[Then]
"Weiss, look out!" Jaune shouted, his voice echoing throughout the abandoned mine as he tackled the young Heiress to the SDC out of the way of a Sabyr's lunge.
"Get off me, you idiot!" Weiss shouted as she pushed the blonde off to the side before quickly getting to her feet.
"You know, most people… would say a word of thanks… after something like that." Jaune said between breaths, the blonde quickly getting up before holding his shield tightly in front of him, just as his mentor constantly instructed him to.
"I don't recall… asking for any sort of assistance from you." Weiss said, the Heiress's face caked with sweat. Just as she started to catch her breath, a pack of Sabyrs started to surround the two of them.
"I count four in front of me." Jaune said, the blonde trying to get his breathing under control as he and Weiss stood back-to-back.
"I count five." Weiss said as she rotated the chamber on Myrtenaster until it landed on the one marked for fire Dust.
"You're looking pretty winded." Jaune said, a smirk on his face as his grip around Crocea Mors' handle tightened, "I can take six and you can take three."
"Patronize me again, Arc, and I'm going to stab you in your sleep." Weiss said as she entered into her battle stance.
"That was just friendly banter." Jaune said just as the four Sabyrs in front of him started stalking towards him.
"Friendly banter only works if we're friends." Weiss said. As one of the Sabyrs around them let out a bloodcurdling roar, multiple white Glyphs started appearing in front of the Heiress, "Right now, we're just two people who happen to be studying under the same mentor."
"One of these days, Weiss, I'm going to make you say we're friends." Jaune said just as two of the Sabyrs pounced towards them, "Scatter!"
As soon as he said that, Jaune immediately rolled to the right as Weiss sped forward using the power of her Semblance. As two of the Sabyrs charged towards him, Jaune dodged one of them before meeting the other head on with his shield.
The blonde proved to be the superior in the clash of strength as the Sabyr was forced to stagger back a few feet. Not letting his chance go to waste, Jaune penetrated the creature's guard before stabbing his sword straight through its' skull.
As the sound of rapidly approaching footsteps reached his ears, the blonde quickly turned around before lifting his shield up in front of him. Unfortunately, however, the force of the crash was too much for the boy as he was sent tumbling back.
Reacting quickly, Jaune immediately rolled back to his feet just as two more Sabyrs charged at him.
"Come on! You can do this!" Jaune whispered to himself just as he ducked under one of the Grimm's lunges. Sprinting towards one of the Sabyrs and catching it unawares, Jaune pumped his arm full of aura before cleaving it in half with one fell swoop. "And then there were two."
Turning around, Jaune narrowed his eyes at the remaining Sabyrs, the creatures growling at him before one of them let out a roar.
"If you're trying to scare me, then you're going to need to work harder than that." Jaune said in an effort to taunt the two creatures of Grimm in front of him. As if in answer to the blonde's challenge, the two Sabyrs charged at him at the same time.
Smirking to himself, Jaune started a charge of his own. With his shield in front of him, the blonde delivered a heavy bash on one of the Sabyrs, sending it staggering back a few feet.
Turning his attention to the second Sabyr, Jaune was able to react in time as he ducked under its pounce before swiftly cutting it in half, killing it. The remaining Sabyr was able to recover from its confusion just in time for Jaune to deliver the killing blow.
"Phew." Jaune said as he stared at the disintegrating corpses of the Grimm around him.
"Well, you certainly took your time." Weiss said, the girl resting against the wall, "I was afraid I was going to doze off by the time you were done."
"Arrogance doesn't suit you, Weiss." Jaune said, looking around the mine, "You think that was all of them?"
"Most likely." Weiss said as she observed their surroundings.
"How's your aura looking?" Jaune asked as he started at the scroll strapped to his arm, "Mine's barely above red."
"About the same." Weiss said.
"Guess we should get going, huh?" Jaune said as he gestured towards the entrance, "Shall we?"
Rolling her eyes at the blonde, Weiss didn't bother answering his question as the two teens silently left the abandoned mine behind. As soon as they stepped outside of the mine, the sound of someone clapping their hands greeted them.
Standing outside the mine was Winter and Musashi, the former dressed in her usual Specialist uniform while the latter was currently wearing a white winter coat over her regular clothes.
"Well done, you two!" Musashi shouted out, a proud look on her face just as the light of the afternoon sun assaulted Jaune's vision, "That was some great work back there."
"Thank you, Miss Musashi." Weiss said, tone as formal as ever as she bowed at the woman.
"Yeah, thanks." Jaune said as he rubbed the back of his head, the blonde still not used to receiving any sort of praise.
"You each deserve a six out of ten for your efforts back there." Musashi said, earning a look of surprise from the both of them.
