GOMU GOMU NO!~ Hello everyone, I apologize for the wait but I've been struggling to write and keep up the inspiration.
Anyhow, I hope this arc wasn't too bad, and I haven't received any feedback about the teams I made, so I guess no news is good news?
Not much to say today folks, so with that, have a wonderful day and happy reading!
"Did you really meet a Deathstalker that big? Huh, I'm glad Mistral doesn't have Grimm like that." Sun laughed as the sound of a gong echoed in the background.
"Aw, looks like that's all the time we've got today, Jaune. My team and I need to head back to the academy for the grande-feast. Tell your sister we said hi though!" The monkey Faunus waved to his fleeting teammates in the background and flashed Jaune a thumbs up before ending the call.
His call list on display, Jaune tapped the picture of his dear Grandparents.
"Granpa Sam! Grandma Carla!" The blonde beamed his goofy smile at the two jolly seniors.
"Ah, there's my little gentleman. How's your first day as a mighty hunter, Jaune? Did you make any new friends today?" Sam asked as he wrapped his arm around Carla's shoulder to pull her closer into the picture.
"Haha... Well, I've met a lot of interesting people, but I haven't made that many friends. It's still the first day of school though, so I can't fold just yet!" Scratching his cheek, Jaune's cerulean eyes noticed a small figure in the background.
"Tell me Jaune, did you brush your teeth this morning? Did you pack enough sweets? Did you check your clothes if they were inside-out before packing them? Did you-" Carla's motherly onslaught cut off by her husband's hand.
"Easy there Carla, we don't want to bore our grandson to death with too much love. How about we give Jaune and his best friend some time while we tend to the farms?" Sam shooed his wife out of the house despite her protests and told Jaune he'd message him later.
"But we're both retired, Sam!" That was the last thing Carla sputtered as she was forced out the front door. Richie's growl echoed from the outside, and Jaune laughed at his grandmother's ranting tirade.
"J-Jaune?" Whispered a meek Faunus.
"Trifa? Why are you hiding behind the couch? I was going to call you soon enough, but I'd like to talk to my best friend now if I can." Her best friend waved with a grin.
Trifa tucked her stray hairs behind her ears and straightened her back. Her face clear on display, Jaune curled a brow and remained silent for a good minute before he spoke.
"Wow, you look terrific today. Did you put makeup and eyeliner on?"
Her cheeks flushed, Trifa clasped her hands on the hem of her jacket and squeezed. She tried to speak, but nothing came out when she opened her mouth. A confident cerulean meeting the gaze of anxious cobalt, Trifa forced her eyes to the floor and pursed her lips.
"Um, are you going to say anything, or am I going to continue this conversation on my own?" Jaune waited for a reply, but his best friend stayed silent.
"All students, please gather in the cafeteria." Buzzed a nearby speaker.
"Aw, already?" Jaune rolled his eyes and winced when he turned back to his scroll. For some reason, Trifa's blush was gone and replaced by a fierce scowl.
"D-Did I do something to make you mad, Trifa?"
"No." The Faunus said curtly and crossed her arms.
"I promise to message you back tonight or tomorrow morning, but I need to get moving if I don't want to be late." The blonde muttered but winced as the cold glare on Trifa's face intensified.
"Well, you look really cute, Silkmoon. I'll see you soon!" Jaune beamed a goofy smile and ended the call.
"Goodbye Jaune, but..." His friend grumbled.
The image of her best friend on the scroll screen flicking to black, Trifa bit her lower lip and plopped herself down on the living room couch. The room felt emptier without the Hawkins siblings and their uncles around, and it didn't help that Carla and Sam were now busy on the farms.
Her fingers gripped the soft cushions of the couch as she let out a long sigh. She hated this feeling of loneliness and isolation, though whenever her best friend was around she never had that problem, but now...
Trifa hated herself for saying it, but she took a page from Jaune's book and let her emotions show. Eyes moist, the spider Faunus said in a feeble whisper.
