PLEASE READ THE AUTHOR'S NOTE AT THE END OF THE CHAPTER!
Ah, Vytal festival season. A time where Hunters and Huntresses in training from across all of Remnant come to prove their worth on a stage, broadcasted live everywhere to so everyone can see the close victories and total losses experienced by these armed teens. Yet, here I was, watching the tournament from our small corner store in the city on a small TV on my cashier station.
I was glad for the quiet day, I really was. It provided some entertainment during an expectedly slow day. Students fought and either won and lost, usually in an epic way thanks to their dynamic weapons and strategies.
Tyler was off today; Sanctum students were allowed the weak off to observe the Vytal Festival and "take notes" on the fighters. A nice break from classes that I never got to experience as a civilian. Tania was sat in a stool beside me, watching along. It was already four in the afternoon, the start of the homeward rush hour. And yet… the roads were still relatively silent. Peaceful.
The Colosseum fights stopped at around 5 o'clock, thus allowing foreign students to explore the city and see the sights. We weren't as "shiny" with technology like Atlas, nor did we have the exotic climate of Vacuo, but we still had a sort of welcoming feel for all to enjoy.
The door chimes sounded, and I brought my attention to the source: a couple of students whose uniforms' color schemes alluded to Atlas Academy. The young, dark-skinned man wore a black fedora and had a lonely black glove on his left hand. His attire was similar that of a man relaxing after a day of work. His companion was a young woman who wore her orange hair in pigtails. She wore a light blue tank top and a short pink skirt with a white and gold belt. Her right arm sported a rainbow tattoo.
"Hi there!" Tania greeted from beside me, hopping off of her stool. "Do you need help looking for something?"
"Yeah, do you have any supplies for…" The young man's voice trailed off as Tania walked alongside him, supposedly towards the items he needed.
"So…" The ginger dragged out the word. She also had cat tail that I had not noticed before, waving lazily behind her. "You work in this small convenience-slash-grocery store, huh?"
"Yup." I answered simply.
"Doesn't that get boring?" She asked, dragging out the last word. That would be getting old fast.
"Not really." I said. "I sometimes read on slow days."
"That sounds pretty lame." She commented snidely.
"I like to think reading keeps my mind sharp." I said putting my hand on my accompanying book on my station. She sounded a lot like my little sister, but much, much more annoying. Before I could say anything, there was a flash of color and she suddenly had my book, carelessly scanning through the pages with a bored expression. She closed it with a light slam.
"Boring!" She concluded, proud of her actions, though I had something that could wipe that smug smirk off her face.
"No roller skates in the store, please." I hadn't noticed them before, but her sudden movement earlier had included the telltale sound of roller-skate wheels against the tiles. I pointed at the door, on which it bore a sign of silhouette of roller-skates crossed out.
"B-but," Now she was flustered.
"I can't service you or your partner if you don't remove them." I said, hiding the smug look within.
"Neon, just do it." Her partner appeared at the end of my station, placing his items onto the belt. Neon, who hmph'd at me as she untied and removed her modes of transportation to reveal a pair of normal sneakers underneath. "Sorry 'bout her. She can be a bit eccentric."
"No worries," I assured; she wasn't the most annoying chick I've met. Besides, Tyler gave me the same lip when he started working here and experienced the first slow day. I scanned the cool dude's stuff. "That'll be 50 Lien." He paid with a credit card, and went on his way with bagged goods. "Good luck up there!" I called after them, out of courtesy. Their only sign of having heard me was the young man's outstretch hand in a backward wave, and Neon's raspberry aimed at me.
"You didn't have to antagonize her." Tania said from her station, cleaning up some stray water puddles on the conveyor belt.
"She didn't have to insult my hobby of reading." I countered.
"Petty."
"Meanie."
"Child."
Silence for a few moments.
"You free to chill tonight?" Tania asked.
"Yeah," I answered. "Junior's?"
"Hell yeah!" She responded.
. . . . .
"I'll never understand why adults like to drink so much." Tyler shook his head as he handed me and Tania coffee and Dustynol. "If it turns you guys into groaning zombies the next day, then it doesn't even seem worth it."
"You don't need to worry about us." I said, popping the pain meds quickly into my mouth.
"We're perfectly responsible adults." Tania added.
"Who seem to be so in control of their lives and futures right now." Tyler rolled his eyes. "Seriously, though, why work in a convenience store of all places?"
"Civilian work, Tyler." I said. "Not everyone has enough Aura, let alone the ability to properly fight against Grimm and evil like you do."
"So we do our best to provide service to Hunstmen and civilians alike." Tania added.
"But, there are other jobs that do the same, and for much more pay!" Tyler complained. "At least I'm here for part-time money, but you guys seem smart and capable enough to do something more than this!"
"I'm a rather well-known book reviewer online," I noted aloud. "I get paid pretty well off of that. Tania also works as an online consultant and tutor, which is pretty well-paying on its own. We do just fine, Tyler.
"Then… why here?" The Signal Academy student asked.
"It's…"I turned to my fellow senior employee for help with this one.
