Harry Potter leaned back in the seat of the Airbus, staring out the windows. "Are you alright, Harry?" Harry glanced over to see Pyrrha Nikos sitting in her seat opposite him, staring at him with concern. It was honestly remarkable how much she reminded Harry of the pictures of his own mother, not that he would ever saw that out loud. There were no other students who come from Mistral attending so they had the airship all to themselves.
"Yeah." Harry nodded, staring out the window again. They watched the Mistrali blue water rolling below them, occasionally a fish popping its head up to eat something then diving under the water again.
"Lake Matsu." Pyrrha sighed, strolling over to Harry's side and staring down at the water. Her smile was sweet, nostalgic even. "I remember when I was a child, I would sneak away from home and go swimming in the lake for hours. It's perfectly safe to swim along the shoreline, but the center of the lake? No. Dad would always scold me for going out, fearing for my safety. For a time, I believed him. It was when I started competing in the Mistral Tournament and people were begging for my attention that I would come back or do anything to try and get away from the crowds." Harry smiled at her memory, but that wasn't all he was smiling about. He was so wrapped up in memories that Pyrrha turned to stare at him in concern. "Are you really sure you're okay?"
Harry turned to her. "Sorry, been thinking a lot lately." He then pointed to the cliffside way off in the distance. "You see those cliffs there?" Pyrrha nodded. "Somewhere resting on the side is the village of Soin My."
"Soin My?" Pyrrha mumbled to herself, shaking her head. "No, I don't recall any village by that name."
"It's a fishing village that doesn't care much for outsiders." Harry shrugged. "But they were sure appreciative when Sirius and I saved them from a Grimm invasion."
Pyrrha's eyes widened. "You fought a horde of Grimm? Is this Sirius a trained Huntsman?"
Harry shook his head. "He's just that, well, cool of a guy. It helps that he has loads of combat training and skill after years of fighting the minions of Voldemort."
"The terrorist who killed your family?" Pyrrha asked, then clasped her hands over her mouth. "Oh, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that."
"It's alright." Harry waved her off, turning to stare at the cliffs again. "It's been so long ago that I don't even remember them." It was certainly a fact of life, but it really upset a lot of people when he put it like that.
Pyrrha settled with staring out the window as well, looking thoroughly embarrassed. Neither of them said a word for several long moments, which Harry appreciated. It was several moments more before Pyrrha spoke again. "Can't believe that our first semester at Beacon is already done."
"Blimey, you're right." Harry laughed a little. Most of the students at Beacon had finished up their exams just the other day and the two week-long break had begun. Everyone, except Team Delph. As compensation for the disastrous mission, they were allowed automatic passes to their combat proficiency exams. They still had to sit the written exam, much to Percy's horror. Harry still remembered the face he made when Percy got the written exam results in and showed that, by a razor thin margin, he passed. The sheer joy was something else, he even hugged Harry which neither of them expected. Harry made sure to mention he would write each of his teammates when he got settled. None of them mentioned what they would be doing, which made Harry feel a little annoyed, but hoped he would hear some details soon. Particularly Percy on his travels. "How're you holding up now that you're separated from your teammates?"
Pyrrha smiled at the change in conversation. "They're going to visit Jaune and his family in Lower Cairn. They were really not wanting to come to Mistral with me." She looked to the ground. "I wonder if it's something I said."
"Please." Harry said, turning away. "They're your friends. If they refuse on coming with you, it ought to be something else entirely."
Pyrrha mustered a small smile. "Thanks, Harry. I needed to hear that."
"Of course." Harry really wondered why she was blushing as heavily as she was but dismissed it to see the countryside that now rolled underneath them. It once again lapsed into silence. This time, Harry saw something that did make him look out of the window out of interest. Houses, white houses rising in a steady slope. "We're back in Mistral."
"Yes, we are." Pyrrha stood up, brushing herself off then walked to the front of the ship to gather the duffel bags containing her gear. Her earlier cheeriness was still there, but there was a definite tension in her body now. Harry knew it for what it was immediately; he himself felt that way quite a lot at Hogwarts. Why would they treat her any differently?
"Hang on tightly, passengers. This airbus is about to come to a landing." The pilot's voice echoed through the deck before clicking off. Harry stood himself up to, pulling out the brand-new case containing a rebuilt Firebolt. Harry grimaced as he remembered the long scar-like gash stretching all across the back. Would that mess with his ability to fly? He would definitely try to find out. It took a long time, but he felt the airbus starting to slow down before coming to a stop. "At least it's better than Grif's flying." Harry said, trying to lighten the mood. It got barely a smile from Pyrrha. "It's alright. Let me lead the way." Harry said. Pyrrha looked confused by the request but nodded and stepped to his side.
The hatch hissed before sliding open. Harry felt himself bombarded with flashes of light and clamoring. "Pyrrha! Pyrrha! How was your time at Beacon?" The questions flew as they stood before a mass of people pointing and grinning at them. Yup, like Hogwarts alright. Pyrrha waved and smiled, and Harry supposed she did it rather well if no one was calling her out. But to him, it was the most sad thing he had ever seen. God, was this how he looked all these years? Harry coughed, straightened himself out, and started walking down the rampway. He smiled as he passed, waving at people now and then. Pyrrha did the same, but she still had that stiffness about her. "Who are you? Are you Pyrrha's partner at Beacon?" Someone in the crowd asked.
"Harry Potter, at your service." Harry bowed. "And no, we're just friends."
"Are you two dating?" Someone else in the crowd asked. Harry refused to even acknowledge that, walking onward. Pyrrha had a massive blush on her face, seemingly heard the question. Just what got her so flustered now?
"Pyrrha!" A little girl with black hair walked under the tightropes and in front of them. "I want to be just like you when I grow up."
"I'm sure you will, honey." Pyrrha said, giving her a smile that was more genuine than before. She picked the girl up and passed her to her parents who took her.
The questions kept coming on as they passed. "Harry! What is Beacon Academy like? Tell it to the crowd." A reporter stood in front of them now, taking a picture of Pyrrha and Harry who were now side by side.
"Life changing." Harry said, "I wouldn't miss it for the world."
"Oh. So humble. So humble." The reporter muttered, worse than even Midoriya, as the two passed on either side. Before them now was a black limo stretched out, the driver holding the door open.
"Ms. Nikos, your ride please."
"Thank you so much." Pyrrha said, getting into the vehicle. "Come on, Harry. We're going together." Harry stared inside then stepped in, sliding next to her. The leather seats were comfortable, rather like the Ministry vehicles that took him and the Weasleys to King's Cross. Harry and Pyrrha weren't alone, though. An older man was sitting in front of them, wearing a grey suit jacket and wearing a straw hat.
"Pete!" Pyrrha said, going over to hug the man. He hugged her back before letting go.
"Ms. Nikos, it's good to see you again. Looking stronger already, I see." He said, glancing back down on his not-Scroll.
Pyrrha stared at her muscular arms, which were even bigger than Harry's even after months of training much to his chagrin. "Not really." She said. She then turned to Harry. "Oh, sorry, I forgot to introduce you. Harry, this is Pete Musabini. He's been my personal trainer since I started Academy training."
"Please. You had all the natural talent already. I just gave you a push in the right direction." Pete waved her off, turning to Harry and looking at him curiously. "So you're Harry Potter are you? Pyrrha told me about you and your teammates."
"Did she?" Harry asked, turning to Pyrrha who had turned away, looking thoroughly embarrassed again.
"Yes. She took you under her wing to train you. Got a lot of potential, I hear." Pete's gaze became sharp, examining every inch of him like a bird of prey looking for its meal. Harry fidgeted under his look.
"Don't worry about it." Pyrrha said, seeming to sense Harry's discomfort. "He did the same to me when I came to him for help."
"Is that right?" Harry asked as Pete's gaze softened.
"You're a ranged fighter, I can tell already. Been bulking up a little at a fast rate, yes, but I've eaten wet noodles thicker than your muscles. Combined with a tallness, you'd fall over the second you swung a sword. You're a born sharpshooter."
"I also like to fly." Harry blurted out. He was starting to become quite annoyed with how quickly this man judged him. He didn't know him at all!
"Flying. Hmmm.." Pete leaned back in his seat, taking a puff of a very unpleasant-smelling cigar. "Yes, I can see that too. But I see something else as well." He leaned in close again, not as inquisitive this time. "We're almost to the hotel now, so I'll keep this brief. Anytime you're looking for advice on fighting, you come to me. Consider it an offer on the house, a thanks for helping Pyrrha adjust to Beacon life so well."
"Uh, right. I'll think on that." Harry replied stiffly. He really didn't want to be any closer to this man, but then he remembered Merlot's island, and how useless he felt while wadding through those monsters. Harry would truly think on it.