"Just... don't make too many friends at Beacon, Jaune..."
The broken moon of Remnant and its twinkling children filled the dark sky as the benches of the cafeteria filled themselves with hungry students. The heat from the kitchens reaching an all-time high drool dripped from the corners of Jaune's mouth as his cerulean eyes observed the stacked plates of food.
With Emerald to his left and empty tables on his right, Roman's team along with Neo's joined them and filled the vacant spots.
"Man, I don't know what to try first Minty. I want to go straight for the desserts, but the steak smells absolutely divine!" Jaune reached for his fork, but a cough and frigid stare from a certain heiress froze his hand.
"It's rude to commence dinner before the headmaster has spoken his piece." Weiss flicked her offset ponytail behind her right ear and took the space beside Jaune.
"Um..." The blonde curled a brow at this sudden presence. It didn't bother him that the esteemed Schnee was seated next to him, more so rather that she deliberately chose that chair.
"Is something wrong?" Weiss cocked a brow at the dumbfounded expression of her blonde cohort.
"N-Nothing, Snow Angel." Jaune bit his lower lip and hastily apologized, but the damage was done. Turning his head with raised hands, Jaune awaited the inevitable scolding, but it never came.
Instead, Weiss settled with a disgusted glare and veered her sights to the front of the cafeteria as the headmaster, along with the professors of Beacon, passed through the front doors. Tapping his cane against the tiled floors, the cafeteria hushed itself and all students straightened their postures.
"It is with great pride that I welcome each and every one of you to Vale's prestigious huntsmen academy. You've all earned your seat among our masses, and I wish you all a bright future. While it is necessary for you to train, study, and grow as huntsmen, one mustn't forget the importance of rest and relaxation."
His lips parting to present a pearly smile, Ozpin twirled his cane and tapped it against the floor.
"So, without further ado, please dig in!"
Cheers and applause erupted as forks, spoons, and hands greedily filled the starving bellies of students. After scarfing down a serving of steak, Jaune wanted a sweet dish and reached for a bowl of ice-cream. Unfortunately, another hand landed atop his.
Tilting his head to meet the owner of the dainty and petite fingers, Jaune smiled at the silent daughter of the RDI and asked if he could have it since he touched it first. Neo shook her head and tugged the bowl closer to her while sticking Jaune's sleeves to the table with five very sharp forks.
"O-Okay, Neo, you can have that one..." The blonde sighed as he picked the utensils from his shirt while the mute fluttered her eyelashes at him with a smirk.
"Don't worry, Jaune, you can have this one." Emerald slid over a banana split drizzled with chocolate sauce.
"Thanks, Minty!" The older of the Hawkins siblings shoveled the sweet dessert down his gullet before Neo could snatch it from him.
"Hey, I found him, you guys!" A spiked mohawk, followed by straight navy locks, and a rounded light brown, rushed to Jaune's table and grabbed him by the shoulders.
"Mr. Thrush? What's going on here?" Before the blonde could devour another meal, his three cohorts asked if they could speak with him in private.
"Please Jaune, this is an urgent and serious manner that we need to discuss," Russel begged.
Sky uttered an apology to Jaune's fellow students as they dragged the bewildered teen out of the cafeteria and into the empty main hall. The noise of chatter and silverware mute, Russel wiped a salty droplet off his forehead and slapped on a smile.
"Alright, so what's so important that you needed my consolation?" Jaune curled a brow at the three trembling males.
Sputtering a plethora of jumbled nonsense, Dove was the first to grow annoyed and silenced his teammates with a punch to the back of their heads.
"I know you're hungry Jaune, so I'll get straight to the point. We need you to fight Sky's partner, Cinder Fall, and win."
The magician in training blinked. "Um, why do you need me to do that, and why me?"
Their heads down in shame, Russel put a weak hand on his friend's shoulder and squeezed.
