It was true that Aberrants were the biggest targets of the Hunters, but there was always that rare occasion when they were hired for a more… Human target. A Huntsman that went rogue, a serial killer, gangs, targets that usually fell into the hands of Huntsmen and Huntresses. This time though, Sabito had been contracted to track down a serial killer, as apparently there weren't any nearby Huntsmen teams that could accept the job. So stalking the streets of Vale as the sun fell below the horizon, that was exactly what the Water Breathing user set out to do. It didn't make sense to him, Beacon was a short flight away so why not send a team of upperclassmen? Sabito was a very… suspicious person by nature, but he didn't have the time to go crafting conspiracy theories from baseless suspicions. He had a target to hunt, after all.

Unfortunately for him though, this night would not go to plan in the slightest…

Based on police reports the serial killer, one Krim Lionel, had been seen frequenting Junior's bar, so he'd start his investigation there and get whatever information he could. Turning the street he adjusted the mask on his face. Urokodaki had carved him an exact replica, although he had been rather indignant… No matter how many times he ran that mountain course he'd never escape it unscathed, which was something Blake Belladonna was finding out the hard way. Speaking of the cat Faunus, she had been staying with them ever since she arrived, only leaving when it was required for Beacon's admission or when Urokodaki took her out to cull the nearby Grimm populations. It had quickly become apparent that while she could, and had begun mastering, Total Concentration breathing she was utterly unable to master Water Breathing. Not for a lack of trying, but she just wasn't suited for it. Water Breathing was a defensive style that was almost entirely about flow and adaptability. He had always seen it as an elastic defense, a style that helped one to control the flow of battle to the user's favor. With their frequent sparring, it was clear that while Blake was an incredibly flexible fighter, she was an agility fighter. She preferred quick strikes that left little time to react as well as frequent use of misdirection to whittle her opponents down while expending as little of her own energy as possible. She had been disappointed and somewhat guilty that she couldn't learn, but the two of them had waved it off. Some people just weren't suited for certain styles, and there wasn't any use brute forcing it. Unfortunately there just weren't many cultivators left, and neither Sabito or Urokodaki knew any style other than Water Breathing. Supposedly there was a Thunder Cultivator deep in Mistral, but Urokodaki hadn't heard from him in over a year.

There was a family that exclusively practiced Flame Breathing, but they were based out of Mistral as well, and Sabito didn't know anything about them other than that…

But all of that was neither here nor there. Right now he had to focus on his hunt, or he would've had to if his quarry didn't run straight into his chest at a full sprint. The two bounced off of each other, or rather Sabito stumbled while the serial killer fell on his ass.

"Wha–" Was all he got out before a boot slammed into his nose, knocking him out. Sabito crouched down and fished his scroll out of his pocket, doing a comparison with his WANTED profile. Other than a slightly different hairstyle they were an exact match.

"Just bad luck, bastard. What comes around goes around." Sabito muttered, cuffing the man's wrists and ankles.

BOOM!

His head shot up, and soon after he saw a stream of people sprinting out of a building. It was Junior's Club, and if he strained his hearing he could hear gunfire coming from inside. Whatever was causing that was probably what flushed Lionel out. Lucky for Sabito, not so much for Junior. The street rumbled, followed by a flash of light coming from the windows and the sound of an explosion. The young Hunter sighed. He probably needed to investigate that…

"Come on then, I'm not leaving your sorry ass behind." Grabbing the ankle of the killer he started dragging him towards Junior's Club. As he came into sight he narrowed his eyes, because standing across the street was a small figure wearing a red cloak. Something about her was… familiar, somehow.

BOOM!

His hand found the hilt of his katana as most of the glass from the second floor exploded outwards. A figure came flying out of the building, landing at the feet of Little Red. And jumping after him was…

Lavender eyes the same shade and shape as his own, a mane of flowing untamed golden hair.

"Yang? Is that you?" Little Red—Ruby, his half-sister, asked, tilting her head in… amusement? She was wearing a long sleeve black blouse with red trim and lace up the front, and a black skirt with red red lining. She had black stockings and combat boots, and over all of it was a signature red cloak with its hood down.

Ruby put her hands on her hips, "what are you doing here?"

"It's… A long story," Yang sighed.

