Chapter 4
Did… did I just get out an update in a timely fashion?
*Confetti & party horns*
And this chapter we will see a 40K space marine Jaune fully decked out in power armor annihilate all Grimm that dare to stand between him and victory with his massive chainsword!
/s
For anyone who's found my new fic, you can rest assured that I'm not abandoning this one.
As it turned out, Headmaster Ozpin hadn't been lying when he said he'd 'keep it brief'. The man hadn't even spoken for a full minute. Though that was a good thing, Jaune supposed.
He knew from Doctor Polendina that part of why Ironwood would give such a long-winded speech every year, despite apparently hating speeches with a passion, was because Atlas Academy's sponsors and the Atlesian council wouldn't stop pushing him to play up the PR.
That Ozpin wasn't dedicating five hundred words to thank "those who so nobly supported the shared cause of all of humanity," meant that Beacon was likely under less political pressure in general.
Unlikely that it would affect me either way, but… nice to know.
The excited murmuring, which had started in earnest upon Ozpin's leaving, died an ugly death as an extremely imposing blonde woman - holding a riding crop of all possible weapons - stepped forth. "You will gather in the ballroom tonight. Bedrolls are provided free of cost. When you leave this hall, submit your weapons and combat equipment for storage. There are staff waiting to collect them. Tomorrow, your initiation begins. Be ready. You are dismissed."
Then she stalked away after the headmaster.
Absolutely nobody moved.
"So that is Glynda Goodwitch." Penny murmured eventually, breaking the heavy silence. "She is frightening."
Noises of agreement came from all around her, and the crowd gradually came back to life. The excitement that the headmistress' presence had suppressed returned, as people talked amongst themselves about the two teachers, about initiation, about that amazing ice cream place they just had to visit again come the weekend.
"Damn, Russel, Goodwitch's hot." Jaune heard someone in the background say. "You think I could chat her up with some of my 'ole Winchester charm?"
Good luck to him with that. I suspect he'll need it.
Well, it was ten in the morning. That meant they had a full ten hours or so to pass before nightfall. Honestly he couldn't fathom why Beacon would require all its students to arrive in the morning to host an opening ceremony, when the initiation was next day. Sure, they could use the time to explore the school's layout, but an entire afternoon felt a little excessive.
"What now?" Jaune mused, to no one in particular.
Weiss was far from as idle as him, already scanning the throngs of students on her tiptoes. "I presume we've the rest of the day to ourselves." She said, and seemed to have something catch her attention. "I'm afraid I will have to excuse myself for time being. A pleasure spending the morning with you, Jaune, Penny. I look forward to our becoming… closer acquainted, in the future."
She gave him and Penny a slight bow and hurried off.
"And we… the same?" He called after her.
Penny waved, but on account of Weiss having her back to them, the gesture went unseen. Jaune didn't feel like pointing it out, so hopefully sooner or later she'd reach the conclusion people can't see you when they're facing away from you.
'Becoming closer acquainted'? Not very subtle, is she? Might as well give us the recruitment pitch straight off the bat. Though I do wonder what had piqued her interest so. She'd been making a fair, if artificial, effort to get on our good side so far. Who is she after now?
He attempted - and failed - to track Weiss' path through the crowd.
"Pyrrha Nikos." Penny said casually, once the heiress was out of earshot. "Graduated first in her class from Sanctum Academy. Four time winner of the Mistral Regional Tournament. Bound by five-year contract as the mascot for the Pumpkin Pete's brand cereal," she listed. "Her decision to study at Beacon Academy was met with significant controversy."
After a moment taken to process that, Jaune chuckled. "Wouldn't that make an impressive résumé. You know what Weiss is doing, right?"
Penny hummed. "If my understanding of this expression is correct, she is seeking to 'stack the metaphorical chips in her favor'."
"Oh yes, that she is. I suspect she'll end up rather disappointed with me, however."
The comment earned him a frown from Penny. "Joke, Penny, joke." he placated, before he got dragged into the believe-in-yourself conversation again.
"I thought it was."
By the Gods, is that a pout from Penny!?
It must have have been a trick of light. "At any rate, we've a little time to roam the campus. Does that sound alright?"
Penny was back to her bubbly self within a microsecond, hoisting up her bags. "That sounds more than alright! In fact, it sounds sensational!"
Jaune's night was an uneventful one, save for two happenings worth noting.
The first was his brief bout of insecurity upon entering the men's changing rooms and it dawning on him that he was a scrawny noodle in the midst of superstars.
They had perfectly sculpted chests, well defined abs, bulging arm muscles, and so much more. He, on the other hand…
Was fit. Jaune chastised himself. I am fit. That is all I need to be. This is a huntsman academy, not some angsty teen drama show. I'm more mature than this.
