Hello again, everybody! Life IRL is being a pain in the ass atm so I apologize if I'm not updating as fast as y'all would like me to. So anyway, here's the next chapter, and do enjoy reading. Thanks!
Delta wandering around Vale... (1st POV)
I continued walking through Vale, contemplating my next course of action. I had eventually concluded that, with as pissed off Sierra was after our last mission, she was probably trying to cool her head with Echo, so I threw that idea out. Next choice was probably Hotel, but lord knows his schedule with Yang constantly moving to and fro. Finally Lima who was…well…Lima.
…I seriously feel like there's a loop here now….
"Well what do you know, good ol' lover boy."
I immediately recognized the voice.
"Qrow? Didn't know you were back so soon."
Ruby's uncle sighed and replied, "Yeah, well I'm not gonna be here for much longer if you give me that attitude. Now where's Ruby?"
"Working on Ember Celica," I replied, "Yang's…well…now that I think about it, probably at the hospital."
"Oh yeah? What'd she do this time?"
"Punched solid rock until her hand broke."
Qrow whistled, then said, "Sounds like her...now, I also hear your team did something big."
"I guess you can say that," I replied, beginning to walk down the sidewalk with the man as I continued, "I'm not sure if throwing Torchwick in jail again is gonna do anything, though."
"Ah," Qrow stated, "At least you're smart."
"Comes from Sierra, really," I replied, "But I use my head too sometimes."
"I also hear you got beat pretty bad as well."
"Yeah. Well, no," I corrected, "I wasn't just beat; I was nearly slaughtered!"
"And somehow Ruby didn't take a single scratch?"
Thinking about it again….
"…Fuck my life, thanks for reminding me," I stated, already knowing where the older man was heading.
"Oh," Qrow stated, smirking, "So Ruby's actually a better hunter than you are."
"God fucking dammit," I replied, suddenly noticing that we were just outside my dad's tavern. I blinked, stopping as Qrow stopped with me. I then looked at him, seeing him wave me in with him as he said, "C'mon; I'll get ya a drink."
I downed another drink, not yet feeling anything kick into my system as Qrow asked, "So how's life away from Beacon treating ya?"
"A little overwhelming at first," I admitted, "But I think it was mostly nervousness knowing we were on our own out there."
"You haven't gone solo yet?"
"Oh, I have," I replied, "But only once."
Qrow downed another shot of whatever he had ordered as my dad interjected and said, "He was still settling down when he went on the one solo mission."
"Oh," Qrow exclaimed in mild surprise, "So you needed the money that badly?"
"I was also planning on proposing to Ruby at the time, as well," I stated, getting a nod of understanding from the older huntsman. I then took another sip of my drink, which I had finally figured was some soda with a little beer mixed in, as my dad slid the bill to Qrow, who took another shot. I then glanced around, watching as several families talked amongst each other. There were also children at another end of the tavern, whom I assumed my mom was in charge of taking care of while the adults had a merry time.
"Thinking of having kids soon?"
I turned back to Qrow, who was looking at me expectantly.
"Not yet," I replied, turning back to face the counter, "But eventually."
There was a momentary silence between us. I closed my eyes, contemplating my next course of action as Qrow finally asked, "By the way, how's your dueling record?"
"Huh?"
I turned to him, confused as he asked, "How're you doing against other swordsman or hunters? I know Ruby mentioned that you're keeping track of all the swordsmen you fight."
"Oh," I replied, dumbfounded, "I'm doing alright. I recently beat Weiss's sister."
"Qrow blinked, then nearly choked, bursting into laugher as he continued, "That's the furthest you've gone? That Ice Queen?"
He continued laughing wholeheartedly. I frowned, immediately drawing a sword, only to meet metal to metal as he smirked. Our aura suddenly surged within the tavern, receiving gasps and screams of surprise.
"Don't do it, kid," Qrow stated. I didn't falter as the kids all ran to their families. I could feel all eyes on me as my dad stated, "Del. Calm down."
I glanced at him, seeing his stern eyes on me. I then turned back to Qrow, who was still smirking at me. I didn't let my aura up as my second sword's handle unfolded, listening to Qrow ask, "You seriously want to do this in here?"
"…Point taken," I replied, relaxing a bit, "Sorry about that."
"Hey, just take it easy, kid," Qrow stated, relaxing himself as he put a hand on my shoulder. I glanced up at the senior huntsman as he put his own weapon away. He then said, "You should go relax or something."
I sighed, then mumbled, "How can I when my usual means of relaxing is working?"
"What?"
"Nothing," I replied, sheathing my own sword. I then quickly apologized to the tavern as my dad sighed, then said, "Son, you should go home."
"I probably should," I replied, moving to stand up as I then said, "Thanks for the drink, Qrow."
"No problem, kid," he replied as I made my way out of the tavern.
Only to move my head to the right as a stray shot glass flew past.
Sighing, I drew my sword again, slashing away at another as Qrow walked out after me.
"Then again," he stated, "I'm eager to get a go at you."
Oh boy, this should be fun.
