Nora Duty (Part 1)
(I OWN NOTHING!!!)
(Jaune's POV)
After a tense moment, Blake made her decision.
"Dare."
Very well then... I think I'll take it easy on her.
"You need to sing a song on the karaoke machine," I dared her while pointing at said device.
"Any requests?" She asked, with her trademark straight face.
"Whatever you want," I answered.
"Fine," Blake nodded. "But only if you sing a song too."
"Very well." I can be a good sport about this.
I wonder what she's going to sing...
(The following song is "Every Time We Touch" by Cascada.)
"I still hear your voice when you sleep next to me
I still feel your touch in my dream (In my dream)
Forgive me my weakness, but I don't know why
Without you, it's hard to survive...
Hey... She's pretty good...
'Cause every time we touch, I get this feeling
And every time we kiss, I swear I could fly
Can't you feel my heart beat fast? I want this to last
Need you by my side...
'Cause every time we touch, I feel the static
And every time we kiss, I reach for the sky
Can't you hear my heart beat so? I can't let you go
Want you in my life...
Your arms are my castle, your heart is my sky
They wipe away tears that I cry (That I cry)
The good and the bad times, we've been through them all
You make me rise when I fall!
'Cause every time we touch, I get this feeling
And every time we kiss, I swear I could fly
Can't you feel my heart beat fast? I want this to last
Need you by my side...
'Cause every time we touch, I feel the static
And every time we kiss, I reach for the sky
Can't you hear my heart beat so? I can't let you go
Want you in my life...
'Cause every time we touch, I get this feeling
And every time we kiss, I swear I could fly
Can't you feel my heart beat fast? I want this to last
Need you by my side..."
"Gotta say, Blake... I didn't think you were into that music..." Yang grinned at her partner with mischief in her eyes.
"It's a guilty pleasure. If any of this leaves this room, I'll tell everyone about your favorite show..." Blake admitted, then threatened.
That certainly got Yang to clamp shut.
Huh... Now I'm curious...
Oh well... It's my turn now.
As I got up and prepared for my latest performance, a thought stirred in my mind.
'Why not have a little bit of fun with this?'
Pretending as though I wasn't up to anything, I began gathering a small thunderstorm outside.
"You've got something about you...
You've got something I need...
Daughter of Aphrodite,
Hear my words and take heed...
I was born on Olympus,
To my father a son!
I was raised by the demons!
Trained to reign as the one...
God of Thunder!!!"
At the word 'thunder' I then released the first crash of it outside as the rain began to pour outside.
That was also when the power, and subsequently, the lights went out. Which in turn made all my friends jump out of their skin and a couple of the girls (Yang and Pyrrha) shriek.
And while I found this all hilarious, I did not intend to go that far with my little joke.
Whoops...
"What happened?" I heard Ruby ask.
"Power's out," Ren answered. "Looks like the storm killed it."
"Well... I guess that's our cue to turn in for the night," Yang said. "Is the fridge still working? I don't wanna waste any leftover pizza."
The common room's fridge opened up to shine it's holy light open the darkness of our room, revealing Blake as the one who checked.
"Still good," she confirmed.
'Thank You, LORD in Heaven!'
(-/Time Skip brought to you by Chibi Jaune in the clouds giving Chibi Cardin a lil' zap.\-)
"Pancakes! Pancakes! We're gonna get the pancakes!~"
It was now Saturday morning and Nora was bouncing around in excitement for today, she would feast upon pancakes.
Provided Yang held true to her word.
Pyrrha and Ren were still asleep in our dorm, so it would be just us and whoever on her team was willing to come. Probably for the best, Ren could definitely use the rest.
Nora-duty, while fulfilling, was tiresome work at times. Which is why we divided it between ourselves on the weekend. This week was my turn, hence why I took up Yang's bet in combat class as a means of sating the chaos that is Nora Valkeryie.
A full Nora is an easy Nora.
.
.
.
Not in that way.
After a moment once I knocked on the door, it opened to reveal a dressed, yet somber, Yang as well as a hungry Ruby and Blake.
"Is Weiss coming?" I ask. "They have fruity options too."
"Nah, Ice Queen needs her beauty sleep after staying up past curfew," Yang sarcastically said.
"I'm right here," Weiss said from behind her teammates.
Guess she isn't wearing her heels right now.
"Alright, I guess we're set. Let's go."
After a short and uneventful flight down to Vale, it was not long that we were now seated at a large table inside of Nora's Pancake Church.
"I am NOT saying that ridiculous phrase, Xiao Long," Weiss insisted.
"Well, if you want me to pay for your share you will. Otherwise, you can pay for yourself," Yang countered.
"Come on, Weiss, I'm doing it!" Ruby tried to encourage her partner, puppy-dog eyes on full blast.
Weiss did not budge. I guess she isn't the Ice Queen for nothing.
"It's a tradition. You have to say it. Or they won't accept your order," Blake insisted.
Tradition. That was the word that got Weiss's attention. Being a nerd for cultural practices and such, as well as never having been to an IHOP before, Weiss had no way of knowing for sure if what her teammates said was true.
"Fine." She relented.
That was when the waiter came up to take our orders.
"Rooty tooty, fresh and fruity with strawberry please!" Ruby declared.
"All you-can-eat for me!" Nora stated excitedly, causing Yang to sigh in relief.
Blake ordered some blueberry pancakes with sausage, Yang got herself some chocolate chip pancakes with bacon, I ordered a stack of chocolate chocolate chip pancakes with a side of bacon and eggs, and finally it was Weiss's turn.
