Welcome to the next chapter of RWBY: Team DUSK, before starting the story. Let's answer some reviews:
Clarent excalibur: I already love that idea and I can also see Neo doing something like that to Hunter.
Jaune's Pride, Pt 1
It was a regular day at Beacon Academy, all the students of Professor Glynda's combat classes were gathered in the amphitheater, which was transformed into an arena. All the students there watched with either worried and/or doubtful looks on their faces watching the current matchups. Some were members of Team DUSK who watched it all without turning their attention from the fight.
"He's doing terrible."
"He's not that bad."
Sandra remarked as Alyssa tried defending the person being beaten, but even she almost winced after noticing it almost watching going anywhere as he was again knocked to the ground. It wasn't even a case of Sandra being her usual harsh self, instead, it was a more truth.
'Do you think that he could turn it around?'
"I'd like to give my friends the utmost confidence and support. But, at this point, I don't see that happening."
Hunter signed, wanting there to be some hope of a win for one stuck on the defensive. But, after hearing Daniel's response, there wasn't much hope of that happening.
There were expressions similar to theirs from the members of Team RWBY, who were sitting in the row in front of them. And also members of Team JNPR who were sitting beside Team RWBY were all watching as their team leader was being beaten into a corner.
"Huff, huff. Hah!"
Jaune was holding his shield in a defensive position as he was knocked backward by his opponent's weapon, which seemed to cause him to breathe much harder. But, he kept fighting on as he charged at him with his sword in hand without hesitating.
"Humph."
His opponent, the leader of Team CRDL, Cardin stepped aside and avoided it without even trying mockingly laugh at Jaune as he fell forward. But, he prevented himself from falling forward, albeit it was a little rough and unskilled as he returned to his stance. Even if some students in the stands couldn't even count this as a fight, there were a lot of them who at least praised his determination.
Cardin, however, wasn't one of them as he continued moving around and spinning The Executioner around in one of his hands as if taunting him. His teammates also shared the same opinion, as a lot of them were cheering Cardin on while mocking Jaune at the same time.
"Hahaha, come on, Cardin just knock him down~"
"This is just getting pathetic at this point!"
Both Sky and Russel laughed as those words left their mouth.
Hearing their snide comments caused intense emotions to swell up inside Pyrrha, but she instead tightened her hands into fists. She struggled to keep herself from turning around to tell all three of them off. Instead, focused on what she needed to do, which was to continue watching her partner and leader even if the odds weren't in his favor.
"Jaune's form is terrible, but I'm surprised he lasted this long after taking all those hits."
"Pyrrha did mention that Jaune has a large amount of aura. He's lasted this long since his aura kept protecting him from all the hits that he's taken. But, is it just me, or is Jaune fighting almost like a novice?"
Alyssa said that last part in a low tone so that just Daniel, Hunter, and Sandra could hear her.
It was honestly, a similar thought that ran through their minds too since the match started.
"A novice, huh?"
At the mention of that from Alyssa, Daniel's mind went back to the time that he first met Jaune when he was surprised that Ruby created Crescent Rose.
"This is the part where you lose."
Cardin blocked Jaune's sword using The Executioner's shaft using both hands, forcing Jaune back using his strength. But, despite being outmatched the entire time, Jaune still didn't surrender to the opponent right in front of him and stared on in defiance.
"Over my dead…gah!"
Before Jaune could finish, Cardin kneed him hard in the stomach causing air to leave his lungs as he was forced to the ground. Due to the pain caused by the strike, he was forced to drop his sword and shield, which fall to the ground beside him. Since he felt pain from that attack, it meant that his aura couldn't stop the attack anymore and Jaune was left on the ground unable to continue.
Cardin, despite seeing that Jaune couldn't fight anymore, still looked as if he wanted completely to put him out of commission. However, as Cardin raised The Executioner in an attempt to bring it down on top of Jaune, there was a buzzing sound accompanied by the sound of their teacher.
"Cardin, that's enough!"
Hearing the authoritative tone from Glynda stopped causing Cardin to stop swinging down The Executioner, then huffed before resting it on his shoulders. After seeing the reaction of her student, Glynda let a breath leave her mouth as she sighed. Not wasting him wondering about what was going on in his head, she began working on her Scroll, which took the form of a tablet.
After working on a number of its controls, she caused the lights inside the amphitheater to turn back as there was a gauge underneath both Jaune's and Cardin's profiles, which displayed their aura. It was almost further showed the difference in skill between them since Cardin's aura hadn't decreased at all, Jaune's, on the other hand, was in the red area. Once it was displayed on the screen, Glynda turned to all the students.
"Students, as you can see, Mr. Arc's Aura has now dropped into the red. In a tournament-style duel, this would indicate that Jaune is no longer fit for battle and that the official may call the match."
"…."
Not wanting to look at the large gauge that displayed his low aura, Jaune pulled out his Scroll, which displayed all his teammates' auras. Since neither of them was in battle, it was full, but Jaune looked disheartened as his aura was, in fact, in the red. A breath escaped from his mouth after seeing that he didn't even cause the slightest hint of damage to Cardin throughout their entire battle.
Glynda turned to see that Jaune was disheartened about his results, so she attempted to do her job as one of his teachers and tried giving him helpful advice.
"Mr. Arc, it's been weeks now since you enrolled in Beacon. So, please try to refer to your Scroll during combat," despite her strict nature, she did want to see her students succeed. "Gauging your aura will help you decide whether or not it's appropriate to attack, or when it is better to use a more…defensive strategy. We wouldn't want to be gobbled up by a Beowolf, now, would we?"
Jaune appeared to have taken her advice to heart as he slightly nodded his head, but his opponent didn't share Glynda's concerns.
"Speak for yourself…."
Cardin huffed as he seemed to walk off, but stopped after hearing Glynda's authoritative voice.
"Cardin, would you like to have a conversation about manners in private?"
Hearing that from the woman whose weapon is called The Disciplinarian isn't something that Cardin wanted to hear at all, causing his face to turn as pale as a ghost.
"N-No, ma'am."
Cardin walked off in another direction in a rush being slight—no, genuinely afraid of the combat instructor, who'd been responsible for giving him several scoldings.
After seeing that Cardin had walked off and there wouldn't be much going on anymore as the students were even silent, which allowed her words to reach their years. She stared forward at all her students with serious eyes and called out to them all in a strong voice.
"Remember, everyone, the Vytal Festival is only a few months away! It won't be long until students from the other kingdoms start arriving at Vale, so keep practicing! Those who choose to compete in the combat tournament will be representing all of Vale! So, I hope that neither of will you put our school to shame!"
Hearing about the Vytal Festival, which was an international tournament held every single two years in one of the four kingdoms around Remnant. And this time, it would be Vale's turn to hold the Vytal Festival on their doorstep, which was something that all of the students were looking forward to. There were students excited about it such as Yang, who punched the air in anticipation; the usual cool-headed Weiss was shaking her fists, wearing an excited smile; and, of course, Ruby, whose entire body shook from excitement.
Blake, who sat beside her teammates couldn't help but smile slightly about their excitement about the upcoming festival. Even she found herself almost looking forward to it deep down and couldn't say that either of them was wrong in that regard.
"You know it's going to be a blast if our teacher sounds like this."
Daniel commented looking forward to the Vytal Festival for several different reasons.
"Heh, this is going to rock!"
There were those from Team DUSK, Daniel looked pumped for the festival; Alyssa punched the palms of her fist; Sandra found herself clasping her palm over her shaking fist, and Hunter clenched his fist looking determined.
