Chapter 1: Peaceful Evidence
10 Years Later
Ruby Rose was feeling pretty mischievous this morning, given the cheeky grin on her face.
She had gently tiptoed to a certain heavy sleeper's bed in her home, carefully making sure she didn't hit or trip over anything along the way. Once she got there, she could barely stifle her giggles. She deeply inhaled before letting it all out with one big scream that rocked the room.
"WAKEY-WAKEY, EGGS AND BAKEY!" She shouted loudly, causing her target to jolt awake and clumsily tumble to the floor.
"Whoa?!"
"Pfft, ahahaha!" Ruby bursted into laughter and rolled around on the floor. "Hahaha, oh man that was too funny! I gotta stop, haha! I'm gonna throw up!"
Sighing, an individual with a head of blue hair found his bearings and sat up.
"Give me a break, Ruby," Minato responded tiredly, rubbing his eyes.
"Hehe, sorry. Couldn't help myself, Minato," Ruby said, wiping away the tears from her eyes. "Dad said I could get creative today with your rude awakening."
"Of course he did," Minato said with mock annoyance. "So I guess with you as my alarm clock, that means breakfast is ready?"
Ruby nodded. "Yuppers! Come on, let's go! We don't want Yang and Dad eating our portions!"
Grabbing Minato's hand, Ruby dragged the poor boy through the house to the kitchen. Ruby knew Minato would rather catch some Z's in the morning, but she also knew that he would never pass up an opportunity to eat so she was doing him a favor by waking him up.
'Some things will never change,' the bluenette mused internally.
As for Minato, this was pretty typical for him. He was always the slugabed in this house, and he had grown used to morning pranks and such. That didn't mean he always liked them, though. He couldn't remember a time where something like this didn't happen while living with Ruby, Yang, and Taiyang.
Ever since he was adopted by Taiyang over ten years ago, he has been officially known as Minato Xiao Long. And he was a welcomed addition to the family.
"Ah, rise and shine, sleeping beauty," the patriarch of the Xiao Long family greeted as mops of blue and reddish black hair came into the kitchen.
"Hey, Dad," Minato replied with a wave of his hand.
Sitting down to eat with Ruby, Minato brushed aside his bangs. Including himself, everybody was in their pajamas. He could see Yang eating eggs and bacon for breakfast while Taiyang had finished his own meal and was feeding the family Corgi dog, Zwei. Ruby already started digging into her food like a ravenous Beowolf.
Just another lazy morning for this family.
"You should've seen the look on Minato's face!" Ruby said while her mouth was full.
"Table manners, Ruby," Minato addressed dryly as he gripped his fork and spoon and started to eat.
"I could hear the noise from upstairs," Yang said in between taking bites of her meal with an amused grin. "You really oughta stop sleeping in, Minato. You know one of us will always wake you up in whatever way we want, right?"
"Can't help it, I'm not really a morning guy," Minato answered with a shrug. He took a bite of his eggs after that.
"Well you're gonna have to get used to it soon, son," Taiyang remarked, patting Zwei's head as the Corgi dog ate his food. "Summer vacation's almost over. In just another week, you and Yang will be off to Beacon Academy. Your potential teammates are bound to have all sorts of ways of waking you up."
Minato couldn't help but shudder at the thought of that. He very much liked to sleep in and had gotten used to it for the most part during breaks in school. His adopted family's wake-up tactics notwithstanding, he sort of dreaded what other people his age might do.
"Don't worry, big bro, we can help you fix your sleeping schedule!" Ruby playfully nudged him in the shoulder.
"Oh no..." Minato muttered with fake dejection before smiling a little.
Everyone then laughed together. This type of repartee was a common occurrence for this family.
"But man," Yang began, "I can't believe it's almost time. Feels like just yesterday me and Minato graduated from Signal. I'm gonna miss doting on my baby sister at school."
"I'm freeee!" Ruby cheered while eating a bacon piece. She could deal without Yang's bear hugs for once.
"Ouch, the cold shoulder," Yang feigned being hurt. "You wound me, good madam! Well, at least I get to have Minato all to myself at Beacon."
Ruby gave Minato her puppy-dog eyes upon hearing that statement. "Don't leave me, big bro!"
"Joy," the bluenette deadpanned. "Now I have two things to worry about."
Taiyang chuckled from his family's banter. He walked towards Yang and Minato and placed his hands on their shoulders. "Yang, Minato. With your weapons and skills, you two are going to do great at Beacon. I'm proud of you both."
Yang grinned brightly in response while Minato cracked a smaller smile.
"Heeey, what about me, Dad?" Ruby pouted with puffed up cheeks.
"How could I forget about you, Ruby?" Taiyang went over and patted her head. "I'm also proud of you. You've got two more years until you can go to Beacon, but you creating and using a scythe weapon like your uncle is already amazing."
It was Ruby's turn this time to grin brightly. "Hehe. Thanks. Crescent Rose and I are inseparable, and together we'll catch up in no time!"
"You're pretty good, but you should have a bit more training for when you can't use Crescent Rose, Ruby," Minato advised her. He thought Ruby was an exceptional scythe wielder, but she was too reliant on her weapon sometimes. "There are times when Huntsmen and Huntresses are disarmed and have to make do with what they have."
"Ack, I suppose you're right..." Ruby flinched and slumped down on her chair. Minato had reminded her of a recent training session with Yang where she couldn't use her beloved weapon. She liked to believe she did okay but knew she still had a ways to go. "But what about you, Minato? You use a scythe weapon too."
She had him there, truth be told.
