And here comes ch 7 of TPA. JJD is editor-in-chief, as usual.
CH 7
It was a peaceful morning in Beacon. All the new students fast asleep in the beds, getting well deserved rest after completing their initiation. Soon, they would have to get up and start their first day of school - but for now, they all could rest for a bit longer.
Well, all of them except one team. A tall figure stood in team JNPR's room, looking over the sleeping teens. They were so peaceful, so calm. So defenseless.
The figure's mouth stretched in an evil, vicious smile. It reached into its pocket and pulled out a small item. If someone would have been watching the scene, they would surely have gasped in shock and understanding of what was about to befall the young students sleeping peacefully in their beds. Alas, there was none who were watching, no one to stop the mysterious figure from executing its evil plan.
The sharp tone of a whistle sounded impossibly loud in the quiet room. Nora jumped straight up, her pillow held in hand, ready to throw it at the source of the noise.
Pyrrha tried to roll out of her bed, but got tangled in her covers, and fell. She groaned loudly, then decided that trying to free herself was not worth the effort, so she just curled in the fetal position and tried to go back to sleep.
Ren sat on his bed and raised a single eyebrow.
Jaune smiled and put the whistle back in his pocket.
"Wake up sleepy heads. We only have an hour and a half until classes starts. We don't want to be late on our first day, do we?"
Nora's pillow dropped from her hands as she turned to Ren and shouted. "Renny! It's our first day, they'll be pancakes, and Grimm, and cliques! We have to find a good clique Renny, tv told me so! Oh, I'm so nervous!" She bolted towards the bathroom.
Ren shook his head, and started his morning stretching routine.
The only response from Pyrrha was some muffed mumbling.
Jaune walked towards his partner, and gently shook her.
"Come on Pyrrha, it's time to get up."
More mumbling.
"No Pyrrha, you can't go back to sleep. Just get up, the longer you drag this out the worse it gets."
There were some more mumbling, and the cocoon made of blankets and his partner tightened.
Jaune sighed.
"Pyrrha if you don't get up now, I'm afraid I will be forced to use more forceful methods."
The cocoon tightened even further. One green eye peeked out, staring at him menacingly.
"Ok, you have been warned."
Jaune walked towards his bed and pulled something from under it. Pyrrha gasped and actually sat up when she noticed what her partner and team leader had in his hands.
"You wouldn't." She said.
"How much are you willing to bet on that statement?" He answered with a half-smile.
"You can't. You … you are our team leader, shouldn't you be looking out for us?"
"But I am! Just imagine what would happen if we were late to class on our very first day. Our reputation would be ruined. As team leader I simply cannot allow this to happen."
He smiled at her.
"Come on Pyrrha, you're already awake. Just get up. Don't force me to use this." He said, lifting bucket full of, no doubt ice-cold, water.
Pyrrha stared at him for a few moments, looking for any indication he might be bluffing. When she found none, she untagled herself, and mumbling something about merciless tyrants, gathered her clothes and joined Nora in the bathroom.
"That was dangerous." said Ren.
Jaune looked at him at shrugged.
"We are training to fight giant monsters that exist for sole purpose of killing us. What's a little more danger?"
Ren just shook his head.
After they all got ready, they went to cafeteria to grab some food. Pyrrha, after a lot of grumbling and complaining, finally forgave him for the sudden wake-up call.
"So what is our first lesson?" Asked Ren after taking sip of his tea.
"Grimm Studies with professor Peter Port." Answered Pyrrha. She just finished her sandwich and was checking their schedule on her scroll.
"Port?" Asked Jaune, fork with scrambled eggs on beacon stopping just before his mouth.
"You know him Jaune?" His partner asked.
"Just by reputation. He is pretty famous in certain circles."
"Famous? What for?" Asked Nora excitedly.
"Well, he is old, but still an active Hunter." Answered Jaune and coming back to his breakfast.
"He is…an old Hunter? And that makes him famous?" Asked Nora, disappointment clearly visible on her face.
Jaune paused, looked over his team, and sighed.
They really don't get it, do they?
"No Nora. He is an old, active Hunter."
They still stared at him. He just shook his head.
"Do you guys know the average retirement age of Hunters?"
None of them answered, so he continued.
"Around 40 years old. Most stop being active much earlier - around 30-35. Just to clarify - by 'active' I mean the ones who go out in the Wilds. The most common reason for retirement is either because they started a family, or because they are no longer capable of fighting. Sometimes it means they got crippled. Those are lucky ones." He didn't say what happened to unlucky ones. Judging by how his teammates shifted nervously, he didn't need to.
Ok, maybe I shouldn't be saying this…
He sighed and continued.
"Peter Port is well over sixty, and he regularly visits the wilds. Not even the frontier - but what we call the 'Deep Wilds'." Jaune looked every one of his teammates in the eye, his face completely serious.
"My teacher was always saying that to survive as Hunter you need three things: skill, determination, and experience. The older you are, the more of them you have - and need. Since professor Port survived that long, and is still active - I can only imagine how much of the three he has." Jaune finished, and looked at his teammates. They seemed contemplative.
Looks like they finally got it. He smiled, and finished his breakfast.
"I guess that means we will have to pay close attention to what he is saying." Said Pyrrha with small smile.
"Yeah! Maybe he knows how to skin an Ursa. We could ask him, and then we could start selling them! We…"
"Nora."
"Yes, Ren?"
"Finish your breakfast. We need to go to class soon."
"Ok Renny!".
"Well, I don't think he knows that." Said Pyrrha carefully. "But I'm sure that his lesson will be very interesting nonetheless."
This is not interesting! It's not interesting AT. ALL!
Pyrrha shot her partner an evil glare. Or tried to. That would require energy - something she found herself severely lacking at the moment. And she wasn't the only one. In fact, most of the classroom seemed to be out. Some people were talking quietly to friends, some played games on they scrolls. There were few who looked like they were actually paying attention, but they were minority. Most of students were fast asleep. The only reason she was not among them was iron discipline.
