Classes were starting once more, and the students were even less excited for them with the afterglow of the prom still radiating from most of them. There were a few teams however, who were less excited for different reasons.
The day before, after Ash had returned from Atlas, Teams RWBY and JNPR were glad to have their friend back, but very quickly denied the idea of Weiss and Ash sparring – that day anyway. Weiss was fine with it, having no desire to follow through with it after opening his gift. Needless to say, she interrogated Ash about his idea of a sufficient gift. Though they didn't get to spar, they did spend the rest of the day together.
Doctor Oobleck's class was first for the day, but Ash was the only student missing. Earlier that morning, Weiss had tried to wake Ash up when he was absent for breakfast, but he never answered the door and none of the calls she made afterwards went unanswered. Only much later, a few minutes before the class started, did he send her a message simply saying that he's out for a morning jog.
Now, the class was nearly over and Ash had yet to show up. Even the doctor took notice, seemingly less enthusiastic about his lecture with the absence, resulting in a rare occasion where the students are actually able to keep up with him.
"'A morning jog,'" Weiss read the message once more in a frustrated whisper, earning her friends' attentions as she kept whispering to herself. "Who goes for a morning jog for more than five hours, fully knowing they have classes to attend? And to only give me the simplest explanation hours after he started and after being called multiple times, does he want punishment?"
"Weiss is going crazy," Ruby commented, honestly convinced that the butler had broken her partner. The seven could only stare at Weiss in her seat, madly writing in her notebook, ways to punish her butler. "Is that what being an older sibling is like?"
"You have no idea," Yang, Jaune, and Ren all muttered in response.
Yang thought about the times she had difficulty, managing Ruby when they were kids, and the bruises that resulted in each failed attempt.
Jaune thought about his seven sisters. The times that his elder sisters forced him to dance with them to practice for their dates to dances, and he'd be the one wearing the dress. And the times that his younger sisters refused to give him respite despite playing with them for hours on end.
Ren thought and stared at Nora. Sure, they weren't related, but there are more times than not that he had to be the older brother between the two, or at least someone more responsible.
Weiss unconsciously reached for her new locket and gently held it in her right hand as she kept staring at her scroll, waiting for the off chance that it'll receive another message from her butler. She stopped writing as she finished writing a full page of punishments that she could use on him.
She got her wish when her scroll lit up with an image of an envelope on the screen. She quickly opened it and simply stared at the message, trying her best to keep her emotions in check. The message simply read I plan to return before noon, but in the case I don't please ask Miss Goodwitch to postpone my duel against Team CRDL.
Weiss flipped the page of her notebook and wrote Ashley Schnee on another page. She wanted nothing more than to just voice out her frustration towards Ash's childish behavior, but her rational side thought of it as a way to advance her goal of repaying Ash.
"Weiss are you ok?" Ruby finally asked her partner. Weiss turned to her with a glare, making the younger girl flinch. Weiss' expression softened as she realized her mistake.
"I'm sorry Ruby," she said, letting out a sigh towards her notebook.
"Is it Ash again?" Ruby asked, testing her suspicion.
"Who else could it be?" Yang asked behind her. Weiss pushed her scroll with Ash's messages open towards Ruby, who immediately peeked at it. She read the two messages over and over again before realizing why her partner may feel frustrated.
"He's gonna kill them," Ruby commented aloud. Yang leaned in closer to her sister and took a look at the scroll herself. She read the two messages as well, but found the matter trivial.
"So he's just out for a jog," Yang said freely, sitting back down on her seat. "There's nothing wrong with that."
Ruby looked to Weiss for permission for something, to which Weiss merely gave a nod. Ruby very quickly wrote a question in the scroll and sent it, making sure to let him know that it was from her. She didn't have to wait long for the reply, but it did make her question the butler's sanity again.
She turned the scroll to Weiss and even she questioned Ash's sanity afterwards. Weiss turned to her notebook once more and wrote down another set of punishments. While Weiss wrote, Ruby passed the scroll to her sister, where the rest of her friends can look at the scroll as well.
Hey Ash, this is Ruby. How long ago did you start?
Around eight hours ago Miss Rose. Is there something you desire from the city?
Yang took note of the current time, finding it to a quarter till ten. After a quick mental math, she figured the butler started his jog around two at night. Beacon didn't necessarily have a curfew, but no one she knew would be awake at the time – till now that is.
"Ok, so he's a little excessive," Pyrrha commented, still staring at the scroll in Yang's hand. She thought back to her training back at Mistral, but couldn't remember a time she went no more than three hours of training at one time. "Maybe he's feeling really stiff after being bed ridden for a week."
"I don't think that's an issue anymore," Yang said sarcastically, giving the scroll back to Ruby to give to Weiss. "Let's just hope that he's not too tired later."
"If they even accept the challenge," Nora said spitefully serious, glaring at the team of sleeping bullies on the other side of the room. Ren put a hand on her shoulder, just in case she loses herself before her targets could make it to their next class.
"I don't think they have a choice," Jaune reassured his teammate, giving her a smile when she turned. "Remember what Coco said yesterday? Practically everyone in Beacon is gonna come and watch. It may be ok if it's just one on one, but it's a four on one."
"They lost to Pyrrha before," Nora countered, recounting previous classes.
"But everyone expected that of her," Ren explained to her, looking to Pyrrha and meeting her eyes for a brief second, silently apologizing as he knew that she didn't want her championship to be the main thing that defines her. "Ash is no one. Until two nights ago, no one knew who he was. Like I said yesterday, with the festival coming up, he's a possible threat."
"It's impossible for him to participate in the festival," Weiss reminded them, her eyes never leaving the notebook page she was filling with possible punishments. "Without a team, he can't even participate in the preliminary team battle."
Her friends thought about the fact as Weiss' scroll alerted her to another message from Ash.
I know that you must be worried Miss Schnee, for that I apologize. But this was something that I needed to do. I ignored my training for four days and I've felt a little off.
For some reason, the three simple sentences eased her mind even a little bit. Unconsciously she smiled, something that only Ruby, who glanced at her only for a brief second. Weiss ripped the two pages of notebook she was writing in and stuffed it in her pocket to throw away later, before sending a response to the butler.
Stay safe and hurry back.
