V3E2: Fortune Favours Foresight


The deafening roar of the crowd reverbed throughout the arena like pure, unadulterated sonic hype. Cheers and jeers flew like popcorn being popped in the machines distributing them to the unwashed masses. Mercury kept flicking popped kernels into his mouth, the fake butter and cheese flavour busying his tastebud. He leaned towards the seat to his left, where his partner enjoyed a fruity soda.

"Y'know," he said with his mouth full, chewing disgustingly loud. "I wonder who's gonna win. Who'd you think's gonna take home the prize?"

Emerald leaned away from him with an exclamation of disgust, repulsed by her partner's eating manners.

"Would it kill you to not talk with your mouth full?! You're spitting popcorn on me!"

"Still didn't answer my question."

"As if it wasn't obvious enough!"

A fine feminine hand reached into Mercury's bucket, pulling out an unpopped kernel with an exaggerated flair. Cinder took a seat next to her green underling, crossing her legs and rolling the kernel between her fingers.

"Emerald dearest," She purred as she looked into the arena's battlegrounds. "You should know by now that even though you might know how the story ends, that doesn't make it any less fun to watch it unfold."

Her eyes glowed an ardent orange as burning hot air enveloped her fingertips, popping the kernel right into her mouth. The artificial aromas made her sneer in revulsion but she nonetheless swallowed her mouthful. Unbeknownst to CME*, the one person who's been a constant thorn in their collective sides sat right behind them with quite an unimpressed expression.

"Tryhard," he muttered as he made yet another bid on the match.

Gambling was not something he would normally recommend to most people but when you already know who's gonna win, it's a simple must.

Besides, it's not like it wasn't fun to see morons lose their money to some greedy cunt in a wheelchair.

"Eh. If you're so certain about the outcome, you'd best get in on this,"

Emerald and Mercury jolted stiffly in their seat, whipping their head around to meet his gaze. Merc was stiff as a board, looking like he was about to jump him right then and there while Emerald kept calm if weary of him. Cinder kept her eyes to the battlefield, a seductive smile creeping across her velvety lips.

"Should I?" She half-questioned, sounding more interested in his query than the possible dosh.

"Absolutely, you're missing on some serious dosh."

Despite his egging, his tone was openly venomous. Her uncovered eye was still fixated on the field and refused to even meet his stabbing stare.

"What do you think about this match, dearheart?"

Hope's red-hot glare turned ice cold at this new nickname.

"If I wasn't in a wheelchair, I'd throttle you."

"Such hostility." She said, flippant and uncaring of his death threat. "Yet I don't think we've done anything to merit such vitriol."

"Riiiiiiight, you haven't." he drolled bitterly.

The thief and the murderer stared at the scene, almost afraid to interrupt. Hope obviously knew who and what they'd done and Cinder didn't care in the least that he did. Was this part of her plan? Since he was crippled, does it mean that he's far less of a threat now and she's allowing herself to gloat? Many more questions like these popped into their heads. Hope leaned back into his seat, exhaling angrily through his nose.

"You must feel so smug right now."

"I'd be lying if I didn't admit to a little twinge of self-satisfaction."

"Cunt." He spat.

"Maybe." She admitted. "But a talented one. Wouldn't you agree?"

He scoffed.

"So talented that your plans keep getting ruined by some asshole in a wheelchair."

Their verbal spar was cut off by the arena's speakers blaring to life as the familiar baritones of Peter Port guffawed a greeting.

"ONCE MORE INTO THE FRAY WE GO! The second team match of today will be most interesting!"

Oobleck's voice joined his portly friend and coworker's, devoid of his usual hyper-speed speech. He didn't sound tired or sluggish either, just... Normal. He sounded normal. And strangely soothing, like a cozy blanket on a cold rainy day.

"Interesting indeed. If the previous match was but a taste of what's to be expected, then this one will be as high octane."

"Quite!" Port laughed. "I can hardly wait! Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome Beacon's very own Team JNPR!"

The gates of the right entrance hall opened with a dramatic boom as Pyrrha strode out, radiating confidence with the practiced coolness of a top-level athlete. Ren and Nora were next with the Wuxia calmly walking forward as the energetic valkyrie waved at the crowd excitedly. Jaune was at the back of the pack, not so much meek as simply nervous. He was used to fighting in an enclosed area ala Beacon's sparing arena with Goodwitch and his classmates bearing down on him. Now? thousands upon thousands of people were looking at him and he didn't have the luxury of Glynda intervening when he was in over his head.

He had to do his best because if he messes up, he was pretty certain that it won't end with him getting berated but something far, far worse.

Oobleck's deeper treble animated the speakers once more.

"And Shade's Team BRNZ."

The doors of the right entrance burst open as well as two men rocketed to the forefront. The pair were as dynamic as they were flamboyant, posing dramatically as they slid to a halt. The pair were none other than Brawnz Ni and his partner Nolan Porfirio. Behind them were the other, more restrained and tired half of Team BRNZ. May Zedong and Roy Stallion walked into the arena looking like they really didn't want to be there with these two. The Flamboyant Duo left their pose only to join hands and kiss one another's joined fists, lifting it high into the air. May sighed, shaking her head. Now was not the time to be lovey-dovey of all times! Roy patted his partner on the shoulder, smiling leniently at the two. Even though it wasn't the time nor the place, at least it was nice that they were so happy together. May reluctantly agreed, nodding her head nervously as she went to join her leader and his boyfriend with her partner.

Hope blinked multiple times.

"Dafuk? I thought... I thought he would be with..." He groaned. "You know what? I'll just ask Scarlet once I get the chance."

He noticed that May also wore her beanie normally instead of wearing it over one of her eyes.

"Well, at least she'll have full peripheral vision..." he paused. "Why do I have this sense of foreboding?"

Cinder hummed curiously.

"Perhaps it is merely anticipation." She shrugged. "But back to what I said."

Hope's eyes narrowed as Cinder elaborated.

"Who wins?"

Hope leaned back, crossing his legs.

"BRNZ has a consistently mediocre record." Hope explained neutrally. "They win more than they lose but they have a tendency to do better in wars of attrition. The longer they go for, the more likely their victory. JNPR has an overall better baseline with a lot of their victories being complete steamrolls but certain members have a tendency to underperform despite their best efforts."

Cinder smirked.

"And you chastised me for studying other teams."

Hope glared at her.

"The difference is, you're trying to get everyone killed, Cinder."

Emerald palmed something hooked to her waist, a fact Hope was very privy to despite his apparent ambivalence.

"Don't," Cinder ordered coldly, stopping the thief in her track.

Emerald looked back at a sneering Hope before moving her hand away from her waist. Cinder's smile returned.

