Beacon Academy, Eastside of the Courtyard
"Link..." Velvet lets out a soft whisper as she turns to face him
"Yeah Velvet? What's on your mind?" Link looks at her, they are both in the exact same spot as the day before, both leaning back on the same tree Velvet was initially using to take cover from the sun
"I know you and Ruby are very good friends for the little time you've known each other. I mean... you guys get along so well. That's what my team says anyway, I try not to pay too much attention to other people's friendships but yeah I just wanted to express how nice I think it is that you're making friends so fast when you came here completely alone as many of us do. Some arrive with friends from other academies or they are lucky to have connections, but others do not have that privilege." Velvet sighs
"Very true. Everything you said is correct and honorable too, that is a very mature way to analyze my friendship with Ruby. I'm curious to know what you think about my friendships with Weiss, Blake or Yang. Same goes for Jaune, Nora, Pyrrha and Ren. Annnd may as well throw your teammates in the mix too, I'd like to think they are my friends by now. I like that you don't judge like so many people do." Link nods. "Whether it's jealousy or not, people shouldn't analyze friendships to the point of judging unless there's something going on with them and what they think of the people in question. Maybe they want a friendship with certain people or they are insecure, it's anyone's guess."
"That sure was a lot but It's a very interesting thought process. I brought up what I said because... darn, I am not very good at this. And let's face it, I am bad when speaking about my feelings and expressing them in general too, but Link..." Velvet mumbles, as she gets closer to Link, she momentarily stalls before awkwardly throwing her arms around him for a hug
"Hm?" Link's face changes instantly, going promptly from being casual and relaxed to showing off a smile as he hugs her back. "This is a pleasant surprise, in a very nice way of course."
"Is it? Good because I think this is nice too? And I like you." She whispers with blind confidence
"Oh... I like you too Velvet, you're an amazing friend despite only just meeting you not too long ago." He smiles at her but does not look her in the eyes. "What inspires the praising of my friendships, the hugs and telling me that you like me?"
"L-link-!" Velvet tenses up as she feels Link's hands on her lower back. "I mean that I really like you. As in more than a friend." She whispers as now both of their eyes meet, her breathing suddenly begins to pick up its pace as nervousness overshadows the confidence she once felt
"Velvet..." Link shakes his head while his eyes shoot open in disbelief when Velvet's words finally register in his head. "I like you too, but..."
"O-oh... I understand, say no more." Velvet's eyes tear up. "And it's okay. I know that these really do make all the difference and why would you want anything to do with me when there are more talkative, stronger and more confident girls all over Beacon..." Velvet is quick to touch her rabbit ears, but before she could say anything else that disregards her charm, beauty or heart of gold, she is cut off by a pair of lips on top of hers… Link's.
"...!" Velvet freezes and practically leaves Link hanging when she does not kiss back, he tightens the grip on Velvet's lower back with one hand.
Meanwhile, with his other hand, he brushes it against Velvet's neck and slowly eases her into him even deeper, continuing to kiss the shocked faunus with everything he can muster effort and energy wise
"...!" Velvet still does not know how to react until out of pure instinct, she slides closer to Link and sits down on his lap briefly before wrapping her legs around his midsection and tightly secure her position for maximum comfort
After nearly two full minutes of kissing, they both pull away and neither even consider the position they are in as their actions clearly were just instinct and not planned out in the slightest
"I, l-love you." Velvet mumbles but then stops herself from saying anything else as she lets out a loud gasp. "Oh no, was that awkward? And was it too soon?"
