Well, here we are. While, technically, V3 started a chapter or two ago, this is the real night before. I hope to entertain you all with what is to come. Nothing else to say, so I hope you enjoy the chapter.
Chapter 48: The Night Before
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.(Chapter Start)
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October 9th
Wednesday
Cloudy
Dark clouds covered the late afternoon sky with the threat of rain and possibly thunder coming down at any moment, darkening the ground below despite the unnaturally warm day that it was. Azura was walking down the path towards the library when he ran into Ruby and Pyrrha, where he was then lumped into walking with them.
"Hey, I know!" Ruby exclaimed. "Why don't we have a duel between me and Pyrrha! Azura can gauge our performances."
Pyrrha laughs. "We must conserve our energy for tomorrow, Ruby. The tournament starts tomorrow and we don't know which team is fighting which and when, remember?"
"Oh."
As Ruby deflated, Azura shook his head in amusement. "Pyrrha just doesn't want you in down spirits if she wipes the floor with you."
"Hey! I can hold my own against her!" The girl pouted.
"Your Crescent Rose would like to disagree." Pyrrha said. "Too much weight on one end for my semblance to...uh…"
"Abuse?" Azura supplied.
"Well...yes, I suppose."
"Yeah yeah, laugh it up, you two. Team Ruby will come out as the victors of the Vytal tournament!"
Despite her words, the girl laughs and the two older students join in. The three of them continue down their path, now just wandering the grounds of Beacon without any direction in mind, despite the weather condition looming overhead.
"I'm sure you'll both do great." Azura said once their laughter died down. "I'll be rooting for you both, and that goes for the teams too."
"You can't be too balanced, Azura." Pyrrha said, her rare joking tone coming out. "Surely you'll root for your own team more than Ruby's team."
"Oh, um, yes. Of course." He says, looking to Ruby and winking. "Totally."
He's lightly shoved by the tall redhead. "Hey, no sly winking at the opposition!"
"Of course, of course." Azura says, chuckling. "You know I can't pick favorites, though."
"Azura, fairest of them all." Ruby says dramatically, her energy bringing the conversation back to her. "You sound like you came straight out of a fairy tail."
He pulls up a mock defensive face. "Maybe I am from a fairy tale, you never know! Surely there's some fairy tail involving a boy with a ghost in his head."
Pyrrha and Ruby look at each other before an amused smile comes to both of their faces.
"I'm sure it's possible, but I have not heard of any such stories." Pyrrha began, green eyes playfully staring him down.
"Neither have I, which would mean that you aren't from a fairy tale. You can play favorites now!" Ruby finished, her own silver eyes holding an excited amusement.
"Well, okay, maybe I'm not." He admits, holding his hands up in defeat. "Maybe you guys should have been on the same team, if your knowledge of fairy tales is as vast and similar to each other. That, or maybe you two should have a competition of who knows more fairy tales."
"Oh, that would be fun! Why haven't I ever thought of that?!" Ruby said with a gasp, as if shocked by herself for not having the idea.
"Thought of what, kiddo?"
The three turn around as Ruby bolts to Qrow's side, who grunted as the girl grabbed him into a hug with an excited yelp.
"Uncle Qrow!"
Azura pretends to not feel Summer's presence shrinking away with guilt as he puts his eyes on the man.
"Yeah, yeah, hi. Can you let go now?" He replied to the girl, wiggling his body to loosen the iron grip of the much shorter girl.
"What's the magic word, uncle Qrow?" Ruby said in a singsong tone, bright smile on her face
The man gave her a deadpan stare before sighing. "Please let me go, kid."
Ruby relents her hold only slightly. "Well, what brings you to your niece on this...uh...possibly rainy day?"
"To see what you and your sister are doing, maybe spend some time with this dusty bird before I gotta get going out again."
"What?! So soon?" She exclaims, voice going up several pitches in surprise.
Azura winces, exchanging a silent glance with Pyrrha as she smiled with a twinkle of amusement in her bright green eyes.
Even Qrow had winced as he responded. "Not for too long, but I'll probably miss the first wave of fights. Maybe the second...not too sure."
"Bu-" Ruby began, getting cut off as Qrow taps her on the head lightly. "Ow…"
"But," Qrow says, putting emphasis on the word. "I will be free to do what I wish to until around the afternoon hours of tomorrow. Was gonna take you girls out for a spin into Vale, maybe grab some grub and have fun."
