Scarlet's first long distance ride in an airship was a lot less enjoyable than she'd hoped, mostly because after they got far enough into Vacuo, the heat became unbearably hot. It was already to the point that even in just her undershirt, she was sweating so badly that her tits were damp, she didn't even know her tits could sweat that much! It probably should have been a sign when Goose had boarded the ship without her favorite jacket, having switched to a more breathable red shirt that loosely hung off her shoulders. Even Alaska had prepared, though she likely was more than aware of the extremely hot temperatures of the Vacuan desert due to being a Vacuo native herself, even if her region was cooler than the rest of the kingdom due to it bordering Vale, dropping a few layers in favor of wearing just shorts and a simple blue flannel shirt that she tied up at her midriff once the heat really started to kick in. Most of the other students were like her, foolishly believing that they'd be fine with the air conditioner turned up, only to be left sweaty and miserable in their various layers meant for Vale's comparatively cooler climate. Another reason for the general aura of misery was that, so far, Vacuo was just so boring!
It wasn't that she didn't care for the sights or traveling, after spending her entire life before Beacon on a quiet, tiny island she had pretty much mapped out from top to bottom by her 10th birthday, she got excited even just thinking about exploring outside the kingdoms. Hell, getting sent out on missions was what she was looking forward to the most when her team would finally become second years in a few months. It was just… well… it was hard to be excited to see the sights when that just meant staring out at miles of sand and barren plains with only the occasional hill, outcropping of rocks, patch of cacti, or somehow still living tree to spice things up. It was a harsh contrast to when they'd flown over Vale's territories where there were lush forests of various colors, islands dotted along the coastline, and even as they were still in the city, the peaks of the nearby mountain range could clearly be seen. So far, the most interesting sight in Vacuo was a rather large, and admittedly pretty cool, ravine they flew over right as the dry grasslands of Vacuo's eastern fringes began to give way to a vast stretch of red and orange-tinted badlands, like a great scar that cleanly split the two environments. Really, the most she could point and look at was the wildlife or the occasional stray Grimm, which was a bit more notable if for no other reason than to give her a decent idea of what to expect during their stay.
There were a few camel looking Grimm traveling in groups, the occasional giant horned rabbit, and the uncommon but still easily spotted sight of the ground moving in a way she and the others swiftly recognized as one of those worm things from initiation, though thankfully, the ones they spotted seemed much smaller in size. Quickly coming to the conclusion that she really wasn't missing out on much, she would have passed the time on her scroll but… well… then she'd have to stare at the unopened notification alerting her that her Mother had sent her a message. So instead, she tried not to think about that and ignored the dull scenery by passing the time with her friends, though at least Goose was seeing some interesting stuff outside that she and Jin were enjoying watching, so they were left with the job of spotting the city. They weren't left waiting for long as the resident Vacuan piped up excitedly.
"We're almost there!" At Goose's excited declaration, several heads turned. Most of their friends were eager to get out of the sweltering metal ship, to the point that most of them would happily jump out the window if they passed by an oasis, with the exception of Lao, who was meditating, and Juliet, who had long since passed out on Rosaria's shoulder. The most excited of them though was Luna, her scroll having died a little over halfway through the trip as she'd occupied herself with her favorite game. However, when she looked out of one of the windows in glee, she was met with more sand and cacti, and was thusly disappointed.
"Uh, Goose, how can you tell? I just see more sand." Luna asked, unable to keep the disappointed whine out of her voice at the apparent lack of progress. Despite the mix of confusion and disappointment from her friends, Goose was no less chipper than she was before.
"Nu-uh, that outcropping we just passed is a landmark, we're only a bit out from the city!" she said, pointing backwards at the window behind them. While most gave her the benefit of the doubt, they were met with what looked to be the same barren dunes they'd seen the last thirty times they checked.
"Did you guys see anything?" Jet asked, not seeing much more than little bumps that might have been some rocks or whatever, but he couldn't really tell. Lumi squinted, hoping that her aunt wasn't just suffering from a heat stroke induced mirage, but similarly could find little difference in the terrain.
"Nope."
"I trust her, I mean, there's no one else we know who lives in Vacuo." Jin said, trying to come to his cousin's aid, but the fact that he wasn't openly supporting her claim gave away that he hadn't seen it either.
"No one worth talking with at least." Elena muttered, shooting a disdainful glare SLVR's way. Most of them were preoccupied in their own little activities across the airship, Professor Fuchsia not so subtly keeping watch over them, the only one who even heard her was Aethelflad who upon noticing her fellow redhead raised a pair of spread fingers to her mouth before sticking out her tongue between them, causing her cheeks to flush red before looking away and shuddering in disgust.
Choosing to ignore the presence of the team, Belka instead focused on trying to remain below melting point, resting a once chilled bottle of water against her head to try and cool herself off and soon found herself scowling up at the ceiling vents that were, based on the transport currently feeling like a giant flying oven, clearly just for show as far as she could tell. "Ugh, is the AC broken?"
At her partner's question, Goose stood and raised her hand up to the air vent, making a face that she was sure meant she was right about the air being faulty.
"Nope, this feels about right." Goose pointed out, much to Belka's horror.
"Huh!?" Before she or anyone else could ask if that had been some sort of joke, Elizabeth chimed in, confirming their fears.
"Yeah, this is how air conditioners usually feel around here, especially at this time of day. Doesn't really matter how chilled the air is when every surface is being baked by the sun." Dread started to set in for the rest of the teens, Beacon's airships were state of the art in terms of comfort and quality of transportation, this was as good as it got short of a custom luxury airship like what the Schnee Dust Company had, and they were already miserable. This was only compounded when they realized they'd be spending the next several months on the continent almost completely without the air conditioners, meaning it'd just get hotter from here.
"Just how hot does Vacuo get!?" Luna squeaked out, unsure if she really wanted to know the answer, but without hesitation, Rosaria spoke up, confirming their fears.