And her partner. Jaune seemed to be not affected at all by the mind-numbing tales of their professor. He was twirling his pen between his fingers, stopping from time to time to scribble something in his notebook. The whole time he was focused on talking man.
Pyrrha, with titanic effort, tried to do the same.
A reason. There has to be one for all of this.
But what? Pyrrha couldn't figure it out. Maybe there was some meaning hidden in this ridiculous story? Some message? She vaguely recalled her third year in combat school and a mission she was taking part in. One of Hunters she accompanied told her that in the Wilds you often have to spend days, or weeks with nothing happening - but you can't let your guard down. Attacks can come at any time.
Was that it? Was this tale just distraction, a test to see if they could remain vigilant even under extreme circumstances? She looked left, where two of her teammates sat. Nora was lying on her desk, snoring quietly and from time to time mumbling something about pancakes and sloths. She was one of the first victims of professor Port's tale.
Ren was sitting up, pencil in hand and focused on his notebook, taking notes. Or rather he might have tried once upon time - his hand stopped moving about halfway through lesson. Judging by his breathing, he was fast asleep too. Pyrrha wanted nothing more than to join the two.
Instead she looked right, towards her team leader. He, unlike Ren, was actually taking notes. And by the look of it - he'd made quite a few of them. He was looking at their professor intensely, nodding from time to time.
What?! What do you see here? How can you be so focused? What am I missing?
Was it this a "practice vs book smarts" thing? Was Jaune able to catch something in the old Hunter's tale because he had practical experience? Pyrrha yet again recalled her short trip in the field. Indeed, she learned quite a few things there. Things that were not covered in textbooks, that maybe weren't necessary to know - but knowing them certainly helped.
Her eyes swept over the classroom, and students almost entirely devoid of energy.
Is this his Semblance? Does he suck out our energy? But where he would store it?
She focused back on the talking man.
Maybe in his mustache?
This though made her giggle a little. She shook her head, hoping to clear her mind, at least a bit.
No, focus on the lesson. If Jaune can see sense in it, you can too.
"I do!" A sudden shout broke Pyrrha out of her thoughts - if only because it broke the monotony of the teacher's tale.
She looked to source of the voice - Weiss Schnee was standing, her arm raised high.
Did she volunteer for something?
Pyrrha lazyly scanned the classroom, and noticed a big, metal cage. It was shaking violently, a low growling escaping from within from time to time.
Is that… a live Grimm?
This was… good. Very good. A live Grimm in classroom meant someone would fight it, and that meant the story would come to an end. Pyrrha smiled. She did it! She survived to the end.
She slapped her cheeks to wake up, and focused on the young heiress who was now armed, and ready to fight.
After this, I'll have to ask Jaune what he saw in that story. There had to be something, considering how many notes he took.
"Ahhhhhhh, it was awful. I can't believe we rushed for that." Complained Yang, stretching.
Weiss fight went as expected - the lone Boarbatusk didn't pose much challenge for the young Huntress in training.
"Don't say that. While I admit that story was… not the best, professor Port wanted to pass a valuable lesson on to us."
"And what lesson was that, Weiss-cream?" The blond brawler asked with a raised eyebrow.
The heiress stammered and looked to the side, cheeks slightly darker.
"Well Yang, don't tell me you didn't get it?" A new voice sounded. They turned around to see Jaune and his team approaching.
"Hi guys." He said, raising a hand. He turned to heiress. "Nice fight Weiss."
She smiled and nodded to him.
"Well, thank you."
"Ok, so care to enlighten us what this important lesson was, Ladykiller?"
Jaune looked at Yang and blinked a few times in surprise.
"Wait, you really didn't get it?"
She shook her head.
He looked to Ruby - but she laughed nervously, tapping her index fingers together. He looked at Blake - but she was suddenly very interested in the ceiling. He turned to Weiss - but she looked away, mumbling something under her breath.
Jaune stared at them for a few seconds
"Wa.. Bu.." He took deep breath, and slowly let it go.
"None of you got it? But it's so… obvious!" There were few seconds of awkward silence and shuffling.
Jaune just shook his head.
"What the hell did they teach you in those combat schools?"
The only answer was more silence and more shuffling.
"Guess we will have to coach these poor souls, right guys?" He said, turning towards his team.
None of them met his eyes.
"Guys?" There was no answer.
"Ren? Nora? You guys were taught by a Hunter, surely you know what I'm talking about?"
"Well.." Ren looked embarrassed when he started speaking. "Butch taught us mostly fighting. As for theory... There was a cram school nearby that taught us most of the basics. And we did a lot of self-study."
He stared at them for few seconds, then turned to his partner, eyes pleading.
"P-Pyrrha? Surely, you…"
Her cheeks were almost as red as her hair now.
"I-I'm sorry…"
Jane looked over both teams, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"So, I'm the only one?"
No one said anything, but that was an answer in itself.
He sighed.
"Ok, listen. The thing about Beowolves is that…"
"How could you not know that!" Weiss practically screeched.
"Hey, who cares who led some battle fifty or so years ago? It has nothing to do with killing Grimm." Jaune defended.
"Because this is our history! Not even ancient history - modern history! We still feel the repercussions of these events!"
"Really? Strange, because I didn't feel any when I was in the Wilds trying to survive against Grimm! You know, the things that are trying to kill all of us now!"
"Jaune…" Pyrrha interjected
"Yes?"
"Weiss does have a point. These are important things to know." She winced at look of utter betrayal on his face.
"Oh cheer up Ladykiller." Said Yang, patting him on the back. "No need to be so grumpy, just because you will have to take extra lessons with Oobleck." Jaune shot her an annoyed look, and mumbled something under his breath.
"Yeah, cheer up! It can't be worse than professor Port's class!" Ruby quipped.
