Feeling really good about my progress for some odd reason, so as a result I pretty much started working on this chapter immediately after the previous one. Probably because I'm slowly yet surely working my way up to the grand finale for this fic. Now said finale is still a ways off, but I'm much closer to it now than I was an arc or so ago, so it just feels much closer to me, if that makes any sense.
Now from here on out, chapters will start getting just a little longer as I intend to pack in some extra content, so get ready to read a few extra pages worth, people.
On that note, the first part of this chapter will concern Naruto and one other person, but the rest of this chapter and the coming few chapters will focus mainly on team JNPR and their time in Burgundy.
Chapter 30
"How nice of you to pay me a visit, Naruto-kun," Masami said, a glowing expression on her face. Wearing a blouse that hugged her upper body enough to show off some cleavage along with a skirt that was perhaps an inch shorter than what is expected of a workplace environment while still remaining classy, Masami smiled as Naruto sat across from her here in her office.
"Yeah, sorry for just stopping by kind of suddenly… but I just wanted to know how things were going on your end," Naruto replied, returning Masami's smile.
Ever since the end of the operation a month back, he and his friends had decided that since a good portion of everything was laid to waste within the warehouse, there was a possibility that the Holy Knights would go out of their way to build up their technological resources. And given Masami's position as CEO of a company that competed with the Schnee family in a multitude of areas and the connections and influence that came with it, then she was the go-to person for this kind of thing. Namely, she had been asked to spend some of her time personally looking into any matters regarding her company or smaller companies that she's partnered with to see if there had been any kind of break-ins or any kind of crime at all that could possibly be linked to the Holy Knights.
Crossing one leg over the other in such a way that it would've riled up anyone else, Masami gazed at Naruto and at nothing else, all of her attention on him. "Well, I've been quite busy lately; my schedule for this month had been packed with a number of personal meetings with other corporate leaders… but I've been able to get some little 'side errands' done," Masami said. She then motioned to her assistant. "Could you please go and fetch a list for me, please? I have it right over there in that drawer…"
Said assistant, the very same woman that was often by Masami's side, didn't move. Instead, she stared at Naruto blankly for what felt like an hour. Then, without realizing she spoke aloud, she said, "I see why the boss is so into him still…" Her eyes roamed over Naruto's slim, well-muscled form through his usual outfit. However, when Naruto looked at her in surprise and confusion, the assistant began to panic slightly. "U-Uh, I mean, yes ma'am!" she stuttered out before quickly walking off to get the document Masami requested.
Naruto simply watched her walk off in confusion still before looking back to Masami. "You have an odd assistant."
Chuckling, Masami fold her arms under her breasts. "Maybe so. I ought to blame your ravishing looks for that, though," she said rather flirtatiously.
Naruto didn't respond to her tone though, having long since grown used to this. Masami would often speak in such a tone and say such things whenever it was just the two of them alone. "So how have you been?"
"Well, all things considered. Really, the life of a CEO can be awfully dull sometimes. You'll have to drag me along to your next excursion against the Holy Knights," Masami replied. "And just how are you and the family? Well, I hope?"
"Miki and I are doing fine, just training and teaching is all." Naruto sighed. "It's just been a busy month… we've been training teams RWBY and JNPR on top of everything else, so…"
"I see. I imagine it was worth it, however. Those children certainly seemed talented. Especially little Jaune…" Masami trailed off, just smiling now. "He in particular does have a great deal of potential, more so than his friends. Not that such a fact surprises me at all considering… well…"
Naruto just nodded. "I know," was all he said. He and Miki had seen team JNPR off before they went to Burgundy and although the blond leader was doing much better than before, he could still sense the internal conflict that Jaune was still going through. He and Miki both hoped that this mission would somehow help Jaune out.
It was at that moment that Masami's assistant returned with the requested list she'd asked for. And with her return, Naruto and Masami began to look over it, getting down to the business he'd come for.
Meanwhile, in Burgundy, Jaune made an effort to not yawn as he continued to cook breakfast.
"How are things back there, boy?" a kindly looking middle-aged woman asked him from somewhere just outside the kitchen.
"Almost done, Alisa," Jaune replied.
"Great! Then afterwards, if it's not a bother still, could you watch those kids again?" Alisa said, poking her head in now to look at him. "They've been asking to play with you again."
"Sure. Just after I take up a plate to Kalma's room," Jaune replied, trying not to let the tiredness he felt show through.
As Alisa smiled and then left him to it, Jaune tried to figure out just where had things all gone upside down for him.
As of this morning, it's now been nearly four whole days since he and his friends arrived in Burgundy. Things had started out roughly enough for him, with him already making less than a great impression as a hunter in training on everyone. Then the very next morning, deciding that the least he could do for his teammates after they spent all of that first night scouting the area was to cook them breakfast, Jaune had found himself almost mobbed by other residents in the inn when as they were waking up and smelling what he was cooking. And when he had somewhat nervously offered to let them have a taste, the next thing Jaune had known was Alisa – the owner of the inn – all but unofficially turning him into the new cook, a role he'd been stuck with ever since now, with all manner of people coming by for some breakfast. Or lunch. Or dinner. Or really, just about any kind of quick snack.
Because of this, Jaune had hardly had any real time to go with his team to scout the area for himself, instead having to listen to Pyrrha or Ren – Nora wasn't a reliable teller of information, though she certainly tried, bless her – recount to him anything and everything they've noted and then formulating decisions based off of that. The blond leader though found it most appreciating to know that his friends still came to him amidst his new 'job' and asked him what to do.
"Can't believe I'm a leader…" he thought as he finally finished up breakfast for the time being. In all honesty, he found it hard to believe that his friends take him so seriously or are even trying to keep him involved. They could've easily left him behind here at this inn to be a cook while they went out dealing with the actual mission, but instead they made it a point to come around as often as possible to update him on things and ask him for his opinions/orders. God bless them, they've even tried to help him and Alisa around the inn, though Nora quickly got herself all but officially banned from helping after trying to use Magnhild to hammer in a small yet loose nail in one of the storage rooms.
