A/N: Embers rule persists.
If folks don't like this, poof! Away it goes.
As ever, reviews are my fuel, my fire, my life.
Without them, I lose all inspiration, all hope, all ability to write. That's no joke.
So by all means, speak up! Make yourselves heard! Every bit of feedback, no matter how small or large, matters! Really, it helps a lot. Its a joy to take with you all and bandy ideas back and forth; it really is.Sorry if this seems shorter than usual, working on a tight schedule here.
Now, lets answer your burning questions, comments, and concerns:
Three should do this time. I'm anxious to move onto the "month" that's been given to our heroes.
Q: Willow is carrying Winter now, right? Will Yang and the rest have other older siblings?
A: Didn't I already answer this before? Yes, its Winter. She was born before Weiss and Whitley. And the idea of Kali and Ghira giving Blake an older sibling is amusing...might do it for the others. Dunno. Haven't decided yet. But imagine it for a moment!
Yang and Ruby with an Older Brother or Sister.
Blake with an Elder Sister. Winter, Weiss and Whitley already have that in Cinder and Sienna, to say nothing of Alma.
Just think of the sheer chaos of it all! My muse wants to write it so badly, but I'm fighting her.
And let us not forget! Little Robyn Hill was recently born. We'll see her when she's older.
Naturally, I'm not saying what the final pairings will be. Could go any way at this point.
Keep the votes 'a comin'!"
Q: So Naruto and co. have a month to prepare for Menagerie?
A: In essence, yes don't give Naruto prep time. Certainly not a month! You think they'd learn...and everyone seems to think this is Salem's work. Is it? Or is it some new faction Naruto created? I wonder...
Guess you'll have to keep reading and see~!
Q: Sooo...does Summer know Willow's preggers? Seems like something she'd fangirl over. And where's Ozpin in all this?!
A: In order, no, yes, and he's occupied at the moment. Why would Kali and Ghira tell him about this? They don't know him; even if they did, its hard to paint the actions of a few radical as Salem's work. And we still don't know who or WHAT is behind this...
Alright then, I've kept you long enough.
As ever, I own no references, quotes, memes or themes.
Not a wit or a one. Ought to be reeeaaally bloody obvious by now.
"I want one."
"No. No, you do not."
"Excuse me?! Yes, I do!"
~?
A Month's Time (Interlude)
In hindsight, perhaps it was too much to hope word wouldn't get out.
Not about Menagerie or the White Fang; despite all appearances to the contrary, Naruto found he was able to keep that under wraps rather handily. Willow was the very model of discretion. Likewise Team STRQ was sworn to silence and naturally Kali and Ghira had no desire to revisit what they'd gone through. No, it was a more...personal matter that slipped out once their merry little band reconvened in the dining room.
"YOU'RE PREGNANT?!"
Summer's startled shout mingled with Kali's delighted shriek to fill the Schnee manor. Whatever Willow might've said to that was drowned out, inundated by all their questions. The sheer clamor they made swelled through every nook and cranny of the estate. Naruto leaned back, a hand on his head. He wouldn't be surprised if just about every servant associated with said estate heard them through the walls. No doubt the news would be all over Atlas by tomorrow morning. It wasn't as if they could hunt every one of them down and force their compliance. Raven looked like she was about to make a fair attempt of it, judging by her hand on Omen's hilt.
"Cant say I blame her." Kurama harrumphed. "If I had eardrums, I think they'd be bleeding right about now...
"Keep it down!" Raven dug a finger in her ear, to no avail. "Are you trying to leave us deaf?!"
"Whazzat now?" Qrow cocked his head. "Cant hear ya over the ringin' in my ears...
Taiyang at least looked a little sheepish. "I am so sorry for her...
Ghira grunted. "Yes, I as well. Kali can be a bit...excitable."
Cinder whined a little and Sienna's ears flattered atop her head. "Why is she so loud...
Willow somehow managed to look gracious about it all.
