Astra's feelings were in a conflicted state.
On one hand, she was filled to the point of overflowing with excitement about the upcoming mission. Her first one, with the best team she could ask for. As long as they had a good teacher to chaperone, things would be great.
On the other hand, she was struggling with confliction over Storm Hunter. A confliction within a confliction. After what they'd done yesterday, the way they'd stood up for Cobalt against their own teammates, not even rooting for them when they'd been suspended…she just wasn't sure. She wanted to trust them. After that, she felt like she should. But part of her simply couldn't shake the knowledge of what they'd been like at Titan. Could people really just change like that, outside of fiction? How could she be sure that this wasn't just some drawn-out front so that they could get closer to Cobalt, while hiding their true self? Or was this their true self now that they were away from Atlas?
She recalled Cobalt's advice; that she should try talking to them. Maybe it would help something. She could she for herself if this really was a permanent thing. Maybe even get an apology out of them, a real one. Then again, Astra had never been good at reading people. Though she was alone, she flushed as she thought of the confrontation that trait of hers had led to with Luna. Sure, things were great now, but it could have gone so much worse. If Astra decided that Storm had changed and they ended up recessing into their old self later, she'd never forgive herself for what it'd do to Cobalt.
At least very least, she decided it was worth a try. It was a free period, and finding and talking to Storm would probably be more entertaining than lying on Luna's bed while Cobalt worked on a drawing, and Luna and Lily were out to discuss their parents. She rolled off the bed.
"I'm going to the library." She told Cobalt. That was probably her best bet for finding Storm, if what she'd heard about their habits was correct.
"Alright," Cobalt replied, not taking his eyes off the paper. "Have fun."
Astra started to piece together what she'd say once she found them. She couldn't even remember the last time they'd spoken, but it had certainly been before Beacon. Most likely, it had been some school thing in Titan where she'd had to talk to them in order to get something done. But she couldn't remember the last time she'd chosen to, or the last time they'd chosen to speak to her.
Her suspicions on where to find them were right on the money. They were right up the back of the library, seated on a desk beside a window. Rather than reading, they were writing something in a workbook, though there were several books stacked beside them, and one open on above the workbook. Realizing they were probably busy, Astra hesitated to approach, but inwardly kicked herself for trying to put it off and forced herself to walk up to them.
"Hey."
Jumping a little, Storm looked up at her, their eyes widening as they recognized her. "Oh…hey. Did you need something?"
Storm shifted. "Well, I know you're Cobalt's teammate. But…we went to Titan together, right?"
"Right," Astra confirmed. "Can I sit?" She motioned to the chair on the other side of the table. "We need to talk."
Storm closed their notebook. "Of course."
Astra sat and clasped her hands on the table in front of her, looking directly at Storm. She decided to be upfront with it. "Is it true that you've changed?"
Storm blinked slowly. They didn't look surprised by the question. "It's true that I'm trying," They stated. "I don't know if I'm all the way there yet."
It was good, Astra thought, that they weren't insisting to have already changed. Still, she pressed.
"I don't know how much you remember me," She told them. "But I remember you pretty well. You and your friends."
Storm looked uncomfortable at that.
"I remember how you'd all hang out together," Astra continued. "I never understood why a good student like you would spend your time with them when they were always one grade away from dropping out." She narrowed her eyes. "But that was never the biggest problem."
"I know," Storm replied quietly. "They were assholes. For what it's worth, I'm not even friends with them anymore. They shunned me when I decided to go to Beacon instead of Atlas."
Personally, it didn't sound like that big of a loss to Astra.
"Do you remember," She asked slowly. "When your friends would follow around that wolf faunus all day, howling at him, even though he had more sensitive hearing than most faunus?"
Storm looked away. "I remember. I'm -"
Astra cut them off. "I'm not done." She sat back in the chair. "What about the sheep faunus that they held down to see if they could cut her horns off with the handsaw they'd snuck into school?"
The shame in Storm's eyes grew. Astra had one more for them.
"And what about," She asked quietly, leaning forward again. "When they threw ice water over an unsuspecting cat faunus in the middle of winter?" She almost flinched at the memory. "Or when they put a dead mouse in her pencil case?" She narrowed her eyes. "Or when they dropped a heavy rock on her tail when she wasn't paying attention?"
Storm looked back up at her, their eyes swimming with clear regret. "I'm so sorry that any of that happened to you," They told her. "To any of you. None of you deserved it."
