Big Issues
AN: Welcome back for another addition to the Big Issues series! I'd like to thank Mysterious Stranger Johnny for the fave and MorganiteHeliodor for the fave and follows. And I'd like to give a big thank you to my most frequent reviewer, you know who you are.
Things are going to cranking up a bit in this chapter, but you'll have to read to find out how!
Growth
If there was something that Nora hated while on the road it would be the boredom that came along with seeing nothing but the road she was on. Sure, there were some changes in the scenery every so often from forest, to fields, occasional farms, mountains to cross that were sometimes rocky, and the rivers and small lakes that they'd need to cross or go around.
She certainly saw more of Anima now than when she was younger, moving from town to town with Ren until they were taken in by a combat school. Those first few days there where they didn't have to scrounge for scraps to eat or drink from rivers were blissful. With the abundance of food and having a stable place to live, combined with the training that they received allowed her to nearly double her weight in six months. Not particularly hard to do when she had been little more than skin and bones when she arrived.
'I can only imagine what my past self would have said if she saw me now.' Nora laughed at herself for the thought. Then again, she had never thought that she'd be as big as she is now outside of a few dreams where she ate an endless supply of pancakes.
Even conversations were few and far between aside from giving directions or watching the weather or for Grimm. Singing was also rare since they tended to go through their canteens faster when doing so.
"Are we there yet?" The short ginger asks for the first time in two hours and thirty seven minutes, Ren had kept the time.
"New record." He comments flatly.
"Nora… we haven't reached the next town yet." Jaune tells her tiredly. It was his turn this time, next would be Pyrrha's.
"I just hope things are going alright at home." Ruby says to the taller redhead.
"You did leave on a good note." Pyrrha reminded her. "Even if it was after you were caught trying to sneak out."
"Ugh… You don't need to remind me about that." The youngest of the team slumped over at the memory. It had taken her hours that day to work up the courage to go out her window and not tell her sister she was leaving. Now, she just hoped that her letters to home would reach her family, sending them at any town they came across that would take mail. It felt good to keep them on the loop of what she has been going through since she left in the late winter and it was now early summer.
Then again, mail across continents was never the most reliable in the best of times. Part of the reason that she didn't want to try buying and sending a birthday present for Yang. She'd just have to make up for it the next time they were together.
—-
"What's our next step?" Weiss asks the older members of the team as they went over all of the information they had, which honestly wasn't too much. Lil' Miss Malachite had told them that there were a series of brokers that the bounties were issued through and they had only tracked down two of them. The questioning had taken a week, let alone the month to find them, and they only had received anonymous bounty information that they had passed on to those looking to collect.
The most 'fun' they had was when they walked into a bounty hunter guild hall. There were few who were willing to contend with any of the trio alone since word had spread about the other threesome having fought and lost handily.
The various hunters took advantage of their numbers and location to attack only to find that very few of them had the skills to be a threat to any one of the Atlas team. Even the four who obviously had Huntsman training didn't stand a chance, they simply lasted longer. It also helped that the sisters summoned Beowolves to assist.
"It may be best that we return to Atlas at this point and investigate our leads there. Everyone we've talked to has been pointing their fingers that way." Farkas admits as he runs his hands through his hair.
"Perhaps, but we should go after this one remaining lead we have here." Winter holds out one of their notes. The lead is a woman who was loosely affiliated with both of the brokers they had interrogated and with the Spiders. Hopefully, she'd be a bit more willing to cooperate.
"We can give it a month to find her and look for anything else, maybe hit up the Spiders again." Farkas relented. "If we have no other breaks, we're going back home. I'll call the Argus base to schedule our pickup."
"Do you really think we'll find anything in that time?" Weiss asks her sister as Farkas walked away with his scroll already up to his ear.
"Hard to say but this woman would be our last shot to do so."
"Do you… do you really think that Father would do this to us?" Weiss was hesitant to ask.
Winter sighed. This was a discussion that they had nearly weekly since this investigation began and it was only her focus that was keeping her from openly worrying about the whole situation, if barely.
"As much as I'd prefer to say no, we do know how he is." That simple answer said volumes that neither young woman wanted to elaborate on. "But we'll get to the bottom of this sooner or later… without giving him the satisfaction of us coming home to him." Winter gave a toothy smirk.
Weiss gave a wide grin. "That I can get behind!"
—-
Blake wandered the halls of her home, simply to keep herself busy as her parents and the town council as they went over the proposed plans for the CCT Tower and Academy. The engineers and construction designers taking notes and drafting up the plans as they were approved. Itazura had called up Goodwitch and the supplies and personnel were already on their way.
