George Gerontio was a man of noble bearing. Delicate facial features marred only by the small scar to the left of his left eye. His clothing was covered from view by the regal (and undeniably antiquated) armour he wore coloured in blue and gold and adorned with lion motifs surrounded by gold filigree. He carried two weapons. A segmented spear and a sword that appeared to only be ceremonial. The shape of the guard obstructing a good third of the blade's edge. Like most hunters, George Gerontio stood out in any crowd.
There was no crowd, however. All he saw was an old friend lamenting what he saw as another failure.
"Mighty Brodin, I pray. Spot me in my time of need. As I benchpress my burdens of guilt in sets of five by five. I pray. Give me strength to lift them and hold them high."
"Blaine?"
"I pray. Give me strength not to falter under the weight of my failures."
"Blaine."
"I pray. Though they may not believe. Though they may not trust in your mighty swole, watch over these two as they pass into the next life. Wheymen."
As George moved to place a hand on the larger man's shoulder, he was – as was often the case – surprised by the larger man's speed and reflexes. His outstretched arm was grabbed, turned, and grappled into a position where it would be easily broken.
Their team all had very specific strengths. Andrea was an expert of tactics and strategy, Patrick had been a master of his own aura, George himself could wield any weapon with uncanny ability.
And Blaine? Blaine could beat anything into submission with his bare hands.
"George." Blaine said as he disinterestedly released the trapped arm.
"Andrea was surprised to see your authorisation being used. We thought you might have..." George trailed off, trying to find the right words. "We hadn't heard from you since-"
"Since Patrick." Blaine cut in.
"... Yes." George answered solemnly. The fact that the last time they had seen each other had also been at a friend's grave was not lost on either of them. "... Were they good men?", he asked, unable to stop himself.
Blaine scoffed at the tactless question that told you exactly where the other man's priorities were. If you weren't a 'good man' then as far as George was concerned you weren't worth mourning. "By your estimation? Hardly. Burnie was angry at worst, irritated at best. Brandon was skittish and utterly unable to stand on his own. They were no saints but they didn't deserve this."
"No one deserves this." George said in an attempt at being conciliatory.
"Then why can't I ever stop it!" Blaine shouted, rounding on him. "First that outpost, then what happened with Patrick-"
"Patrick wasn't your fault! I gave the order-"
"And I followed it! I should have stayed and fought with him!" Blaine growled.
"An army of hunters couldn't have saved him from that! What good would have been done from you dying alongside him?!" George asked incredulously.
Blaine deflated as he turned his back on his old teammate. "At least he wouldn't have died alone. At least I could have saved him from... that. What good was done by my surviving?" he asked in a hollow tone.
"Nothing." Blaine looked at him again, shock and hurt plain to see in his eyes but George continued anyway. "What? Were you not expecting an honest answer? He saved your life but what is that worth when you spent the rest of it hiding in a field spouting nonsense? His sacrifice was pointless because you made it so." And with that, George the Seathslayer turned his back on his lost teammate for the final time, not even bothering to look as Blaine collapsed to the ground, as a quiet scream of self-loathing and loss tore from this throat.
As George neared the exit from the graveyard, and mounted his white Steed S50 motorcycle, a grey-haired man stepped out from the shade of the gates carrying a coffee cup, long empty but it was habit at this point.
"He will be more open to your offer now." George told him, bitterness seeping into his voice.
"It may not seem like it now but it was a good thing you just did. Both for your friend and for this world.", the man tried to comfort him.
"If it is all the same, Mr. Ozpin. I just found one of my few living friends after he had been missing for years. And within minutes of seeing him again I tore his soul to pieces and pissed on it. Please don't try to tell me that was the right thing to do. I doubt I could stomach it."
-(-)-
Naruto was still struck by the view out of the airship even as his journey came to an end. No matter how far they went there was always more world beyond the horizon. It made him eager to explore it but at the same time terrified that it was filled with things that wanted to kill him.
