A/N: Sorry for the very late update. I haven't really gotten that much time since my vacation started. In truth, summer just started and my cousins went all out for the last two weeks, so, I really didn't have much time to write. There was also the fact about my games not playing themselves. I have five games in my hard drive that haven't been touched since I downloaded them. Plus, it's really hot down here.
So, anyways, new chapter and maybe I'll have the next one posted two weeks from now. I don't know. Maybe . . .
Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY. Only my OCs.
Chapter 11
"Leona . . . I know you're angry but there's a time and place for that. You've the time right but not the place. Definitely not the place for this . . ."
"What do you think is the reason why I'm angry!?" Leona shouted. Her eye was twitching wildly. Her normally orange eyes were glowing brightly. Her reddish hair became more vibrant than ever. She was definitely angry at him.
Hell hath no wrath on a very angry Leona. Especially since this woman can create fire, ten times hotter than the flames of hell itself.
But the only thing he was worried about at the moment was the room.
"Leona . . . If you don't calm down—which is unlikely given the situation—the room will burn down. Not just the room but the whole goddamn building will, too!"
There you have it . . .
"I don't care about the goddamn building, Gray!"
The flames on her hair and shoulder grew larger than before. In truth, he knew a situation like this would come. That's why he had back-up.
"Iris, is the fire extinguisher set?"
"What do you think I've been doing for the past five minutes!?" True to her word, she held a fire extinguisher on her hands. Iris was already trying to disperse the fire. Emphasis on trying.
He tried cooking using her fire but . . . Leona slapped the crap outta him when he did.
"Gray, answer my question! What is the meaning of this!?" Leona shouted. She shoved his scroll in front of his face. The message clearly showed just inches away from his face.
"Leona, calm down. I can explain everth—!" He was abruptly stopped by the ringing tone of his scroll, which was still on Leona's hands. The person, calling him, made him breathe out a sigh of relief. ". . . Or you can just answer the call and find the answer yourself." He sat down on his bed and lied down; his face evident of fatigue.
"What do you . . . mean . . . ?" Gray just gave her a smile, although, it wasn't one of his haughty ones. Her thumb hovered over the screen as she hesitated to press the call button.
Gray could clearly see the hesitation in her and heaved a tired sigh, "It's fine, Leona. You want answers, right?" He was given a nod. "Then you don't have to worry about this call. He'll give you anything."
That seemed to be the last push she needed for her to accept the call.
The screen revealed a white haired man with spectacles. His green garb contrasts with the blue sky behind him. "Good morning, professor Ozpin . . ."
[Good morning as well, Ms. Solaris. It seems that Mr. Licorice is busy at the moment. May I ask why?] Doubt was evident in his voice.
"N-nothing is wrong, professor. It's just that—!"
[Is something the matter, Ms. Solaris? If there is, please don't hesitate to ask.] Leona's face fell. She could ask now. But . . .
"No, nothing, professor. I'll give it back to Gray now." . . . She wants to hear it from Gray and not from Ozpin. And if he wasn't going to talk then she'll just have to wait. But knowing Gray, she'll probably wait for a while. That's what irritates her the most.
Leona handed over his scroll to Gray. He cringed at the cold look she gave his way. She opened the door to the bathroom and slammed it shut. He inadvertently scratched the back of his head and sighed. He seemed to be sighing a lot today . . . and it was still too early in the morning.
[It seems that Ms. Solaris is in a rather bad mood.]
"You don't have to say it out loud, professor." He ignored the smile on Ozpin's face. There was that mild irritation and a quick need to knock his teeth in. Then, he remembered how it came to this. "What is it that is required of me, professor?" A bit too formal for his taste, nevertheless, required to be one.
[I wish to speak with you regarding some things that are in need of immediate attention. Please be here at my office before classes begin.]
He gave a quick nod before ending the call. So early in the morning and it was already ruined . . . what a great start! Not only was he sleep-deprived but he's also mentally exhausted from everything that has happened.
As he lay down on his bed, there were two pairs of eyes watching him. One of them finally decided to talk.
"How long have you kept this from us?" Maive asked with her usually cold expression nearing a very dangerous one. He frowned but dismissed it immediately. This was Maive. He's sure that all she could do was speak harsh words. Though, that would be bad in and of itself.
"You don't have to worry about anything at all, Maive. There were steps into all of these before I could reveal everything to all of you but all of that went out of the window." The opportunity, he meant.
"And when did you think was that going to happen, Gray? A month? A year? Or after the day that we learn of your death?" He laughed. But it wasn't a pleasant one.
"That's rich coming from you, Maive." He didn't know what came over him. He was irritable today. And a temper that he can't control. He shouldn't be taking it all out on his teammates, who don't even know what he's going through. But the words just left his mouth, "I don't want to be lectured by a hypocrite like you."
He got up from his bed and opened the door to the hallway. He wasn't violent like Leona so he just let it close on its own. The soft click on the door resonated in the room as Iris just watched from an outsider's perspective. As she watched her teammates fight themselves. Again.
'It's first year all over again.' Even if the thought should've brought a smile to her face, it didn't. Her tail lazily wagged behind her as she played with the hem of her pajamas. They still have time before classes, but do they still have time to reconcile with each other?
. . .
He was glad that he didn't change to his sleeping wear before going to bed. Because if he did, it would be too painful to come back to his room and change to his combat gear.
The matter with his team wasn't finished and he didn't know if it would just stay like that. But he did want to let this problem go for the moment.
Thinking about his team and remembering what he did brought a bitter taste in his mouth. He wasn't mad at them and he felt bad for saying those words to Maive. Though, he didn't know why Leona was like that. She could've just asked the headmaster to know what she wanted. But she didn't. What she thinks of is beyond him.
