Disclaimer: Ownership of RWBY belongs to that of Month and Rooster Teeth
'Thoughts'
"Shouts"
Flash Backs
『 Telecom 』
≤ Vales: Mall ≥
"So let me get this straight." Remlin rubbed the bridge of her nose as she looked over at Arcana. "Paul's knocked out in bed from over training. The twins got roped into a magical adventure with Hena. Ceril just up and disappeared and you thought it'd be okay to follow me around?" The girl's blue eyes shifted over to the silverette. Whose own golden gaze was on their week old scroll. It was a mild surprise when Ceril entered the room and made Paul confess his secret to the team. Though he seemed at least willing to try and better, there was no problem on Remlin's side.
"Mfh. Ceril said I'd get lost if I didn't follow someone." The girl raised a brow as she looked at the feminine boy who was irritatingly typing out what seemed to be a text. 『 Ping 』An excited look was given as the message was received. Then immediately dropped in anger as he spoke out their own text. "Your message is blank, why is it always blank?!"
The girl could only give a deadpan gaze as it appeared Arcana was still techno-illiterate. It wasn't too surprising considering he didn't know things like scrolls even existed until they were handed one for school purposes. As helpful as Ceril likes to be though, he's made it his mission to screw with Arcana in every corner of that progress. To put it simply, that red headed bastard has been replying with blank text messages.
"So do you even know what to do at a mall?" Arcana's brows twitched as he looked up at the blue haired girl then around the area. The crowd was almost as massive as the chatter of noise muffled together with all the sound waves going off at once.
"What's a mall?"
"ARGHH! COME ON!" Remlin was at her wits with this… socially inept and techno-illiterate. If she didn't know better… this might've been that red head's plan all along. 'No… no, that'd be giving him too much credit.' The girl passively thought as she pulled the teen into a clothing store.
"We'll just. Try on some new clothes and buy them if they're good." The girl scurried through the aisles and immediately hit the female spring section. Winter wasn't even close yet and summer being just right around the corner.
"Do I look like I have Lien?" Arcana only grumbled as he as dragged into a more then fancy looking place. He wasn't completely illiterate when it came to finances, but the silverette never had more than enough to actually make a good difference.
An exasperated gaze fell upon him. Causing the male to look away nervously. "As a matter of fact, no." The outfit Arcana wore now was fairly, untamed. His top was a buttoned-up red long sleeved shirt that definitely did not fit. His right shoulder and part of his chest would had definitely been revealed if it wasn't for the tank top being worn as an undershirt. The short shorts weren't helping out that much either, but the length of the shirt covered up anything that might be too revealing. The only thing that looked like they'd fit was the ankle-high boots the teen wore. "Seriously, where did you even get that outfit from?"
"Shirt belongs to Ceril, undershirt and shorts belong to Hena. Boots are mine." Arcana spoke up as he began to literally describe where he got his outfit from.
"What? You guys are sharing clothes?" The girl tilted her head at the revelation. It's only been a damn week. Are they that close already?
"Eh… It's just me, only really came to Beacon with the clothes on my back. Ceril said it wouldn't do to wear my school uniform all the time."
Remlin glazed over at him then back at the clothing. "Speaking of which, why are you even wearing a male uniform?"
"Probably 'cause I'm male. I think that's how that works." Arcana said honestly as he looked back down at his scroll when another message came in. The teen gave no heed as he started clicking on replies.
"Yeah… I guess it does." Remlin rubbed her temples then raised her hands in defeat. She definitely did think Arcana was a girl. A girl just deciding to wear the male uniform. To be fair, Remlin didn't like skirts all too much either. Battle skirts though… 'You know what, have fun with it.' It seemed that Team CASH rolled with the punches with how passive they could be sometimes. Might as well take a page out of their book and have fun with it. "Try this on."
Arcana looked up to see one of the frilliest clothing he had ever seen. It had a regular white top with a golden flower-like weave to the skirt. Remlin walked up and pressed it against his chest as he she nodded. Looking to be the right fit. Arcana's eyes twitched as he looked down, gaining a victorious smirk from the Remlin. "It won't cost much right?" He'd then ask after a moment of silence. The girl could only give a blank stare at finally figuring at that this guy was serious.
"You know what, if it fits. I'll buy it for you. I'll even give you a matching accessory." Arcana gave a contemplating look. He didn't really like being sympathized as he most definitely was a case of tragic syndrome. Arcana was his own person and he could take care of himself.
Remlin watched as Arcana just turned and gave a very dignified humph. "I don't know… I'll have to ask Ceril." The girl's brow raised in question as she looked at boy who began to give a short dial on his scroll.
"You're very reliant on him for someone who shows such outward dislike towards the guy." Arcana clicked his tongue as the scroll continued to ring without answer.
"It's not that I dislike him. It's just that he gets under my skin and that makes me uncomfortable." The scroll continued to ring as the irritation grew. The blue haired girl just gave a nod in response. Recalling how he had done exactly the same thing in their first meeting. Ceril wasn't a bad guy, he was just. Weird or something.
『 Click What Arcana? I'm kind of busy right now. 』The scroll finally picked up as it closed in on its final ring.
"Ceril, it's Arcana." Remlin face palmed. A loud sigh escaped from the scroll as the other teen once again talked
『 Yes… Hello Arcana, what do you need? 』
"Remlin is offering to buy me clothes. What should I do?"
『 Do you like the clothes? 』The teen asked in response after a moment of silence. One had to give credit when it was due. Ceril was a patient man when it came to his less than adept team.
Arcana glanced over at the yellow dress for a moment with a mildly serious expression. "Yes..."
『 Are there any strings attached? 』Arcana looked the dress up and down. He was about to speak again, but Remlin cut him off.
"No Ceril, there aren't any strings attached." A snorting laugh could be heard from the scroll, making Remlin silently curse. Obviously he had guessed what was going on.
『 Then it's fine, Arcana. Send me a picture after you're done. You know how to do that right? 』Arcana loudly humphed and crossed his arms. Making sure his voice and expression broke through the walls of reality and into the red head's mind.
