28: Life is like a Boat - [Life is Like a Boat] - (Original once, then Instrumental)
"Nobody knows who I really am,"
Weiss's soft voice settled over the hall like a gentle sheet of fine silk.
"I never felt this empty before,"
She held the microphone with both her hands, leaning into it on the tips of her toes.
"And if I ever need someone to come along,"
"Who's gonna comfort me and keep me strong?"
As she continued, Ichigo stood slightly off behind her, his guitar in full view as he followed along. It was cherry-red, with double cutaways, weighty, and most noticeably, a double-neck. Hands clear of the twelve-stringed upper neck, he changed chords smoothly and played softly. A week's practice had shaken off the rust in his deft fingertips.
To his left, Neptune sat at a piano, playing the meat of the flowing melody. The piano was far heavier in the song than the guitar, after all. Behind them both, at the back, Amber drove the entire quartet with steady, careful drumming. The high-hat's short beats kept the washing, rhythmic tempo. The chorus washed in, the piano notes rose in pitch until they here high and glassy, and the momentum grew like a rising tide, but never lost its cool, gentle feeling.
"Nobody knows who I really am,"
"Maybe they just don't give a damn,"
"But if I ever need someone to come along,"
"I know you would follow me, and keep me strong."
The hall the Beacon Dance was held in was darkened, with a soft glow from the chandeliers above, with pastel-pink streamers from the ceiling tied into puffy bows, and baby-blue balloons filling the gaps. A grand stairwell led up to the second level, which ran along the sides of the upper walls, protected by bannisters. Round tables were draped over with white cloth, topped with vases of flowers on doilies, and vibrant pitchers of colourful drinks. The crowd of students was thick, but navigable, thanks to the sheer size of the hall allowing for pockets of friend groups to collect together and slide freely around each other. The band played on the open-floored upper level, overlooking it all behind the railing.
So many people, and all of them would lead their own lives. Weiss scanned over the audience, the light pooling in her ice-blue eyes as she as she sang. There were third years, second years, and first years, like herself. The first and second grades had another year, but for these third-grade students, this was their last time. Would their friendships last? Would rivals remember each other? What teams would stay together? How many of these people would ever see each other again? Remnant was a big place, and it was a dangerous place. It drove her performance to be perfect.
"I want you to know who I really am,"
"I never thought I'd feel this way towards you,"
"And if you ever need someone to come along,"
"I will follow you, and keep you strong."
The band kicked into its final gear, pushing through. Their song would soon finish, but the night was just starting. As one of the biggest planners, Weiss wanted to be sure to set the right tone for the night, not one of wild frivoulous partying, but of heartfelt conversations and sentimental warmth. She hadn't had many fans of her ideas at first, but look at it all now; she was puffed with smug pride.
"And every time I see your face,"
"The oceans heave up to my heart,"
"You make me wanna strain at the oars,"
"And soon I can see the shore..."
One more verse, and the song soon finished, to a resounding, organic applause.
Ichigo peered across the sea of faces, putting his guitar in a case at his feet. He stood up—
"–Oof," he exhaled as someone barrelled into his back, and put her arms around him.
"Amber?" it had to be her; "You could've waited."
"You were, ah, really good! We all were!" she applauded, springing back.
"Of course we were. I made sure." Weiss put a hand on her hip. "I'm surprised, Ichigo, you really did manage well."
"...You're making it awfully hard to say thank you, y'know." Ichigo wryly put.
"I'm just glad I made it through." Neptune stretched his arms over his head, with the fingers interlaced.
"C'mon! Let's go see everyone!" Amber dragged Ichigo over the banisters, and she floated down whilst he dropped like a stone. He landed in a handstand, and flipped himself up onto his dress-shoed feet.
"Hey! Watch it, I'm wearing white!" Ichigo brushed off his polar-white woven blazer and trousers, and adjusted his matching tie. His shirt was pitch-black, paired with just-as-dark shoes. The entire thing was tailored to a fine degree, fitted perfectly to his limber physique and height. A new, metallic watch hung off his wrist, bought on the same day as his designer suit.
"Oops, sorry! –And it looks great on you, by the way." Amber carefully added on.
She wore a jade-green evening gown, covered in sequins that just barely sparkled in the low light, avoiding a garishly flashy look. Her hands were covered up to the forearm by matching gloves, and her stiletto heels were just as deep of a verdant hue. A darker, frilled silken ribbon hung from over the left side of her pushing chest and down to her legs, paired with a tied-up opaque short scarf to cover the hollow hole through her throat. Her earthy brown hair was pushed back over her right shoulder, and made to hang over her left, over her pale skin and bone-white hollow eye-mask. Her sword remained sheathed on the back of her hips.
"...You're... not too bad either." Ichigo rubbed at the back of his neck, and glanced away.
The night wasn't rigidly structured, but it wasn't left to abject chaos either, a firm compromise in-between Weiss and Yang. It wasn't long before they found company.
"Ichigo, Amber! Great job!" Jaune waved the pair over.
"You should thank Pyrrha for getting me that guitar." Ichigo replied with a grateful nod to the redhead.
Jaune was seated at a table with Pyrrha, Blake, and a incredibly nervous Yang, who was fidgeting like she had ants in her bright sunflower-yellow halter neck dress.
"What's got her ass on fire?" Ichigo jerked his thumb across the table.
"Ruby." Pyrrha answered. She wore a crimson turtlenecked dress, that left her back and arms exposed as she laid them on the table. "More specifically, whoever Ruby's bringing to the dance."
"Ah, that makes sense." Ichigo watched the older sister's violet eyes dart all around the room like a pair of beyblades in a bathtub.
Suddenly, she halted. "There!" Yang slammed both her palms down on the table, turning heads and almost spilling a few drinks.
"W-what!?" Jaune sputtered, startled by the bang. He'd been about to take a sip from his glass, and narrowly avoided soaking his light blue suit. Suspiciously, he wasn't wearing a tie, leaving his top button undone and his collar popped. It was cool... too cool. Considering this was the "pumpkin pyjamas"–"write my name on my trainers" guy, Ichigo privately ascertained that Jaune probably didn't know how to tie a tie and just made do.
Yang harpooned her finger forwards across the hall. "There! It's Ruby! I've got you now, ahaha-ha!" she cackled, before lunging to her feet and shooting off.
Amber stared after her. "...Is she always like this, or did someone spike the punch?"
"Only when it's to do with Ruby." Jaune replied, shaking his head as Yang vaulted over a table like it was the bonnet of a car.
"Isn't she overreacting? Having a date is good for Ruby, isn't it?" Pyrrha wondered.
"Not at all. Anyone with a little sister knows how she's feeling right now." Jaune sipped at what was left of his glass nonchalantly.
"Hear hear." Ichigo nodded in solemn agreement, his arms crossed and eyes closed. Pyrrha just made an exasperated face at the two.
