Topaz finishes telling Summer and Tai how he and Neo met, and everything that she's told him. Tai turns to Neo absolutely furious, but before he can do anything, Topaz stands between them and Summer grabs his shoulder. Summer's face was calm, but she let out a tangible feeling that made everyone within its range shudder in fear.
Summer: "Tai. Dear. Would you mind explaining to me what you were planning on doing?"
Tai: "S-Summer, I wasn't planning on anything."
Summer: "Oh really? Then why did it look like you were going to try something on Neo?"
Tai: "But Summer, she worked with the guy that almost hurt Ruby. She in turn almost hurt our little flower."
Summer: "No buts Tai. Can't you see she cares for Topaz."
Tai: "Summer, she can-"
Summer: "You hush. I want grandbabies"
Tai: "..."
Summer: "Good, now behave yourself. Now you come here sweetie."
Summer rushes over to Neo and wraps her in a warm hug. Neo is surprised at first but Topaz can see that she quickly begins to enjoy it.
Summer: "Oh my gods, she smells like chocolate!"
Tai: "No way. Excuse me Neo. No, she smells like strawberries, what are you talking about Summer?"
Ariel: "Really, she's always smelled like vanilla to me?"
Everyone turns towards Topz, expecting him to give what she smells like to him.
Topaz: "She smells mostly like vanilla to me now. But when I met her the first time, it was strawberries, then vanilla the second time. It's easy to tell her scent apart from vanilla being used in cooking I found out. She smells nice and it's calming, same with Ariel."
Neo and Ariel blush at his complement, and Summer gives Topaz a knowing smirk.
Summer: "Well I think that settles it Tai. We are taking Neo home with us. It's obvious all three of them care for each other."
Tai: *sigh* "Yeah, you're right."
Summer: "Hey Topaz, have you had any strange dreams or headaches recently?"
Topaz: "Umm, no. Nothing out of the ordinary. Why?"
Summer: "Oh no reason."
Summer leans over to Tai and whispers in his ear.
Summer: "Didn't the note say 16?"
Tai: "I think so."
Summer frowns before looking over to Topaz. Noticing he overheard them her eyes go wide.
Topaz: "What note? And what about 16?"
Summer: "I'm sorry Topaz, but we can't say."
Topaz: "Why, hearing you say that made me feel like something was missing. I felt the same as I did when I first arrived at your house those many years ago. I feel empty."
Summer and Tai blink in surprise when he says that. Ariel and Neo walk over to him and give him a hug to try and cheer him up.
Summer: *Sigh* "Ok Topaz. The note was from your mother."
Now it was Topaz's turn to be surprised.
Topaz: "M-My mother? B-But you said you didn't know anything about my birth family."
Summer: "I know what we said sweetheart. It's something we aren't supposed to talk about until you remember."
Topaz: "So I'm just supposed to remember everything that I don't know at some point? I'm sorry, but that's so hard to believe. You can just say you don't want to talk about it you know. It would hurt less than being lied to."
Summer: "Topaz."
Summer reaches out to grab Topaz, but retracts her arm before she touches him. Topaz shakes his head and turns away. He grabs Neo and gives her a warm hug and kisses her on the cheek.
Topaz: "It was nice to see you guys, please take care of Neo. Goodbye."
Without waiting for their reply Topaz walks off, not knowing where he is going. Making his way into the forest near Beacon, he climbs a tree and lies down. He eventually falls asleep, wondering just who he is really. Waking up a few hours later, Topaz feels his scroll going off. He looks at it and sees a message from both Neo and Ariel.
{Ariel: Topaz you ok? I'm at the dorm room if you need to talk. Love you.)
(Neo: Topaz, I'm sorry for causing you trouble. Your parents are treating me very well and have been debating about whether or not they should call you. Please be ok, you're my hero, so no matter what your past holds, I will always love and support you.}
Topaz smiles when he reads the messages. He quickly replies to Neo telling her to stop blaming herself, that it wasn't her fault. It would have happened regardless. Topaz then jumps out of the tree and makes his way back to his dorm room. Opening the door, he sees Nova and Scarlett asleep on Nova's bed and Ariel staring off into space. He walks over to Ariel and kisses her temple to draw her attention.
