Here's another chapter of Forged Destiny, hope you all enjoy.


Beta: College Fool

Chapter 6


The morning was a rushed affair, not least of all because I'd woken up two hours before everyone else to have a shower in peace. Ren hadn't even stirred as I snuck past, and as per the plan there hadn't been a single other person watching as I let myself steam under the warm water. The amulet stayed on, however, more out of a desire to avoid any nasty encounters than anything else, but at least with no one else around, it went uncommented on. By the time I was done, the early risers were only just waking up and the other people that seemed to be awake were members of the Labour Caste, who gave me surprised looks before nodding their heads in respect. They seemed shocked when I nodded back.

At least the cafeteria was open early, just in case. I wasn't the only one there, thankfully, but the few Heroes I could see sluggishly tucking in to breakfast were tired and unresponsive. For a moment I looked around to see if Blake was awake, she seemed the type to wake up early, but there was no sign of the black-haired faunus. In the end the meal was finished alone and it took at least another hour and a half waiting outside for Yang and Ruby to appear.

"Hey Jaune," Ruby waved, skipping up to stand before me with a wide smile. I realised with a little surprise that it was the first time I'd actually paid attention to the girl's outfit, since I'd been too preoccupied at the Quest and other than that she went around in the school uniform. In all honesty it didn't look much like clothing suited to combat. She had a dark-red corset over a white shirt that would have been more typically seen on someone in a tavern. Instead of the skirt she wore for class, she had a set of maroon trousers, tipped with black boots. The most distinctive thing, however, was the crimson cloak around her shoulders, with the hood pulled down behind her head. The combination of red, white and black… it was strange how such a shy girl dressed to stand out. "You're up early," she said. "You weren't waiting long, were you?"

"Just fifteen minutes," I lied before turning to the blonde beside her. "Morning Yang."

"Morning…" Yang didn't so much say as yawn. The girl's eyes were a little red, her shoulders slumped in the tell-tale manner of someone not used to waking up before the crack of noon. She was dressed differently too, with a light brown leather jacket that had small pieces of metal woven into the elbow and shoulders. She hadn't brought her weapon along, or maybe it was hidden. The latter wouldn't have been too difficult, given the baggy green trousers she wore, tucked into thick, brown boots. "See something you like lover-boy?"

"I see something that looks exhausted," I said in a vague attempt to deflect the fact that she'd caught me looking. "You sure you'll be okay to come with us?"

"She's fine," Ruby giggled as she grabbed my arm and tugged for me to follow her. Yang rolled her eyes and trudged along beside us. "This is how Yang looks every morning. She just doesn't wake up well."

A brief glance towards the blonde girl got a nod and a yawn in return. In the end I figured that if neither of them were worried about it, then it probably wasn't something for me to worry about either. Instead I ran a finger along the battle damage that pitted my breastplate. It wasn't just the crack from Yang's incredible attack the other day, but also the furrows left by the Beowolf. A part of me wondered at the point of repairing it, since apparently it hadn't been much use against either. But then I imagined what it might have been like had I not had it.

The walk to Vale wasn't as arduous as I'd expected, maybe because Ruby kept us distracted the entire way with chatter about how she was getting on with Weiss (it was a work in progress apparently). And how she and Yang were going to pool their resources to get a shared room once they earned enough lien, which would apparently make it cheaper than getting two of their own.

I listened with half an ear, though in truth it was the transformation from Beacon to Vale that held my attention. I'd seen it the other way around, of course. But on the way to Beacon there hadn't been the time to enjoy it, on account of the panic. Now, with my place secured, I could appreciate it more – and it was easy to do so. Vale and Beacon were connected, though there was a clear divide between where the normal people lived and the school. It wasn't something that had a wall or a gatehouse, both the city and school being within the single huge wall that surrounded Vale. Instead, it seemed to be denoted by the point at which the path to Beacon stopped being marble and started being regular stone. Gardens and light forest gave way to expensive-looking houses, and then eventually to taverns, inns and large buildings. There was a clear wealth divide too, with the richer homes being the closest to Beacon, and the quality of the construction – not to mention the roads – getting lower the further we travelled. Ruby led us from marble roads to paved, then cobblestone and eventually to dirt roads.

"You've never been to Vale, right Jaune?" Ruby asked.

"No I haven't," I hadn't really noticed at the time but the two of them seemed far less in awe than myself, and they also led us through the streets and crowds without too much difficulty, like they knew the way. "I take it you're from around here?"

"We live on Patch with our dad," Ruby said, "but we come to Vale a lot too, since Patch is really small and there aren't many places to shop there. It's good for regular stuff, but if you want Hero-specific gear then you have to come here."

"Patch is an NPC village," Yang explained, before her lilac eyes widened. "Sorry – I mean a Labour Caste village." She rubbed her hair with one hand, shooting me a rueful look. "Rubes mentioned how you don't like it when people call them that. I didn't mean anything by it."

