AN: Okay, we're back on track. Well, as on track as we can be. With how much y'all love this, I'm of course doing my best to make this, along with Book 3 of the Age of Heroes series a priority. However, if you ever want to see different things, feel free to follow and favorite to see what other stuff comes out of my demented, scatter-brained imagination. Anyways, enjoy the chapter. And if you like this, check out my Age of Heroes series on Amazon, by Nicholas Drew (yours truly).

Chapter 67: Cedric Keeper

Around the same time, in the kingdom of Atlas, Weiss Schnee was enjoying a nice cup of tea with her mother. Klein Siebold, their butler, poured cups for both with the happiest smile on his face she had seen in a long time. Willow Schnee coughed awkwardly, getting her daughter's attention. Weiss winced slightly when she saw her hand shake as she held onto the cup. It would appear that quitting cold turkey (booze) was a bit rough for her. But the fact she was trying so hard for Weiss's sake made Weiss so happy.

"So, now that you've gotten settled back in, what would you like to do, today?" Willow asked. "We can do whatever you want, Weiss?"

"I mean, I'm fine with anything as long as we do it together, Mother." Weiss promised.

"I see," Willow nodded, "well that's good to hear, considering we're hopefully going to have a third party that should be arriving soon."

"Hmm? A third party?" Weiss was confused.

Klein then suddenly returned with a bow. "Lady Willow," he said, "Master Whitley has arrived."

"Whitley?" Weiss gasped.

"As you know, Whitley has been in boarding school while you were at Beacon." Willow reminded her. "I know this may sound strange to you, but Whitley went through a lot as well."

"What do you mean?" Weiss asked.

"Well, once you left for Beacon, your father turned his attention to Whitley." Willow sighed. "Which in any other situation would be great for a child, but as we both know, is terrible. The poor thing has been through a lot, trying to shoulder your father's insane expectations."

Weiss winced at this. She had honestly never thought of that. Willow saw the guilty look on her face and smiled reassuringly.

"Don't blame yourself, Weiss," she promised, "you had no way of knowing how your father would react and how things would affect Whitley. And in the end, I'm far more responsible than you. I should've stepped up, but I was in no shape to care for any of you."

At that moment, a young white-haired boy with a visibly confused expression on his face entered the room. Weiss's eyes widened. Whitley Schnee, her younger brother, had grown up some in the year she had been away at Beacon. Whitley's eyes widened when he saw one of his older sisters.

"Is that you, Weiss?" Whitley said in surprise. "I didn't expect you back here."

"I…wanted to spend my term break here." Weiss replied. "I'm surprised to see you, Whitley. You look…different since I last saw you."

"I…did some growing up while you were gone." Whitley tried to sound stoic and sure of himself, but was failing in the face of seeing a pairing he never expected. So, he turned to his mother. "I'm surprised to see you here though, mother. And you're drinking tea…that is something I never thought I'd see."

Weiss had to speak up at this. "Don't be so rude, Whitley!" She chided. "You should know that mother has felt awful about all of that!"

"It's okay, Weiss." Willow smiled reassuringly. "Whitley has every right to say such things, considering I was never there for him."

Whitley was taken aback by Willow's calmness and maturity. Was this really his alcoholic mother?

"Whitley," Willow said gently, "Weiss and I are going to spend the day together. I was wondering if you were willing to join us?"

"You…want to spend the day with us?" Whitley was stunned to hear this.

Willow nodded. "I know I messed up as your mother. I abandoned you all when you needed your mother the most to drown in my own sorrows. That was wrong of me. I shouldn't have let my own pain distract me from what you all were going through. So, I'm trying to get sober while trying to patch things up with all of you."

"I…see." Whitley muttered.

"You don't have to force yourself if you don't want to." Willow promised. "Just know that I'll make myself available if you ever want to do something with me. I know it's a lot to ask, but I would like to try and be a proper mother to all of you again."

Weiss gasped softly when she saw the genuinely shocked look on Whitley's face. Whitley seemed to be in deep thought. He then coughed awkwardly.

"If you give me some time to get settled in, I would like to visit Winter." He admitted. "I owe my eldest sister a visit at the hospital, right?"

Willow smiled. "Sounds good." She promised.

Weiss could not help but smile. Slowly but surely, she found herself believing that it really was possible for them to become a proper family, sans her father.

Meanwhile, back at Thimble, Ruby Rose stood proud, enjoying her moment of triumph. The boy behind her looked at his savior in disbelief. She smiled down at him.