"O-of course I do! That'll be all!" The feminine looking male would then end the call with another click. After a moment of silence, he'd look back at the dress and speak. "So, why did you lie to him about the strings on the dress?" He said out loud as he looked at some of the loose frills. A laughter suddenly broke out from the distance.
Across the room was a young female cashier. Holding her stomach with one hand as her face lay on the table and her other palm smacked against it. She was laughing, and laughing hard. A sigh escaped Remlin's lips as she pushed Arcana to the dressing room with the clothing. "You know what, I'll find something too, you put that on and hang tight."
After a few minutes, Remlin returned with a simple one piece dress. Muffled sounds escaped the dressing room, followed by curses and slander. "You okay?"
"How do I get this blasted thing on?!"
Arcana spoke in a distressed manner as they shuffled around the room. "Hold on, don't rip the dress. Do you mind if I come in?"
"Just come in already!" He shouted as Remlin stepped into the dressing room. They were already properly in the dress, but the teen couldn't reach behind to zip up the dress from the back.
"Hold still," The girl spoke as she steadied him and began to zip up the dress. The girl would then smooth out the wedges that were ruffled up. "Alright, put these two on now." She stated as she pulled out a yellow flower ornament and yellow ankle-boots to match the dress. The boots were the first to come on, but Arcana just stared at the hair ornament. Not entirely sure what it was for. Another sigh escaped the girl's lips as she pushed Arcana's medium long hair behind one of her ears and held it in place with the ornament.
The girl would then step back as she gave him a once over. He definitely didn't have a chest, but the dress she picked took that in mind. Regardless, the teen looked absurdly like a girl. Even his voice gave no credit to masculinity. "Alright there, now get out while I get changed." This day was turning out to be more of a hassle then it was worth. Not that the girl feeling slightly jealous was helping. Seriously, how could this man look so much cuter compared to her bland petite self? Hell, he even had curves! 'Why does he have curves? He doesn't need them!' Her thought was cut short as a flash came from Arcana's scroll. She had already stripped her garments off when she was caught off guard. Remlin's gaze turned to see that Arcana had his scroll raised high enough to get a picture of himself in the dress. Though what caught her attention was that she could clearly see her bare naked self in the background.
『 Send me a picture after you're done. 』
The memory flashed quickly through her mind. Remlin raised her hand to grab for the scroll as she shouted. "Wait! Arcana don-" she didn't get a chance to finish as the picture on the scroll shrunk into a box and then shifted off the screen in a mail icon.
≤ Beacon: Library ≥
"Haha haha! My army of Grimm is slowly marching into your last bastille!" Slovik laughed maniacally as he moved his ground troops over into Atlas territory. "You only have one turn left before I rampage through your Atlesian Air Fleet! Mantle will be mine! Those robotic army bonuses won't save you now!"
"Oh no, brother!" What do we do?!" Olga covered her face with her palms as she shook her head. Slovik had been sitting on one side of the table with her and Oswald on the other side. Hena in her excitement, totally left the two behind as she ran off to Oum knows where. Leaving just them around with Paul knocked out from over training.
"Be strong sister." Oswald comforted his whining sister. "Our Aerial Fleet cannot be attacked by the likes of his ground troops." The male twin would look down at the cards in his hands while taking a peek at his sisters. They had decided to play Remnant: The Game. A few copies were always present in the library and they encouraged strategic thinking between students. The two thought they'd have such an easy win when Slovik agreed to a two on one, yet they found themselves in a slowly losing battle. Even when he only picked the Grimm and allowed the two to have Atlas, Vacuo, Mistral and Vales all together. The Grimm were indeed a powerful and formidable enemy…
"We use Air Strike on your ground troops!" Olga shouted as the two finally decided on a card to play. An Air Strike had many bonuses against ground-based units. With the Grimm having no defense against such attacks. They'll be immediately destroyed under the great banner of Atlas' might!
"You fools!" Slovik dramatically pulled a card from his hand and raised it into the air. "I activate Nevermore Revelations! When my troops takes an attack from an Aerial Fleet, it converts my ground troops into flying for the rest of the turn!" The husky Faunus dropped the card onto the table. Indeed revealing that he had such power to do so against their last remaining army. Humanities hope was now doomed.
"Noooo!" Both the twins cried in union, hugging into each other tightly as they silently sobbed.
"It's mine! All mine!" Slovik called out as he flicked the last remaining pieces of humanity off the board. Laughter soon following suit in the game's demise.
"Brother! He's a madman!"" Olga whimpered into her brother's shoulder. Oswald patted her back. "What should we do?!"
"I don't know sister, what do you advise?!" The male twin said pensively as Olga let out a low whining sigh.
"We must sate the beast… we agreed that if it ever came to it… our masculinity was less valuable then our chastity." Both twins sighed at the same time. Oswald then stood up slowly and turned to face Slovik. The shit eating grin still plastered on his face from the high of actually winning and beating the odds.
"It is just I that will sate your overbearing hunger, but as inexperienced as we are, please treat us well." Slovik looked at the male twin up and down for a moment before shaking his head. The twins tended to act like a total troll at times and it seemed they do it purely for reactions. His grin would slowly turn into a smirk as he played along with the two.
"You think just one of you could quench this thirst?!" Slovik shouted as he slammed his hand onto the table. "You yourself is barely even half! Take your punishment as it should be! As one!" The husky shouted out to the two, hands slamming onto the table as the teen fixed his glasses. Olga grew wide eyed as Oswald turned to look at his sister as if to ask a question. No words were vocally exchanged as the two would then nod.
"Olly, it seems that our plan has backfired." Oswald sat back down and hugged his sister tightly. "He plans to take all of our things." The brother whimpered silently while Olga hugged her brother back in response.
"It's okay Ozzy, whatever happens, we'll get through this together."
After a moment, both twins stood up and bowed. Each speaking and moving in such a perfect unison, that only hours of practice could mimic such an act. "As inexperienced as we are, please take care of us." Slovik could only laugh as this was becoming too much. The twins were definitely better at this type of game then he was.
"All joking aside," The husky pushed his long hair behind his shoulder, he'd then begin to put the board game away as overplaying games like these made them boring. "where is everyone?"
