Author's note: This chapter actually put me before a small dilemma, because I didn't know whether I should warn you about something that happens, or if it's fine.
But I've decided to play it safe, just in case, so yeah, trigger warning at the bottom.
Argent and Sirena were in the teacher's lounge, going over some things despite having the day off due to a local holiday. Argent skimmed the students' test results, as well as reports from his team members on the students' skills, to decide whether any of them could be moved on to proper huntsman training once they got old enough.
"Some of them are just one year away," Argent said and asked, "Do you think we should've lowered the registration age a little bit, to give them more time?"
"No, don't worry," Sirena answered, "It'll be fine." She knew that their plan would only succeed for a few generations, but once the faunus became the dominant species, they would fracture into political groups, and infighting would weaken them again. And once humans disappeared entirely, faunus would grow to be more and more driven by their instincts, unless there was something else, a little silver lining, to keep them on the right path.
"What are you thinking about?" Argent asked.
"Silver-eyed warrior stuff," Sirena answered nonchalantly, "Nothing you need to concern yourself with." Just as Argent wanted to pry more, someone knocked on the door.
"Come in," Argent said, and Sherry opened the door.
"Hello, Professor Star. Do you know where-," Sherry began, but stopped when she saw Sirena, and said, "Oh, hello Professor Blue. Look." She proudly showed what appeared to be a wooden tankard that had been in the ocean for decades, complete with barnacles growing on the metal parts.
"Impressive," Sirena said and looked at the tankard. While the wood looked old and damaged, seaweed was wrapped around it, and would seal any holes that might lie underneath.
"Thanks," Sherry said, "And, well, I thought about what we discussed. Also, I had a little help. But I think I know what you were trying to tell me."
"That's great," Sirena said and asked, "What did you come up with?"
"Well, as we discussed, a cup determines a drink's properties," Sherry answered, "So, I made this. Try it." She set the tankard down on the table and motioned Sirena to drink something. Sirena smiled and pulled a water bottle from under the table, filled the cup, and took a sip. Argent looked on in confusion, while Sherry was brimming with excitement. Shortly after putting the tankard down, Sirena fell onto the table.
"Sirena? What's wrong?" Argent asked and looked at Sherry, "What's going on?"
"I made a cup that makes anyone drunk if they drink from it," Sherry answered, "The effect should wear off soon, though."
"I think we need to talk about this later," Argent said, "But now, I need to figure out what to do with her." Sirena sloshed over to the side, turning her head on its side.
"Heyy, kid," Sirena said with a drunkenly cheerful tone, "Hey. Heyyhey. Wanna hear a se- secret? Got a real fun one, I got."
"Uuh, no, sorry," Sherry answered and made the tankard disappear, spilling water on the table, "I'll be going now." Sirena groaned, only interrupted by a foul-smelling burp, then got more serious.
"Boo. Boringkidsthesedays," Sirena said, "Whàtéver. Tís whölé thíng's à shàm ànywày. Yér kíds'll bé fíne. Kíds' kíds, töö. But öné dày, thére'll bé dísàsters. Y'àll'ré dööméd. 'dníght." Sherry quickly left the room and closed the door behind herself. Argent sighed and went to open a window to air out the room.
"What do I do with you?" Argent asked, completely lost on how to deal with someone who never gets drunk suddenly being completely wasted. Ultimately, he decided that the best he could do was to make sure she was safe until she sobered up again, and sat back down. Suddenly, he sensed another presence in the room and activated his Grimm Vision, turning his eyes pitch black and allowing him to see Cinder standing next to Sirena.
"Can you hear me?" Cinder asked when she noticed Argent looking directly at her. She had orange eyes, and wore black high-heeled slippers, black mesh stockings, and a red dress resembling the one she wore at Beacon, although a bit longer than before, and with golden ruffles at the edges. She also wore black, wrist-length fingerless gloves, and her swords were attached to a magnetic clip on her lower back. Her black hair was braided, and reached halfway down her back. A light red shark fin protruded from her back, with the color fading into light gray towards the tip.
"Somewhat, yes," Argent answered, "Your voice sounds hollow, though."
"Heyy, Cíndy," Sirena said, "Höw'd yà gét hére?" She flailed her arms around, as if she wanted to throw them up in celebration.
"Well, the castle filled with slime," Cinder answered, "So, I came to see what was going on."
"Wait, you can actually understand her?" Argent asked and said, "I wasn't even sure those were words at all."