"On average, Vacuo reaches ambient temperatures of 113 degrees Fahrenheit in its central desert region, where the city of Vacuo is actually based." The group briefly sat in stunned silence at that number, before all simultaneously demonstrating their thoughts on the matter. Scarlet swore, Jet groaned, Luna whined, and Lao was pulled out of his meditation, unsure if he'd heard that right.
"I hate it here!" Her hopes well and truly crushed, Belka fell back dramatically in her seat, whining pathetically.
"We haven't even touched down yet." Lumi scoffed. While not surprised at her aunt's petulant reaction, it was still shameful to see a grown woman whining like a child not getting their way. Though, she'd be lying if she said she wasn't also a bit intimidated once it was laid out so plainly, but she was still confident she could handle it. After all, coming from a long and noble line of Huntsmen, she certainly wasn't going to be done in by a bit of above average heat.
"And I hate it now, Lumi. Once we touch down, I'm gonna get all sweaty, and sunburnt, and sand's going to get everywhere!"
"Yeah, the sunburns do suck." Elizabeth muttered, making a mental note to buy extra sunscreen.
Scarlet found herself similarly displeased, spending the rest of the school year in this heat sounded like hell, but there was nothing to be done at this point, so she might as well just suck it up and make the most of it. After all, this was her chance to enjoy some normalcy, no weird ass cult or other loony people trying to stab her over what her parents had done… well, hopefully. At the very least, she hoped she wouldn't be immediately recognized. She chewed her lip at the thought, and at the unopened text nagging at her mind. Was she just being petty? She had every right to be upset and she knew it, but they were still her parents… Thankfully, a distraction made itself known with another notification, which she happily jumped at, only to be confronted by a follow up message from her mother.
'We both love you very much Scarlet, and we'll be watching you live as much as we can during the Festival.'
The words slapped her in the face, being mad was easy when she could remind herself of what they did, of how her friends' families had suffered as a direct result of their actions, or how she was being targeted by cultists, psychopaths, and overly flamboyant gangsters, once again because of their selfish decisions, but it was a lot harder when she was faced with the reality that they were still her parents. The message itself struck her harder than it had meant to, mostly because the word 'love' wasn't said often in her home. It wasn't that they pretended otherwise, it was just that that her parents were, frankly, emotionally stunted. She'd never have a family like Jet's where his parents would constantly gush over each other and shower one another with kisses, and that was just fine with her, they didn't really need any big displays of affection like that, because they understood each other. Or at least, she thought they did, their secret pasts involving terrorist attacks and weird death cults came completely out of left field. Unable to help herself, she tapped the screen to read the earlier message she'd ignored.
'I know you still don't want to talk with us and that's okay, you don't have to respond if you aren't ready. Your father and I just wanted you to know that we saw that you've qualified for the tournament. We just wanted to congratulate you and let you know that we're both more proud of you than we can put into words.'
Her heart ached at the message, her thumb going right for the call button, but stopping just short of tapping the screen. She wanted to call, to tell them that she loved them, to just hear Mom's voice again for the first time in months, but at the same time, she was still unbelievably pissed at them, she wanted to rip them both new assholes over the call. But that wasn't fair was it? To go off on her own mother for expressing her love? Then again, just how fair was it to throw her blindly into Huntress training, knowing she'd get shit further down the line because they were too chicken shit to have a hard conversation and be honest with her. Damn it, this was all so… hard, her conflicting emotions constantly pulling back and forth between calling or blocking them. The whole time, she stared down at the tiny icon of her mother, a candid photo of her looking off at Dad and Mercury as they cooked together on one of their many outings together. She wore a peaceful smile and carried a certain beauty that shined through despite her fading burns, eyepatch and prosthetic arm being seen clearly in the picture. That had always been how she saw her mother before Beacon, a figure of kindness and beauty in spite of her appearance, but now it was hard for her to see those marks as anything other than battle damage, earned against an opponent fighting for their life and the lives of their loved ones against a selfish villain. To her side, Goose took a seat after getting some water and noticed her furrowed brow, following her gaze to the picture of her mother, therefore it wasn't hard to put two and two together from that.
"Hey, Scarlet. Are you okay?" She asked, patting the bovine Faunus's back. Goose understood, sure, it wasn't on the same level as what Scarlet's parents did, but when her Dad had told her he had been a bandit before, she was confused, hurt, and even a little angry, even though it had been decades before she was even born. She could only imagine how Scarlet felt about the actions of her parents, especially finding out the way she did.
"I'm fine, Goose." Scarlet said, quickly turning off the screen and sliding her scroll into her pocket. "Just fine."
Soon after, the overhead speakers crackled to life with an announcement for the first time since they left Vale, alerting them that they would be landing at Vacuo's airdocks in only a few minutes, surprising Goose as, usually, airships would announce their arrival as they entered the city's airspace, not minutes before landing. As they pulled up besides the platform, Jaune was the first one off of the airship, an unsurprising event to his family and friends, and Lumi headed over to rub her father's back, leaving Ruby and Touko to help lead the students out onto the docks. Just as they'd suspected, the sun was excruciatingly hot as it beat down on them, and it hit the cyborg especially hard,. Iit was bad enough that the metal of her legs was soaking up so much heat that it physically hurt, but her inability to sweat on the majority of her body was coming back to bite her as she quickly started to overheat. Noticing this, Ruby offered her a drink from her bottle, and to her surprise, Touko, who'd normally think twice about putting her lips where someone else's had been, let alone hers, didn't think twice about an indirect swapping of spit, as in this heat, hygiene was the least of her concerns, so she downed half the bottle without thinking, nearly choking at the speed at which she downed the water.
