Me and the boys played Dungeons and Dragons for the first time yesterday. I was the punching bag for most of the game because I kept getting shitty rolls but did a comeback later and was the first to hit a Nat20. Needless to say, our mandem has finally ascended to the next level of geekdom lol.
Chapter 13: Fangs
The sound of a camera taking pictures resounded in a small forest. Though it was a somewhat small sound, the quiet of the area allowed it to be heard more easily by anyone in close range.
Her rabbit ears twitched and she turned her head around.
"Gin?" She asked of the person who was sneaking towards her.
"Boo," said Gin with one hand brought up in a clawing gesture. "Scared you, didn't I?"
Velvet smirked, "I almost had a heart attack."
Gin's eyes widened and he looked at his hand. "Whoa. I never knew how terrifying I was. I'm even scaring myself right now."
Velvet couldn't help but laugh at how serious he looked and sounded.
Gin smirked at her reaction. Then a big yawn escaped into his fist.
"You didn't get enough sleep last night?" Velvet asked.
"I didn't get any sleep at all," Gin revealed while leaning against a tree and folding his hands into his haori's sleeves. "Uh, the part-time job I told you about had me working overtime, to the point I didn't catch the last bullhead back last night. I got back just now, actually." He had considered staying at Lizzy's place but he didn't want her asking questions. So, he stayed at The Club but he didn't sleep out of fear for what those twins would do to him in his sleep.
"Eh? Are you okay then?" Velvet asked with a worried look.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Nothing to worry about," Gin said while waving a hand dismissively.
"But, maybe you should be resting now. You didn't have to come this morning."
"And miss my chance to talk with you?" Gin asked as if she said something ridiculous. "I'd rather cut one of my fingers off."
Velvet covered her lips and looked away, embarrassed. Then she muttered, "Stop joking around…"
"It's true though. We don't get to talk much outside of texts or in the morning after all."
"Yeah. I'm sorry about that," Velvet said guiltily. "We're from different years so we don't get to meet much. The only class we have together is History and I don't know anyone there while you have a lot of friends. So, I don't want to bother you and I try to leave as soon as possible…"
"Don't worry about it. I don't mind," Gin reassured her. "No offence, but I can tell that you're pretty shy so I didn't want to approach, in case you felt uncomfortable."
Velvet cringed, "Yeah… you're not wrong. Sorry. I appreciate the consideration, though."
Gin nodded with a smile. "Although, if you want, I could introduce you to my friends?"
Her eyes widened. "Your team? Oh no no, it's fine. There's no need," said Velvet quickly while waving her hands. She'd seen them before and they felt like a bunch of jocks. Velvet didn't have good experiences with those types, she wondered how a nice and reserved guy like Gin even got along and fit in with them.
And there was the familiar way the big one would look at her. She suspected that Gin was oblivious to it and… she'd rather keep it that way.
"Uh, alright," said Gin who tilted his head at her.
"Umm, but if you want… we could talk to each other in class?" She offered, a little awkwardly.
Gin lit up with a smile. "That would be great."
Velvet released a small relief sigh and smiled.
"By the way, did you get any good material this morning?" He asked.
"Well, sort of. But they're mostly the same as every other day."
"Have you tried getting some pictures in the Emerald Forest?"
"Yeah, I have. I've wanted to try to get some of Grimm, like one of those animals in their natural habitat shots, but Grimm can sense us so I can't ever sneak up on one."
"That sounds like a pain," Gin said. "Hey, you've taken pictures in the city before right? Maybe you should try that again."
Velvet thought about it for a few seconds. "Yeah. I reckon I could try that."
"Great. I'll come with you so I can help."
"Eh?"
Gin rubbed his neck, "I guess I won't be any help with finding any good views but I could uh give you company through the city. Maybe even give my thoughts on your pictures more directly or something."
Velvet froze.
Red crept into her face and she looked down while poking her indexes together. "Well, I…"
"It's honestly fine if you don't want to though," Gin said sincerely with a hand held up.
"No! I do. Uh I mean, I don't mind," She said.
A wide smile emerged on Gin's face.
"It's just… can I bring along a friend?" Velvet refused to make eye contact.
The smile lost a little of its vigour.
"Of course, you can," But he pushed on regardless. "Will it be one of your teammates?"
Velvet nodded. "Yeah. Maybe Fox?" She questioned.
His smile twitched. "Sure, I can't wait to finally meet him."
0-0-0
To Velvet's dismay, Fox couldn't make it even though he said he would have loved to meet Gin. So, she tried to ask for Yatsuhashi, but unfortunately, he wasn't free either even though he'd also like to meet his fellow Mistrali.
Alas, Velvet had no other choice but the absolute worst one.
"Seriously, bun? I'm your last pick?" said Coco Adel. She was a fashionista who wore sunglasses over her dark brown eyes and - in a similar fashion - a black beret over her dark brown short hair which had a long wavy lock on her right side that was dyed a gradient dark brown to caramel colour. Currently, she was wearing Beacon's uniform and so was Velvet as they were walking together down the halls.
"You're literally the last person I want to ask this of," said Velvet.
"Ahhh," Coco clutched the part of her chest near the heart. "I never knew words could hurt me like this."
"I'm not sorry."
"I forgive you then," said Coco without missing a beat. Causing Velvet to give an exasperated sigh.
"So, anyway," Coco started, "tell me more about this Gin guy."
Velvet rubbed one of her elbows and looked. "Well, he's a nice guy."
