Chapter 6: Friend or Foe
In which two new friends find common ground, and two new enemies can't see eye to eye.
"No."
"Too late~"
"Fuck no. I will not be partners with this fuckface loser. Get lost, bitch, and take your limp-dicked boyfriend with you."
"You gazed into his eyes, Cardin. Now your fate is sealed! Cardy Car Car!"
"Do I get a say in this?" asked Sky.
"NO!" both of his 'teammates' said at the same time.
Sky looked back towards the disappearing body of the King Taijitu he'd been riding. Thick black smoke emanated from the husk of their former steed. Nora had wasted no time in dispatching the Grimm once Cardin divulged his name. Something about finding what they'd been looking for and not needing a ride any more…? Thankfully, she'd also dropped the cowboy voice.
His new partner was tall. Like, really tall. Sky was no shrimp, but Cardin towered over him by a full head. His armor gleamed in the evening sunlight, making him look like a storybook hero.
He wasn't, though. Shiny armor was about the worst thing a hunter could have. Wearing any armor slowed you down and advertised a poor control of aura, but the lack of wear-and-tear on Cardin's suit practically screamed tenderfoot. Sky would know. His own armor was also squeaky clean.
He wanted to talk to someone who was neither insane nor a total dick, so naturally he sat down with the man who broke his arm that morning.
"I guess it's just you, me, and the crazies, eh, Ren?"
"Nora's wild, but there's no one I'd rather have at my back."
"That's good to hear. At least one of us will like their partner."
Ren raised an eyebrow, and Sky elaborated. "Cardin and Nora have been arguing for a while now. He's…not very kind with his words, especially towards me. He thinks I'm a wimp. I guess that happens when your first impression of someone is seeing them blindfolded and carried around like luggage by a madwoman …no offense to your partner, by the way."
"None taken."
Sky sighed. "I handed my weapon over to Nora and didn't fight to get it back. I let her blind me for all of initiation. For Dust's sake, I rode a frickin' Grimm because she told me to! I doubt Cardin will ever see me as more than Nora's pet."
Ren offered his best attempt at a comforting look. "I can't say no to her either…"
"That's because she's your girlfriend. I've always been too nice to everyone. I'm a pushover, just like that snake Grimm – I let people ride on my back all day until they get bored and throw me away. Ask me for anything and I'll agree, even if it's in my own worst interest. Dust's Sake, you snapped my arm in two, and here we are chatting like best buddies!"
"She's not my girlfr– never mind. Sorry about the arm, by the way."
"No worries. Wait, no! I'm doing it again! Aaaargggh!"
The sun was beginning to set. It looked like their initiation was going test both combat and camping skills. "It's not that I'm weak. I've trained my whole life to be a huntsman. I could fight back if I wanted to. I just… I get so worried that I'd be left all alone if I did. Like, everyone will finally decide they've had it with Sky Lark once he stops being the yes man. Heh, more like the yes bitch." Sky chuckled bitterly. "Maybe it's for the best that Nora scooped me up first. If I were Cardin's lackey, I'd probably be helping that douchebag to bully anyone who looked at him wrong."
Both boys sat in silence for a while. Eventually, Ren spoke up. "It may raise your spirits to know that I suffer from the opposite ailment. People have said Atlesian battle mechs show more emotions than me, even when my semblance is inactive. Apparently, I completely and utterly lack empathy."
The first fragments of the shattered moon were now visible as the sun faded beyond the horizon. Sky smiled weakly. "How about you and I make a deal? You teach me how to care what others think a little bit less, and I'll give you some pointers on the whole empathy thing."
Ren nodded silently.
Sky got up. "First things first. I'll take the first watch. You and I won't be teaching each other anything if we get eaten by Grimm on Day One while we're asleep."
"Sky. It's– we…"
"Yeah?"
"The four of us WILL be a team. Nora will make sure of that, no matter what relics we get. I can't speak for Cardin, but Nora and I are here by your side, and we're here to stay. Yes man or not."
"…thank you, Ren."
"Russ, Dove, there you guys are! Pyr and I were turning this forest upside down to find you."
Oh, Dust. This is it. She'd run through this scenario one hundred times in her head trying to formulate some explanation for her earlier lie about meeting Jaune's friends, but nothing sounded plausible. Besides, the further Pyrrha dug herself into this hole, the deeper she'd be stuck.
"You guys know Pyrrha, right?"
Here it comes…
"Yep."
"Affirmative."
Oh, right.
Who would have thought being a world famous household name would have an upside?
Dove addressed the duo. "Prosperity, friends. Unfortunately, we lack time for conversation. Nightfall is upon us, and we shall be set back in our search for the temple. It would be prudent to establish a defensive perimeter and resume on the morrow."
Time to make a good impression. "I'll take first watch."
"Negative," Dove said. "I will take the first and only watch. My semblance allows me to emit and interpret compression waves in air or other media. Its passive application can be likened to sonar detection, though accuracy and aura consumption correlate with distance."
"…whuh?"
"He can find things from really far away," Russel chimed in. "That's how he sees without his eyes."
"Neat! Was that how you found Pyrrha and I?"
"…yes. Yes, that was how I found you. And, with respect, the correct phrasing would have been Nikos and me."
