The 'Lone' Hero of Vale (RWBY & Link)

by SRenthusiast

Team RWBY runs into a classmate while on a self-assigned mission, when they realize he does not have any teammates because he is a one person team. Link quickly proves he's not just a swordsman and is very much worthy of calling himself a huntsman despite a dark past that correlates with major events. (More of a fusionfic since its Link in Remnant.) (Story is undergoing re-writes)

45. Long Overdue Conversations

Mistral: The House High up in the Mountains, Living Room

Everyone stares in anticipation at the mysterious boy who presumably led a drunk Qrow Branwen back to the house given to them by Leonardo Lionheart, the headmaster of Haven Academy; with Qrow contributing by giving this mystery child directions to the house. Regardless of his appearance as a small boy who could be as young as nine or as old as fourteen, Nora, Ren, Jaune, and Link are on guard as he has previously inquired if Ruby was in this house. However, it becomes apparent he cannot do much, nor does it look like his intention to cause any harm. What he is doing however, is agitating Link with his silence and refusal to speak. The former, who has just completed an intense training session with Ruby minutes prior, is still in the mindset to fight if he needs to. The five huntsmen and huntresses observe the boy carefully after he enters the house and closes the door behind him without ever turning his back, evidently hiding something... Perhaps a weapon? Or a note? It truly is anyone's guess. Thirty seconds pass by as slow if it were actually thirty minutes but at long last, the innocent looking farmhand opens his mouth to speak, the young boy shakes nervously due to the stares he receives from everyone... Specifically Link's

"Um... Well, there's no easy way to say this and I know it's going to sound crazy. It took me a while and I went through so much denial but here I am now. My name is Oscar Pine, I live in Mistral but not here in the city, rather on a farm that's a long way away from here."

"Go on." Qrow laughs uncontrollably. "You guys are going to love this, just wait for it."

"I know you all aren't familiar with me or my name but..." Oscar sighs. "You probably know me as... P-professor Ozpin?"

All four members of team RNJR gasp, with shock and confusion on their faces. Ren covers his mouth, Jaune takes a couple of steps back, Nora's jaw drops, and Ruby's eyes widen. Qrow continues chuckling and Link crosses his arms, still skeptical of the words that were just said, but with Qrow laughing, whoever this Oscar boy is, poses no threat

"I did it!"

Qrow exclaims and throws both of his fists in the air, celebrating. However, his drunkenness finally catches up to him when he throws up his arms too fast and as a result, falls off the couch, tumbling down to the floor. The crash startles Nora and catches everyone else's attention

"Is he okay?" Oscar grimaces at the fall Qrow has taken. "I told him what I told all you at the bar he was in and he ended up drinking a lot more."

"Of course he did." Ruby sighs. "He will be fine, uncle Qrow is always drunk, if anyone can handle getting drunk every day in their life and be fine afterward, it's him."

"T-that's good then." Oscar nods and finds himself staring at only Ruby, mostly getting lost in the color of her eyes. "She has silver eyes... Wait a second. Why did I just say that?"

"Do you want something with Ruby?" Link states loudly as he extends an arm in front of Ruby and quickly pushes her behind him. "Otherwise, why do you keep looking at her?"

"Relax Link, he's just a kid." Ruby slaps him lightly on the back. "If he was going to try anything, he would have done it already."

"Y-yeah, I asked for Ruby because her uncle needed help, he looks... Not in the best shape? But yes, I'm sorry for staring." Oscar frowns. "And hey! I'm fourteen years old, I can't be that much younger than you guys."

"That would put you closest to me." Ruby raises her hand and steps over to make herself visible to the young boy again, "Ruby Rose, although you already knew that. I'm sixteen." She glances at Link to introduce himself, but when the huntsman only stares daggers at Oscar, she sighs, "This is Link, he obviously is not going to say anything because he's my self-declared guardian angel. He's seventeen years old." The huntress turns to Ren, Jaune, and Nora. "Guys, I trust the rest of you can introduce yourselves. And be nice, please."

(Hilarious.) Link shrugs. (Self-declared guardian angel? I guess she isn't wrong about that.)

"Of course." Jaune nods at the boy. "Jaune Arc, I am eighteen."

"I would NEVER be rude to such a cute kid." Nora giggles and salutes Oscar. "I'm Nora Valkyrie, eighteen as well."

"Lie Ren, pleasure to meet you, Oscar Pine. I am the same age as my two teammates here." Ren points at Nora and Jaune

"I see... And you're all professional huntsmen and huntresses?" Oscar smiles brightly

"Sort of." Ruby nervous giggles. "We were still in school, until it got destroyed. We went to Beacon Academy and we're here now to stop the people who destroyed our school. We have been given our professional status with no other choice really."

"We may not be ready or on the level of professionals, but he HAVE to be." Jaune nods

"Oh... I'm s-sorry." Oscar shakes his head. "I've always wanted to see and be a huntsman myself but my aunt never allowed me to even consider it. I've been a farmer all my life."

"That's still pretty cool. You must be very strong for a fourteen year old." Ruby smiles but the boy's confused glare only confuses her. "Ya know? Because of 'farmer strength' as they call it."

"R-right, I hope so." Oscar chuckles. "Sorry, I'm very nervous."

"Don't be sorry, you just met a bunch of strangers in an unfamiliar city, you should probably take a seat instead, Oscar." Link mumbles as he walks over to him but it's really to help Qrow up to his feet. He throws one of Qrow's arms over his shoulder and begins dragging him to the kitchen.

"What are you doing?!" Ruby yells

"I assume you want your uncle sobered up. We're going to need him here if we have any intentions of talking to Oscar-Ozpin, aren't we?" Link asks as he makes quick work of carrying Qrow to the kitchen, leaning him against a counter and immediately getting a glass of water for him

"W-wha-! How the hell are you?" Qrow narrows his eyes. "Nice hair, do you use five different products for it?"

"Very funny, you know when you're drunk you spew out nothing but the truth, right?" Link chuckles and hands Qrow the water. "Drink up, I'm going to make coffee and cut up some fruit."

"F-fine." Qrow rolls his eyes and downs a big glass of water in seconds

"Is that really a way to make someone sober?" Ruby shouts from a fair distance

"Uhhh?" Link shrugs. "I'm not really sure it works but it's what I would do. I normally skip the eating part and drink nothing but coffee and water but if we already have food, then why not?"

"Heh." Jaune smirks. "Link really would know about-!"

"Can you stop? I'm being serious!" Ruby's head snaps in Jaune's direction. "I'm sick of the bickering and jabs between the two of you. Can you at least not do it in front of Oscar?"

"Sure, I suppose." Jaune grunts. "For once in a long time, I agree with Link. Take a seat, Oscar. Anywhere you want."

"O-okay."

Oscar slowly steps forward and chooses the couch in between the two and three seater couches, which happens to be a single seater. He removes the weapon known to the students as Professor Ozpin's cane 'The Long Memory' from his back, fully extends it and leans it against the couch

"Whoaaa." Ruby gasps, despite the fact that she and her friends have already been told this old boy is Professor Ozpin, seeing him hold the cane Ozpin carried around every time he roamed around Beacon, it makes this moment feel surreal

"It really is him." Ren smiles. "We just keep being hit by surprises one after the other. First it was Qrow, Link, and now Professor Ozpin."

"You must all have questions but, if you don't mind... Can I ask some questions?" Oscar smiles

"Sure!" Ruby happily nods. "What do you got?"

"What weapons do you guys fight with?"

"Ooooh, let me answer!" Nora jumps for joy. "I have this really cool hammer that I can turn into a grenade launcher and blast my opponents to smithereens. My super good friend Ren has a dagger that means a lot to him, as well as two machine guns that have really sharp blades at the bottom of them. Don't even get me started with Ruby either! She has a BIG scythe combined with a sniper rifle, the most powerful and precise gun in the world. Then there's Jaune and Link, they're our blonde swordsmen!"

"HUH?!"

"What did you say?!"