"Hey, Port's class was good! At least he was talking about things that matter."
They all shot him deadpan looks.
"Jaune. No one besides you had any idea what he was talking about. No. One. I checked." Said Weiss.
"Not my fault, or his, that you all have severe lack in education. Maybe I should go to him and suggest he make extra lessons for you lot?"
There was a moment of tense silence.
"H-hey Jaune let's not go to far, ok?" Said Yang nervously.
"Y-yeah , there is no need to go that far. We were just messing around!" Ruby added.
"Messing around?" Jaune said sternly. Ruby whimpered and looked even more nervous.
"Messing around can get you killed in the field. It becomes more and more apparent that you lot need some extra lessons with an experienced Hunter." He smiled at them.
"It's good thing there are so many experienced hunters here at Beacon. I'm sure our Grimm Studies professor would be more than happy to help his students, share some of his time…"
Jaune's smile would make the Devil proud.
"... and stories."
"N-now Jaune let's be reasonable. This was just a minor slip up, I'm sure there is no need to waste the time of our esteemed professor with something this trivial." Weiss said quickly, shoving her partner to the side.
Jaune marveled for a moment at their panic.
Ok, this is fun, but I need to cut down on this teasing before I go too far. They will murder me in my sleep.
"I guess you are right… " he said, tapping his chin with a finger.
"Ok, stop staring at me like that. I was just joking." He said, waving his hand.
"That was NOT funny Arc." Weiss growled at him.
"I beg to differ Miss Schnee." Jaune countered with smile.
There was a moment of silence when the two of then stared at each other.
"So… are you two going to kiss now?" Yang interjected.
"As if I would ever do it with that dunce." Weiss huffed.
Jaune just shook his head.
"Yeah, no thanks, I'll pass. I don't want to turn into an ice sculpture."
"It's just that you two bicker like an old couple. Wanted to make sure Ladykiller is still on menu." Said Yang, winking at him.
Weiss just sighed.
"Xiao Long, just because I'm talking with someone doesn't mean we are couple."
"Yeah, but you are nicer to him than to...well, anyone really." Said Blake.
"That's not true!"
"It kinda is…" Ruby mumbled.
Weiss glared at her.
"What was that?"
"N-nothing!" The young huntress stammered, hiding behind her sister.
"Guys, how about we stop this and just get going? Next is combat class with Miss Goodwitch. I'm sure none of us want to be late for that." Jaune's proposition was met with unanimous agreement.
"Stop! The match is over. Miss Nikos wins."
Frankly, Jaune was not surprised. Between her fame as a four time champion, and what he saw during initiation, he doubted there were too many people their age that could go against his partner. Her fight, though calling what happened that was way too generous, didn't even last a minute. And it was completely one-sided from start to finish.
Pyrrha's opponent - some spear-wielding guy whose name Jaune didn't bother to remember - looked very confident when he stepped into the arena. "Finally someone who might make me break a sweat" he said just before match started.
Jaune was not sure if Pyrrha made him break sweat or not - the fight was very short after all - but she quite likely broke his nose, when her shield slammed into her opponent's face right after the match started.
He smiled when he saw his partner's extended hand to her downed opponent. His eyes narrowed at Pyrrha's hurt expression when guy swatted her hand aside.
It seems someone is a sore loser.
After some brief consideration he decided against having "The Talk" with guy. Afterall being a sore loser didn't quite mean he was a bad person - just that he lacked spine.
But I better keep an eye on him. In case he tries something.
"Next match - Miss Xiao Long vs Miss Valkyrie. Please prepare to fight."
Both girls were all too happy to comply.
Now this should be interesting. Thought Jaune.
From what he could recall both fighters were very aggressive, and didn't do too many acrobatics. Well, less than most Beacon students he had seen until now.
Hmm… I think Nora has the advantage here. Judging by the damage they did to that Deathstalker, she hits harder, and has better range. Both are very aggressive, and prefer standoff fights.
"Begin!" Miss Goodwitch announced the start of fight. To Jaune surprise, Nora didn't charge ahead, but held her ground, content to let her opponent come.
Yang didn't make her wait long. She fired her gauntlets backwards, using the added momentum to close the distance in mere seconds. Nora swung her hammer diagonally - a wide, telegraphed attack, made more to stop her opponent's charge, than to hit her.
But strangely enough, Yang didn't stop. Instead she stepped in, narrowly avoiding the hammer's head, and blocking its haft with her left gauntlet. The right one shot towards ginger girl's face - but Nora managed to swat it aside with the handle of her weapon. Not wasting any time, she swung upwards. The blond brawler managed to backstep in time to avoid being hit - but was not prepared when Nora stopped her swing mid-way, and instead thrusted her weapon forward. The attack lacked the power to do any serious damage, but was enough to push Yang back.
Jaune nodded with approval.
She so good at controlling her weapon, and far more composed than one would think.
Yang kept up her assault, apparently determined to stay inside Nora's guard, and pummel her with shotgun-enhanced punches. Nora on the other hand, did what she could to stay out of the brawler's punching range. Jaune's eyes narrowed. While this was not a bad strategy, Yang was taking too many hits. Granted, most of them were glancing blows, or strikes with the haft of the hammer, and thus didn't carry too much power, but it was an extremely risky tactic.
Well I guess she doesn't have much of a choice, but still she takes too many hits. She could easily block most of them, without having to back away.
Jaune took a look at the Aura display. Nora's aura was barely above fifty, while her opponent was closer to sixty. Up until now Yang could score hits even if her fist was stopped by firing shotgun blast at hammer-wielder. On the other hand, Nora couldn't use her grenade launcher - not only did she not have time to switch her weapon form, but at such close range blast would hit them both.
But a few moments ago, a loud click announced that Yang was out of ammo. This, coupled with the fact that Nora was getting better at reading her attacks, meant the fight was not going well for the blond brawler. The Aura gap she had built at the beginning of the fight was closing. Not very fast, but it was clear Yang would run out first.