"It's fine," I said – a little touched that Ruby had not only noticed, but also felt it important enough to convince her sister to avoid the term. "It's just that I grew up with them and it's a bit derogatory. But I'll let it go if you slip," I shrugged. "I know you don't mean it in a bad way." It was just the way they were taught, wasn't it? So long as they didn't mean anything by it, I supposed it would be okay to let it go. Ruby glanced away when I looked at her, though I just picked out the pleased smile on her face.

What a girl…

"Yeah well," Yang shrugged. "We're headed to a Blacksmith we met once before. Doesn't do the best work, but then again we're not exactly loaded either." Couldn't argue with that. After I'd divvied up the shares from the Beowolf between Nora, Pyrrha, Ren and I, I was down to a measly two hundred lien. Well, three hundred if I included the hundred I wanted to give to Blake, but that was her share, even if she hadn't claimed it. It didn't feel right stealing that from her after she'd helped us fight the beast.

When we eventually came to the Blacksmith, however, I couldn't help but lean back. The place… it would have been kind to call it a dump. The house was fine, there was no problem there, but the forge outside was little more than a shed with a slate roof held up by wooden posts. A burly man worked within, hammering down on cherry-hot metal. He looked more a Blacksmith than I, but at the same time, so much less so than my father. Nicholas would never have allowed his forge to look so cluttered, or for his completed weapons to be crammed together into a wooden barrel.

An unorganised forge denotes an unorganised smith, he would say. If you don't look after your tools then they won't look after you.

"Customers?" the man growled, looking at us from beneath a pair of overly-large eyebrows.

"I am!" Ruby cheered, not at all seeming upset by his attitude. "I'm looking for a scythe, or maybe a few scythes…" Not a bad precaution if the last one had broken. Still, keeping numerous weapons was bound to get expensive. It wasn't the same with arrows, since the amount of precious metal used would be much less on those. You could probably make a hundred arrowheads out of the steel needed for a single scythe.

"Scythe?" The man paused and put down his hammer, making me twitch. What about his work, which was cooling even as he spoke? The metal would gain all sorts of impurities if it wasn't treated. It could be smelted down and forged anew, but he could have at least put it back into the coals now to preserve the heat. "This here's a Hero store, missy."

"I am a Hero."

The man looked her up and down, eyes switching over to Jaune and Yang for a brief moment before he snorted. "Don't sell scythes. You might try down the road. Might sell what you're looking for."

"Down the road?" Ruby asked, no doubt trying to map out the route in her head.

"Jeb's," the man grunted. "NPC Emporium. Smith for farmers and the like, probably has a couple of scythes there."

"Oh…" Ruby's smile came a little strained. "Oh, okay… heh, thanks for the help."

"You two Heroes want anything?" the man asked, affecting a grin towards us.

"No." I said instantly. Even if the guy hadn't set off every signal in my head for a low-Level Blacksmith, I wouldn't have used him just for how he treated my friend. "I'm sure we'll find a weapon worth having at Jeb's. Come on Ruby." The girl didn't get a chance to speak as I grabbed her wrist and tugged her along, already too willing to leave this rude idiot behind. I would have done too, were it not for Yang speaking up.

"You're going the wrong way, you know." Damn her amused smirk, as I released Ruby's hand and sighed.

"Sorry… I just didn't like the way he was acting."

"No need to apologise." Yang's smirk was lopsided. "If you didn't do something, then I would have. He wasn't as much of an ass the last time we bought something there. Then again… last time it was to buy my weapons, not Ruby's."

We both looked towards the girl in question, who had her trademark smile back in place as she led us down the dirt-path road. At any other time, I might have fallen for it, but there was a certain brittle quality. Perhaps it was in the way she walked, a little slower than usual.

"She's really letting that guy get to her," I whispered. Yang gave me another one of her looks, the ones I was starting to recognise as her wondering whether I was being sarcastic or not, before realising I was actually just that dumb. Can't say I liked the look.

"It's not how he acted," she said upon realising that I was yet again serious and yet again this ignorant. "He told Ruby to shop at a store for N- for the Labour Caste."

"Worried about low quality? I guess something made for working in a field would probably be worse than if it were made for battle." There were different criteria in mind when you were smithing it. I wouldn't have made a shovel with the same kind of material or design in mind for a mace, even if both were ostensibly chunks of metal on the end of a pole.

"It's not just that, Jaune…" Yang rolled her eyes. "You've got to realise what it means. He told Ruby she couldn't shop at a store for Heroes, but should instead go to one that specialises in equipment for farmers and villagers. How would you feel if someone told you that?"

I wouldn't have been bothered in the slightest, but she was asking how a real Knight would feel. Even if it took me a few long seconds to figure it out, I eventually grasped the meaning behind her words. Ruby felt the man was telling her she wasn't fit to be a Hero, that she should stop playing silly games and just go and be a part of the Labour Caste.

To someone like me, that wasn't much of an insult. But with how most Heroes considered my people, even if Ruby was better than the majority of them – it would still have been a harsh blow. Most would have been offended… Ruby had let it get her down. I increased my pace, just enough to catch up with the shorter girl so that I could walk beside her.