"You sound like a wife," Nora commented behind her. Weiss turned to find Nora looking at her scroll over her shoulder. "You really like him don't you?"
"There's no way I'm doing this again," Weiss said, quickly hiding her scroll from everyone's view. The new locket around her neck seemed to increase in temperature, but she didn't mind it.
The day went on and as Miss Goodwitch's class drew closer, more and more people started to keep their eyes on Teams RWBY and JNPR. They knew the reason: They were looking for Ash.
Now it was noon and the students all have gathered in the cafeteria for lunch before their final classes for the day, and/or their investigation of Ash. Only, Ash had yet to return from his supposed morning jog.
Weiss debated on calling the butler, but decided to trust him that he's simply running a little late. However, as the break started to near its end, she started to worry, not only for his promise but for his health as well. She trusted that he grabbed something to eat for breakfast in the city and hopefully something for lunch, but the last time he pushed his body to his limit he ended up getting sick. Even Pyrrha agreed that ten hours is dangerous to one's body, but the only reason why Weiss couldn't worry any further is that she didn't know if Ash being a dragon also meant that his vitality is different from anyone else.
As people started to clear out of the cafeteria, Ash finally enters through the avenue door with obvious markings of sweat on his black hoodie, while his gray sweats seemed to be safe from the same misfortune as the hoodie. Ash himself looked out of breath, almost desperately trying to catch his breath, with a half empty water bottle in his hand.
"Ash!" Yang was the first to notice the butler. Ash made his way to them, quickly finishing off the rest of the water in the bottle before getting to them. He sat at an empty seat at another table, placing the bottle on it, just to take it out of his hand.
"You look tired," Ruby said innocently, glancing at Jaune as he stood up to get another bottle of water for Ash. He couldn't respond, instead focused on regaining lost breath and steadying his heartbeat.
Jaune came back with the bottle of water and tossed it to Ash, who caught it and immediately ripped the cap off to consume another half of a water bottle. The two teams simply let him rest for a bit before they say anything. A minute or two passed before Ash's condition became somewhat controlled.
"Ten hours," Blake simply said, to which he simply smiled guiltily and nodded.
"Ash, you do know that's a danger to your body right?" Pyrrha asked him, receiving a nod from Ash as well. "And you still did so anyway."
"It'd be more disastrous if I continued to ignore my training," Ash replied in between small breaths of air. As soon as he finished the sentence, he consumed the other half of the water bottle and left it on the table top next to the first one. "This is simply a small price to pay."
"Want another one?" Jaune asked, standing up once more to grab another bottle for his friend.
"Yes, it'll be much appreciated Mister Arc," Ash responded, looking up the male blonde with a small smile as sweat continued to slowly gather and drip from his chin.
Jaune went away again, and Ash continued to try to ignore the exhaustion slowly taking him over. He stretched his limbs, earning him a few pops of tired bones and relief of stressed muscle. Soon Jaune came back with another bottle and once again tossed it to Ash.
"Well, just think about it like this. Later tonight, you're probably gonna get the best sleep you'll ever get in your life," Yang pointed out, trying to find a silver lining to the butler's exhaustion. "Just, you know, don't pass out on us right now."
"It's only ten hours Miss Xiao Long," Ash replied, taking small sips of the third bottled water.
"You know that's pretty much half a day right?" Blake asked, as she became the third member of Team RWBY to question his sanity. "People are usually only awake for sixteen hours."
"Then, I guess, I'll be able to – as Miss Xiao Long put it – pass out without any regrets," Ash laughed with whatever breath he had left.
"You're supposed to challenge Cardin and his team to a match within the hour you know," Weiss reminded him, looking at the time on her scroll. She looked up at her servant, worried about his condition.
"There may be a little difficulty with that, but I'm prepared either way," he reassured her as best he could with a smile. Ash finished the rest of the water from the bottle and stood up. "If you'd all excuse me, I need to shower and change before the class starts."
With a small bow to the group, Ash grabbed the three bottles he'd downed and disposed of them in a recycling bin before he headed for his room. Weiss could only watch him walk away, all the while contemplating on going after him.
"Go ahead and go after him," Ren said to the heiress, earning her attention, while attracting everyone else's attention towards her. "You're becoming easy to predict."
"Ever since Ash came," Jaune added, earning a hum from everyone but Weiss and Blake.
"That's not entirely true," Blake countered, propping her head up with one hand, elbow on the desk. "To be more precise, it's ever since her birthday. She was as predictable hours before Ash introduced himself to us."
"Just him being here is doing something to you," Pyrrha concluded, staring intently at the heiress before turning to the direction of the dorms. "But it doesn't seem like you mind it at all. Not like you would have before."
"I'm simply content that I have him by my side again," Weiss answered, trying her best to hold a conversation with Pyrrha with the rest of their friends pestering Blake for more information on what she meant. "After spending nearly my entire life with him, he's become part of my family. No matter what anyone says, or what happens in the future, he'll always be family."
"You don't sound convinced of that yourself," Pyrrha replied, motioning to another table so that they could continue their conversation in peace, leaving the cat Faunus to regret her decision.
They stood up without gaining much attention from their friends and sat at the motioned table, opposite of each other.
"Is that really all that you think of him Weiss?" Pyrrha continued, acting like the voice of reason for her friend. Weiss opened her mouth slightly to answer but couldn't form a sort of reply, so Pyrrha continued. "Being family is fine, but you really should try and figure out exactly what he means to you."
"He's my friend Pyrrha," Weiss said confidently, despite a pang of guilt squeezing her chest for a brief second. "It's been like that for all these years. Almost like the feeling you get when you're around Jaune."
"If it really is the same feeling, then you've only been lying to yourself," Pyrrha replied, looking towards her oblivious leader and friend. "He's in love with you, we all know that – especially you."
Weiss couldn't form an answer, and for a minute, only silence was between them. It was Pyrrha that broke the silence, finishing her argument.
"By the way you can't respond tells me that I'm right," she challenged. Weiss could only nod once to confirm Pyrrha's assumption. Images of Ash's actions that prove her assumption flashed in Weiss' mind, from him kissing her scar to her requests at the night of the prom. "You know you're just using your long time friendship with him as an escape. What'll you do now?"