Now, what will you do Yang? You may be dictating the tempo of fight, but you've lost the momentum.
Yang's answer was to increase her tempo even more. She almost completely abandoned defense, and charged in close. She managed to grab Nora's hammer by the shaft, and pin it to the ginger girl's body. Then she started to throw punch after punch.
Nora recovered quickly. Instead of trying to wrestle her weapon free - she switched it to grenade launcher form. This forced Yang to let it go - but also created an opening. So close it was impossible for Nora to fire her weapon without hurting herself, and Yang was all too happy to use this to her advantage, and not let her opponent revert her weapon to melee form.
A golden gauntlet flew towards the face of the ginger girl. It never reached its destination though, because the rest of Yang was propelled backward by pink explosion. Nora, apparently unconcerned by proximity, fired her weapon straight at her opponent's face. Yang flew a few meters and landed heavily. She got up almost instantly though and looked up at her opponent.
Nora was right in front of her, hammer already mid-swing.
To Yang's credit - she managed to put up her guard.
To Nora's credit - she didn't let it amount to much.
The first clean hit of her hammer sent Yang flying yet again. The blond brawler just barely managed to avoid being thrown out of the ring. Nora grinned and ran at the stunned girl. She jumped hgh, readying a powerful overhead attack to end the fight.
And then Yang exploded. Flames washed over the arena, surprising everyone - not least Nora. Her surprise grew even further when Yang grabbed her hammer just below the head with one hand, and pulled. Being airborne and completely out of control of her movement, Nora could do nothing to avoid Yang's fist slamming into her stomach. She hit the floor on the opposite side of arena, letting out a loud groan.
"Match is over! Miss Xiao Long wins."
Yang helped Nora get up. They exchanged few words and laughed.
Miss Goodwitch walked up to them and started to lecture.
"Miss Valkyrie, that was a good fight. Deciding to fight defensively was a good idea, keeping Miss Xiao Long at distance too. Unfortunately, it appears you are not used to opponents fighting at such close range, I would advise to work on that. For one, you should hold your weapon closer to its center of mass, this would allow for greater maneuverability. Also, you are taking needlessly large swings. Shorter attacks would be easier to control, and harder to react to."
"Lastly - after the last attack, when you managed to knock your opponent down, you should opt to have finished the fight from range. Closing in on melee, especially in the way you did, will only give your opponent chance to counterattack - like Miss Xiao Long did."
Nora laughed and nodded. Yang shot her a grin, and nudged her in the arm.
"Miss Xiao Long, while you won the match it was only thanks to Miss Valkyrie's mistake. While seeking to lock your opponent into very close range is generally a good idea for fist fighters, you took too many hits you could have avoided. While you managed to win thanks to a combination of your Semblance and your opponent's mistake, I would advise against such aggressive fighting in the future. This could lead you into trouble against an opponent that is much faster than you, or in drawn-out fights."
Yang just nodded.
Both girls walked out of the arena, talking the whole time. Jaune smiled, and patted Nora on the shoulder when she joined them.
"That was a good fight." He said.
She laughed nervously.
"Yeah, but I got a bit too excited."
"Happens. No one is perfect - and now you know a little better what you should and shouldn't do." Said Pyrrha with encouraging smile.
There were few more matches - some more interesting than others. When they were leaving classroom Jaune was lost in thought.
Well, that was better than I expected. For a moment, I feared everyone here would be tournament fighters.
He shook his head.
Nevermind. For now there are more pressing matters to attend to.
"Hey guys." He called out to his team.
"There is something I would like to discuss. Let's head to our room, ok?" They all nodded.
Jaune looked over his team, assembled in their room for their first 'team meeting.' He was standing near the door, while his teammates sat on beds.
"Ok guys, I wanted to talk about something. This will be extension of our conversation yesterday."
He took a moment to collect his thoughts and continued.
"Since we're stuck together for at least four years, I think it is in our best interest if we learn to work together efficiently. Now, I don't expect us to become a perfectly functioning unit day one, but the earlier we start working on it the better." All of his teammates nodded in agreement.
"So, I was thinking about doing some team-building exercises, spars, come up with some strategies for different situations, and so on. But before we can do any of this, we need to know a bit more about each other."
He looked each of his teammates in the eye, trying to gauge how they would react to what he was going to say next. He learned that some people found the topic he was about to bring up very...personal.
"So today, I would like for everyone here to say a few words about how they fight. What you think are your strongest points and what are your weakest. What experience in fighting you have, and what your Semblances are."
To his relief, his teammates didn't look uncomfortable or offended by his request.
Damn, how nice it is to work with reasonable people.
"Ohhhhhh! Me first, me first!" Shouted Nora, raising her hand.
"Go on." Said Jaune with smile.
"So I like smashing things. Renny says I'm too reckless, and that I tend to not pay attention to my surroundings. At first I tended to hit him with Magnhild when swinging it around" She blushed a little. "He might have gotten caught up in some explosions too. But it's better now! Mostly because he learned to keep his distance…" she trailed off, looking lost in thought. Then perked up.
"Oh, and I can absorb electricity to make myself stronger."
"Absorb electricity… Does the source matter? How strong and how long of a boost you get?"
"Well, I think that as long as it's electricity I can absorb it. I constantly use my own bioelectricity to boost my strength - that's why I can wield Magnhild so easily. I've never really had much chance to try it out - but generally the stronger the current then the more power I get out of it. I can use it up all at once, or spread it over time."
Jaune nodded. That sounded useful. A bit situational - but if she had some electricity Dust on her all the time, it would be nice trump card.
"Does it hurt you when you absorb something strong?" Pyrrha asked.
"Nah, it just tingles. I got hit by lightning once - in fact that's how I discovered my Semblance."
Jaune just shook his head. Being hit by lighting to discover your Semblance? That was just so… Nora.
