AN- I've made a mistake! Shea, was supposed to be spelled Shae, so it could be pronounced like this: Sh-ay. Someone pointed this out to me last chapter, and I mixed up the names of one of my other characters whose name is Rhea, so I subconsciously get writing Shea. I would try and go fix it but there are just too many times where I wrote her name to be able to fix it properly. I take responsibility for this error, and I am sorry. For now on, whenever I type "Shea" Just know that I mean "Shae", I'll try to get my brain to remember this.
Now let's thank our reviewers shall we? Or I will at least, I think a lot of you just skip this part.
Haro654- A surprising amount of people actually voted for Weiss, which honestly surprised me, I am planning on what to do with her in case I decide to have her as Kai's girlfriend. Thanks for the review!
Astra- I like how you did the same thing I would do, "Oh there's another blind OC story, hmmm. Nah Im not about to look through 24.7k stories to see if I can find one." I don't know if you can tell yet, but I decided against having thirty reoccurring OC's, I might have two more come in, but other then that. I think I am good so far. You have no idea how hard it is to have that many personalities in your head. Maybe that is why it is so easy for me to write Orchid… Moving on. To me, I don't think silver eyed warriors were meant for JUST the Grimm, they have to have at least some other effect that comes with the eyes instead of being really good at staring at monsters to death. You're right when you say I don't know what would happen to the body if the blood started moving on its own, but at the same time, I don't care, you dont care, and I doubt anyone else cares. It's really cool, and I like Avatar. That episode was one of my favorites. Cinder came to save the bad guys, poor Malikai and his back. Raven came to save the day! She will have a larger role in this fic instead of just being Yangs estranged mom. The extra is not a full explanation, as you said later on, it is one of the reasons, but not even close to the full reason, we all know that Raven is not one for love. More will be explained, and more reasons will be shown in both the story and the extras. Adding Orchids mom to the poll? Nah, she would be better off in a non-canon extra. Thanks for the idea. It is your fault for what is coming. Stop it. Next, Cardin Winchester, our resident racist who was pretty much forgotten about in RWBY itself. I have plans for him, just you see. No comment on the Qrow training Kai thing, I will neither confirm nor deny that. I made a mistake with her name… whoops. Yeah but this bracer is special in a way that I will explain further in the story. Unfortunately, I sort of made up her weapon from scratch, so I do not know if there is a specific name for it, maybe think of a halberd meant for one hand, and then add the other details to it and voila. Headmaster Albedo is an interesting fellow, you will question a lot of his habits. Maybe Orchid put those there herself… maybe the Flamingo goddess is real… maybe… she is watching you right now as you read this message… run. Jokes aside, I love Orchid. Headmaster Rivers is just a reference to my other stories, I might make it into something more in the future. But nothing is guaranteed. I thought you wrote bloody swan for a second and now I can't stop giggling to myself. I thought people would have been a little more shocked or surprised to see Emeralds name at the end of the chapter, AND she is Shae's partner. Matsu will be addressed in the future, no worries there. Thanks for the review!
SuperKaiokenGoku- Yes, very cool.
Now lets see what the Poll is at now…
Yang (Aw Yeah!) - 10
Ruby (No! I gotta beat my sister at something!) - 10
Weiss (This has certainly been an interesting development…) - 6
Blake (I went up one vote… Yay.) - 2
Pyrrha (Thank you for the upvote!*Cries internally*) - 2
Orchid Rosa (If I don't get at least 5 votes by the time another chapter is posted… Something great will happen… Please vote for us- I mean me!) - 2
Neo (...?) - 1
I don't even know how Neo got there, someone just asked me in a PM to add her in the poll and well… there we go. Yang and Ruby are tied for the lead, and the underdog Weiss is making a comeback. While Blake, Pyrrha, and Orchid are all tied for second to last. Neo is just kind of there now, I have no idea what to do with her if she wins but I can think of something Im sure. A blind person and a mute person falling in love would certainly be an interesting story, especially if it was Kai and Neo. it'll be hard as all fuck but doable. I'm sorry but I am not adding any more girls to the Poll, this is it now. So choose wisely.
Kai: Uh… what's going on here? Why are all these girls here? And why is one of them touching me?
Yandere Orchid: Just let it happen my love… Hee Hee Hee.
Kai: Now there's two of them!?
Yang: Nice ass you got there.
Don't look at me like that Im bored, lets get right into the story!
RWBY: The Blind Huntsman
Chapter 9- Volume 0, Episode 7
New Friends, and Old Allies
"I think her name was Emerald." Shae said as she tapped a finger on her chin. "Yeah, definitely Emerald."
"That's a nice name," Kai said with a smile. "Where is she?"
