Chapter 12
A/N: This following chapter contains a lot of dialogue.
The luminous broken moon flooded the streets of Vale with pale radiance, something Ella had not expected as she walked along the sidewalks. Everything was eerily quiet. There were no people, no cars, and all the lights were out, save for only the trail of lit street lamps that Ella walked under. She did not know for how long she had been walking, simply following instead wherever this trail was leading her to.
At one point, the path took a turn around a corner, and she froze in her tracks. A figure stood under the lamplight. She wore an exotic red dress, her skin was fair, and her hair was ashen black and cut back at neck length. Two heels arranged to form a diamond-shaped keyhole were tattooed on her upper back.
Who is this woman?
Slowly, she walked up to her. Time seemed to stretch as she approached her, each step slowing everything further, and also adding to a sense of foreboding growing inside her chest. An evil but familiar aura seemed to radiate from her, in a fashion similar to something she had experienced back at the Emerald forest, except for the foreboding that had now changed into dread.
But she could not let that stop her.
Time had stretched on to a near-eternity before she had gotten close enough to reach out and touch her, but now she was there, and she reached out. Shakily. Her heart racing in her chest, screaming at her to run away. But her curiosity was stronger, overcoming the terror.
Her trembling hand clasped onto the woman's bare left shoulder. There was a soft, startled gasp, and as Ella gently spun her around– Beep! Beep!
Line-break to the waking world
Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!
The sound of the alarm clock woke her up as her eyes shot opened, but then closed shut with a groan. She reached out lazily to press the button, but missed a couple times before pressing the right one to shut it off. She sat up with one hand to keep her propped up, and rubbed her eyes with the other to get rid of the tiredness. She looked at the alarm clock. The usual 8 AM. Then she let her mind wander back to the dream she had.
'Just what kind of dream was that?' She mentally asked herself as she absently brushed the left side of her hair back, momentarily ignoring how it stubbornly refused to stay in place and fell back next to her face, her mind lingering on the strange dream and the terrifying woman.
'For some reason she felt… familiar to me, so why was I afraid of her?' Her mind, still dazed by the ordeal, struggled to understand. The woman had scared the life out of her. But she was a simple woman. It did not make any sense.
Her gaze wandered towards her desk, where her personal Scroll lay. It was not flashing this time, and this struck her as odd. Lazily she stood up and picked it up, pulling it open to reveal the clear glass, holographic display menu.
"Let's see what you have in store for me today," she murmured in wonder as she tapped the 'Schedule' icon. She looked at the date and list—
'Wait, what? Nothing… today?'
She stood still for a second, quizzically staring at the Scroll. This had rarely happened to her before during her months here, but that had been during the summer.
'So what now?'
'For the time being, a shower. That will clear my mind.' She closed the Scroll, grabbed a fresh batch of clothes, and went into the bathroom to get ready for the day.
40 minutes later
Ella walked through the halls of Beacon in the same attire she had worn the day prior, still wondering what to do with all the free time she had available to her. She could head to the gym for practice, but she was more of a private person, and the students would already be using the gym for their training, so she would have to abandon the idea for now. She thought about hunting Grimm for practice, but today was initiation day, and she was not allowed to hunt in the Emerald forest until it was over.
That was another thing she thought about: initiation day, when students from different academies around Remnant have their training be tested to join Beacon. It was a complicated affair. Students were required to pair up and hunt for a relic piece during the course. On top of succeeding on their hunt, they had to match their piece to that of another pair in order to assemble the four-member team they would be part of during their stay on Beacon. Failing at any point meant being dismissed on the spot, and the hunt itself was no trivial affair, what with the off-chance of getting killed, but Ella did not believe they would have anyone to mourn. Ozpin had very exacting standards when handpicking students.
The strangest thing about it, though, was that it had to be kept a secret from the hopeful first year students. The staff members (including her) and the current students residing here were told never to reveal anything to the student hopefuls what the initiation entailed, simply to let them guessing and spreading rumors amongst themselves until it started. She guessed this had been a thing made up by the Headmaster for quite a while.
Glynda had told her all of this, and it would have been interesting to watch, but she had no means of seeing it herself. So she was left with other, more leisurely options. She thought about the gardens and the library, and believed they would be a good idea for relaxation, so she added those two to the list.
As she walked, some second and third year students passed her by, a few greeting her, others simply continuing their way. She recognized none of them, except for one she was all too familiar with; a certain Gatling gun toting girl with a penchant for fashion, and the leader of team CFVY (coffee). She was also accompanied by a rabbit faunus girl who she would believe to be her friend and teammate.
Ella recognized the fashionista right away. Coco Adel; a teenage girl with fair skin, short dark-brown hair, and dark-brown eyes. She had wavy locks on one side of her face, dyed with a gradient that starts in dark brown and transitions to caramel.
Her clothes consisted of a long, cocoa-colored shirt with a dark brown waist cincher. She wore long, dark brown trousers with ribbons on the left side and a brown belt with bullets. Above it, she wore another cocoa-colored belt of bullets with a gold crosshairs buckle. A drape of black skirt hangs on her right side. She wore a pair of dark brown, high-heeled leather boots with buckles.