"For now, repay him for all he's done," Weiss answered, causing Pyrrha to shake her head at her.
"We both know that's not possible," Pyrrha countered, crossing her arms across her chest. "Tell me, Weiss. Do you even remotely hold any romantic feelings for him?"
"I can't," Weiss replied, confusing Pyrrha a little. Before Pyrrha could ask her to clarify, she continued. "I can't hold such a thing for him. If I do, I won't be able to relieve him from his position in the future."
"What do you mean?"
"I've always planned to relieve him after I become a full fledged Huntress," Weiss answered, remembering days when she told Winter her plan. "He's sacrificed too much for my family and I already. I don't remember when it started, but I've started to see him as a bird locked in a cage."
"Didn't he say he'll stay with you even if he's not your servant anymore?" Pyrrha reminded her. "There'd be no point if you relieve him or not."
"That complicates things, yes," Weiss agreed. She took a deep breath to gather her courage and try to ignore the painfully growing feeling of guilt building up inside her. "That's why I want to keep ignoring his infatuation with me, so that when the time comes he'll be able to live his life free of his duty and promise to me."
"How is that repaying him?" Pyrrha criticized, only able to view the girl uncertain girl in front of her as a coward. "That coercion is the complete opposite of what you said your goal is."
"I'm freeing him Pyrrha," Weiss said, fighting her and the feeling of guilt in her chest.
"Ask him," Pyrrha demanded, standing up to go back to the other table, unable to contain her slight spite towards the heiress as of now. "Ask him if he wants to be free. Make sure that he answers you truthfully and not that Whatever you say Miss Schnee bullshit."
Pyrrha left Weiss alone at the table and went back to their friends who barely noticed her return. Weiss debated on either going back to the table like Pyrrha or chasing after Ash even though he'll probably be taking a shower by the time she gets there. She looked over to her friends and found Pyrrha staring at her intently. That was all the convincing she needed to choose the latter.
Weiss knew what spite was; after all she's dealt with it throughout her life. But when she saw it again on Pyrrha, she couldn't tell her that she's already asked him the day before. Though, a thought did dawn on her: was what he said yesterday, a – as Pyrrha put it – Whatever you say Miss Schnee bullshit? She had to know. And if it was, what he's actual answer is.
She stood outside of Ash's door, pressing her ear against the door slightly, barely able to hear the sound of water falling from the showerhead. She waited for the butler to finish before knocking on the door.
"Ash, it's me," she called, stepping back a few steps to let the butler open the door. Within a minute, Ash opened the door, looking tired, still slightly damp from his shower, and wearing only blue jeans. His chest lays bare in front of her, with the scars he received from the Beowolves he fought during Professor Port's class.
"Is there something I can help you with Miss Schnee?" he asked, stepping to the side to let his mistress in, closing and locking the door behind her.
The second bed that she used to sleep in was gone, leaving Ash's lone bed in the middle of the room. His fresh clothes were laid out on it along with fresh gauze still rolled up. She made her way to the bed and picked up the gauze.
"I'll help you with this," she simply said, motioning Ash to sit in the bed to let her work. There was a moment of silence as the heiress wrapped his chest and wings with the gauze, taking a moment to inspect his sacrifice before she covered them as well.
Ash thanked her and started to dress. In a matter of a few minutes, Ash was fully dressed in front of her. Instead of his usual formal suit, he instead wore a sleeveless black shirt with the blue jeans he was wearing. Instead of dress shoes, he instead wore black sneakers, a fresh look from his usual formal look.
"Ash, I planned to relieve you once we graduate," Weiss confessed, watching for a change in the butler's expression. When he showed no emotion, she relaxed even if a little.
"I kind of guessed as much," Ash professed, taking a seat on the chair of a study desk opposite of the heiress. "Or maybe I should say, I've known for quite a while now."
"Winter," she guessed, feeling a little betrayed that her sister might have told him her plan.
"No Miss Schnee," he reassured her, adjusting his position on the chair for more comfort. "You aren't the most discreet person when it comes to me. Up until yesterday when you asked me about this, I was only able to assume. Allow me to ask you again: Do you not want me to serve you?"
"How about y—" Weiss began to ask flustered, wanting to buy time for her to come up with a proper answer, but was very quickly interrupted by Ash.
"I do wish to serve you Miss Schnee. If you're simply going to bring up what I feel about you as a simple excuse then I beg of you to order me to forget it," Ash said sharply, gritting his teeth in an attempt to keep his emotion in check. Weiss recoiled at the tone, and Ash quickly realized what he'd done. "I apologize Miss Schnee. I must be more tired than I thought to let my emotions come over me."
"It's alri—" Weiss started, only to be interrupted by Ash once more.
"However, tired or not, I meant what I said about you ordering me," he said, staring at her intently, wanting to convey that he was serious; a message that was delivered successfully. "It's as you said, it may all be just some mistake that our – my – current mindset can't process as of yet."
Weiss couldn't say anything, and simply sat there with Ash for a few more minutes before it was time to go to Professor Goodwitch's class. Ash asked Weiss to go ahead of him, a request that she was willing to grant. Once she left the room, Ash waited a few minutes to let her get some distance before he let out a cry of frustration, completely unaware that the heiress hadn't left after all.
Weiss met up with her friends in class, taking her time to look around as the room was significantly more filled with students than usual. Even the young professor was slightly overwhelmed with the amount of students that aren't really her students.
"I understand that Professor Ozpin has excused you all this time, but please settle down," she tried to calm the students but only maintained little order as her voice was lost in the cacophony of voices.
Next to her was Team CRDL, ready for their match with Ash, with Cardin staring daggers at the door, as if daring it to come for him. The rest of his team, looked worriedly at Cardin then to the door, unsure of what they could do.
The members of Team CFVY joined Teams RWBY and JNPR, greeting them with the exception of Coco who was furiously looking around for the butler.
"He's the guest of honor, so why is he late?" she asked out loud, mainly directing it towards Weiss.
"He just came back from a jog," the heiress answered dejectedly. "I don't think I'd blame him if he's just sleeping in his room."
"'A jog?'" Coco echoed, slightly angry. "What kind of excuse is that?"
"He started at two in the morning," Weiss further explained, successfully silencing the stylish upperclassmen. "If he's not in his room, then he's on his way here with his blade."
