Welcome back to another edition, hope you're all doing well.
I want to give a birthday shoutout to Cesar, one of the Discord members and commissioner of more than a few art pieces about the fic.
Otherwise, not much to say, so let's get into it.
BetaReaders: BFTyrant, Chris, Daki, Rockmean, Luxutor, ReallyRey, Hackerman27, Chepatard, Jasonzzldude, Tupjunk, and Megadumbo.
...
Long ago
*Drip-Drop...Drip-Drop
Liquid trickled to the concrete floor below, with each splatter sending echoes across an otherwise silent space.
Yuji stared upward, his brown eyes meeting an unmoving set of red, the sight making his lip quiver in anticipation.
It was a blob of flesh, much like the other death painting wombs, a stillborn fetus, a mix of human and Curse, appearing as nothing more than a mass of tentacles and discolored skin, but still-
It was part of his family.
All of them were, for better or worse, discomfort wouldn't change that.
Choso stood to his side, silently raising a hand toward his newest sibling, "You don't have to do it now if you don't want to. There's no rush."
Itadori shook his head, "You're wrong. You know that."
"Hm?"
The half-curse could only watch as Yuji refused to take his eyes off his unborn sibling, "They've been waiting all this time. What kinda jerk would I be if I got cold feet?"
"You'd be a rational person, for one."
The sorcerer forced out a laugh, "You're a funny guy, ya know that, Choso?"
"Eh?"
Choso awkwardly pointed a finger at himself, "I am?"
The former vessel shrugged, "Kinda. You've just got a goofy way of saying things. I guess we're alike in that way."
Yuji gave a faint smile, "Until this year, I was just a regular kid, and then, I had to learn about curses and sorcerers...about how the world really worked behind the scenes, but you?"
He pushed out a free hand, gently putting a fist to his brother's chest, "You lived like a curse, and now, I guess you gotta figure out what it means to be a human being, don't you?"
Choso silently hummed, reaching out to drop a hand on the former vessel's shoulder, "Curse or human, you're still my little brother. Though, if it'll help us be a proper family, then-"
The half-curse gave the most uncomfortable smile in an attempt to be reassuring, "I'll try my best to understand them."
Yuji paused, taking a silent breath, before looking up, "Then I gotta do my part and get where you're comin' from too, don't I?"
"You don't-"
The sorcerer opened his mouth wide-
And let it drop.
Itadori audibly gulped, swallowing it whole, groaning in disgust as he did so, and for a few seconds, there was silence.
...
...
*Bump-Bump
"HRRRRR!...BLEH!"
A pulse ran through the teen's body, his eyes going wide as his arms wrapped around himself as an alien force invaded every fiber of his being.
Yuji Itadori was strong, unfathomably so, with a tolerance for pain that was unmatched by even the most prominent of sorcerers, but-
The former vessel thrashed, slamming back into a table of derelict lab equipment from a bygone age, shattering countless glass fragments, scattering them to the floor as he tried to scream, only for a garbled mess to escape instead.
Choso all but tackled the former vessel, his arms shooting beneath his sibling's, holding him in a grapple, "Yuji!"
The teen lurched back, his feet slamming through a desk, sending it blasting through a wall into the outside world with a thunderous boom, struggling to breathe as his very soul mutated and changed, with his body struggling in vain to compensate and match its container.
Yuji's throat bulged, and soon, a lump appeared in his throat. With a surge, blood shot out of his mouth like a geyser, forming a puddle on the ground.
An almost inaudible cry billowed out as a tiny set of hands gripped the sides of his lips from within.
The sorcerer panicked, trying to reach in and pull it out, but Choso pulled harder, "It's fine! He doesn't know any better. Just endure it! They want this!"
...
...
The teenager clenched his fists, and as his veins bulged and swam along his flesh as if worms were wriggling inside, he forced himself to swallow it back down, falling into another fit as his nails elongated and turned purple, tearing through Choso's skin as the older sibling held firm.
It was absolute agony-
Yuji Itadori was changing on a genetic level as foreign substances, toxic to humanity, flooded through his blood, binding to his cells and mutating him irreversibly.
If it wasn't for his immunity to poison, inherited from the King of Curses himself-
Without a doubt-
If it were anyone else in the entire world-
They would've been possessed or have died immediately, but-
...
...
As soon as it arrived, Yuji went limp, blankly staring at the floor as his cold eyes reflected the flickering light moving about overhead.
Choso let out a sigh, looking down at his destroyed arms, forcing them to heal with his own cursed blood as bone and muscle regrew in an instant, "Are you alright?"
...
...
He leaned over to look at the sorcerer's face, "Yuji?"
Itadori puckered his lips and spat a loogie on the floor, weakly mumbling, "...yuck."
"Was...was it bad?"
Did Choso seriously just ask how his sibling tasted?
How awkward was this guy?
Itadori deadpanned as he hovered there, too weak to even move, "...I've had worse."
"Really?"
"Sukuna's fingers taste like rotten' meat wrapped in old wax."
"Oh...is that right?"
...
...
"Choso?"
"Y-yes?"
"You're buyin' me a freakin' burger after this."
The half-curse looked so perplexed, "You...you really think you can eat that much?... You still have a ways to go-"
Yuji leaned back, looking at him with an exhausted stare, "Supersize it."
"I don't-"
...
...
Choso looked down in shame, "I don't have any money."
"Then I'll give you my money, then you can be a good big brother and I get my food, deal?"
Wouldn't that mean Yuji was still the one paying for it?
The blood user happily smiled, "Oh! That's a great idea! As expected of my genius little brother!"
Apparently, despite being the children of a mad genius, sharing a single brain cell was something that ran in the family.
...
In the present
Yuji quietly opened his eyes, hearing the gentle hum of engines as a bullhead flew across the disparate lands of Remnant.
The sorcerer forced himself not to think about it, not wanting to deal with that sinking feeling in his stomach. Instead, he looked around at his surroundings, seeing the same metal walls as before.
Neo had vanished the moment Qrow had shown up, not wanting anything to do with government agents, even a mercenary like a Huntsman.
Ren was to his left with Nora sleeping on his lap, and with Pyrrha to his right, the members of team RWBY were sitting across from them, their leader's head resting on a shoulde-
"Can't sleep?"
The sorcerer looked up, seeing Qrow's red eyes staring at him from across the way.
Itadori quietly stretched his arms, "I'm used to it."
The Huntsman huffed, scratching his scruffy beard, "Figures, but a kid like you needs his sleep...unless you wanna stay short your whole life."
Yuji didn't respond, staying quiet as he leaned back against the cold wall, watching the dark sky flicker by from one of the windows.
Qrow watched him, gently running a hand through Ruby's hair as she slept, mumbling, "..My niece told me some scary shit-"
He leaned closer from his seat, "About you."
Yuji stared back, "They kept asking."
"Wanna talk about it?"
"No."
"If half of what she told me is true...I don't know how you function, kid."
"What else am I supposed to do? Give up and drop dead?"
The veteran sighed, "Someone your age shouldn't be talking like that. You should care about video games and realizing girls ain't so icky."
"I already do that."
"Don't be a smartass. Look, I know what it's like, and if you need someone to talk to-"
"I'm good."
...
...