"You don't know what it's like man. Cinder might be sexy as hell, but she's gotta be one of the cruelest and unforgiving students at Beacon. Heck, Dove, Sky, and I are sleeping in the hallways now because we caught a glimpse of Cinder's bra!"
"Wow," Jaune said with wide eyes.
"But there's a glimmer of hope bruh!" Russel piped up and a mischievous smile crept on his lips.
"Cinder said she'd allow us back the dorm if we could beat her in battle. I had my doubts about it at first, but maybe with Dove and Sky at my side we could win..."
His smile gone, the saddened expression of Russel earned another curled brow from Jaune.
"Then we saw what our team leader could do to the robots in the training rooms. She said she wanted to stretch her muscles before having dinner, but holy cow did she tear apart those buckets of nuts and bolts! So, we decided to negotiate and managed to have Cinder agree to fight a champion of our choosing in Ms. Goodwitch's class."
"I don't want to lose any limbs if I can help it." Sky whimpered.
"I still want to be alive by the end of this semester," Dove grumbled.
"And I know for a fact that I'm gonna get cooked in a duel against Cinder. So how about it, Jaune? Are you willing to help a brother in his time of need?" Russel sighed.
The blonde cupped his chin and pursed his lips. "If I did this favor for you, what are you willing to trade?"
Now, Jaune wasn't a greedy person mind you, but he needed to see how serious this whole situation really was. Could Cinder be this terrifying that her entire team groveled in her presence? Or did Sky and his friends do something perverted and were holding back the key facts to their story? Perhaps a few tarot draws are in order.
"A month's worth of the cafeteria's desserts!" The three boys shouted in unison.
"Hm... That is tempting, but what happens if I lose? I'm not some invincible warrior you guys, and by the sounds of it, Cinder is dangerous." Jaune fetched his cards from his pockets and shuffled.
Sky hadn't seen the act done before, but Russel and Dove told him to be quiet so their blonde savior could deduce the chances of his victory.
"55% chance I can defeat Ms. Fall." The young magician stated. "Still, those odds aren't that high."
"We don't think of such things between us, Jaune! The only things that matter are our futures as hunters and respectable students!" Russel patted his friend on the back and ushered him back to the cafeteria.
"Just remember to keep your promise and we'll get along swimmingly!" The three males of team CRSD bid him adieu and headed for a cart loaded with chocolate cake.
With the divine scent of irresistible cuisine infiltrating his nostrils, Jaune lost himself and made a bee-line straight for his table. Unfortunately, his path was smirched by a rushing student with a tray full of cream-topped carrot cake and celery juice.
"Oof!" The contents on the student's platter flew all over Jaune and covered him head to toe in food.
Staggered, Jaune managed to stay on his feet, as for the one who crashed into him, she landed on her bottom with a yelp.
Wiping the cream off his eyes, a crowd of laughter filled the cafeteria as Jaune's ocean pupils landed on a pair of twitching rabbit ears and an older girl who looked like she was about to bawl.
"Hey, are you alright? You should watch where you're going." The blonde tried to be polite, but after a whole day of being mocked and ridiculed, he really wasn't in the mood for something like this.
"I-I'm s-so sorry!" The rabbit Faunus stared at the floor and covered her face with her bunny ears.
Jaune clicked his tongue. "Come on now, it's not that bad, but I wished I could have eaten what you had on your plate instead of being dressed in it."
He extended a hand for his new acquaintance to take, but the girl remained on the floor with her arms around her knees.
"Are you hurt?"
The extending appendages atop the girl's skull snapped straight and her head tilted upward. Warm ocean blue meeting a hesitant hazel, Jaune felt his cheeks heat up at the adorable pout before him.
"That pout is definitely an eight out of ten." The blonde muttered and used this opportunity to take in the girl's physical features. Her outfit consisted of a cropped brown jacket over a thin black top and brown pants almost entirely covered up by thigh-high black boots tipped with gold plating.
