[Wind's End Hotel, June 16th, 2:30pm]
The next day, Blake was shown in her hotel room, along with her parents and her boyfriend. The ninja was finishing tying up her purple ribbon to hide her cat ears.
Her mother turned to her, "Are you ready?"
Blake's stomach rolled, she breathed to settle it and herself. "Ready as I'll ever be."
The appointment for the IUD insertion is in about an hour or so...
"Hopefully it shouldn't take too long," Blake prayed.
"Are you sure you don't want me to come?" Ghira asked.
"Maybe I should go." Sun began. "Just in case someone tries to attack them."
"Really, I'd prefer it if both of you stay here." Blake told them.
This entire situation is already overwhelming as it is…
"Besides, someone has to be here in case we get any new recruits."
Sun opened his mouth to respond, but then closed it. A moment later, he gave a different response. "You… do have a good point."
Maybe I was overstepping my boundaries a little… Sun thought.
Ghira and Sun both gently embraced Blake.
"Good luck." Sun told her.
"Be careful out there."
"Thank you," Blake responded.
With this, Blake and Kali left the room, closing the door behind them.
A few moments of silence had passed; Sun turned back to his ally, hoping that he wouldn't be too mad at him.
"Well, what are we waiting for?" Ghira asked. "We still have an army of bookworms to train!"
Ghira and Sun soon left their room, hoping that the day's efforts would be successful.
Back in Mistral City, Nora was shown wandering through the streets. It was a bright, mostly sunny afternoon. A few clouds lingered in the sky, but not enough to completely block out the sizzling summer sun. Well, it wasn't technically summer yet, but it was close enough to most people, here and elsewhere.
Somewhere along this path is a forest with a shelter me and Ren once hid in. I wonder if it's still there…
She paused, trying to be optimistic.
Hopefully it has helped someone else long after me and Ren left it behind.
She stopped upon the bridge, looking over at the waterfall across the way.
That waterfall looks beautiful. I wonder if I could dive into the lake down below from there. She soon realized. But I don't have a swimsuit. Or anyone to serve as a lookout. Not to mention if I were to take a dive, should I take my belongings with me? Should I put them aside? Or would they just end up stolen?
As Nora pondered these and other questions, a nearby outdoor train station came to a stop.
In the background, Anastasia was shown getting off a train, trying her best to remain calm. She pulled out her scroll and made a phone call.
"Hello. I just got to Mistral. Sorry I'm running late." she began. "The journey was supposed to take half a day but there was a problem on the train…"
But Nora heard very little of those words, if any at all as she went forth.
The sounds of a saxophonist playing soft jazz floated in the air. Soon she saw a sign and a familiar set of outdoor tables.
Sakura Sora Cafe… That's where me and Ren went for breakfast not too long ago.
She smiled. I will say, this city is really nice. Maybe me and Ren could settle down here someday….
More clouds rolled in, covering up the sun.
She sighed. But I still don't know who I am, just Nora Valkyrie. It probably doesn't help that I don't know much about my family… But what are the chances of me trying to figure out where I came from, my biological father or anything like that?
She gave out a longer sigh.
Joro Valkyrie. The name of my mother. That's all I know. Well, maybe I can head to…
Suddenly, the sound of an animal mew reached her ears.
"Did I hear a… meow?"
Another meow was heard, this one louder, so Nora went back the way she came, following the sound. She turned into a nearby alleyway, quickly scampering along and avoiding the gazes of nearby criminals.
Soon she found a small little kitten. The kitten appeared to be fairly young, maybe a few months old, its gold tan fur lightly coated in dirt and dust. The cat's light amber eyes looked at her, almost pleading for help.
The valkyrie looked at the kitty, smiling as she knelt down a few feet from it. "Aw… What a cute kitty. But he looks so lonely."
She picked up the kitten, hoping to find a collar or hint as to where the little creature had come from or his owners, but there was nothing around his neck.
There's no collar… Is he a stray?
Cradling the kitten in her arms, she smiled.
I always wanted a pet… I never got to have one because me and Ren were busy trying to look after ourselves… Even though cats always seemed to like me…
A brief flashback or two crossed her mind; a pair of kittens nuzzling up against a younger, ten year old Nora as she knelt on the ground, on her hands and knees in an alleyway. She petted one before realizing she had to leave.
Then, at the age of fourteen, Nora saw a basket of kittens crying out as they floated down a raging river. Nora dived in to save them, struggling against the current, but eventually, she grabbed the basket before it went over a waterfall.
Nora, still soaking wet, held the basket of kittens in her arms, nearly clutching it to her chest. "Can we keep them?"
Ren was exasperated. "Nora…" He sighed. "Okay they are adorable, but how are we going to feed kittens if we can't even feed ourselves?"
"We can't just abandon them." Nora reasoned.
"Okay, we'll find a home for them, and then we leave for the next town."