"Why don't we at least go see?" Amber suggested, holding a finger aloft.
Jaune and Pyrrha stood up, and the quartet followed the blonde's footsteps. On the way there, they ran into another pair of familiar faces.
"Did you see Yang's parkour skills? So cool!" Nora marvelled with a sparkle in her turquoise eyes. The white skirt of her strapless dress flapped about, and the floral pink upper half's seam tapered to a point at her waist, giving it the shape of a heart.
Ren held a hand to his chin. He wore a black suit with grey shirt and dark green bowtie. "What's got her in a twist?"
"Ruby's heart-throb, that's what." Weiss answered, strutting into view on her sharp heels. She'd donned a straight up ballgown; ice-blue and puffy with all the frills and sparkles, like a princess out of a movie. She even had her tiara on. She just happened to have one on hand, it seemed. It made sense, considering she was practically dolled-up with a new dress by default half the time, anyway. It must come with being a rich heiress. She shuffled her stance, then struck her arm forth like she was a video game lawyer. "Let's chase!"
"...You just want to eavesdrop on them, don't you?" Blake guessed, appearing out of the throngs of students with Sun in tow. She wore a short, plum-purple right-slit asymmetrical dress over pumps, with translucent mesh forming a collar, and a swirled pattern trailing down her left side. Black bangles jingled on her wrists, and a teal velvet bow replaced her usual black one.
"You were just eavesdropping on us right now!" Weiss retorted.
"Great! You both agree!" Sun cheerfully mediated. He was wearing jeans, and a dark popped-collar shirt with the sleeves rolled up. A loose, floppy gold tie hung around his neck, and a pair of dark-tinted shades covered his eyes. Yeah. Ichigo blinked. That's Sun all right. It seems that when Blake suggested he wear a tie, that was literally the only thing he went out and bought that day in Vale... But it did suit him, so Blake didn't seem to mind at all. An energy drink with a neon logo sloshed in a can as he waved his hand. "Let's get going! I wanna see!"
They'd picked up a fairly large encourage now, and Ichigo could tell this might end badly. He wasn't even all that curious, but with this many people all rushing to see, he might as well join in at this point. Eventually, the band of purveyors managed to spot Yang and Ruby talking over a table... with no plus-one confidant in sight. The guy was a ghost... no, wait, Ichigo would've been able to see him, then. He meant metaphorically. A no-show?
"Oh, it's you guys! Your song was amazing!" Ruby jumped out of her seat and hailed them over, then crashed face-first into the table like a lopsided Jenga tower. "Ack! Stupid heels! How are they legal!?"
She wore a short, sleeveless deep-crimson red dress with a thick black sash around the waist and matching trim along the bottom. It was split vertically from the bodice to the sash and laced with black lacing. Translucent mesh connected to an opaque collar and hem, with black stockings and pumps. Her wobbling heels were as red as her dress, and her embarrassed blustered face.
"So you're all here to back me up?" Yang glanced over her bare shoulder. Her irises had turned a shade of vivid bloody crimson. "You don't need to bother, I'll just wait here for the guy to show his mug. If he doesn't, then he's dead meat."
"But you wanted to pummel him even if he did show up, anyway!" Sun pointed out.
"Yeah, exactly." Yang cracked her knuckles audibly. "So?"
She received an array of expectant stares in return. She bit her lip and looped a lock of her blonde hair around an anxious finger.
"...I said 'so', y'know. That's your cue to jump in." she muttered.
"...We aren't here to back you up, by the way." Neptune approached in a lemon-yellow suit and bowtie. "At least, I hope not."
"Yang! I'm fine, and I'm having a very happy-super-go-lucky-fun-time with my date right now, so could you please not be so rude, especially right in front of him!"
"Who is he!?" Yang gripped her hair with both her hands. "I don't see anyone here!"
"Maybe he's taking a dump?" Jaune theorised.
"No, he's right here! Look with your gods-given eyeballs dammit!" Ruby gestured very grandiosely, looping both her arms around in a big whirling rose-petalled wheel, then pumping both arms forwards in a big showy-offish manner, holding them out with the palms upturned. This showered vermillion rose petals all over her target, creating an elaborate romantic flourish. Her semblance's ability to create confetti on a whim was something Ruby was very proud of.
A chair with her scythe was covered in soft red petals that soon dissolved into nothing. It was 'wearing' a bowtie.
Yang narrowed her lilac eyes. "What are we supposed to be..." they widened, and she gasped. "Oh..."
"...Really?" Weiss sighed, palming her face with an audible smack.
"Lookin' snazzy!" Nora complimented. Ren gave a thumbs-up.
"What?" Sun asked aloud.
"That's Ruby's date." Blake pointed at Crescent Rose. A small plate, with a slice of cake sat in front of it. Somehow, a small bite was taken out of it. Blake didn't know whether this was disturbing, or just plain sad, but she kept her mouth closed nonetheless.
"He's a slow eater, haha." Ruby chuckled.
Yang visibly deflated. "Y'know, I think I'd have preferred for you to have just gotten a date after all..."
"What're you talking about?" Ruby cocked her head, "I'm on one right now."
"Rubes, I know you've always had your cute quirks, but this is... how do I put it..." Yang let out a dry, nervous laugh.
"–Deranged?"
"–You're not helping, Jaune!" Yang snapped. Jaune closed his mouth, frowned and shuffled back. Yang took a deep breath, and went back to her tirade.
"Ruby, Rubes... do you want to end up on reality scroll-vision? Because this is how you do it."
"Whuh? Waaaaait a minute..." Ruby's silver eyes widened, and she pressed both her hands to her face. "Don't tell me you're jealous? Talk about a role reversal. Everyone else here's landed a date, and you're still stuck out in the cold..."
"That's wrong!" Yang stomped her foot. It cracked the floor slightly. "We're all here as a group of friends, right guys? Right?"
"Not here." Pyrrha smiled, arm-in-arm with a nervous-yet-happy Jaune.
"Nope." Sun denied, drawing Blake in with an arm around her shoulder.
"Nuh-uh!" Amber leapt into Ichigo's back, leaning up and draping her arms over over his shoulders.
"Me and Ren are a pair of friends though?" Nora put a finger on her chin as she grabbed Ren by the waist. "You don't call two people a group, silly."
"Geh!" Yang choked, "Even that last one sounded couple-y to me! B-but at least Weiss is in the same situation as me!"
"Snow-Angel, would you do me the honour of avoiding being lumped in with Yang Xiao-Long?" Neptune held out his palm.
"Hmph. Just for tonight. I don't care for you, but I can't be associated with whatever this is." Weiss accepted the temporary offer and held out her hand.
"No fair!" Yang cried, "You can't just ask someone out at the dance, it doesn't work that way! Why didn't you just ask me? Is it just 'cause she's rich, you gold-digger!?"
"Nah, it's just funnier this way." Neptune informed.