Both Jaune and Link say at the same time, Jaune takes a step back from the comment and Link nearly slices his finger when cutting and peeling a grapefruit. They turn to Nora in disbelief but the girl only smiles nods rapidly

"It's true! They both fight with swords and shields. Jaune's weapons have a little more variety because he can make the shield smaller, then use it as a sheath for his sword." Nora's eyes widened. "Annnd with recent upgrades his shield and sword can be used together as a powerful weapon because the shield changes shape and turns into thick blades. Link's sword and shield on the other hand are much much much stronger and durable. Everyone in this room has had to make repairs on their weapons whether it be dents or malfunctions but I don't think Link has ever had to do a thing to his weapons besides clean and polish them for good looks. I don't know what kind of metal his sword and shield are made of but we need him to tell us as soon as possible! He also has a bow, throwing knives, and smoke bombs because he's a sneaky rat who likes to escape or hide whenever he needs to."

"I can hear you!" Link shrugs and slides a plate of sliced grapefruit, apples, and banana in front of Qrow. "Eat up, I'm going to heat up coffee for us next and-! What the?"

Link groans loudly, his intention was to simply reheat the leftover coffee from earlier but then remembers his mistake, which was telling Nora she could have the rest

"Hurry up and make the coffee already." Qrow laughs at the huntsman's annoyance and scarfs down the fruit like he hadn't eaten in days

"Don't forget about my uncle's weapon." Ruby smiles. "Qrow is the reason I designed my weapon the way it is. He too has a scythe that's way cooler than mine, it can turn into a big sword too and it's got a double shotgun when he opens it."

"Wow, they all sound very cool, but I would give the edge to your uncle's weapon." Oscar giggles and blushes, unable to maintain his excitement. "Which one of you is the strongest?"

"Qrow!"

The five teenagers all state at once, making it very clear who they are most confident in and who they know is the most powerful

"But Link is a close ish but a semi distant second." Ruby beams

"Is he?" Jaune raises an eyebrow

(Of course he's questioning that. I can't even have second place?) Link smirks 'evilly' as he watches the coffee brew slowly

"Yes Jaune, he is." Ruby nods

"It is kind of hard to argue with that." Ren mumbles

"But we'll catch up in no time." Nora nods with fire in her eyes

"We absolutely will." Ruby turns back to Oscar. "Link and Qrow were the reason we didn't face as much trouble as we already did."

"Pfft!" Jaune shakes his head. "They did help us a lot, yes. But we still had plenty to deal with on our own."

"Yes, but imagine how much more we would've had to do ourselves if Qrow wasn't watching our backs and Link wasn't clearing the path ahead of us?" Ruby shakes her head. "But since you really want to say that, how about we bring up Tyrian?"

"Grrr." Jaune balls up his hands into fists. "Yeah I get it, they were both great against that Tyrian guy and Link was the main reason you weren't taken."

"Oh you thought I was done? Hehehe." Ruby smiles warmly, clearly in awe. "How about that giant Grimm we fought? We all played a part in damaging it enough for Ren to get the final blow but Link made it a lot easier by keeping in one place after his last attack."

"I guess you're right." Jaune sighs in acceptance. "Yeah... Link is the second strongest here after Qrow."

"Gee." Link chuckles. "Thanks Jau-!"

Qrow walks up to Link and raises his hand to cover the teenager's mouth, this is followed by a head shake from the older man

"My niece just went out of her way to stick up for you and she did it nicely too. Don't stomp on her efforts."

(...I guess I can be the bigger person this one time.) Link shrugs and nods his head so that Qrow can take his hand away

"I do have one more question." Oscar garners all the attention again. "My memory and soul might be connected with 'Professor Ozpin' and he has a reason or multiple reasons to be in Mistral as do you guys, but I don't entirely know these reasons. Who are you trying to stop?"

"I wouldn't answer that if I were any of you." Qrow's speech recovers quickly, having drank three glasses of water and eaten all the fruit prepared by Link. "It's too much information to throw on the kid, Oz can tell him everything in their own time. Give him a shortened version if you insist, but I would advise you to not even do that."

Team RNJR look to one another to figure out if there will be any volunteers, but nobody speaks or even opens their mouth. The four teenagers nods to one another and then all shake their head at Oscar

"Here Qrow." Link hands him a cup with black coffee and then pours coffee for himself too. "No cream, milk or sugar for you."

"Good, I don't like that stuff anyway. I want to wake up, not drink hot sugar water." Qrow swipes the cup and slowly walks back to the living room

"I suppose it's your turn to ask me questions." Oscar chuckles. "Feel free."

"Okayyyy 'Professor Ozpin' tell me." Nora jokingly narrows her eyes and gets close enough to be face to face with Oscar. "Did you age backwards?"

"That's ridiculous." Jaune laughs and gets just as close, looking directly in the farmhand's eyes. "He's obviously possessed!"

"You called Nora's theory ridiculous but suggest that?" Ren shakes his head and does the same as the two before him. "He must be reincarnated!"

"Reincarnated? But wouldn't that mean he'd start over as a baby?" Ruby scratches her head but with a big grin she too gets close to Oscar. "Isn't it weird?!"

"It is very weird, yes." Oscar's face drops as he solemnly nods

"Okay, okay." Qrow shuts the light off in the kitchen as he and Link emerge with coffee in their hands. "Let's all just take a second and remember that this is very overwhelming... For everyone. Why don't you all take a seat?"

Team RNJR all take multiple steps back at the same time and nervously laugh. Oscar turns to Qrow and mouths the words 'thanks' as the older huntsman sits down on the three seater couch to the far right, effectively sitting next to the farmhand. Link stands across from where Oscar is sitting, with the table in between them being the space creator as Nora was already sitting next to Ruby on the two seater couch. Ren and Jaune stand next to each other, leaving Link as the odd one out and farthest away from the rest of the group. Oscar turns to look at just Ruby once again, the latter in response giggles and meets his hazel eyes with her silver eyes

"Gah!" Oscar looks down at his hand and blushes. "Sorry. It's just... I've never really met Huntsmen and Huntresses before."

"Well, uh..." Ruby glances up at Link momentarily. "We've never officially met a person with two souls before! So, first times all around."

"Officially?" Oscar asks with confusion

"She's talking about me." Link raises his hand

"Y-you too?" Oscar's face lights up

"Kind of." Link shrugs. "I don't really know what's going on with me but I do have another voice in my head. At least you got a good, wise, and powerful man. Mine was kind of a psychopath."

"What do you mean by 'was'?" Nora glares at Link

"Nora brings up a great point." Ruby nods and looks at him as well. "Did something happen that you're not telling anyone about?"

"Moving on." Link looks away

"Yeah, let's move on." Qrow speaks up and turns to Oscar. "Look, no offense but... Not to break up this whole getting to know you game, but we need to have a talk. Mind showing us your little parlor trick and bring out Oz for a few minutes, kid?"

"Okayyyyy." Oscar groans. "Just so you know, I'll still be here."

Link and Team RNJR look on in confusion, having no clue what Oscar or Qrow are talking about. Oscar lowers his head and closes his eyes. Suddenly, his entire body momentarily glows with a mostly green aura with hints of white that shines brightly. The boy opens his eyes, which are now glowing with a golden color almost identical to Link's previously seen glowing golden eyes. After a couple of seconds, the glowing golden eyes cease and Oscar's hazel eyes are seen again as 'he' smiles. When 'Oscar' speaks, everyone hears the voice of Professor Ozpin, but it overlaps with many other voices, including Oscar's before their headmaster's voice prevails

"It is so very good to see you again, students." Ozpin speaks as he changes the way Oscar was sitting, with both of his arms now resting on the armrests of the couch while one leg is now on top of the other horizontally

"Wait, what just happened?" Jaune's eyes widen

"P-professor Ozpin?" Ren asks

"Correct. And though I may be the one speaking..." Ozpin begins, "Oscar is still present mentally. He's merely handed over the control, so to speak." He looks over his shoulder as if someone were talking to him, a couple of seconds pass and then turns back to face his former students. "This all must be very perplexing, I apologize very much. If this is difficult to take in, I completely understand."