"Here's my card when you reach a conclusion." Pete handed him a white paper card which Harry took. The limo came to a full stop. "This is for you. Good to see you again, Pyrrha."
"Good to see you too, Pete." Pyrrha said, opening the door on her end. She and Harry got out, and Harry's jaw dropped.
"Isn't this a bit much?" Harry asked. They were standing in practically a palace, white walls with slanted red roofs that looked oddly Japanese in design, rising up so high Harry couldn't even see the top.
"Maybe. I really love coming here after a fight." Pyrrha grinned at the building entrance. She then turned to Harry, her expression changing into something Harry couldn't quite read. "You're used to it. The scrutiny, reporters, crowds. They are good people but they're too much. You've handled them like they're second nature." She tried to play it off as curious but it came across as rather demanding.
Harry's shoulders sagged. "Is it that obvious? Alright, I suppose I can't hide it any longer. The school I went to for training, they held a similar view of me those people do for you. I would be surrounded by my friends, one of whom the height of Beacon tower, and they would still see me. Voldemort's rampage left a big impact on the school and just because I survived his killing spree as a child, students and staff alike adored me like the next coming of the gods. Because my parents died, none of theirs had to pay that price."
"That's horrible!" Pyrrha exclaimed, horror-struck.
"That's my life really." Harry shrugged again. "And I've been used to other scrutiny too. I was pegged a troublemaker since my elementary teacher's wig turned blue. Then there's this greasy bat who called himself my combat instructor who hated me the moment I walked through the front doors. If I didn't know better, Snape spends his spare time imagining ways he could kill me and get away with it." Pyrrha's already pale face turned to marble, her green eyes being the size of plates. Harry didn't mind as he adjusted his shoes, Snape really was that much of a git.
"Harry!" Harry looked up to the front entrance. Sirius Black was standing there at the front entrance, his arms spread wide. He was wearing a black robe of sorts with a gold belt around his waist with the symbol of Gryffindor on his waist.
"Sirius." Harry rushed up to him, hugging him tightly. Sirius embraced him tightly. This was better than the Dursleys, better than Percy, hell even the Weasleys when Mrs. Weasley hugged him. This was his last family and he would embrace every second of it. When he let go, he saw that Sirius had something like tears in his eyes.
"Hey are you doing, pup?" He asked.
"I've been better, believe me. I'll manage." Harry tried to brush it off. He had seen a lot, but something but Merlot's Island stuck in his mind.
"Pyrrha! Welcome home!" Harry saw a women he hadn't noticed before stepping forward, embracing Pyrrha like a child would with a teddy tear. She had a remarkable resemblance to Pyrrha, Weasley red hair but more fire with the same green eyes. It didn't take much thought for Harry to realize it was her mother, but where was her father? The one Pyrrha mentioned on the airbus. When they let go, Pyrrha looked gleeful. "Why don't we step inside? I would like to introduce you to some of the best tea Mistral has to offer."
"Can't be any better than my own." Sirius grinned. Pyrrha's momentary boast fell flat and she spluttered.
"Come along, dear. Let's get you something warm. You've had such a long journey." Her mother said, guiding her inside. Pyrrha let herself be guided in, giving a final glance back to Harry as she passed.
"Her mother is quite something." Sirius commented, watching them pass.
"You know them?" Harry asked, watching them disappear into the hotel as well.
"Only a bit. The daughter's a bit of a recluse from what I've heard, but her mother is something quite different." Sirius shook his head. "She's taken to stalking me for a while."
"If she's following a tea maker let alone you, then there's something to follow." Harry grinned to Sirius. He didn't know where that came from, but it felt right. "Where's her dad? Isn't he supposed to be here?"
"Nope." Sirius replied. "Haven't heard the details on that either but it seems he got himself blown up several years ago. Very tragic." Harry stared at Pyrrha's back as she disappeared around a corner. Harry felt really bad talking about family in front of Pyrrha then; Harry at least had the luxury of not remembering his family. In his opinion, Pyrrha had it way worse.
"Yeah." They stepped inside.
"You alright, pup?" Sirius asked, taking Firebolt's case from him. "Blimey, that's heavy. What are you hauling around in there?"
"I'll show you later." Harry grinned at him. Honestly, he really was excited about showing him. They walked along the elegant hallways to the main lobby, something plaguing Harry's mind. "Uh, Sirius?"
"Hm?"
"You mind if we met somewhere where no one could listen to us?"
Sirius glanced around. "Follow me." He led them into the emergency hallway. "Illusionst!" Sirius whispered. A ripple of air around them fell, and the humming that came from the lobby dimmed. Sirius embraced Harry once more, this time tighter. "Are you alright? You was your first semester at Beacon?"
"It went rather well at first." Harry said, not sure what else he could say at this time. "Made some friends, fought some Grimm, things most of these other students are so good at. Turns out every student is stuck in a block of four students who need to work together as a team. Let me show you them." Harry produced the plastic picture of his team and showed it to Sirius. The picture is of the four boys standing in front of a tree with Beacon in the background. "This is our leader, Dexter Grif."
"I see." Sirius said, examining the photo closer. "I would expect a student that emphasizes combat to be in better shape. And is that a can of tuna he has in hand?"
"Yup." Harry nodded. "He's a very greedy eater and likes to sleep a lot. But whatever he's experienced before made him a decent fighter, and a decent bloke if you know how to communicate with him." He then pointed to Midoriya throwing a mock fist and grinning. "This is Izuku Midoriya. Unless you really get to know him, he just goes by Midoriya."
"Is that so? Interesting." Sirius rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "What's he like? Hopefully he's better than Grif."
"I couldn't think of two more opposing personalities than them." Harry grinned as he remembered the first days and seeing those two trying to gel. It was nothing short of hilarious. "Midoriya works himself too hard, I think, and a bit dramatic. I thought I was bad at talking with girls, Midoriya looks like he ought to explode from being in a room with one. But when he fights, God, he could best us all." Then he pointed out Percy, slouching against the tree with Riptide resting along the trunk. "This is Perseus Jackson. Just, call him Percy and you two would get along like brothers. Percy's an excellent swordsman and an all-around cool guy. God, you should meet him sometime, Sirius. He gets me better than even Ron and Hermione do at times."
Sirius's eyes widened and he gave a whistle. "That's impressive." He studied him closer than the others. "He seems off, though. What do you make of that?"
"He's experienced loads of things I doubt I could handle." Harry shivered, remembering Percy's recount of his fight with Ares on the Los Angeles beach. "There's so much to tell that it would take days to get through. What we do need to know is that he's in our shoes."
"What do you mean?"
"As in, he's one of us. He's not from Remnant."
Sirius paused, thinking about what Harry said. "He's a wizard? Ilvermorny?"
"No, he's something else entirely. Like I said, that's a long story we really shouldn't get into today." Harry sighed. "If Percy hadn't been on the mission, we'd all have been killed."
"What happened?" Sirius's voice was sharp now, like a knife point.
"The school bullies got themselves into some deep trouble and we were chosen to get them out. Only one survived." Harry looked away, not able to meet Sirius's hardened look. "I did what I could, but it wasn't good enough. If I don't change how I work, I'll never be good enough." Harry had not intended to let that last part go out loud, but that tension had been building in Harry's mind long enough. He really hated being stuck in this position.
Sirius continued staring at him before letting out a sigh. "Harry, let me put it this way. You survived a mission that other students didn't. Have you seen the things they're able to do here? You should be proud of yourself for it." He glanced to Harry again, a very determined light in his eye now. "You survived to now on a half-baked magical education. Did you use magic on the mission at all?"
Harry thought back to the island. "I tried to be discrete about it."
Sirius nodded in thought. "That's good, you should keep it that way. But if you're going to need it, you'll need a faster draw still." Sirius straightened up. "You got two weeks here before you go back to Beacon?"
"Yes."
"Okay. I still remember a good bit of magic from my Hogwarts days. From now to then, I'm going to teach you some of the more advanced spells that can be done. With luck, I can even get you to do it without a wand."
"Percy's tried for months to get me to do that. I can't get so much as a wisp out." Harry grumbled. That was a particularly stinging bit of his training.
Sirius grinned now, a dog-like grin that made Harry nervous all of a sudden. "Well, Percy's not me. Just you wait, I'll get you whipped right into shape." He glanced around. Aside from one person who walked right by them without noticing, they were alone. "We should get going. The girls are probably looking for us by now."
"Yeah, they are." Harry said. Sirius canceled out the disillusionment charm and they walked out.
"This'll be fun, Harry." Sirius wrapped an arm around Harry's shoulder as they walked back into the main lobby.