Face red with embarrassment, she ordered her desired meal.
"I would like a... A... A rooty tooty, fresh and fruity. With blueberries..." She finally choked out.
And with that, our waiter was gone as we had all ordered Pepsi for drinks to keep it simple.
"Ha! She said it!" Ruby and Yang high dived each other as Blake cracked a smile and held up her scroll to indicate she had caught Weiss's humiliation on record.
Weiss's mortified expression was most gratifying.
Once our food was brought to us and we had begun eating Ruby popped a question to Nora.
"So... What's been your latest dream?"
Ah, Nora's wild dreams have been a subject of entertainment between our two teams.
Nora, for her part, grew quiet. Which was odd. Normally, she leaps right into the fray of whatever strangeness enters her mind at night. Her face was contemplative as she spoke after swallowing her mouthful of pancakes.
"It was... Different..." She said slowly. "Like I wasn't actually there you know? It was almost like watching a movie."
"What happened?" Ruby asked, her full attention locked in on Nora.
"There was a guy with all these glowy-bits all over his body like tattoos, except they weren't. I think they were actually a part of him. And they were glowing with tiny bolts of lightning sparking out. In his hands he held some kind of sledgehammer-axe-thing and he was controlling a thunderstorm while fighting a bunch of monsters," Nora said. "He was kicking their butts!"
That... Certainly sounds like me...
"What did the monsters did they look like? Were they some kind of Grimm?" It was Yang, this time, who asked.
"No. But there was one that was big... Really big." Nora shook her head before continuing. "The little ones were as big as Beowolves but looked like fiery demon praying mantises made out of skeletons..."
Niskaru. Nora saw a vision of me fighting niskaru.
'Dammit!' I should have known my little stunt last night would have affected Nora! The nature of her Semblance makes her far more in tune with me.
"The big one looked like the others but had one big club-claw thing and wings..."
A niskaru tyrant.
Fuck! Even in dreams, niskaru are bad news...
"Weird... Doesn't sound like anything I've heard of..." Yang said.
"They're called niskaru." I finally said, earning the attention of everyone at the table. "I can't stress enough how bad they are. If you guys ever see just one of those things, you get as far away from them as possible and come straight to me. Understand?"
"Niskaru?" Ruby asked. "What do you know about them?"
"Enough to know that even a little one is as dangerous as strong as a Major Ursa, and faster than Alpha Beowolves. And that they always travel in packs." I tell her.
"So why should we come to you?" Weiss now asked.
"Because I have experience in dealing with them," I answer. "I've seen plenty of veteran warriors get cut down like wheat in the field by those things."
The table was quiet as everyone took in my serious tone and the implications of my words.
"Let's... Let's switch gears and back up a bit," Ruby suggested. "You said something about a glowing guy with lightning and a hammer?"
Ah shit...
AND SCENE!!!
Okay, let's see... Karaoke Machine used? Check... Jaune did something potentially stupid that might bite him in the ass later? Done... Pancakes? Acquired. Yeah, I'd say that's a wrap for today folks...
How is Jaune gonna (not so) smooth-talk his way outta this one without Pyrrha or Ren to bail him out?
Now, onto Phil McRackin's questions.
First up... "What do I have against pineapple pizza?"
Well it all started when I was a wee lad and thought to myself, "Hey, I like pineapples. And I like pizza. Next time my parents take us to a pizza place, I'll ask for a slice of pineapple pizza." It did not go as well as I had hoped. Plus, it's kind of a texture thing for me as well...
As for the tarrasques in B-Tier vs trolls in A-Tier? That's a bit more nuanced as there are a plethora of troll-species. Generally, it's because of their ability to use tools and operate in small communities based on which species. Some species are even capable of limited use of magic.
In a one-on-one, yeah... A tarrasque will absolutely body most trolls. It's kinda like how a bear is generally way more dangerous than a lone chimp. The chimp may lay the hurt on the bear, but in the end, it's going in the bear's belly nine times out of ten.
Also, most trolls can't stand sunlight and will turn to stone if exposed.
In this universe, there is only one species (technically two) of troll that can handle daylight.
They also happen to be the most magical variant of troll and are generally the most human-like as well in not only terms of appearance, but intelligence as well.
They are known as the Valean Hill Trolls.
While small and oftentimes cowardly, they are actually arguably the most powerful types of trolls.
Split into two subgroups, we have the "Blackthumbs" and the "Greenthumbs".
Yes. They are exactly what you are thinking. Probably. They take inspiration from a movie I used to watch a lot when I was a kid.
Being the "evil" variants, "Blackthumbs" are typically uglier and more meanspirited and have a propensity to turn things into stone using their one black thumb. They are often found underground in dark, dank, caves in the company of giant spiders, goblins, and other such unpleasant things.
Their diet largely consists of bugs, grubs, rocks, and meats of questionable origin and freshness.
"Greenthumbs" on the other hand, are "good" and are more at home growing gardens and groves with their green thumbs. Due to their friendly nature, they can often be found in the company of friendly dwarves, fairies, dryads, nymphs, and other more benign woodland spirits.
They are often highly skilled herbalists and healers thanks to their knowledge of making things grow. And live on a vegetarian diet. Things like fish and cheese is acceptable, but not frequently consumed.
Fun Fact: Jaune, or Jounn, as he was known in ancient times, has a soft spot for these little guys and gals as they will often begin to celebrate any thunderstorms they hear. This little tidbit is a great way to tell if a certain Hill Troll is really a Greenthumb or not, since Blackthumbs are prone to running in terror at the slightest rumbling that resembles the rolling of thunder.
Ciao!