"Eh, probably hanging out with her boyfriend that she totally doesn't have." Shae chuckled. "Should be around here somewhere though… Hey Emerald!" Shae sudden;y screams her name to the whole cafeteria.
Emerald, on the other side of the room at a table occupied by only one other person. Bangs her head on the table as her annoying partner calls out her name.
"Get over here!" Shae waved her over after spotting the unusual but unmistakable mint colored hair that matched her namesake. "Come meet my friends."
Yang stifles a chuckle as the green haired girl reluctantly gets up from her seat and strolls over to their table. A gray haired teen quickly following suit, not even bothering to hide his amusement of the situation his maybe-girlfriend in. His laughs can be heard throughout the whole cafeteria.
"Yes… Shae?" Kai sensed that she forced out every bit of politeness she thought she was hiding.
"Done hanging out with your boyfriend?" Shae teases as she grins her usual sharp toothy grin.
"For the last time Shae, he is not my boyfriend." Emerald gagged at the mere thought.
"C'mon Em, you're gonna hurt my feelings." Mercury sarcastically said as he dramatically placed a hand on his chest. "Such cruelty."
"No, I would rather slice your throat open as you sleep." The scary thing is, Kai could tell that was the truth.
"So this is your partner?" The blind huntsman in training asked. Looking in the dark skinned girls direction.
"The one and only." Shae confirmed. Then looked to her partner with a questioning look. "What did you think of my fight earlier?"
"Heh, yeah Em, what did you think of their fight?" Mercury echoed as he took a seat, leaving a space between himself and the Tiger Faunus just for Emerald, because he is a good friend like that.
Emerald growls lightly at being put on the spot, only Kai was able to notice and he took a note of it. She reluctantly takes the open space next to her partner.
"It was awesome right!?" Bubbly Orchid suddenly slapped her hands on her shoulders, no one questions how she seemingly teleports behind the green haired girl. "I mean, they were all like swoosh, and then bang! Then Kai went oogh, then Shae went AGH, then she fell out of the ring, and for some reason it was considered a draw." Orchid then place a hand on her chin, and thought to herself. "Wait, that doesn't make any sense."
"The fight was... fun to watch." Emerald said as she pushed the hyperactive girl away from her. Kai sensed her lie right away, but kept quiet about because he figured accusing someone of lying wouldn't be much of a first impression, he passed it off as her just not being very social and not holding a high opinion of the thought of having friends, he could understand in a way. He also noted that it would not be a good idea to touch her, she was clearly not a touchy person judging by how she shoved his partner away. "But it was clear who won in the end." At least that wasn't a lie. Kai nodded and smiled, satisfied with her answer.
"Tch, rub it in some more why don't ya?" Shae's teasing smile faded away right after that.
"So, Im Yang!" Yang suddenly greeted, tired of being left in the dark. "Glad you two came over here because this is now going to be where you sit for the next three years!" Yang said as she presented the mostly empty table. For some reason the only ones who ever sat at that rather large table was herself, Kai, Ruby occasionally, Orchid, Cyan, then Rick and Brick. More people wouldn't hurt, it would make her feel a little less in the spotlight as well. She gets enough looks from the lustful hormonal boys that think they can get to touch her just because they are nice to her. After knocking one of them out the other boys seem to have caught the hint, but that doesn't stop them from looking from time to time thinking that she wouldn't notice. Really the only boy's that Yang is more or less okay with is her partner, as rude as he may be sometimes. The Violet twins, who are in their own way fun to be around by just listening to their banter. Then of course there is Kai, who is still her favorite at this point in time. Hell, she'd dare to even say that if they didn't live in the same house together he may still have become her favorite. He was the one who confirmed for her that even a blind person could tell that she was beautiful, and even then he wasn't like any other boy so far, he was more mature, more special in his own right. And that, she liked.
"Uh, where'd Ruby go?" Kai asked out loud as he sensed the featherweight girl suddenly disappear, and by disappear he means dashed out of the room faster then he could keep up with even with his seismic sensing. But sadly, his voice fell upon deaf ears.
"That's… great." Emerald said. Another lie, Kai could tell. This girl really didn't like being around people.
"By the sounds of your voice I can tell that you don't like being around people much, do you?" Kai thought out loud, but didn't regret pointing that out in the slightest, he has gotten tired of her lies. Liars were never really people he ended up liking.
Emerald froze and her red eyes widened as the blind boy caught one of her slips ups.
Luckily, Mercury came to her rescue. "Yeah, she didn't really talk to many people before she met me. Sorry about that."
Well, he's not lying, but I can't tell if that is the full truth with all these people around. Kai thought to himself as he put on a friendly smile.
"Oh, i'm sorry about that." Kai quickly apologized, to which the gray haired teen nodded to, as well as Emerald. "Well, my name is Kai Matsuoka." Kai greets with a nod. "What's yours?"