Izuku Midoriya was laying down on his bed, staring at the ceiling fan as it spun round and round. He tried to push his leg exercise regimen even further than he did before if kicking is going to be his main method of combat now. Turns out after fighting for your life and then intense workouts lead to pulled muscles. The bandages had come off after the new nurse had gotten him healed up, but he still felt broken. Being a hero didn't mean that he would be able to save everyone he could but that he could save as many as possible. And yet, the more he stared at the fan, the more detail came to Midoriya of the bunker and CRDL's suicide pact at its end result.
He was training to be a Huntsman now, how many more scenes like this would be expect to see? Midoriya's eyes widened as a thought occurred to him. He realized that heroes were great at their jobs at protecting people, but being a Huntsman required more from him. It required not only defending people from villains but also to let go of his inhibitions and fight to kill the Grimm. With a grunt, Midoriya pulled himself to where he sat upright, twisting around and standing up. Midoriya grimaced as the pulled hamstring screamed at him to sit down.
Midoriya made his way to the bathroom, resting his hands on the counter and staring at his own reflection in the mirror. He raised up a hand to touch the scar on his face, the three gashes running from the top of his left forehead to his right cheek, barely missing his eyes. "Can I do this?" Midoriya asked, his voice dying off as he spoke it. He wanted to be a hero for longer than he could remember but right now, being a Huntsman was the only thing he can do to fulfill his wish. Was being a hero that different from being a Huntsman? Yes, they both went out into the world to protect the people, giving their own lives if needed. He could imagine Professor Peach saying to them, "It's alright. I did what I could." Yet, there was an underlying note of violence that Huntsmen bear. He'd been watching lots of videos of Huntsmen fighting Grimm, and what did Midoriya see? None of them holding back, some of them even losing themselves and laughing while smashing Grimm. There's some villains like Stain that Midoriya would attack, but he only attacked to incapacitate but keep alive; these Huntsmen he saw fought to kill. It disturbed Midoriya more than he cared to admit especially because of how easy it could be to fall into anarchy and cause more harm than good. His own teammates reflect this underlying philosophy to some extent whether they admit it or not. How much is good enough? Midoriya rubbed his eyes. He turned his attention to the far corner of the mirror. There he taped a picture he drew of All Might in his silver age costume, grinning down at him. "What should you do, All Might?" Midoriya asked out loud. "Please, I need some help here." The picture kept grinning at him, but didn't speak. Midoriya groaned. How would he talk? He was just a picture hanging on a wall. He needed to try and figure this out today. He glanced down at his stomach as it rumbled, the mirror vibrating a little. Detour to lunch it is.
"Grif would be proud of me." Midoriya grumbled to himself, grabbing the wooden stick resting next to the counter and walking out the apartment. He walked slowly down the halls, opening the front entrance once he reached the bottom level. The smells and sounds of Vale struck Midoriya as he stepped outside and yet, it was oddly comforting. It was the sounds he would hear every day in Tokyo going to school. "Thanks, Headmaster." Midoriya said, taking the cane and walking down the street. That was something else to think about as he walked, Ozpin's generosity. He not only believed Midoriya's story but taught him some of the basic principles of how Remnant works, geography and got him an apartment in Vale. Midoriya really doesn't want to say anything out loud to upset Ozpin and have him rescind it, but it was still highly suspicious to him.
"Midoriya?" Midoriya glanced back. Blake was standing in the middle of the street. She was wearing a black shirt and white shorts that go to her knees, her bow displayed prominently to hide her cat ears. "What are you doing here?"
"Going to the docks then getting some lunch." Midoriya said. "There's no beach in Vale so this will have to do."
Blake stared at him with suspicion but ultimately let it go. Her eyes then fell on his wooden stick. "What happened?"
"Trained too hard, strained a muscle." Midoriya shrugged. He had pulled muscles all the time while going through All Might's American Dream Plan and this one wasn't nearly as bad as those were. "Nothing I can't handle."
Blake walked over to him. "You need to stop doing this. You'll get yourself hurt beyond repair one day." She placed a hand on Midoriya's shoulder and started glowing. It was a similar warmth to when Peach gave up her Aura, but it felt colder if that was possible. In an instant, his leg felt much better. Midoriya kicked it in different directions and sure enough, it was healed.
"Thanks." Midoriya said, smiling again. "It really wasn't that bad though."
"Sure it wasn't." Blake rolled her eyes at that but smiled a little. "Do you mind if I join you? I'm meeting up with Sun later today and I left too early."
"Yeah, of course." Midoriya said. "Who's Sun?"
"He's one of the transfer students from Vacuo's premier Huntsman academy." Blake said, smiling wider still. "He wants me to meet his teammates."
"They're here already?" Midoriya was surprised. He thought they were all supposed to arrive the day of the second semester's start. Blake looked away from him like he didn't want to say any more. How odd. They continued walking in silence now, reaching the docks of Vale. So far, no one was present or working at this point so they were completely alone. "So what brings you out here to the docks?"
"I need fresh air and a place to think." Midoriya replied, sitting himself down, legs dangling over the edge as water splashed him. "When I was back home, whenever I needed to get away and think about something, I would go to the local beach."
"That sounds like it works well." Blake said, sitting down next to him. She didn't speak for several moments and neither did Midoriya.
"How're your teammates?" Midoriya asked.
"Weiss flew back home to Atlas this morning. Ruby and Yang? Got the boat from what I could tell."
"Why aren't you going home too?" Blake looked away from Midoriya at that. It occurred to Midoriya that he may have crossed some sort of line. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked."
"That's okay, you didn't know." She said, staring at the ocean herself. "My family don't want to see me again. I can't face them."
"The daughter of Ghira Belladonna, chief of Menagerie, being a member of the White Fang? I do get that." Midoriya replied.
Blake whipped around, her eyes wide and startled. "How do you know about that?"
"I made it a point to know who the current leaders of the world are." Midoriya remembered the lessons Ozpin gave him on Remnant and its leaders. He'd known since the team naming that she must have been related. She even had the chief's eyes.
Blake didn't look convinced even in the slightest but settled with a grimace. "Not many know this, but Ghira was one of the first founders of the White Fang after he retired from the Huntsmen life. He tried to keep it to its roots, but the ones who forced him out and took over, they killed his remaining allies and turned it into the organization you know of today. And seriously? There's so many crime syndicates around the world and yet when any crime happens, they're the ones who get picked on."
"Because they're the ones who make the most noise." Midoriya answered. It was just like the villain societies back home. There's always rumors of underground armies of villains waiting to come out but it's the loud few who distract from the possibility.
"Are you seriously defending them?" Blake demanded, looking angry now. "That sort of scrutiny is what brought the White Fang to this point. If it continues, it's only going to get worse."
"Then they need to be contained." Midoriya replied. He really didn't understand where this anger was coming from. "Contained until people can actually talk about the problems."
"And what if that doesn't happen, huh? What next?"
Midoriya stared at her for a moment, trying to figure out what to say next. Heroes would help to solve the problem, and Blake was being silly about all this but in a way, she was right. What if it didn't happen? What if things continued on or got worse? "Then we take it one step at a time and hope." Midoriya answered, turning back to the waves.
Blake, thankfully, didn't yell at him anymore. "What was the thought?" Midoriya looked back, curious. "The reason that brought you out here. What was it you wanted to think through?"
Midoriya was silent, trying to decide if he should say. He didn't want to say it, but from what Blake said, she might have something of an understanding of what he's getting at. "Something along the lines of what you said. What does it mean to be a Huntsman? I spent a lot of time loving heroism and wanting to become a superhero. But the mission we had, I can't get it out of my mind." Blake said nothing but was watching him with interest. "Being a Huntsman is different, like really different from what I wanted to be and I don't know what to think of it."
They went silent once more, Midoriya looking at the waves. He had hoped saying it out loud to someone would help, but it didn't at all. "Not all Huntsmen are built the same." Blake spoke at last. "My Dad was a Huntsmen for years before he quit. You can select what missions you want to take. Outside of kingdom, inside kingdom, destroy, rescue, anything you can think of. If its only civilian rescue you want, then do it. You would be looked down on in the huntsmen community but you'd keep yourself relatively safe from the worst. You would be spared horrible things but not all. People can treat each other and others as bad as the Grimm, believe me. Violence itself has its value, that its usage in the right places can deter further violence if done right. But it gives power that few would be willing to relinquish. The White Fang proved that reality. You got to figure out what type you want to use."
Midoriya listened to every word she said, his eyes widening. She was right. He didn't have to get violent, but if it was done to save, to protect, perhaps he should consider it more. But at what point would it not be worth it? Midoriya had a lot to think about still, but it was on a reasonable path. "Thanks, Blake."
"No problem." She glanced down at her watch. "It's probably time I meet up with Sun. Want to join me?"
"Sure." Both stood up and walked away. Midoriya gave a final glance back to the dock before turning back. The decision sounded good right about now but it still was different from what he was used to. He hoped it was a change for the better.