Oh, and the Grimm. They were scary too, he supposed.
It had been several days since his fateful meeting with Ozpin and the older man had finally made good on his promise for Naruto to meet his family at their new residence/workplace. The trip, wasn't so much a trip, however, as it was his official exile. They even had a very official gathering where officious officials watched him get officially thrown out of the kingdom by a couple of AK-130s. Of course the impact of this moment was somewhat ruined by an airship immediately picking him up and his giving a jaunty wave as it flew off.
Oh well. He was gone and that was what mattered as far as both sides were concerned.
As the airship touched down, Naruto leapt out of it eagerly, unable to wait to see his family again. He needn't have been in such a rush. Many of them had come to greet him.
"Naruto!"
"Boss!"
"It's good to see you again, Leader!"
Tears welled up in Naruto's eyes at seeing the beaming smiles on the faces of his most precious people. For so long they had had to struggle to survive. Now they were free. Healthy. Happy. Safe. Everything he had ever wanted for them had been achieved.
"I'm so happy to see you all again!"
-(-)-
"How are you holding up, young man?" Ozpin asked.
It was late at night. They were sat in the living room of the farmhouse where the faunus now lived and worked. The owners and workers had all turned in early to prepare for the early rise typical of farm work. Naruto was holding tight onto a cup of tea. It was by no means his preference but it didn't seem like he even knew it was a drink he was holding. His mind was running in circles.
"The owners seem nice." Naruto said finally. "Usually I'm a pretty good judge. Ya see enough fakers you learn to spot the tells, ya know? They seem nice. Genuine."
"This place is nice, too." He continued. Staring blankly at a non-specific spot on the coffee table. "Everybody gets their own space. Lotsa room out back for the kids to play in. Kaine told me they found a pond a little ways away and they tried skipping stones across it. She says they're gonna ask if it's okay to swim there." He let out a weak laugh.
"Ya know, I made a promise a while back. When they put me in charge I swore to myself I'd do whatever it took to keep 'em safe. I'd give up anything to see them live happy lives and now," His voice hitched, "now it looks like they can be. And I'm so happy about that. I'm so glad that I can't stand it! But... They don't need me anymore. I put everything I had into making their lives better and now they don't need it."
"What the hell do I do now?"
Ozpin calmly sipped his coffee. By arranging this escape for his family, the headmaster had bestowed Naruto with a mixed blessing. Every child growing up comes up with an impossible dream they wish to achieve. They see something amazing and say "Wow. I wish I could do that." Most see those dreams for the fantasies that they are and abandon them as they near adolescence or adulthood. Others, those with implacable willpower and determination decide 'impossible' isn't a word. They work, they plan, they fight to achieve the unachievable. And naturally, most of those fail too.
Ozpin was beginning to believe he fell in the second category.
Then there are the rare few. The rare lucky unlucky few who through grit, brains, luck or most often all of the above manage to obtain a miracle. Their dream comes true. And then, after the elation and accolades start to fade away, the same question inevitably reaches all of them. 'What do I do now?' So much time and effort dedicated to one thing, once it's done they realise they have nothing else. Sacrificed it all for the sake of their dream.
Naruto was no different in that regard. He had his people, yes. Even to the point where he called them his family. But even so, and as so often happens with community leaders, he had to maintain a certain distance from them. Being overly close to some of them could lead him to putting their needs over the rest. Even the appearance of doing so could sow dissent. Dissent could lead to division. Division to discovery by their oppressors. And in their former home, that could lead to an unfortunate end for all of them. Ozpin idly wondered if the young man in front of him knew that instinctively... or found out the hard way.
In any case, Naruto could stay with them now if he so chose. He could lead a simple life as a farmhand. Maybe see if he could reforge the bonds with his family on equal terms. But the young man had already tossed aside that possibility or he wouldn't be asking that one question. Fear of them rejecting him? Perhaps. Perhaps he still wanted to achieve the impossible but had no such goal in front of him.