"In any case..." she poked her cheek pensively. "Tell you what,"

Cinder took out a ten thousand Lien card and presented it to Hope.

"I have a bet. JNPR wins."

Hope scoffed.

"I'm not betting on an obvious loss, forget it."

"Then let's make it interesting!" She dangled the card in front of Hope, who completely ignored it. "JNPR wins, but I have a conditional."

Hope raised an eyebrow, telling her to elaborate. She obliged.

"Jaune Arc is obviously the weak link of the group and will therefore be the only member of the team that will be taken out."

Hope blinked deliberately, switching his sight to his yellow friend. He looked nervous, shifting his stance for no concrete reason and hunching slightly. His posture just screamed "insecure". Suddenly, Jaune let out a deep breath and walked to the front of his team. His posture straightened and his gaze focused on Brawnz. He smiled and held out his hand.

"Let's do our best." Jaune offered friendly.

The opposing leader smiled widely and shook the future paladin's hand vigorously.

"Heck yeah! I'd take it personally if you went it easy on us!"

Hope beamed endearingly at the exchange. Cinder paused, her eyes resting on his expression. Such joy from such a pointless action. She felt her heart squeeze painfully and held back a grinding growl of bitterness. Hope's eyes finally came back to her and he grinned wickedly.

"Jaune's going to do just fine. He'll stand shoulder to shoulder with his team!"

She scoffed.

"Skill is all that matters on the battlefield, everything else is just fluff."

Hope chuckled condescendingly.

"We'll see about that, now won't we?"


The ground shifted and churned as its very makeup changed from a simple flat plain to a crooked and mountainous forest clad in a thunderstorm. JNPR looked into the dense forest they were now stranded in as thunder clapped above. Nora immediately began grinning.

"Oh, this is going to be sooooo easy!" She gloated, her eyes to the roiling skies.

Ren flashed a serious frown.

"Nora, remember what we talked about."

She rolled her eyes exaggeratedly while blowing raspberries.

"Yes, Ren. No needless charging."

Jaune unsheathed his sword.

"I mean, we do have a reason to charge her up, though."

"If I'm going to be crass, Jaune, you're not the one sticking your cock in what's practically an electrical socket on a weekly basis."

Jaune restrained a snort.

"When you put it that way, I think I understand why you're so reticent." he paused. "That's how you use that word, right?"

"Yes, it is," Ren confirmed. "So I would like it if we kept using her semblance to a minimum."

They heard a disapproving groan. JNPR kicked into action, the shield bearers immediately raising their bulwark to cover their two unarmored companions as they readied their lethal armaments.

"Oh come on!" They heard through the trees. "I thought we agreed to not go easy on each other!"

Jaune immediately recognized the voice of the opposite team's leader. He steeled himself as he anchored his feet to the ground.

"Never said we weren't going to, it's just that..." Jaune smiled tauntingly. "It's just that we don't want to beat you guys right out the gate!"

Brawnz began chortling excitedly.

"HOHOHO-OH! Now I can hardly wait to see what you bastards have in stock!"

Jaune unsheathed his sword from his shield deliberately as he caught a glimpse in the corner of his eye. Deep in the leafage of the trees, a sniper scope glimmered shortly as lightning illuminated the skies. Jaune subtly nudged Pyrrha with his elbow.

"Sniper on my left," he whispered to his partner. "Be careful."

"Roger that," she whispered back.

Jaune glanced at the lovers and they acknowledged his warning with a nod. Confident, Jaune looked straight ahead where he made out Brawnz and Roy's frames. The yellow page roared a challenge to his enemies like a lion.

"BRING IT!"


Emerald crossed her legs as she witnessed the two groups finally clash. Right from the get-go, she could tell that Team BRNZ would have a steep uphill battle if they were to win. Their sniper, May, was by far the least competent in terms of close-quarter combat so the moment one of the members of JNPR gets tired of getting stung at, she'll be more done than an overcooked steak. It didn't really surprise her, seeing as she was more of a long-range medic type who plinks from afar and patches you up when the fight's done. the others are unremarkable skill-wise, except maybe Brawnz. That guy was built like a miniature tank and it looked like if he were to hit, it would hurt like heck. But the one thing that elevated them out of failure was very simple.

Pure, uncut stamina.

Hope's assessment of them excelling at battles of attrition was a correct one. 66% percent of their victorious bouts were a result of them outlasting their opponents. Nolan especially is well known at Shade for taking hits like a champion and blocking strikes aimed at his comrades. Roy was a complete jobber but by the gods, he can dodge. May was always a mile away plinking at her opponents with her sniper rifle while they get pinned down, wearing them down to make victory that much more likely.

Emerald heard a hum from behind her, where she found Hope in a similar position to her. His legs were crossed, slouching slightly in his seat and staring at the fight.

"Yeah, BRNZ is boned," he announced loudly.

People all around him began groaning nervously as they thumbed their wallets. This made Emerald giggle like a schoolgirl.

"Betting men?" She asked the seer.

A toothy smirk animated his mouth.

"Losing men more like."

"You're pretty devious, aren't you?"

"Me? Devious? How generous."

He rubbed his chin with his index.

"I think evil fits me more."

The irony didn't fly over anyone's head, especially not Mercury.

"Oh, wow! You bet some money and it's probably going to go in your favour!" he clapped his hands together. "How very evil..."

Hope's eyes hardened as they landed on the murderer's frame. The man in grey recoiled immediately as he felt the animosity hit him all at once.

"Evil: the capacity of which people have to accomplish acts that can be construed as morally wrong and/or wicked." Hope quoted.

He leaned forward slowly towards the rapidly tensing Mercury.

"Last I checked," he whispered. "Murder is traditionally considered immoral and/or wicked. And I'm not talking about the girl I drove to suicide."

He leaned back into his seat and returned his severe gaze to the battlefields before him. Mercury tried to disregard the open threat but he was still visibly tense. Emerald looked uneasy as well, although overly aware of Hope's condition, she couldn't help but feel like that wouldn't stop him. Cinder glanced over to Hope, curious. Murder? Perhaps he's less the hero he's been painted as for her. How...

Intriguing.

...

The fight between BRNZ and JNPR went completely differently than it did in Canon. Hope felt as if he entered a version of Remnant where everyone is far more competent than they should be. BRNZ was putting up one hell of a fight and JNPR refused to let themselves fall short. Jaune had taken charge of blocking May's bullets while everyone else was busy being locked in a melee. The markswoman in question was covered by the brush on an elevated, narrow and rocky cliff. May immediately started getting impatient, her mood made obvious by her rapid firing of her sniper with little consideration of who got hit. Jaune hadn't made any tactical blunder so far and the few times his team got badly hit, it was Nora biting off more than she could chew. It wasn't helped by the fact that Branwz was adamant in feeding her as many knuckle sandwiches as he could slug at her. Nolan's cattle prod gave Jaune a wicked idea and one shared look with his pink valkyrie friend made the devilishly simple plan come together. Slowly, Jaune began leading his team away from their current position, not in a retreat but to get closer to BRNZ's sharpshooter. Once they got close enough, Jaune gave the signal.