Coco also donned a number of accessories, such as a bracelet with black roses as decoration; these were accompanied by black gloves and necklaces. She wore a beret of a darker brown and a pair of black, wire-rimmed aviator sunglasses.
"Well if it isn't the Old Fashioned Huntress," said a smirking Coco, referring to the video and the outfit Ella had bought a while back. "I see you've grown your hair by the way, I like it."
"Thanks, it's good to see you, too, Coco," she smiled back. "It has been a while."
"Likewise," she nodded. "Not to be picky and all, but I still think you should have gone for something more modern than this."
She giggled. "I appreciate that you helped me find some things to wear, and I believe I have enough of those as it is. But like I said, I prefer a certain charm of sophistication. I believe you haven't introduced me to your friend." She implied to the faunus girl.
"Oh, yeah!" She realized as she raised her eyebrows. She then placed her hand on her partner's shoulder. "This is my teammate Velvet." Her full name was Velvet Scarlatina. The rabbit girl had long, brown hair and brown eyes. Her combat gear was comprised by a short, long-sleeved brown jacket with a golden zipper, brown shorts with golden detail and black leggings. She wore a black, semi-translucent undershirt beneath her jacket, along with golden spaulders and vambraces on both arms, as well as a golden belt, and her heel and toe were likewise protected.
She bobbed her head lightly in greeting. "It's nice to meet you, miss."
"Likewise," she nodded, "Coco had told me you are quite the photographer."
Velvet blushed rather lightly. "It's simply just a hobby, really," she said softly and looked away shyly, a little embarrassed about her hobby and secret weapon. Ella tipped her head slightly sideways, wondering why she would be so shy about it.
"You have to forgive her," said Coco protectively. "She tends to be shy around people wherever she goes. Speaking of which, where ya headed?"
"I'm not really sure," she shrugged. "I have the whole day to myself, so I just thought I might head to the library to pass the time."
Coco scoffed. "Booooring! You should totally head out to town and have fun instead of being cooped up here."
"I don't really know about that," she retorted. Before Coco could argue further, Ella's Scroll buzzed. Curiously she brought it up. A diamond shape flashed, indicating that someone was calling her. She tapped the icon and put the device to her ear: "Who is it?"
"It's me, Iosefka," came the reply.
She raised her eyebrows in a small bit of surprise. "Oh, what are you calling for, doctor?"
"I was planning to head out into town to pick up some tea leaves I had ordered. Unfortunately the staff here is too busy, and I'm hoping you have nothing else to do for the time being."
She paused for a bit to think. Even after two months of visiting the city from time to time, and almost knowing every nook and cranny when working at night with Eileen, she was still uneasy amongst the crowded street. There were several instances where she almost killed someone out of habit, and a couple incidents where she nearly had an episode done from certain triggers, and if Eileen were not there with her the whole time it would have been worse. But she had improved to the point where she showed restraint when hunting criminals, and being amongst the crowds would not bother her too much. It was part of her recovery program at the time, but now it was simply by choice, and she simply would not do with sticking around the academy.
"Ella, are you there?" Iosefka asked a little anxiously after Ella did not answer for a small minute.
She shook her head a little of the thought and made her decision. "Sorry, I was just thinking, and yes you are correct, I don't have anything else to do."
"Ah, splendid! Will you be coming along then?"
"Yes, doctor, I will come along." She answered sincerely.
"That's good to know, I'll meet up with you at the courtyard then. See you then."
"Of course, but that might take awhile." She explained, catching her before the woman would hang up. "I'll have to head back and change if you don't mind."
"I do not mind at all." She reassured, "I'll be seeing you then."
"Good day." She hung up the call and looked to the two students. "Guess I'll be heading to the city after all."
"Well, don't let me get in your way." Coco said as she smirked and crossed her arms in silent triumph.
She bobbed her head. "It was nice seeing you both." And so she turned back the way she came and headed back to her quarters to change.
25 minutes later
Iosefka stood in front the Bullhead, waiting for her friend to arrive. The Good Doctor wore a dark green coat dress which reached halfway down her ankles, form fitting trousers, ankle length socks and laced heeled shoes. She carried a purse with a long strap which she had over her shoulder. She was currently musing about her work until she heard footsteps coming her way.
"Ah, Ella, you're here." She said when she looked to see Ella in a different outfit this time. Ella, for her part, had switched her morning dress coat for a very similar one, except for being black on the outside and vanilla on the inside, having a shorter tail and no ornamentation whatsoever, the unbuttoned neckline revealing the ornate white undershirt. The rest of her outfit had remained unchanged: black pants, white socks and black heeled shoes.
"Hope I haven't kept you waiting." Ella said.
"Nonsense, I had just gotten here ten minutes ago. So, shall we head off?" She gestured to the open door of the transport shuttle.
"Yes, let's." They both soon took their seats as the door closed, and soon the Bullhead took off towards the city air docks. Meanwhile, the two had begun to converse about yesterday's experience.
"So, Ella," Iosefka started, "how did yesterday go for you?"