"Psst! Hey Blake." She heard Sun getting her attention as she passed by the door to the kitchen.
"What is it?" She was curious to see him in there and found that he was preparing some food and putting it in a basket.
"Wanna get out of here for some fresh air?" He used his tail to hold the basket out to her as his hands were occupied finishing cutting up some fruit.
"I could go for that. Planning a construction project isn't exactly my idea of fun." She took the basket that was 'handed' to her. "That and engineering isn't my strong suit either." She adds with a shrug.
"Really? I wouldn't have guessed with the way you were nearly sleeping earlier." A golden tail pokes her plump hip teasingly, only for that same hip to swing into his, pushing Sun away easily with the far greater mass.
—-
Soon the pair found themselves high up the mountain near where the academy would be built soon. They could see where the trees were marked for removal and stakes and ropes outlining the areas for the buildings. The proposed tunnels into the mountain would be mined but then reinforced with the use of Earth Dust.
Already, they could both see in their minds the school on the mountaintop. How it would watch over Kuo Kuana and the other small villages on Menagerie and help them tame the desert. The big Dust vein that had been found before the explorers were driven away by the Grimm could actually be used rather than the smaller mines on the other side of the mountains.
But where they stopped, they were still high above Kuo Kuana near a small cliff and they had a small clearing to relax in, shaded by some palms. The view is spectacular, the ocean stretching out into the horizon, the various buildings of the main settlement of Menagerie surrounded by the tropical forests. Behind them, flowers are in bloom on the lush vegetation.
"It's like a garden!" Blake gasps as she looks around, the small clearing only covered in short grass.
"Yeah, we can meet here without anyone knowing about it." Sun says with a smile, setting the basket down in the springtime sun.
Blake looked around again, seeing the butterflies visiting the flowers and the birds flitting from tree to tree, occasionally stopping to watch the Faunus. "At least they won't be telling our secret." The cat giggles, as she felt the feelings within her grow. Feelings that she'd come to accept for the blonde and found herself wanting to hold onto more of it.
Sun watched her laughing, practically drinking in her smile like he would cool water back in Vacuo. Honestly, seeing her relaxing, actually opening up to others, and smiling on her own… it was like a dream come true. And he knew her parents felt the same, he was just all abuzz about being the one who was responsible for helping to bring that out. And his heart felt like it was filling to capacity with the feelings that have grown deeper the longer that they were together.
"So… what would you like to see? Should I keep taking you here to our garden?" Sun asks with a smile that was equally teasing and endearing. "You could be the queen." He wiggles his eyebrows.
"Really? Is that your dream?"
"It can be our fantasy."
"But I'd rather be free of that responsibility." They were both wearing wide smiles as they went back and forth, simply having fun with the verbal jousting .
"Hmm… how about you let me be your b-b-b-BEE!" Sun went from teasing to panicked when the mentioned insect landed on his nose. The monkey scrambled backwards as fast as he could to escape until his hands found nothing but air thanks to the cliff. Instinctively, he jumped and grasped the leaning palm with his tail as he rubbed at his face to remove the feeling of the little legs and wings on his nose.
Back by the basket, Blake couldn't help herself from laughing loudly at his reaction, nearly falling into the blooms behind her. As she did so, she was reminded that thanks to Sun, her dark and gloomy past was pushed farther away, especially with regards to fixing her relationship with her family and fighting off Adam.
Sun couldn't help smiling at her laughter now that he regained control of himself, the tropical breeze carrying her giggles that were song to his ears.
Once again, Blake almost couldn't believe that this one young man would do so much to help her. Anything from being a wall to vent to without judgment to assisting her in her times of greatest need like when she confronted the White Fang at the docks to just a few weeks ago to drive off Adam's splinter group. In short, she found her own doubts disappearing with him nearby, almost like clouds clearing in the sky.
She blushed a little as she watched his lips turning up into a certain smile, one that seemed to be reserved for her… and she recalled a few daydreams where she fantasized about what they might feel like on hers… and the shivers of elation that came from that fantasy.
For Sun, he heard the song of her laughter and he could remember the passion that she has for when she talks about her family, her friends, the three girls she calls her sisters, and her goals… with every time she spoke seemed to make what had been a passing fancy into something far more, enough that he'd do just about anything for her. A girl so sweet on the inside that she wound up taking him home with her.
For him, he'd treat Blake like a queen, no matter how much she'd 'protest'.
He swung himself upright onto the trunk and hopped back to the ground. "Hehe, glad that my fear of bees makes you so happy." He dramatically pouts as he sits next to the still laughing cat. Unfortunately or intended, that only renewed her giggles until she flopped onto her back to catch her breath.