"I'm so happy for you!" At least she did, until Summer all but flung herself at her. "Ooh! Are you early?" she ran a hand over the startled Schnee's still mostly flat stomach, drawing a yelp from her best friend who tried to squirm away, to no avail. "When did you find out? Has the baby kicked yeeeeeeet?!"
Her words trailed into a startled yelp as a glyph caught her by the ankle and turned her upside down.
Willow held her hand right hand aloft, eyes blazing with smoldering azure flames. "Summer."
The leader of Team STRQ grinned, utterly unapologetic for her actions. "Yes~?"
"I'm going to put you down now. You will behave. Understood?"
...fiiiiine."
Qrow took the opportunity to pluck his partner out the air and reel her back as Sienna sniggered.
"I suppose congratulations are in order." Kali was a touch more reserved now that the initial moment of surprise had passed. "You'll make excellent parents."
Naruto felt a strange pulse of heat shoot up the back of his neck. Her words were genuine; he could sense that much. She really was happy for him and Willow alike. So why did he detect a strange pang of sadness from her? Almost as if...?
"Wait!" Summer's cry jerked him out of his reverie and much to his chagrin, the little huntress an abrupt about face. "I have another question!"
Ghira quirked a brow. "What now...?"
Silver eyes narrowed in half-lidded glee. "Does this make me an aunt?! I always wanted to be an aunt!"
Kali's ears perked up. There it was again, the sudden flash of emotion. Anger. Directed solely at him. Little more than a pulse and one she quickly muffled, but he got wind of it nevertheless. Why would Kali be angry with him? They were on relatively good terms. Weren't they? It nagged at him; like a half-forgotten memory on the verge of being remembered.
Naruto shook it off and exchanged a bemused look with Willow.
The latter found her voice first. "I suppose so...?"
Qrow swore. "There goes her switch."
Summer inhaled deeply.
Naruto leaned back. Ghira and the rest of the men mirrored him. Kali clamped her hands over Raven's ears. And then:
"I'M GONNA BE AN AUNT?!" Summer's eyes all but pulsed with light, such was her glee. "I gotta tell everyone!"
"Summer, no!" Qrow dove on her before she could race away into the manor. "Down! Bad girl!"
Raven turned a keen eye on a bemused Tai. "I want one."
"Not you, too!" The poor man's tan visage drained of all color. "I'm not ready for that kind of commitment, yet!"
"Boo." Red eyes swept toward Naruto as she sulked, causing him to to bridle in turn. "Although...?"
"Bad birdie." He winged a spoon off her forehead." Stop undressing me with your eyes!"
Kurama shivered. "Nope. All the nope. Not having it."
"What? Its just a child...
Tai slapped his forehead. "Look what you've done!"
Naruto flailed his arms to no avail. Done what?! He'd barely said three sentences! He turned an exasperated look on Summer, still being wrangled by Qrow. Reluctantly his gaze turned to Raven, who'd gone back to glaring at Tai with the latter doing his damndest to avoid her gaze. Yup. That settled things. It was official. Everyone on Tea STRQ was absolutely cracked. Maybe Ghira and Kali, too.
In hindsight, he knew why everyone was acting this way.
No one wanted to address the ticking time bomb that was Menagerie. He didn't much blame them. A month wasn't a terribly long time to prepare, but it was more than enough to agonize over. Personally he was tempted to simply storm the beaches of Menagerie. Alone, or with Willow and STRQ at his back, it didn't matter. One swift tactical strike and they'd be rid of the threat altogether.
But nooo...he couldn't do that. No matter how much he might want to.
"Well, you could send disguised shadow clones...
'No. Too risky. Everyone knows I use those.'
Not only would it be brutish, it would set a bad image for Atlas, nevermind Willow's family. Had been just the former, he wouldn't care. But Willow and Nicholas had been good to him. Very good indeed. He wasn't about to repay their kindness by dragging their name through the mud. One mistake, one slip up, and Menagerie would be wiped off the face of the map. He didn't know if that was a bluff or not. Kali and Ghira certainly believed it wasn't. He liked it not; still there was just no way to be sure. The enemy had the upper hand...for now. He swore it would be the last time they ever did.