"That sounds great! We'd just have to find Yang. We're going now, right? Right?"
"Yeah, sure. Why not." Qrow says, chuckling. "Just give me a moment with the look-a-like, I'll catch up after you."
Ruby blinks, looking over at Azura as her mouth remains open and her eyes widen, then back to Qrow as she tries to speak something beyond unintelligible noises.
"I already know, kiddo." He says, knowing what was on her mind and looking at Azura. "Just need to relay some information."
"Er, okay...be nice to him." Ruby says, flashing an awkward and apologetic smile to Azura before returning to her boundless energy. "See you in a minute, uncle Qrow!"
She races off, likely to go find Yang, leaving Azura and Pyrrha with the older Huntsman. Azura looked at the man with a neutral gaze before remembering Ozpin's words about them working together, and lifted it up into a greeting as the man took a few steps to just get closer.
"Not here to do anything but to tell you that the old man wants to see you." He says, eyeing Pyrrha curiously for just a moment. "I'll be helping to get a lock on your Nightmare, so don't get any ideas with my nieces while I'm gone...whether or not she's in your head." The man turns away, beginning to walk off in his hunched over pose, hands in his pockets. "See you in a week or two, kid."
Azura watches him go for a few moments before voicing up. "Wait, Qrow." He waits for him to stop and turn his head. "Thank you, for helping out in this Nightmare business. And...well, for putting him with someone who brings up some bad memories."
"Heh, you're a good kid, just a bit stubborn and rebellious." Qrow says, shaking his head. "Summer said I was the same way. Probably still am. Anything else you wanted to say?"
Azura nods slowly. "Good luck. It's a tough Grimm."
He exhales air from his nose in a manner of laughter. "I'm a walking bad luck charm, I'll be fine."
"A...what?" Azura asked, more to himself than anyone in particular as Qrow walked off without another word. "That's...not how that works, right?"
"I'll explain after, Azura." He heard Summer say before Pyrrha spoke.
"I can tell you that it is not how it works." Pyrrha answers, shaking her head. "But that's not what caught my attention. The 'old man' can't really be anyone but Ozpin...not that he's old, mind you…"
"I know what you mean Pyrrha, you're good." Azura says, cutting her off as he sighed. "Wonder what Qrow meant…"
"Azura?" The Mistral champion says his name questioningly. "I can get knowing who he is, given this supposed relation to Summer, but you seemed to know him a bit more personally. That, and the fact that he came for you to tell you that Ozpin needed you. What's going on?"
Despite getting better at lying, Azura hated the bitter and dry feeling of lying to Pyrrha of all people as he said his next words.
"If I knew what he wanted, I'd tell you."
"Well, I hope you would. But this also isn't the first time he's asked for you, or that you have gone to him."
"What are you trying to say?" Azura asks, raising an eyebrow at her.
"If you're being given special treatment and feel weird about it...I just wanted to offer an ear to you, like you have done for me so far. Like Jaune has too."
"I mean…" He begins, trailing off as he meets Pyrrha's apologetic and sympathetic gaze. "I guess it could be seen as that. He's just trying to help me with this Summer situation, and the Nightmare Grimm is a really big problem. It was seen during the breach, attacked me even, and if it's staying in the area, something could be on the horizon that it is waiting for."
The girl before him blinked a few times, then took the few steps to stand in front of him. Standing at just the same height, she studied his face for a few moments, causing him to shrink back slightly.
"You're stressed." She stated. "We all are. We're having a tournament in the midst of a recovering city and under whispers of White Fang involvement."
"It's supposed to be a celebration of peace, in fairness."
"Yes, Azura, it is." She agreed, nodding her head. "Yet, here you are, having late night adventures, in talks with the headmaster of Beacon, and possibly involved in an investigation of one of the oldest Grimm to be seen."
He didn't say anything. He couldn't really. There was no refuting anything that she said, even if she likely didn't know the context behind it. He had to tell her something, but the truth wouldn't be smart. The Inner Circle, Neo, their investigations into the White Fang, all of them required digging into details that not just him, but also team RWBY, felt would be best left untouched.
"So, tell me, why are you not celebrating that peace?"
"There's some things in motion that don't really make that peace seem real." He answers her honestly. "I don't think sitting around and doing nothing will help."
Pyrrha smiles at him, placing her hands on his arms and holding him in place. "I understand how you feel, Azura. Not just me, but team Juniper, your own partner, team Ruby, and every student here training to be Huntsmen and Huntresses. But we should also have time to be a bit less than that, don't you think?"