"Relax silly, I love you too." Link smiles and gently gives Velvet another quick kiss on the lips, "And I never will stop... this is the beginning of something really special, I just know it." He smiles and kisses her neck softly, which triggers another reaction from the brunette faunus
"Please don't stop." Velvet let out a quiet moan as she locks her arms around Link's neck for a tight hug
"Velvet..." Link suddenly stops and pulls back to look at her directly her in tears of joy filled eyes
"Yes?" Velvet pulls away too and looks at Link in his bright vibrant eyes
"Wake up silly." He smiles gives her a quick kiss to the cheek, followed by another kiss to her other cheek
"Huh?" Velvet raises an eyebrow as suddenly, Link's kisses stop and he immediately vanishes into smoke. Velvet sits under the tree on the courtyard all alone, looking around frantically, the sky turns red and the sun changes to the darkest shade of black the beautiful environment of Beacon gets darker and darker until nothing is visible anymore
"Link… w-where are you? Please don't leave me…" Velvet buries her face in her hands and shakes, wishing and hoping the scenes goes back to how it was mere minutes ago
Beacon Academy, The Dorm Rooms
"Heyyy, HEY!" Coco snaps her fingers, "Sleeping Bunny, wake up. I know you had trouble sleeping but it's time to get up now Velvet" The team CFVY leader says with a big smirk on her face
"H-huh? W-what?" Velvet's eyes slowly open as turns over in her bed, looking around the team CFVY dorm. Her male teammates Fox and Yatsuhashi are nowhere to be found and it was just her and Coco. One was dressed for class in her school uniform, the other is still in her pajamas and ready for another hour of sleep
"We're going to be late for class, get dressed as fast as you can. Fox and Yatsuhashi are waiting for us. Normally we'd all leave whenever we want to but ever since Cardin and his team decided to physically attack you, we aren't taking anymore chances. We also can't rely on Link to make the save every time if we aren't around. I know we didn't tell you but we decided to walk to class together going forward, sorry for not including you in the conversation." Coco says as she puts on her sunglasses, opens the curtains to annoy Velvet with bright sunlight and glares outside. Her immediate first catch is when she notices Link and Ruby walking around Beacon, "Brilliant, that's the last thing Velvet needs" She rolls her eyes and closes the curtains
"That's okay, I would have agreed anyway regarding walking to class together. Is something wrong Coco?" Velvet asks carefully, noticing her leader does not look particularly happy anymore "Sun too bright even with those shades?"
"Yep." Coco nods and does not even think about mention what she sees
"That's alright." Velvet nods but then immediately remembers the dream and stops everything she's doing. The more detailed the dream got the more it made her blush to the point where it begins to appear on her cheeks as a prominent blush, forcing her to cover with up with a blanket
"You ok?" Coco squints at her and catches the blushing faunus before she can fully hide
"Mhm." Velvet responds quickly, attempting to hide her smile and blush. "I'm still very tired that is all."
"You had a good dream huh? Is that why you are hiding now?" Coco laughs as she viciously yanks the blanket away with tremendous speed
"N-no!" Velvet shakes her head and yelps from the blanket pull. "Maybe."
"Mmmmmhm." Coco nods and chuckles, expressing plenty of sarcasm and enjoyment. "Let's hope there's nothing else... that may need cleaning"
"T-there isn't!" Velvet shouts, clearly flustered at what her teammate and friend just implied
"I'm just kidding." Coco begins to laugh louder as she sits down next to Velvet. "Okay I'll be serious and assume it was a nice dream involving Link. And while that's great and all, you just barely became his friend and that's because he had to beat up some asshats for you. But if you really like him, then get to know him some more, find out what you two have in common or more about him as a person. I'll admit it, the guy's sense of humor and sass is on point, and he was completely destroying Jaune yesterday. He seems very noble and nice, like he'd definitely try and defend his friends from a dangerous situation. I suppose the only downside is he doesn't open up about himself and seems to be a wounded bird about something in his past."
"A wounded bird huh? I hope he talks to someone about that one day. But it's nice to hear that he entertained you guys and that he's nice and fights for his friends. Wait..." Velvet looks at her team leader with a confused expression. "You guys were with him yesterday?"
"Yeah we had almost four entire teams together. Team RWBY, JNPR, Link, and three fourths of our team we're just hanging out in the library with." Coco nods
"W-where was I?" Velvet turns her head in shame and annoyance. "You could have told me you were all hanging out together."
"Asleep, knocked out, dead." Coco laughs. "We tried to wake you up dumbo, but we couldn't wake you. And besides, you weren't going to even talk with Link."
"Huh? And how do you know that?" Velvet's bottom lip quivers, she was flustered once again, but deep down knows Coco is right
"Because Ruby was there." Coco speaks coldly, the sarcasm quickly fades before it promptly returns in no time. "Not that there's anything with that since they are just friends too but, those two were talking a lot so that's why I said you wouldn't have even talked to him. Who knows maybe she's crushing on him too which I can't tell if that's sweet or confusing. Ruby strikes me as the most girly tomboy you've ever seen who is repulsed by boys but also attracted to them at the same time."
"We don't know if she has a crush on him and that's also none of our business. I suppose though, IF she does have a crush on him and everything you suspect, I don't blame her for having a crush on him, he's just..."