"Yesterday was… interesting, I think." Ella responded as she thought about it. She leaned back against the wall, but then her face turned solemn when she thought about her training. "Can't say the same about my sparring match."
"You've been beaten again?"
She sighed in annoyance. "I almost had her," she seethed as she clenched her raised fists, then unclenched them as they fell to the seat as she then sighed.
"Well it shouldn't be all that bad." She attempted to reassure her. "I was told you lasted nearly forty minutes with her. That's quite a record if I do say so myself."
"That's easy for you to say." She retorted as she looked back at her nonplussed.
"Still, you are well on your way to becoming a full fledged Huntress."
"You know what, let's just talk about something else," she sighed.
"Hmm, alright, how did things go with the students yesterday?"
"It was alright. Met a few familiar faces." Then her face suddenly lit up when she remembered her encounter. "You know, speaking of students, I had just run into Ruby Rose yesterday."
She perked up at this. "Really? The girl who stopped a Dust robbery by herself?"
"The same one." She nodded.
"Hm, well if she's here, then that means Ozpin was involved in getting her in." She then chuckled. "I'm not surprised, though. He does have an eye for potential and talent when he sees it. So what have you learned of her?"
"Well," she thought for a bit as she tapped her chin with her index finger. "For a fifteen year old girl, she is socially awkward. Plus she doesn't like to be treated as if she's special or anything. And also…" she paused as she began to lower her head and smiled as a small blush formed on her cheeks.
"Yes?" She asked as her eyebrow perked up at her sudden pause. She also smiled in anticipation.
"… she is my fan." She answered.
Iosefka giggled at her answer. "Ohoho, I suppose she asked you for an autograph?"
"Yes." She nodded while still smiling. Their descent had begun to slow down, and soon it landed with a soft thud. The doors opened and they mechanically got out of the air shuttle.
"I remember you used to hate autographs." Iosefka stated.
"That's because I did not understand the meaning behind it then." She retorted.
"Hm, well since you had an interesting encounter, my own encounter was the worst!" She exclaimed in annoyance at the memory.
"Really, do tell."
She first inhaled to get her bearings together, then exhaled to relax a bit before the storm. "Just yesterday, just when I had everything prepared for tomorrow's injured from initiation; two battered boys, both of them having a black eye, were brought to my front counter by Professor Port. And believe me when I say I know those two 'dalcops'!"
Ella snickered as she raised her eyebrow to that unique name calling. "Dalcops?"
"Yes, it means hairy idiot in the english language. Now, I've known those two since their first year, and they've been nothing but gluttons for both trouble and punishment. Whenever they went on a mission, or in this case any class activity, they come back injured with a few broken bones or something else. Don't get me wrong, they're quite a force of nature when they work together, but their lack of caution just gets me on my nerves!" She sighed.
"So what did they do this time?" She asked curiously.
"They were fighting each other over a first year girl. I believe he said she was a 'blonde haired bombshell'? Tsk, teenage dalcops." She rolled her eyes as she muttered that last sentence. Ella closed her eyes as she laughed, and she could hazard a guess as to who they were referring to. Right now the streets of Vale were busy save for the sidewalks. That felt more like a relief to Ella as the two walked through the commercial district of the city in silence. Though it did not last long as Ella had a thought, a thought that had to do with yesterday's speech. She could only hope that the doctor would give her the answer.
"Sef?" She asked her name in short.
"Yes?" She responded as she turned to her.
"Yesterday, Ozpin gave a speech which sounded more discouraging, as if he were disinterested in the students attending. Why did he do that?" Now was the moment of truth, and she waited with near baited breath to be given the answer. She did not have to wait long, however, because thankfully, the doctor did have an answer to that, though there was more to the answer than she had thought.
"I'm a little surprised you hadn't caught onto the message behind it. You see, he was simply testing them, to see their determination in their choice of coming here. Because once you step forward, there is no going back from the dangers that lie ahead of them. This is a prestigious academy after all, and he expects none but the best to attend here. So, do you get it now?"
"...Yes, I do. Thank you." She was a bit stunned that one of her theories was correct, but it also brought another thought to this answered theory. If her new theory was correct, and if Ozpin had encouraged them to stay rather than test them, then this academy would have been full very quickly. Soon there would have been no room in the dormitories to fit that many students.
To simply put it; it was better to have quality over quantity.
"Which reminds me…," Iosefka wondered. "About your memories, how are they coming along?"
"Sadly, they have been coming to me rather slowly since initiation, or perhaps too slow." She replied solemnly. "Ever since I remembered my full name, barely anything else had come forth. I don't understand why this is happening."
"And it's been like this for nearly three months you say?" Ella nodded, then the doctor hummed in thought for a bit before coming up with a theory. "You were being very diligent on your education and training, correct?"
"Yes?" She nodded.
"Then maybe those had something to do with it. You have been staying so focused on those two subjects that you never have been given enough time to let your mind focus elsewhere."
"So that's the reason," Ella asked herself under her breath.
"Don't get me wrong, I truly respect your dedication to your re-education. But starting today, you can finally have more breathing room to let your mind wander."
