A Leaf Turned
Chapter 6
Truth, Daring and Training
A week had come and gone for Adam and team RWBY. And in that week the bull Faunus had fallen into a comfortable routine, attend classes, eat lunch with team while speaking the bare minimum for conversations sake, and socialize as little as possible outside of RWBY and occasionally JNPR, who had become fast friends with the RW and Y of RWBY.
Naturally this would come to full realization as Adam, Ruby and Yang and JNP.
Weiss and Ren had both stepped out to study for the upcoming test from professor Peach for her class, so that left them evened out and that was the reason Adam was even seated on the floor in a red tank top, leaning against a bed and crossing his arms over his chest and looking very displeased at the girl seated across from him.
Said girl was one Pyrrha Nikos.
The Invincible Woman, the Prodigy of Mistral, Champion and Amazon. She had so many titles that Adam was honestly unsure if she was really was as humble as she appeared to be or just playing the part to sucker more fans into believing she was a paragon of society like she was made up to be.
Even now she was smiling under the warning glare of his crimson eyes. Eyes that would unsettle anyone else in her position she sat proper and not a bit put off. Finally, when she didn't look away or say "pass" he closed his eyes.
Damnit. Was the single thought before Adam relented. "Truth." He muttered the word as if it were some curse.
He'd been getting by this little game by giving everyone a firm look that said if they didn't pass over him it would be a messy night and so far Ruby, Jaune and even Yang had passed him under prolonged exposure to the glare.
Only Nora and now Pyrrha had resisted. Adam expected Nora only did because she was mentally incapable of feeling fear when Ren wasn't around because the two seemed to be joined at the hip.
Said boys' "Don't go too wild" warning to her before leaving the dorm hadn't helped to dissuade this thought from Adam either.
Pyrrhas' smile widened and she nodded. "Very well," He knew from the very tone of her voice that she had a question planned well in advance. "Where did you train?"
And there it was! The digging into his past because he'd been avoiding the topic all together. While his teammates had been smart enough to avoid pressing the matter, or even broaching it really, it seemed his own question of "Who trained you?" against her in a previous round had come back to haunt him.
Ironic.
He took a moment to figure a response. Outright lying would be easier since there would be no way to confirm or deny his story and they had to accept it at face value, the truth itself would almost certainly be too fantastical and "edgy" as Blake would say. Who would believe him if he said he had been trained by a woman in red who could create wormholes with her sword?
Not many, he decided.
"I was trained outside the kingdoms, so it's not someone you'll know." Adam began his answer, inkling it with truth. "She taught me to use a sword, fed me as well. Treated my like some adopted kid, but that was just until my training was done and she set off again." It was vague, but it was as much truth as he was willing to divulge to them.
The redhead accepted the answer and smiled. "I see."
Looking around, it seemed Ruby and Yang were also pleased at the brief, if vague, insight into his background. Adam was more than a little annoyed because the look Pyrrha was giving gave off the impression she was proud that he shared that much with them at all.
And Adam hated pleasing smug humans.
The game continued well into the night and it was only after an hour that Ren and Weiss returned did the final "round" come into play that Adam took a real interest when it was he who had a ask a truth of his team leader, Ruby Rose. He could have followed the advice of the sign Yang was holding up that said "First crush?" or Nora's own "Pancakes or Cookies?".
But that would be as stupid as the people holding them. So, he instead asked a more profound question.
"Why did you really want to become a Huntress?" He doubted he's receive a real answer, but he had to know. Since she and Weiss' make up some days back, Ruby had poured everything into studying when she previously didn't.
The silver eyed girl appeared thoughtful, honestly contemplating the question with a seriousness he'd never seen since the initiation and when it seemed she reached her answer she just smiled at him. "I want to become a huntress that my mom could be proud of and help all the peoples of Remnant! Human and Faunus!"
Adam, whose life had been scarred time and time again by Human cruelty and malice couldn't comprehend this answer on that night some time ago and even now it boggled him how one little girl could have motives so impossible, so unattainable yet seem so eager to face that difficult path ahead.