Back with SJJL, Jin wiped his brow, shocked to find he was already sweating, he had thought growing up in the tropical heat of Menagerie would have better prepared him for this; it didn't help though, as unlike Menagerie, which was only extremely humid on a good day, air in Vacuo was painfully dry, something that nearly made him wheeze with every breath. Looking over at his team, they seemed to be hit just as hard, and he found himself taking his shirt off while Scarlet gave in and poured some of the precious water they'd been given onto her hair. Goose was right, while it had seemed to do very little in the moment, now that they had a taste of what Vacuo had to offer compared to the nice air-conditioned airship, they'd have gladly taken it back.
"Damn, you guys weren't kidding about that sun. I'm probably gonna be darker than Mom by the time we get back home." At Jet's observation, Scarlet's mind went back to her own parents, something she really just didn't want to think about at the moment, so instead she focused her thoughts on the Black family instead. She hadn't heard from Emerald or Mercury for a while, her godmother had reached out a few times after the news had broken about her parents, but she'd hadn't responded with anything more than short messages saying she was fine.
"How are your parents doing by the way?" she asked, finding herself missing them. With everything going on in her clusterfuck of a school year, she hadn't thought about how strange it felt being just her and Jet, no Lupin following them around, no Emerald calling the kids back for drinks, and no Mercury spouting terrible jokes that somehow made her laugh. Despite having Jet, Jin, BGEL and even Lumi around almost constantly, it was strangely lonely without her second family around.
"Pretty good, Lupin's either at school or running around in the woods all day, so Mom and Dad are enjoying their time together." he responded, his voice weirdly soft. Sure, she wasn't expecting his usual snark in this heat or from such a simple question, but Jet of all people being soft spoken? That was even more unexpected. Looking into his eyes, she saw him give her this look of sympathy that reminded her of the way he looked at her after the fight with Lumi. Crap, did she look that bad? Sure, she was a bit bummed out, but it wasn't that bad, and she really didn't want to be babied right now, so she decided to have a bit of fun instead.
"Oh, I'm sure they are, must be nice finally having some alone time now that the kids are out." The deflection worked as intended, the insinuation about his parent's sex life making him cringe, but unfortunately, not enough for him not to quip back.
"Don't go there Scar, we both know I'll win." She opened her mouth to retort, but quickly thought against it, remembering the nights she'd actually lost sleep over her parents… 'activities'. Damn it, now she was thinking she shouldn't have vented to Jet now that she knew he had ammo in this situation.
"Ugh, are the two of you completely shameless?" Lumi chided as she returned to her team, having caught enough of the conversation to wish she hadn't. Seriously, what sort of degenerates openly spoke about such things? Unfortunately for her, merely being called out on her apparent degeneracy wasn't enough to dissuade the bovine Faunus from her antics, especially since it clearly made her uncomfortable.
"Aww, hitting too close to home Lumi?"
"I- what are you on about?" her entire face bristled. She unfortunately had a pretty decent idea of where the perverted woman was going with this, considering her condescending tone, she just didn't know how she'd do it, although if the girl got too crass she'd have to seal her mouth shut with a Glyph.
"Weeell, you said you got nine sisters, right? Your parents must have gone at it constantly." Gagging, Lumi recoiled back, that wasn't- no, no she had a large family because her parents wanted and could easily support one, not because they were degenerate sex pests. She refused to even entertain the idea, huffing as she turned away from her partner, not giving her the satisfaction.
"You're disgusting."
"Hey, at least you probably weren't made in a threesome." Scarlet said, nudging Jin. It was admittedly a weak tease compared to the others, but all she really knew about Jin's parents was that they were both women, and that her Dad had disfigured one of them, so out of the two options, she really only had one angle she was comfortable teasing from. Thankfully, it still worked as Jin could no longer pretend he hadn't heard their frankly awkward talk as he joined in with the cringing.
"Please don't be gross, my Moms had a donor, he's basically our uncle." While Scarlet gave up at that answer, Jet's mind began to wander, something about that didn't track.
"All three of you, from the same donor?"
"Yeah why?" With that, the gears in Jet's head really started to turn. Jin was a little younger than them, and if his math was right, that would place his time of his conception as just less than a year after the attack on Beacon threw the world into chaos for a few years. This meant his mothers would have needed to get this guy, whoever he was, to agree to this and somehow fund an expensive medical procedure as either teenagers or very young adults in a time when both active Huntsmen and students were being run ragged, rather than just join in with the baby boom of that time the same way as everyone else… Yeah, no, that didn't add up, but he knew if he brought it up, Scarlet would probably run with it and he really didn't need to hear that bickering right now.
"No reason."
Seeing that the students were now all off the vessel, Ruby swiftly moved herself to stand at the front of the group, loudly clearing her throat to get the attention of her students, quickly regretting it and nearly choking on the dry air. What was worse was that she'd barely gotten anyone's attention. Thankfully, Jaune came to her aid a moment later.
"Attention students!" Ignoring her little fumble, he clapped his hands together, the loud slapping mixed with the loud and commanding tone he called his 'Dad Voice' quickly had the students at their attention. "Now that we've arrived, we would just like to go over a few things before we reach the city."
With that, he turned control of the speech to Touko, the woman stepping forward as Ruby finished the rest of her water.
"Firstly, while we understand you're going to want to cut loose and enjoy the celebrations just like everyone else, you must remember that just like in Vale, your actions reflect not just yourselves, but Beacon Academy. This is especially true in foreign kingdoms, and you're to carry yourself as you would on Beacon grounds at all times. Understood?"
As sweet refreshing water soothed her throat, Ruby noticed the cyborg woman starting to lose the students attention, and while they did need to hear it, some admittedly more than others, no one really liked being told what they could do with their free time. Deciding to salvage this before they completely petered out, she found herself throwing her arm around Touko's shoulders in a carefree way as she cheerily spoke to her students.