"Guess I'll go next." Said Ren.
"My weapons are Storm Flowers - two submachine guns with extended mags, modified to use high-impact Dust ammo, with blades attached to each - you all saw them during initiation. I'd say my biggest weakness is that they have limited range, and both forms don't have too much striking power. They are good at dealing with softer enemies, but I'll have trouble taking out something heavily armored - I tend to leave that to Nora. I'm good at hand-to-hand combat and aura manipulation." He paused for a moment to think, and made to continue, but was stopped by Nora.
"Yeah Renny is like a super Ninja! He can make Grimm explode with his bare hands!" She made an explosion noise with her mouth for emphasis.
Jaune raised eyebrow at that, and Ren just sighed.
"It is a technique I learned some time ago. You can insert a part of your Aura into Grimm. Since they are not supposed to have Aura, it tries to escape their bodies, expanding rapidly. If you insert enough, you can kill even larger ones like Ursa. It takes time however, and if you insert too little, it wont do any damage at all. So you have to either concentrate a lot in your hand and do it in single strike, or deliver several fast attacks, inserting a bit every time."
"Oh! I know what youre talking about. Saw a guy do it once with an Ursa major - it looked like he was pumping a balloon with air until it exploded," said Jaune. Ren just nodded.
"Yes, it's quite a useful skill for someone with lighter weapons like me. Anyway, my Semblance - I can make people undetectable for Grimm. But I have to remain motionless while doing so."
"Does it work at range? And is there limit to people you can mask? Also, you said 'undetectable', could you elaborate?"
Ren paused for a moment, apparently thinking over his answer.
"I can do it at distance," he said finally. "But I have to touch a solid surface with my hand, like earth, or a wall. And they have to be touching it too - with any part of their body. As soon as contact breaks, my Semblance will lose it effect. When I do it like that, the person I'm masking can move, but it's harder to keep up the further away they are. My max distance is around fifteen meters."
"I'm not sure if there is a limit to the number of people I can mask - the most I've ever done was three, including myself."
"As for your last question - well, I'm not sure exactly how it works, but the moment I activate my Semblance, it looks like Grimm lose ability to perceive the person I used it on. Even if said person is in plain sight, and under Grimm attack - it would just stand there for a moment, looking confused,and then move away."
Jaune whistled. That was a pretty damn good skill to have. This "remain motionless" part was a downer, but hey, you can't have everything.
Well both Ren and Nora have more supportive Semblances. It shows in their fighting style - they are good with their weapons.
"So, I guess it's my turn now?" Said Pyrrha with shy smile.
He focused in on his partner talking about her weapons. Milo was three-form weapon: rifle, spear, and xiphos. Akouo was a simple round shield without any additional functions.
Jaune listened with one ear as Pyrrha described advantages and disadvantages of each form. He actually did some research on his partner. Knowing that she was a well-known celebrity and champion fighter, plus her display during initiation, and in Miss Goodwitch class, piqued his curiosity. So during launch, just before they came back to their room, he excused himself for a moment to look up an article about her, and watched some recordings of her fights. What he saw surprised him - but in hindsight shouldn't.
To put it simply - his partner was a monster. Not only talented, but also hard working, she started training at age of nine. She spared no effort, and it soon showed - the gap between her and her peers was growing by the day. Not only that, but she was apparently one of those "freak athlete" type of people - having unusually good control of her body, and thus able to perform maneuvers normal people could only dream of doing.
So when the four-time champion started talking about her 'weaknesses', all Jaune could do was smile politely and try to not burst out laughing. She looked desperate to convince everyone in the room that she had them - but all Jaune could hear was: "I never met anyone who's ass I couldn't kick with minimal effort, so I might be getting a little too confident."
Now, I wonder what is her Semblance is. I don't think it's a strong offensive one, or even an active one at all. People with those kind of Semblances tend to rely on them a lot, like Weiss. Maybe she..."
"As for my Semblance - its polarity," Said Pyrrha with a slight blush. It only deepened when everyone in the room stared at her in complete silence.
Or, it can be something like that. Sure, why not - talented, hardworking, with Semblance that is basically a middle finger to like 99% of Hunters.
He shook his head. One thing that interested him when he was reading some article about his partner was that she apparently rarely used her Semblance in tournaments. Now he knew why - those things were organized for entertainment. People watched them to see a good fight.
They could watch one-sided masacre performed by a single girl only so many times before it got boring.
"So Fearless Leader, how about you?" Nora's voice brought him out of his thoughts. Jaune smiled.
"Well for starters my weapon - Crocea Mors. It my family heirloom - a sword and shield combo. The shield can be collapsed into sheath. It still weights the same, but at least is easier to carry. They are very durable - almost five hundreds years old, but not even a scratch on either. And I can assure you it's not because they were just gathering dust hanging above the fireplace. And that's it. They don't transform into anything. No guns, no nothing. Just two pieces of solid steel."
"I have lots of Aura, and Leon made sure I can put it to good use - so you won't see me being knocked out easily, unless it's something really ridiculous. As for my weaknesses - the biggest one is that I have very little options in terms of ranged combat. I'm good at throwing things - sometimes, if I knew I would be going up against something tougher, or just a large group, I would make some makeshift grenades, but that's it."
"Lastly, my Semblance - it's Aura strengthening. I can boost my Aura properties - like make it harder to block attacks, or speed up healing. I can use it to manipulate the effect of substances that get into my body - like neutralizing toxins, or enhancing the effects of medicines."
"That's it?" Asked Pyrrha, looking confused.
"Well, yeah. Unfortunately not everyone can have some cool, flashy, powerful Semblance."
"N-no I didn't mean it like that!" She said hastily, panic evident in her voice. Jaune winced.
Damn, you already forgot what happened during initiation?
"Calm down Pyrrha. I'm not angry or anything."
She hung her head and muttered something under her breath. Jaune was willing to bet all the Lien in his wallet it was an apology of some sort.
