A/N: ...shorter than I'd like, but I'm writing this before work. Apologies.

Sorry, not in the best mindset at the moment. My head's killing me and I'm stressed out my mind.

My boss at one of my jobs -still working two- is wearing down my last nerve and grinding my gears. Sucks, don't it? You give years of your life to a job, work hard, climb the ladder, advance, and they still treat you like shit. They think you're expendable. Just another pawn on their chessboard, another grunt to sacrifice while they take all the credit for your hard work. I might just throw down my badge and walk today if they do what I think they're going to do. Here's hoping I'm wrong and cooler heads prevail.

Please let today be a good day...

...I need it to be a good day.

*siiiiigh*

In any case, here we are. The Hunt continues! If by some miracle this makes it to 500-I'm willing to update again but alas, it doesn't seem all that popular-we'll get an early update. If not, I'll update it again around October. Spooky season and all that.

With my fifteen year anniversary on this site finally here, I find myself reflecting on the little things in life. What was once a lazy pastime meant for me and a few friends really grew and evolved over time. There are days when I look back on the last fifteen years here and I wonder if anyone will remember me; if I made an impact, despite never making a single cent on any of these stories. Some days were happier than others, and some stories I enjoyed writing WAY too much; to the point where I'd stay up all night working on them.

And of course, there are times when I look to the future and wonder what will become of things when I'm gone.

Of course, I try not to dwell on the latter overmuch; I'm still alive and still writing. In an ideal world, I'd like to keep doing so for as long as I can. But old age is catching up to me and these days, the world is filled with so much madness and death. Feels like everyone's lost their minds sometimes. Even before that, so many friends and fellow writers I once knew are gone, now. Will I still be here in twenty years? Ten? Five? Its a chilling thought. But for now, I'm still here, still writing. So here we go. The fate of this story depends on you, the reader. Your feedback determines the fate of this tale, and many others.

I'm just a humble author trying to make his way in this wild world, one word at a time.

Time and feedback will determine if this remains a story. Simple as that.

As ever, I own no quotes, references, themes or memes.

They're tributes one and all~!

DLC may be nearly over, but we've still got the whole base game to go through.

Benefits of hitting said DLC early however, means the next few chapters are going to be...fun.

"You keep going on and on about that. Limits.

Do not seek to test his.

You will fail."

~?

Here be Monsters

She had hands again.

Why? Why did she have hands again?

Monsters shouldn't have hands. Certainly not beasts.

Clarice, formerly known as the Cleric Beast, couldn't make heads or tails of it. Her memories melted together in a cauldron of confusion. So little made sense and she was left to cling to what did. She knew her name. She remembered how to wield a weapon in theory, clumsy though she was in her weakened state. She recalled swinging something large and heavy at the skull of a vicious blood-starved beast, ducking back from its raking claws, then moving in to mow it down.

These didn't strike her as the skills of a civilian.

Had she been a Hunter? A Huntress perhaps?

A hammer felt good in her hands. She wanted a hammer. She needed a hammer. But there was no hammer to be found here in the Hunter's Dreams. Worse, she was still so weak! Even sitting up and walking around took most of her energy, leaving her thoughts were lost in a sea of fog.

Today was no different. A bite to eat, then a lap around the "house" at the Doll's behest, followed by a rest once more. She felt another one coming on now. This time her dreams were strange, full of blood and death and nightmares, of orphans given a second chance and failures given a chance to triumph.

And all the while, the questions persisted.

Who was she? What was she?

Would she ever know?


(.0.0.0.)


The Living Failures yet remained.

Naruto was somewhat appalled to find those shambling monstrosities barring their path once more upon their return from the fishing hamlet; those giant blue, near-headless bodies milling about in the sunflower field just outside Maria's clock tower. None of them made any moves to attack them -they didn't even seem to notice their presence- but they remained regardless, ready to challenge any who dared trespass.

Therein lie the rub.

They shouldn't be there. He'd killed them.

Put them out their misery, quick as can be, if only to prevent their suffering.

Times like these, he wished he'd been more thorough. When asked as much, Maria had an answer for him.

"So they just...keep being reborn?" His mouth curled in pity. "Over and over again? In this nightmare? Even after they're killed?"