Qrow barked out a laugh, looking up at the way too bright light above, "You're a pain to talk to, you know that? It's okay to admit you feel like garbage. You know that, right?"
Yuji stared back, "Talking it out isn't gonna fix it. I don't want help, and I don't need it. As long as my friends don't gotta go through what I did, then that's enough for me."
"Fair enough."
The former bandit slowly reached into his jacket, pulling out a flask as he uncapped it and took a swig, soon holding it out, "Wanna sip? I won't tell."
Yuji yawned, "Nah, I can't get drunk anyway."
"For real?"
"Yeah. I'm immune to poison, like...all of it."
"Damn...sucks to be you, man. Raw dogging life's gotta be a hastle."
Qrow whistled, "That's like getting on a plane with no scroll, no book, no booze...just the table and the map."
Itadori shook his head, "If I could get drunk, I would never take a sip."
"Hm?"
"I don't ever wanna forget those mistakes of mine for as long as I live. I won't do my friends a disservice like that, just so I can feel better for a little while."
The Branwen clicked his tongue, "Shit like that is why Ironwood was frothing at the mouth to try and recruit you."
"He was?"
"Well, duh. You got the whole package. You're young, you don't question shit, you've got ridiculous powers, and you've got no problem putting problems down. Perfect soldier material...good thing for both of us. He's about as paranoid as he is smart-"
He pointed the finger at the sorcerer, "You've got him awful spooked, and that guy turns into a real rat when backed into a corner...look-"
Qrow huffed, putting his drink away, "You aren't the type to lie, and I like that about you, so I'm gonna ask you something, and I want you to be honest. Prove to me and Oz that you aren't a liability."
...
...
Yuji was silent, but he hadn't shown a single tell nor any emotion, and so, the Huntsman continued-
"Do you know what happened to Fox Alistair?"
...
...
Yuji's stare was blank, "Yeah, I do."
"And you didn't tell us?"
"That's right."
"Why not?"
"Because there isn't a thing you could've done to help him."
"You don't know that. Oz could've-"
"No."
Itadori's seat creaked as he pushed himself upright, his eyes glowing yellow under the light, "There are some things in this world that you're better off not knowing. They'll only keep you awake at night, aware of just how weak you really are."
Qrow's eyes narrowed, "And you think you can stop whatever's happening on your own?"
...
...
Itadori seemed to give off an unseen pressure, almost keeping the veteran in his seat, "I already failed. I can't let it happen again. I'm not a liar, but there are some things I will never tell anyone, no matter how hard they try to get it out of me."
...
...
The former bandit took a slow breath, not realizing until then that he had been reaching for his sword, and soon pulled his hand away, "How many souls are inside of you?"
Itadori didn't miss a beat, "Ten."
"Do you know how Ozpin's work?"
"I have some ideas."
"Let's hear it."
"I'm guessin' he absorbs theirs the longer he's in their body and, eventually, submerges them beneath his."
"And you're...fine with that?"
"It doesn't bother me. It's not like they're pissed with him."
Yuji tapped his temple, "I can see 'em, you know? Wriggling around inside of him like a big bowl of soup, but Gramps is a good guy, so I trust him."
Qrow hummed, "He talks to them a lot. Hell, I've caught the guy having full conversations with himself...do yours ever do that?"
...
...
That quiet intensity seemed to come back in full force as Itadori closed his eyes in thought-
"One does."
...
...
Yuji hissed, "He never stops talking."
The veteran tilted his head, "These are all your...brothers, right?"
"...They're all family, for better or worse."
"Yeah-yeah, I got that...so, the chatty one, what sort of stuff does he talk to you about?"
It was a long list.
Sukuna would endlessly rant about the various ways he'd torture his friends to death, mutilate their bodies, and do unspeakable things using his hands.
Itadori shrugged, "I just ignore him."
Qrow let out a breath, "Tch...honestly, if I wasn't so used to this shit from Oz, I'd say you were full of it, but having a shitty family? I can drink to that."
Yuji watched him take a swig, "I'm no good either-"
"Neither am I, little buddy. Think of it like this-"
The Huntsman raised his fingers one by one, "If your dad's shit, and his dad was shit, and HIS dad was shit, what are the odds you end up a saint? Not real good, I'll tell you that."
The vessel hummed, "Rube says you're pretty great."
The older man smirked, rubbing her head while she slept, "That's the thing about effort, and it's why I like you and why Ironwood can't fuckin' stand you."
"Why's he pissed?"
"It's a long list, but listen-"
The Branwen slowly inhaled, "Ironwood was born with a real silver spoon in his mouth. Sure, he'll tell you he worked his way up that chain of command, but you know what they never tell you? How daddy paid for everything, made a bunch of nice little phone calls, and suddenly, jobs opened up for his baby boy, but me?"
Qrow scoffed, "The one thing my dad ever did for me was fake some papers to get me into Beacon, and that was only because he wanted me and my sister to be better minions. I only realized what I was doing was wrong because Oz took a chance on me and gave a shit, and even then-"
Itadori nodded, "It was hard."
"Unbelievably. I was a bad person trying to do right. It's real easy to say you followed the right path from the start, but it's a hell of a lot more impressive if you overcame a lot of bad to get there."
...
...
Yuji thunked his head against the wall, "It used to be a lot easier for me."
Qrow huffed, "Life does that to ya-"
"That's not what I mean-"
"Then what?"
...
...
"Did Ruby tell you about what I am?"
...
...
Yuji rolled his eyes, "I won't get mad at her if she did."
Qrow chuckled, "Sorry, just had to make sure. She's still a kid, after all. Yeah, something about ghosts or something, but I don't really get it."
Itadori raised a fist, slowly watching his veins move about on their own, "Curses are evil things. They kill people because they can, and it doesn't matter if they're smart enough to talk or not; it's just what they do. Ever since-"
He sighed, "Ever since I took my brothers in, I've been different. No matter how hard I try to push it back, it's just...there, in the back of my head."
The former bandit raised a brow, "What is?"
"...I've always hated fighting. Ever since I was little, I never liked the idea of hurting someone just 'cause we disagree about things, but...people always test me. I'd see some kids throwin' rocks at some poor old man or people getting picked on when they did nothin' to deserve it, and I'd just-"
Yuji clenched a fist, "I came home from school all bloodied up almost every day, and my grandfather would do the same thing. He'd ask why I did it, I'd tell him, and he'd just gimme a nod and go, 'As long as you did it for someone else.'"
Qrow snapped a finger, "We did that for Yang when she was younger. It's just a way of making sure your kid isn't a bully."
"I know...he always made sure I knew why he asked that. I keep sayin' it, but my grandfather did a lot to make sure I didn't end up like my mom, but for all my life, I was never anything like her...and he kept tellin' me how proud of me he was for that."
...
...
Itadori swallowed a breath, "Ever since I became a half curse, I feel it a lot more than I ever did before. From the taste of blood in my mouth to that dull thud that vibrates out whenever my fist slams into someone, and the way my heart pounds so hard, it might as well shatter my eardrums."
The vessel looked uncomfortable, glaring down at his tan skin, "If I don't fight for a while, I get this itch. It's like a pull that's just screaming at me to go deal with it, or it won't go away, and I hate it, but what if that's just what I am now?"