"Oh, hey sis!" Yang, his older sister, called out, smiling. She was wearing a tan half-jacket and a yellow crop-top that exposed her midriff, black shorts that went down to her upper thighs, and brown knee-high boots. Forget what he had said earlier, his luck was absolutely rotten. Why now? He was practically done for the night. Thank Oum they hadn't noticed him. Hauling the unconscious serial killer over his shoulder he turned to walk away when he heard sirens. He should've kept going, but he found himself rooted in place, head turned to listen as two police officers stepped out of their cars.

"Freeze!"

"Woah! Hey, uh…" Yang stuttered, holding up her hands in a non threatening gesture.

"We received a call of an armed conflict in the club, you two happen to be here with the owner, knocked out cold!"

"Hey, it's not Yang's fault… Is it?" Ruby added quietly, looking at her sister.

"No! Of course not! Well… not… really?" Yang tried, making Ruby facepalm.

"We'll see if you're telling the truth, we'd like you to come with us back to the station for a few questions." One of the officers said, reaching for some cuffs. Sabito let out an irritated sigh before turning back around and walking to the quartet.

"That won't be necessary, officer." He said, drawing the four's attention.

"And you are? Also, who's that over your shoulder?!"

"Sabito Urokodaki, Hunter, Rank A." He grabbed his license, showing it to the two skeptical cops. Both of his sisters' faces lit up in recognition and confusion. "And this is Krim Lionel, a wanted serial killer." Sabito unceremoniously dropped the person from his shoulder.

One of the officers ran his number through his scroll before looking at his partner, "he's legit. And Lionel is wanted."

"Which brings me to my next point. These two were instrumental in his capture." He said seriously.

"Say what now?" Yang said, more than a little confused.

"I'm… sorry?" The cop said, furrowing his brow.

Sabito crossed his arms, "Lionel had been seen frequenting Junior's Club recently, probably stalking his next victim. I couldn't go in because if he saw me he'd go underground, and we'd be back at square one. The blonde here," he nodded to the blonde who pointed a finger at herself in confusion, "went in and flushed him out. Things may have gotten a bit… hectic… But in the end we apprehended a dangerous criminal."

"I'm…" The other cop started.

Sabito interrupted before he could poke holes in his story, "and now you two get to bring in Vale's up and coming Slasher. That's sure to bring in a hefty bonus, don't ya think?"

The two looked at each other, "I mean…"

"He isn't wrong?"

"Just tell your commissioner that I handed him off to you and we'll be golden. If you have any questions we'll be more than happy to answer them"

The two looked at each other again, "that sounds good to me, you?"

"Yeah… Yeah I can get behind that!" And a minute later the three teens watched as the police cruiser drove away, the serial killer unconscious and in the back seat.

Yang turned to look at him, "But… We never said who we were?"

"So you didn't," he said simply before looking at the two of them. "You two owe me one…"

"Yeah, no kidding!" Yang rubbed the back of her head, laughing nervously. "Also, what the hell! Long time no see!"

"Yeah! And what did they mean by Hunter?" Ruby added.

"Other than bailing you two out of trouble? I already explained it to the police, I was contracted to hunt down Lionel and bring him in. And being a Hunter? I took my exam at Beacon a year ago, I've been all over the world at this point."

"You're already a Hunter?!" Ruby yelled in excitement.

"I haven't even gotten into Beacon yet!" Yang exclaimed.

"I was a… special case," he mumbled. All he did was answer a few questions and his conversation topics had already run dry. Tapping the hilt of his katana Sabito sighed. "Well as nice as it was catching up, I'm sure you guys have places to be. I'll leave the two of you to it, just stay out of trouble." He huffed in amusement, "I won't always be there to bail you out."

He gave a small bow before turning to leave but his vision exploded into red rose petals as the wind whipped by him. Blinking in shock, Ruby was right in front of him. "Before you go, mind if we exchange numbers? We only met that one time but it'd be cool if we could all hang sometime!" That was… unlikely… But even then, as he stared into those silver puppy-dog eyes…

"Why not," he said, pulling out his scroll. Ruby did a small cheer before tapping her own against his, their contact information appearing on their respective devices. He turned to Yang who was watching with a fond smile. "She can give you mine whenever, just be aware that I might be in Atlas or something whenever you guys decide to hang out."

"No sweat," Yang waved him off. "We'll be in school anyways so that's probably far off in the future."