A shiver crawled up Jaune's spine when the light above him disappeared and was replaced with a very large shadow... it wasn't Doppelman...
"Is this boy bothering you, Velvet?"
A low voice accompanied by green-plated armor, the tanned student stood a whole head taller than Jaune with a stoic demeanor and round shaved head. His dark brown eyes drilling into Jaune's cerulean, the blonde rubbed his neck and greeted the new presence with a quivering smile.
"M-My name's Jaune F. Hawkins. I bumped into your friend here and offered to help her up..."
The tall teen curled a brow and raised a hand, but the girl now known as Velvet spoke up.
"D-Don't worry about this Y-Yatsuhashi. He didn't do anything w-wrong." Her eyes on the verge of tears, her teammate was not convinced and moved his hand to the robust, copper blade holstered on his back.
"Easy there Yatsu, it won't look good on our team record if you beat up an innocent first year." A familiar fashionista to the rescue, she tipped the end of her beret with a dainty gloved finger and winked at the nervous blonde.
M-Ms. Adel!" Jaune beamed his trademark goofy smile at the approaching teen.
"You know this boy, Coco?" Yatsu curled a brow and lowered his hands to his sides.
"Not personally, but Fox has been meaning to chat with Jaune since he completed his initiation. From what I know of him, he's a little bit of a clutz, but he's good-natured at heart." Coco grinned.
"I-It was my fault for bumping into him too, I was so focused on my carrot cakes that I didn't pay attention to where I was going." Velvet chimed in.
"I see, my apologies Jaune. It's just my team and I aren't used to others giving Velvet the respect that she deserves." Yatsu offered a humble bow and excused himself along with Coco, leaving a relieved Jaune and bewildered Velvet among themselves.
"T-Thank you for everything, I-I'll see you around, Jaune!" The shy girl sputtered and hastily followed the footsteps of her group.
"I didn't do anything, but her bunny ears are really cute..." Jaune mumbled. Caught in the moment, the magician in training forgot about a Faunus' advanced hearing, and a tinge of pink dusted Velvet's cheeks before she scampered out of earshot.
"H-He thinks they're cute?" She whispered.
The bountiful dinner passed and the next morning came. Rising from the soft pillows and sheets of his bed, Jaune sighed at the empty room he occupied, got dressed and snagged his backpack on his desk chair. The most important meal of the day started in the cafeteria, but he made a slight detour towards the dorm of his younger sibling.
His uniform consisting of a black suit lined with gold, accompanied by a blue vest and a white shirt with a red tie, he fiddled with his collar before knocking on the door of team RPBE.
"Hello?" The wooden frame creaked open to reveal a dazzling set of green eyes and long flowing red hair.
Pyrrha adorned the same uniform as Jaune, but with a female twist. A red plaid skirt, opaque black stockings, and a brown jacket with a tan vest and white shirt with a red ribbon tied at the collar.
"Ah, Ms. Nikos, good morning. Has my sister woken up?"
Pyrrha nervously chuckled and gestured to a snoozing reaper and mint-haired teammate. With the sound of water pittering against tile, Jaune assumed Emerald's partner was in the shower.
"They do know breakfast is due in ten minutes right?"
The spartan sighed and scratched her cheek. "Blake and I tried to wake them up, but all they did was go back to sleep the second they came around."
"I see, if you'd like, I could get Minty out of her bed." Jaune waggled his eyebrows at Pyrrah and strolled inside the dorm.
Raising his hands, two obsidian-colored orbs popped out of his shadow to form a set of brickbats. Astonished and intrigued, Pyrrah said nothing and tilted her head behind Jaune's shoulder to get a better glimpse at his plan.
"Alright, you bats know what to do." Jaune stuck a thumbs up at his creations and they nodded in turn.
Flapping over Emerald's face, the brickbats suddenly plunged down with their mouths open and clamped down on her mouth and nose.