Yuji stared at the man, though, it was as if he were looking right through him, "If curses are chaotic things that want nothin' but violence, then what does that make my brothers? What does it make me?"
...
...
The sorcerer winced, "I don't know anymore, and I'm so tired of not knowing."
Qrow stared for a brief moment, "I don't think it affects anything. I mean, look-"
He clicked his tongue, "I'm gonna give you a hard truth. There are very few people in this world who are all good, and do you know why that is? It's not some ideological nonsense you'd hear from Oz or the General-"
The Huntsman hissed the word out but composed himself, " It's simple. You can't commit yourself to doing good if you don't know what wrong is.
No one is entirely one thing. Let's say someone cures cancer one day; that's a nice thing to do, but oh no, he's never put his shopping cart back in the corral, not even if someone told him it makes the employee's day harder. Is he a garbage person because he likes to be a dick once in a while, or does the good outweigh the bad?"
The Branwen's red eyes gleamed under the artificial light, "So, you've got a little sadistic streak and like pummeling people. Guess what? Most people who become cops, soldiers, and Huntsmen are like that, too. It's why they regulate the shit out of who gets their aura unlocked. It's like I said, you can overcome the shitty parts of yourself and do something good with them; just direct it at people who deserve it, and there's no problem letting it fly once in a while."
Yuji shook his head, "You don't understand."
He snarled, glaring down at the floor, "I'll never let myself be anything like them."
"I'll never be like him."
Qrow opened his mouth, "Him? I thought this was about your mom?"
Yuji just stared at him, not making a sound.
It went on for a while before-
*DING
The overhead sign of buckling in lit up, signaling they were descending.
...
A bit later
Mistral was a gorgeous city, and even then, it felt like the word didn't do it justice, appearing like a place out of some movie made to trick tourists into going to a country that was mostly slums.
It was mountainous and lush, with flowing rivers traversing the entire landscape, falling off serene cliffs to some unseen depths below, but from above, it seemed like the pinnacle of tropical living, but-
Buildings were a modest size, each strangely identical to one another, made of the same material-
There were almost no cars, standing in stark contrast to Vale, and while it would make sense, given it was a rugged landscape, the few that did prowl the streets were-
Odd.
They were bulky, dark, and heavy, with no light allowing an outside viewer to look inside. Each moved methodically along the winding, clearly preplanned roadways that defied geography in straight, narrow lines, moving like drones in some bug colony or other-
Looking for something.
Itadori and his friends found themselves on one of the many landing sites scattered about the city, entering a busy terminal with cargo moving about at a record pace, although the workers seemed to do everything in their power to ignore them, let alone make eye contact.
Qrow had mysteriously disappeared like he always did, mumbling something about setting things up, leaving the students to their own devices.
The metal floor creaked as a series of footsteps moved along the surface and into the outside world.
Yang yawned, stretching her arms to the sky, blocking out the sun with a hand, "Damn, it's humid out here."
Ruby poked her in the arm, a tired look on her face, "Swear."
"Yeah-yeah...darn."
Her sister's somewhat satisfied nod earned an eye roll, and Yang ruffled her black hair to Ruby's annoyance.
Weiss didn't last long in the sun, letting off a hiss, standing in the shadow of the bullhead, jumping with a yelp as Blake leaned against her back, "Gah!...What are you doing back here!?"
The catgirl blankly stared at her, "A being of darkness must slither away from the light."
"...Excuse me?"
The Faunus tilted her head, notebook in hand, "Too much?"
"Please don't tell me you're writing a character who talks like that."
Blake rapidly dragged a pen along her page, mumbling a long, "Noooooooooo-"
...
...
*scribble-scribble
"No."
The Schnee sighed, putting a hand on her hip, "You know. If you need an editor, you can just ask. I'm actually quite adept at spotting errors."
Blake deadpanned, "Gee, I never knew."
"Hey!"
Weiss would never know the horrid things she would experience if she opened that forbidden text.
It's like Pandora's box...if the box was filled with a bunch of poorly written smut about people you may or may not know.
Back on the bullhead, Yuji leaned back, popping his shoulders as he glanced over his teammates, "Those long rides always make me stiff. How 'bout you guys?"
...
...
Pyrrha sighed, "...Are you alright?"
"Huh?"
"Don't, 'Huh?' You know what I'm talking about."
The redhead stared at the vessel expectantly, motioning to Ren and Nora, "We're worried. Everyone is."
Itadori casually raised his hands, putting them behind his head as he walked ahead, "You wanted the truth, and now you've got it."
"That doesn't answer the question."
"'Cause there's no answer to give. I live with it, and that's the best I can do."
He glanced at them from over his shoulder, "You're better off worrying about something that matters."
...
...
Nora seemed to take the hint, forcing away her frown and regaining her usual grin as she ran ahead, jumping onto the vessel's back, and started ranting about the foods she wanted to try.
Pyrrha watched them go, slowly gripping a fist, opening her mouth to-
Ren dropped a hand on her shoulder, shaking his head as she met his stare, "He doesn't want to talk about it, so just drop it."
He leaned closer, whispering, "This isn't something you can fix."
The quiet teen watched her for a moment before turning to walk off, leaving the invincible girl by herself.
...
...
Pyrrha slightly shook, biting her lip as her head hung low, glaring at the ground, "What would you know?"
If it meant getting someone she cared about the help they needed-
She needed to tell someone.
...
Moments later
Yuji slowly marched down the ramp with an excited ginger on his back, pausing as he passed by Weiss and Blake-
He happily raised a hand, giving his usual dopey grin, "Mornin'."
Blake slightly smiled back, "Morning."
Weiss sputtered at his attention but awkwardly waved back before pulling out her scroll-
She quickly looked angry as she clicked on the wrong thing, opening an app-
Bitter...the social media app where people complain about everything.
Soon, the sorcerer's own device dinged, with him pulling it out to read a text from the heiress-
'We need to talk later.'
He typed back-
'Kay, Princess."
A look of horror crossed the pale girl's face, and she rapidly started typing-
'How...how do you know about that!?'
He only sent a cat picture back, and he could hear her start stomping after him.
The vessel walked faster, outpacing her through height and the fact Weiss always wore heels.
Yuji took a moment to observe his surroundings, seeing tropical mountains looming in the distance like giant shadows surrounded by a fine layer of vaporized mist, but nearby, he spotted a-
"Hang on-"
Nora leaned closer. Her cheek smushed against his, "What?"
He squinted, rapidly zooming over to a sign, pointing the finger at it, "That ain't English."
It appeared like a series of symbols written in black ink, but why were they-
"Well, yeah, silly. It's in Mistrali."
He put a hand over it, utterly perplexed, "...no smoking?"
"Huh?-"
Nora leaned closer, "You can read it? Wait-"
The ginger blurted something out in another language in a metronome, like there was some unheard tick behind it.
Yuji hummed, "...Somethin'... somethin'...throw it back?"
Her eyes lit up, "He kinda knows! Wait, since when did you speak Mistrali?"
"Huh? I thought you were speakin' bad Japanese?"
The crazy girl waved over their teammates, nudging her glorified pack mule in the ribs with a knee, "Say somethin'."
Yuji waved, "Hi."
Ren waved back, "Hi."
