Chapter 14 - Silence and Sharp Tongues
I don't move a muscle, my body turned to stone by the mysterious girl's steely stare.
Several lengthy seconds pass as neither of us say a word. The only evidence that the pair of us are still breathing are the erratic heartbeats bumping in my chest and the slight flickers from the girl's eyes, scanning me for any obvious deficiencies before settling back to their original state.
It's at this point I realize that I'm gawping like a total idiot.
Moron.
I avert my gaze, peering down at the fallen foliage like I'm suddenly a professional botanist. My shoulders scrunch up, bracing for a scathing put-down or a snarky comment. Yet, it never comes.
Come to think of it, it's been almost half a minute and she still hasn't said anything. I sneak in a small glance. She's still standing there, watching me with no indication that she plans of saying a thing. It's as though she's expecting me to make the first move but she's not giving me any signals to do as such.
Am I supposed to do something? What do I do?
"Eren!" A familiar voice yells out. Bursting from behind the brush, two bright-yellow gauntlets attached to her clenched fists, is Yang, wearing the most unusually agitated glare on her face. A flash of red passes for a mere moment, though, it could've just been my imagination. Regardless, her expression cools as soon as she spots me. "Eren!"
"Y-Yang!" I splutter. "Y-you're-"
"You're okay!" She finishes, jogging towards me without even a puff. She's fine. Of course she's fine. It's Yang. Why wouldn't she be fine, you idiot? "How did you- Woah. What the heck happened here?" Her feet skid across the ground as she stops, looking over the debris left over from my battle with her hands firmly on her hips. She gives Warbreaker an eyeballing. "Are you hiding a grenade launcher in that thing?"
"N-no! No, I just..." I reply, feet fidgeting. "Had a little encounter, that's all."
"An 'Encounter,'" Yang says flatly. "Uh huh, and what's that then?" She points behind me, to the tree I was previously crushed against, barely holding itself aloft as it wavers from side to side. It's still up, surprisingly, but it's sporting a rather small human-shaped indent and one gigantic crack spanning its circumference.
"...An unfortunate lack of damage control?" I answer with a meek shrug. My words are swiftly emphasized by a booming bump and thump of broken branches and bark falling to the ground. Yang's smirk is all I need to tell me what happened. A sheepish smile passes before I quickly shake my head. "Okay, look, that's not important. That's been dealt with. Have you seen Ruby?" Her smirk fades.
"No. I thought you two hatched some grand plan to partner up?" She asks. At the use of the word 'Partner,' I instinctively look over at the Mysterious Girl, arms folded as she scowls at the trees. Yang's eyes follow mine, glinting a tad as she instantly catches on. "Which I can see is going really well." That's putting it mildly. The girl casts her eyes towards us. Suddenly put on the spot, I hesitantly raise my hand and wave at her like a confused child. The girl doesn't offer a reaction, going back to watching the trees as if a gigantic spider Grimm will pop out from it.
Are... are those a thing? Oh god, please don't let those be a thing!
"She seems... nice," Yang says uneasily. It's not her problem to deal with, that's all on me, so I turn the conversation back to the topic at hand.
"I screwed up. I lost Ruby during the fall. I have no idea where she is now," I tell her, tension rising through with my voice. I know I'd be making the same mistake twice in a matter of minutes but, it's difficult not to feel the slightest bit anxious.
The Grimm are everywhere.
"Well, we'll just have to keep looking then," Yang answers with a chipper smile. "The three of us are heading to the same place anyway. We're bound to meet up with her at some point. It'll be alright." I pause...
Then, I nod. "Yeah. Ruby's a great fighter anyway. She'll be okay." It doesn't quite have the same amount of power when I'm the one saying it but, if it's her words I'm bounding off from, it makes it far easier to believe.
I give my mind a quick jostle. What the hell am I like? Of course it'll work out. Hell, maybe she hasn't even found a partner yet?
It might seem that I'm reach but, if Yang and I managed to last this long before meeting anybody in the forest, who's to say that Ruby hasn't had the same luck? It's possible. I think...
Speaking of Yang, right now, she's grinning a smile so wild that it can only be described as being devilishly proud of herself. For what? I have absolutely no idea and, to be honest, it's starting to give me the creeps.
"W-what? What are you smiling about?" I stutter.
"Oh nothing," she sing-songs, almost obnoxiously jubilant. "Well, gotta go!" ...Huh?
"Wait, where are you going?!" I exclaim. Yang halts, already turning away to rush deeper into the dark depths of the Emerald Forest. Almost like she failed to understand why I'm stopping her in the first place, she furls her eyebrows.
