How I Met Your Mother by JamJackEvo
Prereq: Escape
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Ryuugi said: ↑
Not so much as a glimmer of industrialization, of things shaped by muscle or
machine, I saw an almost impossibly long slope of pure
white snow, until it gave way at last to land in the distance.
A large cliff overlooked the land beyond the snow. I remembered this place to be a forest that was a natural habitat for packs of Beowolves, the close-knit kind that attacked by the hundreds whenever they sense Aura-laden prey.
More distractions would help keep the tail away from me, so I swooped the ship low and fired its arsenal upon the woods. My attack awakened a pack-no, that was too small in scale, because what I was seeing was a freaking horde-and they gravitated on my ship, if only for a moment before I activated Aura Crash for the shield effect. The White Whale entered a large clearing and...
... were those Beowolf corpses disintegrating?
This looked like a different pack, centering on a different enemy, who seemed to have dispatched most of them to a mere half-dozen. The odds were gone and their prey-who-became-the-hunter just stood there, posed with elegance, .50 caliber bullets dropping like rain all around them. A red hood covered both head and gender, but the ever-present gale in this area swooshed the cape enough for me to espy a black skirt with red frills and legs covered in dark stockings and combat boots.
Her-and she was totally a her-schythe gleamed, as if thirsty for more Grimm blood.
Now I honestly have no idea how some Huntresses think. I mean, she seemed to have them beaten, and it was only a matter of picking off the stragglers and the job was done. But, of course, maybe I was not seeing how tired she must be, how much Aura she had used in her Beowolf eradication, and with civilization still miles upon miles away, she must've had little time to think about the consequences when an opportunity came by.
But still, propelling herself to the sky and clinging onto the belly of the White Whale was not my idea of a sensible joyride.
-o- -o- -o- -o-
Once I'd escaped my pursuers and my mortal brush with Ziz, the Grimm of NOPE, I did some maneuvering and coaxing so that the little red hood girl was inside the ship instead of outside freezing at the temperature of our current altitude.
Her name was Ruby Rose, as eloquently stated by Observe and from her own mouth, which still a little blue from the cold. Some of her shivers might have also been caused by Ziz; I sure as hell was still shaken up by the experience and only Gamer's Mind kept me calm and collected, kept the fear and I-wanna-shit-my-pants-till-they're-brown urge from controlling me.
"So," I said, as I handed Ruby a cup of hot cocoa. The concession stand here was stocked and I made good use of it. And learned a new "Hot Cocoa making" skill to boot. I waited for Ruby to take a sip before continuing, "So... you thought it was a good idea to hitchhike under a giant ship."
She winced. Was it the hotness of the drink or me being blunt? "It seemed like a good idea at the time."
"Define 'good' please."
"Uh... it was the quickest way out of the woods?"
"Out of the woods, yes, but you never considered that this plane won't be heading towards Vale."
She deflated from being reminded of that fact. She looked so downtrodden, it felt like I just kicked a puppy.
"By the way, where're all the passengers?"
"There are none." I already prepared for this question. "It's just you, me, and the pilot."
She blinked, as if she wanted me to elaborate on this to drive away the ensuing confusion.
I didn't oblige her.
"Wait... so why are you flying this thing?"
News wouldn't spread till later. I could still handle damage control and drop her off at the nearest place of civilization. But...
But that also meant I'd be abandoning a 14-year-old on her own in a place unfamiliar to her. Her mini-bio, courtesy of Observe, told me that she lived most of her life in Vale and Patch, an island just outside of the former. Anywhere else was alien to her. Plus, I had to land in a spot that could attract the least attention, not to mention convincing Ruby to get off without asking any more sensitive questions and . . .
I looked at her again. She finished up her cocoa and set the mug onto her lap. Her silver eyes stared straight at me, and I recoiled at the feelings of innocence, excitement, and heart-wrenching trust.
Damn it.
Dammit, dammit, dammit.
She was 14 years old! I shouldn't get her involved. Yet a part of me...
God. Dammit.
I just knew I was gonna regret this.
-o- -o- -o- -o-
20 years later...
"And that, children, is how I met your mother."
My youngest raised her hand. "Is that why Aunty Yang keeps calling you Pedophilic Eloper?"