"Luckily I spar with Dad and Yang enough without my weapon to hold my own in a fight," Minato rebutted.
"Heh, barely," Yang teased with an aside glance, earning herself a slight scowl from Minato. When it boiled down to just hand-to-hand combat, the blonde girl certainly had the advantage due to her main fighting style. Sparring was a recurring activity the entire family did together throughout the years. "I'll admit, last time you did get closer than you ever did before, but I still won those 2 out of 3 rounds."
"There's always room for improvement, Minato," Taiyang gently stated. "Anyway, we all know Yang could work on her temper, especially in the heat of battle."
"Hey!" Yang grumbled, although he wasn't wrong. For the Xiao Long father, it was interesting to see how Yang and Minato's dispositions and abilities complimented each other. Yang was more gung ho in battle than Minato was, however it could lead to reckless mistakes like taking too much damage. On the other hand, Minato was more calm in his approach to combat. Both of them could take cues from one another.
"Someday you'll realize this, Yang. It's all a part of growing up," Taiyang informed, talking from experience. "By the way, aren't you kids heading into town today? You should probably get ready soon then."
"Oh yeah! I wanted to check out From Dust Till Dawn to see if they have the latest weapon magazines," Ruby chirped. Everyone else sweatdropped. She sure loved admiring weapons.
"And me and Minato are going to do some shopping at the mall to prepare for Beacon!" Yang added.
"We are?" Minato asked, sounding legitimately confused. Yang gave him a wink. "Ah, yeah. I forgot about that."
"Alrighty then," Taiyang replied. "You three know about the robberies that have been happening in Vale recently. Be on your guard today, especially when it's nighttime."
"We promise!" Yang, Minato, and Ruby said simultaneously.
To get to Vale from Patch, Yang, Minato, and Ruby had to take the ferry on the east side of the island. Aside from taking an airship, which was usually the more expensive option, the ferry was their only method of traveling to the rest of the kingdom. They had done this plenty of times in the past for shopping or other errands, and today was no different.
That being said, the voyage across the waters wasn't instantaneous, even if Patch was located literally next to Vale. Right now, Taiyang's kids were passing the time on the ship until they reached land. Ruby was polishing Crescent Rose and cradling it like a child while Yang and Minato were lounging by the railing. Minato was leaning on the ship's railing, and Yang was sitting on her personal motorcycle, Bumblebee. She brought it with her today so traversing the city would be quicker than usual, along with the sidecar because there was only room for two on Bumblebee. The sidecar was mostly reserved for Ruby, though. The younger girl wanted to feel the wind on her skin when on the road, as opposed to sitting behind Yang in which she couldn't get the full experience.
Today was a beautiful day, with clear skies and the sun hovering above. Perfect for doing errands. Yang stretched, taking in the atmosphere.
"Are we heading to anywhere else today, Yang?" Minato asked the blonde.
"Mmm, nope! Unless you have somewhere you wanna go to, Minato," Yang responded.
"No, not right now. Just thought I should ask in case you wanted to hit the town again for leads," Minato said. "Mainly because the last time we were in Vale, we went to that club and you never told me about the plan until we got there."
Yang grinned, knowing Minato was referring to that one past incident. "Don't tell me you're still sore about that! It all worked out in the end, didn't it?"
"Depends on what you mean by that. We're not that much closer to finding answers about your mom, and we had to fend off all of the club's staff," Minato recounted with narrowed eyes. "You didn't even get that strawberry sunrise either."
"It was good training, so we never really left empty-handed. Besides, having you with me makes me feel more confident that we can do anything if we put our minds to it," Yang pointed out, glancing at her signature weapons, Ember Celica, on her wrists with a sad smile. "Wherever my mom is, that can wait… Sorry if I can be a handful sometimes, Minato. We've had a lot of adventures together that ended with us fighting people somehow. Probably because of my temper and stuff; that can get annoying I bet."
Yang had never given up on her search for Raven Branwen, her biological mother, after all these years. She simply had it as a lower priority compared to other things in her life. Although she enjoyed Minato's company whenever they where out on their adventures, she felt guilty for dragging him along sometimes. She was a thrillseeker at heart, but she knew Minato wasn't one like her.
She would never consider bringing Ruby with her on her hunts for Raven. It was her big sister instincts that prevented her from doing so ever since that time she nearly got Ruby and herself killed if it wasn't for their uncle Qrow. She also never spoke a word of this to her dad or uncle, assuming that they would tell her to stop.
Minato was the only person she felt confident enough to confide in about this. Whenever Yang believed there was a lead on Raven's whereabouts, Minato would usually accompany her. This had been ongoing since the time he caught her sneaking out of the house when they were much younger. They had each other's back for years.
The blue-haired boy then flicked Yang's forehead, which caught the blonde girl off guard.
"What was that for?" Yang asked, sounding slightly annoyed.
"I'd sooner believe in fairy tales than let you go alone and get in trouble," Minato gently answered her. He had decided to assist her in her search after she explained her motives to him when they were kids because he didn't want her to land herself in a bad situation, not to mention sympathizing with her. Somebody had to keep her in check, and he was admittedly curious too about Raven from the things Qrow and Taiyang mentioned every now and then. "You're definitely strong, Yang. But you're not invincible. None of us are, especially by ourselves. That's why we have to look out for each other. I've always got your back."
Yang was surprised but also genuinely happy by Minato's response. She appreciated hearing it.
"Why does it feel like you always know the right things to say, Blue?" Yang jokingly wondered, smiling. Minato shrugged.
"Beats me. I just say what comes to mind," the bluenette answered truthfully. He didn't like to mince words often.