"Don't let what he said bother you." No one had ever accused me of being subtle, nor of knowing how to talk to girls. With that in mind I went for the direct approach.

"It's fine," she faked a smile for me, and it was bad when I could tell it was fake. "I got my first weapon off a farmer too. I'm used to it. No one makes scythes as weapons, no one uses them as weapons."

I wanted to ask why she did, what made her different, but she was already in a bad enough mood as it was. The question might have been offensive too. Just another social more that I'd fall into without realising it.

"I don't think it matters what weapon you use, or where it comes from," I said instead. "A weapon is just that, a tool." An ironic thing for a Blacksmith like myself to say, but no less true for that fact. Each weapon was a work of art, that was something my father had drilled into me, and yet despite that – nothing was unique and everything could be recreated if you had the know-how. "Take my sword for instance," I hefted it up so she could see it. Crocea Mors was my greatest creation, but that wasn't saying much… I was pretty low level. "I'm proud of her, but she's just a sword. Anyone could pick it up and swing it around, even a ten-year old child."

"It's a bit heavy for someone that young," Ruby giggled.

"Eleven, then," I grinned, pleased to see a little improvement. "The point I'm making is that I could use this, a broom or even a chunk of wood. It wouldn't change who I am."

A Blacksmith…

"A Knight," Yang stepped up to agree, even if she was wrong. "Jaune's right, sis. I like to fight hand to hand, but I'm still a Brawler if I pick up an axe and use that on a Grimm. I'm just a Brawler messing around with someone else's weapon."

"Exactly," I nodded. "So you'll have a scythe made for a farmer, big deal. I'm sure someone who uses knives can still fight with a kitchen knife, even if it's not a real weapon. Besides, last time I checked if you were going to be using that scythe to cut wheat then the words floating above your head would say Farmer, not Reaper."

"You guys…" Ruby mewled, before holding her arms wide and trying to hug us both at the same time. It didn't go very well, on account of how small she was and how big the two of us were, but I joined in with Yang in putting an arm around her shoulders. The older sister mouthed the words thank you to me over the top of Ruby's head. "You're right." Ruby nodded, "And if a Knight says that, then it's definitely right!"

She sure seemed to place a lot of faith in that, for whatever reason there was. I wasn't about to argue since it helped me cheer her up. Ruby let go of us both a moment later, skipping ahead with her usual chirpiness once more.

Thankfully the forge was a lot closer than the last one, and we made it only a minute or two later. Normally there wouldn't have been two competing stores so close to one another, but I could only assume the Smiths had made some kind of agreement to focus on different things. There was definitely an implied status increase for people who catered to Heroes, it was about as close as you could get to being a Hero, and the wares you sold were normally more expensive too. In contrast, those who catered exclusively to the Labour Caste were considered to be inferior craftsmen, almost by default. My father worked for both and so straddled the line, though that was just because there weren't that many Heroes travelling through Ansel.

The man behind the counter, however, seemed to me to be the better Blacksmith - as strange as that sounded. Obviously I couldn't see his level, but the store itself was arranged in a much more organised fashion, with tools segregated based on their purpose and even a display of ore and minerals at the front. I gravitated towards that as Ruby went about looking for something she could use.

My armour was fairly torn up, but luckily there was little metal missing, it had just been pushed aside, torn open or impacted. I could melt down what was left, or just re-heat the area and beat it back into shape if I had to, but I would still need a little extra material just in case. No use weakening the armour if it turned out I had lost a little to the Beowolf's claws. I picked up a chunk of ore with one hand, closing my eyes as I sensed the impurities and minerals within. Buying a steel bar would have been easier, but smelting the ore myself would be far cheaper. I had time in abundance, what with our school schedule giving us the mornings to ourselves. What I didn't have was lien.

"I'd like to buy this," I dumped the rock down on the man's counter, watching as he inspected me and then the ore itself, lifting it up and humming lightly.

"Good choice," he said after a moment, no doubt doing as I had and using his Skills to inspect the mineral content. It was a Blacksmith-specific Skill, something any Blacksmith learned early in their life and more of a passive ability than an active one. It didn't tell you much, just what was used and in what quantities. It was useful for forging, however, especially in making sure you didn't include too much or too little material. "You've got a good eye, son. Fifty lien."

"Forty."

He raised an eyebrow, but I hadn't grown up with seven Shopkeeper sisters and my mother without learning something. Mom had words for people who bought things at full value, and they weren't complimentary. Plus, it was kind of the Smith's fault for running his own store. There was a reason most people hired a Shopkeeper, even if it meant giving them a percentage of your profits.

"Forty-five," the man grunted, and I agreed by handing some lien over. In all honesty I could have probably dragged it lower but fifty had been a good price anyway and I didn't want to turn him angry at Ruby when she came to pay.