In the front row, sitting beside Team RWBY, Nora and Ren seemed to be looking forward to the Vytal Festival, but it wasn't as much as the former who seemed to be bouncing in her seat. However, Pyrrha didn't appear to even be focused on the upcoming festival, instead, she looked down at her partner who hadn't moved an inch.
"…Jaune."
Pyrrha spoke sadly as he didn't even more as the bell rang for their combat class to be finished. All their friends shared the same mindset as Pyrrha as all of them stood up to leave. She already decided that she could go over to console him, but stopped moving after noticing that someone else had the same idea. Standing in front of him after returning her Scroll to her person was Glynda whose expression almost softened after seeing his face.
"Mr. Arc, I know that you must be aware that there are going to be times that you win and lose in life. But, please don't take losing as meaning that you can't win. Instead, take it as another lesson on what you can improve on in the future for a different result," Glynda said as her words seemed to have almost earned her the attention of her student. She then retrieved her The Disciplinarian from her holster before waving it around, which caused Jaune to be lifted from off the ground, and retrieved Crocea Mors. In the air, the sword was returned into its sheath, which was the shield, and was returned to Jaune. "Mr. Arc, I want you to remember that continuing to win at everything can be good, it can cause one to build up an ego. And that is the worst thing for anyone…most of all a leader to gain. All the best Huntsmen are people who accept their losses and learn from them to be the kind of person people can look up to."
"…yes, ma'am."
Jaune replied, feeling more uplifted after hearing those words, which sparked some relief in Pyrrha who'd been a little worried about him.
"So, Professor Goodwitch can be nice."
Yang said laughing lightly after overhearing the advice that Glynda gave Jaune, but was nudged in the arm by Alyssa who chuckled.
"You'd better hope that she didn't hear that unless you want a punishment."
Alyssa reminded Yang, who realized that she was right, and it didn't help that Glynda looked to have had her attention on their group. Realizing that, the blonde brawler started putting more pep into her steps as she ran off her close friend laughed at that. All their friends and teammates soon followed behind them, which left Pyrrha to watch as her partner lagged behind the others.
As she continued walking forward and taking several glances back at Jaune as she continued wondering what she could do to make him feel better. But, nothing came to mind at that moment and all she could do was continue to think about it.
Soon enough, Teams RWBY and JNPR found themselves sitting inside the cafeteria at their usual table where all the student were already eating their lunch. But, neither of them could see the members of Team DUSK near their table at all yet. However, passing the time was the most energetic of the bunch aside from the young leader herself. Nora appeared to have been telling them all about a riveting story.
"So! There we were, in the middle of the night…."
"It was daytime."
Amid Nora's attempt at catching everyone's attention using dramatics, Ren was beside her correcting her.
"We were surrounded by Ursai…"
"They were Beowolves."
Although Nora attempting telling her tale to her friends at the table, barely anyone seemed to even be listening to her at all aside from Yang who was cupping her face using her hands. Blake was focused on the book inside her hands, Weiss was failing her nails, Ruby and Pyrrha looked to be listening to be polite, and Jaune was looking as if he wasn't paying attention to anything and simply messed with his food.
"Dozens of them!"
"Two of 'em."
"But they were no match…. And in the end, Ren and I took them down and made a boatload of Lien selling Ursa skin rugs!"
"Nora, Grimm vanish after…."
Weiss tried reminding Nora that Grimm vanishes after being killed so, it's impossible to make their skin into rugs.
"That's beside the point, princess!"
Nora stood up energetically from her seat to stare directly at Weiss who appeared to have paused from filing her nails from shock. She was right in front of Weiss' face causing the heiress to stare blankly at the hyperactive girl who could put her leader to shame. But, Ren placed a hand on her shoulder and gently returned Nora to her seat, while drinking from his coffee cup.
"She's been having this recurring dream for nearly a month now."
Ren replied calming Nora down as things settled down.
"Ahhh, come on, and it was interesting too."
Yang seemed disappointed that it was all just a dream as she leaned her head on the table slightly sobbing. But, later felt a comforting hand on her shoulder causing her to look and notice that it was Blake who still hadn't taken her eyes from her book. After realizing that Blake was attempting to console her, Yang almost felt emotions inside her heart causing her to immediately hug Blake from the side.
"Oh, Blake, you're the best."
Yang thanked her, but Blake didn't respond and simply rolled her eyes.
After things calmed down, Pyrrha brought up the thing that has been concerning her for some time, which was a thing that had to do with the other leader in the group.
"Jaune, are you okay?"
"H-Huh," Jaune didn't seem to be focused on their conversation as he jumped after hearing Pyrrha talking to him, before recovering. "U-Uh, yea, I'm fine. What we were talking about Nora's weird dream?"
"It's just that you seem a little…not okay…."
"Yes, but I was talking more about your situation."
Both Ruby and Pyrrha started voicing their concern for Jaune, but he didn't appear to realize what it was about.
"Situation. What situation," Jaune tried reasoning, but all his friends appeared to have taken several looks at him as Jaune tried playing it off. But, his attention was being directed toward Cardin and the others who looked to be crowding around Velvet. It wasn't anything friendly as the group looked to be making fun of her for being a Faunus and Sky was even imitating her bunny ears. "Guys, I'm fine. Seriously! Look!"
"Jaune, Cardin's been picking on you since the first week of school!"
"Who? Cardin Winchester? Nah... He just likes to mess around! You know, practical jokes!"
"He's a bully."
"Oh, please! Name one time he's 'bullied' me."
Jaune requested, but even he could see that was going to go wrong since most of them were aware of it.
"What about the time, he knocked your books out of your hands in the halls?"
Ren replied, recalling that incident.
"Or the time, he activated your shield as you were leaving class."
Weiss added.
"Or the time, he almost launched you somewhere else in our rocker lockers."
Blake finished recalling that incident, but it was stopped by Sandra before he was launched.
"Jaune, you know if you ever need help, you can just ask."
Pyrrha said placing a comforting hand on his shoulders, but Jaune didn't know what to think about that offer since it did strike him somewhere.
"You'd think that Cardin recalled the time that Dani whooped his butt," Yang stated as she once again cupped her head no her hands again before smirking and punching her opened palm. "We wouldn't mind giving Cardin a little reminder after school."
"Ooooh, I got it," Nora said excitedly after standing up from her seat to look at all her friends who stared curiously at her answer. "We'll break his legs."
"Now, we're talking!"
Yang was onboard with the idea as she seemed prepared for it.
"Do all your suggestions involve using unnecessary violence?"
Weiss asked.
"Hey, it's worked for me so far," Yang nonchalantly replied before smirking at Weiss. "Besides, how come when I do it, it's wrong. But, if it was Dani, then you'd have no problem with it?"
"…."
Weiss didn't humor that with a response as she started examining her nails again, but it did spark a reaction that didn't go unnoticed by Yang.
"Guys it's fine! Besides, it's not like he's only a jerk to me," Jaune said before once again pointing over at a current victim of Cardin's. "He's a jerk to everyone."
After hearing that comment from Jaune and following the direction that he was pointing, everyone at the table all noticed what Jaune was referring to. At a nearby table, Cardin at this point was pulling at Velvet's ears causing a pained groan to escape from her mouth as she struggled to escape. Despite seeing this happen right in front of them, none of the students looked to have wanted to get involved.
Some of them were due to not wanting to get into a confrontation with four people over one person, while others didn't want the hassle.
"Ow! That hurts," Velvet said as she was attempting to get away from him to the point of being almost pushed to tears. "Please stop!"
"I told you it was real!"
"What a freak!"
Cardin and Russel laughed.
