The God of Remnant Chapter 18: Movement
"" – Dialogue
'' – Thinking
Vale – Location/Time
"Renewal Taekwondo" – Technique
A/N: I'm gonna name the ship Blake and Ilpyo are on "Dawn Strider".
Dawn Strider
"So, where are we even headed?" Sun said, nursing the swollen cheek he'd received from Blake.
He, as well as his two new traveling mates, were situated in the latter's allotted cabin on the ship. The cabin had two beds as well as a desk, all assorted in a triangular manner with the desk on the opposing wall between the beds. It was on the included chair, sitting leaned over the back, that Sun chose to sit.
Glancing at Blake for an answer seemed to be a big mistake, as he received a silent glare in return. Him tailing her from beacon seemed to have struck a nerve.
Glancing at Ilpyo seemed to be an infinitely better option as the teen had a small placating smile on his face as he looked between the two faunus.
"We're currently heading for Menagerie to meet up with Blake's parents, or rather, the original leaders of the White Fang." Ilpyo explained summarily to the monkey faunus, dropping his placating smile for a more serious expression.
A look of shock crossed Sun's face as he processed Ilpyo's words. "Your parents started the White Fang?!" Sun half yelled, barely remembering that they're supposed to be incognito.
Already feeling a headache forming, Blake let out a sigh at the expected response. "Yeah, they started the White Fang… the old White Fang" she emphasized.
"The old White Fang… you mean the non-violent one?" Sun clarified, getting a nod from the black-haired faunus.
"The original White Fang was formed with the hope that faunus and humans could co-exist peacefully. To this end, my parents allowed nothing more than peaceful protests and only pushed rallies promoting acceptance… but were only met with violence." Blake bitterly summarized. "Something caused the White Fang to change, though, and that 'something' is what we're going to Menagerie to find." She finished.
Humming in response, Sun voiced the first thought that came to mind.
"What happens if it does end up being a someone?" He asked, voice losing its natural cheerfulness for a more solemn tone.
"…I think you already know the answer." Blake responded with a steely tone.
The rest of their ride would be spent speaking in hushed tones, adjusting plans to accommodate their late-joined teammate. None could predict just what would await them once they arrived in Menagerie, however.
—GoR—
The city of Vale, Vale
Mori and Neo had travelled for a few hours, soon seeing the forests of Patch replaced with the ocean separating the small island from the city of Vale. The trip served to be more useful than either thought, as both sides traded information.
Mori learned about the current state of the world, learning that when the CCT went down; all sorts of things went haywire. He'd already known that the communication system crashing was going to cause a nightmare scenario, but he hadn't known just how damaging such an event would be.
Neo informed him of such happenings as petty crime increasing, police being overwhelmed and huntsman being spread thinner than ever (being sure to add how much easier it was for her to get by undetected). Taiyang had told him most of this but even he didn't know too much as a result of not leaving the island since the fall.
Hearing that such a complete collapse was even possible was… unsettling. In addition to learning this, Mori received information about the enemy ranks, namely the abilities of those whom Neo was targeting.
First was Mercury, one of those who'd infiltrated his classes prior to the festival. A kicking specialist with metal shotgun legs and an attitude to match; according to Neo's description, he was less of a threat than Cinder but definitely not one to take your eyes off of.
Second was a girl named Emerald, another of the Beacon infiltrators. She wielded twin revolvers that had hidden blades and could become kusarigama. Her weapon was manageable, but the real problem came from her semblance. The semblance to make those around her see whatever she wanted was a powerful semblance indeed, and incredibly similar to that of Neo's. The difference being that Neo's illusions were tangible and Emerald's were not, as well as Emerald's directly manipulating the minds of her targets.
Last, but definitely not least, was Cinder. Neo's information on Cinder's abilities was limited as the she'd rarely seen the woman make a move personally, and Cinder wasn't exactly forthcoming with her secrets. Thus, the only new thing Mori learned was just how deeply Cinder had planned the fall.