"That thing's too heavy to be normal," Yatsuhashi commented, remembering a time during the prom that he tried to pull the blade out of the ground but in the end left it there, after noting its weight. "Is there something we should know?"
"It's special. He said it's made from a heavier material than the usual metal," Yang told them, looking at the door for the butler to finally appear. In a matter of a few minutes, Ash entered the room with the sheathed blade across his back, metal brace on his left forearm and his pair of metal gloves, but a tired look was apparent on him. "There he is. Still doesn't look like he's recovered."
"How could he?" Weiss asked her critically. "It's been less than an hour."
Ash walked towards Miss Goodwitch and spoke to her, their conversation mostly inaudible to his friends. They were only able to catch a few words, the first part being obviously an apology for his tardiness, while the second was a mystery, something about a change in the usual rules.
The professor exited the arena and allowed Ash to take his place on the opposite side of the opposing team. Cardin was angrily glaring at Ash, as Russel, Dove, and Sky spread themselves as to not to bump into each other when they inevitably follow Cardin in his charge.
Ash simply drew his blade, kept it pointed down at his side. He took a defensive stance by taking one step forward with his left foot, putting his sword behind him, and raised his armored left arm.
The students took their seats, or stood wherever they could to view the oncoming match. The monitor lit up and displayed the five combatants' Aura levels. Team CRDL's Aura levels were the first to appear, with Ash's following. All would've been normal, if it weren't for Ash's Aura level reading thirty instead of the usual hundred.
Before anyone could start asking questions, Glynda raised her voice.
"As you all can see Mister Valentine's Aura level isn't full," she said, addressing the elephant in the room, glaring at the butler who paid her no heed. "Therefore, in an attempt to make this as fair as possible, Team CRDL is required to completely deplete Mister Valentine's Aura."
"Miss Goodwitch!" Weiss immediately stood up, still staring in shock at the monitor, hoping in vain that it was simply broken. "If it's like this, then at least let me be Ash's partner."
"This is something that Mister Valentine himself requested Miss Schnee," the blonde professor told her, unable to meet her eyes, ashamed that she let herself be persuaded by the butler. She let Weiss sit down defeated and made her to Weiss' side, before turning to the five guys in the arena. "The rest of the rules are still in play. Knock your opponent out of the boundary or decrease their Aura level below critical with the exception of Mister Valentine. If none of you have any questions, then you may begin."
At those words, Cardin immediately charged forward with his teammates following somewhat closely behind him, as if the three of them were trying to hide behind their team leader's larger form. Ash stood still for a moment, simply analyzing the four in front of him.
A thin veil of smoke gathered around Ash's legs before the butler seemingly disappeared, only leaving dark red smoke in his place. Dove Bronzewing was unable to do a thing when Ash's knee suddenly slammed against his nose, knocking him on his back a few feet away, decreasing his Aura level by twenty. Sky Lark turned in response but couldn't attack as his weapon proved to be too long to do anything. Ash twisted his body mimicking a lying position and kicked Russel away before the dagger wielder could attack.
Cardin looked back and planted his feet to the ground in an attempt to stop. As Dove was picking himself off the ground, Ash grabbed Sky's halberd just below the blade and used it to propel himself to the ground before pulling on the weapon to send its wielder into his dual wielding teammate. Cardin charged towards Ash once more like a mad bull. He reeled his mace back and swung the titanium mace down at him. Ash activated his semblance again and focused it on his legs only for a moment. Jumping back towards Dove, Ash managed to avoid the mace as well as grant him distance from the majority of the opposing team.
Realizing it might be an opportunity Dove rose up and held the butler, trapping his arms behind his back to allow his teammates to land some blows on the butler, hopefully enough to end the match. Smirking at the opportunity that Dove created for him, Cardin ran once more. Ash reeled his head forwards and forced it back, hitting Dove's nose, forcing him to release his grip. Quickly getting around his dazed opponent, Ash kicked Dove forward in Cardin's way. Frustrated that the butler got away, Cardin swung his mace to the side, hitting Dove out of the way, earning him angry gazes from the students of Beacon. Dove's Aura level quickly decreased another fifteen percent.
While their teammates had Ash's attention, Russel and Sky went around Cardin, hoping to flank Ash and catch him by surprise. Finding an opening after his teammate was kicked, Russel ran towards Ash as fast as he could and got to him before Cardin could. Russel sliced and stabbed, anything he could in an attempt to land a hit on the butler, but the rushed attacks heavily telegraphed his movements. Ash dodged half of them and blocked the rest with either his bracer or his sword. Out of the corner of his eye, Russel saw Cardin barreling towards them with no reason to stop and coordinate with him for an attack, so he did the smart thing to do: jump away and let Cardin take the blow.
However, as his feet left the ground, Ash grabbed him by his shirt and threw him at Cardin. The bigger teen, once more swung at his teammate to allow him through, decreasing Russel's Aura level by fifteen percent.
Cardin swung his mace at Ash horizontally and in various angles, and Ash met each blow with his blade, frustrating the bully even more. Sky came in from behind Ash, ready to attack, hoping that Cardin would get the idea. Luckily for him, Cardin did.
Cardin looked behind Ash and saw his teammate poised to strike at the butler, but it was a movement that Ash managed to see. While Cardin was briefly distracted by Sky, Ash stepped to the side and kicked the bully towards his awaiting teammate, sending the two of them to the ground. Unfortunately, their Aura levels barely decreased, only dropping a single percentage.
"He's just using them against each other," Velvet commented, looking through the lens of her precious camera for a moment to capture Ash's fighting style. "He only really attacked once, but look at the monitor now."
The monitor showed Cardin and Sky's Aura still pretty much complete at ninety-nine, Russel's Aura was at eighty-five, and Dove's Aura stood at seventy percent. Ash's stood at the lowest, still at thirty.
"Yeah, and with his semblance, he could've done more," Jaune added, staring intensely at the match, trying to learn something he could use. "One of them could've been eliminated already."
"What's his semblance?" Coco asked, taking her eyes away from the combatants.
"It's that red smoke," Yang explained, feeling that she had the right to answer as she'd been on the receiving end of it before. "As far as we know, it just increases his overall speed and power."