"Neptune isn't the type of guy to discriminate." Sun explained, "This is the same guy who learnt sign language solely so that he could chat up deaf girls. You can give him a fat, uggo cashier, and he'll go after her with the same sorta vigour as he would a slim, rich supermodel. So long as it's female, and she's got a pulse, well..."
"There's a certain, ethereal beauty found only in ruins." Neptune nodded sagely. "...And it's thick, not fat."
"Aaaand this 'date' is over." Weiss proclaimed, stepping away from the blue-haired teen. "I think I'm alright being lumped in with Yang, now."
"Eh, I'll still count that one." Neptune winked. "One minute is still more than zero."
"...Somehow that interaction still sounded healthier than whatever Ruby's doing right now." Blake shook her head.
"Oh, knock it off already!" Ruby pouted.
Ichigo just stared at the scythe. No... not just a scythe...
A Zanpakutō.
"...Just treat her right, okay." Ichigo spoke to the blade. "I'm watching you."
"Don't affirm her!" Yang wailed.
Amber, too, was drawn to the red and black scythe, staring at it from over his shoulder. When Ichigo spoke to it, it confirmed what she felt. That spiritual energy... reiatsu... it felt like how her own scimitar did. But Ruby wasn't an Arrancar, was she? She felt like she should be able to tell, if she were to ever run into a member of her own race. So would she be a Soul Reaper? But she was human...
"Ruby, can 'he' hear me?" Amber asked.
Ruby nodded. "Sure he can. Crescent Rose is really nice, you know? When I asked him to the dance, he said he was glad, because I'd have had to bring him along anyway. He was worried about being a third wheel, he's so sweet! Plus he likes a ton of stuff I like, we agree on a ton of things, he helps me out all the time, plus he does look kinda handsome..."
As Ruby rambled on with a slight blush, Weiss pinched the bridge of her nose.
"Honestly, I'm not even surprised at this point. If the rest of you had seen how she treats her weapon, you'd have all known this would be the forgone conclusion. I wager you thought that whole 'fifth team mate' thing last week was a joke, now didn't you?"
"Yeah! Ruby and Crescent are so cute together!" Nora gushed. "They eat together, train together, do homework together, go to class together, sleep together—"
"—N-not like that!" Ruby yelped with a blanched face, "We just snooze together, nothing naughty, Yang, I swear!"
Ichigo held his hands up, for order in the date-court. "Alright, alright, I can explain some things here." he announced. "But to do that, I'd rather take this outside. There's a balcony over there. I don't really want your headteacher or anyone else to hear this."
- –—{}—– -
The balcony was a few steps up from the floor, at the same height as the upper level where the band had played. It was divided by a glass set of ornate automatic doors, that slid open as the group stepped out.
It was twilight, giving the greyish stone an almost-purple hue, and the inky sky was full of sparkling stars. The shattered moon hung in the middle of the night sky, pouring its lunar veil of light on the darkened landscape. The platform was a giant semi-circle jutting out for students to stand on, ringed by protective carved bannisters with potted plants built into the top of the railing at regular intervals. Thin vines wrapped around the rails, their ivy leaves turned towards the warm dust-lamps that resembled an old Victorian design.
The music still reached outside, but it had a muffled, smoothened-out quality to it now, as if the treble and bass had the edge knocked off of them, leaving only a subtle background track for the atmosphere.
Ichigo had led them out here for privacy, but...
"...Yeah, you got a lighter? I think if we just line the fuses all up at once, we should be good..."
"What are you doing!?" Weiss shrieked like a banshee.
"Ah!" Russel yelled and stumbled, falling onto his rear. The rest of CRDL turned to face her impassively. Sky and Cardin crouched down around a box with wrapped fuses trailing out of it, and Dove leaning against the railing lazily.
"What's it look like we're doing?" Cardin raised a burnt-orange eyebrow at the heiress.
"Like you're setting up a bomb!"
"The hell? These are fireworks, dumbass." Cardin opened the cardboard lid further, revealing a set of red-tipped multicoloured rockets.
"Haven't you ever seen any before?" Jaune asked.
Weiss flushed and shifted her eyes. "...No. I've never seen anyone set them up in person."
"Pfft. Rich ass pansy." Cardin sneered. "Overreact much?"
"Don't talk to her like that!" Nora growled, barging to the front. "If Weiss was a flower, she'd totally be a waterlily!"
"What?"
"Don't you losers have dates, or something?" Yang growled, stepping forth with her hands on her hips.
Sky shrugged. "Dove actually pulled some chick. But he dropped her right before the dance."
"That's horrible!" Ruby gasped.
Dove ran his hand through his hair. "The dumb broad was chatting crap about my friends, what else was I supposed to do? Sit there and let her? What's the term again..."
"...Bros before hoes!" Russel supplied with a mock-salute.
"I'll 'hoe' you!" Yang made to march forwards—
"Hey! Hey! That's enough." Amber held up her hands placatingly. "Yang, that was a terrible pun. And Weiss, I can see the look in your eyes. You don't need to report them for this. Trust me, a little pyrotechnics won't hurt anyone."
"I didn't even say anything!" Weiss threw her hands in the air.
"Look at me, playing the responsible adult here..." Amber rolled her eyes. (She really wasn't).
"That's out-of-character for you..." Ichigo smirked. She glanced away, all flustered, grumbling into her palm.
"...So, you've brought us all out here." she held her arms out wide, "You can get talking. I think it should be fine if they're here," she gestured at DRCL, "because they were there when we slew the Wyvern yesterday. Just forget about them."
Ichigo felt a sea of expectant gazes settle on him. He coughed into his fist, clearing his throat.
"Ah-hem. Yeah, yeah I guess it should be fine. I know just where to start, too. With that."
Ichigo lifted a hand, and pointed right at Ruby... no, Crescent Rose. Her silver eyes followed his finger.
"What has Crescent Rose got to do with anything?" she wondered aloud.
"A lot, actually." Ichigo informed. He reached into his pocket, touching his combat pass, and was engulphed in a flash. It wasn't a blinding one, more of a white flicker; like static on a monitor. An optical glitch.
He stood before them in his shihakushō, his sealed sword bandaged on his back. The ethereal fabric wavered, then settled. He smoothly reached up, over his shoulder, and drew his man-sized greatsword, unfurling the cloth sheath. He let it lean, point-down, on the stone at his feet, whilst his left hand gripped the inverted hilt.
"This is Zangetsu; Slaying Moon."
He could see Ruby had stars in her eyes, eyeing the silvery edge of soul metal, catching and pooling the moonlight from above with its metallic lustre.
Yang nodded, "Very cool, but—"
"–So cool..." Ruby mumbled, drooling slightly.
Yang continued, "–but we already know all about your sword. It's kick-ass, huge, and can split into two. What does it have to do with Ruby?"
"Ruby's got a weapon like mine. Maybe even just like mine. Amber's got one too."