Unlike Jaune, Pyrrha understood what Dove had said about his semblance, and she also understood what he hadn't say. Passive application suggested an active application. Some sort of air blast? It probably wouldn't be very damaging, but Dove would always have control of his opponent's motion in combat. Maybe if she dug Miló into the ground to brace herself, she could–
No, bad Pyrrha! Bad! These are my friends! Dammit. I guess it will take more than a few days to undo a lifetime of having opponents first and peers second.
"It is most odd, Arc. My semblance seems to have been boosted since encountering your party. It would appear that my range has been extended significantly."
Dove inhaled, held his breath for what seemed like an inhumanly long amount of time, then finally exhaled.
"Arc. A small cave is dug out of the cliffside less than three klicks east of us. Please secure it. Thrush. There are a series of burrows localized in a ravine due north. Would you please hunt and kill any animals residing within? Nikos. Would you please defend me while I recover my aura? I shall need to use it sparingly if it is to hold all night. We can rendezvous at the cave in one hour."
Pyrrha couldn't help but notice that Dove asked her and Russel but ordered Jaune.
Russel misinterpreted her scowl. "Don't worry. Once Dove's eaten some of my delicious gopher stew, he'll have plenty of stamina. Why, he'll probably have so much aura, he'll be able to do some recon on the temple!" His mohawk nearly poked Pyrrha in the eye as his head rolled back in laughter while he walked away.
Dove sat cross-legged on a downed tree's stump as he recovered, while Pyrrha paced until she was certain the two were alone. His eyes were shut, but Pyrrha wasn't sure she'd ever seen them open.
"You lied to Jaune about finding him with your semblance."
"Correct. I used my semblance to find Thrush first. We stumbled upon you two after meeting."
"He's only known the both of you for a day, but he acts like he's your third musketeer."
"Also correct. Arc appeared quite lonely when Thrush and I introduced ourselves. He appears to have…clung to us."
Pyrrha's eyes narrowed. "You don't really care about him as much as he does you. You're taking advantage of his loneliness to get him to obey you so you can breeze through initiation while he does the hard work." She stopped pacing and faced Dove. "I won't let you."
"Incorrect. Arc is my true friend. We–"
Akoúo̱ slammed in between Dove's legs, embedding itself on the wood on which he sat. "Don't lie to me. Jaune's my partner, and I'm not going to sit back as you lie back, relax, and send him to fight Grimm."
To his credit, Dove's face remained neutral as he answered. His tone did not. "I located Thrush first because he was closer. As long as two out of the three of us became partners, the third member could bring whoever they found to the temple and join us as a team. If all three of us found different partners, one of us would be unable to team up with the other two. I was doing it for Jaune."
Not good enough. "I was watching him yesterday. You approached him when he was at his lowest. An easy target."
"Arc was lonely, and we thought he could use a–"
"There's more to it than that. I'm sure."
"Incorrect. Arc was–"
"HIS NAME IS JAUNE!" Pyrrha's javelin joined her shield in the base of Dove's stump. The dead tree had so much metal in it, one might have mistaken it for a mace. "You've no right to call yourself a huntsman. Preying on a kind, sweet man. You should be ashamed."
"I would have thought that one as famous as the Invincible Girl would be more well-mannered." Dove stood. "My aura is sufficient, so I shall head to the cave. You may join us if you wish, but I suggest you take a moment to collect yourself. Prosperity, Nikos."
With that, he departed.
Pyrrha was all too familiar with people who used honeyed words and manufactured kindness to get what they wanted from you. She was going to look out for her partner, politeness be damned.
Blake Belladonna stirred as the darkness crept in.
The students that practically infested the forest around her would be asleep. Even those who were not would be unable to see clearly in the darkness. It was as good as a guarantee that there would be no eye contact with some bumbling moron. Blake couldn't help but grin as she descended from the tree in which she was perched. It was nighttime. Her time.
Her training with the White Fang had encompassed stealth for infiltration missions. If Adam had been here, she probably wouldn't be getting past the likes of him, but these students were amateurs. They'd grown up in cozy schools. Blake's school was the school of life, where a failing grade meant death.
Blake became aware of how tense those memories made her, for her hand had subconsciously reached for Gambol Shroud. The blade rested on her back, still in its sheath. The Faunus pulled her hand away and tried to relax. She was in an actual school now and needed to remember that. No need to draw her blade every time a twig snapped.
A twig snapped.
Blake drew her blade.
It was a rodent. Blake watched the fuzzy vermin scurry by. Suddenly, a student entered her frame of view. She froze.
"Come back here, you little rat! Dove needs to eatcha for his aura!"
A pointy haired boy brandishing twin daggers chased past Blake at a safe distance, so focused on his quarry that he missed the Faunus completely. She could see him moving through the sparce moonlight with her night vision, but he had no such biological advantage and remained oblivious to her existence. This large pest was probably only able to pursue the small pest because it was in motion.
Damn, that was close. Her first day in one of the cozy schools, and she was already slipping. If the scraggly child could sneak up on her, so could a Grimm. Monsters of Grimm should be child's play to her, but a run in might draw someone else's attention, and she couldn't have that. Eye contract with the wrong person could ruin her life.
Omake
Dove: …18, 19, 20! Ready or not, here I come! *inhales* Thrush hides within the treetops.
Russel: Shoot!
Dove: *inhales* Arc is submerged in the lake, breathing through a reed straw.
Jaune: *through straw* Darn it.
Dove: *inhales* Nikos is sneaking up behind me with her shortsword aimed at my neck.
Pyrrha: Aw, rats!
Next Chapter: Wrath of the Deviant – No one told Jaune initiation would be this hard.