Without a second to waste, Cardin charged towards the blonde with his weapon drawn. Jaune barely had time to react as once Cardin's mace swung towards him, he instinctively hid behind his shield. A loud clang echoed the arena whilst its strong force forced itself down onto his shield. Before Jaune could recover, he staggered back by the consecutive swings..
Cardin smirked with each successful hit, his mace dominating over his opponent to near submission. But with each passing blow surfaced an exploitable pattern. Just before he could land another swing of his weapon, his blonde opponent sidestepped out of its reach, causing him to stumble. Without a second to waste, Jaune bashed his shield into the bully, catching him off guard.
Everybody in the stands now had their full attention on the fight. Some even made a dramatic gasp at the sudden turn of events. It was a new sight to see Jaune having the upper hand over Cardin. The more exuberant members of JNPR and RWBY (Yang and Nora specifically) loudly cheered for the blonde, whilst the more reserved members (Blake and Ren) attempted to quiet them down to not cause an even bigger scene.
As Cardin's body landed to the floor with a thud, Jaune switched towards the offensive and rushed. Before another move could be made, Crocea Mors was swatted out his hand by Cardin's mace. Not a second later, an immense pain erupted in his nether regions as a rough kick forced him onto his knees.
Those in the stands flinched as well, with some closing their legs in shadow pain and others wincing at the strike. It even got a reaction out of Professor Goodwitch.
"Mr. Winchester! This will be your one and only warning; no illegal moves!"
Cardin only grumbled in response as he got back onto his feet.
Malicious intent now radiated off the bully, and the crowd felt it. Each student was at the edge of their seats. This turned from a sparring session to a grudge match between 2 fighters.
With as much as he can, Cardin aimed to uppercut his opponent. As if he had sensed danger, Jaune had enough time to look up and reel back, missing his face by mere inches.
Now even angrier, Winchester booted the blonde to the ground before releasing his frustrations through his mace. Jaune managed to twist and turn from each strike, with every passing one becoming more aggressive.
Once more, a noticeable pattern surfaced, giving Jaune the upper hand by seizing the mace after impact before dazing his opponent with a kick to the face. Cardin doublebacked in recoil, his hands covering his pained face.
Now was his chance to end it. Not a second to waste, Jaune snatched his fallen sword off the ground. Using his tormentor's own mace, he swept Cardin off his feet, the man crashing onto his back, then laid Crocea Mors' blade just above his neck.
The fight was finally over…
RIIIINNNGGG.
…and he won.
Holy Crap, I actually won.
At the sound of the buzzer, the crowd burst into cheers and uproar at the underdog's victory. The blonde knight retracted the blade from his opponent's neck and placed down the mace next to him before walking away. Cardin snarled and scowled at the loss while Glynda Goodwitch made her way between the two fighters before calming the excited crowd. "Alright students! Settle down!"
Once everyone calmed and quieted down, Professor Goodwitch started her lecture.
"With Mr. Winchester being disarmed and immobilized by his opponent, an official may be able to call the match." Glynda addressed the rest of the class. "What you saw was a prime example of underestimating your opponent. Remember: anticipate everything your opponent can and would do before making an attack."
The headmistress eyed both boys before settling on losing opposition. "Mr. Winchester, remember to think before recklessly acting. Any more behavior such as that would only end in failure."
She then turned to the winning opposition. "Mr. Arc, while you may have won your first match in my class, do not take this as a sign to slack off. Take this opportunity to analyze what went wrong and how to improve."
With their match over, Professor Goodwitch dismissed the current fighters then called for another pair. Whilst walking towards the changing area, Cardin made sure to bump shoulders with Jaune as he walked past.
"This isn't over, Arc." was all he said before entering the locker area.
The Arc's shoulders slumped at the prospect. His feud with Cardin was far from over. He should probably wait until the coast was clear before changing back.
"That was incredible!" Nora yelled before giving her team leader a bone-crushing hug.
Class had finally ended and the majority of the students already left for the next class. It was when team RWBY and JNPR (plus Velvet) left the classroom did they celebrate Jaune's milestone of winning a match. While members like Ren, Weiss, and Blake were more vocal with compliments, some were more…vigorous in their praise. Case and point, Nora Valkyrie and Yang Xiao Long.
"Congratulations, vomit boy," commended Yang, giving him a playful punch to his arm. "I might actually invite you for a spar next time."
Jaune strained a chuckle at the idea while rubbing his sore shoulder. Cardin was one thing, but fighting a brawler like Yang Xiao Long was another. If what he heard about her strength was even partially true, then perhaps it was best to stay away…for now at least.