"That's rather plain," Coco replied disappointedly. Yang turned to her with a serious expression.
"Maybe, but it just depends on how much he gives it in return," Yang challenged, unknowingly sounding cryptic to the members of the senior team. "We fought once and he got way stronger than me."
"Shocking, but still plain," Coco said, still slightly unimpressed.
The monitor now showed that Cardin's Aura level remained at ninety-nine, while Sky's Aura level decreased to seventy-five due to one hit from Cardin and several small slashes from Ash. Russel's Aura decreased to fifty after an attempt to sneak attack Ash once again, only to be countered by the butler with two vertical slices across his body. Dove faired the worst, now at thirty-five after being thrown into his teammates' attacks several times and one heavy slash from shoulder to shoulder from Ash's sword. Ash, on the other hand, remained at thirty percent.
Ash stood in the middle of the arena, while Team CRDL stood at opposite ends, surrounding him. Sky and Dove were the first to attack. Dove took aim and fired six shots from his sword in an attempt to keep him distracted while his halberd-wielding teammate attacked from a blind spot. Ash sliced the six bullets out of the air, but was too slow too notice Sky's attack. The halberd's blade ran across Ash's back, with his Aura being the only reason for his safety.
Though hurt, Ash spun and activated his semblance again, this time concentrated on his left arm, and thrust it forward striking Sky's diaphragm, decreasing his Aura to fifty as well as knocking all the air out of his lungs and preventing him from breathing correctly for the time being.
With his teammate's plan leading to their first success, though at a cost, Dove rushed in along with Cardin. Dove got to Ash first, but was unable to attack, as Ash turned to counter whatever it was he had planned.
Cardin jumped into the air and raised his mace high. He swung the mace down, using some of the Dust he had available to not only propel his attack, but to deal more damage to his target as well. Ash swung at Dove sluggishly, knowing that the boy would dodge, and when he did, Ash spun and brought his heel to Dove's temple, putting him in the way of Cardin's attack. Ash jumped away as Cardin's Dust enhanced attack depleted Dove of the rest of his Aura and sent the boy out of the boundary, completely unconscious.
Cardin muttered 'useless' under his breath as he took a stance as to not get caught off guard.
Russel charged forward again, but couldn't make it far from his position when Ash decided to charge towards him as well. Loosening his grip on his sword, Ash turned the sword 180 degrees and held it like a dagger, like he'd done when he dueled Yang. Ducking a little, Ash brought his right fist crashing towards Russel's diaphragm, activating his semblance for the brief second of impact, causing the boy to lurch over as he desperately searched for air. Righting himself upright, Ash lifted his right foot and brought his heel down on the back of Russel's head like an executioner's axe, activating his semblance at the point of impact again.
Russel's Aura quickly depleted and the boy was rendered unconscious by the blow to the head and the impact of his head on the floor, enough to cause a crater. Ash stepped away from him and Glynda used her semblance to move the unconscious boy out of the arena.
"I don't get it," Velvet said out loud, putting down her camera. "If you guys say that his semblance can make him stronger than Yang, why won't he just keep it activated? It'd make things so much easier."
Weiss thought about the question, before realizing the answer almost immediately.
"Because it needs a sacrifice," she answered, earning Team CFVY's attention. "Ash's semblance is special in that he can use either his Aura or the reserve energy in his body as a fuel. But right now, he's running on as little energy as possible, and with only such a minimal amount of Aura, how could he risk using his Aura?"
"You're missing the bigger picture," Ren commented, looking at the monitor. "He's saving it for a different reason."
They all looked at the monitor confused, unable to see what he meant. Russel and Dove have been eliminated. Sky still had fifty percent of his maximum Aura, and Cardin basically still had his entire Aura.
Weiss realized it after she watched Sky's Aura decrease even further to forty.
"He's aiming for Cardin," she announced out loud, receiving a nod from Ren. In a matter of seconds, Sky Lark had an X across his picture, while maintaining seven percent of his Aura, though like Russel and Dove, rendered unconscious.
They turned their attention back to the match, with Cardin and Ash the only ones left. Cardin was glaring intensely at Ash, while Ash's expression couldn't be as easily read.
"So what you guys are saying is that now we're going to see what that semblance really is," Coco guessed, not needing so much as a nod to know that she was right. Velvet got her camera ready to capture moments of the fight.
Before Cardin could attack, Ash sheathed his sword, causing some questions in the students and the professor. He removed the sheath from his back and tossed it aside.
"Mister Valentine, may I ask what it is you're doing?" Glynda asked, noting the crack that the sheer weight of the weapon caused when it hit the floor.
"I'm now taking this seriously," Ash simply answered, as he started to remove the bracer off his arm, then his gloves followed. Weiss couldn't help but stare at the scars on his hands, remembering exactly how he received them. It was when they started to bleed that she almost looked away.
"Ok, that's not supposed to happen with Aura," Coco said blatantly.
Ash rushed towards Cardin, as Cardin did the same.
Cardin swung his mace down at the butler, only to hit the ground as Ash jumped to the side. Helpless with his weapon on the ground, Cardin took a blow to the chin, though only a tiny portion of his Aura was depleted from the attack. Cardin dragged his weapon from the floor to his opponent, heavily telegraphing his intent. Ash kicked the weapon away and once more hit Cardin's chin with a hook, before kicking the mace wielder away.
Cardin quickly recovered from the attack, and faced Ash again. Recklessly, he charged again, hell bent on smashing his mace down on Ash. Using whatever Dust he had left, Cardin brought the weapon down on the butler. Once more, Ash jumped to the side dodging both the attack and the explosion of Dust that followed it. Before Cardin could recover from his missed attack, Ash rushed in, grabbed the hilt of the mace loosely and spun, using the momentum to kick Cardin's chest, gripping the mace tightly before the point of impact. Cardin was forced back, his weapon now held by Ash.
Ash threw the weapon away, outside of the arena, forcing Cardin to engage him in hand-to-hand combat. Frustrated that he feels like he was simply being toyed with, Cardin accepted the challenge and, with a roar, attacked.
