New chapter yaa! Hope you enjoy it.
RIP I had to reupdate this chapter. I tried to upload it through my phone and it took off all my horizontal line space markers.
A few days later, Beacon was having an emergency staff meeting regarding budget, students, and most importantly, the spread of news of team CRDL's racist act. Neo had not only sent it to Beacon and the Vale police station but also leaked it to the news. A simple citizen discriminating against the Faunus was not much a surprise nor newsworthy. Four potential Huntsmen, who have sworn to protect the light and life of both Faunus and humans, actively harassing a simple masseur was enough to make a volcano explode.
Though on the news, when the video was revealed, the owner's face was blotted out. Still, it was enough to spark outrage that citizens were fearing Huntsmen and Huntresses, afraid they would hurt them. Quite a few were now viewing them as glorified bullies or attack dogs of the government, able to act however they wanted without consequences. Questions were being raised about the Academy and how they were being run. The only good thing was that Ozpin managed to get avoid getting even more budget cuts, and there some rather generous 'donations' was waiting for Beacon from some 'mysterious donor' if this was swept under the rug. Which was why they were having this meeting, whether to expel team CRDL or not. Team CRDL, for now, was under house arrest.
"I say expel them and make them blacklisted from joining any Academies!" shouted Peach, pounding on the table, "Why are we even considering this!? Huntsmen and Huntresses should be the example of being just, fair, and kind. Clearly, this evidence shows that these brats are willing to bully other and use their training for their own selfishness! I've had several Faunus students finally step up and tell me they were being bullied just for being a Faunus. Here! At Beacon Academy!"
"Although I don't want to admit it, Professor Peach is right. Team CRDL's behavior is atrocious and must be heavily punished. I'm not sure I would go that far to blacklist them, though. Perhaps transferring them to Shade or Atlas Academy may be better. Both of those have a rather stricter policy on such things," commented Oobleck as he sipped his coffee.
"That's a bit harsh, don't you think?" said Port, "The semesters only half-way through. These boys are still rough diamonds who just needs to be guided to be molded into better Huntsmen! Sure their attitude less than cavalier, but give them some time to grow out of it! I say we have them serve detention with me for the rest of the semester. I will surely pound that attitude out of them."
Ozpin sighed as he closed his eyes, trying to recalculate the budget. The donations would be a huge boon for the school, something he couldn't ignore. And they needed every Huntsmen and Huntresses they could train, as the Grimm grew more powerful. Yet he couldn't just ignore this current dilemma.
Glynda hummed for a bit before flashing back to poor Jaune. Since they had received the unedited footage, they all knew that it was Jaune's place team CRDL had trashed a bit. She knew that they would've made a bigger mess if someone hadn't mysteriously intervened. Then, she had an idea that shot through her head, though she wasn't sure if it was a good one.
"If we do expel team CRDL, that leaves a room empty for others to use. Not to mention that's four allowances that Beacon doesn't need to give to the students. Perhaps we could use that Lien that originally went to the students and use it to hire Jaune to open his massage place in that room. It would be easy access for all students, as they reside in the same dorms. I'm sure some of them could use it."
'Not to mention, easy for the staff to get it too,' thought Glynda mentally, already slightly salivating at the chance of free massages on a bi-weekly basis if they could swing the deal right.
Peach was all for it while Port and Oobleck actually had to think about that proposition. Ozpin slowly opened his eyes and made a decision.
"While it is true that their behavior horrible as aspiring Huntsmen, let us not forget they are still children and still training to become one. As Professor Port said, they are still rough on the edges. Though we should not condone their actions, we should not condemn them to the extreme. There is still time for them to slowly change their views. Even specialist Schnee from Atlas Academy managed to break away from her father's view and formed her own, polished by Atlas Academy and its staff. Not to mention all the students that interact with her. The world is growing to be a more dangerous place, so we'll need all the people we can train."
Ozpin took a sip of his coffee mixed with a little brandy for a kick before continuing, "I believe that team CRDL... should not be expelled. And before you shout Professor Peach, allow me to finish."