Azura looks down, a small smile on his face. "You're always right, Pyrrha."
She laughs lightly. "Only in matters involving being young. You learn a lot when you aren't given time to be anything but a prodigy." She rubs his arms for a moment before letting go. "Now, you go see Ozpin while I head to the training halls. Meet me there after you do whatever you need to, okay?"
"Uh...okay." He answers, not wanting to say no to her. "Any reason why you want me?"
"A spar, just you and me. You look like you could use one."
"Ah. Well, I'll humor you, sure."
"Excellent. Meet me there whenever you are able to." She said, a bright smile crossing her face. "See you then."
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.(Line Break)
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Ozpin had not spent much time talking beyond introductions before prompting him to take a seat. The man clearly wanted to get back into whatever process he was attempting to do, not that Azura minded. He was just as determined to do this as Ozpin was, and he knew he had Summer's support through it all.
His thoughts drifted away as he felt himself slip into a dream-like state, Ozpin's presence feeling closer than the last time. He was once again laying down in the shallow water of, staring up into the empty sky. The water rippled as he moved to get up, the sound of it echoing infinitely within his mind. Rose petals drifted past him and around his feet as he saw a rose almost infused to his clothing, reminding him of the one he grabbed last time he was here. This time, no land was nearby, seeming to be much farther ahead of his location, but he began his trek towards the land anyway.
The location felt empty, but at peace. It was as if there was a quiet in his mind, an enlightened silence stretching out across the water among the ripples he was causing. He kept walking forward for what felt like seconds and hours all at once, slightly jolting him back to reality as he realized he had no sense of time before settling back. The rose petals were growing thicker as he progressed, making it harder to see the water it rested on.
Eventually, he stopped before a rose of white and red color. Summer's presence, which had been resting in the back of his mind, was now heavier and like she was gently brushing her fingers along his cheek. Not truly here, but Azura found himself almost believing that she was as he bent down to pick the rose from its stem. As soon as he did so, his body shuddered as he fell within this place in his mind, kept still only by Ozpin's hands.
"Find me…" Summer's voice echoed in a whisper.
But the woman had not said anything to him. The only signs of reality to him were the warm hands of Ozpin and the colder ones of Luna.
Despite having fallen, he was now standing again. It was an empty hallway, one that he even recognized. He was on Beacon academy grounds, in a hall that was for the third year student classrooms. Summer was standing in front of him, both shorter and younger, her hair not as long as he knew and in Beacon school uniform. It reminded him of Ruby.
He walked forward, aware that he was making no noise and not even a part of whatever he was looking into. The young Summer was staring into a classroom, silent and not even moving. Despite knowing he wasn't here, he still attempted to reach out to her, finding that his hand merely went through her. All he could do was exist.
With this knowledge in mind, he looked inside of the classroom that she had her eyes glued on and saw a similarly young Qrow within. The man-turned-teenager was much leaner and without beard stubble, but the hunch was just as present. He looked tired, trapped in the room with what looked like a previous professor of Beacon. It was an old woman, her grey hair hiding her eyes as she talked to him. The boy nodded his head, then looked over and seemed to look at Azura.
His head caught up with what was going on, and he moved out of the way to look at Summer. She now had a smile on her face, raising a hand to wave at him. She was waiting for Qrow to get out, Azura realized.
The location fell apart before his eyes, flashing into the rooftops of Beacon academy. This time, the young Summer was seated on the edge of the roof, kicking her legs softly as the young Qrow was sitting next to her. The wind blew through as the sunset blazed before them, drawing long shadows of the tall buildings of the city of Vale.
"You know, I would have thought you would grow out of the tribe mannerisms before Raven." She giggles, her face bright and full of laughter as she looks at him. "But it seems like she was right when she told me that you learned slower than her those few years ago."
"Oh, shut it." He grumbled, seeming just as amused as her. "It's not my fault that Raven took all the good traits."
"Not all of them." Summer remarked, holding a hand up and pointing a finger at him. "She didn't get the heart of gold."
Qrow breathes out a laugh, his laugh not seeming quite as hollow as Azura knew. "Didn't you call her 'the sweetest thing ever' yesterday?"
"Hey, I'm allowed to compliment her when she's nice to me!" Summer retorted, puffing her cheeks out in mock annoyance. "I would think she's always grumpy if she never did nice things, so I try to encourage her to do them more."