"It broke my tail, you know," Astra commented, remembering the pain that had shot all the way up her spine when she'd tried to yank it out. "I couldn't move it for weeks. I spent all that time scared to even walk because I felt so off-balance."
She sighed. "I know you must have thought it was all in good fun. Or you were too worried they'd think badly of you if you said anything," She stared seriously at Storm, praying her words would get through. "But they hurt so many people. And every time, you stood by and did nothing. I even saw you laughing along sometimes. You could have stopped at least some of it if you'd just told a teacher, or even stopped them yourself. But you didn't."
It was a massive relief to get this all off her chest. For years, she'd not been able to express her frustration and anger towards those in Atlas who hurt faunus just for fun. She'd never even been able to tell off Storm's ex-friends before she'd left Titan. She'd backed out at the last minute. But now, this was something.
"I won't make excuses for myself," Storm replied softly. "I know that it was wrong of me to let it all happen. I knew it was wrong then too. But I was selfish. I valued my friendship with a bunch of assholes over doing what was right. And it took hurting someone I cared about to make me realize I needed to change, when I should have already figured it out on my own. And I know I can't just blame it on Atlas, because you grew up there too, and you know so much better." They heaved a deep sigh. "I'm so sorry. I'm doing my best to be better, but I know I can't fix the past."
Astra was quiet for a moment as she thought it over. She'd honestly expected excuses; for Storm to give some kind of explanation or guilt trip for their actions, or lack thereof. But no, they'd been honest, they'd accepted all responsibility. It wasn't something they'd have done a few months ago; she was sure of that. They really were changing.
"Okay," She replied finally. "That's good." She leaned forward. "I just need you to promise me one thing."
Storm stared at her earnestly. "Yeah?"
"Be good to Cobalt," Astra replied simply. "He cares a lot about you. And I know what it feels like to care that much about someone." She almost rolled her eyes as she thought of Cobalt's pining. "If I know him, he's not going to wait too much longer to ask you out. So listen to me,"
She leaned close to Storm. "I need to treat you like the most important person in the world. I need you to listen to him when he wants to talk, care for him when he's not feeling great, and give him as close to the world as you can get. Understand?"
"Of course," Storm's reply was almost instant. "I owe him that much just for giving me a second chance. That last thing I want to do is let him down again."
Astra nodded. "Good. Just make sure you prove it."
"I will," Storm confirmed. After a moment, they asked, "You and your teammates are pretty close, huh?"
"Well, one of them is literally my girlfriend," Astra pointed out. "But…yeah." She smiled softly. "They're the best friends I've ever had."
Storm gazed out the window. "I wish I could have been that close with mine," They said quietly. He chuckled slightly. "Don't get me wrong, Yarrow's a good friend. But with the way he follows me around…" They looked sheepish. "I kind of get the feeling he has a bit of a crush on me."
Astra couldn't help but smirk. "Honestly, I think half of the first-years have a crush on you," No matter her suspicions, she couldn't deny that Storm was awfully…popular. "But hey," She added. "Coco said you'd be getting a new teammate next semester, right? Maybe that will change things."
Storm shrugged. "Yeah, maybe," They frowned. "Unless it's just another asshole."
"Well, you'll see, I guess." Astra glanced across the room, no longer knowing what to say. "I should get going," She said. "Luna will be back soon."
"Right," Storm looked back at her as she stood up. "Can I just…ask you a favour?"
Astra narrowed her eyes. Surely this was not the time to be asking her favours? "Yeah?"
Storm rubbed the back of their neck. "I've been thinking about going back to he/him pronouns. Instead of they/them, I mean. Could you let Cobalt know?"
Ah, a trans thing. Astra relaxed. That, she could do. "Sure," She replied. "I'll tell him when I get back."
Storm smiled. "Thanks," he replied. "I'll…see you around then?"
Astra shrugged. "Yeah, okay. Just keep up what you're learning, okay?"
Storm nodded. "I will," He assured her. "I promise."
With a nod, Astra turned and walked away. Cobalt had been right; the talk had helped, moreso than she thought. Part of her was unsure if she'd be able to forgive Storm anytime soon, but she knew now that he was genuine in his regret, and in his desire to be a better person. Maybe now she could finally feel more okay with seeing him get so close to Cobalt.
With that done, there was only one thing left to think about now. Astra found herself grinning. Several days, out in the field, on a real mission. This was the moment she'd been waiting for since her decision to be a huntress. After this, she'd be one step closer to the real thing.