"I hope he doesn't call himself that," Coco commented.
Velvet paused for a second before she giggled into a hand, "No, he's not like one of those types. Like Fox, he likes making crappy jokes and puns but he never once made a rabbit joke. Hey actually, I just realised he's sort of like a mix between Yatsuhashi and Fox. And a little bit of you too, Coco."
"Hmm, I'm starting to like this guy. Is he hot?"
"Well, he's really pretty."
Coco looked at her with a raised brow over her sunglasses.
Velvet shrugged.
"Uh-huh," said Coco, a bit unsure. "Then, why do you want me to go with you again? To rub it in my face all day about how you got asked out?" She questioned.
"Of course not."
"Okay, good," Coco nodded while adjusting her sunglasses. "But still, Coco Adel is many things but a third wheel ain't one of them. So, why are you bringing me along on your date?"
"… It's not a date," Velvet mumbled.
Coco snorted, "We both know that ain't true. Your guy is about as subtle as an Ursa. So what is it, you're not attracted to him or something?"
Velvet didn't dare look at her friend right now and was instead looking down at her clasped hands. "… I am, a little bit," She muttered faintly.
"That's good then," said Coco. "So, you should give him a chance and give him a proper date to impress you."
Velvet groaned, "Please, just come with me."
Coco sighed, "Alright, alright. Just don't blame me if the guy falls for me instead."
"You swing the other way," Velvet pointed out.
"Well yeah. But I'm still hot as hell, so boys can't resist even when they know that. Oh hey, maybe we should do that as a test to see if he's faithful to you or not."
"You make it sound like we're already dating…"
"That's just your imagination," Coco grinned playfully. "By the way, how long have you known him? You said you were friends but you've never mentioned him before."
Velvet looked away, "For a week or two now. And I never mentioned him because it was never brought up."
"Oh really?" Coco smirked. "Did something embarrassing happen between you two?"
"What!? No way!"
"Oh yes way!" An excited Coco stopped walking and made Velvet do the same by grabbing her shoulders. "Come on, bun, you gotta tell me. I need that juicy tea."
"It's not gossip," A flustered Velvet denied. "And stop acting like that stuff is water for you."
"But it is?" said Coco as if it was obvious and was confused why she would think otherwise.
"Ugh," Velvet rolled her eyes.
"I promise I won't tell anyone else. It will be a secret between us hot gals," Coco partially lowered her sunglasses to show a wink.
Velvet stared at her suspiciously with thinned lips. "… Please don't laugh…"
A few minutes later, Coco snorted. She quickly covered her mouth with one hand to reign herself in.
"You said you wouldn't laugh!" Velvet slightly yelled with her hands balled at her sides. Her face sulky and embarrassed.
"I'm sorry I'm sorry," Coco flapped one of her hands up and down. She took a quick breath to regain her bearings. Then she wrapped Velvet into a hug.
"C-Coco?!" Velvet struggled
"Oh bun, you've grown so big. I remember last year when you avoided almost every guy like they were beasts. But now, YOU'RE the predator! I'm so proud—" Coco suddenly cut herself off by squawking. Her side had been kneed by a red-faced Velvet, making her lose her grip and allowing Velvet to break free and immediately stomp off.
"Wait!" Coco held out a hand while her other hand clutched her side. "I just hope you know that joke had nothing to do with you being a Faunus," She quickly ran after her friend.
0-0-0
Inside Beacon's indoor amphitheatre, Miss Goodwitch's Combat Class was currently being hosted and the next two fighters were just selected to show their mettle on stage.
Cardin Winchester Vs Jaune Arc.
"Heh. Hope you won't mind if I kick your boyfriend's ass," said Cardin who grinned at Gin.
"I would literally pay a large sum of money to see that," replied Gin which got a laugh out of Cardin while he marched towards the stage.
"That's cold, mate," Russel commented with a snicker. "Ain't Jaune your best friend?"
"He is. That's why I know that I would need to pay millions for Cardin to beat him."
"Huh?" said a confused Russel while Sky laughed.
Gin merely closed his eyes and focused on his Aura Sensing without elaborating. After all, he didn't need to since it was explained a few minutes later.
The Executioner slammed into the shield of Crocea Mors.
And again, from the opposite side.
And again, from a different side.
And again, from another side.
And again, from the same side as the first.
What the fuck!? Cardin yelled in his mind. If Gin was a slippery eel, then this fucker's like a solid block of steel. He glared into the sharp eyes of Jaune who peered right above his shield after blocking the attacks to keep an eye on Cardin.
Another attack from the mace was blocked but this time Jaune followed it up with 3 swift slashes that made Cardin take a step back. Whereas, Jaune had remained steadfast for their entire exchange.
His left arm should be a mess by now, Thought Cardin with clenched teeth. I'm using a mace for fuck's sakes.
But it seems like the mace did affect Jaune, though not to the extent that Cardin expected because Jaune only rolled his shield arm a few times before returning it into position.
With a frustrated scowl, Cardin grabbed the shield with his offhand. But Jaune swiftly attacked the offending arm with his arm and also scored another hit on Cardin's armpit with his return swing.
Cardin's scowl grew even more distorted as he two-handed his mace and brought it behind him for a powerful overhead strike, uncaring that he left himself wide open.
Aura Amp
Instead of taking advantage of the opening, Jaune glowed as he brought his shield up half a second before The Executioner came crashing down.
The Dust on the mace allowed it to explode on impact.