His attention then shifted to Velvet, whom he was surprised to see at the seats during his match.
"Nice to see you again, Velvet." Jaune gave his best smile to show his appreciation. "Surprised you came to see my fight."
"I actually had some free time before my next class," Velvet said before gesturing towards Ruby and Pyrrha. "They were the ones who invited me. 'Even convinced Professor Goodwitch to allow me to sit in."
A quick glance at the two showed Pyrrha with a sheepish smile while Ruby had turned away, but the edge of a smirk still visible.
Jaune smiled as he shook his head. He really should've seen it coming. He needed all the support he could get.
It didn't take too long for all of them to move on and head to their next class. Only ones that remained were him, Pyrrha and Ruby. He was eager to hear the opinions and criticisms of his two tutors.
Pyrrha spoke first. "Your skills certainly improved under our supervision. You did great out there!..."
While her praise spoke volume for what he did…
"But, that doesn't mean you were perfect."
…he was more afraid of what Ruby had to say.
"You were slow and got sloppy." critiqued Ruby as she folded her arms.
"You focused on defending yourself without thinking of a counter, allowing Cardin to get you to the ropes numerous times. When you did go on the offensive, you rushed in without thinking and allowed Cardin to disarm you before returning back on the defense. Had he treated you like any other opponent, the results of the match might've been different."
Pyrrha kept quiet while Ruby continued to point out the errors made during the fight. She thought it best to try and ease in on what mistakes he made, but it seems her co-tutor thought otherwise.
Jaune, on the other hand, frowned at himself at the given lecture. She had a point. While he did win, he knew everything didn't go as smoothly as he hoped.
Ruby took one last deep breath before continuing. "Other than that, you did a good job."
This caught Jaune a bit off guard. If he were to be honest, he suspected that she would've grilled him a lot more than that. Then again, she's only criticizing him so he would learn to become better. And it's better than the alternative.
"Seeing that you've actually proven to have taken all our teachings to heart, Pyrrha and I are going to continue tutoring you." said Ruby, much to his (and Pyrrha's) relief. "Don't get cocky though. Just because you've beaten Cardin doesn't mean that he won't eventually improve alongside you."
Hearing that actually got Jaune to freeze upon realization. He should've seen this coming. This won't be the last time he'll be fighting the bully. And being the first loss to him of all people, Cardin would be gunning for him even more than normal.
"And that's not even considering other students you haven't fought yet. Because of that match, you're going to be catching the attention of a lot more students."
His shoulders slump, now comprehending the consequences of winning the match. He just became fresh meat for the picking. He had to improve quickly.
Jaune looked towards his tutors with determination and slight anxiety. "When do we start?"
*THWACK*
"Gah!"
"Remember your footwork!"
Jaune's training resumed the very next day. Both tutors decided to switch it up a bit and have Pyrrha help the blonde on the academic side for now and allow Ruby to handle anything combat related. Thanks to his performance the previous day, it was clear what needed to be improved and what places to focus on. Currently, they were practicing his ability to switch from offensive to defensive and vice versa.
While Jaune rubbed the burning sensation from his arm, Ruby continued to lecture him as she twirls one of her escrima sticks.
"Knowing when to switch from defense to offense highly depends on your ability to spot windows in your enemy's form and take advantage of them."
With a second wind, the blonde swung his wooden blade towards his tutor, only for her to block the attack and smack him in the face with her escrima stick.
"As demonstrated."
Training itself wasn't as tough from the previous days. His win allowed Pyrrha and Ruby to lighten the load in terms of training hours and breaks. But, then again, it was still more demanding than standard Huntsman training.
They continued to train another 2 hours before taking a quick water break to catch their breaths (more so for Jaune).
"So what was he like?"
Ruby raised a brow before dropping her drink. "Excuse me?"
"The 'Big Guy'," Jaune expounded with much eagerness. "What was he like when you were with him?"
The Girl Wonder chuckled at his enthusiasm to learn more about the Dark Knight. It was only a matter of time until he started asking questions about the man himself. Not that it bothered her in any way. "He was…complicated. Inside and out of the mask."
"Really?" He leaned in closer to listen, almost like a child.
"Yeah. Throughout most of my life, I couldn't always decipher what was going through his mind. He was always scary, but smart in his actions. Brutal when he needs to be, but was just at the same time. Cold towards everyone, but deeply caring when nobody's around. There was never a time that I was fully sure on the motives for his actions. He always just…did. Just understanding him is a language in and of itself."