"Huh? Gray?" As he walked by at the double doors of the cafeteria, Jaune called out to him.
"Wait! Isn't this the guy that nearly died during initiation? He is, isn't he!? That was pretty brutal, though! Who would've thought that there will be someone who would survive being attacked like that? I don't know if I would even live longer after that!" A ginger-head girl said, rather loudly that it almost blew his ear off.
"Nora, please stop. Haven't I told you not to shout when talking to people?" Turning to Gray, the boy said, "It is nice to finally meet you. My name is Lie Ren and the obnoxious one is Nora." He wore the same uniform as Jaune. For a second there, he thought that Ren was a girl.
"Ah, you must be Gray. Jaune has told me a lot about you. And with the way that you saved us during initiation, I guess his stories about you weren't that far off. It's nice to meet you, my name is Pyrrha Nikos." Ah, the ever famous champion of Mistral. He wondered why Pyrrha enrolled to Beacon instead of Haven but it didn't matter. It seemed that the red-headed Spartan chose this place for some reasons unknown to him . . .
"Likewise, the name's Gray Licorice. A second year."
He brought out his hand and Pyrrha shook it. The girl had a firm grip; he had to give her that. It might even be stronger than Leona's but not as strong as Iris. If that was true, he didn't know if he should associate himself with a monster.
"So, Gray, you want to have breakfast with us?" Jaune asked innocently.
Gray knew he wanted to spend some time with him and his friends but he had some unfinished business to attend to. There's also the chance of being excused in classes today.
"Not today, Jaune. The headmaster called for me this morning. He said it was urgent so I don't think I'll have breakfast today . . ."
"The . . . headmaster . . . ?"
"Yeah, don't worry 'bout it. It's nothing special . . . I hope not."
"I'm sure you'll be fine! You're . . . you!"
"Thank you for the vote of confidence, Jaune. Now, if you guys will excuse me, it's best for me to get going. It was nice meeting your team. See ya later, Jaune." With a wave, Gray turned to the opposite direction and walked off.
Jaune didn't understand. Gray was normally a cheerful person. But today was very different.
"Pyrrha . . . did you notice how gloomy Gray was?" Jaune said as soon as they sat at their table in the cafeteria. "He didn't even try to hide it from us . . ."
"Well, he did seem like that . . . but I couldn't quite place it." Pyrrha sounded worried. Of course, she would be. She's Pyrrha. "Though, maybe something happened?"
It was true that they didn't see each other every day; there might be something that happened to him without Jaune knowing.
The doors to the cafeteria suddenly opened and revealed the team the other day. It was Gray's team . . . and they were shrouded with the same gloomy atmosphere as he was. It was hard not to notice how miserable their mood was.
"Hah . . ." They heard Leona breathe out a sigh as the team passed by them. Leona's team sat at the table beside them. The all of them looked so depressed for some reason.
The whole room became awkward for them all if the sudden.
"U-um . . ."
"When did Gray become like this . . . ?" Jaune tried to start a conversation but it was shut down when Leona exclaimed.
"Don't worry, Leona . . . I'm sure he'll be back to normal in no time. I mean, this is Gray we're talking about! I'm sure he'll have an explanation by the time this mess is all cleaned up!" Iris said, waving her arms high. "Even that stupid Gray has his limits!"
Iris tried to assure her leader but she got cold sweat when Leona didn't pay any attention to what she said. It was bad enough that Leona was sulking; there was also the matter with Maive. The terrified face that she made after what Gray said to her.
'What's wrong with you Gray . . . ? Why are you being like this again . . .?'
Eventually, her chirpiness died down and was replaced by a more morose atmosphere. They ate in silence without any regard to those around them. They didn't even know that the people around were affected by the gloomy atmosphere that they had.
"Wow, this place stinks! Hey, Velv, brighten up their day, will ya?"
"H-how am I supposed to do that?"
". . . Let them touch your ears. It will make them feel happy . . ."
"Sorry, sweet stuff, but no one's touching Velv's ears. Unless of course, they want a beat down from me."
"Please don't become too violent at this place and hour, Coco. You are interrupting others meals."
Team CFVY—completely unnoticeable until now—were just beside the other team beside them. It was strange to think that even Jaune didn't notice them until now. However . . . the other team didn't even budge when they heard this.
"Damn, what's wrong with them? It looks like they've gone through hell. And where the hell's Gray again? That bastard's always preoccupied even while we're together." Coco complained.
"I'm sure that's probably your fault, Coco. Your loud, vulgar mouth always puts him off. You better be careful if you ever want to find a partner in life."
"Ah! Shut it, Yatsu! You don't know how my thoughts process, so don't butt in!" She flung a piece of her breakfast at his face. "Man, you're such a pain!"
"Says the one who's throwing food—!" With a splat, he was hit by a meaty projectile.
"I said, shut it, Yatsu!" The giant merely wiped off the smudge on his face. "Seriously, I'm already having a bad day! I don't want my team to patronize me."
Before any of them could reply, Leona heaved a loud sigh, ". . . At least, they're being honest with you . . ." That left team CFVY speechless. From their surprised faces, it instantly turned to worry.
"What has Gray done this time?" Yatsuhashi said, nonchalantly taking a sip from his tea.
"He made Leona upset and he said something he shouldn't have to Maive. But other than that I don't really know what he's up to." Iris said. The lazy tail of hers was very low on energy.
Coco looked at their sister-team. She could only sigh at the situation they were in right now. They could laugh. Oh, how they could laugh at this . . . But the crucial part here was that it was Gray that wronged them. Gray—the nice and playful Gray would do something like that . . . ?
"But . . . Gray didn't mean it, right?" Velvet voiced out her concerns. Surely, Gray wouldn't do this.
