"In our minds, we seek absolute perfection; yet within the heart and soul sleeps a kind of beauty perfection can never comprehend."
A soft breeze ran through the snowy, white afternoon. The snowflakes fell ever-so-slowly upon the grounds of a primary combat school. Such a setting would be appropriate for the inhabitants of the northern portion of Remnant.
It was nearing 2:00 pm. Students were to be let out of their classes for a few minutes' break. One of these classes, in particular, held a student who would soon embark on the journey of a lifetime.
A history instructor sat on his desk in front of the class, wrapping up his review for an upcoming final exam.
"And finally, can anyone remind me just how Atlas became the new capital?"
Many hands shot into the air, but there was one who just sat, taking notes. And, like any teacher nowadays, this one points right at her. "Ms. Aubri!"
She looks around before finally noticing his eyes on her. She taps her pencil on her chin, and, before long, it hit her.
"Oh! It happened sometime after the Great War when the Cross Continental Transmit System was invented. Everyone adapted to the system's communication process by enhancing the campuses, research facilities, and military technology. Throughout that time, we became overshadowed, giving Atlas the title of 'new capital.'"
The instructor stares for a moment with one eyebrow raised, then nods with pursed lips. "That is correct; excellent job, as always!" As if on cue, a loud ringing echoes throughout the hallways. All of the other students pack their bags and begin to leave. "Alright, everyone; take it easy, and good luck!"
Once the place was cleared, Aubri decides to check her notes one last time. She skims through the pages in her notebook, completely unaware of the sound used to catch her attention. It wasn't until the second time that she heard, "Ahem!" and stopped.
She looks up and flinches. "Oh, sorry! I didn't know you were—"
"No need," he puts one hand up, "I just want you to know you're doing wonderful here, so don't push yourself so hard."
"Right…" She takes a deep breath and packs up. Once she makes her way to the door, she hears him say,
"If I could give you a tip: don't study today. You've worked hard enough to prepare for tomorrow; relax."
"Of course, thank you, professor."
Entering the hallway, Aubri pulls out her planner and flips through the pages. "Let's see, besides history, there's math, reading, and biology. But," she scratches her head, "there's something missing, I just know it. Ugh, this is one of the reasons why I can't 'take it easy.'" Her mind wanders off as she reaches her locker and packs her books inside. "Well, whatever it is, it's not gonna stop me from passing."
She pulls out Sun and Moon, her double-barreled pistols, still in their holsters. She secures them around her hips and closes the door. The moment she turns around,
BAM!
Her back slams into the lockers. Two girls beside her hold her arms as another head-butts her stomach, bringing her to her knees with a grunt. Taking shallow breaths, Aubri notices a pair of legs strutting toward her. Her brown eyes trail up to meet green eyes and a smirk.
"Well, look who it is! I heard you did well on today's review; good for you!" She said.
"What do you want, Sandy?" Aubri said while struggling to break free.
"Oh, I just wanted to drop by and see you: the incomparable Aubri Talia Azure, Atlas's finest, number four in the academy, might I add." Sandy waves her arms dramatically, her voice dripping with charm. "I must say, it must be wonderful to have everything in the palm of your hand; the teachers, the grades, the popularity. It's perfect, I mean it's what everyone calls you, but that, my dear," she chuckles, holding up one finger, "that's where they're wrong!"
"Cut to the chase; what are you going on about?"
"I'm merely getting at the places where you fall short. Now, let's see…" She counts her fingers, "There's your sense of direction; you have to have a good hand in strategy, and, so far, I've hardly seen any of that from you. I even heard you were quite temperamental: we can't be having that, now can we? Hm, what else?" Sandy taps her chin and paces back and forth, "I'm positive there was a third flaw, something very important for Huntsmen to have…"
One of the girls beside Aubri raises her hand and shouts with a gleam in her eyes,
"Ooh, ooh, I know! Maybe it's her Semblance?"
Sandy faces her victim and playfully gasps. "That's right, you still haven't discovered it yet, have you? How are you ever going to defend yourself on the battlefield without it?"
That struck a nerve, seeing as how Aubri broke free for a second before being pulled back. She hits the lockers once again, making her head pound slightly. With no other way to escape, she responds with a hint of optimism. "So what if I don't have a Semblance right now? It's nothing a little practice can't handle!"