"DIVIDE AND CONQUER!"

At that precise moment, Everyone in Team JNPR broke off and ran for the metaphorical hills. Branwz saw Jaune gunning for May and he was having none of it.

"Oh no, you don't!"

The brawler went to intercept but a flying kick to the ribs sent him rolling to the floor. Brawnz looked out with gritted teeth as the Wuxia of Team JNPR stood between him and his mark.

"If you want to fight him," Ren announced. "Then you will have to go through me first."

Branwz wiped his nose with his forearm and gently hit his side, his ribs responding with dull aching.

"Ok then." The brawler put his hands up, ready to fight. "Your move."

May peered over the battlefield through her scope like a hawk. Everyone had broken off in different directions and the only two in the open were the guy in green from JNPR and Brawnz. Her team leader had a habit of being the most competent guy in a fight but she stagnated on them a bit longer. She didn't know how skilled that green guy was and it was better to be safe and help her boss in case anything goes wrong.

In the stands, an unimpressed Hope held his head frustratedly.

"Tunnel vision," Hope commented.

Emerald nodded in agreement.

"Really bad tunnel vision," she added. "I mean, look at Jaune. He's running in a straight line!"

Just outside May's vision, the yellow page ran with the subtlety of a stampeding herd. Yet despite how obvious of a target Jaune was, May was far too focused on her boss's fight. Fortunately, it didn't take her too long to realize that someone was after her. Unfortunately, the realization came at the point of Jaune's sword. A metallic glint from the corner of her left eye alerted her to Jaune's presence and she turned just in time to get slashed. Panicked, the markswoman turned her sniper rifle into a double magazine burst-fire personal defence weapon and sprayed wildly at her attacker.

However, Jaune had a shield.

The page held up his shield arm and withstood her barrage of lead, walking through the rapid-fire assault. With every inch he advanced, she took a step back. In her retreat, her foot caught a rock and she tripped over the edge of the cliff. A scream left her mouth as her body went over the edge, her life only saved by her free hand catching the cliff face with a precarious grip. Jaune's fighting instinct evaporated once he saw her tip over the edge. The future paladin threw his sword aside as he dashed to her aid. He hung his upper half off the cliff, his hand held out toward May.

"Take my hand, quick!"

May squealed fearfully as her grip began failing. She stared at her other hand, still gripping her gun. She sighed sadly as she let her gun go, cringing as it crashed against the rocks at the base of the cliff. Her weapon had to be trashed the sound it made was so awful. She held her now free hand up, reaching for her saviour. The tip of their fingers brushed together but a sudden cracking sound alerted the two competitors. Suddenly, her grip failed. Not because her sweaty hand slipped, but because the rock she held unto snapped under her weight. She gasped as everything went slow but just as she thought she was going to freefall, Jaune threw his hand out and grabbed her hoodie's zipper. The zipper immediately snapped but the halting momentum gave May enough reaction time to grab his arm. She let out another quick, fearful squeal as the cracking sound returned. With the help of her enemy, she hoisted herself back up. the pair dashed as the edge rapidly crumbled to pieces. Once they were out of danger, the out-of-breath pair sprawled out on the stone floor.

"T-thank you." May coughed out.

"It... It was nothing." Jaune panted. "Sorry about your gun."

"Fixing it's gonna be a pain..." she whined. "But I'd rather lose my gun than break my back on the rocks."

"Understandable."

Jaune hoisted himself up with an exertive groan. Once up and about, the knight looked for his sword. To his surprise, it was lodged in the stone of the cliff. Seems like he threw it really hard. Baffled, he huffed before taking back his family blade and sheeting it. May sighed sadly as she looked up to her saviour.

"I guess I'm out, seeing as I lost my weapon."

"I mean, unless you can throw a punch."

She waved down the idea.

"Nah, that's Brawnz's job. I hit like a feather."

Jaune held his hand out to his prone rival, smiling.

"You still did really well. It was really scary when I saw the chunks you took out of my Aura!"

She smiled back, taking his hand.

"Thanks, you did pretty well yourself."

As she was about to be hoisted up, her hoodie's broken zipper finally popped open. What was previously thought to be a modest bust turned out to be far larger than anyone could have thought. The sweaty bandages binding her chest came loose, her dignity only barely hidden by her now wide-open hoodie. Jaune's face flushed red as he immediately turned away. May ripped her hand away and held her top closed. The two stayed silent for a moment despite the playful cheering and jeering of the crowd.

"... Let me escort you down to the safe zone," he offered shyly as he helped her up.

"Yes, please and thank you," she muttered quickly as she rapidly walked away.

The rowdy rafters kept cheering and booing as the large screen displaying the combatant's statuses crossed out May's portrait, her name replaced by the exclamation of a technical knockout. Hope clapped with a proud grin.

"Selfless heroism AND wardrobe malfunction? That's my boy."

His smug smirk wasn't all unwarranted, seeing as Jaune held up well so far. Cinder shook her head.

"The match isn't over yet."

A resounding twang echoed down in the arena. Roy Stallion just learned the hard way what happens when Pyrrha throws her shield. A boisterous guffaw came from the speakers once more.

"Oh well, oh well, oh well! It seems we have a double elimination! May Zedong and Roy Stallion have been eliminated! How will BRNZ turn the tide now that their support duo is down?!"

Hope's smirk widened into an awful grin.

"you'z wuz sayin'?"

Cinder deigned him a disdainful glance.

"That disgusting look doesn't fare well on you. Quit it."

Hope raised a confused brow.

"The fuck does that mean?"

Cinder went to explain in a needless show of eloquence but realized something weird.

Why did she say that? Why would she care about how he acted?

It wasn't her place to tell him how to act, seeing how forthright and honest he had been while her first interaction with him was an attempt at deception. But there was just something that tugged at her when he smiled in that way. She mentally shrugged before watching over the match once more.

The lovers of BRNZ stood back to back as JNPR's own power couple circled them like vultures. Nolan had previously regrouped with his boyfriend when he realized he couldn't take Nora on alone. You know, safety in numbers. Unfortunately, their numbers were even.

"Damnit!" Nolan cursed. "Where the hell are Roy and May?!"

"They're out, dum-dum." Brawnz playfully reminded him, smiling defiantly at the current adversity.

"Wait, for real?!"

A quick look at the scoreboard revealed the terrible reality that the pair were on their own.