"Yes." she confirmed the words softly at his side, unwilling to draw attention to them. "With the Orphan tended to," still speaking, she risked a glance back Orpheus, currently badgering a bemused Ludwig with questions, "These children are one of the few tethers still binding the Nightmare in place.

Kurama went still in his head. "Did she just say what I think she did?"

Naruto felt his throat go dry, leaving his tongue heavy in his mouth. Maria had and she dearly wished he hadn't. "Children?

"They were, once." they were of one mind on the matter, for she granted him a small, sad smile as they watched the creatures paw and play with the sunflowers. "No longer. There can be no saving them. At best, we can grant them a clean end and put them to rest-

"No." He gripped her wrist, shouldered her aside, and strode forward. "We're not doing that. They've been through enough."

Her voice pitched behind him, sharp and incredulous "You cannot save them!"

Anger burned in him, bright and sharp and so very furious.

He bit his palm. "Who decided that?"

What followed wasn't even a fight. Fighting implied violence. There was none here; he didn't inflict any...this time. The first Living Failure to reach him was met with a bloody golden palm. Said palm planted itself on its body and with it, Kurama chakra raced forth to flood their form. His blood joined it, sparking a change deep within. The creature gurgled wetly and stared down at him in confusion. At least he assumed it was confusion. Hard to tell without a real head.

"I'm sorry." he apologized. "You never asked for this. But its alright now; you can rest."

He kept walking, leaving the towering creature to topple behind him. Its body fell into the sunflowers and did not rise again. Another gurgling monstrosities reached him he inflicted the same treatment upon them as well; a quick tap of the hand, a chakra-blood infusion, then he was gone, moving onto the next and the next. Grasping hands reached for him. Others called down the stars upon him. He effortlessly evaded them all. One by one his hand found its mark. He laid them down, each after the other, flooding them with chakra to make certain they stayed that way.

The last, a smaller specimen not quite so long as its fellows, he grabbed and held, until it too collapsed.

"Its not your fault." he murmured. "This was never your fault. "You can move on now."

He should've know it wouldn't be that easy. Nothing in life ever was.

A low voice stabbed into his head. "...failure no longer."

"Wha-

He was still speaking when the Living Failure in his arms exploded into light and blasted him backward. Maria tried to catch him, but that just sent them both tumbling down into the sunflowers. Little Orpheus laughed at the sight. No doubt the former orphan thought it all a grand game of sort and the resultant fog that followed quite pretty.

Naruto...did not.

Groaning at the pain, he squinted into the haze and swept a hand through it. The mist retreated at his touch.

And he saw.

In place of the grotesque Living Failures, a child with deathly blue skin stared back at him. Her deep black eyes were intent, hair seemingly cut from the starry night sky itself. Clad in little more than a ragged dirty robe, she clutched a ragged cloth doll to her chest and seemed utterly at a loss. Her gaze swept left, now right, searching for something. When she failed to find it, she whimpered a little.

"What have you done to us?" She blinked up at him and a soft, plaintive voice issued from her mouth. "We can't hear the song of the stars anymore." A shiver rattled slim shoulders. "We're cold."

"We?" Off came his spare jacket, which he endeavored to wrap around the shivering child. "We? There's no one else here. Only you."

"We are we." guileless eyes blinked up at him, shining like the cosmos itself. "We are me. Who else would we be?"

And in an instant he understood. The living failures must've shared a hive mind of sorts. Now it had been condensed into a humanoid body. But she wasn't human either. There was something about her, this ethereal waif of a girl, something...greater. Something more. She shone in his senses the same way little Orpheus did. Not quite as brightly, but bright all the same. Ironic, and the sheer irony of it all almost made him laugh. In their final moments, the Living Failures had produced a Living Success, it seemed.

"Don't suppose you have a name?"

She tilted her head and touched a finger to her lips.

"Of course you don't." Naruto pinched the bridge of his nose and fought down a sigh.

Orpheus perked up at the newcomer. She stared at him in return, trying to puzzle him out.

Naruto felt the beginnings of a migraine coming on, but it was a bittersweet one as they children regarded one another. Lovely. A pair of little great ones. Of course. Not going to be difficult disciplining these two, no sir. Still, he couldn't just throw out a name for her. Wouldn't feel right if he half-assed this. But what to name her...?