"Mumph!" His sister's scream drowned by lumpy shadows, Emerald flailed off her bed and landed flat on her face.
"Rise and shine, Minty, breakfast is due in five minutes!" Jaune laughed as his shadow pawns dispersed.
"Damn it, Jaune! You promised not to do that anymore!" The mint girl shouted and threw a pillow at her brother.
With a soft thud against his chest, Jaune caught the pillow before it touched the floor and smiled.
"I did promise to stop, but only if you woke up on time. At least dad's not here, if he was, you'd be out of the room in your pajamas."
"Hmph, whatever, get out of the dorm so I can change," Emerald grumbled and picked herself up.
"Just a moment, Jaune." Pyrrha extended a hand towards Ruby, who was still mumbling about cookies in her sleep with drool trailing down the edge of her lips.
"I got it." Jaune grinned and produced another set of brickbats.
This time, the shadow beings took hold of Ruby's covers and yanked them off. A frosty chill working its way from her toes to her spine, the young reaper's hands reached for the warm blanket that the bats waved back and forth above her. This continued for five seconds until Ruby rolled off her bed and landed in a similar fashion to Emerald.
"Ah, curse you, Judge of Germa 66!" Ruby slammed the floorboards with her fist but tilted her head up as giggles and snickers filled the dorm.
"Good morning, Ms. Rose. Sounds like you had quite the dream last night." Jaune smirked.
"J-Jaune?!" The little reaper sputtered and shot to her feet, a ting of red on her cheeks, Ruby pouted at her partner for not waking her up.
"Well, I'll let you all get dressed then. See you in history class, Minty." The blonde saluted and skipped out the door with a satisfied huff.
"You have quite the doting brother don't you, Emerald?" Pyrrha said.
"Well, he's not the worst goofball to have around," Emerald muttered with a thin smile.
"Hey, it's Jauney!" Yelled a bubbly valkyrie and strutted beside her tarot-reading friend.
"Good morning, Ms. Valkyrie." Jaune returned the enthusiasm and grabbed a tray of scrambled eggs, crispy bacon, and two slices of toasted bread with a couple of pancakes on the side.
"Um, you're not gonna eat those are you?" Nora stood on her tippy toes with her hands clasped behind her back and slapped on her most endearing smile.
"As a matter of fact, I am," Jaune said smugly and spit his tongue at the pouting ginger.
"B-But we can be better friends if you share your pancakes!" Nora's eyes glimmered with hope.
"Is taking my dough filled and syrup slathered delectables for yourself sharing, Ms. Valkyrie?" Jaune chuckled at his friend's puffed cheeks and childish frown.
"Here, you can half my pancakes this time around, but I want your chocolate milk for it." Stabbing his side dish with a fork, Jaune plopped down two of his four pancakes on another tray.
"Really?! Thanks a bunch, Jauney!" Nora grabbed her breakfast off the counter and the two made their way to the tables of Nora's team.
It didn't take long for the leader of team LMNN to adjust to the attitudes of his new teammates, but Ren couldn't deny there were a few barriers among them, besides his adopted sister Nora of course.
Mercury was easy to get along with, but he tended to be dismissive and tried to end a conversation as quickly as it popped up and Neo wasn't any different. The ice-cream lover opted to leave her team to hang out with Roman, and though she did give Ren her attention when he spoke, she didn't really seem to care about what he was talking about.
"Oh well, Patience is a virtue." Ren sighed.
"Hiya, Renny!" Nora bounded over to her seat with a blonde companion in tow.
"Good morning team Luminant," Jaune smiled and sat himself down beside Mercury.
"Hm, is Neo sick?" The young magician eyed an empty seat beside Nora who shrugged her shoulders and pointed to her partner a few tables away.
"Neo doesn't like me very much..." The valkyrie muttered and stuffed a wad of syrup-covered pancake in her mouth.