"Raven? Doing nice things?"
Yes, Qrow. Raven doing nice things."
Silence descends on them before Qrow cracks up in laughter. He holds an arm up weakly as Summer hits him with soft blows.
"Stop laughing at your sister opening up!"
"Stop! Stop!"
His cries for her to stop were pulled away from Azura as the seeming memory faded away like the rug being slipped out from under him, snapping back to the reality of Ozpin's office. He blinked several times to reacquaint himself with the room, then rubbed his head with a groan. Summer was present in his mind, not talking, but with concern written all over her presence.
Ozpin had stepped away, leaving Luna to watch Azura with a similar concern to Summer. He nods his head at her, offering a smile to assuage her concern while sitting up in the chair. The silence of the office had never felt emptier, as he moved from what had to be a memory from Summer to the cool silence of a room that held only two living bodies and two dead ones. He takes a deep breath, closing his eyes to refocus himself.
He felt Summer's emotions stream through his own, a mixture of nostalgia and sadness with hints of fear within them. His thoughts wandered back to what he had seen, of the voice that had sounded like Summer's, and of the vastly different Qrow he had seen before his very eyes.
"Summer?" Azura asked within his head, trying to convey a gentleness.
"I'm here."
"Was that a memory?"
Summer hums an affirmative. "I know I always say I want my own privacy in these cases, but it feels like a step forward."
"A step closer to the whole purpose of this training of sorts."
"A step closer...or, as you put it, one step at a time."
Azura nods, feeling a boost of confidence from the positive outlook that Summer was giving to him. It seemed as though they were finally making progress for the first time since he was getting used to her semblance and its ability to boost simple actions. The feeling felt good, and it was a feeling he liked.
"Let's not get ahead of ourselves, though. Talk to Ozpin, tell him that his theory proved correct."
He looks up from where he was seated to find that Ozpin was watching him in silence, nodding his head to the boy.
"Done with your talk? How did it go?"
"I...saw a memory from Summer. She was aware of it...but, if she was talking to me, I didn't hear her. It was like I was asleep, dreaming of something that never happened to me."
Ozpin taps his fingers against the top of the cane in a rhythmic motion. "Then, what we believed was possible did work. And this time, there was no reaction...how interesting."
"Then, we should continue this, right?" Azura asks, standing from the chair. "The sooner this temporary split can happen, the sooner I can…"
He trails off as Ozpin holds a hand up, shaking his head. "One thing at a time, Azura. We still don't know how long this will take. Finding something that no one has really described is a hard thing."
"I know, I know. I'm just glad that some form of progress was made."
"As am I, Azura. I do expect it to be a while before you find something...dear to Summer, though. And that's no fault of hers, but I do believe that the key to you two having this middle ground is a mutual understanding of one another."
"Like a merge?" He asked, sounding as alarmed as Summer felt. "Isn't that what we don't want?"
"No, not like a merge. Think of it as a form of stabilization between the two of you, a harmony of sorts." Ozpin explained, a calming smile on his face. "I would not help if this would lead to one of you being lost for good."
Azura sighed quietly in relief. A silly overreaction on his part, despite the mistrust that Summer still held. Ozpin had been nothing but useful up until this point, so he could continue to hold some trust in regards to this particular thing. Not that they had much of a choice, they were in a situation that only Ozpin seemed to understand.
"For now, we know progress has been made, which is good enough for me. Plus, I really should not hold you here for much longer."
"How long have we been here?"
"It's been a bit over an hour since you first entered my office." He answered. "But, before I have you leave, I need you to see a picture that was taken recently and sent over by our Huntress tracking the Nightmare."
"A picture? What is it?" Azura asked, moving to stand on the other side of Ozpin's desk as a scroll was slid over to him.
"Take a look for yourself."
He grabbed the scroll and lifted it up to examine the picture on it. It had been taken from a higher elevation, likely from one of the trees that was surrounding the large clearing that was framed within the center of the picture. Shock hit his system as he saw a mass of Grimm all bowed down or decaying on the ground in the clearing, the shattered moon shining down onto them as the Nightmare hovered over all of them with a evaporating Grimm in its only arm.
"She believes that the creature is either building its strength up or building a horde of Grimm." Ozpin explained, sounding deadly serious. "I knew that the Nightmare was intelligent and very old, but this suggests that it is planning something to a higher scale. A mass concentration of Grimm so close to the city of Vale and Beacon itself...it is almost exactly what happened at the Mountain Glenn expansion. This is our past staring back at us, Azura."