Ariel: "Topaz! You ok?"
Topaz: "Honestly, I don't know. I'm sorry for worrying you, I just needed some time to think."
Ariel: "It's ok Topaz. I will here for you if you need me. Anytime."
Topaz: "Thanks Ariel. I'm just worried that my past holds something dark. I don't want to remember if it causes you to be scared of me."
Ariel: "Topaz, you're overthinking everything again. I don't care what happened in your past, and I know that Neo feels the same. I fell in love with who you are now. Knowing your past won't change who you are now. I don't think I could ever be scared of you."
Topaz: "I don't deserve you or Neo. You're both too good to me."
Ariel: "You shut up. All three of us are lucky to have each other. I love you."
Topaz: "I love you too."
The two hugged each other and relaxed late into the night. Before heading to bed, Topaz sends a message to Neo, wishing her a goodnight and sweet dreams. Ariel snuggles into his chest and the two drift off to sleep. Waking up the next morning, Topaz opens his eyes and sees Ariel still sleeping. He smiles and gently gets up, making sure to not wake her up. After successfully getting out of bed, Topaz begins getting ready for his teams match later in the day. After mentally preparing himself, Topaz grabs his scroll and sends Neo a good morning message.
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Port: "Ladies and gentlemen! I am Professor Port, and along with me again today is Professor Ooblek."
Ooblek: "Doctor!"
Port: "Yes, doctor. My bad. Anyways, today we have a match between two of Beacon's very own. We have team CRDL facing off against team SATN!"
Ooblek: "Yes, yes. This should prove to be very exciting for everyone."
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[Somewhere in Mistral]
In a small room, a man and woman are sitting on a loveseat watching the tournament at Beacon. Much to their surprise they recognize a boy who stands on the arena floor.
????: "Hey Sally, is that who I think it is?"
Sally: "I-I think so. I can't believe it. After so long we finally see him. Mike, it looks like he's doing well."
Mike: "Yes, it does. I'm relieved to know that he was able to survive after his escape and make it back to his family."
Sally: "Do you think he'd recognize us?"
Mike: "I think he would, he's a smart kid, but I don't think he would be very happy to see us."
Sally: "That's true. The last time he saw us was when he was being held by Jacques Schnee. You as his trainer and me as a maid. I wish we could thank him though, his escape allowed us to be released from that monster's hold."
Mike: "Very true. Maybe someday we can try and contact him."
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[In Patch: At the Rose/Xiao Long household]
A familiar group of three sit on the couch in the living room, watching the tournament.
Summer: "Woo-hoo! Kick their butts Topaz!"
Tai: "Summer, you should take Neo as an example and relax."
Summer: "Tai, Neo is just as excited as I am. She just can't voice it like I can, so I have to cheer for the both of us. Right Neo."
Neo smiles and nods to Tai's dismay.
Tai: "Fine, I will support him quietly."
Summer: "You will support him verbally, and will not complain about it. Understand?"
Tai: "Yes Summer."
Summer: "Good boy."
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The crowd in Amity Arena roars with their excitement. Topaz looks around and sees the large amount of people all staring at him, his team and their opponents. The noise of the crowd in his chest does little to suppress the excitement he feels inside.
Scarlett: "Alright team. Let's show Remnant what we can do."
The two teams stand on opposite sides of the arena, waiting to see what terrain they will be fighting on. Topaz looks on the screen that will say what terrain they'll be on. Seeing it stop on a heavy forest and mountain he chuckles. He turns to Scarlett and gives her a suggestion.
Topaz: "Scarlett, I'm going to use hit and run tactics in the forest to frustrate them and take out whoever I can. You guys stick in the mountainous area and do what you guys do best."
Scarlett: "Sounds like a plan."
Nova: "They will never know what hit them, literally in your case."
Ariel: "Be careful Topaz."
Topaz stretches and waits for the match to start. Hearing Professor Port finish the story he was telling he takes a deep breath and waits.
Port: "The match will begin in 3...2...1... START!"