Speaking to self
Speaking to Ghost
Small puzzle in this story, hint hint, look for the underlined words.
Team RWBY and JNPR waited for Joseph at the entrance of Beacon Academy. "It's been over 15 minutes! What is Joseph doing?" asked Weiss.
"Don't know, he said that he's going to call his gunsmith to repair his gun. Just give it some time Weiss." Ruby said.
"I don't know Ruby, it's getting pretty long…" said Jaune.
"We should just leave him and get him something." Said Ren.
"That doesn't sound right though. Let's give him a few more minutes." Pyrrha said.
"Sure thing. A few more minutes and if he is still not here, we will just get him something." Jaune said.
Team RWBY dorm
"Transmitting Ace of Spades to you Banshee," Joseph said.
Banshee gave a disappointing grunt, "You got to be more careful when using this weapon Joseph." Banshee said.
"I know I know, I've been using it too much lately." Joseph scratched the back of his head and chuckled softly.
Banshee sighed, "If Cayde finds out that you broke his gun, he'll be pissed."
Joseph remembered that Banshee has memory problems, he even forgot that Cayde's dead. Joseph frowned, wishing that he'd forget about Cayde dying. "Heh, yeah. Please fix it ASAP before he finds out." he chuckled awkwardly.
"You got it." Banshee said. "It'll be done in a few days. In the meantime, you'll have to use something else."
"I'm fine with that." Joseph replaced Ace of Spades with Nation of Beasts, a weapon he picked up after he saved Shuro Chi in Operation Last Wish. "Thanks, Banshee. I really appreciate it." Joseph said.
"No problem. Just make sure you don't break it again. I might forget again." Banshee paused for a few seconds. "Hey Joseph, you called? You need anything?" He asked.
He forgot… "Oh no, just accidentally called you, sorry about that," Joseph said
"Oh alright." Banshee paused again, "I'll get Ace, back into the field in no time, but it'll take a day for a full repair."
"Thanks. I'll see you later Banshee." Joseph said
"Yeah, same here."
Joseph hung up and he sat down on the floor. He sighed, "Well, should get going they must be waiting."
.
.
.
Joseph walked towards the exit of the Courtyard to see the two teams talking.
"Sure thing. A few more minutes and if he is still not here, we'll just get him something." Said Jaune.
"Sorry for the long wait, the call went a bit longer than expected," Joseph said as he walks towards the group.
"What took you so long?" Weiss asked.
"Well, let's just say that the gunsmith I know has a small memory problem," Joseph explained.
"If he has memory problems, he shouldn't be a gunsmith in the first place!" Weiss said, "If there is a gunsmith who can easily forget things, They will need to reconsider what they should be!"
"That's when you're wrong Snow White. You see, Banshee, my gunsmith, is a talented man!" Joseph boasted, "Fixed my guns in the most terrible conditions. He does have memory problems, but he does not forget how to repair or forge a weapon and the person who asks him to repair said person weapons."
"Banshee… never heard that name before. What's his last name? I have never heard any Gunsmith like him before…" said Ren
"Well, his name is Banshee-44. Yeah, the last name sounds a bit... odd, but that's his last name." Joseph said. "But, enough with interrogating me for now, let's find something to eat before it gets late." He thought of what he wanted to eat. "Y'know, I've been craving sushi lately, what about you guys?"
Xeno materialized next to Joseph and scanned the area. "There's this place that makes delicious sushi, noodles, and meats with a small bakery inside that does many varieties of sweets like cookies, cake, pancakes, and-"
Nora's gasp interrupted Xeno, "Let's go there guys!" she said with excitement.
"She has a sweet tooth for pancakes," Ren explained.
"Yeah sure why not, I wanna get cookies!" Ruby said.
"If there's tuna, I'm in," said Blake.
"Yeah, I guess it's fine," said Weiss.
"Then it's settled! Lead the way X!" Joseph cheered.
"Follow me if you want to eat!" Xeno said. While the whole group follows.
The group follows Xeno to a mildly expensive fancy food court. It was a mix of cultured foods. Joseph went to go check out the sushi bar they had. He held the menu and squints at each of the suggested sushi rolls. "I'll take a Special Sushi Roll," he says.
"Make that two please," said Blake who sat next to Joseph.
Joseph looked at his reflection from his cup of water and sighed.
"You alright Joseph?" asked Blake
"Eh, kinda. Just a bit tired." Joseph lied
"You know, you could've just stayed back in the dorms, we could have bought you something to eat."
"It's fine. I don't feel like staying alone for a while." Joseph tried to hide his miserable mood. An awkward silence filled the sushi bar and both were served their sushi roll. Joseph got up and paid for his food. "Thank you" he nodded and left the restaurant.
The rest of team RWBY and team JNPR saw Joseph leave with his sushi roll on his hand.
"What's wrong with Joseph?" Ruby asked Blake.
"I don't know…" Blake said
"He wasn't like that hours ago," Nora said.
"Did something happen to him?" Wondered Jaune.
"Well, judging him, he must be very protective in every touchy subject," Yang said.
"Wonder what happened with him and his gunsmith…" wondered Pyrrha
"Is he sad because of a gun?" Weiss said. She scoffed "such a pathetic reason to be sad!"
"You can't make that judgment Weiss," Xeno said as he entered the restaurant.
"Xeno, you were with Joseph, right? What happened?" Ruby asked.
"Mourning… he's mourning a friend that we know." Xeno said.
"What happened?"
Xeno looked to Joseph who was outside on a patio, leaning his body forward on a fence. He turned back towards them. "Murdered…" Xeno said softly.