"Uh, you've already found your partner. Now, I gotta go find mine," She states, as though the answer's blatantly clear, and continues pulling away to leave.
I call out again. "W-wouldn't it be safer if we all go together? We don't know what else is out there!"
"You'll be fine! Don't worry about it," she grins, eliciting a faint frown. That's not what I meant. "Keep an eye out for Ruby! I'll see you back at the cliff!"
"Y-Yang!" I cry, reaching out a hand. It's far too late. She's already disappeared through the dense greenery. I let out a heavy sigh, rubbing the bridge of my nose. Guess there's no helping it then. "Will do," I say, deflated. So much for finding her together...
Well, it doesn't matter. With me or without me, as long as Yang becomes Ruby's partner, we still have a shot at creating our dream team just like we wanted. I'm pretty much redundant in that area.
Hah, and I haven't even started working yet. The recession hit us harder than I thought.
Regardless, it's out of my hands now. I need to focus on my own issues. First on the agenda...
My partner.
I turn around, expecting to see her standing, still acting as personal security as to make sure that the Grimm didn't catch us with our trousers down. Instead, what I catch is her flowing long dark hair swaying as she begins walking further into the forest, leaving me behind as though I'm somebody else's luggage. Her face is hidden but, I didn't have to be the most socially savvy person in the world to tell that my negligence didn't sit well with her.
Though, I did have to think about it for a sec. I wouldn't blame her if that's her reasoning.
I let out a startled balk as I run after her, almost literally chasing her black coattails. She turns her head briefly, the glint in her eyes stopping me dead in my tracks. Her face is a clean slate, beguiling nothing. Is she upset like I thought she would be? Or, is it pure apathy? I'm completely clueless. Sorting my fringe back into place with noodle fingers, I suck in a breath and choose the safest option.
"S-sorry..." I say, bowing my head.
"Let's go," she speaks plainly. I perk up slightly. That's... a reaction, I suppose? Coughing lightly into an open fist, I retract the bayonet back into its holster and follow the quiet girl.
I steady my pace, keeping in time with her, giving each other a fair few inches for personal space, to not make things any more awkward.
Our feet crunch the dry grass underneath, walking down an unmarked path towards an undisclosed location in the middle of nowhere as I point Warbreaker's barrel at the trees, ready for praying Grimm vying for blood. It's not all too different than what I was doing before the ambush.
In-fact, it's eerily similar to how it was before I encountered the Ursa. Tense, cautious and... quiet.
My eyes linger naturally on the back of the girl's head every time I switch positions. It's been a fair few minutes. She should've said something by now.
It's not that I'm eager to have a conversation alone with a total stranger or anything but, there's a certain pattern that always happens when I'm stuck with someone new.
They introduce themselves: ask for my name, I mumble something, they keep talking, I feel the urge to jump out of a building, it ends and we both leave as awkward as a mattress full of spikes. Granted, there have been exceptions to those turn of events recently, a specific few certainly spring to mind, but that's the general order of things. I guess this is technically an exception too but, it's not in the way I'm used to.
Why isn't she saying anything? Who is she? Why did she save me? This is all so strange.
As I linger on these questions more and more, another question soon arises. If I'm so bothered by all these questions...
Why don't I ask her?
I freeze, fear gripping my heart and squeezing tightly. Me? T-talking? T-to her?!
"What is it?" The girl stops to enquire. Despite my sudden stoppage, she's only about five paces away from me. If I were in her shoes, I wouldn't have even noticed before I was at least a hundred miles away.
"U-um..." I stammer, sight trailing away. If there's any time to ask, it would be now. I-it shouldn't be that hard, right? I'll start with her name, get a nice conversation going, and then move onto everything else. It's easy!
Come on. Say something!
I shake my head. "N-n-nothing. I-it's nothing."
Avoiding her eyes, I await her clear annoyance quietly with a hand latching onto my arm.
"Alright," she says, half-heartedly shrugging as she turns around and proceeds to keep walking. I sigh heavily to myself.
I am such a coward.
Then, all of a sudden, a vile gaseous smell slivers into my nostrils. Pinching my nose, I reel at the sickening scent. It's not particularly strong, more a whiff than a haze, but it's significant enough to identify.: Toxic and dirty like cigarette butts burnt against a used ash-tray.
I scowl deeply. It's very similar. Either we're near another student who's a record-setting chain smoker or...
I zone in where the smell is originating from, snapping my eyes up. Peeking through the tightly knit branches, I see an enormous plume of dark poisonous smoke scarring the bright sky blue. You know the saying: Where there's smoke.
