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-Chapter 18- Back to work
It had been about a week since the Vytal Festival came to an end, the celebration was dying down from Beacon's win, Austin along with the rest of Team JADE had high praises, Austin showed he could compete against 4th Year students and come out on top that Professor Ozpin had clearly noticed even before the Vytal Festival as he had tried to recruit Austin to graduate early to help in an urgent matter. Austin was still learning and only in his first year but he was one of the few people that knew the truth.
Austin had spent less time with the team though, he was more interested in studying and working on his combat techniques thinking he was going to be challenged by other students and needed to stay sharp. Ever since the day after the end of the Vytal Festival Jade had tried so many times to get a moment alone with Austin to apologize. She had thought it through and maybe she should've tried harder fighting for them, hoping after she got a chance to apologize that they could repair their relationship or at least come out after this as friends.
Austin had avoided her, every time she thought she could talk to him, it's as if he had to be somewhere or someone would interrupt when she attempted to try talk to him, she had left messages but Austin either ignored them or didn't check his scroll, getting the help of Eada and Daisy seemed to fail as Austin was only interested in flipping the conversation focused on them and wouldn't talk about himself or subjects about him and Jade. Constantly trying to get his attention even with notes during class didn't work as Jade really wanted to apologize but Austin wasn't letting her.
Daisy had spent time with Jade worried about her, doing her best to reassure Jade that Austin just may need time, she hugged her best friend as they sat on Jade's bed. Jade had found the teddy Daisy had left but it had backfired when Jade thought the teddy was from Austin. Daisy's heart broke a little thinking she made it clear that the teddy was her gift and not Austin's but didn't say anything, truly accepting that Jade was head over heels for Austin only and told herself to move on.
Eada had made some friends after apologizing to a few people about how she acted when they first encountered her back on the first day of Beacon. She had been truly working on bettering herself sine the Vytal Festival and had been working out but of course made time for her team as she arrived to see Jade and Daisy sharing a hug as she asked what was wrong. Jade remained quiet as Daisy then told her that Jade's been trying to apologize to Austin the past week but he had been avoiding her.
Eada sat down on the other side of Jade and then offered to help them brainstorm ideas of how to get Jade and Austin talking to each other. They spent hours on this and in the end they couldn't come up with anything, Austin was avoiding all 3 members and was good at it, the only option was all 3 of them confronting him at once but that would only cause drama and send Austin into another gear at avoiding them. He had even begun to sleep in the tree again with the excuse that he didn't want to wake them when he came in late or woke up early.
All he did was spend his time training and studying between attending classes, meals and sleep, Jade looked at the teddy bear stating that Austin must love her for him to win her the gift. Going on at how she had seen the little bear on the first day at the carnival of the Vytal Festival and how it was so cute. She had tried getting it but couldn't so she gave up and coming to the conclusion Austin must've gone back to win it for her. Eada looked over at Daisy, she could see the look of angst on her face as she asked Jade and Daisy did they ever see Austin go to the carnival a 2nd time?
Daisy knew the answer to that already but Jade said no but thought he must of as she asked who else would win the teddy bear for her. Daisy went from being angst to... to an emotion that has no suitable word for the way she felt, her heart had received a heavy hit as Jade was still wrapped up in her own thought process about Austin and herself as Daisy excused herself after giving an excuse that she was supposed to meet Team TGRN and would continue this later and got to the door as quick as possible.
Eada watched her go and got up leaving the dorm telling Jade she needed to tell Daisy something. Jade nodded and still went on brainstorming ideas as Eada found Daisy walking away slowly from their dorm crying. She called out to Daisy claiming she was the one to win that teddy bear for her, Eada knew the answer as Daisy turned around and could only nod as the tears fell. Eada hugged Daisy, being 6ft tall she could hug Eada of course but not rest her shoulder on her. Eada looked up at Daisy telling her to go talk to Team TGRN and she would have a talk with Jade.
Before Daisy could form any words Eada had stopped their hug and went back to the door of their dorm and winked hoping to give Daisy some reassurance that Eada was on her side. Daisy turned around leaving as she made her way slowly to Team TGRN's dorm, meanwhile back at Team JADE's dorm Eada had entered slamming the door making Jade jump and get distracted from her train of thought as she asked Jade what type of game was she playing. Jade looked at her in disbelief not knowing exactly what was going on.
Eada started raising her voice and telling Jade not to play dumb as she knew damn well who won her that teddy bear. Jade looked at Eada trying to remain confused asking Eada what had gotten into her but Eada could see through her. The two stared at each other, Jade was sure guilty and Eada widened her eyes realizing that Jade knew who won the teddy, Eada stepped up and slapped Jade asking her how it felt toying with Daisy's feelings like a puppet master, Jade shook her head saying she hated it but it was for Daisy's good.