Cardin's inexperience with hand to hand in comparison to Ash was immediately evident. Cardin's heavily telegraphed power attacks, proved easy for Ash to dodge and deflect. On the other hand, Ash's smaller jabs and hooks to the chin were easy to connect as most of them came after Ash had deflected a blow from Cardin. Soon Cardin's Aura was decreased to seventy, and it was only when he felt his knees buckle, did he remember what happened the first time he went up against Ash.
Ash stood no more than five feet from him, unmoving. Cardin tried to calm down even a small bit, as to not charge in again to simply receive another blow to the chin. He simply breathed and abided time for his body to revert back to its usual state. However, Ash wouldn't wait for long.
Ash's form was enveloped in red smoke when he charged towards Cardin. Caught off guard, Cardin took the blow to his cheek, decreasing his Aura by twenty. However, without reserve energy as a back up, Ash's Aura decreased slightly as a payment for his semblance.
Ash jumped up and forced Cardin's larger body to the air with a single blow to the chin. Once Ash landed, he grabbed Cardin by the foot and slammed his body to the floor, causing pieces of the floor to fly in every direction. Cardin's Aura level decreased by another twenty percent, and couldn't help Cardin recover from the damage fast enough to react to Ash kneeling by him.
The smoke around Ash increased in intensity before it all gathered to his right arm, his overall Aura decreasing again as payment until five percent disappeared. Ash reeled his right fist back, prepared to bring it down on the bully. Realizing his intent, Weiss stood up. Before she was able to shout out to stop him, Glynda grabbed her shoulder. Weiss turned to her in panic, but ended up more confused.
"He can still see, have a little faith in him," she assured her. Weiss sat down, and silently kept watching.
Ash brought his fist down on the ground next to the bully's head. Cracks appeared on the ground originating from Ash's fist. Glynda managed to activate her semblance in response to the room cracking, repairing the room almost as fast as the cracks appeared. Ash stood up and left the arena, heading over to the professor and his mistress.
"Mister Valentine has left the arena, the winner is Team CRDL," Glynda announced, wanting to announce something different, but was bound to the rules. She waited for Ash to meet them before saying anything else. In a quiet tone, she spoke to him. "You did well Mister Valentine. You've grown much since your last bout."
"I'm sorry," he apologized despite her praise, unsure of who exactly it is he was apologizing to: Glynda, Cardin, Weiss, or just everyone in general. He looked around, and saw many looking at him with mixed emotions in their eyes. " Even if it was only for a moment, I let my emotions get the better of me. I'm sorry."
"Ash, it's alright. No one's hurt," Glynda reassured him, breaking her character of a strict teacher. "Are you alright? You're bleeding."
"I'm… fine," he replied, thought completely unsure. He looked around once more, the students still stunned by the event. "They're scared. I think I'll go clear my head. If you'll excuse me Miss Goodwitch."
"You're still bleeding. Go to the infirmary, I'll meet you there," she told him, checking him for any injuries from shards of the floor. Ash followed her instruction and made his way to the infirmary before bowing slightly to Weiss.
Glynda made her way back to the front of the class to check up on the supposed winners. Cardin was still lying down, unable to do anything like the time he was saved by Jaune from the Ursa Major. The rest of the team remained unconscious, but more or less fine.
"Ok, never mind plain, his semblance is just dangerous," Coco admitted, releasing her grip on the chair she was seating in. She then noticed Velvet, staring at her camera, with a picture of Ash kneeling Cardin with his right arm pulled back, covered in what looked like armor of angry red cumulous clouds. "As much as I want to think that Winchester deserved the beating, your butler very nearly killed him."
"But he didn't!" Weiss bit back, glaring at the team leader. "He was just angry. Anyone could've done the same in that situation."
"That was beyond just being angry," Coco tried to reason, though frustrated at the heiress' ignorance of the matter. "That there was pure hate. Stop trying to defend something that we all know isn't true."
"I'm not saying that he doesn't hate Cardin!" Weiss countered, ready to run after her friend once she's explained herself. "I'm merely stating the fact that you're judging him as if he's actually killed Cardin. You're judging him like he's a monster."
"Look around you!" Coco yelled immediately, motioning to the people who were still in a state of disbelief. "No one needs that kind of strength! There's no reason to develop a semblance like that without wanting to destroy the world!"
"It's to protect the things he still has!" Weiss yelled, not bothering to acknowledge the attention that their argument was getting. "How dare you judge him like that when you don't even know him?"
Weiss took off towards the infirmary, leaving Coco to think about she just told her. Glynda didn't even try and stop her, only watched the heiress leave, as she used her scroll to explain to Ozpin what caused the quake he felt.
"'The things he still has?'" Velvet echoed, looking at the door Weiss exited through. "What did she mean by that?"
"Ashley told me something like that yesterday," Ruby said, thinking back to how her friend worded it. "She said that before Ash met the Schnee's, the kingdoms didn't even know he existed. His birth certificate, every document that proves he exists is fake."
"What happened to his parents?" Blake asked, suddenly interested in the matter. The people around were clearing out of the room, some heeding Yang's warning during prom night more than ever. Anything she could learn to explain that would put her at ease.
"She didn't really go into it," Ruby said, still trying to recall everything that Ashley told her the day before. "He was abandoned in the streets and they never even found his parents. She said something about Ash probably being born outside the kingdoms."
"So what you're saying is that a five or six year old managed to survive Grimm infested areas, get inside Atlas, and survive for a couple years alone?" Blake guessed, her emotions slowly taking over as she remembered the hundreds of Faunus in similar situation. Ruby nodded slowly.
"Then he literally started with nothing," Yang concluded, with thousands of possible situations that Ash could've gone through at that time, and it made her sick to her stomach. Then she remembered the scars on his hands and the scars that he wants more than anything to hide. "Oh Oum, I'm not so sure I want to know what happened to him to get those scars anymore."
Thanks to the brawler, the image of someone purposely harming a kid, enough to cause scars that not even Aura could fully heal or at the very least, some accident causing the scars. Either way, it's an image they – even Nora – wanted to immediately forget.
Coco, silent ever since Weiss left, now expressed an emotion of pure guilt and regret. Weiss was right to defend Ash, and was right for yelling at her. The right thing to do was to apologize to both mistress and butler, despite her reluctant to admit her fault. However, that was second to the rising question on many minds.