"Right. Well, have a good night, you two." He started walking away before they could come up with another excuse to keep him there, hearing a "bye" and "see ya" from Ruby and Yang respectively. When he turned the corner he almost stumbled, letting out a shaky breath. His heart was racing and he had fallen out of TTC. How had he managed to get through that without fucking up? 'Hanging out with them?' That was asking for them to find out! His existence would only complicate their lives, he had no idea how they'd react. How was he even supposed to broach that?! "Hi, I'm Sabito! Did you know that when Raven left you she was pregnant, and you've had a brother for sixteen years without even realizing? How crazy is that, huh?" That was sure to go over well!

"And now they have your contact info, great going Sabito…"

Taking a moment the Water Breathing user got his breathing back under control and the calmness of TTC washed over him once again. After a minute he was back to normal. Seeing his sisters was a one off, just a stroke of chance, the chances of running into two specific people in all of Remnant was astronomically low. He checked his scroll for anything new but no dice, he got a confirmation from Lionel and the payment had gone through, but no new jobs or texts from anybody he knew. But since he was in Vale… Taking a minute Sabito flipped to apartment listings, if he was going to be traveling across Remnant for targets it would probably be a good idea to have some kind of small residence in the major cities. Rent wouldn't be an issue, he wasn't going for anything expensive and he lived a very minimalistic life. As of late he was sitting on a rather large sum of money, because outside of Coco's… Shopping trip… He only really spent money when traveling. On that train of thought his mind drifted to his most recent experience with an Aberrant. Maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea to invest in some kind of ranged option, or he could even look into modifying his katana. He'd probably do the former though, because tampering with the weapon Urokodaki had given him just felt… wrong.

That was all for later though. He confirmed a purchase on a small single bedroom apartment and sent a quick message to Urokodaki telling him that he'd be back in a day or so. Was it wise to purchase an apartment without even visiting? Maybe, but he didn't really care. It had a bed, a bathroom, and a small kitchenette. That was more than enough for him.

Maybe for once he'd finally get more than a few days…

Clang!

Sabito and Blake locked blades, both of them trying to maneuver it to their advantage. Locking blades wasn't like the movies, it wasn't static. Both fighters still had control and could influence the struggle to their advantage, something that Sabito was doing as he thrusted his blade forward, forcing Blake to duck and lean to avoid it. Sabito's katana had a couple of inches on Gambol Shroud, and though it wasn't much it was definitely something he was using to his advantage. Knowing the situation was untenable Blake jerked her blade up and along his katana, separating them in a shower of sparks. Wide open, the Faunus leapt away by kicking his chest before flipping and landing in a crouch. Sabito slid back a foot but he was able to keep his footing. He shifted to a semi-sideways stance, holding his katana in both hands parallel to his waist. Blake kept her hands at her sides in an open guard but that didn't fool him for a moment, the girl was hellishly quick when she wanted to be.

"I passed Beacon's preliminary exam," she said as they slowly started circling each other.

His eyes widened behind his mask, "good for you. You're gonna take the exam then?"

She nodded, "in a few days, yes." and both of them stopped. His foot slid forward an inch and she tensed, ready to intercept his attack. His grip tightened, and after a tormentingly long moment he lunged—

BEEP-BEEP-BEEP!

The two teens jumped at the noise, adrenaline still surging. They blinked, and Sabito held his katana loosely as he pulled out his scroll. It was Ozpin's number, and it was over the Hunter's Standard Mission Frequency. As shocking as that revelation was, he knew exactly what it meant: the Headmaster of Beacon Academy had a mission for him. He waves his scroll at Blake before sheathing his katana.

Sabito tapped the call button and held his scroll to his ear, "Hello Headmaster, it's been awhile." Yes, he could. There wouldn't be any other reason for the call, but it never hurt to be polite, especially when talking to someone important.

"Hello Mr. Urokodaki. It has been awhile, hasn't it? How have you been this past year?" Ozpin said over the call. Like always he had that voice that was just a little too pleasant.

"I've been fine, the life of a Hunter certainly keeps one busy."

"I can imagine. And while I'm glad you've been taking care of yourself I'm afraid this isn't a courtesy call."