"What are you going to do with that?" Ruby asked from behind me, making me jump in fright. She was looking over my shoulder, one hand gripping my breastplate because she had to physically lift herself up to do so.

"Just buying some ore to repair my armour with," I grinned, tossing the rock in the air for her to see. It landed in my palm, before I stashed it in the small, leather pouch that hung from my left hip, alongside Crocea Mors' sheathe. Ruby blinked.

"How do you intend to repair it, though?" she asked. "Wouldn't you need someone to do it for you?"

I nearly said no. My eyes widened as I caught myself at the last second, faking the action in coughing loudly. Holy crap I'd forgotten entirely… a Knight couldn't repair armour, they couldn't even sense what was in ore. No wonder the Smith had seemed surprised at me choosing a good piece. Good eye indeed… he'd assumed I had known what to look for.

"I know someone," I said instead, making a note to find somewhere secretive where I could repair my kit without being seen. "Just someone who used to live in my village and moved here. I figure they could repair it for me, faster than anyone else too."

"Couldn't we have shopped there?" Yang asked, while Ruby made an `ahh` sound of understanding. I started to sweat a little.

"They don't have their own shop, they're more of an apprentice than anything. But repairing armour is pretty easy… I mean they say it's pretty easy. I wouldn't know, of course."

My laughter sounded pretty forced, even to me.

"Right..." Ruby tilted her head as she looked at me, but luckily if she had any doubts then it must have been about something else. With an amused shake of her head she looked back to the man behind the counter before pointing at the three scythes Yang was carrying. The poor girl looked more than a little burdened down, trying to hold the three tools in such a way that she didn't cut herself with the wildly unpredictable blades. With a little chuckle I rushed up to help her, taking one away so she could hold the other two in each hand. "I'd like to buy three scythes please," Ruby chirped happily, not even noticing our plight.

Jeb raised a brow but didn't argue, "That'll be 450," he said, making Ruby blanch and me wince.

"A-Ah," Ruby looked humiliated. "J-just one Scythe then, 150, right?"

"Hm." The man nodded, thankfully not being quite so rude as the last one. Yang looked at me, worried. I could make a guess as to why. I was holding one of the scythes, which meant I could tell what its stats were. That wasn't a Blacksmith ability, but rather something anyone could do. You had to know how good a weapon was so you could decide if you wanted to use it.

These scythes were good… for scythes. They would last for a while; the material was decent – the man hadn't cut any corners or debased the metal with weaker bronze or copper. But that still didn't mean they would be any good for what Ruby needed. The haft was oak, strong but still only wood – and the blades themselves were thin and light, useful for someone who had to swing them all day in a field, but lacking striking power and liable to break if they hit anything too hard. If Ruby bought only one, then it was going to break and she would be back here again. The scythe I was holding clinked as I laid it down on a nearby counter, pushing forward and placing a hand on Ruby's shoulder. She looked up at me, silver eyes confused but also panicked. I tried to smile as comfortingly as I could, before gently pushing her aside.

The Blacksmith sighed, no doubt knowing exactly what was coming.

"They're good scythes," I started, knowing it was the truth and that the man would surely raise that point if I didn't first. "Lightweight but sturdy, perfect for work in the fields."

"I do good work." Jeb crossed his arms, apparently knowing he wasn't going to win a battle of Charisma with a Knight and thus deciding to say as little as possible. That was a lucky break since I wasn't a Knight either, and my Charisma was probably less than his! The problem for Jeb was that stats didn't decide everything.

More Strength meant you hit harder, but that didn't mean you could lightly tap a hammer against a wall and knock it down. It enhanced what you did, and when everyone was swinging with their full might, then sure, stats would decide it. But I knew how to haggle. Oh, did I know how to haggle.

"You do, sir, you do. We're just facing a bit of a problem at the minute because my friend here isn't a Farmer, she's a Hero. Her specifications are different and she's going to be using these to cut down things a little more vicious than stalks."

"She could commission something," the man offered, "But that would take a few weeks."

"Time she doesn't have," I sighed. "Ruby here needs to fight against Grimm and other Heroes, which means she needs weapons now. We definitely might commission something with you later, but for now she needs at least two scythes. How about a hundred each, two for two hundred?"

"I can't drop prices on the promise of future work…"

"But it's not just future work is it?" I smiled. "Let's be honest here, we've been to the guy down the road. His gear was worthless and you're the better Blacksmith. It's clear from the fact you actually have a store as opposed to a rickety barn."

"He isn't committed," Jeb nodded. "Hasty work at best, likes to cut corners."

"But you don't and it shows. Labour Caste can't afford to be paying for sub-standard equipment. They need their tools to last, and you provide that. What I'm saying is, when the others at Beacon see the kind of quality you make, how even a farming tool can be a weapon – that a Hero would rather buy a scythe from you, than a sword from the other store? Well you can rest assured people might want to see what else you can do. It could mean new customers for you, especially for commissioned work."