But 2 seconds later, Cardin yelped in surprise because he was forced onto a knee after his front leg was hooked by the crossguard of his opponent's sword. It seems Jaune had managed to quickly change his grip and it now held onto the blade's end. He had also twisted his body to make Cardin fall onto his knee, which allowed Jaune to follow up with his own overhead strike that used the heavier crossguard right on Cardin's cranium.
The vicious blow caused the large teen to slacken his jaw and his eyes to blur.
Then he fully fell to the ground with a loud noise.
It seems that despite his Aura not breaking, Cardin was no longer capable of getting up for a minute at least. Basically signalling the end of the match. Even Miss Goodwitch thought so because she turned on the other lights and walked towards the centre of the fight.
"Well done, Mr Arc," She praised Jaune who had sheathed his sword and was now lightly rubbing his left arm. "Your sword is the type with more uses besides cutting so I'm glad to see you apply its versatility well. You've also proven yourself to be even more durable than you appear. However, that last block was quite risky, no?"
Jaune winced, "Yeah, it was. My bad, I'll try to do better."
"Hmm," She stared at him for a second or two before dropping it. "Very well."
"And you Mr Winchester," Glynda turned her attention to Cardin who was still lying on the floor. "First, how are you feeling?"
Cardin didn't respond.
"I suppose you'll have to hear my words later. Team Cigar, please take your leader to the infirmary."
With some help from Glynda's Semblance, Team Cigar carried Cardin by putting both his arms over Russel and Sky while Gin carried Cardin's legs under his arms.
"That was a new trick," Gin remarked to Jaune who was leaving the stage with him and his team.
"Yeah. Pyrrha taught me," said Jaune with a wide smile.
"Cool. Nice match, by the way."
"Thanks. Can you tell Cardin that it was a good match when he's coherent for me? I kinda have the feeling that he won't like hearing it from me."
Gin chuckled, "Yeah. Good idea."
0-0-0
"Hey, did you guys know that ducks have evolved to become better rapists," said Sky out of nowhere. The various teams who had just finished Combat Class were now in the cafeteria eating lunch in their combat outfits. And right now the 3 members of Team Cigar were staring at Sky in bafflement.
"It's true," Sky continued. "Ducks are notorious for being unconcerners of consent to the point where you'd probably be a witness to a crime scene if you keep watch on a duck for a few hours. They're really aggressive about it too and it's pretty common for female ducks to be maimed or die from gangbangs, feathers blazing and flying. Female ducks had to evolve their genitalia into mazes that make forced entry impossible, even having fake pouches and dead ends. But in response, male ducks evolved their penises into corkscrews over ten inches long. And did I mention that 'duck ritual of grape with a silent G' includes homosexuality? Because it does. Some male ducks have even fought to anally infiltrate each other. Oh, and necrophilia too, sometimes even homosexual necrophi—"
"Sky, what the FUCK are you talking about?!" Russel finally interrupted the bastard.
"We're fucking eating you disgusting piece of shit," said Cardin who glared.
"Yeah. You're going to give Cardin another head injury, this time a mental one," said Gin nonchalantly which made Cardin yell at him to shut up too.
"Hey, I'm just trying to help," Sky defended himself. "We all have bird theme names and shit, so one of you might wanna give your kid a duck theme name or something. But now, none of you will. Unless you really hate your kid."
"Yeah, well keep that shit yourself. Or at least not when we're eating, dumbass," said Cardin.
"Okay," Sky said with a salute.
The team went back eating to while chatting about some more normal things.
"Oi Gin, why so quiet?" Russel asked. "You're barely contributing to the talk."
"Huh? I just have a lot on my mind," said Gin who yawned into his fist.
"Like what?"
"Just some things like our test next week, my nightly slave job, my quasi-date on the weekend."
"Wait what? When the fuck did this happen?" Russel was the one who said that but the others quickly zoomed in on Gin.
"This morning," said Gin. "I tried subtly asking her out without outright saying it. But then she invited a friend along," He sighed.
"Her she who?" Sky asked.
"Oh, right. I never told you guys," Gin realised. "So, for a while now, during my morning routines, I've been getting along with this girl who likes photography and takes some pictures in the morning."
Cardin laughed lightly, "Nice, man. But why didn't you tell us about this sooner?"
Gin shrugged, "It was never really brought up."
"Fuck you man," said Russel. "You're supposed to tell your fam about shit like this all the time."
"Yeah yeah yeah, my bad."
"Damn, that reminds me. I should take Anna out next weekend too," said Cardin.
"Fuckin' hell," Russel groused. "Me and Sky can't get any girls right now and you traitorous twats are going on dates next weekend."
Sky mimicked adjusting his uniform's necktie while saying, "You can't get girls because they don't like you. I, can't get any girls because females are a burden so I avoid them. We are not the same."
Russel threw some food at him and Cardin and Gin did the same on reflex.
"Cope and seethe, fucking woyjacks," said Sky.
"So Gin," Cardin turned his attention back on his partner. "Your girl is a student here too, right? You're really lucky. Mine goes to a civilian college so it's hard as hell to see her," He sighed before taking another bite.
"She's not my girl, not yet anyway, but yeah," said Gin. "Oh and she attends history class so you guys might know her. She's Velvet Scarlatina."
. . .
"What!?" Cardin exclaimed. Russel and Sky stared in surprise as well, but they were more subdued compared to their Team Leader.
"Huh, what?" Gin tilted his head in confusion.