"Six is much too generous for their performance, Musashi." Winter said, her expression unreadable as she studied the two teenagers in front of her, "Personally, I believe their efforts warranted a five out of ten at best."
"B-but sister, why?" Weiss asked, "Jaune and I cleared the Grimm, did we not?"
"That you did, Weiss, but simply killing the Grimm was not your objective for today." Winter said, "The both of you were instructed to work together to achieve that goal. Instead, what the two of you did was work as two individuals working towards a common cause. There is a difference."
"Hate to say it, kiddos, but Winter's right." Musashi said as she placed an arm on the Specialists's shoulder, "If the two of you had worked together in there, you would have been done a lot sooner and wouldn't have wasted too much of your aura."
"B-but me and Weiss hardly know each other. We haven't even trained to work with each other before." Jaune argued as Weiss nodded in agreement.
"The two of you dream of becoming Huntsmen one day, do you not?" Winter asked as the two teens nodded in response, "Then there will come a time in your careers where the both of you will be forced to work with people whose skills or abilities are unknown to you. Remember that lesson. It might just save your lives one day."
"I will, sister. Thank you for your lesson." Weiss said with a bow.
"Winter's right, you know." Musashi said as the Specialist shrugged her arm off of her shoulder, "Did you know there was this one time where I had to work with a guy who was half-man and half-horse?"
"You mean…" Jaune said as he exchanged a confused look with Weiss, "A Faunus?"
"I'm not talking about a Faunus, Jaune." Musashi countered as she continued her tale, "I'm saying that this guy literally had the upper body of a man and the lower body of a horse. It was a crazy - but also very eye opening - experience."
Winter, Weiss, and Jaune, meanwhile, could only stare at Musashi, the trio unsure of what to make of the woman's story.
"Well, regardless of Musashi's… unlikely tale, I'm sure the two of you are famished. Come, let's have lunch. It's my treat for today." Winter said as she started leading the group back towards the Bullhead they arrived in, "Except for you, Musashi. You pay for your own meal."
"W-what, why? What did I do?" Musashi asked, an expression of betrayal on the woman's face.
"Besides telling an obviously fake story-"
"I'm telling ya, it's true! His name was Chiron!" Musashi argued, "He had a bow and arrows and everything. Damn good at it, too."
"-you are a working adult who has earned her fair share of Lien. I think that makes you perfectly capable of paying for your own meal." Winter said as Musashi turned to her student.
"Jaune, you believe me, don't you?!" Musashi asked as she gripped the blonde by the shoulders.
"So Winter, what are we having for lunch?" Jaune asked as he slowly pried Musashi's hands off of him.
"Kuh! Even my own student doesn't believe me." Musashi said as she slumped to the ground in defeat.
[Now]
Dodging under his opponent's mace, Jaune quickly brought his shield up to block the follow up kick from Cardin that was aimed at his chest.
"Man, that was kick was heavy." Jaune thought to himself as he tried to gather his thoughts, "Even with my shield, I could still feel the force behind it."
Taking a few steps back to gain some distance between him and the leader of Team CRDL, Jaune took in a few quick breaths to think of a plan on how to win his first match in Beacon.
"What's the matter Arc?" Cardin asked in an awful attempt to get a rise out of him, "You're not going to beat me by running around like a rat, you know?"
"Man, this guy sure loves the sound of his own voice." Jaune thought to himself, "Fine, if he wants me to attack, I suppose I'll just have to take him up on his offer."
Rushing towards the taller teen, Jaune swiftly dodged another attack from him before striking Cardin on his ribcage. Unfrotunately for the blonde, instead of doing any sort of meaningful damage, Crocea Mors' blade simply bounce off of Cardin's armor.
Cardin, in response, wore a smug smile on his face before kicking Jaune in his stomach, staggering him. Not letting up, Cardin then followed up with a blow on the blonde's chest with his mace that sent him flying back back a few feet.
"Okay, that didn't work…" Jaune muttered to himself as he got back to his feet. A frown formed on his face as he stared at the scroll strapped to his wrist, "And now my aura is in the yellow. That's just great. If Musashi were here, she would definitely be-"
"Raargh!" A shout from in front of him immediately reminded Jaune of where he was at the moment. Hastily dodging Cardin's mace that was aiming for his head, Jaune did his best to dodge and weave past all his attacks while trying to deliver any sort of counterattacks as best as he could.
This went on for several seconds before Jaune jumped back to once again gain some needed distance between the two of them.
"Alright, my current strategy clearly isn't working." Jaune thought to himself, the blonde's breath now much heavier than when the spar started a few minutes ago, "Wait, what's that thing that Musashi's always saying?"
"Remember, Jaune, udon is the greatest food in the universe!"