"That's such a you answer, but I guess I wouldn't have it any other way," Yang snorted, feeling satisfied.
Although he may not express it often, if at all, Yang was important to Minato. They grew up together for over a decade, after all. Considering Yang's social butterfly nature and stubbornness, even as a child, Minato couldn't help but become attached to her over the years. Additionally, this extended to Ruby, Taiyang, and Qrow. They all treated him well when he had nowhere to go.
Minato could hardly imagine what kind of person he'd be now if he never met Yang and her family. Would he be more distant and apathetic? It was difficult to say, given his unusual circumstances.
He wasn't native to Remnant – that much was for certain. However, it didn't mean he couldn't adapt.
"Am I, uh, interrupting something?"
Distracted by their conversation, the pair failed to notice Ruby currently standing in front of them with a curious expression on her face.
"Nope, not really," Minato replied coolly.
"What's up, sis?" Yang asked, dismounting herself from Bumblebee to stand up.
"Wellll…" Ruby pushed her two index fingers together as she gave Minato a hopeful look. "I was wondering if I could hold Azure Eclipse for a little bit, Minato. Pretty please?"
Minato rolled his eyes but smiled. "Sure, go ahead, Ruby."
The bluenette took a moment to briefly inspect his own weapon after retrieving it from his hip and then gave it to Ruby. The name Minato dubbed his weapon was Azure Eclipse. It was a rather intricate piece of blue and black weaponry, so needless to say it took Minato a long time to make while he was at Signal Academy.
To the untrained eye, Azure Eclipse appeared to be a standard sword when sheathed. However, it was comprised of two components that allowed Minato to fight in different ways. It could detach into two separate parts: a handgun called Azure that could shoot Dust and a sword for melee combat called Eclipse. Compared to other weapon choices, this seemed rather tame, but this wasn't all Azure Eclipse could do. When combining the handgun with the sword's hilt, it became one sword that could be enhanced with whatever Dust Minato wanted to use. The icing on the cake was that it could also turn into a scythe, making it one of the three known scythe weapons in the world – Ruby's Crescent Rose and Qrow's Harbinger were the other two. What made Azure Eclipse different from Crescent Rose and Harbinger was that its whole build was lighter, enabling Minato to wield it easily with one hand for swift attacks. And, of course, it was a gun in this form too – a sniper rifle to be exact, although it traded power for rapid shooting. It could be considered Crescent Rose's counterpart and, fittingly enough, older brother.
If it weren't for Qrow's assistance and training, constructing and using Azure Eclipse would've been a nightmare for Minato.
"Hehe, I'll never get tired of seeing and holding your weapon, big bro," Ruby remarked with a giggle. Like with Crescent Rose, the small Huntress-to-be took the time to admire Azure Eclipse's design and forms with admittedly adorable noises and gestures. Her older siblings couldn't help but smile at the display.
"It's kinda cute how Azure Eclipse and Crescent Rose are like you and Ruby, Minato," Yang noted to Minato. "I remember when she would get excited and watch you like a puppy while you were building it with uncle Qrow. Seeing you in action with the finished product inspired her to make Crescent Rose when it was time for her own weapon."
"Mm." Minato recalled those memories fondly. Ruby really cared and looked up to him. Despite not being blood siblings, she treated him as her older brother and vice versa. To his chagrin, she also loved playing pranks on him. Still, they got along quite nicely.
"Honestly, I wonder if Ruby will be alright while we're at Beacon," Yang mused worriedly. Minato couldn't blame her for worrying and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder.
"I know how you feel, but Ruby can handle herself. There's something special about her, you know? She's a fast learner," he admitted. "She'll get into Beacon and join us in no time."
"Yeah... You're right about that," Yang agreed, cheering up. Her smile then turned smug as she rose an eyebrow at Minato. "Know what else I'm worried about? Your fashion sense, Minato! We need to get you some new duds."
"Huh?" Minato was caught off guard from that switch in topics. "What's wrong with how I dress?"
Yang pointed at him with flair. "It's too plain! We're about to go to Beacon and your style needs a change of pace! That's why we're going to the mall in Vale!"
"But-" Minato was promptly shushed by Yang as she wagged her index finger in front of him.
"No buts!" She exclaimed. "Trust me, I'm doing you a favor, Minato. Me and Ruby are gonna help you pick out your new clothes. Isn't that right, sis?"
"Yeah!" Wielding Azure Eclipse in its sword form over her shoulder, Ruby suddenly stood by Yang's side as the sisters then high-fived each other.
Seeing no way out of this, Minato was forced to comply with them as he looked upwards to the sky. He could never win against them when they became a tag team.
"This is going to be a long day."
"A cape really doesn't look good on him."
"Aww phooey, you're right. Hey, what about this, Yang?"
"Red on blue? That's just a fashion disaster waiting to happen, sis."
"Hey, I'll have you know red looks good on anyone!"
Minato watched as Yang and Ruby bickered back and forth. They had arrived at the mall a few minutes ago after their ferry reached Vale's port and were browsing through several clothing stores. The girls, however, couldn't seem to agree on what would look good on him. And at the rate they were going, this would take a while.
Deciding to leave them be for now, the bluenette wandered around the current store they were in. Perhaps by himself he could find a set of clothes that he would enjoy. Now that he thought about it, Yang had a point. His style was pretty safe, all things considered. He was at that age where teenagers started to establish an identity for themselves, with clothing being one of the ways for expression. Yang and Ruby already had their trademark looks down, so he supposed he should follow suit.