Jaune furrowed his brows and narrowed his eyes. Sure, Nora could be a bit over the top, but she was a good person at heart and that's what mattered. Then again, from his experience with the daughter of the RDI, if Neo didn't want to spend time around you then she'd ditch you with her semblance the first chance she got.
"Maybe I can get Roman to convince his sister to spend more time with her partner," Jaune muttered and veered his attention to the sulking valkyrie across from him.
"Don't worry about Ms. Crocodylus, Nora. I'm not going to lie that she's a tad spoiled, but she'll come around eventually."
His words earned him an appreciative smile and pat on the back from Ren. Mercury rolled his eyes at the display but kept his mouth shut and focused on finishing his pancakes before Nora could get to them.
The first bell dinged, signaling Jaune's first class of the day of history.
"Welcome to history my dear first-years! I will be your teacher for this fantastic subject and eagerly await to show you the rich past of Remnant!" Called an excited professor with green hair and round spectacles.
His yellow tie whizzing around his neck as his shoes skidded across the classroom the slim man now known as Oobleck, passed around a couple of booklets that were titled, the Faunus rights revolution as his students took their seats.
"Now, before we begin your first lesson, I want each of you to take out a blank piece of paper and describe to me what you know about the history of the Faunus or your experience with them. This is not a test and you will not be marked for it, instead, take this as a personal reflection on where you stand on the subject."
"Seems easy enough," Jaune twirled his pencil around his finger and scribbled down what he'd read from the books in Tukson's store.
His pencil stalled halfway down the page and his brows furrowed. Should Jaune mention what he'd experienced in Menagerie? It wouldn't feel right to leave out such a detail, but the horrible vacation did leave quite a nasty memory in his mind.
"Mr. Hawkins, are you done with your paper?"
Jaune almost jumped out of his seat and dropped his pencil.
"S-Sorry professor." Jaune rubbed his neck and shrunk in his seat when his instructor frowned.
"I prefer to be addressed as Doctor Oobleck, thank you."
"Sure thing, Doctor Oobleck!" Jaune nodded.
"That's better, now-" Oobleck's eyes wandered to the sentences below him. He cupped his chin and leaned down to inspect his student's paper.
With a bead of sweat on his chin, Jaune's stomach churned at the thought of disappointing his first professor of the day.
"Mr. Hawkins, you've been to Menagerie?"
"Y-Yes I have, but that was seven years ago. It's a nice island, that is if you can adjust to the stuffy streets and tropical weather. My dad really likes the local tea there, but we haven't been able to get more leaves because Menagerie doesn't do business outside its borders. Except for basic dust needs of course." Jaune trailed on about the scenes and attractions the island had to offer. His words earning the exclusive attention of a rabbit Faunus, and a secret cat Faunus seated in the rows above him.
"Seven years ago? That is an impressive development indeed, it was around that time during the spring that the island's chieftain announced that the borders of Menagerie were open for both Faunus and humans alike." Oobleck adjusted his glasses and turned to the rest of his students.
"Remember what you heard today class, Mr. Hawkins is an excellent example of how we should all cooperate and coexist if we wish to maintain the upper hand over the Grimm!"
His piece said, the instructor sped over to his chalkboard and scribbled so fast he engulfed himself in a cloud of white chalk.
"Hmph, what's so great about the Faunus anyway, they're just a bunch of animals." Grunted a familiar voice.
Jaune turned to see the one responsible for the rude remark and frowned at the sight of a smirking Cardin Winchester with his hands behind his head and legs propped up on his desk.
"You got a problem, blondie?" The bully sneered.
"Yes, I do actually." Jaune shot back, his voice surprisingly sharp.
"Everyone, please open your textbooks to page 56 and we'll begin with the territory disputes and the following wars of the eastern parts of Vale." Oobleck's authority drowning the class' conversations, Jaune turned his head towards the front while flipping through the pages of his book.
He'd settle whatever beef he had with Cardin later, as his current priorities stood on passing the pop quiz Oobleck decided to implement at the end of the class.