"Perplexing?!" Nora shakes her head in pure confusion and inadvertently gets in Ruby's face dramatically. "More like alarming, bizarre, and just really kind of hard to believe!"

"I see." Ozpin chuckles, "It's good to see you children still have your sense of humor... I know you've all been through tremendous hardship already. Qrow has told me how you've all been affected. I'm sorry." He glances at all the teenagers individually and nods glumly; his sights linger the most on Jaune and Link

(Understatement of the century, but if anyone understands what I'm going through, it would be Professor Ozpin.) Link does not respond with words but nods his head

"I mean, you don't have to be sorry." Ruby's face drops sadly. "It's not your fault."

"You're wrong, Miss Rose." Ozpin shakes his head. "It's all my fault."

"I'll be right back." Qrow gets up and returns back to the dark kitchen to get something, pouring liquid can be heard next

(Now I'm glad I made extra.) Link chuckles

"I told you once that I made more mistakes than any man, woman, and child on this planet, and I wasn't exaggerating." Ozpin frowns. "You can say I'm cursed. For thousands of years, I've walked in the world of Remnant, living, dying, and reincarnating in the body of another soul. The man you knew as Professor Ozpin was not my first form, and clearly wasn't my last. It's... A strenuous process for everyone involved."

"Wow, so then who-!" Jaune shakes his head. "What are you?"

"Here you go, Oz." Qrow returns to the living room with a cup of coffee for his old friend

"Thank you Qrow." Ozpin nods and turns to Jaune. "You see, Mister Arc, I am the combination of countless men who've spent their lives trying to protect the people of Remnant. With every rebirth, my soul is eventually merged with another and I am changed, but my memories stay with me. This curse was bestowed upon me by the Gods, because I failed to stop Salem in the past. But we must stop her now."

"Okaaay." Ruby mumbles, remaining very confused. "And how do we do that?"

"Good question, Miss Rose." Ozpin smiles. "We start... by ensuring the safety of the Relic of Knowledge. Which as you know after your meeting with Professor Lionheart, is here. Somewhere inside Haven Academy."

"I like where this is going." Link snickers. "If Salem wants this relic, she's going to send everyone. Tyrian, Emerald, Mercury, Cinder, and anyone else they have. If we get them all in one room, we can take them all out."

"Mister Link..." Ozpin looks at him with sadness in his eyes. "Qrow told me you were one of the most affected by the destruction of Beacon. I am saddened to witness this with my own eyes but it appears you lost your sense of humor. Now, you want to kill our enemies, you want to fight them. You never used to look for a fight unless you were left with no choice, so this is... Surprising to hear from a young man who only fought when he needed to."

"I understand what you mean Professor Ozpin but something changed inside me that day." Link frowns and shuts his eyes. "Here's something you and Qrow finally get to hear from me after all this time. Somehow, I didn't lose my sense of humor when I witnessed my first best friend and her entire village be slaughtered by Atlas military while being the only survivor and being unable to stop their toasters, soldiers and ships from destroying a peaceful village. Does that ring a bell by any chance?"

Professor Ozpin's jaw drops and Qrow's eyes widened instantly as the older huntsmen processed every word that was uttered. They had still not heard the story that is Link's past, after being told they might hear about it one day while everyone was at Beacon Academy

"James said that destruction was done by you... I never believed him but I never thought he would do something so horrible like pin that destruction on you." Ozpin rubs his forehead and temples with one hand in frustration. "Rest assured Link, if we ever see General Ironwood again, I will to the bottom of this. You have no reason to lie which is why I believe you."

"Thank you... That is great news." Link smirks. "The intention was to play my cards carefully, now having association to Qrow and use that to hopefully find out from Ironwood what happened and who was the soldier leading that mission to wipe out Garanda, but your influence might work better. And if that doesn't work, I will get it out of Ironwood myself."

"Are you crazy?!" Jaune shakes his head. "I get that this is a topic close to your heart but you can't threaten or fight General Ironwood."

"I already have in the past." Link mumbles. "This wouldn't be any different. I had all that time in Vale with Ironwood to find out who destroyed that beloved village and killed Ray. I received no answers then and something has to give."

"There is always the peaceful approach Link." Ren speaks up. "I'm sure if you explained to the general what happened from your perspective, you can both work together and figure out what happened and who did it."

"That won't happen, Ren." Link shakes his head. "General Ironwood would never tell me who did it, he will protect his soldiers and the people in Atlas over anybody else. That is one of the things I can praise about him. He will protect those he loves with everything he has. Whether it is reputation, will, power, or his life on the line. They might not be the most wise choices but it's what he thinks is best."

"I can't say I'm surprised. That typical Jimmy for you." Qrow scoffs, shakes his head, and glances at Link. "Now that I know you're definitely on our side, I will tell you this. We will get the information you need, Oz gave you his word and I give you my word as well."

"Thank you." Link nods his head at Qrow, then turns back to face Professor Ozpin. "You could say I lost my sense of humor when I saw Pyrrha die with my own eyes, after I had the chance to save her but couldn't. There is not a lot to be humorous about after witnessing something like that. I'll spare you the details of how she died, it wasn't a-!"

"W-what?!" Nora shakes her head. "You were on top of the tower too?"

"Huh? What do you mean? Haven't you and Ren talked to Jaune about-!" Link rolls his eyes and scoffs. "I see Jaune left out those details. I'm 'shocked' that he would do that."

"Jaune? You knew this?" Ren leans over to look at his former leader. "That was part of your conversation and you didn't tell us?"

"..." The secondary leader of team RJNR looks away and does not say a word

"Anyway... I'll let you three figure that one out." Link frowns. "Then Jaune told me about Amber, the girl who saved my life. I won't stand here and pity myself because I'm sure that you have seen and felt more loss in the many lifetimes you've experienced, Professor Ozpin. But yes, I have changed and I'm sorry that it isn't for the better."

"Like Miss Rose said, you do not have to be sorry." Ozpin nods. "It is not your fault."

(If you say so, Professor Ozpin.) Link closes his eyes, nods again and ends his verbal responses (Sadly, it isn't that simple. I can't help but feel like I could have done more to save all of them.)

"Let's say we don't have to fight anybody, how do we ensure the safety of the... Relic?" Ruby raises an eyebrow. "Is the Relic in a vault?"

"How do you know about vaults-!" Ozpin turns to Link and Jaune and chuckles. "I see. You could say that yes. Regardless of whether we fight or not, the Relic can only be accessed with the spring maiden. I am confident we can get her on our side as opposed to Salem getting them on her side."

"Especially now that we have THE Professor Ozpin on our side, don't you guys understand?" Nora jumps to her feet and runs up to Ozpin's left side, "This is perfect!" She jumps in place excitedly. "We were stuck at a dead end, but now, we can just take little cute boy Ozpin to Professor Lionheart and have him set things straight! A flawless plan!"

Ruby, Jaune, and Ren smile and laugh at Nora's enthusiasm. Link's jaw drops, Ozpin face palms, and Qrow shakes his head

"Please don't call me that." Ozpin mutters

"Heh, that's pretty funny." Qrow hides a smirk with his hand. "But anyway. About Leo... Yeah, we're not sure that's the best idea anymore."

"Are you kidding?! Grrr." Nora pouts and walks back to the couch, plopping down in a foul mood next to Ruby

"But I thought the Headmasters all took their orders from you?" Ren asks as he walks over to sit closer to Ozpin and next to Nora on the armrest of the two seater couch. "Wouldn't it make sense to go straight to Professor Lionheart?"

"It's because something isn't right with Professor Lionheart." Link softly speaks while standing in the same position, he promptly opens his eyes. "Didn't you guys feel something was off about him? There was no eagerness to take any action when Qrow told him about the spring maiden. When Salem and her people need this 'relic' and the only way to access it is through the spring maiden, why would it make sense to wait 'weeks' to go after her?"

"W-well..." Ren rubs his chin. "He's doing things by the book as any official in an important position of power would."