"Amber?" Ruby confusedly glanced left and right. When the Fall Maiden met her eyes, she tilted her head. "...Cinder?"
"Yep, he means me."
Ichigo frowned at the name. He hadn't got around to telling Ruby that Amber's name wasn't... well, it made sense that she still thought Amber was called that, since he'd only called her Amber in front of a few of them.
She reached behind her hips, and drew the length of soul-steel sheathed sideways there. It came out with a smooth sound of sliding metal, and she soon held her bronze scimitar aloft in the effulgent moonlight for all to see.
"...I don't know its name yet." she admitted, "but I can feel it. Ichigo's right."
Ichigo nodded, then continued, "These are Zanpakutō. All Shinigami–" he jabbed his thumb at himself, "–and Arrancar–" his thumb turned towards Amber, "–wield them."
"Shinigami and Arrancar..." Ren rolled the foreign terms over his tongue, "...Does that mean that Amber is from the same world as you?"
Amber shook her head, "Not quite. It's a long story."
"And what about Ruby?" Yang pressed, "How'd she get one?"
Ichigo shrugged. "I don't know."
"You... don't know?" Weiss shook her head incredulously, "Are you serious?"
Ichigo held his hands up, "I'm being honest, I don't have a clue how she got one. There's supposed to be a whole proper procedure to get your hands on one of those, and she didn't even have an asauchi. It's weird, all right..."
"Well then, what was the point of bringing us out here to talk about this?" the heiress demanded.
"Because obviously there's other stuff I can tell you about, smartass." Ichigo scowled. "Ruby isn't crazy... probably. Her weapon can hear her, and it speaks to her too. It's—"
"–He's" Ruby corrected–
"—he's got its own personality and everything. Hell, with enough training, you could probably manifest him into the real world and have him meet everyone."
"Really!?" Ruby squealed, hopping on her feet. She hugged Crescent Rose against her chest, and wiggled in place with stars in her eyes. "Did you hear that!?"
"...So you mean unsupervised CCTnet access from a young age didn't warp Ruby's psyche beyond repair?" Yang wiped her brow. "Phew, thank gods."
"So what she's doing isn't really all that weird, eh?" Jaune supposed.
"Oh no, it's weird all right." Ichigo sighed, "But it's not unprecedented." He recalled the rumours about Shunsui and his Zanpakutō floating around the Seireitei. He wouldn't put it past the old charmer to put the moves on his own sword spirit. Freaking perv, but it sure sounded like him. In fact, Shunsui seemed too classy to be called a perv. A womanizer? That was more like it.
"'Weird but not unprecedented'? You know what... that fits Ruby all right. At least its actually alive...?" Yang slumped. "I'll take it."
"Wait a minute... if Ruby's sword is alive, then how about yours? What's Zangetsu like?" Pyrrha wondered.
"You sure you wanna know?" Ichigo double-checked.
"Of course we do. What, is it embarrassing or something?" Jaune pushed.
"Hardly. Zangetsu is..." Ichigo wondered how to put it best, "...totally insane. He's a murderous sadistic maniac, and I'm starting to suspect he might be a little pervy too. Oh, and one time I found out he somehow he browses the internet in my soul."
"You're exaggerating, right?" Sun wasn't sure how to take that.
"You have net access in your soul?" Nora gasped. "What's the bandwidth like?"
"How on Remnant would a sword like that be helpful in any way?" Blake stared at the massive blade.
"I'm not kidding..." Ichigo reached into his robes, and pulled out something with a red-black flicker.
In Ichigo's right hand was a mask.
A porcelain-white skull-mask, with twin thick stripes bleeding down from the top to the chin, running over each eye. Exposed, wicked teeth ran across the entire mask below the smooth nasal ridge. The markings were pitch-black, dark as night, contrasted sharply by the osseous spirit-matter of the rest of the skull.
"...Here's a keepsake."
It looked, for lack of better term, grim.
All eyes twisted to the sword shining in the pale nocturnal air, seeing it in a new, dangerous light.
"You have something like that in your head!?" Jaune cried. "It's deranged!"
"That mask... and the way you describe him, it's almost like..." Ren didn't finish. Ichigo still knew what he was implying, though. What they were all thinking. He wasn't surprised. Since they had never seen a hollow before, Grimm were all that they had to compare the mask to.
"Obviously you all know it only looks similar, but I'll say it anyway." Amber spoke up, to his surprise. "Nope, the thing that mask belongs to, is far, far more fearsome than any creature of Grimm to ever stalk Remnant. Trust me on that one. I mean, no Grimm can shoot giant lasers, after all."
"Hey!" Ichigo growled, "I thought you were going to reassure them, not make me sound any worse!"
"You... uh... sound like you've met him." Neptune guessed.
Amber rubbed her hands together, feeling them grow clammy the more she looked at the mask's visage of the one that had ended the previous Fall Maiden's corporeal life. She fought the residual inherited fear off with a suppressed shudder. "In a manner of speaking. Ichigo was just doing what was best for me, though, so I don't mind. And none of you should, either."
"Now that's more like it." Ichigo smiled, "You don't have to worry about it, Zangetsu and me are one and the same. I wouldn't hurt any of you. I'm proud of my strength; and Zangetsu is my strength."
Ichigo pocketed his mask again. Ever since his horn disappeared, the mask had started appearing randomly on his person in its place, like it did years ago in the Soul Society. He supposed that it was a replacement of sorts, since the constant horn had been a physical manifestation of his merging with Zangetsu, so the mask was a far-more-manageable substitute for that. He was thankful for it, since it'd make returning home a lot easier to manage than a horn on his human body.
"...So you really are from another dimension, huh?" Ruby contemplated.
Ichigo pulled Zangetsu up, and slung it back into its bandaged sheath with a slick one-handed movement. "...Yeah. You know, I'm surprised you guys believed it straight away."
He received a crowd of deadpan stares.
"...What?" Ichigo sweat.
"Seriously? After everything you did in front of us, you're surprised when we believe you're an interdimensional alien?" Blake jabbed blankly. "Don't take us for a gaggle of idiots! That only fits half of us!"
"Yeah!" Yang chimed in. "...Wait, what?"
"Okay, okay, when you put it like that..." Ichigo made a half-guilty face.
"Oh my..." Ren's magenta eyes drew wide, "...I just realised Nora was right all along."
"Oh yeah! Vindicated again!" Nora pumped her right fist in the air, and cocked her left hand on her hip. "Next up on the list is the secret magical 4th-dimension!"
"You know, a month ago I would've said that was B.S., but now, I'm convinced that might just be a thing..." Sun rubbed his chin.
"Don't jinx it." Blake huffed, rolling her amber eyes.
"You know, I could check that for yo—"
Ichigo paused, and blurred. He flickered in-place, then out, then back in, like a mirage. When he was done, two other dancegoers were under his arms.
He dropped them to the floor, but they caught themselves and were up in moments. It was clear to everyone present that they were trained.