"Hmm, maybe, but my job as an assistant professor should come first."
"I understand."
They both went back into walking in silence, Ella merely following alongside the good doctor as they pass by many of the storefronts until, after walking through the district for nearly thirty minutes, the doctor turned to enter one the doors. Ella stopped and looked up to see a hanging sign reading "Nirvana Glade". Curious, the Good Hunter went inside and saw in awe that the shelves and tables were filled, from different tea sets to the many tea varieties anyone would want to buy. Being a fan of tea herself, she could not help but be amazed at the many ingredients possible.
"Welcome to Nirvana Glade," the store clerk standing behind the counter welcomed with a business smile, but then he realized who the customer was. "Ah, lady Ashcroft, welcome back! Have you come to pick up the usual?"
"I was told that my order just came in today, good sir," Iosefka answered to the store clerk in her usual civil manner. "I'm here to retrieve it."
"Ah, yes, the package just came in today. I'll be right back with your order then, miss."
"Thank you," she nodded. The man left the counter and went inside the inventory room. As she waited, Iosefka looked around to see Ella browsing around the store, admiring the tea varieties that were in stock.
"Is there a specific kind you would like to try, Ella?" She asked.
"O-oh no, I'm just simply browsing about."
Iosefka shook her head in disagreement. "Nonsense, go ahead and try whichever one you fancy," she encouraged Ella. "I'd suggest you try the Kiro Oolong tea mix, it's good for calming the nerves and your health." Her suggestion was met with a bit of confusion, which prompted the doctor to add a few details with a little embarrassment: "Oh, I'm sorry. The store clerk can brew your choice of ingredients into tea, although it's a bit more expensive to do so."
"Oh. Well, in that case I'll try it." Soon after, the store clerk came back to the counter from inventory with a small, ornately carved green box.
"Here it is, ma'am," said the clerk as he set the item near the register. "One box of Tegran Tea leaves. Would you like to have it in a bag?"
She bowed gratefully. "Yes, thank you." She watched as the clerk packaged her order into a paper bag. After he handed it to her, she gestured to Ella: "My friend here would like some Kiro Oolong tea."
"Will that be in a mix or brewed?" He asked as he looked at the Good Hunter.
"Brewed, please," was her polite reply.
"Okay then." He went to grab the two ingredients as he asked another question. "Will that be small, medium, or large?"
"...I'll go with small."
He hummed in confirmation. After scooping up the two ingredients and mixing them together by shaking the container, he then went back behind the counter and used the brewing machine to make the tea. While the tea was being brewed, Ella had something on her mind that she wanted to ask about.
"Do you come here often?" She asked the doctor.
"Of course!" She beamed. "It's been my favorite shoppe for three years since its opening, so the clerks and owner know me by now. I truly recommend you come by this place."
Ella giggled at the offered suggestion. "Well in that case, maybe I should come here. Speaking of tea, what is Tegran anyway?"
"Tegran leaves are one of the best medicinal tea leaves you can ever find. They're grown on the mountains in Mistral on a certain month, which is August. Unfortunately, since they only grow on certain mountains they are very rare, so they do tend to be very expensive when produced in a small quantity, but those who can afford to purchase these leaves receive quite the plethora of benefits."
Ella raised her eyebrow, becoming curious as to the properties behind these exotic leaves. "Really? What makes them so special?"
"Well, it is rich in antioxidants and contains various minerals and vitamins that are beneficial for your health. So when brewed perfectly, it can prevent tooth decay, provide gum health, strengthen bones, protect the heart, regulate blood pressure, and relieves stress and anxiety. And of course, like all other medicinal teas, it can help prevent cancer. It also benefits the health of your skin, giving you that anti-aging look. Which gave it the legend that, if you drink Tegran tea once a day, your aging would be slowed down considerably. Of course, it's just simply a legend."
Ella blinked at this and gave her a dubious look. "You make it sound as if it were some sort of… 'miracle tea'."
She chuckled at the name being made. "It may be a fantastic find, but it is by no means a miracle. I should have you try it sometime."
"Well, if they're as rare and beneficial for your health as you say… wait, you said they grow on certain mountains, so why is it they're so rare?"
"Well…" she was about to answer her when they heard coughing from the counter.
"I'm sorry to interrupt you," the clerk excused himself, "but your tea is ready."
"Oh, thank you." Ella walked up to the clerk as he then set the sealed cup on the counter.
"That will be thirty lien." He said after typing in the amount.
"Alright then." She pulled out her wallet and counted through the number of lien she had. She soon took out forty lien and gave it to him.
"Thank you." He went through the register and gave back ten lien in change as the receipt was printed out. "Here's your receipt, ma'am."
She nodded as she took both the receipt and the cup in one hand. Holding it up nearly at face level, she examined the closed lid, noticed the instructions to open it, and peeled it back with her left hand. An inviting vapor rose at once, filling the air with a sweet aroma that sent a wave of pleasure up her nostrils. She took a small sip, careful not to burn her tongue; the taste was so good that she closed her eyes and sighed through her nose in bliss.
The clerk looked on with a knowing smile. "Is this your first time with tea, miss?"