"That being said, you'll have the first week to get acquainted with both the City and Shade Academy, just remember that after this, you'll be expected to attend classes and learn just like at Beacon. Keep in mind that we're guests here, so be respectful and listen to the other professors, but while we wait for the convoy to come take us to the main city, take a moment to stretch your legs and take in the… dunes." With the necessary information given, Ruby and Touko both decided to start handing out water to the more parched looking students, the group beginning to kill time by mingling, though the information that they'd be brought to Shade via a convoy of vehicles rather than taking the airship the rest of the way brought both confusion and complaints from the students.
"This isn't Vacuo city? I guess it did look rather small." Belka asked, mostly just thinking out loud, but also turning to her partner to see if the other girl had any insight, considering she was, in some way, related to a good half of the faculty.
"No, this is Duat, it's a pretty busy spot for travelers, but most people who actually live here just come to retire." Goose shrugged. She didn't really get it either, her family had used their airship to reach the city plenty of times, so she didn't really get why the school couldn't just go straight there rather than stopping at another one. BGEL stood in silence, each of them trying to figure out why such an inconvenient route was chosen, however, rather than try and guess at the decisions of others, Lao decided he'd just directly ask, tugging on Jaune's sleeve as he passed to get his attention before asking.
"Jaune, why aren't we going straight to the city?" Jaune paused at the direct question, he'd already recited the reasoning he'd been given to a few students, and he already didn't like lying to the students who trusted him, but looking down into the ginger boy's trusting eyes made repeating that lie so much harder. He reminded himself that it was for safety, that if the students knew the real reason for this detour, there would be a sizable panic that would most likely cause a Grimm swarm, likely exactly what they wanted. So he swallowed his feelings, and repeated his lines.
"Well, apparently all the airdocks for an airship our size are undergoing repairs right now, and this is the closest city with a docking center."
"Repairs right when we'd show up? That's rather inconsiderate." Elizabeth spoke up, similarly bothered by the heat, but much like her aunt, she'd known what to expect coming into Vacuo and had long since shed her jacket. Jaune did his best to play it cool, and using his knowledge of the area, he came up with an excuse.
"Transportation is a lot less reliable here, so they just have to make do with supplies as they come in, right Goose?" His godson, his sisters in law, and his niece, not only had he'd lied to all four in one fell swoop, but he had even gotten Goose involved by roping her into supporting his half truth. He didn't know how Oz lied so easily, and he wasn't sure he wanted to. Acting like that man just now, even for only a minute, had him disgusted with himself. Goose didn't pick up on this however, instead just happily explaining what he meant to her team.
"Yup! The sandstorms here can keep convoys stranded and prevent airships from flying for days if it's a really bad one." Thankfully with Goose's support, they bought his explanation, and having satisfied their curiosity, he continued to hand out water. Thankfully, they weren't left waiting long, as four figures started making their way to the platform.
"Looks like our escorts are here." Ruby said out loud, alerting the students to get ready. The first was an older man with shoulder-length sky blue hair, his face framed with a matching but graying beard. He dressed simply, a cattleman style cowboy hat obscuring his eyes, a brown vest that matched with his pants over a long sleeve button-up shirt that he rolled up his arms, and a simple but very large revolver firmly held in the holster strapped to his hip. The second and third were a pair both in all black, the first was a young man, no, he was practically a boy, definitely young enough to still be a student, in his very early 20's at absolute most. He wore a cloak covering his eyes from the sun, his light gray hair contrasting sharply from his dark skin, though matching closely with his eyes, even if slightly off. Below the cloak, he wore a black tactical vest and matching pants, with the part that stood out the most about him being the dull shine of dark gray metal that replaced his right arm from the shoulder down. With him was a cat Faunus with a set of cat ears atop her head, not unlike Blake's, amidst a sea of long black hair pulled back into a low ponytail. She wore a crop top with an extended collar that hugged her neck and a pair of short shorts that had her holsters, containing a pair of sizable semi-automatic pistols, strapped to them. Her clothing didn't leave much to the imagination, although it was more so in service of giving a clear view of her muscular frame, not that her companions were lacking in their builds, just that she seemed to be showing off. Bringing up the end of the group was a redheaded woman in a dark blue vest with some sort of pattern, mostly obscured by a red scarf and some loose fitting chainmail over her chest and shoulders, providing some protection against both the elements, and potential threats. As for her weapon, there was a pair of sai hanging off of her hips. As the students caught a glimpse of their escorts, one girl lit up, smiling brightly as she approached the man, her sky-blue eyes meeting the man in front's own, the teachers letting her walk right past them as she flashed a bright toothy grin his way.
"Pa? What're you doing here in the desert?" Alaska asked as Arkansas reached the platform. A fair few students were surprised, although looking at the two side by side, they really had no right to be, she had his eyes, his hair, even their facial structures were similar, though Alaska's was obviously more feminine. It wasn't an exact match, it was clear she had elements of both her parents, but she was still unmistakably his daughter.
"Well, when I heard you'd made it to the Tournament, I volunteered as one of the chauffeurs so I could keep an eye on you." Unlike his daughter, his voice lacked much warmth, his low, gruff tone indicative of a far less enjoyable mood, something she chalked up to him just being tired as usual. However, her team paused in their tracks, as while they may not have known the man, they did know that tone, it was the same way their leader spoke when she was furious.
"Whatever for? We're second years now, we've even taken a few missions on our own." The pride in his daughter's voice only served to make his brow furrow harder.
"Yet you act like you don't have any sense."
"Huh?" It was at that moment that it clicked into place that, for some reason, her Father didn't look happy to see her. Before she could think to ask why however, he started once more.
"I know what you've been up to girl, you think they didn't let me know? Or do you just think I'm stupid?" Her heart jumped into her throat at that, they'd told him? They'd called her Pa about her behavior? Why!? Wasn't she a grown woman in Vale? There was no damned reason to call and get her Pa worked up like this! While she was unfocused, he was far from it, his eyes glancing down at how her top was tied up. "Pull your damn shirt down, what's wrong with you? Showing off in front of the Brothers and everybody!"