"Hang on..." Amber frowned.
"Oh, it was you two behind the doors. How much did you hear?" Ichigo nonchalantly dusted his hands off.
Mercury Black and Emerald Sustrai found themselves surrounded by a twelve-strong group of huntsmen and huntresses. Emerald gulped, but Mercury just turned his chin up at them all and rolled with it.
"All of it." he announced smugly.
Emerald had put on an olive-green halterneck backless dress with a black sash around her waist, and matching heeled pumps. Mercury wore a silver sharkskin suit, with a black shirt and matching silver tie. Both of them looked pretty expensive, almost too expensive, but Ichigo chose not to mention it.
"Damn, now we've gotta dump their bodies." Nora crunched her knuckles.
"Whoa, whoa! Hold on a second, they already knew this stuff." Amber waved her hands in front of the hammerless hammer-girl. "They're harmless, honestly!"
"Harmless?" Mercury half-narrowed his silver eyes at that inadvertent slight.
"Cinder? Are you still in there?" Emerald asked hopefully. Mercury huffed frustratedly.
"I told you not to say that, idiot. She isn't the same person."
Amber's expression sank. "You wouldn't like the answer. I remember everything, at least."
Emerald's expression grew conflicted. "That's... well... it's something, isn't it?"
"...Shouldn't you deal with this in private?" Cardin hollered over. DRCL was still crouched around their cardboard box of fireworks, not having budged since Weiss yelled at the four. "Damn, what do you mean nobody here brought a lighter?"
"S-shutup! This is a heartfelt moment between girls!" Emerald howled, drawing her pistols at the quartet. Her wrists were immediately grabbed and she was hoisted up, surrounded and held aloft by Ichigo.
"Chill out, you freakin' trigger-happy lunatic!" Ichigo admonished. "How'd you even sneak those in under your dress?"
"S-sorry..." Emerald cursed, "I'm just a bit..."
"–Deranged?" Jaune suggested helpfully.
"–Distressed!" Emerald barked back.
"Seriously Jaune? That's the third time this night. Don't you have any other words to use, dude?" Ichigo jabbed sarcastically.
"Who gives a crap! Listen to me!" Emerald groused, "I have no clue what to do, and you just abandoned me!" she shot a glare at Amber.
"At least you're back on your feet already...?" Amber hazarded.
"Hmph. Aura'll do that." Mercury harrumphed. "We've still got bandages under this formal getup."
"What happened to you two?" Blake grilled. "Aren't you Cinder's team mates?
"Ichigo happened." Mercury gestured with a tilt of his head at the older teen. "That's all you'll get outta me. Ozpin's enrolled us. Provisionally speaking."
"Really?" Amber raised her eyebrow. "That's a good thing, isn't it? Your life actually has a structure to it now. You have something to work towards."
"I guess so..." Emerald pouted, then kicked her feet, "Can you let me down already?"
Ichigo dropped her, and turned towards the glass doors that led back into the dance hall. He flashed back into his physical body as he went. "Good for you. I'm going back inside, if nobody else has any questions."
"Hold it!" Weiss called, "Of course we do!"
Ichigo craned his head over his shoulder.
Pyrrha clasped her hands together amicably. "What we all want to know is, if Remnant isn't your home, why are you here, Ichigo?"
"Not that any of us have a problem with you, y'know, it's just..." Jaune searched for the words "...honestly, I'm just being nosy."
Ichigo smirked. "I can indulge that, no big deal. I'm not some sorta superhero with a secret identity. I'm here to save my home. I need to find some magic stuff here to do that."
"Didn't you say you were an exorcist?" Yang probed, "And what kinda 'magic stuff'? You sort of mentioned you were looking for something when your dad called you..."
"Me? An exorcist? In a matter of speaking, sure..." Ichigo admitted cryptically, "I need magical artefacts. Relics. Ask Amber about those; she knows just as much as I do."
"M-me!?" she squeaked, feeling the weight of a balconyful of collective colourful gazes upon her.
"Yep. You. Just tell 'em about the Relics and the Maidens of the Seasons."
"...You guys have to absolutely promise me you won't say one word about any of this to anyone else, okay?" Amber warned with a 'no-no' wiggle of her finger, like a school teacher. "Okay? Ozpin would freak."
Ichigo opened the door as he heard her begin.
"What's your favourite fairy tale? Mine is the one where, once upon a time, there was some old wizard coot living in a crack-den..."
Ichigo found himself back inside the dance hall, and decided to make a beeline for the drinks table.
It was in a hollow near the right side of the large central stairway, which was taken up by groups of students sitting on the steps.
What he found there, waiting for him, almost made him regret it.
"Mr Kursosaki..." Ozpin stood there, all alone, leaning up against the side of the central stairway with a glass in his hand. Had he been camping out there all night?
Ichigo reached over the table, picking up a glass and taking a sip of some reddish-purple squash. It tasted slightly bitter.
"...Don't you have any friends?" Ichigo needled.
Ozpin chuckled, "Of course I do... it's just that most of them are talking to their students right now, and a couple couldn't make it tonight..."
"You want to ask me about the Wyvern, right?" Ichigo guessed with an impassive face.
Ozpin reached up, and adjusted his dark spectacles. "Why would I need to ask you anything? In fact, I'm thanking you for taking care of it. Can you imagine the catastrophe it could have caused unchecked?"
Ichigo gave a mock-bow with a smug leer, "Well, consider yourself welcome."
Ozpin smiled, then shifted into an uneasy frown. "Although, I have to admit, the media pressed me a tad hard on it... I hope it's alright that I gave them your name? Credit where it's due, after all."
Ichigo's eyebrow twitched at the news, and pulled out his scroll to check. Sure enough, there he was, on the front page of the news, ghostly-body be damned. He knew it was a mistake to give Ozpin a photo for his Huntsman ID.
"...Oh? I have to say... thank you for that, really." the sarcasm in his voice was laid on so thick it could be cut with a knife.
Ozpin sighed. "Come on, Mr Kurosaki. Don't be so taciturn. You know that, with your antics, it was only a matter of time before the masses took notice. If you were going to be so media-shy, maybe you should have been a little more covert."
Ichigo gulped down the drink in his hands this time, finishing it quickly. He found that he really didn't like the taste after all. "...Well, isn't this lucky for you? Now you'll have reports whenever someone sees me..."
"Not quite whenever. A foreigner like you might not know this, but most of Remnant is hardly inhabited." Ozpin reminded, "You could travel for days without meeting another soul. Then again, if you were to show up in a Kingdom..."
"Yeah, yeah," Ichigo brushed off, "–listen, I get it, you're stuck in this weird sort of loop where you want to trust me, but you can't be irresponsible as a leader, so you'll drop something like this to at least have done something. I don't blame you, really. Especially since I'm gonna be leaving Vale, soon."