Seeing this sparked an immediate reaction from them since Velvet was someone all of them had befriended, but Blake seemed the angriest after seeing her being bullied and her ears pulled. So much so, that even she, Yang, and Pyrrha all started standing up from their seat. But, all of them stopped after seeing someone approach the four bullies, their leader, in particular.
"Come on, who would allow an animal too…? Ouch, ouch, ouch, shit, shit, shit!"
Cardin stopped pulling Velvet's ears as his right ear was being tugged as hard as possible to the point where he was pulled backward. It continued as he was struggling to get away from whoever was doing this.
"Hey, let go of my ears, asswipe!"
"Oh, hey, look your ears are real too."
Daniel was revealed to have been the one standing behind Cardin and pulling onto his ear using his free hand, as the other was preoccupied holding his lunch tray. All around the others were members of Team DUSK, mostly Alyssa and Sandra who looked prepared to fight. And Velvet moved from the other members of Team CRDL and moved toward Hunter who was near them too.
"Hey, I don't see your interest in seeing whether or not her animal ears were real," Daniel said still pulling on Cardin's ears without changing his expression. "All you need to understand is that they're real and pulling them in that way hurts her. Cardin, I thought that we'd come to a mutual understanding last time about you bullying my friends and Faunus. Or, do you want another lesson?"
"Ouch, ouch, ouch, fuck, no, fine, I got it! So, let go!"
Hearing those words without believing him, but not wanting to cause another scene like before, Daniel did let go of his ear. After being freed from Daniel's grasp, Cardin and his friends all stood up from their seats and then started to go off in another direction. But, not before Cardin turned around to point an aggressive finger toward Daniel, while holding onto his ear.
"This isn't over yet, Norden! I'm going to get you back for this!"
"I'm always here and ready whenever you want to finish it."
Daniel replied wearing a fake smile and waving, causing the members of Team CRDL to run off, all grunting angrily. After seeing that all of them were gone, Velvet turned to Daniel wearing an appreciative look on his face as a calming breath escaped from her mouth.
"Thanks for that Daniel."
"No problem, and if they do anything like that again don't be afraid to tell me. I'll give them a lesson that neither of them is going to forget even in their thirties," Daniel stated reassuringly before directing pointing at himself, but Velvet didn't know what to take from that last part. "Also, don't listen to what those idiots say about you being a Faunus. There's no difference between your and other people."
"Y-Yea, but…."
Velvet looked to be a little ashamed that she needed to rely on someone else, more so from someone who's the first year, her underclassman. She later turned to notice Hunter tapping her shoulder, causing her to turn to face his direction.
'If you don't want our help, then you could ask for help from your teammates or leader.'
"H-Huh, I couldn't tell Coco about this."
Velvet seemed flustered about asking her leader, Coco for help. Neither of them could understand the reason, though it didn't appear she had any personal issues with her.
"Well, then it might be best if you come over to our table."
Alyssa suggested pointing over to the table all their friends were gathered still watching the entire situation as it went them. She was nervous about sitting around others at the moment, Velvet thought that it would be good to sit around some friends instead of people like Team CRDL.
"Okay."
Hearing Velvet agreeing with Alyssa caused the group of five to head over toward the others.
"Are you alright, Velvet?"
As soon as the new group took their seats at the table, Ruby asked that question worriedly as she could tell that Velvet seemed a little nervous.
"Y-Yea, I'm fine, Ruby. It's nothing new for me."
Velvet replied as naturally as possible. She was depressed, but she was starting to recover from the previous incident.
"You shouldn't let those guys get to you, Velvet. You're supposed to be their upperclassman."
Weiss stated finding it weird that a second-year would be bullied by first-years.
"Not much she can do when two of them are bigger than her."
Alyssa stated as she started digging into her lunch.
"Atrocious. I can't stand people like him," Pyrrha stated showing more anger than anyone had ever seen from her before. "They always believe that they can pick on people who're different from them, and believe they're better than them."
"He's not the only one…."
Blake stated under her breath also showing more emotions than usual.
"It must be hard to be a Faunus."
"Yea, but only because of people like them. You'd find a lot more people like that around Mistral than you could count believe me," Daniel pointed out after drinking from his coffee before looking around the table. "Well, Cardin and his teammates being incurable racists aside. Did we miss anything?"
"Well, Nora talked about breaking Cardin's legs."
Ruby pointed out as she finished swallowing one of the cookies on her tray.
"Nora!"
"What?"
Nora asked confused back after finding Daniel called out to her.
"One of the hands as a warning first, then go for one of his legs. But, you might want to get in line in that regard."
Daniel nonchalantly replied, causing a light bulb to go off in her head.
"Oooooh, thanks for the into, Daniel!"
"So, all in favor of breaking one of Cardin's hands and/or legs say aye."
[Aye!]
Almost all the people at the table raised their hands, even Velvet, but more shyly and barely to where no one can see it. Jaune didn't appear to raise his hand instead of looking on without responding.
"All opposed."
[….]
No one said a single word rejecting that idea.
"Then we're all in agreement, right?"
[Right.]
There were a couple of seconds before the people at the table started laughing after that little bit from one of their group's main jesters. But, among the laughter, Jaune seemed to have stood up from his seat, then started going off in another direction as if to throw away his food. Some in their group noticed this such as his partner, Ruby, and Daniel. It wasn't them alone as Cardin, who took a seat somewhere else noticed Jaune going off alone and formed a sinister grin.
"So, what's up with Jaune nowadays?"
"What're you on about?"
Alyssa asked, rushing at Sandra using Gwyn Ddraig as Sandra blocked it using her Gae Bulg, then began stepping backward. Her blonde partner followed her making many attacks using her whips, which she felt as soon as each was blocked using her spear. Sandra knew that she didn't have the edge against Alyssa when it came to strength, not that she relied on it anyway.
After weaving through the number of attacks that Alyssa had been aiming at her, then managed to get behind her to aim a precise strike at her. Seeing this, she blocked it using her right whip before continuing with what they were talking about.
"I mean, Jaune has been acting weird?"
"Okay, first off, Jaune is always weird," Sandra honestly replied, which was something that Alyssa couldn't disagree with. But, that was a part of Jaune's charm as a person. "And is it our business?"
"Well, he's our friend. And didn't you rescue him from being launched?"
After being reminded of that, Sandra seemed almost embarrassed about that since she acted so out of character that it might've left an impression.
"I-I did that out of a reflex. Not because he's my friend or anything."
"Oh, come on. Now you're starting to act like Weiss when she doesn't want to admit anything concerning feelings."
"…!"
Sandra glared at Alyssa using serious eyes, which caused her blonde partner to laugh as she released a sudden force due to the gravity dust embedded into her whip. Because of the gravitational pressure that pushed her back from her blindside, sending Sandra backward before she recovered her footing.
"But, whereas Weiss gives an ice-cold stare. I believe that yours is more scorching hot."
Alyssa joked causing Sandra's glare to intensity.
The members of Team DUSK were all inside a training room located in Beacon Academy, which all of them reserved for practice. After talking to Glynda about it, she allowed them to use the training room. It wasn't only them, since the members of other teams such as Team RWBY planned on practicing for the tournament. However, their team and even Team RWBY wanted an area with more space like the Emerald Forest, but due to some issues, it would take a little bit of time before they could do that.
At the moment, the members of Team DUSK have been fighting against one another like this for almost half an hour. But, at first, Daniel was fighting against Alyssa, while Sandra was fighting against Hunter.
"Ugh, it could have something to do with that dumb ass Cardin and his friends bullying him," Sandra said as she made another stabbing motion using her spear with Alyssa dodged. "At this point, I can't disagree with their idea of breaking his legs."
