A/N ({[REWRITTEN FINAL PARAGRAPH, MAJOR SHIT CHANGED]}) Hey, thanks for all the views, favorites, etc. If you have any suggestions or just want to chat, feel free to PM me, I like to know what the readers think about my content. I'm always open to new ideas, OC's, or anything else of the sort! Now onto the show!
(A few uneventful weeks later)
Will woke up to the sound of the alarm clock on his scroll blaring in his ears. He quickly moved his hand to stop it and got up. Everyone but Weiss was still sleeping, and she was just starting to wake up. 'Something feels…different somehow.' Will quickly dismissed the thought as nonsense and took a quick shower. He got dressed and left the steamy bathroom to see an impatient Weiss tapping her foot clad in her blue nightgown. "Finally, can you wake everyone up please? We'll be late for breakfast if they don't get up soon."
Will looked past her at the other girls. Blake however, was already waking up. Yang was sprawled out on her bed, soring loudly and Ruby was curled into a ball patting her hand where Will would normally be. IF it wasn't a cute enough sight already, she was letting out small whimpers upon finding her warm teddy bear missing. The promise of Ruby doing something adorable was enough to wake Yang up with.
"Yang, wake up, hurry!" Will whispered by Yang's. She mumbled something incoherently before rolling over, facing away from him now. "Ruby's doing something really adorable and you'll miss it if you don't wake up."
This woke her right up. She bolted up and off of her bed and across to Ruby's, grabbing her scroll in the process. "Awwwww, got a picture!" Will let a grin burst out on his face and said. "Send it to me please!" Blake popped up next to Yang and let out an aww and snapped a picture for herself. While Yang and Blake were giggling to themselves, Ruby had started to awaken.
"Wiiiillll~. Come back to bed pleeaaasseeee~." She whined, reaching towards said boy with both hands making grabbing motions, causing Yang and Blake both to squeal with delight at the sight of the act of adorableness put on by the girl. "Sorry Ruby, but it's time to get up. If you don't we'll miss breakfast." Will stated, slipping his black robe over his head.
"Besides, I really want some pancakes before Nora devours them all." The sleepy girl got up and jumped at Will, causing him to catch her. Ruby gave Will a quick peck on the cheek and dropped down. Weiss exited the bathroom and Ruby sprinted in and out, clean and ready to go, within a minute. Blake and Yang were the last two to finish their daily morning rituals.
From the other side of the hall, they could hear Nora singing about the pancakes she was about to go eat, causing Ruby's eyes to go wide and sprint out the door , leaving a trail of rose petals in her wake. Yang laughed and said. "Let's go before she eats them all."
Will was the last one out of the dorm and locked the door just as Nora was sprinting out of her room saying. "HeyWillcan'ttalkgottago." Donning a confused look at the girl, Will turned to face Ren. "She's in a rush to get to breakfast before Ruby so that she can have more pancakes." He explained. "Well we better go before they eat them all." Will said walking down the hall.
His scroll beeped when he entered the lunchroom. Pulling it out from his pocket, he opened it causing it to depict a message from Ozpin. It read, "You and the rest team RWBY are to come to my office after you are done with Breakfast. –Ozpin.
'Hm, wonder what he has in store for us Will.' Shade said, his voice echoing through Will's head. 'I'm not sure, but it must be important.' He proceeded to grab a tray with a few pancakes and a large quantity of bacon and sit down with the rest of his team and JNPR, whom he learned of during dinner the previous night. "So, why does Ozpin want to see you all after breakfast?" Asked a curious Jaune, the leader of JNPR. Ruby looked up from her now diminishing mountain of pancakes. "Not sure, he sent the message to team RWBY and Will here." Will nodded in confirmation and said. "Well I'm done eating, I'll be up in Ozpin's office waiting." Giving Ruby a quick kiss on the cheek, he disposed of his tray and left the cafeteria heading for Ozpin's office.
Arriving in front of a large wooden door, he knocked and Glynda came to the door almost instantly, ushering him inside. "Ah, Will, good morning." Ozpin said, taking a sip from his seemingly never empty mug of coffee. "Good morning to you too professors." Ozpin smiled at Will's polite attitude. "So, how has your time here at Beacon been so far? I imagine it can be very interesting considering that you're on a team with all females and Ms. Rose and you are now in a relationship." He said with an all knowing smile.