Leaving Vale? Ozpin was taken aback. "You're... not wrong. I appreciate that you understand, at least. But for you to tell me you'll be leaving Vale so soon... why not at least wait until the Student-Huntsman Shadowing Missions? I did tell you that you and Amber would be a good pick..."
Ichigo stopped, and considered. He'd be leaving for Mistral, and he couldn't just run around blind. He'd need someone with connections there, who knew the land. Amber was from Vale, so that wouldn't work, but how about some of his other friends?
"You know what, I've been thinking about that... Here's an idea. You tell me all about it, and I'll shoot you some of my ideas..."
- –—{}—– -
"...And who're you supposed to be?"
"Don't you remember my whip-gun? It's kinda my calling card." the girl lowered her glasses, inspecting Ichigo closer. "You're that crazy strong guy who took down CFVY, Goodwitch's favourites. You don't have a date? I'm surprised..."
"CFVY?" he recalled, "I think I remember them. How come none of them are here tonight?"
"They're away on some mission, it's taking them way longer than usual. Must've ran over the clock." she sidled up closer to his taller, broader frame.
Ichigo's amber-brown eyes focused up and away, at the patterned celling above. "Where's your team?"
"They're already on the dance floor. Don't tell me you're shy〜..."
"He's taken!"
Ichigo felt a sudden weight drop onto his shoulders behind, and arms wrap around his neck and over his chest. This time, he didn't question it.
"My my〜, I'm sorry. Have fun, you two." the forgotten lady surrendered without a fuss.
"Damn, Ichigo, you really didn't budge at all..." Amber puffed, pulling him away with a blusterous yank. "Even passively, you're really, really strong, aren'cha?"
"You're not all that heavy, anyway." he turned his head. "Doesn't mean you've gotta act like a wrecking ball, though, does it?"
"Oh, come on〜 I know you can take it, tough guy." She leapt off of his back, and smiled brightly with a blush over her features. She crossed her arms behind her back and leaned forwards slightly. "Wanna dance?"
Ichigo stared at Amber, the sequins on her dress shimmering in the low light, his eyes looking right at her, and through her, into her very spirit. He blinked, and held out his right hand, with a warm smile of his own.
"You know, that's the first time someone's said that to me and actually meant it. Every other time it was a cheesy one-liner before a fight."
She giggled as she took his hand. "Cheesy? Don't pretend you haven't used that one before. It's a classic, we all have."
The music now was a mellow waltz, having slowed down now that the crescendo of the night's festivities was over.
In the back of his mind, Ichigo suppressed the thoughts grabbing at his conscience. He wasn't an idiot. He could tell what Amber was doing. She liked him, that much was clear, and Ichigo was indulging her. He'd never really had something like this, specifically, before. Sure, there were girls in his life he'd consider himself close to, girls he'd be more than happy to go for, but none of them had ever made any moves, and he hadn't either. And now, this girl was pretty much throwing herself at him. So nope, he had zero experience in this sort of department, so all he could do was go with the flow. It felt surprisingly easy.
"...I told them all they needed to hear, by the way. All about the 'Rs' and 'Ms'. That hit them like such a mind-blowing truth-bomb that they didn't even ask anything more about Shinigami or what your real job is." she gestured with her head to RWRN and PJYB, both of the teams spread out throughout the hall now. He could spot Jaune with Pyrrha, and over there was Blake with Sun. He noticed Ruby with Crescent Rose too, and Ichigo had no idea how she was supposed to dance with a scythe, but she sure was giving it the old Beacon try.
"Probably for the best." Ichigo surmised. "If I were to start spotting ghosts for them, then it'd probably screw them up. Imagine dredging up lost family and all that, or giving them the false hope of seeing people who've already passed on. Trust me, it's happened before, and it was always ugly."
"Mmhm." Amber nodded. "You know, it's fine. I think we've gotten all the 'serious business' out of the way tonight. Let's party!"
"I... don't know how to dance." Ichigo admitted candidly.
Amber put his left hand on her waist, and took his right hand in her own off to the side. She began to step in time with him, following along to the rest of the students on the dance floor. "It's alright, I'll lead you."
"Huh, nice." Ichigo took up a thoughtful face. "How'd you learn?"
"I watched three videos on CCTube before I came here!" Amber boasted proudly.
"Hey, if it works, it works..."
Crap... What was it his dad had told him?
"Just don't get into anything serious, okay! You'd just be stringing them along, otherwise. Unless she can come back here, that is..."
Well, it wasn't as if he one-hundred-percent had to marry her after this...
At the front of the hall, the delinquent quartet that made up DRCL burst into the room, and quickly made to dissolve into the crowd.
"You know what that means?" Amber giggled.
A high-pitched, squealing whoosh went off outside, followed by another, and then another. Moments after, a popping boom drew the attention of everyone in the hall, illuminating the star-studded night sky with sprinkles of sparkling colours. More rockets followed. Verdant greens, cobalt blues, strawberry reds, coral pinks and bellflower indigos. The high glass windows of the venue made the illegal display clear for all to see.
"I guess they did find a lighter after all..."
Amber's honey-orange eyes almost glowed in the dim, kaleidoscopic lighting, and Ichigo found himself taking in every detail of her face. Her fluttering eyelashes, smooth chestnut locks, lone beauty spot under her left eye, and lips as red as fallen Autumn leaves. Ichigo would never ever admit it out loud, but he had a... type. The sort of... 'endowed' figure, that Orihime and Neliel were blessed with. He didn't want to sound shallow, but he couldn't help it. And Amber fit that soft mould, both up there and down there. She didn't flaunt it, but she didn't need to. Her spirit, too, he found himself gazing into. Beholding the intricate magic-tinged colour of her Arrancar soul flame, a blazing orange-yellow, mellow and warming like pumpkins and sunsets.
For tonight, Ichigo just followed along.
Amber's leading footwork got the duo into a spin that turned the makeshift-ballroom into a revolving, colourful background, dulling their focus to all but the music, and each other.
Knock-knock. Knock-knock.
Knock-knock. Knock-knock. Knock-knock.
Bang—Bang—Bang—
"What's the big idea!?" Yang roared, her eyes blazing crimson as she lobbed her pillow with all her might at the door. The head-cushion exploded into a cloud of drifting feathers, and she marched through the downy floating shrapnel with murder on her mind and profanities venting with her every breath. Her unbrushed hair was a mess, and was more like a cloud of frizz that just happened to half-assedly follow her head.
As Blake stirred, and Pyrrha and Jaune murmured a groggy silent prayer for whatever unfortunate soul was on the other side of the door, Yang ripped team PJYB's metal door open so hard its hinges screeched.
"Whoever you are, you better have a damn good reason for this!"
Ichigo loomed over her in the doorway. He gave her a little wave.
"Morning. You up yet?"
Yang threw a haymaker at his stomach. "What does it look like, retard!?"
Ichigo barely managed to brace himself with the azure circuitry of blut vene in time, still feeling the shock reverberate through his core like a steel drum. "Hrk!"