". . . We don't know . . ."
Silence enveloped them again. Each and every one of them was really depressed . . . and it was getting on Coco's nerves.
"God, this place really stinks! If you guys are gonna sulk, do it to those newbie teams! Not us!" She said as she pointed to where Jaune and his team sat. "You guys can teach them a thing or two on how to suck bad in life . . ."
"Coco!" Velvet chastised.
"What!? They're miserable!"
"So, you thought that making the situation worse will make it better? As always, I'm surprised how your thoughts process . . ." Yatsuhashi said.
But even with that, they didn't show a reaction. Iris just smiled at them for trying to cheer them up. The other two, however . . . not even a retort!
"Hah, fine! I'll stop being an ass and act nice to them . . . but at least say something, you guys. You know we won't always be there in case something happens again." Her voice was mixed with concern. Even if she was irritated, she still cared. But that's not stopping Coco from making their lives miserable after this.
They were worried about one thing, and that's their teammate. But it'll obviously just end with them making up. The real problem might even be something so trivial, like forgetting to tell them his secret or that he's a part of some secret organization that involved the world leaders . . . right?
"You're right, it is miserable here . . . we shouldn't let something as trivial as that bother us . . . but at the same time . . ." Leona sighed.
If there was someone who could cheer Leona up in an instant, it would be her partner. But what use would that be if her partner was the main source of their suffering?
On the other side of the table, team JNPR couldn't take the air around them. It would be easier to say that they were sulking. But it seems the problem was a lot more severe than they thought.
"Uuuuhhh . . . Jaune?"
"Yes, Nora?"
"Can't you do something about this situation . . . ?"
"What can I do in this situation, Nora? Just so you know, I'm not particularly an expert with social interacting . . ."
"What!? No way!" Nora laughed it off, but the instant she saw Jaune with a serious look. It made her think otherwise, ". . . Huh? Are you serious?"
"I am. The only reason why I can talk like this is because you're similar to one of my sisters. That way it made it easier for me on how to handle you." Jaune ignored the retort from Nora. It was definitely easier to think of her just like how he treats his younger sisters.
Jaune glanced to his left. There might be something going on. Even if he wasn't involved directly, it was his mentor that they were talking about.
Despite his resolve, there was nothing that Jaune could do except watch from a distance and see what will happen to them.
. . .
Tick, tock.
Tick, tock.
Tick, tock.
His hands clenched tightly. Finger nails were digging through his skin with a mild irritation growing inside him. Ozpin sat in front of him with only the two of them in the room. It was far from awkward. Rather, it was strained.
"What do you want from me this time, professor?" With the time he spent with Ozpin, his respect from the man gradually declines until it looked like he was just seeing another man with a position that wasn't really meant to him. That mischievous smile was evident of that fact.
"Why, I just called to give information regarding the issue that has occurred this week. This knowledge will also be given out to the people involved with the matter at hand." Ozpin interlocked his fingers with his elbows resting on top of his desk. "We believe that there was something more to this attack than we thought."
"Is it really important?" He wanted to complain here. But that would ruin the image of his team.
"Apparently, it is." He flicked through the computer on his desk and made an image appear in a holographic projection. "What you see here is the area that the Grimm used to infiltrate the borders of Vale."
"Wait . . . but that looks like . . . a settlement?"
"Yes, it is a village to be precise. It is called Lockwood. Particularly, that village was Ms. Rackler's hometown." His whole being shook. Panic raced through his body as he thought of ways on how to tell this to Iris. He took a step back and made a run for the elevator.
"Glynda . . ." But he was stopped when he was engulfed in a purple Aura.
"Let me go! Iris needs to know about this!" Gray cried out. This was definitely cruel. Especially since Iris didn't know a damn thing about this. She had the right to know!
"Please calm down, Mr. Licorice. The people in that village suffered no casualties when the Grimm attacked." Glynda appeared from behind a door that he didn't know about. She carried a tray of ceramic cups filled with the special brew that Ozpin loved. Was that there during this whole time? Wait, this wasn't the time to be asking that!
The purple Aura dissipated and he fell to the floor. He groaned as he held his head in his hands. There wasn't really anything worth wasting his energy for. He knew that the people in that village were safe. Specifically, Iris' family.
"All of the people of Lockwood have been given accommodations and provisions until we can secure a better living quarters. Till then they will have to make do with the health center. " Glynda held her scroll in her arms as she faced the hologram. The image changed from a destroyed village to a health care center. There were definitely more people in there than before.
He calmed down and tried to change to the subject, "So, what does this have to do with me?"
"I will tell you, Mr. Licorice, that this very much concerns us all. Do you know what's so special about this village?"
"Nothing that I know of. Only that, it was the hometown of Iris." He said. Though, a vague thought passed through his mind when he searched for other possibilities. He can rule out the idea of another maiden hiding in that village. If there was one, there was no chance in hell that the maiden will just watch the Grimm mow down the village.
There was also the potential of ancient artifacts that can only be used as weapons against humans, but he was only joking about it. Unless, of course, it was actually true . . .
"You are not wrong, Mr. Licorice. But we need to keep in mind of what is truly at work here. What you need to know is that there is absolutely nothing special about this place, in a particular sense. It is but a home of human and Faunus alike."
Did he hear that right? Nothing special about this place?
"But sir, what is it you're trying to tell me?" Gray saw Ozpin give a nod to Glynda. Those two were always keeping something from him, despite his presence in this group.
Glynda walked over to Ozpin's desk and placed her scroll there. The previous image changed to that of 3D layout of the terrain of the Emerald Forest.