"Feel better?" The monkey asks as he holds a bottle of water in his hand over her.
"I don't think I've laughed so hard since the dance." She huffed as the giggles slowly subsided. Her chest and stomach rose and fell as she sucked in air to stabilize herself.
Above her, there was a small crack of the seal being broken before a few cool drops fell onto her bare belly, the riveletts tickling her skin and making her giggles renew. "Glad I can make you laugh so well." Sun gave her a theatrical bow, leaving the bottle next to the fat cat as he did so. Needless to say, her laughter needed a little more time to settle, easily long enough for him to sit down next to her and start unloading the basket.
Sealed bowls of fruits, packs of crackers, mixed nuts, and a few candies now sat in front of the pair along with a few bottles of water and powdered drink mixes.
"I didn't realize how much you brought." Blake comments as she looks at the spread of what would normally be considered snacks.
"It did add up pretty quickly."
"Think Mom will have a big dinner made?"
"I think you are just upset that I didn't bring any fish."
"Maybe…" Blake teased before popping a piece of pineapple into her mouth.
"Still, I'm glad to see you lightening up again."
Blake quirked an eyebrow at him, rubbing her large gut as she wriggled on her rump a little.
"Y-you know what I mean!" Sun began to panic until she began laughing at his reaction. "Huh?"
"I'm just playing with you, Sun." She giggles. "I… I know I've grown… a bit since we left Beacon. You've been there with me since this whole thing with The Issue began and before that. Thanks for staying with me… even when I… wasn't the nicest person around." Her tone had become saddened and filled with guilt by the end with no small amount of embarrassment.
"Hey, we all have our bad times." Sun shrugs. "Heck, you've seen me during mine."
"But I was the cause of that!"
"Maybe… kinda." He was unsure what to say about that. "But at least things worked out for us."
"True. We had a great time at the dance."
"And cool pictures too."
"Are you talking about the ones at the dance or the one before that?"
That made him stop and purse his lips as he tried to make a decision, though doing so simply made Blake laugh again. "It is a cute picture of us, isn't it?" He finally said as he got over her teasing.
"Very cute… once the embarrassment of being caught like that wore off. At least Itazura didn't spread the picture everywhere."
"Yeah. Um, what do you think your team would have said about that? I know Sage and Scarlet would have simply said good luck and Neptune… um, well… probably bugging me on how that happened."
The cat hung her head as her ears folded back. "Ugh… honestly? I think they'd all have my back but Weiss and Yang would tease me relentlessly."
"And Ruby?"
"Probably be asking when we started dating." That statement made them both turn red. It didn't help that they found that they had eaten most of the food they had brought already.
So their distractions were starting to run thin.
They found the scenery to be rather distracting for the next few minutes, the rest of the food vanishing during that time. But the silence between them couldn't last.
"Um… are… are we dating?" Sun asks, recalling the dance, how often they were together at Beacon, how comfortable they were during the parties that their teams had together, the day that he took Blake out for lunch and to visit Tuckson's Booktrade, and how the two of them had gone out for a relaxing day that culminated with them spending hours at the beach.
Blake had similar thoughts running through her own head now that the question had been asked. She also couldn't help but remember how often that it had been Sun who had been the one who actually tried to understand her. He was someone who did his best to help her, to listen and be there when she needed someone the most. And she was finding that she was wanting to be near him. For him to support her, knowing that he'd let her stumble to learn but be there to keep her from falling.
"I suppose so." She says quietly, somewhat curling in on herself.
"Do… do you want to?" He was still unsure of himself.
Blake sat there for a few seconds to process the question, inadvertently making her companion increasingly nervous. But with what she remembered of her experiences with Sun, she had yet to find anything that was particularly negative. And he was giving her the choice.
"I'd like that." She finally answered with a small smile.
"Really?" Sun slowly was brought out from his nerves and replacing that with joy.
"Hehe, really."
Sun moved to give her a hug but was brought up short by two things: One being that he remembered that it might be a bit too much too fast for the normally anti-social cat for comfort. The second being the bee flying in front of his face again that made him panic slightly.
"Sun? Are you afraid of bees?" Blake recognized the pattern easily enough.
The blonde ducked backwards in hopes of evading the insect. "I'd rather not get stung again!"
"A sting isn't that bad." She countered, though she rubbed her leg where she had been stung years ago.
"Try thirty or so and tell me what you think!" He shouts and jumps onto the leaning tree again.