Peach had jumped up and was about to shout when Ozpin made that statement. Pouting, she fell back on her seat.
"Team CRDL has not committed any felonies, though their crime cannot be counted as a mere infraction. It is a misdemeanor, and the appropriate punishments must be set. I propose that team CRDL will not only serve detention for the rest of the semester but use their two-week break and do community service at any locations that either specializes in helping the Faunus or helps both humans and Faunus, whether it be a hospital or even a soup kitchen. Two hours each day for their two-week break, only Sunday off. And their overseer will write a report about their behavior every two days. If they fail to get a passing ovation, then they will continue their community service during the second semester until we deem enough. Finally, team CRDL will not be allowed to participate in the Vytal Festival Tournament. No exceptions on that part."
Peach grumbled but nodded at Ozpin's decisions while the others tilted their head in acknowledgment.
"Oh yes, before I forgot to ask," piped Port all of a sudden, "Why didn't you tell us that young Jaune had his Aura unlocked as well as have such incredible Aura reserves?"
Ozpin, Glynda, and Oobleck blinked in surprise and looked at each other before looking back to Port once more to see if he was just joking. They were shocked when they saw Peach nodding in agreement with Port.
"We were unaware Mr. Arc had unlocked his Aura," said Oobleck, "When we came for our massage, none of us could sense it unlocked."
"Indeed, and I went twice," added Glynda.
Sensing someone's Aura was something only Huntsmen and Huntresses of the highest caliber could do. It allowed them to tell if others were in danger.
"Mr. Arc didn't even seem to know about Aura when I casually advised him what to train in. Something must have happened between our visit and your visit. Exactly how big were his reserves?" asked Ozpin curiously.
"It was... quite impressive," admitted Port, "Though I didn't get use the Scroll system to scan the exact number, I'd estimate that it tops over even most of our fourth-year students, and he's still growing! And from what you've said, it was only recently unlocked, which means Peach and I couldn't get a good estimate. The only problem is he currently has no idea nor control over it."
The teachers blinked in awe at this revelation. Ozpin especially was already putting his mind into overdrive on this.
'Perhaps this is why Aurivelle Arc wanted me to take in Jaune,' pondered Ozpin, 'But why not unlock his Aura? Why without any visible training?'
"He really showed great interest in attending Beacon," continued Peach, not noticing Ozpin's internal debate, "Is there any chance we could perhaps strike a deal with him? His services as a masseur here, and in return, he gets access to Beacon library, gym, and other amenities that we can write in later. We wouldn't need to pay him Lien, thus not hurting the budget too much, and we can surely use one of the spare classrooms we have here as his workplace. Not to mention, I know personally he has the right attitude as a Huntsman."
"Hear hear," supported Port.
"I agree," nodded Oobleck, "Though my conversation with him was short, I gleaned that he was someone that desperately wanted to become a Huntsman. A dream that we should not turn him away, now that his Aura has been unlocked, and from the looks of it, vast untapped potential. In fact, if he may be able to transfer in next semester if we can manage it."
They all looked to Ozpin for the final decision for Jaune. Ozpin closed his eyes to contemplate before opening them and gave his answer.
"Professor Peach's idea has merit. I will run it by the board of directors of Academy, but I myself will support it. If what you two say is right, then he is a student with vast potential. However, I will have to disagree with Doctor Oobleck's suggestion of transferring him in the second semester. This year, Beacon will be hosting the Vytal Festival Tournament. We simply do not have the time to test him and then try to fit him into a team, not with us all catering to the three other Academies, nor do we currently have any openings in the teams. I'm sorry to say that if Mr. Arc wishes to join Beacon, he will have to attempt it next year, though I will allow him to proceed to the second year, depending on his audition. Let us put this topic to rest and cover whatever else we need."
Glynda nodded and swiftly changed it to dealing with the upcoming field trip to Forever Falls.