"I can, yes," Cinder answered, "Sirena and Ruby had some… adventures, including in other worlds, and at one point, Emerald and I had to take over for those two. Since then, both of us can use a semblance that allows us to speak and understand all languages."
"That's… impressive," Argent said.
"It would be, if it worked," Cinder explained, "However, that semblance relies on the speaker's intent, and as you can see, there is no such thing involved at the moment."
"So, how do you understand her, then?" Argent asked. Sirena giggled, then exclaimed something in a language neither of them understood, although it sounded like some sort of pun or play on words. Then, she finally appeared to fall asleep.
"For some reason, her languages are jumbled up," Cinder answered, "She's speaking in some amalgamation of current-day Vytalian, Old Soraklian, and one or two languages from other worlds."
"Any idea what to do with her?" Argent asked.
"I thought you were her team leader," Cinder answered and asked, "Why do you ask me?"
"Because I've never seen her drunk," Argent answered, "Normally, she can't get drunk at all."
"You do make a good point," Cinder said thoughtfully, "But to be completely honest, neither have I."
"So, all we can do is wait for the effects to wear off?" Argent asked, frustrated that he couldn't support one of his team members when she needed him.
"Looks like it," Cinder answered, "However, if she wakes up again, but is still drunk, don't talk to her about things she didn't tell you while she was sober. I don't know if she'll remember what happened, but she can understand all languages, so if she remembers, she'll know what she told you. And if you made her tell you something she didn't want you to know, she may just kill you, along with anyone you told about it. She's really strict about that sort of thing."
"Don't worry, I know," Argent said and looked over to Sirena, whose entire head had relaxed into a blob-like state that made it hard to believe there were bones underneath. He motioned Cinder an offer to sit down on a nearby chair, and she took him up on it. Then Argent turned off his Grimm Vision and focused on keeping Sirena safe until she sobered up again.
~o~
Sherry wandered through Alpha Academy, contemplating whether she really should have made that tankard, and if it really was a good idea to ask Professor Blue to try it without telling her what it did first. She pulled out her scroll and went through the list of other cups she had come up with.
"This one looks good," Sherry said to herself when she looked at the image on her scroll. It showed a small porcelain teacup with a light blue floral pattern, which would whoever drink from it emit a sweet and calming scent for a while, depending on how much they drank.
"Oh, Sherry, hey," Ravi called out from another hallway, drawing her attention away from her scroll, and ran over to her.
"Ravi, hello," Sherry said and asked, "What are you doing here? Aren't you going to the festival?"
"I could ask you the same," Ravi said, stopped in front of Sherry and answered, "But anyway, I think I have an idea how you can use your semblance better. If you want, that is." She looked at Sherry's scroll, and Sherry followed her gaze.
"Oh, this?" Sherry asked, "This is nothing, really. Anyway, what about that idea you had?"
"Actually, Hinata plays this game, which gave me the idea," Ravi answered, "Basically, I wanted to suggest making cups that bestow an effect of some kind on whoever drinks from them."
"That's a great idea, thanks," Sherry said, "Although, to be honest, I already figured that out last night."
"Really?" Ravi asked and said, "Well, at least you did. And if you need inspiration, I'm sure Hinata will be thrilled to tell you about some of the things in her game."
"Great, I'll talk to her later," Sherry said and held up her scroll, "Anyway, look at these. I've made them earlier today, but so far, I only managed to test the Drunken Sailor. I just hope that Professor Blue won't be too angry with me later."
"Wait, Professor Blue is drunk?" Ravi asked and said, "If these things can do that, then I'm sure you'll be a great support for the others."
"Well, it ignores alcohol tolerance, so it's not that big of a deal," Sherry answered and said, "Still, Professor Star said to leave it to him, so now I'm kinda trying to find others to help me test these."
"If you want, I can help," Ravi said, walked over to a water fountain and added, "But no alcohol."
"Alright, thanks," Sherry said and walked over to her, "First, the Ghost Whisperer. It lets you see and hear ghosts." She manifested a chalice resting on a black wooden base, with three skeletal arms holding up a bowl whose outside was designed to look like a skull with the top removed.
"Well, it certainly looks the part," Ravi said, filled the chalice at the fountain and took a sip. It took a few seconds for the effect settle in, but then a shiver went down her spine and she looked around, eventually fixating on a point on the wall.
"What is it? Did it work?" Sherry asked, paused for a moment and said, "Wait, don't tell me the school is already haunted. We haven't even started and scary rumors yet."
