Chapter 9: Burning The Candle


Dream Scenario: Tales Of a Huntsmen- Hero and the Brave Choccobo

Out on the open fields of the Emerald Forest, Hero Arthurus is sitting on the ground, looking up at the beautiful sky which was covered by small clouds. Next to him stood a choccobo, which was covered in blue armor, all while a polka was tied to its saddle. His sword was stuck in the ground, as a flag(which was tied to it) flowed in the wind. A flag that contained the Vale insignia.


(Beacon: Ballroom)

Hero is resting his head on his hand and staring into the distance before he's startled by someone slamming their palms on the table he's at.

"I need you to pick a tablecloth." Weiss asked, smiling. She slides two squares over to Hero, both seeming to be similar shades of white.

"Aren't they both the same?" Hero asked, confused.

"(sighs in frustration) I don't even know why I asked!"

Weiss walks away as Yang comes in carrying a massive sound speaker on her shoulder, which bounces Hero and the table he's moping on again to jump in the air when she drops it on the ground.

Oliver arrives, and drops another speaker, that causes Hero to bounce up again." So Yang, do you have a date to the dance tomorrow?" He asked, leaning against the speaker.

"Not really." Yang said, brushing her hands." Why do you ask?"

"Well, I was wondering if you would like to be my date to the dance." Oliver asked, walking over, and trying to flirt with her." What do you say?"

"Hmm... Nope." Yang winked and walked away.

"Ah, come on. It'll be-" He walks after her.

Ilivane:" Oliver! The speaker is supposed to go to the opposite site, not behind the other one!

Oliver stops in his tracks." Ugh... yes, your majesty." He said, annoyed.

Ilivane walks over to Hero." So, have you picked out a suit yet?"

"What's the point? Riku's not going, so why bother." Hero said, still moping.

"Don't worry; Riku will be there." He looks over, and becomes exasperated." Miss Schnee! I thought we agreed: No doilies!"

Weiss walked up to him, pointing in his face." If I don't get doilies, then Yang doesn't get a fog machine!"

The two are interrupted by the sounds of doors opening. Sun and Neptune walk in." Your dance is gonna have fog machines?"

"We were thinking about it..." Weiss said, stepping up to him, becoming sweet.

"That's pretty cool."

Sun walks into the little scene, much to Weiss' ire." You guys all excited for the dance?"

"Well... not really." Hero said.

"Gloom all you want, the ladies will be going crazy over me tomorrow night." Oliver gloated.

"Yeah sure." Neptune said.

"What are you two wearing?" Weiss asked Sun and Neptune.

"Uuhhh...this?" Sun gestures to his current shirtless outfit.

Neptune steps up and holds a hand in front of his friend's face." Ignore him for he knows not what he says."

Sun knocks Neptune's hand away." Hey, I may have moved to Mistral, but I grew up in Vacuo. It's not exactly a shirt-and-tie kind of place."

"Yeah, I know." Oliver said, looking annoyed." I'm from Vacuo..." The last part, he mumbles to himself.

Sun looks at the others, and rubs the back of his head, preparing to ask:" Soooo... how is Riku doing? He still being all, y'know... Riku-y?"

"Obviously." Weiss said, turning and crosses her arms in disapproval.

"Why are you so concerned?" Oliver asked." Your the reason everyone is afraid of him."

"Uh...I-I didn't mean all that stuff I said. I'm sorry." Sun apologized.

Oliver turned away." Whatever."

"So...What's up with him?"

"Not much. We're just trying to think of a way to change his mind about the dance." Hero said.

"Hero." Everyone looks at Ilivane as he starts to walk out." Believe me; Riku will go to the dance tomorrow."


(Beacon: Library.)

Riku is sitting at one of the library tables with a holographic screen in front of him. He is more sleep-deprived than ever, barely focusing on what he's seeing...which is a article on 'The Faunus War- what was the Grand Conclusion?'. Riku tried to keep his eyes open...until he begins to smell the air. He starts sniffing around, looking behind him, to see if anyone is carrying food, but no one walking among the table was his culprit.

Turning back to the computer, he starts typing on the beeping keyboard before he picks up the smell again, prompting him to look around again and still find no one. Riku slowly gets out of his chair and couches to the ground. He then begins moving like a real wolf on four legs, sniffing the ground, and following the scent blindly through shelves of books, turning the corner. Suddenly...a collar is snapped onto Riku's neck.