Nora growled, "Noooo! In the sign thingy!...I forgot the word."
It took Yuji a second longer than a normal person would to realize she meant Mistrali, but he really didn't want to argue, so Japanese it is.
He stoically raised a finger, "Zōjiki o sōji shitara, anata mo zōjiki ni narimasu ka?"
...
...
Lie's face scrunched up, "Why do you talk like you're eighty?"
Itadori pointed a finger at himself, "Eh? Me?"
Nora bobbed like a bobblehead, "Old! Old! Old!"
"Eh?"
"You're old!"
Ruby hollered from the distance, "He's younger than you!"
Yang tilted her head, "...He is?"
"Yeah? He's fifteen. like me."
Everyone stared at Yuji, but the most horrified expression came from Weiss.
The heiress had stopped her stomping, "You're...you're not really fifteen, are you?"
Yuji blankly stared back, "Why? How old are you guys?"
...
...
She put her palms to the sides of her head, "Oh my God, you're fifteen...am I-"
Weiss looked at Blake, "Am I going to jail?"
Pyrrha looked between the groups, "Why would she go to jail?"
The redhead got ignored.
The Faunus sputtered, "Why are you looking at me!? I don't know!"
Weiss stomped a foot, "You're the criminal!"
The raven-haired teen flicked a non-existent pair of glasses, scribbling something unholy in her notebook, "I might be a cat burglar-"
"We both know those aren't your charges."
The Schnee also got ignored.
Blake pointed a finger, "But you're a groomer I wouldn't wanna see."
As Weiss fell into despair, mumbling about needing to call her lawyer, Blake started writing, an awful smile creeping up her face.
A Question mark appeared over Nora's head, "Weren't we talking about something?"
Ren nodded, "Language or something."
Pyrrha shook her head, taking a few steps closer to the vessel, "Say something else for me."
Yuji raised a hand in compliance, "Something else."
"No! You...you know that's not what I-"
His grin made her drop a hand on his head in a failed attempt to mess up his eternally spiky hair, "Come on."
Itadori chuckled, pushing her head aside, and after a moment, "U~eitā ga tabemono o motte kuru no o matte iru toki, anata wa u~eitā ni narimasu."
She deadpanned, "Do you just think of these things on the fly?"
"Wait, you get what I said?"
Yuji looked so confused, "You guys know Japanese?...man I could've avoided so many headaches if you told me that before-"
The armored girl shook her head, glancing at Nora and Ren, "Some of it, but...isn't that the dialect some of those super isolated communities use? You know? The ones in the north?"
Lie shrugged, "You're from Argus, not us."
"It's not the same! Argus is-"
Nora floated a hand, "They got dat Mooolah...speakin' dem fancy words!"
Pyrrha twiddled her fingers, "It's not that rich..."
Nora leaned closer to the sorcerer's ear, "Do you think in English or the other one?"
Ren huffed, "That implies he ever think- AF!"
Pyrrha elbowed him in the stomach.
Yuji shrugged, "I dunno. I don't really think about it."
Ren's brief, tiny grin was destroyed by another elbow.
*Caw-Caw
There was a flash of motion in the sky as a dark bird came swooping down behind the bullhead, and seconds later-
"Hey, over here, brats."
They all turned, seeing Qrow perched on one of the giant containers strewn around the landing site, "'Bout time we get going, don't you think?"
Ruby excitedly jumped a few times, "Yeah-yeah!...Wait...where are we going?"
Yang nodded, "Yeah, you kinda kidnapped us."
The Branwen shook his head, "It's not kidnapping if it's family."
The Scythe user pulled out her scroll, "...I'm gonna tell Dad you said that."
His grin faded, "Seriously, don't do that."
Qrow pinched between his eyes, "Look, I'm too hungover, and y'all have the attention span of fruit flies, so let's keep it on the straight and narrow, alright?"
There were a few nods, but mostly, those blank stares teenagers give that reek of social anxiety and make everyone uncomfortable.
The veteran clapped his hands, "Fantastic. See, 'cause of your little joyride through Vale, you missed your internships, which, long and short, ain't good. Normally, Oz woulda kicked you all out and made you try again next year, but since we got a buncha nepo-babies with us-"
He pointed his fingers at them lazily, "You get to follow us around and watch the magic happen. Now come on."
The former bandit hopped to his feet, marching through a tunnel entranceway heading toward a light at the end, leading to the outside world with everyone following him like ducklings.
Qrow clicked his tongue, "First question: what's in magic cereal?"
...
...
There was collective confusion.
Yang raised a hand, "Bourbon and chew?"
Qrow gave a thumbs up, "Ding-Ding-Ding."
Weiss crossed her arms, "How were we supposed to know that?"
He reached into his jacket, pulled out a tin, and shoved a patch of dark material into his mouth before spitting to the ground, "Your problem, not mine, snowgirl."
The heiress had to jump over his loogie with a gag, "Eugh! That is just...you pig!"
"Heh. This might be fun."
Ruby zoomed ahead to match his pace, coming up on his side, "What makes it fun, Uncle Qrow?"
The older man shrugged, "Well, kiddo. Adults have these things called 'expectations,' and they aren't fun, 'cause instead of getting to do what you want, you gotta do what other people want, get why that sucks?"
He spat again, smiling as Weiss almost puked, "I, however, partake in a tapestry of pleasures in a method called, 'I do what I want,' and part of that includes pissing off your partner's sister at every given opportunity."
The Schnee tilted her head, "Wait...are you...'that dark-haired jackass,' she keeps complaining about!?"
"Probably."
"How old are you!?"
"Old enough to know it's fun fuckin' with someone with a stick up their ass. It's my way of doin' community service for all the bullshit penalties people like her stick on the average Joe."
Ruby kicked a rock, a pout on her face, "Just for average Joes'?"
Qrow rolled his eyes, "Fine...I do it for the common folk-"
Her eyes lit up a bit, "The busy woman on the go?"
Their voices synced up, "The average Joe or Josephine! Right!"
Weiss grumbled from the back, "I do not have a branch up my buttocks."
She glared back at a certain sorcerer, "Do I?"
Yuji gave his usual dopey smile, "I think it gives ya charm!"
"Hmph."
The white-haired girl turned away in a huff, but she seemed a little less upset.
Qrow let off a yawn at the front of the pack, "But, yeah, bottom line? You idiots are getting assigned 'cause no one wants you. My nieces and their partners go with me because I'm biased-"
Blake deadpanned, "He's so open about it."
The Huntsman waved a hand, "The other team is a surprise."
Nora may or may not have thrown a rock at him.
...
...
Minutes later, they breached the outside world, with the morning sun briefly blinding them before-
Yuji's eyes lit up, "Oh!"
He looked left, seeing wooden structures, "OH!"
The vessel looked right, seeing more with a distinctive style of dark shingled roof, "OHHH!"
The vessel zoomed off, ending up in front of a random store, pointing up at the rooftop, "We've got these back home!"
Ren walked up beside him, following his stare, "I didn't see any when we were in your...you know-"
Yuji waved him off, "Yeah, Japan used to have places like this, then we did uh...a thing-"
He coughed, mumbling something about Americans.
Itadori smiled, raising a finger as his friends gathered around with the exception of Qrow who could not care less, "See, our temples back home still got that old Japanese look."