"Mr. Licorice, we have told you that the Ancient Grimm that attacked us days ago was no longer in the area of Vale, correct?" Gray nodded. "We also told you that there were still some details that are in need of further investigation. As of now, the image that you are seeing is one of those details. A few days ago, this village was not touched when the attack on initiation occurred."
. . . What?
"Wait! Then, what caused the village to be destroyed like this!? If not the Grimm, then what?"
"We did not say that it wasn't the Grimm that destroyed the village. There was also the fact that the village cannot be reached geographically . . . When the village was attacked, there was a hole at the center of the village. We can only assume that it was the Ancient Grimm that attacked the village. There were tracks that led outside of the boundaries of Vale after the attack."
Then, the Queen had left them? That was good to know but at the same time the underlying threat was still out there causing harm to many. It was inevitable. If only he had finished it off, there was no need to involve others into this.
". . . I know what you are thinking, Gray. But this is not the time to have regrets on what you have not done. There is still time to correct the wrong. For now, you can go back to your life as a student. We will call you when there is another emergency. You are dismissed." Ozpin said, as he sipped at his new cup of coffee.
Gray turned around and walked towards the elevator, only to stop in front of it.
He turned around to face Ozpin with a determined look plastered on his face, "Leona and the others will probably be suspicious of me ever since your call. They know that if something happens to me you will be responsible for it . . . at least, regarding to what they know of. They're probably aware that something big is happening. I was confronted this morning and they want answers."
"I'll be sure keep that in mind, Gray. For now, keep them occupied with something else. For example, school work? Don't let it bother, I will be sure to give an acceptable excuse for what you are doing. You may leave, Gray." Without another word, he left the room. Gods, it was always like that for him.
After reaching the ground level, he thought that it wasn't even worth it to go to classes today. The day was ruined and there was nothing to actually do. An alarm on his scroll set him off.
One thought came to mind. He never puts an alarm on his scroll. When he checked, there was a message written on his screen.
[Don't be late for classes.]
Only one person would try to fiddle with his scroll. But today, he wasn't really in the mood to go to classes or to see his pissed-off teammates. Now, where's a good place to take a nap?
. . .
There were only a few more minutes before classes begin. This year Velvet and Maive had to take up another set of classes from the doctor since they missed rather a lot of classes than their teammates. The fact that they had to attend these mandatory classes was beyond them. All they did was escape death a few times and they were back to their normal lives.
There was a story behind it. A story so long that it would make classes with Port a little less boring. Maive walked beside Velvet as they went to their classroom. It was Professor Oobleck's class that they were going to attend to, which made them less inclined to become excited about. Another history class . . .
"Maive, can you really not tell me what's happening, right now? Earlier, you and Leona were in a pretty bad mood." Velvet said beside her.
It wasn't because she didn't have the right to know but rather for the reason that she's going to confront Gray about it. That seemed more of a hassle than anything.
"Believe me when I say this, Velv. It is better if you do not know what happened earlier and not telling you will also save me some trouble." She said.
"At least, tell me what's really happening! Just a vague explanation will do, too." She was certainly adamant about this. She saw Velvet pout cutely at her. It was something that everyone didn't want—a sulking Velvet . . . Very well . . .
"Remember when I have told everyone about my previous life? I couldn't tell anyone about it since I have met all of you. It came to the point where I was afraid of even mentioning it. But then, some people have targeted me out of nowhere. The secret was revealed but none of you were really mad at me. And it happened just hours ago. Gray was being secretive and Leona found out. She made him promise to always tell us what's wrong and to have no secrets—to have an open heart." Velvet listened intently, all the while walking with each other.
"But he didn't?" She asked.
"But he didn't. This morning, Leona got angry at him for keeping it from us and lashed out at him. But then the headmaster called his scroll, which was unusual already. Leona walked out after that and when Gray was finished with his call, he . . . let's just say he said some words that shouldn't be said . . ." Velvet nodded. But she was quiet than Maive's ever seen from the timid and shy member of team CFVY. "I think it's better if you stay quiet about this . . . I don't think it's a good idea for you to know."
Maive smiled at the girl but Velvet didn't take any of it, "But he hurt your feelings! Shouldn't there be at least a punishment for that!? When I get my hands on him . . ." She was angry, that much was obvious. But it was rare to see Velvet so angry. Even if her actions made her seem so harmless and cute.
"I know it hurts but he is not wrong . . ." Velvet stared at her with concern, "I have no right to tell him that. If anything, there was really no need for me to say anything but I did anyway." She became contemplative for a moment there, wondering what she could've avoided that time.
"Well, maybe he's also having a tough time. Normally, people are really can't keep it all in when keeping secrets from people close to them."
"I . . . suppose you are right. We may not even know the burdens that are on his shoulders at the moment . . ." A sad looked crept on her face and Velvet looks like she noticed it, making her flustered. She only made Maive gloomier than she intended.
"B-but! T-th-that d-doesn't mean that idiot needed to hurt your feelings like that! It was out of line!" Maive was glad that someone was angry for her sake, for that, she gave her a smile. Albeit only as an assurance.
"Thank you . . . that made me feel better, actually." Maive chuckled a bit. She heard Velvet released a sigh of relief. Glad to see her friend finally calmed down after what had been the most emotional discussion she ever had in her entire life. It almost felt like she was gonna cry.
Before long, they have arrived at Oobleck's class. When they opened the door, they were surprised that the room was only half-full, when it was already time for classes to start. A lot of lazy people have joined this year, perhaps.
Maive scanned the room for familiar faces; she recognized a few. There was Jaune and Pyrrha as well as the quiet member of team RWBY, Blake, and the snotty-brat of a Schnee, Weiss. The professor was behind his desk inspecting some papers. The class was relatively quiet despite their numbers.
They took a seat at the back, away from the group.
