A/N: Yo, time for the next chapter! The first mission of team JPLL is here, and I can't fuckin' wait to write it out!
Also, on a small note, tomorrow's chapter is gonna be delayed again. I'm gonna be in a guard shift tomorrow in the base I serve in, so I won't have proper internet connection to upload the chapter with. Regardless, I'll put it up as soon as I can.
Anyway, hope you enjoy! Please don't forget to review/follow/favorite, and I'll see you all next time!
For a change, in team JPLL's dorm, Perci got up first. Usually the biggest slacker besides Jin, by the time Leila and Hue woke up, Perci was already in the bathroom, brushing her teeth, her school uniform thrown on her bed ready to be worn in a moment's notice. It was finally the day of their very first mission as a team, and for some indiscernible reason, Perci seemed just a tad too eager to be up and running.
Leila stared at the rushing Perci, blinking in confusion as she was still waking up from a full eight-hour sleep. Shaking her head lightly, and forcing herself to snap back to the real world, remains of dreams forgotten right away, she couldn't help but question the validity of the person in the showers, or whether it was a Grimm wearing Perci's skin. "Uhh... Perci?" Her voice spilled out without thinking much, wondering for the nature of her behavior.
Perci took a peak out of the showers, looking at the rest of them annoyed to a degree. "Well, are you girls gonna stay in beds all fucking day or are we gonna go get a mission rollin'! C'mon, we better be there first so we can get first dibs on the mission we want to go to." She then stepped back inside, finished with brushing her teeth, and running back out fully in the nude, taking her uniform and underwear, hastily putting them on. "And can someone please wake up the Brute! I ain't gonna be late because she's a lazy fuck!"
"Perci..." Leila struggled to her feet, walking slowly to the showers. "Well..."
"There's an assembly first. We all get to choose our missions at the same time, regardless of when we woke up." Hue finished her sentence, explaining the memo they all got that Perci clearly didn't read all the way through. "Didn't you read the mail we got entirely?"
Perci froze in place, her uniform still covering her head entirely, slowly letting it slide down, as the excited face she put on before turned into an angered frown. "...Shit." She shook her head, though shrugged it off regardless. "Well, whatever I guess, we should still be there on time, right?" As she spoke, she tapped Jin on the shoulder. "Oi, Brute! Get up!"
Jin slowly opening her eyes, stretching in bed regardless, Leila spoke from within the shower, still in the middle of rinsing herself. "Though I do wonder why you care about it so much. Yes, it is quite exhilarating to be able to go on an actual mission. It is a testament to our growth, in a way. But regardless..." Her voice, though muffled to a degree by the water, still held a certain amount of distrust. "It still wouldn't explain you being so passionate about it."
Noting Perci's grin and light cackles, Hue shook her head, taking off her pajamas. "You better not be planning something, Perci. I know that laugh."
"Who, ME?" Perci acted offended, gasping in an over the top manner and putting a hand to her chest as if swearing she did no wrong. "I would NEVER!"
Without even looking at each other, both Leila and Hue held the same pause. "Yyyup. Totally planning something." They spoke at the same time, making Perci roll her eyes.
"Well, whatever." She let it slide, finally ending her earlier than usual morning routine, fully dressed in her school uniform, as well having her cane on her, tapping it on the floor. "Alright gals, let's go! If I'm getting up this early, might as well get the morning routine over with! To breakfast!" She called out while raising her finger, and dashed out, disregarding the rest of her team.
Leila finally stepped out of the shower, carefully putting on her school uniform. Hue and her exchanged quick glances, unsure of what got Perci so riled out about the missions, though notwithstanding, they wordlessly agreed to keep an eye out, just in case.
After helping Jin put on her tattered, stitched up uniform, the three of them headed out to the cafeteria, only to see Perci already there, a plate mounted with food before her, chewing some of it away without abandon. Each of them taking some food and slowly approaching them, Leila couldn't help but clear her throat, notifying Perci of their presence. She finished whatever she had in her mouth, swallowing what looked like an almost full pancake, nearly choking herself. "Well, where the hell were YOU guys?! Turns out if you get here first you get the freshest shit. I think I might just turn this into a habit." Smirking to herself, Perci resumed her monster-like eating, running through the rest of her plate with ease.