If he could see, Emerald and Mercury both perked up just a bit after hearing his last name.
"Mercury Black," Mercury greeted back with a smirk. "So you're the Blind Huntsman kid everyone has been talking about?" Mercury asked, leaning into the table as he spoke.
Kai rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Y-yeah, that would be me. Didn't know I already made a name for myself."
"Oh, Kaizy." Sly Orchid spoke up. "You were only the number one trend on the news for the next few days after the entrance exam." Sly Orchid said slyly.
"W-what? Are you serious?" Kai did not plan that at all. He didn't plan to make any kind of name for himself, at least not so soon. So this sudden celebrity status has caught him off guard.
"Yeah man," Yang confirmed. "Lisa Lavender had a field day with you, pretty much all of Vale knows about you already."
"Why was I the only one who didn't know I was famous?" Kai threw his hands in the air frustratedly. Well, that makes things interesting for sure. Honestly he is surprised that his half-faunus biology would have steered away a lot of people. He knew Cardin was like that, and his mother did warn him to be careful with strangers and to always hide his tail in his shorts like he is doing now. But he has been finding himself doing that less and less with around the people he is always around. He would have it out more if Orchid and Ruby wouldn't always keep trying to play with it.
"Maybe because you don't watch the news?" Smug Orchid suggested smugly.
"Orchid, how would I watch TV?" Kai asked rhetorically. Using the old blind excuse that got Orchid most of the time.
"Fair point, but you can still hear can't you?" Smug Orchid caught him there, threw his rhetorical question right back at him.
"W-well." Kai stammers as he tried to find some sort of comeback. "Okay fine, that one is my fault."
"The Flamingo wins this battle of wits." Nerdy Orchid said victoriously. "I look forward to our next bout." Competitive Orchid added with a wink and a finger gun fired his way.
"As do I." Kai said with a chuckle and a small bow of his head in her direction.
"Is that… normal?" Emerald asked, clearly a little freaked out by Orchids spontaneous patterns of speech. That's putting it lightly of course.
"Oh yeah, she does it all the time." Yang answered right away. "You get used to it."
"I certainly have." Kai said, which earned him a light slap on the arm.
"I… see." Emerald is at a loss for words. This was not what she had expected when she was given the task of attending Signal along with her very annoying partner.
"See? This is what you're missing out on Emerald." Shae said as she wrapped and arm around her shoulder, uncaring of Emerald's clear discomfort that she shows with her whole body. "I am making an executive decision, and hereby declare that you will know longer sit anywhere else but here with us."
Emerald never wanted to scream her head off more then she did now.
"You can bring your boyfriend with you to if you want."
"He's NOT my boyfriend!"
Kai could tell that is the truth, but couldn't bring himself to save her from the teasing. To his amusement so could the one who was being assumed to be the other girls significant other. Oh the amusements lunch time could bring. He could tell that there was plenty more to come in the future if the same group of people were around him all the time like this.
"As much as I'd like to sit here and listen to the banter, I have to go early to take a vocal version of the upcoming test later on." Kai said as he stood up.
"Ooo, ooo! Can I come!?" Excited Orchid exclaimed
"Orchid you were the one who told me I had to go by myself." Kai pointed out.
"Aw…" Flamingo is sad.
"I really like that little group you got us stuck with. Really, the mix very well with us." Mercury joked as he and his partner in literal crime walked the halls, they made the excuse of having to go to class for extra help. And by they it means Emerald. She just couldn't stand them anymore. That weird girl who kept making one-eighties in all directions, her feisty Tiger faunus of a partner. That blonde girl who is just plain annoying, and the worst of it all is her actual partner. With his stupid quips and just stupid existence.
"Shut up, I hate you." Emerald growled at him.
"Is that any way to talk to your boyfriend?" Mercury faked sounding hurt just to annoy her even more.
"If you were my boyfriend I'd cut my own throat." Emerald snarled.
"Heh, well," Mercury leaned in just a bit. "Were you able to use your semblance on him?" Mercury asked very quietly, and in a much more serious tone.
Emerald did the same as she spoke, she shook her head side to side a couple times. "No, he didn't even react to them. Guess he really is blind." Emerald was honestly incredibly impressed by the blind boy. Not only was he able to find his own way to see, but he could fight extremely well too. If he wasn't so nice and polite, she may have even be able to stand being around him more. But thing is, she could tell that he could get very serious if the situation called for it, if the way he was so focused in the sparring match was of any indication. She tried to use her semblance on him before that, to give him the illusion that Cardin was attacking him instead of simply walking by him. Then when he was up against her school partner, she tried to make him see her as a Grimm rather than as a person to make him fight to kill instead of incapacitate. The finally, she tried using it when she was right in front of him, to give him the illusion that she herself was attacking him, but she didn't even see a flinch out of him. Even if he was pretending there has to be some natural human reaction to a blade suddenly heading toward your eye. Yet, nothing. Her semblance even becomes more powerful and easier to use the closer she is to her target, which was why she was always able to get away with stealing in the past before she was picked up by a certain red clothed woman. If he becomes an immediate threat, her semblance would be useless, while he would always have access to at least part of his semblance if what she overheard was to be believed.