"What the!?" Riku yelled, in surprise and shock. He jumps up, only to see...

"He-lloooo!" Ilivane said, waving with his left hand as his right holds a leash, in a sing-song voice.

"Ilivane! What are you...?"

"We need to talk." Ilivane said with a smile.

"Forget it!" Riku runs off...only for Ilivane to pull the leash.

"You'll thank me for this later." Ilivane walked off, dragging Riku by the leash, who was squirming like a dog.


Emerging from the steaming bathroom in nothing but a pink towel wrapped around his lower body, Ren sighs in contentedness and starts walking away, only to be stopped by Jaune suddenly appearing in front of him.

"We need to talk!" Jaune said, pulling his teammate away, to Ren's single cry of surprise, leaving his bottle of 'Samurai Shampoo' to spin in the air before dropping to the ground.


(Beacon: Student Dorms.)

"Ren... I'm just gonna say it. You are one of my best friends. These past few months, I feel like we've really bonded, even though you don't say much. I mean, you're really quiet. To be perfectly honest, I don't know that much about you, personally, but darnit, I consider you to be the brother I never had!" Jaune said, sitting on his bed in the dorm room, talking to the uncomfortable Ren.

Ren still nods and smiles to Jaune when he's done." And I you." He said, trying to be attentive from then on, but keeps glancing at his usual outfit hanging by the door.

"Which is why I wanted to get your advice on... girls."

"Girls?" Ren said, sounding surprised, but starts reaching out for his clothes while Jaune is looking away.

"I just... don't know... how to... girls." Jaune said, trying to find the right words." Um, I-I guess what I'm asking is... Well, how did you and Nora... y'know..."

Ren puts his hand down after almost touching the green robe, but looks even more awkward now." Uh...uh...uh..."

Nora clears her throat to get the boys' attention on her, wearing nothing but her emblazoned headphones, a 'BOOP' T-shirt, and pink lighting bolt underwear as she reads a book resting on her knees, before she laughs nervously." We're actually not 'together-together..."

"NORA I SAID HEADPHONES ON!" Jaune shouted. Nora does so quickly under her leader's demand.

"Jaune, what is this all about?" Ren asked, focusing on his friend fully.

Jaune sigs deeply before speaking, obviously depressed by staring at the floor as he talks." It's Weiss. I'm completely head-over-heels for her, and she won't even give me a chance. She's cold, but she's also incredible. She's smart, and graceful, and talented. I mean, have you heard her sing? I-I just wish she take me seriously, y'know? I wish I could tell her how I feel without messing it all up."

Pyrrha:" Then do it."

Jaune looks up to see Pyrrha in the doorway, with Ren and Nora doing the same." Uh, wha?"

Pyrrha walks into the room." Tell her exactly what you said. No ridiculous schemes, no pick-up lines. Just... be honest."

"But what if I-"

"Jaune." Pyrrha smiles at him." You can't get it wrong if it's the truth."

Jaune looks up with a new confidence." You're right." He stands up." Thanks, Pyrrha!" Jaune looks back to his bed as he goes out." Good talk, Ren!"

Ren smiles and waves his thanks while Jaune closes the door. Upon doing so, Pyrrha becomes less cheerful as she walks over to her desk, with a concerned Nora watching her with sad eyes.

"(Sighs) Practice what you preach, Pyrrha." She said.


(Classroom.)

"Ilivane, if you're trying to convince me to go to the dance, you may as well save your breath." Riku said.

Ilivane sat cross-legged on the central desk of the empty classroom they're in, orange light shining across his calm features." Riku, do you want to hear a story?"

"No, I don't want to hear a story!" He said, still pacing, and irritated.

"Come on. It's a good one."

"I said, I don't want to hear some stupid story!"

"I promise it won't take long." Ilivane said, patting the part of the desk across from him.

Riku looks away for a moment until he relents and drapes his legs over the desk's edge." Fine, let's hear it."

"Hmm... So, Is there anything you want to know?"

"Know? About what?"

"About me." Ilivane smiled.

"Is this a trick question?"

"Not at all. I think this is a perfect way for us to get to know each other."

"Right..." Riku looked away for a second, before looking back." Well...how did you end up with Weiss?"