"That would do it." Blake shook her head as she reached behind her.
Meanwhile, Sun kept backing away from the stinging insect along the tree but was finding that he was losing ground fast and would need to jump soon.
BANG!
And the bee was nothing but a pair of wings fluttering through the air towards the ground far below, nothing left of the rest of the bug to be found.
Blake was still sitting by the basket but had Gambol Shroud in its pistol configuration and a wide smirk on her face. "Better?"
"Much better." Sun drops down next to her and lays back to try to relax again after his fear was triggered.
"I'm sure you are." The cat giggles, already having her weapon sheathed again. She shifted so that she was laying next to him, content to let the day pass to keep the peaceful moment going without interruption… almost.
"Boop!" She used a finger to lightly pat the tip of his nose. His reaction was immediate: his head snapping over to look at her with wide eyes to see her wide grin- like a feline who had gotten the canary. "And don't worry about bees, I'll keep them away."
And his own lips turned up into a similar grin that promised fun to be had. "This is coming from someone named after a flower?"
"Flowers do need the sun to grow. And I've grown in many ways thanks to you."
So much for relaxing the afternoon away as things became more active.
—-
Today was Yang's scheduled day off from training and so she had no problems with staying in bed well after sunrise. It helped that she wasn't exactly a morning person. Even if she wasn't sleeping anymore since sometime after seven, she didn't feel the need to rise.
She was slightly irritated that Denko had slipped out of bed earlier, initially for the bathroom but had gotten the call that a Beowolf pack was nearby and had left to deal with it. He had woken her up to ask if she wanted to help but she declined in favor of sleeping in.
At least she was smelling breakfast being made.
Ruby's bed was in shadow, a consequence of Yang's bed being by the eastern window of the room. That also meant that she was currently being bathed in the warm rays, encouraging her to stay in bed.
But eventually, her stomach and bladder overruled her desires to spend the day in bed, taking care of the latter first.
Her father was manning the stove, eggs, sausage, and potatoes frying in the pan together with toast and jam of the table already. Complete with the jug of orange juice.
"Smells good!"
"Good morning Yang. Mind getting the plates and stuff out? This is almost ready." Tai greets his daughter as he begins to mix some cheese into the pan.
"Sure. Is Denko back yet?" The rotund blonde had plenty of practice getting the table ready with one hand, so she did so easily. The part of her having very vivid flashbacks from accidentally breaking the porcelain or glass was a very good incentive to keep a firm grasp on them. Too many already for her liking and the occasional nightmare from that night didn't help.
"Not yet. But it's only a pack of Beowolves, he probably had a harder time going over to their location than actually fighting them."
"Probably, where'd he have to go? He left the Scarab here."
"Didn't he tell you?"
"Maybe but I was barely awake when he said he was leaving."
"Ah." It was odd to think that a man who was so overprotective of his daughters would be okay with letting his daughter share a bed with a boy, but he was also a boy that Tai has known for years. It may have helped to alleviate his worries knowing that Denko still felt that he owed him for helping himself and his sister get off the streets.
But between that and the genuine closeness that he saw Yang and Denko shared, especially when it came to helping her after things went bad at Beacon, he felt that it was best to let them go. Of course, that also came with a warning and a long talk about the birds and bees that thoroughly embarrassed both younger blondes to where he was sure that he made his point. If not, he is a fully trained Huntsman and WOULD use those skills to beat respect into them if he had to.
Plus he knew that telling the younger generation not to do something usually meant that they found it as encouragement to do just that; experience from his own youth.
"I'm home!"
"That took long." Yang quips as she sets down the forks in her hand and walks over towards the front door to see her boyfriend setting Raijin in the corner. "Welcome home."
"Hey." He accepts and returns the hug his very plump girlfriend gave him "Did you eat breakfast already?"
"Nope! You came in just in time." Yang chirps as she pulls him into the kitchen and sat down as Tai emptied the large pan onto the plates equally, and setting a plate full of cooked sausage on the floor for Zwei to eat.
"Any plans for today?" Tai asks as they eat.
"Not really, Dad. It's my day off so it's just the regular stretches and relax."
"Nothing really planned for me either beyond listening for Grimm reports." Denko shrugs.
"Alright, then you two wouldn't mind stopping in town to pick up some eggs? Used the last of them for our meal."
"What are you doing today?" Yang asks with a raised eyebrow.
The father reached down to lift a brown leather briefcase, one that was well worn. "I have reports to go through and grade. Not to mention a test to write up."
"Yeah… that'll keep you busy." Denko drawls.