Is this the hope that Blake cradled in her heart when she joined me in the White Fang? He wondered to himself as he stared at the red reaper, who was being hugged to death by her older sister who declared her pride for the youngers' response. Even as the game ended, the teams bid each other night and Adam gave his half hearted goodbye and they returned to their dorm was he still stuck on the answer Ruby had given him.
As he lay in bed that night, staring up at the bed above him while replaying Rubys' response over and over again did he finally have a final question for himself before he succumbed to sleep.
Could this little girl really have such hope in so dark a world?
He didn't have the answer, he probably never would too. But Adam was willing to at least believe her for the remainder of these next four years. He sent his report to Blake, who replied with her own and after an exchange of goodnights and well wishes he fell asleep.
"Freezerburn!" Ruby cried as she jumped from the large Ursa Major, who roared and tried to pursue it's target. Only to receive a Glyph accelerated Yang Xiao Long to the chest and the flaming punch that accompanied said blonde. It was send flying back through a pair of trees and skid to a death halt.
Adam twisted his blade in his hold and spun on his heel, slicing the Beowulf that had "snuck" up behind him clean from right shoulder to left hip. He knew it had been there for awhile, but he'd waited until the last moment to react to give off the "last second instinct" feeling of the others, who reacted only when danger was about to happen, as opposed to just sensing the monsters.
The body dissolved and Adam flicked his blade as if cleaning it of blood and he glanced over to see Weiss dispatch a pair of the creatures with a precise series of thrusts with her rapier. He frowned and flicked Blush into Rifle mode.
A moment to aim before he fired and struck down the Beowulf that lunged at her flank. Weiss turned, looked at the dissolving wolf and over to him, rather surprised that he'd aided her.
He didn't even nod before turning and cutting across the waist of another wolf himself.
That was when the ground shook beneath them and RWBY stopped, looking around. Adam glanced left, then right. Another series of rumbles… before they became smaller, faster. Something big was coming and it was coming fast.
"I've got ten lien on it being a Deathstalker." Yang said, grinning as she reloaded her Ember Celica.
"Please," Weiss dismissed standing back closer to her three teammates as they tightened their formation. "Could be an Ursa. In fact, I'm putting ten lien on that." She sniffed, checking her Dust reserves.
"I wanna say… Lots of Beowulves!" Rubys' magazine clattered onto the ground and she loaded another.
Adam listened, closing his eyes and just… Focusing. He picked the direction out and stared, trees fell and the rumblings grew closer. Finally, he said. "A Major Taijitu." He deadpanned and sheathed Wilt back into Blush with a click.
Before they could question his statement the treeline exploded and there it was, the large, fast moving form of the Major Taijitu. Unlike the regular variant, this one's bone plating took addition form of "ribs and spine" along it's entire body and had two additional "horns" on the tops of its' brows.
It hissed out and it's dark head snapped forward, maw agape to swallow whatever it could from the team. "Scatter!"
RWBY obeyed and the four split off, letting the head slam into the ground. Adam however watched as the White Head swung forward and towards him, it's own jaw opened. He narrowed his eyes and readied to summon his semblance, if he couldn't dodge he had to kill it, despite showcasing his true power.
"Freezerburn!" Ruby ordered, pointing to the Black head of the Grimm.
Yang and Weiss jumped into action, eager to engage their stunned foe as it dug it's head from the ground and snarled. Lunging to meet them head on.
A glyph appeared beneath his feet, offering him a platform which he quickly used to propel himself upwards into the air and narrowly dodging the head. He didn't glance again to know it had been the Schnee who aided him. He stared down at the slithering body of the Grimm beneath him.
"Red Bull!" Ruby shouted as she sped forward, her scythe unfolding and she hefted it up as she became a blur of crimson that slid beneath the exposed neck of the snake and then she shot upwards to "hook" her scythe blade down onto the throat of the massive beast.