The fall had been planned from before the school year began, at the very least. The frequent dust robberies and Mount Glenn both only being small parts of the overall plan. Assessing Ozpin's willingness to push through with the festival and infiltrating Beacon were all things taken into account. There was only two things Cinder hadn't planned for: Ruby's silver eyes and Mori's god status.
This information solidified for him just how terrifying of an enemy Cinder Fall really is.
In exchange, Mori began to explain the semblances and abilities of a few of his allies, namely Seraphina and team RWBY. Neo wanted to know about these people the most, so Mori obliged since it was very likely they'd all be working together in the near future.
Neo surprised him, however, by discussing the information they'd already gained on the aforementioned individuals. This was to avoid going over information they both already knew, but what shocked Mori was the amount that they knew.
Weapons, semblance, personality, and battle tendencies. They already had a good idea of how each of them functioned individually and speculated accurately on their group dynamics. In hindsight, it shouldn't have been surprising, given that they'd successfully infiltrated the school and were essentially scoping them out for weeks. Thus, for the most part, Mori's information was nothing new to her.
By the time the two of them had finished their exchange, Kinto'un had brought them to the city. Hearing a seeing were two very different things, Mori discovered, as the state of the city was even more depressing than he'd just heard.
While the city of Vale was always a drab shade of gray, the city always had an undercurrent of life to it. The sun was always shining and the streets were always bustling with the thrum of urban energy. The windows were always lit and the sound of vehicles was never far-off. The city itself always felt…alive.
But there was no sign of that life now.
The majority of the buildings they could see were in some form of dis-repair. Most had broken windows and some chunks missing but about a third were completely obliterated, leaving only rubble to signify their previous opulence. The shadows of the city seemed to stretch further than before, giving an eerie sense that any corner could prove fatal.
The biggest tragedy was Beacon, though. Beacon used to stand as a bastion of hope against the darkness presented by the existence of the Grimm. Now, that very symbol against the Grimm was adorned with the gray, petrified corpse of one of the very creatures it was meant to repel. The irony was not missed on the monkey Faunus.
He suppressed whatever feelings the destroyed cityscape brought him, though, as he came here with a specific objective in mind: To find Glynda Goodwitch. Logic dictates that if there were to be any order at Beacon academy, those efforts would be directed by Ozpin's second-in-command. Thus, Mori's true destination was Beacon Academy, as that seemed to be the most likely place for a survivor's camp, but first…
"Neo, I'm gonna need to drop you off before I head to Beacon." Mori said to his traveling companion, receiving an understanding nod in return. He didn't need to explain what would happen if he showed up to Beacon with an international criminal in-tow.
"Would you be fine if I dropped you off at the city limits?" He asked, getting an incredulous look in return.
"Right. Right. Trained Assassin. Sorry." He said sarcastically.
With that, the rest of the trip went by in silence as they approached the east end of the city. Before long, they were descending onto a mostly uncluttered street that seemed to have formerly led to a shopping center.
"Let's meet back here in about 2 hours-" Mori started but paused as he turned, noticing a distinct lack of Neapolitan-patterned hair behind him.
She'd already left.
Furrowing his brows at the noiseless exit, he willed his cloud companion to lift up and set off in the direction of the former campus of Beacon; wondering all the while if she'd be willing to teach him how to do that.
-GoR-
Approaching Beacon, Mori began to notice differences in his surroundings. Less buildings were destroyed, and signs of previously abandoned camps could be seen, filling the faunus with hope for the future of the capital.
The grand walkway that leads to the academy was still relatively unscathed, so once he was within walking distance, Mori will Kinto'un to descend. Keeping his guard up as he approached the academy, Mori couldn't help but compare what he was seeing to what it once was.
The trees that lined the walkway were relatively left untouched, their green splendor lending some much needed color to the drab surroundings. The lights lining the walkway were spared no such courtesy, Mori noted, as the glass from shattered lamps occasionally crunched under his feet.