Everyone could have their fun today. Tomorrow, they would make plans.
"I think she's got the right of it." In his peripherals, Kali favored Ghira with a grin as she returned to her seat. One leg crossed over the other. "I wouldn't say not to a litter myself."
Willow nearly choked on her drink as the larger Faunus blinked. "A litter of what?"
Kali's smiled soured like she'd bitten into a sour lemon. "Nevermind, dear."
Naruto winced. "And they call me dense...
"Um...excuse me...?"
Unfortunately, a certain someone used that moment to throw gas on the fire. It came in the form of Cinder raising a tiny hand. All eyes turned on her, the confusion momentarily forgotten in the wake of her quiet plea for attention. In the background, Qrow hauled a scowling Summer to her feet. Naruto realized too late what she was about to say and bulled forward.
Too slow. "Does this mean I'll have cousins? Or siblings?"
Willow turned beet red.
Naruto absolutely squawked. "No!"
"Yes!' Summer shouted him down in turn.
"Hmm." her curiosity satisfied, the little fire sprite nodded. "Good."
Kali touched one hand to her face and cooed softly. "She so sweet. I want one just like her...
Naruto felt his heart twitch a little. It wasn't weakness. He swore it wasn't. Cinder's fascination for all things family was a good thing; a far cry from her fear of being replaced. His only concern was that she might have taken that desire a little too far. There was only one aspect in which he felt his daughter truly needed his opinion and as such, Naruto was understandably loathe to give it. Cinder was growing both upward and outward as a person. That was all well and good in every way. Yet for all her ambition she still lacked something. Her and Sienna both. Family was great and all, but they
...you know," he hazarded, "You two should be focus less on family and make more friends...
Sienna blinked. "Why would we do that?"
Cinder scowled. "Don't need friends. Family's enough."
Willow swept the little hellion into her arms. "Oh, my sweet precious children..!"
"I'm fine with it, too." Sienna shrugged one shoulder as her foster sister struggled. "Dad loves Mom the most anyway."
"Hey!" Raven scowled at the younger Faunus for her remark. "You callin' me second fiddle, brat?"
Sienna's smile was all teeth. "Lady, you're not even a stringed instrument...
"Be that as it may," Willow preened a little and set Cinder down before the pair could come to blows, "It'll take a great deal more than some flowery words and a show of force to convince me." her smile was sweet as cream. "I'll thank you to keep your grubby mitts off him."
Summer pumped a fist in the air as she raised her glass. "You tell him, bestie-better-than-the-restie!"
"That goes double for you! I swear you just want his arm to-
"Lalalalala! Can't hear you!"
Tai and Qrow muttered a silent prayer to the gods as Kali and Ghira looked on with muted interest.
Raven remained undaunted. "Is that so?"
Rather than back down, Raven took that as a challenge; because she opened a portal and stabbed a hand into it. Her body leaned into it for all of an instnat, rummaged around for a moment and came up with a bottle of green-and-gold glass. She grinned and brandished it like a weapon. In her hands he supposed it was.
"Y'see, I thought you'd say something about that. Would a bottle of Valean wine change your mind?"
Willow frowned a little. "What year? And where did you get that?
"Hundred years ago. And Ozpin's personal wine stash."
Ghira tilted his head. "However did you accomplish that?"
Summer made a keening noise between her teeth.
"Meh." Raven shrugged. "He gave up trying to stop me ages ago."
.
..
...
Willow leaned forward a little. "What kind of wine does he have?"
She grinned. "The best kind. Old bastard's stocked vintages that don't even exist anymore.
A slightly glazed look passed through the heiress eyes. "Is that so? I may have misjudged you, Raven."
Naruto felt a bead of sweat run down his brow. "Willow, no drinking, remember?"