In the abandoned streets of Mt. Glenn, Aurivelle Arc was seen wandering through it silently. Avoiding contact with Grimm, he made his way through Mt. Glenn as whispers of the past tickled his ears. Aurivelle closed his eyes as he could remember and even feel how the city was like before the disaster. The children laughing, the birds chirping, and the scent his favorite bakery making those delicious cheese rolls. Now, all he could see was the screams of the dead as Grimm overtook the city. Shaking his head out of the trance, he made his way through the city before stopping at a small building. On the side of the building were letters that were fading from view, though Aurivelle would remember what it was. It was a small restaurant where he and the love of his life would eat whenever they could for special occasions. It was also where he proposed to her. And it was the resting place for her. Though he could not find her body when Mt. Glenn fell, he felt like this would be the perfect place to set up her grave. She died a hero's death, protecting the civilians. The only thing that made him mad was that he hadn't been there to save her. Aurivelle had been on a long-term assignment in the wilds, hunting down some Grimm for other settlements.
He stayed there and prayed for a few minutes, completely motionless. Not even moving when a Beowolf started to prowl down the street. The Beowolf gazed at the solitary figure, sniffing from the distance. It growled and started to run towards Aurivelle, who stayed completely still. With a howl, it tried to pounce Aurivelle when he finally reacted with deadly force. Before it could figure out what happened, Aurivelle had already decapitated it.
"Guess I shouldn't linger here too long," mumbled Aurivelle as he stood up, "Still have our grandson to visit. I'm sure he's doing well in Beacon now."
Though he said that, he stood still staring at the grave marker of his wife for a bit longer.
Jaune sighed as he finished massaging an old man with too many wrinkles to count. Though slightly disgusted, he did his best not to show it on his face and got a decent tip for it. This morning had been slightly off for him, as there had been a patient who had been so rude that Jaune was tempted to kick her out.
Not only was she a walk-in patient, she demanded to be next. When Jaune managed to finally convince her to just wait for the next available timing, he was 15 minutes behind the schedule. He was glad the other customer was understanding, being in the service business himself. When it finally came to the hag's turn, she took forever in the changing room. So long that Jaune had to ask a female customer to check up on what was happening. It turned out that the hag was in the shower staring at the wall for no apparent reason, using up the majority of the hot water.
When it finally came down to the massage, she kept switching which massage oil she wanted. After Jaune managed to convince her to use a single brand, the hag kept nagging about his choice in locations, hair, etc. She had reserved a 45-minute massage, and yet when Jaune told her she was done, she kept yelling, telling him he should show some courtesy and keep going. Luckily, the next appointment wasn't until an hour later, so Jaune decided to allow an extra 15 minutes. It went downhill after as the hag kept trying to haggle the price, saying that that was only a 30-minute massage without oil. After finally paying for the 45-minute massage, the hag shrieked and said she'd never come back here again and she would be telling her friends not to come while writing a Delp review about the horrid services of this place.
"Least I won't have to deal with her again," growled Jaune as he went back to his studies on Dust.
Soon, he heard the door chime once more and heard a familiar voice.
"Hello again!"
Jaune smiled as he looked up to see Pyrrha waving at him with a bag on her side.
"Hello again yourself! I didn't expect to see you again so soon. Did you need another massage?"
"Actually I came to visit you! That's if you don't mind... Did I come at a bad time! I'm sorry!"
Pyrrha began to panic a bit, forcing Jaune to stand up and calm her down a bit.
"It's okay, right now it's a bit of a dead hour, though I do have another appointment within 10 minutes."
"That would be mine."
Jaune looked over to see two more people about his age enter in.
"Jaune, these are my teammates and friends, Lie Ren and Nora Valkyrie," introduced Pyrrha.
"It nice to meet you," greeted Ren as he gave a slight bow.
"So this is who our preppy leader been smiling about!" cheered Nora as she clung onto Pyrrha, forcing her to blush, "She's was mopey and cold when she became our leader, and then in one day, she suddenly turns more happy and connecty! Obviously, something happened in that so-called 'business trip!"