Coco, Velvet, Yang, Ren, Pyrrha, and Blake looked at the arena floor imaging that the cracks are back on them. If such a small sacrifice was enough to nearly cause the entire floor to cave in with just one strike, then what could be destroyed with a much larger sacrifice?
Weiss reached the infirmary, with Ash sitting on the furthest bed, his palms still bleeding, though less severe than before. She entered as quietly as she could, but by the way Ash's head twitched to her direction, he knew she was there. She grabbed some gauze from one of the drawers and sat down to Ash's left.
"Did Miss Goodwitch send you Miss Schnee?" he asked her, not wanting to meet her gaze in shame. "There's no need to wrap my hands. While I'm not entirely sure why such old scars are bleeding, I know that it isn't anything to worry about."
"Ash, please just let me do this for you," she replied solemnly, waiting for his approval. She heard him start to talk, but she quickly cut him off. "Shut up, that's an order."
Without saying another word, she grabbed Ash's left hand and started to wrap it in the gauze; she finished wrapping it and moved on to his right, he simply let her work. Once she was finished, he examined them by closing and opening his hands.
"I don't know what to do anymore Miss Schnee," he finally spoke, staring at his opening and closing hands. Weiss would only listen. "Before, I only had to protect you at any cost, but even then I didn't let my emotions take control of me. What happened between now and then that changed me?"
"You found more you want to protect," she answered him truthfully, thinking of her team, and many others, all people that Ash befriended in his short time at Beacon. "You're starting to be just a normal teen Ash. You're no longer just Weiss Schnee's servant. You're a student of Beacon now, a Hunter-in-training."
"Is this why you wanted to relieve me? Because I was changing?" Ash asked her, trying to figure out his mistress' mindset, as well as move attention away from his mistake earlier.
"I wanted you to change Ash," Weiss replied, taking Ash's left hand in between hers. "I wanted you to change so that one day we could see each other without thinking of mistress and servant first."
"Best to re-word that, lest I assume differently," Ash warned with a small bitter chuckle. A yawn escaped him and he shook his head to stay awake. Now that the match is over, all the adrenaline that kept him awake has completely dissipated. "I'm sorry Miss Schnee, but I don't think I can stay awake any longer. I've already burned through most of my reserve energy."
"Then sleep," Weiss simply said, getting up from the bed so that he could lie down and sleep. "I'd say you've earned it more than anyone today. I'll be here when you awake. Don't worry, I won't leave you."
"Thank you Miss Schnee," Ash lied down on the bed, and fell asleep as soon as he closed his eyes. Weiss sat on a bed adjacent to his, and smiled at the peacefully sleeping butler.
A half hour passed before Miss Goodwitch entered the infirmary, taking in the sight of the heiress and the sleeping butler, his hands already wrapped in gauze.
"He's tired," Weiss told her, cautious of the professor in case she wants to lecture Ash because of his actions. Glynda sighed and made her way to Weiss and sat down next to her. "Are you angry with him?"
"No, his actions were understandable," the professor said leaving the heiress in shock. "However, that was not what a Hunter is supposed to do. Had he let his emotions take over him like he said, I'm unsure what he might've been able to do. Mister Winchester still had a good percentage of his Aura, but that room was built to sustain large amounts of damage."
"So what happens now?" she asked, afraid for her stay at Beacon along with Ash. She looked to the professor, trying to keep a straight face as to not show her fear. "What's going to happen to Ash now?"
"Nothing," Glynda said with a more successful attempt of keeping a straight face than her student. "Mister Winchester isn't dead, so there's no reason to expel him for it."
Glynda looked around for a bit and made sure that no one was near before continuing.
"And off the record, I believe that Mister Valentine was in the right to give Team CRDL something to be scared of."
"You can call him by his name, you know," Weiss told her, a smile forming on her at the hidden favoritism of the professor.
"Until that boy has been determined to be my son, I shall rarely call him by his given name," Glynda joked with the student, causing her to laugh a little as she remembered her first meeting with Ash.
Glynda left the infirmary, leaving Weiss to care for Ash should he need it. Weiss could only sit at the bed, and watch Ash sleep. When he stirred in his sleep, muttering every now and then, did she get up out of curiosity.
"Miss Schnee, Snow White wasn't so abusive," he muttered almost inaudibly.
Weiss held in her laughter at the memory of the time she ordered Ash to take part in a small play she wanted to do on her favorite fairy tale – though in the end, they never managed to do it. She played the part of Snow White, while Ash played the Prince.
It was all the same as the book, until Weiss got fed up with the passive attitude of the princess, so she put a little more of her own personality in it, much to Ash's dismay. She ended up hitting Ash for trying to kiss her when the part came up. Ash ended up with the reddest cheeks after being constantly slapped by her.
"To dream about such a thing," Weiss said, taking note of the consistency of Ash's dreams. "It seems like you only view memories instead of just dream."
In that moment, she realized that they've been in an almost similar situation before; one of them stirring in their sleep, while the other hovered above them, though she was only pretending to sleep before. She touched the scar over her eyes at the memory, and cursed him.
"Consider this payback," she said before leaning in and stealing the fourth she requested nights before. When she pulled back, not even embarrassment took hold of her. "Now, we're even."
"Is it you can't because you already are?" Pyrrha entered the room alone, closing the door behind her. Weiss pushed herself away from the bed and looked to the smiling warrior. "Miss Goodwitch dismissed everyone and announced the day over. Our teams are stuck trying to avoid students with questions. But that's not really that important right now. What's important is that you can't deny anything now. You just stole someone's first kiss while they're unconscious."
"That's not his first kiss," Weiss very quickly defending herself, immediately regretting speaking up without thinking. Pyrrha raised an eyebrow in confusion.
"He said he's never been with anyone before," Pyrrha said out loud, thinking back to everything that butler told her about past relationships, but her mind quickly zeroed in on a single theory. "Wait, have you guys… When? Yesterday?"
"Pyrrha please, this is already as awkward as anything could be," Weiss tried to resolve her little problem quickly, but the warrior wouldn't let her. Pyrrha pulled out her scroll and showed Weiss a picture of her taking advantage of an unconscious Ash. "Saturday night, after Cardin ripped Ashley's dress."