"Right, if you need me, I'll be in my office downstairs." The teacher tells them as he drinks the last of his juice and puts his dishes in the sink. Zwei grabbed the case and drug it to the basement door before going down backwards, the thuds of the case hitting the steps almost echoing through the otherwise quiet house.
"Looks like even Zwei is telling you to get to work." Yang grins cheekily, Denko settling for a smirk beside her.
"Alright, I know when I'm beaten three to one." The man mocks as he follows the family pet.
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK
That made the homeowner stop at the basement door and look towards the main entrance to his home. "Were we expecting anyone this morning?"
"If it was the Watch, I'm pretty sure they would have called, unless they were already right here." Denko shrugs from his seat but both young adults were rising to investigate with the father.
"Hello?" Tai asks as he opens the door.
"Good morning, Taiyang Xiao Long!" The loud greeting was met with surprised looks from three blondes.
"Barty? Pete? What are you two doing here?"
"Did you forget? You invited us to come over!" Peter Port was close to laughing at the much younger man.
"Um… I didn't forget." Tai began and looked back at the television cabinet to check the time. "I just didn't expect to see you closer to noon at earliest, not barely after eight."
"Ah, but the early bird gets the worm!" Oobleck raises a finger.
The homeowner sighed and ran a hand through his hair as he knew his plans were now put on hold, something he wasn't sure if he should be happy that he wasn't grading reports or upset that he wasn't getting them out of the way to enjoy his weekend. "Come on in, we just ate."
"Thank you, Tai." Both men say as they step in and are led to the kitchen to sit at the table where the youths quickly clear the surface and begin cleaning the dishes together.
"So… what are you doing here so early, really?" Tai asks as he sits down with his old friends.
The two men glanced at each other briefly before Bartholomew decided to speak. "Several reasons actually, but they are all related." He paused to push his glasses up. "First and foremost, to check in on our students and see how they are doing since the attack on our school."
Yang turned from the sink where she was scrubbing the plates. "Well, you can see how that turned out." She waved her stump at the men in a way that looked like she'd be waving if capable with that arm.
"Ah, y-yes. Though you seem to be looking well otherwise." The history professor tried to save face with the compliment.
Yang rolled her eyes at that but let it go, returning to the dishes.
"We were also curious as to how your training has been going." Port adds.
"You did find us having a little celebration for Yang exceeding our expectations during our training sessions." Tai says casually.
"Might we see?"
The young couple glanced at each other due to that question. "Just so you know, it is her scheduled day off to relax and recover." Denko tells them without looking.
"I see, perhaps we could stop by tomorrow and join you for your training session then." Oobleck offers.
"We could do that." Denko agreed after Yang shrugged.
"Was there anything else aside from catching up?" Tai asks, trying not to sound too protective of his daughter and her privacy.
"Ah, yes. Now that is something that I'm quite certain that you'd be very interested in learning about!" The green-haired teacher says with renewed excitement as he lifts the backpack he'd carried in. Reaching in and with a small bit of shuffling around, his hand withdrew with several envelopes of varying colors and conditions.
But it was the very familiar handwriting on them that caught the attention of the blondes in the room.
—-
"How long have you been doing this, kid?"
Oscar was working the fields again with the man he had offered shelter to some time ago. While he had said that he was a traveler, the man was also content to stay to help out for some time. That worked out rather well to assist with the early harvesting of fruits and vegetables in the early summer.
"Since two years ago when my aunt took me in after a Grimm attack…" Oscar trailed off as his hand went to his neck that he kept wrapped up with some bandages.
"Hmmm… I see. I know what it's like to lose someone." The man sympathized. "I've actually been looking for someone who I believe I can trust and last I heard, they had been going this way."
"Is that why you'll be leaving soon?" Another weed joined the basket they were using, soon the contents would be part of the fertilizer.
"Yes, yes I will."
"Well… I hope you find who you are looking for."
"You know… when I usually say thanks to someone, I tend to be rather sarcastic. But this time… it's genuine. Thank you."
Oscar's eyes went wide at that admission but seeing how uncomfortable the man looked while doing so, he could tell he was being honest.
"You're welcome."
—-
'Dad and Yang, I really really hope this gets to you. You know how bad snail mail can be. I don't know if my other letters found their way to you yet but I'm letting you all know that we are doing okay.
The Bullhead crash was pretty scary but everyone survived and we got them to the nearest town safely.'
'Hey Yang, I hope you aren't giving Denko too much trouble as your arm gets better.'
'Denko, you better be watching out for my sister. I know she's strong but she will need the help, even if she doesn't want to admit it most of the time.'