She blushed slightly. "No, it's just that I never tried this tea before." She turned to Iosefka with a relieved smile. "Thank you Sef."
She giggled a little at the compliment. "I'm glad you liked it. So, shall we go?"
Satisfied with the drink, she and her friend bid the clerk farewell, and were about to walk out with their respected purchases, but then Ella stopped as she noticed Iosefka had not paid for her tea.
"Wait, aren't you going to pay for that?" She asked as the doctor turned towards her.
"Hm? Oh no, I already paid for this in advance. So there's no need to worry," she assured her.
Or tried to. The attempt only stumped Ella further. She narrowed her eyes at her: "Um… how?"
Now it was Iosefka's turn to be confused as she raised her eyebrow. "…Online shopping?"
This was an entirely alien concept to Ella. "…What's 'online shopping'?"
Iosefka's eyes widened and her mouth opened, flabbergasted to the point where she almost dropped the bagged wooden box, hardly able to believe that, after nearly three months of being in school, she still knew next to nothing about the CCTN.
Unbeknownst to them, even the store clerk was dumbfounded when he heard the question.
'Was she living under a rock or something!?' Was the first thought that came to his mind. "Are you sure you don't know what online shopping is, miss?" He asked as politely as he could.
"I–uh," she tried to answer but felt embarrassed under the people's gazes. She really did not know how to explain this or what it was, so why were they staring at her like that?
It took a split-second for Iosefka to notice the clerk's confusion and snap out of her stupor: "Oh, apologies! Please forgive my slip. My friend here is a recovering amnesiac. Some things she remembers, but some others we have to teach to her again from scratch. We haven't really reintroduced her to CCTN yet."
Ella did not need to struggle much to show embarrassment. "Yes, um… sorry. For being so much trouble." The bright blush and the way she crossed her arms defensively were no fabrications at all. Still, to a point it was an act, so she waited a bit with baited breath, hoping the clerk was none the wiser in catching on.
"O-oh, I'm sorry miss! I did not know you had that kind of condition. I do hope you get better." Iosefka quietly exhaled through her nose in relief.
"Thank you," Ella replied with a hesitant smile.
"Alright then, now shall we go?" Iosefka asked Ella, and after telling the clerk their goodbyes again they finally went out the door and away from his sight. Once safely out of sight, she asked the Hunter:"Do you really not know about online shopping?"
"To be honest, I never even heard of it." Ella honestly answered.
"Oh dear," the doctor muttered as she pinched the bridge of her nose with her right thumb and index finger while holding the box close to her stomach with her left hand. "How much do you know about your Scroll?"
"Only the basics. It did show other icons which they did not bother to tell me, so I never bothered with them. My days are usually too busy to spend time experimenting with a fancy gadget."
"Hmmm, tell you what. Once we're back at Beacon, I will show you everything there is to know about your Scroll, deal?"
"Deal," She said with an assured smile as she nodded, but then she wondered about what the doctor was about to explain about the tea leaves. At least they were away from any interruptions this time. "So what were you going to say about the tea leaves?"
"Hm? Ah, yes!" She hummed as she thought back to the story she had read about, and had decided to tell her the short version of the story. "Well long ago, back before the Great War even began, some of the Mistral nobles once tried to seek answers to eternal beauty. Eventually one of them did discover the Tegran leaves, and high demands for the hunting of these plants soon came after. With only one Tegran bearing mountain left, it took the effort of a group of herbalists to stop the nobility from harvesting the plants to total extinction. To this day, efforts are still being made to repopulate the Tegran leaves, and so far, only four mountains have been repopulated."
"Wow. All that greed for just one particular herb…," was all she could say. She already knew very well of humanity's appetite and skill for destruction, but evidence of its talent for preservation was much rarer to come by.
"True," she nodded. "Of course, I did get this knowledge from Dr. Oobleck. Which is how I came to love this tea."
She nodded, she could agree to that, but then a thought occurred to her; what should they do next? She did not plan on buying anything today, so she looked to her friend, to see what she would want to do. "So, where shall we go next? I'm sure we've got plenty of time before initiation ends."
It did not take much thought for the Head Nurse to ponder about her other plans for this morning. "Well, I believe the market stands are nearby. I plan to do a bit of grocery shopping, since I'm running rather low on food in my apartment." Iosefka saw that Ella was being a little uneasy of her next route, and she knew why. "I'm pretty sure you have gotten better over the months, but just in case you stay by my side." She nodded in confirmation, and the two walked further into the commercial district.
Time-skip
The farmers market square in the commercial district was not as packed as Ella thought they would be, but it still had plenty of customers going about checking every ingredient available. She walked next to the doctor the whole time, watching her examine many fruits and vegetables, checking their surface, firmness, coloration, etc. As a medical professor, she was very critical in choosing the right ones, and so far, Ella had ended up carrying one bag of fruits and vegetables while the doctor carried her own. For a normal person, they would have been almost heavy to carry, but she was no normal person. Having been exercising under Eileen's instructions, additionally with her Aura being used to dull the aches and keep the blood flowing through her veins, Ella was strong enough to carry them with relative ease. A superior physical form was needed to sustain the unique skills of a Hunter after all, even though she still looked rather slender.
