Eyo again, Kariotic here! Thanks for the follow and favorite, it really helps me get motivated to continue writing, no matter how small the following is. Enjoy the chapter and leave any comments,constructive criticisms, or even suggestions in the reviews, as I usually do respond to them in future updates.
"And that's it." Kay paused the video that was the RWBY finale, where they had defeated Salem in the same way they had done in their reality.
"We are… a TV show?" Weiss finally spoke up after an awkward silence. "And we're…"
"Fictional characters." Blake finished for her. She had been shivering ever since she had seen Adam's death once more. Yang moved over next to her partner on the floor at the start of the episode, knowing where the sequence was leading.
"I always wanted to be on TV," Nora made an attempt to bring levity to the shocked room. Her hands were intertwined with Ren, who had made sure to comfort her during the Kuroyuri episode. "I never thought people would be watching my every move!"
"How many people are aware of this… show?" Ozpin asked. The young boy's face was ashen with the elder's shock, his hands steepled in front of his mouth. Kay took a moment to calculate the answer. The original RWBY episodes on YouTube had millions of views and the RT site episodes didn't have a view-count, so there was no solid number he could give.
"These episodes have garnered millions of views over the years." Kay said after while. "Thousands of people were, and maybe still are, fans of this series."
"So we'd be recognized as characters in this show?" Ren asked. "Would it be dangerous to be seen outside?"
"Probably not," Kay shrugged. "That finale aired online several years ago. I can't say for myself that the fandom is very active, but I doubt anyone out here would spot you on sight."
"Speaking of 'out here,'" Blake asked, as Yang rose from beside her and the Faunus moved to stand as well. "Where would that be?"
"Glen Plains, New York, United States, North America, Earth." Kay answered. Before anyone could ask, he continued. "I'm sure you're all unfamiliar with most of those words, but there really isn't time for me to explain the world's history and geography."
"Understood." Ozpin sighed, pinching his nose. To think that so many people were aware of his past was harrowing to say the least. "I'm going to need some time to take this all in."A soft green glow emanated from the young teen's body as Ozpin relinquished control. Once the process was finished, Oscar smiled sheepishly at Kay who answered with an understanding nod.
"At least he can sleep on it whenever he wants." Yang snarked. "So, we're fictional characters in that have been brought to the real world. What can we do about that now?"
"Does this world have Dust or Aura?" Weiss asked the local inhabitant. Kay shook his head. The heiress sighed. "Then no, we have no way of solving the issue on this side of... reality."
"If my memory of similar science-fiction premises tells me anything," Kay said, "You should stay close to where you landed because the other side might already be working on a way to bring you back."
"Is that an invitation?" Yang asked. Kay flinched at the question, and for a second it seemed as though he might refute that. Instead he shook his head and put his head in his hands.
"It's not like your Lien would work here," The man shrugged. "And I don't exactly earn enough to pay for even the cheapest hotel rooms for y'all to stay in for an undetermined amount of time."
"Do you even have enough room?" Weiss asked.
"Two bedrooms and two baths," Kay answered, holding up two fingers. He pointed at the room he had emerged from earlier that day and once more to a door past the office. "Enough room for two more to sleep on the floor in each bedroom. I can sleep on the couch."
"You're surprisingly okay with all of this." Ren said with a curious smile. "I don't know what I'd be thinking in your position."
"Oh trust me, my mind is still doing cartwheels trying to understand this." Kay replied with a soft chuckle. He was interrupted from his next thought as a stomach's growl echoed through the room. "And now it's almost noon and I haven't eaten breakfast."
"So we're all staying here for the time being?" Ruby asked, looking to her friends with uncertainty. Kay shrugged and nodded. RWBY, JNR, and Oscar shared a look, as though communicating telepathically before looking back at Kay with a unified hooded girl zoomed at Kay and attacked him with a fierce hug. "Thank you Kay!"
The rest of the crew gave similar messages of gratitude in their very own ways as Ruby finally let go of their new friend. Then, multiple stomach growled in starving harmony.
"Alright," Kay said, getting the attention of the Hunters. "If y'all are staying here, you're gonna need more than one change of clothes. Second, I don't have enough eggs for all ten of us, so I'll need to go out and order some."
"How could we help?" Jaune asked.
"I don't have a bus for all of us to travel in to the store." Kay mused aloud. "Jaune and Nora, your clothes look closest to normal civilian wear. You two can help me get clothes and carry food back here."
