Hello everybody! It is me once more! Howdy howdy! You all good? Sorry about the late upload, been chilling, to be fair, there isn't a schedule... Anyway!
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'Breathe in... breathe out.' The words repeated in his head like a metronome, seriously, could they not have taken a boat or a train to get to Trayus? Jaune let out a deep breath before inhaling once more. Hell, he'd have walked if given the option, but no, here he was, stuck in yet another flying metal tube, trying to not see his dinner for a second time that day.
Pyrrha, Ren and Nora had already retired to their rooms for the night and were doing their part by resting up for the mission. Jaune, on the other hand, couldn't sleep. To his surprise, the pit that had formed in his stomach wasn't due to motion sickness, not now he had better control over his aura, but because he was afraid. Afraid of letting his team down on their first mission.
He let out another breath and rest his head against the cold metal surface of the inside of the airship "I got this..." He attempted to firm his faith in his own capabilities of a leader, to little avail. His team had told him that it would be a nice and simple mission and that he would do fine, but he still had his doubts. Especially with what's at stake. Jaune closed his eyes, remembering his conversation with Ozpin.
"Say what now?" Jaune stared at the headmaster in confusion.
"I said you have a mission, Mr Arc." The older man repeated, taking a sip from his hot chocolate "You will be heading out tomorrow night and should arrive in Trayus by morning." He explained.
Jaune felt a wave of emotion flow over him. On one hand he was over the moon that he and his team have already been given a mission, whereas on the other, he was panicking that they had already been given a mission... "Huh... May I ask for more details?"
"Of course." Ozpin hit a few buttons on the terminal at his desk and Jaune's scroll vibrated "I have sent you all the necessary details."
He pulled put his scroll and read over the mission brief.
Ozpin continued to give him a more simplified run down "It's your job to investigate the strange disappearances that have been occurring in the village and to eliminate any threat to their safety." He noticed the blonde boy stiffen up "No need to panic, Trayus is well known for having the least amount of Grimm sightings outside of the kingdom. You shall do fine, I'm sure."
The headmasters words weren't as comforting as the young leader would have liked them to be. He shook his head, 'This is what you signed up to be. Don't back down now!' His mind screamed at him. He nodded understandingly and went to take his leave.
"Oh, one more thing." Ozpin called out "Failure to accomplish this mission will result in you being expelled from Beacon."
Jaune froze "But you said..."
"I know what I said." Ozpin cut him off with a sigh "Just think of this as a second initiation. I do honestly believe that you belong here, young man, and I do believe you have proven that many times before. That's why I know you will be able to do this."
"Yes Sir. I won't let you down."
He opened his eyes, his breathing had calmed down and the feeling of nausea had somewhat subsided, aura was a crazy little thing. He pulled out his scroll "1am..." He sighed, they should be arriving at the village by no later than 8am and he wasn't going to be much help if he wasn't properly rested. "Can't be setting a bad example now, can I?" He let out a light chuckle and got to his feet.
"No, you can't."
Jaune almost jumped out of his skin when the voice of Ren answered his question "Holy hell, Ren!" he screamed in horror as a response, turning to face his quiet friend "What are you doing up this late? You should be resting." A laugh "We've got a big day ahead."
Ren grew a small smirk "Hello Pot, this is kettle." He teased his leader "I just came to check on you. Is everything okay?"
"Yeah, I'm good, just worrying about the mission I suppose." Jaune admitted "Can't help but be nervous."
"I see... Well, I think it's a good thing you're worrying so much." Ren replied "It shows you care enough to not make rash decisions and endanger all of us. I'd take a worrisome leader over an arrogant one."
"Thanks, Ren." Jaune smiled at his friend "It means more than you know."
"I'd also like a well rested leader." Another smirk.
"When did you become so funny?" Jaune laughed "Come on, let's head to bed. I expect you and the others to be ready first thing."
"Understood, fearless leader."
The two parted ways when they both got to their rooms and Jaune fell back onto his bed. He pulled out his scroll and read over the mission brief once again. He was sure that he could probably recite it back fully if someone asked him to with the amount he had read it, he thought it was better to be familiar with the mission than to just wing it.
The scroll buzzed and a message notification popped up in the corner of the screen. 'Dad.' Jaune hesitantly brought his finger to the message, his throat felt tight and his insides turned. He let out a sigh and hit the delete button. Throwing the scroll to his side and closing his eyes. "One day..."
Aura Link~~~
"Weiss, this young man is Henry Marigold." A tall man in a white suit with a matching moustache looked down at him "I think you two will get along just fine."
'Weiss?' He thought, immediately realizing what was going on. Another nightmare.
