A/N: Aaaaaannnd we're back! Sorry about the delay, folks; that incorrigible ass we call life caught up with me for a brief time. Thankfully, I've given it the slip again, and can once more write! The holidays are approaching, but I'll try and build up a set of chapters to release in case family takes up time. Oh, I just started reading Solora Goldsun's "Once in a Shattered Moon", and it's wonderful.
Enough of that, though: thank you for reading, and pleas enjoy chapter twenty-two!
One last breakfast with Tai and Team RWBY, which Pyrrha spent most of trying to convince Blake to delete the photos of them sleeping on the couch without letting any of their friends know about them, and the whole group was off for the Patch docks. Jaune followed from the rear with Ren and Tai, while Blake and Pyrrha were dragged this way and that by the other girls.
Judging from their occasional whispered conversation, Pyr still hadn't gotten the blackmail material destroyed. Jaune himself wasn't too worried, though; embarrassing as it was, he trusted Blake to not do anything malicious. He was content to just relax and enjoy the show.
He felt eyes on him then, and twisted to see Ren suppressing a smirk, Tai grinning broadly. "What?" he asked defensively. Ren simply shook his head, while Tai's smile grew fonder.
"Ah, don't sweat it kid; you and your partner just remind me of some people." Before Jaune could ask what he meant by that, Tai began again. "I may be joining you kids in Vale soon. At least, maybe a trip now and then to help out." That caught them off guard, and Tai chuckled at their confusion. "Got a message from Glynda this morning: Yang should expect a package from Atlas in a couple months. Once Ruby's done disassembling it fifty times and Yang can hook it up, I think they could loan me out to the city every once in a while." He was watching his daughters now, that same distant, content look to his face.
"It would be a pleasure to see you in action, Tai." Ren added politely. "Ruby and Yang have mentioned some of your exploits before you became a teacher."
"Yup, I was quite the Tai-tan." Jaune bit his tongue to stop any groans, and he thought Ren did the same.
"Oh yeah, this is Yang's dad." When neither boy acknowledged the joke, Tai grumbled about kids not having a good sense of humor, and then starting asking Ren for some of his more applauded recipes. Jaune didn't miss the gleam in his brother's eye, and the two men spent the remainder of the walk swapping meal ideas. Jaune went back to watching Pyrrha.
Rather than the airfield where they had arrived in Patch, they made their way to the naval docks, where one of Patch's regular ferries would carry JNPR back to the city. The very thought of being on the water turned Jaune's stomach, but he couldn't hope for roads everywhere he needed to go. The great green and white beast was already pulled up, a long line of people waiting to get on. "Plenty of normal looking folks: I suppose Vale has calmed down a lot since we left." Tai was nice enough to cover their tickets, despite their attempts to do it themselves.
"Nope! You all took care of my girls, I want to return the favor a bit." He chivvied the four of them to the line, and JNPR just had to accept one more kindness from the man. But then Jaune and his team were confronted with another round of goodbyes. Nora and Ruby were weeping in a crushing embrace like it was a funeral, while Blake and Ren watched from the side, shaking their heads in sync. Yang slapped him on the back, snatching his attention back.
"Been great seeing you guys again, kick some ass for me, alright?" She was smirking, and Jaune pretended to not see the tears. He took a hold of her, feeling her hand on his back and the remainder of her arm on his shoulder. "Stay safe." She whispered.
"We'll be fine, Yang. Take care of yourself, okay?" Yang nodded against his shoulder, before stepping aside, moving to Ren. The fearful look in Ren's eyes made it clear he had no doubt Yang's hugs would be any less crushing one-armed. Ruby stepped away from Pyrrha and toward him, holding out another sealed letter.
"Sorry, Jaune, I got another one." She said sheepishly, but Jaune took the letter, settling it with the others in his pocket.
"It's not a problem, Ruby. I could just get her to call you, you know?" She shook her head.
"It's all about the presentation, Jaune: Weiss taught me that!" She glomped onto him then, and Jaune couldn't help but mess with her hair. A tiny fist buried itself in his kidney, and Jaune bent over dramatically. He clutched his side, falling to a knee making cheesy death noises. "Jaauune!" Ruby whined, while the rest of the gang snorted.
"We really need to work on your hand-to-hand, Rubes." Yang sniggered.
Shocking everyone, Blake hugged Pyrrha: she initiated and everything! Pyrrha was a little taken off-guard herself, but was quick to return the gesture.
Tai clapped a hand on Jaune's shoulder before pushing something into his hands. "Here ya go, kid. Qrow used something different, but I think this should settle your stomach."