"Huh? Are you implying we're dating?"

"No! No... What I mean is, how did you end up working for Weiss and her family?"

"Oh...Well, I can't recall all the events, but I guess it all began 4 years ago. I was wondering through a wasteland, not knowing where to go, but I kept on moving. Days past, nights went on, I felt like I was in a endless cycle. I hadn't eaten at all, so I couldn't make out if I was seeing things or not." Ilivane looked down at this point." At one point, I just gave up. I was tried, out of energy, I just decided...'What's the point? There's nothing out here for me, so why keep going...I should just lay here, and die.' That's what I was thinking at the time." Riku looked at his friend, feeling sorry." Then, a miracle happened. I felt like it was the end, then I saw shadow fly over me. My vision was blurry, so I couldn't see what it was clearly. Then, I saw her. I saw a beautiful angel, she came to my rescue, but I passed out before I could see who it was.

"What happened after that?"

"I found out, that the angel that saved me that day, was just a normal women: Winter Schnee." Riku looked at him.

"Winter?"

"Miss Schnee's older sister."

"Oh..."

"And after that, I woke up and found myself in the home of the Schnee family. It was all new to me, so it was like, I went from one place I knew nothing about, to another place I knew nothing about." Ilivane smiled at him." Lady Winter's father, told me that; If I wanted to earn my living there, I had to work for it, if I couldn't work for it, I had to leave. However, Lady Winter came to my defense, and told him that I could be of great use to them. So, they put me under the job of being Miss Schnee's right hand servant. And, I've been with them ever since."

"So... Was that your story? A little history about yourself?" Riku asked.

"Oh, Riku my friend, that wasn't the story." Ilivane said, still smiling.

"Are you kidding me!?" Riku said, getting irritated.

Ilivane looks at the chalk board." Now then... Our little story." He gets up and walks to the chalkboard." I had a friend, who just like you, thought he lost everything. His mind was completely consumed by vengeance, it was all he ever cared about. His family was murdered by a simple thief, and this thief, he went beyond simply stealing from his family, he burnt their home to the ground, killing his family.

Riku became silent while hearing this.

"One day... He snapped. My friend... decided to get even with the thief, by killing his family and burning their home to the ground. A struggle began between the two, which resulted in the death of the thief. My friend was now filled with joy, for he had killed the man who took his life away. But that joy...was short lived, because the family and man he killed, was the family of an innocent girl, who now had nothing, and suffered for the actions of her father. This drove my friend into madness, a madness... that resulted in his death."

"...What does all of this have to do with me?" Riku asked.

"Riku." Ilivane looked at him, seriously." Revenge is like a sickness...It can turn you into something your not. It can turn you into a monster."

Riku got up." I don't need to hear this." He started to walk away, but Ilivane grabbed him by his shoulder.

"Riku, you need to hear this!"

"No I don't. You don't understand anything..." Riku said, still not looking at him.

"You can't let this vendetta rule your life! You need to-"

"Need to what!?" He turned sharply at him, revealing his red eyes." Forgive!? Forget!?"

"Well, that's a step."

"You don't understand anything!"

"No, you don't understand." Ilivane said, calmly." What would you do, if your vendetta came walking through that door?"

"I'd fight them!"

"You'd lose." Ilivane said, pushing Riku away.

"I can stop them!" Riku yelled, tiredly trying to do the same to Ilivane, but he doesn't even budge.

"You can't even stop me." Ilivane pushes him again.

"I will! I don't need you! I don't need Hero or Oliver! I don't need Blake! I don't need anyone!"

"...Then just die. Like a true monster." Ilivane said, looking at him calmly.

"Shut up!" Riku yelled out, as he pulled out his blade and strikes the desk, his yell echoes through the entire room.

The two stare at each other for a few seconds, until tears begin to form in Riku's eyes, as he drops his weapon and breaks down into tears.

"Riku..."

"I...I don't know what to do...I'm scared." Riku fell to his knees." I'm scared... of myself...Of what I'm becoming..."

Ilivane looked at his teammate, saddened by this.

"I'm so scared... I just..."

Ilivane kneeled down and embraces Riku in a hug, with his red eyes returning to their normal purple, in surprise.