"I didn't think so, the HSMF is only used for one reason." Out of the corner of his eye he saw Blake taking a moment to rest. He decided to do the same, leaning against the halved boulder that had become their unofficial sparring arena. Blake wiped the sweat from her forehead using the hem of her shirt, unintentionally giving him an eyeful of her toned stomach. It wasn't surprising, anybody training to be a Huntsman, Huntress, or a Hunter had to be in peak physical condition. He'd seen it across the planet, so no, it didn't surprise him. With Blake it was just… He tore his gaze away, heat rushing to his cheeks. Having a mask to cover his face definitely had its perks… If Blake had caught him staring he'd be mortified.

"I didn't catch that. Sorry, living in the wilderness isn't conducive to great reception." He claimed, thankfully able to keep his voice steady.

"Understandable. Like I said, as you've no doubt already guessed I have a proposal for you. Beacon Academy's Entrance Exam is mere days away and preparations are well underway, but we've run into a bit of a snag. An Aberrant has taken up residence in the Emerald Forest. And this time there isn't a Hunter in Training to take care of it."

"And you want me to take care of it?" He guessed.

"That would be appreciated. There have never been a multitude of Hunters, and as of the moment you are the only Hunter in Vale."

He blinked, and after mulling the idea over he sighed, "Fine, I'll be there the day before the exam at the latest. The Emerald Forest isn't massive so finding it won't be too much of an issue." At least he wouldn't have to track the monster over half of Atlas this time…

"Excellent. I'll see you in the coming days then." And without another word the Headmaster dropped the call. Fate was a fickle thing, it seemed. Two Initiations with two Aberrants? His mind wandered to the last time with the massive Centipede that had almost killed him. If Velvet and Coco hadn't shown up then things would've gone very differently, but that was a year ago now. He had improved by leaps and bounds, he had two new Water Breathing forms with more ideas on the way, and he had killed multiple unique Aberrants. Unlike back then, he had experience now.

"Who was that?" Blake asked, walking up to him. She didn't have her bow on, he noted. Either she forgot to put it on or their friendship had grown to the point where she genuinely trusted him. He… wasn't quite sure what to make of it, because even years later his mother's teachings about trust were rooted like weeds.

He showed the closed call, "Headmaster Ozpin. It would seem that an Aberrant has taken up residence in the Emerald Forest."

"But," Blake's eyes went wide, "The Initiation is only a few days away!" She was worried, he could see it plain as day. Her cat ears had flattened and she was a bit pale, for good reason too. She had told him that when she was younger an Aberrant had attacked one of the White Fang's camps. If it wasn't for a close friend of hers and his lieutenant all of them would've died. She wasn't exactly traumatized, but she knew more than most how lethal they could be. And as skilled as she was, she wasn't a Huntress yet.

You're right, and that's exactly why I'm leaving with you. I'm guessing your plan was to leave tonight?" She nodded. "Then I'll go with you, we'll go to Beacon together and I'll kill it before Beacon's Initiation. If you're that worried I can do a forced march, I'll be tired but I'll have more time."

Blake looked away, holding her arm. "I'd probably feel a lot better knowing you were there."

"I was gonna leave tonight anyways, reassuring you is a side-gig."

He didn't even attempt to dodge the smack she sent his way.

–Ruby Rose: Hi! Are you asleep right now?

Sabito blinked at his scroll. He and Blake were staying at his new apartment since it was closer to the Airship Terminal and the Faunus had turned in a bit early. It made sense, their flight was early and they wanted to make sure there weren't any complications. He had given her the bed, content with just the couch, but right before he decided to call it a night… This happened.

–Sabito Urokodaki: Not yet.

–Ruby Rose: Cool… Can I talk to you for a few?

–Sabito Urokodaki: What about?

–Ruby Rose: …

He stared as the three dots popped up, vanished, and popped up again over the course of a few minutes. He knew what it meant; she was deleting her messages and retyping them.

–Ruby Rose: Can I call you? It'll be way easier…

He stared at his phone for a solid minute before sighing.

–Sabito Urokodaki: Give me a few.

He didn't want to wake up Blake so he'd do this on the roof. Slipping out he made his way up the service stairs until he opened the door to the barren rooftop of his apartment complex. Taking in the brisk night air he leaned against a ventilation unit before flipping to Ruby's contact page. Hesitating, his thumb hovered over the call button. This was his sister… Half-sister, but… He honestly didn't want to make a connection with her, if they got close it would hurt her when she eventually found out who he was. Avoiding Ruby and Yang was the wise course of action, the path of least resistance, the action that just made sense. But at the same time…

It was his sister…

"Damn it…" He hit the call button.