"I don't know…"

"But I do," I had him and I knew it, or at the very least he was interested. Mom had warned me time and time again of pushing too hard, especially in the closing stages of a deal. You couldn't make someone take something, you had to convince them it was their own idea – that they wanted it themselves. "I mean you're the Blacksmith, so you know more than I do of course. But if the gear you sell really is better, then the quality would show, right? As far as I see it, the only reason he has the up on you is because no one knows you can make weapons."

"He made my weapons too," Yang interrupted, showing her gauntlets to the man. "They're okay, but not great. If these scythes are any good, then I might have you make some for me too when I do a few more Quests."

"Yeah?" The man looked down on the gauntlets in barely hidden contempt.

"And that's just the two of us," I said, not mentioning that I wouldn't ever need my own doing. "Think of what your regulars are going to think. Jeb's work, not only good enough for them – but good enough for Heroes!?"

"Scythe's so good even a Hero picks them," Yang grinned, catching on to my plan.

"Yeah…" Jeb was smiling now, a distant look in his eye. "And you say you'll tell people where you got these from?"

"I swear it on my honour," I pledged. It sounded something like a Knight would say, and certainly Jeb seemed to think so.

"Okay… two for two hundred, but that's as far as I'm willing to go. If custom does pick up, I might be willing to give you a discount on a commission."

"Thank you, thank you!" Ruby gushed, pushing over the lien so quick she almost dropped it. To my amusement the man actually flushed, looking away as he collected it. Looked like Ruby had her own bargaining technique… a most dangerous one indeed.

"I guess that's the benefit of having a Knight around," Yang teased as she took one of the scythes so Ruby didn't have to carry both. "I'd best be careful you don't turn that Charisma on me, eh lover-boy?"

"Yang!" Ruby howled, more embarrassed than I was.

Right… bargaining was something that relied on Charisma normally. Something a Knight would have been great at. There was some humour in the idea that my family had helped prepare me to better pretend to be a Knight, but hey – I wasn't arguing with results.

By the time we left the store there was less than two hours remaining until their afternoon combat class, just enough time to get back to Beacon and have some food. Ruby seemed thrilled by her purchase, even if I was still a little uncertain as to what it might mean. She had a scythe now… but it was still a trash-tier weapon in terms of statistics. Crocea Mors could do easily ten times the damage, and that was before my high Strength was brought into the equation.

They were farming tools…

And yet it wasn't just Ruby who looked relieved, but Yang too. Ruby was my friend, but I'd be the first to admit she occasionally came off a little naïve, but the same couldn't be said about her sister. Yang knew what she was doing, especially so considering how easy she'd annihilated me yesterday.

"If it's rude," I said, as we made our way back, "then you don't have to answer… but why is it that you need a scythe in particular?"

"You shouldn't-" Yang began, only to go quiet as Ruby touched her arm.

"It's fine," the smaller girl said before turning to me. "I trust you. It's not anything special, but I'm what you'd call a Mono-Weapon Class."

"Mono… as in a single weapon?"

Ruby nodded, "All my Skills, all my abilities – they need a scythe to work. Asking me to fight without it is like asking you to fight Yang without a weapon."

"Which I did anyway, for all the good it did me." I laughed and looked towards Yang, waiting for her retort. The blonde didn't return it, though she did smile a little.

"Just… trust me, I'm a better fighter with a scythe. I don't mind you knowing. We're friends, right?"

"Of course." She was the first person to talk to me in Beacon, not to mention she didn't ask anything in return. Maybe it was selfish but I liked that. My friendship with Ren, Pyrrha and Nora was great, but it was built on fighting together. I was fairly sure it would grow to more in time, in fact, I was confident Ren and I were already getting along better. But Ruby's was different, it had no basis in Class, fighting or anything. We were friends because we liked one another. "I don't even see why you're worried about it," I shrugged. "Is there even a problem with being a mono-weapon Class?"

"Nope," Ruby giggled. "Now come on, we need to get back to Beacon!" She jogged ahead, far faster than I could have hoped to follow. She had to have known that too, which made me wince a little.

"It bothers her more than she admits," Yang said.

"I shouldn't have asked…"

"You shouldn't," she agreed, "But maybe it's good that you did. It doesn't bother you in any way, does it?"

"Not at all. I don't see why it would bother anyone. She passed the First Quest, no one can say she doesn't deserve to be at Beacon."

She had more right to be there than me, at any rate.

"Some might," Yang shrugged. "I'm glad you don't, for Ruby's sake. Look, Jaune…" Yang sighed, pushing some hair back as she stared at me. "Ruby trusts you… and maybe I'm starting to as well. Being a Mono-Weapon Class isn't bad, but there's some people who would consider it as being weaker, or less pure. It's a weakness to be exploited too, no ways around that. If I told you that you had to fight an Archer, what would you do?"

"I'd get in close," I answered immediately.

"Exactly… it's not that there's anything wrong with what she is, but if people know about it, then they can start thinking up ways to take advantage of her. She's like an Archer in a sense, she has all these Skills and benefits to using a Scythe, but none without it. Just… keep it quiet, for her?"