Before his mind could conjure up any more saddening thoughts, Mori spotted a makeshift gate in the distance. The gray coloring and overall sturdy appearance, giving away that the wall was made of concrete. The gate and accompanying walls were clearly roughly made, being uneven in some areas and overall, an aesthetic eyesore. This led Mori to believe that they were thrown up in a hurry, no doubt with the help of someone's semblance. On top of one side of the gate was a structure that seemed to be a guard post, holding a single man within.
The man was dressed in basic Vale military gear which is composed of a skin-tight black bodysuit with lightweight white armor plating covering the vitals. A black mouthguard made it so Mori couldn't see his mouth, and his brown hair rendered his appearance rather non-descript.
Upon catching sight of Mori, the man stood up revealing the rifle he had presumably been holding the entire time. He held the rifle at his waist, eyes trained on Mori as he trekked closer to the checkpoint.
Walking until he was close enough to speak to the man, Mori was going to begin speaking but was beaten to the punch.
"State your name and reason for entry." The man said in a neutral tone.
"Hey! I'm Mori Jin and I'd like to speak to Glynda Goodwitch!" Mori said in response.
As soon as Mori gave his response, the man's eyes seemed to flash a light amber. An event after which the man nodded lightly before speaking again.
"We've been expecting you. I'll call for an escort to bring you to Ms. Goodwitch." The man said before lifting a hand to his ear and muttering something Mori couldn't quite hear.
After a few awkward minutes consisting of him finding strange ways to manipulate the electricity Kinto'Un gave him control over, the gate before him began to open with a low whirring noise. Similar to an elevator, the concrete doors began to separate in a way Mori didn't believe possible until they separated enough for him to spot the metal contained within.
Once the doors separated sufficiently, Mori spotted a soldier dressed identically to the man in the guard tower, except this one was wearing a helmet that concealed his entire appearance. This soldier used his rifle to gesture for Mori to enter, an invitation which he gladly took after wasting precious time waiting.
-GoR-
The camp was roughly what Mori expected when he first saw the exterior, but he still found himself surprised at the difference between what he was seeing and what he'd known.
Beige tents lined the entire courtyard, but still organized in such a way that there were walkways. These were the tents that housed people, Mori noticed, as he spotted several people hanging out around their tents with children and the like.
As the two continued walking, he was able to spot two tents that were much larger than the residential ones. One was the food tent, as indicated by the large sign above said tent. The tent was about three times as large as the residentials and featured much more ventilation than them. He could see the volunteers shuffling around, getting ready for the next meal.
The next tent was even larger than that one, being of a size so large that he'd likely only be able to gauge it if he looked on from above. This was the medical tent and it seemed to be just as busy as the cafeteria tent. Even just passing, he could see the tent was lined with lifted beds that were all filled with patients. The medical staff didn't seem to be rushing around, leading Mori to believe that this has been the normal state of things for a while. He'd briefly wondered if he'd be able to find Professor Peach in there, but squashed the idea as soon as it came as he'd come here for a specific reason.
Shaking off the unnecessary thoughts, he'd noticed they were heading towards Ozpin's clocktower. Looking towards the top, Mori saw the dragon Cinder brought to their fight. Even in its stone form, the large grimm still gave off an air of uneasiness... yet, the sight of petrified creature also inspired something else within Mori.
Hope.
Hope that despite how poorly things seemed to be going that somehow, they'd figure it out. Even last time it all boiled down to a miracle.
By the end of his inner monologue, they'd reached the entrance at the base of the tower. At this point, the soldier turned and made to stand guard at the door, gesturing for Mori to enter alone.
Thanking the soldier for the guide, Mori entered the tower through the two tarps used to cover the threshold. Upon his entry, he noticed a large wooden desk covered in neat stacks of paperwork and maps. Above the paperwork, he noticed the woman he'd been looking for furiously writing; she'd seemingly not noticed that he entered.