Percy Jackson really wanted to get out of dodge while he could. The crowds of students eager to leave Beacon was nauseating so he made sure that they were among the first to get out. It was the same as every other school Percy attended in his life. At least with this one, he stands a chance of making it past the first year. He really should get Harry something as thanks for being his personal tutor.
He said his goodbyes to the team and practically leapt across the rooftops to the Vale Docks. The sea air filled his lungs and he took in a deep breath. It was good to be back where he belonged. He made his way to the private docks, where the personal boats were docked by landowners or leased out. Percy walked along the dock among the boats, fancy and dingy, until he reached his own. The Chase compared to its companions was an average-sized sailing boat with brown wood panels and a white deck with furled white sails. During his travels along the coast line of Vale, he had come across this boat shipwrecked and half-eaten by Grimm so Percy used one of the many favors he was owed to have the boat rebuilt the day before he got the request to attend Beacon. It was one of the few possessions Percy had, and he was really proud of this one. He immediately got to work untying the boat from the dock. "Hey, Percy." Percy's head whipped up. Ruby and Yang were standing on the dock, watching him work.
"Don't you have somewhere to go?" Percy asked, returning his attention to the dock. He paused when he felt the ship rock under him.
"We do," Yang said, "And you're taking us there."
"Why would I do that? Don't you already have something planned?" Percy asked, stopping his work and turning to look at her fully. She didn't remind him as much of Annabeth as she once did, but it was still striking.
"The boat for Patch is shut down today." Ruby explained in her sister's place. "We'd heard from Harry that you owned a boat so we were hoping that you'd sort of, y'know, take us there."
Percy groaned. Why couldn't he have just one day alone lately? One day, that's all he asked for. It's like the Fates back home were still getting their kicks out of whacking a Percy-shaped pinata. Still, he knew these sisters well enough where if their minds were made up, no one could do a thing about it. "Alright. Welcome aboard!"
"I knew you'd see our view." Yang said, making her way to the front of the ship and plopping herself down. Percy bristled at her attitude but didn't want to say anything about it. Once the last knot holding them to the dock came undone, the boat drifted in the water, sometimes scratching up against the surface.
"Hold on." Percy said, flipping a switch. The motor on the boat revved to life and Percy steered them out of the dock and into the bay. Ruby and Yang, to their credit, actually listened and moved to the far side of the boat, hanging onto the silver railings. Once they were far enough out into the water, Percy left the canopied region and made his way to the mast, tugging on the last knot. It came undone and the white sails unfurled outward, billowing in the wind already. Percy snagged the end of the sail and pulled it to the mast base, clipping it in. All done, Percy returned to his perch and deactivated the motors. It was a routine that Percy took solace in, returning to the deck and laying down, feeling the salty sea air whipping around him.
"Wow, that was incredible." Ruby said, star-struck by Percy's work.
"Yeah, that was pretty impressive how you handled that." Yang added on, eyes wide.
Percy grinned. "I love being out on the water. It helps me to clear my head."
"Meh, it's nothing like riding on Bumblebee but this has its fun too." Yang said, standing up and stretching. Percy saw the sails bending in a direction that would take them too far northwest of Patch so with a thought, the sails corrected themselves and set them straight. "You want to join us for the break? Dad would be happy to have a guest, just don't give the wrong impression about our relationship."
"Yeah, that'll be hard to do." Percy replied, working at the ropes. Yang said nothing but she did look rather hurt by that. Percy did feel a little bad about it, but really, what did she think he was going to say?
"Percy, is everything okay?" Ruby asked, looking between them.
"Of course. Why wouldn't it be?" Percy asked, giving a small laugh. He got up again and adjusted the sails to correct the course once more then pulled out a compass from the captain's corner. "Alright, our current heading is 294 degrees West-North-West. I've done the trip from Patch to Vale many times, we should reach the main port in 5 hours."
"Sweet!" Ruby said then shielded her face as a large gust of wind hit her. She then glanced back to Percy for some reason. "Uh, Percy? Where are you going to go for break?" That was a good reason for the concerned look. Secretly, Percy was hoping to get them off his boat as fast as possible and spend the whole time searching for a way home. He hoped that Harry had luck in his search as well. As much as Percy didn't want to admit it, he needed Harry's help in this search.
"I don't know, wherever the winds take me." He returned his attention to the boat, tightening up the sails as the wind gusts became particularly strong.
Yang placed a hand on her hips. "That's sounds lonely."
"It works for me." Percy shrugged. "Get to meet new people every day, fight some Grimm. What more do I need."
Instead of getting the sisters off his back, they only became more concerned. Gods, what was he saying that was so wrong? "Uh, Percy? Are you trying to avoid someone?" Ruby asked.
Percy flinched. One could say he was trying to avoid Gaea and her monsters or the rest of her sons, but none of them were here. Did Annabeth and the rest of the seven succeed in besting Gaea? He needed to get back to them to help before something really bad happened. "No, of course not. No monsters have been trying to have me for lunch lately so that's paradise for me."
Both sisters shared a look but thankfully, neither asked him further questions. They settled with playing on their Scrolls as Percy continued his work for sailing. The trip continued on when Ruby looked up from her Scroll. "There it is!" Ruby pointed. Percy glanced over. Way off in the distance, they could see a spot of land. Percy thought about his navigation. It wasn't just a rock in the water; it really was Patch. "Oh crap!" She said, her eyes widening. "I need to tune up Crescent Rose. Be right back." She rushed to the lower deck of the boat, disappearing from sight. Yang glanced at the open door, then back to Percy before walking to the hatch and closing it.
"I know that's going to take the rest of the time between here and Patch." Yang said, walking to Percy's side and sitting down. "Percy, there's something I need to talk with you about."
"What's that?"
Yang twiddled her fingers, not saying anything for a moment. "Why do you hate me?"
Percy blinked. Of all the things he expected Yang to ask, that was definitely not one of them. "No, I don't hate you, Yang."
"Then why do you avoid me at every opportunity?" She demanded, gripping the railing tightly. "I've seen how you interact with the others. Harry, he's like a brother to you. If I didn't see how you interacted with anyone else, I would have pegged you for a cold bad boy. I can be a bit much to get used to, I've been told that all my life, but if there's something I said that's wrong, please tell me. It's really damn annoying being kept in the dark like this, so what the hell?"
Percy's eyes widened, turning to look away from Yang. He had his challenges with Yang, sure, but was he being unfair to her? Yeah, probably. If she's going to have his back on anything like what happened on the island, then he needed to get on her good side as soon as possible. And that meant giving up something in return. "Okay, but please, keep this between us. It's because it's really hard being around you." He said.
"Why?" Yang crossed her arms under her impressive boobs.
"Because you remind me of my girlfriend." Yang blanched. "Her name is Annabeth, Annabeth Chase. You want to know the full truth? That's it."
"What's she like?" Yang said slowly like she was walking on eggshells, looking very scared now.
"She's beautiful with the same shade of blonde as yours. She's able to hold her own in a fight. She kind of reminds me of how you fight, not afraid to step in especially if someone is in need. I wouldn't have lived this long without her guidance and support. I can depend on her for anything that comes our way. Gods, I wish she could see Beacon, she could spend months looking at every angle of the castle."
"How come I haven't ever heard about her before now?"
Percy winced on the inside. This was the part he was dreading the most. "We got separated during a Grimm attack. I have no idea where she is or any of the rest of my friends. I know they're somewhere but it's like they vanished, poof! I need to find them before something terrible happens."
Yang looked terrified as Percy went on, "Wow, okay." She coughed into her hand, now looking determined. "She must be really special then."
"She really is. She's the best friend I ever had." Of course, there was more to those thoughts, but Percy refused to say any of it out loud. Even Harry wouldn't get to hear that part. Percy wiped his face. Why was his fist wet?
"That settles it." Yang stood up and walked over, holding out a hand to him. "I'm going to help you find them."
Percy stared at her hand then back up at her. "No, it's alright. I appreciate it, I really do, but I can do it."
"You're not getting away from me that easily." She smirked now, "I know a thing or two about tracking down loved ones. I remember when she was younger, Ruby would try and sneak out from Dad's side to raid the sweets shops. If she really means that much to you, then I'll do what I can to lend a hand."
"Really?"
Yang's face hardened. "I know what that's like. Come on, what say you?"
Percy returned his focus to her hand. It was a risk but it was one he was willing to take. He grasped her hand and pulled himself up. "Thanks, Yang. Let's make it happen."
She brightened up further, smiling widely. The door burst open. "All done." Ruby shouted, beaming at them. She then looked between Percy and Yang. "Um, am I interrupting something?"
"Not at all, Ruby." Yang said, turning to her sister. "Percy here was just about to take us into Patch."