It's a fairway away which means, based on its size, that it started a while ago and it's been spreading by quite a margin. It's no danger to us nor anyone who have spotted it already but, to those who were in the vicinity when it started...
I hope Ruby isn't anywhere near that thing.
Rustling. Movement.
Warbreaker clunks as I jump back to attention, eyes darting as I scan around for life amongst the forest brush. Grimm. It has to be them. Praying on us hot off the heels of our last encounter like vultures. Leaves bristle as I search around for the source. Nothing stands out to me quite yet but, with my finger ready on the trigger, I'm ever at alert. I won't be caught off-guard like last time.
More shimming. However, this one's different than the last two. It's distant, not exceptionally but, more than before. It's moving away from me and closer towards...
I strange a gasp, breaking my stance and bolting towards The Girl.
"Look out!" I shout-
Right before a pair of razor-sharp claws carve right into her. An unsuppressed gasp rips out from my lungs. I can no longer see the girl. In the space where she had just been walking, standing menacingly with its wolfish maws bare, is the bone-covered face of a monster I haven't seen in over half-a-year. Turning, it growls intensely, glaring at me with blood in its eyes.
Beowolf.
It's going to regret that.
Snarling back, I flick the dial, switching to burst-fire, and lock onto its neck. Three good shots will do the trick, kill it before it even has the chance to fight back. However, before I even have the chance...
Sword slices flesh. Without so much as a whimper, the Grimm's head detaches from its shoulders, a clean cut separating the two. Blinking, I gaze up in awe to see The Girl in the middle of the air, flipping gracefully like an Olympic gymnast, with her weapon in hand.
Gravity sets in. The Beowolf falls lifeless, fading away as the others have done. The Girl lands safely, not even wincing at her heels hit the ground. All I can do is stare at her like a complete dumbass.
When did-
How did-
What just happened? The claws definitely made contact, I saw them. Then she disappeared and... Was that her Semblance at work? It happened all so fast, I couldn't process it.
"Ahem," The Girl coughs, interrupting my thoughts.
"R-right," I respond, rubbing my neck. There are bigger things to attend to.
Like the fact that the Beowolf attacked us alone, separated from its pack for one reason or another. A lone brash Grimm taking its chances on two fighters at the same time? Probably. Young Grimm are infamous for pushing their luck too far and getting themselves killed as a result but, considering that it came from the same direction as the fire, I'm willing to bet it was separated from its pack that way and if it's anything like the last time I encountered a Beowolf pack...
"The pack shouldn't be too far away. We should keep moving," The Girl states.
I mumble an affirmation. Killing Grimm, while I'm certainly not against it, isn't a necessity. If we can avoid an encounter and stay on track to the ruins, it's all the better for us. There's no reason for us to go looking for trouble.
A roar booms throughout the forest. Quickly following it are sounds of clashing steel and cracking ice, sounds that no Grimm I know of can make.
"P-people," I splutter. I think we were just given a reason. The pack's even closer than we thought. "We're... helping them, a-aren't we?"
She doesn't offer a reply, dashing towards the clanking of combat with her weapon still in hand. Well, I shrug, at least she's fine with it.
I make chase, making sure I don't let her out of my sight as we speed along towards the ensuing battle. Slashes and clashes become louder with every step we take, intensifying along with the monstrous grunts and groans from the Grimm.
The Girl halts. I slide to a stop next to her, following her sight. I take in a breath.
There's the rest of the pack. More than two dozen Beowolves, pouncing uncontrollably and bombastically at a lone figure adorned in a white dress fending them off with a pair of agile feet and some well-placed thrusts from her rapier.
That's Weiss, the scary girl from the locker room. There's way she can take on that many Beowolves by herself.
She needs help!
My eyes snap to my side, where The Girl should be, only to find that she's nowhere to be seen. I gaze up to see leaves fluttering down, removed from the branches through her momentum. Once more, I sigh to myself.
So much for working together, then...
"Hyah!" Weiss howls, garnering my attention, her rapier coating into an icy blue as she plunges it deep into the earth. Erupting from such an act are multiple conjoined icy spikes, impaling several of the surrounding Beowolves, killing them almost instantly.
My jaw drops at the icicles. I'm not close enough to inspect them properly but, considering I can see a whiff of cold air emanating from the spikes, they're real. That threat earlier wasn't a joke. She's fully capable of utilizing ice. Is that her Semblance? No, that doesn't sound quite right. I feel a kindling, a reminder of an advert frequently running the TV. About what? I can't quite recall but, it's connected. I'm sure of that.