As the blonde absorbed all the information, Ruby couldn't help getting curious about him. "So how did you get fascinated by the 'big guy'? Being a comic nerd could explain it, but people outside the kingdom always thought of him as some Atlas myth or Media Babble."
Jaune's cheeks turned red while he chuckled. It was a funny story actually. "W-Well, my oldest sister and sister-in-law used to live in Atlas for a time. Ever since our dad's injury, anything related to Huntsmen and Huntresses had been taboo at home. So, whenever they visit every holiday, they would tell us stories about Batman and Robin."
Once more, the Girl Wonder raised a brow at his explanation. Hearing that some people talked about Atlas' vigilantes like they were stories in a children's book was odd but quite amusing. But her interest would peak when the blonde started to snicker.
"I still remember that one holiday when Saphron came home with custom made comic books about both of you. 'The Silver Age of Batman and Robin!'. My other sisters would always laugh at how goofy they were."
Now that got a laugh out of the Girl Wonder. Ruby giggled at the thought of her and Bruce being some comic book characters going on wacky adventures. But she soon cackled when Jaune explained some of the made-up villains, like Baffler ("Discount Riddler" as she put it), and the catchphrases they would have ("Holy Rusted Metal, Batman!" "Ha! As if I'd be caught saying that!").
After a couple minutes of laughing their asses off, they started to calm down.
"We must've had a big impact on you." said Ruby as she wiped her tears from laughing.
"That's putting it lightly," Jaune said. "I practically idolized what you guys did. To fight for justice and to serve and protect the people. It's because of you both that my dream of becoming a Huntsman strives. My life wouldn't be the same without Batman and Robin."
Hearing his race got Ruby to turn away from his face. But it was not out of embarrassment or pride. She looked towards her own hands and gripped them till her knuckles turned white. Anger briefly flashed across her face before being replaced with pain.
Just as Jaune was about to say another word, the Girl Wonder grabbed the rest of her stuff and headed straight for the exit. "We've done enough for today. You can have the rest of the night off."
Her words only puzzled the blonde. Done for the day? But they hadn't even worked on anything yet! Jaune wanted to intervene and call out to her, but by then, she was already gone. Many words ran through his head, but the constant thought that came to his mind was: Did I say something wrong?
"Sorry Babs, but I am gonna have to cancel our plans for tonight."
"Oh come on, Ruby. You haven't been out for a while! It's high time for a girl's night."
"I'm sorry. Maybe some other time?"
"*sigh* Fine. But I'm picking the venue. *Mubbles*. Dad says 'Hi', by the way."
"Hi, Mr. Gordon."
"Dad's wishes you luck on your recovery." *Knock Knock* "Hold on a sec, Ruby."
"Who-"
*BANG*
*BEEP*
"Barb?! Barbara!"
"Yes students, the forests of Forever Fall are indeed beautiful. However, we aren't here for sightseeing…"
Ruby rubbed the sleepiness from her eyes whilst she paid half attention towards the Professor. She already knew the general gist of their impromptu field trip after sneaking a glance at Professor Goodwitch's scroll; Collect some sap samples from the Forever Fall forest and return them to Professor Peach. And while being attentive to the words of the professors would still be beneficial, her mind was far too exhausted and preoccupied somewhere else.
After their conversation the previous night, the ex-vigilante wasn't able to get any shut eye. Everytime she closed her eyes, Ruby was plagued by the same horrifying memory. So much so that she chose to walk it off around the school. She wasn't sure how long she'd been walking, only that when she stopped, the shattered moon was her only source of light around the halls.
Although her journey around the property was directionless, she found herself back in front of her own locker. The same locker that held a certain black case.
The thought of the black case hadn't left her mind ever since. She wasn't sure what to do with it. Its existence called for her, taunting her, even when she can't even see it. Part of her wanted to toss the case out or send it straight back to Atlas. But she barely had the guts to even look at it, let alone touch it again.
Her internal dilemma kept her up. Kept her up for so long that she hadn't noticed the sun started to shine upon the academy. Ruby barely had time to even get back to the dorm room before the others woke up.
Honestly, the only thing that kept her upright and partially focused was sheer willpower. That, and Weiss' expensive imported espresso shots. Why she had some in the first place was a question for another time.
" …Do remember that these forests are still infested with the creatures of Grimm so please be sure to stick by your teammates..."
