A/N: This is the last one
Team SNOW will rise!
Westlyn Arc
-0-
"Are you ready for this?" He said unsheathing his sword
"I will prove it!" She said, extending her aura out of her palm into the shape of a sword.
"Well said but can you back it up!" The man jumped toward her with a slash of his sword. It bounced off her aura blade. He quickly used the momentum to twist into an underhand slash. She moved to block. No! It was a fake.
Westlyn felt the sword clash against her shield with enough force to throw her to the ground. "Get up and fight!" Westlyn rolled, adding in a slash at his legs to push him back. Instead he nimbly jumped over the slash and came down crashing back into her.
Westlyn was glad for her stature and training. The slash pushed her back, but she was able to keep herself up this time. Knowing he just landed, she ran back in. She blocked a swing on her shield, pushing it up to stab at her opponent's midsection.
He turned sideways having her stab go past him before grabbing her arm. He threw her forward using her momentum, managing to cut her across the back. It took a huge chunk of her aura. She spun around and blocked the next attack before it could do more.
Alexander Arc took two steps away from her frowning. "I taught you better than that. You can do better! Do it again. I'll start this time"
Westlyn nodded, bringing her shield up into position. Her father took a few more steps back more for her benefit than his. She could feel her aura was low. She could feel her muscles straining under the weight of her armor and weapons, her labored breath filling the space between them. It was going to end soon. In return her father hadn't even broken a sweat.
"Here I come" His eyes sharpened.
He pushed off. She expected him to start with a side slash. It fit with his style. She knew not to dare move though. If he saw her go to block before he even started the attack, he would change it, wasting her efforts. Why was he smiling?
"Hey Westlyn. What's going on. Training?" Jaune said, stepping in front of her. Westlyn was only startled for a moment before she realized their father hadn't stopped.
"Shit!" She grabbed Jaune, throwing him on the ground behind her, using the dust cannon in her shield, firing it at her father. He dodged it while moving into her guard, slashing at her. She deflected it, letting it slide off her shield. Alexander smiled again and Westlyn knew she did something wrong.
His attack kept going, right towards Jaune who was still on the ground stunned.
Westlyn elongated her sword using her aura, throwing most of her remaining aura into it to block the attack. She managed to stop his sword inches from Jaune's head. She pushed him back. He attacked her again pushing down on her hard. Westlyn blocked two strikes before a third hit her side. I wasn't as powerful as his heavy attacks but it hurt all the same. Westlyn saw her aura flicker.
Her father frowned again, then attacked. Not at her? Jaune had gotten his wits back and had managed to walk to the side, watching Westlyn's form. He was trying to copy it like he was holding her weapons using a wooden sword and shield she used when she was smaller. NO!
Westlyn intercepted the attack, practically jumping on top of Jaune. She felt pain crash through her body. Her aura blade disappeared so she ripped the wooden sword out of Jaune's hand. Alexander swung towards Jaune again. Westlyn decided to attack instead of defend, meeting his swing with her own towards his unprotected side. She saw red.
Alexander moved to block it instead of continuing his swing. It was only the wooden blade so his aura could have handled it, but to have her get such an easy strike on him would have been shameful. He blocked the next strike and the next. Noticing that each strike had more power than her other attacks. He smiled. One large last strike against his sword shattered the wooden sword, throwing the end past his head.
Alexander watched it fly past. "Okay I think that's eno-" Westlyn's fist met his face with her momentum behind it causing Alexander to stumble back. He was stunned.
Westlyn didn't know what happened but when she blinked her father was standing back holding his face. Jaune! Forgetting about herself she threw down her shield and the stick she held to check him. She grabbed his face and arms. "You're okay right!? Not hurt anywhere? Please tell me you're not hurt!"
A very embarrassed Jaune swiped her away and stepped back. "I'm fine! I'm fine! I may not have aura but I am not helpless!"
Westlyn kept staring at him. "No, I'm not hurt"
She let go of the breath she was holding. "Oh thank the brothers" She smiled.
"And what are you so happy about?" Jaune asked
"Just glad I was able to keep my little brother safe" she smirked.
"By two minutes! That doesn't count!" Jaune protested while crossing his arms.