"Which would be understandable, had Beacon Academy not been destroyed and Mistral attacked in the process. There isn't the time to do things 'by the book' anymore." Link shakes his head. "When Skylar of team SLVR talked about him to me during our tournament match, I was expecting a brave man who feared close to nothing and wasn't scared of change or something unusual. Something tells me the man we met today was not the man Skylar found to be inspirational."

"People change, Link. We have all changed in the months we were all apart." Ren mumbles. "That doesn't mean-!"

"I'm afraid Mister Link is correct." Ozpin promptly interrupts Ren, "You thought the Headmasters all took their orders from me? Yes, that was the intention. To have four lieutenants I can trust, especially during times of reincarnation. But..." Ozpin stands up and walks forward with his hands formally behind him, stopping to look at a painting, a perfect recreation of the City of Mistral. "Qrow told me about your meeting with Leonardo and I don't like what I heard in the slightest."

"Because he doesn't want to get the spring maiden on our side in a hurry?" Ren asks

"Orrr." Ruby chimes in. "Maybe it's because he sent everyone home and left the relic unprotected with the exception of himself."

"It's everything you said and more, students." Ozpin narrows his eyes. "Leonardo isn't just behaving irrationally, he's disobeying specific instructions I had left him. Something is very wrong. I don't want to jump to conclusions, but I don't want to rule out any possibilities, either."

"Okay then?" Jaune frowns, quizzically. "If going to Professor Lionheart is out of the picture. What is our next move then?"

"Well, we don't have an exact path carved out at this time, but we can always take steps forward." Ozpin rubs 'his' chin with Oscar's dirty orange gloves. "No one outside of this room knows that I've paired up with Oscar. I hope I'm making myself very clear when I say this students: I think it will be for the best to keep it that way. Is that understood?"

Everybody nods in agreement, with the exception of Qrow who is obviously already on Ozpin's side

"Keeping's Oz's identity safe is crucial. It allows us to play things close to the chest until we get a better hand." Qrow smirks

"Precisely." Ozpin turns around to face the entire group again. "Now then, it is indeed time we take a few steps forward. I've done some thinking and we have two steps ahead of us. The first is enlisting the aid of more Huntsmen."

"How are we going to do that? Professor Lionheart said he still needs approval from the Mistral council." Ren shakes his head. "And the Mistral council-!"

"The Mistral council doesn't own every Huntsman in the Kingdom!" Qrow snorts, "And I've been here enough times to know where we can find some more." He then points at Link. "Maybe you can find us some of your old mercenary associates. As long as they aren't wimps, of course."

(I haven't heard from any of my old mercenary associates in two years...) Link shrugs, but even that is enough to make Qrow smirk in approval

"You can get whoever you want, as long as they're trustworthy." Ozpin nods

"The one thing you can trust is for them to put up a good fight. I'll throw together a list tonight, verify that they're still active huntsmen first thing tomorrow and start looking around morning or midday until night time." Qrow gently puts one of his feet on the table, but his 'Misfortune' semblance kicks in, that leg glows, and it causes one of the legs to break, spilling his coffee. "Ugh, great... I'll clean that up, you keep talking to them Oz."

"Will do. Round up students, I have something to say to all of you and I don't entirely want to walk across the room every time I need to address someone." Ozpin glances at Link as Nora, Ruby, and Ren get up and walk over, standing next to Jaune

(If I must...) Link slowly walks over and cuts in between Ruby and Ren

"He got very defensive of Ruby when Oscar stared at her and now when being able to stand wherever he wants, he chooses to inconvenience himself, Miss Rose, and Mister Ren, for the sole purpose of being close to her..." Ozpin thinks to himself and Oscar. "Interesting."

"What's step two?" Nora places both hands on her hips

"I'm glad you asked, Miss Valkyrie." Ozpin walks back to the couch, grabs his cane and turns around, wielding it like a weapon; a sight not seen by any of the students before. "Getting the five of you into fighting shape, of course."

(Huh? It makes sense but... I figured this step would be more of an investigation to figure out what's wrong with Professor Lionheart.)

"B-but uh, Professor Ozpin..." Ruby says with a look of confusion on her face. "We already know how to fight."

"Is that so? Then it's time I critique all of you then." Ozpin chuckles and rapidly points his cane in Ruby's face

"...!" Link frowns at this action

SMACK!

The protective huntsman twists his body, extends his arm and catches the cane with his left hand

(A little too close for my liking.)

"Please relax, Mister Link. I am not going to harm Miss Rose." Ozpin shows off a sincere smile. "Let go of my cane, please."

"Do it Link... Y-you're embarrassing me." Ruby blushes

"Okay, okay." Link nods and releases his grip on the cane, which remains in the same spot

"Ruby, you can only fight so long as you have Crescent Rose, but you're still lacking in hand to hand combat." Ozpin shakes his head

"Well, uh..." Ruby throws up her hands in defeat with a goofy smile present. "Y-yeah, I'm aware of that. Link and I already sparred today to work on that problem."

"Is that so? Thank you Mister Link, for helping Ruby progress on something she needs a lot of work on."

"No problem." Link nods

"Mr. Arc!" Ozpin turns to Jaune and points his cane at Jaune too. "I'm glad to hear you've improved, but sorry to say, you've yet to unlock your Semblance. Without one, fighting anybody could be very dangerous to you. However, Qrow told me you held your own during your journey through Anima, good job young man."

"T-thank you." Jaune lowers his head despite the compliment, as the mention of him not having a semblance drops his mood

"Miss Valkyrie." Ozpin moves to the next student. "You rely too much on your power in fights, whether it be with your natural strength or semblance. What I have to say to you is that your technique and speed requires work. If you can perfect both, you'll be one of the most powerful huntresses in the world."

"Whoa... C-cool!" Nora blushes in excitement

"Mister Ren." Ozpin repeats the cane pointing action. "In contrast to Miss Valkyrie, you have plenty of speed and perfect technique when it comes to your hand to hand combat, but your lack of power is what hinders you the most. It's as if you and Nora were perfect partners in crime. What you lack, she makes up for it and vice versa."

"Yes Professor Ozpin, I will do my best to improve." Ren nods

"And last, there's you, Mister Link." Ozpin does not hesitate in pointing his cane directly in Link's face, mere inches away from his eyes. "What do I say about you-!"

"There has to be something, he isn't perfect." Jaune frowns

"I know I'm not perfect." Link glares at him. "Be quiet! And let Professor Ozpin talk."

"HEY!" Nora crosses her hands

"That's enough." Ren shakes his head

"Indeed, that is enough students." Ozpin remains in the same position. "Qrow told me about the ongoing conflict between you four, and although he didn't share every detail, I know why you're feuding with one another, but please do not. We can address that situation another day. When we have the spring maiden and make sure the Relic of Knowledge doesn't fall into the wrong hands."

"Another day?" Link shakes his head. "Only because you said so, Professor Ozpin. As for 'every detail' I don't know if Qrow told you what Jaune said... But allow me to warn you Jaune, if you repeat those words to me-!"

"I can say them again right now!" Jaune balls up his fists. "I-I'm not scared of you."

(You should be. Not to sound egotistical of course, but you have no idea how one sided a fight between us would be.) Link says to himself, therefore not speaking out loud and instead flashes a smile, which only makes Jaune even angrier

"ENOUGH!" Ozpin lowers his cane and slams it into the wooden floor, making everyone jump except Link. "I would like to get through everything I need to say before the sun rises, is that fair?"

"Yes." Link mumbles

"Good." Ozpin does not wait for the others to respond before pointing his cane at Link again. "The next time you interrupt me, Mister Arc, please make sure you know what you're speaking about. I was questioning myself about what to say regarding Mister Link because there is a lot I can say about him, but I'd rather keep it as short as I can to preserve time."

"R-really?" Link's eyes widen, he cannot hide a blush of embarrassment upon hearing there is plenty of critique for him

"Oh..." Jaune looks away. "I'm sorry."