"It ain't- I can explain ju-" She was rendered near speechless, the young woman didn't know how to respond, she'd never been scolded in front of her friends before, let alone in front of so many of her peers. Yet, while she couldn't find the words, her hands went exactly where she wanted, and in a flash, she pulled her shirt down, covering her abdomen and buttoning it up faster than most people could blink, all the while blushing profusely at her father thinking she was showing off, especially since it was partly true.
"Can you explain picking on people who you know can't fight back? Or picking fights with good folks who ain't done nothin' to you?"
"I…" She didn't have an excuse, not a good one, and that just made it all the worse, he must have thought the worst of her at the moment… Unable to even look at him anymore, she just looked at the sandstone floor. The rest of her team had no clue how to react either, Alaska had never acted this way as long as they'd known her. Ignoring the onlookers, he sighed, calming down somewhat, his tone shifting from anger to disappointment, something that was somehow worse in her mind.
"Did I ever have to threaten you to get you to listen?"
"No Sir."
"Have I ever raised my hand at you?"
"Not once Sir." That revelation frankly shocked both her team and even those who knew her casually, that the same girl who had grown up all rough and fierce had apparently never even been spanked was a strange thing to hear. Belka personally was just enjoying the show even more now.
"So how'd you get it in your head that this is okay, that this is how we treat people?" Alaska could feel her lip start to quiver, she didn't care about the dressing down she was getting in front of her girls, or the rest of the school, but her Pa being this upset with her? That stung more than she'd expected, a small sniffle escaping her as she started to cry.
"I'm sorry, Pa." Arkansas sighed, reaching out and wiping a tear off her face, they weren't done, not yet, but now wasn't the time or place for this.
"Come on, you're riding with me today." Turning and walking off, Alaska followed. By now, things were made thoroughly uncomfortable for both the students and the escorts they'd been provided, the red headed woman looking back at the other two, who shrugged, similarly having no clue this would happen, but not really protesting when Arkansas led Alaska over to where the vehicles were being stored. The rest of SLVR stared on uncertainly, Aethelflad and Vera looking to each other to decide what to do next, only for Loyal to make the decision for them, running up after her leader, and leaving the other girls to follow suit. With… whatever that was out of the way, the students began to gather their suitcases and follow suit as they'd need to come along either way
"What did you tell him?" Jaune asked under his breath, Ruby shrugging nonchalantly as she looked back at her students, seeing the hushed giggles and whispers spread like a wave. She hadn't meant for the girl to be humiliated in such a way but… well… maybe it was what she needed.
"Nothing that wasn't true. She clearly wasn't going to listen to us, nearly two years of her antics have made that increasingly obvious, so I went to someone she would." However, one student in particular didn't put much thought into whether this would make her tormentor rethink her actions, instead, Belka just openly cackled as she leaned on Goose for support.
"You know what, I changed my mind, I think I'm going to like Vacuo."
Reaching the city had thankfully been as uneventful of a trip as they could have hoped for, the closest call being a lone Drake that Ruby had managed to shoot between the eyes before it was even within a hundred yards of the convoy. Once at Shade, Ruby left the task of corralling the students to their temporary dorms to Jaune and Touko. It wasn't like she'd be needed for that, most students would probably immediately head off to explore the city the second they knew where their dorms were and got their keys. Really, aside from their role as the student's guardians, all they'd be doing would be helping the professors of Shade handle all the extra students, which usually just meant standing at the back of classrooms and being an extra pair of eyes.
Thankfully, their presence wouldn't draw too much attention. After the fortieth festival was attacked, many were uncomfortable with the idea of continuing the tradition at all, but after nearly a decade, it continued, though now with each kingdom sending their own Huntsmen as security rather than just traditionally relying on the host kingdom's cohort to ensure something like that could never happen again. While the public was satisfied with the change, those who lived through it, and especially those who knew why it had happened, had their doubts, but the message of unity was too important, and it would be an insult to those who had died to let Salem take their symbol away, so they did what they could to ensure such a tragedy would never repeat itself. It was for that exact reason why, rather than showing students to their rooms, Ruby made her way straight to Theodore's office. She didn't know the man all that well, they'd spoken in the past and collaborated about as often as she did with the other Headmasters, but as nothing more than friendly colleagues, though, from her limited encounters with the enigmatic man, she'd come to the conclusion that she liked him.
Out of the Headmasters who were still in charge from when she was still in training, he was the most down to Remnant as far as she could tell, just seeming to understand and relate to his students in a way Ironwood, Lionheart, Ozpin, and Glynda just… couldn't. As she opened the door, his head shot up, a smile of recognition spread across his lips, and the Headmaster was on his feet and striding her way not even a second later. For a man worn down for the majority of his sixty years of life by grueling combat, the outright hostile environment of his homeland, and the general stress of Huntsman life, he was shockingly spry. While she knew thanks to her uncle that a Huntsman could easily reach that age and keep going thanks to Aura, Theo just moved differently, and if not for the clear signs of aging such as his mostly white hair and wrinkled face flecked with sunspots, it would be easy to assume he was still in his prime.
"Ruby, it's good to see you." he said as he reached out and took her hand, shaking it enthusiastically enough for the two of them. It almost reminded her how Penny was when she was first learning how to interact with others, or just how Nora was… all the time really, just without cutting circulation off to her hand. "Are the others not with you?"
"Nah, Jaune and Touko wanted to make sure the students at least got onto the school grounds. Our first years have been… rowdier than usual." she admitted sheepishly. A part of her expected some judgment from the more experienced Huntsman, but instead the Headmaster let out a good natured laugh as he threw his arm around her, leading her further into the office where they each took a seat.
"So I've heard, you seem to have handled the situation well though."