"You okay?" She asked gently. The boy nodded dumbly. Ruby giggled. "No need to thank me. All in a day's work for your average, ordinary, everyday Huntress."

The boy just looked up at Ruby in shock. Taiyang and Yang ran up to Ruby. Yang had a look that was torn between proud and annoyed. Meanwhile, Tai just looked annoyed.

"You brought Crescent Rose?" Tai asked incredulously. "You brought Crescent Rose on a family vacation?"

Ruby laughed uncomfortably. Yang's expression went full-annoyed at her laughter.

"Come on, Rubes, for real?" She sighed in exasperation. "The whole point of this vacation is to relax. You can't relax if you bring your weapon."

"Nonsense!" Ruby gasped dramatically. "I can only relax when my sweetheart is right next to me! Crescent Rose is…an emotional support weapon!"

"That's not a thing!" Tai exclaimed while Zwei whined at the idea of being replaced by some other emotional support thing. And he was not even officially used for emotional support.

At that moment, the shopkeeper of the bakery that the boy had robbed before the attack came out of his shop, after he saw the danger had passed. With the danger over, he could focus on what was important: punishing that boy for his robbery.

"You!" He pointed furiously at the boy. "You thief! Don't think a near death experience is going to stop you from paying for stealing from me!"

"Oh come on," Tai's paternal instincts kicked in as he stepped between the baker and the boy, "the kid just escaped with his life and you're freaking out over some bread? Don't you think you're being a little unfair right now?"

"That bread is my life blood, stay out of this!" The baker shouted. "How about he steals something from you and we see how you feel?"

"Okay, okay," Tai groaned, "look, how much did the kid steal? How about I pay it off and we call it even, okay?"

The baker glared at Tai. He then told Tai the amount. Tai quickly paid off the amount the boy had stolen. Before the baker left, he had one last thing to say to the boy.

"I'm still going to talk to that damn caretaker of yours at the orphanage! She clearly needs to keep you on a shorter leash you brat!" The baker then turned and almost tripped over the Grimm's body. "What the…why hasn't this damn thing evaporated!"

As the baker walked away, Tai's attention was drawn to the Grimm. His expression soured when he saw that the monster had not vanished into darkness at all, like most Grimm did when they were slain. Why? Before Tai could answer his own question, a crowd started to form. He winced at the sight.

This defeats the purpose of a vacation. He lamented.

"Disperse, please." A curt voice cut through the crowd. "Please disperse. Official Huntsmen, coming through."

At that moment a woman wearing a forest green pantsuit and a tie that reminded Ruby of tree bark broke from the crowd. She had a bespectacled face and brown hair cut into an asymmetrical bob. Her expression was severe. It was so severe, Ruby actually was more intimidated by her than she was of Glynda Goodwitch, if that was even possible. Tai, on the other hand, was actually smiling, having recognized the woman.

"Gardenia LeSouhait? It's good to see you again!" He exclaimed.

The woman named Gardenia gave Tai a brief glance before turning her attention to the body of the Grimm. Tai was briefly hurt by the fact she basically gave him the cold shoulder, but he did notice she was also curious about this unique Grimm. At that moment, a few more Huntsmen broke from the crowd.

"Take the body to the local coroner." She ordered. "Perhaps he can get some answers."

The Huntsmen nodded and took the body. The crowd parted, allowing them through with no resistance. Gardenia then turned her attention to the Rose-Xiao Long Family. Her attention was particularly on Ruby.

"I suppose I should praise you for saving the boy's life. Well done." She told her. Ruby blushed briefly, only to be brought right down to Earth by what she said next. "However, please note that we do not normally endorse vigilantism. If you lack a license, then legally you shouldn't be doing such things."

Is this woman Professor Goodwitch's long-lost twin or something? Ruby sweat-dropped.

Gardenia then briefly turned to Yang. She studied her for a moment. Then she turned to Tai. Yang's mouth dropped open.

That is rude! She exclaimed inwardly.

"Taiyang," she said to Ruby and Yang's dad, "I see the rumor is true. You really did philander with both Raven Branwen and Summer Rose."

Tai sputtered at this. Ruby and Yang both sweat-dropped at how blunt this woman was. She was officially more severe than Glynda was, with a low blow like that.

"It's not like I dated them both at the same time." Tai said in his defense. Gardenia let out a sharp humph. Tai regained his composure and smiled. "I had heard rumors you had returned to the Huntsmen game. Good to see you back in the field, Gardenia."