Now putting some of what he cooked – nothing too fancy if one asked Jaune, just simple scrambled eggs and spam that he sprinkled with a few spices he's found to add more flavor – onto a tray, he then readied himself to take it upstairs.
However, he hardly got out the door before a small group of kids nearly slammed into his legs. "Jaune, Jaune!" they all cried out as they rammed him.
"Oof!" Jaune nearly lost his balance, the tray and its contents almost falling, but he made a quick and admirable recovery. "…Aksel? Lili?" he spoke, speaking to the two 'leaders' of the small group.
Aksel, a young boy perhaps no older than five with shaggy brown hair and grey eyes. Lili, a girl around Aksel's age with pale blonde hair and sharp green eyes. Both kids had very light, almost pale, skin due to the lack of sunlight here in Burgundy, and combined with how slender they were for kids, they looked almost frail. Said supposed frailness certainly didn't make them any less energetic or lively in general; often times, they and their friends could be found running all over the village as if they were constantly on a sugar rush or something. Jaune could attest to that.
"Are you ready to play with us?" Aksel asked, looking up to the older boy with eyes of expectation.
"Yeah, you said you'd play tag with us today, right?" Lili now chipped in, clutching Jaune's pant leg firmly yet with a measure of shyness about her. The lightest of blushes on her face, it was easy to tell that somehow, someway, young Lili had developed a precocious crush on the blond leader. This was a fact that was immediately and painfully obvious to everyone in Burgundy along with Jaune himself and his friends.
"I will. You know I will," Jaune said softly as he balanced the tray carefully. "Just give me about another ten minutes, okay? I need to take this tray up to someone first."
"Oh, you mean that quiet and scary lady?" Aksel asked, referring to Kalma.
"Aksel, you shouldn't be saying that. She's not scary at all," Jaune chastised the kid sternly. "She's just a girl my age, no different from anyone else."
Inwardly though, he couldn't help but at least see why the kids of this village would think such a thing about Kalma. From his brief talks with her thus far, she's been staying in Burgundy for about two weeks now and during her time here, her room has been regarded with much fear by kids due to just how unnaturally cold it was in it and in the area right outside of it. Given how wildly imaginative kids can be and how quick they can come to make things up in general, it wasn't entirely unexpected for them to think of Kalma as being a little scary. The serious temperature drop that occurred wherever she went certainly was a little… off-putting.
That didn't make it right to hold it against her, though. Jaune would personally see to it that these kids understood that much. "I know it's really cold up there, but that's just how things are okay? Kalma is a really nice person."
"Okay, okay…" Aksel replied, looking down. He was almost ready to cry. Out of all the kids Jaune has ever had to deal with, the boy wore his emotions on his sleeve and was quick to act on them. If he was happy, then he'd scream it to high heaven. If he was sad, he'd cry. Simple as that.
Smiling a bit, Jaune delicately moved the tray so that he was carrying it with his left hand alone and then used his right one to ruffle Aksel's hair a bit. "As long as you know, that's all that matters, alright? That goes for you too, Lili. And the rest of you." He ruffled Lili's hair too, making her face get even redder. At least it made her let go of his pant leg.
"Okay," all of the kids chimed, Lili included.
"Now head on outside. I'll be out there, right now." Not bothering to wait for an answer, Jaune already started making his way for the second floor, once again trying not to tiredly sigh.
He didn't know why this was so. His friends didn't know why nor did anyone else in the village. But he had proven himself to be remarkably popular with kids for some reason on his second day here and so playing with them every day now had left him being labeled by Burgundy's entire population as 'the adorkable caretaker' given his general attitude and personality, though Jaune, in his more exhausted and annoyed moments so far silently preferred the term 'the sometimes beleaguered babysitter.'
Reaching the room he'd been looking for, he rapped on the door lightly. "It's Jaune. Can I come in?"
"Y-Yes…" came the reply from within.
Opening the door and then closing it behind him, Jaune was once again greeted with an increasingly familiar sight: Kalma politely waiting for him whilst sitting in the chair near the room's sole table. Once again wearing a hat, Kalma shyly looked to him as he set the tray down on the table for her, placing a fork and napkin alongside it. "Here you go…"
"Thank you…" Kalma replied.
Now this was yet another turn of events that Jaune never would've imagined happening.
It had all happened the first day or rather evening here. Having deduced this room to be the one where someone had been looking at him and his team, he'd been proven right when he'd approached Kalma and asked her. Amazingly, the girl had said that yes she was the one who'd glanced at them earlier.
From that moment, Jaune had asked her why she'd been glancing at them and in response he'd received no real answer beyond 'no reason, really.' From there on that first evening, the two of them had fallen into an awkward silence that Jaune had then tried to clear up by apologizing for just bothering her like this and the likes. Kalma in turn had waved off the apology and instead had tried to apologize to him. Then he had shrugged it off and before either knew it, they'd fallen into this strange cycle of awkward apologies before they had caught onto it, which had been cause enough for them to laugh.
From that moment onwards, Jaune had opted to spend a bit of time with the girl whenever he could after silently noting that she was all alone in this room of hers. And as they talked here and there and got to know each other a bit better, he'd come to learn that she'd come here all by herself and hadn't been with her family for years.
Needless to say, having learned there from a very reluctant-to-tell Kalma just yesterday had set off his protective instincts and he'd resolved to be there for her since he was currently unable to work directly alongside his friends on their actual mission.
"It's really good," Kalma then said as she ate her food, a small smile on her pale face.
"I'm glad you like it," Jaune said happily, trying not to be too taken aback by her smile. This was the first time so far that she's actually smiled. So far during their brief talks, she's looked so very insecure and shy, so seeing her smile made him feel good about himself; it meant that he'd been of some sort of help to her.