In a blur, Oobleck stood in front of them all.
"Good morning, class! To most of you that don't know me, I am Doctor Bartholomew Oobleck. An archeologist, a professional doctor, and a licensed huntsman! Now!" The volume of his voice nearly made Maive jump out of her skin. "Do any among you know what the reason that started the Faunus Rights Revolution? While I agree that this topic is considered to be rather basic knowledge, it is something that must be remembered!" A hand below was raised. "Yes! Ms. Schnee!"
"The cause of the war was attributed to the previous leaders' attempts to confine the Faunus to the continent of Menagerie; and to countermand the rights of the Faunus earned in the participation in the Great War."
"Yes, yes! In the Faunus Rights Revolution, or otherwise known as the Faunus War, humans were very adamant in centralizing the Faunus population in Menagerie!" Hmm, it felt like she saw this before . . . oh, wait, she did. "Now! While this may all seem ancient history to you, it is imperative to remember that all of these are recent events! Many of the repercussions of the rebellion are still present to this day! Are there anyone in here that have been subjected or discriminated due to your Faunus heritage?"
There were many that have raised their hands; Velvet even raised her own. Maive put a hand on her shoulder to give her assurance. There was a time when Velvet would always be bullied during their first year that ended very quickly because of Coco. Along with some help from team SLVR.
Iris, however, wasn't bullied in some way. Probably because of how she beat up everyone that was pitted against her during combat class. That was a nightmare itself.
The doctor asked some more questions; specifically to the blond in front who had he's lights out. The only reason why it was Jaune that got the brunt of the doctor was that the kid behind him—large but not enough to match Yatsu—threw something to startle him. Now, he has to suffer by detention with Oobleck.
The larger guy behind Jaune was questioned as well by Oobleck. He got it wrong. After that, things were going a little bit heated in the class. 'It's not worth the effort to try and break it apart. The professor's seems fine with it . . .' Maive thought.
Cardin Winchester—she recalled—was a bit of an asshole. He was easily angered when the girls tried to belittle him. It kinda reminded her of Gray and Leona at one time. But that was already water under the bridge for them. Both Jaune and Cardin got detention. And everyone was happy. She could already pinpoint the ones that needed help and the ones that needed to be avoided.
Even if this student of Gray was good enough then surely he would've avoided detention, right? But since this was Gray she was referring to, he's most likely the reason why Jaune was like that as well.
Maive and Velvet didn't talk much in class—more in the lines of eluding attention from Oobleck. So, it was pretty comfy at the back where no one was bothering them. That was until the class was dismissed.
"Class dismissed! Mr. Arc and Mr. Winchester! Will you please stay in front so I may discuss with you some troubles that have come your way?" The students filed out, some made eye contact with them; namely, Pyrrha, Blake and Weiss.
Pyrrha was the only one who seemed to recognize them, as she waved at them with a cheerful look. Velvet tried to greet back and was half-successful in doing it. Maive just nodded. Maybe this class wasn't going to be so bad after all . . .
But before they could leave, her scroll rang. Funny . . . rang this tune before. She put different kinds of tone with her friends so that she would know who it was before answering. This one, though, was different. Like it was just a normal ringtone.
Despite her suspicions, she picked it up. Thankfully, it was only a voice call. "Hello?" She said. It took a few minutes before the caller answered.
". . . Azatoth, upon the black throne," Her voice hitched when she heard the caller say.
"Steps of twelve hesitant to tone.
Madness and chaos swallowed your mind,
ears of the deaf, eyes dying to be blind.
Shrills of discordance to rattle this hell,
Creating our worlds as Barbelzoa fell."
She knew that poem. Oh, how she knew that poem so much. But it wasn't just any poem. It was something that was forced for them to memorize during their time in that group. Hazy images flashed before her. What was once a classroom; it was now a very bloody room. Bodied littered on the floor but not whole bodies. People were hanged onto the ceiling.
She shook her head, trying to dispel the image. But it was no use. "Maive, are you okay?" She heard Velvet's voice and when she turned there was nobody there. Just a corpse staring at her with dead eyes. Maive held a scream but that didn't try to shake off the fear that she felt. It was all too real for her. Her breath was heavy, with every pant her body shook.
There was no telling when the nightmare will stop. She felt someone grabbed a hold of her wrist. It was just another corpse, pulling her closer to death. Maive fought against it, but failed marvelously.
Maive slipped on the crimson liquid on the floor and fell to her bottom. With her free hand, she held her head. "No . . ." She said.
"Madness and chaos swallowed your mind," A voice said.
"No . . ." This time, she whimpered. "I don't want to . . . not anymore." She could tell that there were tears in her eyes but did it matter?
"Ears of the deaf, eyes dying to be blind". The voice said again.
"No. Stop it!"
"Shrills of discordance to rattle this hell." The persistent voice said again.
"Don't!" She cried.
"Creating our worlds as Barbelzoa fell . . ."
"Nooooo!" She was found.
. . .
Velvet didn't know what to do. First, everything was just fine with Maive. But then a call came and Maive's breaking down. She was crying and whimpering that everyone in the room stopped what they were doing and looked on with confusion. Thankfully, Oobleck was there.
"Ms. Scarlatina! What is happening to Ms. Viridian!?" He asked. In truth, she didn't know what this was. Only her team knows something like this.
"Make it stop! Ahhh!" Maive screamed. Literally, screaming. Her voice could've reached to the other side of the building if this keeps up.
"I . . . I don't know. I don't know! Please, professor! You must help her!" Her concern grew as Maive let out a louder scream. Velvet kept a hold of Maive's hand, in hopes that she would calm down. But from the looks of it, she wasn't seeing anything at all!