"Nora," scolded Pyrrha, "I was-"
"Don't lie to us," waved Nora, "We know you wanted to get away from Oreo."
"It was obvious," nodded Ren.
"Wait a minute," said Jaune as he did a quick count, "Aren't you supposed to be in teams of four? Where's your last member?"
"Oreo had something busy to do today," smiled Nora, "Not sure why. He's Pyrrha's partner."
Pyrrha wrinkled her nose at the thought of that man being her partner but soldiered on. She was surprised that Oreo didn't try to muscle in on this trip, though. She wondered what he was trying to do, though.
Ren, however, smirked from the background, unbeknownst to them all. Ren was a man of few words. He didn't interact with others too much, letting Nora's peppy behavior do all the work. However, in return, when he was annoyed, he made sure to get rid of it. Ren had basically told Oreo about some legend of a bizarre flower and five leaf clover, and how finding it would unite him and Pyrrha together closer to even lovers. Ren also told him he had to do it alone and without his partner's knowledge, or the legendary powers wouldn't work. So Ren had sent him on a wild goose chase.
The reason why Ren did this besides helping Pyrrha get him off her back? He was mad when Oreo tried to 'accidentally' walk into the room, knowing full well Pyrrha and Nora were changing clothes. Though he didn't show it, he was fiercely protective of Nora. He thanked the heavens that Pyrrha was the leader and not Oreo, otherwise, he knew Oreo would abuse it to get free glimpses. He had learned to respect Pyrrha and would be damned to let anything bad happen to both girls. He knew the girls felt the same way about the leadership position.
Meanwhile, back at Beacon...
"WHERE IS IT!" raged Oreo in the courtyards as he fruitlessly tried to find the mysterious items so he could grow closer to Pyrrha. Little did he know he would be there for a long time.
"I'm sure he's very busy with whatever he needs to do," answered Ren diplomatically.
"As long as he doesn't go through our drawers," shuddered Nora, "You remembered to lock it up, right?"
"Of course," nodded Pyrrha.
"So you guys made the reservation?" asked Jaune, switching the subject.
"That is correct," responded Ren, "Nora will be getting the massage today, and I was hoping to apply for the job opening you have here if you still have it."
"That would be great!" said Jaune, almost shouting now., "I've been needing some help organizing some files, invoices, and statements. I can interview you after I finish the massage appointment."
"That would be fine," nodded Ren, "If needed, we can do the interview during the massage, if that's okay with you."
"That would feel unprofessional," frowned Jaune, "I wouldn't want you to feel like I wasn't giving you my full attention. Not to mention I wouldn't to make Nora feel like I wasn't giving my attention for the massage."
"Bah, I don't mind," shrugged Nora, "Speaking of which, what are you going to do while we are getting the massage and interview?"
"She can just hang out upstairs if she wants," offered Jaune, "I have a television and a room where she can study in peace if needed."
"That would be grand," smiled Pyrrha.
"Alright, you know the way in," waved Jaune as Nora finished up the medical questionnaire and patient information, "I'll take Nora to the changing room and I can interview Ren a bit. Help yourself to the fridge if you need a snack."
Pyrrha nodded and went up the stairs, slightly wincing in guilt as she saw Jaune hadn't had time to fix the cracks.
As Ren and Jaune went towards the bigger massage room, Ren glanced at the cracks before asking how those happened.
"Let's just say someone was in a rush and crashed into me and leave it at that," said Jaune with a nervous laugh.
Ren just eyed the cracks for a bit before turning to Jaune, "If you want, I can fix that. Just buy me the materials and it'll be good as new."
"You've had experience with this?" questioned Jaune.
"My partner/friend is someone who loves to make explosions and tends not to restrain herself when she should," deadpanned Ren, "Having someone like that as your friend tends to make you learn how to fix things, especially walls."
"And yet you wouldn't trade her for anything, right?" asked Jaune.
"Correct," grinned Ren.