Tai turned to his daughters, who were visibly baffled by the relationship their dad had with this woman in particular. Zwei, for his part, seemed to be closely studying the woman, trying to figure out if she was a new friend or not.

"Girls, allow me to introduce an old classmate of mine." Tai smiled politely. "This is Gardenia LeSouhait. After graduation, she chose not to go into the field of Huntsmen work and ended up working a regular 9 to 5 job. But, she was damn good at what she did when she was in school, and I don't doubt for a second she hasn't lost a step."

Tai then turned back to Gardenia. Gardenia seemed bored at Tai's description of her, but she at least stood at attention when he addressed her directly.

"If you don't mind me asking, where would you say you rank in Soul Class at the moment." He inquired curiously.

"B-Class." Gardenia said curtly.

B-Class? That caught Ruby's attention. Then that means, she's as strong as Professor Kobalt! That's incredible!

"Umm, so what was your time at Beacon like?" Ruby suddenly asked.

If she's as good as Professor Kobalt, then I have to know what her journey was like. Maybe I can get some pointers from her? She wondered.

"You want to know what my time at Beacon was like?" Gardenia raised an eyebrow.

Ruby nodded eagerly. Gardenia adjusted her glasses. She then approached Ruby. Ruby could have sworn she saw what looked like three green stars tattooed on her neck. Gardenia studied Ruby for a moment before responding.

"I went to Beacon Academy at the same time as your father." She explained. "And during my time at Beacon, I learned one thing."

"And that is?" Ruby asked eagerly.

"Huntsmen suck." Gardenia bluntly replied.

Ruby and Yang's jaws dropped in disbelief at that response. Tai sweat-dropped. She had not changed a bit. Not in the slightest.

"So, after I graduated, I decided to get a normal job and live a normal life. That was when I learned something else." Gardenia's expression darkened. "Working for a living also sucks."

So she's incapable of making up her mind? Yang frantically wondered.

"With that in mind," Gardenia sighed, "I decided that since both suck, I would choose the profession I was good at, and more importantly didn't suck out my soul."

"That is not a ringing endorsement of the workforce." Yang muttered under her breath.

"Now, to be clear about one thing, regarding my relationship with your father, he was a very talented and reliable classmate during our school days together." Gardenia admitted. Then, her expression darkened again. "But I wouldn't trust a single member of Team STRQ with anything outside of combat. They were the least mature, least reliable bunch of people I had ever laid eyes on, and your father was no different."

"Huh?!" Tai's jaw dropped. He never knew that was how Gardenia felt about him.

Gardenia then looked at Ruby once more. Ruby winced slightly at the way she was looking at her. Gardenia looked like she was studying her. In fact, that was probably exactly what she was doing. It made her more uncomfortable than it should have. Perhaps it was because of how much this woman reminded her of Professor Goodwitch? The only difference was that Ruby had the opportunity to get to know Glynda as a person. Gardenia, not so much. Gardenia then surprised her with a curt nod.

"Your Summer's daughter, right? When she graduated from Beacon, she was the finest student in her class." Gardenia bluntly told her. "I certainly cannot tell you you're anywhere near her level. However, she would've dispatched that beast just as quickly, maybe even quicker."

Ruby cocked her head in confusion. Was that a compliment, or a put down? She honestly could not tell. They then heard the voice of someone else.

"Vice Director LeSouhait? The police are expecting a report." A Huntsman stated.

"Fine, fine," Gardenia turned away from Ruby and her family. However, she had one last thing to say to them. "Take the boy home. There is an orphanage on the edge of town. I'll cover for you all and say the one who slew this beast already left. You're here on vacation, right? That much is obvious. Take the boy there and then focus on your vacation."

With that, Gardenia returned to her fellow Huntsmen. Tai lowered his head, dejected from hearing how that woman actually felt about him.

"Did I actually have a worse reputation than Qrow when we were at school? I've gotta start calling up my old classmates and getting their honest opinion on me." He muttered.

Yang patted Tai on the shoulder. "Come on, Mr. Mopey, we've got more important things to worry about."

Ruby then turned back to the still shocked boy. She found herself wondering how best to handle this. She thought back on Yang, who basically raised her alongside their dad, especially during the moments where he had basically shut down. So, in this moment, she channeled her older sister. So, she started by getting on the boy's level, kneeling down to look him in the eye.

"It's okay, we'll take you home." She promised. "Can you take us there?"

The boy nodded. "What's your name?" Ruby asked him.

"Umm…Cedric." The boy replied. "Cedric Keeper."