"Me neither, but then we'll have to face the consequences of doing that," Alyssa replied as Sandra already knew the person she was talking about. "We'll have to face the Disciplinary herself, Glynda Goodwitch."
Hearing that from Alyssa, Sandra already knew that they'd have to explain themselves to Glynda, something that none of them wanted.
"Yea, that's someone that not even I want to deal with at the moment."
Sandra replied.
"I'd second that," Daniel stated as he avoided an arrow fired at him by Hunter and rested Retribution on his right shoulder. "I got off with a light scolding, but Professor Goodwitch is more intimidating than Atlas' instructions by a wide margin. But, at the same time, she's a little more reasonable."
Hunter was prepared to fire off five arrows, pulling back Actaeon's strings, then fired them all at high speed. Reacting to that, he avoided the arrows fired at him, but in seconds, all five altered their course with his semblance. He turned around and continued dodging them, but the arrows continued chasing after him.
It continued as Hunter loaded five more arrows, then fired them off at Daniel, which made it a total of ten arrows that he needs to avoid. All of them started coming at him from different angles and speeds based on how Hunter used his semblance.
"Heh, let's try this then."
Daniel spoke, jumping up and creating a runic array underneath his feet, propelling himself backward.
All the arrows altered their course, following after him, then he made another runic array, which propelled himself into the air. At this, there was a slight lag at the time when the arrows changed their course to chase after him. Because of that, just four of the ten arrows chased after him, with the other six being behind him. Seeing that, Daniel smirked, then pulled out Retribution and fired off two shots that broke four of them.
He later pulled out Vanir from its holster, then formed a runic array in front of the barrel, and fired off six shots, which accurately broke the remaining six.
"Of course, Daniel could pull off something like that."
Hunter smiled as he tried firing off another series of arrows, but stopped after noticing that Daniel fired two shots from Retribution at him. He reacts to the explosion and noise caused by it, which leads to him being distracted for a couple of seconds and forced to move back. But, at that time, he ended up noticing that Daniel was behind him as he landed on the ground with Retribution's edge pointed at his neck.
"You lose."
'That figures. You and I focus on two different combat types,' Hunter signed as Daniel removed Retribution from his neck, letting him turn around to face him. 'I'm a long-range type and you're more of a close-ranged type.'
"Well, it wouldn't be too hard if you learn how to defend yourself from those kinds of opponents," Daniel said before turning around to see that Sandra and Alyssa finished their finds too. "Alright, Team DUSK let's gather together to discuss the reason that I asked us to pair up and spar with each other."
"Hah, seriously," Sandra sighed after hearing his sudden tone, but Alyssa seemed to have found it hilarious for all of them to hear. "Whatever, I think that it was to see what our strengths and weaknesses were among the group."
"And, you'd be correct girl formally known as the Red Lancer?"
"Do you want to die?"
Sandra asked after glaring at him and was already preparing Gae Bulg in her hands.
"I was kidding," Daniel said before returning Retribution into its portable state, then placing it back on the belt that his magnetic strip was. "The Vytal Tournament is in a few months so before that I wanted us to get a better grasp of our strengths and weaknesses by first fighting each other. By doing that, we'll first know how one another moves in battle and learn to fight together as a team. If we learn each other weaknesses, then it'll be easier for the other to cover for them when the time comes. I'm sure that all of us were able to find out what we all specialize in after being paired up. And in being able to understand how one another moves, we won't be stepping on feet. Right, Sandra?"
"…yea."
Sandra replied after recalling the first words that she said to Daniel before their initiation into Beacon.
'If you ended bumping into someone during a fight, then that person ends up shooting someone would an apologize be enough to make up for that?'
Hearing Daniel's explanation caused them all a great deal of surprise due to the amount of detail that he went into in this exercise. In their heads, it sounded almost like a regular sparring session against one another for practice so it wouldn't have crossed their minds. There wasn't a single doubt in their minds about the reason that Daniel was made the leader of Team DUSK aside from them.
'That's a brilliant idea, Daniel.'
Hunter signed as he gave an honest smile.
"Yea, thinking about it like that, then it does make sense for us to fight against one another to get used to how we move in a real fight. I mean, if it were me, then I probably would've had us all practicing without considering that option as well," Alyssa pointed out as she returned her dual iron whips into their dormant state. "Well, I guess we can all agree that Daniel is the main brain of the group."
"Yea, especially for someone who gives off the impressing of charging in alone."
Sandra pointed out returning Gae Bulg to its portable state.
'That's right."
Hunter signed moving as if he were snickering.
"Alright, so you're all starting to take shots at me again."
Daniel said staring at his teammates who all seemed to have started stifling in laughter before allowing a sigh to escape from his mouth.
"So, before we continue with talking about our training plans," Daniel started as he began scratching the back of his head. "I heard both of you talking about the current situation of one of our friends."
"Again, he's not my friend. But, yea."
"He's been distant around even his partner and team about this Cardin situation."
'Pyrrha is starting to get worried about him. But, knowing her, she isn't going to do her best for him,' Hunter signs to Daniel before delving further into the situation. 'She did the same thing for me when I was feeling self-conscious about being unable to speak. I was almost surprised about how mad Pyrrha got at them on my behalf.'
"Yea, that sounds like Pyrrha. She gives off the impression of an overall kind and quiet girl, but I don't think that a bully of any kind would want to be on her bad side. But, as for Jaune's situation, I think that he wants to handle it himself without anyone helping him."
"So, basically a man's pride?"
"Exactly."
Daniel nonchalantly replied to Sandra after pointing in her direction as she rolled her eyes.
"I wouldn't be so sure of that," Alyssa pointed out catching their attention. "When Ruby was in her first or second year at Signal, there was a situation where some upperclassmen bullied her. And she wanted to handle it herself without telling Yang about it. Of course, she did end up handling it after standing up to them, but let us be honest at some point Yang was going to find out about that."
"What did she break their legs?"
Sandra jokingly asked.
"Well, I'll just say that one of the things Yang hates aside from someone bullying her younger sister is being called sweetheart by a bunch of guys," Alyssa replied calling what happened at that time. "She hit them all in a place no man would want to be hit."
It didn't take long after hearing that comment for Daniel and Hunter to realize what that means, causing them both to cringe and instinctively cross their legs. Sandra found herself laughing at their reaction and hearing about what Yang had done to previous bullies.
"S-So, I think that we should just wait until he either handles it himself in his way. Or asks for help."
"Yea, I can agree with that. But, if it happens in front of me, I can't promise anything."
Alyssa replied smiling.
"I hate those guys in general. So, I'll do whatever I want in regards to them."
Sandra added shrugging her shoulders.
'I'll fight if everyone else does.'
Hunter signed before giving out an expression that meant he was serious.
"Alright, since we're all in agreement about that. Let's focus on something else that I was thinking about," Daniel gained their attention as those words left his mouth. "I wanted to think about how our semblances can work together. My Runes. Hunter's Orion. Sandra's Phasing. And Alyssa's Pendragon."
"Yea, but aren't our semblances all different things. I mean yours allows you to summon runes, his allows him to turn anything into a projectile and control their path," Sandra started off wondering where Daniel was doing with this idea. "Mine lets me pass through solid objects like a ghost. And hers turns her into a superwoman. All of the semblances are put into different categories."
"Yea, if you look at it and categorize it like that, then it might seem impossible. But, I heard a lot that the more you work on your semblance, the more you'll find out that it can other things beyond what you thought possible," his words caused them to recall hearing that once in a lesson. Daniel then gave them all a smirk that caused most to wonder what was going through his head. "But, if our semblances can end up working together, then it might be possible if you work with me for a bit."