"Funny." Coco laughs, "Nice, honorable, strong… TOTALLY HOT!" She sarcastically says while throwing her hands in the air dramatically
"Stop that. But yes everything you said and more..." Velvet exhales as she thinks about all of the positive her and Coco just listed
"Me personally, I don't get why you're so crazy over him. Yeah he's the kind of guy you can rely on and hang out with casually, but I don't see what you see." Coco nods, "...Although that's just me and this isn't about me. This is about you Velvet, don't give up until you know there's nothing to fight for. Besides, you two are very different, she's outspoken, tomboy-ish and feisty, while you are quiet, shy and passive. So until we know what Link likes or if he is even interested, it's a coin toss for both of you."
"I just hope he gives me a chance if it ever comes down to that but you're right for now we're all just friends and nothing is set in stone." Velvet sighs as she gets up and uses Coco's brush to fix her hair. "Thank you Coco, though your sarcasm can be cruel at times when you need it to be, today it was funny and nice in a way."
"Anytime kiddo. I'm glad you didn't take the jokes to heart and I like what you took away from the conversation, stay optimistic. I will be outside to not distract you any further. Yatsuhashi offered to wake you up, maybe I should've let him do it considering how we spent ninety percent of this time talking about Link rather than you getting ready for class. Don't take too long, from just a standard prediction, I think we have about five or ten minutes." Coco gives Velvet another quick nod and leaves the dorm
"O-okay!" Velvet nods firmly and is determined to change in less than five minutes by using her light footing and agility to quickly get out of her pajamas and into her uniform, next is her hair which she rapidly brushes along with her giving her bunny ears a brief brushing too. One teeth brushing session wrapped up by putting on her brown boots and the faunus races out of the dorm to catch up with her team and head to class together
Beacon Academy Courtyard
Team RWBY and Link are walking around the campus and find themselves now on the courtyard of the prestigious academy, they are being led by Weiss Schnee who insists on not trailing too far away as they have classes that will start very soon. Behind her are Blake and Yang who silent silently next to each other and behind them are none other than Ruby and Link who vary between walking in silence and conversing casually
"Ooooh!" Ruby quickly bends down and grabs something from the ground, then rises up and presents it to the huntsman in training, "Here you go." She says and hands Link a beautiful rose looks so perfect it could be fake even
"Sweet, thank you Ruby." Link smiles and immediately gets an idea, first he breaks the stem of the rose before proceeded to put it in Ruby's hair
"Link!" Ruby laughs. "I got it specifically for you."
"I know and I appreciate the gesture but we both know that red roses will always look better on you." He says cheerfully as he adjusts it enough to where it can stay in her hair without flopping over to one side or falling off completely
"Thanks." Ruby looks away and sheepishly lets out a soft giggle. "Now I have to find another one for you."
"It's okay you don't have to."
"Come on guys!" Yang shouts as she, Blake and Weiss have gotten farther away. Ruby's half sister turns around and sticks her tongue out. "Keep up slowpokes."
"More like we don't want to be late to class, Yang." Weiss shrugs and crosses her arms, she is about to storm away but seeing Link come to a full stop while Ruby continues walking makes her stay and listen carefully
"Link you coming?" Ruby asks as even she leaves Link behind. "Oh no don't tell me you're not attending classes again today. You've already missed multiple classes, not that I know the disciplinary actions for missing classes but you shouldn't even risk it"
"I don't know Ruby." Link shrugs. "I can't focus and I just feel like I'm wasting my time. I don't want to be one of those students who prioritizes the fighting part of attending an academy over academics rather than having a good balance between the two but it seems like I'm already on that side."
"Pleeeeeease? Will you just come?" Ruby grabs onto Link's hand and tugs on it. "Professor Ozpin will get mad at you as will Glynda and every professor around campus who sees the super 'one man team' being lazy and barely getting by."
"Hm..." Link thinks on what was just before, then lightheartedly rolls his eyes, "Annnd?" He responds jokingly
"Guys..." Blake whispers as she frantically looks at the school and back at her team and friend. "We really should get going now."
"Just let him skip, he clearly thinks this is beneath him." Weiss frowns but in the inside she has something different in mind
"Excuse me?" Link raises an eyebrow. "Says who? Because I didn't say that."
"You don't need say it word for word, you basically already did with your previous answer." She sarcastically turns her head and whips her hair. "Truth be told, you can do what you want with your life and your time here and you may come out on top as the strongest huntsman to ever graduate Beacon but that title won't matter if you continue being a lazy dunce and don't even try to take classes seriously. Nobody expects you to be a perfect student, but they also don't expect someone with the honor of Professor Ozpin himself who allowed you to be your own team by the way! To be worst student to ever attend Beacon. Got anything to say to that?"