"No, not that!" Jaune shouted, surprising the people around him with his sudden outburst - except for Professor Goodwitch - as his mentor's words echoed in his head. "That other thing!"
"Remember, Jaune, don't think of your weapons as tools for combat. Think of them as extensions of yourself."
"Right, that. I still don't know what that means but now is a good a place as any to test out her advice." Jaune thought to himself just as Cardin finished whatever he was trying to taunt him with before charging towards him.
[~]
"Psst, Ruby, you didn't do anything to upset Weiss again today, did you?" Nora asked, whispering into her team leader's ears as they tried their best not to gain the Heiress's attention.
"Me? You're her partner!" Ruby shot back in a hushed tone, "Shouldn't you know more about what she's going through than me?"
"Well, you're our team leader!" Nora argued, "I'm pretty sure team leader outranks partner."
"Did you accidentally replace her bottle of shampoo with a bottle of maple syrup again?" Ruby asked as she narrowed her eyes at Nora.
"Okay first, where else am I supposed to store maple syrup? In the closet?" Nora shot back, the girl offended that she was even asked such a question, "And secondly, no. She was all smiles before class started."
"One could even say she was excited for class." Ruby noted before her eyes slide over to Pyrrha sitting to Weiss' right, "Maybe Pyrrha knows something. Let's ask her why Weiss is in a awful mood right now."
Before either of them could even get up, however, Weiss spoke up.
"You two dolts know I can hear you, right?" Weiss asked as her two teammates flinched in surprise. With an annoyed look in her eyes that was growing by the second, the SDC Heiress was observing the spar down below while gritting her teeth and impatiently tapping her foot
"Uh, so Weiss…" Ruby started, the girl sliding closer on the bench towards her teammate, "What's up?"
"Yeah, what is up?" Nora added, the girl appearing from behind as she slid herself between her partner and her team leader, "You're wearing a pretty sour face right now."
"It's nothing." Weiss said even as she continued to fidget in her seat.
"It's Ruby's snoring, isn't it?" Nora asked, earning a look of betrayal from the girl in question, "I keep telling her she needs to do something to fix it but she just won't-"
"Nora, that's you! You're the one who snores at night, not us!" Ruby shouted out only to regret it a moment later as Professor Goodwitch sent a glare her way.
"Oh, right. That was me." Nora said, the girl rubbing her head in embarrassment even as Ruby sent a look of betrayal her way. Before she could probe into her partner's issues further, however, Weiss started mumbling to herself.
"What is that fool doing?!" Weiss asked herself in a hushed tone while biting her thumb in frustration, "How is he somehow worse than last time?! Is he an idiot?!"
"Oh, okay. I think I know what's going on here." Nora said as she slid closer to her partner before putting an arm around her shoulder, "You wanted to be the first one to knock Jauney's ass on the ground, didn't you? I totally get that. I mean, I have to physically restrain myself from breaking his legs every time I see his face in class."
"No, Nora, that's not it." Weiss answered even as her eyes never left the arena down below.
"Then what is it?" Ruby asked, "Because you looked more annoyed than the time I accidentally used the last of your shampoo."
"And I'm still waiting for you to compensate me for that." Weiss shot back, "But to answer your question, it's because that blonde fool down there can fight so much better than… whatever this display he's showing us right now."
"I didn't realize the two of you were close before this." Pyrrha said, offering her own thoughts.
"We're not. We're acquaintances, at best." Weiss said as Jaune scored a significant blow against Cardin that brought his aura down to barely above red, "We just trained together for a few weeks, that's all."
"Really?" Ruby asked, the young girl surprised at the revelation, "What was he like?"
"Better than what we're currently watching." Weiss said, an annoyed frown on her face just as the buzzer sounded, signaling the end of the match between Jaune and Cardin, "He should have been able to end this fight ten minutes ago."
"The match is over. Jaune Arc wins by aura loss." announced Professor Goodwitch as she stepped onto the arena.
"Idiot." Weiss muttered as Jaune and Cardin received advice from the Deputy Headmistress on how to improve their performance in the future.
"As for you, Miss Rose." Professor Goodwitch called out, earning a look of fear from the young Team Leader, "Another outburst like that, especially during a spar between your classmates, will earn you a spot in detention over the weekend. Am I understood?"
"Yes, Professor Goodwitch. I'm sorry, Professor Goodwitch." Ruby said as she bowed profusely at the blonde deputy over and over.
The bell sounded not long after, signaling the end of their first combat class for the semester. Just as Jaune reunited with his team to congratulatory words, Weiss got up from her seat before making her way to Team Jazzberry.
"Arc." Weiss called out as she approached the team. Turning to face her, a smile threatened to form on Jaune's face before it morphed to a nervous expression as he took an instinctive step back.