"Damn," Mercury sounded equally as impressed, only he actually showed it unlike his green haired moody partner.
"Well, how does it feel to be striving to be a huntsman?" He asked next, switching topics right away as he heard footsteps coming from around the corner, it was just a pair of other students who were skipping out on class.
"Guh, never thought I would have even attempted this." Emerald played along. The two were able to work together like that, after months of working with each other, and many assassination attempts from Emerald onto Mercury. They managed to get something down together when it came to finding topic to talk about on the spot of they had to.
"Yeah, me neither, the plans we had seemed to have changed drastically just because of that blind kid. Do you know why?" Mercury asked as they got out of ear shot from the other two kids.
"If I knew you would too, but if you didn't, and I did. I wouldn't tell you." Emerald said with a smirk.
"Tch, course you would. You're massively in love with me."
"Mercury, I swear to everything I hold dear - which isn't much - that I will be the one to end your life."
"Funny, that sounds similar to what my dad said to me, and he was a much better fighter then you will ever be. "
"Shut up." Damn him, and his boastful remarks about committing patricide.
"Alright Kid, you ready?" Qrow asked as he leaned against the desk in front of Kai.
Kai nodded and got ready for the first question.
"There really is no way you could cheat, so I am going to skip out on the whole 'Do this and you fail' talk." Qrow said as he threw the packet of papers with the rules on it away into the garbage can. "In fact, this test is so useless, and we have a much more pressing matter to discuss, you pass."
"Wait, what?" Kai is massively perplexed by this, he could sense with his feet that Qrow was being genuine right there too, which just added to his confusion. That's it? Is he really that special? No, that can't be, Qrow wouldn't care about something like that. The countless hours over the past month he had spent around the man said as much.
"We won't get the chance to talk much, I got to go visit some… family." Qrow said the word bitterly, but not reluctantly. "I'm leaving today, so this is the last chance we'll get before I go." He said as he sat backwards in the chair in front of Kai.
"Qrow what's going on? Is this allowed? I am going to miss you of course but-"
"Your parents were attacked Kai." Qrow cut him off with shocking news that makes Kai widen his eyes underneath his blindfold.
"W-what… do you mean attacked?" Kai's voice was barely comprehensible as he fears the worst almost immediately.
Qrow sighed and thought about how he could explain this. He figured he should be the one to do this. Since he has been the one who has been around Kai the most besides the girls. He has taken Kai under his wing, and has been training him alongside Ruby and occasionally Yang, while also bonding with him while they were on their own. In some way, it's like Qrow is also Kai's unrelated uncle, although he really wished Kai never actually saw him like that, because if he did it would make things weird if Yang or Ruby ever got the hots for Kai, and then there's the situation with his semblance…
He's never been good with kids, which is why he doesn't have any of his own, among many other reasons that he convinced himself. But he feels Kai would rather have it come from him rather then by some letter in braille saying that his parents were attacked and presumed dead. Qrow of course feared the worse himself when the news came to him from the Headmaster of Shade academy himself. Which had news of the attack, how Malikai's house was all but destroyed, and Malikai and his wife were both missing.
Qrow knows about his silver eyes, and like the late Summer Rose, he feared that he may have met the same fate. But Headmaster Rivers reassured him with something that came with a massive amount of surprise. Raven feathers were found in the treeline around the area the battle was presumed to be held, and considering the fact that there are no bodies. Well, put two and two together and it's not difficult to find out what may have happened. He plans to kill two birds with one stone, the first one being to find Malikai. The second one being having a nice 'Friendly' talk with his sister about a very important missing person that just happened to be close to the location of the tribe.
"I think they're alive." Qrow stated his honest thought. "Your father is one of the strongest and most powerful huntsman I know, he would not go down easily." He went for the reassuring choice, which seemed to have calmed Kai down just a bit. Which in turn made himself calm down a bit as well.
"That's good… what about my mother?" Kai just had to ask the one question Qrow didn't know the answer to.