"Two minutes is two minutes. Two seconds can mean the difference between life and death in a battle, so two minutes defiantly counts baby brother" She made sure to emphasize the word 'baby'
"He-hem" Alexander got the twin's attentions. "I think it's time to get back into the house. Your mother should be back from Vale soon with your sisters. We need to get some things done before then" He shuffled them back into the house.
It was an old house made of stone. From the outside it looked like a mansion, but from the inside it was built like a castle. The house had been in the Arc family for generations. It had been built right after the Great War started by their ancestors as less of a house and more of a stronghold. That and the large Arc owned land that it sat on.
As they stepped through the front door Alexander grabbed Westlyn's arm. "Jaune, start cleaning up to get ready for sisters. I need to have a talk with Westlyn."
Jaune seemed wary by agreed.
Westlyn was confused. Their father only ever took them away to punish them. She wasn't getting punished was she? Did she do something wrong?
He led her towards his office. Once inside he grabbed a book and sat down. "Do you know why I called you in here?"
She shook her head. "I assume it has something to do with our training?"
"Something like that" He slid a paper over towards Westlyn.
She grabbed it.
Congratulations! Your daughter WESTLYN ARC has been accepted into Beacon Academy.
Her eyes expanded in shock. "Wait really! I didn't even apply?!"
Her father smiled, "You are ready. You are not the best, but you are ready for this step. I have some pull at Beacon and used it for you"
She was shocked. Her, going to Beacon! This was a dream come true! "When?" A simple question with so much behind it. She didn't know she could make dreams based on a single word.
"Beacon starts in one week, but your mother and I want you to go early so you can have some time in Vale to yourself. You leave in two days"
Two days. "That's not much time. There is so much to do!" She had to tell her friends and pack and prepare. Not to mention sharpen her weapon, figure out how to get to Beacon from Vale and get a hotel-
"I know you're overwhelmed right now, but take it slowly. Your mother is working out where you will stay until Beacon starts while she is in Vale. She is also getting you a new wardrobe set" Westlym made to protest. "Whether you want her too or not"
Westlyn didn't need new clothes. She liked the ones she had. She was never a frilly girl, more like a tomboy. She liked her simple clothes. She kept her hair short because she didn't like her hair in her eyes while she was trying to train, mush to her sisters' disappointment. She was tall and lanky much like her twin, which didn't help her with the guys, especially when some of her sisters had a more womanly figure with better….assets. But she was okay with that. Being a huntress was something she wanted. Finding love could come after.
She smiled. Who knows, maybe she would find someone at Beacon. Her true partner to fight side by side against the forces of grimm.
"And when you become the huntress I know you can be. You will inherit the family blade" Alexander pointed up towards the case above them that held Crocea Mors. "It has been passed down the family through generations. You don't have to use it if you don't want to, but you must own it as a symbol as the next leading Arc as I have and my father before him"
Westlyn was so excited she was shaking. Something stopped her. "Wait, but what about Jaune?"
Her father frowned. "What about him?"
"You just said the family blade has been passed down the family line for generations. The first male in the family line. Wouldn't Jaune inherit Crocea Mors?"
Alexander kept frowning, "He will not because I don't deem him fit to carry the family blade"
"But!"
"That is enough!" Something seemed to snap in her father. He had never yelled at her. Even during training he would raise his voice, but never yell. "This is the last I will talk about this! You will go to Beacon! You will inherit the family blade!"
Westlyn was shook. This time it wasn't from excitement but from fear. Something must have happened. Something to do with Jaune. Her father sighed but before he could speak he was cut off by a knock on the office door.
Jaune opened the door a small bit. Westlyn could see sadness on his face. "Mother just called. They'll be home in an hour….I guess….I'll start dinner so they can eat when they arrive"
"That's good. Thank you son" Alexander said calmly like his outburst didn't just happen. That earned him a glare from Westlyn.
"Jaune" Westlyn said softly looking back at her brother
"Sorry to disturb you" he said before shutting the door. Westlyn heard him running back down the hall obviously not heading towards the kitchen.
Westlyn got up quickly intent on going after him. "Let him go" Alexander stated earning him another glare, "He needs to let that foolish dream of his go"
Westlyn didn't say anything to her father. She slammed the door behind her before running off to comfort her grieving brother.