Still didn't make him feel truly good per say. Looking Kalma over as subtly as possible, Jaune was quick to note that she was perhaps barely an inch taller than Weiss without her heels. Which made her quite short. Combined with her very slender figure and pale skin and almost abnormally dark hair, Kalma could be deemed by society at large as either a very frail looking girl or a very ethereal looking one. Her eyes, which glowed brilliantly, might make her belong in the latter category, painting her in the eyes of many as a sort of young and supernatural beauty, but Jaune was able to think with his 'upper' head and was therefore one that placed her in the former category.
Of course, the side of him that was controlled by the hormones that plagued all others his age was taking definitive note of the sixteen year old's – Kalma had told him her age the other day – delicate looks and it took a good deal of willpower to keep said side under control. The absolute last thing Jaune wanted was to scare off Kalma just because he couldn't keep proper control of his 'lower' head or something.
Even then, he did note that Kalma was a beauty in her own right nonetheless and that actually made him worry. Unlike other pretty girls he knew such as Ruby – who he feared to check out lest Yang find out and kill him – and Pyrrha – who he feared to let his eyes roam over like a stereotypical hormonal kid out of fear for her entire fanbase to find out and kill him – Kalma wasn't a fighter. This was a fact made known by her lack of muscle mass and her demeanor. And given the number of people so quick to flirt with others here in Burgundy, Jaune couldn't help but worry for her safety. Granted, everyone here in Burgundy seemed like very good people, but his protective instincts were driving him to paranoia for the moment.
While he thought on this, Kalma was having thoughts of her own, the girl oblivious to Jaune's 'dilemma.'
"I can't believe how things have turned out…" the sixth seat thought with mixed feelings. On one hand, it certainly was a great thing indeed for her identity to not have been discovered. But on the other hand, here she was forming a friendship of sorts with a boy that was essentially her enemy by virtue of him being on the ancient magi's side. So she was skirting a very dangerous line here, but alas it was something that she couldn't help but do; Indra had perhaps been the only person of the Holy Knights to really check up on her with genuine care and sibling-like affection, so now that she was all on her own for the time being, she'd found herself missing such a small comfort.
And this comfort of having someone by her side was something Jaune seemed willing to provide to her in spades, what with how often he tried to make time just to check up on her in these past few days. It was a nice feeling, but it was tempered harshly by the reality that sooner or later this happy little time of theirs would come to an end.
Continuing to eat the meal that Jaune had graciously cooked for her, Kalma winced slightly from a form of mental backlash that Surma had unknowingly caused her. "Please settle down…" she mentally spoke to her Relic.
If there was one thing that Surma could be known for, it was his complete loyalty to his master and his powerful desire to keep her safe. The instant she had first come into contact with Jaune, it had taken considerable effort on her part to keep Surma at bay. Although Jaune posed little threat to her and definitely to Surma, the beast wasn't one that'd willingly take a chance with his master's safety. Especially since Jaune had the stench of the ancient magi on him due to all of the time he's spent around them.
Knowing that Surma would have smashed his way right through Burgundy to get to Jaune should it ever come to it, Kalma had strongly requested the beast to stay as far away from the inn as is possible and continue it mission of scouting and mentally mapping the area. Kalma didn't dare put Surma to sleep and draw his spirit back within her, for she feared that if she did so and Jaune ended up unintentionally doing something to set off Surma's protective side, the sentient Relic would manifest directly within the room and slay the teen where he stood.
At least if Surma did try anything, he'd be out in the forest and well away from the village, which would hopefully provide enough of an obstacle for Kalma to get him to heel should anything happen.
But alas, that was a scenario she highly doubted would happen; Jaune was a really nice guy.
"I'm done…" Kalma then said moments later as she finished her breakfast. Wiping her mouth with the napkin slowly, she then gave the tray to Jaune who now stood up. "Thanks for bringing me my meal again. You really don't have, though…"
"But I want to," Jaune replied with a soft smile, making for a sight that actually made Kalma blush a bit at how unhesitant he'd been to say it. With one hand, the blond leader held the tray while using the other to open the door. "It's about time I get going, but I'll try and stop by later again." He paused as he saw Kalma's expression, which appeared to be one of gratitude and uncertainty, though he couldn't understand why that so. "…Unless you don't want me to?" he finished, feeling a little uncertain himself now. Had he become something of a bother to her?
"No! That's not it at all," Kalma replied quickly. Standing up herself now, she walked a little closer to Jaune, having to tilt her head back to look up at him given the height difference between them. "You're… you're welcome here, okay?"
That seemed to lift Jaune's uncertain mood, because the boy's smile returned. "Alright then. I'll stop by later then."
"Okay. See you then." Those were the last words Kalma said before Jaune took his leave. And as the door closed behind him, Kalma removed her hat to reveal her Faunus attributes, a frown of worry and guilt upon her face.
Has she done the right thing in continuing this charade? That was a question she doubted she'd find the answer to soon.
Meanwhile, out in the forest surrounding Burgundy, Surma growled loudly and with the promise of extreme violence, causing any Grimm within its immediate vicinity to turn tail and run.
Through the mental link between it and Kalma, Surma had monitored the interactions that had taken place between its master and Jaune. It didn't like it.
Its number one priority, no matter what Kalma would try to convince it otherwise, was its master's safety. Having encountered Jaune all that time ago back at Beacon Academy, the beast was fully aware of the boy's pitiful capabilities, especially when compared now to his enhanced comrades, who Surma had spotted earlier from a great distance slaying a few Beowulves. However, as weak as Jaune was, Surma could hardly bring itself to like his presence around Kalma. Because no matter how weak the boy is, there is always some kind of chance that he could hurt the girl, which Surma would absolutely not stand for.
Furthermore, although Jaune was weak, the boy had demonstrated admirable determination in the past when he had stood up to it at Beacon. Even though the blond leader had been fully aware at that point of the ludicrous difference in ability between Surma and Beacon's student body, the boy had stood up to it anyway.
That sort of determination, which Surma fathomed to still only be the tip of the iceberg, would be problematic.