"W-what's up, Weiss?" Jaune askeed, staring at Weiss with a cautious look in his eyes.
"What was that?" Weiss asked.
"What do you mean?" Jaune asked, the blonde looking towards his team for answers only for them to be as clueless as he was.
"Your performance down there. I know you can fight better than that." Weiss said, "So, I'll ask again: What were you doing down there?"
"Oh, that… Right. Well, I guess I was just.. a bit nervous?" Jaune answered with a nervous chuckle, "Never had to fight in front of a crowd before. Pretty nerve wracking, to be honest."
"Hmph. I dread to think what Miss Musashi would say if she saw that wretched display of yours." Weiss said.
"Hah, yeah… That Musashi…" Jaune said before letting his sentence trail off.
"Stop reminiscing!" Weiss shouted as she waved her hands in front of the blonde's face, "I'm telling you, you're better than what you showed us down there. Remember that next time you're picked to fight in class."
"Aww, thanks, Weiss." Jaune said, "I guess we really are friends, huh?"
"Say that again and I won't show you mercy when we're facing each other." Weiss said with a huff before turning around to join her team.
"I wouldn't expect anything less from you, Weiss." Jaune said with an amused smile.
[~]
"Ehhhh? You want me to go to Vacuo again?" Musashi asked, a disappointed look on her face as she sat across from Beacon's headmaster, "But I just went there… like a month ago."
"Your last visit was actually two months ago, if memory serves." Ozpin said before taking a sip of coffee.
"Same difference." Musashi shot back with a wave of her hand before slamming her head on the desk in front of her, "Ugh… I don't hate Vacuo, I just hate the sand. It's rough, it's course, and it's irritating. Not to mention the fact that it gets everywhere."
"Regardless, your help in this matter would be greatly appreciated, Musashi." Ozpin said.
"Why? Something going on again?" Musashi asked as she looked up at the Headmaster, "Wait, what am I saying? Something's always going on with you."
"Quite. But I believe this latest matter requires a bit more attention than most." Ozpin said, "The Headmaster of Shade Academy, Theodore, has alerted me to some troubling activity involving the local criminal underworld. One group in particular, called The Crown, has been very active as of late."
"Can't Qrow do it?" Musashi asked, the woman still against the idea of travelling to Vacuo, "He can fly, right? Surely that would make it easier for him to travel there."
"Unfortunately, Qrow is rather occupied at the moment." Ozpin said as Musashi let out a defeated sigh.
"Yeah, alright. Fine, I'll go to Vacuo." Musashi said, "I just hope I don't find myself lost in another ruin this time."
"Excellent. I'll have a Bullhead prepared and ready for your departure by the end of the day." Ozpin said but before their discussion could get any further, the sound of someone tapping against the window caught both of their attention.
Looking at the source of the sound, Musashi saw a little black bird tapping its' beak against the window.
"Speak of the devil." Musashi said, the woman getting up from her seat, "I thought you said Qrow was busy?"
"I did." Ozpin said. No sooner did the displaced Samurai open the window did the bird instantly flew into rage, the avian creature letting out indignant squawks at Musashi while trying its best to peck her eyes out.
"Ow, ow! What gives, Qrow?!" Musashi asked as she tried - and failed - to swat the bird out of the air, "You looking for a fight or something?!"
"Musashi, I don't believe that's Qrow." Ozpin said, watching the scene play out in front of him without lifting even a single finger to help.
"Of course it is. I mean, look at it. It's a bird and it's black." Musashi said as she shielded her face from the bird's assault, "It's not like you know other people who can turn into birds, right?"
"..."
"Wait, do you know other people who have that ability?" Musashi asked, the woman having resorted to drawing her swords out to slice at the avian intruder, "Do you have a whole nest of people who can turn into birds?"
"Regardless, I suggest you prepare all the supplies you need before you leave for Vacuo later in the day." Ozpin said as the bird continued its futile and relentless assault on Musashi, "Once you land, Theodore will be there to meet you. He will fill you in on the details."
"Yeah, alright. Sounds like a plan." Musashi said, the woman making her way to the elevator just as the bird halted its assault before landing gracefully on Ozpin's desk. Narrowing her eyes at the bird, Musashi slid her thumb across her neck, "Next time, birdie. Next time."
"Caw! Caw!" the bird shouted, flapping its wings at the woman in an attempt to intimidate her.
[Chapter END]
A/N: Nothing much to say here except life goes on and Musashi is going to Vacuo. Will we see her adventures there next chapter? Or will we see what's going on in Vale when Team JYBR decides to visit the city for a bit of R&R? Find out next chapter.
As always, faves, follows, and reviews are always appreciated.
NoXIV signing off.