Marrons body was nowhere to be found, nor was any sign of her fighting alongside her husband. But upon further investigation it was revealed that she might have escaped the fight before it was able to heat up. Given by the footsteps that showed a person running into the dead forest that surrounded the house they lived in. But is she alive? He doesn't know, Silver Ebony wasn't found in the wreckage of the house, so it was either stolen, used by Malikai before he disappeared, or Marron took it. Qrow doesn't want to give Kai any false hope, but he also doesn't want to crush his spirit. It's only been a few weeks in the first year of Signal for him. And he can't even lie to him either, the kids basically a walking lie detector. Damn him and that ability he has.
"I… am not going to lie to you kid, I have no idea where she is or how she is doing." Qrow was forced to be honest, the words were forced out and sounded regretful. He should have kept pushing for Malikai to stay around Vale, should have stuck around him more. Especially after what happened to Summer. He feels as if he is partly at fault for this "very unfortunate situation" as Ozpin called it.
He could see the way Kai's fist clenched up, and wouldn't doubt that behind that blindfold he has red rims around his eyes. It pains him to see the kid he has become so fond of during their training. He doesn't deserve to feel this pain of not knowing what has happened. And he doesn't even know that this is only the beginning of the beginning. Being born with those eyes is both a blessing and a curse.
"Kai, listen to me." Qrow said in a soft voice, even standing up and walking to his side to kneel down and get to his level, even if the boy couldn't see it. Kai was the one who opened his eyes just a bit, he guessed he needed someone other than his nieces to tell him that he should get back into good terms with his old partner. Even said that he should get a better relationship with his sister. Which made the decision of going back to his own tribe just a bit easier. He feels that he owes the kid for that, and now he is offering a shoulder to cry on if need be. But Kai was never really an outgoing affectionate kid like that.
He gingerly placed a hand on the boy's shoulder to get his attention, but to his surprise, Kai slapped his hand away angrily. His eyebrows arch angrily, and all signs of sadness transform into bitter anger.
"That's why they sent me away." Kai managed to figure out the ruth on his own, and while Qrow would usually deny it such as his first thought. It would be a futile effort and might damage his relationship with the kid. "They knew it they had targets on their backs… and they wanted to protect me, or at least one of them did." He was getting dangerously close to the truth.
"Kai… it's best that you don't know the full truth." Qrow said carefully.
"Best for me? Or best for them?"
"Both." Qrow sternly answered. "This is something that I wished you wouldn't have to deal with for years to come. But as luck would have it, things changed, things happened sooner than expected."
"What's going on Qrow!? Is my family being targeted?" Kai did what he was good at when he wanted to know something. A simple yes or no question would almost always give him a clear answer unless it was dodged.
This is getting out of hand, Qrow has slipped up too many times, which is very uncharacteristic of him. Now he is paying for it when he finds himself caught in a bind. The answer to the question is an obvious yes, but if he answers truthfully, then Kai may act without thinking anything through. He may be more mature than others his age. But he is still just a fourteen year old kid. On the other hand, if he lies and says no, Kai would know, and it may yield the same results as if he said yes.
"I can't answer that Kai." Qrow was forced to say. "For your own protection, you have to be left in the dark."
Kai, even while angry, can sense that this is the truth. He slumps back into his chair and takes a few deep breath to calm himself down. He realizes that he is being irrational, and that the situation with his parents may be very much out of his control. Qrow was right to be so closed up, even if Kai hated that it had to be this way.
Kai exhales through his nose, composing himself much more than he was before. "I… okay, I understand." He relents. "I am sorry for getting angry."
Qrow blinks his eyes a few times. He wasn't expecting this, he was expecting the kid to blow up even more, maybe even make fire out of nothing by just being angry. But no, Kai surprised him once again by showing that he can be willing to not let his emotions take control and listen to reason. He smiles at that, he takes after his father that way. But takes after his mother by how explosive his temper can get.
"Thank you for understanding." Qrow lets out a sigh of relief. "That makes things so much easier."
"Yeah…" Kai said quietly.
"Don't let this get you down kid." Qrow places a hand on Kai's shoulder once again, and this time it doesn't get slapped away. "I promise you that we're doing everything we can to figure out where they are."
Kai raises his head, and nods in understanding. Dry streaks of tears are seen on his cheeks but he quickly wiped them away. "Thank you."
"No problem kid. Well, it looks like your test is over." Qrow speaks in his teacher voice and stands back up. "You did a great job, I look forward to seeing you when I get back."
Kai laughed, but it sounded hollow and desperate rather then joyful. But still, it was better than nothing.
"When will you get back?"
"Eh, with my special way of transportation I might be back within a week or two. Depends on a bunch of different things." Qrow could be honest there, but he couldn't tell him exactly how he would travel. Kai just assumes it is some special kind of Bullhead that huntsman use to travel around the world, or at least something similar to that.
"I'm, uh…" Kai hesitates. "I'm sorry for getting angry at you."