But no, what really had Surma rankled so much now was the memory of how Jaune had been able to actually land a blow on it last time. Yes, it had been holding back greatly, may have underestimated Jaune, but nonetheless he had been able to slip through its attack and strike it in the chest. That Surma had also felt the blow was another thing that had been completely unexpected and although it hadn't even scratched it, it was still a memory that seemed to haunt Surma now as it monitored Kalma's interactions with the boy.
Although the beast couldn't quite be sure of it, Jaune seemed to possess a great deal of potential, enough to set its hairs on edge whenever he approached its master.
Slowly but noticeably enough, it seems as if something with Jaune had changed a bit since all that time ago. Surma could imagine that Jaune had trained hard since then, but even then such a thing shouldn't account entirely for this 'shift' that it could detect.
To put it simply, something now seemed off about that boy. And whatever that something was, it worried and angered Surma simultaneously.
This was a thought that made the sentient Relic let out another low growl.
Going on the move again, but at a much slower pace than before, Surma decided on one thing: if Jaune ever decided to lay a hand on Kalma, then no matter his intentions, it would kill the boy.
No matter the cost.
In another part of the forest, the three other members of team JNPR navigated their way through the thick forest with minor difficulty, with the only real issue being the large roots they'd often see rising up out of the ground.
Certainly, the plant life here seemed annoying to an extent.
But alas, that wasn't what plagued their minds right now.
"We should've brought Jaune along," Pyrrha said, a frown marring the usually polite and cheerful redhead. "This feels like the hundredth time we've left him behind."
"Maybe so… but Alisa dragged him into the kitchen a little quickly for us to have done that, I think," Ren remarked, recalling how quick the inn's owner had been to call upon Jaune's surprisingly great culinary skills.
"But even then… it feels wrong to just leave him to act as support like that." Pyrrha now actually grimaced, a rarity given her usual disposition.
But said reaction perhaps wasn't entirely unexpected. Ever since she's met Jaune, she's always been more than a little interested in him due to how kindly yet differently he's treated her compared to everyone else, interacting with her as if she was just a normal girl. And during their time together as a team, she's come to better understand him and genuinely like him for who he is. And by 'like,' she meant as more than just friends. However, due to how serious things have gotten thanks to the activities of the Holy Knights, she hardly had any time alone with the boy to try and hint at her affection towards him.
Her currently sour mood went beyond just that though. Being Jaune's partner, she was well aware of his own troubled inner conflicts and thanks to the people of Burgundy, Jaune was being kept from being able to actually act on his desire to be a leader and hunter. Sure, the villagers all meant well, but Jaune was being unknowingly suffocated by them and it irked her.
"Maybe we should just drag our fearless leader along next time?" Nora suggested then and there. She too was aware of Jaune's worries despite her seemingly childish attitude. And like the other two members of the team, she wanted to lend Jaune a hand too. Though that didn't make her suggestion any less childish.
"I… don't think that'd be a good idea, Nora," Ren spoke up, trying to be polite about this. He strongly doubted dragging their leader would really work since it'd probably come off as being too forceful a method. No, what the quiet teen felt was needed was just giving the blond an opportunity to act upon his desires to be a leader, a hunter, a hero.
But he wasn't sure just how best to do that. It's not as if there's much for Jaune to show off his best traits within Burgundy aside from his cooking skill and surprising ability to easily handle kids. And trying to get him to show off his moves against the Grimm would be incredibly stupid, since that'd run the risk of having the Grimm outright try and crush the village through sheer numbers alone. And as strong as all three of them now where, Ren was certain they'd find such a scenario more than a little trying.
In addition to that, so far, their daily treks through the forest have yielded little in the ways of clues or hints for them to act on. As sporadic as the Grimm within this forest were stated to be moving about, they've only encountered a small handful of Grimm thus far, which wouldn't quite justify an outright Grimm extermination here in the area. Never mind the fact that during the very few encounters they've had so far, the Grimm had been acting randomly the whole time, looking more as if they wanted to keep on running past the three Beacon students or even die by their hand.
As if there was something else they were scared of…
Ren was rattled physically out of his deepening thoughts by Pyrrha of all people, who'd walked up next to him and shook his shoulder. "Ren, just what do you think we should do?"
Blinking numbly, Ren responded a little hesitantly. "I'm sorry, my mind wandered a bit… do about Jaune or the Grimm?"
"Both, I suppose," was Pyrrha's answer. She considered herself a capable individual – she wouldn't have been a four time champion otherwise, if she wasn't capable enough – but serving as a leader was a role she dared not to take up. She knew she was more of a passive person, more content with acting on orders than issuing them… and acting like a leader would feel like a betrayal of sorts to Jaune in a way. So she asked Ren, since he was more of a thoughtful and level headed sort and Jaune had shown privately in the past that he trusted the boy's judgements and opinions.
"Well about the Grimm, I feel we don't know enough yet about the reason behind their odd behavior to truly decide on things," he began. "So I think we should actually consult Jaune on this… I'm sure that'd make him feel a little better too."
Pyrrha and Nora both nodded, agreeing. All they could do for now was simply try and keep Jaune in the loop and hear what he thinks about the whole thing.
So with that decided upon, the three of them began to walk back towards Burgundy.
It was at around this same time that Jaune found himself busy playing with the kids for what felt like the umpteenth time. Aware of the amused stares and chuckles he was garnering from people all around him, Jaune had quickly discovered that the kids' idea of tag comprised of him being the one needing to be chased after while all of them were it.
This was a surprise Aksel and Lili had dropped on him pretty much the second he'd asked them how it was going to work today and before he'd known it, the blond leader had to make a run for it all over the village.
Unfortunately for him, while he definitely had the kids beat in sheer speed, they knew the village like the back of their hands and had the number advantage too.
So before he'd even been able to make it particularly far, all of the kids had practically dogpiled him with praiseworthy effort and Jaune was rendered unable to get up as the kids crawled all over him. But he'd been able to force some off of him enough so that he could properly breathe via the dreaded and ever effective tickle attack.