For a celebrity and badass fighter, she is timid as hell. He recalled her fight in today's class. Well, at least outside of the arena.
"Ok, so what had you surprised Pyrrha?"
She perked up, blushed, and looked to the side.
"I-It's just that during initiation you could see Grimm and people from very far away. Even if there were trees in the way. How could you do that, if not thanks to your Semblance?"
"Yeah, Fearless Leader! You are not withholding information from us, right? Not after forcing all of us to tell everything about ourselves?"
"Nora, he didn't force us to do anything." Ren said with a sigh. Then he looked at Jaune with a small smirk.
"But I do agree that it sounds suspicious. If what Pyrrha is saying is true, the only way to accomplish such a thing that I can think of would be a Semblance. Maybe if you were a Faunus." Ren contemplated him for a moment. "I don't think you are one though. Do you?"
Jaune just hummed.
Well… I guess there is no real reason for me to not tell them. It's not like my elixirs are illegal or something.
"Ok, I'll tell you guys. Or rather show." He said, walking to his bed. He rummaged under it for a moment then stood up with a big wooden box. He pressed two buttons on each side, and it unfolded, showing several rows of small bottles in four colors - green, orange, red and black.
"These," he said with proud smile. "Are my Elixirs."
"Elixirs?"
"Yeah." Jaune rubbed back of his head, a bit embarrassed. "Leon took to calling them that, so I kinda started to use the name too. It's sure easier to say than what I called them at first."
"What did you call them?" Asked Nora, excitement evident on her face. "Why do the bottles have different colors and shapes? And what do the do?"
"Easy Nora, one question at the time." Said Jaune smiling.
"So, I called them Dust Enhanced Aura Boosters. Don't laugh, I was fourteen then!" He added when his team snickered. "Anyway, that basically tells you what they are - a mix of herbs and Dust that works to either boost some aspects of Aura, like healing, or that can grant you some additional benefits, like enhanced senses."
"There are few different… well I guess you can call them 'Tiers', depending on strength of the effects. That's what colors are for - green are simple herbal medicines - painkillers, stomach ache medicine, water treatment agents, stuff like that. There is none, or very little Dust in them. Anyone can use them safely, even civilians with no Aura."
"Orange are simplest Elixirs. Civilians can still take them, but there is a risk of complications, and the effects will be much weaker than if Hunter uses them. This is a category I use the most since they have little to no drawbacks. There are a few in this category, the one I use the most is the Healing enhancer. It boost the natural regeneration factor Aura gives to the user. I can make stronger versions of Orange Elixirs, but it's usually not worth the effort - the increase in effectiveness is not worth the stronger side-effects."
"The Red ones are a bit more tricky. Most of them come with some drawback - the most common is a killer migrene. I can manipulate their effectiveness by using my Semblance. Also, If anyone other than me uses them, they usually get very serious side effects. Not sure why - Leon thinks it's either because I have a lot of Aura, or because of my Semblance mitigating the negative effects."
"What kind of side-effects we are talking about?" Asked Ren.
"Disorientation, inhibited motor functions, temporary loss of sight, hearing or smell, hallucinations, loss of consciousness, temporary loss of short-term memory…" he started counting off. Pyrrha looked shocked, Nora uncertain, and Ren contemplative.
Hmm, interesting. Most people freak out when they hear this.
"Ok then what about the black ones?" His partner asked. Jaune smiled
"They are extremely potent - and dangerous. Most of the Black ones I make on a need-to basis, since they usually are unstable and very situational. And the side effects are quite serious - even for me. That's why I use them only when I absolutely have to."
"So what happens if someone other than you will drink one?" Asked Nora
Jaune considered his answer for a moment. Then decided there was no way to say it delicately, so he went with blunt truth.
"They will suffer heavy damage to their nervous system and be paralyzed, reduced to a vegetable-like state, or die on the spot."
There were a few seconds of silence.
"How do you…" Pyrrha started hesitantly.
"Bandits. I was experimenting with my elixirs, and passed out after drinking one. When I woke up I was tied and in a cage in some small camp. There were other kids there too. The bandits found my Elixirs, and thought it was booze. None of them survived."
There were a few more moments of silence. Nora was the one to break it.
"So why do they have different shapes?" She asked pointing at the bottles.
"So I can easily identify them in the dark." Answered Jaune, more than happy to change the subject.
"I also marked several bottles for elixirs that I use often, so if I have few of the same tier, I know which one is which."
"Ok, which one lets you see other people and Grimm through trees?" Asked Pyrrha.
"These two." He answered pulling out two bottles -one orange, and one red.
"The Orange is a Perception enhancer. It boost my sense of smell, hearing, touch - but not by much... It also makes it easier to react to quickly. It's not very dangerous, even for other people. Hell, once a civilian drank it and was fine. The only reason it's in the Orange category is because it can easily overwhelm you. I usually use my Semblance to cut off some of its effects and boost only what I need."
"The Red one I call Dawn. It's similar to the Perception enhancer - it boost my senses. It's much stronger though, and unlike PE it boost all of them - even my sense of balance. And when I combine these two - I can see the Aura of others."
There were a few seconds of stunned silence.
"That.. is interesting. I never heard of anyone who could perceive Aura. How does it work?" Asked Ren.
"I see lights. It all depends on how much Aura there is. But things like trees, and bugs usually just glow softly. Animals, and people with unawakened Aura give off a more intense light. When their Aura is awakened, It makes a sort of outline over the person's body."
"Then how can you see Grimm? They don't have Aura, right?" Pyrrha asked with hint of worry in her voice.
"No of course not. I can't see Grimm, but I can see spots where they dim the light of Aura in their surroundings." Jaune mused for a moment, then continued. "Think about it like this - if you were to look at the night sky, and something big flew over you, you wouldn't be able to see it, but could track it by observing where stars were covered."