"Ginger ale?" He studied the can as if it were one of Nora's grenades, but Tai nodded reassuringly. "I'll give it a try?" Armed with his drink and with his team at his back, Jaune boarded the ship for Vale.
/
"I just, I just don't understand how I never knew about it, Pyr." Jaune murmured in a shocked voice. Pyrrha rubbed circles in his back as the ship rocked, while her boyfriend continued to stare at the can clutched between his hands.
"Well, the important part is we know now." They'd been on the water for an hour, and Jaune hadn't been sick once. Ren, Nora, and she were all pleasantly surprise, but Jaune seemed shaken to his core. She could understand it was a serious change for him, of course, but still.
"This changes everything, Pyrrha. There's so many opportunities! I can fly all the time! I don't need to carry mouthwash everywhere! Or mints!"
"I'd like it if you kept the mints, actually." He locked up, twisting slowly towards her. She let a coy smile flash, and Jaune returned it with a flustered smile of his own. Jaune scooted a bit closer, while she did a quick sweep to see if there was anyone else in their segment of the deck. The ship's motions were lesser in the back, but it was colder, so the two found themselves alone. "Should we be worried about Ren and Nora?" It was usually a bad idea to leave Nora unattended anywhere.
Jaune's arms snaked around her waist boldly, and part of Pyrrha was quite pleased with his confidence. "They'll be fine, Pyr. Ren watched Nora for years, they can spare us for a while." The couple slid closer together, and Pyrrha's belief that Beacon was the best choice she'd ever made was wholly reaffirmed.
…
Nora and Ren had the grace to not comment on Jaune keeping his hood up or Pyrrha having the collar of her coat upturned when the four of them finally arrived in Vale, offloading onto the crowded passenger docks of Vale.
Their fellow passengers mulled about, as did the line of people that would soon replace them on the Patch-bound vessel, but the docks were an ocean of humanity. Soldiers bustled in units all around while others stood on guard. Dock workers and vehicles carrying light cargo surrounded them, and Pyrrha could see the flashes of color that marked their fellow Hunters.
Breaking through the crowd, JNPR navigated to the nearest street before hailing down a cab. The driver was more than happy to tell the four students where the Beacon staff and Vale military had set up, and happily answered any questions they had.
"You kids signing on for their Hunter teams, then? Best of luck to ya: people are tired of looking up to the Cliffs and seeing that giant Grimm." The sight of the frozen dragon hanging from Beacon tower had sent shivers through her.
"What's Vale like, at the moment?" Ren asked the friendly cabbie. He hummed a moment, considering.
"Oh, most of south the river's safe now, and the power's back on in the north part of town since last week!
"Most of East Commerce is still a wreck, East End's swarming with Grimm. Closer to Beacon you get, the worse it is. There's been talk about sending folk up to Beacon, though: get the CCT operating."
"They'll probably want a secure route to Beacon before the move into it." Jaune mumbled, his eyes distant as he no doubt ran through strategies. "It makes supply easier if they don't have to rely solely on airships…"
…
The hectic collection of tents Beacon had gathered in after the Attack was gone. Instead, the effort to take back the academy had moved into a collection of office buildings, with students and soldiers alike in nearby barracks. The tents were still around, or course, but they were neatly ordered and seemed far less crowded. A soldier posted at the encampment's entrance was able to direct them to where the Headmistress had her office, and JNPR made their way into a nondescript building.
After a brief wait for the secretary to be sure Professor Goodwitch could see them, Pyrrha and her team were ushered into an office nearly identical to the one in Beacon. Where there were not bookshelves, there were instead photos: dozens, if not hundreds, of teams of Hunters posed for the camera. Pyrrha had never been able to study the pictures, she'd never been in enough trouble to spend very long in Goodwitch's office, but she had no doubt they were students the older woman had taught.
A large wooden desk was filled to the brim with papers stacked so neatly, that Pyrrha was certain they aligned on a molecular level. A single overstuffed chair rested behind the stacks, occupied by the room's owner, while a pair of simpler seats remained on the other side, and a row of wooden stools sat along the wall. But behind that stack of papers was the professor. "The Headmistress", Pyrrha mentally corrected. The room felt comforting, with the large chairs and thick carpet and wall of papers, yet also intimidating. Or perhaps the intimidation was simply the Headmistress?
Pyrrha could remember the edge of worry in Glynda Goodwitch's voice when they spoke, just days after the Attack. She could see the lines carved onto the woman's face by exhaustion and stress just by settling the students. These past months had not been kind. Glynda Goodwitch had been giving Vale her all, sacrificing everything she could to see to the security of the people while JNPR went on vacation.