Soon, Nora appeared in the room as Jaune was scanning over the resume Ren gave him, wearing just a towel and short shorts. Seeing Jaune was too distracted, Nora grinned and tried to tease Ren, pulling her towel down a bit to reveal her busty chest, forcing Ren to turn away and blush.
"Well that seems to be in order," announced Jaune as he finished scanning through the resume, "Plus, since you're Pyrrha's teammate, I feel like I can trust you with this job. I suppose you can only work weekends?"
Ren nodded in reply, to which Jaune murmured that it was better than nothing before telling Ren he was good and that if he wanted to stay to watch or go with Pyrrha.
"I'll stay and watch," volunteered Ren, "I could use some tips to help my team."
"Watch out, Renny might steal some of your business," teased Nora.
"I don't mind," chuckled Jaune, "If he can work as a part-time masseur here, it'd be a big help. But he would need to get a license, and I don't think you'll have enough time with Beacon."
Ren nodded in agreement. He really didn't have that much free time between Beacon, homework, blocking Oreo, and most importantly, watching over Nora. With this new job, it would dwindle even further. As Jaune got ready to massage Nora, Ren called Pyrrha back down, telling her he was going to watch and learn, and that if she wanted to do the same. Pyrrha instantly agreed, and soon they were all in the double room.
"You have a lot of muscle on your back," admired Jaune as his hands slowly went over her feminine but lean back.
"She wields a giant hammer," commented Pyrrha.
"And I smash legs with them!" cheered Nora.
"She's been like that before you ask," sighed Ren as he leaned back in the chair.
"Yea! No offense Jauney, but I don't think you'll be able to OOOMMMMM~!"
Nora was interrupted as Jaune pressed down on under her shoulder blade hard with his elbow, taking on a knot he found. Nora's whole body shivered from the top of her skull all the way to her toes at this sudden feeling.
"Well you're right that pressing down with my fingers would be hard, but you got a giant one here that using my elbow would be much easier," shrugged Jaune as he moved his elbow in a circular fashion.
"MMMMMMM~~~~!" moaned Nora ash she felt pain and pleasure spike through her body.
"Was I that vocal when you did my back?" asked a blushing Pyrrha.
"Not as loud as Nora," assured Jaune, "Though you did knock out really fast. I could tell your whole body was tightly wound up for some reason."
"Is that so?" blushed Pyrrha.
"I blame Oreo!" shouted Nora from the bed.
"Nora!" admonished Pyrrha in embarrassment.
"You have to admit, he does cause undue stress to the whole team," shrugged Ren.
"What about you and Nora?" whispered Pyrrha discreetly, knowing Ren was always cleaning up after Nora, who tended to cause many accidents.
"That's different. I do it voluntarily and don't mind it. You and Oreo, on the other hand, are water and oil. You're water, pure and clean, and he's the oil because he's a slimy creep."
"... Thanks. But I'm sure Oreo will improve," said Pyrrha with a practiced smile that Ren saw through easily.
"The day that happens, I'll put Nora's weekly pancake fund into making brownies instead," scoffed Ren.
"Don't you dare!" shouted Nora before being hit by another sore spot that Jaune had found.
Jaune took longer on Nora's back as there was quite a bit of muscle and he explained what he was doing for Ren and Pyrrha to learn. When asked about using his feet for a deeper massage, Jaune said that he didn't like to do that too much, but if needed, he'd have the patient lying on the floor instead.
"What about acupuncture?" asked Ren.
"I'm okay with that, but again, that's the patient's decision," said Jaune, "Learned it during my continuing education. Also got fire cupping, but so far, nobody has really asked for that."
"Intriguing. I always wanted to learn more about acupuncture," said Ren.
Shortly, Jaune was finished with Nora, going 15 minutes over her time, but didn't charge for it.
"Wow! That was good!" cheered Nora, "I can see why you like this place Pyrrha!"
"I admit, he does a better job than my old spa in the gym back at home," nodded Pyrrha.
"Hey, here's an idea! Why don't we take a photo of you two shaking hands!" suggested Nora, "You can post the picture on the wall and your website, and get tons of customers!"
