Authors Note: Hi, I'm a horrible writer and would appreciate any criticisms given. This is my first fanfic and I hope you lovely deviants enjoy.
As with any start of year, Beacon academy's fleet of airships were full with eager young students bursting with energy. Those smart enough to get seats at the rear did, in order to avoid the pain of having to stand. Now for all of Beacon's prospective Huntresses and Huntsmen, began the long and anxious wait for them to finally arrive at the academy they would eat, sleep and train in.
The sound of the bustling barge caused Peri Winkle to cower in fear. He was trapped in a forest full of people far taller than him and it terrified the petite boy. Peri felt small and insignificant among a group that was far larger than his minute four foot, nine. Even with his bright blue hair, and eyes, Peri's size meant he would never stand out in a crowd. Closing his eyes and trying to breathe slowly didn't help either, he could feel the flying barge slowly meandering to its destination, Beacon. The academy had been somewhere Peri dreamed of going, it was his first step in the wider world, one where he was going to help ordinary people, kill Grimm, and have adventures with what would hopefully attractive group of girls. At least that was what the stories he'd heard back in Vacuo had told him.
But alas, Peri Winkle was now stuck having to face three fears at once, a trio of terror as it were, claustrophobia, an intense dislike of having to meet new people and flying. He realized the latter two were needing to be conquered at some time, but he hadn't thought that things would be this crowded.
Peri's thoughts were halted when he felt a knee brush up against his back, not a particularly hard feat since Peri was little under five foot tall. Normally this wouldn't have been so humiliating, had Peri, in the most embarrassing way ever, squealed, before looking at the knee's owner. The knee's owner chuckled and pushed Peri into a group of girls giggling at him, sending them all tumbling over into a dog pile.
Peri groaned and began to pick himself up, "S-sorry, I-I-"he was cut off by a cold slap across his cheeks.
"Clumsy idiot!" the girl shrieked, she had long white hair, braided to look like a princess, with a white dress to match. Peri briefly registered her beauty before realizing he shouldn't have been ogling a woman pissed at him and he began to full on grovel.
"I-I didn't mean to…." He whimpered, internally cursing himself for being such a wimp, this wasn't the way of the Huntsman, he should of tried to allocate blame
"Oh really now?" she asked, rolling her eyes, before picking herself up in a huff , Peri tried to do the same and looked back at the person who caused all of this. Across the divide Peri had caused, a giant, at least six foot nine was laughing. He wore a ragged maroon hoodie with a duffle bag, and red hair to match. Usually big men scared Peri alone, but there was another reason to dislike this one, his teeth, there was something about them, they weren't human teeth. They were serrated blades, the sort that could cut through tendons like butter.
Peri shivered a little as the giant then realized his victim was looking and gave the midget the most menacing scowl Peri had ever seen. His mouth closed, but it was clear that he didn't like the midget for some reason, perhaps it was an inquisitive glance that offended him, Peri didn't know. But considering it was little under an hour into his new career choice; and he'd probably already made two enemies. To be honest, Peri wasn't particularly enthused.
Hector Braun grinned as he sat back at the rear of the aircraft, he'd already collected quite a captive audience who hung onto his every word. "So is it true?" one boy asked, "That your great grandfather murdered a King Taijtu with nothing but his bare hands?"
Hector smiled a little "And," he began, pausing as the whole group leaned in, "He had a boarbadtusk on his left arm, mauling him, he lost two fingers, but he saved a whole village that day." There was an audible, gasp and Hector sat back, and this was what he loved to do, telling people he was related to Artemis Braun. The elder Braun was one of the founding members of the Atlas Huntsmen, hero of the Great War and industrialist.
One tall boy with short black looked at him, "Do you have any other stories about your grandad?" he asked, the whole group murmured in agreement. They were slaves to Hector's tales and the former was loving it.
Hector shrugged his broad shoulders, and pretended to toy with the idea. But he was already thinking about how he was going to tell them about the time his ancestor had fought off a battalion of regime troops in Mantle by himself. Hector ran his hand through his thick brown hair and leaned back, basking in the attention. His thoughts momentarily lapsed when a shorter girl with long black hair and a ribbon decorating it, began to hover around. Her figure was slim and elegant with a white and black dress complimenting her curves and pale skin. Hector was head over heels at this point, and winked at her. The response was obviously not reciprocated as she rolled those gorgeous yellow eyes.
"So, during the great war, my great grandfather, Artemis Braun," Hector began, in a loud, almost booming voice, "was in Mantle, liberating it from the oppressors who were killing people left, right and-"
"You mean Artemis Braun is your great grandfather?" the ribboned girl asked, Hector was taken off guard, but nonetheless nodded.
"Yeah, he is." Hector said in a slow voice, was she dense? He'd just said that.
"So your great grandfather served in Mantle to stop the Iron Warrior regime from mass murdering innocents, correct?" she asked, she was starting to give off the smuggest vibe Hector had ever experienced.
"Yes, yes he did, can I contin-" Before he could continue, he was cut off again.
"Well if he was there to save the people of Mantle from the evil government, why don't we mention the Atlas ghetto?" she asked, a smirk pursed across her lips in satisfaction, Hector meanwhile went white. The girl had referred to a part of history that his family preferred to keep a quieter than the other exploits of Artemis.
"What's the Atlas ghetto?" the tall boy asked, the whole audience seemed inquisitive over why their storyteller had suddenly gone whiter than an Atlas soldiers briefs.
"Well, in reparation for supposed slights against Atlas' human citizens, Artemis Braun took control of a platoon of soldiers and marched them to the old Faunas quarter of Atlas." She let the statement linger, it became apparent to anyone there, that she was receiving some kind of sadistic enjoyment out of this.
Hector finally found his voice, "No, no, please stop, there's no need to-"
She bit back "No need to what? Educate the public on history? Point out you erasing history?" she asked "Your great grandfather is a murderer and a thief whose legacy has been built on the hard work of others."
"T-that's not fair at all!" Hector angrily retorted.
"It is, and you know it." She shot back, "Your great grandfather, the great hero of Remnant was one of the worst war criminals of the war. The atrocities he committed were among the most bloody in the war." She then paused, Hector couldn't really reply to it, the newcomer had shattered the crowd's interest in hearing more, "The only reason he wasn't hung like the others was that he fought for the 'right' side."
Hector meekly gave up, and his former audience left his company to go talk elsewhere, he sighed and then looked up at the girl who'd given him so much grief. "Fucking hell..."