The twins would look at each other and then turn around immediately as they begun to mumble amongst themselves. "I told you he was joking! Why did you take it seriously?!" Oswald whispered loudly into his sister's ear. They bother held their own irritated expression, but one could tell who was who by the glean in their eyes. Oswald tended to have a more of a calm passive look while Olga had a sharp aggressive one.
"I don't know! He had that look in his eyes the other guys had back in APA!" The female twin replied soundly to her twin.
"Uh, you guys didn't actually think I was serious… right?" Slovik said in a little bit of a worried tone. The last thing he wanted was to be labeled as the weirdo or pervert in the group. Labels like that just never left a person and made reputations permanently stained.
'We're so stupid! He's a Faunus! Of course he'd hear us!' Oswald shouted through their link, making Olga twitch in response.
'It's okay, play it off as a joke!' Olga suggested as her eyes shifted onto the worried look of Slovik. The girl would then snicker and give the taller teen a wave. "Oh we're sorry, Slovik. You just seemed so," a playful smirk left her lips. "Serious…"
'This is why we didn't have any friends back in Atlas! Maybe chastity should be first!' The twins once again bowed. Their actions were almost always in unison. When one thought to gesture, most of the time both would due to their semblance. "You had us by the ropes. We were ready to surrender everything."
Slovik just rolled his eyes as he groaned out. These two were definitely messing with him, not a single doubt with that. "Seriously though, where is everyone?"
"Remlin went to the mall" Oswald spoke, "and Paul is in bed." Olga finished.
The black haired Faunus nodded as he thought of his own team. "Hena just ran off excitedly somewhere. Arcana I saw chasing after Remlin and Oum knows where Ceril went."
『 Ring Ring Ring 』 Slovik looked down at his scroll as he saw his long time childhood nuisance give him a call.
"Speak of the devil and she shall appear." He stated out loud as he answered his scroll.
『 S-slovik. I need, help. 』 The husky could hear her panted and gasping breaths. Slovik only signed as he spoke up.
"Hena? Are you having another panic attack again?" He asked with a frustrated tone in his voice. The girl was a handful with just her vibrant personality, but her insecurities were on a whole other level and he'd like to avoid such happenings.
『 Slovik... I. 』 Hena seemed to be struggling on the other line and he only cut her off as he spoke up.
"Hena, listen." He paused momentarily and listened to a raspy breath on the other line. "You need to learn to take care of yourself. You can't always be depending on people." It was the best he could do for her if he ever hoped she could stand up on her own.
『 Slovik. 』 She tried once again and the irritation beaded off his person.
"Handle it yourself, Hena!" He quickly cut the call on the scroll as he let out a sigh. The two twins stared at him with tilted heads as he just ran a hand through his medium black hair. "Hena sometimes has anxiety attacks. She gets over them quickly though." The two twins nodded in hesitated confirmation.
Slovik folded his arms as he thought back to the current week. Things were definitely going a lot better than he thought it would had. Ceril had taken up most, if not all of Hena's attention. Giving the teen himself enough breathing room for the first time in many… many years. Arcana was always on edge when it came to their leader, but recently it looked as if he would always go to him with literally every little question.
If it was Slovik, he'd of flipped a table on Arcana or something. It was downright disrespectful to treat someone like he does to the red head, yet still expect quick and fast responses so he could stop talking to him faster. Not that the relationship between Slovik and Arcana was even better. It was like their entire team is slowly being built on tolerance and efficiency. So it wasn't bad, but still not good.
"Slovik has gone silent… he is thinking devious thoughts." Olga whispered over to her twin, the husky clearly hearing the two despite it being lower than before.
"Hena told me he was hitting on Arcana the first day despite him being a boy. Those devious thoughts could be anything…" Oswald whispered back to his sister as their whispers were close as mouth to ear.
'Okay, maybe I should enact justly punishment…' The tempting thought drove passed his mind as the twins teasing didn't relent.
≤ Beacon: Dorm ≥
Paul was lying face first into his pillow as a low groan left his lips. If one could describe what hunter training was like. It'd be pure unadulterated hell. The tallest teen of the group was no slouch when it came to working out. You needed strong arms after all to work the forge, but after lunch. Mandatory individual training was required for two straight hours, then mandatory team training for another two hours. Paul was dead by the time both were done. A technical self-study was given for the next hour before students were allowed to leave the school grounds for personal business.
It was at that moment that Ceril had come to collect him… for more training. His already sore body instantly died as the red head completely destroyed any self-confident Paul might have had in himself. 'Seriously what did he expect from me…'
"I'll do what I can to help you, but I need your full cooperation if we're going to pull you up to par before anyone notices."
"I'll do it, whatever it takes."
'No… don't answer that.' Paul rolled over onto his back. His bones cracked and his limbs ached in such unwarranted pain. The hardest part of the ordeal was that the next morning, Ceril had come into the room while everyone was getting ready for classes and demanded Paul tell everyone. To be truthful, Paul was scared. That paranoia was just as quickly relieved considering everyone had seemed to be accepting of the situation in some form or way. A smile cracked on Paul's face as it turned into a wide grin.
Paul's own fights in Combat Studies were very subpar at first, Professor Goodwitch literally did nothing but denote him at every single action he did. Yet after the third day. Angry banter became words of praise at his steady improvement. It was just today that he finally had won a fight against one of the girls from Team CALZ. Boy was she not happy when their blonde teacher went off on everything she did wrong.
Don't get him wrong or anything. He was barely decent, unlike Ceril. Who of which hasn't lost a single fight yet in the Arena. It was astonishing at how little effort someone could put into a fight, yet always come out victorious. 'Perfect Memory, is that really such an advantage?' His thoughts wondered onto the time Ceril talked about his semblance. When activated, his eyes would turn blue and anything within his vision would be completely remembered for the rest of his life. Lectures, Theories, Experiences, Combat Stances and Fighting Styles. Everything. The teen assured him that he'd still have to practice everything to even be remotely good at something, but it was still such a cheat in comparison to most people.