"Oh!" he exclaimed. "Crap."

"Yeh, I think we're boned." Brawnz agreed.

The leader of BRNZ saw Ren walk forward a few steps, entering an aggressive stance.

"I'm glad that you see that. You can still forfeit and avoid a crushing defeat." He offered. "There is no shame in surrender."

The lovers looked at one another, as if asking the other if this is what they wanted. The pair smiled, already knowing the answer.

"HECK NO!" Nolan bellowed.

"We're taking this to the end, baby!" Branwz declared as he rushed his opponent in green.

Ren sighed as he deftly deflected the leader's gauntleted fist. Ren kept deflecting and redirecting his strikes, squeezing in the occasional unarmed strike in his opponent's torso. Ren began noticing a strange tick that his enemy had. Every time he would get hit, he would tense up unnaturally and gently hit the spot where had been struck.

On the other end of the field, Nora's fight with Nolan led a lot to be desired. Nora. was. bored. Nolan was playing it way too safe, blocking almost constantly and being really annoying about it too.

"Stop! Freaking! SQUEALING!" Nora whined as Nolan dodged the massive flat of Brunhildr's head.

"I CAN'T HELP IT, OK!?" Nolan whined back. "SORRY IF I'M REALLY AFRAID OF GETTING MY ASS FLATTENED. I MEAN SERIOUSLY, WHY IS YOUR HAMMER SO BIG?!"

"TO BETTER MAKE PANCAKES!"

"Wait, really?"

"NO, REN COOKS FOR ME! BECAUSE LAST TIME I TRIED, I RUINED ALL THE PANS AND BROKE THE STOVE! NOW SHUT UP AND LET ME HIT YOU!"

"NYOH!"

"LET ME PANCAKE YOU!"

"NEVER!"

Brawnz's continued tick of hitting his injuries led Ren to suspect some sort of foul play at hand and rather than see it unfold, chose to end things quickly. Brawnz's next hit was parried instead of deflected, Ren's nimble hand striking away the blow then roundhouse kicking the enemy leader square on the chin. Brawnz recoiled drastically from the hit but stayed upright. Ren tilted his head curiously as he noticed another thing about his opponent.

Why do his muscles look like steel cables all of a sudden?

A sudden burst of movement woke Ren out of thought as Branwz leaped into the air for a leaping overhead strike. His sudden speed surprised the wuxia but managed to just miss his enemy by a hair. Ren felt the blow graze against his stomach, the bladed knuckles of Branwz's gauntlet tearing a hole in his shirt. The strike hit the ground, rupturing it and blowing chunks of rocks in all directions. Ren brought his arms up to cover his face as the shrapnel tore into his Aura, bringing it into the yellow and very nearly taking the Wuxia out of the fight.

Hope squinted incredulously as he saw Ren nearly get dropped like a bag of bricks.

"The fuck was that?"

Cinder rubbed her chin as she hummed thoughtfully.

"His semblance, most probably."

Emerald took out her scroll and nodded in agreement.

"Yes. Brawnz Ni's semblance allows him to hold the kinetic energy received in combat and unleash it in one devastating attack."

Hope leaned over her shoulder as she played a video of Brawns sparring with a familiar monkey man. the video showed footage of the two men sparring in what looked like a hole in a desert. Sun Wukong was obviously kicking all kinds of ass and Brawnz was not up to the task of taking the overly agile monkey king on. his Aura dropped to into the orange and, similarly to Ren's situation, Brawns just took the hits before betting it all on a one-shot hit. Sun got hit like a freight train just as he shot Brawnz in the face, ending the match on a technical draw as both men dropped to the floor.

"Where the fuck did you get this?" Hope questioned.

"It was on his boyfriend's socials." Emerald shrugged. "Guy posts every day about his and his team's spars and workouts like some sort of wannabe celebrity."

Hope had no reply to this. From what he's seen of this Nolan, it seems to check out.

Her beloved's pained scream made Nora's heart skip a beat. Nora shot around as Ren hit the dirt, gasping and grabbing his side. The pink valkyrie saw red and went to pummel the half-wit who hurt her boo. Nolan, seeing her complete lack of awareness, Saw the opportunity to...

Shock her.

Nolan depressed a small switch on the handle and with a flick of his wrist, his weapon transformed. His baton's top end opened up, allowing a group of four sharp coils to encircle the tip. Lighting arcked aggressively between the coils and with a swift strike to the spine, Nolan landed his first hit on his opponent. Sparks flew as the electric coils collided with Nora, sending thirty thousand volts of electric power directly into her spine. Nolan let out a victorious cry, only for Nora to slowly turn her head towards him. Her eyes glowed a violent pink and all of her body's hairs stood on their ends. Lightning arcked between her fingers, her arms, her legs and her body. Even her teeth, now bared with an aggressive snarl, glowed with voltaic arcs. Nora wound her arms back, far too quickly for Nolan to react, and sent the man flying through the air with a lighting quick smack of her hammer. Nolan crashed into the far cliff face, stuck in a clean indent of himself inside the stone wall. His aura was now but a distant dream as he became one with the earth. Nora pouted childishly as her hair glowed like a certain famous, classic shonen anime character of ape alien origin.

"I hit him ONCE!" She complained angrily. "Why do I get the boring ones all the time?!"

"Honestly, anyone who faces you is 'the boring one', Nora."

The ginger saw her leader's blond head walk past her with his partner nearby. Ren groaned mildly as he got back up to his feet. He was hurt but he was still well within his limits. Pyrrha and Nora moved to circle Brawnz, surrounding him from all sides. The brawler looked around, the situation finally hitting him as of its direness. Jaune crossed his arms gravely as he stood facing BRNZ's last man standing.

"It's four on one." He announced. "This is your last chance before I order a unanimous beatdown on your sorry hind quarter."

Brawnz, ever defiant, shook his head with a restrained laugh.

"Yeah... I should, shouldn't I?"

He held his fist up, still smiling like he usually does. Moved by Brawnz's determination, Jaune joined his enemy in smiling.

"You're damned cool." his smile turned cheeky. "For a loser."

Brawnz laughter.

"Right back at'cha!"

Brawnz dashed forward to punch Jaune's lights out but, seeing it coming, Jaune deflected his adversary's gauntleted blow with a swipe of his shield. What followed was nothing short of a dog pile. Jaune slashed at him as Pyrrha poked at him with her spear. Nora and Ren took turns kicking and hammering him until his aura reached dangerously close to the red.

Hope smirked to himself as the people around him begrudgingly began giving him their wagered cash.

"It was as clear as glass who would win."

Nonplussed, Cinder crossed her leg with unshakable calm and coolness.

"Just wait."