"Done." I waved one hand. "Ruby's my friend. I won't betray her trust. Ever."

"Ugh, you're such a knight-in-shining-armour that it's sickening," Yang rolled her eyes and grabbed my arm, but at least she wasn't glaring anymore. "Come on lover-boy, and keep your hands to yourself."

Suspicious one moment, angry the next – then teasing. It was official. There was no understanding Ruby's sister. I don't know why I even tried.


"That was so amazing!" Nora gushed. "You were like `hyahh` and she was like `arghhhh` and you were all `eat the floor bitch` - it was so cool!"

"Nora," Ren said, though not without a small smile, "I don't recall calling my opponent a bitch, nor telling her to eat the floor."

"But you could have," the ginger girl said, "and that's what's important!"

"Well I'm pleased my fight earned your approval."

I could only shake my head at the banter between the two, raising one eyebrow to Pyrrha as she stifled laughter behind her hand. The redhead had been curious as to where we'd been all morning, though she had soon turned into smiles when I explained about helping Ruby and Yang with their shopping. Apparently she'd been out grinding with Nora, the two having actually managed to earn some lien already.

I couldn't feel too bad about it, though. Ruby had been ecstatic ever since we'd come back, even offering to spar with me to prove the claim about her skills.

I'd turned that down, partly for my own self-esteem, but also because I was terrified of what might happen if her scythe broke on me. Either Yang would kill me, or I would kill myself if Ruby brought out the tears.

Either way, after a shortish lesson (that felt like a million years) in which the Cavalier Peter Port regaled them of his time as a young Hero, they had all made their way to yet another combat class. According to the schedules, these weren't always so common but were important early on to let the teachers get a grasp for how strong people were. That meant I wasn't likely to be called up again, at least until everyone else had fought. Of our group, Nora and Pyrrha were the only two who hadn't had a chance in the ring, with Nora saying that she really wanted to fight off against Pyrrha anyway.

So long as I wasn't stuck between the two, that was fine with me.

Ren had just taken down a Martial Artist of his own, the two trading a flurry of unarmed attacks that made mine and Yang's bout look like children in a schoolyard brawl. I'd never expected Ren to be so strong, mainly because he seemed to quietly defer to whatever I said.

It just went to show that it was the quiet ones you had to look out for.

"Next to fight," the Warlock on the platform called, "We have Cardin Winchester," a burly teen dressed in full plate stepped onto the stage, hefting a huge, two-handed mace in one hand. I recognised him as the Warrior from back when Beacon began, the one who had told me to go away, though in less kind words. "And against him, Blake Belladonna."

"Blake…?" My head snapped over to the other side of the ring, blue eyes widening as the girl casually climbed onto the arena. As always I hadn't seen her in the crowd, the faunus silently slipping into and disappearing amongst the throngs of people. This was also the first time I'd ever really had a chance to look at her too, since the first occurrence had been in combat, and the second while she was in uniform.

Her cloak and hood wasn't actually black, or rather it something of an off-black, with a blue tinge to the edges that suggested it was instead just an incredibly dark shade of navy-grey. She had a black corset with lace criss-crossing over her chest and abdomen, with long sleeves that left her shoulders bare but didn't quite reach her wrists. Her long legs were encased in black hose, or maybe thick leggings. There was a slip of material that looked like a skirt, but was a little shorter – more like the bottom half of a tunic. As always it was the hood and mask which gave her away, the thick material draped over her head, though her ears poked through, while the mask was nothing more than thin, dark silk that was wound across her mouth and nose. Golden eyes stared out at her opponent.

"Assassin," Weiss seethed, crossing her arms beside us but not saying any more. I stared at her a little, wondering what she meant by that, only for Pyrrha to lean down and whisper in my ear.

"Assassins are a Mage's natural enemy," my friend explained. "On the battlefield, it's always a Healer or a Mage who attracts an Assassin first."

Ah… something of a personal vendetta between them, then. Couldn't say I appreciated it, but then again I wasn't at risk of taking a knife in the back either, so maybe Weiss had a reason. Either way, I didn't think Blake was going to hurt any of us.

The two opponents handed their weapons to the Warlock, who once more cast her curse upon them. With only her eyes visible, Blake gave nothing away, but for the Warrior, his emotions could not be any more obvious. He seemed to be thrilled to be up against her, his face set just the wrong side of vicious. I hoped she would be okay.

"If you are both ready," Miss Goodwitch began, "Then you can-"

"Wait!" Cardin Winchester held one hand up, bringing the woman to a pause. Blake loosened her stance, as surprised as I was.

"What is it Mr Winchester?" The teacher asked.

"There's just something wrong here," the man shook his head. "I mean… there's an Assassin, and she's standing in plain daylight. Shouldn't there be a shadow she needs to creep off into?" The crowd laughed, a few people whistling at the barb. Blake didn't seem to react, but I certainly did, glaring at the arrogant man.

"The battlefield remains as it is," Miss Goodwitch said. "Unless you have any other concerns?"