Answers later. Taking the magazine out of Warbreaker, I peek inside, estimating the amount along with the one loaded in the chamber.
Twenty-five bullets. I commit the number to memory. When it's time for me to reload, I won't grant them the extra second. I pop the clip back in, mentally taking note of the many targets to choose from. It's best if I keep my distance. I am using a gun after all. From here or over there, the bullet will hurt all the same.
Weiss stands, fatigued but defiant. The beasts impulsively throw themselves at her wall of ice, a hailstorm of bodies rampant and ferocious. The ice shatters, the Beowolves practically falling over themselves to rush her. She's ready for them, her rapier piercing one of them through the jaw, retaining her offense while still remaining defensive.
She's doing really well. Impressive as it may be, she has her blind spots.
From behind, a frothing Beowolf bounds towards her. Occupied with the ones in front, she doesn't have the time to turn around.
Gun to shoulder. Eye through scope. Burst-mode. Finger on the trigger.
Boom. Three bullets crack the sky. The Beowolf wails as all three make contact with its chest. Its attack has been halted, the monster left briefly dazed from the impact. Not enough to kill it but, as Weiss dislodges her sword from its neck, I don't think I'll have to worry about that anymore.
She doesn't move but, I see Weiss's eyes flicker towards me. It's probably just to register my location, that's all. She's far too focused on her survival to pay me any mind.
Considering the dozens of swarming Grimm, I can hardly blame her.
Those who find themselves distracted by the gunfire are quickly ended. With myself acting as covering fire, Weiss slices and dices the monsters to pieces. My shots rarely ever kill them but they do offer a moment of respite for her to plan her movements accordingly.
More and more Beowolves swamp the place. Reloading accordingly, I dig into my bag for another clip. I should be fine for the time being, I have plenty of ammo, but that's not what's starting to worry me.
This relentless assault is turning into a dog pile. Weiss is dragging her limbs and the Grimm that still live are starting to catch onto my position. Can't exactly help somebody when I'm in trouble myself and there isn't enough room for Weiss to escape yet.
That's when a certain someone decides to join the fray.
Dropping down from the trees, The Girl plunges her deep through one of the wolf's skull before taking what looks to be some kind of grappling hook, attached by what looks to be a black ribbon, and throwing it at another, impaling it through the eye.
However, she's not done yet. Pressing something down on her sword, a loud gunshot booms from the hook, ricocheting off the corpse remaining, soaring through the air and tearing the heads off a couple of other Beowolves almost through sheer force.
Wow. The more fighters I meet, the more Warbreaker feels under-dressed. Well, that's why they're called the best of the best.
Pulling the weapon back into her hands, the mechanical pieces morph from the grappling hook into a thinner, sleeker sword form. Weiss glances back at her, gritting her teeth. Lack of energy, maybe?
Whatever the reason, she doesn't dwell on it for long. Taking full advantage of the situation, the pair go on the offensive. Limps begin to fly: arms, legs, bodies, heads, their blades mutilate the horde, bullets flying from Warbreaker all the while. As the two decimate the pack, I suddenly notice something. Something that may have a hand on why the three of are winning so handily.
There's no alpha. For the sheer amount of Grimm attacking us, they're not acting in the same organised manner they had back in the Patch forest. They're not fighting as a unit, more reckless wretches using the opportunities the other Beowolves are making in order to fight their own battle. No strategy, no tactics, only mindless blood-lust that gets them carved into meaty chunks.
They're not working together. They're working around each other.
No wonder they're dropping like flies. What happened to their leader?
"Weiss!" A familiar voice calls out from the trees. My head tilts somewhat, trying to find a clear view through the vying monsters and the flying corpses. A fourth person? Her partner? Footsteps draw nearer from the other end of the field, metal scraping against metal. Running out from the shade is...
A boy with scruffy blonde hair, a sword and shield in each hand, and a bright white armour plate on his front.
J... Jaune?
"Jaune?!" Weiss screeches indignantly. "What are you doing here? I told you to stay put!"
"I-I know! It's okay! I can do this," he replies with a smile. "I've got your back, partner!"
She visually retches at the word. Before Weiss is allowed even a word of disapproval, Jaune roars, sounds more like repressed screaming honestly, and throws himself towards the nearest Grimm with his sword-arm raised so high that it makes him look like he's waving a white flag. My eyes narrow in how the sword's being held.
It's far too low. If he tries to strike with that, he'll over-arch and lose his grip at best.