Slightly taken aback, Sandy couldn't help but smirk again as she prepared her iron-clad comeback. "Is that a fact? We'll, you may want to hurry. You do know we have that one exam coming up, right? For combat class?"Aubri's eyes widen, and her heart stops for a moment. "Oh, don't tell me you forgot. You can't pass without that special power of yours, you know," Sandy shrugs, "Looks like you're not so perfect after all!"
With a snap of her fingers, the two girls finally release her arms. The gang leaves her on the ground, laughing until they were out of earshot. Clutching at her stomach, Aubri stands slowly and facepalms. How could she forget the most important exam of all? Without a Semblance, she can't graduate, and she'll have to retake combat class for another semester. She had to discover it and fast, so she decided to try and activate it after class. That way, she'll have all the time to herself.
The snow crunched beneath Aubri's feet as she dashed her way home from class. Normally she would've taken a ride home with one of her friends, but today was a bit special; besides, she doesn't live far.
Barging through the front door, she ran upstairs past a woman with a quick,
"Hi, mom! School was good!"
Her mom nearly stumbled from the impact, but she caught the railing just in time before calling out,
"Whoa, whoa! Slow down, you just got here!"
"Sorry…" Aubri stopped, "I have to study a bit more; it can't wait any longer."
"Again? You've done it since day one, you should already be prepared!"
"I know, but there's one thing I'm missing. I promise I'll stop after this."
Her mom sighs, "Okay, then."
Aubri smiles and runs inside her room. Shaking her head, her mom mutters,
"Just like her father…"
Aubri sits her backpack down and kicks off her shoes. Standing in the middle of her room, she closes her eyes and meditates on what her Semblance could possibly be. Many ideas light up inside her mind, such as deflection shields, ice manipulation, and even gravity burst. Seemingly indecisive, she tries them all to see if anything happens. And the first thing she chooses as a target is a chair near the window.
Anticipating whichever power would happen, the girl winds her shoulders back. She plants her feet a few inches apart and thrusts her arms toward it… nothing. She glances at her palms and tries again… still nothing. Maybe there was another way to activate it?
Aubri focuses harder on the chair and snaps her fingers much like Sandy did earlier. Like the other two times, nothing happened. Another idea came to mind. She closes her eyes and presses two fingers against her temples. Hoping to see shields or a frozen chair, she opens her eyes, but all she sees is the chair in the same place. Known for being so persistent, she tries other methods of activation. She keeps this up for fifteen minutes straight until she plops onto her bed with a huff.
"What am I doing wrong? Is my Semblance gonna show up or not?" She said to herself, "Can't it happen before tomorrow? I don't wanna have to repeat a semester, not when I'm so close to the end!" Her head starts pounding, the temperature rising from within. The moment she notices, she takes deep breaths. "Get it together, Aubri…" All of this was starting to get to her, so she decides to quit for now and go in the kitchen.
After going downstairs, she walks in, hearing the sound of a sizzling frying pan and smelling her favorite food. She grabs a bottle of water from the refrigerator and sits at the table. Her mom heads toward her with two plates full.
"Done already? Must've been easy." She said.
"Nah, just needed a break." Aubri smiles at the sautéed shrimps, fries, and cole slaw sitting in front of her. She grabs a fork and picks up a couple of fries. Before she could even start eating, a question clouded her mind, one she just had to ask.
"Hey, mom…"
"Hmm?" Her mom responded, chewing.
"How… how did you discover your Semblance?"
Her mother gulps and takes a few sips of water. "Well, it took some time, but it happened after I met your father. We were in the Atlesian army, and I saved him from a life-threatening condition during one of our missions. He would've taken his last breath had I not felt some sort of energy burst from my hand into his body. No one believed their eyes until a second incident similar to that one occurred. That's pretty much how quick recovery became my special ability."
Chewing the fries, Aubri couldn't help but think about how long it took. What if she had to wait so many years for her Semblance to activate for the first time? And how could someone survive without it for so long?
"I know what you're thinking…" The sound of her mom's voice brought her back into reality. "Just because it took me so long doesn't mean it will take you long. Everyone's different…" She lays a hand on her daughter's and smiles warmly, "It'll happen at the right moment, I'm sure of it."
Swallowing the fries, Aubri stares at the plate, worrying and hoping she was right. This was the perfect opportunity for her mom to change the subject as she let go of her hand. "So, have you decided where you want to go after all this?"
The Atlesian student knew this question would come sooner or later. Stammering, she responds, "I-uh… well…"
"If not, there's always Atlas Academy. You won't have to worry about the cost of the dorm room. I can help pay for it, or you can just stay here and commute if you'd like."