"That smile doesn't give me much confidence," Sandra pointed out shrugging her shoulders. "Well, let's find out how to work together without our semblances before moving on to whatever idea is going through your head."
"Alright, fine, I planned on it either way. So, let's do one more training session with different partners before we all head off back to our dorms."
Daniel suggested as Hunter, Sandra, and Alyssa didn't have anything against that idea.
"Your wish is our command, leader."
'I'm game.'
Alyssa and Hunter gave their responses.
"Good, I'm always happy for the chance to beat up a certain someone. So, let's get to it."
"Well, I'm happy that I can motivate you like that. Even if that way might endanger my life," Daniel replied snarkily at Sandra's response who simply rolled her eyes. Seeing that caused Hunter and Alyssa to laugh, Daniel, seeing all their reactions caused a genuine smile to appear on his face. "I never considered being a leader after deciding to migrate over to Vale to attend Beacon Academy. I would've been content being the teammate of a competent enough leader, but this is better than I thought it'd be. Hahahaha, now that I think about it I'm the worst when it comes to following certain orders! So, if it wasn't someone like Weiss or Ruby, then I likely wouldn't even follow it."
Daniel suddenly started laughing to himself as he recalled something like that about himself, which caused Hunter and Alyssa to believe that he was just laughing with them. Seeing all her teammates laughing like that resulted in Sandra letting a sigh escape from her mouth before a slight smile graced her face. After that Team, DUSK did as planned and continued training with one another before leaving the training room.
The next morning in Professor Oobleck's classroom, as always, he was zipping around the class and giving his usual history lesson and drinking coffee at the same time. All of the students attempted to follow his lesson as much as possible, but his words were sometimes difficult to decipher for some.
Among the students acting dutifully was Weiss who looked to have no trouble with following the lesson given by Oobleck. Blake was sitting beside Pyrrha who also appeared to be following the lesson wearing an impassive but attentive expression, as well as Velvet who was sitting in the front row. However, this didn't include Jaune who was looked to have been dozing off; and Cardin who simply leaned backward without a care in the world.
"Yes! Yes, before the Faunus Rights Revolution, far more popularly known as the Faunus War, humankind was quite, quite adamant about centralizing the Faunus population in Menagerie," Oobleck zoomed in front of the map he posted on the front board using a telescopic teacher's pointing stick to a certain location on it. It was a location in the southeast of Remnant where most of the Faunus were located, which seemed to have stirred up a reaction from Blake. "Now! While this must feel like ancient history to many of you, it is imperative to remember that these are relatively recent events! Why the repercussions of the uprising can still be seen to this day!"
Having taken another long sip from his coffee, causing students to wonder how much coffee was inside of that one mug, Oobleck zipped right in front of the class. Seeing this, caused Velvet who already experienced a similar incident flinched lightly.
"Now! Have any among you been subjugated or discriminated against because of your Faunus heritage?"
At that question, the Faunus sitting inside the classroom looked almost surprised about it, but at least one of them raised their hand in response to that. After seeing that another did too and so on, Velvet looked around nervously to see whether or not the other Faunus did it before raising hers too. Taking a light discreet look at the number of Faunus bullied caused Blake to narrow her eyes before glancing at the student lounging nonchalantly wearing a bored expression.
"And I'm sure that Cardin is at the center of bullying some of the Faunus, just he and his teammates did to Velvet right in front of everyone," Blake seemed miffed about that fact. "It's reached the point where no one intervenes if they see a Faunus being bullied by someone. But, at least some people stepped in."
Blake's mind started drifting off toward the people in her friend group who either tried to or stepped in on Velvet's behalf. Having witnessed all the Faunus bullied due to their heritage, Oobleck shook his head before sighing even seeming to place his coffee cup down.
"Dreadful, simply dreadful! Remember, students, it is precisely this kind of ignorance that breeds violence," there was a hint heavier sigh that escaped from his mouth before taking another sip of his coffee. "I mean just look at what happened to White Fang!"
At the mention of the White Fang, there was a reaction from Weiss and Blake who seemed to have two different facial expressions about the matter. One of slight irritation from the former, on the other hand, the latter had worn a slight look of shock.
"Their initial goal was to address all the discrimination experienced by Faunus in society through peaceful means like debating and negotiation. But, five years ago, a change in leadership caused the formerly peaceful group to use more violent methods. Since then, they started stealing dust, dealing in the black market, and resorting to far more serious crimes such as kidnapping and even murder. So, if people continue treating Faunus the same, then things might continue to escalate."
After mentioning that, the mood in the room seemed to have become deeper as the students all started taking in those words. Most of all, the Faunus were re-educated about the White Fang's actions, which was something that a lot of the Faunus not involved didn't agree with.
"Now, back onto the lesson," Professor Oobleck's sudden voice recaptured the students' attention after taking an instant sip from his mug, which could've been his attempt at loosening the mood. "Now, which one of you young scholars can tell me what many theorize to be the turning point in the third year of the War?"
It wasn't a single second before one of the students, Weiss raised her hand without hesitation.
"Yes?"
"The battle at Fort Castle!"
Weiss energetically answered after Oobleck pointed at her, causing him to nod his head equally energetic.
"Precisely! And, who can tell me the advantage the Faunus had over General Lagune's forces?"
There was another silent pause in the classroom as Cardin seemed to have made a paper football, which he had now directed at Jaune, who seemed to be dazed. After giving a light laugh, he flicked the paper football using his finger, immediately striking the back of Jaune's head.
"Hey!"
In response to this, Jaune was immediately aroused awake, then turned around to see the person who aimed the paper football at his head. But, it seemed like Oobleck didn't realize that Jaune dozed off, and with his hand in the air, he thought it meant he knew the answer.
"Mr. Arc," Oobleck appeared right in front of Jaune without skipping a beat causing him to flinch similar to all the other students who experienced a similar incident. "Finally contributing to class! This is excellent! Excellent! What is the answer?"
"Uhhhh…. The answer…. The advantage…. that the Faunus…had over that guy," Jaune looked behind Oobleck as he noticed Pyrrha was attempting to gain his attention using several methods. After focusing his attention on her as Oobleck seemed focused on him, Jaune noticed that Pyrrha cupped her hands right in front of her eyes in an attempt to answer. After seeing this, he nodded his head causing him relief in his redhead partner. "It was binoculars!"
Hearing that response caused Pyrrha to slap her forehead and sighed since that answer was the furthest from a correct answer. Seeing that Weiss seemed to have given a light sigh and Blake seemed almost amused about it. But, no one seemed as amused about it as Cardin who raised from his seat and started laughing without even caring that the entire class could hear him.
"Very funny, Mr. Arc," Oobleck said stepping away from Jaune before turning his attention over toward the one in class making the most noise. "Cardin! Perhaps you would care to share your thoughts on the subject!"
Cardin seemed surprised that he was called up, but he wasn't for long as he sat straight up with his answer, which was furthest from the truth.
"Well, I know it's a lot easier to train an animal than a soldier."
"…."
After hearing that answer, Professor Oobleck shook his head at his student's cold-hearted and casual response to that question. He sought to teach his students to learn from mankind's mistakes so that neither of them will repeat them. Cardin's response caused a reaction from the Faunus inside of the class, and Blake seemed to be at the point where she might punch him.
"Cardin, I hope that you'll learn something from this class in the next four years. Because that is furthest from the actual answer."
"What, teach, it's the truth."
Cardin wouldn't let go of his opinion about the Faunus, causing all the students who were Faunus to glare over at him or didn't share the same opinion.
"You're not the most open-minded of individuals, are you, Cardin?"
Pyrrha spoke up from her position without even taking the slightest glance toward Cardin, but it didn't stop him at all from glancing over toward her.