After being handed the jars, she and the rest of class went their separate ways. Some teams decided to split and move in pairs while others stayed together as groups. Most of team RWBY and JNPR stuck close to one another, majority paired with their partners.
While Ruby had paired up with Weiss, she paid no mind where they took their sap or even how far they had collected from one another. Her own body was on autopilot until the caffeine in her system failed her.
Her sap extraction would be initially halted when her ears caught the rustling of twigs and leaves from behind. Ruby made sure to make no physical reaction, even when the approaching figure stopped behind her. Her hand then retracted from her belt as her worries soon stifled when she caught the color of red hair out of the corner of her eye. "Oh, hey Pyrrha."
"Hello again!" Pyrrha greeted before making her way to a nearby tree. Although she saw Pyrrha kneel to collect some tree sap, the Girl Wonder knew she only did it to make herself look busy. The poorly-hidden full jars not too far away were indicators.
"Ruby?"
"Yeah?"
Pyrrha hesitated for a moment, but found the courage to speak her mind. "Were…were you serious about reporting Jaune to the Headmaster?"
Air around them stilled as the wind took an immediate halt. Both huntresses remained silent, but for separate reasons. With each passing second, Pyrrha felt the tension balloon until she heard a sigh escape the other girl's mouth.
But before Ruby could give an answer, a loud roar echoed throughout the forest.
Both girls turned towards the direction of the source with their weapons drawn. They weren't the only ones to have noticed because all other members of team RWBY and JNPR converged at their position. All except one.
"What was that?" asked Blake.
Pyrrha, however, had a different question. "Where's Jaune?"
Both of their questions were soon answered when members of team CRDL came out from the foliage ahead of them and sprinted into the opposite direction. Before one of them escaped, Yang grabbed the closest one and lifted him into the air.
"What happened!" Yang demanded with conviction.
It didn't take much to convince him. "Ursa! It's got Cardin!"
Everything just got serious.
"Blake! Yang! Get Professor Goodwitch. Inform her of the situation." Ruby ordered before turning towards Ren and Nora. "You two! Go with them. There's bound to be more in the area."
As the duos left to find the Professor, the rest of them readied their weapons and headed to the opposite direction to find Cardin.
Finding him was not an issue. The loud ferocious roars and screams of terror were definite telltales to guide their direction. It wasn't long before they finally arrived at the scene, where they found Cardin and the Ursa.
The Ursa that attacked team CRDL appeared to have been a Major, an older and more vicious of the norm. What attracted the Ursa Major was easy to surmise based on the broken jars and the sap that covered both the grass and even Cardin himself. Not too far away was a roughed up Jaune, who was equally surprised by the appearance of the grimm as he was getting up. A quick look at the evidence at hand and Ruby already knew what happened.
The Ursa Major once more cried out an ear-splitting roar and towered over Cardin to attack. Just as the grimm was about to dive into its meal, someone jumped before the beast and shielded the bully, much to most of everyone's surprise.
Defending the crawling sap-covered Cardin was Jaune who held back the Ursa Major with the use of his shield. Just as Weiss and Pyrrha were about to help him out, Ruby held out her hand. "Wait" was all she said as they continued to observe the scene.
Before the grimm could retaliate, Jaune slashed at its unarmored bits, making the beast flinch back in pain. He then attempted to strike once more but was caught off guard when one of its large paws came out of nowhere and hurled him to the side. Fortunately, he was able to catch himself by rolling onto his feet before landing back into an offensive stance.
Both huntsman and grimm stared down one another eye to eye from across the field. While the blonde took long and smooth breaths, the beast loudly huffed and snarled in anticipation like it was taunting him. Both stood idle in place until the other made the first move.
The Ursa Major furiously howled one final time before dashing ahead in a full sprint. Not too far along was Jaune who cried out before charging towards the massive grimm animal. As the beast lunged forward to smash its prey, the Arc son raised his shield to deflect the attack while pushing for one clean kill. However, Ruby knew his actions were to be futile as the Arc hadn't raised his shield high enough.
But in a surprise twist of fate, his shield suddenly raised and diverted the monster's attack, leaving it wide open. With a swish of his blade, Jaune cleaved the beast's head clean off its body. It was only when its body crashed to the ground did his own body finally relaxed. The air he didn't know he was holding finally exhaled out his lungs. Every muscle around his body continued to shake whilst the adrenaline was wearing off.