"Seriously? The fucking animal?" asked Cardin who raised both brows at him.
"Yeah," confirmed Gin who raised only one brow in contrast.
Russel laughed, "Looks like Gin wants a taste of some bunny meat, eh?"
"I can respect that," said Sky. "What man doesn't like bunny girls? And you're probably hoping that she does fuck like a rabbit, right?"
. . .
Gin merely hummed in reply.
"You said you like kids but I didn't think you'd want some of your own so soon," Russel joked again with a laugh.
"Make sure to breed the bitch with the mating press," said Sky with a grin and a thumb raised.
"Oi," Gin voiced in a hard tone. "Enough."
The two partners were taken aback, immediately noticing the sudden shift in Gin's mood.
The wind was taken out of their sails as they deflated with awkward looks.
"Hmph, if you just want to fuck her then go ahead," Cardin said gruffly. He had already turned back to his meal so he must not have noticed Gin's expression since they sat next to each other. "You won't ever catch me with an animal though."
"… I don't want to just fuck her. I want to be in a relationship with her."
"What? So, you're serious about her?" Cardin scrunched up his face at him.
Gin turned and looked at Cardin right in the eyes.
"Do you have a problem with that?" He asked with a cold expression.
"… The hell is that supposed to mean?" Cardin spoke in a low tone with narrowed eyes.
"HA HA HA!" Russel loudly interrupted with a nervous expression. He stood on his bench and jumped onto the other side of the table with a flip before taking a seat between the partners. Fortunately, it managed to make them look away from each other and turned their attention back to their plates and ate again.
"So Sky, you got any other disturbing shit to share?" Russel asked somewhat awkwardly.
Sky must have felt the mood because he looked a little awkward too, "Uh, lionesses are pretty good mothers but I heard that they usually spawn multiple cubs but if they spawn only one cub, they will kill it because just one is not worth the effort. And they'll probably eat it too to not waste resources."
Russel laughed, though it was still a little forced, "Why do you know so much shit like this anyway?"
"So I can make creative racial insults during my online games."
Russel snickered, this time more naturally, "This fuckin' guy."
"Speaking of racism," Sky began. "Say Gin, I thought Mistral was really racist. The most racist Kingdom in fact."
"Hmm, I don't know if it's the most but yeah, it is pretty racist. At least when I still lived there," Gin replied naturally. "I never cared about any of that though."
"Why not?" Cardin asked. "The faunus are literal animals. Why do you even like them?"
"Why would I of all people judge others for what they're born with?" He replied dryly.
That took Cardin by surprise.
"That's-That's different!" He stuttered. "Faunus literally have the personality traits of the animals that their faunus parts are from. A dog faunus will be dumb, social, and probably hate cats. Same for cat faunus who will hate dogs and shit."
"That's true," Sky admitted. "But it's not like that's the same for all faunus. A lot of them are the opposite of their animal counterpart. Besides, even real animals can have different personalities so you can't really fit them all into one stereotype."
The 3 of them stared at him.
"I thought you were racist?" Russel questioned.
"I'm only ironically racist," said Sky with a straight face.
"Whatever, that doesn't change anything," Cardin continued. "Even if some faunus are different or there are some good ones, it doesn't change the fact that a majority of them aren't and they cause so many problems. Hell, they're the reason that the Faunus War happen, killing thousands. Including my grandfather and other relatives."
Both Russel and Sky winced at that but Gin just thought that Cardin was lucky.
"Even right now, the White Fang terrorists are running wild everywhere," said Cardin before he noticed something in the distance. "Look at Scarlatina right now," He said which made them - excluding Gin who just slightly moved his head - turn their head towards the direction that Cardin pointed in.
"She's supposed to be a Huntress-in-training but she's moving like the rabbit that she is All meek and cowardly," He sneered.
"So what?" Gin cut in. "Her shy personality doesn't mean that she's 's the same for Ruby and we've all seen what she's capable of. You directly, when you lost to her."
Cardin growled, "If you want to fucking ride her dick so much, then why you don't just join her—"
"Ahh yeah!" Russel interrupted him by moaning loudly as he hunched over the table. "Your footjob's amazing, Sky!"
Sky was utterly taken aback by what his partner just yelled out.
Then Russel sent him signals through facial expressions. He immediately understood that Russel was desperately asking for his help which made Sky's face twist.
"Y-Yeah, you like that don't you, you little whore!" Sky blurted out. Other people around their table had begun staring at them in various degrees of confusion and disgust.
But it did achieve the desired effect of taking the wind out of their teammates' sails. Gin merely wrinkled his brows, while Cardin had a bigger reaction because his mouth was agape in sheer horror and repulsion.
"... What the hell is wrong with you guys?" Cardin whispered in an almost desperate voice.
""Yeah, I'm wondering that too,"" Both Sky and Russel replied.
Gin sighed. "I'm done eating," He said as he stood up with his plate and walked away.
0-0-0
Weiss gave an annoyed sigh and stood up with her plate. "I'm done eating so I'll be heading to class first," With that, she briskly walked away and her team followed after the sisters gave their condolences to Jaune.
"Fearless leader, I think you were too fearless today," said Nora Valkyrie. She was a fair-skinned girl with short orange hair and green eyes. She wore a collared black sleeveless vest, and under it was a white sleeveless shirt with a heart-shaped cutout in the centre of her chest. Her arms were adorned by a pair of white detached sleeves and a pair of pink fingerless gloves. She also had a silver armour piece that wraps around her waist, under her breasts and around the back of her neck with metal connecting each piece at the front. Her lower half consisted of a short pink skirt and white shoes with pink highlights.