"It's nice to meet you, Cedric," Ruby said sweetly, "my name is Ruby. This is my big sister, Yang, our dog, Zwei, and our dad, Taiyang. But you better call him Mr. Xiao Long or Mr. Tai, okay?"

Zwei barked and happily ran up to Cedric. Cedric finally seemed to let down his defenses and let Zwei give him his own brand of affection.

"I can take you all there." He promised.

Cedric started walking away in the direction of the orphanage. Yang and Tai looked at each other in bewilderment while Ruby just happily followed behind with Zwei trotting next to her. Tai frowned slightly at what he perceived to be rudeness. The boy had not even thanked Ruby for saving his life yet.

He's just a kid, Tai told himself, try to offer a little bit of grace, Tai.

With that, Tai and Yang followed behind Ruby, Zwei and Cedric. As the group made their way to the orphanage, Ruby surprised her sister and father by trying to strike up a conversation.

"So you live in an orphanage?" Ruby asked. "I'm sorry to hear that."

Cedric shrugged. "It's just a stupid building." He pointed out. "I mean, we're all there because our parents are either dead or don't care about us. And, if you're still there, that means basically nobody cares about you, other than Miss Gosling of course."

Ruby winced. Perhaps that was the wrong thing to start the conversation with?

"So, she's a good caretaker." Ruby noted.

Cedric nodded. "She's nice enough, and she tries her best." He replied. "But things have been tough lately."

"Is that why you stole from that bakery?" Tai frowned. "You know, little kids shouldn't be doing such awful things."

"And what would you know about what little kids shouldn't do, stupid old man?" Cedric snapped back, making Tai's mouth drop.

"I mean…I raised two kids." Tai muttered in defeat. "I'm a single dad."

"Then…help us understand." Ruby smiled politely and patiently. "Why did you do it?"

I've already experienced some truly evil people with equally evil motives. And I've also met plenty of evil men with genuinely sad motives too. Whatever made this boy do it, can't be anywhere near what drove Cinder to such awful things.

The group passed a sign post. Cedric gestured to it. Ruby looked off to the side and her eyes widened. It was a missing poster of a girl who looked even younger than Cedric. Beneath it was a missing poster of an adult male.

"People have been disappearing lately, including kids from the orphanage. I know the little girl on that poster. And I saw that grown-up once or twice around town." Cedric explained in a dispassionate tone of voice. "They never found any of the kids…or the adults either. Everyone just goes about their business, making this stupid town look nice for stupid people like all of you."

What a rude little boy! Tai and Yang thought in unison.

"If they don't care, why should I?" Cedric scoffed before heaving a sigh. "Besides, any food the orphanage has should be given to the younger kids instead."

"That's sweet, but don't you think when you act up like this, you worry your caretaker?" Ruby asked curiously. The boy looked at her in shock. "I mean, you clearly think the world of her. Don't you think you owe it to her not to worry you by acting out?"

Does…my socially awkward little sister have a hidden talent in dealing with kids? Yang looked at Ruby in amazement. She then sweat-dropped. Little kids are awkward little monsters. Is she good with them because she can relate?

"I…never really thought of it like that." Cedric admitted.

"We're going to have to tell her, you know." Ruby told him. "Perhaps we can give her the full story before that baker overreacts and gives her a more embellished story?"

Cedric nodded. "But before we get there, how about you tell me more about yourself." Ruby said to him. "Do you have any board games you like to play at the orphanage? Do you like to play outside? Do you have any friends you like to play with?"

Little by little, Cedric was opening up to Ruby. The boy even eventually picked up Zwei as they continued to walk, holding the corgi close to him. Tai watched with pride as his daughter displayed a talent even he did not know she had. Eventually, they arrived at a two story building. It had some wear and tear on it, but it thankfully still looked habitable. At that moment, Tai took the lead and knocked on the door. They heard the voice of an adult woman on the other side.

"Coming!"

The door swung open inwardly. Cedric lowered his head in shame as a blonde, blue-eyed woman in a tattered white dress opened the door.

"Umm…hello, I'm Citrine Gosling." The woman introduced herself. "May I help you?"

"Hi there, Ms. Gosling. We were just taking one of your charges, Cedric, back here." Tai told her.

Citrine gasped and looked past Tai. She saw Cedric, trying to hide his face from her. Her face fell. Ruby winced, realizing immediately that Citrine knew why he was here like this.

"Oh, Cedric, what did you do this time?" She asked.