"Got you, slowpoke!" Aksel exclaimed, pinning down Jaune's left arm.
"Got you, got you!" Lili parroted from her spot atop Jaune's chest, smiling down on him.
"Heh hehe… you sure did, you little cheaters…" Jaune wheezed out. "But I'm not done just yet!" His left arm may be pinned down by Aksel and a few other kids, but Jaune was able to call forth enough strength to lift the kids up, throwing off some so that he can bend his arm and tickle Aksel mercilessly in his side with his now freed left hand. Likewise, he did something similar with his right arm, grabbing Lili and gently pushing her off before alternating between her and a few other kids with his tickling attacks.
The kids all screamed with delight and tried to return the favor by tickling Jaune all over as well, forcing the teen to roll all over the ground, suppressing the urge to laugh as they found his 'weak spots.'
This kept up for a few more hours, with Jaune playing with the kids in a myriad of other games before finally most of the kids went home, having been called back by their parents to have lunch or tend to other chores and stuff.
Now sitting on the steps leading to the inn's entrance, Aksel and Lili were the only kids still hanging around Jaune for now, who sat off to the side.
"That was fun! We need to do that again after lunch!" Aksel said from his spot on the steps, just sitting next to Jaune.
"Yeah!" Lili agreed. Unlike the boy who was actually sitting on the steps, she was sitting on Jaune's lap, the teen ruffling her hair playfully. Evidently she liked the feeling of him ruffling her hair earlier because she had requested for him to do it now.
Jaune weakly chuckled. "I don't know, you two… I do have other things to do, you know?" He hoped he said that gently enough. He didn't want to somehow upset them.
"Oh right, you're trying to be a hunter!" Aksel exclaimed this as if he was recalling something truly shocking. "You have a lot of training to do!"
Jaune winced a bit at the boy's unknowing verbal blow. "Yeah… I do need a lot of training," he muttered. But he forced a full blown smile onto his face now. "But it's what I got to do if I want to be a hero!"
"Oh, like those knights in my mama's and papa's books?" Lili now asked.
"Like that, yeah." Jaune ceased to ruffle her hair, which made Lili pout a bit in sadness, but as he began to pat her instead, her smile and blush returned. "A hero just like those guys…"
"Eh, sounds kinda scary if you ask me," Aksel then said as he started to aimlessly kick at the air. "I mean, don't those heroes always fight like big scary monsters? I would run instead!"
"Yeah, me too." Lili shivered now. "Monsters are really scary!"
Their words actually made Jaune laugh. "Well, I guess I can't blame you for feeling that way… monsters are scary." He paused a bit now, his smile taking on a more somber look. "But if not for heroes, who'd protect the innocent?"
In reality, that is perhaps all he really wanted to do. To help and protect the people around him. Be it his friends or people he doesn't know, he just wanted to keep them as safe as was possible. But just how is he to do that if he's stuck here on the sidelines?
"So… you protect people?" Aksel asked. "From the G-Grimm?" He spoke that word with unhidden fear. Undoubtedly, his parents had told him a number of stories about the creatures that have been plaguing human and Faunus kind for centuries now.
"Yep. And from anyone and anything else that want to hurt people," Jaune replied.
"But… you're kinda weak," Lili said, her words like a cruel blow to Jaune, no matter how unintentional it was. "Can't your friends just do all the protecting?"
"No… they can't. You've probably heard the stories so far from the adults about their fights with the Grimm these past few days… but as strong as they are, they can still be hurt and die like anyone else," Jaune said almost bluntly. "…I wouldn't be able to stand it if that ever happened without being able to do anything to help them. Again, that's why I'm training to be a hunter."
"But… aren't you scared of getting hurt?" Aksel asked. "Or dying? My mama said my uncle got killed by one of those things a long time ago…"
Jaune, for all of nearly a minute, was completely silent. "Yeah, I'm definitely scared of that. I don't particularly want to get hurt and I definitely don't want to die either…" He chuckled a bit and then looked to the two kids. "But it all comes with the job."
Gently lifting Lili off his lap so that he could stand up, Jaune began to make his way towards the inn's entrance. "However scared I might end up being, I'll protect the people… or die trying."
Both kids looked at him with wide eyes. For a moment, Jaune looked really cool to them.
However, this only lasted exactly a moment.
"Jaune!" Alisa exclaimed, the middle aged woman suddenly popping out from the inn and clasping the teen with surprising force. The poor guy nearly went tripping down the steps and the little yelp of surprise he let out most definitely didn't sound cool, if the good natured snickers of some people nearby were anything to judge by. Alisa, for such an aging woman, smiled with remarkable vitality. "About time you got back! I sure could use your hand in the kitchen again! Some people want dinner early and refuse to eat unless it's you cooking, helper boy!"
Jaune weakly chuckled as he tried to recover. But one brief look at the suppressed giggles that Aksel and Lili let out told him that he'd already failed on that front. "…Okay. Give me a quick minute then." He tried not to sigh. He'd meant every word he'd just said to the two children, but even then he'd tried to make it sound as cool as he could manage. And now Alisa had come along to ruin it a bit. Oh well. "Now it's time I take my leave! Can't let these people wait for their hero!" he said grandiosely to the two kids.
Aksel and Lili both got up and started to run away a bit, but not before turning around one last time to look at Jaune. "Whatever you say! But I still think your buddies should be the heroes!" the boy shot out in good, innocent humor.
"H-Hey!" Jaune couldn't help but be flustered by that a bit. "Heroes still need to know how to cook, you know!" But his words fell on deaf ears as the kids had already ran out of sight, having a good laugh the whole time. He grumbled a bit, but couldn't quite help but still feel a little amused. While the kids didn't seem to think much of his abilities either, it was kind of nice to know that they enjoyed his presence so much. If only they didn't laugh at him so much…
"Jaune! They're getting rowdy!" Alisa said, having gone back into the inn and now yelling at him through the door.
