RWBYond Vale
AN: Another day another chapter. This one is taking things nice and slow. Today we're catching up with team SSSN. I think these guys have been robbed of their screen time honestly. I know they'll get bigger parts in volume 4 but in the grand scheme of things they are supposed to be the second or third most important team. I personally blame the FNDM's fascination with team CFVY for SSSN's lack of screen time. Well if you like CFVY just know that they will only have very small roles in this story whereas SSSN is going to have their own story arc later on.
Chapter 10: What do you think the girls are up to?
Haven Academy was positioned on the east coast of Mistral on the east edge of Haven city. Once upon a time it was a fortress protecting the land from would be invaders. On the other side of the city was Lagoon Academy, another fortress repurposed as a combat school in the days since the war. From atop Haven tower where the CCT was located one could see the entire city as well as the two bodies of water that surrounded the city. Haven was touted as an academy second only to Beacon in prestige. That is why when Sun had the choice to stay in Vacuo, where his family was, and go to Shade, or go to Haven, where his mother had gone and his uncle still lived, Sun chose Haven. He had met a lot of great people here. He had a great team even if they weren't exactly a group of prodigies like a certain Beacon team. He loved Haven almost as much as he missed Vacuo. Haven was supposed to be one of the best schools in the world. So then why had everything gone wrong and why did it seem like Haven's fault?
Sun didn't know Pyrrha that well and he had never met Penny. He only knew Ozpin by reputation and his only ties with Vale was how fond he had become of a certain all-girls team. Still when Beacon was falling he fought with all his strength because it was the right thing to do. He had practically laughed when Ironwood gave them an out. He was going to be a huntsman. Growing up in the nomadic regions of Vacuo taught him how dangerous that could be. It was a job and they signed up for it. When he was offered to go back home to Vacuo where it was safe, he still elected to return to Haven where he could hopefully do some good.
That is why he and his team were working the streets at this time of night. A plan like the one that brought Vale to its knees would require a massive push from the underground. Cinder and her gang had attended Haven. Sun remembered seeing them around his first semester. Before he went back home for break, boarded a ship going from Shade to Beacon and decided to get a jump start on his second semester as the first Haven student to arrive in Vale for the festival. That was how he met team RWBY.
The team had just roughed up another sniveling weapons dealer to no avail. They had never heard of Cinder Fall nor did they care about what happened at Beacon. Sun wondered if Blake was having better luck in Vale. That's what she was doing right? It had to be. Blake would never abandon her friends for a stupid reason like protecting them would she. No it was the only way Sun could rationalize it in a way that kept up his feelings for the black cat Faunus. It had been months since the battle surely they were all recovered and back together save for Weiss through no fault of her own. As a Faunus Sun heard the stories of what Sturm Schnee was capable of. Weiss had even shared some of her deep seated worries about him to Neptune. And Neptune couldn't keep a secret to save his life. Though he did last a whole three months before telling Scarlet that Blake was a Faunus. Scarlet didn't care but Sage he thought it was wonderful. He even spouted some poetry about likeminded hearts or something. Sage might look tough but he was actually a big softy, kind of the opposite of Scarlet.
"Another day another bust." Neptune said with a sigh.
"You said it." Scarlet added.
"I'm starting to think going for the criminal underbelly of Haven was a mistake." Sage said. "Perhaps we should do as I suggested and ask Professor April."
"But what if she's somehow involved?" Neptune said in a hushed voice.
"Then she won't tell us anything." Sage said.
"Not necessarily." Sun said as he paced around. "Sometimes the lack of information is all the information you need." He finished with a smile, pointing to his comrades.
"You read that in an "X-Ray and Vav" comic." Scarlet said.
"Doesn't make it not true." Sun said. A strange silence followed.
"What do you thing the girls are up to?" Neptune finally said after a minute of silence.
"Why are you asking me?" Sun asked.
"You knew them the most all that time with Blake talking about feelings and history and books." Sage said.
"Not to mention all the weapon shopping the two of you did with with Ruby." Scarlet said.
"Hey she just wanted to make sure I didn't steal Blake away again." Sun said defensively. "Besides without that Ruby wouldn't have been able to use my scroll to call in her scythe."
"Regardless, I still say we go to Professor April and see what she knows." Sage said.
"Everyone agree?" Sun asked.
"I don't." Said Neptune.
"Good, let's go." Sun said taking the lead.
A little while later they were at the office of Professor April, headmistress of Haven Academy. They could hear people arguing inside. Something about a ship. Sun knocked and the arguing stopped.
"Come in." The voice of Professor April said. Team SSSN walked in single file. April was sitting at her desk wearing her normal blue dress. Across from her and leaning against the wall was a young man, perhaps in his late twenties. He had a light brown skin with shaggy black hair. He wore a yellow sleeveless vest showing off his toned muscles and a matching pair of baggy pants. Over his right shoulder was a yellow bag, kind of like a satchel but looked more like a purse. He also had a black cat tail waving to and fro slowly.
"Headmistress we have something to ask." Sun started.
"Ya, you and the whole world kid." April said.
"You must be team SSSN." The man said. Sun recognized him from interviews and news programs. Headmaster Felix of Shade, the youngest huntsman to reach the rank of headmaster and the first Faunus to do the same. "Headmaster Felix, it's a pleasure to finally meet you." He said shaking each of their hands.
"What's a headmaster doing here?" Neptune said.
"The peace talks, your moderating them." Sage said.
"Sharp boys aren't they." Felix said turning to April.
"They are without a doubt the best team in their year here." April said entwining her fingers and putting her elbows on her desk. "You were going to ask something."
"Ah, yes, we um…" Sun started.
"What do you know about Cinder Fall?" Neptune blurted out.
"That's right, you guys were there when everything went wrong." April said with a sigh. Her eyes sank down. "I, have an answer for you but I don't know how to say it."
"She'll have plenty of time to say it at the peace talks tomorrow." Felix said. "The four of you should watch it. If I'm not mistaking you might see some familiar faces there."
"What do you mean?" Neptune said.
"Well I've been trying to get as many people who were there at the peace talks. And a couple of them are arriving by boat in the morning."
"Who?" The four of them said in unison.
"Ruby Rose, and three others." Felix said.
"What about Blake is she there?" Sun asked hopeful.
"I'm afraid not. We sent a huntsman to fetch her but there is no telling when or if they'll ever arrive." Felix said lowly.
"And Weiss?" Neptune asked.
"Ms. Schnee will be arriving later in the day."
"So who else is with Ruby?" Scarlet said.
"The survivors of team JNPR if I'm not mistaken." Team SSSN was ecstatic though a little disappointed on the lack of a Blake.
"What about the other member, Yang Xiao Long?"
"I'm sorry to say, I highly doubt she'll be able to make it. Her therapy takes time. There's no telling when she'll be able to leave her home. Even then everything here will hopefully be over."
Sun was down trodden. Yang had been their strongest fighter and she lost an arm to the White Fang leader. But hopefully the arrival of some Beacon survivors would help in making the talks go a lot smoother. Sun just hoped nothing bad will happen.
AN: One of the tough things about writing is keeping track of who knows what. None of the characters have all the information and that is what helps build suspense. Felix is actually based on the cartoon Felix the Cat, hence his bag. I've got some cool ideas for him in the future. Next chapter will probably be the longest. RNJR arrives in Haven, a funny Nora/Ren moment, Ruby and Jaune meet up with SSSN and the headmasters, and the first round of the peace talks happens. Make sure to Follow, Favorite, Review and do the same for my other story STRQ: Tales of the Old Huntsman.