"..." Link rubs his chin with his index finger and thumb, trying to think of a comeback. "Unfortunately no, you win this time Weiss."
"Okay um…" Ruby looks around awkwardly, "If that doesn't fully convince then how about this... Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease? For me?" She dramatically begs and falls to her knees
"You are something else Ruby, fine. You and Weiss did a good job convincing me so fair enough." Link chuckles and lets Ruby lead him into the school, following Yang and Blake, who exchange nods of approval with Weiss
"That was surprisingly inspiring." Yang chuckles
"Yeah, I didn't know you had it in you." Blake mumbles
"What do you mean you didn't know I had in me? I'm not cold hearted!" Weiss frowns and turns her head to the side, flustering herself enough to blush
"Well? Any particular reason you said all that to him? You guys have barely spoken at all." The quiet girl with the black bow on her head asks
"Honestly? I don't know, I just felt passionate about certain things. He's lucky to even be here because he was a late applicant and is under the minimum age by one year. Then he displays amazing talent and enough of it to be declared his own team when other students would've been turned away or thrown into a team." Weiss speaks as if she was almost admiring Link. "While I wouldn't consider ourselves friends or even acquaintances, I don't want to see someone with so much potential sabotage themselves. Whether he deserves to be here or not, he is here and if he really is that strong, I want to see it with my own eyes so now that he's here to stay he should take it seriously."
"Now you two DEFINITELY have to become friends." Yang smiles. "That was so formal but nice at the same time."
"Thank you." Weiss crosses her arms triumphantly
"Annnd the ice queen returns." The confident blonde cackles as she and Blake run off, leaving Weiss all alone in the courtyard
"HEY!" Weiss growls but also takes off running, doing her absolute best to catch up to Blake, Yank, Link, and Ruby
Later on: Combat Class, Beacon Academy Auditorium Stage
"Excellent work Mister Ren, what excellent technique you showed with your hand to hand combat." Glynda nods at Ren who walks away, he does not look back at Sky from team CRDL who is being helped to his feet by Cardin, Russel and Dove
"He got lucky that's all." Sky confidently grins but then slumps over in pain
"Of course he did." Glynda mumbles, "Now students..." She loudly speaks again. "As many of you know, there is a certain team which only consists of one person, and I have been informed that luckily he is here today."
Professor Goodwitch finishes her sentences while glancing up and speaks perfectly right as Link enters the room long after the class has already started, arriving late from his previous class. Everyone in the room looks in his direction which makes the one man team freeze up and look around as if those stares are supposed to be for somebody else
"W-what?" Link raises an eyebrow, after some time the boy realizes the stares are directed at him. "Did I miss something?"
"Mister Link, please make your way down here this instant." Glynda says with a stern voice
"Umm…" Link plants his hands together, laces all his fingers together, nervously looking around before nodding and following the instructions of his professor. "Okay. Will do, just give me a quick minute."
"Good." Glynda nods and turns back to the rest of the class, "Now I have been informed by your headmaster Professor Ozpin of complaints and now he along with Beacon as a whole is being monitored closely due to the decision to allow Link to be his own team without running it by anybody, which includes me students. I was skeptical too but what I have come to understand is that Professor Ozpin is a wise man and it is best to trust the decisions he makes for himself and for others… and while I'm sure many of you have different questions for which there are explanations. Rest assured that Mister Link is very strong and capable, so today he will not be going one on one." She begins to raise her voice, "He will be going against an entire team." The Beacon professor smiles and begins to glare at the 'audience' which are the rest of the students whilst ignoring all the gasps; everyone was shocked, except for herself and Link
"I get why all eyes were on me now." Link nods as within that minute he asked for, he enters the 'arena'. "So, who will I be facing? Do I get to pick my opponent or do you?"
"You really have been skipping classes like I've been warned by other professors, haven't you?" Glynda sighs. "For the most part, all combat is done through a randomizer but today I will make an exception and choose the team myself."
"No offense professor but is he really ready to take on an entire team?" Cardin snickers as he, Russel, Dove and the fatigued Sky are back in seats alongside the rest of the students. "I'm all for witnessing a beatdown but this won't even be close, right?"
"Mister Winchester... I advise that you keep your comments brief, considering what I have been told occurred in the dormitory the other afternoon." Glynda glares and Cardin gets frustrated instantly but ultimately he does not talk back. "Good. Whether Mister Link is ready or not, we are about to see for ourselves. If he is ready, the rest of you need to do your best to keep up and not fall too far behind. If he is not ready, then he will need to be the one training and studying harder. Additionally, this is good practice for him because when it is time for the Vytal Festival, there will be no exceptions and no one on one combat for the young man, all four opponents will be coming his way with the intention to win."