Maria mercifully came to his rescue. "Ophelia."

He gave her a brief, baffled look. "Where'd that come from?"

She smiled in return. "It was the name of an old friend of mine. It suits her, no?

Huh. Ophelia and Orpheus. Had a nice ring to them, those, now that he dwelt on it a bit.

Ophelia looked to Maria, wide-eyed. "You gave us a name?

The huntress laughed a little. "I did, dear girl."

It was the wrong thing to say and Naruto knew it the moment Ophelia's eyes lit up. "Mothers give names! Does that make you our mother?!"

"I beg your pardon?!"

Orpheus tilted his head in turn. "Are you my mother, too?"

Maria squeaked. "N-Now wait just a moment!"

It was too much. Naruto fell back laughing.

There wast but one last loose end to tie up, then they could be gone from this place.


(.0.0.0.)


His skull approached.

Laurence felt it from where he lay sprawled on his throne, that telltale fragment of his former self, a shattered splinter of his soul so close, and yet so far. He sensed it-nay, recognized the scent, the aura, all that made it his own. Torturing him. Tempting him. So close, yet so far out of reach. This was what he was now. Guilt, suffering, failure, regrets and anger. His body burned, both from the horror of Yharnam and his own failures, an endless spiral that went on without end.

The skull. He must have it. T'was his salvation.

There were voices now. So many voices. He was still bound to his throne, still unable to move, unable to see them, but he heard them.

"So...that's Laurence. Ouch. He looks like that Cleric Beastie I fought. Who set him on fire?"

"No one." a woman's voice answered. "This is what he became on that awful night."

Ah, yes. The night. He remembered. The blood.

Fear the Old Blood.

He had not. And so he had paid the price.

"Laurence, what has become of you...

Another's man voice...and children?

"No, Orpheus." the first voice tutted. "Not so close. You too, Ophelia."

"Awww, but he looks so sad...

"You can tell?"

A child that could sense his emotions? What waking nightmare was this? Of course. This was a Nightmare, after all.

There could only be one end for him now.

"Laurence!" he heard someone fling their arms wide. "I've come to bargain!"

Those words reactivated him. He twitched. Dragged himself upright, clutching his ruined face.

He saw them, then, this merry band of misfits, and the blond man leading them. Was that Maria and Ludwig with him-no, they didn't matter. The skull. He must have his skull. He sought it. Seeked it. Craved it. It was all he cared for. Yes. His skill. He tried to speak, but all that emerged was a high, shrieking cry of a beast.

"G...I...V...E!"

He lunged at him and smashed a giant arm down on the fool's head. A hand caught it and wrested it aside, turning his overhand smash into a tilting tumble that left him sprawled on the floor. Anger and misery burned in him, stoking the flames of his body to new heights. Righting himself, he pivoted with a snarl.

Naruto beckoned, crooking one hand at him in a come hither motion. "You're an angry one, aint'cha?"

Laurence lost himself, or rather, what little of his self remained.

And so he attached him.

Again and again, over and over, screaming and shrieking, whaling and wailing. His skull where was it?! Where was he hiding it?! This one must be hiding it somewhere; he could smell it on him!

"It's not your fault, ya know." his foe crooned at him, swaying like a leaf between his every strike. "Ya had good intentions, Laurence. You just went about it the wrong way."

Laurence spat fire in his face. The blond took to the chest without complaint.

"That's right." he coughed, brushing the fire away. "Take it all out on me. I'll burn all those awful feelings away."

Someone shouted at the baffling blond. Laurence never knew who. "Naruto, don't! You're at your limit!"

"Limit?!" He rounded on them with a snarl. "Don't talk to me about limits! I decide my limits! And I say I'm going to save him. Oi! Ophelia! Orpheus! You want an uncle?!"

Laurence heard the children make happy noises.

Saved? He could not be saved. Without the skull, his destiny was damnation. Only the skull could save him.

Laurence was heedless to all of this and tried to bite him in vain. The blond hunter swayed aside and shoved a hand into his toothy maw instead. Hot blood flooded his mouth. Blood and...something else. Firm hands closed around his jaws and pinched them shut. Forced him to swallow, now.

"You want a piece of me?" the blond grinned. "Go right ahead. I've got blood to spare!"

Laurence choked, made a wretched noise. And as he did...