Yang straightened up, her wild red eyes half-lidded. "That's what you get, you— Ack!"
Ichigo strode backwards, put his rear foot up against the wall, and jumped off it for momentum. A fly-kick nailed the blonde girl right in the face, sending both her and her assailant into her room with a heavy crash.
Ichigo crouched over her, as she grabbed his foot and pulled it away from her face. She was prone on the floor, and the rest of the room scrambled awake.
"I-Ichigo!?" Jaune yelped. Who else could take a full-force punch from Yang like that, and hit right back?
"What's the big idea with you, you goddamn psycho!?" Ichigo hissed, "That was pretty damn uncalled for, don't you think?"
"Uncalled for!?" Yang snapped, "You just kicked me in the face after banging on our door at five in the morning, dipshit!"
"Only because you punched me!"
"So? This is a combat academy, dumbass. Why're you so surprised? I know people who'd pull a gun on you for waking them up like this. It's the morning after the dance, for crying out loud!"
Pyrrha grabbed Ichigo from under his arms, and dragged him off of Yang, whilst Jaune reached over and helped her off the floor. Blake just sat in the corner, under her covers, fully awake and glaring at everybody.
"Shouldn't you people be used to getting up at this time? I thought you're like highly-trained super-soldiers or something." Ichigo turned to Pyrrha. She seemed sensible enough.
"We're training to be professional freelance huntsmen, Ichigo. Not soldiers, like in Atlas Academy." Pyrrha reminded, "We're only first-years, anyway."
"Besides, don't you know any 'professionals' who'd still take your head for waking them up like this? I'm sure you do." Blake spoke from morbid experience.
Squad 11 briefly passed over Ichigo's mind. "...Yeah, I guess you have a point. I could've given you a heads-up, yesterday."
"Well, we're already up now." Yang harrumphed, crossing her arms. "What did you even want, anyway? Might as well get it over with."
"You know those Huntsman-Shadowing missions that're supposed to kick off next month?"
Yang felt her temple twitch. "...Yes? I'm not sure I like where this is heading."
Ichigo smirked. "As a professional huntsman, I picked your team to join me on an teeny-tiny trip to Mistral. You might want to get packing."
- –—{}—– -
"Uh... is that a horse?" Jaune pointed at the braying mount in the distance as it kicked idly at the floor.
White doves fluttered off and landed in small flocks of twos and threes, filling the early morning air with their mourning coos. The light-bluish sky still had a slight orange tinge to it, as though it was under a giant filter. Even now, this early in the morning, delivery bullheads were landing in the Beacon bays, and returning to Vale, taking off from the giant metal octagons that made up the bullhead pads.
"...A pony, actually." Ichigo corrected, "Amber couldn't bare to leave it behind, and it'll act as our pack mule."
"Can't you fly? Why do you even need any of us? And can we even take that thing on a bullhead?"
"I don't fly, I walk on invisible platforms in the air." Ichigo rolled his eyes. "If I just went on my own, what would be the point? I can't find something if I don't even know where to look. And if I'm taking you guys to help me, then we'll need supplies, 'cause I can't just run back-and-forth every time you want to eat. I'm not playing delivery-boy."
"Supplies?" Blake's bow perked up. "Why would we need those in Mistral? We can just buy them. Shops exist, you know."
"Not in the wilds." Ichigo revealed. "We're not going straight there, we're going to get dropped off about half-way. Who I'm looking for could be anywhere in the continent."
"Anywhere in Anima!?" Jaune cried, "That's ridiculous!"
"Did you just say 'who'?" Blake narrowed her topaz-yellow eyes.
"Relaaax, I'm not going into this willy-nilly. There's a plan." Ichigo reassured as they continued to walk. As they approached the pony, a familiar figure stepped out from behind it.
"Amber?" Jaune murmured confusedly.
"And Sun!" Sun leapt out, with his partner Neptune Vasilias in tow.
...Alongside Mercury Black, and Emerald Sustrai. Ichigo paused at their faces, before continuing on. Perhaps Amber held no hard feelings towards them, but he was still surprised she'd still decided to take them along.
"Ichigo!" the Fall Maiden greeted with early-morning cheer. It was, oddly enough shared by most of her team, barring Neptune's tired face. Well, actually, Mercury wasn't exactly cheerful, but he was awake and alert.
Why'd I get stuck with the tired and cranky ones...
"Morning." he greeted, "What's with your choice of team? I'd have thought you'd take Ruby and Weiss's."
"Oh!" Amber realised. "Well, I know you wanted Neptune and Sun since they're from Haven themselves, so they'd be a big help. And as for Mercury and Emerald..." her voice dropped, "...well, I know they're a bit more 'experienced' than the usual students. They'll be good for gathering info, searching far and wide, and in case we have to deal with anything a little bit more... seedy."
"Call us team SEMN!" Sun declared proudly. And phonetically. Emerald facepalmed. Neptune grinned. Amber tried to hide her amusement, and failed.
"...Don't tell me you put them together just 'cause of the name..." Ichigo groaned.
PJYB looked horrified, barring Yang who just hi-fived the monkey faunus.
"Pfft. This guy gets it." Mercury sniggered. "Who's the leader?"
"Me, obviously." Sun asserted, bumping a fist off his chest. "I'm already a leader. I've got the experience. Who else?"
"To be fair, you're kinda a crappy one though. Didn't you abandon our team to get to Vale early?" Neptune pointed out with an unimpressed face.
"Neptune!? You're betraying me?" Sun exclaimed, "You came here too, dumbass!"
"Hmm, then I guess Mercury should be the leader." Amber decided, assessing the four in front of her, "It'd only be fair."
"Why me?" Mercury halted, a suspicious glint in his eye.
"What!?" Sun piped up, outraged. "C'mon!"
"I know what you can do." Amber implied, and that was all.
Sun protested, "But—"
"It'd work." Emerald agreed. Even Mercury was taken aback by her input. She was supporting him? Now he'd heard everything. Yet somehow it wasn't even the craziest thing he'd heard that month.
Pyrrha watched the entire scene unfold in front of her, before she turned to Ichigo.
"We're going with them?" she didn't ask why, but Ichigo felt like he should explain it anyway.
"Yep. Our mission, task, assignment, whatever you wanna call it, is to find the Spring Maiden, then head on to Haven Academy. Amber herself is the Maiden of Autumn, so we're banking off of her to find another one. She should be able to sense them."
"Wait-wait-wait." Yang shook her hands in front of her face. "You just told us about these witches yesterday, and now we're supposed to track them down?"
"Wtches?" Amber furrowed her brow, "Hey! I take offense to that! I'm a... uh, sorceress!"
It was right then that the group became aware of an approaching comet of rose petals, charging in over the grassy pathways back to the academy.
"Yaaaang!"
Ruby exploded onto the scene, with Weiss piggybacking, shooting into her sister's arms with a crash and an avalanche of fluttering red.