"Burns! I've told you to...!" The woman began, only to have the words die in her mouth as she lifted her head.
"Hey, Professor. It's been a while." Mori said with a small grin and wave.
Glynda's expression softened as a small smile of relief came to her face. "Indeed, it has. Now, please sit as we have much to discuss." She said, waving her hand towards a chair, causing it to gently slide in front of her desk.
-GoR-
Atlas
Life had been a blur since she'd awoken. From General Ironwood's visits to the day she was discharged, everything in the hospital seemed to blend together.
Currently, she was back in her room, imprisoned once again within the confines dictated solely by her mother. Her hospital stay had been just long enough that the doctors could repair the damage Cinder left but not long enough that there wasn't still a dull pain rhythmically pulsing within her shoulder.
It was currently early in the afternoon, a time which Seraphina was quickly finding to be her favorite due to the consistency with which she was left alone, allowing her the luxury of laying in her bed in a manner unbefitting of her stature. Her hair was still short but her extensions were missing, taken due to them 'ruining' her image. The green spots in her hair were re-dyed to their original hot pink. There was no doubt in her mind that her mother would've done something about the length if claiming her hair as a casualty wasn't so advantageous.
Each pulse brought the false maiden's glowing amber eyes to the forefront of Seraphina's thoughts. The helplessness of facing a threat far above her capabilities, the uncertainty of if she was even going to survive were still fresh in her mind. She suppressed those thoughts, however as she prepared herself for the event that was to come.
Her mother, though seemingly cruel and unusual, was actually cruel and methodic in her actions. Everything she did served a purpose. Even withdrawing her from the hospital was a move done with the utmost calculation, calculation determining how long the press would keep the fall on the front page before her daughter's discharge from the hospital would be able to take its place.
Seraphina's early discharge not only served this purpose, however, for there was a party set to take place tonight. This party was a significant one as it was the first to be held after the fall-but more importantly to Narisa-the first chance to show her daughter survived the fall and bounced back stronger.
Seraphina wanted to vomit.
The plan was so sickening that skipping the party altogether seemed like a viable option to her at first. The little bit of satisfaction she'd get from the act of teenage rebellion would almost be worth not seeing the sun for the foreseeable future.
Almost.
But this party was a blessing in disguise, a chance for her to meet up with one of the only other people in Atlas who would share her feelings. Seraphina was certain that if she went to the party, she'd be guaranteed to encounter Weiss because if her mother wasn't missing the chance then there's no way Jacques Schnee would shy away from free publicity.
Well, free if you don't consider their own children's well-being as collateral.
The only snag in her planning was arguably the most important step. She currently lacked a plan to escape Atlas, much less had an idea of where she was going.
Vale was always an option, but with the CCT down and the school destroyed, she'd be going in blind. The chances of there being some sort of survivor's camp at Beacon was relatively high, but that also left the issue of how she'd get there. Getting out of her house was one thing, but managing to leave the kingdom? No chance.
She really hoped Weiss had a plan...
-GoR-
With Mori
Mori had just finished summarizing what had occurred between him and Seraphina arriving on the roof and the present for an attentive Glynda. He left out the detail regarding his temporary partnership with one of their main enemies, though. That seemed better left unsaid.
Upon the completion of his re-telling, Glynda closed her eyes and let out a tired sigh, "to have to go through so much when you'd only just started your career..." Glynda said, clearly sorrowful. "I'm glad Taiyang actually comforted you; usually that man has a tendency to put his foot in his mouth at the best of times..." Glynda remarked, earning a small chuckle from Mori. A sound that brought a small smile to the seasoned huntress's face.
"Moving on," Glynda said, locking eyes with Mori once again ", Ruby and the remnants of Team JNPR stopped here." She revealed, getting a nod in understanding from the faunus.