Paul shook his head as he pushed the thoughts aside. There was no need to envy Ceril or anyone else on his own team. They were all helping him in his own way. "I'm the leader of Team PORO. Don't worry everyone… I'll become the leader that you all see me as." Paul raised his hand up to the ceiling. "I won't disappoint you." Grasping onto a thought that once seemed so impossibly far away, yet now… Now it was slowly coming into his grasp. One week at a time. A sudden stitch clipped Paul in his sore arm as he instantly dropped it and let out a loud groan. At least no one was here to witness him be a total pussy over how much pain he was in.
≤ Vales: Shopping District ≥
Hena scurried around the district to as many counters as she possibly could. Giving out loud obnoxious ou's and ah's as she laid eyes on many of the outdoor displays. The fox was only playing when she begged Ceril for some Lien. Yet to Slovik's very disgruntled expression, he had given her enough to buy something neat. Her long time childhood friend didn't seem too happy with Ceril indulging her and decided not to go with her to anywhere. Then opted to completely ignore her.
Ceril's other friend Paul was out cold on the bed and Remlin had walked out a while ago with Arcana slowly following behind. Which only left her with the twins. "Oh it's no fair that Olga gets to have a brother, I want a brother!" Hena had palmed her face with her hands as she shifted back and forth. Garnering some weird looks from the pedestrians that walked by. The Faunus decided to wear a beret to hide her ears. Besides that, she wore a black shirt with the sleeves a bit too long and some plain black shorts. No fashionista in this blood at all.
Yet the adventure with the twins was not to be, after rushing past Arcana and Remlin. She soon lost the two at Beacon and just decided to run off on her own. "Hey! Watch where you're going!" The girl's hat twitched as a male voice shouted off in the distance. Curiosity perked on over as Hena shuffled past the crowd to investigate the disturbance. A very tall burnt orange haired man was spotted in the epicenter. He looked to be shouting down at a female Faunus with small antlers.
"S-sorry sir! I didn-" The Faunus kept her eyes to the ground as she stuttered out a quick apology. The man was glaring down at her with folded arms and a disgusted expression on his face.
"Did I say you could speak?" He asked aggressively, causing the girl to stammer up in responses or anything that could get her out of the situation. It was then that Hena stepped in via under the man's massive arms.
"Yeah! Did he say you can speak?!" The black haired Faunus-in-Hiding spoke up almost sounding offended at the antlered girl. The act alone caused the girl to instantly clam up with a feared look in her eyes. The taller man was mildly caught off guard due to the sudden appearance of a small black haired girl appearing from bellow his arm. "You think you have any right to speak looking like that?!"
The surprise soon left as the man took the girl as an accomplice and smirked. "Yeah that's right. You're just a filthy Faunus, you have no right to s-" Though his next words caught stuck in his mouth as the black haired girl spoke up.
"I mean look at that bust size! It's way to large!" It was the tall man's turn to start stammering his words as he was caught completely off guard by the girl's statement. Even the Faunus who once wore a scared expression was now donning a confused one. "It's at least a high c-cup or maybe even a d!" Hena leaned forward as she pointed directly at the Faunus' bust and looked up to the man. "Do you see it?! Look at it!" The burnt orange haired man took a moment to blankly stare at his would be supporter then back at the Faunus. Who of which would then start instinctively covering her chest with a mortified expression on her face.
A sudden blush started escaping the man's face as he quickly spoke. "Wait that's not the po-" Yet he was once against caught off guard by Hena.
"Look! She's obviously showing off!" Her finger then pointed towards the Faunus' shirt. Which was a perfect fit for the nice figure the antler Faunus had. "Not only does her outfit fit perfectly around, but it's definitely made to show those busts, that cleavage. That Ass! Look at it!" As she spoke each part, the man couldn't help but look at every aspect of the girl. Causing the man to blush more before clicking his tongue and turning around.
"You know what, this isn't worth it!" His arms unfolded as he threw them into the air while he walked off. Hena just giggled as she winked at the other Faunus and skittered off towards the man walking away. Leaving a very confused, mortified and now embarrassed looking Faunus in the district.
Hena once again followed up by entering through his underside. He was that taller that she could easily maneuver around the teen. Despite his tall height, he seemed to be looking around her age. "Aw come on, you know she was cute." The girl openly teased the man who was still apparently blushing.
"No! She's a filthy Faunus." The man folded his arms again as his blushed face turned disgruntled. Hena smiled up at him despite the guy trying not to make eye contact with the very much smaller girl.
"Cover the horns and she's a really pretty girl." Hena threw the shot in while he was still thinking about it. Forcing the man to look down at the girl with a glare. She just stared blankly back for a moment before changing her expression into a goofy grin.
"Why are you even following me?" He asked as the last of his nerves visibly began to get thrown out.
"I'm looking for a brother!" Hena exclaimed loudly. The male just glared at her as he started pacing away a bit faster. To his contempt, the girl only paced quicker as if bouncing on her feet. "So I'm Hena! What's your name?" That grin never left her face and it continued to agitate the male.
A growl escaped his vocals as he spoke up, hoping that she'd back off if he just gave her what she wanted. "It's Cardin. How long are you going to be following me for?"
"As long as I have to!" The fox-in-hiding grabbed Cardin by the shoulder and began to drag him forward. His first action was to keep his feet to the ground and stop. Yet the tall teen had begun to get yanked and dragged as his feet slid across the floor. He'd stammer a bit in words as the sheer strength this girl was using caught him completely off guard at that moment. "If you don't have plans, let's go to the amusement park!" Cardin tried to get a few words in between trying to remove Hena's strong grip, but to no avail he'd definitely be dragged along in this joy ride.
A dart shot through the air at high speed. A loud crack was followed as the tip pierced through and shattered pieces of a wooden wall. Three other darts next to it in the same manner. "NOOOO!" Hena cried out in agony as she lay solemnly against the counter on one of the many games the park had to offer. Right next to the dart were balloons of various size and colors. Each holding different points for different prizes. The fox-in-hiding attempted to hit the biggest one, but failed entirely. "Cardin! Cardin! What am I supposed to do?! That was my last Lien!"