"Heard you loud and clear!" Nora saluted. Kay, who was much more awake now, saluted back and walked briskly back to his room. Within minutes, he had changed into dark jeans and a grey hoodie.
"Here are our sizes," Weiss handed Kay a piece of names and numbers on it. She carefully pointed out each column and row for Kay, making sure he understood what he was looking at. "Tops, pants, shoes, and underwear. Nora could help you with that last part."
"That's convenient, thanks." Kay remarked, glancing over the data. Even Oscar gave his sizes. Made sense, no one would want to be stuck wearing overalls every single day. "Any preferences for breakfast sandwiches?"
"I'd prefer a tuna salad sandwich if they have," Blake answered. "Chicken is fine if they don't."
"Got it," Kay nodded, retrieving his car keys from a coat hook in the kitchen. He turned to Jaune and Nora and seemed to remember something. "You should probably disarm yourselves before we get out there."
"So Kay," Jaune spoke, breaking the awkward silence that filled the drive. "You live alone?"
"For the most part, yeah." Kay answered, glancing at his mirror before he turned left. "Lived with a girlfriend for a while, but we broke up a long time ago."
"She didn't happen to leave any clothes?" Jaune asked.
"As super convenient as that would be," Kay said, pulling into a strip mall. "Her clothes wouldn't fit everyone back home."
The strip mall was a rather modest affair. There were several small restaurants that they could choose from, Kay made sure to keep them in mind. A large furniture store sat at the start of the complex, so that would be a good place to find any replacements if any accidents occurred. It was a conveniently placed strip mall between home and work that Kay visited when he didn't feel like cooking, which was often. Nora expressed interest in the local frozen yogurt shop, but Jaune quickly shut her down to focus on the problems at hand.
"Wouldn't you know that already?" Nora butt in from the backseat. She had already unbuckled her seat before Kay could even park. "You have seven sisters!"
"I'm just trying to make conversation, Nora." Jaune admitted. He followed Kay's lead as he exited the car. Nora totally didn't slam the door as she joined the two young men.
"Welcome to the only decent clothing store in town." Kay gestured to the large sign above them in navy letters.
"Is there a New Navy?" Nora asked. The quip scored a snort from Kay who just shook his head and made his way to the door. The older man took a deep breath and led the trio towards the women's department.
Meanwhile, back at the home, Oscar and Blake could be found reading in Kay's office. Blake was reading what appeared to be a graphic novel, while Oscar was reading through a poetry book. Weiss stumbled into the office before noticing something that caught her interest. Despite it standing at the wall opposite the doorway, the busy eye would only catch the desk and bookshelf, playing off the object as a simple table. A quick look towards the floor under the table showed a small compartment. Blake was forced to peer over her book as Weiss walked over to the mystery table and appeared to lift the top, revealing a set of black and white keys.
"A keyboard?" Weiss said quietly. "I wonder if he still plays."
"What makes you think that?" Blake asked, turning her attention back to the manga once the mystery was solved.
"There was a lot of dust on top of it." Weiss answered. "Are there any music books on those shelves?"
Rather than wait for Blake to search for one, Weiss walked over and started looking for them herself. Towards the front end of one of the lower shelves, she found several thin booklets with unfamiliar names on them. Bach? Beethoven? Tchaikovsky? Opening the books revealed unfamiliar pieces with varying levels of difficulty. There were little notes every few bars, and numbers to indicate finger placement on some of the more difficult areas. Weiss pulled out the small piano seat from its compartment and found a small lip for sheet music to sit on the open lid. After a few moments of clumsy sight-reading, there was a calming, simple melody filling the small office. During a surprisingly long pause, Blake peered over her manga to see Weiss having a little trouble with some of the notes.
"I didn't know you played, Weiss." The feline Faunus said.
"It was more of Whitley's thing, really." Weiss replied. "Though he was never very… good at it."
A genuine giggle came from Oscar, surprising both of the Huntresses. He wasn't laughing at what Weiss had said, he was reacting to the book he was reading. A poetry book of sorts, Blake mused.
"You've been enjoying that book ever since you picked it up, Oscar." Blake noted aloud, bringing Oscar back to Earth.
"I mean, some of the poems are pretty funny," Oscar said. "The rest are really introspective and a few get pretty meta. Even Ozpin had to comment on a few."