"None here. If she wants to play at being something more than a filthy Assassin, then more power to her. I'll reduce her to dust, that'll be a step up."

"You will do no such thing," the blonde woman ordered. "If I believe for even a moment that you will attack once your opponent is down, then I'll show you more than a few other Spells in my repertoire." That shut him up, though he still looked smug with his taunts having hit home. "Now then, you may begin!"

"Rargh!" The Warrior charged in, swinging his mace up over his head and down. To my horror Blake crouched, drawing one knife and holding it in a reverse grip before her, as though she intended to actually try and catch the attack! My breath caught in my throat, but of course at the very last second she flashed to the side – dodging so fast I, and the Warrior, could barely see it. The mace slammed down into the ground, with such force that it splintered the matting.

She didn't attack, though… even though the opening was there. Instead the girl ducked back, taking a few short hops to put some distance between the two of them.

"What?" Cardin laughed, "Scared?"

The Assassin didn't answer, but rather she lifted her single blade up, holding it before her so that the purplish sheen of the curse was visible in front of her yellow eyes. It seemed enough to drive Cardin into a frenzy, the teen roaring and charging forward once more.

It looked like he might go for the same attack, crashing down onto her, but when Blake dodged to the left he instead chambered his strike and shoulder charged her, catching his foe off-guard. A gasp slipped past my lips but the moment he hit, she seemed to explode into smoke, making him stagger and cough.

"Coward!" he yelled with one hand over his mouth. "Quit hiding behind your tricks and fight me. You call yourself a Hero, yet you rely on dirty tactics? You sully the name of Hero – show some god damned honour!"

Cardin must have heard something for he spun around, lashing out with the end of his mace. But he hit nothing… there hadn't been anything beside him in the first place. To my surprise, he was alone in the ring. When had that even happened? Had Blake left? But Miss Goodwitch hadn't called the fight, the Warlock still focused on the duel… was this stealth of some kind? To me, it might as well have been total invisibility. A shadow appeared behind him, Blake seeming to leap out of nowhere with her blade shining purple.

"Behind you!" Someone in the crowd shouted, Cardin's eyes widening as he spun and delivered a furious blow to the girl.

It went straight through her. Or rather, the girl it hit seemed to fade, like an illusion that had never been. I gasped as I finally saw her, falling down from the ceiling with her cloak trailing behind her. She landed on his shoulders with unnatural grace, crouching down as her cloak trailed down Cardin's back. Her fist rose, a flash of purple as she stabbed down.

Cardin hit the floor instantly.

And the crowd went silent.

Blake stood, dusting herself down as she stepped off his paralysed body. The implication wasn't lost on me. She'd paralysed him in one hit. Cardin, for all his bluster, was a Warrior – which meant he probably had more Constitution than most of the other Classes in Beacon. Yet Blake had done enough damage to `kill` him in a single blow.

That was terrifying. Was there a single person here who could have taken that strike and kept fighting? I wasn't sure. Blake sheathed her weapon, turning to face us. It was only then that I realised just how stifling the silence was. Normally when a victor was called, people cheered… sometimes it was loud, sometimes quiet. But there was always some noise, even if it was just polite applause.

No one clapped for her, not a single person. Many glared instead.

"Mr Winchester," Miss Goodwitch began, "While your offence was aggress-" She didn't get any further. The Warlock cut off, looking out into the crowd, as did Blake – golden eyes wide.

I clapped my hands louder.

They weren't the only ones looking at me. The crowd turned, many shooting me irritated or judgemental looks, but that only made me slap my palms together louder and louder, a huge smile on my face. It was the best I could do, since inside there was only burning anger.

She'd saved my life.

I wouldn't be where I was, I wouldn't have had this opportunity, if it wasn't for Blake stepping in to distract the Beowolf – and then to try and cover for me while I retreated. And I would be damned before I let her be humiliated on stage like that. She won… she deserved applause, even if I was the only person to think so.

Except that… I wasn't.

It caught me as off-guard as it did Blake. I could tell from the way her hooded head snapped to my left, where Ruby had started to excitedly clap as well. Those silver eyes were locked on mine, a small wink as she let me know it was because of me that she had joined in. I couldn't care less, only too happy that someone hadn't left me hanging.

"You guys…" Yang whispered, shaking her head with an almost exasperated smile. "Whoo!" She screamed, completely eclipsing us in volume. "You kicked his ass – sweet work!"

There was polite applause from my right too, Ren with his eyes shut, expression amused as he clapped. That didn't last for long, since Nora caught on and promptly obliterated him in terms of volume. Her cheers could have been weaponised. Pyrrha joined in too, smiling at me as though it were my victory and not Blake's.

But it was enough. Up on the stage, there was no obvious change in the girl. But she looked at me for a moment, golden eyes boring into mine, before she took a gentle step back with one leg and fell into a dramatic bow, like an actress acknowledging her fans at the end of some grand play.