"I wholeheartedly agree Professor Goodwitch." Link nods with a bright smile on his face. "Sorry to be a broken record but who will I be facing?"
"I'm glad you are eager to compete. You will be facing team RWBY which consists of the young ladies Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Yang Xiao Long and Blake Belladonna." Glynda speaks coldly as her attention is entirely on Link, she watches his look of calmness go to one of complete shock. "Come down here girls."
"Out of all the teams you could've given me." Link closes his eyes and shakes his head
"Wow, talk about a challenge." Pyrrha sighs, "As good as he may be... No, I will not make assumptions just yet, it is time to see what he can do." She smiles and keeps her sights on Link
Suddenly, it feels like time has stopped for the lone one person team who's heart begins to beat and accelerate with a crazy pace. Being told he has to fight his friends has sent him into a state of shock, the world around him disappears and all he sees is himself in a pitch black room with a single bright spotlight shining on him, and then...
(You're going to more of your friends hurt, huh?!)
A dark voice echoes in Link's head, it is very loud and prominent and makes Link's eyes shake as he hears this voice take over everything around him. He rubs his eyes and opens them and he can see Glynda, the rest of the students and the room they are in again. Regardless, everything Glynda continues to say falls on deaf ears as Link can only hear the strange loud voice
(Not now.) Link growls and shakes his head more. (I haven't heard you in a while and I don't need to hear you right now either. Go... a-away!)
(Be quiet, I tell you what to do and you do it, we work better that way. Go on then, kill those 4 pathetic girls and prove that you should be feared, you are a monster after all. That will NEVER change.) The dark voice evilly laughs
(BE QUIET!) Link grabs his head in pain, his hands are pressed against his temples
"Link?" Ruby's gaze is instantly on Link the moment she sees him experience this 'headache'
"Uhhh, are you okay?" Yang asks
"Y-yeah I'm alright." Link frowns "Let's just get this over with. Whether you guys want to fight or just spar, either one is fine with me."
"Hmph!" Weiss frowns as well. "You might be strong but that line you just said strikes me as overconfident jerk alert, time to teach him some manners!"
"You may begin." Glynda speaks with a stern voice before taking multiple steps back, the lights in the room dim down and the spotlight is on Link and team RWBY
Weiss does not hesitate, rather than attack in coordination with her team to outnumber or keep Link guessing, she grabs her sword and gets in an offensive stance, a span of different colors were seen. Weiss is unsure of which to use to best approach her opponent and shows her lack of research done or preparation for Link
"You're too slow." Link takes off and in side to side strides avoids shots from Yang who fires away with her shotgun gauntlets known as Ember Celica. Blake and Ruby collectively get defensive stances but with a mild leap, he gets in between the four girls is directly behind Weiss, directly inches away from her
"W-what?!" Weiss swiftly turns to strike with an spinning elbow but Link catches her elbow and firmly holds it in place
"I believe I made myself clear, Weiss." Link coldly speaks as he lets go and grabs onto Weiss' wrist, on the hand she was holding the sword with, while putting his other hand on Weiss's back and places it perfectly in the middle of her spine
"What is he-!" Blake looks on closely, but for some reason she does not respond with action
"We have to help her!" Ruby shouts as her weapon Crescent rose is retracted and in it's sniper rifle form, she carefully aims a shot and fire at Link while making sure to not hit Weiss
"Get away!" Weiss manages to loosen the grip on her wrist as she retreats by walking forward and away from Link, she stares daggers at her stunned teammate. "Blake? Hello?!"
"Hmph!" Link grabs his shield with his right band and plants his feet on the ground, the shot from Ruby's sniper rifle blasts into his shield but no harm comes his way with the successful block he executes, "Time to show off my semblance...s?" He speaks with confidence but on the inside he is completely bluffing to scare his opponents
"Semblances?" Pyrrha looks at Link closely. "That can't be. Everyone who has unlocked aura has one semblance, what he is saying is impossible... right?"