Someone pressed something into his larger hand.

Bleary bestial eyes blinked at it. His skull. He recognized it anywhere, scarred and pitted, charred by fire. The last lost vestige of his humanity. Holding it did...nothing. No, perhaps that wasn't quite right. Cradling it in his claws brought him a brief measure of melancholy peace. No more. He wanted it to end. Just wanted an end to it all. To the fire and the flames, the pain and the memories...

He was not granted one; for the intruder spoke anew. "This won't be enough to save you. But won't worry. I'm here."

Golden claws closed around his face, holding him fast."

"Now hold still and let me fix your everything.

Laurence tumbled to the floor.

The world reasserted itself.

Bones began to break.

Fire in his blood.

Pain!

It hurt, it hurt, it hurt! A thousand agonies! Torment eternal!

As quickly as it began it ceased, leaving him writhing upon the floor of the church.

And in that moment, he felt it. Hands instead of claws. Boots instead of paws. Battered hunting leathers, burnt and scorched. He touched a hand to his face and found his stern jawline intact, no longer the slavering jaws of a mad beast. Fingers fumbled at his face further and found his features just as he remembered him. Even his burning blade had been returned to him, left to simmer sullenly in its sheathe at his side. He cared little for it at present, oh no; his thoughts were far more preocuppied with the miracle that had been delivered to him.

Human.

Why was he human again?!

He did not deserve...he shouldn't be! "...what have you done?!"

"I've fought with a few folks with the whole "I've give up on the idea of living" schtick." those keen blue eyes fastened upon him intently. "I beat them all. Even made peace with most of 'em. I want everyone to have that freedom, too. The chance to rebound. Including you. You wouldn't get that if I took that chance away from you. So!" he thrust a hand forward, fingers splayed for him to grasp. "Lets chalk this up as a rocky start and have ourselves a do-over, eh?

Laurence tensed.

"Careful, now." The blond beamed at him. "I'm giving you freedom of choice, sure, but you attack now, and you're choosing to get a whooping from me."

What choice did he have, then? He grabbed his hand.

The whiskered warrior grinned.

"Good man."

A/N: Aaand scene.

We'll be moving onto the main story after this.

Aaaand there we go. As ever, reviews keep me alive. Without them, I cannot write. So...in the Immortal Words of Atlas...

...Review...Would You Kindly? And have some previews

Get ready to smile. Or laugh. Whichever comes first.

Hope they brighten your day~!

(Previews)

"Welcome home good hun...wait. Who is that?!


"Nice clinic you got here."

"You think so?" Iosefka preened. "I've been a bit busy, I have so many to look after. A curious woman came by, but I turned her away...


Amelia screamed. "Stay away! I'll hurt you!"


"Spiders. Why is it always spiders. You friendly?"

Countless eyes turned to him. "...?"

"Great. Can you talk?"


"Way I see it happiness is light as air, sweeter then sugar, and disappears just as you get taste for it. So cling to it while you can.

After all, you only get one life~! Might as well enjoy it, no?"


"Shh, shh. Hush little baby, don't say a word. Mama's gonna buy you a rocking bird...


"Orpheus, put the bad man down. I need him alive...for now."

"Yes, papa."


"I have had it up to HERE with people suffering. But you?" he stomped down, crushing the creature underfoot. "There's no saving something like you, someone who takes pleasure in the suffering of others. They're rotten. THEY DIE."


"Ohohoho and now the big bad shows his face! C'mere, ya sonuvabitch!"


She jumped him, bearing him down to the ground.

"There's not really a bed here...

"Does it look like I care?"

EDIT: Hey, you made it!

Once more, we're sticking with the "Embers" rule for this story...and others.

If folks don't like this, it won't be continued. Meaning that if the story itself ain't popular? Well...I won't be able to continue it.

I'm working two jobs with ever-increasing hours and the holidays are right around the corner; I barely have time to write; as such, I cannot afford to write something folks don't enjoy. So by all means, speak up! Your voice matter! Make yourself heard! As ever, reviews are the fuel that sustains me. Without them, I cannot write a single word. Simple as that.

So by all means, speak up! Raise your voice! Make yourself heard! Your reviews matter! Really, they do!

Looking forward to chatting with you all when I get back~!

R&R~!