Brawnz was backed against the cliff face, battered and out of breath. His bruised brow flooded slick with sweat. His eyes began to swell lightly as they darkened. Defeat was evident and despite how cool he tried to play it, he couldn't help but feel really lame. His team got demolished like a bunch of jobbers and the best they managed was a solid surprise hit on the guy in green. His limbs were tense with stored kinetic energy but he was tempted to just release it and get it over with. A sudden cold feeling hit his neck and his hair stood on its ends. Just then, it felt as though time went slow. As time stalled to a crawl, he saw an opportunity.

An opportunity to redeem his team.

Right down the middle was JNPR's team leader, his shield held down and his sword to the side. His teammates were far enough apart that if he went for it, they couldn't react in time to stop him. If he couldn't get a team wipe, he'll at least take their boss down with him. His muscles tensed up further as he prepared for one last assault.

Brawnz shot forward, partially releasing the stored energy to kick off his attack. The mighty stomp that propelled him forward dented the stone floor with pure physical might. Jaune had enough time to blink before Brawnz appeared in front of him. A gauntleted fist collided with his face, nose first. A sickening crunch rang as deafening silence followed shocked gasps from the crowd. His aura shattered on impact as his broken nose sprayed worrying amounts of blood everywhere. To add insult to injury, the yellow page was sent rocketing against the protective barrier that separated the public from the fighting grounds. Jaune slid off as his eyes flickered shut before landing in the safe zone at the edge of the battlegrounds. A small pool of blood began forming under Jaune's face-down head.

The crowd stared in abject silence at the ghastly sight of Jaune's unmoving body. Pyrrha's eyes went wide and her mind screamed in anguish. Her pupils rescinded and a wave of pure rage overtook her every thought. She whipped her head to face Brawnz, who was just as shocked as everyone else. Why did he do that?! It wasn't supposed to go that far! Seeing red like the blood of her fallen crush, Pyrrha roared as her semblance went out of control. The magnetic force emanating from her animated every piece of metal around her. the very force of her semblance blew even her friends away, both figuratively and literally. The leader of BRNZ was lifted into the air, powerless and defenceless. Panicking, Brawnz held his hands up in surrender.

"W-wait! WAIT, I GIVE UP-"

Too late. Pyrrha screamed again as she used the full power of her semblance to send Brawnz crashing into the cliff face, embedding him into it right next to his boyfriend. The crowd's horror grew and blew to a crescendo with exclamations of fear and angry jeers. Hope stared, his eyes so wide they almost bulged out of their socket.

OH, THIS IS BAD!

The announcing duo tried fruitlessly to calm everyone down but their efforts were for naught, as the crowd began pelting the arena with all manner of things, like food or trash. Such was the outrage and disapproval of the mob at seeing Beacon's idol display of uncontrollable rage against a surrendering foe. Huntsmen are supposed to be above all of this, her especially! They are supposed to be heroes, not violent, merciless maniacs! Cinder's sinister smile turned into a full-blown evil grin.

"All well, that ends unwell."

Hope, still flabbergasted, didn't register a word of what she said. All that he saw was that his efforts trying to conceal Pyrrha's semblance had been for naught, as he caught Emerald taking note.

The gladiatrix exhaled furiously, not listening to the crowd booing her name and throwing things from the bleachers. The violent veil that clouded her judgement faded and one singular thing was on her mind.

Jaune.

A tear began rolling down her cheek as she dashed for his body.

"JAUNE!" she screamed.

She skidded to a knee right next to her crush. She cradled his head and inspected it, hoping to the gods that the damage wasn't too severe. Ren and Nora jumped to their feet and ran, animated by the same worry for their leader and friend that the gladiatrix did. Ren joined her in inspecting the extent of his friend and leader's injuries. His expression of deep worry was not helping Pyrrha's rapidly climbing anxiety.

"He needs emergency care bloody yesterday!" Ren declared, his usual calm now completely replaced with fear.

Just as he said that, the arena's emergency service members ran into the arena to recover the injured. Three men clad in white medical garbs broke away to tend to Jaune.

"Move away from the injured immediately, clear the way!" One of them ordered.

The trio of white-clad medical personnel surrounded Jaune as they gently moved him into a stretcher. They hurried out of the limelight and into the deep bowels of the Colosseum to get the injured combatant to safety. The rest of *NPR ran behind them, refusing to leave their friend's sides. As for Brawnz and Nolan, the lovers were removed from their rocky cage with little fuss. Brawnz was actually fine for the most part, though still rattled and shaken up by Pyrrha's fury. Nolan clutched his boyfriend and whined all to way to the infirmary, much to Brawnz's indifference. Right now, he had other things on his mind.

The crowd began to settle down once everything was over. It clearly was JNPR'S victory but due to their behaviour and actions in the ring, the match was suspended and to be concluded later. there were many in the crowd that wanted JNPR disqualified but it wasn't for them to decide. One thing is for sure, that ending was unbecoming and shameful.

Hope was not having a very good time as the only muscle that didn't make him suffer worked hard as always. None of this should have happened but clearly, the cosmos decided that pissing on his head wasn't enough. It had to piss on his friends too. Not only that, Pyrrha's semblance was revealed in a spectacular fashion and Cinder would eventually definitely plan out for Pyrrha VS Penny. He remembered when Penny got torn apart. the cute little android he became friends with. The happy, optimistic and genuinely wonderful little bundle of high tech and joy. His heart felt like it was being strangled with piano wire at the thought of her life being so violently extinguished. Even though he knew she could be rebuilt, he knew the price her father, Piotr, would have to pay to bring her back.

No. Not on my fucking watch. but that's for me to worry about later.

Hope quickly sent a message to RWBY, telling them that he'll go check on JNPR and keep them up to speed. Yang ended up replying to him, thanking him for the consideration and that they'll keep him updated on what's happening top side. He rolled away from the scene as Cinder crossed her legs.

"It seems as though you aren't as infallible as you make yourself out to be. Don't you now, dearheart?"

Hope stopped for a moment, denying Cinder the sight of his distraught expression.

"I never once said that I was infallible, Cinderella. You just made that assumption based on my track record." he began rolling away. "And you know what that makes you."

Hope disappeared into the exiting crowd, leaving the villainous trio behind. Cinder grabbed one more unpopped kernel from Mercury's now empty popcorn bucket. Burning hot heat popped the kernel.

"I do, Hope dearest. but then again..."

The popped kernel began browning before bursting into flame, charring it black.

"That makes you an ass as well."


Click-clack, click-clack, click-clack. Such was the nervous rhythm of Pyrrha's feet as she waited on the bench outside the infirmary. The medical staff demanded that she stayed out as they properly took care of the rather bloody problem at hand. Nora was no better as she quietly rocked in her seat.