"Who's it by?" Blake asked. "I like poetry too, maybe it'll pique my interest."
Oscar closed the book, using a finger to hold his place, to check the writer's name on the cover. The name read "K. Grey." The name itself caused Blake to pause. She read the poet's name out loud, getting Weiss's attention.
"Funny coincidence," The Faunus took the book in her own hands and looking at the back cover, both inside and out, but there was no pictures of the poet, just a simple quote from Mr. Grey that she read aloud as well. "'When the clouds come in to drown your mind, when the sun saves the day but still stings, I give my written word while the rest of this world gave me nothing.'"
"Maybe Kay did write it." Oscar shrugged, reading the quote for himself in an attempt to decode it. Weiss silently decided to table that discussion for when the homeowner returned and looked back at the piece she was sight reading.
"We never did ask what he did for a living." Blake replied. "Granted, we only met him today. Literally minutes ago. Maybe we'll get a chance to get to know him better?"
Meanwhile, Yang and Ruby were playing some sort of party game on Kay's television in the living room. Ren was busying himself by neatly placing everyone's weapons and armor in a vacant corner and was making an effort to clean the area where the group had landed. Kay had made it a point to let everyone know that there were no shoes allowed indoors. Thankfully, he had a large shoe rack by his front door for everyone to put their shoes and boots on. He looked up at the screen every so often to entertain himself during his chore. Kay said he would deal with the mess himself, but Ren took it upon himself to be a decent person and clean up the dirt they brought into his home.
"No!" Yang cried in despair as her character whiffed a punch and fell off the side of the stage. "Go up! Up up up!" Ruby's laughter quickly turned into panicked cries as Yang's character respawned and immediately started ferociously attacking the white-haired, dragon girl that Ruby had chosen. With a few choice hits, Ruby's character was sent flying offscreen with immense speed, much to the reaper's dismay.
"No wait, I wasn't ready!" Ruby cried as Corrin was launched off-screen, winning Yang the round. Ruby pouted as Yang pumped her fist into the air, mirroring the Little Mac on the Victory screen. "Best five out of seven!"
"Only losers keep bargaining." Ren popped in.
"You're a loser, Ren!" Nora would smack Ruby for her rash retort when she returned. A quick look at the clock showed Ren that it had already been a couple hours since the trio of Kay, Nora, and Jaune had left. He had contemplated a lot since then.
Were they truly stuck in this world? Were their allies already working on a way to bring them back and not immediately pronounce their deaths? No, there would have been a bit more of a mess, wouldn't there? Ren shook his head to clear away the morbid thought and focused on the recent revelation. Would someone recognize them if they stepped outside? Kay allowed Jaune and Nora out with him, so they must not be too easily recognized. Could they assimilate into the community if it turned out they were truly stuck in this world? Which reality was the true reality: Kay's or their own? Was Ozpin already thinking these very same questions? Probably. Ren was shaken out of his stupor as he heard the sound of keys jingling and the front door getting unlocked from outside.
"A little help, please!" Kay grunted as he held four bags of clothes in his hands followed by Nora with several more, including some shoe boxes. Jaune was wisely left to hold the bag of food; no doubt Nora would have eaten most of it on the way home.
All casual pastime participation throughout the house paused as all of the displaced Remnant citizens looked over the clothes Kay had brought for them. Each of them had three different tops and four different bottoms. Kay organized piles of clothes for each of them. Nora placed smaller bags with the brands "PINK" and "Victoria's Secret" on it, which revealed women's undergarments upon an inspecting glance. Ren redirected his attention as Kay gestured the green-themed hunter to his own pile of similarly colored clothes, complete with a shoebox.
"Get changed," Kay said, sitting down on the couch with a say. Ren watched the man close his eyes, no doubt mentally exhausted from all the planning he had done for them. "You can wash up in the bathrooms or whatever else you need to do. We can eat afterwards." Team RWBY took their respectively piles and brought them into Kay's master bedroom. JNR and Oscar did the same in the spare bedroom.
"I'm lucky my savings are good. I'm gonna have speed up my next submission." He pulled out his phone and began texting, slowly dictating his message as he typed it. "Need to meet up, when are you free?"