"That's actually one of the main reasons I came here." Mori revealed. "I was hoping they gave you a more accurate breakdown of where they were headed since Taiyang didn't really tell me too much." Mori said.
"Of course, he didn't." Glynda said in a level tone, as if she expected as much from the man. "They're travelling to Mistral with the intention of reaching Haven academy to protect the relic hidden there."
After pulling out her scroll and fiddling with it for a moment, Glynda placed it on the table; causing a holographic map to appear between them. On the map, which was a sea of various hues of blue, there was a strong yellow line that bent and curved in various places. At numerous intervals along the line, there were red dots with names next to them. This continued until the end of the line, which was indicated with a golden star that and a larger title reading "GOAL".
"This is the most likely route that their group will be taking. Each dot is a known village or settlement and the route was calculated using main pathways. While this may seem encouraging, I'd like you to keep in mind that this map was drawn before the collapse, so use it as a guide rather than a rule." Glynda explained. "Connect to our local network so I can send it to you."
Pulling out his scroll, Mori was a little confused. "You guys have connection?"
"Yes. To explain briefly, the CCT was only used to seamlessly connect multiple smaller access points to a much larger one that expedited long-distance connections. The collapse of that means that we still have short-distance connections but we're effectively cut off from those further than a few miles away, depending on the strength of the local networks." Glynda explained to a slowly nodding Mori.
After receiving the map on his scroll and ensuring it worked, Mori stood up. "Well, it was great seeing you again, Ms. Goodwitch, but I've got to go. I'm gonna try and reach this first blip by sundown." Mori said, surprising the (stand-in) headmaster.
"Already? I won't stand in your way, but are you sure you shouldn't at least stay the night?"
"Nah, I got plenty of rest being cooped up on Patch for so long so I'll be good for a while," Mori explained "Besides, I need to catch up to Ruby and them as soon as possible." He said with a confident grin.
A small smile came to Glynda's face as Mori's words caused her to reminisce for a brief moment. "Well, if that's your choice then I suppose it'll be a long while before we see each other again." Glynda said, extending her hand. "Good luck and please be careful, the world is in an uncertain state right now and you all are our best hope."
Grin shrinking to a gentler smile, Mori reached out and took the woman's hand in a firm shake. "No promises." He said, releasing her hand as he did so, and turned towards the exit. Ready to set off on whatever journey awaited him next.
But first, he had an ice cream-themed assassin to pick up...
-GoR-
Atlas
Seraphina had known what to expect, having been to many parties of the same type throughout her childhood, but this one took the cake.
The ballroom was a classic white, as was to be expected given the hosts, and the attendees were all sharply dressed in ways that were guaranteed not to stand out. The sea of grays, blues and other such colors served to create a drab collective in which one could easily become lost.
Amidst that crowd, however, were notable stand-outs.
The Schnee family was all dressed in a lighter blue or white articles of clothing, causing them to not only stand out from the crowd, but also identifying them as the hosts. Other notable families seemed to have followed a similar theme of dressing themselves contrary to the dress code in order to stand out.
Seraphina herself was dressed in a modern light pink ballroom dress. The dress was light pink until the chest area where the color darkened, covering her chest, shoulders and arms in a dark pink. Complete with a shiny dark pink sash around her waist, Seraphina appeared the picture of elegance.
Currently, she was standing near the center of the ballroom 'conversing' with a random socialite. That is to say, if the definition of conversing was one party scanning the room for someone else while the other effectively talked to a pink-haired brick wall. By that definition, this was a great conversation.
Spotting her target engaging in the aforementioned definition of conversation, Seraphina decided to make a move. Excusing herself from the socialite she was engaged with, she swiftly walked towards her white-haired friend just as she seemed to be finishing her conversation. Judging by the invective her ears detected and the stunned look on the red-suited man's face, his attempts to break the ice resulted in a volcanic eruption.
"Weiss." Seraphina said simply, getting the girl's attention.