Blake and Yang both charge at Link who draws his sword and fights off both huntresses with each weapon reserved for each girl. First comes Blake and this is where his sword comes into play. The speedy girl attacks Link from different angles with direct slashes across the body but each rapid-fire strike is blocked and deflected whilst using his shield for Yang's powerful but slower punches powered by shotgun blasts. This sequence lasts until both girls back off after landing absolutely nothing. Link takes this chance to run at Ruby who proceeds to fire bullets as fast as she can. Link keeps an eye on each bullet as he runs directly at the team RWBY leader, bringing his shield up, down or keeping it towards the middle as each bullet deflects loudly off of his defensive weapon. This sequence also ends with no significant attack landing due to Ruby spinning in place with Crescent Rose returning to its scythe form. This keeps at bay and rather than charge forward, he backflips away from danger and smiles in the process. Link drops down to one knee, plants both hands together and concentrates. A symbol in the shape of a perfect triforce on his left hand lights up through his leather gauntlets that cover his forearm and hand. Soon enough, most of his weapons too. The sheath for his sword, shield, the handle of his sword and his bow and arrows all glow a bright golden color.
"What the-!" Weiss' voice takes over and everyone's eyes are drawn to her when she drops to one knee herself, after a few seconds and with Link continuing to glow, Weiss is fatigued despite not using her aura or even her rapier, Myrtenaster
"Feeling tired?" Link's smile remains, he stands up and immediately draws his primary weapons. Both sword and shield glow with golden aura that becomes stronger now
"He can take someone's aura... and add it to his own." Pyrrha says to herself as her JNPR teammates look on excitedly. "Can he heal his injuries? Or perhaps heal others? Use it as regular aura? Maybe it's exclusively for attacking?"
"Whatever you did, you'll pay for it!" Yang shouts and charges at Link with sharp speed. Firing multiple rounds from her gauntlets at Link, who blocks most of them with ease and avoids the rest with some difficulty, and then came the time for close combat, "Ahhhhh!" Yang shouts as she charges up for a powerful punch that would have also fired a bullet right in Link's face
"Hmph!" Link frowns and catches Yang's powerful incoming punch by grabbing her bare skin forearm with his shield hand; he manages to push and deflect it away in an upwards direction. The bullet fires and hits the ceiling, and Link replies by swinging his sword without any thought or target. It wildly swings at Yang, who in return dodges with ease, but Link's real motive behind the wild swing was not to hurt Yang and simply to just attack for the sake of continuing the fight
"Oh no..." Ruby shakes her head and expects dire consequences. Link's wild swing went for Yang's head but, when she dodges, the blade makes contact with her hair and slices off the smallest amount.
"Heh, not bad but you..." Yang's anger builds up within seconds when she sees her chopped hair hit the ground, "Y-YOU! YOU BASTARD!" She shouts at the top of her lungs and unleashes her boiled over anger. Her eyes instantly change color from purple to red as she charges at Link once again
"W-wait, that was an accident!" Link scrambles to lift his sword and shield
"COME HERE! AHHH!" Yang swift with more power than technique and blasts many and consecutive shots that are mostly blocked by the shield
"I'm sorry!" Link begins to get angry when his apology is ignored and he is forced to retreat as Yang's power is moving him back despite his strong stance, "Alright that's it! You asked for it Yang! And word of advice, if it doesn't work the first time..." He says the last words coldly as he puts his sword away and shuffles backwards, shield still present, "It won't work a second time!" The one man team shouts as he makes it his main priority now to dodge rather than block Yang's attack, only using his shield when needed. Knowing her strength will be more powerful than in her normal state. Dodging punch after punch only makes Yang angrier and more determined to get at least one hit on him
"Come here!" Yang is able to keep up with Link's agility but can't seem to last the strike, her opponent dodges a couple of punches by mere inches. Then stopped the cat and mouse game as Yang reaches forward and grabs him by his collar. With a firm grip, she lifts him in the air with ease while looking him right in the eyes, "Game over!" She smirks and cocks her fist back
"Not yet." Link squirms around, swinging back to get loose, to no avail. However, it was enough distance and just the amount of time to bring up his right leg and land a perfect high front kick that hits Yang directly in the chin. The huntress lets go out of sheer instinct but as she turns back to face Link, she is met with a balled up left hand thrown as a straight punch. It connects with Yang face first, which sends her flying back back and crashing to the ground back first
"No way. Just like that, he was seconds away from being clobbered... And he got out of the tough spot." Jaune nervously looks up, clearly impressed by what he sees
"..." Ruby hesitates when reaching for Crescent Rose, but knows she has to once Link sets his sights on her
"HEY!"
"Huh?" Link turns around and notices Yang getting back up
"I'm not done yet!" Yang says as she gets up to one knee, visibly stunned. "Did you really think I was finished with those attacks? You punch a girl."
"You will be finished now!"