"On my way, on my way…!" With a bit of a sigh, the blond boy made his way back into the inn, rolling up his sleeves as he did so. It was time for him to get back to his 'cooking heroics' as he'd now like to dub them.
Hours pass by and with every passing minute now, the sun slowly began to set. Not that such a thing would mean much to the residents of Burgundy; the cloudy skies ensured virtually no sunlight. They only knew the sun was setting because the sky was getting darker, bit by bit.
At this time, people were beginning to close shop for the day, workers now keeping themselves busy simply putting things away and locking down their stores. The older members of the community, such as Hans, proceeded to return to their homes, eager to get to bed a little early. The younger men and women headed to the inn to grab themselves some grub, Jaune's skills having quickly become a hit amongst them and therefore forcing the leader of team JNPR to work more hours than he'd expected as a cook today. It was to the point where his teammates, having returned an hour ago from their trek, to lend him and Alisa some help, with Ren helping wash the dishes while Pyrrha and Nora took some of the meals to the people that had ordered. Some of the even younger people of Burgundy – around team JNPR's age group – had shown up to the inn as well, with some guys still attempting to hit on the two girls while some girls tried to sneak their way into the kitchen to try their hands at hitting on Ren. Truly, it was amazing how much time and effort the teens and young adults of Burgundy were willing to spend in flirting. A result of not having much to do outside of work, team JNPR supposed.
As for the children of the modern-esque village, virtually all of them had been tucked into bed early and were already sleeping peacefully, dreaming fantastical dreams, the kind that were to be expected of such young kids.
However, 'virtually all of them' didn't actually mean all of the children. Aksel and Lili were but two of this minor group that still remained stubbornly awake. Unlike the other children still awake, however, who remained in home with their families, the two children had decided to sneak out of their homes for a while. Actually, it was more like Aksel had snuck out and then gone on to recruit Lili into doing the same thing, but nonetheless the point still stands that they were roaming around at a time when they should be in bed.
"Aksel… can't we just go back home?" Lili asked, stifling a massive yawn. "If mama or papa find out I'm not in bed, they're gonna come looking for me. Same thing goes for my sis too…" As it just so happened to turn out, the very same busty young woman that had boldly hit on Ren the first day the team had arrived also happened to be Lili's older sister, who was just a tad bit overprotective of the young girl.
"Ah, come on, have some fun here!" Aksel replied with a smirk as he led Lili by the hand.
"Where are we going?" Lili asked, relenting finally as she now made Aksel let go of her and follow him of her own accord.
"To the inn," was the boy's brief response.
"To see Jaune?" Lili sounded perhaps a little more hopeful than one would expect of her.
"Nah, to see that one girl; the 'scary' girl." Aksel had to quickly correct his balance when Lili suddenly grabbed a hold of him.
"Eh, her?! B-But what for?!" Lili's eyes were wide with shock and a bit of fear.
Aksel grunted, trying to remove the girl's hands from his shirt before replying. "Cause Jaune said she's not scary at all and I wanna see if he's right."
"But how come you want to see her now?" Lili looked ready to make a run for it, but for whatever reason, didn't. "You coulda seen her earlier!"
"Because scary things are even scarier at night, right? Well, if she's as nice as Jaune says, then at night, she shouldn't be scared at all!" As could be expected of a child, Aksel's reasoning for things bordered on surreal. No one would ever be convinced by such a reason.
Not even Lili seemed to buy that, but she no longer said anything. Instead, she reluctantly proceeded to follow the boy yet again.
However, as the two children neared the inn, they suddenly came to a stop.
Because of the inn's location relative to their houses, the two kids were approaching it from behind, which is usually a dark and often deserted open ended area.
Yet, through means they knew not, Kalma could now be seeing walking away from the inn. Dressed in the same white dress as before and still without any footwear, the young girl didn't seem to notice the two children as she walked towards the forest.
"T-That's the girl!" Lili whispered as she and Aksel suddenly hid behind the nearest thing they could find, which happened to be a pile of logs that someone had left out near their house. "W-Why does she have ears on her head?"
Because of the time and how dark it now was in Burgundy, Kalma had forgone her hat, letting her dog ears enjoy the breeze that now came through the area. The ears even wiggled a bit, as if with delight.
"I… dunno. But she's going to the forest…" Aksel muttered, peeking his head out from behind their cover. Although it was dark, the residents of Burgundy had long since grown used to this sort of thing and as such the kids, much like the adults, had better than average night vision. By no means on par with a Faunus, but enough for them to get by if need be. "…Wanna follow her?"
"Why?! Can't we just go home?" Lili whined.
"Cause I still wanna see if she's scary! And we won't know if we just let her walk off!" Aksel replied quickly.
"Muu…" Lili let out a shrill groan, but didn't offer any resistance when Aksel pulled her along after Kalma.
Pausing for only the briefest of moments as they were about to enter the forest, Aksel gulped… and then charged in after Kalma, dragging Lili behind him.
As for Kalma, the teen Faunus didn't notice their presence at all. She was far too caught up with her own thoughts to pay much attention to her surroundings beyond the fact that everyone was in doors. It was because of this fact and the fact that it's now approaching night for good that she didn't bother with her hat. The wind felt quite nice as it hit her dog ears. Because of how paranoid she was about showing her Faunus attributes during the daytime and anywhere near humans, she rarely if ever went anywhere without her hat. But now that she's done just yet, she found this experience rather nice.
Alas, she didn't come into the forest for just some nice little stroll. She'd come here for a different reason: Surma.
Yes, the beast, as protective as always, had been all but seething as Jaune had stopped by yet against just an hour or so ago amidst the dinner hour to give her a warm meal. Kalma had nearly winced in pain when Surma had let out a low roar when Jaune, as he'd been leaving to head back to the kitchen, had tripped and had fallen backwards into her chest, an experience that made the girl feel more than a little red in the face as she recalled that scene. It took all she had at the time to hold Surma at bay, something that she'd ultimately succeeded in doing, but only barely.