It took him approximately ten minutes to gather clothes he wanted to try on. Once he was finished with that, he went into a fitting room, tried them on, inspected himself, then returned to the sisters.
"Hey, what do you two think of this?" He asked them, grabbing their attention.
Yang whistled while Ruby let out an "Ooh". They saw Minato sporting a blue dress shirt with folded sleeves and black suspenders. In addition to those, he was wearing black trousers and fingerless gloves.
"Now that's an outfit, big bro," Ruby stated with an approving thumbs-up.
"You clean up nicely, Minato," Yang praised. She walked around the blue-haired teenager twice to check him out before placing her hand on her chin. "It could use one more thing, though."
"Oh?" Minato tilted his head.
Yang surveyed the area, trying to see if anything else would compliment Minato's appearance. She then laid eyes on a yellow necktie prior to going "Aha!". She went to go grab it and came back to fit it on Minato.
"There we go! Yellow goes pretty well with blue, if I do say so myself," Yang declared, nodding her head while looking proud of herself. Ruby pouted a little, thinking red would still look good on blue, but had to admit her sister was right this time.
Minato observed his reflection in a mirror from many angles. With Yang's added touch, he felt quite satisfied with this outfit.
"I like it. Thanks, Yang," he said with a smile.
"Heh, anytime!" Yang smiled back. "Now that we fixed Minato's fashion problem, let's go to the checkout. Then we'll stop by the food court for some grub."
"Sounds like a plan!" Ruby cheered. "Can we g-"
"You're not getting funnel cake this time, Ruby," Minato quickly cut her off, knowing how strong her sweet tooth was. Ruby's shoulders slumped.
"Fiiine." She rolled her eyes before smiling. "How about ice cream?"
Minato turned to Yang. "Ice cream?"
"Ice cream." The blonde nodded at him.
Some time had passed, and it was now nighttime in Vale. The trio were done shopping at the mall today, and Yang and particularly Minato were officially ready for Beacon in the coming days.
Yang drove to From Dust Till Dawn to drop off Ruby since the latter earlier said she wanted to windowshop for weapon magazines. Afterwards, Yang and Minato decided to stop by a local cafe around the block and unwind until Ruby was finished.
While Yang was driving Bumblebee, Minato noticed that the moon was out tonight. He had gotten used to seeing it partially shattered at this point. Why was it like that? He didn't know, and apparently the reason was elusive even to the rest of Remnant's denizens.
Definitely unique and different from the moon he knew back on Earth, he thought to himself.
The moon in Remnant was merely one of many aspects he couldn't help but compare and contrast to his former home.
Lost in his thoughts while Yang was driving them to their destination, Minato started to reflect on his past and what he learned.
Living in this world for ten years made him realize a long time ago that Remnant was its own beast. Earth was almost like a distant dream to him. It took him quite a while to get adjusted. At times he thought about Earth and what it was like nowadays, but he had come to accept Remnant as his permanent home now.
His memories from that day from ten years ago had since become foggy, truth be told. He could only recall his parents dying, some fight occurring between a blonde girl and a monster, and then he met Yang and her family. He used to question how he was even transported but as time went on he grew to not care as much. Whether it was a freak accident or something else, it didn't change the fact that he was stuck on Remnant and possibly couldn't reverse engineer a way back.
It wasn't like he had a reason to return to Earth anyway, so he didn't really mind staying in Remnant.
Fortunately, Remnant wasn't too dissimilar from Earth. The two worlds shared lots of things such as animal life, food, and technology. Remnant had progressed further with technological advancements than Earth, however. From vehicles like flying ships, to appliances like Scrolls and weapons, Remnant was the clear winner.
There were four major regions of civilization in Remnant in the form of kingdoms. There was Vacuo to the west. Mistral was on the eastern continent called Anima. In the north was Atlas, a part of the northern cold continent of Solitas. And finally Vale, which was located on the central continent of Sanus with Vacuo. Each kingdom had their own distinctive cultures and academies for training Huntsmen and Huntresses.
Additionally, there was a humanoid species co-existing with humans on Remnant in the form of the Faunus. What made the Faunus unique was their varying, animal-like features. Other than those attributes, they were practically the same as humans. Minato believed they were rather cool from the start, to be honest. Sadly, not all humans liked them, so the Faunus have had some rough history. Different world, similar prejudicial issues.
There certainly was never anything like the Grimm on Earth, as far as Minato could tell. They were just as abundant as humans and Faunus, feeding off their negativity. It was as if they were meant to be the opposing force humans and Faunus had to fight off for survival. There were a multitude of countermeasures to the Grimm thankfully, such as Remnant's technology and civilizations.
But most importantly, Huntsmen and Huntresses were the Grimm's biggest obstacles. They were warriors consisting of humans and Faunus that upheld the peace to this world. Academies such as Beacon were created to cultivate future Huntsmen and Huntresses so that they can carry the torch as protectors. Huntsmen and Huntresses's means of fighting back were their wits, teamwork, weapons, Dust, Auras and Semblances.
Dust was a source of energy in Remnant that could be used for combat and even outside of it, and there were varying types of them as well. When harnessed properly from crystalline and powdered forms, Dust can provide all sorts of purposes in this world. It was the primary source of power that kept Remnant intact in everyday life, such as powering buildings and vehicles. Dust was very essential to Huntsmen and Huntresses also because it gave humans and Faunus an edge over the Grimm throughout history, as Minato learned in school.