Will's face adopted a deep shade of red. "Y-Yeah, how d-d-do you k-know?" The grey haired headmaster let out a small laugh and said. "Please Will, I the Headmaster, I know pretty much everything that goes on with my students. Oh, it seems as if your team has arrived." Right on cue, the rest of team RWBY was let in by Glynda. "Good morning girls, take a seat here beside Will so we ca finally get down to business." Ruby was the first to speak up. "Why are we here again?" Ozpin pulled his scroll out to reveal a map of Vytal. There was a dot on the border between Vacuo and Vale territories. "This dot here marks the border town of Split, named for the split population of those from both Vacuo and Vale, Human and Faunus alike. We got a call from the mayor of the town asking for assistance. He had said that the Grimm population in the area has drastically risen. I'm sending in team RWBY to help, do you accept?" The girls chatted for a second before looking at Will. Giving the four a nod, Ruby nodded her head. "We accept, when will we leave?" Ozpin glanced at his scroll. "As soon as you get ready. Dismissed."
The five students, excited about their first mission, packed all the essential items that they would need such as clothes, toothbrushes, toothpaste, and in Will's case, a highly advanced laptop with a small portable satellite dish and solar charger. When Will bought his electronics, he went all out and bought anything that he thought would be useful in the future. Weiss, however, disagreed with his decision to bring the electronic equipment.
"What on Remnant do you need all of that for?!" she questioned Will angrily. "You never know when we might need an actual computer besides these dinky little scrolls that the school provides. I like to be prepared for the worst." He explained, causing Weiss to let out a huff and continue packing. Along with the electronics, he also packed a compact weapon repair and construction kit he had made in his free time. Finally finishing their packing, Will and Ruby went over to team JNPR's dorm and slipped a note explaining their situation under the door for them to find later. Before Will was ready, he changed into his newest outfit of the black pants, vest, and grey scarf, allowing him a more free movement with his body. He still, however, kept his robes packed.
They picked up their packs and made their way down to the airship and loaded in. Because of the situation, Ozpin had put them in one of the fastest airships available. Despite the speed they were going, which would allow them to arrive in Split in a much shorter time frame than normal. During the flight, Blake had, for some odd reason, fallen asleep on Yang's shoulder while Yang was also fast asleep with her head leaning on Blake's head. Ruby had passed out with her head on Will's lap, who was reading through his spell book for the flight.
Because it was comfortable to him, he would curl his tail up on his lap. Ruby would unconsciously grab it and cuddle with it as if it was her favorite teddy bear. 'I don't mind her doing that and all, but she could lighten her grip every once and a while.' 'Heheh, like that's going to happen. That girl needs her teddy bear. HAHAHA.' Will just sighed and shook his head at Shade's endeavors to mess with him. Putting the book away, he lifted his hand and summoned a blue flame, flickering in the dim light provided by the moon. The ship was one of the fastest that Ozpin could afford, but it would still take around 24 hours to arrive in the town of Split, so they would all have to spend the night in the airship.
As a way of learning to control the flame and make it stronger, he would cause it to move and weave between his fingers ad up his arm, flickering around his sleeve. Thankfully he had enough control over the flame to where he could cause it not to burn anything it touches. During one of his many experiments with his newfound power, he found that he could take flames from other sources such as Yang when she was angry. He had near full control over the fire, he just needed to work on sustaining it and not letting it get out of control. Concentrating, he changed the flames color from blue to green to red to white and caused it to flow over to a curious Weiss who was watching the flame, too engulfed in the tongues of fire licking the floor to realize what her teammate was about to do.
The flame proceeded to crawl across the floor and crawl up her leg and along her dress until it reached her hand. Realizing what was happening, she let out a squeal and said. "Get it off, get it off, get it off of me Will!" Will let out a slight chuckle and dispersed the flame. Inspecting her hand, she glared daggers at Will, who was trying to remain composed, but with his ears and tail twitching, he failed.
His tail twitched a few more times before Ruby awoke with a yawn. "RUBY! Your boyfriend here is a big meanie!" Weiss never cursed and that made it funny when she was mad at times because she sounded like a child trying to scold someone. Yawning, Ruby said. "What did he do this time?" Ruby looked up at Will, who was trying not to laugh. "He did his stupid fire trick and scared me!" Ruby just giggled at Weiss and lightly punched Will in the chest. "Bad doggy." She said tiredly before falling back into her slumber.