Azura put the scroll back down on the desk, biting his lip. "It needs to die. Soon."
Ozpin remained silent for several seconds before responding. "Do you say that as someone who wants it dead? Or as someone who knows the danger this represents?"
He felt Luna's cold hand gently touch his arm, forcing Azura to think clearly. "I want it dead, I will not lie. But it isn't the only reason I am at Beacon now...but this is a danger that comes up once in a lifetime. These cause events that change the world forever."
"Indeed they do. That is why I sent Qrow out as soon as possible, to group up with our Huntress and keep an eye on things. Either to track the Nightmare to where its lair could be, or to thin the herd of Grimm that are now roaming the forests of Vale."
Azura looked at Luna with concern, taking note that her normal playfulness was gone and drained from her body. If anyone knew the dangers of this creature, it would be his mother. She had been murdered by it, and it brought a mixture of negative emotions to his heart just thinking about how the price of that knowledge had been with her life.
"You don't need to say anything. I just wanted you to know, you deserve to know what this Grimm is up to. I said I would assist you against it, and I intend to keep my word."
All he could do was nod and look up into the man's eyes. "Thank you, headmaster."
"Of course." Ozpin replied. "That's the only other thing that I wanted you here for, so you may leave." He pauses, waving a hand at him. "Unless there is...something else you'd like to say?"
Azura shook his head, remaining silent.
Ozpin watched him closely, a vaguely hidden doubt on his face. "Then, you are free to go. I will see you again soon." A small smile washes away the doubt. "Have a good rest of your day, Azura."
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(Line Break)
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The sounds of someone yelling like they were in combat as the clamoring of metal hitting something rang out told Azura all that he needed to as he entered the hall of the combat training building that led to the more privatized arenas. He opens the door at the end of the hall, finding Pyrrha attacking a dummy with her weapon currently in spear form.
A slice to the left side of the waist, a slice to the right side of the chest, a stab to the left shoulder, her routine was practiced and fluid in his vision. She took barely a moment to notice him as he slowly walked up to her, sweatshirt off and in an undershirt with his weapons in tow, then repeated her actions once more.
As she pulls back from her final stab, she swiftly and sharply steps back, then dashes forward to stab the spear head into the worn arena floor and launch herself into the dummy with a rapid kick to the head, slamming it to the ground. She stands, using her polarity to pull her spear back to her hand without looking at it, then spins it so that the butt of the spear rests against the ground.
Pyrrha shakes her head, wiping the sweat off her brow as she turns to him. "You came here faster than I expected."
"You're more of a show-off than I thought." Azura responds humorously, crossing his arms as he smirks.
"Oh, shut up." She muttered, still looking embarrassed.
He laughs. "It looked great, though. Made me want to consider doing a nice deed for you in exchange for you not beating me up."
"I won't beat you up." The redhead exclaimed, pausing a moment later. "I think…"
"Such a vote of confidence for me. "Azura replies dryly. "Do you want me to try my hand fighting you or beg for some other activity?"
"I'm sorry!" The girl instinctively responded, raising her hands up. "I didn't mean it like that."
"You're fine, you're fine." He said, waving her concern off as he stepped into the large sized arena. "At least the arena is the same size as when I sparred with Weiss once...never again, might I add. Those glyphs are scary."
His words get a small laugh out of Pyrrha. "Even I must agree, give her a few years and she will be a menace to any fighter caught in single combat with her."
"Enough to surpass you?"
"Oh, definitely!" Pyrrha answered in confidence. "Give enough patience and time and care to someone...they'll shape up soon enough." Her smile widens as she says her next words. "Jaune is certainly an example of that."
"With that look in your eye, I'm shocked you haven't just taken him out on a date." Azura teases, watching her confidence and energy deflate into embarrassment.
"It's not like that, I swear!"
"Just like how you aren't going to kick my ass?"
Her shoulder slump with an exaggerated sigh. "Can we just do the thing I'm good at to spare myself the embarrassment?"
"Ready whenever you are. Any specific rules to this spar?"
"No, not particularly." Pyrrha says as she connects to the console with her scroll, poking at the screen's options. "First to fifteen percent aura, no holds barred. Semblances, dirty fighting, anything you have. All fine."
Azura nods, stretching out as he listens. "Your aura is good, then?"
"Haven't even used it." She answers, stepping back into the stage as the barriers pull up. "I want you to give it your all against me."