Ruby Rose… had a problem…

She followed her usual routine; maintenance of her baby, Crescent Rose, a glass of warm milk and some cookies, changing into her comfiest pair of pajamas, but…

Ruby Rose couldn't fall asleep…

She had even tried counting the clock's tick-tocks since counting sheep didn't get her anywhere, but here she was; still awake, and the clock was still tick-tocking away. She looked at her clock and sighed. 01:30… It was so annoying! Because she couldn't even try rationalizing why this was happening. She already knew!

She was going to Beacon Academy tomorrow!

It was a literal once in a lifetime opportunity, something she had been dreaming of ever since she knew what a Huntress was. But… She had moved up two years… She was probably the first fifteen year old to take Beacon's Initiation… ever! How had her biggest dream turned into her biggest source of anxiety? She looked at the clock again. 01:36. Sighing heavily she reached over and grabbed her scroll. She looked at nothing in particular until something caught her eye. Sabito's contact information. She stared at it for a solid few minutes and before she even knew what she was doing she had already sent out a text.

–Ruby Rose: Hi! Are you asleep right now?

Why did she do that?! Of course he was probably—

–Sabito Urokodaki: Not yet.

Or… Not… Ruby stared up at her ceiling for a moment before giving in.

–Ruby Rose: Cool… Can I talk to you for a few?

–Sabito Urokodaki: What about?

–Ruby Rose: I'm like crazy nervous right now! I got into Beacon because I fought this criminal named Roman and then I ran into this Huntress and I went to jail and then I met the Headmaster of Beacon! And he accepted me and—

She paused before scrapping the message. It was complete word vomit!

–Ruby Rose: So I got accepted into Beacon early because I accidentally fought this crazy criminal at a Dust Store and then I teamed up with a real Huntress and went to jail, but it was fine because I met the Headmaster of Beacon Academy and I got into Beacon because of it, but now I'm really nervous—

She said the same thing twice!

–Ruby Rose: So I got accepted into Bacon Academy—

"Argh!" She quietly yelled before scrapping that one too. Why was this so hard?! She stared at her scroll before…

–Ruby Rose: Can I call you? It'll be way easier…

There was a small pause and for a moment Ruby thought he had stopped paying attention to her. Why would he bother? They barely knew each other and it was like, Two in the morning…

–Sabito Urokodaki: Give me a few.

Ruby blinked once, then twice before silently panicking. She didn't think he would actually say yes?! Before she could come to terms with anything her scroll started buzzing. Taking a breath she hit the accept call button.

"Hello?" She said quietly.

"Hi. You said you wanted to talk?"

"Yeah, yeah… It's just…" And just like that the wind was gone from her sails. She knew what she wanted to say, but she couldn't… say it!

"Ruby?" Sabito asked through the call.

"Sorry, I just…" Ruby took a long breath before speaking again. "I got accepted into Beacon Academy…"

"Con…gradulations?" Was Sabito's confused reply. Rightfully so too, as she hadn't been particularly enthused with her statement. "Aren't you happy?"

"Oh I'm over the moon! It's a literal dream come true, but… I got moved ahead two years. I don't wanna stand out! What if people think I'm weird!? Or-or some kind of freak who—"

"Ruby!" Sabito cut her off. "Why don't you tell me what happened from the beginning?"

"Y-Yeah, ok…" And so Ruby did. She told him about Roman Torchwick, her battle, the small interrogation/interview with Ozpin, and her acceptance into Beacon. And she told him about her conflicting feelings; how she was ecstatic but also nervous at the same time. He listened to all of it, only asking for clarification on one or two things. And at the end of all of it?

"Huh."

"Huh?!" She quietly parroted back. "That's it?!"

"Well you can probably answer the question yourself. Do you not want to go to Beacon?"

"Of course I want to go to Beacon!"

"Do you think Ozpin would accept you if he didn't think you could handle it?"

Ruby pursed her lips, "… No. So…?"

"He obviously looked you up, and he made a conscious decision to admit you to his academy. If you want to go there, and he wants you to go there, then what's the issue here?" Sabito asked honestly, and almost boredly.

It took a few moments for Ruby to respond. "I just want to be normal. I don't want anyone treating me differently because I got special treatment or because I got moved ahead."