The doors to the room slammed opened, revealing someone that she never thought would make her feel relieved.
"Mr. Licorice! Just in time! We need your help with Ms. Viridian! She is having a mental breakdown! We do not know the cause of it, but in any case we must calm her down!"
Gray moved quickly to Maive's side and held her in his arms, sitting her in between his legs. There was no hesitation there. He quickly hugged her frame from behind and held her tight. Despite the lashing outs, he held onto her very tightly, quickly grabbing both of her wrists so she can't hit him—the legs were a different story. She kicked his shins and feet many times.
Velvet knew it would hurt but Gray kept a hold on her. Maive, though, she just kept on crying and screaming.
"Shh, it's okay. It's gonna be fine, Maive." With her sensitive hearing, Velvet heard Gray whisper into Maive's ears. "I'm here. Gray's here. So, you don't need to be scared. I'm here, shhh . . ." Before she knew it, Gray was already humming. It was a soft tone that one could barely make out. It was a tune that was usually used to children who needed to sleep.
Slowly, Maive's movements became sluggish. Her arms dropped as Maive's head leaned into his shoulder. Although, she was already calm. Gray still held on tight. "Gray . . . ?" They heard Maive said.
"Yeah! I'm here!" He frantically replied.
"This is real . . . right?" Velvet frowned. There was something going on here . . .
"Yeah, this is real, Maive. This is real. You're in Professor Oobleck's class. You're not out there anymore. You're here with us! All of us. So, just sleep tight, okay? No one's going to hurt you any longer . . ." There wasn't some confidence in that tone. Not the usual bravado that Gray showed. It was concerned and fearful. Nothing like Gray at all.
Maive's body fell limp as it leaned onto his. Gray looked relieve when Maive has fallen asleep. It was times like these that told her how much stranger team SLVR are than her own team.
"Is she going to be okay?" Velvet asked. The look on his face told her enough. I don't know.
"May I ask, Mr. Licorice? But is this the first time that she had a panic attack? If not, then why did you not tell the school about this?" The questioning face on Oobleck wasn't going away soon. He was angry. That much Velvet could tell.
But even after all that, he still didn't answer his question, "I'm sorry, professor but I need to take Maive to the infirmary." He carried Maive in a bridal carry and proceeded to the door. "And no, professor. This wasn't the first time that this happened. Come on, Velv." She followed him, of course. Then they left the room without another word.
. . .
In the dark room of the infirmary, Maive was laid on the hospital bed. She was unconscious for the rest of the day. He, at least, expected for her to wake up before dinner but she didn't. Gray was with her all this time.
The cold night wind drifted into the room, chilling his exposed skin as he shivered slightly. There was no point in staying here. Not after what had happened earlier. Leona and Iris hadn't visited the sleeping beauty since the both of them had classes till dinner. He chose not to go to the lessons, proving them to be somewhat useless and troublesome. Though, he wasn't really prepared to face the consequences when Goodwitch found him asleep in the courtyard beneath a tree, skipping classes and all . . .
He may have incurred the wrath of the good professor but it was a coincidence that she made him get up and go back to his room. Like a mother would do to a child. But that doesn't seem to be far off, considering that she literally runs Beacon—instead of that sadistic bastard of a headmaster. He considers her to be the only other sane person in the teaching staff, too.
But on the other hand, it was just a coincidence that he passed the first year building, where he heard a scream. He thought it was probably someone in combat class getting hurt. But having been followed up by another gurgling scream, he thought otherwise. Maive was lucky he was there.
Before moving up a year in Beacon, he saw Maive have an episode like this before. She would hyperventilate and try to calm her breathing. Then, that's where the panic starts. She'd try to grab the closest thing to her and hold it close like some lucky ornament that would dispel her crazy nightmare.
There were also times that she'd try to shun all thing around her. It was almost as if she was hallucinating. She'd keep muttering words incoherent to him. She'd calm down, right after he restrained her and soothe her with words. It had an effect just like today.
If only they were in a different situation then maybe he wouldn't be so nervous today. He thought about everything and everything that he could've changed if only he was honest. He brought all of this to himself, to be honest. Now, he was suffering by himself when he could've just told Leona.
There was also that issue. He was sure that Leona gave in so easily because of how she wanted it to come from him—those reasons, explanation. She was too easy to read. So, the decision to tell them everything from his job from Ozpin to the jobs that he was doing will be in effect. That is, if they were willing to listen to him at all . . .
"Hey, Gray . . ." Velvet's voice sounded as she entered the room, with two cups of steaming hot coffee. Ugh, he hated coffee—but accepted it nonetheless.
"Hey . . ." At least, the warmth from the cup made it more comfortable for him in the cold room.
"So . . . are you still mad?" He only raised a brow at the confusing question. Mad? What did she mean by that? If there was anything that he has done to her, then surely he would know. Only because of how Coco's overprotective of this girl. He wouldn't hear the end of it if that were the case.
Velvet seemed to get the idea and just sighed, "It's about what happened this morning. About you and Leona?" Oh! Right . . . "We heard about it from her and from Maive. They weren't really in a good mood. The others noticed but didn't say anything about it. But considering that you weren't there. We thought that it was probably you again."
He smiled bitterly, "Yeah, I'm the reason just like any other problems that they encounter. I take it that you already know what's going on?" Velvet frowned.
"I heard a little from Maive. About how you were being so secretive—but I don't know anything about it." Velvet stood up from her seat and stepped closer to Gray. "I'm mad because of how you disregarded her feelings! You hurt her . . ."