They all nodded in understanding. Jaune looked over them and smiled.
"So any more questions?"
This time Ren was the first to speak.
"Why do you have to combine two Elixirs to get Aura vision? Haven't you tried to make a single one that would allow this?"
"I actually did. It's called Dusk. And before you ask - I don't use it often because its Black." Ren just nodded. Immediately Nora raised her hand and started waving it around in the air.
"Me next!" When Jaune nodded, she continued. "What other effects do they have? You mentioned only a few and you have lots of bottles here."
"Well most of them aren't Elixirs. I make… I guess you could call them "bases". It's easier to carry it around since they can be stored for a very long time - around six months. Most elixirs tend to lose their effects after three to four weeks, with some of the more complicated ones lasting only day or two. Sometime even less. But my most used ones are Healing, Perception, and Heart enhancers."
Seeing as Nora opened her mouth to say something, he continued.
"It allows me to regulate my heartbeat. Either slow it down, or accelerate."
"Isn't that dangerous?" His partner asked.
He shrugged. "Not really. There is a limit to how much I can change it, and I have to do it with my Semblance. So if I go too far either way, and start losing consciousness, the effect will simply stop and my heart rate will go back to normal. I use it mostly when I want to speed up the activation of other Elixirs."
"Wait!" A sudden shout from Nora caused everyone to look at her. She was half-pouting, half smiling and pointing a finger at her leader accusingly.
"What about your other sword?"
Jaune opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted.
"Don't think I didn't notice - you had two swords at Initiation. You never used the other one, even when we fought that Deathstalker! What it is? Some super-secret-hidden weapon? Your trump card? Why didn't you use it? Is it too powerful? Does it devour your soul when used? Oh, I know! It…"
"Nora."
"Yes, Renny?"
"Let him speak." The ginger girl laughed nervously and sat on her bed, waiting patiently for Jaune to speak. Well, patiently for Nora - she was bouncing up and down, making annoyed noises.
"I'm sorry about her. Nora's got a...vivid imagination, and she often says whatever is on her mind."
Jaune just nodded.
"Ok so my other sword is named Eclipse - and it's a longsword. I didn't used it because… well it wouldn't have been suited to the situation. We had two heavy hitters already, and I decided it would be better to help Pyrrha keep that thing at bay."
Nora nodded, apparently satisfied with his explanation.
"Ok guys, I think that's enough talk for today." Said Jaune, standing up and checking his scroll.
"We have about four hours until curfew. How about we go to the library, do some studying, and then hit the gym for a few spars?"
His proposition was met with approval. Though he had a suspicion that Nora tuned out the "studying" part and focused solely on the "sparing."
Oh well, not that it matters much. He thought, marching towards the library, his team in tow.
Today was good day. Nothing tried to kill me, nothing crazy happened.
Jaune smiled. Yes, today was looking good so far. He could already feel excitement building up at the prospect of fights. He caught glimpse of his teammates fighting skills during initiation - but that was not enough. He couldn't wait to be able to test himself against them.
And that wraps up ch 7. In this chapter I want to showcase some of differences in education between someone learning in school, and someone learning by practice. Jaune knows a lot about Grimm and hunting them - more so than average person his age. However, he knows little about topics not related to his profession - like pop culture or history.
In other news - TPA passed 400 follows this weekend. What can I say to that, beside 'thank you'? I honestly didn't expected this story to be so well received. So really, thank you all.
Here is this week omake - Jaunes first meeting with Weiss. Written by me this time (can't have JJD do all the work…).
Meeting the Ice Princess.
"I do not agree to this!" Cried Weiss Schnee.
"You have no choice in this matter, dear. The White Fang outright stated they aim to attack you at your next concert, and it would be irresponsible for me, as your father, to not take every precaution I can. That's why I'm hiring him to be your personal bodyguard." Jacques Schnee said, pointing to the man standing next to him.
Boy rather - he couldn't be any older than her - just nodded for his part, with light smile on his lips. She scoffed.
How could he protect me any better than I can protect myself?
She focused on him. He was taller than she was, with mop of messy blond hair. He didn't look too well built - scraggy, more than lean. He wore a simple breastplate over a black hoodie, and a pair of blue jeans - that obviously had seen better days. He wasn't armed - but that was probably because his weapon was confiscated when he entered Schnee mansion.
Overall, her supposed bodyguard didn't look too impressive.
And there was one other problem.
"I understand Father. But why do you insist on hiring," she paused, looking for right word. "...him? I can protect myself, and even ignoring that - I'm sure there are more… qualified people available."
When she learned her father was hiring a personal bodyguard for her, she made sure to learn as much as she could about him. What she found was rather… underwhelming. Jaune Arc was born in some backwater town in Vale. His father was a Hunter, and fairly successful one. Whatever skills he had apparently didn't pass on his son, since Jaune was rejected from the local Combat prep school. Then most records of him stopped.
"There are, and they are hired to protect you, and everyone else during your concert. Jaune is being hired specifically to stay close to you. I'm hiring him because he both comes recommended from a trusted source, and has proven himself as capable fighter."
She opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted.
"That is enough Weiss. Jaune will be hired, and you will do nothing to hinder his job. Am I clear?"
She hung her head, and nodded.
"I didn't hear your answer."
"... Yes, Father."
"Very well. You can leave now."
"Sir, if I may?" A new voice sounded.
Weiss looked up surprised. Jaune spoke up for the first time. He was looking her father straight in the eyes, not even flinching under older man's gaze. He still wore the same small smile.
Weiss had to admit to being slightly impressed. Not many people could hold her father's gaze.
"I believe Miss Schnee has the right to voice her concerns. After all it's her health, or life, on the line."
Jacques brows furrowed - he really didn't like when people questioning his decisions. Jaune either didn't noticed, or didn't care.
"What are you suggesting?" Her father asked.
"That I be allowed chance to prove myself to your daughter, sir. That way we can avoid any potential… complications in the future."