Link rushes at Yang, ignoring Ruby and not even concerning himself with Blake, who just stands still and watches in shock, she still was completely frozen after attacking only once. The finishing sequence from Link for Yang consists of mostly kicks. One being a single kick to the midsection, a straightforward attack that sends Yang flying back yet again, he is quick to follow up by predicting correctly where Yang is going to land and get in the exact spot himself. Once he is there, he waits for the perfect moment and times it perfectly. Right as Yang is about to hit the ground, Link lands yet another kick, this one also aimed low but not the midsection and rather the back, sending her up in the air now. Link's final attack for this sequence begins with the one person team running to the general area where the hot headed huntress will land, he gets into a position where he is going be face to face with Yang or at the very least in front of her, grabs his bow with the click of a button not seen by anybody, it turns it into its small double crossbow state.
(MY TURN!) The evil voice courses throughout Link's head once again
(NO!)
The huntsman's previously genuine smile now turns into an evil smirk when he shows off something new, a third transformation for his secondary weapon. The double crossbow rapidly turns into a thin semi-automatic rifle. Link springs up in the air but evidently did not jump with enough speed or power to be level with Yang, which leads to use the powerful shots from his rifle to launch himself further upwards, but his end game is soon obvious that he intends to land above Yang and with his left leg raised in the air. Link makes no attempt to prolong the tense moment of the both of them being in the air and brings himself down, with the bottom of his boot landing right on the top of Yang's head as both of them plummet to the ground. Link manages to land on his feet, while Yang lands hard on the ground.
"YANG!" Ruby shouts for her sister who does move and is conscious, but is clearly hurting
All the attention previously on Yang and Weiss now turns to Ruby, but he does not grab his sword nor did he pick up his bow, which was still in its rifle state and inactive on the ground. What is different however is his left eye, it was not blue anymore nor was it golden due to the Aura surge that occurred earlier, but it has strange lining in it and it going in different directions
"L-link? Are you there?" Ruby hesitates once again but follows through and charges at Link
"One more to go." Link frowns as he dodges a scythe slash in the form of Ruby raising her scythe in the air and dropping it directly on top of Link. He is fast enough to dodge that but was not quick enough to avoid the spinning kick that came after the scythe slash as Ruby holds onto her weapon tightly and fires shots to make herself spin in place and land a two footed kick perfectly on his chest. It stuns and sends Link back, not giving him any time to prepare for the incoming bullet that is fired from Crescent Rose
"Take this!" Ruby grins with confidence as her shot is picture perfect
Link, knowing he would be hit if he attempts to reach for his shield, suddenly stops and lets his eyes carefully watch the bullet that soars to him with a rapid speed. He exhales, raises his hand, and allows his aura along with the aura he stole from Weiss to the job by deflecting the bullet just in time before it hits and likely pierces his hand
"Whoa." Jaune's eyes widen. "I thought that extra aura went away."
"That's just how he fools people." Pyrrha calmly speaks. "Aura is always active and present but like with all of us, it's not visible to the eye until the user exerts great use of it. In this case, he took Weiss' aura which helped him be faster than Blake and Yang during their exchange. It momentarily 'went away' but is now visible again for this exchange with Ruby."
"Have you ever heard of someone who can take aura?"
"It is a difficult question to answer." Pyrrha thinks. "On one hand yes I have heard of that but it's nothing like this. People who can take aura are criminals with illegal technology but what Link is doing feels... natural."
(Get the hell out of here!) Link growls and angrily fights back with the evil voice in his head
And now... mysteriously, the black and gold eye vanishes along with the strange lining that at one point almost expanded further and was on the brink of spreading to the rest of Link's face slowly. Link inhales and exhales in relief as his normal eye color returns and he feels completely in control of himself
"Ahh!" Ruby charges at Link again, swinging Crescent rose again for another deadly slash, this one a sideways slide that could easily chop an Ursa in half from the stomach but her swing proves to fall short as her chosen opponent leaps over it. "Hmph!" Ruby grins and spins in a circle as she attempts another double-footed kick. Her feet smash into Link's chest for a second time, but she makes the foolish mistake of leaving her weapon behind as she runs in for hand-to-hand combat. "Eat this!" She says whilst going for an uppercut as Link is barely scrambling to his feet
Link gives no oral reply but he does catch Ruby's fist just as it was about to connect with his chin. He proceeds to yank Ruby's arm and twisting it so she spins as well, resulting in her being back first against Link. The former then wraps her own arm around her throat, and holds her tightly in a basic but deadly choke hold. Ruby fights and squirms but ultimately cannot break free from his grip
"L-link." Ruby gasps for air. "D-don't you dare... go easy... on-!"