"Wait...are you-"
"Am I what?"
"Are you religious?"
"Eh?"
The sorcerer paused, scratching his chin, "Well, now that I think about it, I guess I'm kinda a Buddhist."
Yang cocked a hand on her hip, "The heck is a Buddhist?"
"Well, I'd be a pretty bad one if you called me one."
Yuji's eyes looked downward, "They're kinda...ahem-"
"nonviolent."
...
...
Nora pointed a finger at him, "You're a bad Buddhist."
Itadori mumbled something about trying better.
Meanwhile, random passersby had begun to stop and look at the chatty teens with strange accents, but eventually-
Their focus went to the sorcerer with that distinctive spiked pink hair and the slits beneath his eyes.
They began to mumble.
"Oh my God-"
"Is that?"
"...We should probably go-"
An older man walked out of the store, bag in hand, a noticeable horn pushing through his white hair, and the moment he laid eyes on the vessel-
He paused, a grimace quickly turning into a scowl, which morphed into a snarl.
The old Faunus reached into his bag and let it drop, holding something large in his hand as he shook in silent rage.
...
...
Yuji smiled, "Hahaha! I gotta say, this place really reminds me of home. Except the whole jungle thing. That's more somethin' you'd get from Vietna-"
*CLUNK
His hand instinctively shot to the side, catching a bottle aimed for his head.
"You-"
The street went quiet with the sound.
Itadori looked ahead, seeing the old man glaring at him from the entranceway, "You fucking traitor."
Yuji looked around, then, "...me?"
"Who else killed their own kind. You're a Faunus, aincha?"
Passerby recoiled at the word as if it were toxic, some immediately beginning to walk away in a rush, while others-
Others pulled out their scrolls.
The man chuckled, pulling at his long beard, "With those freaky eyes, what else could you be but one of us?"
He pulled his hair back, letting his dark horn out for all to see, slowly walking forward, "Tell me, how's it feel, knowin' you killed your own for a bunch of humans who couldn't care less if you lived or died? How does it feel living a lie while your own people live as slaves?"
His eyes focused on Weiss, "And with a Schnee? My God, you might be a tiger, but all I see is a fucking rat."
Yuji stood there, utterly dumbfounded, "I-"
"I don't-"
*WHIRRRRR
There was a collective wince as an alarm blared down the street, with nearby storeowners slamming their shutters down as bystanders ran away.
The members of team RWBY looked just as confused as the vessel, but-
His own team backed away, looking anywhere but at them.
Yuji glanced down the road, seeing a flashing series of lights as an armored vehicle came barreling toward them before-
*Fwoosh
Qrow appeared beside the vesel, crossing his arms as he closed his eyes, not in anger, but pity, "You shouldn'ta said the F word, old timer...not here."
A pitch-black vehicle rolled in, the words, 'Hold Your Peace,' etched along the side, which soon opened up as what looked like police came charging out, rushing toward the withered man as he scoffed, putting his hands up.
He couldn't say so much as a word before a cloth was wrapped around his mouth, and his limbs were cuffed, and soon, they were carrying him back toward their ride.
Yuji shook his head, marching after them, "Oy! Wait a sec!"
Qrow put out a hand, "Don't."
"I don't wanna press charges. They can't do that to an old timer!"
"It's not about that, kid."
Pyrrha spoke up from behind, "Remember what we talked about...back when we got icecream with Penny?"
The redhead rubbed her arm, "You don't say you're different. You don't point it out, and you never question it... or-"
Nora curled up, burying herself in Ren's jacket, as he spoke for her, "They come."
The sorcerer shook his head, "I don't care about some bullshit cops, I'm not letting them-"
Qrow stepped in front of him, leaning in, "Just hold on for a second. This is their country, and it's their way of doing things. You're a guest...we'll tell Oz, he'll make a few calls, and they'll let him go, but if you start something, they'll just wait until you're gone and kill him instead-"
He leaned closer, "Are you fine with that?"
Yuji turned, watching as the man was violently thrown into the cabin, the door soon slamming shut, those words bouncing around his head, forcing out thoughts the sorcerer had suppressed for so long.
Living a lie in a place that looked like home...but he knew it wasn't.
Did home even exist anymore?
How long had it bee-
...
...
There was a deep cackle coming from the recesses of his mind as a familiar chill ran down his spine, with venom flooding his senses.
'It took you this long to even question it? From an insignificant welp, no less?'
'Shut it.'
'Don't feel so bad. After all, what did a thousand years do to me the first time? Certainly not what it's doing to you, though, it's undoubtedly been far longer. I'd love to see the despair cross your face...when you realize it was all for naught. '
Sukuna let off an uproarious cackle, bouncing off the confines of Itadori's soul, 'Your precious little friends and family are dead, and what do you really have to show for it? You've gotten me back in my cell, but that is always subject to change. How long do think you can keep this up before I break out and do this all over again?'
'I won't let you.'
'I didn't know you were capable of being funny, and the biggest joke of all? I don't even have to do anything. You're falling apart at the seams, brat, and whether it culminates in you ending your own life or letting me take control of it. I will savor every second of it, and you'll sit there and take it like you always do.'
'...Hey, how's that older brother of yours?'
'He's not dead.'
'Are you certain about that?'
'He isn't...I know he isn't.'
'One hundred and fifty years, and never once did he succeed at anything. This family of yours is just a ramshackle collection of Kenjaku's disgusting tests...whether you combine them with yourself or not means nothing. Failure mixed with failure leads to yet more disappointment.'
'Do you really think him facing your...hehehe...mother... for a third time would've made a difference?'
'Stop.'
'His rotten corpse is long gone.'
'SHUT IT!'
'But I'll keep you here as long as I have to until you're well and truly broken...after all, I'm all you have-'
'and what is family for?'
...
...
Back in the present, time had slowed for that brief moment, but in the next-
The car hummed as the driver turned the key, with the engine sputtering to life, their dark visor illuminated by the sunlight peering in. They looked left and then right, seeing nothing in their rearview mirrors, and as they began to back out-
A shadow blocked out the light-
And an unspeakable force slammed into the front of their car.
Itadori had moved so fast, it was almost incomprehensible to the human eye, and with a single kick to the armored hull's side-
*BOOOOOM
The APC tumbled across the street, nearly flipping over as shrapnel and glass exploded out from a massive dent on its side, buckling reinforced steel like it was made of paper.
The driver shook their head in delirium, but soon, their eyes focused on the vessel, recognizing him as the person who-
Panic took hold, and they moved the vehicle into reverse, slamming down on the pedal as rubber burned on the roadway, but-
The sorcerer disappeared, reappearing in front of the hood, his hand reaching through metal plating that let off a screech in resistance. as he grabbed hold of something, and with a pull-
*CRRRRRRRRRR
Itadori ripped the entire engine block, still sputtering in his hand, and with a flick of his wrist-
*CRACK-CRACK-CRACK-BOOOOM
It bounced along the street like a rock over water.