"You're just being nice, we've had the same team sneak off campus twice, and someone actually managed to get onto the grounds to try and hurt a student." To say she was embarrassed would be an understatement, if anything, she was downright ashamed. She knew they should have kept a closer eye on SJJL after the initial incident with Scarlet and Lumi, especially since their antics after the fact were very familiar to the sort of thing team RWBY had gotten up to when they were attending. If anything, she should have noticed something was up faster than anyone.
"And despite that, no one's died! In our line of work that's definitely a win." She supposed he was… technically right, they'd managed to step in before any permanent harm could be done, but it didn't change the fact that she'd allowed the situation to get to that point to begin with. It just didn't sit right with her, especially considering the very real possibility that Salem could get her hands on a Maiden once again.
"Not to get right into business, but I need to know, the Summer Maiden, is she…" In a flash, Theo's face was all business, the slouched posture he'd adopted disappearing as he leaned forward, back ramrod straight.
"Durga is being guarded, she's not happy about that in the slightest, but she's always understood that the stakes are high with her… position." The Maiden actively cooperating with them was a huge relief to Ruby, she'd seen plenty of regular Huntsmen let their skill or strength go to their heads, it was an easy trap to fall into for someone who was superhuman compared to the average person, something that always ended in disaster sooner or later. In the case of someone with the nearly unimaginable power granted by a Maiden's ability to use actual, gods-given magic, she had to assume it was only easier to fall into such a trap. As her worries were saitied, she realized how rude she must have come across in asking. Of course he'd heeded their warnings, he'd been working with Ozpin about as long as her uncle, he knew the dangers just as well as she did, and here she was worried he wouldn't secure what was arguably the most important person in the kingdom.
"I'm sorry, I'm sure you have things under control, it's just…" She trailed off, though the look he gave her said he understood. They all had their own version of the Fall of Beacon, Huntsmen just didn't make it to that age without seeing some sort of horror they'd give just about anything to stop from repeating. "If there's anything I can do at all to help, just say the word and I'll be there."
"As much as I like your enthusiasm, you know we can't spare the Huntsmen from Vacuo, leaving the Summer Maiden and the Relic unguarded near an event like this simply isn't an option." Hearing this, her mood deflated. As much as she loved her job, this was the part she hated the most, having the ability to go out and do something, but having no choice but to stay back and defend the important targets.
"So, what are we doing?" The question came across more pointedly then she'd intended, her frustration starting to boil over into her tone. He didn't take it personally, letting her anger roll off of him as he stayed on the matter at hand.
"If all goes according to plan? Cut them off before they have a chance to strike. Worst-case scenario? We'll have all of our bases covered to minimize the damage an attack will cause." So he did have a plan, just one that meant she'd be playing defensively. She knew protecting the Maiden and the Relic was more important than going after what might be a red herring, but it was the same issue as before. She was tired of always being reactive to Salem… but as long as they weren't just waiting for her worshippers to make their move, she'd accept it.
"Okay, what can we do to help then?" Theo's smile returned, as toothy and carefree as ever.
"I'd appreciate it if one of your professors who investigated the cult in Vale could meet with an associate of mine to compare notes. You already met her during the transport earlier, the redhead, she's… more in the know than most." Ruby nodded. Yes! That was more like it! She was pretty sure she'd heard her name during the trip, Carmine, or something along those lines. Okay, now she cou- "There is one more thing. Team SJJL."
Ruby knew what that meant, Scarlet being the child of Adam was public knowledge, and anyone aware of what really happened at the Fall of Beacon would swiftly realize just who exactly her mother was, and who her childhood friend's parents were . Quickly jumping to their defense, she spoke firmly.
"If your concerns are with Scarlet or Jet, I can assure you, they're nothing like their parents were." To her surprise, he literally waved the notion away, leaning back in his chair.
"No, nothing like that, I'm more so worried they're just a little too much like you. At least, if the stories Oz and Glynda told me are anywhere near true." That… wasn't what she was expecting, and frankly, it confused her. She could see it in some ways, sure, Lumi and Scarlet's dynamic, Jet's calm, reserved nature, Jin's… Jin-ness, but none of them really struck her as being too similar… that was, until she thought about it in a wider scope. Big, explosive fights, getting into life or death battles with criminals, constantly going behind the professor's backs… Yeah, those were all team RWBY-esque moves.
"I'm sorry?"
"Don't be, it means they have the sort of drive too many Huntsmen lack. But these aren't some White Fang mooks being pulled around at the behest of a weaselly thug. If Carmine's info is right, we're dealing with people who'd give us trouble."
"It won't come to that, I won't let them fight our battles. It's not fair, they should be enjoying themselves, goofing off with their friends and worrying about tests, who to take to the dance. I don't want them to have to take things into their own hands like-" Ruby stopped herself, realizing she was getting too far into her own head. That wouldn't come to pass, not if she had anything to say about it.
"I'm glad you agree, which is why I took the liberty of setting up a little mentorship assignment for one of my teams with SJJL."
"You're going to have your students babysit mine?" Was that supposed to feel judgy? Because she was feeling rather judged at the moment, even if she couldn't really call it a bad idea.
"Oh no, nothing like that, more of a two birds with one stone kinda thing. After all, a Maiden's loved ones are just as much of a target as they are, it's better to have more people watching their backs."
"Admit it Scar, we're lost." Jet said, knowing she was already trying to think of a way to convince her friends that she absolutely knew where they were and wasn't regretting Goose's offer of a tour in favor just going in whatever direction caught her eye as usual.
"No, we're not lost, we're… exploring, huge difference!" Scarlet said unconvincingly. She might have had a chance to play it off as genuine if they weren't all standing in the middle of the street, the only people who didn't know where to go as crowds of people flowed around them, making them stand out even more than they already did as tourists.