Turning towards her with a face full of dissatisfaction, Weiss seemed ready to blow her off before catching sight of just who called her name.
"Seraphina..." Wiess said, anger melting off her face as relief came to replace it. It looked like the girl had just found an oasis after spending an ungodly amount of time in the desert. "To say I'm happy to see you would be the understatement of the century." She spoke.
"Same here. I was banking on the fact that your dad would want you out in the spotlight as badly as my mom wanted me to be." She explained to the currently light blue-themed girl with a small look to her covered injuries.
"Astute as ever..." Weiss said with a withheld sigh. "I wish I could say I didn't believe they'd turn the tragedy at Beacon into a way to flex their riches but it's more or less expected."
"Never mind that." Seraphina said, redirecting the conversation. "We need to somehow get back with Mori and your team. We can't really do much to help while trapped in Wonderland." Seraphina said, using her head to subtly gesture to the room around them.
"That might be difficult... but not impossible." Weiss said, with a hand placed on her chin. "I have a few attendants who I'm close with who may be willing to assist me. All I'd need is for you to somehow get to my house at a time I give you." Weiss explained.
"That should be doable, considering the closeness of our families. Framing it as an attempt to 'better prepare for the next generation of our respective companies' should work." Seraphina said, mentally cringing at the thought.
"Either way, that should be good enough for now. So how about we make the most of this impromptu reunion?" Weiss said, grabbing two glasses of champagne from a passing server.
"That sounds fantastic." Seraphina said with a smile as she proceeded to enjoy the first conversation, she's had with a friend in what felt like years.
Elsewhere in the venue, though, a man stood surrounded by pleased faces and hollow praise. He would occasionally cast a glance towards the two girls-no, survivors, but he would not approach them.
For James Ironwood felt far too much shame to do such a thing.
-GoR-
Elsewhere in Atlas, a teen was out on a jog.
He had been jogging for a couple hours, the cooling effect of his aura and the absence of his mind were surely to blame. His black muscle shirt being drenched and his heavy breathing were testaments to just how long he'd been at it.
What was he thinking about?
The Vytal festival, the fall, and one of his best friends knocking some sense into him namely.
John was a troubled boy with a lot to make up for, but he was thankful that he was in a place to acknowledge that. The only problem was getting people to give him a second chance.
The fall had tensions at an all-time high. This, combined with the large amount of work that needed to be done left him few opportunities to meet with those whom he needed to apologize to.
'Not to mention Sera...' he thought to himself. 'She's probably locked up tighter now than ever before...' He reluctantly acknowledged.
As he was having these thoughts, an event began to take place in front of him.
A faunus man was walking on the sidewalk in front of him, seemingly minding his own business. This was normal, so Jon barely registered him... that is until the man was thrown to the ground by an Atlas soldier kicking the back of one of his knees. Jon couldn't believe his eyes as his feet stopped moving.
For context, Jon had been jogging for so long that night had long fallen. The sunny sky being replaced by an unforgiving night that was barely lit by the less-than-stellar streetlights of the area he was in.
Oh, yeah. It seemed he'd been jogging for so long that he was in a faunus ghetto towards the edge of the city. This was normally a dicey area, especially at night, but for a hunter-in-training like John; it wasn't too much of a concern.
But apparently, this particular soldier viewed the seediness as advantageous in another way.
John was about to charge the man, amber eyes already blazing in response to his anger; but he was beaten to the punch.
Before John could take a full step, the Atlas soldier was hit by a figure that came flying out of a nearby alley. The figure landed a jump kick to the side of the soldier's helmet, resulting in a loud crack as the kick broke the chin guard off the helmet.
The soldier, unable to prepare for the sudden attack was sent cartwheeling into the road, gun flying off during his flight. His body came to rest on the sidewalk across the road, a bruise already forming as he let out a pained groan.