His friends were screaming at him to stop, but the vessel seemed in his own world. His mind focused on one goal in front of him, the one thing that made him different from the King of Curses-
Yuji didn't walk around the car; no, he walked through the front, cleaving through the frame until he was within arms length of the window-
The teen balled a fist-
And swung-
*CRASH
Itadori tore through bulletproof glass with his bare hand, not even scratching the surface of his skin, grabbing the driver by the neck, dragging them out the way he came as broken shards tore at their uniform-
Yuji tossed the man into the street and as he scrambled to his feet, holding out a hand in, "Wait-wait-wait! If you do this, they'll put you away for-"
The vessel grounded himself, his left foot sliding back, glaring into that dark helmet's visor, seeing the glare of his spiraling yellow eyes in the reflection.
The man's eyes only widened as Yuji swung, his fist cracking through, slamming into his skull as the force reverberated across the skin of his cheek, and with a mighty boom-
The man sailed across the street, impacting against a closed metal shudder, denting the surface before slumping to the ground.
Itadori wasted no time, walking around to the side, casually grabbing the door handle, tearing it clean off the structure, and only for-
*BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG
A series of colorful sparks lit up from the inside of the cabin as the two members inside opened fire, the rounds merely bouncing off of him.
Yuji Itadori simply stood there, letting them unload their entire magazines as they screamed in terror before-
One by one-
*Click-Click-Click
Their mags ran dry, and they were left there, shivering in the back of their vehicle, with random casings bouncing along the floor.
One pulled out a sidearm, putting it to the old man's head, screaming, "Back off or he gets it!"
...
...
Yuji raised a hand, his fingers making that distinctive scissor shape, and with a voice as cold as steel, the sorcerer spoke in a tone that was all too calm-
"Get out or you're next."
You're next-
The way he held his hands-
How could they not recognize him? This was Yuji Itadori, the boy who had slaughtered a hundred people along with one of the top leaders in the White Fang with ease, making a fool of the strongest military on the planet.
One leaned back as if trying to get away from the vessel, his helmet rising just enough to reveal his exposed teeth, contorted into a terrified grimace.
One by one, they dropped their arms with a metallic click, awkwardly shimmering their way out of the van, only for the vessel to reach an open hand inside to the old man inside who stared at it, then him for more than a few moments, then took it.
Those brief seconds it took to help the elderly man down were long and tense, with all bystanders in silence, with the only sound breaching the void being the man's clumsy steps out. Once he was, he gave the vessel a strange look, stumbling off to slink away into one of the many alleys on the street.
Yuji slowly turned, looking up at the armored men who stood a head taller than him without so much as a sense of emotion, "You like pickin' on old timers?"
One raised his hands, "N-No! Of course not! We were just doing our-"
The vessel surged ahead, slamming a fist into his stomach, with sheer kinetic energy blasting through armored kevlar, and as the man gasped, Yuji simply raised a hand and slapped a palm against the side of his helmet, sending him to the ground.
Itadori blankly stared down at the unconscious figure as the other closed his mouth in utter silence, "...Just 'cause someone told you to be a jackass doesn't mean it's right."
He looked up at the remaining officer, "Bother that guy again, and I'll smash your head in."
The man quickly nodded, "Y-yes! He-he-he won't hear a word from us, I swear!"
"Then get lost."
The man abandoned his compatriots and took off running down the street.
...
...
Yuji tried to turn back to his friends, but-
A hand grabbed his arm, and as he looked up, the vessel met a familair yellow stare, "Blake?"
Her pale face was lit up in panic, "We need to go, right now!"
"But what about-"
"Right now!"
The raven-haired teen took off down the street, dragging the sorcerer with her, and as Itadori scanned their surroundings, he could see several people in the crowd with their scrolls out, aimed at him while others made calls.
He realized something, "Wait! What about the others!?"
"Qrow took off with them the second you pulled that stunt! Why do you always do this shit!?"
"What!? But I-"
"Overhereoverhereoverhere!"
Off to the side, a concrete wall blocking the street off from an adjacent one gave way as a chunk of it was pushed to the side, revealing a passageway and a familiar ginger poking her head through.
Blake pulled the vessel onto another busy street, with confused onlookers rushing into buildings and Nora pulling the blockage back into place.
In the distance, a siren went off as the sounds of multiple heavy engines got closer by the second.
Ren came up from the side, pushing a hand into his chest, "You just had to start something here, didn't you?"
Before Yuji could respond, Lie let out a sigh, "No, no time, we gotta go. Nora, do you think our place down in 'you know where' is still good?"
The hammer-user jumped, "Probably, I mean. They never check there!"
"You're right...we gotta get there and find-"
Ren visibly cringed, "The Danger. He'll know how to make this disappear."
She looked confused, "Who's that!?"
"Remember, 'Monkey's Paw? He changed his name."
"Again!? That's like the tenth time this year!"
The sirens got closer, and Lie shook his head, taking off down the street toward one of the many waterfalls running through the urban center, "This way!"
As they ran, a car turned a corner behind them, flying down the street after them-
Blake huffed, grabbing a nearby vendor stall and throwing the wooden cart and its contents onto the ground, mumbling an apology as a man started screaming about his cabbages.
The armored vehicle tried to bulldoze through, but the wooden contents jammed up its front wheel, causing it to swerve into a nearby wall as others took its place in hot pursuit.
As they ran, Yuji shook his head, "Seriously, what the heck is going on in this place!?"
Nora stared ahead, oddly serious, "We warned you it was bad here! If they catch us, we're going into rehab!"
"...Rehab?"
Ren huffed, "Not the time, Yuji!"
"Then...why did you guys stick around?"
Ren dully raised his fingers one by one, "One, we're your friends, and two, I know leaving you on your own is just asking for half this town to get blown up or something stupid, but three-"
Nora punched the air, "This be our terf!"
The sorcerer looked to Blake, who simply shrugged, "I might've...done an attack or two here in the past."
*WHIRRRR
The armored carriers caught up, their side doors opening as gunmen leaned outside, taking aim at the group.
The sorcerer hissed, spinning around as his momentum dragged him back, and with lumps swimming through his veins, Yuji slammed his hands onto the paved road, mumbling thanks to his big brother-
The ground beneath the carriers cracked, then bulged upward before giving way to the massive pressure beneath. The rocks shot outward and upward as a giant pillar of stone burst into the skies of Mistral.
Yuji's vaporized blood let off a sonic blast that shattered windows for blocks, with the new structure completely cutting off the roadway, giving the teens a precious few moments to think.
Ren gawked at the sight but shook it away, pointing to a bridge up ahead, passing over a flowing waterway, "Over there!"
They soon found themselves on the pathway, watching the water flow beneath them, falling off a massive cliffside to an unknown fate.
Nora put her hands on the railing, "Alrighty! Who wants to go first!?"
Blake's eyes widened, "WHAT!?"
"Huh?"
"You want us to jump off the edge!? Are you fucking nuts!?"
"Well, how did you get away before?"
"ESCAPE DRIVERS!"
"We ain't got yo fancy pants drivers. Me and Ren kept it REAL and jumped off REAL waterfalls!...We did have a barrel boat back then, though."
And by 'boat', she meant a barrel they floated downstream in.
Yuji didn't seem shocked, just perplexed, and looked to Ren, "Are you being for real?"
Lie blankly stared at them, "It's better to risk dying from the fall than getting caught, trust me."
Blake put her hands to her face, "I'm not doing that."
Nora inched closer, "Is it 'cause kitty-cats don't like water?"