With the threat gone, the trio of girls sighed in relief before sheathing their weapons. It was a slight relief that the blonde Arc had everything under control. However, Ruby's eyes narrowed towards Pyrrha, who quickly shifted her hand to her side. The ex-vigilante had a sneaking suspicion, but best kept it to herself.
As Jaune stood over the Ursa Major's dissolving corpse, Cardin still couldn't believe the scene that happened before him. Arc, the guy he pushed around in the first weeks of school, the same guy whose ass he kicked for a month in Combat Class, had just saved his ass and killed an Ursa Major. Sure, Arc may have beaten him recently, but that was a fluke…right? Much to his shock, once again, Jaune turned from the corpse and offered his hand towards him.
Cardin had been speechless when the blonde boy helped him up. He wasn't sure what to say or how to react. Hell, Arc saved his life and he wasn't even sure how to pay him back. "Jaune…" was all he could muster before being cut off.
"Others wouldn't be as compassionate" Jaune warned before turning away. "I want you to keep that in mind before you start terrorizing someone else"
While Jaune slowly limped towards the trio, Pyrrha whispered to Ruby. "You still haven't answered my question: were you going to report Jaune?".
Much to her astonishment, the girl merely smirked and winked in response before walking towards the blonde to help him out.
~Days Earlier in Ozpin's Office~
Ruby's eyes widened as she analyzed the transcripts and other documents on the desk. She couldn't believe what she was seeing and yet…
"These can't be his documents."
"And what makes you so sure, Miss Rose?" asked Headmaster Ozpin.
The Girl Wonder re skimmed the papers once more to find any errors or any signs of forgery, but found no such thing. It wasn't possible. Everything she witnessed about the Arc screamed untrained. Yet, all the contents in the folder were real and came from legit government organizations and Huntsmen academies. Some even had personal signatures of different professors and huntsmen from said academies. Not even professional forgers were capable of creating such intricate and well-developed documents. Unless…
Realization dawned upon her. "You."
"A couple strings were pulled and a few favors were owed," Ozpin cryptically said. "All of them were fortunate enough to not ask questions."
"Why?" Ruby demanded, still unable to wrap her head around any reasoning behind the Headmaster's decision. "You went through all this trouble, even with the knowledge of his inabilities. For the gods sake, he nearly died on multiple occasions!"
The headmaster sighed at her frustration, but kept his ground. "Believe me, Miss Rose. I was as skeptical as you were when I viewed his transcripts. To the point where I was willing to let you view his case personally. That was, up until initiation day."
"So what changed your mind?"
To answer her question, Ozpin reopened his desk drawer and sorted through it. It took a while but he eventually fished out what he needed before dropping various folders onto the tabletop. It took a single glance to realize what they were.
"7 applications," Ozpin started, gesturing to the folders before them. "Mr. Arc had made 7 applications to try to get into Beacon Academy. Of course, all were forgeries under different aliases. But what got me interested in Mr. Arc wasn't the content of the documents, but the 7 attempts."
Ruby analyzed the various documents and identities on the table: 'Jim Harper, from Mantle' , 'Jonas Queen, from Mistral', 'Grant Rogers, from Vale' , etc. Numerous documents and identities with quality levels of forgery.
"I have seen countless Huntsmen and Huntresses in my lifetime; all of them coming from different places, experienced different levels of training, and having their own reasons for being. But only a few of them had the attribute I saw in Mr Arc, your mother included."
"And what would that be?"
The Headmaster sat up straight before placing arms onto the desk.
"Will, Ms. Rose".
The room then turned silent, with the ticks of the clocktower being the only source of sound.
"Training means absolutely nothing without the ability to willingly act" Ozpin stood from his chair and made his way to look out towards the school. "Of course, training still is an important aspect of every Huntsman and Mr. Arc still has a long way to go. Keeping up with his peers is already an obstacle for him. But fortunately, Miss Nikos might be able to help him in that area."
He then turned back towards his student. "Perhaps she shouldn't be the only- "
The Headmaster stopped mid-sentence upon finding himself alone in his office. He pinched the bridge of his nose and grumbled at his student's use of her mentor's disappearing act. Perhaps adding an alarm in his office should do the trick.
~Present, Beacon Dorm rooftop, Nighttime~
"Didn't Pyrrha and I tell you that you can have the night off?"
Jaune chuckled at the reminder before shifting his gaze towards his approaching tutor. "Just came here for sightseeing."
Ruby snorted when hearing his reasoning. "Pretty sure you'd get the same view from the dorm window."
The Arc son gave a playful shove at his mentor before taking note of her lone appearance. "Where's Pyrrha?"