Shocked at what he just witnessed; John watched on as the woman-shaped figure crouched down to help the faunus man to his feet before allowing him to leave the area. John was about to walk up to the woman, but she'd turned to him first revealing the mask she had on.
A White Fang mask.
The only thing that stopped John was the weird coloring of the mask. It seemed to have several colors displayed on the mask in striped patterns, in stark contrast to the normal white ones.
The woman had on a black form-fitting body suit, leaving the only identifying features she'd displayed being her lavender hair and a pair of cat ears that stood proudly atop her head.
"Well, aren't I the lucky one?" The woman asked rhetorically ", I was just about to come looking for you- not to fight." The woman quickly appended upon seeing John's eyes begin to glow. "I'm going to need you to follow me, John Doe." The woman said.
"Let's start with 'who are you and why should I do anything'" Jon quipped, assuming a fighting stance once again.
"Because I'm going to need your help." The woman said, removing her mask and leaving John in disbelief.
He had a lot of questions.
Chapter 18 end
A/N: It's been a while? Is that even appropriate to say after taking over a year off this story when I thought it would be two weeks? Probably.
To be honest, the thing that kept me from writing this for the longest was the scene with Mori coming up on the survivor's camp. I'd had the scene with Blake, Ilpyo and Sun written out since last Christmas but for some reason, I just couldn't get past it. Thus, I just put it off and started playing Valorant... as you do. I also started another story, but that one is more open ended so it won't get in the way of future updates to this one.
That being said, I am sorry for taking so long off this story and I can't really promise regular updates but I will try to update more than a few times per year at the very least.
That being said (2x), I hope you guys enjoyed the first chapter in a while and watch out for more GoR coming your way.
-Mango G
Enjoy a little side story first though .
Omake: Seraphina and Mori: Out and About
"Coffee shop?" Seraphina suggested.
"Not feeling it." Mori responded
"Food in general?" She tried.
"Nope." He shot down
"Shopping?" She tried sneakily.
"I already said I was bored, right?" He reminded.
Currently, Mori and Seraphina were walking the streets of Vale. The city was bustling with activity, this was of no surprise to the students, though as the weekend had this kind of effect on the populace.
"How about we sit in the park?" Mori suggested, the greenery in the center of the concrete jungle catching his eye.
"Sounds good to me." Seraphina agreed, leading them to the park and quickly finding them a bench that had adequate shading.
No sooner had they sat down, Seraphina laid length-wise on the bench. Crossing her legs, placing her hands behind her head and closing her eyes; Seraphina entered a state of chill rarely seen by anyone.
"So, why the park?" Seraphina asked with a small yawn escaping her lips.
"I'm not sure... I guess it just reminded me of something." Mori said, leaning back on the bench; letting his eyes follow the branches as they swayed gently in the wind. His tail absentmindedly swaying over Seraphina's face, creating a shadowy pendulum in her darkened vision.
"I didn't think they had any forests in Vacuo..." Seraphina prodded; another small yawn being released as she followed the oscillating shadow.
"There are some, they just are pretty small and far in-between. My grandpa actually used to train me in one, had me practice my forms on trees just like this one." Mori said, looking at the healthy brown bark of the tree they were under.
Suddenly, Mori could see his grandfather standing next to the tree, throwing punches in slow motion while looking down at him. The proud smile on his face never faded, even when his adoptive grandson would butcher the movement.
The scene brought a serene smile to Mori's face as he zoned back into the present.
"zzz..." He heard the light breaths of Seraphina next to him, causing him to look down at her sleeping form.
Her messy bangs had surrendered to gravity, exposing her forehead to the world as she napped with such a calm expression that one wouldn't think she was being trained to hunt monsters of the night. The light that seeped through the branches and danced along her face certainly helped sell the picture of serenity that found itself resting next to him.
Smiling at the scene, Mori removed the light jacket he was wearing and draped it over his partner before leaning back in the bench to rest himself.
They rarely got moments like this anyways.
Omake end