'We took a few wrong turns and found a bazaar with all kinds of neat stuff. Too bad none of the parts the weapon vendors were selling were better than what we already were using. And the ammunition was really pricey for us. Ren is keeping our budget tight so we can afford our food and places to stay the night.
And guess who took third in the pancake eating contest! ^_^ This cool girl!
Nora won easily and Pyrrha beat me by a few bites. But we used our winnings to get Pyrrha some new armor and to stay the night in a soft warm bed.
And it felt good to shower after a week on the road, so… that's a plus, right?'
'We took down a Geist that used a bunch of huge boulders as its body to attack a town. It was a really tough fight but we pulled it off without any serious injuries.
And we found out that Jaune needs a lot of gun practice. I can't believe that when he had the best opportunity to shoot it's face, he forgot the safety was still on! Then when the Grimm tried to escape, he tried to shoot it. He… missed, badly.
Maybe when we can afford to stay somewhere without worrying about ammunition, we'll take him out for practice.'
'Things weren't good this week. The village of Shion was attacked by bandits and Grimm. Not much left without a lot of rebuilding. The only survivor we found was a Huntsman who lived long enough to tell us what happened. We buried him near one of the walls and marked his grave.
I hope there were others who got away. But we let the people of the next town we found know about what happened. At least we were told that search parties are being sent out.'
'Dad, Yang, Denko… I miss you. Hopefully we'll be in Mistral soon and we can get an airship back to Vale.'
The words on the pages from the different envelopes sent chills up the spines of the readers and brought laughter at other times but the overall theme was clear; that Ruby was going to lead her team to complete their mission and she missed her family.
"Well… one thing is guaranteed." Denko began before nudging Yang's right shoulder. "You have a big surprise for her when you see each other next."
Yang used her stump to hit his arm, allowing the metal cap to deal the real 'damage'. "Yeah, I can't imagine how she's gonna take it."
"I don't want to know what she'd do if she came home while we were out and she visits the cliff again." Tai adds somberly. They all have a good idea of what Ruby would do in that situation and it wasn't pleasant.
"If I may ask, how is the young Miss Rose?" Peter asks, reminding the blondes that they had company.
"Yes, it is quite odd that such a young team had been given an official mission despite having yet to complete their first year of training. Glynda must have a lot of trust in their skills. Granted, they are among the top students of their year… most of them anyway." Bartholomew says, obviously doing his best to contain his usual excitement.
"The latest one here says they made it to the village of Shion but it was destroyed shortly before they got there." Tai tells the older men.
"Hmm…" Port strokes his mustache. "If I remember correctly, Shion was only a days flight from Mistral. Provided they don't lose track of their path, they could reach Mistral within a month."
"Well, the letter was dated a few weeks ago. You think they made it to Mistral then?" Taiyang sounded hopeful.
"It is possible, so long as they don't run into too many Grimm or get bogged down by the weather in the mountains surrounding the Kingdom." The elderly Huntsman confirms, though his reasoning made the father worry more.
"But the only thing that I believe that they should worry about is that there have been reports of powerful Grimm in the area around Mistral that I doubt anyone would be able to handle on their own." Oobleck adds.
"Ah yes… the Nuckelavee is among those. I would have loved to add one of those to my list of accomplishments but they are rare. The best I can claim is being among those who fought a Sea Feilong about twenty years ago. Had to lure it into a trap to even wound the beast." Peter boasted.
"You're not making this easy on me guys." Taiyang groans as he runs his hands through his hair. Behind him, the couple were done washing and had begun putting everything away.
"My apologies, Tai." Barty was quick to respond. "While we were simply stating the facts, we have confidence that your daughter's team will be just fine. If they can defeat a Geist using boulders for a body and they are as intelligent as we know they are, they should have no trouble reaching Mistral despite the obstacles in their path."
"Yes! I fully agree with that!" Port nearly shouted, much to the amusement of the others, especially since had stood while pounding his fist to his chest.
"Alright, I get it. Still, my girls are all I have left and I don't want to lose them like their mothers."
Yang and Denko had finished by that point and leaned against the counter. Tai's last words took them by surprise and Yang was hoping that he'd continue, it was a rare event that he'd say anything about her mother and that was part of the reason that she wanted to find her.
"And you've done an excellent job of raising them in spite of the circumstances!" Barty told him flatly.
"Not to mention you and Qrow taking two more under your wings to guide them through life." Port adds, gesturing towards Denko as he did.
"He he, I see your point." The father perked up as his confidence was boosted. Looking to the side, he saw the youths giving encouraging smiles.
