Author's Note: And here is the promised Ren chapter, roughly three months after I first mentioned it to a reviewer. Better late than never, right?
By the by, this is set a day or so before the gang sets off for the Grimmlands in Chapter 9 of Golden Retriever. Just so you have an idea of when this is in the timeline.
Disclaimer and Warnings still apply from the first chapter
That Time Ren Got Insecure
Lie Ren sat cross-legged under the shade of one of the trees that ringed the clearing The Group (as he'd begun calling it in his mind) had taken to using as a practice field. He'd learned quickly that if he pretended he was meditating in order to improve his Aura control that Orville was less likely to sic Nora on him (which was a marvel in and of itself; the only other person he'd ever seen actually able to reliably give Nora orders was her father). He allowed the sounds of mock battle wash over him as he peeked out at the scene through his eyelashes, feeling a sense of peace as he did so.
Yang and Pyrrha were dominating the majority of the field as they knocked each other back and forth across the glade, finesse and precision against unpredictability and sheer force. Ruby was being coached through a basic set of boxing combinations by Russel close to where Ren was resting, though the speedsters were arguing about the merits of baked goods more than making any actual progress. Nora, Blake, Cardin, and Dove were all listening to an impromptu (and frankly unasked for) lesson in the proper handling of Dust from Weiss while Penny helpfully provided a holographic PowerPoint as a visual aid.
A crease formed between Ren's brows as he took mental count and came up short by two. Where was Orville and the new guy, Sun?
Opening his eyes more fully, Ren began to scan his surroundings, leaning a bit to the left as a stray shell casing flew past him as it was ejected from Yang's gauntlet. He could have sworn the two Faunus males had been sitting with the Dust lecture group a few minutes ago when he'd last checked around him so he started there.
A rustle of movement in the trees above Weiss caught Ren's attention, and after a more careful look he spotted a golden-furred tail twitching back and forth. He rose to his feet and cocked his head to the side to get a better look at Sun, who was fiddling with something in his hands. A few seconds later, a slight buzzing noise and a distressingly familiar musical piece began wafting on the breeze.
Before he could properly react (which in this case would have been to dive for cover), a swarm of miniature drones laden with baskets full of multicolored pellets zoomed overhead to the tune of Ride of the Valkyries and began bombing those assembled. Everywhere the pellets fell, a loud, colorful explosion of smoke soon followed and unfortunately for The Group there were quite a few of them.
Ren watched, open-mouthed as Weiss went from having a pristine white ensemble to looking like Nora had gotten into her wardrobe with a bucket of tie-dye. The others fared just as badly, with Cardin's gunmetal grey armor quickly turning aquamarine under the barrage and (much more worryingly) Yang's mane of gold rusting to a red that matched Ruby's battle skirt's ruffles.
Within moments of the attack's start, the Hunters-in-training all let loose and blasted the drones out of the sky before more havoc could be instigated. Thankfully, Ren had been able to avoid the worst of the bombardment (only getting grazed by a pink pellet on his elbow), but the others didn't seem to be as luck.
Sun curled his tail up in a futile effort at remaining unseen, but Blake had already noticed and yanked him down by the prehensile appendage forcefully.
Yang, whose eyes had lit up to match her new hair color, stomped over to the Faunus with murder written on her face. "What the HELL was that for?" she snarled in a manner that was more reminiscent of a ferocious Grimm than a teenage girl.
"It's Trickster Week," Sun yelped as he scuttled away from the terrifying vision before him. When he was met with bemused glares, he continued. "You know, the day that everyone pranks everyone else? Um...don't you guys have that here in Vale?"
"There's a whole week devoted to pranking people and nobody told me?" Nora asked, looking put out. She turned to Ren, who felt a shiver of cold fear run down his spine.
"I was unaware something like that even existed," he replied truthfully. Honestly, he didn't understand many of the special celebrations even in Vale. Most of the holidays observed in the little village he and Nora had grown up in were for sensible things like Yuletide and the first day of Spring. He couldn't comprehend the necessity of Trickster Day, unless it was to stave off a city-wide foul mood that might bring about a Grimm incursion...come to think of it, that might have been how the holiday came about in the first place.