"No need to worry about it." Ozpin does not glance at Jaune, but rather keeps his focus on Link. "You've clearly improved the most out of the five of you. I don't know what you have been putting yourself through during this time but it's worked wonders. However... I'm sorry to say, your mental state is weak and you are too emotional as a warrior."

"I don't get it..." Link raises an eyebrow. "Don't I lack speed? Strength? Toughness? A semblance like Jaune? Anything physical?"

"No." Ozpin shakes his head. "Regardless of the fact that you have also not discovered your semblance, you've shown that you can handle yourself without one."

"Okay, I'm following." Link nods

"And yet you are the one who needs the most help." Ozpin stare's into Link's eyes. "How would it make you feel when I say that no matter what happened during the Fall of Beacon, that sweet young woman Amber was going to die regardless?"

"Professor..." Link's gaze drops, swiftly turning into a cold expression. "I am at my absolute limit with people pushing my buttons. First it was Doctor Oobleck, then Qrow, and now you?"

The teenager angrily balls up his fists, furrows his brows, and begins breathing rapidly with big consistent breaths. His heart picks up speed and something feels wrong with the house they are standing in. It is not rumbling or shaking, but it feels as if there is a lot of force nearby

"H-huh?" Nora instinctually grabs her grenade launcher with shaky hands. "Did anyone just get the chills?"

"What's happening?" Ren looks around, worriedly. "Is someone here? Did Tyrian track us down?"

"I d-don't know." Ruby hugs herself and rubs her arms nervously. "I feel like I can't move but... I'm shaking."

"W-what i-is that?" Jaune says with fear in his voice

The only ones who do not tremble in fear are Qrow and Ozpin, having faced and encountered much worse in their lifetime

"Nothing or nobody is here, students. That daunting energy, presence, or 'aura' you feel is standing right in front of us." Ozpin speaks to Link with no fear, despite being the host of an inexperienced fourteen year old farmer

"Link?" Ruby looks into his dark blue eyes as hers tremble and shake. "Y-you're doing this?"

"Doing what?" Link blinks rapidly and looks at Ruby, the look of fright and panic in her eyes changes his cold expression immediately, "Ruby!" He grabs her by the shoulders and feels her shaking. "Hey, it's okay. I'm here."

"..." Ruby does not respond but nods her head, the expression change and gentle squeezing of her shoulders helps calm down the young huntress. "I know you're here. Thank you."

"L-link did that?" Jaune struggles to even glance in his direction as he feels frozen in place. "But how?"

"You're very powerful, Mister Link, that I cannot take away from you. What you did against Tyrian Callows surpassed what Qrow was able to do to him. But if anyone knows what affects you mentally to this extent, they can use it against you."

"This might be a stupid question." Link unfolds his arms. "But how can they use it against me? The last time somebody made me snap, I could have killed Ironwood."

"I don't want to proceed but, do I need to continue and bring up Miss Nikos? Or perhaps your friend Miss Ray, from that village?" Ozpin frowns. "I see you hold special items on your belt. That accessory belongs to Pyrrha, doesn't it? And that canteen, was it Miss Amber's or Ray's? Do you think I could take those items by any chance?"

"I would rather if you didn't." Link keeps his head lowered and struggles to slow down his breathing. "O-okay, I get it. My emotions were not the best at Beacon. I would find myself crying or drinking until I passed out... And yes I did just admit that I snuck alcohol into your school but there's no point in keeping secrets anymore."

"What about now? What do you do when your emotions are out of control, Mister Link?" Ozpin narrows his eyes, ignoring Link's admission of guilt

"During our journey in Anima, I took it out on Grimm... Plenty of Grimm." Link shakes his head and glances to his left at Ren, then to his right at Ruby, Nora, and Jaune. "I apologize to all of you. I can take the credit of defeating and slaying all the Grimm that would have come your way. But as Professor Oobleck once said to myself and team RWBY: Grimm are attracted to things such as sadness, envy, loneliness, and hatred. I displayed three of those qualities... I still do now."

"While I do not know how to recover a damaged and scarred mind, in my experience I've gone through many phases which included adjusting, coping, denying, accepting, and trying to do my best moving forward. That isn't the advice I'm giving you, Mister Link, but..." Ozpin lowers his head. "I sympathize with you and I lend you a helping hand. We are all here to support you as we should be supporting one another."

"That's right!" Ruby dramatically wraps her arms around Link and squeezes tightly. "I know you four have issues but I'm here for you! All of you, and I hope you guys know that."

The other three do not say anything, Jaune looks at the ground, Nora raises an eyebrow skeptically, but Ren seems to be the only one taking a smell step forward by smiling at the blonde huntsman getting the life squeezed out of him by Ruby

"Good, moving on now." Ozpin waves and drags his cane in the air, pointing at all five of them. "As you just heard, all of you still have ways to go before you're ready to pose any real threat against Salem and her forces."

(Salem? Sure, but her forces? I can take them. Especially Tyrian, Emerald, and Mercury.) Link grunts

"Although Oscar can give me temporary control, he'll need to strengthen his body and his Aura." Ozpin nods confidently. "He'll inherit my muscle memory in due time, but practice will expedite the process, so getting you all into fighting shape also applies to Oscar."

"But... Professor Ozpin?" Ruby raises her hand. "If Qrow's out looking for Huntsmen, who's going to teach us in the meantime?"

"Hmph!"

Ozpin pushes off his feet and launches 'himself' in the air, cane still in hand and spinning with an acrobatic corkscrew form that transitions into a barrel roll as he lands onto the seat of the couch he was previous sitting on, perfectly standing tall and twirling his cane in style

"I believe I was the previous headmaster of Beacon Academy." Ozpin smiles. "I also know that we have approximately one month before classes resume at Haven. If Salem were to plan an attack, it would make sense that it would occur prior to students returning. Otherwise, Salem and her crew are in for an impossible task. Barring the amount of huntsmen Qrow can gather tomorrow, for the time being it is just us in this room. One month may not be much time, but it's better than nothing. If you're going to remember at least one thing I say today, it's this: Do not expect me to go easy on you."

Suddenly, 'Ozpin' glows with the same green and white aura, his eyes are gold for a split second once more but then it all disappears, signaling that he has switched back to Oscar. This is confirmed when the young boy has a hard time keeping his balance on the couch and tumbles backwards, falling over back first against the wooden floor. Link, team RNJR and Qrow hurry over to check on him

"Owww..." Oscar groans. "You've got to be kidding me."

"Let's call it a night." Qrow stands up, grabbing his cup and the cup Ozpin was drinking out of, "Considering our journey through Anima, you kids worrying about me almost dying, a failed meeting with Leo, and now this. We all need some rest and I mean all of us." He glares at Link. "I get that you actually cannot make yourself sleep, but at least try."

"I will give it my best attempt." Link shrugs. "Professor Ozpin didn't say when we started training, did he?"

"Nope!" Nora shakes her head. "But we don't need him to figure out a time."

"Right, we can set up a time to train!" Jaune nods

"Okay?" Link raises an eyebrow. "When?"

"Ummm..." Ruby looks around aimlessly

"How about tomorrow at dawn?" Ren asks. "The sooner we get started, the better."

"Sounds like a plan." Link nods

"We didn't vote on it!" Jaune groans. "Dawn is too early."

"How about you kids ask Professor Oscar Ozpin over here?" Qrow chuckles

"It's just Oscar, and whenever we all individually wake up is fine." The boy smiles politely as he gets up on his own. "Should I stay on the couch? It's probably bigger than my bed at home so anything is an upgrade really."

"Are you stupid?" Qrow rolls his eyes. "There's rooms everywhere, pick one and go to bed. I'm going to be out on the patio making my list and tomorrow I'll start the search for more huntsmen."

Qrow walks to the kitchen and dumps the empty cups in the sink, fills them with water and walks away, wasting no time in heading downstairs. The same way Link and Ruby just came from after doing their hand to hand and speed training for one another

"If you're scared or anything like that, each room has two beds, do you want to stay with me?" Ruby smiles. "I was going to ask Link if he wanted to be roomies but he already picked his own room so that sucks for him."