"How would that work?" asked Jaune, tilting her head, "I mean, Pyrrha's beautiful and all, but she's not famous, is she?"
Nora blinked and was about to speak when Pyrrha covered her mouth and replied with a blush, "Haha, Nora has the craziest ideas sometimes. How goes your studies?"
"Not bad. Ren, since I don't have anyone applying for the job, why don't we just go over what I expect you to do, as well as discussing pay? You can also tell me about how to repair the plaster on the wall."
As Jaune led Ren away, Pyrrha let go of Nora's mouth, who was glaring at her.
"What was that for?" hissed Nora.
"I'm sorry," whispered Pyrrha, "But I didn't want Jaune to know about my fame. He has no idea who I am, and I want it to stay that way. Remember our girl talk with team RWBY during that sleepover/study party?"
"You mean the one Oreo and team CRDL tried to crash in?" said a disgusted Nora, remembering that time. It didn't help that team RWBY, Pyrrha, and Nora were considered the hottest freshmen in Beacon Academy, though many knew better not to mess with Nora.
"Still, you should tell him! He's your friend, is he not?" insisted Nora.
"I'm terrified that he'll become distant and put me on a pedestal like the others," whispered Pyrrha.
"You can trust him, can't you? You slept at his place, after all."
"What!? How'd you know? I never told anyone!? I mean.. I stayed a little, but I went to a motel to check in!"
"You're not a good liar, Pyrrha. Plus, me and Ren sort of put it together, based on how you glanced at those cracks on the wall. You did those, didn't you? What'd you do?"
Pyrrha zipped her lips shut while Nora tried to pry it out of her. Too soon for Nora, Ren and Jaune had returned from their discussion.
"Well, we've discussed everything we needed," said Jaune, "Ren will be working every weekend except for test weeks to let him study. Now, since I'm officially closed, let's go out to eat as a celebration!"
"Ooh, I know the perfect place!" proclaimed Nora.
"No, Nora, we're not going to Pancake Factory," said Ren sternly, "We already went there last week, where you got a month ban for trying to break an adult's leg when you thought he was stealing your pancakes."
"But he was!" whined Nora.
"It was an all you can eat buffet," whispered Pyrrha to explain to Jaune, "Nora was going to grab the whole tray when someone took two pieces."
"Yikes. Guess the first rule for her is don't take her pancakes," whispered Jaune back.
"That's right. Especially if it's Ren's pancakes," giggled Pyrrha.
The four finally decided on an all-you-can-eat Mistral BBQ, mainly comprised of different cuts of meat and some veggies. Nora kept eating the meat only until Ren forced her to eat some veggies, but Ren took up eating most of his and Nora's share of the veggies.
"So you're trying to get into the Academy after being rejected once?" asked Nora with a mouth full of meat, getting an elbow from Ren about being so blunt and rude when Jaune told them about his dream.
"Yea, I've been studying. Professor Oobleck was helpful in giving me a few books to study from," answered Jaune.
Suddenly, appearing from the window beside them was Oobleck, who knocked on the window and stated, "DOCTOR Oobleck, thank you very much. I didn't get my doctorates for fun!"
He disappeared right after, causing them all to sweatdrop before continuing their conversation.
"Anyways... Professor Peach gave me a few more suggestions on some Dust books, and even Headmaster Ozpin helped a little. The only thing I need help is... being able to fight and maybe getting a new weapon."
"Didn't you attend combat school?" asked Ren.
"Didn't really get the chance to," admitted Jaune, "Homeschooled, as I had to help take care of the family, along with seven sisters."
"Seven!" shouted a shocked Nora, "Wow, that's a lot. Your mother must be, like, a super mother! To have eight kids!"
"Yea, but it took a lot of time for my parents to take care of them," blushed Jaune, scratching the back of his head, "I got my basic education diploma along with my Masseur degree, but I was mainly busy helping out the family."
"Does that mean you don't have a weapon?" asked Ren peacefully.