Jacques looked at him for a few moments, lost in thoughts. Then he focused back at her.
Weiss took another sip of her tea, and did her best to not flinch.
"How do you intend to do that?"
Jaune's expression didn't change. He still looked calm, and wore this small smile that she definitely didn't like.
"With your permission sir, I would like to use the same method my teacher used to convince Mr. and Miss. Linsing."
Her father looked surprised for a moment, then took on a contemplative expression. After few moments he nodded.
"Very well. I shall allow this."
Jaune nodded and looked at her. Weiss met his gaze. She decided his smile was not only thing she didn't like. His eyes - although a rather nice shade of blue - were… strange. There was no distaste, or calculating pragmatizm in them - something she got used to seeing a lot. They appeared to be… disinterested. Like he didn't really care about her - or anything else.
"Miss Schnee." He addressed her.
She nodded in acknowledgement.
"I understand your concerns. And would like to propose a way to alleviate them. But first I would like to confirm something. You have your Aura unlocked, and are trained in combat, am I correct?"
"Yes." She said with huff.
"Very well. In that case I would like to propose a little game. Right now, I will pretend to be an assailant and attack you. If I can incapacitate you, or signal what could be a mortal wound, you lose and won't oppose to me being you bodyguard. You will also follow my instructions in case we come under attack. If you manage to hold me off for five minutes, or incapacitate me, you win and I'll either resign from being your bodyguard, or you will be able to order me around in case you decide to hire me anyway. How does that sound?"
Weiss stared at boy in front of her for a few seconds, dumbfounded. The she looked at her father, just to make sure he really approved of this. He nodded, and Weiss looked back at Jaune.
"That sounds… acceptable. I'll have someone bring you your weapon, and we can meet in one of training rooms in the mansion." She said finishing her tea - but a single cough from Jaune drew her attention back to him.
"I'm sorry, I'm afraid I didn't make myself clear. When I said 'right now' I meant 'as soon as you agree'. We will do it in this room, as we are now."
Weiss couldn't help to stare. Then she looked back to her father to confirm again he is ok with this. Yet again she received a confirming nod.
Then she looked back to Jaune. He was still looking at her with a small smile and an indifferent look in his eyes.
She scoffed.
Is he seriously thinking he can win against me without any weapon? He even knows I have my Aura unlocked and I was trained!
She shook her head. This Jaune had to be either extremely arrogant, or an idiot - possibly both. She was trained from an early age by the best teachers money could buy - he failed to get into a simple public Combat school. And he suggested he could win against her without even using a weapon? Preposterous.
Well, I guess I'll have to teach him a lesson. She thought.
"Very well." She said a loud. "Le…" she never managed to finish.
The table she was sitting at was kicked forward and slammed into her. Before she could even think about what to do, it was kicked again - this time with much more force. It knocked the air out of her lungs and pinned both her hands and body to the chair she was sitting at, preventing her from drawing her weapon. Panic started to settle in as she tried to free herself. Finally, she managed to push away from table and reach for her rapier. She didn't managed to draw it though - she was lifted, and then slammed onto the table.
She tried to struggle, but Jaune was strong - far stronger than his scraggy frame suggested. He pinned her left hand with his knee, and held her right one in vice-like grip. All she could do was gasp when she noticed a glint of something metal in his right hand. It rose and fell towards her face.
She let out a quiet whimper, and closed her eyes, awaiting agony. It didn't come. The pressure on her hand disappeared and she let out a breath of relief.
Weiss slowly opened her eyes, and looked at the boy now standing a few steps away from her. Something about him had changed. His eyes were no longer distant and disinterested, now they were warm and looked at her with… was it sympathy? Understanding? She wasn't sure.
He was still smiling - but it had changed too. It was no longer plastic, and looked much more natural.
"I know you are strong." He said. "But even the strongest Hunters can't do everything alone. They need someone to cover for them, to watch their back. That's why they usually work in teams - so they can have people they can really on."
He paused for a moment, and looked above her, to the window.
"I know you are strong." He repeated. "But you can't be on your guard all the time. Well, you can - but not if you want to live normally. It would break you, sooner or latter. And those guy, the ones that would come and try to take your life away - they do not play by the rules. They won't give you time to prepare, they won't wait till you draw your weapon. They will not care how many others die, as long as they can get what they want."
There was something in the tone of his voice that made Weiss wonder if he was speaking from personal experience.
He looked back at her.
"You want to be a Huntress, right?"
The sudden question surprised her. After a moment of hesitation she nodded.
"Great. Then how about this - don't think of me as your bodyguard, but as your partner. I heard that when you go to a Hunter Academy you have to work in four man teams - you can think of this as practice."
She shook her head. It was ridiculous idea - but in some strange way it made sense. Plus she lost - and thus had to accept him anyway.
"Well , I guess that is acceptable." She said.
"Great. So let's start from beginning, shall we?" He cleared his throat and smiled at her - and this time it was a big, goofy one. "I'm Jaune Arc, and I will be your partner for now. I look forward to working with you." He said extending his hand towards her.
She snorted and took it.
"I'm Weiss Schnee. I look forward to working with you too."
Jaune Arc, huh? Maybe he is not so bad afterall.
Now, I want to clarify something. I do not imply Jaune is a better fighter than Weiss. The reason he was able to "win" was not because he is more skilled, but because he is more vicious. This omake happened between Jaune's visit in the village and the meeting from 'Thank you' omake - so roughy one year and two months before the start of story.
At this point Weiss is less skilled than in show, and much less used to violence than Jaune is. So he was able to take her by surprise, and shocked her to the point she didn't knew what to do. I guess simplest way to put it is that he didn't tried to fight her - he tried to kill her. And Weiss was not prepared for this.
And if you wonder why her father allowed this - it's because he is ass, and don't mind seeing his daughter beaten up, just because she dared to oppose him.