Aura was the manifestation of the soul. Anything with a soul could have Aura. When Aura was activated, users can utilize it in various ways such as defense, self-healing, strength reinforcement, and more. Living creatures could withstand attacks from slashes, stabbing, gunshots, et cetera if their Aura was capable enough. But even Aura had its limits, because once a user is depleted of their reserves they were more susceptible to physical injuries. It was simple for Minato to understand when he was taught about Aura, although he wasn't sure if he had one due to being from another world. To his surprise, even he was capable of having it despite not originating from Remnant. Qrow had unlocked it for him when he was younger.
Semblances were considered special abilities that originate from Aura users. Some called them tangible projections of one's Aura. Semblances were interesting in that each individual had his or her own unique abilities. Ruby's Semblance for example was speed, letting her move extremely quick as a red blur with added effects in the form of rose petals. Yang's allowed her to absorb damage she took and retaliate with stronger attacks, causing her to become more powerful with each hit.
As for Minato, his Semblance was a peculiar case. Like Aura, he didn't know if he could obtain a Semblance but was proven wrong again as he activated it not long after Yang obtained hers.
Until it was deemed beneficial in specific situations, he actually preferred to not use it. He wasn't as proud of his Semblance as Ruby and Yang were of theirs because of its... intriguing capabilities. They thought his was impressive, on the other hand.
When Minato was still on Earth, he never thought he would live a life of slaying monsters and such. Yet here he was in Remnant, doing just that and about to be trained further soon. After the kindness and love that his new family expressed to him by accepting him into their fold, he grew attached to them and was inspired to carry on their ideals. Qrow apparently pulled some strings that made it possible. He had nothing left on Earth, but on Remnant it was the opposite.
He would do whatever it took within his power to protect and save people. He didn't want to experience something like his parents' deaths ever again nor let anyone else go through that kind of pain.
That was the oath Minato made to himself when he chose to walk down the path of a Huntsman.
"You doing okay back there, Minato? You've been kinda quiet," Yang raised her voice to talk to Minato while still driving.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking," he answered.
"About what?" She wondered.
A soft smile formed on his face.
"About stuff."
The cafe Minato and Yang chose to chill at was a highly rated one in Vale called Cafe Noir. It wasn't a part of some international corporation, but instead it was managed by a young married couple. They both didn't appear that much older than Minato and Yang. The cafe was somewhat smaller than the average well-known establishment, yet the exterior and interior expressed homely vibes to potential customers. And most importantly, a cafe would be nothing without its menu options, to which critics praised for its variety and delectable flavors that made them feel like they were in their own homes.
This wasn't the first time Minato and Yang came to this specific cafe. They were sort of considered regulars by now, after an incident one day where a couple of armed and drunk adults were causing trouble for the owners while the pair happened to be passing by. It was a one-sided scuffle, honestly.
Minato and Yang would come here once in a while whenever they were in town. Minato enjoyed the curry that was served here. For Yang, this was the only place that would willingly serve her a strawberry sunrise. A virgin strawberry sunrise, to be exact. Yang was still a minor.
"Ah, you're back." Greeting the duo was the male head of the establishment – Minato and Yang referred to him as Boss. The teenagers entered the building and seated themselves at a booth near the front counter. "Haven't seen you both in a while. Will you be having the usual tonight?"
Yang shook her head. "Not tonight, Boss. We ate a bit earlier, but I will have a strawberry sunrise. No ice, of course."
"One virgin strawberry sunrise with no ice, coming right up," Boss clarified, causing Yang to roll her eyes. "And nothing for you tonight, Minato?"
"I'm good, thanks," Minato assured. Although he typically had the habit of eating more than what a person of his physique could presumably handle and not gain notable weight, he wasn't thirsty or hungry because of lunch earlier. He decided he would eat back at home because he and Yang were just here to kill time while Ruby did her thing.
With Yang's order taken and being prepared, the owner of the cafe tried to make small talk with the pair while they waited.
"So has anything new come up lately, you two?"
"Nah, other than that we're going to Beacon pretty soon," Yang informed him.
"Is that so? Then I suppose I might you see both around here more often," Boss replied with a laugh. "Knowing the kind of stuff I've seen you kids do, Beacon's going to be smooth-sailing probably."
"I can't wait to go on all sorts of missions and beat up Grimm," Yang proudly stated with a confident look.
"Hm." Minato had nothing more to add to that as he put his hands in his pockets.
"Aw, come on, Minato," Yang said with a teasing tone. "Aren't you excited too?"
The blue-haired boy shrugged. They did share the same goal of becoming professionals, but their motivations differed.
"A little."
Yang shook her head with an exaggerated shrug. Sometimes she wished Minato could display a wider range of emotions, but then again it may not feel right if he did. Moments where he would break his trademark stoicism were few and far between. Just once every now and then wouldn't kill him, in her opinion.
"What about you, Boss?" Yang inquired. "Don't see the missus here tonight. Got any new stories to tell too?"
"She's spending time tonight tending to our garden. It's what keeps us stocked with fresh ingredients", he replied while finishing Yang's drink. "Other than the recent robberies in town, it's been normal around here. Although, there have been some guys that come inside sometimes in the last couple of weeks. Mostly at night to drink and complain about the club they work at being wrecked and having to fix it."
The cafe owner then brought Yang her strawberry sunrise but also gave the blonde a suspicious look.
"They also mentioned something about some teenagers being the cause of all that. One blonde and one blue-haired. You two wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?"
Yang laughed nervously while Minato's poker face remained intact.
"They started it?" Yang said hesitantly.
Minato knew for a fact that wasn't the case because Yang technically threw the first punch at the club owner back then but kept his silence. Afterwards, the club's goons reacted and the pair had to fight their way out. It was another escapade added to their list of adventures while searching for Raven Branwen, and he knew it wouldn't be the last most likely.