Sometime and much more flame practice later, they docked in Split and made their way to a local inn. The receptionist looked at them and smiled. "I take it you five are the huntresses ad hunter that are supposed to assist us?" Everyone nodded. "Ah, the mayor has already bought out two rooms for you then! Here are the keys, your room numbers are 105 and 106, enjoy your stay and thank you for coming to our aid!" they took the keys and made their way to the rooms that had been bought out for them.
The rooms were about the same size of their dorm each and had a doorway connecting the two in the middle. Each room had a TV, bathroom, a small kitchenette, and two queen sized beds. Will tossed his pack on the bed and flopped down. "Ah, some rest at last." He said, his voiced muffled by one of the pillows on the bed. Ruby dropped her pack and flopped down on top of Will, causing an audible groan to emerge from the wolf Faunus.
Will got up, which caused a groan to emanate from Ruby this time and for her to latch on tightly. "Hey, I think we should probably go see the mayor before we head out later." Weiss looked up from checking her luggage. "That sounds like a good idea. What do you think Ruby?" Instead of answering, she nodded, her face buried in Will's semi long hair. "She says yes. Let me know when you're ready to leave." He walked through the door leading to Yang ad Blake's room. Opening the door he saw luggage piled on one bed and Yang straddling Blake, kissing on the other. This, however, did not surprise Will as the two have been getting increasingly close over the past two weeks. He pulled out his scroll and snapped a quick picture before poking Ruby's cheek to get her attention. Reluctantly, she raised her head. "What is it Wi- WHAT ON REMNANT!?" she said, spotting Yang and Blake. Yang jumped and fell off the bed in surprise, dragging Blake down with her.
Blake stood up and pulled Yang up with her, both blushing violently. "Hey Ruby, check this photo those two got of you this morning." He pulled up the picture of Ruby in the bed from the morning the day before. Ruby tried to grab the scroll from his hands but failed. "Give it to me pleaaaasseee. I wanna delete it!" Ruby complained. "Nope. I got one more picture to show you. It might make you feel much better." He then opened up the picture of Yang and Blake. "Leverage." Said Will. This caused Ruby to get a very wide devilish smile. "Listen, let's just keep this in this room ok?" said Yang. Blake, who was now hiding behind Yang, nodded furiously in agreement. "Sure, just delete the picture of me and I won't give this photo to Weiss, you know how she would react."
Yang's face paled a bit at this. "F-fine." She picked her scroll up from the nightstand between the two beds and deleted the picture. "There, happy?" Ruby smiled and said. "Yep!" Will sighed and shook his head at the girl's antics. "Well, we are all going to the Mayor today to get the information needed and hopefully we can leave sometime tomorrow." The two girls nodded their heads.
After grabbing Weiss, they made their way through the streets and to the Town Hall. The receptionist had immediately recognized them and told them where to go before she paged the Mayor. The Mayor looked a lot like Professor Port at beacon, a large set man with white hair and a large bushy moustache on his face. "Ah! Welcome Hunter and Huntresses!" Weiss's eyes went very wide at the sight of the man. "PROFFESSOR PORT?!" she yelled in surprise. "Ha-ha. No, although Peter is my brother. Tell me, how is that devilish bastard?"
"I wouldn't call him devilish…" Yang muttered. "He's just fine Sir. Now, what can you tell us about the rise in Grimm population?" Will asked "Ah, well they are gathering mainly in a large grove in the forested area to the east. As far as I know, there are only Beowolves, Ursa, Deathstalkers, Boarbatusks, and possibly a few Creep." The girls looked confused at the last one. "Creep are lizard-like Grimm, very rare but from what I heard, are rather weak." Yang punched her knuckles together. "This sounds like fun."
They said their farewells and made their way east. The trees in the forest had greed leaves, but the wood and bark was tinged blue. They encountered few Grimm along the way, but they easily fell before the five students. They made their way through the forest and, finally, to the Grimm infested grove. The size of the Grimm population was unknown to them, but from what they saw before them, it could easily be over 200.
"Will, stay behind and use your magic to kill as many as you can please. This is too much for us to handle close ranged." Will nodded at Ruby's command and started to prepare the strongest fire spell in his control. His voice then started to take on a reverberating echo as he spoke.
"Here and now, I invoke the elemental force of Fire,
I call to the Hearth Fire's warmth and the sun's revealing light,
To the lightning's strike and the meteor's blazing arc.