"Well, if you're taking suggestions, Mr Fox. I might have one." Ozpin finally said.
"Right." Naruto smirked. "Here it is. Took ya so long I was starting to think there really wasn't a catch."
"There really isn't." Ozpin reconfirmed. "No catch. Your family are safe and if you wish to stay with them and work here, you can do so. I'm sure the owner wouldn't mind an extra pair of hands. But if you were going to do that... I dare say you would be doing that."
Naruto didn't respond. Just stared, waiting for the other shoe to drop.
"Mr Fox." Ozpin began, leaning forward in his armchair. "What do you know of huntsmen?"
Naruto shrugged, folding his arms as he leaned back in his own seat. "They fight Grimm." he answered simply.
"True." the headmaster smirked, accepting the... succinct answer. "Huntsmen and huntresses fight against the Grimm to protect the four kingdoms and all people within them. They do this using the best tools available. Advanced, specially crafted weaponry and clothing, but most importantly they use the greatest asset humanity have in this endless conflict. Aura."
"Is that the thing you called the clone thing I do?" Naruto asked.
"Not quite. Aura is not a well understood concept. It hinges a great deal on the metaphysical elements of the soul and-" It was at this point Ozpin noticed the faunus' vacant expression. "In simple terms, aura is the use of the power of the soul to affect the body. It can make you stronger, faster, more durable."
"Right." Naruto nodded. "The thing that makes me awesome. Got it."
"Y... Yes." Ozpin agreed reluctantly. "Usually someone has to unlock another's aura for them and it can be an... unpleasant experience." Left unsaid was that it maimed or killed some people. "And through training in its use, one can learn to expand the capabilities of their aura. This is what we call 'semblance'."
"Ah!" Naruto exclaimed, pointing at the older man. "That was the clone thingy!"
"Indeed. Your semblance has been dubbed 'Doppelgänger' in the past. An old word for a look-alike or double of a person. As semblances go, it is in fact one of the most versatile on record. I believe you can figure out where I'm going with this."
Naruto dropped his arms from his chest and let them rest perpendicular to his body. "You want me to be a huntsman."
"I do." Ozpin confirmed, not hiding his intent in the slightest. "Your semblance alone could do so much to beat back the Grimm, could save so many lives. Your talent with aura without any training whatsoever-" Ozpin stopped as he saw the deepening frown on Naruto's face.
He had believed that with his regular self-aggrandisement the young faunus would be rather vulnerable to flattery. Not so, evidently so he tried a different tack. "I also have an impossible dream, you know." He began, standing and starting to pace. Lacing a bit of honesty into his appeal might help. "I have a dream that one day, people of Vale, of all the four kingdoms can live their lives without fear of the Grimm. I want to see a world where Atlas doesn't need five defensive walls to act as a glorified early warning system. A world where Vale can build a city without it immediately being overrun by soulless monsters. Where I don't have to welcome children to my school, watch them grow into fine young men and women and years later learn they died fighting for some pointless objective that we later lost anyway. That world... That is my dream. And as the years march on I can't help but notice how impossible it is. Even so, that's no excuse to stop. I might not see it in my lifetime. But I like to believe that as long as someone keeps that insane dream alive, it will happen one day."
Ozpin stopped pacing to look at Naruto directly, "You kept wondering what the catch was. There still isn't one, but I propose a trade. I helped you achieve your impossible dream. Will you help me with mine?"
-(-)-
A/N: Literally every time. No happy chapters. The humour tag option should just be taken out of my options, I swear.
Long wait on this one. I know. It's how I roll. Hate me for it, I won't blame you.
So pretty obvious who Blaine's team are based on. The patron saints of England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. Yes, I made Saint George the leader but I also made him kind of a dick, so I think it balances out. Though... Maybe people might be more miffed that I genderswapped Saint Andrew. Meh.
Thanks for reading.