Tears threatened to break out of the girl's eyes as Cardin just wore a passive expression. There was no point staying mad at the girl for so long. Especially considering that the day wasn't too bad at all. The two entered the park and road a few rides and watched as the goofy acting girl freaked out in the mirror room. All in all, he had calmed down. Yet he would never admit he was having fun. Nope. "And? What does that have to do with me?"
"Cardiiiiin!" Her eyes were like puppy dogs and they were hard to resist. Especially with the flood gates ready to break through in full force. Indigo eyes closed as the teen rubbed the bridge of his nose and stepped up into the stand.
"Fine fine! Whatever, just this once." The teen paid the bald old guy who was manning the shop and obtained three darts. He picked one up by the tip and didn't even take a moment as he threw the dark like a throwing knife. It sailed quickly through the air and hit dead onto the smallest balloon in the crowd. Hena let out an excited squeak in response, only to release another loud one as Cardin threw the next dart and hit the next smallest balloon.
There was no effort at all when the final dart in bullseye onto the last small balloon. Successfully hitting all targets dead on and popping each and every one of them. "Yay!" The girl shouted excitedly as she chose the biggest stuffed fox which was given to her as a reward. The stuffed animal practically being bigger than the girl's whole body and barely having room to wrap her arms around it.
"You happy now?" The male said with a smirk on his face as he folded his arms. The glitter in the fox-in-hiding's red eyes pretty much said everything. "Heh, of course you are." The two began to leave the stall as the old man's head hang low at the loss of such an expensive doll.
『 Now Playing: The Man with Two Souls! 』
An electronic voice boomed out over in the distance. Hena turned her head over to the area and was faced with a large theatre offering various movies to be played. The girl only tilted her head in confusion as she looked over. "Playing what?" Her voice was miffed in confusion.
"Just a movie, looks boring." Cardin replied passively as he continued to walk by, Hena had stopped in her steps as she continued to look at the theatre.
"What's a movie?" It was the teen's turn to stop in his steps as he looked behind to see the girl hugging her newly acquired stuffed animal with that dumb expression on her face.
"A movie, you know uh. On a big screen, plays… a movie… with moving pictures…" Cardin tried his best to describe what exactly a movie was. The concept had never actually crossed him as the need to even explain such a thing never came up. "Ugh, you know what. Let's go." The teen would then just grab the stuffed animal as Hena too would be pulled a long with it to go watch a random movie.
"That was amazing!" The glitter in Hena's eyes never left as she and Cardin left the theatre in a crowd. "I never knew they could make pictures move like that."
A simple brow raised on the male's face as he spoke up. "Wasn't that movie more depressing then it was amazing?" The fox-in-hiding merely gave a bellowing laugh as she just grinned up at the teen.
"I had absolutely no clue what was going on!" The crickets in the mind of Cardin chirped loudly. Sometimes he thought this girl was just joking around when it came to being quite stupid. Yet by now, he knew for a fact that she wasn't joking when she said she didn't know or didn't understand. Hena turned around to continue moving forward, but bumped into a shadow man who was quickly running past. The girl huffed out as she fell backwards on the floor.
Cardin's anger took rise as he looked at the running person and shouted. "Hey watch where you're going!" The teen seethed as he turned and got hit in the face with a beret. He peeled the hat off and looked down at Hena. Both instantly froze as Cardin gained the sight of two extra pairs of ears. "Wait, you're a…"
The words never left his lips as he shifted from confused, to angry and even a bit of betrayal. Hena staggered off the floor shortly and stood up with mildly shaky legs. Cardin opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out. Causing the fox's ears to slowly fall as she slowly put down the stuffed animal.
If Cardin had said anything else, Hena didn't hear it due to quickly turning around and making a break for it. The only thing running through her mind was how stupid she was to even forget she was wearing the hat. Maybe it would had been better to let him know first and let him look in disgust and walk off. Yet she foolishly decided that maybe she could show him that Faunus weren't so bad and reveal herself later. That idea was thrown out the window just by looking at his face and his obvious thoughts portrayed.
It was then that the fox ran right into someone as he fell on his ass and Hena tripping around him. Her recovery was quick, but someone grabbed her hand before she could make a break for it. "Hey! Don't just tackle someone and run off!"
"Yeah that's right, you Faunus are so deranged and disrespectful!" A second guy spoke up as he cut off her exit. Hena's breathing began to slightly pace up as she yanked her arm harshly away. The one that grabbed her was pulled in as he lost grip and hit the floor.
"Hey, you bitch!" The one that hit the floor got up and made a swing towards Hena. The punch was slow. Civilian slow as the fox merely side stepped and pushed him on the chest with her palm. The guy lost balance from the force and landed hard on his back.
"Oh this girl wants to fight!" Hena turned to look at three other people. The one that grabbed her was getting up off the floor as two began to ball up the fists and rush over. Hena's breathing began to deepen as her expression turned sharp. Almost angry.
Did you hear? Hena got into another fight again. Again? What are we going to do with that girl…
Eyes flashed dangerously as she stepped into the guard of the guy on the right. A swift punch with her right arm landed onto his stomach and dropped him down with a heave. The other guy took the opportunity to strike, but Hena passively blocked it with her left arm and delivered a swift upper cut to his jaw. Making the guy stagger backwards as he covered his now bleeding mouth.
She hasn't been the same since… Don't talk about that! You know how she gets!
A loud crack snapped onto her back. The force causing her to stagger up a bit. Dangerous red eyes turned around as she looked at the one she palmed. He had broken a wooden pole over her back. Yet her semblance had already recovered the damage before she even finished up righting herself. The girl was trained to only use half her passive aura to defend against blows. The other half was converted into active aura and was used to heal due to using less aura compared to blocking a blow in full.
"Hena, you idiot! You can't keep getting into fights at a whim!" A younger Slovik shouted at the little fox. "How do you expect to get adopted when all they see is a bruised and beat up little girl?!"
The fox's face extorted in anger as she dashed forward. Eyes widen from the one wielding the now broken weapon as he took a wild horizontal swing at the girl. With great ease, she weaved under the pole and slammed a fist into his stomach. Blood asked his lips as his feet lifted off the ground and he rocketed back until momentum dropped and he hit the ground hard.