Percy nodded, thankful that Yang didn't say anything, returning his attention to the sails as the boat made its way for Patch's main port. It reminded him a little of New England with how the town was laid out and fishermen hauling in cages with the day's catch. Percy frowned at the sight but said nothing as the boat made its way to an open dock, Percy steering them to a full stop. "Welcome to Patch!" Percy called, taking ropes on the side of the boat and tossing it over the side, lashing them to the docks.
"Excuse me, sir." Percy glanced up to the dock workman who was rushing to them.
"Hiya, Rusty!" Percy called out waving at him.
Rusty came to a stop, his eyes widening. "Percy! How are you doing? Gods, it's been months! Where the hell were you?"
"Attending the one and only Beacon Academy." Percy grinned. "My application came through."
Rusty dropped his clipboard in shock, before he scrambled to pick it back up. "You? At Beacon? Please." He scoffed at that.
"No, really. We just got back from there." Ruby replied, waving at him.
Rusty scoffed again. "I repeat what I said. Still, you got one night here, Percy. You better make it count."
"Thanks, Rusty." He nodded, writing some stuff on his clipboard before leaving.
"Well, he's nice." Yang said sarcastically.
"He's a nervous wreck most of the time." Percy said as he finished the last touches to the knots, lashing down the sails once more. "But he's alright. I've met much worse on my travels."
"I bet." Yang said, walking along the docks. Some of the dock workers looked up from their work to watch as they passed, mostly on Yang. "Hiya, boys." Yang waved to them. They gave small waves back then returned to their work.
They reached the head of the dock. "Dad should be waiting for us at the parking lot." Ruby said, pointing to the parking lot up top. As they were walking up, Ruby turned back. "You really should join us for dinner tonight."
Percy thought it over for a bit. He would be here for he night, and it would be nice not having to pay to sleep. "Yeah, sure. Why not?"
"Dad'll kill us, bringing a boy to the house." Yang said then whipped her hair around. "Still, it's been a while since we've had guests. He shouldn't mind too much."
"Killer dads. Yay." Percy grumbled but followed behind regardless. The three reached the top of the hill where several vehicles were parked.
"Hiya, girls. Miss me?" They turned. There, standing next to an SUV, is a tall blonde man with a small stubble on his chin. He wore a brown vest with a shoulder pad on his right side and a tattoo of what looked like a heart.
"Dad!" Ruby was the first to reach their Dad, hugging him tightly.
"Hey, kiddo. You made it through your first semester of Beacon. I'm proud of you." He rubbed her hair carefully. Percy smiled at the scene. It reminded him of simpler days, when he was younger and in the Montauk cabin with his own mom. He then saw Yang coming over. "And here's my flaming dragon." He hugged her tightly. "How are you doing?"
"I kicked some butt at Beacon, Dad." Yang grinned as she let go.
The man smiled at her too. And then his eyes fell on Percy. "Who's this?" He asked, his gentle tone whisked away for a suspicious one.
Ruby chuckled. "Dad, it's okay. This is Percy, he's one of our classmates. He's a member of Team Delph."
"Delph." He mused, staring at Percy with suspicion. If he thought that was an intimidating stare, it was rather wimpy. "Yes, I remember you mentioning them. Strange boys who can't even march in line without causing trouble."
"I would normally take the majority of shares on that." Percy said, "But that wouldn't be me. What is this world coming to for that?"
The man stared at Percy cautiously still, not saying a word. Yang decided to break the ice. "Come on, Dad. He's just a friend whose staying the night. As of the next morning, he'll be back on his boat and go elsewhere."
"You sailed here from Vale?" He asked, surprised. "Huh. And he didn't make any moves at all?" He asked Ruby. She paused for a moment then shook her head. He let out a breath. "Well, that's good to hear." He broke off the hug and held out a hand. "Nice to meet you. I'm Taiyang Xiao Long. Just call me Tai."
"Percy Jackson." He took his hand and shook it.
"You got a strong grip there, young man." Tai commented, staring at their hands.
"Where I come from, weakness like that gets you killed."
Tai's suspicion came back tenfold now. "You're from outside the kingdoms?"
Percy smirked. "Got to make a living of my own."
"I can tell." They separated. Tai started looking around now. "Where's that useless uncle of yours? He is somewhere around here?"
"How nice you hold me in such regard." A drawling voice called out. Percy glanced over to the source. It was an older man with greying black hair, a red cape and grey vest. He looked haggard like an overworked office worker. Percy could tell he had seen many a fight and not all of them ended well.
"Uncle Qrow!" Ruby shouted again, even louder than before if that was possible. Percy held his hands to his ears as Ruby hugged him too.
"Hey, kiddo. How are you?" He said, hugging her as well. He then saw Percy. "So you're Percy Jackson."
"You know me?" Percy asked, reaching for Riptide.
"Hey, it's alright." Qrow said with a raised hand. "I'd only heard about you while on happy hour with Port. Managing to beat the unbeaten champion from Argus? You got a bright future ahead of you." Qrow turned back to Tai. "I will be able to make dinner tonight. Hope you have the liquor out and ready."
"Big surprise." Tai said, rolling his eyes.
Qrow chuckled at that. "My supply ran out. Anyway, I have someone who I would like you to take care of tonight. Is that good with you?"
"Two guests?" Tai asked, shrugging. "Sure. Who's this other guest?"
"You'll have to see to understand. Hang on." He turned back. "Hey, brat! Get out here!"
"Shut up! You're not my dad!" A very familiar voice answered. Percy's heart sank. Sometimes, his life really did suck.
Dexter Grif stepped out of the car to face the family before him. It honestly reminded him somewhat of his family before his dad died and everything got all fucked up. Then the bastard Qrow had to ruin it by mentioning he was there. He stared from one person to the next. Ruby and Yang were stunned that he was standing there, their dad was looking cautious, then there's the asshole extraordinaire. "Oh, fuck me sideways." Grif grumbled. "Hey, Percy."
"Hi, Grif." Percy gave a half-assed wave to him.
"Who are you now?" Grif looked up, eye wide under his helmet. It couldn't be!
"Church?" Grif asked, looking around. Weird, the dad standing in the street was there but Church wasn't around. How did he get out of the entrapment capsule? "Where are you, you stupid ghost-man?"
"Who?" The dad asked. It did come from him! What was he thinking?
"Are you possessing this man? Show yourself, you stupid fuck!"
"Language." Ruby called out, softer than times in the past. That's good since this situation went from weird to FUBAR in 5 seconds flat.
"You need to have that mouth washed out, young man." The man said with anger in his voice. "And who's Church?"
"Church?" Grif asked, laughing hysterically. Why was he playing dumb like this? "That's you, man. You have his voice clear as day then deny you're him. Do you think I'm an idiot or something?"
The man's anger turned to confusion. "What are you talking about? I'm Tai."
"I eat Thai for breakfast. Are you trying to hide from Caboose and Tucker again?" Grif asked. That was the only thing that made sense to him. "I don't blame you. There's kids around after all."
"We attend Beacon. I'm not a kid anymore." Ruby said, very confused now.
"Oh-kay." He then turned to Qrow, having had enough of the family and their stupidity. "Qrow-man, if you ever meet Tucker, you'll understand. He'd stick his d…"
"Grif." Qrow said, his voice very dangerous now. "I dare you to finish that sentence, I really do."
"Uh, um." Grif asked, taking a step back. How was this guy so scary? It was like being around the Meta again.
"You scared Grif off." Percy said, blown away. He then turned to Qrow. "You're my hero, man."
"Hey, fuck you!" Grif said, giving him the bird. He didn't have to take this sort of abuse, he was leader now!
"Anyway," Not-Church said. "I don't have the room for him tonight."
"Come on." Qrow moaned. "Please take him? My place can't handle it anymore. Do it for me."
Tai glared at him before sighing. "Fine." He then turned back to Grif. "And you. You better behave yourself or I will straighten you out."
Grif let out a sigh. "Alright, fine. Let's fucking go."
"And stop swearing!" He shouted. Man, not-Church is really totally making his case for not being Church. "It's so goddamn annoying."
"Ah-ha!" Grif pointed to him triumphantly. "You are Church! Church would totally say something like that."
"For the last time," he said, his voice calming down but still angry, "I'm. Not. Church. Will you repeat that back to me? I'm. Not. Church."
"You. Are. Church." Grif replied, grinning under his helmet. He knew that it wasn't Church now, he would never say anything against the swear words. This was just screwing with him now. And it worked like a charm.
"I'm not entertaining this anymore." He said, getting into the car. "You're riding with Qrow." He got into the car and rode with everyone else but him. Qrow looked like he was having an aneurysm on the spot.
"Hey, welcome to the cool club." Grif said only to feel a slap to the back of the head.
"You need to treat your hosts with more respect than that. You should be glad you're staying somewhere at all."