"While I appreciate the help, mom, I… I think I want to go somewhere else."
Aubri's mom looks at her in a bit of shock. "Really? Where to?"
Aubri fiddles with her fork hesitatingly before looking in her mom's eyes. "I was thinking… Beacon?" Expecting some sort of negative response, she recoils into her seat.
"Go for it!"
"Huh?"
"You heard me! Don't let anyone stop you!" Aubri stares as her mom leans closer, her face serious. "You listen to me, Aubri; in life, there's only one person who can determine how your journey goes from here. You're that one person, not your teachers, not your classmates, and not your family. You want to go there, then go there!"
Aubri relaxes. "Oh, okay then."
Aubri's mom leans back and rests her head on her hand. "My girl's going to Beacon Academy, isn't that something? I remember when you hated seeing blood, and here you are getting ready to slay monsters. This reminds me of the time your father and I gave you flax flowers on your sixteenth birthday."
Aubri facepalms. "Oh, no, not this story again!"
"We tried to warn you about the thorns, but you got so excited that you grabbed them and pricked your fingers. And then you fainted the moment you saw the wounds. All I could do was laugh; you should've seen the look on your face!"
"That was then. I'm seventeen now, things have changed."
"I can see that. I trust my daughter enough to have her succeed on her own; heck, I've seen you do it when you started this school. If you've worked hard enough to rank second now, imagine what you'll do next! There's a big world out there for you to explore, take that advantage and run as far as you can. Just try not to become overwhelmed by all the new people; I don't want anyone calling me saying you blacked out all of a sudden!"
"Mom!" Aubri yells as her mom laughs heartily.
"But, all jokes aside, you're gonna do great! Like I've said before, you're prepared!" Aubri nods slowly as they finish their meal.
Aubri did just as her instructor and mother said; she relaxed. There was no need to cram anything and end up stressing it anyway. Time passed quickly, and the day of the finals had arrived. She fastened Sun and Moon on her hips and walked to combat class for the exam. Anxious faces and conversations filled the room the moment she entered and sat at the front. Before long, the bell rang and the instructor called out,
"Okay, settle down, class. This is it, your final exam." She pulls out a bowl with small, folded pieces of paper inside. "It's gonna be just like every other time you took my courses, only this time, you'll have a full-fledged battle against a random opponent. Also, I want to see you implement your Semblance at least once. Here in this bowl are everyone's names. Whoever's name I draw with your own, that's who you'll go against today. The winner will receive bonus points on his or her exam. Good luck!"
Beads of sweat trickle down everyone's faces as the instructor swirled the papers around. She quickly pulls out two of them.
"The first match is…" She unfolds them and reads, "Flynt Coal vs. Drisella Damson!" All of the other students sighed in relief; eyes were focused on the first two contestants.
"Ugh, fine!" Drisella scoffed as she lazily marched down the steps to the stage in front of the class unsheathing her double-headed spear. Aubri couldn't help but smirk at the damson-haired girl; she knew she didn't have a chance. Plus, seeing one of the bullies get a taste of her own medicine was probably the best thing about today. Out of nowhere, she felt a cool breeze pass by. Turning in its direction, she spots a young, dark-skinned man in a snazzy suit make his way to the opposite side of the stage, his trumpet at the ready.
"Ready… begin!" Yelled the instructor. Aubri was right to judge Drisella's skills. All it took was four blows from Flynt's trumpet and a full-scale Semblance; not once did she activate hers or damage her opponent. Landing on her back with a thud, her aura depleted, causing the fight to be over in less than one minute.
"Stop!" The instructor calls, "The winner is Flynt Coal!" Everyone else cheers and laughs as Drisella storms back to her seat, her hair frizzy and her clothes slightly torn. Aubri giggles, but she stops at a low, smooth voice calling,
"Hey…" She turns and sees Flynt looking directly at her through his shades. Her eyes widen as he continues. "Good luck out there!" Then he pulls his shades down, smiles, and winks before going back to his seat. Immediately, her body heats up and her cheeks turn red.
Many more battles passed by, each one of them turned out better than the last. It was now the fourth to last match, and the instructor has just drawn the next two names. Quickly unfolding them, she calls out,
"Sandra Skaar vs. Aubri Azure!"
"What?!" Aubri yells. She turns to the very back of the room in shock. Seeing Sandy wave playfully as she passes by with her ninja claws equipped, she sneers and makes her way to the stage. Drawing her pistols, she stands in a fighting position.
"Ready… begin!"