"If people are going to treat you differently because you're skilled enough to skip a few years, then they're jealous and you shouldn't give them the time of day. Also, you're going into a profession where the average life expectancy doesn't go past thirty-five, I wouldn't call anyone going to Beacon 'normal.'" Sabito finished in a dry tone of voice.

That got a snort out of her, one that she had to stifle lest she wake up Yang or her dad. "Do you really think I'll be fine?"

"Look. If you think you're going to stick out, then make sure that there isn't a question as to why you're there. The people that don't care are the people that really matter. Your Team will end up being your greatest strength."

"Thanks, Sabito. I guess I just needed some reassurance is all. Getting accepted into Beacon so suddenly? Oof, overwhelming doesn't even cover it." Maybe she really was being silly about this.

"No problem. And I know you'll do fine. Was there anything else you wanted to talk about?"

"No, no I think I'm good now. Thanks a bunch!"

"Well then, have a good night."

"Goodnight!" And with that he closed the call. Ruby found that falling asleep after that was significantly easier than before.

Had it really been an entire year?

"You know, I wasn't sure what I was expecting but I figured that you would be a little more excited than you are right now." Sabito crossed his arms over his chest as he gave Blake a side-glance.

Said Faunus just flipped a page in her book, yellow eyes focusing on him for a moment. "And I am, quietly."

It was impressive though. The two teens were standing off to the side, away from the major crowds. Beacon hadn't changed since Sabito had been here last, the tall arches and towering spires still instilled a sense of awe even a year later. Perhaps if fate had been different, he would be taking this exam with Blake, and he'd be spending the next few years within the walls of the castle-like academy with a team of three others. But fate hadn't smiled upon him, and his path was his own to forge. That didn't mean he wasn't excited on behalf of Blake though, they had spent months sparring and training together. Coupled with her learning Total Concentration Breathing this would probably be a breeze. Still though, he could see the way her bow twitched. She was still nervous.

"You don't have to worry, Blake. I'm actually gonna split off right now, find Ozpin and get started hunting. I'll let you know how it goes, yeah?"

Blake gave him a long look before sighing. "I'm not worried about the Aberrant, I'm worried about you."

"Don't be, seriously." The fox-masked boy put a hand on her shoulder. "And have fun this year."

Blake frowned as he walked away. "I haven't gotten in yet…"

"You will." He said without turning around. She'd make it, he knew she would.

Blake sighed before opening her book again. Where was she…

BOOM!

She elected to ignore that too, right up until a small vial of dust rolled to a stop, bumping against her foot. She picked it up without looking, but frowned slightly when she saw a symbol that she was very familiar with. And sure enough; when she looked up she saw a girl dressed entirely in white berating a girl with a red cape. Even though Blake had never seen Weiss Schnee in person her image was ingrained into the faces of every member of the White Fang. Seeing the girl set her on edge, but Blake reminded herself that she wasn't in the Fang anymore, she was here to become a Huntress. Besides, it wasn't like she was going to be on a team with her, this would probably be the only time they saw each other.

"Unbelievable! This is exactly the kind of thing I was talking about!" The Schnee shouted. Before she knew what she was doing Blake was already walking, on her way to meddle in someone else's business. Sabito was rubbing off on her… She listened half-heartedly to their argument until she was only a few feet away. As expected the Schnee wasn't taking any accountability and was placing the blame on someone else. Typical...

"Hey, I said I was sorry, princess!" The girl in the red cape eventually bit out, annoyed at being yelled at.

"It's heiress, actually."

"What do we know so far?"

"Oh my, ready to get started so soon?"

Ozpin was unavailable, as was the deputy-headmistress. All of the teachers were preparing their lessons as well. So Sabito was sent to the one, familiar, person who knew how to handle the situation.

"Time is short, Shinobu, the faster I deal with this Aberrant the better. Unless you want prospective students to fight something they have no idea how to handle?"

The butterfly themed doctor ignored his last remark and smiled at him. "I understand that you're concerned about the students, but rushing into these things is akin to suicide."

"Which is why I asked you what we know so far. Type? Abilities? Hunting preferences?"

Shinobu hummed as she opened a door leading to a familiar cliff. "We know that it's an Aberrant of a Deathstalker but our cameras haven't gotten a clear view of it. For an Aberrant species it seems to be incredibly basic, though that doesn't mean anything. It tends to prefer the darker parts of the Emerald Forest and we believe that it made its home in a cave. Other than that we don't know much. Like all Aberrants it seems to have higher than normal intelligence. My only advice is to be ready for anything!"