"Hyah!" Jaune cries, swing his sword at the Beowolf.
Unfortunately, the beast saw the attack coming a mile away. Dipping its claw down, it strikes up at the blade, knocking it out of Jaune's hand with the ease of disarming a child. The sword flies, impeding itself in the ground several feet away. Blinking, Jaune looks down at his hand, clenching it as though it's invisible. I wish.
"Uh..." Jaune trembles at the large wolf. "Can I redo that?"
A swiping claw scores across his ribs, hurling him against the sturdy bark of a large tree. Jaune lets out an anguished howl as he holds his ribs tightly.
"I-I'll," he coughs horribly. "I-I'll take that as a no."
I wince. The pain must be absolutely dreadful. I know how that feels...
My breath hitches, another gasp breaks out from my lungs. Instead of going after The Girl and Weiss like the rest of its pack, two Beowolves breaking off from the ground and tread closer towards Jaune. Along with the one currently stalking him, he's at a three against one disadvantage with no weapon.
Full Aura or not, those bastards will skewer him alive!
The trio encircle him, their snarling teeth shining black drool. Pressing himself up against his cornered tree, Jaune audibly gulps.
"Heh, h-hey guys!" He giggles nervously. "Uh, you've got some nice-looking teeth there! W-who's your dentist? I'd love to meet him! Heh. Heh..." His smile fades, replaced entirely with a face of pure horror. It's beginning to dawn on him just how bad his situation clearly is.
"P... Please don't."
The wolves pounce. In a last-ditch effort of self-defence, Jaune pulls his shield up, holding it still with both hands, as the monsters vehemently and maliciously bombard him with an almost berserk fury. Despite his best efforts, the blonde boy can't withstand this kind of onslaught and his arms lower, allowing one of the Beowolves to bypass the front and violently rip the shield away from his hands, smashing it into the ground and away from their prey.
With nothing else in their way, the bastards lay into the helpless knight.
A maw bites at his leg: a pair of claws dig at his armour in an attempt to break both it and the boy behind it, and a pair of sharp teeth snap furiously at his neck, stopped only by Jaune's struggling arms, all the while Jaune's is screaming his poor heart out., kicking his legs frantically as the rabid wolf sinks closer towards his neck.
They're going to kill him! Do something, you moron!
Firing another volley at a Grimm attacking The Girl, I spare both her and Weiss a glance.
They'll be fine. They can look after themselves. They're not in the position to help him. My shoulders tense, but I nod to myself regardless. Right. I flip the dial on Warbreaker.
Fully-automatic.
I take my focus away from the raging battle the girls are involved in and, with a heart full of fire and a fresh clip, I unload on the ravenous wolves.
"Get the hell away from him!" I yell. For chewing on his leg, the Beowolf earns two bullets in each of its legs and four across the back. For clawing at his rib-cage, the Beowolf deserves three in its right arm and two in its left leg. For trying to rip out his throat, the Beowolf merits six in its back and three piercing its skull.
The first wave of bullets stop. I roll my shoulders back, popping the magazine out of the gun. Eight bullets totally wasted. I never like using fully-automatic unless it's strictly necessary.
One dead, I grimace. It should've been all three.
As the remaining two howl from the newly-made bullet holes, the clawing one takes an exception to my offerings. With its right arm dangling limply, the wounded beast swerves from its original target and hobbles towards me hungrily.
This one only warrants single-fire, I switch.
Up. Aim. Fire.
The monster shrieks, collapsing as my shot scores in its right leg.
Despite its lack of mobility, the wolf doesn't quit. With its single remaining limb, it digs into the earth, dragging itself closer to me little by little. With every few meters it gains, its tempo slowly increases, going from weak crawling to that of an unrelenting predator. These demons may be soulless, but they are very passionate about ending all our lives.
It doesn't even make it halfway before a bullet nails it in the back of the neck.
Like its cursed brethren, it fades away. Now, for the last one.
While I've been busy dealing with the active Beowolf, Jaune meanwhile has been trying desperately to kick off the surviving Beowolf, still gnawing at his leg. The fact that his leg is still there is impressive enough, but he endured that entire ordeal with his Aura intact? That's a bloody miracle.
Placing the barrel at a sideways angle, I pull the trigger. The back of its head implodes from the execution. Jaune finally kicks the empty corpse off of his leg, pupils narrow and skin sweaty.
I look back to the girls to see how they're doing. Littering the field is a sea of Beowolf bodies leaking that dark substance. Neither one of them look injured so, I think they did just fine without me. Leaving them to it was the right decision.