"Don't sweat it kid, trust me, I've been through much worse." Qrow visibly shuddered as he remembered Summer's reprimands, and of course there is his dear twin sister and then there's his partner, good times. "You were pretty tame compared to most I know. Though for some reason I thought you would be much angrier."
Kai smiles when he is easily forgiven. Something that he is sure Qrow doesn't do with a lot of people.
"Yeah, I guess so." Kai stands up. "What happens now?"
"What happens now is you taking care of Ruby's training while i'm gone." Qrow said with a smirk. "I can see the look on your face already, don't worry I'm not telling you to be her mentor, just make sure she doesn't get rusty, hell in return I am sure she would be glad to help make your weapon for you."
"We have to make weapons? Oh gosh, we do have to make our own weapons!" Kai comes to the sudden realization as he remembers one of the tasks given to them at the beginning of the school year that is due at the end of the first semester. Luckily for Yang, she already built her weapon before she entered the school, which gives her a free pass. As did mostly all the other kids. Really the only other person he knows didn't make some kind of weapon or gadget would be himself. He has little use for gadgets, since he can make throwing weapons out of the environment around him, and even if he could make a working firearm, he wouldn't be able to see where he is shooting and could end up killing someone on accident, so that is a no go to… Ruby is going to have to come in clutch for this one.
"Don't worry, since you can't see what you're doing you get extra time. Albedo was happy to allow the rules to be bent just a bit for ya."
"... I don't want special treatment."
"Well tough shit." Kai's blind eyes widened underneath his blindfold. "This is a mandatory thing all schools have to do for kids with special needs. You somewhat fit into that category, so instead of bitching about it how about you accept the help being offered?" Qrow's mini lecture actually sounded like he came from experience, and Kai knows that it would be foolish to ignore his advice.
"I… okay Qrow I'll remember that." Kai nodded and gave his usual smile.
"Good, that's gonna be the last lesson I teach you for now." Qrow said as he sifted through his pockets to find his bottomless flash that held his precious alcohol. Truthfully he doesn't even know where he got it, he just kind of found it and claimed it as his and no one questioned him because he was Qrow-Fucking-Branwen.
Qrow walked up to Kai, and placed a hand on his head. The most affectionate action the old huntsman has ever done for his most recent student. "Stay safe kid."
No more words were said after that. Kai just felt him… disappear? He was there one second with his hand on his head, and then the next he can sense no sign of the huntsman, only the wind whistling through the window and blowing through his air. He hears a squawking outside and thinks that is just perfect timing to add the dramatic effect of Qrow's exit.
"Wow, that must be how a fully trained huntsman can move." Kai flexes his arms and rolls his shoulders. He feels his blindfold around, and tightens it when he feels it beginning to come loose. He gets filled with new determination, he needs to become stronger, and more skilled. For the sake of himself, and his parents. Even for those around him. His parents sent him away for his own safety, or if his hypothesis is true, his father. His mother was never much of a fighter, but was able to take care of the smaller Grimm that strayed too close to the house.
Malikai sent him away because he was too weak… that is the only explanation. Kai gruntds in frustration and clenches his hand around the black blindfold that was gifted to him from his mother.
"Mom… if you are okay, please stay safe." Kai then reached his hand down to where his sword would usually be out of a very old habit he thought died out, only to feel nothing but his hip.
"Dad… I know you are okay. I can just… feel it." Kai mumbles, even as his head started to become uncomfortably warm for whatever reason. "Come back to me, and together we will deal with whatever threat that you had to send me away for."
Wherever you are… you better be alive.
Unbeknownst to him, underneath his blindfold. The tiniest flicker of white was visible for all but a second, before going out just as fast as it came.
Malikai slowly cracked his silver eyes open, he felt a soft bed underneath him, and a warm fur blanket draped over his body. His vision was blurred for about ten seconds before he was able to start making out the details of the room - No, tent he is in. There's a lot of red. He tries to sit up but feels agonizing pain in his back and side that makes him slump back down in the bed with a pained yelp. He looks about the tent and notices a very familiar symbol.
The symbol of the Branwen tribe.
"Shit…" Malikai said to himself over his breath, he knows where he is now. He's been here only one time before. The only question he has for himself is Why?
"You're awake." He didn't even realize that Raven was sitting in a dark corner of the tent, fully clothed, which is of great relief to him. That was one mistake he won't dare make again.
"Raven?" He asked as he rolled his head in her direction. He hasn't seen her for a very long time. He remembers that Raven saw his son once, but he only saw her one time after that, the day she abandoned her family.
"Yes." Raven confirms. "No thank you for saving your life?"
"... Why?" Malikai asked, Raven arched her eyebrow from the question. "Why save me?" He can feel his aura begin to come back to him now that he is awake, he must have pushed himself even more than he originally thought.
