Chapter 28: Making Their Way Downtown
Air Bus to Market Square, Vale

"Soooooooo… this isn't totally awkward, right?" LUMO's team leader joked weakly, pointing out the obvious. The oppressive silence on the airbus was the only answer, besides the hum of the engines. Luna was still in shock that all four of them were actually here. Leif and her were no brainers, obviously, but up until departure she still wasn't convinced that Mura was actually going to show. The real shock was the very silent, very out of place, very awkward looking Umbra, who looked at none of them and merely stared out the window.

To make matters weirder, both him and Mura were armed, albeit her partner with only Dusk.

"Is the weapon really needed?" Leif asked, still trying to fight back the silence. The question earned a scathing looking from his partner.

"Why would I want to be unarmed?"

"Because Vale is pretty safe?"

"You're naïve if you really-"

"That, and I figured you'd be more confident in your abilities to take down any foe without needing an actual weapon," Leif finished with a slight sense of amusement. Umbra's low growl was echoed by snickering from Mura; even Luna found herself suppressing a giggle. A month ago, before their rematch with CRDL, there was no chance of their leader ever making a joke like that to his short fused partner, but somehow, against all odds, things had changed quite a bit since then. It wasn't perfect, plenty of tension and conflicting attitudes, but it seemed that the infighting had passed for-

"So why is it that she gets a pass for having a weapon then?" Umbra growled, attempting to fan the flames. Well, the worst of the infighting seemed to be over, but between Umbra, Murasaki, and Leif, things still got heated at times.

"Because she is looking for new gloves to wear in combat, so having, you know, the thing she does combat with, is kinda important." Mura answered for her leader, hefting Dusk up to illustrate her point. Orange eyes glared in response, but no vocal retort was issued. Shaking her head in tired amusement, Luna glanced back out the window at the city below. Vale was divided into districts based on roles, which was aided further by the rivers that broke the city roughly into thirds. They were currently traveling over the main residential area, row after row of houses and apartments where countless people lived. Coming from the small village of Yorugao, she was used to being able to traverse the whole village in less than an hour. Here she could spend a whole day and still not have seen a quarter of the city.

"You seem easily impressed," remarked her partner, now also glancing out the window.

"It's just so big. How does anyone find anything in all of this?"

"I suspect if you grew up here, it's probably quite easy. Even Umbra looks more interested in what's out there than Leif." Glancing over her shoulder, the Faunus saw their leader resting up against the window, evidently half asleep. Mura was likely spot on, this ride being routine for him traveling around- suddenly his reflection shimmered as her aura suddenly began to slowly drain. A half sleeping face twisted into a nervous expression, filled with anxiety and panic, forming quite the contrast to Leif's actual look. Digging her nails into leggings, Luna winced in pain, trying to quell her rouge semblance before anyone noticed. Five long seconds passed before the drain on her aura shut off, Leif's true reflection shimmering away.

Nervously glancing around, a small sense of relief filled her as it seemed nobody had noticed. This was the second time since Initiation that her semblance had gone active on her teammates, something she had always taken great pains to avoid happening, especially after that unsettling incident with Umbra in the hallway. Despite learning more and more about Aura and Semblance in her classes, nothing seemed to keep it contained. All Luna could do was hope and pray it would stay off around those she cared about.

The next fifteen minutes of flight went by wordlessly until the airbus started its descent at the station. The intercom crackled to life, with a calm female voice filling the cabin.

"Now arriving at Market Square. Next stop, Coastal Shores. Please mind the ramp while departing." Luna got to her feet along with her teammates, exiting the airbus as people moved to fill the now empty seats. The station was open air, allowing for the sight of the square to fill her view. Small gardens encircled the stone tiling, forming an inner and outer ring, the inner featuring a large fountain and the outer was lined with various shops and restaurants. Civilians bustled about, some in uniform carrying boxes and others in casual clothes carrying shopping bags. Just like the view from above, the sight was breathtaking compared to her upbringing.

"The Cornucopia Café is over there." Leif pointed across the square to a quaint looking café with outdoor seating. "Let's meet back here in an hour and a half?"

"Wait, we're splitting up?" Mura asked with one eyebrow raised, vocalizing exactly what Luna was thinking. The wolf Faunus caught a glimpse of an annoyed scowl from Umbra. Seemed that he was promised to be left alone in exchange for coming.

"Y-yeah, figured we all had different things we wanted to see, so…" Leif trailed off as Umbra began to walk off, apparently done with the conversation already. Luna gave a small warm smile to her leader, trying to relax him.

"An hour and a half then, got it."

"Whatever, works for me," Mura agreed, scanning around the shops, almost looking a bit too serious.