You that catalyzes transformation,
You that teaches the clearest lessons,
You that melts stone,
I call you here to infuse my intention with your flickering gifts.
I call you here to fill the Spirit Forge.
Temper my will in your flames and anneal my purpose with your heat
Candle and Campfire,
Courage and Coals,
Fire, I call to thee"
Finishing the spell, Will burst into blue and black flames that infused themselves with his now flaring aura. He knew what was to come, and braced for it. Sticking his hand towards the Grimm, palm facing the creatures, he expelled the flames, effectively incinerating roughly half the population in the area and causing all plant life to burn to ashes due to the immense heat. The master destruction spell immediately drained nearly all of Wills aura and caused him to collapse on the forest floor, still wrapped in his now dying blue flames, on the brink of consciousness. He managed to see the four girls charge into the fight. They were soon overrun however and had to retreat.
That wouldn't have been a problem for Will, however they were chased off in a different direction, leaving Will behind. He sat in silence waiting on their return to help him. He sat for a long time, possibly around three or four hours before coming to the realization that they wouldn't be coming back for him. Not too long after thinking on what had happened, a red haired man in a black coat and pants with a red undershirt with an intricate red and white design on the left shoulder of the man's jacket. He wore a white mask with more intricate red markings on it. Will could barely make out a pair of horns within the red hair of the figure before him. The figure approached him and picked him up before Will lost consciousness.
"Wake up Will. We are in somewhere new." Will slowly cracked open his eyes to see Shade standing over him, repeatedly poking Will with its foot. "Ugh, I have two questions. Firstly, where are we? Secondly, how did you manifest into a physical form?" Will whispered, careful not to alert anyone to his presence.
Sitting up, he was able to get a look around the room. The bed he was laying on was actually just a thick mat and a sheet for a blanket. There was another smaller blanket rolled up for use as a pillow. The walls were made of what seemed to be wood frames and paper with a wood floor. There was a desk and a chair set off to one side of the room with an oil lantern resting on the table. He saw his clothes sitting in a neat folded pile. One wall served as a window and a glass door leading outside. From what he could see, the area was in an elevated position as he could see the tow off in the distance. The area was located right outside the forest and seemed to a tribute to an old culture.
Will stood up and walked over to them and saw that they had been cleaned. He looked down and noticed that he was wearing what seemed to be a black kimono. On the table, Naze was in its compact form on a small wooden stand. He quickly changed out of the robe and into his clothes, picking up Naze and putting it in its slot on the back of his belt.
Turning around, he saw Shade standing there waiting on him to finish what he was doing before saying. "I do not know where we are or who found us, but I was able to manifest by using some of your Aura and projecting myself. I think we should try to find a way out, but I don't think we should find the one who saved us, they might have some rather useful information regarding our position." Will nodded in agreement and walked out the sliding door, almost bumping into a rather tall man with bright red hair with what looked like small horns emerging, pointing behind him, curving to match the curvature of his skull. He had a pair of dull green eyes and a small smile on his slightly tanned face. He had on the same outfit as the one he saw in the forest before slipping into unconsciousness. On his waist was a katana set in a black sheath with what looked like a trigger on the underside of it. The man, upon seeing Will about to bump into him, swiftly moved out of the way, balancing a tray with two cups and tea pot resting on its surface.
"Excuse me young man, but I don't think you should be up and moving quite yet. Please, sit with me." He said, moving to the center of the room and set the tray down on the floor and sat down cross-legged beside it. Will followed his example and sat down across from the red haired samurai, as he thought the man resembled one. Pouring the contents of the tea pot, which turned out to be tea, into both cups and asked. "So, what is your name young mage?"
Will was surprised that the man came close to guessing what exactly Will's semblance was. "A-actually its Illusionist, and my name's Will. If I may ask, what is your name and what happened? How did I get here?" the samurai let out a small laugh. "Adam. Adam Taurus. And I found you I the woods on the brink of death, so, I took you here to rest. Welcome to my home." His deep green eyes twinkled "I witnessed the fight and the spell you had cast, so I sat in the shadows and watched what happened. I myself practice the Iaido fighting style, but I'm sorry your team abandoned you like that. Now I have a proposition for you, come and be my partner. The work I do is dangerous and my last partner had abandoned me too. So what do you say Black Wolf?"