Hena. There's little hope for you actually getting adopted. So we advise you apply for Atlas Primary Academy. There you can prove your worth as an… individual and gain an easy life. If you're even worth anything.
Breathing grew heavy and staggered as red eyes turned to see two more rushing at her. Another on the ground holding his jaw in pain. "JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!" Her voice screamed out as she rushed the two at a speed they weren't able to follow. Before they knew it, Hena had slammed a punch into one of them. Ribs soundly cracking as he gasped for air. The other raised his arm to block the incoming punch that soon followed. Yet the impact caused his arm to crack and bend. Look turning horrified as he staggered back and let out a pained yell.
"Slovik! I was accepted! They accepted me into APA!" Hena's smile grew wide as now she can finally live the orphanage and take up room in the girl's dormitory.
"Oh… great. That's cool." The young husky just stared in bewilderment. It was no surprise that the girl was an okay fighter. Yet he never expected the girl to have what was needed to gain admission.
Hena's smile was wide with happiness. Life was finally moving forward.
The fox couldn't stop shaking as she hyperventilated heavily. As she staggered away from the four, she pulled out her scroll which she could barely keep hold in her palms. Hena flipped on over to her contacts and raised Slovik's number and quickly dialing out. It'd ring with what felt like forever before the line finally picked up. "S-slovik. I need, help."
Look, another Faunus accepted into APA! They don't deserve to be here! They're just a plague onto society. Thinking their superior with their senses when they're nothing but a bunch of filthy animals. Hey did you hear that fox got into another fight?
『 Hena? Are you having another panic attack again? 』 The Faunus on the other side spoke up in a frustrated voice.
"Slovik… I." As she struggled to keep her breathing upright, she was cut off by her long time childhood friend.
『 Hena, listen. 』 There was a momentary pause as the only sound could be heard was the girl's staggered breath. 『 You need to learn to take care of yourself. You can't always be depending on people. 』 The husky began to rant out as she just shuttered.
"Slovik…" She tried one more time before her friend shouted.
『 Handle it yourself, Hena! 』
A loud click signified the end of the call.
"Why do I always have to look after you Hena? We're from the same orphanage, but that doesn't make me your care taker!" Slovik. "Seriously? Why do you keep bothering me? Don't you have any friends of your own?" Slovik. "Just go and talk to them if you're interested in their topic. That's how you make friends." Slovik. "That's fine, she's my partner after all." Ceril…
Hena swapped over her contacts and attempted to dial her partner. As the call began to ring she was hit hard in the back. A loud ding vibrating from a metal pole as she ricocheted forward and hit the ground. The call she was making ended as her scroll hit the floor. "What you did to my friends wasn't very nice." Hena staggered up with heavy breaths as she turned over to the individual that hit her. It was a light-brown haired teen wearing what appeared to be a signal uniform. With an extra of a belt buckle with the picture of a Dove on it. The teen seemed to have squinted eyes and a calm demeanor.
"Hena, your attitude is unacceptable. If it wasn't for superior fighting ability compared to those of your classmates… You'd of been considered a lost cause." One of the many teachers spoke to the fox as she sat alone on the desk. "I know the life of a Faunus is hard, but it's no excuse." The teacher glared at her with a serious expression. "It doesn't have to be real, just smile and nod." Hena cracked a bad smile and nodded. "Good, we'll continue these lessons later."
Hena reached for her scroll and pocketed it as her expression turned feral. The new guy seemed to be holding onto a short pipe. Yet his stance was practiced and trained. These factors didn't play into the girl's mind as she charged him in a blind rage. A right hook took swing from the girl as the other evaded with a step back. His pipe drew back as he gave a swift blow to the side of Hena's head as a loud crack echoed throughout the park.
Your fighting style is unorthodox. Just because you can heal from the hits you take, doesn't mean you should take them. I advise throwing away those knuckled gauntlets and changing your weapon.
The blow did little to Hena as the damage from both concussion and splitting skin healed on impact. There wasn't even a stagger as a right fist landed onto the side of the squinted eye's ribcage. The aura took majority of the direct damage as he staggered backwards. Hena knocked the sword away that was on the side of her head with her left and reeled in as another blow was given on direct impact to his chest.
Why does this Faunus keep winning all her fights? Seriously all she does is take blows and counter attacks. No matter what weapon we give her it's always the same thing. The faculty would be hounding her if she didn't win all of her fights. That method won't work against Grimm. One blow is good enough to kill. This NEEDS to stop.
The teen's feet left the floor as he flew backwards. The male merely caught his balance as he flipped back onto his feet and blocked a left hook that he almost didn't catch. Rather than just staying still, he rotated against the momentum and twirled a horizontal hit that landed successfully on her waist. Hena's center of gravity faltered and the light-brown haired teen didn't relent. He recoiled as took a vertical strike onto Hena's shoulder and followed up by slamming his shoulder into her chest to knock her back.
A teacher looked sadly down at Hena in a battered mess. The other students obviously weren't overwhelming the girl enough to show that her fighting style was completely flawed. So the teacher took it upon himself to show her. "Hena… Are you really that intent on taking blows to gain advantages?" The girl shivered in pain as she tried to get back up, her aura already healing the damage. "Well an unorthodox fighting style requires an unorthodox weapon." Two loud clanks hit the floor in front of her. Her vision looked through blurry eyes as she stared at what hit the floor. Two basic kite shields. Just shields, nothing else. "If you're going to be taking blows, you might as well mitigate the damage as best as possible."
The tackle did not go as expected as Hena staggered back and spun. Her leg lifted as it kicked the side of his legs causing his center of gravity to collapse. Yet before he could do an aerial recovery, Hena rotated back around and grabbed him midair by the face. What happened next could only be described as pain. Hena pumped her active aura into her arm as she slammed him head first into the ground. Cracks began to splinter outwards even before his head met gravel. When it did, a small area around them mildly shattered in response.