"Tell me Yang, how has your training been going?" Oobleck asks, mixing curiosity with his professional activities as a teacher and Huntsman.
The girl shifted a bit as she thought of an answer. "Well… when we started, these pants didn't need a belt." She shrugs and pulls at the waist or the article to show that there was a fair amount of loose fabric. That demonstration was slightly diminished by the love handle she had to move to do so. 'Probably should bring out the next size smaller soon.'
"And her exercises have been going surprisingly well." Denko adds. "Her time to run around the tree line here has been cut down to under half since we started."
"Hmm…. That's all good but how about your combat skills? Have you been working on them at all?" The Doctor asks neutrally.
Denko glanced to the side as a touch of red came to his face. "Uh… we've simply been building up her strength and endurance until now. We were planning to start sparring soon?"
"And when would that be?" Peter asks.
"C'mon guys, this is supposed to be her day off from training." Tai defends his daughter. "But we were thinking about getting started tomorrow since she hit her conditioning goals earlier than expected."
The Beacon teachers shared a look, unknown to the residents of the house, they weren't simply on a forced vacation but to also evaluate Yang's recovery for Glynda. For both of them, their mild disappointment for Yang letting herself go as she did was offset by their sympathies for what she had gone through. It would be hard to imagine bouncing back easily from what she went through, especially having to spend months thinking that her arm would be saved only to lose it in the end.
"Yang, I realize this is supposed to be your day to relax, but could you provide us with a demonstration of your exercises? Just a light workout is needed." Bartholomew asks as he adjusts his glasses.
"Um.. okay."
"Excellent! Lead the way!" And he went from full seriousness to excitable caffeine-nut that only Ruby and Nora could compete with in terms of energy.
And a tune from a brass band played through the kitchen, making the professors look around for the source. The blondes simply sighed as Denko reached into his pocket and checked his scroll, the tune stopping.
"What is it?" Yang tried to read from the side.
"Another pack of Beowolves is being chased this way by the Watch. Wants me to be the trap." He slips the device back into his pocket as he starts to move for the front door where Raijin sat.
"Allow me to assist you with that! I'm always ready for a good hunt!" Port declares as he follows the much younger man to the door, his own weapon sitting there.
"Works for me, I can tell you about the Grimm attack on Yang's birthday here. Would you believe that she got the killing shot on a Silverback Beringal?" Denko says before the door closed.
"Is that true? You killed a Beringal?"
"Yeah, Doc. But Denko did most of the work on it. I just jumped on its back and shot it in the head." Yang explained, using her stump to mimic the final attack like she did that night.
"Hmm… interesting." Oobleck cupped his chin at the thought of someone who had been disabled and out of shape like the student in front of him being able to take on a powerful Grimm such as that. "Very well, let's get on with your demonstration." And he was back to business.
—-
"Thanks again for the help Denko."
"No problem Iris." The blonde shrugs since the hunt was over quite quickly. While the pack seemed to be trying to guide the Watch Huntsman into a trap of their own where an Alpha and a dozen other Beowolves were lying in wait, the Grimm didn't plan on Denko Mori and Peter Port to ambush the ambushers.
That coincided with the Grimm who were leading the other Huntsmen to the location, finding a combat zone rather than the trap their leader wanted, leaving them in surprise long enough for their trackers to catch up and attack. Then the rest of the pack fell soon afterwards.
"You are quite the skilled Huntress, young Iris!" Port proclaimed. "I'm surprised that you weren't accepted into Beacon."
"Oh,really?" The flower themed Huntress was shocked that her skills were being praised. "I'm not an official Huntress yet but my time on the watch has been helping a lot."
"I'm sure it has! Even if one has yet to receive their Huntsman license, doing the work of one regularly will only make one improve! If you wish to apply to Beacon when we reopen, I shall vouch for your admission personally! If need be, we may move you up a year to match your skills if a team needs a new member."
"Oh, wow… thank you!"
"No problem at all my dear!"
Denko stepped closer to the girl and kept his voice low. "Just so you know, he's a bit of a braggart but he can back that up in a fight. Also, don't be surprised if he tries hitting on you a bit. Just tell him to knock it off if he does and he won't bother you that way again."
"Really?"
"If you get that old while still being an active Huntsman, you don't just have the skills to keep going, you'll pick up a few quirks that help you deal with the things you've seen or done."
"Is that your excuse?"
"I've seen a lot of shit and been through more. I keep my quirks productive."
Iris snorted at that, and Port going off on a story about a hunt from his youth didn't help. "Is that what Yang wanted?"
Denko's face turned red in a flash. "We weren't expecting anyone that night."