Will was genuinely surprised that Adam had recognized him. "H-How did you know?" Will questioned. "I have my sources." Will thought for a moment on his offer. On one hand, he could decline and leave Vale and head to Vacuo and start anew. On the other hand, this man most likely would not turn his back on him like his team had. "I accept, but there is a problem. All of my gear is back at the town of Split and I need to retrieve it." Adam nodded his head at his proposal.
"Yes, I understand, I could accompany you if you wish. You never know when there might be danger around the corner and with your recent problem, an extra hand is always helpful." Will thought on this for a second. Shade decided to butt into his thoughts. 'Hmmm, he seems trustworthy enough, but can we trust him?' 'Only time will tell Shade. But if we are going to earn his trust, we have to tell him about you. Can you manifest?' 'Hmm, yes, give me a second.'
Will felt his aura drain fast as a shadowy orb appeared out of thin air beside him and slowly made the form of Shade. Adam did not seem fazed by the form appearing. "Ah, I see you have a trick up your sleeve Will. Is this just an illusion of yours or something else?" He questioned. "Hello Adam, my name is Shade, I am what you would call a second conscience of Will's. If we are going to trust each other then I might as well reveal myself." Adam nodded. "I see, well I'm sorry to say that I will not be sharing my past or secrets at this time. Now, shall we get going?"
It turns out that Adam did not live too far from Split. His home was located on a large hill about two miles away from the border town. They arrived after walking for a small bit. Adam had given him a black robe to help hide his identity. The tall Iaido samurai wore one exactly the same and walked right beside Will as they made their way to the inn his former team was staying in.
They arrived soon and walked around to the side of the building, stopping next to the window to the room Weiss and Ruby were staying in. Peeking in, he saw that the room was thankfully empty, but he could hear voices too muffled to make out coming from Yang and Blake's room. He tried opening the window, which thankfully was unlocked and quietly slipped inside. He immediate grabbed his laptop and its gear and shoved it into his bag. He heard the door to the room next door open just as he was jumping out the window where Adam was waiting. He and Adam sprinted away, hearing the angry voices of Weiss and Yang behind them, screaming for them to stop. Will ignored them and kept sprinting, soon hitting the town gates and losing the two, who were shooting icicles and flaming shotgun shells their way, missing every time, in the forest.
They emerged after hiding in the forest, waiting on the two to quit searching for their targets. They stayed low, observing the area before becoming satisfied that they were safe to head back to Adam's home. Will walked straight to the room he was staying in after they got back and set up the computer with its antenna and solar charger next to the window in the room. He heard the beep from his laptop signaling that he had connection and that it was charging.
Adam walked in and sat a pot of tea on the desk and poured Will a cup. "So, what are you working on?" he asked, looking at Will's screen. "Disabling anyone from finding my location by tracking this computer." Will replied, typing speedily. "I see. Very helpful. Now I do have something to tell you. I am a soldier of the White Fang, although I would rather it revert back to its old, peaceful, way and not this… monstrosity." He stopped to examine Will's reaction, which was surprisingly stoic. "I hope you understand that I am not forcing you to go on these missions with me, but it would be welcome to help keep the missions non-lethal with your skills." Adam said, taking a drink of his tea.
"I see. I support the way you think and your wishes, but I am not ready to re-engage in certain…activities just yet. I hope you understand." Adam nodded at this. "Of course. I know what it's like to lose someone you care for." Adam got up and walked to the door with his cup in hand. "I will leave you too your business, Good night." With that, he left and closed the door behind him and left Will deep in thought on who had taken him in.
Sometime late into the night he woke up to a near silent tapping sound at his window. He sat up and saw Blake there with a worried look on her face. Needless to say, he was happy to see her, thinking they had left him behind. He pulled the glass door open, allowing her in. In a hushed tone, he asked her. "Blake! What are you doing here? How did you manage to find me?" She put a finger to her lips, dragging him outside. "Listen, we don't have much time. The man who took you in, Adam, he is not a good man, he-" Will interrupted her. "I know what he did, he has told me of his past and current occupation. Believe it or not Blake, he wants change in the Fang for the better." She shook her head. "That does not excuse his crimes. Just be careful around him, ok? I'll send Ruby by soon. Goodbye, and once again, stay safe." She ran out into the wooded areas behind the house, disappearing.
A/N So I've changed the final paragraph of this chapter around a bit and I will continue on to edit the next chapter as well."