Yes, Nora was quiet.

Ren gently held her hand but it was clear that his own worry was tremendous. The sound of rolling rubber disturbed the clacking of reinforced heels on marble. The lovers looked up to see their seer friend approaching. Pyrrha didn't bother, as her eyes were fixed on the door she was not allowed to go through.

"Hope." Ren greeted half-heartedly.

Hope nodded his own half-assed greeting as he looked at the door Pyrrha was fixated on.

"Any news?"

Ren shook his head grimly.

"Still diagnosing him. But from the looks of it, his nose is completely broken and he has a bad concussion."

"Possible brain damage?"

Hope saw Pyrrha shiver from the edge of his vision. Hope could easily understand her own fear of that possibility. It wasn't uncommon for professional combat sports to get brutal, with head trauma being an especially common sight.

The doors swung open as one of the white-garbed medics left the emergency room, a cigarette already in his mouth. He looked quite spry for someone who easily could be in his sixties, judging by his crow's feet and the salt peppering his temples. He froze for a moment as a trio of desperate-looking teenagers surrounded him. he blinked twice in surprise at his current predicament.

"Can I help you?" he croaked, his voice obviously damaged by a lifetime of smoking.

"Uhm, Is Jaune ok?" Nora asked.

The man paused for a moment to take out the cigarette from his mouth. His mouth curved into a soft, grandfatherly smile.

"Keep heart, he's fine for the most part."

A collective sigh of relief that could be heard around the world left *NPR's lungs. Hope's worried heart eased at the news as a similar smile to the medic's came to his own mouth.

"That's good to hear." Hope exhaled.

"When he first came in, it really didn't look good." The medical professional explained. "But as it turns out, the kid just has a lot of blood in him and all he has is a minor concussion and a badly broken nose."

"Any lasting damage?"

"With his aura? I doubt he'll even have as much as a headache in a few days. His nose on the other hand might need some surgery."

The medic's smile turned wry.

"I'd even go as far as to say that the guy who did this to him did him a favour if his previous x-rays are anything to show for it."

Hope expressed his confusion in his own signature way.

"What the fuck are you even on about?"

The man turned to his patient's teammates.

"He snores really loudly, right?"

"Very." The trio replied immediately.

"It's like a damned vacuum cleaner," Nora added. "But like... Right next to your ear, even though he's on the other side of the room."

The medicine man chuckled at the speed of their answer.

"You're in luck, part of the reconstruction surgery includes restructuring parts of the nasal cavity to remove any possible defect, whether it being a birth defect or acquired."

He took back out his cigarette and put it in his mouth.

"So that shouldn't be a problem for you guys anymore." he finished.

Nora closed her eyes for and held up her index, indicating that she needed a minute. She excused herself into one of the empty side rooms, closing the door behind her. Hope heard a faint throat clearing before a bellow of pure relief and jubilance nearly made him fall out of his wheelchair.

"FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAH!"

The door opened to a cheery Nora happily skipping to her lover's side. Hope looked to Ren and Pyrrha for any reaction but they seem to actually agree with their ginger comrade if the look of relief on their face was any indication.


Blue eyes flickered open and with a confused glance around the room, a defeated sigh was heard. Jaune blinked multiple times before looking around the room once more, this time with more purpose than just scared confusion. He wanted to know what time it was, seeing as the windowless room was of no help in his desire to know how much time had passed since his defeat. Defeat... Jaune sighed again. He lost, almost assuredly the only one on his team to have been eliminated. His worst fear since he entered the tournament came to pass. He must have looked so damned lame...

Another glance around the room finally yielded some results in his desire for the hour as his eyes landed on an old wall clock. It was well into the afternoon and by this time of year, it probably meant that sundown was only a few scant hours from now. Jaune tentatively sat up on the medical bed he was lying in. The click-clacking of someone typing on an analogue keyboard finally registered to his ears. The sound brought a nostalgic smile to his face despite his sour mood.

"That sound brings back memories."

"You too?"

Jaune jolted with a short, surprised yipe as the voice suddenly came right next to him. Recognizing the voice, Jaune grumbled in annoyance as he got up to meet his friend.

"Hope? Seriously, don't just scare me like tha-"

Jaune became silent as he came face to face with Anon. The bandages that had become so typical of him for the past few weeks were nowhere to be seen. Instead, Hope was sat up on another medical bed, naked save for his underwear. His body was as riddled with half-healed wounds as Jaune expected and more, considering Hope went through the monstrous equivalent of a woodchipper. Some of the wounds looked especially awful, as if chunks of flesh had been flayed or torn off. It was even worse in some instances as Jaune could see trenches in his flesh that looked like they reached the bone. Jaune's annoyance turned to sadness as he witnessed the man he had come to admire looking closer to a wreck than a person. Hope saw the sorrow on his younger friend's face and shook his head.

"A sight for sore eyes, aren't I?" He self-deprecated.

Jaune's fists tightened into a ball.

"Yeah..."

The sound of analogue typing stopped before being replaced by the sound of an especially squeaky rolling chair coming toward the two men. Atop the chair was a perpetually annoyed-looking dark-skinned woman with a curly peach-pink afro. She wore a pink and brown medical uniform worn under a well-used but clean lab coat. Clipped to her belt was a veritable arsenal of medical equipment, from a surgery kit to a box of gauzes and band-aids and everything in between. She chewed on what looked like the remains of a pencil as she stared at the pair with a fresh roll of gauze in her blue-gloved hands.

"Mister Arc," She coldly called. "Kindly clear my damned way."

Jaune realized that he was in the way and stepped back.

"Right. Sorry, doctor Peach."

The not-so-peachy doctor went to work as she expertly applied the bandages required to keep Hope from falling apart at the seams.

At least in theory.

Jaune looked on as Hope's broken flesh and sinew were covered back up with clean white gauze. If there was one thing that Jaune would be hard-pressed to deny was that Doctor Thumbelina Peach was one hell of a nurse.

"I'm still amazed at how retardedly fucking reckless you can be at times." She quipped neutrally as she bandaged his left arm.

What Jaune would not be hard-pressed to deny was that she was also really rude. To put it very mildly.

"It comes with the job," Hope said, barely acknowledging her foul remark. "Still, thanks for freshening me up while I waited."

Jaune cocked a brow.

"Waited for what?" The young would-be paladin asked.

"For your same-day surgery to end and for you to wake up."

Jaune's brow furrowed further.

"What surgery?"

Hope smirked and tapped his own nose. Jaune touched his face and quickly came to notice the large bandage stuck to his face. Hope pulled out his scroll and showed him that the middle third of his face was completely covered up. Jaune's eyes widened in shock at the revelation.

"Damn! Did Brawnz really mess me up that bad?!"