Truly, her Relic had meant it when he had decided that Jaune needed to die if he touched her. Kalma felt bother amazed and ashamed by Surma's resolve. After all, such a moment of contact – as sudden and as embarrassing as it was – had been a complete accident.
But that fact certainly didn't seem to calm Surma much at all and so Kalma felt like she was left with no other choice than to go and confront him directly.
"Maybe… it's time to just head back to base," she thought somewhat mournfully. She could say with complete sincerity that her time here in Burgundy had been rather pleasant, having thoroughly enjoyed the lively atmosphere in spite of her self-imposed isolation from others. The weather was nice and the environment was a sight to behold, the impossibly wide and tall trees making for a rather beautiful thing to lay eyes upon. And…
Kalma actually blushed a bit. Although she's only known Jaune for just two days or so and barely at that, his company had been enjoyable. Despite the risks involved, despite her many worries over her cover being blown, the boy had just been so kind to her and had gotten to know one another a fair bit pretty fast.
And yet, it's because she's gotten to know Jaune that Kalma felt she had to leave. There was always a chance that somehow he could discover her Faunus heritage, something that she wasn't sure on how he'd feel about. And if she was really unlucky, he could discover she was a Holy Knight. And that happened, that'd be… bad.
But really, it was Surma that was the deciding factor here. The beast clearly remembered Jaune well from his mission to Beacon and appeared to hold the boy in some special regard that she couldn't discern. Combined with his overprotectiveness of her and now she had a beast that was itching to rip Jaune apart at the drop of a hat. And considering how many times she's had to order Surma to keep away, Kalma was genuinely worried that at this rate, the beast simply wouldn't be able to stand it anymore and ignore her orders.
That would be bad and for more than just her. It'd be bad for Jaune and for the village, as Surma would no doubt reduce it to complete rubble if it meant killing the blond leader.
And so it was with some measure of steel to her voice that she took that moment to speak. "Surma. Come here…"
At first, there appeared to be nothing happening as the girl stood calmly by one of the massive trees. But then that was when her Relic made itself known. It wasn't an obvious appearance at first, but Kalma could faintly hear the whimpering of some Beowulves and Ursa off in the near-distance, said Grimm moving away as fast as they could manage.
Then out of the shadows, Surma stepped forward. Walking at its full height, the sentient Relic simply towered over Kalma to a ridiculous degree. Its pitch black fur managed to somehow stand out in spite of the night sky above, its eyes glowing ominously as it leveled its gaze upon its diminutive master. The very much alive looking snake that was Surma's tail moved about with a deadly grace, the snake head hissing softly as it maneuvered itself to look at the sixth seat as well.
Kalma leveled a gaze of her own at her Relic/guardian and while there was a sternness to her eyes, there was still a softness as well. "Surma…" She raised a hand and the beast responded, lowering itself so that it was almost kneeling. The beast let out a content hum as Kalma's hand made contact with its face. "I think it's time we leave here… Don't you agree?"
Kalma gained a bit of a hopeful smile as the beast let out a bit of a soft growl, the kind that meant Surma was in agreement with her. This was a good thing indeed. If he was still willing to listen to her and wish to leave, then maybe no one will have to get hur-.
A scream rang out through the night at that exact moment.
Whirling around on the spot with wide eyes, Kalma turned just in time to see the heads of two children poking from around on the trees, their little eyes transfixed on Surma's form. A boy and a girl.
"W-What is that thing?!" the boy, Aksel, exclaimed, the fear evident in his voice as he pointed at Surma.
As if in direct response to the question, Surma rose to its full height instantly and growled. With lightning speed, the beast's lax posture vanished and took on a more primal fighting posture.
Surma was about to attack the two children.
Kalma wasn't having any of that. "No, stop!" she yelled as she proceeded to obstruct the path between her Relic and the kids, who now seemed to snap out of their horrified stupor. "Don't hurt them! They didn't do anything!"
"Y-Y-Y-!" Aksel began to stutter out. "You're a monster too, aren't you?!" he eventually yelled at Kalma. He pointed a shaky hand at her Faunus attributes. The boy, ever so emotional, could be vaguely seen with tears forming at the very corners of his eyes. Even here in the near complete darkness of the forest, Kalma's immaculate green eyes shined brightly, as if to indicate some otherworldly attribute. Combined with how she had spoken so softly and kindly to the beast and how it seemed to do her bidding, and now Aksel and Lili beside him were convinced that she wasn't a human either. She was something else.
And to them, if what Kalma was wasn't human, but instead something completely unknown to them, then surely she was a monster too, like the Grimm.
Kalma's entire body seemed to freeze and her mind all but shut down as Aksel's words struck her to the very core. "Monster…" she whispered as if in disbelief.
Then the memories came flooding back to her.
The abuse; physical and verbal from her hate-filled mother, who had been so worn down by the discrimination that most Faunus tended to face. The feeble attempts by her doormat of a father to try and comfort her after her mother has had her hateful way. The sneers and insults of other people all around her… followed by the eventual murder-suicide that was later performed by her mother, her father ultimately paying the price after the woman could endure no more.
All of these memories about her wreck of a home life followed by all of the time she spent being so sick and frail all on her own… all of it came flooding back to Kalma in that exact moment.
Through the mental link between the two of them, Surma saw all of this and let out a deafening roar. The very ground shook beneath the beast and even the trees, as tall and as wide and sturdy as they are, nearly cracked apart due to being so close to the point of origin.
Aksel and Lili, poor children that they were, got blown back more than ten feet, crashing roughly to the ground, screaming all the while as it happened. It was only thanks to the passive effects of aura, which everyone in the world now had, that they were able to remain relatively unhurt.
And much to their fortune, Surma's roar had been what was needed to truly snap them out of their body-freezing fear. "L-Lili! Run!" Aksel screamed, scrambling to his feet.
The girl that he had dragged along with him didn't bother to reply. She simply followed his lead, screaming all the while.