"I know." Link whispers in her ear, "I'm sorry about this." He mumbles, pushes ruby off of him and draws his sword. The calm and composed boy takes off and with impressive speed is right behind Ruby in no time, then proceeds to finish her with a sword slash that goes across her back from her left hip up to her right shoulder.
"Ahhh!" Ruby shouts as she is sent tumbling onto the ground next to her sister. No visible damage is done to her as her aura does its best to withstand the blow but ultimately that proves to be the final move on the match. With Ruby and Yang struggling to stand up, the last RWBY member Blake being the only one left standing... and yet she still made no attempt to attack him
"It's over. AHAHAHAHA!" Cardin laughs hysterically
The spotlight fades and the entire room lights up again, indicating the fight is over and the victor is obvious. The first thing the victorious Link does is glare at Cardin who's laugh engulfs the otherwise silent room.
"You think it's funny?" Link mumbles and reaches for a brown pouch attached to his belt, he reveals a throwing knife and launches it perfectly at team CRDL. The knife would have hit Cardin directly in the shoulder if not for the protective transparent barrier
"STOP! That's enough. Mister Link is victorious over team RWBY." Glynda declares with a serious tone as she makes the decision to step in and stop the fight despite the fact that Blake, Ruby and Yang were still able to fight. "Miss Belladonna. I don't know if you didn't get enough sleep or this is just an off day for you young lady but your lack of offense, defense and simply watching your teammates get defeats is unacceptable, please do better!"
"..." Blake does not say a word, instead she looks up at the hologram screen to see where everyone's aura is at now that the fight is over
Link's aura did barely even plummets, the kicks from Ruby were all that made him exert aura. Weiss' was near finished and in the red margin, Yang's was above in the yellow margin, so was Ruby's, and Blake's was completely full. As for their physical status, Yang was slow but successful in getting up. She feels the top of her head for blood and smirks but also has a frown present. Weiss stays down and Ruby is able to get up to both knees. Blake and Link are able to stand and walk just fine without any struggle or assistance
"Grrr, I can't believe it." Link shakes his head, angry that he lost control but seeing Ruby begin to get up makes him move
Link's hands are balled up into fists as he walks towards Ruby, the audience of students gasp as some expect a knockout blow on the leader, while four particular bullies jeer and demand more action and anything extra would establish dominance along with consequences. However, instead of anything malicious, Link extends his hand to Ruby who gracefully takes it. She playfully pushes him back and he responds by pushing her back too. Ruby nearly falls over as she is still fatigued and Link has to move fast to catch her before she hits the ground. The two friends laugh quietly despite the fact that the childish gesture nearly drops Ruby to the ground.
"I'm sorry." Link mumbles
"N-no problem… we're fighting... not dancing. You owe me a rematch though." Ruby chuckles and still has her smile, cherishing the showing of respect
"Of course. Now come on since I roughed you guys up I should help a bit."
Link smiles, throws Ruby's arm over his head and slowly leads her over to Blake, who can't bear to look her leader and friend in the eyes but does immediately help by taking Ruby off of Link's hands. She does manage to look at Link and give him a thankful nod
"And now for you." Link runs over and kneels down to help Weiss
"Don't touch me!" Weiss angrily shouts
"Weiss..." He stares at the ground and sighs. "It's the least I can do, let me help."
"..." The heiress to the Schnee Dust Company wipes away tears of anger as she turns to Link with the cold expression on her eyes. "Fine."
"Good."
Link uses his right arm to get a hold of Weiss' legs, his forearm lifting her by the hamstrings, and his fingers with a light grip on her left thigh. The one person team next places his left arm under her upper back, his forearm lifting her back, fingers gripping her arm and with minimal effort he lifts the most fatigued of the four girls completely off the ground
"H-hey!" Weiss' eyes widen. "This is not what I had in mind!"
"Oh... sorry." Link nervously chuckles. "Do you want me to put you down?"
After a long pause and careful consideration, despite her resentment for Link, the most arrogant and entitled member of team RWBY finds the warmth in her heart under her usual cold interior
"No..." Weiss shakes her head, swallows her pride and looks at the helpful classmate in his eyes. "Thank you."
"You are very welcome." Link smiles again as he helps carry Weiss out out the Beacon Auditorium alongside Yang, who follows them gingerly as she is now able to walk on her own, with Blake trailing behind while she assists Ruby
(7/19/24): Edited - Crucial changes to the fight scene and additional words/dialogue to every scene in the chapter, increasing it from 3.1k words to 7.8k words