"For once, I agree with Nora," said Lie Ren, a white-skinned Mistrali with long black hair tied at his back in a low ponytail. One lock of his hair is magenta coloured, along with his eyes. He wears a dark green, diagonally-buttoned, long-sleeved tailcoat, with black and gold trimming and pink cuffs. The trimming goes down the right side of his torso and forms a black high collar. Along with this, he wears a black, long-sleeved shirt beneath the suit and light tan pants with black shoes.
"And that's like, really really really rare," said Nora Valkyrie with a chipper nod.
"I kind of think so too, Jaune," said Pyrrha with a wince.
The subject of their criticism groaned and planted his face into his hands. "I want to kill myself," Jaune bemoaned.
"Don't forget to do a flip if you're jumping off a building," said a new voice which made Team Juniper turn towards it to see Gin on the other side of their table. "Or do you want to do seppuku? If so, then let me help because I've always wanted to try it."
"Shut up asshole," Jaune slammed both of his fists on the table. "This is all your fault!"
"Huh? What did I do?" Gin asked with a raised brow.
"You told me about how you got a date with Velvet and that motivated me to try harder with Weiss. But that just made her mad at me," Jaune explained with a scowl.
Gin gave a hearty laugh. "Stupid virgin," He said before continuing his laughter.
"Shut up!"
Gin shook his head as his laughter died down. "Anyway, do any of you mind if I sit here?"
"We do. So piss off."
"Jaune. Don't be like that," Pyrrha scolded. "We don't mind if you do, Gin."
"Indeed," said Ren.
"Yeah!" Nora slapped the table a few tables, "You can sit with us anytime! But I'm not giving you any of my pancakes."
Gin chuckled and gave a partial bow, "I thank all of you. Except Jaune."
"Hey, make your Realm bigger. I want to show you something again," said Jaune.
Gin didn't and instead sat down with his back towards the table to lean against it while letting his weapon do the same against his shoulder. Then he raised his middle finger at Jaune.
"Tch," Jaune looked annoyed but he shook it away with a sigh. "So, what's up? You need something?" He asked.
"Not really. I'm just annoyed with my team right now. Especially the giant with orange hair," Gin folded his arms inside his wide sleeves.
"Eh?" Nora sounded confused. "What did I do?" She asked while pointing at herself.
"Nora, he probably means Cardin," Ren clarified. "You're not a giant at all."
Nora gasped with an offended look. "I am too!" She yelled while slapping the table.
Gin chuckled, "Yeah, I do mean Cardin."
"So, you finally see that Cardin is a huge jerk?" Jaune asked. "Because everyone's known that. Even frigging Pyrrha and she's a saint."
"Jaaaune," said Pyrrha who lightly pushed his shoulder with a blush.
"It's true though. You think he's a jerk too right?"
"Well… I do think that he's the bad type who likes to push his weight around and bully others."
"In Pyrrha's terms, that means that Cardin deserves to get his legs broken!" Nora said with an excited fist pump.
"Nora, no!" Pyrrha objected.
"Nora, yes!" Nora countered.
"Heh. Well yeah, I've known that for a while now too," said Gin.
Jaune gave him a flat look. "Yup. I called it. You never care about stuff like that unless it affects you."
"That is true," Gin admitted without shame. "Though, this one indirectly affects me through someone else…"
0-0-0
From her seat, Velvet turned to the side to see someone familiar standing next to her, now in his uniform.
"Hey, Velvet," Gin greeted with a smile and nod. "Do you mind if I sit with you this time?"
"Oh, sure. Go ahead," said Velvet and Gin obliged. "Umm, not that I don't want you here or anything but you usually sit with your friends, don't you?"
"Well, since I can finally talk to you in class, I might as well make the most of it," He said with a smirk.
Before they could talk any further, their History teacher arrived and swiftly started the class. Velvet wasn't as studious as Gin was but she was still a good student so the two of them diverted most of their attention to the class. Though they still had quiet and short chats during the lesson where they were both having some fun. And it did not go noticed by Cardin who was sitting somewhere else as he had a disgruntled look on his face.
"Yes!" Dr Oobleck exclaimed while dashing around in the front, seemingly unable to stand in one place for long. "Yes, prior to the Faunus Rights Revolution, more popularly known as the Faunus War, humankind was adamant about centralising the Faunus population in Menagerie." He took a sip of his coffee. "Now! While this may seem 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 today!"
Dr Oobleck took another sip before continuing, "Now! Have any among you faced discrimination for your Faunus heritage?"
Some students in the class raised their hands, including a hesitant Velvet that Gin did not notice.
"Dreadful, simply dreadful. Remember students, it is precisely this kind of ignorance that breeds violence." He took another sip. "I mean, I mean, I mean just look at what happened to the White Fang. Now which one of you young scholars can tell me what many theorists believe to be the turning point of the war?"
Two hands were raised, though one raised hers high while the other only partially raised his.
"Yes, Mr Suzume?" Dr Oobleck gave his attention to him instead of Weiss.
"The Battle of Fort Castle," Gin answered casually.
"Precisely! And, who can tell me the advantage the Faunus had over General Lagune's forces?"