"That still doesn't explain why you thought it was a good idea to pull this...prank now," Weiss snapped, fists on her hips as she loomed menacingly over Sun.
"I-it was Orville's idea!" Sun whimpered, cringing away from the heiress as he threw up his hands defensively.
"Snitches get stitches, Broku!" came the faint response from somewhere across the glen.
"Orville Doyle, you show yourself!" Weiss demanded, her ire shifting from one Faunus to the other. She pointed Myrtenaster toward the place from where Orville's voice had issued forth. "I'll give you until the count of three before I start practicing some of the new techniques we came up with. One...two...th—"
"Alright, alright!" grumbled Ren's leader as he dropped down from one of the trees sullenly. "It really shows that you're Atlesian, Edelweiss, what with that stick up your..."
"Finish that sentence and I'll shove something up yours," Weiss threatened, waving her rapier for emphasis.
"Kinky," Orville drawled, waggling his eyebrows suggestively, then yelped as he scrambled away from the wave of ice that washed over his former position. "Can't you take a joke?"
"Not when it's as unamusing as this," Weiss retorted. "Do you know how much this dress cost?"
"An absurd amount of lien, I'm guessing," Orville chuckled. "Relax, would you? It'll wash of without a trace, and that's a Doyle guarantee. It wouldn't be funny if it was cruel, would it?"
Yang, who had pulled her hair over her shoulder, examined the new red color speculatively. "So long as this doesn't damage my precious, I can sort of see the appeal," she admitted. She struck a provocative pose and winked at Orville. "How do I look as a redhead?"
Before Orville could answer, Weiss huffed in annoyance. "This doesn't excuse the fact that you perpetrated a malicious attack on us for no reason other than to satisfy your own sick sense of humor!"
"If I wanted it to be malicious I'd have mixed in itching powder and made the color permanent," Orville argued, and Ren supposed he had a point. There were much worse things his leader was capable of, including giving poor Carmin Falcone a week-long Hot Snake simply for something she'd said to Pyrrha during Combat class.
Weiss seemed to come to the same conclusion, but didn't want to give Orville the satisfaction. Instead, she let out a strangled snarl and began to stomp back toward Beacon, snatching Ruby's arm and dragging the younger girl along with her. "Come on, we need to figure out whether or not Doyle is telling the truth about this stuff."
"I thought it was funny, Orville," Ruby called out helpfully as she allowed her partner to steer her away.
The others quickly decided to do the same, leaving Ren, Orville, and Sun alone in the clearing.
"Man, that chick is such a stick in the mud," Sun said, shaking his head.
"She's alright," Orville defended, which confused Ren. Weiss was usually nothing but belligerent toward the dog Faunus, which irked Ren to no end. Sure, Orville could be as much of a handful as Nora sometimes, but was generally a good guy...for the most part. "Just that Atlesian upbringing showing. Not everyone can be as laid back as us, right, Peej?"
Ren didn't exactly consider himself 'laid-back', but nodded nonetheless. He supposed his imperturbable attitude, accrued through years of association with Nora, could be considered the same thing. "As long as nothing is permanently discolored, I don't see what the problem is," he reasoned.
"So, since training's pretty much done for the day, what's say you and I go watch the new Captain Vytal movie that came out today?" Orville suggested. "I know you've been looking forward to it."
Though he didn't advertise it, Ren was a bit of a comic book buff, and the recent 'Golden Age' of comic book cinema had only cemented his love of the characters. The newest film, which was based on one of his favorite runs, had been something he had indeed been anticipating since its announcement two years prior.
"That sounds like fun," Ren said, offering his leader a smile. "Should we check when the next showing is?"
Orville gave him a sly grin, waving his scroll jauntily. "Why do you think I waited 'til now to spring the prank? The shuttle leaves in ten minutes, the movie starts in thirty. That gives us plenty of time to load up on snacks and get some good seats. I already got the tickets."
Ren raised an eyebrow in mild disbelief. Orville had planned this? He really needed to stop being surprised by his only male friend's thoughtfulness. Granted, Nora had really been his sole companion for several years and while he loved her to death, the excitable ginger couldn't exactly be called the most sensitive person in the world when it came to others' needs.