"What? You got a problem?"
"No, I have the answer! It's night vision," Pyrrha corrected Cardin who seemed to have glared over at her in anger. "Many Faunus are known to have nearly-perfect sight in the dark."
"Correct, Pyrrha! I see at least some of my students pay attention to all life on Remnant."
"General Lagune was inexperienced, and made the mistake of trying to ambush the Faunus in their sleep without being aware of that," Blake added that additional fact as she turned to face Cardin who seemed to have glared at her and Pyrrha. "Perhaps if he'd paid attention in class, he wouldn't have been remembered as such a failure."
In response to that comment, which showed clear animosity toward him, Cardin stood up from his seat almost looking as if he wanted to fight in the middle of class. It was further proven as he started moving from near his desk but was stopped after hearing an authoritative voice.
"Mr. Winchester! Please take your seat unless you want a severe punishment," after hearing Oobleck sounding a lot more serious and clear, Cardin stopped moving and even seemed worried. After seeing the person who acted as his tormentor reacting like that, Jaune laughed under his breath. It didn't go unnoticed by their professor, who zoomed right in front of him and he stared directly into his eyes. "You and Mr. Arc can both see me after class for additional readings."
"Oohhhh…."
Jaune seemed disappointed after hearing those words, and Cardin groaned in annoyance.
"Now! Moving on!"
Oobleck zoomed back right in front of the class, then continued with his lesson about the history between both humans and Faunus. Things continued remaining silent from there as Oobleck continued giving a lesson that just a few students were able to follow.
Soon after class ended, all the students aside from Jaune and Cardin remained inside the classroom as their teacher seemed to stand still in front of them. It was a minute or two after class ended, but Oobleck didn't speak a single word to them. There was almost a tension raising in the room as their teacher stood right in front of them before taking a single sip from his coffee.
"You two have been struggling in my class since day one!"
Oobleck was recalling the moment that they started class, and neither of their grades was the most exceptional for students. Aside from Jaune, who seemed nervous, the concern about failing grades didn't even appear to be on Cardin's mind as he still leaned back in his head.
"I don't know, if it's because of your lack of interest," Oobleck seemed to have started pacing back and forthright in front of them before taking another sip from his coffee. "But, it stops now!"
"What's the point of taking history serious in the first place," Cardin asked without changing his position without a single sign of respect for his teacher. "It's the past, so it's not like there's going to be anything to change that! So, what's the point of learning about a stupid war involving Faunus who was treated as animals for being animals. All we need to be worried about is training and killing Grimm. And who cares about the reason that the White Fang was created, all you need to do is put down a rabid animal."
Oobleck allowed a long sigh to escape from his mouth after hearing his student's response, which just showed several things that he didn't want his students to do. First, it was his disrespect for the past and treating it as if it doesn't matter at all. And second, is his obvious blatant disrespect for the Faunus who goes through enough issues in their regular lives.
"You worked hard to gain entrance into this school, and we only accept the best of the best. So, I expect you two to the fact like it," Oobleck stopped for a moment as the tension returned before just a slight second before he stared straight at them. "Mr. Winchester, even if you don't believe it, history is important! If you can't learn from it…you're destined to repeat it. All Faunus are forced to live in discrimination due to people unable to see past their animal traits, which caused all the incidents in the past. So, as a punishment for your actions in class. You'll need to write an essay on pages fifty-one to ninety-one! Now, run along!"
Having received permission from their teacher who once again zipped outside of class passed Pyrrha, who seem to be waiting for Jaune as a green blur. Jaune was the first person to leave outside the classroom thinking about the lecture that he received from Oobleck. His thoughts were stopped as Jaune was pushed to the ground by his tormentor, Cardin who laughed as he walked away.
After seeing that, Pyrrha walked forward to assist him as she received and ignored a glare from Cardin.
"You know, I really will break his legs," Pyrrha said in a serious tone not caring about the punishment that she will receive at this point for doing so. After helping Jaune back to his feet, she could see that he was still the same as the other day. It was then that an idea came to mind, causing her to grab onto Jaune's arm who looked surprised and a little flushed from the contact. "I have an idea! Here, I want you to meet me on the dorm roof at nighttime!"
"Wh-What, wait why," Jaune looked flustered since that could have different meanings based on what this idea is. "Why did we need to meet on the dorm's roof?"
"It's a surprise! Just come there alone!"
Once those words left her mouth without giving him a definite answer, Jaune was left stunned as Pyrrha started walking away more cheerfully than before. He was simply left there following behind his partner as she seemed to first head in the direction of their dorm room.
It was still daytime as the sunlight still illuminated Beacon Academy, Blake was sitting at one of the benches with a book in her hand. She was alone without either of her teammates around her, although, she did love spending time with them, she loved moments like this. Blake read from a book of hers as there was nothing but silence and the wind blowing as she sat on the bench.
She needed a much-needed break after recalling all the words that she heard from Cardin and his teammates for two days about Faunus. Blake felt a familiar tension building up within her after hearing those four's comments on Faunus and pulling their animal parts.
"I guess that I was asking for too much when I left and decided to come to Beacon. Even here, some people bully Faunus for the dumbest reasons," Blake felt her irritation building up within her chest, which caused a movement in the black bow on top of her head as something under it seemed to twitch. Feeling that it started to come loose, Blake sighed and placed her book on the spot beside her. She moved her hand to tighten it back up without it far being too uncomfortable. After fixing her black bow, Blake placed her hand on the book cover beside her without picking it up. "*Sigh* I wonder what he could say if he saw me in a place like this. No, I already know that he likely wouldn't consider me the same person as before especially that I…. Huh?"
Blake stopped after catching that someone started coming in from behind her, but she didn't turn around to see who that person was. There were at least three people who she knew would attempt to sneak up on her and that meant she wouldn't be surprised to see whoever it was.
"Yo, Blake."
It was revealed to be one of them right, as Daniel vaulted over the bench and took a seat smoothly right beside her. Seeing Daniel being seated beside her, more so in such an over-the-top manner, Blake allowed a light sigh to escape from her mouth before smiling. Similar to herself, she could see that he was still dressed in his school uniform despite seeing that he did return to his dorm room.
"Hey, Daniel. What're you doing here?"
"Well, I was just taking a stroll before noticing that you were sitting here alone," Daniel replied in the usual causal tone that Blake heard from him since they first met. "And since, you seemed to have been in a bad mood today. I thought that I'd come and brighten up your day a bit."
"Thanks, for the consideration," Blake found herself laughing lightly. "But, if you and Yang were to brighten up my day too much, then I might go blind. To be honest, I thought that if would be either you, Yang, or Ruby coming in from behind me."
"Well, I think that Yang and Alyssa are having a little talk. And I think that Weiss is a little busy with Ruby," Daniel replied as it remained the same as what at least her leader and her partner were doing before she left. "So, what was it that got under your skin?"
"It was nothing, but something that I should've gotten used to by now."
"Yea, I understand that feeling. You think that you've gotten used to something that irritates you, then you find out that it still does," Daniel noted as he started getting more comfortable as if to listen to her. "So, mind sharing with the class of one?"
"…," Blake seemed to have started thinking about whether or not she should talk to Daniel before choosing just to talk about it. "It's Cardin and his teammates, it just seems as if they have nothing better to do than pick on other people. It just makes me wonder what caused them to want to become huntsman in the first place."
"Who knows, likely because it's the only profession that they're at least partially qualified for. But, if they don't at least get their act together before graduation. Team CRDL might find themselves flunking out! Kicked out due to their behavior," Daniel replied. "Well, as a wise man once said. If a fool doesn't learn their lesson the first couple of times, then give them another chance before…."