Cringing a bit at the hell that would be Perci waking all of them up every morning, Leila nonetheless focused on her meal as well, giving a light prayer and beginning to eat. Luckily for her, the sun didn't come out just yet, giving her some time to have a decent meal before going for her morning prayer.
Too busy with her meal, she couldn't help but notice the masked figure that passed by them, stopping by her side, and tapping her on the shoulder lightly. "Good morning, Leila."
Recognizing Elaine's voice, Leila jumped in place, a hiccup ensuing in her wake, looking back at her childhood friend for a split second, before glancing away, in a combination of shame and disgust. "Good morning, Elaine." She then thought about it some more, deciding she might as well ask her about the matter, turning her head over one more time. "I'm... Gonna go to my morning prayer after the meal is over. If you'd want, I wouldn't mind you joining me." She didn't know how Elaine would react to the offer, but regardless, she felt obligated to offer it.
Elaine grinned gently, nodding once. "Well, for old time's sake, I suppose it wouldn't hurt. I will see you later then." She nodded, walking off, and being greeted by the rest of her team, eating with them the light meal she picked for herself.
As the small encounter came to a close, Perci gave her one last look. "...So what, you two are BFF's again now? I thought she turned her back on you or some shit." Sneering at Leila for the two-faced nature of her behavior, she took another bite of her food, not realizing she bit her tongue forcefully, yelping in pain and holding her cheek.
Leila looked around, avoiding any direct eyesight, feeling slightly uncomfortable with the whole situation altogether. "W-Well... She's still a friend. She's still someone I grew up with. And if the Lord decided to put her through such a trial..." She took a deep, long breath, sighing slowly and letting the air naturally leave her lungs. "...Then I'd stand by it. The least I can do is try and remain her friend."
Hearing her resolve, and waiting for the pain to pass, Perci rolled her eyes, keeping a stern look in Elaine's direction. At that point, Leila was predictable. Leila was someone she could beat, if she needed. But the Haven Reaper was an enigma to Perci. A person she couldn't quite well read yet.
And Perci didn't like enigmas.
"Well, whatever." Masking her disdain to the unpredictable person seated a few tables away, she brushed her tongue against her teeth, making sure the pain was numb enough to continue eating. "You do you, Nun. I'll just be busy getting ready for our mission..."
As the breakfast concluded, Leila stepped outside, taking in the fresh air of the pre-sunrise breeze. It was still cool outside, though not enough to warrant warm clothing or anything of the sort, and the gentle wind brushed against her skin, making it shiver lightly. A natural smile forming on her face, Leila walked to the courtyard, where the sunrise would hit her directly as she prayed, bathing her in the Lord's light while she prayed. Getting close enough, she saw Elaine, keeping her word, already waiting for her, while sitting on one of the benches nearby.
Seeing her childhood friend grow closer, Elaine stepped up, walking towards the nun, giving her a bow, just like she used to do when she was a kid. "Good morning, sister." She added with a light chuckle, looking yonder towards the approaching sun. "I figured at this point you would have already been promoted from an acolyte, right?"
Looking at the rising sun with her, Leila nodded absent-mindedly, her mind in deep thought. "Hmm? Oh... Yes." She finally remembered to answer her question. "I was promoted to sisterhood about five years ago, though now I hold the title of Angel Ascendant in the church."
"Angel Ascendant?" Elaine pouted in curiosity, raising a hairless eyebrow underneath her mask. "I don't recall anyone holding that titl-"
"We'll talk in a bit, it's time." Leila fell to her knees, Elaine following her lead, both crossing their arms and beginning their prayer. As the sun shone up, the rays of light hitting Leila gradually, she couldn't help but feel a sense of ease and comfort, as if the Lord himself was watching her from above, guiding her every step. She dared not to open her eyes, nor to turn her head towards Elaine, slowly finishing her prayer, and then getting up.