"I'm used to sleeping outside. I don't need to go anywhere." Grif said as he got into the car. Qrow pulled it out of the lot and drove it away from the town. "Oh, thank God. I would have eaten fish again tonight." Qrow grunted but didn't respond. How rude. The road wound around, over hills and into the roads passing through a very scary-looking forest. For an island, Patch sure had some scary fucking forests. "How fucking long is this road?"
"We're almost there." Qrow's voice was tight. "And if you value your life, you will stop talking now."
"Yeah? And what'll that do?" Grif asked. Qrow didn't even remark to that, just kept driving. Hah, he knew that Qrow would back down, he really did. And yet, despite that, he really didn't say any more. When did he get so cautious? These damn nerds called his teammates are leaving a really big mark on him. The trees were here now, and getting thicker as they went on.
"Where the hell do these people live? In a serial killer's house?" Grif asked, watching the trees go by. Qrow said nothing again. "Fine, be like that." Grif rolled down the window, waving his hand like a boat on the water.
"Shut the window." Qrow demanded.
"Ah, you're no fun at all." Grif grumbled but did so. He had spent enough time with Qrow to know that when he demanded something like that, then you did it. "Look, we're stuck together so if you stick with this charade, it's not gonna…"
"Just shut up." Qrow held up a hand. "We're here." He parked the car in front of a two-story log cabin.
"I hope you'll remember, if there's a serial killer that comes after us, I'll make sure to haunt your asses." Grif got out too.
"This is a nice place." Percy was saying as Grif stretched his legs.
"Thank you, Percy. I built it by hand myself." Not-Church was commenting. Grif scoffed; bullshit, he built that house himself.
"Dinner's all ready and waiting inside." The three kids walked through the front entrance.
"Where's the booze?" Qrow demanded. Not-Church sighed.
"It's in the top cabinet. Help yourself." Qrow whooped and ran inside, slamming the door shut. Not-Church turned back. "Now, Grif was it?"
"Uh, yeah. Who do you think I am, Jesse Ventura?" Grif asked.
"Who?" Not-Church shook his head. "Enough. I'm not this Church fellow, I'm Tai. I don't know what your family situation is so I'm letting you have space out of the goodness of my heart. But, if you do anything illicit around or to my daughters, then I'll make sure your life is a living hell."
"Hey, whoa. I've got better things to do than be a creep." Grif held his hands up. "I can think of some others who'd do that but that ain't my style."
Not-Church, Tai, whatever, sighed. "Okay, I'll take your word for it. But before I let you into my home, I just have to ask. Why did Ozpin make you team leader?"
Grif lowered his head. That was something he found himself wondering about, ever since Fuck-Face got his team killed. "Hell if I know. All that I know is that it happened."
Tai gave him a God-killing stare, one that would have made Grif shrink back but years of Sarge made him immune to it. "What do you mean you don't know? You made it to a position of leadership at one of the top academies on Remnant, not know why, and you don't even question it?"
"I've stopped questioning anything lately. If you've dealt with as much crap as I have, you'd be in my place."
That got Tai to shut up, looking shocked. "You've lost someone close to you, didn't you?"
"Try me some other time." Grif really didn't want to get into this conversation, let alone with a guy with Church's voice. It was so annoying. He walked up the steps to the front steps and pulled the door open. Now this was the type of place Grif liked. No fancy decorations, no Donut breathing down your neck to wear your pants every morning. Just a couch and a TV. Grif took in a deep breath, breathing it all in.
"Grif, come on! Since when has food staying away from you for more than five minutes?" Percy called out in his usual mocking tone.
"Don't rush me." Grif called out before walking into the kitchen area. Everyone was already sitting down with bowls of something green and flaky. "What is this?"
"Salad." Ruby said. "It'd be good to get something healthy in you."
"Please. What do I look like, a cave man?" Grif said, sitting down. His place was empty thankfully. No stupid salad for…. "Ah!" Grif screamed as a bowl was slammed down in front of him.
"You need to eat good if you're going to be even an average Huntsman in the field." Tai said, placing a glass of water next to him. "As your host, I do insist on it."
"Yeah? Watch me." Grif said, stabbing a fork into the green monstrosity and took a bite of it. Then he spat it out. "What is that ungodly grape? You trying to poison me or something?"
"That is what is called grape dressing." Yang said, grinning between bites. "It's good for you."
"Fuck that. If that is what's good for you, give me the bad shit!"
"Mr. Grif." Tai pinched the bridge of his nose. "You are a guest under my roof and I want you to eat the salad."
Grif crossed his arms. "No."
"Eat the salad."
"No."
"Yes."
"No. I still haven't had a glass of water in 2 years, what makes you think I
Tai's eye started twitching. "You haven't had a glass of water in two years?"
"Not since Red Base ran out of water. By that point, no water had become a force of habit. Simmons would get me to sip from the waterfall like a cave man now and then."
No one said a word for several moments. Tai looked like someone told him his cat had gotten run over. "Then what have you been drinking the last two years?"
That's a good question, Grif thought to himself as he stared up at the ceiling in thought. "Ketchup." Grif held out his thumb. "Soy Sauce." Next one. "Mayonnaise. God, that mayo saved us more times than we could count. Whenever the Blues were asleep at night, we would raid Blue Base. Caboose had struck a deal with Command to trade them his family crock pot recipe for 140 jars of mayo."
Tai let out a very Church-like groan, banging his head against the counter. "Why are you the way you are?" Grif turned to look at Qrow who had asked the question. "You're a complete asshole and liar to boot, you claim you're a soldier at this Red Base yet you're the biggest fatass I've ever had the unfortunate pleasure to meet which is saying a lot, and you clearly have no idea what it takes to be a Huntsman. Yet you not only made it in but survived your first Hunters mission."
Grif shrugged. "Is that not how Huntsmen supposed to act? Badasses, raiders in the night, all that shit. You talk and look like them and yet you think you're better than them? Bullshit."
This time, Ruby stood up and made her way to Grif's other side, sitting down. "What happened to you? Come on, you're with us now. At least for me, you're my friend. So please tell me, what happened?"
Seeing how concerned Ruby looked for him made Grif actually regret some of the things he said which was honestly shocking for him. It helped that the way she spoke reminded him a little of Kai when she was younger. She was such a good little sister, it hurt him a little to see how she ended up when she arrived at Blood Gulch. "You wouldn't believe me."
"Try us." Yang spoke up, not nearly as sympathetic as Ruby but still didn't look down on him somehow despite standing up. "I'm with Qrow that you're an asshole. Still, I saw you save Ruby's life during Initiation so I know you're not a complete dick."
"Yang!" Tai said, pointing a finger at her. "But go on." He didn't sound nearly as angry as he did before which was a good start in Grif's mind.
"Sorry, Dad." Yang said before turning back. "So I'm going to ask the same question Ruby did. What's up?"
Grif looked to the ground in thought. There was one way he could tell them that would convince them. Fuck it, Grif thought. It will get them off my back for the night. "I have one way to describe it that would be good enough. Follow me." He walked into the living room, scooping up his helmet that he took off for dinner as he passed.
"Are you about to give a campfire story?" Percy asked.
"I'm going to show you something much better. Just sit down." The family did so, Ruby and Yang on the floor next to each other with Qrow and Tai on the counch itself. Percy sat on the opposite side. Grif fiddled with the digital TV. "Motherfucker, turn on. Yes!" Grif cheered as it came alive. He then turned back to them. "You can thank the chief blacksmith at Beacon for this, he helped me learn about this little feature in my helmet after he insisted on tuning it up. I stole some of Weiss's money to make this happen."
"You what?" Ruby squawked, looking angry. "She's been accusing me of spending her money for weeks now. And you've let it go?"
"Hey, don't ask, don't tell." Grif said as he pulled out a plug and inserted it into the TV.
"You stole money from the heiress of the Schnee Dust Company?" Tai and Qrow asked at the same time. They turned to look at each other. What the hell was it with people on Remnant being so dramatic? It gave Grif a headache most days. "Okay," Qrow pointed his flask to him, "Maybe you're not so bad after all."
"Don't encourage him!" Tai slapped him on the back of the head.
"Uncle Qrow. She's not bad." Ruby protested
"Hey, what did I do?" Qrow asked innocently. As if he could call himself that.
"Anyway!" Grif said, raising his voice. That got both men to shut up. Thank God. "I've been wearing this armor since I joined the Red Army without stop. Turns out the troop armor has cameras here set to default on record. Every bit of the rage, the stupidity and the bats are all trapped here." He tapped his helmet as it continued connecting to the TV monitor. "Any questions before we get started?" He twisted a knob on the right-hand side of the helmet, dates and hours scrolling on by. He hadn't considered which ones to show them so why the hell not pick them out at random?
"How did you not know it was all set to record?" Ruby asked.