"Riku...It's alright to be afraid. Fear is something that can actually be of help than harm. But Riku, your not alone. Me, Hero, and even Oliver are here for you. But, please don't let your anger and vengeance consume you, because it will only cause pain for you, and the people that care about you. So, no more anger and sadness. Okay? We're not afraid of you...you are never alone."

Riku looked at him and wiped his tears away." You all...care about me?"

"Of course! We all do! Even Blake has shown she deeply cares about you." Ilivane said, smiling.

"Blake...(sighs)I've been such a jerk to her..."

"So, you do care about her?" Ilivane helped him up.

"Well...yeah." Riku walk back a little." Hehe... I do care about here."

"Then it's settled!" Ilivane twirled over to him." We shall advance to Team RWBY's dorm and you will ask Ms. Belladonna to the dance!"

"Huh!?"

"You... Do like Blake, right?"

"Uh...well..." Riku looked away, embarrassed.

"Then, that settles it!"

"One problem: She's going with Sun... I think."

"Oh...Then you'll just have to impress her at the dance tomorrow!"

"W-Wait a minute! I never said I-"

"You are going, right?"

"I don't know..." Riku said, looking unsure.

"Hmm..." Ilivane smiled at his friend." Well...whatever you do, it's your choice." He hands Riku a business card." If you want to look good for the dance, Rosso is your best choice." He walks away." See you back at the dorm!"

Ilivane smiles and waves at Riku, as Riku stares at Ilivane while he leaves before sighing heavily and walking away, leaving the all-seeing eye on the board, next to the words:'I am a cursed one.'


The white rose in Jaune's hand bounces up and down as its smiling owner walks through Beacon Academy until he stops at the entrance of a hallway with the sound of a familiar voice, causing him to duck behind the columns outside.

"Neptune!" Weiss called out, as she walks past Jaune, who is peeking around the corner and goes up to Neptune.

"Oh, uh, hey, what's up?" Neptune asked.

"I know this is a little unorthodox, but... I wanted to ask you something." She puts her hands behind her back trying to look innocent as Jaune drops his smile an recoils at the oncoming words." Would you...like to accompany me to the dance tomorrow?"

While Neptune rubs the back of his head and smiles with raised eyebrows, Jaune loses all of his confidence and drops the rose on the ground before walking back from where he came from.


(Beacon: Ballroom. The night of the dance)

A large collection of the same flowers(one dropping outward) in a large vase is behind Yang, who is now in a short white dress with black heels as she stands at a podium. The doors in front of her open and she flips out upon seeing who walks in.

"Ooohh, you look beautiful!" Yang said, happily.

Ruby groans as she looks distressed in her red dress with black lace, belt, and pumps." Can we have a serious talk about how Weiss fights in these?" She tries to maintain her balance as she walks to the podium, much to her laughing sister's amusement.

The door opens again, this time Hero and Oliver come walking, as Hero quickly helps Ruby keep her balance.

"Whoa! You okay, Ruby?"

"Not really. But thanks for the help." Ruby said, smiling.

"No problem." Hero smiled back.

"Well, aren't you the handsome looking guy!" Yang said, walking over to them.

"Thanks. I knew you would like it." Oliver said, flexing with his short sleeved suit, as Yang walked past him." Huh!?"

"Why don't you show me around, Hero?" Yang asked, holding Hero's arm.

"Wha-, um..." Hero tried to speak, blushing hard, and also shy. He felt even more awkward when Ruby did the same.

"Hey, I need his help if I'm gonna be walking in these." Ruby said, gesturing to her heels.

"Well, he can escort both of us." Yang said.

The two lead Hero towards the dance, leaving Oliver behind.

"Hey! What about me!?" He called out.

Yang:" Can you take care of the podium? Thanks!"

"Argh..." Oliver looked annoyed, then happy when he saw Hero with the girls." And you said, no girl would dance with you."


(Beacon: Student Dorms)

Shingi-To-Giri rested next to Riku's bed, as the window was open, letting the night breeze flow in. Riku's scroll suddenly gets a call, it was Oliver.

Oliver:(From Scroll)"Dude, where the hell are you? You better get down here, and don't you dare try to skip out!


(Back at the Ballroom.)