As she did, Elaine did the same, remembering the practice quite well. Despite having her eyes hidden away, she closed them, though unlike Leila, didn't really pray to any god, simply going through the motions and reminding herself that no god would bring her friends serenity, if not for herself. "Anyway..." She finally spoke after the prayer was fully done with, and both herself and Leila resumed their earlier talk. "I don't recall this title within the church when we were there."
Leila closed her eyes for a brief moment, pondering her words. "Well, it would be the title before the one my mother currently holds. I am poised to replace her as the guardian of the village, when her time to retire comes." Giving a brief explanation, she hoped it would be enough to sate Elaine's curiosity on the matter, as this was information she was not fully allowed to disclose to others.
Elaine nodded in understanding, seeing through her expression easily enough. "Alright, I suppose. And I don't imagine you fully chose this path, correct?" She couldn't help herself, asking the question that was burning on her mind up until that very moment.
Leila shook her head slowly. "No, though it does not matter to me. It is the path the Lord chose for me, to be an angel, a guardian, a symbol for the people to look after in admiration, and I will cherish that role and be a paragon for it when my time comes." Her conviction was absolute, leaving no cracks for self-doubt to sneak through. She couldn't let herself fall into this pit of uncertainty again, after all.
Elaine looked at her with hints of disbelief, somehow worried for her. "But have you ever considered what you want to do, Leila? Are you certain this is the path that fits you most? I'd hate to see you become something that, at the end of the day, you'd regret being."
"...It is fine, Elaine." Leila responded with a weary breath. "This is my fate. My destiny. And I am at peace with it."
Seeing that there was no more point in arguing with her about the matter, Elaine reluctantly gave up the attempt to change her mind, instead picking up her scroll and checking the time. "We should go, the morning assembly and mission selection would begin soon." She pointed towards the main building, walking towards it slowly.
"But aren't you a fourth year?" Leila couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. "I thought today's mission was exclusive to first years."
"You'd be right in essence, but any student team above that can choose a mission for some extra credit, you know." Elaine grinned, picking up her weapon from the bench nearby and wrapping it around her arm again. "Besides, I would never give up a chance to test my skills in combat."
Watching the scythe, the weapon of experts and masters, so casually bent itself to her whims, Leila's head fell a little, picking up the folded in Caliborn, putting it tightly around her back again. "I suppose you'd be right..." She mumbled, walking towards Beacon itself, where the first years gathered for their first real mission.
Meeting up with the rest of her team, Leila stood patiently, hearing Ozpin give his speech, about the great war, the burnings of arts and self-expression, and the people who rose against it, trying to preserve their free speech in the names of everyone to follow. However, despite all that, she couldn't help but notice how energetic Perci was, especially for her usual self. It was like she was preparing to jump at any moment, as if a race as afoot, despite the mission boards having plenty to choose from.
As Ozpin dismissed the students, the first years coming to the board to choose their first missions, Leila called over the rest of her team, to discuss what kind of mission they should take. "Alright, since we are still first years, I suggest that we pick a mission that could still fit our level of experience, though should provide a challenge nonetheless."
Hue nodded in agreement. "On top of it, we should probably aim for a mission that transpires around the industrial district. It could provide us with further data related to the cultist investigation, on top of the experience."
"Very well." Leila turned to Jin, who stared at the two with a large grin. "Jin, what do you think?" While it was hard for her to imagine Jin giving an appropriate response, she was the team leader nonetheless, and it would have been rude not to include her in the decision-making process.
Jin looked at her, staring directly into her silver eyes, her grin intensifying. "I wanna have lots of fun!" She exclaimed, hopping in place a bit.
Leila couldn't help but sigh, getting the exact type of response she bargained for. "Alright, then before we go and pick a mission, do you have any suggestions, Per-" As she raised her head to look for her partner, it dawned on her that the conversion thus far had a surprising lack of snark and sarcasm sewn into it. "Perci?..." She looked around, Hue joining her search, both of them attempting to locate the last member of team JPLL, who seemingly vanished off the face of the planet. "Jin, can you help us look for Perci?" Getting an idea, she tapped Jin's shoulder, asking her for her assistance.