"Kids these days," Boss complained with a sigh. "Well I'm sure you two had your reasons so I won't ask. Promise me that you'll keep Yang in check while you're at Beacon, Minato."
"I promise," Minato said with a nod. Yang frowned.
"The unfairness is strong with this one…" She mumbled, taking a sip of her strawberry sunrise.
A few moments later, the peace and quiet in the cafe was disrupted as the sound of a car coming to a stop was heard from outside, followed by doors opening then closing.
"Speak of the devil, those may be the club stooges right now," Boss surmised. "They're always so unnecessarily loud."
Yang sighed. "So much for the peaceful atmosphere."
Four adult males wearing black suits, black hats, and red shades entered the cafe. From a glance, they looked very generic when grouped together. Their body language suggested that they were tired, not to mention having resting bitch faces. It was as if they haven't smiled in a long time.
"Hold the phone. It's those damned kids that wrecked our club!" One of them said as they looked in Yang and Minato's direction. His face scrunched in annoyance as did the rest of his group's. Sure enough, these guys were from the club Yang and Minato thrashed a while ago. All of them brandished swords and axes that had no special modifications.
"Ready for round two, boys?" Yang took one large sip of her strawberry sunrise then stood up and cracked her knuckles with a confident smirk. Minato also stood up with her. "You wanna have a go at them too, Minato?"
"They might damage the cafe," Minato stated.
Yang blinked and looked around. "Oh yeah. That would be a pain to deal with. It's kinda small in here too."
"Geez, what a pain. Could you please take this outside?" The cafe owner pleaded with everyone, not wanting his establishment to be destroyed in the possible crossfire.
"Understood." Minato nodded.
Yang grinned.
Before the generic mooks could react, they were quickly shoulder-tackled by Yang, who used her shotgun gauntlets – Ember Celica – to boost herself forward. Fortunately the adult men were still in front of the cafe entrance while it was open, so this made it easier to get them outside and take the brawl to the streets. The mooks landed on the pavement as Yang entered a battle stance and Minato casually walked out of the cafe while unsheathing Azure Eclipse. Minato opted to detach his weapon and use its sword and handgun forms separately.
"I'm getting déjà vu…" One of the grunts mumbled deliriously, slowly picking himself up from the ground.
"Shut up, stupid, and let's dish out some payback already!" Another grunt angrily responded, charging forward along with the rest of his buddies.
Yang and Minato simply waited for the men to come to them. They gave each other nods before engaging their opponents.
Minato easily sidestepped a grunt's axe attack and smacked the man's head with the butt of Azure, causing the grunt to fall to the ground. Minato followed up with performing a high kick to the fallen grunt's torso, which made the latter airborne for a couple seconds before landing with a thud.
"Goddamn brat!" One of the other grunts yelled, gunning for Minato to avenge his comrade. The blue-haired boy then blocked that grunt's sword attack with Eclipse. Twirling Azure in his hand to place his finger on the trigger, Minato then shot the sword-wielding grunt he was blocking at point blank range, which knocked the wind out of the adult and sent him into a nearby building's wall. The impact left visible cracks on the surface.
"Not even a good warm-up," Minato said with a bored tone. He then looked in Yang's direction to see how she was faring.
Yang nimbly evaded a mook's horizontal sword slash by jumping before planting her fist into the mook's face. Utilizing Ember Celica, her punch was amplified and caused the mook to be blown away into trash bins on the street. The last of the mooks then rushed at her with his axe from behind, but Yang saw it coming a mile away and grabbed his face. The mook tried to escape but couldn't due to Yang's strength. She faceplanted him to the ground with ease while smirking. For added measures, she swiftly punched the man's head before he could recover, effectively knocking him out.
The whole scuffle was over in a matter of minutes.
"With guys like these, I almost feel sorry for their boss," Yang said sarcastically. These grunts were a walk in the park. Yang and Minato had more trouble with common Grimm than them honestly. "Is it just me, or weren't there more of them when we were at their club a while back?"
Minato shrugged. "Doesn't matter. They're still annoying at the end of the day."
"Heh, yeah that's true. Maybe they'll get the message of not messing with us finally," Yang replied nonchalantly. She raised her hand for a high-five. "Anyways, good teamwork, Minato."
"Likewise, Yang." Minato returned the gesture and smiled lightly.
"Why does it seem like you kids bring trouble with you wherever you go?" The two teenagers heard a groan from the cafe, which belonged to Boss. Yang smirked proudly while Minato remained stoic. "Well either way, you two saved the cafe again from getting damaged so I can't really complain. I doubt those schmucks will cause us any more trouble for tonight, so why don't you both come back inside?"
Before either teenager could give an answer, Minato's Scroll started ringing in his pocket.
"Who is it?" Yang wondered. Minato brought out his Scroll and examined the caller ID.
"It's Ruby," he replied prior to answering his Scroll. "Hello? Ruby?"
"WHERE ARE YOU TWO?!" Ruby shrieked from the other line, causing Minato to recoil and hold his Scroll farther away from his ear. "I've been trying to call you guys for five minutes! Did something happen?"
"It's a long story, sis," Yang said. "What's up though?"
"I kicked some robbers' butts over here at From Dust Till Dawn, but then something cool happened! You two gotta get over here!" Ruby exclaimed. Minato raised an eyebrow and looked at Yang, the latter giving a confused shrug in response.
"We'll be right there," Minato said to Ruby as he hung up and placed his Scroll away.
"Sorry Boss, but we'll be taking a raincheck on your offer," Yang told the cafe owner.