Kay sighed again as he wiped the sweat off his forehead. They were lucky too; it was Sunday. If they had dropped in during the week, who knows what could have happened while he was working! Luck again has its hold, as he no longer shared the living space and had the extra room. Unluckily, he'll need to speed up writing and writing took time and with work he had no time and dealing with all eight of the visitors would mean even more time and more money lost. Kay scrunched his eyes closed and took several deep breaths.
"We'll deal with those fires when they start smoking." Kay said, defeated. "I need it to be Saturday already."
"Hey Kay," Yang's voice called from behind the couch. Multiple pairs of steps gathered behind him as well. "You good?"
"Yeah." Kay answered simply as he turned to see the group. "How do y'all like the clothes?"
Ruby was dressed in black skinny jeans and a dark red t-shirt. Next to her was Blake, wearing a dark blue jeans and a purple sweater. Weiss wore light blue skinny jeans, a soft white Henley shirt and a grey cardigan sweater. Yang wore brown cargo pants and a black Thrasher t-shirt. She could just use her boots, but Kay got her some basic running sneakers. Jaune was pretty proud of his outfit, having chosen it himself: he wore a simple dark blue t-shirt and a black zipper hoodie with a graphic design similar to his Pumpkin Pete sweater. He already brought his own jeans with him, so there was less clothes to get him. Nora had jean shorts and a pink tee with a denim jacket over it. Ren chose to put on a green sweater and simple white jeans. Oscar wore a brown polo t-shirt and dark blue jeans.
The clothes fit each person so perfectly, they could have been models in pictures! Having their clothes sizes was definitely a huge help in the process and Kay was so glad Nora was there to remind the two other boys about underwear. Ah youth, Kay mused with a little salt in his mind. How I miss being that athletically fit.
"Right," Kay said, after no complaints were made. He made his way to the kitchen counter, where the bag of breakfast sandwiches sat. "I realize our initial meeting wasn't the most… friendly, but I'm willing to open up a bit more to help ease you guys in and help y'all feel at home." That seemed to bring some relaxed smiles to their faces. "You guys can ask me anything while we eat, how's that?"
There was obviously no room for everyone to fit in the kitchen, so everyone grabbed a sandwich and sat in the living room once more. Blake happily munched on a tuna salad sandwich while everyone else had a regular sausage, egg, and cheese sandwich. Kay sat cross-legged in front of them, owning up to his offer of answering any question, like a weird convention panel. Once everyone was comfortable, and awkward silence filled the air as no one knew how to begin. Blake made the decision to break the ice by raising her hand, causing Kay to tilt his head, amused, and call on her.
"What do you do for a living?" Blake asked the first question, glancing to the wide open door to his office. Kay also noticed that Oscar was holding a familiar book.
"I'm a teacher at the local college." Kay answered. "I also do a little writing on the side."
"Like poems?" Oscar raised the book in question. Kay easily identified the poetry book.
"Yup," the familiar sight brought a small smile to Kay's face. The confirmation was a surprise to them, as he saw a lot of interest towards his office. "That's mine. As are several more on the shelves in my office. Some poetry and some short stories. Nothing groundbreaking, really."
"Do you play piano?" Weiss asked, almost immediately. "You have several songbooks in your collection as well."
"When I was younger, yes." Kay answered after swallowing a bite of his sandwich. "I took lessons as a kid and I used to teach other relatives. I play a little when I have writer's block and some free time, which isn't much nowadays."
"Whaddya teach?" Yang asked, already done with her first sandwich and walking over to the kitchen for seconds.
"Wouldn't you that make you a professor?" Nora added, calling and catching a third sandwich from Yang all the way in the kitchen.
"Nah," Kay shook his head, eyebrows still raised in reaction to the impressive sandwich catch. "I'm just a regular English teacher for the more basic classes. Don't need to be a professor to do that at a college." He was glad to have thought of this idea. He normally saved this for the start of each semester to break the ice in class. The rest of the afternoon was filled with much more casual questions, like favorite colors and other trivial things. It wasn't until Nora asked what the world's movies were like that Kay decided to break out his old DVDs.
Ren, Ruby, Jaune, Nora, and Yang were particularly enjoying Rush Hour, as Blake and Weiss decided to start having a deep conversation after the group watched Inception over some tea in the kitchen. Kay felt slightly bad for Nora and Ruby; they looked plenty confused at the ending.
"Do you really not have any coffee, Kay?" Weiss asked. "Not that this isn't good tea, I'd much rather prefer coffee."