"Pleasure to meet you." Henry wore a cocky grin.
"You too..." Weiss' voice replied.
He had somewhat grown accustomed to these semblance related nightmares. He knows he can't react or speak, only be able to relive the memories and wait for them to end. He felt kind of bad for unintentionally prying into his friends pasts, but Nora and Weiss had seemed okay with it once he told them. Pyrrha was different and he had yet witnessed anything from her past.
"Weiss!" The voice of the man erupted in anger "Show some damn respect, you're a Schnee!"
"Sorry, Father." She apologised, bowing her head in respect "I.. I should know better."
"That's right. Now, why don't you and Henry go and get to know each other better. It would do the family a lot of good if you got along with your future husband." Her father ushered them out of the room before she could argue. Henry just smiled at her.
"So, how old are you, Weiss?" Henry tried to chat with the girl as they walked through the vacant halls.
"Nine." She replied coldly "Not that it matters. I have no intention of getting to know you." She added, walking ahead of the boy.
Henry just shrugged and followed "Just trying to get to know my future wife. Would be a shame if you didn't like me." Another smirk "I wonder what your father has to say about this."
She stopped and Jaune could feel the anger and the fear flow through her. Her hands gripped her dress in frustration "I won't be his to command much longer..." She sounded unsure of herself, but pushed on "I.. I don't care what he has to say!"
She noticed his grin grow even wider and she paled as she heard the man in question behind her.
"Weiss."
She could feel the venom in his tone.
He turned to the Marigolds "I am so sorry for her behaviour. I'll be sure to talk to her about this later."
"It's no worries, Jacques. I'm sure you're daughter will come around in her own time." Who he could only assume was Henry's father replied "We must be going. We shall talk more of this in the future."
"Yes, we shall." Jacques glared down at his daughter.
He could feel Weiss close her eyes and suddenly the scene skipped. He was now inside an icy blue office with a single desk and he was being dragged along by her father.
"You dare to embarrass me?" He turned and delivered a hard slap to his child. Jaune felt the sting in her cheek as she raised a hand to nurse the burning mark. "Who do you think you are?" His voice raised and another slap. Jaune felt angry tears slide down her face.
He had no idea that this is what Weiss had gone through and it made him sick with anger. How dare this man try and control her life.
"I'm sorry, Father." She once again apologised "But..."
"But what? Speak up, a Schnee doesn't mumble!" He ordered the girl.
"I want to be a Huntress!" Weiss screamed back, tears falling from her face "I don't want to be married off to someone just to benefit you and the company!" Her eyes burst a flame "I'm not yours to control!"
Another slap. "You are what I tell you to be." Another slap "You do what I say." With the last slap, the young girl fell to the floor, hiding her face behind her hands. "If you think, even for one second, that you are going to follow in Winter's footsteps, then you are very mistaken." Her father didn't bother looking down at her and just sat down in his chair. "Now, get out."
Jaune shot up, wiping away the stinging liquid pouring out of his eyes. He couldn't fathom why a father would beat their own child like that and treat them like an object. It pissed him off. He got out of the bed and grabbed a towel, if he was going to be forced to ride in an airship, he was glad it was a high class one with individual rooms and showers. 'The perks of being a Huntsman in training...'
After his quick shower, he got dressed in his combat gear and got ready to meet the others. As much as he'd have liked to stay in the shower for a bit longer, he had to get ready for their mission. He reluctantly left his room and made his way to the lounge area. To no ones surprise, Pyrrha was stood confidently, waiting for the rest of them. Seeing her there put him at ease, she seemed to have that effect on him.
"Morning, Pyr." He smiled "Sleep well?"
The redhead girl turned to face her leader with a smile of her own "Good morning to you too, Jaune. And yes, my rest was surprisingly comfortable. How was yours?" She asked.
"It was... Okay." He answered slowly "Just my nerves playing up I suppose."
"There's no need to be nervous, Jaune. I'm sure this mission will be a piece of cake." She placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Did someone say cake?" Nora skipped into the lounge with an already exhausted looking Ren following behind.
"Pyr was just saying how easy this mission should be." Jaune explained to his excitable teammate "Sorry to disappoint you."
Nora just beamed "That's fine. Once we're done here, you can treat us to cake, Jauney!"
"Sure thing." Anxiety kicking in as the ship got closer to the ground.
The airship landed and the doors slowly opened, revealing a lush, green landscape, in the distance, there was no more than 100 buildings and a huge forest just passed them. The scene was breath-taking. It reminded him of home.