Cedric grumbled. "I…um…I stole some bread from the bakery in town." He said awkwardly.

Citrine shook her head. "Come now, dear, what have I told you about stealing? You're setting an awful example for the younger ones when you do stuff like that."

Cedric sputtered, unable to answer. Tai coughed, getting Citrine's attention. Tai forgot about the boy's rudeness and smiled pleasantly at the woman.

"It's fine though, I paid for what he stole." He promised. "Not only that, but he was attacked by a Grimm, and my daughter here saved his life."

Citrine gasped. "That's awful." She looked Cedric up and down. "But it looks like you're safe, so that's good."

Citrine then turned to Ruby. She smiled gratefully at the young girl.

"You have my eternal gratitude for saving one of my charges, dear. Thank you." She said sweetly.

"Hold up!" Yang yelled. "Why'd you immediately guess she was the one? Look at me! I'm, like, way more muscular! I'm a Huntress too, ya know!"

"I'm sorry," Citrine laughed nervously, "I mean, I had a 50/50 chance at guessing correctly, you know. And, she is carrying a bag that I can only assume has her weapon of choice inside."

Ruby held her hand out. She puffed her chest out, laughing triumphantly at Yang's expression.

"Well, you would be correct," she said as she extended her hand, "my name is Ruby Rose. There's no need for thanks. I'm just doing my job as a Huntress-in-training."

Citrine looked at Ruby's hand. She smiled nervously and took Ruby's hand.

"It's very nice to meet you, Ruby." She said sweetly, shaking it.

This had the unfortunate effect of making Citrine's long sleeves ride up, revealing white feathers covering her flesh. Ruby and Yang both gasped at the sight.

"Whoa, you're a Faunus!" Ruby gasped. "And you're a bird! I know a cat!"

"Moron," Yang smacked Ruby across the back of her head, "don't word it like that. Blake's not here to criticize you so I'll do it in her place."

"Oh, no, it's fine." Citrine laughed. "I'm a Goose Faunus. But, I'm sure you both can agree that for the sake of the children I look after, what I am doesn't matter in the slightest."

"Oh, absolutely!" Ruby said eagerly. "One of my best friends is a Faunus, and she's one of the coolest ever!"

Citrine seemed to calm considerably upon hearing this. Her smile became less nervous and far more bright and happy.

"Would you all perhaps like to come inside?" She offered. "I could whip up something for you all real quick and maybe you could all say hi to the children too. They all think Huntsmen are pretty cool, especially ever since that bureau set itself up here."

Cedric had to balk at that. "Ms. Gosling, no! All the food should be for the kids!"

"Cedric, don't be rude to guests." Citrine chided.

"We couldn't possibly impose." Taiyang promised. "And besides, we're kinda here on a family vacation that we'd love to get back to."

"I could come by another time." Ruby offered. "I mean, we're going to be in Thimble awhile, so I can come by and visit whenever I can until our vacation is over."

Cedric finally returned to Citrine's side, putting down Zwei in the process. Citrine smiled and nudged her charge.

"Well, what do you think, Cedric?" She asked. "Would you like her to come by and visit? That would make the children happy, don't you think?"

Cedric huffed and turned away. "I mean, yeah it would make the other kids happy." He acknowledged. "But, it's not the end of the world if I don't see her again."

With that, Cedric reentered the orphanage. Tai and Yang could not resist glaring at the boy as he left.

What a rude kid. The two thought in unison.

"I'm sorry about him," Citrine said with a laugh, "he's had a rough life. He lost his parents to a Grimm attack on a nearby settlement, and that's how he ended up here. In fact, that was how the Huntsman Bureau here in Thimble came to be."

"Grimm attacks round these parts?" Tai was surprised. "That's unheard of. Thimble and the immediate area around it has always been peaceful. That's what made Thimble such a draw for tourists in the first place."

"Between that and the increase in missing persons, things have been scary lately." Citrine's face fell. "I've been unable to sleep some nights, wondering where the little ones I was supposed to look after went."

"Are you the only one here?" Tai asked.

"I unfortunately can't afford to hire an assistant." Citrine admitted.

"Believe in the Huntsmen here!" Ruby piped up. Citrine looked at Ruby in surprise. "I'm sure they'll solve the mystery in no time."

"I'm sure you're right, dear." Citrine smiled. She turned her attention back to Tai. "Please enjoy your family vacation. And please do consider my offer to come by and spend time with the children if it's not too inconvenient. The last thing I want is to cut in on your family time more than I already have."