"It's not haunted, don't worry," Ravi answered, "But Professor Star is here. I don't know how long she's been, though." Sherry took the chalice from Ravi and took a sip as well, then followed her classmate's gaze once the effect settled in.
"Hey there," Talia said, her head sticking out of the wall just below the ceiling, "You know, you two should really go to the festival. It'll be fun."
"Hello Professor," both students said in unison.
"Then, why aren't you there?" Ravi asked.
"I'm just taking a break," Talia answered, "Anyway, Sherry, be sure you don't let that cup fall into the wrong hands. It could cause some serious damage if I wasn't able to spook around like this."
"Don't worry, I'll be careful," Sherry said, poured the water out and made the chalice disappear again.
"Anyway, Professor, before you leave," Ravi said, "I thought about what kind of support I want to be, and decided to keep an eye on my allies' aura levels, how long their semblances last, and so on. Hinata says that it's called the battlefield monitor in her games."
"That's a pretty important job, yes," Talia said and asked, "Do you know what you need for that?"
"Well, kind of," Ravi answered, "I figured that some kind of glasses would be good, to keep my hands free while still allowing me to monitor everyone's aura levels. Maybe also a smart wrist watch, or something to that effect, for better control."
"Sounds like a great idea," Talia said, "I'll think of something."
"Thanks, Professor," Ravi said, and Talia disappeared into the wall.
"Looks like things are really going along," Sherry said, "And I know just the thing to celebrate." She manifested a porcelain teacup with a light blue floral pattern near the rim and filled it with water.
"What does this one do?" Ravi asked.
"It makes you give off a sweet scent," Sherry answered, "I call it the Floral Spray." She took a sip and handed Ravi the cup, who took a sip from another section. A few seconds later, both noticed a lovely scent emanating from the other, and decided to visit the festival after all. Sherry took a small detour through the dorms, and picked up a water bottle so she could share the effect of her semblance with others.
~o~
Jay circled above Kuo Kuana, keeping an eye on both the festival and the surrounding area. When he noticed something suspicious in the distance, he hovered for a moment and pulled out a pair of binoculars to get a better look at it. His blood froze when he saw a massive, blood red, fungal growth near the shore, and hundreds of gigantic insects swarming around it. Jay quickly took a picture with his scroll, zoomed in as much as possible, and sent it to Sirena.
~o~
The festival was in full swing, with groups of dancers in colorful clothes making their way through the crowds, and individual people on three meter tall stilts and dressed as mythical royalty walking through the crowds. A group of musicians played a local song on some corner, and there was no shortage of booths where one could win some prize or another. However, everyone suddenly stopped what they were doing, and looked at the two newcomers with a pleasant smile on their face.
"Wow, this stuff works really well," Ravi said, and Sherry blushed a bit. Once the festival-goers knew where that sweet scent came from, they quickly returned to the actual festivities.
"Right, maybe I should've toned it down a little," Sherry said, "Anyway, let's have some fun." She walked ahead into the crowd, and Ravi followed her. Both girls had ditched their huntress outfits for more casual clothes, and Sherry also carried a shoulder bag, for her water bottle.
~o~
Sakura wandered through the forests of Menagerie, holding a short sword in her hand. The blade appeared to be made from jagged stones fitted into a wooden core, with plant vines wrapped around the hilt. As the green pheasant faunus pointed The Forager at some foxglove, it glowed red, and she smiled happily and kept walking.
"Sakura?" Plum asked and walked out of the shrubs, "What are you doing here?"
"Oh, hey Plum," Sakura said and answered, "I'm just testing my new weapon ideas. Look." She made her sword disappear and summoned a new one, a bastard sword with a dark red blade and bone hilt, and small skulls at the tips of the cross guard.
"Wow, that looks… scary," Plum said and asked, "Also, what do you mean by 'new weapon ideas'?"
"Earlier today, Hinata told me about her games," Sakura answered, "There are a bunch of weapons, including swords, that have special properties. So, I decided to try and make something like that myself. I already have a sword that glows when you point it at dangerous plants, so this one should work, too." She turned around and swung the sword in a diagonal arc, sending a dark red energy wave through some trees, cutting them down.
"Looks like it worked," Plum said, staring in disbelief.
"Yeah," Sakura said and rested the blade on the ground, breathing a little heavier than usual.
"Hey, are you alright?" Plum asked, took the blade from her and nudged her to sit down on a nearby rock. She obliged, and Plum pulled a water bottle and a candy bar, one of those made for nutrition, from his bag.