"Simple, you are strong, and I respect you." Raven said with a shrug, standing up to walk over to his bed.
"You know I can tell that's bullshit Raven." Malikai bluffs, while he can detect lies up to a certain extent, he can't do so properly without his feet on the ground, and the fact that he is in a very soft bed makes it so that it muffles his ability to detect such things even more. But Raven doesn't need to know that, and if she did she would have called him out right away.
"Heh, you always were able to read me." Raven shakes her head and smirks. "Would you believe me if I said it was to save myself from the aching heart that would have resulted in your death?"
"No." Malikai answered right away.
"Then we both have our reasons for keeping you alive Malikai." Raven said his name bitterly.
It looks like she still holds a bit of a grudge… Women. Qrow did try to warn me about her before. Malikai thought to himself. He couldn't help but notice how Raven's hand subconsciously moved to the hilt of her sword. She always did that when she was nervous or angry. But in this case, he can't even tell which is which.
Malikai forced himself up to a sitting position, and the blanket slides off of his sore body. Every muscle in his body tells him to stop and relax, but he needs to get out of here as soon as possible. He has things that he needs to do. Very important things.
"You shouldn't move yet, your body is still not healed." Raven leaned on one hip as she watched Malikai struggle to even turn his body to the edge of the bed.
"My wife… did she?" Malikai didn't even want to finish that question. But what he managed to get out was more than enough for Raven to understand
"She's fine." Raven answered before he can begin to think the worst has happened. "She made it out before anyone got to her, I made sure of that."
"Where is she?" Malakai's voice was suddenly filled with hope. His wife was alive, that's good. No, that's great! They got away with their lives, and they can live to see their son another day.
"On her way to Vale, as you told her to. She has your old sword as well, the black silvery one from Beacon. The one with the weird name." Malikai chuckled at this, that was the sword he gave to Kai a few years back, the same sword that was passed down to him by his own father. "I wouldn't be surprised if she thought you were dead however."
Malikai's smile faded, that was to be expected of course. He was already hurt before he decided to start fighting back, and he made it sound like he wasn't going to come back. He even believed that he wasn't going to come back, and was filled with such hope of being able to after breaking a promise to never manipulate ones blood again. But if he didn't, then he is sure he would have fallen to their blades.
"I'm surprised you were able to defeat Hazel and Tyrian on your own," Raven smiled as she said this. "You didn't lose any of your strength like most others did. You grew stronger and stronger… I like that."
"It was something I needed to do, just in case they found me." Malikai wasn't going to fall for any of her traps anymore. "Which they did. Even with my eyes I was barely able to beat them. I was going to kill them until... " Malikai felt around in his pockets for his headband that he always wore around his eyes, only to frown as he remembers the headband being ripped from his face. Now it is on the dirt torn apart and unusable. "Someone attacked me from behind with a flame attack. If I was able to sense the fire coming I might have been able to absorb it and use it against them, I wasn't able to see who it was."
"The Fall Maiden attacked you." Raven finishes for him. "Or half of one at least."
Malikai didn't know it was the Fall Maiden, therefore he widened his eyes out of shock and horror. "Amber? She's working with Salem now!?"
"No, Amber was attacked." Raven reveals recent news to Malikai, the attack happened a week before Malikai was attacked. Which gave just enough time for the perpetrator to make it to Vacuo to completely turn the tide of the battle.
"Damnit." Malikai grips the sheets of the bed tightly. "Wait, what do you mean by half of one?"
"I don't know the specifics Malikai, only that the woman who attacked who wasn't a full Maiden. If she were, you wouldn't have been able to take that attack."
"You would know wouldn't you?" Malikai accused, which made Raven narrow her eyes at the man. "You think everyone is so stupid don't you?" He forced himself to stand up, even if he muscles burned in protest and almost made him fall over, but that didn't stop him from glaring into his ex-lovers eyes. "What happened to the Spring Maiden?"
"Careful Malikai, you are treading in dangerous waters." Raven said with barely restrained anger.
"You should know that is what I do best Ray." Malikai chuckled bitterly right after he called her by her old nickname, one that was given by Summer long ago. Raven always hated it. "Then again, it's not like you tried to keep anyone around so I wouldn't be surprised if you forgot."
Raven draws her sword and in a flash of red holds it up to his neck. Malikai's weak aura isn't able to defend, and a small drop of blood drips out of his neck and down his chest.
"People usually get angry when stuff about them are guessed correctly." Malikai smugly remarked. He always knew how to rile Raven up.
"You will be silent." Raven demands as she pressed the blad a millimeter deeper.
"I'm not one of your grunts Ray. Once I get better, I will leave."
"You will have to earn your way out if you wish to achieve that goal."
"So basically you mean I have to fight you?" Malikai guessed correctly. "I know you would win, having maiden powers and all that. I'm not taking that deal."