Inside the ballroom, streamers are hung through glass chandeliers, pink and blue balloons are everywhere, and students in dark suits and dresses are stepping with each other to the music between the white-clothed tables. Blake is spun around by Yang before they courtesy to one another, and Sun comes up and takes his date's hands as Yang gestures for him to do so. She goes to hang with Ruby and Weiss(in a similar white dress as Yang's) in the back of the room. Hero, Ilivane(who was wearing a white suit), and Oliver were watching the dance.

"I wonder where Riku is?" Hero asked, looking around.

"Don't worry Hero, he'll be here." Ilivane said.

"He better." Oliver said, looking around, while leaning against a column.

Ilivane looked to his right and smiled." Mission accomplished."

"Huh?" Hero looked in the direction Ilivane was looking in, and smiled happily." He's here!"

Riku came walking up to his friends dark suit." Hey guys." He said, with a genuine smile on his face.

"'Bout time you showed up!" Oliver said, walking over and trapping his friend in a headlock." Trying to make a grand entrance, eh?"

"Hey! Knock it off!" Riku said, trying to get free.

"Honestly. Must you two always act un-gentlemanly?" Ilivane said, looking at the two with a disappointed look, while Hero chuckles nervously.

"He started it!" Both Riku and Oliver said.

Oliver let him go." But still, good to have you here."

"Heh...Thanks." Riku said, fixing his hair while looking around." Where's..."

"Where's Blake, you may ask?" Ilivane asked, smirking.

"Uh...Y-Yeah..."

"She's over there, dancing with monkey-boy." Oliver pointed forward.

Riku looked and saw the two dancing, watching Blake laugh and enjoy herself." Oh..."

"Are you okay, Riku?" Hero asked.

"Yeah. As long as she's happy, that's all that matters." Riku said, smiling.

"Don't give up yet, Riku my friend!" Ilivane spun over to his friend." You can't count yourself out of romance yet! Go my wolf companion, find a maiden to dance with, and 'wow' her!"

He shoved Riku forward.

"Uh..." Riku looks back at his teammates." Alright... Wish me luck!" He said, holding a forced smile and a thumbs up, as he walks off, with his teammates waving to him.

"...Oh, he is so f**ked." Oliver said, as he continued to smile and wave.

"Make sure he doesn't here you say that." Ilivane said, along with Oliver

"Soooo, what do we do now?" Hero asked the two.

"Don't know about you two, but I have to return to the band." Ilivane said, walking off." Enjoy yourselves!"

"Well, I'm gonna go look for Miss Firecracker." Oliver patted Hero on the back, before he walks away in the opposite direction, leaving his friend alone.

"Uh...so where does that leave me?" Hero asked himself.

"Not enjoying yourself?" Ozpin asked.

Hero was surprised to see the headmaster step up by his side, but he shakes his head and laughs." Oh, no, everything's fine! I'm just... new to this, so I don't know what to do."

"Well, you can't spend your whole life on the battlefield, even if you may want to."

"That's a life, I'm trying to stay away from. Believe me sir."

"If you think about it, fighting and dancing aren't so different. Two partners interlocked, although one wrong move on the ballroom merely leads to a swollen foot." Ozpin said, staring out at the dancing couples.

"Yeah, gotta look out for that." Hero said, looking down at his foot.

"It's not every day that friends are able to come together like this. Time has a way of testing our bonds, but its nights like these that can help keep them stronger than ever. Nights like these are ones we'll never forget."

Hero smiles at the words of wisdom, but turns his head at the sound of the doors opening. Yang is back behind the podium, and smiles at the new arrivals.

"You guys are just in time!" She said.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world." Mercury said, as he and Emerald step in with their ballroom best.


And that's another chapter! Believe it or not, this chapter took a lot of re-planning in order to make it work. But now the dance is underway, everything can only go up from here.

Yes, Ilivane was the one to talk Riku out of his doubts. It may not show now, but at the end of this Volume, and later in Volume 3, you'll understand why it had to be him

Lastly, the Dream Scenario for this chapter is the start of a new mini-series called: Tales of a Huntsmen. This is mostly just episodic, as each scenario is meant to show what Hero and the other characters do on their off days. Nothing complicated, just a simple scenario. Hope you all like it.

Anyway, comment and let me know what you all think. Until the...Keep moving forward!

P.S: If the characters of HIRO were in RWBY, who would be their English and Japanese voices? Comment and give me some of your opinions if you have any.