"Waah!" the heiress was thrown off, rolling to a stop on the landing bay's smooth floor.
"You're leaving!? Why can't I come?" Ruby whined.
"You ingrate! Why would you stop like that!?" Weiss shouted, clawing to her feet.
"Each huntsman can only take one team with them." Ichigo explained to the younger sister.
"But you're leaving over a month early! You clearly don't care about the rules at all!" Ruby pointed at him accusingly.
Ichigo coughed into his fist guiltily. "Not... entirely. I already told Ozpin what teams I want to take with me, and where I want to go. Me leaving early is just a flex to show Ozpin I can do whatever I want, and he can't do jack about it."
Jaune blinked. "Who's Jack?"
"You don't have that saying here?" Ichigo ran his hand through his hair musingly. "Well, I mean, if I do it this way, I get some helping hands, without anyone being able to accuse me of kidnapping."
They didn't look very impressed at his train of thought.
"What? Don't tell me you guys don't want to go?" Ichigo shoved his hands in his pockets. "It's part of your curriculum, so you kinda have to."
"We have to?" Jaune muttered. "You know, you're starting to make this sound like you're exploiting us for labour."
"And Weiss isn't even coming along, so there's not even a hint of irony to enjoy here..." Blake sighed.
"Bold words from an ex-terrorist!" Weiss retorted.
Ichigo chose not to answer the 'exploitation' allegations. Instead, he pretended he didn't hear their accusing tone and turned to face Weiss.
"But what are RWRN supposed to do?" the heiress opined with a haughty stamp.
"Aren't you supposed to get your own trip? Just train, do homework, or whatever. You're at a school; do school stuff. Ruby, you should try spending more time with Crescent Rose."
"More time?" Weiss uttered in disbelief. "That gremlin already spends every waking moment with that thing as it is!"
"Yeah, but how much time does she spend meditating with it? It's called Jinzen; when you're so in tune with your zanpakutō that you lose all connection to the word around you, like a stone. How often does Ruby sit still?"
Weiss snort–snooted. Snorted snootily? Ichigo was still trying to figure out what to call that one. "Nowhere nearly enough. I'll be glad to help her with that."
Ruby grimaced, "I've got to meditate? Seriously? Like in some old kung-fu movie?"
The howling thrum of a bullhead pulling in collectively turned their heads up. The aircraft slowed down as it steadily descended, and its metallic doors unfurled with a smooth hydraulic hiss as it landed.
"See ya, Ruby!" Jaune was the first up the steps, eager to get the best seat for his airsick-prone stomach's safety.
"Bye Jaune!" she waved back. The others began to climb the steps, in their own little ones-and-twos.
"Our ride's here." Amber announced, climbing up onto her steed. Her honey-orange eyes rove over her chosen team carefully. "To me, my vassals!"
"...Is a trip with a nutjob like that really supposed to teach us anything?" Yang slumped. "Ruby, before I get exploited to death, come give your big sister a goodbye-hug! Ooph!"
Ruby was on her in an instant. "Yaaang! Don't say stuff like that! Stay safe, okay?"
Yang felt the smaller girl's arms tighten around her. She stepped back, breaking it off, and ruffled her head. "...Sure I will. Sorry. I'll be fine. Ichigo'll be there."
They both glanced over to see Ichigo picking up the pony like a herculean strongman. Over his shoulders, he carried the animal up the steps, Amber following behind him with a rosy blush and sparkling wonder in her eyes.
"Eh, I could do that too." Yang shrugged, unimpressed. Most people with aura she knew were strong enough, really.
"Yeah, you could." Ruby nodded. Then she faltered. "Is that even allowed on there?"
Yang shook her head, her hands on her hips. "No idea."
Inside the Bullhead, Ichigo stood in the doorway. After putting down the horse, he decided to take one last look at the place that had taken him in for the last couple months after his arrival in the new world of Remnant. Beacon Academy, a place of towering spires, a monumental clock-tower slowly chiming out, a fantastical gothic skyline full of young Huntsmen and Huntress student teams milling all about, waking up for their early classes. A 'Beacon' of hope for humanity against the Grimm. A birthplace for the future protectors of their homelands.
No crisis had befallen the Academy; it had not, and would not fall. It would stand for generations to come– for centuries more.
And Ichigo had saved it all, but he'd never know that.
NEXT: 29 - TEETHING ISSUES - [Nightmare]
Author's notes:
...And that's it. Beacon's saga in this story is finished. Vale is safe. No fall here. Ichigo stopped it without even realising, or meaning to, since his presence alone was enough to throw off the story completely.
Next up is Mistral, and the search for the Spring Maiden begins in earnest. Don't think that Ruby's team are done, either. There's a reason I mixed the teams up like this; they're each supposed to get a focus as Ichigo's 'support' squad under his wing in a different Kingdom where they have their own personal ties there. First up, is Pyrrha-Jaune-Yang-Blake. I've set up some stuff in advance to make their journey a wild ride, like Ichigo's identity now being public as a consequence of the Wyvern incident last chapter. I made them leave early because I wanted Ichigo to do something in-character that would show he's not beholden to anyone on Remnant. He just does what he wants, without anyone to answer to.
With the opening song, I tried to do the thing where the lyrics I've highlighted go between the descriptive parts, and the paragraphs slot over the Japanese stuff and parts I haven't written down. This way you can read along in real-time. Bleach's first ED gives off the 'farewell' vibe I want, whilst also being suitable for background music. For this chapter, play the full song version of Bleach's first ED once, then swap to an instrumental version.
Ichigo's guitar here is the one from the TYBW second intro. It was cool and all, but I just hope Cour 3 gets an OP on the level of the very best old ones. That being said, him playing a guitar there totally vindicated me, lol. I introduced it before the second season even came out, after all.
On the subject of 'romance', let me just say that the focus of this fic is very much not that. It's just a thing on the side. You're not supposed to take Ruby x Crescent Rose too seriously beyond a gag. I just came up with it after seeing a "You materialise your Zanpakutō to learn Bankai, I materialise mine to bang it. We are not the same." meme with Shunsui. After all, Ōetsu did indirectly say that it was possible...
Shoutout to TheAttemptedWriter, he's gotten back into writing and I've discussed some lengthy ideas and plot-points with him over DMs. His new story, Desperate Measures, focuses on Fullbring Ichigo getting trapped in Remnant after getting screwed over. If you want a more 'grounded' take on Ichigo in Remnant, where he can't just neg-diff solo everybody, then here's your fic. Mine and his stories fit different niches. Check it out.
Thank you for 1,000 reviews! It's a huge milestone, so I'm really pleased to have reached it.
LEAVE SUGGESTIONS FOR THE STORY IN THE REVIEWS PLEASE! Give me your thoughts, stuff you think would be cool etc. I could use them. I want some more ideas for what to do with this new Mistral saga.