"…giving them another chance, then regretting it," Blake finished before laughing. "You couldn't think of anything else, and just decided to use a line from your grandfather's book."
"It's good advice," Daniel pointed out before continuing. "Besides, I'm a wisecracker by nature. And I might not be an idiot, but I don't know much about insightful lines."
"Hahaha, yeah, I can see that."
Blake was surprised to find herself laughing whenever she was around all the other members of Team RWBY or even Daniel in situations like this. Aside from Cardin and the others being everything that she hated, it was times like this that made being in Beacon worth it.
"Well, look at this."
A familiar, but not friendly voice reached their ears as Blake and Daniel seemed to have groaned.
Walking right in front of them were Cardin and the other members of his team, all of them looked to have held a lot of hostility toward them.
"So, is this a little date between the two of you?"
Russel asked.
"No, but I believe this is something called minding our own business," Daniel replied staring at them wearing an impassive look. "So, why don't your little team go mind your own?"
"What was that?!"
Russel seemed prepared to step forward and fight but was stopped as Cardin moved his right arm in front of him causing him to stop. He instead moved forward without caring about the looks that he was receiving from Daniel and Blake, both of them seemed irritated.
"Well, you certainly can move from girl to girl," Cardin pointed out as Daniel narrowed his eyes after hearing him stating those words in front of him. "First, it was the Schnee girl, then the midget leader, her bimbo sister, and the stoic girl. What are you planning going from girl to girl in Beacon or is it just simply their lame team?"
"You'd be set for life if you got in good with the Schnee heiress," Dove added after Cardin as the other two stood by them in an attempt to look tough and intimidating. "But, then you're getting too greedy don't you think."
Despite being outnumbered at least by two more people, neither Daniel nor Blake seemed fazed about it at all and continued standing forward. Speaking from personal experience, they've been through things more serious than the bullies right in front of them. But, it was also due to that personal experience that Blake knew that things wouldn't end well if they fought.
"Daniel, let's just leave from here," Blake said already starting to pick up her book after placing a bookmark on the page she left off on. "Getting into a fight with these guys isn't going to end well compared to the last time that you tried doing the same thing."
Blake stood up from her seat already prepared to leave the area, then noticed that Daniel stood up from his seat leaving her to believe he was going to leave too. But, she stopped after noticing that Daniel didn't move from that spot and instead remained in the same position.
"A lame team, huh," Daniel asked wearing an almost condescending smile. "Well, where I sit the only lame team that I can see if the one standing in front of me. More so, since individually all the members of Team RWBY could beat up everyone on yours without breaking a sweat. So, if you don't want me to prove that it could take just one person to take out your entire team, then keep talking. And there's no issue with me hanging out with my friends."
"…Daniel."
It didn't take long for Blake to realize that he was still standing up for her and her teammates who Cardin and his had been talking about.
"Do you think that you can fight all of all?"
Sky asked, but a single serious glare from Daniel caused him to yelp and his behind Russel.
Daniel wasn't backing down from challenging the entirety of Team CRDL if neither of them left at that moment, it was something that almost reminded Blake of someone else. But, Blake didn't know what to think about that. All the members of Team CRDL looked prepared to fight against him, but no more so than their leader.
"You might have gotten the drop on me last time, but you're not going to get me with a cheap shot this time."
"…," at that moment Daniel looked confused about Cardin accusing him of getting him using a cheat shot, which caused him to lean over toward Blake. "Did that count as a cheap shot?"
After hearing that question, which seemed more playful if anything rather than a serious question. Blake recalled the entire fight between them but didn't recall Daniel ever using a cheap shot.
"Not at all."
"Cardin, did that last kick do some serious damage to your brain or something? I don't want to hear taking cheap shots from someone so insecure about himself that he needs his entire team to pick on someone else. Based on what I can see, you're the kind of person who wouldn't have the balls to fight against someone who could fight back against you."
It was hearing those words that caused Cardin to move forward, then Daniel started walking forward right in front of Cardin who stood taller than him.
Daniel stood up from his seat without even the slightest hint of fear behind him.
"What was that you little ass…."
"You little what?"
Daniel stood right in front of Cardin's face giving him the same look that he had given him the time that they had fought in the cafeteria. Seeing that caused the tall and tough tormentor to become shaken up a bit as even three of his teammates looked worried too.
"What's going on over there?"
A sudden voice from a teacher caught their attention, which resulted in Cardin and his team all leaving the area so neither of them could get in trouble.
"This isn't over Norden."
Cardin declared before leaving the area.
"Huh, I got the oddest sense of déjà vu."
Daniel said sarcastically before feeling Blake poking his arm causing him to turn to face him.
"Daniel, did you come here because you saw Cardin and his teammates coming here too?"
Blake asked surprising him since she knew Daniel wasn't the kind of person who would leave his friends alone in this situation. Both him and Team CRDL being around in the same area seemed to be too much of a coincidence, then Blake recalled what she said to Cardin in class. And based on Cardin's entire character, he was the kind of person to hold grudges.
"Hah, you figured it out," Daniel replied chuckling to himself and scratching the back of his head. "I was on a stroll thinking about something, then I noticed Team CRDL looking in the same direction and decided to visit. As you know, I'm not the kind of guy to leave a friend hanging."
"Hahaha, yeah, I know," Blake said shaking her head before looking at his face and sighing. "The more that I hang around you, the more I'm reminded of an old friend of mine."
"Is that a good thing?"
Daniel asked curiously since he couldn't get a clear sign from Blake whether or not that was a good thing since her feelings seemed between happy and sad.
"I don't know yet," Blake seemed to have teased taking a seat on the chair after seeing that Team CRDL left them alone and opened her book. "I can see a lot of the positives that he had…or thought he had. Besides, both of you still appear to prefer a more direct approach to handling a situation."
"You've been reading my grandfather's autobiography. So where do you think it originated from in my family."
"True, but your grandfather at least didn't make it a habit to antagonize them."
Blake teased as she continued to read her book again in peace before losing the sunlight, although, she wouldn't be troubled reading at the night.
"So, do you want me to leave now?"
"No, it's fine. Honestly, I found myself enjoying being around people like you and Yang," Blake replied before she stopped reading for a moment to talk to him. "Please, don't tell her that I said that. I don't feel like being caught in one of Yang's hugs."
"Deal, I know the feeling."
After saying those words, Daniel and Blake continued sitting in the same spot in peace without being bothered at all until it was time for them to return to their dorms.
It was nighttime as a still depressed Jaune and cheerful Pyrrha did as planned, then went to the roof of their dorm room. Once both the leader and his partner started following behind her until the two of them arrived in front of the ledge. She stood there watching the beautiful scenery before them, including the green light given off by the tallest tower in Beacon Academy. Although Pyrrha found the sight itself breathtaking, Jaune seemed to be the only one who thought something different.
"Pyrrha, I know I'm going through a hard time right now, but I'm not that depressed," Jaune said as he looked at the bottom of the roof, whatever thought entered his head caused him to feel dazed. "I can always be a farmer or something instead of a huntsman, you know?"
"Jaune, what're you talking…about," Pyrrha asked as she noticed what he was thinking about before realizing his thoughts, which were radically different from hers. Hearing this caused Pyrrha to push him away from the ledge as if to prevent him from jumping off. "N-n-no! Why would you think that I brought you up here?!"
"You brought me up here alone in the middle of the night," Jaune said flustered since that wasn't the case as he stood back up to his feet. "I mean, the first thing that I thought about was, you know?"
"What did you think about first?"
"I mean, you asked me to come alone on the roof," Jaune replied, but Pyrrha didn't appear to get what Jaune had thought about at first. "You know, a guy and a girl alone on the roof at night."