As they took off, Surma looked to its master out of concern. Kalma's arms had dropped to her sides and now the poor girl was shaking like a leaf, plagued by dreaded memories that Aksel's words had summoned forth deep within her.
It had been this that had made Surma so angry; the boy, as young as he was, had caused its master pain, perhaps not on a physical level, but pain nonetheless. The boy and girl, who had screamed so fearfully at Kalma, would pay for that, pay for the 'harm' that they had inflicted.
But it wouldn't just stop with those two either… no, since they were running back towards the village, it'd make sense for them to seek out the help of the adults. Surma wouldn't allow that.
Letting out another roar, Surma worked its 'power' into it, calling forth the Grimm of this forest. This was but one of Surma's magical abilities. Just as it was a beast of the darkness, so too were the Grimm. Although their origins weren't one and the same, Surma was still as close to a 'relative' of the Grimm as a whole as one could get. Combined with its awesome power, the sentient Relic was an alpha, one to be feared yet obeyed by. It was why the Grimm now began to make their way from wherever they now were towards the village against their will; it was simply impossible to disobey their 'commander's' warcry.
Then without haste, the beast charged forth, traveling on all fours to catch up with the two children.
Which it managed to do in a mere matter of seconds. Traveling at but a quarter of its full speed, Surma navigated its way through the somewhat treacherous forest, slipping through the gaps between the large trees with an unnatural ease. And as it caught sight of Aksel and Lili, both of whom had covered a fair distance in such a short amount of time, the beast let loose a snarl that it knew for a fact the kids could hear.
And hear they did.
"A-Aksel!" Lili squealed, hearing Surma approach fast. "I-I-It's right behind-!"
"Don't look back, don't look back!" Aksel screamed at her, dragging her along as fast as he could due to how much faster than her he tended to be.
He said that as if not looking back would somehow make Surma fall behind. Such was the belief of a child that so desperately wished to live, to be able to see his family and friends again. It was to be expected and it'd be hard for anyone to hold the naivety of this belief against him.
But unfortunately, reality simply doesn't work that way.
In one swift motion, Surma switched from running on all fours to running on its actual legs before slowing in order to gird itself for a brief leap forward. Then with a howl, Surma leapt with tremendous, force, the ground cratering beneath its feet. Lunging forward at the two children, Surma forwent using its claws and instead leaned forward, its mouth open wide.
It was intending to eat the children whole in just one bite.
Although they didn't look behind them for even a microsecond, Aksel and Lili both screamed, sensing their impending deaths coming for them.
But. Their deaths never came.
Having been able to make it within ten yards of Burgundy's boundary, the children had come close enough for the residents, all of whom had exited their houses and had gathered close by after hearing Surma's roar earlier, to see them coming. And oh how the people of Burgundy screamed in fright as Surma's leaping form came into view behind the children.
It had been at that exact instant, when all three had come into view, that Surma's attack was ultimately thwarted.
With an indignant cry, Nora all but leapt out of nowhere, appearing in between Surma and its would-be victims. With Magnhild in its hammer form, the auburn haired girl smashed it right into Surma's bottom jaw, making its mouth snap shut with a sickening crack. Having pulled the trigger as well so that her weapon fired an explosive round powered by mana, Surma ended up getting knocked back into a tree, smashing halfway through it.
"Aksel! Lili!" Jaune yelled as he now ran forward, Crocea Mors drawn and his shield already activated. Being the first to approach the kids, he quickly crouched to their height and looked them over. "Are you alright?!"
"J-Jaune…!" Lili stuttered out his name in a hoarse voice, her screaming having taken a toll on her already.
"Oh, thank God you two are okay…" Jaune allowed himself a moment of relief upon seeing them unhurt.
But that came to an end quickly enough when Surma crawled out of the hole it'd been knocked into, the tree collapsing to the right as it pulled itself to its feet. Roaring in challenge at Nora, who stood at the boundary line between the village and the forest, one could easily tell that it was preparing itself for a battle.
"T-T-That thing was chasing-!" Aksel tried to explain, but was stopped by Jaune.
"We can kind of guess what happened…" He stood up slowly and watched as Pyrrha and Ren now appeared on the scene, standing alongside Nora. His grip on his sword tightened considerably, enough for his knuckles to start turning white. "Just go, you two. Get back right now," he commanded them, his eyes never leaving Surma's form.
"B-But Jaune, you'll…" Lili began.
"I said get back!" Jaune now nearly roared.
The two kids jumped, even screamed at how suddenly Jaune's demeanor seemed to shift. But without another word spoken, they did as they were told, running past Jaune and towards their families, who now quickly ran forward to take them into their arms.
"Hey… Hans!" Jaune then called out, asking for the elderly man just as Surma started to size up his friends. "Hans, get everyone somewhere safe! Somewhere big and sturdy to hole up in!"
If the man in question had heard him and replied, Jaune didn't know. He was too focused on Surma to pay much attention to anything else now. Memories of his first encounter with this beast came back to him and as this happened, he began to sweat a bit.
The blond leader sincerely prayed that this wouldn't be a repeat of what had happened at Beacon Academy.
As if somehow reading his mind, Surma then leapt forth and so did Nora, Pyrrha, and Ren, all of their weapons drawn and ready.
And as all four of them began their clash, Jaune could only run forward now to join in.
What would later be known as the Battle of Titans had now begun.
Oh, how much I can't wait to get to the next few chapters. Seriously you guys, I don't think I can fully express how much I want to start working on the next chapter already. Unfortunately, as I'll be heading to Las Vegas in just a few days, I won't be able to have my laptop with me to do just that. So working on the next chapter or so will have to wait until I come back, likely by the start of next week.
But I'll say this much: once I start working on the next few chapters for sure, you can expect them to be quite action packed. I'm certain that you'll find them most enjoyable and hopefully worth the wait.
So until then, everyone. Take care and please look forward to what I have in store. And once again, please don't forgot about my story "Fading Darkness, Rising Light" on Amazon!