"That's fine. I feel like I'll see you two around more often soon anyway, haha. Stay safe, and do well at Beacon, kids," Boss said with a smile.
"See you later!" Yang said to Boss before getting on her motorcycle. Minato waved goodbye and left the area with Yang shortly to fetch Ruby.
Boss went back into Cafe Noir and shook his head, reflecting on tonight's events.
"Those two will go far for sure as Huntsmen and Huntresses," he mused, glancing at where Minato and Yang were sitting not too long ago.
Boss then sighed upon realizing something.
"Those kids didn't pay for that strawberry sunrise. Ah well… I'll consider their tab paid."
Ruby felt nervous.
Today was the start of a new school year at Beacon Academy. Students both new and old were to travel to the combat institution and reside there for the duration of their studies. Yang and Minato would be away from home for quite some time while they were learning to become proper Huntsmen and Huntresses. They were being taken to Beacon Academy via airship along with other students who were accepted.
Ruby logically would've said her goodbyes to her older siblings by now if it weren't for the fact that she was going to Beacon with them. Instead, she had said her goodbyes to her father and Zwei.
She never imagined that she would be accepted in Beacon earlier than the normal entrance age a week ago, but reality hit her hard like one of Yang's punches.
"Getting cold feet, sis?" Yang asked Ruby as the blonde wrapped her arm around her younger sister's shoulders. They and Minato were standing near one of their airship's large windows by themselves and slightly away from the other students.
"What made you think that?" Ruby crossed her arms and looked away.
"You don't look happy about getting into Beacon," Minato replied, noticing how the normally perky Ruby was being glum.
Ruby sighed. "Fine, you got me… I guess I am a bit nervous."
"You always were such a bad liar, Ruby," Yang said cheekily as she ruffled Ruby's hair with a noogie.
"Grrr, why meee?!" Ruby groaned, eventually breaking free from Yang's hold.
"Because it's adorable!" Yang grinned. "Plus every time I try to do it to Minato, he dodges."
"Don't mess with the hair," Minato noted while brushing aside his bangs.
"Mark my words, Minato Xiao Long. One day I'll get you," Yang stated confidently before turning her attention to Ruby. "Anyway what's the matter, sis? I thought you were excited about going to Beacon with us."
Taking a moment to fix her hair, Ruby tried to find the right words.
"I still am. But the more I thought about it, the more I started to feel like I'm out of my depth. I'm jumping ahead of what's normal for people our age by two years. I don't know anyone else who's going besides you two since all my friends are still at Signal. People might think I'm weird if they find out about me, and I don't want to be special – just normal. Did Headmaster Ozpin make a mistake in offering me to attend Beacon?"
Apparently while Minato and Yang were off on their own escapade last week, Ruby dealt with a robbery at From Dust Till Dawn by herself until a professional Huntress from Beacon came to her aid. The robbers only wanted the Dust from the store, and when they tried to mug Ruby... well, the story wrote itself. The boss who led the operation escaped, though. A shame, but what mattered was Ruby being safe.
Ruby's encounter with the Dust shoplifters had caught the attention of Beacon's headmaster due to her fighting prowess with Crescent Rose. And from what Ruby told her family, she essentially went through an interview with him, chattering about her skills as a scythe wielder that she obtained from training with Qrow and why she wanted to become a Huntress. By the end, she was asked if she would like to attend Beacon. Ruby was planning to apply to the academy when she was done with Signal anyway, so she said yes.
Even after a week had gone by, Ruby was still trying to process the turn of events.
"I want to think Headmaster Ozpin wouldn't make a decision like that if he believed you didn't have what it takes," Minato said while patting Ruby's head reassuringly. "Don't let anyone mislead you like you aren't special, because you are to us."
"Minato's right. We believe in you, Ruby," Yang promised with a grin. She then cracked her knuckles. "And if anyone makes fun of you, let's see at the end of day who's gonna be smiling."
Ruby couldn't help but smile. She didn't have the words to argue with their logic, and that allowed her to feel better. Whether this was the day she was waiting for or not that would lead her closer to her dream of being a Huntress, from here on out she would be living with determination.
"Thanks, guys..." she quietly said with a small blush.
The next couple of minutes on the flight for the trio were spent watching VNN Live, as the reporters displayed mugshots of the criminal boss that Ruby tried to apprehend, Roman Torchwick. He was a man with orange hair who wore a white suit and gray scarf. VNN Live then shortly talked about a civil rights protest of the Faunus that was disrupted by the White Fang, an organization of Faunus that was once peaceful but had started to become more violent as of late, until the newscast was abruptly turned off.
In its place was a hologram of a woman with blonde hair tied back into a bun and glasses. Wearing a white pleated top, a black skirt, and a purple cape, she appeared to be a dignified-looking person.
"Oh hey!" Ruby exclaimed. "That's the lady who helped me fight those robbers last week!"
"She looks like a hardass…" Yang whispered to Minato. The bluenette nodded neutrally in response.
"Greetings, aspiring students. Welcome to Beacon Academy," the woman greeted the students on the airship. "My name is Glynda Goodwitch. This esteemed academy has chosen you all as the selected individuals who have received the honor of joining us. It is future Huntsmen and Huntresses' duty to continue sustaining our world's marvelous time of harmony, and the torch shall be passed on to you. Because of your proven willpower to uphold such an obligation, it is our responsibility to deliver you with the wisdom and training to protect Remnant."
The hologram of Glynda disappeared once she finished her speech. Afterwards, everyone onboard took in the sights from outside the airship. It was an impressive view, seeing the kingdom of Vale from high in the skies.