"Gotcha, well just call me if you get lost!" Leif teased as he jogged off, Mura rolling her eyes while Luna giggled. Always something different with him. She just hoped they would all be able to relax today; a change of pace could do them all some good.


Market Square, Vale

'Why the hell would that idiot run off despite having no idea where-' this thought was yanked backwards along with his body as he passed an alleyway. Struggling around, attempting to see his assailant, Leif found himself completely outmatched strength wise, practically like he was fighting… his body went motionless as he realized who his 'attacker' was.

"As usual, you prove you wouldn't last two seconds in the real world," a familiar condescending voice spoke as Umbra emerged from the shadows. His black full body tunic blended perfectly with the shadows of the alley, meaning Leif would have been none the wiser if the giant chose to remain hidden.

"To be fair, exactly what dangers am I supposed to be surviving in the middle of the city? Other than a combat-obsessed partner I mean," Leif replied with some snark, rolling his eyes as he started off towards their destination without waiting for a response. Sure, Vale wasn't a completely safe haven between petty criminals and crime lords such as Roman Torchwick at large, but for a local like Leif, keeping away from dangerous areas was a breeze. Glancing over his shoulder to make sure Umbra didn't decide to ditch, he was a little surprised to see the curious expression on his face. The normally stoic teenager's head was on a swivel, eyes darting around examining everyone in sight, the tall buildings, and everything in between. Compared to his cold composure in the wilds of the Emerald Forest or Forever Fall, this unsettled look was actually mildly amusing.

"First time in a city?" Leif asked, taking a chance to try and have some conversation. He had no fears of getting lost while distracted by his partner, his legs on an autopilot developed by years of exploring Vale as a child.

"Yes, I've never seen a place quite so populated before."

"O-oh really? What kind of sights are you used to?"

"Nothing so permanent, due to-" shock crossed Umbra's face for a moment before he scowled, silencing himself. Leif merely chuckled, bemused at catching his partner with his guard down for a moment. No need to rile up his partner further, despite his deepening curiosity. Out of the three members of LUMO, he only really knew of Luna's origins, hailing from the Kingdom of Mistral, or rather, a small village by the name of Yurogao. Murasaki and Umbra's past remained huge question marks, due to actual conversations with Umbra being almost unheard of and him knowing better than to ask Mura too many questions.

These thoughts were pushed to the side as they turned down 27th street. 270, 272, 274, not too much farther, something Leif was thankful for given Umbra's mood. He slowed to stop as they reached 282, Tukson's Book Trade.

"This the place?" Umbra asked, still rotating his head around like a top.

"Yep, best bookstore in Vale as far as I'm concerned."

"It better be."

"Seriously? Making threats over a book store now?" scoffed Leif as he pulled the door open, heading inside. Books lined the walls, all of various sizes and thickness. Memories of his first few visits here surfaced, coming inside with his grandfather leading the way, picking out new books to read. Good times.

"Well there's a face I haven't seen in quite a while," a welcoming voice called out from the back of the store. Glancing over the book stands in the middle of the store, Leif smiled at seeing the familiar face of the store's owner, Tukson himself. The Faunus entrepreneur had always been a one-man operation here, and while the guy could seem a bit distant, he knew books better than anyone.

"Sorry 'bout that, been busy," he sheepishly answered, heading to the counter, "especially considering I'm a first year at Beacon now."

"Beacon eh? That would certainly explain your absence, too busy slaying Grimm to buy books now," Tukson chuckled, before glancing up at the giant behind Leif. "Who's your friend?" Umbra snorted at being referred to as a 'friend' but Leif ignored him.

"This is, uh, this is my partner Umbra Imaly," he answered, again ignoring the low growl, likely irrationally angry at him using his full name. "He was having a hard time finding something, so I figured you might be of help."

"Is that right?" Tukson remarked, giving Umbra a full up and down look. A bit of nervousness crept back into Leif's mind, not sure how Umbra would react to the wary shopkeeper. Despite his fears, Umbra remained docile, yet still serious looking.

"Well I find no reason to complain, especially after the last person you brought here became such a valuable customer."

"Yep exac-wait what?" Leif asked suddenly, his nervousness intensifying for entirely different reason.

"Yeah, she comes in all the time these days to get new books," Tukson elaborated, eyebrow raised. "I'm actually expecting her in the next half hour to pick up a book she requested," he continued, eyeing the clock on the wall. Leif swallowed, his heart sinking rapidly.

"Err well, it certainly has been a pleasure Tukson," he quickly said, clapping his hands together as his feet began to back up. "Umbra, I leave you in his very capable hands! I'm sure you can find the way back, just call meifyougetlost,okaybye!" The surfer's legs already were already speeding up like his words as he practically ran out the door without waiting for any kind of response.

Time to get the hell outta dodge before she showed up and made Umbra the second worst option for people he wanted to spend the rest of the day with.