Said chastising was marginally effective.
The second was Penny's almost worryingly frequent glances at a certain student, which had began in earnest the moment they'd set down their bedrolls. From his position at the opposite end of the ballroom from her, he couldn't quite manage to make out more than black hair and a bow.
"What gives?" He asked her. "Who is that?"
"I have a hypothesis. It requires confirmation."
"And what might that hypothesis be?"
"I… Look, Jaune!" She exclaimed, abruptly pointing at a window. "It is dark outside. I would say this is a suitable time for us to go to bed."
"You didn't-" he started, but she had already curled up, pressed her eyes shut, and was snoring away.
… Penny doesn't snore.
The morning after, Jaune rose early. He would've loved to claim that it was out of self-discipline, or an intention to better prepare for initiation. The truth was… somewhat less flattering.
He was just nervous. Far too nervous for his own good. So nervous that he'd interrupted his own sleep five times throughout the night. It wasn't nightmares, no - simply his inability to keep himself calm enough to sleep soundly.
Damnit, haven't I been through this already?
As a matter of fact, he had, but his infuriatingly persistent stomach-butterflies didn't much care to respect that.
The sixth time his eyes opened, he gave up.
He sat up from his bedroll, and instantly, so too did Penny. "You woke five times during your sleep. Are you adequately rested?" She asked worriedly.
A girl to his left, with hair the same orange shade as Penny's, stirred.
Jaune rubbed his eyes. "I'll have to be. Keep your voice down, by the way. Everyone else is still asleep."
Penny's hand slapped over her mouth, her expression horrified.
At that, he couldn't resist a soft laugh. "Let's find ourselves breakfast, and somewhere we can talk freely."
So they did, carefully packing their bedrolls and picking their way across the mass of slumbering bodies.
A check of his scroll informed him that it was six-thirty. There was also a message from the academy administration, detailing the location of initiation to be the Beacon Cliff, at which they were to assemble two hours from now. Food was available for free, though not at the cafeteria - initiates would be served at the temporary kitchen on the field outside the armory.
Placing their bedrolls in one of three marked carts, they exited the ballroom and into the early, cloudless dawn. Aside from the occasional staff member cleaning the paths, the academy grounds they traversed were empty.
Half a minute later, a thought occurred to Jaune.
Penny's been quiet the whole time.
And with a start, he remembered something that his initiation-induced anxiety had pushed to a corner of his consciousness.
"Penny." He said.
"Yes?"
It's not like her to hide anything from me.
Jaune decided on the blunt approach. "While we're not busy, would you mind telling me what last night was all about?"
Penny was silent for several paces.
"I would not." She replied finally, turning to face him. "Forgive me, I appear to have made a mistake on this matter."
"What would help, is me being made aware as to what 'this matter' is." Jaune sighed. "That said, you are forgiven. Though I doubt there's really much to forgive."
Penny raised a finger. "How can you forgive me if, as you yourself pointed out, you do not know what I am requesting forgiveness for?"
"Because you were trying to help, and I know you well enough to refuse to believe otherwise."
"That… does makes sense." Penny's face brightened immediately. "I am extremely glad to hear that, Friend Jaune!"
"Please, back on topic." He prompted.
"Okay." Penny stopped walking, and in a jarringly instantaneous transition, her tone switched to a deadly serious one. "Blake Belladonna is among the first year students."
'Belladonna'… That's a familiar name. 'Blake' is not.
His memory clicked, and he put two and two together.
That only brings up more unanswered questions.
Jaune's eyebrows knit themselves. "She's… White Fang, then?"
"Correct." Penny confirmed. "Blake Belladonna is the daughter of Ghira Belladonna, former High Leader of the White Fang."
Oh dear.
"I didn't know he had a daughter."
"That is to be expected. Blake Belladonna's existence was kept secret for a significant portion of her life. She was not identified until years after she became an active member of the White Fang."
Subconsciously, Jaune's gaze began to flit about, scanning his surroundings. Then he reminded himself to stop being a fool, since Penny would've detected any eavesdroppers from kilometres away.
With the White Fang, though, there's two ways to interpret 'active member'.
A glimmer of admittedly naïve hope rose in him. "From what I recall, Ghira is one of the organization's advocates for peaceful protests. The responsibility for the terrorist actions of the White Fang were claimed by Sienna Khan."
Perhaps she follows in her father's footsteps. By the Gods, please let that be the case.
"You are correct again."
The glimmer shone brighter. "That would explain why she can be here. Ghira and his daughter could be considered separate from the extremist White Fang factions."