Grif sighed, pinching his nose himself. "If you spent a second around Command, you'd understand. No more questions allowed." He pressed a button on the side of his helmet. Static filled the TV screen, before it started clearing up. Rocks, all-too familiar rocks came into view. It was nighttime.
"Where's this?" Tai asked, leaning forward to examine closer. "It looks like it's in the heart of Sanus."
"This is Blood Gulch." Grif explained. "This is my first deployment to the Red Army and where most of my life the last three years was spent. No idea where it is, they never told us. Now which…?" Grif trailed off. Oh no, no, no. Not this one! "Hang on, let's do a different memory shall we?"
"No." Yang said, staring at Grif. "We want the whole thing."
Grif spared a glance to Ruby. "Alright, suit yourselves." This was going to get real awkward fast. The camera now focused on running along the concerete roof of Blood Gulch Outpost One, picking up one of the sniper rifles. Ruby squealed at the sniper rifle, saying "I want it, I want it." It got picked up and started scanning the canyon, looking around.
"Hey, Grif. Is that one of the Blues?" Simmon's voice came through the screen loud and clear. Grif stared at the monitor as the sniper rifle swiveled around, trying to find him. As much as he didn't miss all the batshit things that happened and no doubt they are going through now, he did wish Simmons was here now. The sniper rifle trained on one of the Blues, Tucker. He was standing out front of Blood Gulch Outpost Alpha, guarding the doorway.
"Quiet, Simmons. I'm navigating here."
"No, navigating is what happens when you're on a ship."
"Fine, let's say we're standing on the world's largest ship, okay?"
"And the slowest." The sniper rifle was trained now on Tucker as he stared back at the outpost before returning his focus.
"Glad to see nothing's changed with you." Percy said in a teasing manner. Grif didn't say anything to that, ready to change the film as soon as the worst was past.
"What's he doing now?"
"Oh, sorry." The sniper rifle focus returned to Tucker as he gave a final glance back before running away form the base. "He's leaving."
"Where's he going? Is he heading for us now? Is this my chance to prove to Sarge that I'm the best?"
"Geez, he's got some issues." Yang commented, her eyes never leaving the TV screen.
"No, he's heading for that rock there." Grif saw through the sniper rifle as Tucker made his way over to the tallest rock right near the base.
"A rock? What rock?"
"The marked one. Let's see what it says." The sniper rifle scope zoomed in. The rock was labelled in aqua ink TUCKER'S ROCK. KEEP OUT! PRIVATE!
"Tucker? The guy you mentioned… what's he doing?" Yang demanded, her eyes widening in horror.
"What's happening now?" Simmons asked at the same time as Yang. Grif said nothing, just watched in open-mouthed horror as Tucker started pulling down the pants of his aqua armor, showing a big black butt.
"Shut it off! Shut it off!" Tai shouted, standing up.
"Ew, ew, ew, ew!" Ruby screamed as Yang covered her eyes, looking mortified.
"How much whiskey have I had?" Qrow said as he stared at the flask, then shrugged and finished off the rest. Percy turned away so as to not look at the screen.
Grif spun the dial on the side. It skipped over the nasty details happening. Thankfully, he had stopped looking at that point so he missed the humping that he gave the rock. Really, if it weren't for Simmons' insistent badgering, he would have forgotten about it entirely. When the screen refocused, it now showed Tucker laying on the ground, his chest heaving heavily.
"Grif, if he's planning an attack, we need to know. What is he doing?" Simmons demanded as Grif threw the sniper rifle on the ground. He turned to the maroon armored man he called a friend, Simmons.
"Simmons, never ask me that question again. Nor am I going to do navigating at night. Ever. Again. Got it?"
"Fine. You pussy."
Grif pressed another button on the helm, pausing it on Simmons' face. "Now you know what I was saying earlier about Tucker?"
Tai was rubbing his eyes, trying to get the image out of his mind. "No wonder this Church guy tried so hard getting away from him. And Caboose?"
"We'll get to him eventually, maybe. If you think Tucker's not good for him, Caboose was his nightmare."
"Oh Gods." Tai plopped back down then rubbed his face. "I can feel the headache starting already."
"So that's Simmons?" Percy said, staring at the screen. "He's your friend?"
Grif nodded. "One of my first probably. Are we ready for the next?"
"Let's see what you got to offer. If it's anything like what that last was, you move on. Okay?" Qrow demanded.
"Sure." He scrolled through the dates. "Ah yes, the first assault on Blue Base. I think you should enjoy this." He pressed the start button. The screen now refocused on Blood Gulch and guns being fired. Grif remembered that day well; they charged for Blue Base for the first time and as part of Sarge's shitty ass negotiations, Grif would suffer for it.
The bullets flew for Blue Base. "Simmons, I can't feel my hands." Grif's voice moaned through. Grif sighed, staring at the floor in embarrassment. He really had come a long way since Blood Gulch.
"Maybe you should lift your finger off the trigger, dumbass." Simmon's voice answered, his voice a little deeper now and sounding more confident. They kept firing as the Blues hid behind the rocks. They could see a teal-armored Church and a purple-armored soldier if you can even call him that, Doc, talking about God knows what. Then, in a moment, Church stood up from the rock, pointing a gun in Caboose's direction.
"What, is he…?" Percy asked, stopping when the shot went off.
Even over the bullets, Grif could make out a loud yelling. Doc ran over to Caboose.
"I got him!" Grif shouted, pointing his gun at Doc. He stopped when Church and Tucker started firing at him. Grif yelped, ducking for cover as he ran over. When he got back up again, Tucker and Church were back behind the rock.
"Ah, crap. I'm out." Simmons said, pulling out his clip. "Give me some ammunition, Grif."
"Me? I don't have any extra. I'm down to one bullet."
"Wha- How can that be? You're the one who carries all the extra rounds into battle!"
"Oh, you're so busted." Percy said, watching this with glee.
"Shut it!" Grif called out.
"Since the last staff meeting." Simmons said
"We actually talk about stuff in those meetings? I just fall asleep in my helmet."
"So nothing's changed there either." Yang said, hand over her mouth to try and keep herself from laughing.
"What's your job?"
"Me? I'm the social chairman." Simmons said, puffing out his chest in pride.
"Oh, so a bullshitter." Qrow spoke up, getting up to get more whiskey.
"Grif!" Sarge came into the picture, holding a shotgun in his hands.
"Ah shit, here we go." Grif grumbled. Qrow stopped, turning back to watch with interest. "Sarge is in the room."
"Sarge?" Percy muttered, watching now with more interest still.
"Treasurer Donut and I are empty. We need some clips."
"Hey, Grif." Simmons turned around, "You remember that one bullet you have left? I just thought of the perfect way you could use it."
Ruby gasped, tears in her eyes as Grif paused the recording.
"He did not just say that." Percy added on. It was quite interesting, seeing Percy looking horrified which turned to real anger. "What kind of a friend says that?"
"A friend compared to the rest of them." Grif said. Percy glared at the screen coldly and Goddamn, his glare is far scarier than Qrow's or even Tai's. "Do we want to go on?"
"Need we say more?" Tai asked, looking at Grif with the worst expression he could give now: pity. "Please, go on."
"If it makes you feel better," Grif added, "Simmons is the greatest trash-talker I've ever met. It's Sarge you gotta watch out for."
That did have some benefit but they still glared at the screen as Grif hit the play button. "Oh, don't you even start, Caboose!" Church's voice echoed through the canyon.
"Pause." Grif did so. Qrow turned to Tai, looking suspicious. "Tai, are you sure you're not hiding something from us?"
"I'm sure." Tai said, blinking an awful lot. "I get now why you confused me for Church. Wow."
"Anyway, that's the assault there." Grif said. "Sarge tried to negotiate the surrender and it just led to more bullshit happening. Over and over. No, it was a year after that assault that shit got real for us. Turns out the Red and Blue Armies were cannon fodder so some mad scientists could test out their super-advanced tech in battle."
…"What?" That was the consensus. Grif couldn't keep track of who said what, nor did he care to.
"Stop." Percy held up a hand, getting up and walking over to Grif. "Grif, you need to tell somebody about it."
"Don't worry about. Project Freelancer's defunct now. Their asses are long gone and no longer my problem." Percy stared at Grif for a moment before going back to sit down without another word. What Grif found odder was the look of shock and Tai's and Qrow's faces. "What?"
"It's nothing. Nothing at all." Qrow said, waving his hand. "Show us what you'd like to."
"Just one more of you invading my space." Grif said. "This one takes us to an abandoned valley in Atlas. Teleporters got us there, don't ask." He then primed it and began.
Church and Grif were standing in a prison cell. "Okay, Grif. I've been putting something off that I can do to help us escape but, I gotta warn ya, it might scare you."
"You want scary? You should try showering in Cell Block C. Those guys are animals."