"...Normally, I'd get offended, but that one is true."
In the distance, bullheads started taking off, heading in their direction, and on the opposite side of the bridge, more armored vehicles began to roll in.
Yuji shrugged as if this was a no-brainer, and without warning-
"WAH!"
He kicked Blake off her feet, catching her in his arms bridal style as she blankly stared up at him, "What are you doing?"
The sorcerer put on his coolest, most chisseled expression, "Saving our lives..."
"You suck."
He looked to Nora and Ren, acting even cooler, "Get on..."
Ren hopped onto his back, and Nora jumped onto him, making this some kind of ridiculous totem of some kind if only it was one of undying.
Blake pointed a finger in his face, ignoring the fact that he was holding her entirely, "Seriously, that line is such a cliche, and it doesn't even make sense here! I know you're bulletproof, so there's no risk! At least use something like, 'It can't end here. You matter too much to MEEEEE!'"
The bridge exploded as the vessel jumped over the void, falling into the depths as Blake screamed, Nora happily shouted, and Ren stayed indifferent.
...
...
They fell for a while, passing through layer after layer of settlements as the sunlight got dimmer.
Yuji hummed, raising a finger, "By the way, don't let go or you're definitely gonna die."
Blake paled while Nora leaned closer, "Does this flight come with peanuts?"
Ren counted down on his fingers, starting at thirty seconds, then-
"Get off at the next floor."
Yuji nodded, "Kay!"
Without missing a beat, he kicked his legs back, grazing them against the flowing waterfall as they touched the solid rock, shooting off with an explosive jump as he leaped between the walls and as they came upon an outstretched metal walkway covered in sightseers-
*FWOOOSH
*CRACK
Yuji landed on the catwalk, hopping along the ground with his momentum, digging his feet into the ground to slow them to a halt, leaving a trench in his wake.
Just like that, he put Blake on her feet and let Nora and Ren clamber off, taking a moment to look around, ignoring the many confused looks they were getting.
Nora puffed out her chest, "We're good down here. They won't even bother lookin'."
Blake hummed, "Really? It's that easy?"
Ren waved a hand, "The regime really only cares about the important people on the surface. Down here, they only do the occasional raid to arrest troublemakers."
Itadori whistled, looking at their surroundings, "Dang, people actually live in caves here?"
They were currently on an archway overlooking the waterfall, but within, strewn about lush caverns covered in green, with lots of sunlight poking in from above, was a viable settlement, albeit far less opulent than what was on top.
Homes here were made of rock, some seemingly chiseled into the cavern walls themselves, with markets, town centers, and even statues all made of whatever seemed to be available, although-
The people seemed a lot more normal than before, laughing and doing their thing as if they weren't scared of something.
"Mhm. My mom always told me it started during the Great War. Our cities above ground got bombed so bad everyone fled to the caves, and it just sorta stuck around in the culture."
Yuji put a hand on Ren's shoulder in Asian solidarity to getting airstriked by outside forces, "I know that feelin'."
"What?"
Blake surveyed the sight with interest, "We have something similar back in Menagerie; there isn't a lot of land, so entire extended families live together."
Yuji idly daydreamed about living in an apartment with Choso...and Eso and Kechizu-
Man, that sounded cramped, but if the jars were there-
Okay, that would make friends coming over a no-go. Imagine explaining that at the dinner table, a random guest would go, 'Oh, I love the decor. What are they?'
'My brothers!'
You gotta take your shoes off when you come inside, but the unborn children STAY on the dining room table.
Nora stretched her arms to the ceiling, putting them behind her head as she made her way down into town, "If you follow muah, I'll give you the grand tour."
Yuji walked behind her, marveling at their Flinstone surroundings, "So, you guys spent a lotta time here?"
"Mhm. We lived all over the Kingdom, but Mistral's easier to hide in."
"Really? I thought the dudes who run the country live here?"
"They do, but they don't come down here."
Ren nodded, waivng a hand to their dimly lit surroundings, "Think of it like this. These tunnels are old lava chutes made a long time ago. They go down for miles and have who knows how many passageways. Every time some politician blows one up to control the people easier, it gets dug out a few weeks later."
The ginger girl kicked a rock, watching it crash against a stone wall, "Lots of people live down here, but they're still finding new tunnels every now and then. Me and Ren used to live in a...oooh, you think our old hole is still around?"
Lie nodded, "We'll see, but the point is that there's just not enough resources or interest in controlling what happens down here. Every time Mistral tries, people just pack up and move deeper, and at a certain point-"
Ren stopped, an uncomfortable look crossing his face, "Well, no one really knows what goes on down at the bottom, but the tunnels go everywhere in the capital, so it's easier for the people in charge to leave us be instead of having us move where they can't see us."
Yuji hummed in interest, "I could live in a cave."
Blake deadpanned, "That's 'cause you're already a caveman. Seriously, why did you have to go and pick a fight?"
The vessel shrugged, "I don't like bullies."
"Yeah, I get that, but-"
"There's no 'but-'"
Yuji stared ahead, "Honestly, there's nothing I hate more than someone who can't leave other people alone."
"I get it. Trust me, I get it-"
The Faunus looked away, "I've spent my whole life just trying to be treated like a decent person, but there are situations you can't fight your way out of."
"Probably, but-"
Yuji glanced at her from over his shoulder, "Even if it's meaningless and never amounts to anything. I'm not gonna go against what I think just to keep my head down."
He sighed, "You can pitch it any way you want, but someone tormenting another person just for being weak is something I'll never let slide. Those types will never stop unless you make 'em."
Blake bit her cheek as they continued through town, "It might work in the short term, but if you want change to last, you need to convince people it's worth keeping when you're gone. I just wish I knew that before doing what I did."
"I've only ever been good at fighting, so that job's best left to someone smart like you.:
Her bow twitched, "M-me?"
"Kind of a no brainer, ain't it? I mean, you've lived with humans and Faunus, so you probably understand it better than most people, and with that book you're writing? Why shouldn't you give it a shot?"
Blake laughed, dropping a hand on his head to ruffle his hair, "I doubt anyone will actually buy it, but...thanks."
Yuji gave a thumbs up, "I'll buy it! I'll get like a million copies with Gramp's money and give 'em out for free!"
"You know book burnings are a thing, right? Some people might not be too keen on what I have to say."
"Then I'll pummel 'em till they leave you alone. You can leave that part to me 'cause-"
Itadori gave a reassuring smile, one his teacher gave him so many times before, "I'm the strongest."
The raven-haired teen gave a tiny smile, ruffling his hair more, "Dork."
...
...
A bit later
The group had wandered down a few pathways, finding themselves in an area speckled with water flowing in from above, with the sunlight above allowing a tapestry of green to grow in the surrounding rock, with a few shrubs and plants lining the area.
Yuji looked about, not seeing a soul in sight, "So, where'd you guys live?"
Ren mumbled, "We're almost there."
"Really? Where is i-"
Nora hopped on her feet, "There it is!"
She ran through the tunnel, looking in every direction to make sure they were clear, then waved a hand in dismissal, "Can't let people see yo hole, or they'll steal your stuff when you ain't home!"
With that, the ginger reached into a shrub, grabbing what looked like a root, but as she pulled, it was revealed to be a piece of metal covered in green plastic, revealing a darkened, haphazardly made staircase going down.