"Perhaps not 'vacation'…" Pyrrha admitted, recalling nights waking up screaming and moments of unwanted memory. "No, certainly not a vacation, but nothing to compare to what the Headmistress faced." Yet for all that, the professor smiled for her students, rising from behind the mountain of paper.
"It's good to see you all again. Please, have a seat." She gestured to the chairs and stools. Pyrrha briefly considered whether the four of them could just take the chairs, but decided the look they'd receive would not be worth it. Instead, Pyrrha reached out for the stools and speedily levitated them beneath her friends; Nora was sitting down before it was even there. The team barely registered the mild surprise on the teacher's otherwise stern face.
"I see you've come quite far with your semblance, Miss Nikos." Goodwitch said, voice a hair curious. Pyrrha flushed a little: she'd been pushing her semblance with things like that for some weeks now, but the professor was used to Pyrrha being circumspect with it. The Headmistress didn't dwell on it, thankfully.
"I would like to thank you all again, for your decision to return to Vale. The situation has improved considerably since you left some months ago, but we have yet to recall the students.
"Of course, Team JNPR has extenuating circumstances." Glynda paused meaningfully then, waiting for Pyrrha. She cleared her throat quietly before beginning.
"I first noticed a change the week after we departed: I mistook what turned out to be Amber's memories for nightmares. Soon after, signs of the powers began to manifest themselves. At the moment, they appear to have expanded the limits of my semblance, as well as given me some tangential abilities: I can manipulate objects with trace metals as well as non-metals I've touched, I can generate electrical charges to a degree, and my semblance's general strength has increased as well. We've been attempting to hone my new skills and push those expanded boundaries as well." Goodwitch was nodding along, weary eyes still sharp.
"We don't really know what the plan it," Jaune offered from next to her, "but we'd like to help. We think getting into real fights could help Pyrrha test her powers as well! Plus, you may know more about what Pyrrha might be able to do." The Headmistress shook her head regretfully, however.
"I agree that letting Miss Nikos test herself in Vale would be useful, as well as keeping her nearby, but I'm afraid I can't help in regards to what her powers will become. The Headmaster and Qrow were more active in that field, while my duties were focused on and in Beacon. The other headmasters are both in situations similar to mine, as well." Goodwitch stopped, clearly considering something, and Pyrrha felt a flash of fear at the idea of secrets even greater than the Maidens.
"We may be able to gather more help in the near future, but until the situations in Mistral and Atlas calm, it would be wise to remain in Vale." News of her home piqued Pyrrha's attention though.
"Is there something happening to Mistral?" Her mother had made mention of some troubles as well, had she not?
"I'm afraid they're dealing with a good deal of Grimm, at the moment." Glynda answered gravely. "We don't have any hard details, communication is still difficult, but what we have heard indicates a great deal of Grimm: reports from Mistral though, not Haven. Lionheart's silence is worrying…" The professor briefly shook herself, refocusing from her papers onto them.
"That shouldn't be of concern to you, I apologize. No, your efforts - our efforts -, will focus on securing the eastern portions of Vale. I'll add your team to the Beacon duty roster, and you'll receive notification of where and when to report for missions. I can also find bunks for you in the student areas if you need it?" Pyrrha shook her head briefly.
"Thank you, Professor Goodwitch, but we have a place in the city: my mother is in Vale, and we intend to stay with her."
Jaune leaned forward then, drawing the professor's focus. "Professor? Is Winter Schnee still in Vale?"
"She is, do you need to see her?" Jaune nodded briefly, and the teacher took up her scroll, typing quickly. "Someone will meet you downstairs and take you to her."
"Thanks, Professor." Jaune said, weakly. "We heard some of the details on Vale earlier, but can you brief us? I'd like to be more familiar with the situation." Jaune's request brought a smile to the older woman's worn face. Drawing forth a map and scouting reports, Pyrrha watched as the strained Huntress eased into the lecturer's role, while her admittedly goofy partner resumed a leader's mantle with ease.
"It's good to be back."
/
When JNPR finally stepped out of Beacon's base of operations, Jaune felt full enough of information to take on the world.
Which was probably why the headlock took him by such surprise. Instinct drilled into Jaune responded, his leg kicking out to knock his assailant off balance, but it only resulted in him crashing onto his opponent, a loud "Oof" coming from below him.