"Seeing as I'm lactose intolerant, no." Kay answered, sipping from his own cup. "Besides, tea is healthier." Blake nodded in agreement as she finished off her cup and made to pour herself more hot water.
Kay's gaze traveled through his normally quiet one floor home. From the calm discourse of the kitchen to the raucous enjoyment in the living room and Oscar trying to peacefully read one of the many fantasy books from the shelves in the office. It was like having a party, except the party-goers are going to be staying here indefinitely. A glance at the clock told him that it was nearing 10 PM already, the movies had really helped to pad the hours.
"Alright everyone," Kay stepped out from the kitchen to grab the TV remote and stop the movie. "That's gonna be all for the entertainment tonight. Electricity is expensive and I don't want to piss off the neighbors on a work night."
Mutters of "party-pooper" and similar groans of complaint filled the room, though none of them held any real ire and began clearing out to their respective rooms. Kay made sure to pick up some of the pillows on the floors that Nora had been sitting on, carelessly tossing them back onto the couch. Walking over to the kitchen, he noticed Blake and Weiss's mugs were waiting alongside a few small plates in the sink. It wasn't until he was done cleaning that he noticed that there was one last person still in the living area. Kay walked to his office, where Oscar was still reading his book. A sizable pile of books were on the floor next to his seat; he had been reading this entire time, choosing not to join the others during the movies. That idea surprised Kay, as any teenager would have been excited to watch the movies he had. So he went with a hunch.
"Ozpin?" He probed carefully. "Is that you still up reading late?" That garnered a soft chuckle from the boy.
"No need to chastise me like a student caught after lights-out, Kay." The telltale wise tone came from the boy's mouth. Ozpin folded a corner to keep his place and stood. He bent down to start returning his read books to the shelf. The former headmaster caught Kay's upraised eyebrows in reaction to the voice. "Oscar fell asleep after the second fantasy story. I've been looking through your poetry in the meantime."
"Kid was that tired?" Kay asked, leaning on the door frame. He looked out the window and saw the waning crescent hanging above the horizon."I remember having more energy at that age."
"Please remember," Ozpin's voice took a much more serious edge, causing Kay to bring his attention back to the room. "These children have just fought the most dangerous enemies in all of Remnant. I wouldn't be surprised that he, the youngest out of all of those involved, was exhausted after the battle."
"Right," Kay nodded. He had been so worried about his own issues about this new situation that he somehow forgot they had actually lived through the hectic and usually violent world he used to watch for entertainment. "Sorry. Is there anything I can do to help?"
"You've already offered your home to us for the time being." Ozpin said, placing one last book onto the shelf. "That kind of generosity is rare, perhaps even rarer not knowing what could have happened in any other situation. I hope we don't cause much of a problem. I know this scenario would cost plenty in terms of money."
"Lady Luck herself seems to really have a hand in it." Kay joked and was rewarded with a short chuckle from Ozpin. "We're in a relatively inexpensive part of New York in terms of rent. If I still lived in the city, I wouldn't be able to help you. The college pays pretty well, and I could always dip into my savings if there's ever an emergency."
"I can't say 'thank you' enough already, Kay." Ozpin said, extending an arm to shake. "I can only hope our time here is short. Please let us know if you need help in anyway. Fate knows we owe you for it."
"Of course." Kay took his hand and shook it. He took a minute to consider tomorrow's situation before speaking. "I'm going to be working tomorrow afternoon. If you'd like, I can bring you and few others along. There may be something in the college library that can help you better understand my world."
"I accept," Ozpin smiled. "That was actually another issue I wanted to bring up, but I'm glad to see we're both on the same pages."
"Teachers usually are." Kay shrugged and smiled again. Feeling an awkward silence growing between them, he decided that was enough talking for tonight. "You should probably let Oscar's body rest as well, Ozpin."
"You're absolutely right." Ozpin said, as Kay made way for the Huntsman to walk away. "If I may have the last word tonight, Kay?" The man nodded. "You're a good writer. I hope you're doing well, if your poem's contents are anything to go by."
Kay stood in subdued surprise as he looked back at his bookshelf once more before closing the door. He made his way over to a large storage closet in the living room with content smile on his face, a rare peaceful visage that he hadn't genuinely felt in what seemed like years. That one line was the kindest thing he had heard from someone in a while.