"Sure that sounds like fun." Oscar smiles back. "I am pretty tired too."

"Ren and I will hang out here some more." Nora nods. "Jaune, what about you?"

"I'll join you guys, same as how we were before Qrow and Oscar arrived." Jaune weakly smiles

Without giving an answer himself, Link begins walking away, with his room being upstairs, he decides to retreat there and most certainly not be able to sleep

"Ahem! Where are you going?" Ruby playfully demands. "You could at least tell us you're going to your room."

"Fine." Link had not even begun to make his way up the stairs. "I'm going to my room. Goodnight Ren, Nora, Oscar, 'Jaune'. I'm not saying that to you just yet Ruby, because I would like to speak to you in my room, only us two... If you want to."

"Sure!" Ruby beams. "I'm going to show Oscar to my room and I'll head over whenever he feels comfortable, deal?"

"Deal, I'll keep the lights on so you know where I'm staying." Link nods and makes his way upstairs, not bothering to look back at anybody else as he heads to his room

Silence

More Silence..

Until... a door closes and the group in the living room knows Link cannot hear them anymore

"Does anyone have any idea what he did earlier?" Jaune frowns. "There has to be an explanation for that, right? Has he told you about that, Ruby?"

"Hm?" Ruby's eyes widen when Jaune, Nora, Ren, and Oscar turn to look at her. "N-no! Just because I talk to him the most doesn't mean I know what that was."

"Maybe you could ask him?" Nora happily wags her head up and down. "He already wants to talk to you."

"That would be wrong." Ruby shakes her head. "I'm going to talk to him as a friend, not someone only seeking answers to certain questions."

"Asking might not even be necessary." Ren mutters. "Link could tell you himself without even needing to ask."

"Do whatever you feel is right... Ruby." Oscar raises his hand to grab everyone's attention. "S-sorry, I didn't mean to intrude, I just thought I could give my opinion."

"You can always share what's on your mind. Let's go to my room, no more talk about any of this stuff until tomorrow at least." Ruby grabs Oscar's hand and leads him to her room, the latter blushes heavily, having never held a girl's hand before

"I don't have to stay with you if you want your privacy, so are you sure about this?" Oscar chuckles

"Nonsense, I don't mind having a roommate at all, I used to have three of them, so you could say I need roommates with how desperately I want one right now. Link never had roommates at Beacon Academy, maybe that's why he wants to be alone for the time being... oh well, his loss." Ruby playfully remarks as they walk to her dorm in seconds. "This is me, quick trip I know... Come in!"

Ruby opens the room, pushes the door open widely, turns on the lights, and allows Oscar inside first before she runs in and shuts the door behind them. After fidgeting with the cane for a while, Oscar is able to figure out how to deactivate it and set it down on a shelf above and in between the two beds; although, he rises to his tiptoes in order to place it there

"Are you gonna be able to get that for when we train tomorrow?" Ruby snickers. "Actually, I could get it for you, so it's okay."

"You and your uncle have both made fun of my height now, I should feel very offended but... I'll allow it." Oscar rolls his eyes but with a visible smile. "You don't have to babysit me, if you want to go and talk to Link, you can do that whenever you want."

"I know, but I thought you might like some company. Ya know, we don't only want to talk to you because Professor Ozpin is in your head. You're part of the group now, Oscar." Ruby sets Crescent Rose down leaning against a nightstand next to the bed she sits on

"Thank you, I hadn't even thought about that but now I don't need to." Oscar laughs. "So, what pushed you towards being a huntress, Ruby?"

"Hehe, I'm about to give you the biggest nerd answer and you don't have a choice but to take it!" Ruby nods happily. "Being a huntress has been my goal since the day I even knew about the word. This is all I've ever wanted to do, Oscar. I grew up desiring to be a hero who slays monsters and saves the day. I aspired to be like all the heroes in the books I grew up reading."

"That's beautiful." Oscar gushes in excitement when hearing these words

"Then it evolved into aspiring to be an amazing huntsman like my Uncle Qrow. He taught me everything I know and as I said already, he's the reason I built my baby Crescent Rose the way it is."

"You made your weapon? Completely from scratch?!" Oscar's jaw drops. "I know you said 'designed' earlier but I thought that meant aesthetics and not literally building it yourself. Wow, that's so cool."

"Is it really? Thank you!" Ruby dashes over to Oscar and gives him a tight hug, unaware that she's making him blush even more than when she simply looks or giggles at him. "I like you already, it's hard to find people who nerd out about this stuff like I do."

"It's hard to believe I share a soul and mind with a really powerful huntsman, and now I'm training to become one." Oscar suddenly begins to shake. "Is it okay to be nervous?"

"Definitely. I was nervous too, nobody is perfect when they start. You should've seen how bad I was before uncle Qrow got his hands on me, I was complete garbage! But now..." Ruby lets go of Oscar, backs away, grabs Crescent Rose, activates her scythe, and begins spinning with her hands easily

"W-whoa!" Oscar's eyes widened even more. "It's one thing watching myself twirl a cane when I wasn't really doing it, but seeing you do it with that big scythe is on another level."

"I can't wait to see you grow as a huntsman and fast too, we should train first tomorrow, how does that sound?"

"That would be great, yes!" Oscar nods

"Oh man! I can't wait! You're about to be THE most powerful teenager Remnant has even seen." Ruby's showcase of her agility with Crescent Rose comes to an end when she deactivates it and places it back where it was resting before. "Although, you should beware, you do have some stiff competition to earn that title."

"I'm not looking to compete with anyone." Oscar scratches his head. "But because I'm curious, who is that?"

"Hehehe." Ruby smiles and looks up at the ceiling. "It is just opinion based at the end of the day, but in my opinion, you met him already. He thought you were here to kill me and kind of scared the life out of us by just balling up his fists, breathing heavily and looking serious."

"That's right." Oscar recalls what happened not long ago, giving himself goosebumps in the process. "Your friend, Link."

"OUR friend Link." Ruby frowns but notices the boy looking uneasy. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, I'm okay." He shrugs away the nerves and fear to put on a brave face. "I just felt... Helpless when it happened. I was not in control but I still felt scared, which is not fair because Professor Ozpin wasn't scared, so why was I?"

"I guess despite having your souls combined, you and Professor Ozpin still have different emotions. I agree though, it's not fair, if Professor Ozpin is taking control of your body, his lack of fear should pass over to you too." Ruby nervously giggles. "I know Link came off as mean and aggressive, but I promise you when he softens up, he's the most amazing friend ever. He's my best friend for a reason."

"H-he's gone through a lot, hasn't he?" Oscar looks at the ground. "I heard him and Professor Ozpin mention three people: Pyrrha, Amber, and Ray. Who were they to him?"

"They..." Ruby sighs, feeling her eyes well up. "They were girls who really made a big impact on Link, all three of them lost their lives unfairly and tragically, then there's how it affected Link... He hasn't taken any of them well at all. After we lost Pyrrha, he lost his speech, changed completely, and left all of us. We didn't see him for a long time."

"But then he came back?" Oscar looks up, his expression drops upon seeing Ruby crying but her smile tells another story

"He did come back. I knew he would, everyone gave up on him coming back but... Not me!" Ruby nods and lets the tears flow down her cheeks. "I'm confident he's never going to leave again either. Link might be here for revenge but he isn't doing it alone at least. He's here to help us with our goal, to stop and put an end to evil once and for all."

"It sounds like Link is lucky to have you as a friend." Oscar leans back and lies on the bed horizontally. "If he didn't come back, he might have-!"

"I know." Ruby swiftly cuts him off whilst wiping the tears away. "I don't want to think about might's or what if's... I'm just happy he's back."

"Y-yeah, that's nice." Oscar smiles

"Are you sure you're going to be okay by yourself, you're not scared of the dark or anything, right?" Ruby asks with genuine concern

"Come onnnnn!" Oscar groans and sits back up with an annoyed expression. "I'm not eight years old."

"I'm just messing with you." Ruby giggles and walks over to the door. "See you later, okay? I promise not to make too much noise when I return."