No one else appreciated it… but to me as she walked off the stage, it looked like she held her head a little higher.


"Quite the scene you made in combat class," Ren said as the two of us sat cross-legged on our beds, pouring over the cost sheets provided by the staff of Beacon. I glanced towards him, wondering if he meant anything by that, but his expression was fairly neutral.

"Blake's a friend."

"Does she share that opinion?"

Probably not, from what I'd seen of her… but that didn't mean she wasn't a friend of mine. Just that I wasn't a friend of hers. It was complicated, but not unreasonably so.

"I've no idea, but even so, I'm not willing to let people humiliate her like that."

"So I see," Ren said, and there was an underlying amusement to his tone that helped me relax a little. I'd never really seen him angry or upset, though maybe I just hadn't known him long enough. But at the very least he didn't see offended by my choice. Not as much as the others did anyway… Winchester had slammed a shoulder into me as we left, in what would have knocked me clean off my feet if it wasn't for Pyrrha catching me. "Perhaps you should ask her."

"Maybe…" I knew I should, or at least talk to her. That didn't make it easy though, not when she had that focused look that seemed to see right through you. I could admit I was a little afraid. That display of power had been just that, and it had hit me just as hard as everyone else.

But that was what an Assassin did, wasn't it? They took out their targets in a single strike.

"I've worked out the costs of what we need for our own rooms," Ren leafed through some sheets. "We want private rooms, en-suite bathroom with a shower, meals in the cafeteria, clothes washed and repaired… you sure you don't want weapon and armour maintenance?"

"I've got that handled," I said in what I hoped was an enigmatic enough manner. Ren shrugged and continued.

"Added onto that is heating, lighting, medical cover, security-"

"They charge for security?" Ren looked over towards me as I groaned. "How mercenary is this school? Surely it's their fault if we get robbed. Do we even have anything valuable?" Other than my amulet of course, which I wasn't about to take off.

"Not yet," Ren shrugged. "But we may find rare equipment that we desperately do not want to lose. I don't wish to accuse anyone, but there is a Thief Class for a reason."

"Ugh…" No arguing with that. "Anything else?"

"Nothing else that I can think of, but I'm sure there will be things we want to add sooner or later. All in all, that comes up to a thousand lien each per month."

That… was quite a bit. Not too much, not an insurmountable number, but also pretty rough. We could have bought six scythes with that earlier, though to be fair it made sense that lodge and all those other things would be more expensive than a simple tool. Still, it meant that if I wanted to get out of these overcrowded dorms, then I'd need to start earning – and fast.

"What if we shared?" I asked, recalling Yang and Ruby's conversation from before. Ren seemed confused. "I mean what if we instead rented a room with two separate beds, so we're bunking together? If you're up for it, I mean."

Ren frowned as he pulled out the leaflets once more, skimming over the prices.

"A room for two is a little more expensive," he said, "but it would mean we pay for only one en-suite, and we can pool heating, lighting and security. There are even discounts on cleaning since it's just the one, slightly larger room. That would come in at… Sixteen hundred a month, eight hundred each. It's quite the saving."

"Do you want to go for it?" I asked, sitting a little straighter with an excited grin. I'd never shared a house with someone before, at least someone that wasn't already family. "I mean if it isn't too much to ask… you don't have to say yes if you don't want to, or if you'd rather share with Nora."

"I've told you we're not like that," Ren rolled his eyes. Still wasn't sure how much I believed him on that one… Pyrrha and I even had a small bet on it, though even that was on how long it would take for them to get together. Neither of us had been willing to bet it wouldn't eventually happen. "But for what it's worth," Ren grinned, "I wouldn't have any complaints sharing a place with you. The extra savings might even let us get some luxuries."

"If we can earn some money," I warned – though there was no denying the excited look on my face.

"The Emerald Forest, tomorrow?" Ren asked, nodding his head in the direction of the forest. It was outside the walls of Vale, but it was the section near Beacon, which meant only a fifteen-minute walk to the gatehouse leading to it.

"We should ask Pyrrha and Nora if they want to come along." The suggestion was a little self-serving, since technically we could have split the lien better between the two of them. On the other hand, I was still under-levelled and unsure how I could hold up out there. I'd feel a lot safer with Pyrrha's mighty levels beside me. "They'll need to earn lien too and they also said they went there today, so they might know some good spots."

"That goes without saying. Nora would stalk me all week if I dared go hunting without her."

I won't say I wasn't worried as we disrobed and climbed into our beds for the night, but at the same time there was a little bit of excitement too. If I wanted to become a Hero, then there was going to be combat at some point. Better to get that practice now, and more importantly – the Experience I'd need to level up a few more times.

Things were finally starting to look up. I just hoped they could stay that way.


Another chapter done, though not much time has passed. In a sense, these first few days are always the more important, and soon after things can start to speed up a little. First impressions and all that, really. I think of the Beacon here as being very different from the one in the show, which means things do have to be explained a little.

Next Chapter: 3rd October

P a treon . com (slash) Coeur