The ginger puffed up in pride, "I dug these with mah bare hands!"
Ren sighed, "You have no idea how many times I had to bandage her up."
"I don't like how gloves feel!"
"You're wearing gloves right now."
"Yeah? But these are MY gloves."
"Holy...I'm not having this argument again."
With that, the group lined up one by one, making their way down the unlit stairs, using their scrolls for light before-
There was sunlight.
The space was like an exposed cave jutting out over a cliffside. Beams of sunlight came through the stalagmites, and an array of random objects, from stolen construction equipment to makeshift containers and whatever else the two could get their hands on, scattered about the place.
Nora was the first through the entrance, running and diving onto a sleeping mat atop a pile of hay, "Ah, hole-sweet-hole~."
Ren nodded, moving over to sit beside her, "Make yourselves at home...sorry if it's not...super nice."
Blake shrugged, "You kidding? This is way better than my house. Everything on Menagerie is made of scrap metal, so whenever it rains, you hear that annoying 'Dunka-Dunka-Dunk.'"
"To each their own, I guess."
Lie raised his scroll, "I texted our guy, but he has like ten burners, so...it's more a game of hoping he uses the one I know."
Yuji dropped onto a wooden crate, ignoring the creak it gave, "How do ya know this dude anyway?"
Nora yawned, "He taught us how to steal stuff."
Yuji breathed, then gave a neutral expression, "...Nice."
Blake raised a brow, "He a local?"
"Hm? Nah, he's from Vacuo, and all they do is steal stuff out there."
The cat girl huffed, "Tell me about it. One time I was there on a mission, and some kid stole my shoelaces, like...dead serious, I was standing there waiting for my guy to show up, and this twerp crawled on all fours, undid them, and ran off."
Itadori tapped his thighs to make a beat, "...I'm hungry."
"Yeah? Well, we were gonna go get food, but SOMEONE decided to beat up cops!"
Ren looked at their belongings, "I'd make something, but we tossed all of it when we moved to Vale."
Itadori locked in, standing up, walking toward the light, looking down at the flowing waterfall pooling in a huge lake at the bottom of the cliff, "I got this."
No one batted an eye as the sorcerer dove out of what had to be a multistory fall.
...
...
Blake put a palm under her chin, "So, why'd you two come to Vale anyways?"
Nora turned over in bed, her blue eyes staring the girl down, "We got too old to steal-"
Ren gently pushed her shoulder, "And we were tired of doing it-"
"Yup-yup, but they're a lot meaner when you aren't a cute kid. It goes from 'aww, you poor thing,' to, 'ew, this gremlin stole mah pie!'"
"Going to a Huntsmen school was always on the table, but you know how hard it is to get in. We needed money to get the books to study and tools to impress them and whatever, so-"
"Steal we did."
"Steal we did."
Ren grimaced, "That's where... 'The Danger' came in-"
Blake raised a hand, "You know it's just us, right? Why do you keep saying his nickname?"
"It's one of his rules. If you break one, he gets pissed and won't help."
"He sounds like a dick."
"He kind of is, but he always pulls through, anyways-"
Nora pushed herself upright, "I got this...We started lookin' for that stuff on the cheap, found a guy online, and it was 'The Danger,'
and I guess we're kinda friends now."
Blake deadpanned, "What? Like a 'he might be my drug dealer, but we're chill' kinda way?"
"You do drugs?"
"What!? No! It's just..."
The Faunus poked her fingers together, "I read about it."
*BOOOOM
There was a massive explosion of water, and seconds later, a hand gripped the cliffside edge so hard that it cracked. Itadori pulled himself back up, holding a hand out, "I'm back! I got a buncha-"
*NYOOOOOOM
A pale hand slapped the fish out of his hand, sending them flopping and hopping everywhere as Blake shoved one in her mouth, making everyone's jaw drop.
Yuji's eyes widened, "DON'T EAT THAT! IT'S RAW! IT AIN'T EVEN SUSHI YET!"
The vessel dove after her, crashing through a giant spool of steel wire, making Nora jump to her feet, "NOOO! OUR LOVE SEAT!"
Ren looked at her, "That's our dinner table."
"Oh, right."
Yuji grabbed at the fish, only for Blake's suddenly sharp nails to start clawing at his arms and face, "AHHHH! MY BREAD AND BUTTER! ARE ALL FAUNUS LIKE THIS!?"
Ren watched indifferently, "No, I think Blake's just weird."
Blake skidded to the corner, hopping onto a wooden crate, her dark hair standing on edge as Yuji stood like it was a Western standoff, pointing a finger at her, "You will surrender the fish. You will let me make it into sushi."
She hissed.
"It's better than eating it with nothin' on it!"
Blake mumbled through the fish, "Better..this...way."
His expression darkened as his pink hair shot straight up, his yellow eyes gleaming as they met hers, "You are truly lost to us."
The sorcerer picked up two flopping fish, connecting them with his blood, spinning the new weapon like the playful cloud, "Come at me."
...
...
The crate burst as the cat lunged, taking a rapid swipe with her sharpened nails, only for Yuji to meet her attack with a pillar of fishy meat, letting off a cascade of scales as they made contact.
As they struggled, the vessel smiled, "You truly are fantastic. Let me take the fish from you!"
He pushed ahead, pushing the raven-haired girl back as he reached a hand toward the fish in her mouth, only for Blake to spit it out toward the ceiling, lunging forward, her jagged teeth exposed-
*NOM
Yuji gawked as one of his fish was bitten in half, his entire weapon falling apart as their innards spilled to the floor.
Darkness consumed the Faunus, "Devour this loss instead."
Oshiete, oshiete yo sono shikumi wo
Blake jumped, flipping overhead, landing on the opposite side of the room, swiping a hand over her face, smearing blood over her pale skin, "...That's foul."
Boku no naka ni dare ga iru no?
Yuji paused in shock, watching the blood flow across the floor, "Wha-? Y-you?...Bit it?"
Kowareta, kowareta yo kono sekai de
The Faunus hid her face behind her long hair, "It's the fish's intestines are on the verge of spoiling."
Itadori threw the remaining fish at her, only for the quiet girl to gracefully spin on her heels, letting it pass her entirely as she jumped once more, landing gracefully on his shoulders, catching the fish she spat before-
Kimi ga warau nanimo miezu ni
Yuji grabbed her ankle, "I'm not letting go!"
*Click-Click-Click
*BOOM
The floor raddled as a figure came rushing down the stairway, leaping down the last few steps, landing with an audible slam as a blonde head of hair and an immaculate set of abs glistened in the light-
"Sup ladies! The Danger is her-"
The teen stopped dead in his tracks, his tail swishing about, seeing Ren and Nora on the floor, two people he had never met having some life-or-death battle-
And a lot of dead fish on the floor.
"The fuck happened here?"
Nora waved a hand, "Hi, Sun!"
...
That's all for now.
This arc will likely be longer than most, I'm building up to something devious and need to enjoy myself while I can.
Once shit hits the fan, I will not be able to make jokes for a hot minute, not with what I have planned.
Enjoy that suspense. Take it easy, and I'll see you all next time; cheers.
Discord:
/4edf44FSSn