"I give, I give…" he heard Blanche wheeze. Jaune hopped up, dragging Blanche to her feet with him before throwing his arms around her. His older sister took a crushing grip before lifting him off his feet, swinging him a bit in the hug.
"Great to see you, Blanche!" He choked out in her iron grasp, trying to crush back. Pyrrha's beautiful laugh drew the two Arcs from their greeting, and Blanche dropped Jaune back to his feet.
Pyrrha stepped forward, offering a hand to Blanche. "It's nice to see you again, Blanche, how have you been?" Blanche accepted the hand, then pulled Pyrrha into a light hug that his partner quickly returned. Nora took an uncompromising grip, while Ren managed to get away with just the handshake.
"Oh, I'm doing alright: good to see all of you. Apparently, I have to take you all to see a certain snooty Atlesian?" He felt his jaw go a little slack, and Blanche smirked at him. "Got a message from the Headmistress a while back, so let's get going." She took off, waving for them to follow.
A few hurrying strides, and JNPR had formed up around Blanche as she led the way down the street, away from the encampments outside the Beacon office.
"You've met Winter Schnee?" Pyrrha asked with not a little confusion, while Blanche just nodded along.
"Schnee is the Atlesian liaison officer to Beacon, and I'm the Valish liaison officer to Beacon, so we get to sit next to each other in meetings." His sister snorted loudly then, rolling her eyes to Pyrrha. "If Weiss Schnee is anything like the Specialist, I owe you for stealing Jaune away from her." Pyrrha's head whipped away, face turning bright red as she inspected her boots. Jaune laughed uncomfortably, also watching where he stepped, while his sister and Nora joined in a maniacal laugh. He felt a consoling hand pat him on the back.
"Sorry, sorry: I'll spare you two from here on out."
"Doesn't mean I will." Nora added sidelong, earning a snicker from Blanche.
"But do you mind if you guys explain what you're doing here? Last I heard, first years weren't being recalled to Vale?" The entire team began a collective sweat drop.
"Well, you see…" Jaune began before petering off, facing his team in panic.
"We were hoping to-" Pyrrha began, just as Nora overran her.
"The Headmistress-" Both cut off, then waved for the other to start.
"The Headmistress wanted to speak to Pyrrha about her account of the Attack, and Pyrrha's mother is in Vale. We decided to speak in person so Mrs. Nikos could see us." Ren's voice was as calm as ever, his smooth cover easing the tension from the rest of the team. Jaune did not sigh in relief when Blanche shrugged at the response.
"General Ironwood left for Atlas a few weeks ago, but he left Schnee and a few more of his people here until Vale is secure. Dad wants to meet up for dinner, by the way." Pyrrha coughed politely, then.
"My mother was hoping to have dinner with the team tonight, actually." Jaune suspected Mrs. Nikos was a little more insistent than that the other day: she hadn't seen Pyrrha or JNPR since semester break.
"Perfect then!" Blanche cheered. "Dad can meet your mom at the same time, I'll let him know."
Jaune noticed a collective shiver run through his entire team, though he wasn't sure why; all three sent him subtle shakes of their heads. Even Nora! She was never subtle!
"Actually, Blanche, I think it'd be better if-" his sister silenced him with a cutting hand, and from one step to another she transitioned from his sister strolling along the street with friends into a straight-backed soldier escorting visitors.
She strode up to a pair of soldiers standing guard outside another office, saluting as she presented her credentials. Nora made to talk, but the glare from Blanche silenced her. The Atlesian soldier made a brief inspection of Blanche's credentials, then waved them aside, calling through his comms that "L.O. Arc to see Specialist Schnee, plus four."
Striding through a small foyer, Blanche whispered to the team: "Sorry about that, they're real sticklers. Look, I'll catch you guys in the lobby, okay?" They all nodded, though Jaune was feeling a little overwhelmed by the stark atmosphere in the Atlesian office.
"Would they really be mad at you for just talking to us?" Blanche shrugged, though her arms remained at her side.
"Maybe not, since you're Hunters, but better safe than sorry." They came to a stop outside another guarded door, this one held by Atlesian Knights.
"Thanks for the help, Blanche." Jaune said, one last brief hug with his sister.
"Not a problem, little bro." She whispered, squeezing him tight. Blanche stepped back, winked at them, then spun on her heel before marching back. Leaving JNPR to face their next encounter.
Post: I realized realized while writing this that I'm approaching the end of When a Plan Fails. It's not imminent, but it is coming. As I said previously, I may continue it if V5 is cooperative, but the original endpoint in on the horizon! It's terrifying!