? (3rd POV)
"So are you gonna stop walking in circles?"
"Of course not!"
"Well, the way you're going, we're about to walk past that tavern again."
Two characters, both girls, continued walking around Vale, determined to locate their next target.
"See? Right back to the tav-."
An energy slash zipped past one of the characters, catching them off guard.
Delta skidded to a stop, jumping out of the way of another as Qrow yelled, "What's wrong!? You're never gonna get me like that!"
Grimacing, Delta jumped from his current position, locking swords with Qrow as the man smirked at him.
"You're gonna learn real quick," Qrow stated, "That there's a real big difference between our skill levels."
"I can," Delta groaned, "Already tell…!"
With a "CLANG," both men jumped away from each other, quickly charging each other again.
The two girls watched on in surprise as one of them said, "Umm…aren't those two…?"
"I'm pretty sure that one with the bigger sword's name is Qrow," the other girl stated, "Not sure about the other one though…."
With that said, the two girls continued on their way.
Later at Delta's apartment...
"Ugh…ow…."
Delta sighed, feeling his arms stinging as Ruby continued laughing on the ground uncontrollably, saying out loud, "I can't believe you actually fought my uncle!"
Frowning, Delta looked at Ruby, who had finally sat up to wipe away a tear. Ruby then looked at him, holding back a second stream of laughter as Delta sighed and stood up, making towards the kitchen. Ruby's laughter immediately disappeared as she stood up to follow him, chasing him as he sat down at the table and put a finger on his forehead.
"Del?"
"What…?"
Ruby flinched slightly, surprised by his slightly annoyed tone as she took the seat next to him. Delta shot a brief glance at her, sighing as he looked away just as quickly. Ruby blinked, furrowing her brow in concern as she scooted next to him and asked, "What's wrong, Del?"
"Nothing…," Delta replied, "Just…crap..."
Ruby, however, didn't buy it.
"Is it because you lost to my uncle?"
Delta glanced at her.
"Or…losing to…that guy…?"
Delta sighed again and stood up, walking back towards the living room. Ruby followed again, worried about his mental state. Delta flopped onto the couch, crossing his arms as Ruby followed suit, bringing herself close to him.
"Del, what's wrong?"
"Nothing," Delta replied, only to be met with Ruby hopping onto his lap and bringing her arms around his neck. Ruby closed her eyes, focusing on his well-being, going through the latest events that probably had an effect on his mental health. She immediately figured that it was multiple losses by two strong swordsmen, as well as the fact that she was technically the "better" hunter than him.
"What's wrong, honey?"
Delta blinked, slowly comprehending the situation before sighing and wrapping his arms around her. Ruby opened her eyes, pulling away slightly to put her forehead to his, silver orbs diving into deep amethyst. Delta half-lidded his eyes, staring back as the sun began to set outside the window, their shadows mixed with each other. Ruby remained still, her eyes almost glowing a light orange as Delta sighed again, pulling her tighter against himself.
"It's…just…," he stated, "I…I'm lame…aren't I…?"
Ruby blinked, comprehending that he was a little depressed.
"Of course not," she stated, smiling to herself, her chest fluttering as she thought about how cute he was acting.
"But…."
"Del," she continued, "You aren't lame. You're a great huntsman."
"But…I…."
"Just because you lost doesn't mean anything," she stated, "We all go through growth periods."
"But…."
"Don't bring yourself down," Ruby continued, "You're you. And that's the Delta that I love and want to marry."
Delta blinked, seeing her smiling at down at him.
"Rubes…."
"I love you, Del," she stated, "I don't care if you win or lose. As long as we both make it out alive, that's all that matters-."
Delta immediately cut her off by tilting his head, landing a chaste kiss on her. Ruby blinked, comprehending his lips on hers, slowly closing her eyes as he pulled away briefly, only to be drawn back to one another. Then engaged couple's stomachs fluttered with butterflies as they pulled away from each other, looking deeply into each other's eyes.
"…Thanks, Ruby."
"Hehe," Ruby giggled, "You're welcome, Del."
?
The two girls continued walking around Vale.
"See? I told you we're lost."
"Shut it! I know where we're going!"
They continued walking around Vale, still arguing whether they were lost or not.
"Oh forget it. I'm gonna ask where the docks are."
"But what if you-!?"
"I'm not gonna compromise our mission, idiot," the other replied, "I'm just gonna ask."
The girl looked around, spotting a boy walking around nearby.
"Excuse me, sir."
The boy turned to face them.
"Can you help me? I'm looking for the docks and my colleague here got us lost."
"Oh? Are you two new to Vale?"
Both nodded.
"Well, I'm fairly new myself, but the docks are in that direction as far as I know," the boy pointed. The girl smiled, then bowed in appreciation as she ran back over to her friend. The boy, however, with wolf ears hidden under a hat, felt his ears perk slightly as he overheard them say, "See? Mission uncompromised."
"Excuse me."
Suddenly, a needle landed in front of them, catching their attention.
"It must be me," he stated, pulling out more needles, "But I have a feeling you two aren't here as tourists.