Plus, she quietly thanked whoever invented straps for bags, otherwise she would not have been able to enjoy her tea.
Now they were standing at the herb stall while Iosefka picked which herbs to buy as flavor for her next recipe. Meanwhile, Ella looked at all the choices of herbs, but she did not focus entirely on the leafy items in particular. Her mind wandered back to the dream, the strange, fearful feeling she had when confronting her from behind. Looking at the doctor as she made her purchases, an idea had come to her that perhaps the good doctor could decipher them. Although she was only a well renowned professor of medicine, she could only hope that she had some knowledge on dreams.
"Okay, I think that is everything now." Iosefka said after making her purchase and carrying the bag in her left hand, along with the bagged box. "I believe it's time we should head back, don't you think?"
"Sure," she nodded, and the two soon went out of the market square and took a different path back to the air dock. For the whole ten minutes they walked side-by-side without a word being exchanged, being content with what they had gotten before Ella finally broke the silence. "Hey Sef?"
"Yes Ella?"
"How much do you know about dreams?"
She hummed in thought for a bit. "Sorry, I'm not really an expert in that sort of field, why do you ask?"
She sighed. "Well, I just had a strange dream last night that I can't quite understand. I was hoping you might help me answer it."
Iosefka stayed quiet for a bit, pondering on her choice of words. "Well, I may not be well versed in dreams, but I am willing to listen."
Ella nodded, she compiled her story in her mind before beginning. "Okay. So, I was walking in the streets of Vale at night, following a trail of street lamps until I turned around a corner. That's when I saw this woman. Her back was facing me so I did not know who she was, but something within me told me she felt familiar. So I went up to her to take a look, but as I closed in, I felt aversion, then fear, and then stark terror, like something was screaming at me to run away, but still I pushed on and reached her. Just when I was about to see who she was the alarm clock went off.
"The one thing I just don't understand is why this fear? Why should I even be afraid?" She sighed again, after retelling her story, the doctor hummed as she went into pondering for a bit, until she finally grasped something which actually made sense.
"Perhaps it is not because of the fear coming from her, but perhaps it's because you are afraid of who she is." She queried.
"What do you mean? I wasn't afraid, I was curious!" Ella scrunched her eyes as she looked at her dubiously.
"That is not the point, Ella. The point is that you are afraid of the unknown. You said she felt familiar to you, correct? What if that was your sister, and if so, what has she been doing? What has she become? Does this not make you feel nervous?"
"Well… when you put it that way, I guess it… kind of does make me feel uneasy", she muttered, her voice trembling slightly.
"See? If I had a relative whom I haven't seen in years, which I definitely don't have, then I would be quite nervous, too."
"And here you said you were no expert", she remarked with a slight grin. She felt a little relieved now that she had found an explanation to her dream that made sense. Even if it brought yet another slew of questions to needle her. If it was like Iosefka said —and the chances of that were long indeed—, then could that woman be her sister? And what had happened to her? It was saddening she could not remember her, only knowing of her existence through the silver locket she wore around her neck.
"Yes, I did say that, but what you had just explained to me made sense. Or perhaps I could be guessing", she teased with a smile.
"Well, for a woman in her early forties, I would say you're quite knowledgeable." She brought her cup to her lips and was about to have another sip of tea, but she was startled by Iosefka's sudden outburst of laughter:
"Ha ha ha ha! Oh, Ella, that's so sweet of you to positively think I'm that young! But truth be told I'm actually fifty nine years old!"
Ella did a double take as she looked a her features. "How is that possible!? You look rather younger than that!"
She giggled at her confusion. "Well that comes with the perks of being the best doctor in Remnant!" She boasted proudly.
Her braggadocio annoyed her slightly. "Alright, spill it. What's the trick?"
"Hahaha. Now now, Ella, you're clearly not old enough to learn my secrets! How about you wait until you're forty, hmm?" Again she teased her, with raised eyebrows this time.
"That's not fair", she sulked.
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Unbeknownst to them as they talked, they went by an antique shop displaying an assortment of old, outdated items set up behind the store windows for window shopping. One of the items which stood out amongst the rest was a mannequin like doll, taller than any doll ever seen, sitting on a handmade rocking chair. This doll wore clothes that would have come from Victorian era England. Her porcelain, human-like face was the color of pale white, and her grayish blonde hair was covered mostly by a hat. The passing presence of her mistress opened her lifeless blue eyes, watching the Hunter walk by, with the back her head shown to her. She suddenly stood up from her chair, careful not to trip over anything as she made for the exit…
Much to the shock, bafflement, and heartbreak of the store clerk who watched it all happen.
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The two women walked in silence after Ella's hopeless attempt at convincing the doctor to reveal her secrets, oblivious to something or someone following behind them — or not: Ella did feel that someone was following her, but she dismissed it on the spot, chalking it up to her mind having another fit of rampant paranoia, an unhealthy habit she was trying to break.
