if i got from A to B, in the darkest coolest way possible, which now just seems needlessly edgy. There is this sweet spot, between being dark and cool for the sake of it, and being dark thematically. I myself, haven't found it...but I'm looking for such a mythical place.
I like to believe I've improved from that crutch i had when i started out. Instead of making the MC of the story like another character, he is his own character. He may have traits, something akin to founding blocks to his character that may seem similar to others. Like Harry, with his similarities with Orochimaru, Hazama, or Kabuto. However, while he has similarities with them, which I used as a template for his character. He is fundamentally not them, he has his own goals, ideals, loose moralities which largely differ them their own.
That's why I can't look at my old stories. It's not because the stories themselves were cringey, or in my current view point cringey. But it's how I wrote them, which really irks me. And for all i know, in a year or two, when I've expand my skills in writing; I'll find problems with this stuff. Who knows.
...Anyway, Another Rant. That example I gave, about Jaune being a racist and a sexist, joining with Cardin to rape Pyrrha. Did you know that's an actual Fanfic. And it's supposed to be taken seriously. I mean, what the fuck? It's a, surprise-surprise Naruto Crossover Fanfic. I like Naruto as much as the next guy, sure. It's a good Manga/Anime, I enjoy quite a few fics too. But the pure over saturation of him everywhere, it's like, my God.
Most of them are the exact same fucking story! It's, oh man a fucking four year old Naruto is outrunning a mob of seventy grown men. Which, doesn't make any fucking logical sense whatsoever. Then woop, someone 'insert random character' swoops in and saves him, and out of pure disgust they slaughter all those peopled. And then, for some reason they just take Naruto and train him for a dozen years, and then he just returns as the Genin squads are made. Like what?
Or it's Naruto get's 'Insert Power/Weapon' during the Wave Arc/Forest of Death, he then proceeds to convince everyone that his Zanpkauto or whatever is a Bloodline, and get's to be the head of a Clan. And than get's the Naruto Fanfic Made 'CRA', oh-boy.
The third classic, Naruto seals the Ten-Tails inside him, get's the Rinne-Sharingan and goes to 'Insert Universe'. Where he kicks ass, in one-sides fights, takes zero names and talks about ramen.
I guess you can figure out which Naruto fanfic my example came from. Reading that fanfic, it...I can not read any more Naruto x RWBY fanfics anymore. It was just so abysmal. Not to throw shade, but. What the fuck. I mean, I like Jaune. He's a fine character, sure. Not well rounded, or even that consistent. Like that thing in Volume 5, where Jaune is distrustful of Ozpin one episode and than the next one, he's calling him fucking 'Oz' like they're buddies. What's up with that?
But that pure disservice that was done to the character in that story, it was awful. Here you you guys go, I'm going to give you all another insight into most Fanfics here. I am not some insider, but It's something you all should be keenly aware of though. When an author wants to write a dark character, like in a Dark Naruto fanfic. How do you make them sympathetic, or even relatable? You make everyone around him so horrible, that by comparison he is still in the moral high ground. When Naruto becomes Dark and Edgy, he basically turns into Sasuke. But the reason you don't notice it, is because the author than twists Sasuke in the story to such a degree that he may as well not be the same character. A perfect example of this is Naruto Chaos Mage. In that story, every person that likes him, are perfect examples of the noblest of people, living happy lives, wealthy and intelligent. People in that story that don't like him, are basically caricatures of evil mustache twirling villains, who act mentally retarded in some cases. That's the trick to making a Naruto Fanfic, you make everyone around Naruto so fucking awful that you have no choice buy to sympathize with him. I've given you the key.
And that my friends, is why I am not writing Naruto fanfics anymore. I just...I just can't not anymore. Now that my eyes have been open. And hopefully your eyes have been open as well.
...Well, that was a weird rant. If you couldn't tell, that was basically free form. Off the cuff, I didn't really plan on writing it. Later.