Penny proceeded to brutally crush his budding relief. "Unfortunately not. Blake Belladonna is a wanted criminal in Atlas for over fifteen assaults on SDC Dust convoys. She is also affiliated with Adam Taurus." She paused, seemingly oblivious to his sharp intake of breath. "Oh! I forgot to mention that this is all confidential information, which I am only disclosing to you on the clearance authorization order of Doctor Polendi-"
Jaune barely heard her. His heart was pounding in his chest. "We need to get back to the ballroom. Right now."
He could think of a singular objective for a White Fang operative to have here at Beacon. An objective who was presently fast asleep. Helpless.
"Wait, Friend Jaune! Weiss Schnee is not in danger."
Jaune froze. "What?"
"Blake Belladonna left the Ballroom twenty-seven minutes before we did. I can detect her heat signature in the armory change-rooms." Penny narrowed her eyes at the building several hundred meters from where they stood, then looked back to him. "She is brushing her teeth. I share the same suspicion as you, that Friend Weiss would possibly be a target. I have, however, yet to notice any sign of malicious intent towards her."
Jaune grit his teeth, trying to steady his breathing and see through his haze of panic. "It is true that a kidnapping would not be particularly feasible to carry out in the presence of Beacon's professors, and so many huntsmen-in-training, while an assassination…"
"Is unlikely, for it would serve no purpose on an individual such as Friend Weiss, who holds no significant political influence." Penny finished.
She was absolutely right, of course. Penny's social skills could use some work, but when it came to other things - logical deduction, counterterrorism, and subterfuge, to name a few - she was leagues above him. He had to trust Penny.
With great difficulty, Jaune forced the increasingly outlandish conspiracy theories piling up in head away. "What do you think we should do?"
"Observe."
Jaune stared at her incredulously.
"I have been unable thus far to discern Blake Belladonna's motives outside of theory. Collecting more data would allow me to make a sounder judgement. The closest opportunity to attempt an abduction is today's initiation, when Weiss is isolated in the Emerald Forest, and I believe the best course of action is to remain near her then."
Huh. I… can't argue against that. But I don't like just doing nothing.
I don't have a better plan, either, so…
"Fine. We'll do as you say." Jaune conceded.
"Thank you for your faith in me, Friend Jaune!"
He cracked a small, short-lived grin. "You deserve it. Although… you said information on this Blake figure is all confidential? To Atlas?"
Assuming she gained entrance to Beacon with a fake ID, her real identity can't be in Vale's database. Otherwise she would've been found out in an instant. I'm certain the academy does cross-referencing checks for its applicants.
That would mean…
"I did." Penny tilted her head, studying him. "Are you concerned that Headmaster Ozpin is, as people would say, 'in the dark'?"
He could understand the desire for Atlas to keep their intelligence on its enemies a secret. Regardless, here and now that secrecy was going to prove inconvenient, to say the least. It wasn't going to go well for them if they tried to deal with a potential terrorist plot alone.
"Very. The academy authorities must be warned immediately. Can you send a message directly to the Headmaster?" Jaune reached for his scroll. "I'll contact Doctor Polendina."
"The former is unnecessary, and I have already done the latter."
Jaune blinked.
"Headmaster Ozpin is in possession of a Top-Secret security clearance in both Vale and Atlas. He has access to all relevant information on Blake Belladonna." Penny explained. "Furthermore, we have reason to draw the conclusion that he is aware of her association with the White Fang - records indicate she was summoned for a private meeting to his office two days ago. The contents of the meeting are not available to me, though little else can be its subject."
Slowly, he nodded. "I'm still not entirely sure what to make of this, but… I suppose we shouldn't jump to conclusions in that case."
"I agree. Also, Pyrrha Nikos is forty-two meters behind us and approaching. Are we to cease this discussion?" Penny said, eyes never leaving him.
Under normal circumstances, Jaune might have decided to talk to the champion, if only out of curiosity.
Normal's out the window.
"Let's keep walking."
"Let's!"
Right. I almost forgot.
"And Penny? What possessed you to not tell me this yesterday?"
"I… imagined you would sleep better, if I did not worry you with this issue."
Penny smiled sheepishly as Jaune's palm impacted his forehead.
For the love of-
…
Next update will probably be on Annas & Outrealms.
To the reader who sent a concerned message about Jaune's backstory: he does have a coherent one. I just don't want to dump it out too soon because it's revelation will serve a plot purpose.
P.S. I didn't get to initiation this chapter. I'm VERY sorry to be delaying the action for so long, but I wanted to set up Blake as a plot point. I promise next chapter will have the fighting and excitement we've all been waiting for.
P.P.S. I make mistakes. Lots of them. I implore you to point them out to me via review / PM if you come across any ..
On a side note, to my AP-exam taking comrades, good luck the next two weeks! WE DIE TOGETHER.