"I'm fine," Sakura answered and sat down, "It just… takes some effort… to use this." Plum handed her the water bottle and candy bar, and she gratefully took both.
"I see," Plum said, looking at the destruction, "It makes sense, but you should really get used to this before using it in a real fight, or at least make a less powerful version."
"Yeah, I know," Sakura said, "It's just that I'm not good with ranged combat, yet I'm a highly mobile person. There's this mismatch, and it sucks."
"What do you mean?" Plum asked and sat down on another rock.
"Take yourself, for example," Sakura answered, "Your trait complements your semblance, letting you punch harder than most. You punch harder than anyone I know, and you didn't even have to train to get there. And your semblance means you just keep hitting even harder with every hit you land."
"I guess that's true," Plum said, "But I don't have anything for ranged combat, and without a weapon, I can't even use aura arcs."
"Well, you could just bring a gun with you," Sakura said.
"I could say the same to you," Plum said and held up his hands, "But that's where my trait causes trouble. After all, with these hands, I'd probably need a custom-made gun, and those aren't cheap." He let his arms down again and looked at Sakura, who had already finished both the candy bar and water bottle.
"Oh, right," Sakura said and looked away in embarrassment, and her wings opened uncontrollably, "I didn't realize that would be an issue."
"It's fine," Plum said and gently brushed the tip of Sakura's right wing out of his face, "We all have our circumstances, and sometimes, we're so occupied with them that we forget other people's problems." Sakura looked back at him and reigned her wings back in.
"You know, you're much easier to talk to than you look," Sakura said, and only then realized she said something weird again.
"Don't worry, I know," Plum said with a chuckle, "Even faunus are scared at first."
"That's a relief," Sakura said with a sigh, "I mean, well, I tend to say things that come off wrong to a lot of people. It makes it difficult to talk with people, but I only realize that something sounds weird once I say it out loud. It sounds fine in my head, so I just go ahead with it. And then, people get upset with me. I didn't even know why at first."
"To be honest, I had a similar issue," Plum said, "When I was younger, I didn't realize how much stronger I was than everyone else. So, when stuff kept breaking, I thought that it was already damaged, and I just happen to touch it at the wrong moment."
"I guess we both have our problems," Sakura said with a smile.
"We sure do, yeah," Plum said, "But we're still trying to be good people, and that matters far more than the problems we were born with."
"By the way, what were you doing out here?" Sakura asked.
"Well, the festival is today," Plum answered, "I met Jay on the way, and when I asked why he had his weapon with him, he said he'd keep an eye out for danger, and asked if I wanted to help."
"Sounds good," Sakura said, "I'm sure the teachers will love that."
"Me too," Plum said and asked, "Anyway, do you have any other swords you want to test?"
"Well, yes," Sakura answered, got up and summoned another sword, a scimitar with a disk-shaped cross guard resembling a spider's web.
"Looks interesting," Plum said and asked, "What does it do?"
"It creates an energy web to immobilize enemies," Sakura answered, "The idea is to use it against flying enemies, forcing them to land and allowing my allies on the ground to take them down." She summoned another sword, and another, and the duo continued talking about the different swords and their abilities until Sakura's aura broke and they had to take a break.
~o~
Marcus paced up and down in his room, angrily contemplating how his initial assault on Menagerie had failed. If he didn't produce results, and forced Ozpin to divide his forces, Salem would be angry with him, and he couldn't let that happen. Unbeknownst to him, Salem was equally upset, seeing how Ozpin somehow managed to orchestrate the construction of another huntsman academy, while distracting her with the four existing ones. She knew she had to do something about it, but there was no easy way to approach it, since Ozpin had assigned one of his best teams to that task. So, she had her Seer contact the one in Amity.
"Tyrian," Salem said, getting Tyrian's attention.
"What is it, my Goddess?" Tyrian asked, but found himself wincing a little when he said it.
"Launch the next stage of the attack on Vale," Salem ordered, "Once that is done, come back. I have new orders for all of you." She had her Seer cut the connection and walked away, thinking about how she could counter Ozpin's latest plan.
Trigger warning: Intoxication without alcohol consumption.
Author's note: Writing Sirena being completely wasted was really fun. And yes, that is, in-universe, an incomprehensible mess of seemingly random noises. However, I decided to write it like this, both because I can't really write drunken dialogue, and because this way, it's easier for you to read.
No idea what the festival is about, but I like festivals, so here's one.
Salem is convinced Alpha Academy was Ozpin's plan, due to how much prep time was required to pull it off.