"Helping Ren make sure that Nora doesn't finish the last syrup." Ruby then passed the blonde a wrapped box. "Although she did want you to have this. Her gift to you for passing your first combat match."
Jaune unwrapped its layer before opening it to view its contents. It was some sort of gauntlet with a white and yellow triangle layered on top. When placing it on, it was surprisingly comfortable and felt light as a feather.
"Squeeze your hand." suggested Ruby.
In doing so, he was shocked to see the triangle expand into a shield of hard-light that covered his forearm. "Whoa." was all the blonde could muster.
"Pyrrha thought you could've used another one. Something less heavy and easy to carry around."
"While I do know it's traditional for Huntsmen to name their own weapon, Pyrrha was quite fond of calling it 'Guardian'" said Ruby.
"Guardian," Jaune tested then smirked. "Short, sweet, and rolls off the tongue."
Ruby rolled her eyes at the boy before heading to the exit. "Whatever you say, vomit boy. Come on. Pretty sure your team is worried sick about you"
"Why"
The Girl Wonder stopped in her tracks. " 'Why' what?"
Jaune's gaze shifted from his shield to his tutor's back. "Why did you help me? What did you see in me that got you to teach me?"
Hearing his words sank her heart. As she turned to face the blonde, no words left her mouth as her brain failed to gather up a reason.
"Why?! Because I can! Without you, and pixie boots, and me, I don't see much of a future for Mantle!"
"Hm, I like her already boss."
"You…remind me of someone. Someone who had almost nothing to go off of and still wanted to do what's right."
Before he could ask for any further explanation, Ruby had already made a haste escape inside. That's most likely all that he was going to get from her. Best not to look a gift horse in the mouth. With a shake of his head, Jaune proceeds indoors and towards his dorm to rest alongside his team.
~Somewhere in Atlas~
"And to what do I owe the pleasure, Pietro?"
Pietro Polendina glared at the general as he rolled into his office. "Don't act oblivious with me, James! You know damn well why I'm here."
General James Ironwood ceased doing his paperwork before taking a long breath. He knew the doctor would've found out eventually, he just never knew quickly the news would reach him. "Pietro, listen- "
"Where did you send him James!? Why was I not informed!?" Pietro demanded, not leaving room for any excuses or brief answers the general would give.
With as much composure as he can muster, Ironwood explained. "Few months ago, we discovered numerous anomalies surfacing around Remnant. Each one popping in and out at random intervals. With how quickly these anomalies tend to surface and dissipate, no Atlas team was capable of analyzing them up was, until - "
"Victor" Pietro finished, having been calmed down.
"...Yes. In fact, it was actually Victor who had initially brought the anomalies to our attention. And it was him that volunteered to be the one to personally research and analyze them."
"Then why wasn't I informed of this, James?" Pietro brought back with some bitterness still laced in his words. "He's my son for the gods' sake! I had every right to- "
"It was his choice not to inform you, Pietro" answered Ironwood, much to the doctor's surprise. "He was adamant that none of this should ever reach your ears."
Pietro cursed his son's closed-off nature towards him. This wasn't the first time Victor made sure to keep him in the dark. Of all times he wished his son wasn't so stubborn about distancing himself from him. "What are you planning to do now?"
"I'm planning on sending an investigation team to Victor's last whereabouts. Hopefully his trail hasn't gone cold."
"A team of Atlas specialists come to Vale to investigate a city block? That will surely turn some heads." Pietro pointed out.
Ironwood immediately alleviated. "I'll take care of it. If the Vale council gets uneasy, I'm sure Ozpin would cover for me and help ease their worries"
An idea then popped into Dr. Polendina's head. "What if that wouldn't be necessary?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, what if we only needed one person to survey and investigate? It surely won't garner any attention from the council and would be easy to keep under the radar" explained Pietro.
Ironwood's interest was certainly piqued by the idea. But there was still one more issue. "Interesting idea, but who do you propose we send?"
"The Vytal Festival is coming within a couple of months. And I know just the person who is eager to go and help out in the investigation."
Sorry for the long wait. I have re-edited almost the entire story (Omakes included) by fixing some errors, rewrote some scenes, and even adding more scenes to enhance aspects of the story. Volume 1 of the story is almost about to wrap up so I hope ya'll enjoy this in the mean time. I would like to thank you all for the support, please leave a review or a comment on the story, and I hope you enjoy.
I do not own any of the characters. All characters and names used are owned by either Rooster Teeth and Detective Comics (DC).