-0-
Dinner was awkward to Westlyn. She had calmed Jaune down enough where she got him out of his room. They managed to still make dinner together right before her mother Sapphire Arc and her several sisters showed up at the door.
Each one congratulated her acceptance to Beacon and told her about Vale. Each one made her feel like digging a hole. Her brother sat next to her. For each story told, Jaune seemed to eat faster. He was the first one done with dinner.
Usually even when they were done eating they stayed at the table, each doing their part to take care of dishes for this massive family. Jaune just left, surprising his sisters.
Sapphire looked at her husband, but he said nothing so she let it be. For now.
Later when her sisters had gone to bed Westlyn snuck out of her room, intent on seeing her father. She knew that he didn't go to bed until late. Usually he did huntsman paperwork until then. She went down the hall. His office was closed as always, but when she opened the door he was not there. The light was off and the paperwork was on his desk as if he stopped halfway in between. Maybe he was in his room?
Unlike all the other rooms that were on the second floor, her father's room was the master bedroom connected to the central living room. She used to joke that it used to be a throne room for the Arcs of old. She got closer, hearing her father and mother through the thick door.
"What do you mean it isn't necessary! He looked devastated! What did you tell him!?" Sapphire yelled
"I didn't tell him anything. He may have….overheard my telling Westlyn she would inherit Crocea Mors" Alexander calmly explained
"Oh because that's nothing?! You know how he feels about being a huntsman. What it means to him. Why not just train him and let him inherit the sword?" Sapphire asked annoyed
"Because my semblance has never been wrong. Do you want him in pain?" That seemed to cowl her mother.
"No. Of course not. But can it be wrong? It just seems like he will wither at this point. I don't like seeing him like he was."
"I saw him surrounded by destroyed buildings and fire, crying with Coocea Mors on him" I never want to see him go through what he must have been going through. That look he had in his eyes honey….it wasn't that he was hurt, but that he had lost some part of himself. I would rather have him shrivel than be destroyed entirely" Alexander sounded old in that moment.
Westlyn was shocked. Her father's semblance showed him a piece of the future, a small glimpse. That's why he decided to train her, because he saw something in the future he approved of. She heard her mother move and sit on something soft. She assumed it was the large bed, "Are we doing the right thing keeping him here?"
She heard Alexander move. "Enough of that. We'll talk about this more some other time. For now" Westlyn heard a kissing noise and her mother moan. "Let's do something more fun," her father said suavely.
Westlyn's face went red. Now she knows why she had so many siblings. And why they have a room so far away from everyone else. Thank the brothers they had a room away from everyone else. And that the walls are so thick.
Also EWWW!
Westlyn wanted to get that last bit out of her mind, but she couldn't help but ponder about Jaune. Their father had not ever been cruel per-say, actually he had always been loving and accepting to their goals. The one thing he ever refused was to train Jaune. That means no unlocking his aura, no giving him weapons, no physical training sessions. It was hard for Jaune, but even through all of that he never gave up on his dream. Jaune still wants to be a huntsman, Westlyn knew nothing was going to change that.
But what about her father's vision? Westlyn had always had a soft spot for Jaune. He was someone precious to her that needed to be protected. What was the best for him? She didn't know herself and that made her worry.
She was walking back up the stairs when she heard someone walk towards the office. She went up to see Jaune in the office staring at Crocea Mors. "Are you okay?"
Jaune spun fast, not knowing Westlyn was behind him. "Westlyn!" He grabbed his chest. "You scared the crap out of me"
Westlyn looked at Jaune. His face was red again. He had been crying. Jaune was one of those people that believed in suffering in secret. He didn't like others to see him weak, even when they were young. She walked toward him, wrapping Jaune in a hug. "You are okay right?"
Jaune sighed and hugged back. "Yea. My dream was dumb, but it was mine. I still want to be a great warrior one day. I will! But I am glad father trusts you with the family sword. You...you deserve it"
"Hey, don't doubt yourself. I know you will be great in the future. I can feel it." Westlyn said smiling
"Then maybe father will acknowledge me"
"Hey! I said no sadness!" She said, pulling away from him. She walked back through the office door before stopping and looking back at Jaune, "He does love you. You might not see it, but he does"
"Thank you sis. For believing in me. I know you'll make a name for yourself at Beacon" Jaune smiled with just a tint of sadness.