"We'll see about that." Oscar smiles brightly. "Have fun!"

"Thanks!" Ruby sprints out of the room in a hurry, racing over to Link's room in a hurry

...

...

...

Second Floor: Link's Room

Knock knock knock!

"Come in, Ruby." Link calls out, he is in bed, on top of the covers again. "Turn the lights off when you come in please."

"Heyyy." Ruby quickly enters and shuts the door behind her, then gasps and thus forgets about Link's request. "You actually got in bed, on your own? You didn't just get in because I was coming up, right?"

"I couldn't hear you coming up." Link chuckles. "However, yes I have been in bed since I entered the room. We haven't been apart that long... You do know that, right?"

"Yeah yeah, it's just..." Ruby smiles. "Good to see you doing it on your own as opposed to me having to beg you to do it."

"I'm sorry about that." He sighs. "You're not my mom or babysitter, the responsibility of getting me in bed shouldn't be yours... But thank you for going out of your way to do that regardless. You're an amazing friend."

"Noooo, I just try my best to ensure all of my friends are happy." Ruby smiles warmly and sits on the end of the bed Link is lying on. "So! You wanted to talk and hang, just us two?"

"Yes. Not for any specific reason, it's always nice spending time with you and ever since we reunited it has been you reaching out to me and never me reaching out to you. I would feel horrible if this turned into a one sided friendship in your mind." Link grumbles, feeling a bit in despair. "Although, I did have some things in mind that I was going to dismiss, but since you're here and asked if I had anything specifically to talk about. Do you mind?"

"Please, the more you share, the better." Ruby nods and places a hand on Link's boot. "You should take these off, you can't sleep with your gear on."

"H-hey! Give me some credit, I took off my belt and weapons." Link smiles weakly. "I thought you didn't want to talk to me after what happened earlier. Your eagerness to show Oscar to your room as well made me think that... You were now scared of me. If I'm thinking about this too much, I apologize. Normally you rush to speak to me straight away, but Oscar is a new guest so it makes sense-!"

"You're a dummy." Ruby giggles. "Yes, I was trying to make Oscar feel at home and let him know that he is part of our group. As Oscar Pine and not just Professor Ozpin. I had a feeling he might have felt that way after uncle Qrow immediately asked him to hand over control to Professor Ozpin when we were still getting to know Oscar."

"Wow Ruby, you're a genius." Link sits up and directs his smile at his friend now. "I'm sure nobody has even taken that kid into consideration the way you did and-! Actually... Who am I to call anybody 'kid' when I'm not even an adult yet."

"You're fine, we all make mistakes." Ruby shrugs her shoulders. "Hey, don't worry about earlier too, I know you-!"

"Stop." Link shakes his head. "I'm sorry for scaring you, all of you, even Jaune. I'm not even sure what I did but, seeing that look in your eyes, it felt like somebody ripped my heart out. I never want to see that much fear in your eyes ever again."

"You don't have to talk about it, Link. Unless you feel comfortable enough." Ruby sighs and smiles at him. "When you grabbed me by the shoulders and looked at me, I saw your concern and felt your warmth, you were the reason I wasn't scared anymore."

"I'm glad to have helped." He drops his head. "I will be completely honest too. I don't know what that was at all, but it also isn't the first time I've seen it happen."

"How many times has it happened?" Ruby anticipates the answer by balling up her hands and bringing them up to her mouth. "Five times? A million times?"

"Definitely not a million times." Link picks his head up and smirks at her. "Five is closer to the real answer, I don't have a specific number but I was going to say 'a handful of times' as my official answer. You're not going to like this next part but, I have no clue what specifically happened or what I did."

"Hmm." Ruby thinks while playfully tapping her temple with an index finger. "Can you recall how it played out? Or what happened from your perspective?"

"I sure can, one time I protected Ray from a bully, this was from a different occurrence than the story I told you guys at Beacon. We had just endured a long training session and we went to the village's Academy because Ray's father asked me to train with their students. I'll spare you the entire back and forth but one of THE bullies I did tell you about the first time tried to charge at Ray. I simply stepped in front of her and was ready to teach him a lesson."

"Were you in any sort of pose, perhaps with your hands in closed fists? And did you have that look on your face like earlier?" Ruby leans closer and looks into Link's eyes

"I don't know what 'look' you're talking about. With that bully I was crossing my arms if you consider that a pose. Which was different from today." Link cannot help but laugh. "If you're asking, was I angry? Then yes I was, he stopped a few feet away from Ray and I, next thing I know the bully froze in place. His exact words were 'what is this?' and 'what are you doing to me?' while he trembled in fear and... That's it really."

"Huh... That's interesting, it's practically what happened today except you got angry at Professor Ozpin for bringing up that girl Amber. He wasn't intimidated but we were, even Oscar told me he was scared because he could feel and hear everything we were saying."

"Damn." Link shakes his head. "I should apologize to him, shouldn't I?"

"If you want to, but he knows you weren't aware of what that was." Ruby nods firmly

"That's good." The huntsman sighs, attempting to remember other times he scared people by primarily appearing upset. "I recall doing it and scaring a couple of White Fang soldiers before the Black Hawks were forced to work with them. A couple of us had finished a mission and they tried to take our lien, it was about eight soldiers but they quickly scurried away. How you might ask? I felt mercy for them, told my group not to attack, and demanded that they leave us alone."

"Hearing about it happening to people who deserve it is actually entertaining." Ruby excitedly spins, a ninety degree counterclockwise turn and now she's sitting on Link's bed with her legs crossed and her hands pressed together. "Please tell me you have another one."

"I do, actually. The last one I remember happened at Beacon, let's just say it was at night and I wanted to go into the city to roam around. I wasn't drunk but I wasn't having a good day either, who did I intimidate you might ask? Any guesses?"

"Hmmm, nuh uh." Ruby shakes her head

"Why of course Atlas soldiers." Link scratches his head shamelessly. "They threatened to arrest me for demanding a ride to the city and then... They looked like I transformed into that big Grimm we killed in Kuroyuri."

"Maybe THAT is your semblance!" Ruby claps loudly. "You can scare people by looking terrifying and mean."

"Intimidation as a semblance? That doesn't sound like my style but, I suppose going through something traumatic can be a way I unlock my semblance." Link sits in the same way Ruby does with his legs crossed, he rubs his chin and thinks. "Great suggestion, Ruby. However, it didn't seem to affect Professor Ozpin and Qrow so I don't think it's my semblance."

"Welllll..." Ruby sighs. "Our semblances aren't perfect, they don't always work. You can dodge my speedy semblance, Ren couldn't keep us hidden for long, Nora's didn't work against Tyrian, my uncle Qrow's nearly got me killed hehe."

"You do have a point there." Link hesitantly agrees. "I don't suppose I could convince you to stay the night at least once, right?"

"Nahhh." Ruby snorts. "You made your choice my friend and besides, I told Oscar I'd see him later."

"Fair enough." Link nods. "Do you want to wake up early tomorrow and train? You know, before everyone else wakes up and we have our group training session?"

"Sure!" Ruby smiles. "I did tell Oscar we could train first but that's a pretty good loophole, training BEFORE we officially train."

"Great, sounds like a plan."

"Are you kicking me out? DON'T TELL ME-!" Ruby gasps. "You want to sleep?!"

"No no, of course not, you can stay as long as you want. I just figured I'd ask you rather than wake you up early and ask you then." Link lightly slaps her shoulder

"I'm messing with you, silly." Ruby returns the gesture by gently punching his leg. "But maybe I should get going, do you still have your scroll by any chance?"

"Yeah, I do. Almost left it behind in my dorm but I'm glad I brought it with me." Link nods and gestures to his belt. "It's in my brown bag, next to my other stuff."

"Awesome! Text me tomorrow when you're up. I don't want you coming in and waking Oscar up." Ruby scoots backwards and gets off the bed

"Will do. Goodnight Ruby, sorry again."

"Stoppp, you didn't know." Ruby heads for the door, turns off the lights to the room, exits said room, and turns back to giggle. "I'll see you tomorrow. Byeee!"