"Well, you never hold back in a fight, so I figured as much." He says playfully, readying his weapons as he and Luna share a glance with a silent agreement.
"Glad we see eye to eye in this case." Pyrrha says back, smirk on her face as a look of battle enters her normally kind green eyes.
A countdown begins with a robotic voice, a buzzer sounding the beginning of their spar. Azura stepped carefully as Pyrrha held her ground, ideas whizzing through his mind for how he could approach the situation of a warrior holding their ground with the ability to push metal away and around. He would have to be extremely brief and fast in any engagement with Pyrrha, staying on his toes for her semblance whenever she might use it.
Both sword and dagger out, he rushed forward in a burst of petals directly for her. She raised her shield, shifting her stance a moment before he sidestepped and had his blade screech against the metal of her shield. He could barely think about how she had read him a move ahead before sliding his dagger against her now transformed sword to block her counter attack, speeding out of reach of the stab that came after before rushing back in and slamming his body against her own. The shield shuddered, but held fast as the familiar sign of polarity entered his sight. He sweeped at her ankle with his foot as he spun away from her blade, catching it with the back of his ankle and flipping her over. She was quick on her feet, pushing into a roll that landed her right back on her feet.
This time, she engaged the attack, hopping up and throwing her shield at him. He barely dodged the shield as it seemingly tracked onto him, flashing his semblance when he locked swords with Pyrrha as the sound of the shield slamming into the ground was heard. With her shield immobilized, Azura went on a counter offensive of pushing her blade away with one weapon while attacking with another. He was fighting the gravity being forced onto the attacking sword until an idea popped into his head.
As the gravity grew heavier on his sword to the point of him struggling to work with it, he triggered Summer's semblance and spun in place. The blade snapped out of the polarity and, with the extra momentum now put on it, slammed into her sword on the other way around with a loud banging noise. As the extra strength buckled Pyrrha over for a moment, he slashed his dagger against aura before she jumped back. He followed after her as her arm raised, seeing the shield whizz by as she spun her weapon in hand and transformed it into spear form.
"Luna!"
His call for her rang out as he blocked and was blocked by the spear within Pyrrha's hands, feeling the pressure of both of his weapons being pushed away while extra force was being put into the spear. Pyrrha ducked as Luna sweeped over with a blade, pulling her shield back onto her arm just in time to block Azura's sword, using her spear to stop his dagger. As she pushed back, he was left wide open for a shield slam right to the face as his aura sizzled against the attack. He flew back as the polarity pushed him further than he would have gone, feeling bullets of her rifle form pelting him as he rose back to his feet with haste, the gunfire stopping as Luna engaged with Pyrrha.
He ran along the side of their fight as he fired lighting dust from the dagger, taking notice that Luna couldn't be affected by her polarity. One less layer of protection for her. Despite the pressure from both a ranged and melee attacker, Pyrrha either let the attacks graze aura lightly or hid behind her shield to let it take the brunt of Luna's attacks. Azura moved towards them before letting the speed boost of Summer's semblance propel him forward into combat.
Luna flipped up and over with her semblance, grabbing onto Pyrrha's shield as she did so. The champion flipped over with the momentum, landing back on her feet as Azura's weapons slashed forward in an 'x' shape against her shield. Luna hit from the back side a moment later, causing Pyrrha to stumble and take a hit from her back and front as mother and son combo'd her between them.
His next attack was blocked as Pyrrha pulled her aura up from the back to take Luna's attack before she thrusted her shield out to push him back and used her now spear-like weapon to hit Luna in the gut with the butt of it. She launches her shield out at Azura near point blank with her polarity, and he had no time to react before it hit him in the head. He fell to the ground as stars flashed before his eyes, glad to have his aura up in the meantime. He felt Luna grab onto him and drag him out of the way as Pyrrha's spear slammed into where he had just been, getting lifted up and put into a standing position as he saw his opponent launch herself into the air from the spear that had been in the ground, transforming it into its sword form as she suddenly dropped like a rock onto his position just as he raised his weapons to block.
With polarity aiding her mostly metal covered body, she shattered through his defense and both of them went rolling several times in a bundle. She ended up on top with her weapon in hand, instantly springing into a standing position with the blade pointed down at him. Now able to refocus, Azura forces her to jump off and away as Luna swoops in with her own attack. She pushes forward onto the offense as he gets back up and readies his weapons once more, joining the attack on Pyrrha.