Her silence was telling.
Naruto swatted her arm. "Oi!"
"What?!" she sniffed. "Its a fine vintage. I just want a sip...
He stood firm. "No alcohol until after Winter's born!"
Summer pounced on it. "Winter, eh? You've already picked out a name?"
Alright, this train was going off the rails in the best -and worst!- of possible ways now, wasn't it? Especially when he thought of-ack! No! Focus! He gave his head a mighty shake, marshaled the tattered threads of his his thoughts and wove them back into a coherent tapestry once more.
"Ahem!" He coughed forcefully into a fist. "Can we get back to the topic at hand?"
Kali tilted her head. "I thought we were?"
And what topic is that?"
Her smile was nothing short of beatific. "Babies, of course!"
Ghira sighed. "Please, ignore her-ow! Why did you scratch me?!"
She huffed as the boys laughed. "No reason."
"So...we're going to Menagerie?" Yet again, Cinder was the one to rescue the conversation.
As far was inquiries went, hers was a relatively innocent one at first glance. It seemed just the sort of thing a daughter might ask their father.
Naruto wasn't fooled for a moment.
He saw that spark in her smile, that telltale twinkle in her eyes as she swayed to and fro on her heels. Sneaky girl, trying to slip that bit in when he wasn't looking! She was clearly up to something. But what? Whatever it was, he didn't have time to figure it out. They had a month to get their affairs in order. Rushing in half-cocked would not only be unwise, but suicidal. Thirty days. Time to train, prepare, and make sure the kids were safely out of harms way.
Cinder must've guessed his train of train of thought. Why? Because she hissed.
Her eyes flashed. "Don't you dare leave me and Sienna behind!"
Naruto fought down a grimace. Not so long ago she would've said "me" and little else. That she included Sienna in that statement warmed his heart. Or it would have, if they weren't being so reckless!
"Cinder," he hazarded, "Its going to be dangerous. You should stay here with Nicholas-
She stomped a food. "We're strong! We can handle ourselves! In a month we'll be even tougher!"
"Yeah!" Sienna, silent for so long, bulled in from the side to support her. "We're getting stronger every day!"
Willow shook her head. "Out of the question. We'll be risking our lives out there."
"Might wanna listen to 'em, runts." Qrow tipped his flask back.
They most assuredly did not.
"Pleeeaaase?"
Instead they went for the weak link. Namely, him. They clasped their hands. Upturned golden eyes focused upon Naruto. Urk. Since when had they mastered that look?
Kurama sighed. "You do realize if you leave them behind, they'll just sneak off after you."
He had a point, loathe though he was to admit it. Cinder was a good girl, but her old life had left her clingy. If he tried to sneak off to Menagerie without her, she'd
Naruto knelt. "Come here."
Cinder rushed into his arms like the child she still very much was. Sienna, not fond of such public displays, had to be tugged in as one would a surly kitten.
"Daaaad!" She thrashed a little in his grasp. "Stoppit! Not in front of everyone!"
Kali tittered softly into a palm. "My, my, how the tables have turned...
Sienna put up a token resistance, little more. Naruto paid their babbling no mind. Here in this moment he only had eyes for his girls.
"You know I love you." he pulled them closer. "Both of you. I just want you to be safe."
Cinder nestled into his arms. "We'll be safer with you."
...no. Not at your current level, you two won't."
Sienna's eyes flashed. "Then you mean...?"
A third body joined in, all but leaping onto Naruto's back before he could reply. The faint scent of chakra mingled with aura reached his nose as dark hair tickled his face. He craned his head over one shoulder with a bemused look. Sure enough, he recognized the tiny form clinging on for dear life.
"Alma." he said.
"Yes, uncle?" her soft voice chimed.
"Why are you clinging onto my back like that?"
"You were giving hugs." she chirruped in reply. "I thought you deserved one of your own."
Addendum. Must protect this precious child. Nothing would harm her.