It wasn't the exact way to put it as Jade explained that she knew Austin didn't win the bear and Daisy spent so much time trying to get it so in order for her to stop trying so hard if she kept the focus on Austin then eventually Daisy would give up. Eada stared at her like she had been hit by a train, arguing that she was putting Daisy through emotional hell but Jade retorted back attacking Eada, bringing up her previous behaviour. Eada stared Jade down saying that she was starting to make emends for her actions unlike her not having the decency to actually talk to Daisy.
Eada turned and left saying that she was very lucky to have a friend as amazing as Daisy to be in her life at all but if she kept hurting her she'd leave. Eada left leaving Jade alone as she went to go check on Daisy. 30 minutes later the door opened and Jade was now in a bad mood getting lectured at by Eada however knew she was right, looking at Austin as he entered and sat on his bed and looked at Jade asking what she wanted as he held up his scroll with countless messages.
Jade got right to the point wanting to apologize and talk about possibly getting back together or at least become friends again, Austin shook his head saying that they couldn't be together, not after what was said, how she gave up on them easily. This got a rise from Jade as the duo began to argue, Austin had a comeback for Jade and Jade had a comeback for Austin, a vicious cycle it would be until one of them caved or stormed off. It was Austin who got up and said Jade was lucky that she was on his team or he'd never talk to her again and to keep the original agreement before leaving.
The next day tensions were high, Daisy had spent the night with Team TGRN, Eada had come back to the room but refused to speak to Jade, Jade stayed up all night thinking and Austin slept in the tree he had been sleeping in. It was time for another field mission, not in the right mindset Jade ignored the others comments about which job they should take and signed them up for search and destroy. Not leaving any point up for discussion the team left together but were walking separately at the same time.
On the airship Jade gave the instructions giving Eada and Daisy the perimeter thinking since they were such best friends now and told Austin to take some men into the centre of the Grimm infested area and Jade would take her team from the perimeter to flank them. Eada and Daisy looked at each other worried as they attempted to ask for another strategy which wasn't as dangerous, Jade was about to cut them off but Austin got to it first by telling the them not to worry claiming that Jade being the leader knew what was best and how he trusts her order.
The airship landed as the girls jumped off as a few men and Austin stayed aboard the airship, as they left Austin then nodded to them as the airship took off. Something about the nod had Eada and Daisy with a bad feeling, they knew Austin was good but he was jumping into an area surrounded by Grimm, he was confident about it and had been doing extra training so they figured he'd be fine and love to tell this story upon returning to Beacon. Jade got ready and took her team as a few hundred metres away they could see Austin and his men jump from the airship.
The mission had started off quite well as Jade made sure to take her time clearing the Grimm with her team as Eada and Daisy were back at the perimeter on standby keeping an eye out for any approaching Grimm, Austin and his team were heavily engaged in combat and the men used the radio to keep in contact with everyone, eventually though as Jade was only halfway to Austin's team that was when they heard the words on the radio about 2 people going down from Austin's group. Requesting for reinforcements as Eada and Daisy boarded the airship with some more men.
Another airship was flying into the danger zone with Professor Port and another Team of 1st Year Students on their way to help. Not just there yet Team JADE heard something that they thought could never happen, it had to be repeated but Austin's team had reported declaring Austin was down. Eada demanded the pilot to go faster as Jade started speeding up the pace trying to get to Austin. The reinforcements arrived and started taking out the wounded and clearing Grimm, there was no sign of Austin.
Jade and her team had managed to cut through meeting up with Eada and Daisy, she went up to them as they sat on a log, asking where Austin was, they didn't respond and Jade could see they were holding Austin's weapon Argenti Lustitia. They handed his weapon to Jade, sinking down to her knees staring at his weapon, unable to believe it and this needing to be some type of joke. Eada and Daisy shook their heads as they pointed towards a cliff, they told her the official report was how Austin had taken the fight head on.
He was the one to suffer most damage and exhaust the most energy, he held on longer with his semblance but even that could run out as he had his aura buckle and was by the cliff. An extremely large Ursai were attacking some of his men and he leapt in saving them but being exhausted the Ursai had him so he blew the edge of the cliff where he and the Ursai were standing, he threw his weapon taking out one last Grimm before he and the Ursai fell off the cliff.
A rescue team was down there right now but even they know they were looking for a body, Eada and Daisy pulled Jade in hugging her as the three held onto each other starting to cry but trying to remain hopeful that Austin possibly somehow survived. The three girls were practically forced back to Beacon, Team TGRN was waiting for them, knowing what the pain was like they rushed to the girls hugging them as all 6 girls were crying just waiting for the news hoping Austin would be found alive.
To be continued...