I let out a breath. It's over. We survived.
Relieved in the knowledge that the remaining Beowolves are dead, I settle Warbreaker on my back. Spinning around, I spot a wobbling Jaune attempting to use a tree as leverage. The memory of the fall remains fresh in my mind.
"Y-you're!" I stutter wildly. "You're alive!" The last time I saw him, he was falling to his death at a hundred miles per hour. Now, here he is, dusting off scuffs of dirt in his hair, climbing to his feet after almost being slaughter by a Beowolf onslaught.
If it were me in his shoes, I'd certainly be dead. No qualms about it. This guy is made of some serious stuff. I'd applaud if I weren't so amazed.
Jaune's eyes widen. He stands up straight, patting himself all over as if to check that he's indeed still altogether. A grand smile begins to grow on his face, large enough that it's almost hysterical. In complete disbelief, Jaune starts laughing.
"H-heh! Hey! You're right! I'm alive," he says, looking at his arms like they're made of metal. Without abandon, he throws them both into the air and cheers, "I'm alive! Woohoo! I'm alive!" Without any warning, Jaune charges at me and wraps me into a great, big hug.
While wearing cold, hard armour.
"Hrk!" I grunt. The air wheezes from my lungs as blood begins rushing to my head.
"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! I get to taste life's sweet nectar once more time! Thank god!" The guy doesn't have much meat on him but, damn if those arms don't pack a lot of muscle. Between him and Yang, I'm starting to think there's something in the water! I-I'm starting to feel a little light-headed.
"N-n-nah. N-no problem," I fumble back, my face a swelling red balloon. P-please let me down!
"Jaune!" Both of us turn at the startling yell. Jaune releases the hug, visibly paling as a fuming Weiss storms towards him, stopping in front of him with her fists on her hips. "What did I tell you about strategy?"
"To... not do anything stupid?" He replies tentatively, smile like a jester that just told an unfunny joke.
"Close, but no," she hisses. "Our strategy was you stay out of the way and not get yourself killed!"
"W-well yeah, but-" Weiss doesn't let him breathe.
"Eh! Eh! No buts!" She shouts, interrupting with a finger. "You were almost mauled by three Beowolves because you charged in like a complete dunce! You're lucky to be alive!"
"I-I know! I know, I made a mistake. A big one! It won't happen again. Scout's honour," he splutters in his fervour, placing one hand on his heart with his other aloft. He laughs awkwardly, wearing a grin so fake that even I can see right through it. Weiss clearly can too, leaning in closely as her severe tone thickens.
"Next time, stay out of the way and don't do anything. Do I make myself clear?"
"...Yes," he mumbles meekly, lowering his head as his arms lose all their vigour.
"Good. Go grab your sword," she orders, twirling on her heels and walking away. With sunken posture, Jaune kneels down and picks his shield, sporting a massive dent in it by the way, grumbling to himself while doing so.
"Good job, Jaune. Really knocked her off her feet," he sighs.
Poor guy. Somebody had to get stuck with her, I suppose. It's just bad luck that it had to be him
"You weren't exactly doing great by yourself," I hear The Girl say pointedly. I turn around. Both her and Weiss are standing across from each other, The Girl with her arms neatly folded while Weiss is sporting an unamused scowl. My body shrinks. Sparks are about to fly. That's not good for any of us. Not with the Grimm still skulking amongst the bushes.
"I'm sorry. Who are you?" Weiss sneers back. Her opponent opens her mouth to reply, prompting me to lean a little closer, but before she's allowed to say, Weiss sticks a hand, turning her head with a hint of haughtiness. "Actually, never mind. I really don't care." I do though, as I grumble quietly. "Truth be told, I didn't need any of you to help me. I had the situation under control."
'Entirely' is a bit an exaggeration. I'm not one to question her abilities or anything but, her movements were starting to lose their fluid motion towards the end of the fight.
Not that I'd tell her that.
"Entire? Hardly. You were having trouble standing up," The dark-haired Girl fires back. I flinch slightly. Not exactly the softest way of putting it...
Weiss glares at her statement. "I was fighting for fifteen minutes straight, Miss. Unlike some people, I don't just jump into the middle of a fight when it's convenient."
"No, of course not. You like to get yourself cornered and then whine when somebody has to save you," she says, a hint of a smirk stretching on her lips.
"Listen here, you!" Weiss yells, pointing accusingly at her. This is starting to get a little fiery. I-I should... step in or, I don't know, do something at least! I gulp lightly, stepping forward to diffuse the ticking time bomb that is this verbal battle. I open my mouth and speak so eloquently.