"It's a shame that she was born a Faunus. If she were human, I'd have no doubt she'd reach the top." Tears threatened to break through the young teen's eyes as she hid outside the classroom. Listening to the teacher that helped her through and through be like that rest. "Her display of combat and tactics is overwhelming and she showed no problem fighting amongst her first Grimm. I'd advice cutting her last year here and shipping her off to Atlas Academy. There is literally nothing left to teach her here."
The adrenalin began to wear off as Hena staggered out of the cracked gravel. Her breathing beyond haggard as she took heavy breaths for air. A crowd had gathered to watch the fight, but all she could see is the judging eyes on her. Even ones of both hate and scared. She was a Faunus who just beat up five guys, obviously they would look at her like she was the cause for the whole ordeal. Her shaky hands reached for her scroll as he attempted to dial her partner once again. Yet the girl couldn't keep a steady finger as she attempted to navigate through the device.
"Yes, Headmaster. I plan to go to Beacon." Slovik spoke up as Hena hid around the corner. Beacon Academy in Vales. A more tolerable place to live for Faunus and maybe even a new start if she could get in… Atlas Academy was definitely on par in prestige when it came to training hunters, but the people she'd be graduating with didn't like here. No one liked her here. Sometimes she'd think not even Slovik liked here. Beacon… it wasn't a bad idea.
"That hurt…" Red eyes widened as the Signal student from before had gotten up and grabbed her by the hair. Violently pulled her down. "I don't think a small beating will suffice."
Hena balled her fist up as she was ready to reengage, but the teen began to lift slowly up. The girl only stared in confusion as the aggressor's turned into one of panic as he let go of the girl. He kept going up until she could clearly see Cardin. Holding up her attack high into the air. "What the FUCK do you think you're doing?!" Cardin cursed with vehemence as he threw the other teen with all his strength into a nearby shopping wall. As the teen hit, his aura shattered in response and was knocked out onto the floor.
Hena could only stare with wide eyes as the last person she expected to help had come to her rescue. "Cardin…" She croaked out weekly through her hyperventilating breaths. The teen only looked around to see the damage. Four guys in excruciating pain and the fifth literally looking like complete shit when he had gotten there. Originally he came to ask what the point of even hiding like that was. Yet looking around gave a clear understanding to why she did it.
If she can get into this much trouble by running off not even five minutes later… "Shut up and stop causing me trouble." He picked up the stuffed fox from where he placed it and walked up to the girl. Her beret placed back on top of her head to cover her ears. Hena shifted her gaze over towards the crowd as his own indigo eyes followed along. Seeing the crowd he gave a mean looking glare as he shouted. "Well?! Scram already, parties over!" His aggressive demeanor caused the crowd to quickly disperse.
"Cardin… I'm s-." Before she could finish her line, the teen lifted her up by the arm as he began to pull her away from the scene. Lifting up most of her weight as walking seemed to be quite difficult for the girl right now.
"Save it. Let's just get out of here before you cause more trouble." The two began walk off until deciding to hide out in a café. If anyone came looking for the girl, they'd be looking for a Faunus. The hat not being the best of disguises would still work to deter onlookers away. It even fooled him to an extent. By now, Hena had caught her breath and calmed down. Cardin sat on the other side of the table with the stuffed fox sitting comfortably next to her. Words didn't come out between the two as they sat quietly amongst each other.
It was Hena who broke the silence. "I'm sorry… I shouldn't have hidden what I am to you. Or even approached you." Cardin's gaze shifted over towards the window. He found Faunus' disgusting, but why? Well it was obviously because he was raised to believe they were. Nothing, but animals. Animals that can bleed, can feel pain, can cry. Hena probably didn't notice herself, but she was definitely crying through that pained expression of hurt and hate. His eyes closed as he contemplated his next words.
"So… why are you looking for a brother?" Cardin changed the subject and caused Hena to widen her eyes. As a simple of a question it was, no one had actually bothered to ask why. Her red gaze fell as she spoke up.
"I… use to have a brother. Back in the orphanage." Her statement caused Cardin to wince. He was ready to tell her she didn't have to explain, but she continued onward. "He was adopted into heavy labor." Her expression down trotted further. "I only ever got a notice a year later stating he passed away in a construction accident. At first I was using it as an excuse to replace my depression, but after a few years. I just leave it as a bad joke."
Cardin clicked his tongue as his gaze returned out the window. 'Is it really that bad out there for people? For Faunus?' He closed his eyes as he just sighed and reached over. He gave the girl a pat on the head as he spoke up. "Hey… I won't replace your brother, but if you want…" He murmured out the next line. "I wouldn't mind acting like one for you." Hena only blinked in surprise and awe as Cardin sealed his fate. That smile she wore when they first met returned in full force like the rising sun as she reached over and hugged him tightly. "H-hey! Personal space!"
"There's no such thing as personal space!" She couldn't help but laugh and giggle out the phrase her leader had told her on their first day together as a team.
≤ Vales: Outskirts - Indoors ≥
"Then it's fine, Arcana." Ceril was rubbing the bridge of his nose as he was speaking on his scroll with his unreliable teammate. "Send me a picture after you're done. You know how to do that right?" A loud humph broke through the scroll. Making the teen move the scroll away from his ears.
Thankfully he did, 『 O-of course I do! That'll be all! 』 He could clearly hear his least cooperative team member shout out to him before the call had been ended. The teen groaned as he leaned back onto the couch he was sitting on. His legs rose as he crossed them onto a coffee table in the middle of the room.
"That sounds like such a cute friend you have there." A man with a bowler hat spoke up, his own legs were crossed as he rested his cane on his lap.
"I'm not here to talk about my cute friend, Roman. You have something I want, and if you don't. I need you to get it." Roman could only laugh at the audacity of a teenager walking into his neighborhood and making demands. If it wasn't so amusing, he'd of kicked the teen out already.
"No need to be hostile. A business between friends is better than a business between strangers." Ceril frowned as he tilted his head.
"How about we move on. The cuff, I need it." A sigh escaped the red head's lips as he closed his eyes. He didn't even want to be here in the first place. Yet what he needed was literally illegal to sell. Possessing them was one thing, buying them was another thing. Yet selling them was downright illegal. Who made those stupid laws?