"It's a nice constant, for me." Tania answered. "When things get crazy with Grimm and the Council and politics, it's nice to come here and work on something that isn't too demanding. It's a bit of an escape, as weird as it seems."
"And you, boss?" Tyler asked me. "Don't you want to be remembered for something more than this?"
"Well…" I thought for a moment. "What's the point of moving out of this point? I'm comfortable here and making decent money from both sources of income that keeps me fed and housed. I don't attract too much attention like a Hunstman or even a policeman would, so I feel relatively safe. That way, I stay a nobody that people don't have to worry about."
"A nobody?" Tyler repeated. "That's… boring."
"Like I said, Tyler." I said. "I'm pretty safe here."
"We have different reasons for what we do," Tania put a hand on the younger employee's shoulder. "It doesn't mean we are of less value in society compared to Hunstman. We rely on each other dearly, and to do that, we all must be in positions we can handle and feel comfortable in."
"I… don't really understand it." Tyler said, after taking a moment of contemplation. "But, if you guys really are happy with where you are right now, I won't fight you on it."
. . . . .
It was hours until Tyler spoke again, as a great rush of students and workers alike swarmed the store for snacks and other necessities. It was already evening, and Tania had clocked out a while ago by now. I caught the young teen staring at me from his station.
"Something on your mind, Ty?" I asked, checking to make sure there wasn't any lingering customers in the store aisles.
"Aren't you certified to medically care for Hunstmen?" He asked. I nodded. "Why would you need that?"
"Emergencies." I said. "It's better to know something that helps the cause against the Grimm that to panic and waste time looking for another person who can provide such care. In that time, any Huntsman could die. I plan on helping if needed."
"What's… really thoughtful." Tyler muttered.
"For all it's worth," I sighed. "If you ever find yourself stumbling with a limp, but without enough money to cover your clinic bill, stop on by my apartment and I'll see what I can do, alright?"
"Alright." Tyler smiled. "Thanks, boss."
"You can stop calling me boss." I said. "You know that's not gonna be true soon."
"Then what should I call you?" Tyler said. I paused for a moment, looking at the clock.
"You can call me…" I trailed off as a vibration went off on my Scroll; Tania had messaged me.
"Well?" Tyler asked enthusiastically.
"You can call me when you've finished closing up shop." His face when I said that was priceless. "I've got quite an important appointment to get to tonight, so I can't close up for tonight."
With that, I left Tyler shaking his head, rolling his eyes, and laughing in that order, to get changed for my date with Tania. It was our third date, and things were starting to get promising.
"Good luck out there, boss." Tyler bid farewell, as I walked to the store's doors, fully changed into semi-casual clothes for my date tonight. "I wish I could've gotten your name sooner, y'know, before you left me here to rot on my own."
"You'll be fine." I rolled my eyes. Tyler would be starting Beacon in a few weeks, so Mr. X would be hiring and training a brand new staff, without the teen, Tyler, and myself. Neo had stopped coming for her ice cream ages ago, though I suspected it was because she was involved with something fishy after being a part of the whole Neapolitan Heist back then. Ember Autumn stopped calling for 'stress relief' once Vytal started, so there was that connection gone. Pretty much all my time has been eaten up by reading and Tania, lately. I shrugged and continued with, "And remember, I'm just a nobody out here in Vale."
"I'll make sure to remember the wacky tales you'd have for me, then." Tyler said. "Maybe I'll write 'em down."
"You do that, buddy." I said. With one last departing glance, I smiled at the kid and left with, "Good luck out there, Tyler."
"Go and take care of Tania already, dude." We shared a laugh, then a wave, then I was gone.
There's nothing for a nobody in Vale to do but to fade into the background, behind the scenes of the Huntsmen that defend our cities and lives. Usually, I was okay with that. But Tyler was right, because I did want to be remembered for helping people, for doing more than just that station. But I couldn't.
Ain't that a bitch?
Nah, not really. I'm just glad that I've found a new constant. Tania and I were happy. My reading made me happy. And I think we'd manage to enjoy the peace while we still have it.
Besides, it's not like Vale's gonna be invaded in the middle of the Vytal Festival, right? That's crazy!
Author's Note: Heyo everyone, BleachCadelina here with a bittersweet piece of news: This is the last chapter of Nobody's Tale in Vale.
While it was fun making this story up, and taking some suggestions, I personally started to lack the time and interest in keeping this one going while the other projects started to stack up against me.
I'm still working on that Mistral SYOC story, it's just all so slow going with what life is hitting me with. The RWBYxME fic is fun to work on, as I'm not really taking it seriously, but it takes time to work on that as well.
My first FanFiction story, for Food Wars (Shokugeki no Soma) has been on hiatus for too long and needs an update soon.
Another story on my backburners, for Pokemon, is slowly coming together, though it needs work as to what the actual story is.
So, as you may see, that's a lot on my plate for this story to have any stake in. I hope you understand, and I hope you enjoyed the story that is Nobody's Tale in Vale. I appreciate the love and attention you all did give it, and I hope you give the same treatment to the other fics I work on.
Thanks again, BleachCadelina out!