"Right, and Yang was just 'stuck in the window' for fun."
"She thought it was fun." He grumbled. It was a vivid memory of that night where Yang had a little 'extra training'... surprising him with her position and teasing voice. The part where Iris had come to the house near the end was a real damper on their moods.
Thankfully, they arrived at the Xiao Long- Rose home soon after, just in time to see Yang and Oobleck running by them at a good pace.
"Kinda thought we were gone long enough for them to finish." Denko wonders aloud as they watch the runners.
"Yeah, it takes you two a long time to finish." Iris mutters under her breath, still having her mind on her friends personal life.
"It is good to see so much energy in today's youths! It fills me with hope for our future!" Port was anything but quiet and covered up what Iris said.
"When do you plan to retire anyway?" The blonde asks the teacher as they resume the walk to the house.
"Hmm…." Peter strokes his mustache. "I'll admit that I'm not as sprite as I used to be but these old bones aren't done yet! I'd much rather prefer meeting my end surrounded by the corpses of Grimm than lying on a bed."
"A true warriors end, fighting to the last." Denko says in response, getting a grunt of agreement from the older man.
They found Taiyang inside at the table going over the reports he had to grade and one in particular caught their eye with all of the red ink. But it was the image that the red circles made on the page that was truly attention grabbing, being that of a middle finger being raised.
"Really?" Peter picked up the report and read it through, grumbling all the while. Then he slammed it down and walked out the back door without a word.
"What was that about?" Iris was now concerned about the Huntsman who had, until now, maintained a smile to match his jovial attitude.
"Looks like Tai has a real joker in his class. Made key 'mistakes' at certain points that would make the picture during the grading process." Denko couldn't keep the smile from forming.
"Yeah, I didn't notice either until I was just about done." Taiyang admits with a sigh of frustration.
"What are you going to do about it?" Iris was curious, Tai was known as an easygoing man who was more than willing to play a few jokes on teachers and students.
"Meh, I'll figure it out when I get through the others. Don't need that distraction right now." He waved off the concerns with a chuckle.
—-
By the time lunch had rolled around, Tai was finished grading, Denko and Yang had made the meal, Iris had to go to work at Hestia's, and the professors had finished whatever conversation they were having outside.
Honestly, the meal wasn't much, simply sandwiches that everyone could make them as they wished. A few snacks on the side and iced tea to wash it all down.
"Yang Xiao Long." The use of her full name from Dr. Oobleck made her sit up straight.
"Yes?"
"When we first arrived here, we were unsure if we should give this to you." The tall man picked up his large backpack.
"Overcoming your insecurities and limitations with your drive and actions have persuaded us to reconsider our initial assessment. And your renewed spark in such a short time will surely make your flame glow brightly!" Port continued in his usual boasting manner.
"And we can only assume that this gift will help your passionate flames grow so that you may help others in turn." Bartholomew finishes as he pulls out a long white box, stamped in grey with the symbol of Atlas and hands it over to Yang.
"What is it?" She looks it as she sets it on the table; she still didn't have much room on her lap when sitting.
"It represents many things, depending on who you ask." Oobleck tells her cryptically.
Yang quirked an eyebrow at that before glancing at her boyfriend who was encouraging her to open it. Her father was openly curious while the other teachers were unreadable beyond expectant.
Her hand worked the lid of the box, tearing away the stickers that kept it sealed. As she did, she noticed a few small scuff marks on the white surface, even a corner was slightly dented. But she pulled the lid off once it was freed.
And she was shocked into silence at what was inside.
Nestled within the molded indent and velvet lining, a gleaming prosthetic arm sat there. Most of it covered in a silvery metal that was polished so that there were no weld marks, no scuffs or scratches to be seen. Not even a fingerprint to mar the clear finish. The joints are all a much darker carbon grey and looked to be fully articulated to match her natural arm. Even the socket for attachment looked to be slightly reinforced and would cup around her arm slightly.
The small card on the inside of the lid almost went unnoticed except for Denko plucking it out and handing it over to Yang to read.
AN: And finally, Blake and Sun are making things official! Now the only thing standing in their way may be her parents *cough- Ghira- cough*. And how their date was written is something that some sharper eyed readers may pick up on. ^_^
Plus, Yang finally got her new arm! We should thank the delivery boys for bringing it with them, they've already been given lunch as payment.
And there is the mysterious stranger who has been talking to Oscar... just who is that?
Oh well, I'll leave you all to stew on some of those conundrums until next time. Until then, I hope you've enjoyed the series so far and will keep coming back for more! Reviews are welcome!