"Velv, calm down. I know what I've done and am already reflecting on it. Besides, you'll wake her up if you yell that loud." That cooled her off, somewhat. "Yes, I know that I'm not the most considerate teammate. There's also the fact that everything that I do are questionable at best. If anything, they have every right to be angry at me. But instead, they're not. That speaks volume of how much faith they have in me. That's why I decided to tell them all tonight. If not, them earlier tomorrow. Just trust me on this, Velv. I promise to tell all of them."
The quiet girl in front of him relaxed, even if she believed that the assurance was false. But it was true. Now, it was only a matter of time before his team gets here. He already sent the team a message what had happened to Maive. He's sure that they'd be shock to have received a message from him, though.
The door to the infirmary slammed open. Gray flinched at the sound that it made. The metal smacked against the concrete wall, creating a loud thump that nearly made him jump out of his seat.
"What happened!?" The looks on Leona's and Iris' faces were nothing short of shock and surprise. Yeah, who knew that it would be Gray that would save Maive from self-destructing herself in front of the class?
"Gray? What're you doing here? I thought . . ." Iris didn't finish that sentence. He didn't know if it was a question out of curiosity or out of disdain. But it was Iris. She was probably just curious ever since what happened this morning.
"Maive suffered from an anxiety attack. No one knows the real reason other than Maive, herself. I'm only here because I was the one who brought her here." Leona gave him a scrutinizing look; it didn't hide any of the coldness at all. Velvet noticed, apparently.
"U-u-uh, Gray's the one who calmed her down! He was the only one with knowledge of what was happening then! Even Oobleck didn't know what to do then!" At least, there was someone defending him. Immediately, Leona changed from cold to worry.
"What really happened?" Leona's voice was tinged with concern.
"I don't know. Ask Velvet. She was there when it happened . . ." Although, he already knew the details when she told him earlier, he didn't really want to trouble himself of the pain of explaining what he already knew. All of the remaining members of SLVR's eyes were on her in an instant. With those many eyes at her, no wonder she hesitated. Her eyes caught his and he read the unusual threat within them.
"U-um—! Ah! There was that call earlier! Yeah! Maive got a call! She didn't know who but it made her go into shock!" . . . Actually, that was all that he needed. He could take a look on who called her by tracking the ID number of the scroll that called her. But knowing Maive and her past, these people that called her would be pros in this line of work. They may already have gotten rid of the scrolls that they had and got some new ones.
"Now, the problem is what they said to her. Enough for her to have a panic attack and to lose her composure . . . I never saw Maive cry. Not even once . . ." He said.
"Yes, while that may be true, but this isn't the first time that she had one. An attack that is. But nothing to this degree before. The message must be serious enough that it would force her to do something so drastic." That was logical coming from Leona. Iris moved to her partner's side and held onto Maive's hand. A sad look appeared on her usual cheery face. And it pissed him off.
'Damn those fucking bastards! I'll make them pay for what they've done to Maive!' His hands clenched and crumpled the metal armrest like a piece of paper. His anger was another thing that he needed control over. A tap and he looked over his shoulder. It was Leona.
"Can we talk?" That was all she needed to say and Gray understood her intentions, can we talk in private and let me know what's on your mind? That was what those eyes were saying. Needless to say, he complied.
They went outside after making a half-assed excuse to Velvet and faced each other without a hint of fear in their standing. They made sure that they were alone till they spoke.
"What is it?" He asked first, knowing that Leona will be the one that will always ask the questions that she wanted. It was a given.
". . . I want to apologize for what I've done . . . It was unreasonable of me to even snap at you that time. I got so . . . angry that I didn't really know what to do. But you know me; I get angry so quickly. And despite what I have said, I regre—!"
"No, you don't need to apologize. It was my fault. All of it. I didn't tell all of you what was really happening behind the scenes. I should be the one who's sorry. I broke my promise and made you upset!" Leona looked shocked enough. Though, he could guess why . . .
"You're sorry?" What? Did that seem unusual to her too? ". . . You seem awfully calm about apologizing."
"I am. I thought about it and knew how wrong it was for me. There wasn't even a real reason for me to be hiding it from all of you. I just thought that . . . if I dragged the team with me, this would be a repeat of what happened. All of us almost lost our lives because of my mistake of trying to hide some valuable information from you guys." He wasn't sure where he was getting at but he was just dragging this out longer than necessary. "What I'm trying to say is . . . I'm sorry."
That's it. That was all that he needed to say.
". . . . . . I suppose I can accept your apology . . . that is if you're willing to tell me what is really going on." Yeah, he saw that one coming . . .
"Um, about that . . . I'm not sure I have the authority to disclose information like that . . . the only people who can tell you are the headmaster and Goodwitch. I can tell you but I don't think that would be a good idea . . ."
"Then, tell me anyway." He blinked. Then a second time before he felt his shoulders slump. His back hit the wall behind him and fell down on his bottom. He felt a smile creep up to his lips when he looked back to Leona's eyes.
"Okay . . ." After a long days' worth of lazing around, he saw a smile grace Leona's brightened face. It was definitely worth it to apologize. She sat down beside him, leaving no space between them.
"Well, what're you waiting for?" He told her everything from the start of the semester to this night; from the fairy tale that Ozpin told him to the part of his missions with Qrow. She appeared to be surprised. That was until he told her about the fight in the club yesterday. She expressed her shock and surprise in a well manner. She didn't lash out at him o tried to reprimand him; she just said she was relieved.
No matter how many times he excused himself for what he had done wrong, Leona had forgiven him. It came to the part where he didn't know where this was going. He has just told everything to Leona—even about the maidens.
This will just paint a larger target on them both. It was bad enough that the same people might be targeting him; he didn't want that for Leona.
"What's wrong?" She calmly asked after being told the secrets of Ozpin, which should've at least rattled almost all people who heard about it.
For that, he just sighed, "Nothing, I'm just worried that something might happen to you if I told all of these. In truth, I was told to keep it a secret from most people."