She gave a sad sigh, but she knew he was right. She was in no position to take care of anyone or anything, save for arguably herself and Ren.
She returned to the present, still smiling.
"Well… Maybe this is a sign. A sign that we're meant to be friends."
And so, Nora picked up her new friend and went forth.
Sometime later, Nora was shown setting up some spread out newspapers in a pile, covering the upper left corner of an old office room. In a different corner, she set up a filled water bowl and a food bowl with a moderate amount of tuna.
Well, it's not much, but it'll do until I can get some real supplies.
She grabbed a small piece of paper and taped it to the door. It was a white paper sheet written in red ink; Cat Room
The cat Nora found earlier was shown approaching the water bowl.
"That's it, little buddy. Drink up."
"Nora?" The valkyrie turned to find Ruby there. "What's going on here?" She heard the cat meow and looked over at him. "Is that a cute little kitty?" She smiled, gushing her the new furry friend. "Aw, so adorable!"
"I found this little guy while I was walking around. I think he might be a stray. No collar, no name…"
The cat meowed. "How can you be sure it's a guy?"
"I think it's a boy. I thought male cats were more common, but maybe I misread that one book…"
A moment of silence passed.
"What are you going to name him?" Ruby asked.
"Pancake. He looks like a pancake, and he's about the size of one. I'd say it fits."
Ruby smiled. "Aw, how cute." She sniffed him. "Ugh, but he needs a bath."
"He does. But I also need to get supplies to take care of him, because what I have right now…" She gestured to the areas she had set up. "isn't much."
Ruby gave a side eye glance to the audience before turning back to Nora. "Do you know how to take care of a cat?'
"No, but I'm going to try." She sighed. "If I can't care for him, I'll give him to a shelter. But I don't want it to come to that."
"He is cute." The silver-eyed warrior gently petted his head. "I think I can get supplies for you."
"You'd do that?"
"Of course." Ruby then added, "Also, if you are going to bathe him, you're gonna need special pet shampoo."
Nora raised a brow. "Really? Well, good to say that now before I bath him with something I'm not supposed to use!"
"Well, I had to help bathe Zwei a few times, so I understand completely."
"Man, now I'm kinda wondering if I'm really up to this..." she wondered.
"It's no trouble. I'll be right back."
With this, Ruby left the room.
Meanwhile, Ghira was shown sitting on a small bench in a hotel hallway, taking up the entirety of its space. The older faunus sighed in dismay.
"Are you alright?" a familiar voice asked him.
He turned to find Sun Wukong standing there. "Still nothing. I'm beginning to fear that our efforts to guide others to unlocking their aura may be a waste of time that could be better spent in other ways."
"Don't fret too much, Mr. B. After all, it took Blake over a month to unlock her own aura, and that was technically under pressure."
"But it's not like we can subject our recruits to highly stressful situations and hope for the best. Not to mention people unlock their auras and/or semblances differently."
Sun paused for a moment, thinking. "Could a fake crisis work?"
Before Ghira could answer, a messenger approached them. "Mr. Belladonna and Mr. Wukong? We have a huntress who says she wants to join your army."
"Alright, I'll bite; who is it?" Sun asked.
"Someone named…" He checked his list. "Urdina Morris, sir."
Ghira mused to himself. "Hmm…"
That name sounds very familiar. But can she be trusted? he thought.
"Send her in."
A while later, Sun and Ghira sat on one side of the table with their interviewee on the other. The woman had blue fish scales over her pale body, black wavy hair flowing like a waterfall, and blue eyes, deep as the ocean. She wore an ocean blue skirt long enough to obscure her feet and a purple tank top, covered partially with chest armor. On a satin chord rested a natural light purple oyster shelled necklace along with a blue satchel. On her right side was her weapon, collapsed into an easy package.
Ghira looked at a clipboard with some papers attached to it. "Ms. Morris? Urdina? Is there any name you would prefer to be addressed as?"
She gave them a nonchalant shrug. "Either one works."
"Very well then, Ms. Morris. Why do you want to join our army?"
"I have little to gain from being here in terms of money or fame, but I do wish to stop the White Fang."
Ghira looked over one of the papers, which appeared to be a printed version of her resume. "I see. You're a member of what was once team LUNA, correct?"
"That is correct. Spelled exactly as it sounds."
"Who were your teammates?" Sun asked.
"Luna Diaz, Nubia Nyx and Rouge Arc."
There was a brief moment of silence.
"And where are they now?"
"Well you see, what made our team so special was that all of us came from different kingdoms. Luna was from Normandouen, a village in Atlas, I came from Kuchinashi in Mistral, Nubia from Vacuo and its city, and Rouge from Olympia in Vale."
The older one looked at her sternly. "And how would you describe your relationship with your former teammates?"
"We all get along pretty well." She chuckled, whether out of laughter or nervousness (or both), was a mystery to the interviewers. "At first, we could hardly stand each other, but we eventually came to become close friends. We actually attempt to reunite and spend about a month together every year in the capital of one of the kingdoms every year, but with the CCT going down, and with Haven closing its doors, that didn't exactly happen."