"U-um..." I stammer. Words refuse to form, just as I should've known they wouldn't. Whatever idea I had of defusing the situation falters as the two girls stare at way, one face a blank slate and the other volatile and irritable.
She is the one that speaks.
"What?! We're quite busy at the moment. Kindly go away," she growls like a lion. My knees sink closer to the ground. This was a mistake. The fire of this fight is burning far too hot for my meek touch.
"S-sorry..." I apologise, bowing my head and backing away slowly. Best not to anger her any further.
"Wait," she calls out again. I jump up with an unbecoming "Meep!" Lifting up my head, I point a trembling finger towards myself.
"M-me?" I ask, as if she'd be telling anyone else to wait. Idiot.
"Haven't I seen you before?" She asks curiously, her tone a little less aggressive than she was before. My eyes widen greatly. Did she notice me eavesdropping back at the lockers?! She couldn't have not. Yang and Ruby were practically commentating over the entire thing. If she remembers me from back then...
"N-n-no. We-we never met," I stutter, Warbreaker rattling in my arms.
"Hm..." she mumbles thoughtfully to herself. Please don't recognise me. Please don't recognise me! "Come on, Jaune! The ruins should be this way!" She walks away, in the same direction she was heading before the argument. I let out held air. She doesn't remember me. Good, that's good. The last thing I'd want is that anger and frustration in my direction.
"You're heading the wrong way," The Girl states. Weiss stops in her tracks again.
"Excuse me?" She says irritably.
"The Professor said that the ruins would be on the northern end of the forest. You're heading east," she pauses for a moment. "East is not north." She says in a very manner of fact manner. Almost to an insulting degree.
Or maybe she actually meant that as an insult. I'm slow.
"I'm perfectly aware, thank you," she grits out. "And pray tell, how in the world do you know that?"
In response, The Girl holds up her Scroll. Pressing down on the button, the screen pops out to reveal what seems to be a compass. Actually, it is a compass. That's the compass app, the one installed on Scrolls on start-up.
"Oh," Weiss blinks rapidly.
"Woah. I totally forgot we had those," Jaune says, approaching the three of us with his shield in hand. I can hardly blame him, I completely forgot about it too. While mandatory for all Scroll product lines, with the wide variety of map apps available for download nowadays that include a compass along with a digital map to work with, the compass app isn't used all that much anymore except by travellers heading out in the wilderness without any signal. No internet, no digital maps.
"W-well it's not my fault!" She says, rather loudly, turning away in a huff. "My Scroll's out of charge."
"No it's not, you just tried to cal-" Jaune is quickly cut off by a terrible glare from his partner.
"Oh! You're talking about your Scroll? I-I thought we were talking about mine!" He laughs awkwardly, pulling out his own Scroll and flashing the, broken, screen with a plastic smile. "See? All good here! I-I should've said something earlier. Technology, you know? It acts up. Heheh. Heh. Heh..." His laughter soon peters out as quickly as it phased in.
Weiss rolls her eyes, turning her attention back to The Girl with an irritable grimace. "Well, thank you oh so much for that little titbit Miss-" The Girl tries to say her name again but is quickly interrupted once again. "Still don't care."
"Bugger," I mutter to myself.
"But we must be on our way. Time is short and I don't want my grade to suffer. So, goodbye! And good riddance," she growls, not even bothering to hide her disdain through her gritted-teeth.
Still, this doesn't feel right. Terrifying as Weiss may be, splitting off from another group of fighters right after a tiring battle with the Beowolves isn't a very sound strategy. I said it to you and I mean it just as much here: We don't know what other Grimm will be out waiting for us and it'd be much safer if we go together. Separating makes both us and them prey. I contemplate speaking up, before they're allowed to leave.
Just as Weiss is about to leave, I take a foot forward to stop her.
"U-um!" I stutter loudly, feeling the sudden urge to punch myself in the face.
"Gah!" She jumps, giving me an incredulous look. "Oh, you're still here." You mean you forgot? Seriously, you talked to me just a minute ago. She coughs and straightens out her dress. "Right. What do you want?" Her grumpy tone leaves a pressure on my chest. I do my best to try and shake the anxiety aware. All I need to do is tell her the following sentence.
I think it's a good idea if we all stick together.
"N-nothing. It's nothing..." I say instead, like a complete twat. I step back a few paces, giving her some space. M-maybe it's a better idea if I keep my nose out of it...
"It's okay. You can tell us. What's up?" Jaune perks up from behind me, filling with just a sliver of confidence. I mean, if it's okay with him if I ask...