But then, it was impossible to ignore the strange looks people walking past them would sport. Was it them, she thought, and discarded it after a moment of discrete scrutiny.
Out of a hunch she softly grabbed Iosefka by the arm and took a random turn around a corner. The doctor was startled, but said nothing and played along. Ella interrogated her senses: the presence continued to hound their steps, closer now.
So in a single, blindingly fast motion, she shoved Iosefka ahead of her, ditched the bags of produce and tea, whirled around and lunged towards their stalker's throat, her outstretched palm now a lethal weapon…
Except that the throat was a lot higher than usual.
Her outburst of adrenaline gave way to mind-numbing shock. She dropped her mouth open, hardly able to believe her eyes.
"Ella…?" Iosefka ventured cautiously, her back still turned on her. There was no answer, but neither were the sounds of fighting the Good Hunter's sudden outburst had caused her to expect, so she slowly turned around.
The sight that greeted her eyes was beyond strange. The person was a tall woman, taller than any woman she had ever seen, and if she were to guesstimate, she may be a head taller than Ella. Her outfit consisted of a dark brown corset, and a black dress coat with white sleeves underneath. A dark brown laced shawl draped over her shoulders, a black long skirt reaching down to her ankles, and worn ankle length laced shoes. She had a dark pink bow tied to her neck with a golden broach set in place. She wore some kind of hat meant for a vintage porcelain doll, which struck her as odd.
What was even more odd and unsettling was her expression. Her face was very pale yet beautiful with her grayish blonde hair, but her expression looked passive yet calm, and her grey blue eyes looking back seemed lifeless.
"We finally meet again, Good Hunter," the tall woman said passively yet sweetly in that familiar Portuguese accent, but her words barely held any emotion to them.
"Um, Ella? Do you know this woman?" The doctor asked curiously, but Ella did not hear her as she tried to come up with something to say.
"D-D-Doll!?" Ella managed to speak as she continued to stare in disbelief at the Plain Doll, but words almost failed her. "Wha-… how—how is this even possible!?"
"It was Flora who sent me here to serve you, Good Hunter."
'To serve me,' she mentally asked herself in her confusion. 'This should not be possible,' she thought, 'she should not even exist outside the Hunter's Dream'. Ella had seen enough things, from knowing there being celestial creatures residing within the cosmos to taking on the plague. She thought she would never be surprised after witnessing so much, yet somehow the universe still had another thing to surprise her with. So here she was, standing in front of her in all her reality defying glory. 'First seeing the old Hunters and now this? Just what is going on here!?'
"A-and… how long have you been here?"
"Around the same time you returned to Remnant."
"Ella!" Iosefka broke through her shock as she called out in alarm. "What is going on here? And who is she!?"
"S-she's a Doll." She answered nervously.
"What do you mean she's a doll?" Iosefka asked as she looked at the Hunter incredulously.
"...Look at her hands, Sef," she muttered. She still looked at her in incredulity at the demanding answer, but she did what she told her to do and looked down at the doll's embroidered, red fingerless gloved hands folded together. She did not see anything out of the ordinary at first, but within a second, when her eyes adjusted more clearly she realized with a surprised expression that her fingers were articulated porcelain.
"I… I don't understand," she said dubiously. To her, these could be prosthetic hands covered in porcelain.
Ella was about to try and explain to her about the Doll, but then she noticed as she looked around that people were staring at them. It then dawned on her that these people had never seen a living doll before, but it also dawned on her that without a close look all they would see was a tall, strangely dressed woman, and if she did not give them the opportunity that was all they would see.
"Um… Doll, come with me please!" She told her hastily as she grabbed her by the arm and pulled her away, forgetting about the spilled produce and tea and searching for a place to hide from prying eyes.
Meanwhile, Iosefka gave Ella a baffled expression for her sudden action, but she soon followed after she hastily gathered her fallen purchases. "Ella, wait for me!"
They soon found an alleyway and went in, and they soon stood near a dumpster after taking a turn. Ella looked around to see if anyone followed them or was watching, and to her relief no one was. She was about to address the elephant in the alleyway, but the doctor interrupted her before she could speak.
"Ella, what is wrong with you!?" She asked all baffled and being somewhat upset. "Why did you drag her all the way here!?"
"Sef, do you remember Eileen ever telling you about a doll residing in the Hunter's Dream?"
"I…" The doctor paused and thought for moment, remembering her past conversations with the former Crow Hunter. Eventually she did remember her mentioning a doll within a dream when they discussed with Ozpin about Earth. "I think she did mention a doll. Are you telling me she's the one?"
"Yes," she nodded.
Both her eyebrows were now raised in surprise after the confirmation. "Oh… I see."
The doctor did not feel comfortable about this whatsoever. A doll being alive did not seem possible, scientifically speaking, yet her curious mind had begun to wonder how this could be possible. She was not ignorant, she also knew about the existence of the Great Ones and their power. She once had served the Healing Church after all. She did not, however, wish to pass on this opportunity to learn of this new kind of marvel. She then walked up to the living Doll to examine her more closely, particularly her hand, but not without permission.
"May I," she asked.