Peach rolled further away, returning to typing on the keyboard of an honestly ancient-looking computer.

"Considering you were still pissing blood while on the operation table, I'd say he fucked your face harder than a cheap Mistralli hooker."

Jaune's mouth twisted in disgust.

"Oh gods, that's a visual."

Hope shrugged.

"I've seen worse."

"I really don't want to know."

"Your loss, it's a pretty good story too. I almost died that day!"

"Riiiiiiight..."

Jaune gently rubbed his nose, barely feeling anything due to the local anesthetics. Hope began putting his clothes back on as he noticed the worry on his friend's face.

"You're fine, bruv," Hope reassured. "The surgeon said that with your aura, you'll hardly feel it in a few days"

Peach returned, squeaky chair included, with a pair of X-rays dated before and after the surgery.

"Pretty much." She agreed as she handed them to Jaune. "Unlike the obvious cripple in the room."

Hope grimaced as he held up his hand, opening and closing it like a babbling hand puppet.

"Yarayarayar!" He dismissed. "When are you gonna stop being on my case?"

"When your reckless retard streak ends." She answered back.

Hope groaned.

"Oh for Christ's sake, please don't follow me to the grave."

She shrugged casually.

"Sorry, but looks like you'll have to deal."

Hope grimaced again, this time from pain. Peach had grabbed part of his ruined abdomen and brought her face uncomfortably close.

"Argh!" He exclaimed. "Do you fucking mind!?"

"Considering some of your stitches broke, yeah, I do fucking mind."

She grabbed one of her myriad tools from her utility belt and began disinfecting and restitching the offending area, much to Hope's pain. Hope gripped the side of the bed, clenching his teeth at the piercing pain in his sides. Once she was done, Peach glared at her "favourite" patient.

"You stood up suddenly, didn't you." She asked, despite obviously knowing the answer.

"...Maybe."

"Dipshit."

"You are not wrong."

She sighed.

"You know it would be good for your health if you didn't act this way, right?" She said, knowing full well he would never listen.

"Yeah, but at the same time I wouldn't get to spend time with my favourite doctor." He joked.

"Well, aren't you the sweetest." she deadpanned.

Hope chuckled.

"I thought that was Oobleck."

The pen she had been chewing on was crushed to pieces as she ground her teeth together, her normally static scowl turning into an irritated frown of pure frustration.

"Do not get me fucking started on that dummy, I swear to the gods."

Jaune, having listened to the conversation so far, was now lost like a child at the mall.

"Uhm... What? What's wrong with Professor Oobleck?"

Peach snapped at the yellow knight-in-training.

"That's 'Doctor' to you!"

Hope chuckled as Jaune leaped back in fright, never having seen Peach so animated before.

"Oobleck got his shit ran by a Grimm stampede during the Breach."

"Wait, really? Then why has he been animating the tournament?"

"Because he has a good Aura and it stitched him right up. "

"How come you know this?"

Hope and Peach looked at him like he was an alien.

"We both got hospitalized during the Breach, the fuck did you think?"

Jaune's cheeks became rosy.

"Well, now I just feel silly. Still, Oobleck got hurt badly... I never thought he would actually fight."

Peach scoffed.

"He is a huntsman, kiddo. A damned good one at that and one hell of a teacher!"

Jaune blinked multiple times while Hope smiled in his typical shipping trash way.

"You must really like him to compliment him that much," Jaune said, still surprised.

"HA!" Hope exclaimed. "You should have seen her when she heard he was in the emergency room. She literally busted through the wall looking like a fucking banshee!"

Peach uncharacteristically began half-heartedly grumbling, her face darkening slightly.

"It'snotmyfault,heismypartnerafterall...I'llbedamnedifstupidwallgetsinthemyway..."

Jaune chuckled awkwardly as Hope chuckled openly. Still grumbling, the doctor kept chewing on the woody remains of her last pencil as she secured the last of Hope's bandages in place.

"There," she exclaimed emotionlessly as she rolled away. "As good as new! Well, as good as your crippled ass can be."

Hope patted his limbs, feeling the slight pressure of his well-adjusted bandages

"Thanks." He said gratefully, completely disregarding her verbal jab.

"You're welcome."

Peach rolled away and back to her workstation, tapping away at her keyboard.

"Jaune Arc, discharged without complications. Recommended Recovery time, one week." She reported out loud. "Anon Hope, check-up completed without complications. Stitches found out of spec, replaced and patched. Attitude problem, still unsolved. House Arrest recommended for his own sake."

"I'm not a felon!" Hope yelled over.

She waved at him dismissively. Hope flipped her the bird before another bird came signing. Hope took his scroll off the bed he sat on and read the new message.

CoolestCutie: 'Hey! Are you done?'

me: 'yeah, we were just finished actually. '

'did something happen?'

CoolestCutie: 'SSSN won their match! Sun wanted to go celebrate but we want to wait for you.'

Hope snorted at how adorably considerate Ruby was being.

Never change, you glorious little shit.

Me: 'I'll be right over.'

'Gimme like five minutes.'

CoolestCutie: 'Gotcha! See you there! :)'

Me: 'you too, boss.'

Hope went to hop off his seat, but Peach's quick glare held him back. He sighed.

"Mind giving me a hand, dude?"

Jaune nodded furiously before fetching Hope's wheelchair. After helping him change seats, Jaune grabbed the handles of the wheelchair, ready to help him out.

"We're off!" Jaune declared.

Peach waved the pair goodbye, still fixated on her screen.

"Don't come back soon."


The sun, so mighty and bright began to falter on the horizon as its golden yellow hues began darkening. The previously healed duo made their way to the fairgrounds to their awaiting friends.

"So that's what happened, huh?" Jaune asked, wanting his suspicions confirmed.

"Yup. I was as shocked as everyone else when Brawnz floored you in one hit."

"So you didn't know?"

"I'm not omniscient, Jaune." Hope exhaled, tired of the assumption that he knew everything. "If I was, we wouldn't be in this fucking mess."

Jaune's brow furrowed with deep worry.

"Anon? What mess?"

At that very moment, Hope wanted to just spill everything. To let lose a torrent of foul language and truths that probably would have caused Jaune to fall to despair if only for Hope's own selfish relief. At the moment Hope was opening his mouth to share his woes with his friend, A fretting being of pure simpering worry charged in to hold the future knight in a bone-crushing embrace.

"JAUNE!" Pyrrha let out jubilantly as she squeezed her crush's face into her mammaries.

The only thing still visible of Jaune's face, namely his ears, were as red as expected. But before he could begin to feel the beginning stages of oxygen deprivation, an orange and pink rocket barrelled through and brought the lovely pair to the ground. An out of breath Ren sprinted towards everyone, perhaps in the hopes of stopping them from killing Jaune with gladness, only to see that his mission was doomed from the start. Ren watched as a teary-eyed Pyrrha held her beloved in her Great Canyon.