The same two hands were raised again but this time, Dr Oobleck didn't let them answer and instead dash right in front of Jaune who had been sleeping with his head propped against his hand. Pyrrha was sitting next to him and was now grimacing at the sight of their teacher sipping his coffee before her partner.
"How about you, Mr Arc!?" Oobleck loudly questioned which promptly woke up Jaune. "So? What is the answer?"
"Uhhh… The answer," Jaune slowly began while trying to make eye contact with someone who didn't even have their eyes open. "The advantage… that the Faunus had…"
"Hey Gin. I think your friend is asking for your help," Velvet whispered while leaning towards him and covering her mouth with a hand.
Gin quietly snorted. He turned his head in Jaune's direction and rubbed his nose with his middle finger.
Jaune's eyes twitched at him. "Their advantage was that they were the size of goblins?" He answered with an unsure tone and smile.
His answer got a short laugh out of some students, including Gin who smirked at the end.
Dr Oobleck dashed back to his stand behind his table. "Very funny, Mr Arc," He said in an unimpressed tone. "Cardin! Perhaps you would care to share your thoughts on the subject?"
"Hmph. Faunus have the advantage of being easier to train than humans. They ARE animals after all," Cardin declared with his arms crossed.
Velvet frowned at him.
Gin gave a light snicker.
Causing Velvet to direct a surprised look at him.
"You're not the most open-minded person, are you Cardin?" Pyrrha asked disapprovingly.
"What? You got a problem with me?" Cardin shot back.
"No," said Pyrrha who turned her attention away from him, "I have the answer. It's night vision. Many Faunus are known to have nearly perfect night vision." Her answer made Cardin growl.
Then Blake suddenly spoke up, "General Lagune was inexperienced and made the mistake of trying to ambush the Faunus in their sleep. His massive army was outmatched, and the General was captured." She turned her amber eyes towards Cardin, "Perhaps if he'd paid attention in class, he wouldn't have been remembered as such a failure."
Some of the students made 'Ooooh' sounds at the clear provocation with Gin even outright chuckling this time.
Balling a fist, Cardin angrily stood—
"Mr Winchester," Dr Oobleck interrupted him with a tone mixed with disappointment and annoyance. "Please, take your seat. You AND Mr Arc can see me for additional readings," He said which made Jaune sigh. Taking another sip of his coffee, Dr Oobleck moved on with the lesson.
0-0-0
"So Velvet, will Fox be coming with us?" Gin asked as he followed Velvet through the hallways.
"Uh no... He's busy so he can't," Velvet said in an odd tone. "Coco will be coming with us instead…"
"Oh?" said Gin. A smile grew on him as he thought about how he'll be accompanied by two girls. "That sounds good," He said.
"Yeah…"
"Is something wrong," Gin asked with a raised brow.
"No. It's nothing."
Gin chuckled, "Even I, can see that that's not true."
Velvet gave him a flat stare.
"I don't read facial expressions with my Realm but I can tell you're giving me a flat look. Perceptive, aren't I," He laughed at his own joke again.
"Yeah, sure." Velvet sighed before mumbling, "Why did you and Fox have to share that trait of making crappy jokes?"
"So, come on. Tell me what's wrong," Gin prodded again. "Please?" He added with pleading eyes.
"… Alright," Velvet finally conceded. "But let's go somewhere first." She then dragged Gin away to somewhere else while he look excited at the sudden development.
They stopped in a somewhat secluded place where passing students were few.
"So… It's about your team leader," Velvet began while rubbing her elbow.
"Cardin?" Gin asked with a raised brow. "What did he do?"
Velvet stared at him with wrinkled brows. "You seriously can't tell?"
"… Oh!" Gin suddenly realised it. "Was it the things he said back there?"
"Well, yeah but…"
"Don't concern yourself with him, Velvet," said Gin. "Though not exactly the same as your situation, I've experienced things like it because of my blindness. So I know that ridicule and the like only affect us if we allow them to. They're like flies and are only mildly irritating at best."
"Yeah, I know that," said Velvet while looking away. "It's just… it's not really your racist team leader that bothers me. It's that you don't seem to mind he's racist…"
Gin was caught off guard by that as his eyes widened.
"That's not… well I uhh," He trailed off.
"To be clear, I don't think that you're racist too or anything. I actually thought you just didn't know that your leader was racist."
"I didn't," He said before pausing and rubbing his chin. "Uh. Actually, now that I think about it, there were some signs of my teammates being racist that I just now realised."
Velvet looked away, "I guess you're just used to it because it's common in Mistral. Even Yatsuhashi used to be like that. It would explain why you're so apathetic about it…"
Gin grimaced.
"Yeah… you're right." He rubbed his hair, "I haven't been in Mistral for a while now but there was a lot of racism there. Especially in my clan but my mother raised me better than that so I never adopted that mindset."
"Yet, it never affected me directly so I never actually cared about it. I'm sorry."
Velvet gave a sigh. "It's fine," She mumbled.
A tight expression form on Gin's face.
"Uh hey, maybe I could beat up Cardin for you. Or maybe I could arrange a spar between you and him so you can beat him up directly. I'm positive that you're stronger than him," He suggested with a grin.
"What? No!" Velvet protested. "Violence won't make him any less racist."
"But it will make you feel better."
"I… okay, maybe a little," Velvet admitted. "But it's not worth it in the end. And please, don't fight him because of me. I don't want to be that kind of girl who causes problems between boys."
"You'd be worth it, though," Gin teased with a smile.