Adam curled his fingers around Wilt's handle smirked in time with Ruby as they pulled the respective triggers of their weapons. A pair of powerful gunshots propelled them into their attacks as Ruby cut upwards, carving black scales and red flesh while Adam sheared white bone and met her half way through the monster.
Their blades clashed, creating a shower of sparks that accompanied the shower of blood around them as they passed each other on their ways up and down.
Adam landed, the head of the Grimm not far behind him, exhaling what remained of it's last breath. He slowly slid Wilt back into Blush and with a click! Ruby landed beside him, her scythe supported on her shoulder and when he turned his head to give her a look, she gave him a thumbs up.
The bull Faunus just chuckled and stood.
Across from their own battle, the other head was defeated, Yang, using Weiss' Time Acceleration to beat the snakes armored skull into a pulp and allow the Schnee to finish it with a piercing stop that no doubt skewered it's brain. Both heads dissolved and so too did the body.
Team RWBY stood victorious.
"Oh yeah!" Ruby pumped her fist. "Who's bad? We're bad! Team RWBY is the best!"
Yang joined in, punching Adam in the shoulder and wrapping an arm around Weiss' shoulder, much to the heiress' chagrin, but Adam saw that small, pleased smile on pale lips all the same. Ruby stood forward and proclaimed "Champions of Beacon for all time!".
He chuckled and shook his head. These were still low level Grimm and hardly anything to write home about, but even he couldn't bring himself to tell them that and crush the energy they were parading around with at the moment, it just wouldn't feel right. "I suppose we are good for something." He said, his own two cents into the celebration.
"Right! Next time, we gotta work more on our pairing attacks! Yang, you and Adam are perfect! Weiss, perfect work with Yang, Adam, you too! But! Tomorrow, we work on Flame Charge and Schneedam!"
"What?" Adam and Weiss stared at Ruby, ignoring the fact they again spoke at the same time and said the same thing.
"Schneedam! It's what I'm calling your pairing attack." Ruby announced, nodding as if the very name didn't sound utterly ridiculous. And it did, it really, really did.
"…Yeaaaah." Weiss began, crossing her arms to match Adams' own stance beside her.
"No." Said bull finished with a frown. Before Ruby could ask why he continued, to clarify. "We can work together, but why Schneedam?" That was the real question here, why did their pairing attack name sound so… silly?
"Uh, because it combines your two names and it rolls off the tongue?" His leader replied as if were obvious.
It really didn't help the pair understand. "…It doesn't." Weiss frowned. "It sounds stupid and forced."
"I hate to agree with the Schnee," Adam ignored the indignant "hey!" in favor of further explaining. "But it does sound dumb. Seriously, the others I can see, but Schneedam?"
Seeing Ruby begin to pout, before finally an idea seemed to strike her because she grinned shortly after. "Well! In that case, you and Weiss!" She tapped Adam on the chest with that same grin. "Have an assignment for the rest of the day! You two must come up with a good pairing attack name for yourselves! I expect it by tomorrow."
Before either part of the pairing could protest Ruby turned and rushed off, waving over her shoulder as she rushed back towards Beacon, calling out over her shoulder with a "Good luck and I know you two can do it!"
Yang, snickering the whole argument, finally broke into gut wrenching laughter at the expressions Weiss and, even if he wasn't aware he'd been wearing one, his own before she too followed after Ruby,
Left behind, Adam sighed and looked to Weiss, who stared back at him. They didn't speak, blink nor move. They just stood there in silence before they nodded in a mutual agreement that this could wait until much later, much, much later. For now they were hungry from training and so they moved to catch up with their teammates.
They remained silent with one another the entire walk.
End of chapter 6
There it is, Chapter 6! And wow did it take awhile, that said, I have a reason! The Finale of RWBY Volume 3. I just, I cannot. It was so intense! So insane! I loved it. And hated it. And loved it again.
I'm sure you can all understand why if you've seen it, so I won't say much for those of you who didn't, but if you haven't, go do so! Now! Wait! Review, fav and follow THEN go see it!
Thank you, have a nice day/night