"I was just doing my job, I promise. And I also promise to strongly consider coming back here for the kids." Ruby smiled brightly. "Have a nice day, Ms. Gosling."

With that, the Rose-Xiao Long family left the Gosling Orphanage behind. Tai took a deep breath. He cleared his throat to get Ruby's attention.

"Yeah, Dad?" She asked curiously.

"Look Ruby, I had planned this trip for the four of us to just relax and forget about stuff like Huntsmen and Grimm…and really the rest of the world." Tai admitted. "But, if you want to drop by at that place on occasion and play with those kids, I won't stop you. Especially if that's your idea of relaxing."

"I mean, I don't want to cut in on our family vacation too. It's been way too long since we've had something like that." Ruby admitted. "But…it would make those kids really happy, so I suppose I would love to try and do something for them as much as possible."

Tai gasped in surprise as Ruby blushed. Her expression turned wistful.

"I can't really explain it," she continued, "but…for some reason, the thought of bringing smiles to the faces of those kids, it makes my heart soar. Just the thought of brightening up their day is making me melt."

Tai had to laugh at that. Ruby turned as red as her namesake at that.

"I'm pouring my heart out and you're just laughing at me? You're awful, Dad! The worst!" She exclaimed.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Tai wiped a tear from his eyes, "it's just…at that moment, you were just like your mother. Summer loved kids. She loved how they laughed and smiled. She even loved when they acted out and got rebellious. She thought that was cute. Summer also used to tell me this story about a family she used to visit. They had this newborn son that she loved to play with…"

Tai trailed off. He turned white as a sheet.

That was the moment she decided she wanted a baby of her own. I don't think Ruby needs to hear a story like that. Kids really did not need to hear the moment their parents decided to conceive them. Way too embarrassing. For both the kids, and for the parents.

You are way too easy to read sometimes, Dad. Just be glad Ruby's a bit dense. Yang glared at her dad, knowing exactly what he was thinking.

"So Mom was like that, huh?" Ruby mused to herself.

Sharing something like that with her…it kinda makes me feel a bit closer with her. Ruby admitted to herself.

"I think we've still got a few more shops to check out." Tai quickly changed the subject. "We can head back to the cabin afterwards and unpack everything we've bought so far."

"Sounds good to me!" Ruby exclaimed with a cheer.

Nice save you big goober. Yang shook her head with a fond smile on her face as the Xiao Long-Rose made their way back to town.

Meanwhile, at Thimble's local coroner's office, Gardenia LeSouhait had a perplexed look on her face as she was called in to speak with the coroner. She was not surprised to get a call about the body of that Grimm she had sent in to be examined. She was soon greeted by the coroner, who had a very serious expression on his face.

"What is it?" She asked.

"Well, Ms. LeSouhait, I'm going to be honest with you." The coroner said to her. "When you sent that body in for my examination, I was at first excited. I know it sounds morbid, but the thought of being the first man to actually examine the corpse of a Grimm was exciting."

"So what went wrong?" Gardenia asked curiously.

"You…might want to see this." The coroner was paler than usual.

Gardenia's serious expression grew concerned as she followed the coroner into his examination room. She winced slightly at the corpse of the large Grimm.

"I see you needed two tables." She noted.

The coroner walked up to the Grimm and gestured for Gardenia to stand next to him. As Gardenia made her way towards him, he spoke.

"Once we brought it in, I immediately performed an autopsy to try and learn about this creature to see what makes it tick. That was when I made a horrifying discovery. Please take a look at where I made the incision."

Gardenia reached the coroner's side and looked over the giant body of the Grimm. She saw the incision and her eyes widened in horror. The normally stoic woman felt sick to her stomach as she saw what was inside the incision.

"It can't be." She muttered under her breath.

"I checked to confirm," the coroner said grimly, "inside of this creature's body are internal organs such as a heart and lungs. And upon further examination and finding more internal organs, I reached a conclusion that I never wanted to imagine."

"This Grimm was once human."

AN: And with that, shit just got real...again. I just want to say for the record though, this isn't a Hound situation.

Anywho, who isekai'd and genderbent Nanami from JJK? Oh, right, me. I wanted to base a character template off of him, because he's honestly one of my favorite characters in that series. He's such a mood. It's great.

But yeah, we've got more fairy tale based characters, and even a character that is a straight up Mother Goose reference. Internet's your friend, guys. Never be afraid to do research for the sake of your art. I do it.

Hope y'all enjoyed the chapter. I'll see you all next time.