Luna sweeps high as he attacks low. She flies above and around with quick and targeted attacks while Azura keeps to the front. This time, Pyrrha was more prepared for the tactic as she flipped her sword to be gripped in reverse and stabbed backward as her shield arm swept in front, spinning in place as her sword slid against his own and the shield pushed Luna back.
From there, their combos weaken further as Azura fights against Pyrrha's polarity and Luna keeps getting forced away or over Pyrrha's attacks. He slammed forward with Summer's semblance to break out of the polarity, met with the now polarized shield as he was then flung backwards with the momentum that he had just pushed with, skidding and tumbling across the arena floor until he hit the shielded wall on the far end as his weapons slid off and out of his grip.
He saw Pyrrha block an attack from Luna and stab forward, nicking the ghost's somewhat transparent skin with her weapon, before pushing her back with another polarized shield bash. Azura stumbled back up as his ears rang, not particularly enjoying the blunt weapon trauma she was imposing on him, able to fight back with a few hand motions before getting put against the wall with her shield holding him in place while a sword remained pointed at him.
They were both breathing heavily as they stared at each other for a moment, sweat running down their face from the spar, before Azura gave in and raised his arms up.
"I surrender."
She relaxes at his words, gently sliding him down so that his feet rested against the ground. As she moved away, Azura stretched and rubbed a hand on his forehead, nodding to Luna as she approached him with his weapons.
"Thanks." He says to her, smiling. "It must be hard to attack someone who plays a step ahead of you, especially with your semblance."
Luna shakes her head, a fatigued amusement crossing her face as she rubbed the top of his head with a hand. She moves to his side as Pyrrha officially ends the spar, checking things on her scroll.
"You did well for no input from me." Summer commended. "You and Luna both, though she's a Huntress, even as a ghost."
"Probably could have done better."
"Probably could have won if you let me fight, but I won't do that." She said. "We're proud of you, it shows progress. And it looks like Pyrrha enjoyed her time, so that's good too."
Azura looked over at Pyrrha, who had a bright smile on her face as she started to approach him.
"How'd I do?" He asked, nodding at her.
"Forty-three to fifty-one percent." She answered. "My semblance drains a lot of aura and you kept making me use it. Your blows hurt when they did hit, though...and Luna knows how to hit someone good. Kept me on my toes, it was fun!"
"Well, glad you enjoyed it. You certainly proved just how good you handle multiple opponents, which is to say, very good."
"You don't need to compliment me…"
"No, I do mean it. I'm sure if it was Summer and Luna, you would still have a decent chance of coming on top." He remarked, rather happy to say the words. "I mean, you're amazing! I'm sure Jaune tells you that enough, though, so you get it only once from me."
"He does, it's rather...cute." She mutters, before shaking her head with a small blush. "Never mind that, thank you. Both for the spar and the compliment."
Azura laughs. "Should tell him that yourself, Pyrrha. I don't need to know that you think he's cute."
"Oh, shut up." Pyrrha said, unable to say the words loudly. "Can we just freshen up before heading out? I want to be able to rest for tomorrow, in case we fight early."
"Yeah, let's go. Still need to go to the library and everything, like I originally planned. Schoolwork calls."
"Then, why don't we head there after? Does that sound good?"
Azura nods. "Sounds great."
Pyrrha nods in return. "Good. See you then?"
She raises a fist up, which Azura meets with his own in a fist bump.
"See you then."
.
.(Line Break)
.
Azura left the library shortly after Pyrrha did, recalling her telling him that she needed to go through some training exercises with Jaune before the night ended. The shadows of twilight were long gone, leaving a night sky open with the smell of freshly rained grass and the creeping chill of the Autumn night. However, the silence was thrown off as Summer came into the forefront of his mind, her shadow motions asking for him to follow through.
When he did, he found nothing to the right side of his person. He scanned the ground, finding nothing, then turned to look up into the sky. His vision locked on to the light post as he saw a black feathered raven staring at him from the side with a red colored eye. Without having Summer by his side, he would have thought nothing of the strange bird watching him. But he knew because of her, knew who exactly it was.
There was a mixture of emotions similar to when she first saw Qrow again, but it was much heavier and darker than with Qrow. Some mixture of anger, anxiety, and sorrow. He tried to not let any of it show on his face as the raven flicked its head in a direction, then began to fly off between the light posts.
It wanted to be followed. And so, he followed.
"Tell me what you're thinking, Summer."