Velvet pursed her lips in and looked away with a blush. "Anyway, class is gonna start soon so we should go. I'll see you later."
"Hey, wait. We're still going on a trip this weekend right?" Gin asked when Velvet was about to leave.
"… Yeah, sure. But… maybe we could reschedule it. I'll text you later." She quickly walked off before Gin could stop her.
And so, the boy was left grinding his teeth.
0-0-0
Inside a classroom filled with students waiting for their teacher, Gin stood before his team leader who was already sitting in one of the seats.
"Oi, Cardin," He began with a blank expression. "Stop being racist."
"No," Cardin said while crossing his arms.
"Pretty fucking please."
"Well, since you asked so nicely," Cardin rubbed his chin and seemed to be considering it. "How about… fucking no," He said.
One of Gin's eyes twitched. "Alright, then how about we have a duel? Loser has to obey the winner."
"Hah! You honestly think that will make me not racist?" Cardin questioned.
"Not really. But I'll get to kick your ass and get you to keep your mouth shut at least."
"Don't be so cocky just cause you've won a few times," Cardin frowned. "I'll beat the stupid out of you and make you stop hanging out with that animal."
"Adorable. You actually think you have a chance of winning."
Cardin's lips curled up and he made to stand up.
"Oi oi oi!" Russel interrupted them and placed a hand on Cardin's shoulder to push him down. "C'mon, mandem. Let's not fight because of a bloody girl. That's like, one of the most cliche and stupid reasons for fighting."
"To be fair," Sky started, "I think this fight is because of clashing ideologies. But I think Gin is going about it in a weird way if he wants to beat the racism out of Cardin."
"Yeah. I never gave a shit about anything like that before, but now I realised that stance was wrong and won't stand for it any longer," Gin declared.
Then he pointed his finger at Cardin, "Also, I got in trouble with Velvet because of what you said in History class, you son of a whore."
His teammates paused and stared at him for a second. They all suspected that Gin's latter sentence meant more to him than the former because the first sounded hollow compared to the second.
Before they could talk further, the teacher arrived which ended pretty much all discussions in the room. Gin clicked his tongue and moved towards a seat away from his teammates, though he made sure to flip Cardin off in the process.
0-0-0
Some time in the afternoon, Gin sat in one of the seats of Beacon's Library and seemed to be studying at the table on his large Scroll while he wore the flat wireless earphones and had a fist on his cheek.
Then he turned towards the somewhat familiar person who just entered his vicinity between the books shelves. "Blake," He greeted with a nod.
"… Suzume," Blake greeted back in an odd tone. "I've never seen you stay in the library before. Shouldn't you be with your gang of thugs?"
He raised a brow. "Well, I'm annoyed with my partner right now so I'd rather not study in the same room as him. It's hard to focus over the urge to cut someone."
Blake looked surprised before she smirked, "Let me guess, the racist is also an asshole. Shocker."
"Oh right," said Gin who suddenly realised something. "I take it you're bothered by what he said in History class."
"Anyone with basic decency would be."
"Heh, fair enough." Then he paused. "… Say, would you know how to fix a racist?"
Blake gave him an odd look. "Why would you think I know that?"
. . .
"Just a hunch," said Gin.
Blake narrowed her eyes at him for a second. "Well, if you want someone to change, they're going to need to want to in the first place." Blake crossed her arms, "And something tells me Cardin doesn't. Hell, he even sounded pretty proud of it."
"True," Gin agreed. "Is there anything else?"
Blake sighed, "Finding out the root cause for someone's racism may help. If it's something like misconceptions, then things will be simpler."
"Well, it seems like Cardin's racism is generational," Gin revealed. "Apparently, his family has a warrior's history. With his grandparents and such even fighting and dying in the Faunus War. So, that probably has something to do with it."
Blake slightly grimaced.
Then she sighed, "You might as well give up then. With the way Cardin is and that extra bit of info… I won't say it's impossible but it would take a lot of work."
"Yeah. I thought so too." Gin gave an annoyed sigh before absent-mindedly saying, "I'd probably need to join the White Fang or something."
. . .
"I highly doubt joining the White Fang as it is would help you with that," Blake voiced in an odd tone before she turned and walked away.
Gin tilted his head at the retreating girl in confusion.
0-0-0
The night had arrived and it was time to meet Roman again in The Club.
The lights flashed, the music played and people danced while these two faced each other once more.
"Heya kid," Roman greeted. Then he put his cigar out in an ashtray.
"Roman," Gin greeted with a nod.
"Take a seat," Roman gestured to one of the couches. "No work, I want to just discuss something with you for tonight so you can get going after we're done."
Gin complied and plopped down on the couch and leaned against it while his weapon did the same against his shoulder.
"First, let me congratulate you again on a job well done last night. I hope you're enjoying the new lien, though not too much because again, people might get suspicious."
"Yeah. I haven't even used any of it yet. But I've considered gambling with some of it," Gin said nonchalantly. It wasn't really his money, after all, so he didn't mind losing it and he could even win some proper lien. Or maybe he'll donate it to an orphanage.
Roman laughed. "This might seem rich coming from me, but don't go too overboard with that. Gambling addiction is the worst kind of addiction."
"Yeah yeah yeah," Gin dismissively waved a hand.
"Well anyway, onto business. I'm sure you've noticed how my reputation has grown." Roman chuckled, "I'm more infamous than ever before."
"Okay," said Gin. "So, is something going to change or something?"