Jin quickly stood up, surpassing most if not all the students present with her impressive height, looking around, until Perci's rather massive aura was directly in her sights, a few meters away. "Over there!" She called out overly excited to help, pointing at her with a dust covered finger, the trio walking towards the missing member, Leila and Hue already looking at each other with worry as to what Perci was doing there in the first place.
Finally finding her fiddling with the mission board, Leila coughed loudly, making Perci stiffen in place. She turned around slowly, giving her teammates a big, fake grin, hiding the screen behind her back. "Hey guys! What's up?!" Her tone was overly cheerful, and it didn't take a genius to figure out she was hiding something.
Cutting straight to the chase, Hue approached her, delivering Perci a cold, emotionless glare. "What did you do?" She questioned spoke in one short breath, questioning Perci's behavior right away, and showing no hints of sympathy. At that point, the last thing she needed was Perci pulling their legs and doing something fooling on her own.
"Well..." Perci moved aside, showing them the team's name on the board, already accepted and filled out.
"Excellent!" A robust, bombastic voice from came at them from a few steps away, as Peter Port walked towards the team, giving Perci a high five, which she eagerly returned. "I'm glad to see some students have any appreciation for the fine art of Grimm hunting! Well Perci, team JPLL, I'll see you all in about two hours, sharp!" He started to walk away, whistling to himself happily, stopping after a few steps. "Oh! And be sure to pack extra rations in your bags!" A light chuckle escaped his mustache. "The Emerald Forest doesn't have a lot of edible berries in it, you know."
And with that, he was gone, the great and mighty teacher of Grimm studies in Beacon walking off to prepare his own equipment, leaving a rather angered Leila in his wake. "Port." She turned to Perci, shaking her head in disappointment. "You picked us up for a mission with Port of all people..." She couldn't believe Perci's selfish actions, weary of her chicanery.
"Oh come on, it'll be fun!" Perci tried to cheer them up, as at this point it was quite impossible to refuse Port directly. "We get to kill Grimm... Watch Port be a BADASS... And hell, maybe he'll even feature us in one of his stories!" She exclaimed, smirking victoriously.
Hue, however, wasn't amused in the least, going to check the mission board to see what the mission was actually about. "Hmm..." She pondered, reading through the description. "It would seem some local criminals have taken to hide in the Emerald Forest. It is now our duty to capture them unharmed, and bring them back to Vale to face court." After fully reading and memorizing the brief detailing presented to the students on the holographic board, she turned her attention to Leila. "It would satisfy your criteria for a proper mission, Leila. I believe it would be advisable to go nonetheless."
Hearing Hue approve, Leila yielded as well, nodding once. "Very well, I suppose. Then let us go back to our dorms to pack more rations. I believe that it was a necessity."
"Ah man, this is gonna be so sweet..." Perci could barely contain herself, actively tapping on the ground with her feet with each step she made.
Hue suppressed a chuckle, shaking her head slowly. "You... ARE aware that most of his stories are over exaggerations of real events, at best, right?" At that point she couldn't tell if Perci was willingly deluding herself, or if she was just that ignorant to the reality of the situation.
Perci rolled her eyes in response, crossing her arms. "Oh, just let a girl dream, would you? Party pooper..." She stepped forward, wanting to get away from the rest, for the time being, thinking about the upcoming mission they would head out towards.
Soon enough, the time was up for preparations, and the four members of team JPLL each stood over the airship bay, looking over at the small bullhead that would deliver them to their destination. Port was already on board, checking the final details for the mission, giving them team just a few more minutes to get ready and say goodbye to whoever it would be that they wanted before leaving altogether.
"So, that's it, eh?" They heard Ash's voice sneak up on them, turning around to see her walk towards them with the rest of her team, not having any bags on them for some reason. Unlike her mood when investigating, Ash was rather calm at the moment, a relaxed grin spread between her lightly curling lips, taking her sweet time with each step she made. "You gals leavin' us for the high n' mighty life of huntresses while we get stuck with the boring stuff?" Chuckling at her teasing, she seemed content with the mission they got so far, regardless.