Silence was what he was met with. She was still very present in his mind, but seemed to have already decided to keep silent and refuse to open up. It left him with the only option of following the path that the raven was having him follow. As he followed after it, Azura noticed that he was being led to a private area of the academy, likely away from cameras and any late night passerbys. The raven was no longer visible now, but Azura followed after it to the best of his ability.
Sneaking in between two buildings led him to a location just beyond the private gardens, to a sloping hill that flattened out towards the bottom into a drop off of the flooded valley that littered the backside of Beacon from its raised elevation. As he crested the hill, he saw no raven any longer. At the bottom of the hill, staring out into that valley was a black-haired woman. Her long hair mimicked Yang's, calling upon things that Azura didn't want to admit to himself. Knowledge he had from Summer, who was still not speaking.
She had a hand resting on her blade's hilt, her fingerless gloves black as the night. She wore an outfit that seemed from Mistral, with a black and red robe-like top. From the back, he could barely notice the black feathers that lingered on the red belt wrapped around her stomach. Her armored forearms were red, matching with the belt and her shoulder pads, while her skirt and leggings were black. Her heels had a red colored underside while remaining mostly black, rounding her outfit off with two basic and dark colors.
Azura stopped at the bottom of the hill, several feet behind her. The moon shined down, being their only light, and her Grimm mask hung from her waist like an ornament with the gleam of the moonlight. He held a hand up to tell Luna to stay still, having a feeling that the woman wasn't here to harm. He wondered if he should wait for her to speak or if he should speak first, deciding a moment later that someone needed to say something.
"Raven Branwen." He said the words as a statement, keeping his tone soft and without emotion from Summer. "Sister to Qrow Branwen...member of the unformed team Stark. Power to turn into a bird.
A breath of unamused laughter comes from her as she calls his bluff. "And yet, you do not know why or how I can do so."
"Summer isn't one for telling me things." Azura admitted.
"Looks like it isn't just a fluke, even if she is different in death." She said, keeping her back turned. "Azura Heart, I read up on you through some snooping in Beacon files."
"Then you know what my situation is."
"Current host for a ghost from the past." Raven continued, turning around and revealing her dark crimson eyes. "Member of the Inner Circle of that lying headmaster, possible hero complex...revenge seeker." Her head tilts slightly, her bead necklaces shifting in the process. "I know more about you than you think."
Her eyes flick to the silver eye, and the dark markings that stretched from it.
"Why are you here?"
"Who is saying that? You? Or Summer?"
It was asked as a rhetorical question, Azura noted. He licked his lips, deciding to ask the question that sat on the tip of his tongue.
"You have actual family here." He started. "Yang is no more than five hundred feet from here."
The woman's eyes narrow. "Careful with your words, boy. Do not speak of situations you only understand from one perspective."
"Then why talk to me other than to find out that Summer is in my head and body?"
She breathes out a sigh, relaxing slightly. "To give you a message, for both you and Yang."
Azura remained silent at her words, merely nodding to show that he was listening and wanted her to continue.
"You're stepping into a dangerous game, you both are." Raven says, her tone serious and face without emotion. "But you...you play with not just fire, but lightning too. It requires a level of mental strength to do that, but you are only so strong because of Summer. Remember that you are only a quarter of what you are without her." She pauses, looking back out over the cliff. "You get one save from me, one. Make sure you need it in a dire situation."
"And Yang?"
"I consider her rescue to be used. Make sure she knows that, I will not have my blood die because of stupidity. Your one save is only because of Summer." Her sharp words stung like a bee, continuing with force as she held out her hand in a fist. "Now, take this. It's rightfully hers, and will continue to be."
Azura held out his hand below her fist, her fingers grazing against his palm as she dropped a light object in his hand. He took it close, finding that he was now holding a necklace in his hands. It was a simple metal chain, holding a black metal raven feather and a white rose symbol similar to what Summer and Ruby wore.
He looked back up, only to find that Raven was already gone.
"One save, huh?" He whispered, clenching the necklace in a fist.
He wished he could have had more time to talk to her, thinking of what he would want to say to the woman he only knew from Summer's past as he looked up at the moon.
.
.(Chapter End)
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Raven...Branwen. A lot to unpack for one character, so I've been waiting to include her in any capacity. This was a moment that I have thought of ever since her initial save in V2 against the experimented Grimm, so it's nice to see it on paper now. Hope you guys liked the little peek around the corner at the absentee mother. Have a great day/evening!