"I suppose we should get going then," Ren shrugged, turning to head toward the docks.
"Hey, can I come too?" Sun asked. "I love Captain Vytal!"
Orville cast a glance toward Ren, who hesitated as he considered it. He wasn't jealous, per se, but after having spent so long with Nora he was somewhat reluctant to share what little time he and Orville spent together. The dog Faunus' attention was split so many different ways between his duties as leader, their other friends, Pyrrha and Yang's developing rivalry, and trying to get them all in shape for whatever that woman Cinder had in store for Vale that their one-on-one 'bro time' (Orville's words, not his) was a precious commodity which Ren was loathe to give up.
Sun, as the newest guy to join their group, had caused Ren a bit of trepidation. The monkey Faunus and Orville had meshed so well so quickly that Ren was a little worried that the blonde might replace him as Orville's best male friend. Obviously, Ren already had Nora, but it was nice hanging out with someone who only had one X chromosome.
Then in waltzes this happy-go-lucky fellow who shouldn't even be in Vale for another month or so and befriends Orville without so much as a by-your-leave. Ren knew that he wasn't the most social person, but it frustrated him to no end that Sun had simply squeezed himself into the fold like it was the most natural thing in the world.
Orville must have seen a bit of the conflict on his face because he turned to Sun and said, "Give us a minute, yeah?" Sun shrugged with an easy smile and nodded, heading off toward the school. "What's up, PJ?"
"Nothing," Ren answered, perhaps a little too quickly. Orville gave him a dubious look, and Ren relented. "I just...look, I know I'm not as great a conversationalist as Sun is, but—"
Orville cut him off with a snicker. "Are you jealous?"
"No," Ren denied vehemently, averting his eyes from Orville's skeptical gaze. "Maybe..."
Still smiling, Orville clapped a hand on his shoulder, commanding Ren's attention. "Ren, you're like, the first bro I've ever had. Roman doesn't count since he's almost a decade older than me, and Gin sure as hell doesn't count 'cause he basically raised me." He shook his head slightly. "The girls are great and everything, but sometimes a guy's just gotta be with his buddy, and you're my best buddy. Just because Sun might be a little more outgoing than you doesn't mean I'm just gonna toss you to the side."
Ren knew that; honestly, he did. Orville wasn't the type of person to discard someone like that, but to hear it spoken aloud was certainly reassuring. "I'm acting stupid," he finally said, running a hand listlessly through his hair.
"Nah," Orville denied, smirking. "If you suddenly started kicking it with Tiny and Bright-Eyes I think I'd get a little jealous myself." He squinted at Ren suspiciously. "You're not hanging with the CFVY guys, are you?"
"Er...no," Ren replied flatly. Yatsuhashi and Fox were virtual unknowns to Ren. Hell, they had really only interacted the one time Coco had brought her team around to their table to thank Orville that one time. He was sure they were fine people, but he had enough trouble keeping track of The Group as it was without adding more members.
"Good," said Orville, sounding oddly relieved. "So, is it a yea or a nay for Sun?"
Ren cracked a grin. "I can't very well deny him the awesomeness that is Captain Vytal: Buddy Fight, now can I?"
After-Action Report: Can you guys tell I'm excited about Captain America: Civil War? Because I totally am. I'm actually gonna see it later on tonight with a couple friends of mine, which was how this chapter came about.
I've always thought that Ren isn't a very emotive person because he's always had to check himself due to Nora's exuberance, and he probably never had too many friends for the same reason. I mean, I'd personally love to have someone like Nora as a pal, but I can see how it could be off-putting for others. Therefore, Ren has never really been able to just hang out and shoot the breeze with the guys because there have been no guys.
Ren will eventually warm up to Sun, but for now it'll be slow-going. I'm not sure whether or not I want to add CFVY to The Group, mostly because Yats and Fox are basically non-entities in the show. Hell, even Taiyang got more characterization than those two.
Also, I dropped some Orville nicknames that I haven't used in Golden Retriever yet so:
Broku = Sun
Tiny = Yatsuhashi
Bright-Eyes = Fox
Just so you know.
Anyway, review, favorite, follow, etc. Thanks to those who've already done so, I appreciate you all. See you next time, and have a great day!