"As much as I understand your gladness," Ren interjected after regaining his breath. "It wouldn't do him any good if his nose were to be damaged again."

Almost as if hit with that fact, she immediately let go of Jaune's head. The reddened page took deep breaths through his mouth as his nose bled. Pyrrha immediately began fretting.

"OH MY GODS, I'M SO SORRY!"

Hope snorted at the unfolding scene.

"His nose is fine, P. He's just a virgin is all."

Jaune let out an indignant squeek.

"H-hey!"

"The blood is supposed to go to your dick, Jaune, Not out your nose." Hope scolded amusedly. "Silly Amateur."

"Oh, like you are different! Your nose bleeds all the time!"

"That's because these two," He pointed to Ren and Nora, the former scolding the latter for spearing his boss and the girl that liked him. "And you two are so sickeningly sweet together."

Jaune's already red face became even redder.

"W-what do you..." Jaune began quieting down. "What do you... mean by... that..."

Jaune began meekly fiddling with his fingers as Pyrrha tried to hold back a grin, her own face red. On cue, Hope's nose began bleeding as the two love birds tried and failed to not look happy at the implications.

This... This is bliss...

Hope wiped his nose with his handkerchief, erasing the evidence of his shipping trashness. The smell of roses suddenly entered his olfactory, betraying the presence of yet more of his dear ones. A cloud of flowers rained petals all over Hope until the mass of flying botanicals solidified into an older girl right into his lap. Innocent and young silver eyes met brown lenses hiding blue, emotionally weathered eyes. Ruby smiled innocently, her arms wrapped around his shoulders.

"Wassup."

Hope's worried, jaded heart warmed softly, his own mouth curving into a loving smile.

"Sup, boss."

Her lips parted further, revealing pearly teeth as her smile widened. Hope snorted, happy with the reaction he got. In the near distance, a group of seven familiar faces separated from the crowd of black shapes. SSSN followed their leader as he talked with RWBY's black cat until their macaque-in-chief froze at the sight of the not-quite-broken Hope. The nearby Neptune winced as he and Sun approached to better see the extent of the damage.

"Good Light!" Neptune let out quietly.

"WHAT THE HECK HAPPENED TO YOU!?" Sun bellowed in shock, inspecting his friend from every angle.

"I got in a fight with a gaggle of fuck-wit Grimms and killed every last one of them." Hope grinned proudly.

"Dude... That's like..." He paused before beaming like a fanboy. "Super hardcore!"

"Like way hardcore," Neptune added.

The rest of RWBY came in to the commotion but instead, fixated on their's leader's current seating arrangement. Weiss immediately facepalmed at the sight.

"Why are you on his lap?" She asked.

"Because I was looking for him and I landed there?" Ruby said, tilting her head innocently.

Weiss sighed as she removed her friend from her other friend's lap. Ruby stumbled off right next to her sister.

"Was it comfy, Rubbles?" Yang asked with a teasing smile.

"Yeah?" Ruby admitted, unaware of the meaning behind her sister's words. "Why?"

"Just checking~!"

Unfamiliar steps came close as familiar yet new faces appeared next to Sun and Neptune. One, a mountain of a man with dark skin and green hair, standing calmly next to a punkish-looking man with pale-as-snow skin and scarlet hair. The tall man, Sage Ayana, was dressed like a wanderer, with well-worn boots and a long weathered coat. A massive greatsword was strapped to his back, its obvious weight going seemingly unnoticed. The scarlet-haired one, Scarlet David, looked like the most flamboyant pirate to ever sail the seas, what with his obviously designer-looking and overly flashy coat that he wore like a cape and his Freddy Mercury-looking outfit. A single-shot pistol modified to look like a black powder flintlock hung at his hip, opposite to it was a short cutlass ideal for fighting in tight spaces.

"So this is the guy you two have been creaming your pants over, huh?" The red-coated pirate asked with a cornish accent, unimpressed.

"Yup!" Sun confirmed. "He's the guy that-"

"Yes yes, he saved your ass when you got caught stoawaying, he saved your ass when you got mixed up with those White Fang losers." He enumerated, sounding more and more annoyed as he went on. "We get it, Sun! You think he's the best thing since warm water!"

Sage held his chin pensively as he looked over the man that Sun had praised so much. Wheelchair-bound, covered in bandages, fragile seeming physically speaking but his poise showed his inner strength and confidence. His eyes sparked with will and determination. The giant nodded approvingly, holding out his hand for a shake.

"Sun spoke well of you, I can see why he would do so." he praised.

"You can?" Scarlet said. "I can't see it at all."

Hope joined hands with Sage, shaking it firmly.

"Glad Sun doesn't talk shit behind my back." Hope joked.

Sage snorted.

"Hardly, He's more the type to tell you upfront how much you suck."

"Good to hear."

"Yeah, you don't live with him," Scarlet muttered.

Hope looked at the monkey king and the sea god curiously.

"I didn't see you guys during the Breach." He stated.

"Yeah... We got there late." Neptune admitted guiltily. "We had some interference because of some Griffons."

"Yeah!" Sun added. "We almost crashed when one of them got caught in one of our bullhead's turbines."

"We had to do an emergency landing, then we linked up with law enforcement and cleaned up some stragglers."

Sun sniffed cockily.

"Not to brag, but we did our fair share of butt whoopin' too!"

His usual shiny self dimmed slightly at a particularly sore memory.

"Well... One butt slipped through."

Hope felt the familiar breeze caress his nape.

Seems like this one is important.

"Oh?" Hope questioned.

"Yeah," Sune admitted ashamedly. "Some alpha... thing, managed to escape."

Neptune sighed.

"You're still on about that? It's just one alpha."

"Neps right," Scarlet added. "Bastard was on death's door anyhow. I bet he's dust in some alleyway."

"Scar's probably right."

"What do you mean 'Probably'?!"

The two began bickering like children over Neptune's choice of words. While annoying, a passing wind and the sound of turbines took his attention. High above was a military bullhead bearing a symbol that Hope immediately recognized.

A snowflake. The Schnee Family crest.

Looks like the Ice Queen's in town now.

Hope smiled, remembering that Weiss had complained about not seeing Winter during the semester break. His smile immediately soured when he remembered that Qrow would also be there and start unnecessary trouble. He looked to where she was and saw her looking at the plane, a fond smile on her lips. Hope sighed through his nose, wondering how he'll have to deal with those two.

"Time for a double family reunion..."


V3E2: END!

NEXT ON PLAYLIST: V3E3 - PLAY?