"Ah, you mean Atlas' Aura Cuffs? Am I right? Those are indeed quite… rare." Roman gave a knowing smirk. The Cuff was used on maximum security prison for Hunters that broke the law. It locked around the neck and made it completely incapable of using your aura so long as the cuff was charged or active. "Now what would a hunter-in-training from, Beacon need with a one of those?"
The red head shook his head. Don't ask, don't tell was a good philosophy when it came to shady dealings. Finding this part of town wasn't even hard at all. Following the bread crumbs criminals left behind was possibly one of the easiest things he had done to lane him over here. He tried several different establishments like Junior's Club, yet everything he turned to lead him here.
"Look… I'm not trying to be rude or anything. I just want one, will you sell me it?" Roman only laughed as he unfolded his legs and leaned forward towards the red head. A smirk on his face as he spoke up.
"You know those things are illegal to sell." Ceril was about to say 'no shit,' but held his tongue as he just quietly listened. "There you go, a calm face is all you need." Roman's gaze turned to the side in thought, then back at the teen. "So instead of selling, I'll propose. A trade."
The teen narrowed his eyes as he stared at Roman's wide grin. The older man had already won this discussion and he knew that fact well. "Fine… name your price." A wide grin turn feral as the orange haired man bared his teeth. A snap of his finger and one of his more… colorful associates strutted on over. Slowly placing a file neatly in front of him.
The teen removed his feet from the table as emerald eyes met brown and pink. Yet when she blinked, brown turned white and pink turned brown. Ceril shifted his gaze and let them fall onto the file as a gloved hand from the new female began to slowly begin to open its contents. "This man," a picture of a weary old person with a lot of grey hair. "has become a liability." Ceril's eyes sharpened, but Torchiwick quickly cut in. "Now now!" Before the teen could jump to conclusions, Roman spoke quickly. "He was hired to do some research for me and it turned up successful before he… broke relations. All I want is your team to snoop around the area I say. Find him and reveal everything he's done, but before that." The dual colored hair girl would place a tiny looking scroll onto the desk. "Connect this into his system and wait for the upload. Bring the device back to me immediately and our deal is done."
Ceril closed his eyes as he thought about his options. It certainly wasn't a bad deal for him if what he'd be dealing with wasn't anything too dangerous. He could even do this alone without his team if it came down to it. Roman would then whisk his hands as he playfully repeated a phrase from the teen's call earlier. "No Ceril, there aren't any strings attached."
"Fine…" Ceril all but growled out his last words as he palmed the small scroll. His eyes glazed down at the photo one last time. It had an address with a date on the paper. The red head's next action would then be standing up to leave. As he made his way for the door, that very short girl was already standing in place. Holding the door open for him with a small smile on her face.
"Excellent! I do hope to further increase our relations together!" The teen wasn't looking, but he definitely could feel that snarky smirk the man with the bowler hat obviously wore. Ceril gave one last look at the mixed color girl. Her eyes blinked to pale pink and white as her expression narrowed with a wide smirk. The teen blinked himself as his once emerald gaze would then open up to a piercing blue glow. Rather than offset the girl though, her eyes only grew with a more challenging gesture. A grin becoming wider.
An exasperated sigh was given as the red head rolled his eyes. It was obvious that this was one of those women his father told him not to ever get involved with. Downright bat shit crazy. His eyes didn't even fall back onto the girl as he made his way out the door, through the club and back onto the streets.
『 Ping 』The sound made the teen pull out his scroll in response. A picture message had been sent to him. He wondered if she sent a picture because Arcana wanted him to see or just doing it out of spite to show that he indeed did know how to send a massage. Regardless, the red head wasted no time as he opened up the picture which also had a caption to it. 'How does it look?' Arcana's face seemed a bit unsure. That exact question he asked obviously plastered truthfully on his face. A sporting smirk sprung on the teen's lips. He was about to give a reply, but something else caught his gaze as he blinked. Eyes turning back to emerald green.
Quite literally right behind Arcana was Remlin. Who was lost in thought while positioned sideways with a very compromising view of her barely budding chest and quite a nice round… The teen shook his head as he gave a soft chuckle. "Note to self, teach Arcana proper etiquette." He'd then swipe his finger to save the picture while marking the text itself as unread.
≤ Beacon: Dormitory ≥
It was rather late when Ceril finally made it back to his dormitory. He opened the door to see quite a few things happening. Arcana was standing in front of a mirror twirling around in his new dress. Hena was on their shared bed hugging tightly onto her knew fox doll. Was that literally what she bought with the Lien he gave her? 'Well it could had been worse.' The thought stroke through his mind as he looked at Slovik who was just snoring down on his pillow.
"CERIL!" Hena shouted in excitement as she lay her chin on top of the head of the doll.
"CERIL!" A shout came from behind as the door on the opposite end of the hall opened quickly. Remlin tackled him with literally no strength from the back as she reached into his pocket and stole away his scroll. Ceril tilted his head as the girl opened his messages and saw that the picture Arcana had sent was still unread. "Oh thank Oum!" She shouted as the message was inadvertently deleted and the scroll placed back into his pocket. The girl just let off a relaxed hum as she dashed back into the apart. Seeing a wave from a still tired looking Paul before the door closed.
A smirk left his lips as he entered into his room and closed the door. "So what I miss?" He asked as he began to remove his shoes and headed for the shower.
"Not much! I went to the amusement park, Arcana went to the mall and Slovik stayed lazily at Beacon!" The girl was all smile and giggles, absolutely no doubt in anyone's mind that anything had actually happened.
"Shut up, Hena." Slovik mumbled out as he groaned in his bed. Arcana strutted on over to Ceril and looked up to him with a questioned look on his face.
"How does it look…?" The silverette asked as he never had gotten a reply. A small smile left his lips as he patted the girl on the head again. This time no bite came and he spoke up.
"You look good Arcana." He gave an honest answer as the door closed to the bathroom.
AN: Well that's all for now! I don't have much to say here besides to thank the people who've bothered to stick through this mess of a story that I'm currently writing. Any questions, reviews or anything? Feel free to ask!