Urdina folded her arms and looked down.
There was a moment of silence. Sun wondered what he should say, if anything, but ultimately, words failed.
"The relationship between you and your teammates is quite touching. I've heard many tales of huntsman teams splitting up and never even speaking with each other after graduation. To say that you not only kept in touch but also saw each other in person speaks volumes about you and the bonds you've created. I too wish that Beacon's communication tower would be repaired quickly. Now, before we start training, there's something I must ask."
Urdina tensed up a little as Ghira spoke, "I remember your family being previously involved in the White Fang. Would you care to elaborate?"
The lonely huntress gave out a long sigh. "My family's history, with and without the Fang, is a… complicated one. Me and Aoi were both born in Mistral, and I considered it my home. But twenty years ago, our mother, Skyla Morris, was called on to lead the Atlesian White Fang branch. We were both three and didn't fully understand the situation at the time. And at that same time, our parents were going through a divorce. In the end they got joint custody. On the even years we were with dad in Kuchinashi, and on the odd years we were with mom.
"For many years we had no idea that she was leading the White Fang in Atlas, and committing crimes in the process. She used her position of power to commit robberies and smaller crimes in the name of helping faunus. It wasn't until eleven years ago that she realized she couldn't do it anymore."
A moment of tense silence fell over the room.
Sun was the first to ask, "What happened?"
"During one of her routine bank heists, a woman was accidentally shot, and passed away from her injuries. That woman was Charlotte White."
Ghira looked unnerved, goosebumps prickling on his neck. "Mrs. White? The mother of Guinevere Regenbogen?"
"Indeed so. Guinevere was deeply affected, but to what end can only be imagined. Some say Charlotte deserved it, but I pity her. Nonetheless, Skyla looked for someone to take the burden of leadership from her. And eventually, she found Pearl Callows. I believe we all are aware of the damage she caused. And her successor Laverna… would become even worse... "
There was a grim silence. "But I digress," Urdina said to break it. "After Pearl took over, Skyla retreated from Atlas City to the village of Trivia in Atlas for a fresh start to live her days in peace as a good citizen. No one ever knew the identity of the woman who accidentally murdered Charlotte, or that it was an accident. In some ways, the case had been forgotten by society at large. But me and Aoi could never forget…
Sun and Ghira grimaced as the huntress continued, "Last time I saw my mother over a year ago, she came to be the manager of a local inn and worked under a slightly different name. But Aoi never saw any fault in mother's actions, and as time went on, became more and more angry with humanity. And I will admit, sometimes I was angry at them as well. But I knew that lashing out in anger would do more harm than good, so I chose to become a huntress in hopes of bringing humanity and faunus together.
"Aoi immediately disagreed with my decision, believing I was betraying the White Fang and everything faunus fought for. I just wanted to make things better. Originally I had thought about going to Haven Academy, but I believed that for the sake of my mental and emotional health that I needed to get away from my family. Far from Mistral, and far from Atlas. That left only Beacon and Shade. I believed Shade would be easiest to get into, and that's where I went.
"It was hard, being away from everyone and everything I knew, but eventually I found freedom, I found friends, and I found joy. But as I went closer to my destiny, Aoi began her descent into darkness. Just two years after I enrolled at Shade, she joined the Atlesian White Fang branch. My mother was the one to tell me the news. I was devastated to hear this.
"At first I didn't even tell my teammates, fearing that they would judge me, or worse, believe that I would follow in her footsteps. But when Luna heard rumors of Vacuan leader Wungeng looting a dust factory and the topic came up, I broke down and cried, confessing my sorrows. But my friends held me tight and comforted me through it all. Nubia was even kind enough to get zalabya and accompaniments for the whole team because all of us were having a rough week. I was luckier than I deserved to have friends like them, and it kills me inside that I can't reach them with the CCT system being down.
"Regardless, by the time I graduated from Shade, Aoi transferred to the Mistral branch and sooner or later met Athena. From there, she became even more violent and malevolent. And while I am here to stop the White Fang from causing death and destruction, all I really want is to save my sister before she falls further down the dark road she's on."
The two men sat in silence. The good cop gave her an expression of pained sympathy and fear. "Do you really think you can convince her?"
"I have to- for mom, for dad, for myself, for Mistral, and perhaps even for the world."
It's not gonna work… Sun thought.
Ghira looked at her. "I can not guarantee the success of your plan, but I appreciate your upfront honesty. Your resume also states that you know how to unlock auras. Is that correct?"
"That is correct. I learned this technique from an aura master in Vacuo City during my time at the academy. I may not be an aura master myself, but I have at least that advanced ability."
The bad cop's expression softened to a smile of determination. "You're hired. When can you begin unlocking auras and training others?"
"I can begin work immediately."
"Excellent. We're going to need all the help we can get."