The doll silently nodded, and the doctor lifted up her porcelain arm to examine further. Meanwhile, Ella watched this happening, a bit surprised that she was taking this somewhat well for a rational woman who had never seen a living doll.
"Interesting, can you feel anything?" Iosefka asked.
"No I do not, I am merely a doll." She answered passively.
"Hmm, that's strange," she muttered, "then perhaps you have a soul? You do have one, don't you?"
"Sef? You seem to be taking this a bit well." Ella said cautiously. "Are you alright?"
"Of course I am." She scoffed. "Although this makes me feel uncomfortable knowing she was made by something beyond my understanding. Still, doesn't it make you curious to know how she works?"
The Good Hunter lifted her hands up in a refusing gesture. "No thanks! I would rather keep my sanity intact if I were you," she warned.
"Actually, she has no need to fear of that." The Doll responded. "I was created with Flora's power residing within me. I suppose you could say I have a soul, but that is not how it is."
Iosefka was a bit taken back by this gleam of information. "Oh… I see. Well I guess that answers one of my questions."
That still did not bode well with Ella, and she would rather keep the doll away from her to save her sanity. Thinking about taking the doll away sprung another dilemma; where could she take her? She knew she had to hide her from everyone, and perhaps the academy might be the place to do so, but there would be students walking about, and having the doll to walk inside the halls would raise more suspicion. She then decided that she would just keep her in her living quarters. Iosefka was about to ask the same thing, however, when she turned to address her.
"I was wondering, where should we take her to? I was thinking we should take her to Beacon."
"I was thinking the same thing, but I will need to inform Ozpin of this first." She pulled out her Scroll and searched through her contacts, soon pressing on Ozpin's contact profile as it then rung.
Meanwhile, at Beacon cliff
Glynda and Ozpin were currently on the cliffs of Beacon where the student initiation had started, and as of this moment the initiation was almost coming to a close. They were watching the group of future student teams running through the woods to the next set of ruins (the very same place where Ella had killed her first nevermore) when Ozpin's Scroll had a call alert pop up on his screen, showing that the call was from Ella. This made him rather curious as to why, so he tapped the phone symbol to answer and it went straight to audio.
"Good morning, Ella, is there something that you need?"
"I apologize if I am interrupting anything, but I'm just calling to inform you that we're bringing in a guest." She answered cryptically.
"I see, and does this guest happen to be familiar with you?"
"Yes, she is the Plain Doll I've told you about, sir." Now that certainly was an intriguing surprise to him as he raised his eyebrows. Ella had explained to him about the doll living in the Hunter's Dream, with the same description Eileen told him. Why a living doll created in the dream happened to be here was beyond his comprehension at the moment.
"...I see, have you and the doll stay at your apartment until we come over and talk. The initiation trial is about to end soon."
"Understood sir, I'll be seeing you there. Good day." The call soon hung up after that.
"Did I just hear her right?" Glynda asked incredulously when she, too was listening in on the call. "She says she's bringing a doll here?"
He shook his head. "It's not just a doll, Glynda. She is bringing the doll to Beacon."
Back to the city
Ella soon hung up her Scroll after saying her farewell.
"Well, what did he say?" Iosefka asked.
"He says to have her stay at my apartment until after the initiation trial is done, and has told me that he will be coming over to talk soon after."
"I see, well we best get going then."
"Wait," said Ella as she had an idea. She told the doll to hold onto the bags as she handed them to her, to which she obliged without question before the Hunter turned to the doctor with a positive smile. "I was thinking; if people start asking questions about the doll, then we should say she's my mechanical servant, what do you think, Sef?"
"I don't know," she said, uncertain of the idea. "Are you sure it will work? She does kind of… stand out." She explained as she looked up at the Doll.
"Yes, I'm positive it will work. I'll just have to make up a story, endure the staring, and soon we will reach the air docks with hopefully no problems." She then turned to the Doll. "So how about it, do you think you can work with me?"
"Of course, Good Hunter," the Doll said as she bowed her head.
Ella then turned back to face Iosefka with a proud smile on her face. "See, she agrees with me!"
Iosefka could do nothing but sigh in frustration at this. "Alright, I'll go with this plan of yours, but we should get going."
With the plan set, the two ladies plus living Doll walked out of the alleyway, preparing themselves to ignore the stares as best they can until they reached the docks.
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A/N: You all have waited patiently for the next chapter, and I have finally delivered. Well this became another long chapter, and the strangest and best thing about this chapter, is that she now has the doll to keep her company at home. You all may be wondering what her true purpose in this story might be. Well, sorry but you're all gonna have to wait on that. What I would like to know is how I've gotten the doll's character. Was it good, bad? Let me know in your review.
Anyways, about this chapter: it was a pain in the ass let me tell you. I had to change some whole scenes four or five times (only in the city of Vale in particular) in order for the story to fit, and I was going to write in the team forming ceremony and the meeting with Ozpin, but I was almost reaching ten thousand words and beyond and I did not wish to go that far just yet.
I would like to give a shoutout to my beta reader CruxMDQ for his proofreading and suggestions.
This is Kyro2009, signing off.