"W-well, um... I-I was just thinking that..." I start. My tongue feels gloopy with saliva but I push myself to continue. "Maybe the four of us... could go together?"
"Like a team-up?" He adds in. I glance at him and nod.
"Y-yeah. We're all heading to the same place, right?" I ask rhetorically. No one has told me to shut it yet so, I keep talking. "I-if we go together, we'd stand a better chance against the Grimm." My feet shift nervously. "If... that's cool with everyone, I dunno. W-what do you guys think?"
"Yeah! I'm cool with it," agrees Jaune, smiling and nodding rather enthusiastically. I suppose after almost being mauled, you wouldn't exactly want to chance it by going alone.
The Girl... shrugs. Alright then. I figured she would've had a stronger opinion considering how she and Weiss were throwing barbs not too long ago.
As for Weiss herself, she appears to be... wrestling with herself. Not literally of course, though it'd be pretty interesting to see someone so... intense, attempt a german-suplex, but everytime it seems like she's about to give us an answer, she shuts her mouth and makes what I can only describe as internal grumbling noises.
She looks at The Girl and scowls deeply. She looks at Jaune and scowls... even more deeply.
"Fine," she sighs. "Fine! You two can come along but, if you get in the way, we're ditching you."
"I don't think we'll have to worry about that," The Girl snarks. Is that confidence in us holding up our weight or confidence that they won't?
"Now, let's. Go. Before I have an aneurysm," Weiss moans, stomping away... before twisting on her heels and stomping in the correct direction.
"Shut up," she barks at The Girl, who's went from a tiny smirk into a smirk that's somewhat noticeable. Without another word, as she seems to do, she trails behind Weiss, keeping a lofty distance between her and the steaming ice queen. I guess that's that, then. All except for...
"Oh man, come on!" Jaune mutters, patting at the grass like a sniffer dog. "Where did I drop it- Ow! Seriously- Where is-"
It doesn't take me long to figure out what exactly he's looking for. Squinting out in the distance, entrenched into a large patch of grass, is a shiny sword. I think during his pseudo-butchering at the hands of the Beowolves that he's forgotten where exactly it had been knocked into. Lightly jogging towards it, I pry it out of its green casing, almost dropping it on my knees from the weight. This thing ain't no Warbreaker, I can tell you that. With it in-hand, I take it back to the still scavenging Jaune.
"U-um. E-excuse me?" I prompt lightly. "I-I think this is yours?"
"My sword!" He cries, leaping to his feet. With a beaming grin, he takes the offered sword from my hands. "Thanks! My Dad would've killed me if I lost it."
"I-it was nothing. Uh..." I reply, scratching my neck. "Thank you. For... backing me up there."
"Eh, it's no big deal," he says nonchalantly, waving me off. "I miss talking to someone-" He twirls his hand in the air, searching to find the most 'Politically Correct,' term he can possibly fine. "Calmer." I giggle lightly. She's certainly a handful, that's for sure. Morphing his shield into a sheath, stunning me in just how mundane of a transformation it is, Jaune holsters his sword and we begin to walk after the two anti-social girls.
"The name's Jaune Arc. What's your name?" He asks. Feeling a settling sense of routine, I clear my throat.
"Er... Eren," I answer.
"Eren?" Jaune says testing the name. I can already predict what he's about to say next.
"Huh, weird name."
A/N: Two partnerships founded and neither of them get along very well. Clearly this won't lead to anything dramatic.
This chapter certainly found a way to be a pain. I had to rewrite it at least four times, mostly the Eren/Blake "Talk" and the second half involving Weiss and Jaune. To be honest, I'm still not fond of it. Much self-guessing and re-evaluating interpretations were had, especially with writing Blake still in her distrustful, aloof shell.
Anyways, Weiss and Jaune are partners! Which means that my Ruby/Weiss Blake/Yang and Jaune/Pyrrha readers must all really hate me right now! That's great!
I was originally planning on keeping the other three pairings the same but, between the new dynamic I had going between the two and another dynamic that I think would be interesting, I thought it'd be better explored if the two were on the same team together. Because suffering is my jam and Jaune's the first serving. Don't worry, we'll get to everyone else later. Volume 3 is still very much a thing~
Also, for those who are absolutely sick of the non-Beacon stuff, the next chapter will be the finale of the Induction Arc and the formation of teams! So, look forward to that!
So, what do you think of the new dynamics so far? Good? Bad? Let me know in the reviews. Constructive criticism is always encouraged.