"Oh… I'm, I'm sorry to hear that…" said Ruby.
"Some of you guys may think that one death is nothing, but Joseph has suffered more than you think. Cayde's death was another heavyweight to bear."
"Cayde?" Asked Weiss.
"Cayde was a friend of Joseph and I. To Joseph, he was a father figure to him. So when he died, it shattered him." Xeno explained.
"What happened to Joseph's parents?" Asked Ruby
"Same as Cayde, murdered. Same goes for his older sister, younger brother and younger sister."
The teams were silent shocked to hear such depressing news.
"Want to pity him?" Asked Xeno
"Yeah… just hearing that… I can't imagine if that happens to our dad…" Ruby.
"Our mothers are gone, and if our dad passes away as well, just thinking about it makes me feel, terrible…" said Yang
"Yeah, family means everything…" said Jaune.
"But not every family is great…" Joseph said as he re-entered the restaurant.
"Joseph! Are you alright?" Asked Ruby
"Yes… but please, don't pity me. I don't want people to worry about me." He replied. He crossed his arms to his chest, "don't wanna make this cheerful atmosphere turn into a negative one." Joseph chuckles softly.
"Do you want to do something to get your mind off of… Cayde?" Asked Yang.
Joseph looked at Xeno, a bit dissatisfied with the fact that Xeno told them. He sighed "no, I am fine. Just, a bit down after the call with my gunsmith, just remembering about Cayde, but that's all, truly." He explained.
"Are you sure? I'm just worried that if your depression goes any further, it might have unerasable consequences." Said Yang.
Nora pushes Joseph forward. "Come on! Let's do something exciting before the day ends!" She yells
Joseph looks at the two teams. He knows that he can't push them away. Joseph smiles, remembering his deceased friends were just like that. "Fine." He gave in. "I don't feel like doing anything, but I will teach you something, something worth listening to." He says,
"If it will get your mind off of Cayde, then I'll listen," Ruby said.
"Yeah me too!" Said Jaune
"It better be worth it!" Weiss said
Joseph chuckles, "fine, it will be worth it."
Team RWBY and team JNPR followed Joseph to sit down outside on a table with a big umbrella that covered the sun.
"Well, this mainly focuses on Ruby and Jaune. It's about being a team." Joseph said.
"Team leaders will need to get to know more about your team members, and seeing that all of you can get along, is a fine start," Joseph said. He materializes a weighted throwing knife and starts to spin is while solar light particles swirl as the knife spins. "When I entered the restaurant, I said something about 'not all families are great.'"
"Yes, you did. What do you mean about that?" Asked Ruby.
"Not all families will have a caring mother or father. If we are talking about very wealthy people, some will take advantage and people will marry those who're wealthy to earn that person's wealth, not giving a fucking damn about their family and only caring for themselves." Joseph said. "When you are in a team that is set permanently, they are like a family to you. You bond stronger than anyone else whether you guys like it or not."
"Any tips on being a team leader?" Asked Jaune.
"Being a leader doesn't mean that you command your team daily, technically that just means you are bossing them around. A team leader is a person who understands everyone in their team. Team leaders are those who're willing to take responsibility and carry the weights of stress and struggle of everyone in their team." Joseph dissipates his knife and looks at Jaune and Ruby, "You two will need to understand how to be a leader. There isn't much I can tell you, because being a leader can go in different ways. Ruby's methods will be different from Jaune's and vice versa."
"You know quite a lot about being a leader," Jaune says.
Joseph leans back and puts his hands behind his head "I have… experience."
"You lead a team before?" Asked Yang.
"Yes, I have led my team before," Joseph replies
Weiss, Yang, Nora, Jaune, and Ruby were surprised "How old were you?!" asked Jaune.
"I was fifteen when I started to lead a team. Small combat situations nothing more." Joseph partly lies.
"How were you as a leader?" Pyrrha asked
"Well, it has been two years since I headed off to venture uh… Remnant. I was the youngest out of all of my team members. They found my methods reasonable and fair. They liked me a lot due to my personality being serious, funny and caring." Joseph explained.
"What happened to your team?" Asked Ruby.
Joseph remembers his dead squad mates who died by his actions.
"Dead," Joseph said.
"I-"
Joseph put his hands up at Ruby "No need to be sorry. You asked and I answered."
"But we are having you remember terrible memories." Said Yang
He nodded "yeah… yeah, you guys are. But I am fine answering questions. Plus, I will remember the good parts of my friends, not the bad ones." Joseph smiled. He got up and started to walk towards the exit. "I'm tired. Going back to the dormitories." He said as he waves back to them.
"Aww really Joseph, I like talking to them. Their tales are pretty interesting."
"Well, if you wanna talk to them, by all means, go ahead. I ain't stopping you. Just… stay safe."
"Are you okay? You seem more down than ever…"
"Every time I remember my dead friends, it's like a stab through the heart. I wish I could join them… but you'd have to die, which I don't want as well… I'm, sorry X, I'm just in a predicament right now. Go, let me get some time to myself."
"Ok…"
Xeno materializes and flies towards the group.
"Is he going to be okay? I feel like it's my fault…" Ruby said
"No, it is not. He's just rehabilitating in his own way. Please, just give him some air." Xeno said.
No matter what, there is no way we are able to forget those we cherish and love. Because if we do, well, it just feels fucking awful.
"_ _ - _ _ _ - _ _ _ _ - _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ - _ _ _ _ _ - _ _ _ _ _ _ _ - _ _ _?" - Joseph Anderson to Wu Ming
If there is anything I can improve on in this chapter, please give me a heads up!