Pyrrha deleted the picture, slightly in respect of Ash's promise. Pyrrha walked closer and examined Ash clearly. His chest was still covered a gauze, and was barely visible underneath the black shirt. Blood was splattered on the gauze that covered his hands, and slowly spread further out.
"Will he be alright?" Pyrrha asked, motioning to his hands. Weiss knelt took a closer look and saw what she meant, but didn't worry about it.
"He'll be fine," Weiss stated, though started to unwrap his hands in worry. The gauze fell off his hands, and she used them to wipe any blood from Ash's hands. The scar closed once more and returned to just any old scar. "We don't know why his scars are bleeding, but I have a theory. It might have something to do with the trauma connected to his semblance."
"A trauma?" Pyrrha asked, a question that Weiss reluctantly nodded to. "Not yours to tell?"
"Sorry Pyrrha, but it's something you might not want to know," Weiss admitted, remembering her trip throughout Ash's memories. "There are just some things better left unknown, I guess."
"Am I right to assume its related to what you said earlier?" Pyrrha asked, sitting on the adjacent bed. "'To protect what he still has?'"
Weiss nodded, getting up to dispose of the bloody bandages. She went back to Ash and searched his pockets for his scroll. Once she found it, she sat next to Pyrrha with an exhausted sigh escaping her.
"Coco has a point you know," Weiss admitted, maneuvering through her servant's scroll to find his Aura gauge, in hopes that she'll feel better just knowing that his Aura recovering will ensure that he'll no longer be in any danger. "Ash's semblance was meant to destroy, but I can't help but continuously ignore that. And even if he does destroy something valuable to someone, I can't see myself blaming him."
"There's a difference between just actions and justified actions," Pyrrha agreed, pondering on the problems of Remnant: from the White Fang to Grimm, from bullies to petty thieves. "We're all always trying to both at the same time that we lose sight of that fact. Ash is no different."
The two of them sat in silence; Pyrrha just relaxing while watching Weiss stare at Ash's scroll counting every percent of Aura that recovered. Only when Ash's Aura reached thirty percent again did she become satisfied. She let out a sigh of relief and pocketed Ash's scroll, having no need for it any longer.
In a few minutes, the rest of Teams RWBY and JNPR, along with Team CFVY. Coco looked like she was forced there; only it didn't look like she wanted to continue her argument with Weiss before.
Velvet, on the other hand, held her camera in one hand and pushed Coco forwards with the other. She was smiling from ear to ear, at the distress of her leader. Yatsuhashi held Ash's sword, bracer and gloves in one hand, gripping them tightly as to not accidently drop it.
"All I'm saying is that it doesn't make sense for us to know that much about him, even if we are friends," Yang said to her friends, annoyed for what can be assumed the questioning they sat through. "Dude's more secretive than Blake is with her books."
"Hey!" her feline partner responded in defense. Ruby quickly silenced them with a rather high-pitched shh, pressing her hands to their mouths. She motioned to the far corner of the room, where Ash was sleeping. They gathered around the bed that Weiss and Pyrrha were sitting on, leaving the butler to sleep in peace. Yatsuhashi placed the butler's gear at the base of the bed he was sleeping on, after briefly inspecting the blade once more.
"Ok Weiss, we need something here," Yang demanded, looking to Ash's hands to see if there are any traces of blood still left on it. The only proofs that she could find were the small bloodstains on the white bed just under his hands. "What's with the bleeding? Every student at Beacon, especially us, is dying to find out."
"I can't tell you that," Weiss admitted, with an apologetic look on her face while keeping her usual stoic one. "If you want to know, then you're going to have to ask Ash."
"But as previously stated, he's secretive," Blake recapped, standing next to her partner. "There are things he won't even tell you, what makes you think he's going to tell us?"
"You're not one to talk Blake," Weiss countered, shaking her head at the cat Faunus, though without any negativity. "Perhaps you've forgotten but you've hidden things from us up till the scuffle at the pier."
Team CFVY looked at each other. They've heard of the events at the pier, but what they didn't know was that Team RWBY had something to do with it. But what perked Velvet's interest the most are the things Blake's hidden from her own teammates.
Silenced by the point made, Blake quickly backed down from the argument, but Yang still wanted answers, even if she had to force the heiress. Weiss, on the other hand, was determined to avoid every question thrown her way, knowing that failing to do so will be betrayal to him.
Yang kept asking questions, trying to break down her guard by asking questions that can be answered as vaguely as possible, but Weiss refused to answer even in those.
"Weiss, just tell us something, please," Yang begged, now knowing that she won't be able to break Weiss. The heiress thought for a second, trying to find an answer that will satisfy the brawler without giving away Ash's secret too much. Luckily, she didn't have to.
"I'll reveal something if everyone in this room vows not to speak of it any longer," Ash spoke behind Yang, eyes bloodshot and half open. He still had no spare energy to move about too much, but recovered enough to stay awake, for now. "That is until I bring it up myself."
"Ash, we didn't mean to wake you," Pyrrha admitted staring at the butler's half-asleep expression, as well as feeling sorry for him. She never knew the feeling of being without energy, but just by looking at Ash, it was something she'd rather not experience.
"I'm aware Miss Nikos," he told her, feeling himself already falling back asleep. "Do I have everyone's promise?"
One by one, they gave him their words, with the exception of Fox, who had Velvet vouch for him. Ash tried to think of something vague he can share that will satisfy Yang, despite his consciousness already being wisped away. In the end, he found one.
"I assume that Miss Schnee has already warned you," he guessed, and let out an exhausted yawn, becoming aware of his breathing slowing down. "I watched scavengers wound my mother and simply left her to bleed to death."
The room stayed silent at the revelation, Ruby and Yang affected the most, as they knew the feeling of losing a mother at a young age, though the causes and situations were completely different. Yang's curiosity has already been sated, and now she regretted asking, but Ash continued.
"My father blamed me, and soon after tried to kill me. I was only four years old at the time. Is that sufficient Miss Xiao Long?"
"Yeah, thanks for…" Yang stopped abruptly, figuring that simply saying 'thanks for sharing' or anything of the sort wouldn't even cut it. "Just thanks."
"Then if you don't mind…" Ash quietly drifted back to sleep, leaving the twelve people to let the revelation sink in.
"I warned you," Weiss said, nudging Pyrrha on the side.