"Oh no, I do. Crocea Mors was given to me only for some reason. It's a family heirloom, though. My great-great grandfather used it in the Great War."
"I remember seeing that weapon in your apartment," said Pyrrha absentmindedly, "I didn't think it was that old, though. The blade looked quite sharp. Did sharpen it recently? Or take it to a local blacksmith to grind it?"
"Err neither. I haven't touched it since I've been at Vale, and it was just hanging on our wall for a long time," replied Jaune, "When I said I left home to come to Vale, they insisted I take Crocea Mors, though I'm not sure why."
Pyrrha looked quite shocked at this revelation while the others merely frowned. Pyrrha had seen the blade, and it definitely didn't look like an 80 year old blade. The hilt of the sword looked rough and could use replacing, but the blade itself looked sharp, though a bit dull. Nothing a good polish wouldn't fix, though.
"So you just need a training partner for spars, right?" grinned Nora as she shot a sly look at Pyrrha, "Well since Renny is going to be working here, Pyrrha would love to be your sparring partner and teacher to help train you for the test! She's not a four-time Mistralian Champion of the Mistral Regional Tournament for nothing!"
"Nora!" hissed Pyrrha, as if embarrassed at this information.
"Err what's that?" asked Jaune.
The trio blinked in surprise, but before Nora could explain it further, Ren's hand shot up and clamped her lips down while he went in a different way, "What Nora means to say is that Pyrrha is quite experienced and would love to help you get better, right?"
"You'd do that for me?" gasped Jaune.
Pyrrha wasn't going to say no, but looking at his adoring face made it impossible for her to resist now.
"I could come every time Ren comes for work if you don't mind," suggested Pyrrha.
"Of course! Unless you have something to do! I wouldn't want to disrupt your training either."
"Oh no, it's quite alright! I don't mind training you."
While the two flustered and traded compliments, Nora and Ren watched it go as if it was a tennis match and smiled. Slowly but surely, the real Pyrrha was revealing herself to them, and it was all thanks to Jaune.
They finished up the meal, paid, and walked back to Jaune's home, where Ren and Jaune were finalizing some stuff. Ren would only be working midday on Friday and full days on Saturday and Sundays.
"Instead of taking the ship on and off on the weekend, why not just stay on Friday and live until Sunday?" offered Jaune.
"That wouldn't be too bad," nodded Ren. The only problem he had with that was it left Oreo unchecked, but he supposed he could ask team RWBY to help out.
"Hey Jaune, is this the sword you were talking about?" shouted Nora as she pointed to Crocea Mors before trying to take it off the table. Jaune had been using it earlier to practice some swings before he opened the store.
"Nora, it's not nice to just take it right after asking," lectured Ren as he grabbed Nora by the wrist.
"No worries, just don't drop it," smiled Jaune.
Ren sighed as he let go of Nora and used his left hand to try to lift the blade and sheath with one hand without thinking much, with the keyword being try. His eyebrows raised in surprise before he exerted a bit more strength before switching to his dominant hand.
"Nora, hold this for me?" asked Ren as he managed to lift it with both hands and gave it to Nora. She cheerfully accepted as she put both hands out. Ren carefully put the weapon parallel to the ground before dropping it onto her hands. Her eyes widened as she lowered her knees at the sudden weight, but managed to keep hold to it.
"Wowzers! This is heavier than it looks! How do you carry this? No offense, but your arms don't seem like they can carry this weight easily."
Pyrrha raised her eyebrow before taking the sheathed sword from her, not really feeling the weight. She had to admit it was a little heavier than it looked, but nothing she couldn't handle with time. The shield seemed of similar weight to hers, too. Yet Nora seemed to say it was heavy, and she was physically the strongest out of her team!
"Really? I mean, I have a little trouble carrying it, but I don't think it's heavier than normal," said Jaune as he took his weapon back and unsheathed it with ease, as if it weighed normally, stating that he did feel a bit strained if he wielded it for too long.