Westlyn smiled and nodded heading off to bed. She heard barely a whisper before heading up the stairs 'I will be great'.
-0-
The next day was a blur with preparing. The one thing that Westlyn couldn't do was face her father. She was too conflicted. Did she ask him about what she had heard? If she did though then that means admitting she was eavesdropping on her parents when they were in their room.
She decided to go a different route. She waited until night and he was in his office alone.
She knocked on the office door, "Dad I have a question for you, can I come in?"
Her father shuffled through some papers. "Sure. I have time anyway"
She sat down on the front chair. "I want to ask you about your semblance?"
Suspicion flashed across his face. He frowned, "What brought this up?"
"I remembered when you started training me, you did so because you used your semblance on me. At least that's what I think. Right?" She asked feigning a childhood innocence. It must have worked because her father's face softened.
"Yes, I did"
"What did you see?" Westlyn asked actually curious
He shut his eyes. "I can't tell you" He saw Westlyn's disappointment, "my semblance gives me a vision of a 'turning point' in someone's life. It could be useless….or it could give me all I need to know to make a decision" He seemed to have a long stare as he thought. "But I don't tempt fate. If I tell you what I saw it might change how you act. I don't want it to be the reason something changes for you. You must choose your own path, whether I like it or not"
Westlyn was happy until she thought of Jaune. Her father was a hypocrite! He didn't want to change her fate, but was perfectly fine with trying to prevent his.
"Are you okay?" her father asked, noticing her frown.
She looked up smiling again. "Just pre-Beacon jitters. Tomorrow will be a big change, you know?"
Alexander smiled, "I understand. I was in the same boat when I left for Beacon. You'll be scared at first, but it will be the best experience in your life. You will get experience and friends that will last a lifetime" He smirked, "Maybe even a boyfriend. Beacon was where I met your mother."
"Dad! I….just." She didn't know what to say, so she went with deflection. "I'm going to bed!"
Alexander laughed, "Good night honey. See you tomorrow" She heard him laugh as she walked away.
Westlyn wasn't lying. She would go to bed, but she needed to make one stop first. She just hoped she wouldn't regret this.
Going past her room she went down to the end of the hall to Jaune's room. She knocked on the door but he didn't answer. She peaked into his room, expecting him to be asleep. Instead he was on the other side of his room pretending that he had a sword and shield. This was going to hurt to do.
"Jaune?" Jaune turned around. This time he was not scared. He seemed to have a steel in his eyes that Westlyn didn't know he had. It softened when he saw who it was.
"Hey sis. I was just getting ready for bed"
"Yea, I have to talk to you about something," Westlyn said slowly. It pained her, but she had too. She had thought it out, and as much as she hated it, she did NOT want to see her brother in pain. It could not happen. She would make sure it didn't. "I think you should give up on being a huntsman!"
His face fell fast. "What? What did you say?" His face hurt her.
"Listen. I know it's what you want but you have no training! You will get hurt. I can't...I don't want you to see you hurt". He whispered something with his face down. "What?"
"I said get out!" He had tears going down his face, but the steel was back in his eyes. "You want me to stop because I am just some weakling, but I will show you. I will be great! I will make it! I'll show you and father!"
"Jaune I-" She reached toward him, but he slapped her hand away.
"I said get out!" He turned his back on her until she left.
She barely slept that night. What little she did get was full of tears and regret..
-0-
They pulled the car around. The car that would take her away. She had her things already loaded. Her sisters, father, and her mother was their to see her off. The only one that wasn't there was Jaune. He refused to leave his room all morning, not coming out for food or the bathroom either.
It pained her. Jaune may be her twin, but to her he was a little brother. She had to keep telling herself that this was all for his benefit. He may not know it now, but it would keep something terrible from happening, she was sure.
Westlyn got in the car, waving goodbye to her sisters. As the house got smaller behind her she could only say one thing in her mind: "Goodbye Jaune. I promise, I will see you soon. You will be protected."
"I promise"
And an Arc Always keeps their word.
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A/N: That's it. What do you think?
If only she knew what she was in for. Am I right?