"Whoa, I can see Signal over there!" Ruby noted in awe as she saw said academy. "I wonder what the future will be like for us."
"It's gonna be a fun year at Beacon. I can feel it!" Yang said cheerfully before hugging Ruby suddenly. "And I get to dote on my baby sister still!"
"Ack! C-can't breathe!" Ruby yelped, trying to break free from Yang's hold. She tried reaching out to Minato. "H-help, big bro!"
Ruby's cries fell on deaf ears. Minato's mind had wandered as he gazed aimlessly through the airship's window.
'It's been ten years since I came to Remnant. Whether it was because of fate or an act of a god, I feel like things worked out.' Mental pictures of Ruby, Qrow, Taiyang, and finally Yang smiling surfaced. 'I'm not alone. I have people I care about and want to protect.'
The image of his deceased parents temporarily manifested in his mind, causing the blue-haired boy to unconsciously clench his fists.
'I won't let anyone else die. I'll become a Huntsman with the abilities I've got.'
Minato's musings were then interrupted when somebody abruptly bumped into him from behind. He looked over his shoulder and saw a tall blonde guy whose hands were covering his mouth.
"S-sorry, urgh!" The blonde teenager weakly said before wobbling away as his eyes darted in several directions.
"I should leave him be." Minato shrugged the encounter off, minding his business.
These next few years were definitely going to be interesting. He didn't know what the future had in store for Yang, Ruby, and himself, but one thing was for sure. They were going to become great Huntsmen and Huntresses together while making new companions along the way.
"Ah geez! Yang, there's puke on your boots!" Ruby suddenly blurted near Minato and pointed at Yang's boots.
Yang's face blanched in disgust.
"Gross, gross, gross!"
"Hey, don't get it on my new clothes, Yang!" Minato admonished.
"Eww, stay away! Stay away from me!" Ruby exclaimed.
She awoke from her slumber.
Contemplation was the next phase for her.
For ten long years, the image of that boy never left her mind. Even when she dreamed, he was there. How many times did this make? He had to have been important to her, otherwise her psyche wouldn't remain fixated on him.
Each time she thought of him, this unexplainable feeling of guilt would enter her heart. And she wished to know why.
"Another dream about him..."
"Salutations, sister!" A sprightly voice spoke up. Brought out of her thoughts, she acknowledged the source with a smile.
"Ah, good morning," she greeted. "You appear to be in a good mood, Penny."
The individual called Penny wore a whitish-gray blouse with short gray feminine overalls and stockings. Penny also had notable short, curly hair and a pink bow.
"I always feel jubilant when the time comes to awaken you!" Penny whimsically stated. "It is what little sisters do, correct?"
She patted Penny's head. "Indeed. I am honored to have a thoughtful little sister such as you."
Penny beamed.
"General Ironwood requested us to begin our training for today in preparations for the 40th Vytal Festival!" Penny informed. "Let us be off, Aigis!"
Penny dragged her sister to their training grounds, but Aigis was used to this.
For Aigis Polendina, this was just another day for her in Atlas.
A/N: Surprise, I managed to write this chapter as my college classes settled down for now. Sadly, my schedule fluctuates, so I'll take what I can get haha.
As some of you pointed out, I've had inspiration from the Trails series when writing this fanfic. Guilty as charged. As far as the beginning and other details go, I know what direction I should follow as the plot continues and deviates from canon.
I'm rather relieved to see that my approach hasn't been done yet, so that is neat.
Some of you are probably asking, "Can Minato summon Personas in this story?" The answer: yes, but he currently doesn't know their existence or how to summon. As a heads-up, it won't happen for quite some time due to how I want Minato to grow as a future Huntsman, and I apologize for that. You guys can take a guess as to where it will happen. Usually with P3 and RWBY crossovers, Minato just steamrolls lots of things with his Personas, so I want to be different here haha.
Azure Eclipse is basically a lighter, blue version of Crescent Rose that can split into a sword and a handgun. I based Minato's fighting style off of Sara Valestein from the Trails of Cold Steel games, believing it would suit him since in P3 his default weapon is a one-handed sword and the handgun is a nod to the Evoker. When Azure Eclipse is in its scythe form, Minato can use it for speedy attacks and combos, like Osiris from DmC: Devil May Cry (a bad game, yes, but I actually liked that weapon). The appeal of Azure Eclipse is its speed versus Crescent Rose's power.
Minato's Aura and Semblance have been unlocked already. I originally wanted to show the Semblance I thought of for him here but felt it would be a bit overkill. It's better suited for fighting capable opponents like Pyrrha or Grimm, to give you all a hint. I guarantee it will be revealed soon.
For his default appearance, his clothes are based off of Ludger Kresnik from Tales of Xillia 2 and Naoto Shirogane's dancing outfit from Persona 4 Dancing All Night. To me, I thought it would fit and make him blend in with the RWBY cast.
As for Aigis, shout-out to Blue Bragon for correctly guessing what I was doing with her.
Oh, and no harem. Not my thing.
I believe that's it for now. Thank you all for the feedback from the prologue, it helped me a lot with ideas I could implement.
Like last time, I appreciate any thoughts or questions in your reviews!
Update: After much reflection, I decided to alter certain parts of this chapter. Specifically, parts that were almost the same from the RWBY canon. I'll admit, I could've done a much better job of putting my own spin on events from RWBY. Some of you pointed that out to me, and I wholeheartedly agree so I appreciate the feedback a lot. From now on, I'll do my best in being more unique when I incorporate future events for this story.
Until next time, sayonara!