Ren decided to experiment, weighing his weight first without the sword before doing it again with it, finding out that the sword and shield actually weighed a total of 35 pounds! The sheath/shield was 20 pounds, while the sword itself was 15 pounds, and the sword looked like a regular longsword that should be only 5 pounds.
"Yikes, that's heavy," said Nora.
"Is it? I never thought it felt that heavy, though," replied Jaune as he examined his equipment along with Pyrrha, who noticed there were several nicks and scratches to show just how old the weapons were.
"Yea. Even Nora's hammer weighs 28 pounds, though she can bench five times her own weight," replied Ren.
"It's weird, though," commented Pyrrha, "I'm holding it, but it doesn't feel like thirty-five pounds total. More like twenty for me. Why is that? And how much does it feel like you're carrying, Jaune?"
Jaune weighed it in his hands before replying, "You know, I feel like this is much lighter now. I know it was heavier, but at most it weighed twenty pounds. Now it feels like... ten pounds total. Though I don't know when that changed."
"Perhaps an old forging technique?" theorized Ren, "You said it yourself, this weapon is old. But it's very durable and lighter than normal for you. Normal swords with similar builds as yours weigh at most 7 pounds. You have quite the advantage now. You can swing a weapon like its made out of light metals but still deliver heavy attacks. The same can be said with your shield."
"Yea but that's all it can do," sighed Jaune, getting depressed.
"Cheer up!" said Nora, "If you want, we can see if we can get some sort of attachment to the weapons! Oooh, I suggest a grenade launcher! Or a Rocket Launcher! Something that goes boom!"
"Err, let's just stick with the basics first," said Jaune nervously.
"I can help you with your swordsmanship and shield," chirped Pyrrha happily.
"If you need ranged weapons, I'm sure you can just buy a pistol and a holster on the side instead of trying to put it on your weapon," added Ren, "Plus, I don't think it would be easy to recraft your weapon."
Seeing that it was almost time to head back, the trio were about to say their goodbyes when Nora whipped out an instant camera from somewhere
"C'mon, let's take some photos together!" cheered Nora.
Seeing Nora wasn't giving up, they managed to get all four of them together by using the timer on the camera. Then Nora insisted on a photo with just Jaune and Pyrrha together. After much complaints and threats from Nora, they finally agreed to it. Their bodies were facing each other while their heads looked at the camera, shaking hands as if a famous person was greeting the owner. Pyrrha once again let out her true smile instead of her professional one and Nora snapped the photo. Once done, Nora convinced Pyrrha to sign it before taping it on the wall, and made Jaune promise not to take it down.
The trio said their goodbyes and went back to Beacon via Bullhead.
"You want him to be on our team, don't you," said Ren suddenly towards Pyrrha as the Bullhead slowly descended down, "To replace Oreo.
"... I neither deny or confirm your accusation," replied Pyrrha lightly.
"I wouldn't mind," smiled Nora, "He could've been our fearless leader if he got in!"
"Maybe," smiled Pyrrha sadly, "But Oreo is our teammate. And it's our duty to get along with him somehow. I'm sure down the road, he'll turn out better."
"Maybe if I break his legs, Jaune could get in," whispered Nora.
"As tempting as it sounds, don't," sighed Ren.
The trio arrived at their dorm to see Oreo dead asleep in his bed, completely worn out. Ren chuckled silently but maliciously as he knew his hunt for the "legendary" items had been unsuccessful.
Whew, that was a bit longer than my usual massage chapters. Hope you've enjoyed it. As for the old hag, I've actually had something similar with me on that, though details may be slightly different. In the end, I almost pulled my hair out dealing with the customers, and my coworkers know that's a very rare occurrence.
Next time, team RWBY will finally be shown in the story, though just a tiny bit. They will get a full chapter soon, though.
Heads up, dirtrevor did a reaction fic on chapter 1 of Mending the Knots in his story Different Views.
Second note, I'm now accepting commisions. Look at my profile for more detail.
Lastly, I've made a page! Come support me if you can, I'll still keep writing though it may get harder due to life as usual.
Link is : pa_ /azndrgn, just take out the underline