"Scarlet please, I need to pee." Lumi pleaded, not doing the little 'pee dance', but with how she squirmed, she may as well have been. While Lumi liked to pretend she was above such things, her eyes had sparkled as she was caught up in the same excitement when they'd first set out to explore. She'd been to Vacuo to visit her grandmother several times, but she'd never been in the city without supervision, however now, that enthusiasm had faded.
"You've got a bottle, don't you?" Scarlet said jokingly, however Lumi didn't see the humor. Thankfully, before she could make a scene, Jin butted in to defuse the situation.
"How about we stop at that convenience store, just to stock back up." he said, pointing over at one of the corner stores, the prospect of some real directions instead of their whim, a chance to be out of the sun for a minute, and nice cold drinks quickly making them forget the tiny squabble about to start.
"Okay yeah, I think we're low on water anyway." Scarlet said, reaching into her pocket only to find it empty. "Uh… crap, I left my wallet back at the dorm."
"Typical Scarlet, don't worry, I'll cover it, after all, money is no object for friends of an Arc-Schnee." Considering she'd be getting free refreshments, Scarlet decided to stay quiet and let Lumi have her little win for now, she'd put some of her stuff on the top shelf when she wasn't looking once they got back to their dorm. As the group made their way over, they collected a few stares, not a surprise considering how much they stood out as tourists, though some eyes were keener than most.
"You there, the large young man with the tail, would you be interested in a glimpse into your future?" Turning their attention to the voice, they were met by a kindly looking man, still young even if clearly older than they were. He sat in a small portable booth, no distinct name or markings, but the painted design invoked a mystical feeling from Jin as he stepped forward curiously. However, Jet placed his hand on his partner's chest, stopping him as he scrutinized the shabby looking set up before them.
"What kinda scam is this?" Jet asked, not bothering to lower his voice so the man couldn't hear, yet despite this, he didn't get upset by the accusation, now giving the same inviting smile to the dark-skinned youth.
"It's no scam young man, it's my Semblance."
"Really, so why're you just operating out of a booth instead of making millions off of it then?"
"Unfortunately, I can only see a small glimpse into a moment in someone's future, sometimes minutes, sometimes only seconds, but the one thing that's constant is that the moment is always important." Jet couldn't have rolled his eyes harder if he'd tried. Right, how convenient, as if the guy wasn't obviously telling people what they wanted to hear, maybe sometimes he'd get bored and switch it up to some tragedy they could prevent. Looking over at his partner however, he was disappointed to see a look of genuine intrigue on the monkey boy's face.
"Dude, he's obviously trying to scam you."
"I dunno, maybe he's telling the truth, we can't just assume he wants to rip us off." Jet wanted to smack him upside his head for that, wondering what was going through his head. In truth, Jin didn't really know what to think, but the guy really didn't seem that bad, and it was technically possible. Sure, he hadn't heard of anyone's Semblance allowing them to see into the future, but he didn't know anyone else who's Semblance let them float around as if gravity didn't exist like his or use their own blood as a weapon like Scarlet's, so why just assume it was impossible?
"Oh I'm no stranger to skeptics, but if you're still interested, I can do a joint reading for both you and your girlfriend."
"Oh, no Lumi's ju-" Before he could finish, the girl in question grabbed Jin by the wrist, pulling him along over to the booth.
"Why not, it sounds fun, you guys go ahead, we'll catch up in a minute."
"I can't believe they actually fell for that." Jet sighed disappointedly, Scarlet couldn't help but to chuckle at that, nudging him playfully.
"Come on, it's not all that different from those dumb palm reader fair games we used to play back in Patch, let them have their fun." He rolled his eyes at that, like playing a dumb game as a kid was the same as getting swindled as a young adult. Still, he found himself smiling at the memory.
"You mean the ones you always dragged me to?" Scarlet smirked, it was always cute when he tried to win their little arguments.
"Pfft- you had fun, especially with the ones that said we'd eventually get married." He averted his gaze to the floor, mumbling something about just being a dumb kid at the time. Knowing she'd won, the horned girl snickered as they entered the store.
"Good, now please give me your hands." Back at the booth, Lumi and Jin both held their hands out for the man, and as soon as his hands touched theirs, they could both feel a distinct tingling feeling from his touch, one they assumed meant it was working. His smile all but vanished as he went cross eyed and started to lowly hum to himself. "Hmm, yes… oh, oh my…"
"What? Is that a good or bad thing?" Lumi asked, glancing worriedly at Jin, who shrugged.
"I see the two of you… at the end of the Vytal tournament. It seems you win the tournament young man."
"Woah, really?" Jin would be lying if he said he didn't feel some pride swell up within him hearing that. It would be so cool, not that he really knew what he'd do with his winnings or the other stuff that he couldn't remember. He mostly wondered how he could treat his team, his moms, and the twins if this really was the case. However, the man wasn't done, now shooting a knowing look Lumi's way.
"Yes, you're riding a high you've never felt before, and in your delight the two of you share your first kiss."
"Wait what?" Jin gawked at the idea, having no clue how things would escalate in such a way. He and Lumi were just friends, sure she was cute, but he didn't want to make things weird by making any unwanted advances, they were best friends after all. She gasped, and, glancing over a moment later, he saw her cover her mouth, probably just as confused as him, though she had a strange look in her eye...
"It's merely what I see." the man spoke in his kindly voice, leaving no real room for arguments as he retracted his hands, the tingling feeling going along with them.
"O-of course! Thank you sir, you have a great day." Lumi said, quickly turning away and pulling Jin along with her. He winced, seeing that she was so uncomfortable she'd rushed to leave. Aw man, he'd just wanted to have some fun, maybe see into his future a little, he didn't plan on making things weird. As they reached the store, they saw that Jet and Scarlet had collected everything they'd need and then some, Scarlet having grabbed an eyebrow raising amount of cheese sticks and energy drinks.
"So, what'd you get scammed for?" Jet asked as he placed the water down at the register, immediately getting confused when his partner started to blush while Lumi's smile seemed to widen.