"Alright, alright." He relented at last. "You can come with us!"
The girls cheered.
"However!" A finger rose, quelling them. "You three have to do exactly as I say. What I say, when I say it, how I say it!"
"M'kay!" they sang back.
Naruto felt his heart twitch traitorously. Kurama scoffed. "Softie."
"Bah! As if you don't love them, too!
This was his crazy little family.
None would harm him.
No one.
"Alright then," he began." this is what I want you all to do...
Someone knocked on the door, returning his attention the present.
"Sir," a woman's muffled voice came through. "There's a Pietro Polendina here to see you. He's waiting in the yard. Its urgent."
Pietro? Arthur had mentioned that name...hadn't he? He was sure he had. Naruto blinked once. "No idea who that is, but alright. I'll bite. Send him in...
There was a pause.
"That's just it, sir." the maid's voice came on again. "I'm afraid Mr. Watts found him there. They're quite cross with one another."
"Of course they are." Naruto pinched the bridge of his nose. "No rest for the weary."
Willow laid a hand on his shoulder. "Would you have it any other way?"
He smiled and let her help him to his feet. "Nah!"
Twenty-Nine Days Yet Remained.
A/N: PLEASE READ THIS NOTE, WOULD YOU KINDLY?
Aaaand we're in countdown mode. Don't worry, we'll be moving faster after this.
As ever, reviews are the fuel that keeps me writing. That's no joke. I'm sorry the chapters are shorter, but silences hurts more than any flame...
Without them, I can't write a single world. Seriously! So speak up! Every word -and every review!- really does matter!
And the gang's all here.
Yes, this is gonna be a tournament arc. Haven't done one of those before. Shocking, I know!
So in the Immortal Words of Atlas...
...Review, Would You Kindly?
And enjoy the previews.
Hope you're ready~!
Menagerie arc is here, and its gonna be a BIG one...or is it?
(Previews)
"That was my research!"
"And what of it?! I didn't need your blueprints! I made my own!"
Alma released her and danced back, face alight with joy.
"Oh, I see! Is this what they call a vacation?"
Willow smiled. "In a sense, dear."
...best auntie ever!"
"You're sure about this?"
Quite." Watts reached out and clasped Naruto's hand. "You may not be able to bring an army to Menagerie...
He wiggled his fingers and a sea of drones behind him lit up in lab.
...but I have ways around that."
"Watts, this isn't a competition between you and Pietro."
His ally bristled a little. "Of course not. My creations exceed his in every way. Hardly fair for him, I'd say."
"Well!" Willow shrugged at his side. "You tried."
"Welcome to Menagerie! We've been expecting...you...?"
Watts winced behind his helmet. "Alright, then. Time for a test run."
Harsh, clanking footsteps stepped off the boat. "Don't mind me. He'll be here momentarily."
The guards stepped back. "What...what are you wearing?"
"Oh, this? Its a battlesuit. I call it...Iron Man. Red and Gold are fitting colors, no?"
"Call it insurance."
His smirk was nothing short of sly.
Cinder looked around appreciativley. "We should vacation here sometime."
Raven chortled a little. "Move along, squirt...
"Get back here, you!"
A hand clamped down on her shoulder.
Alma tilted her head just so. Her attacker lost his hand.
"You do realize this tournament is rigged, no?"
Naruto didn't stop smiling. "They can rig it all they like. They'll still lose."
But what if they take your arm?"
"S'fine." he shrugged. "I've got one more."
Kali flinched like a skittish cat. "But you'll be in danger!"
"Naw. This isn't danger. This is pest control. Don't worry. I'll fix everything."
EDIT: Once more, it seems folks aren't happy with the length of recent chapters, judging by the flames.
I only have so much time to write these days, I'm sorry I'm letting everyone down T_T
As ever, reviews are my fuel, my fire, my life.
Without them, I lose all inspiration, all hope, all ability to write.
That's no joke.
...
...
...really, it isn't.
R&R~!