"I'm not the Maiden."
"Bullshit, if you aren't the Maiden, the who is?"
"I am." A new voice sounds off from their side. Malikai looks to his left to see a young woman, who must be in her early to mid twenties. Short brown hair, icy blue eyes, wearing clothes that pretty much screams 'Im part of the Branwen tribe', and a black tattoo resembling a raven holding up part of the moon, along with other accessories around it.
"Who's this? You got into younger women now?" Malikai sarcastically asked.
"No, I don't swing that way fuck-face." The woman snarls at him.
"Ooo, one with a mouth too. You were always into those kinds of people Ray." Malikai continues to taunt, even with a blade pressed up against his throat.
"My name is Vernal," The woman said through gritted teeth.
"And you confused me as someone who gave a shit."
"She is the Spring Maiden." Raven said as she reluctantly re-sheathed her sword. "And you are going to help me train her.
Malikai looks to Raven, then to Vernal, who is now leaning on one hip and giving him a death glare. Then back to Raven, and blinks his silver eyes a couple of times.
Then proceeds to burst out into boisterous laughter.
AN- Would you guys believe me if I said I wrote this whole chapter in two days? No? Well you're wrong cuz I started this yesterday. I don't know how I do it, or why I do it. I just keep writing and all of the sudden I see 7.5k words and a perfect place to end the chapter. I had to stop writing 10k+ word chapters, since I said all chapters would be 6-8k words each like three chapters ago, and I broke that rule I made for myself the very next chapter. Some chapters will be long like the last two of course, but I have to set a limit for myself lest I use up my ideas before I even realize it.
For those of you wondering, yes, Mercury does have his own partner, and will be revealed further in the story.
For those of you who might not have read the extra last chapter. Raven and Malikai used to be in a relationship with each other, keyword being USED. As in they are no longer together.
Vernal is here! I personally liked her character, and she will have a larger role to play then she did in the actual show. Not just being some character that only existed to piss off Weiss then get killed by Cinder. You will see her more.
And now, for the extra of this chapter!
Extra #3
2nd year of Beacon
"Matsu!" Summer yelled his name as she banged on his door. His team all groaned and told him to just answer her, but Malikai was just as stubborn as she is.
"Matsu!" Summer yelled again as she bangs on the door.
"For the love of- Malikai get your ass to the door already!" Malikai's partner, Richie, shouted from the other side of the dorm.
"Fine!" Malikai finally through the sheets off of his body, and storms off to the door wearing just pants and his headband. "Yes Summer?" He as politely as he can greets his friend.
"Matsu I need a date to the dance!" Summer exclaimed her situation.
"... And you are coming to me for this why?"
"Because you and Ray broke up two months ago, Tai is going with Ray, and Qrow nowhere to be found. You are literally too only other guy I like." Summer goes red at that, but presses on.
Malikai tilts his head in confusion. "So I was your literally the last person you thought about?" He was way too tired to catch her confession. "Couldn't this have waited until… the morning?"
"The dance is tomorrow Matsu."
"What!? Why did none of you tell me?" Malikai woke up suddenly and yelled to his teammates. All members of team MAVR, ot team Maverick. Consisting of Malikai, Adrian, Vanessa, and Richie.
"You're the leader, it was your responsibility." Vanessa groans from her bed.
"I just didn't care." Adrian was honest about it at least.
"Mmrbl." His partner responded with a snore.
Malikai sighs and facepalms. This was the team he was stuck with for the next three years.
"Wait, you're asking me to the dance?"
"I'm assuming you mean yes. Thanks Matsu! I won't forget this!" Summer sped off before Malikai could even give an answer. A pile of white rose petals the only thing left behind.
"What the hell man? Now I gotta go get a suit I can't afford."
"Only you can't see when a girl likes you Mali."
"I mean… I dated Raven for a year."
"Yeah, she literally pinned you up against a wall and stuck her tongue down her throat as a confession."
"I never did say she was normal…"
"Go back to sleep Malikai."
"Already on it."
And there we go, before any of you make assumptions. Summer and Malikai DID NOT have a relationship with each other. The next extra will confirm this. The most Summer had for Matsu- Malikai was a crush. More on that in the next extra which is going to be the dance.
Also. Team MAVR is canon to the story. They really existed. They will appear more in future extras, and will explain how each of them died. The one after the next chapter will begin the first one.
Okay, now since that is all over with. Please review and tell me what you think of the story so far! Any suggestions, ideas, or concerns? Please let me know, I read all reviews and I will listen to what you have to say. Thank you.
Don't forget to vote in the Poll! You can help me decide who will Kai's girlfriend in the story!
Disclaimer- I do not own RWBY in any way, shape or form.