"So business as usual then, huh?" Sabito remarked sarcastically.

"Sabito," Shinobu said, lacking her usual cheer. "We really don't know much about this Aberrant. Please don't hesitate to call for help. You're skilled. More so than many Hunters, but you're still just one person."

"I haven't lasted this long by being careless. I promise you that I'll call for help if I need to, but hopefully this'll be a normal Hunt." As normal as hunting Aberrants went, anyways. Without hesitating he stood on one of the metal platforms, preparing for the sudden launch.

"Sabito," Shinobu called out, making him turn to face her. She smiled that sickeningly sweet smile that sent chills down his spine. "If you come back with serious injuries I'll make sure that whatever the Aberrant did to you will be a massage compared to what I'll do to you!" She tilted her head. "So take care now!"

"… Noted…" Was his simple reply. And before any more words could be spoken he was launched into the air, sailing over the forest.

That took significantly longer than I intended it to. I had a big test that I spent a lot of time studying for, which meant I wrote basically nothing since the last chapter of Absolute Radiance. And when it was all said and done? They canceled my test and only told me when I arrived to take it. Yipee…

Regardless of that though I'm back! Sabito had his first interaction with his sisters, and we're finally at Volume 1! What will the Aberrant mean for the Initiation? Will he kill it in time? All that and more next time! Trust me, it's gonna be a doozy. I originally planned on having it all in one chapter but I decided to split it. Now onto comments!

NightmareKnight1: I've said before I'm sure, I'm glad I keep you entertained! And I agree on the RWBY front. This'll be a short story so I'm probably gonna go my own way rather than going through a bunch of seasons that I probably won't enjoy. At most I'm probably planning on approximations of 4 and 5, but we'll see. Also since you like Demon Slayer, I think you may enjoy what I'm teasing later.

Gwynx: I'm glad you enjoyed it!

And now without further ado~

Next Story in the Rotation: Final Destination

Teaser:

"Ow! Must you be so rough?!"

"You tensed up and jerked away from me… If you had relaxed like I told you to, you would've been fine." The doctor grumbled, pulling the needle away.

"I still don't know why I need these yearly shots, it's so demeaning!" The patient complained, lavender eyes trying to burn holes into the doctor's back.

"You know damn well why you need these shots, Yushiro. Your blood is thinning. She only gave you as much as you needed to survive, and slowly it's being purged from your system."

The Demon known as Yushiro continued before the doctor could finish, "And when it's gone I'll be human again. You're stalling the process by giving me your blood, Datenshi." Yushiro glared at the now named doctor, but it lacked heat.

"And so far it's working. You should've died a century ago, and yet here we are."

"And we have no idea when she's coming back," Yushiro lamented. There was silence between the two of them. "Usually this is where you say something dark or hopeless, Doctor."

Datenshi sighed, typing something at his desk. "Yet nothing comes to mind…" Yushiro rubbed his already healed arm and stood. "I want her to come back too, you know." Both of them stopped, looking down.

"I miss her…" Yushiro whispered.

"I know… I know…" The doctor sighed before looking at the centuries old artist. "But we have each other, the last of our kind."

Yushiro scoffed. "Please, you being soft is making me sick."

Datenshi huffed, shaking his head. "I thought I was going to vomit just saying it. Get out of my office you ungrateful ingrate, I have patients to see."

Yushiro growled before fast walking out of the door, pausing just before he disappeared. "Thank you…" he said sincerely before vanishing from sight.

"Anytime, my old friend…" Finishing his document he stood and entered the lobby of his clinic. For a moment he stared out of the window, beyond, and through the thick viewing port across the small walkway. Five gigantic metallic arms extended away from him. Each of them were gargantuan cities of their own . Beyond? A purple hued nebula with hundreds of space faring vessels going to and from the giant station.

"May you live in interesting times indeed." He muttered to himself before a mother and daughter rushed through the Clinic's entrance. His eyes momentarily lingered on their blue-hued skin before he got to work.

"My daughter!– Her arm…" The mother stressed.

He gently took the arm of the little girl, maybe five or six, and gave it a brief inspection. "It doesn't appear to be anything serious, but please follow me." The three of them went back into the room he had just left, leaving the view alone.

May you live in interesting times indeed…

I'll see you all soon!~