"You survived prison in Atlas?" Qrow demanded. "Shit, no wonder you're like this."
"Alright, here it goes." As Church was going to do his thing, the cell bars lifted up.
"You opened the doors? That wasn't scary at all."
"What? I didn't do that." Church protested. "Somebody on the outside must have done it. Come on, let's go." They ran through the blue-lit corridors.
"That doesn't look like Atlas design." Qrow mused, watching them go through the corridors. "What do you think, Tai?" He sat frozen. "Tai? Wake up!" He slapped him.
"Oh." Tai rubbed his chin. "I can't get over it. It's like I'm watching myself on the big screen and I don't like it."
"Don't be such a baby." Grif said as they got to the cold outside.
Eventually, the two reached the Reds and Blues standing side by side. Standing on the side of a cliff was Doc and Lopez with brown symbols swirling him.
"What're those symbols?" Ruby asked, pointing to them. "What are they trying to say?"
"Dunno. Never found out. Probably something stupid." Grif answered.
"What's going on?" Church asked as the two reached the stand-off.
"You want the long version or the short?" Sarge asked, "Basically, you've got a fifty megaton bomb in your gut,"
"Ten sir." Simmons corrected.
"And Lopez is about to kill us all."
"I'm sorry, what?" Qrow asked as Grif paused again. He was getting sick of being their personal remote control. "He's got a what in his stomach?"
"These guys seem very stupid," Tai said, "I'm sure he's just messing around." He turned to Grif. "Isn't that right?"
"Why don't you watch and see? And if you of you ask me to pause again, I will eat every last sweet I find in this house. Got it?"
"I think we should listen to what he says." Ruby said, giving a girly laugh.
"Go." Percy pointed. Grif continued.
"That doesn't make any sense. What's the long version?"
"That was the long version. The short version is, we're boned." Tucker added. Several in the audience booed the presence of Tucker but thankfully said nothing else.
"Hey, Grif. Are you okay?" Simmons asked once he finally noticed Grif was standing there.
"I've done some hard times, Simmons. I'm not the man you used to know."
"Hard times? We were only separated for five hours." That got a laugh out of Yang who started pounding the ground uncontrollably.
"Time moves slower on the inside, Simmons. It seemed like seven or eight hours in there."
"Really?" Qrow asked, staring at Grif.
"I had to screw with him a little. Cut me some slack." Grif said.
Their attention returned to the screen when a rocket exploded nearby. "You foolish fools! You will never defeat me. You're far too busy being foolish. Ha! Oblivion is at hand!" Doc-O'Malley called as the Reds and Blues ducked for cover behind the nearby rocks or dead trees.
"Sarge, I have an idea." Simmons called out, hugging the tree tightly. "But I'm going to need you to distract him."
"Will do!" Sarge called out then turned to face Grif. "Grif, I've never believed in you. Not even for a moment but now, it is your chance to prove yourself to me."
"What can I do, Sarge?" Grif asked eagerly.
"Oh, how naïve I was back then." Grif said, watching the screen.
"I need you to run right at O'Malley…"
"And shank him with my shiv?" Grif asked, a little too eagerly still.
"No. When he inevitably blows you up with the rocket, try to see if you can get your dismembered limbs and guts to clog the barrels of his rocket launcher."
"What did he say?" Tai asked, outraged and for once, not at Grif. That was a nice feeling.
"You're kidding." Grif's enthusiasm was gone. What was he thinking?
"It's a remote chance, I know. But it's worth a shot."
"AAH! Oblivion is at hand!" O'Malley, who had jumped down from the cliffside, shouted as he approached the covering Reds.
Then his voice changed. "Cover your ears, guys. This thing is really loud."
"Huh?" Ruby asked, tilting her head. "His voice changed."
"This is it!" Grif shouted, reaching behind him. He stopped when Simmons called out, "Not so fast, O'Malley. Maybe we can't stop you, but I know who can."
Then from out on the other side of the tree ,a green light glowed prominently. "Alright! New level!" That, and whoops, greeted the new arrivals who stormed through the portal and started looking around confused.
"Hey, guys. You want your flag back?" Simmons asked. That got their attention and turned to Simmons. "He's the one that has it."
"Uh-oh." O'Malley said, lifting the rocket launcher higher.
"The crusade has begun!" One red soldier shouted. "Our glory is now at hand. Let all you would stand against us be washed in our divine light." As one, they raised their weapons and started firing at O'Malley.
"Oh no! No! Get away from me!" He shouted and tried to run away but the new arrivals whooped and cheered as they ran after him.
"What am I watching?" Percy asked, turning to look at Qrow's flask for a moment before focusing back on the screen, grimaching.
"Yeah! Get him!" Grif shouted, watching the fight.
"We need to disarm Church's bomb, sir." Simmons said, reaching them.
"Wait, it's real?" Yang asked, dumbfounded.
A tray bolt of lightning hit Church, who jumped away while yelping in pain. "Hold still, son!" Sarge said once they reached him. "This'll just take a second." He then crouched down and examined the cog piece and touching aorund.
"Not again!" Yang said, covering Ruby's eyes.
"Don't you install anything above the waist?" Church asked in disbelief.
"Oh no!" Sarge said, standing back up. "That last bolt of lightning fused the detonator. There's no way to turn this thing off."
"Can you do it manually?" Simmons asked.
"Impossible." Sarge admitted. "I specifically designed it so no one, specifically I, would be able to defuse it."
"Why?" Grif asked.
"In case I fell into the wrong hands and was brainwashed to help the Blues."
"Great thinking, sir." Simmons said.
"Wha-I-what?" Tai asked, his face contorted into some freakish form. "Why did my left arm get numb all of a sudden?"
"You had to get in just one last ass kiss in before we died, didn't you?" Grif asked in a deadpan tone.
"Apparently." Percy added, looking at Grif with a little pity now too. That was even worse, Damn it!
"No! Stop! That's disgusting!" Grif turned to look at what was happening. The new Reds and Blues had caught O'Malley by now and most of them were teabagging him as he lied on the ground. One blue in particular had grabbed O'Malley by the hips and was pulling him to him in a doggy position. "What are you doing?"
"Hey! Let me try!" The blue was shoved aside and replaced by a red. "Take this dude!"
"I'm being violated!" O'Malley shouted.
"Yeesh, hate to be in his shoes." Grif turned away and stepped back as Tucker lifted O'Malley's abandoned rocket launcher.
"Church, there's only one thing I can do."
"Hey! What the hell?" Church demanded, raising his hands and taking steps back from the rocket launcher.
"There's only 20 seconds left!" Simmons called out. "Grif, get in and help!"
"Fuck that, I don't know this nerd stuff." Grif said.
"If I blow YOU up before the bomb, then there's at least a small chance the rest of us will live."
"But the rocket will kill me!" Church protested further
"Ten seconds!" Simmons called.
"You're going to die anyways when the bomb goes off." Grif shouted.
"What can I tell you, pal? Misery loves company." Church shot back.
"Five seconds!"
"Sorry, Church!" Tucker pulled off the switch.
"Man, this blows. You guys suck." Church whined.
Before the trigger could be pulled, the rocket launcher was shot out of Tucker's hands. They all looked to the source.
"Sorry, Private Tucker." Wyoming called down. "But I always get my man. Say goodbye, mate."
Now there was a loud shrilling. "Guys? Zero seconds." Simmons said, taking in a deep breath.
"What?" Church asked then there was a dial-up tone. "Oh, son of a…" The screen went white followed by a massive explosion.
"That's quite enough." Grif said, shutting the TV off. "Anyway, we all survived the explosion only to endure even more absurd bullshit than that. And I didn't even get to use my ass pen." He pulled it out from the small pocket in the small of his back. It was a rotted toothbrush he found on Sidewinder that he had funneled into a tip. "Perfect for sneak attacks. So in short, those were just blips of the shitfest I call my life. What did you think?" Grif asked, his voice rising.
Ruby and Yang's jaws were both hanging open. "Wha, wha, wha? What was that?" Ruby stuttered after a moment before fainting on the spot. Yang didn't even notice, such was her shock.
"Why would you show us that shit?" She whispered.
Tai's eye's were wide then he turned to Grif. "How are you still alive?"
Qrow had dropped his liquor to the floor, the liquid spilling out. "What he said, holy shit." Qrow added, his usually sarcasm long gone. "I thought I'd seen it all, I thought I'd seen stupid for that matter, but Gods, that was bad." He got up. "Hell, I need a refill after that."
"After what happened to O'Malley, I'm getting some for two." Tai replied, both men getting up and heading to the kitchen.
Percy just looked blank, his eyes the size of dinner plates now. "That explains so much more than I cared to know." Percy said, his voice flat.
"Yes, but I'm still here and that's all that counts. So, who's up for some s'mores instead? I've been told they're the bomb."