"Okay, team." Jaune switched to leader mode "First order of business, we get to the Inn and drop our stuff off. After that we find..." He pulled out his scroll and opened the brief "Mr Gold." He was about to put his scroll back when it vibrated. 'Message Father.' His mind went back to Weiss' nightmare and he shook his head, turning his scroll off and putting it away.
~~~Aura Link~~~
Jaune and Ren strolled through the village, asking anyone they saw about the location of Mr Gold. So far, no luck. Some said at the local pub, others said out in the forest and most said nothing, just ignored them.
"This isn't working." Ren groaned as another villager fled once he tried to ask them for information "I wonder if the others have found anything."
"I get that it's frustrating, but we can't just give up." Jaune tried to boost the morale "Let's go and ask them." He pointed over at a group of children running around playing.
"They're kids." Ren pointed out.
"And they've probably lived her their whole lives." Jaune was already walking over to the group "What's the worst that could happen? They don't know where Gold is? If not we'll move on."
With a sigh, Ren followed his leader.
"Ooooooh! Are you guys Huntsman?" A young boy with dark red hair and fox ears asked as they neared. The excitement in his voice made the two teens relax. Finally someone who didn't just run away.
"In training." Jaune smiled proudly as the kids gazed up in amazement.
"When I grow up, I'm going to be a Huntsman too!" The fox faunas announced loudly, gaining cheers from the other kids in the group.
"I'm sure you will be." Jaune got down to his level and smiled "We'd be glad to have you onboard."
"Hehe!" The boy grinned happily "My names Ares."
Ren couldn't help but smile himself "Hey Ares. My name is Ren." He greeted "And this idiot, Is Jaune."
"Pleasure to meet you both! What are you guys doing all the way out here?" Ares' smile and joyfulness never once faded "Kinda far away from the kingdom for some students."
"We're on a mission. We're looking for Mr Gold, any idea where he is?" Jaune replied.
"Ah, old man Xander went out to the forest to hunt us all some food." Ares answered.
"All of you?" Jaune looked at all the kids who had resumed playing and turned to Ren "What about your parents?"
"Don't have any." Ares responded and for the first time, his smile faltered "We're all orphans. Xander has been looking after us ever since I can remember."
"I'm sorry to hear that." Jaune frowned.
Ares shook his head, smile reappearing "Don't be! Xander has treated us all like family and has kept us safe for so long. He's the reason I'm going to be a Huntsman some day. To help those in need like he did for all of us."
"Not if I can help it." Came a gruff voice as a middle aged man with short brown hair and a scar across his cheek, walked up to them "Run along, Ares. Melissa is cooking up the latest hunt." He scuffled the kids hair while wearing a warm smile.
"Thanks, Dad!" The group cheered out and rushed towards the nearby building.
"I said, do not call me that!" He called out to the group. His smile dropped in a judgemental glare at the two Huntsman in training "Don't go filling up his head with stories of your fake heroics, boy. Last thing we need, is for him to get sucked into the idea that a Huntsman's life is filled with glory and love. Now, who are you?"
Ren looked to Jaune and he nodded "We've been sent from Beacon to investigate the disappearances that have been happening lately. We're looking for Mr Gold. He's the one who sent the mission request."
"I sent that to the Vale council. Why have they sent me some kids?" Xander leaned against the wooden fence next to the building the kids has just entered "Damn them, not taking this seriously." He muttered, pulling out a cigarette and lighting it.
"We were selected for this mission by Headmaster Ozpin himself." Jaune stared back "We should be more than capable of assisting you on this mission."
"Tch, I don't like the word 'should', kid." He released a cloud of smoke "This is why I asked for qualified Huntsman for this. I don't need to be babysitting more children."
"Unfortunately," Ren stepped forward "We got sent here. So like it or not, you don't have a choice."
"Irrelevant. The safety of the people is more important than you getting a passing grade on your mission." He countered "I don't need a few, wet behind the ears, trainees failing the population because they're soft."
Jaune winced internally, he had been outed. He was so caught up on what headmaster Ozpin had told him, that he wasn't 100% committed to helping the people. "Sir!" He went to argue his point but was cut off.
"Dad!" Ares called out, much to Xander's protests and popped his head out of the door "Are you and the other Huntsman coming in?" He sounded hopeful.
"Don't call me that." Xander replied with a sigh and turned to them "No Huntsman stories, no matter how much they beg. Got it? We can go over the mission inside after the meal."
"Understood." Ren and Jaune both said, following the man into the building.
STILL NOT BETA! SO IF SPELLING IS DUMB, FORGIVE ME!
Kind of a short chapter, but they will always be over 3000 words! I just feel like this little arc can be spaced over 3-4 chapters so keep watching! or reading... you know what I mean.
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Love you all!