"…ah, aaahhh," Pyrrha realized what Jaune must've been thinking about causing her face to turn as bright as her red hair, then causing her to push him with more force than she had before. "That's not why I brought you up here!"
"Alright, stop pushing me."
Jaune said after being pushed a second time, which would make it a third time that he was pushed to the ground in just a single day. It took a couple of minutes before the two of them were able to calm down after that previous episode and misunderstanding.
"Jaune," Pyrrha was the first person to speak after managing to calm down. "I know that you have been having a few difficulties in classes and that you're not the strongest of fighters at the moment. So…I wanted to help you out a bit!"
"Wh-what?"
Jaune seemed surprised that Pyrrha suggested helping him in classes and fighting.
"We can train up here after class where no one can bother us! I can also help you in your other classes so that it won't result in you failing them!"
Pyrrha looked excited that she would be able to help Jaune with all his troubles in class, but he didn't share the same thoughts as her.
"You think I need help?"
Jaune spoke dispirited as her suggestion seems to have hit Jaune somewhere in his pride, which was something that Pyrrha was able to tell based on his reaction.
"N-no! No, that's not what I meant."
"But, you just said it."
The more that Pyrrha tried reasoning with Jaune about her pure intentions, the more it seemed to have just hurt his pride.
"Jaune, everybody needs a little push from time to time. It doesn't make you any different from the rest of us," as those words left his mouth, Jaune started feeling more and more guilty about something, which didn't make it any better as Pyrrha continued going. "You made it to Beacon! That speaks volumes of what you're capable of!"
"You're wrong. I-I don't belong here."
Jaune lowered his head in shame as he revealed that truth to Pyrrha who seemed confused about those words, but she just believed he was looking down on himself.
"That's a terrible thing to say! Of course, you do," Pyrrha spoke as she approached Jaune in an attempt to build up his confidence. "Jaune, look at all you did against that Death Stalker. You led us, me, Ren, and Nora against it, while we were on that bridge! We wouldn't have been able to win that fight if it wasn't for your leadership."
"That was just a fluke," Jaune started raising his voice more. "I don't belong here like all of you did. I wasn't accepted into Beacon…I wasn't."
Those words are what caused Pyrrha to stare at him in silence as those words confused her most of all.
"Wh-what do you mean?"
"I mean, I didn't go to combat school, I didn't pass any tests. I didn't earn my spot at this Academy," Jaune finally confessed what he did to Pyrrha who seemed more shocked and confused. "I lied! I got my hands on some fake transcripts, and I lied!"
"What? But…why?"
"'Cause this is always what I've wanted to be," Jaune declared as he looked around Beacon Academy, where all the best and most talented students all gathered in an attempt to become a huntsman. "My father, my grandfather, and his father before him, all of them were warriors! There were all heroes! Since I was a kid, that's what I wanted to be too. But, I just wasn't good enough to make it happen on my own."
"Then, let me help you, Jaune! If we work together, then you can be exactly what you want to be! You don't have to attempt to do this alone!"
Pyrrha didn't care about the fact that Jaune lied to get into Beacon, everything she saw him doing during the trail to come here. Even if Jaune wasn't the best fighter, his great aura, and leadership skills, all proved that he does have all the makings to become a great huntsman if he tried. She was in a similar position as Jaune at one point, but she was assisted and trained by one of her favorite instructors, Joseph Kheiron.
"Then, let me help you, Jaune! I know that you can become like your father and grandfather if you work for it!"
"I don't want help," Jaune found himself shouting that out loud surprising Pyrrha who stopped. "I don't want to be the damsel in distress! I want to be the hero!"
"Jaune, I…."
"I'm tired of being the lovable idiot, stuck in the tree while his friends fight for their lives," Jaune continued putting more and more of his inner feelings out in the open. "Don't you understand? If I can't do this by myself, then what good am I? I mean, look at Daniel, he can pretty much fight without help, lead his team, and make people laugh without looking like a joke."
"But, even Daniel thinks that…."
Pyrrha reached out her hand in an attempt to console him, but Jaune seemed to have pulled back from her. And it caused her to believe that he didn't want to be touched or consoled at all.
"Just…leave me alone. Okay?"
"If that's what you think is best…."
Pyrrha spoke sadly as she realized that Jaune didn't want her help, causing her to lower her hand, then started walking toward the entrance back into the building. It didn't take Jaune long to realize what he said to Pyrrha, who's been nothing but supportive to him the entire time.
"Come on…."
Jaune was preparing to follow Pyrrha so that he could apologize for what he said, but he was stopped as a familiar voice reached his ears.
"Oh, Jaune..."
"Cardin!"
Jaune was surprised to see Cardin climbing onto the roof of the dorm wearing a malicious smile as he started to approach him.
"Wh-What're you doing on the dorm roof?"
"I couldn't help but overhear you two from my dorm room. So, you snuck into Beacon, huh," Jaune realized that his entire conversation was heard by Cardin, which caused his heart to sink to his feet he became worried about what he was going to do with that information. "I gotta say, Jaune, I never expected you to be such a rebel!"
"Please, Cardin, please, don't tell anyone!"
Jaune tried begging and reasoning with Cardin so that his secret wouldn't be revealed, but he instead gave out a laugh as he approached him.
"Jaune, come on! I'd never rat on a friend like that!"
"A...a friend?"
Jaune didn't believe Cardin based on everything that he has done to him and others so far, but he remained quiet since nothing was stopping him from revealing his secret.
"Of course," Cardin trapped Jaune in a headlock without caring about the strength that he was putting behind it as the shorter leader tried getting himself freed. "We're friends now, Jauney boy! And the way I see it, as long as you're there for me whenever I need you, we'll be friends for a long time."
Even Jaune could see where this was going as Cardin released him from his grip, causing him to gasp for air, as a result of the pressure on his neck.
"I mean, that being said, I don't have time to do those extra readings that we received from Oobleck today, you see," Cardin stated leaning down roughly rubbing Jaune's hair again without caring about the force that he'd been using. "Think you could take care of that for me, buddy?"
"…"
Jaune didn't give the slightest reply to Cardin, but he simply nodded his head in agreement, seeing that he didn't have any other choice in the manner. Seeing how submissive Jaune was being at the moment filled him up with a great sense of superiority.
"That's what I thought," Cardin released Jaune's head after pushing it off his head before heading over toward the ledge that was above his window. "Don't worry, Jaune. Your secret's safe with me."
Cardin hung off the dorm's ledge, where Jaune realized that he retreated inside of his dorm room with all of his other teammates. Seeing that Cardin was gone, he fell to the ground without seeming to be able to regain the feeling of strength in his legs, then started rubbing the back of his neck in pain.
"Good job, Jaune. Now you're being blackmailed by one of the worst people to be blackmailed by."
Jaune was lamenting everything that happened at the moment, a sigh escaped from his mouth as he soon found himself leaning back on the ground. Jaune had turned down the one person who wanted to help him, and now he was being exploited by the one person who didn't like him.
A/N: Well, this is the end of the next chapter of RWBY – Team DUSK, I apologize for the late update. This showed the troubles that Jaune is going through in Beacon, feeling lower than all his friends. Everyone's currently looking forward to the Vytal Festival with teams like DUSK working on their cooperation in battle with Daniel being at the head of it. Cardin is still being Cardin and picking on the students weaker than him and showing his feelings toward Faunus.
Also, Daniel and Blake shared a moment before being interrupted by Team CRDL and being chased off by someone not afraid of them. And it ended with Jaune being unable to affect Pyrrha's help and being blackmailed by Cardin.