"Yeah. Like this club being our meeting place, because it can't be for much longer. Besides, Junior's been on my ass for a while now because of how hot it is and all the attention it's attracting."
Gin suddenly sat straighter.
"So, does that mean we'll move our meeting place to your hideout?" He asked, his tone more energetic than before.
"Yeah. So, you're now cordially invited to one of my hideouts."
Gin stilled.
"One of?" He asked.
"Of course. A master thief like me has backup plans for my back plans," Roman said with a wide grin.
"… Is that so," Gin said through clenched teeth.
"And another thing that's going to change is that I'm getting a new set of pawns. And they're free so I don't have to rent them like Junior's men. They were especially expensive after Junior got mad at me for losing some that one time," Roman laughed. "I'll be introducing you to them tonight."
.
.
.
"What about that woman who always watches us from a distance?" Gin suddenly asked. "When will you introduce us?"
Roman smirked at him. "Hmm. I suspected that you knew she was there," said Roman. "Fine then, I'll introduce you to her along with the pawns. So, let's head out."
0-0-0
Later that night, Roman took Gin - who now wore the grey duster coat - to a large white warehouse. He suspected that Roman's hideout would be a warehouse, it was a classic after all. Though, he thought the place would be abandoned and dirty. In reality, the place was dim and dark but it was pretty neat and tidy considering what it was being used for.
And it was far from abandoned because the place was crawling with people that anyone could tell belonged to an organisation from what they wore. A uniform that consisted of dark pants and a sleeveless white longcoat that only reached the back of their knees. Underneath was a similarly sleeveless dark hoodie that they all had on over their heads. Black gauntlets and boots with silver plates covered their hands and feet.
Finally, their most distinguishing features were the masks they all wore which resembled the Grimm. All these - along with the animal parts that some of them had - made it obvious who they were if it wasn't already crystal clear from the red emblem on their backs. A snarling beast in front of claw marks.
"Hoody," Roman grabbed his attention. Then he spread out one of his arms in a grandiose gesture, "Feast your eyes on the noble," He a sarcastic emphasis on the word,"warriors of the White Fang."
. . .
Gin pulled his hood slightly up and moved his eyes across the room. "I can't eat much but thanks for the meal," He said dryly after putting his hood back.
Roman blinked for a moment before he laughed loudly. "Oh kid, you and your blind jokes," He shook his head with an amused smile.
"Now, to be honest, I've been working with these animals for a while now but I never had enough of them until now."
"Hey, don't be racist," Gin admonished without any real feeling to it.
"Oh. My bad my bad," said Roman who chuckled.
"Also, what about the woman?" Gin asked.
"Hmm. You seem awfully interested in her," Roman noted.
"Such is the peculiarities of the male brain," Gin claimed.
"Right," Roman gave a sly smile before he snapped a finger.
On the access platforms for walking around the warehouse, a small figure jumped off the railings.
In the air, the woman opened her translucent parasol, elaborately decorated in lace fabric of multiple colours but pink and white were the most abundant. With her hand holding the black handle, she slowly descended as if she was using a parachute.
When the woman landed, she stood at 4"10' while letting her opened parasol lean on her shoulder with a smile. She had heterochromatic eyes of brown and pink and her long multicoloured hair had similar colours, though there was also a white streak on the pink part of her hair. Her skin was white and she wore fancy attire that matched Roman.
A white buttoned-tailed coat with a pink interior, collar and cuffs. Brown leather pants were fastened with a dark belt. A brown corset was wrapped around her waist while also exposing bare her hips a little. Her feet and shin were protected by white-heeled boots with black bottoms. Lastly, black beaded necklaces hang haphazardly around her exposed neck and chest.
"My partner-in-crime," said Roman while gesturing towards the woman. "Neopolitan. Though you can call her Neo."
The newly introduced Neo waved a hand, her smile having never left her.
"Now, this is a bit of a funny coincidence," Roman began, "but Neo here is mute. Trust me, the irony wasn't lost on either of us."
Neo placed the tip of her palm on her lips and giggled soundlessly.
Unexpectedly, Gin gave a light laugh.
Or rather, any of his friends would have expected that, but Roman raised his brows at the boy because this was pretty much the first time Roman saw the kid actually laugh despite all the dry jokes he made.
One step closer to his plans, Gin bowed and said, "A pleasure to finally meet you, Miss Neopolitan."
The angle of the bow allowed Gin's hood to hide his bare grinning fangs.
End of Chapter
Don't you hate it when your racist mates get you in trouble with girls? Lmao.
I originally had plans to make Gin's mother, Karin a faunus. That way, I could add more reasons for their clan's discrimination. But I scrapped that idea because I thought writing racism from an MC who experiences it first-hand would be too much for me to handle. So yeah, I pussied out.
The fight scene between Cardin and Jaune was inspired by a RWBY fanfic called Talk About a Role Reversal where basically the characters have their roles switched with another character. Pyrrha takes Jaune's place as the one who forged her way into Beacon and Jaune is the one who's the tournament champion. There, he has a nickname like Pyrrha which is, The Immovable Arc. And that is just the best fucking epithet for a fanfic Jaune that I have heard yet. Because I just love how Immovable and Arc fit so well together.
Also, writing the history class scene made me feel like such a shit writer. It was basically just plagiarism of the original scene with barely any differences. Legit that meme about friends copying each other's homework but only making a few differences so that the teacher doesn't notice.
Until next– ya'know what, fuck it. I'm done with that sctick.