"Apparently, we're going to win the tournament, and, um… Lumi and I kiss?" Jet shrugged at the statement, only wishing he'd stuck around to call the man out on his obvious surface level prediction.
"Oh? In front of everyone? Lumi, how shameless of you." Scarlet snickered, yet her teasing failed to elicit any reaction from her partner, who stepped forward to pay for their things.
"You can be as smug as you want Scarlet, it wo-." She paused, her hand moving around in her purse, confused for a moment before patting her pockets as her eyes widened. "Hey, where's my wallet?"
While the rest of SJJL started looking around on the floor and around corners for any shady individuals, Jet turned right around and looked back at a familiar booth. "Do you think the scam artist and his friend over there might know?"
Turning to see what Jet saw, Lumi and Jin were both aghast to see the kind man who'd given them their reading being handed a stark white wallet by another man who otherwise completely blended into the crowd. Jet was torn, the small disappointed "aww" that came from Jin was too sad to be cathartic, but he really didn't have much of an excuse considering he had warned him. He absolutely enjoyed Lumi's reaction however, the girl immediately running out of the store in a rage.
"You wretched, low-down, good-for-nothing fraudster!" As she called out to the men, their heads snapped to the infuriated teen, and, cutting their losses, they turned and started to run away. They got about halfway down the street when suddenly, a white and yellow blur passed the two men. Lumi saw it too, although, thanks to being accustomed to her godmother's Semblance, the blur was comparatively easy to follow, which was good considering that if she hadn't seen the tanned woman approach her before suddenly appearing barely two feet infront of her, she might have thrown a punch on reflex.
"Sup! I'm Blitz, this is yours, right? I mean, it has your logo and everything." The woman, Blitz apparently, asked, holding out the wallet with a small but genuine smile. She was reminiscent of Juliet in terms of surface level appearances, tanned skin, very visible muscles, a shirt so obscenely tight that the outline of her sports bra was clearly visible, she even had a ponytail done in the same style, only much shorter and blonde. The biggest difference though was her eyes, or more specifically, how colorless they were, not silver like Ruby's, but stark white, to the point that if she didn't have pupils, you'd think she was possessed by a ghost or something. Lumi wasn't too sure what to think after being scammed, but it certainly was her wallet, Schnee snowflake and Arc arcs clearly emblazoned on the white leather. Looking back over at the men, the false fortune teller just looked at his now empty hand, confused, his untrained eyes not even being able to perceive the woman as she rushed past him. However, the purple haired girl in denim overalls and a plain white shirt that was running towards them was another story, panting as she reached Blitz.
"Hey! That ain't yours!" The pickpocket called out, stunning Lumi into silence with his absolute audacity as the rest of her team finally caught up, Jet a little behind having had to pay for their things. Before Lumi could righteously call the man a conniving bastard, the new arrival turned around, unamused.
"Ain't yours either bozo, you just screwed up your little scam, just go before we have you arrested like we should." she snapped back, her accent reminiscent of Alaska's. The face of the duo's little operation went pale at the threat of jail time and tried to grab at his partner, but the pickpocket stepped forward, barking in anger.
"Why you li-" Before he could even start though, a hand grabbed him by the shoulder and turned him around. For a brief moment, he looked like he was going to swing on the newcomer, that was until he laid eyes on them, a completely bald and unnaturally pale skinned man, easily seven feet tall with muscles that made Jin look small, staring down at the pickpocket.
"We got a problem bub?" His voice wasn't necessarily deep, but it was thick and gravely, like an old man who'd smoked multiple packs of cigarettes a day for his entire life. The pickpocket lost all bravado in a moment, freezing up as he stared in disbelief at the specimen before him, only snapping out of it as his accomplice grabbed him by the nape of his neck and pulled him away into an alleyway, the pair running down it without ever looking back. As soon as they were gone, Blitz let out the snort of laughter she'd been holding in ever since hearing the man speak.
"Pfft- bub? Really Taimur?" The man rolled his eyes as a glow of white Aura covered his shape, shrinking and morphing into a smaller, but still tall, feminine shape. A few moments later, he Aura faded to reveal a girl with long auburn hair and a pair of racoon ears atop her head, dressed in what looked like a school uniform, a thigh length skirt that matched the color of her hair and a navy blue blazer over a white button up shirt.
"Look, it's all I could think of on the fly. Next time, warn me before you antagonize some punks Ruta." the shapeshifter, seemingly named Taimur, said, clearly not finding the situation as amusing as Blitz.
"Sorry," She in no way actually sounded sorry. "But come on, they were robbing these guys, they started it."
For a brief moment, the two stared each other down, before Blitz threw her arms around both of their shoulders and pulled them into a forced group hug.
"Girls, c'mon now, we're making a bad impression on the newbies." she stage whispered to her teammates while gesturing to SJJL, who wasn't quite sure what to make of them so far, exchanging looks. At the very least, they were a nice change of pace from everyone else, who so far, either ignored them or tried to rob them. Jin was the first to step forward, smiling at the trio, embarrassed.
"Thanks for that, I've never been pickpocketed before, so I wasn't really looking out."
"If only you'd been warned." Jet muttered dryly. It's not like he told him it was a scam like five times, but nooooo, why listen to him though? Ignoring the obvious sarcasm, Blitz stepped right up and playfully knocked on Jin's chest, seeming impressed by the boy's build.
"Oh it's no problem, we're just glad we found you when we did, would've been pretty embarrassing if you ended up getting robbed on day one under our watch."
"Found us, like, you were looking for us?" Jet asked, folding his arms in a way that clearly expressed a demand for some sort of explanation, yet the girls were undeterred by the looks they were getting, as Blitz continued without missing a beat.
"Yup!" Her smile only grew as she held her hand out. "Nice to meet ya SJJL, we're team BRST, er- most of it anyway. As of right now, consider us your team of big sisters here in Vacuo!"