Meeting her with a bow, Leila came to address her inquiry. "Well, Ash... We did not have much of a choice in the matter. Isn't that right, Perci?" She gazed at the delinquent sternly, glaring knives in her direction, clearly not being entirely happy about her taking matters into her own hands still.
Perci, however, merely shrugged, slumping in place and shifting her weight around from shoulder to shoulder. "Well, what can ya say? Ya snooze ya lose, Nun. 'Sides, ain't no chance in hell I'm gonna lose a chance to see Port in action." Melody giggled at the stunt she pulled, only adding to Perci's confidence, her chest puffing on its own with pride.
"Well, I guess as long as you're happy with what you got..." Ash mumbled, looking at her scroll to check the time, just in case.
"And if you don't mind me asking..." Leila cut in, feeling it was only polite to show interest. "What was the mission you and your team chose?"
"Something BORING!" Undine interjected before Ash could even respond. "Hope ya have fun fightin' Grimm in the forest while we're stuck blasting through Professor Peach's shopping list... Melody." She turned her head to Melody's direction, showing some amount of disdain in her azure eyes.
To her defense, Melody pouted, crossing her arms defensively, and backing up just a bit. "I-It couldn't be helped, alright? I-I just didn't want to fight Grimm right away... They still scare me, alright?" She retorted, puffing her cheeks and turning around, presenting her back to the rest of them.
Leaving their antics aside, Ash finally opened her mouth, shedding some light on the matter. "Melody didn't want anything too intense yet, so we ended up shadowing Professor Peach for the week or something. Hopefully, she won't do anything too crazy, so I don't expect any major issues. Hell, who knows, we might even have enough personal freedom to continue our investigation on our own." She added, nodding contently to herself, trying to see the positive side on the matter. At the end of the day, however, they were just gonna serve as lab rats for her experiments, trying to concoct new types of usable dust, making team ACMM go and fetch her more from local stores each time she would run out.
"Well... Just be safe, alright Love? Wouldn't want to see that perfect face get spoiled like mine..." Perci muttered, running a single finger across the scar that now permanently stained her previously passable face. A single frame of the Eldritchan Grimm flashed through her mind. "Though you have to wonder... How the fuck did a Grimm get so fucked up, right? Like, how come we don't see those walk around all the time?"
This time, Hue chimed in, opening her notebook and turning the pages, looking for something specific. "I have a few hypotheses, though there's not enough evidence to support any of them. Suffice to say, however, is that the process involves said Grimm consuming another Grimm to achieve this. What are the implications of such a bizarre ritual, or the origin behind it, I cannot tell." She concluded, closing up the small tome, and sliding it back into her bag, within a pocket that fit it perfectly. "Regardless, it shouldn't matter in the grand scheme of things. We should prioritize capturing the cultist that brought it to being, though if we could find the cause behind it, it would also be preferable." She then turned to Ash, her stare as expressionless as ever. "Keep your eyes out. It's enough that that we have that Roman Torchwick stealing from every dust store that exists out there, we also have our own case on our hands. Better stick out from anything that isn't absolutely needed."
"Oi, no dissin' the Roman," Perci spoke up, looking slightly displeased. "He's a great thief, you know. Got mad respect for the man."
"Count me unsurprised..." Leila muttered under her teeth, looking to the bullhead as Port's head popped out, calling them over.
"Girls, everything is ready! Let's sail out, on the grand wind of adventure!" He put on an almost medieval-like voice, trying to act like a gallant knight, stepping inside and turning on the ignition. Perci didn't spend a lot of time hanging around, only giving Melody a peck on the cheeks, and trailing off, anticipating the mission to come considerably.
Before the rest of them could leave, Ash raised a closed hand, bumping Leila's shoulder lightly. "You guys be careful out there too, alright?" She said, rallying the rest of her team, and walking off to their own 'mission'.
"Will do..." Leila uttered, as Hue, Jin and herself followed Perci to the bullhead.