"Stop being so paranoid. Even if something went wrong, I'm not some damsel in distress that needs some saving. I can handle it on my own." She smiled.
"I know you can—I mean you're the scariest person that I've ever met, aside from Goodwitch that is. I really can't think of anyone that can keep up with you."
She laughed an honest to goodness laugh; it made his heart skip a beat, "Really? I think there's someone who can keep up with me during spars. He's an idiot though. Also, a moron. A selfish and helpless moron. But he's nice and kind. There are not many people just like him. He wouldn't ask for help until he's forced to. Not to mention lazy, arrogant and stubborn. All of which redeeming qualities that he never knew."
"Sounds like a nice guy. I want to meet him." Sarcasm was never his thing. But it seemed like a good time as ever to put it to good use. It was met with a giggle to his side. Something he never thought Leona was capable of.
"So, you accept that you're any of those, then?"
"Maybe, I don't really like how I'm call selfish. I'm never selfish!"
"Just goes to show that you never know. It's something that only other people from the outside perspective can see."
"Meh, you're right. That's really how I am; selfish. I'm selfish enough to not make my teammates worry about me."
"Liar! You make us worry all the time!"
"When was the last time you guys got worried about me?" She gave him a flat stare. There were probably a lot of times that he did, now that he remembers it . . .
"Yesterday, your date with your sister, and initiation. Should I add more to the list? These were only recent, like this week. Want to know more what last week was like?" With reluctance, he shook his head.
"You know there's no need for that!" He chuckled lightly as he relaxed.
A comfortable silence washed through them. It was relatively peaceful outside, with the dim light illuminating the dark hallway. Sometimes, there were moments like these that made him question what his relationship with Leona. Others would say that it was like they were stuck their own world.
But there will always be times when they're at each other's throats. Just . . . not now.
"It's getting late. We should get back." She said, standing up and dusting her skirt.
"Yeah, we should. Wanna go get Iris?"
"No, I don't think she wants to go back without her partner." He nodded. Gray understood her intentions. Iris was attached to Maive when they became partners. Their relationship started a bit cold but now, they were the best of friends.
"Do you want to be left behind?" He didn't notice that Leona was already heading back to their room. Actually, he didn't think that he would be sleeping on his own bed tonight.
. . .
"Azatoth, upon the black throne,
Steps of twelve hesitant to tone.
Madness and chaos swallowed your mind,
ears of the deaf, eyes dying to be blind.
Shrills of discordance to rattle this hell,
Creating our worlds as Barbelzoa fell."
In the middle of the room was a lone man in a straitjacket, muttering endless the same poem over and over. One side of the room was made out of tempered glass. On the other side of it were three men with varying appearances.
The most distinguishing of them was largest and the tallest in the room, wearing a fedora and a white mask with intricate floral designs. He wasn't round but rather muscular with his features. A red coat hanged on his shoulders with no sleeves.
The second was a cloaked hooded man. The darkness covered his face which made it hard to see. Nonetheless, the hooded man had a large sword that had the length and width of his own body.
The last one was in a suit and necktie, wearing round spectacles. He had the air of a business man much more different than the ones behind him.
"How long has he been there?" The hooded man asked.
"About a year and a half. We regulate his food by twice a day, befitting that of an animal." The man in a suit replied.
"Well, I'll be damned . . . I wouldn't be surprised if this guy, right here, is a bit malnourished for our taste! How do you live with that conscience?" The largest man said.
"My conscience? Is it even a shock to you that we even feed this monster? There is no need for this man to be alive still!" The loud voice of the man didn't seem to faze the two warriors behind him.
"Regardless, this man is still needed by my queen." The hooded man said coolly.
"This man is Tyrian Callows! The most dangerous man alive! If anything, there would be no need for him to be allowed to walk even in the courtyard of this institution or better yet outside the gates—gah!" A hand made itself comfortable by wrapping itself on the man's neck.
"We don't need your opinion. We need him. Milady asks for his service once more." The large man dropped his victim in the unforgiving concrete. The hooded man walked away and towards the door.
"Tulpen, wait by the car. I'll bring Tyrian."
"Got it boss!" Tulpen walked out of the room and down the corridor. The hooded man walked towards the door that held Tyrian inside. He opened it and revealed the confined man inside.
Tyrian snapped his head up and faced towards the hooded man, "Who are you? Nah, forget it. I don't even want to know. It's just a hassle, really. I doubt you're really here on something that you want to do, would you?" This man . . . didn't really make any sense at all.
"I'm here to fetch you, Tyrian."
"Fetch me!? Ha! That's a laugh. What are you? Someone's dog!?" Tyrian laughed, maniacally. The hooded man expected this and there was only one way to sedate him.
"Salem wants you back . . ." The mere mention of his queen sent Tyrian in a shocked state. That was when he broke out of his confined state. Ripping out the straitjacket from his body. Afterwards, he walked calmly to the hooded man.
". . . Then . . . we shouldn't keep our mother waiting . . ." A dangerous smile plastered onto his face. Soon, they left the institution for psychopaths in Atlas.
A/N: Hellooooo, BloodyCow is back! Speaking of back, it's really killing me. I haven't gotten that much sleep as I would've like.
Now, for the story, I' m sorry for the quality but I've tried to progress it as much as possible but it seems that it only covered a day worth's of plotless facts. This next arc will be about Maive's past and how they will confront it. As many of you know, Maive is an assassin that worked with you-know-who. And a sneak peek, she was one of those inner circle members that worked for Salem.
There are also those two new guys that I thought of. Really, though, it was a spur of the moment kind of thing . . .
Anywho, thanks for reading! This is BloodyCow, over and out!