"See you."

Link smiles and waves at Ruby as he watches his friend leave, her happiness and optimism leave him feeling a tiny bit happy to end the night after what has been a hectic day, but the next day should be more productive with training and finding out which huntsmen Qrow is going to pick to them keep the Relic of Knowledge secure in Haven. To wrap up this crazy day, Link faces the dilemma of trying to sleep while knowing he is only going to be able to rest his body, not sleep peacefully

---

The Next Day: The Group's House, Back Patio

ZOOM!

The sun is barely rising but when the Link and Ruby meant waking up early before everyone else did, they definitely stick to their words as the former dodges a speedy attack from the young huntress, who is in her 'Petal Burst' semblance and attempting to collide with Link, who does his absolute best to dodge, with a good amount of success but some failure as well. His clothes are visibly somewhat dirty, implying that he has been hit and knocked to the ground, but the huntsman welcomes the challenge of getting beat up for the prospect of making himself faster and with this being only their second training session, there is plenty for him to learn and adjust to. After training for some time, it seems to be coming to a close as Ruby's semblance appears to slow down. Nevertheless, Ruby gives it all she has and when she's inches away from colliding with the huntsman, Link digs his heels into the ground, pushes off and just about dodges the attack but is still grazed in the chest, causing a slight injury due to the speed at which Ruby travels. Link drops to one knee to assist his recovery, while Ruby comes out of her semblance and falls to both knees, neither one is injured or needs extended rest, they simply need to catch their breath. Both of the teenagers look up and smile at each other sequentially, feeling satisfied with Link's progress to increase his speed

"That was fun!" Ruby huffs and puffs crazily before slowing herself down and breathes slower. "It helps me navigate while I'm in my semblance too, now I don't have to only practice on Grimm."

"I'm glad this is of use to you, because this might only be our second session and it might be in my head but it feels good to be making progress already." Link chuckles

"Yeahhh, that's the spirit Link!" Ruby giggles. "So, what are we doing for me today? Once we catch our breath and stuff."

"It's your turn to attack me." Link nods. "Last time I tested your defense and although your blocking needs work, you are very good at evading strikes. The good news is you can rely on that as much as you want while working on your blocking secretly."

"Oooh I get to strike today, fun!" She rises up to one knee. "Is there anything you want me to do? Certain punches? Kicks? Knees? Elbows? Headbutts?"

"Anything you know." The huntsman shrugs his shoulders and rises to his feet. "Whatever you know, it needs to be sharpened up and fast. I don't know what Professor Ozpin has in mind but, we can get you a head start on it before everyone else wakes up."

"WOOO!" Ruby cheers, jumps to her feet and raises her hands in the same stiff guard she displayed the previous day

(I should tell her to loosen up her hands a little bit. Unfortunately, I did also tell her she should learn how I did by doing it and learning the hard way, rather than being told. Hmm...)

Link thinks of a way for Ruby to learn without going back on his own words, he smirks and thinks back to their first semester at Beacon. When team CRDL was bullying Velvet, he stepped in, weaponless but prevailed with quick thinking, speed, and an unexpected awkward stance

"W-what are you doing?" Ruby is visibly confused as she and Link slowly approach each other in their guards, ready to fight as soon as they get in striking range. Although, now the huntress is thrown off when Link lightly bounces on his feet, going back and forth and with hands down to his midsection

"Ruby? I'm offended! You're telling me you don't remember this? It was a while ago but you knew me then." Link chuckles and advances with a quick dash, he does not hit her but rapidly taps her head with his palm

"GYAH!" The huntress growls at the taunt, steps forward and throws a powerful but inaccurate straight right hand, while her left immediately drops down to her side as a recoiled fist

(Come on Ruby! You can do better!) Link, being light on his feet, bounces backwards and watches the girl almost fall over entirely

"Whoa!" Ruby maintains her balances and gasps when it finally hits her. "I see what you are doing, Link! You could be fighting me normally but instead you're making it even harder by using an evasive fighting style, you jerk!"

"Hehe, maybe!" Link closes the distance again and allows Ruby to make the first move, opting not to taunt her again

"AHHH!" Ruby quickly twists her body and throws a spinning roundhouse kick with no elevation

"Ruby!" Link effortlessly parry's the kick with his hands. "Aim for the head when your opponents hands are low, my best bet would've been to dodge there. By blocking your attack, you left yourself too open."

"GAHHH!" Ruby spins out entirely but returns fire with a high front kick that is sloppy but despite this, the kick flies upward at the head

"Nice!" Link slides backwards to dodge. "That's much better!"

"Thanks!" Ruby giggles. "Let's step it up a notch though, you should counterpunch!"

"Are you sure?" Link raises an eyebrow. "We only just started-!"

"Yes pleaseee." She puts on an exaggerated sad expression. "You ask me to push you and we just started your speed training. I cannot in good conscience ask or expect you to go easy on me in return."

"Okay then, I will grant your request." Link stops his bouncing and taunts Ruby when he extends his arm, twists it, raises his hand so the back of it is facing her and gestures Ruby to come at him with his fingers

"You're gonna get it now mister!" Ruby screams out and charges at Link, but regrettably they do not notice they are being watched

"Someone's up early!" Oscar calls out

"HUH?!"

Both Link and Ruby turn in shock as Oscar, Ren, Nora, and Jaune are watching them carefully. The latter of the first two teenagers even trips over herself and nearly falls completely, but luckily Link is there to catch and prevent the huntress from tumbling by wrapping his arms around her. Choosing to grab her with a tight bear hug due to Ruby's incoming speed when catching her

"Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry!" Oscar runs forward to check on them

"I'm o-okay!" Ruby laughs and pats Link's back as a signal to let her go

"That's a relief. Professor Ozpin told me to relay a message to you two." Oscar nods. "He says good job and nice urgency to learn and improve considering our limited time."

"Thanks." Link mumbles and releases his grip on Ruby. "Do you mind if we finish our session?"

"A-actually I um..." Oscar chuckles. "Ruby and I agreed to train first when we all started."

"Well." Link hesitates. "This is technically us training before our official training and we aren't done. So if you don't mind-!"

"Don't be rude to Oscar!" Ruby lightly punches Link on the shoulder

"Then in that case, congrats Ruby on landing your first punch." He sarcastically retorts whilst sticking out his tongue

"Grrr." Ruby frowns. "Okay! Let's go Oscar! Professor Ozpin said I needed work on my hand to hand combat. I hope he gave you some advice before you got up."

"He did." Oscar nods vigilantly. "Professor Ozpin also told me to train hard and eventually it'll be easy for me since... Ya know, I will be inheriting his muscle memory. Isn't this kind of like cheating?"

"Maybe but when the world is dependent on us, cheat as much as you can!" Ruby snickers

"Good luck you two."

Link nods and backs away, standing a fair distance away from Jaune, who stands next to Nora. Meanwhile, Ren has even more distance from everyone as he sits on the ground and meditates peacefully, seemingly having zero interest in watching Oscar and Ruby spar, but deep down he is aware of what is going on. The two youngest huntsman and huntress begin training, but someone finds himself not fully invested...

...!

(Not again... GRRR!)

Link frowns as his vision goes blurry and the ringing in his ear initiates its long, grueling process. The young man's breathing increases and so does his heart rate, he attempts to look over his shoulder at Jaune, but he cannot move his neck or eyes now. Suddenly the entire world disappears around him until it all gets sucked into darkness like a whirlpool getting rid of a large body of water. Only for the fateful rainy night in Garanda to resurface as the current world in his head. He watches as an Atlas Soldier guns down Ray in cold blood, with the young girl gasping, squealing, and begging to not lose her life as she covers the bullet wound in her chest with her hands

(Why did I have to bring up the village or Ray today. D-damn it! This never gets any easier, does it?! If it's not Pyrrha's death replaying in my head twenty-four seven, it's Ray being shot by a cold blooded bastard!) Link attempts put his hands on another Garanda civilian to take some of their aura and transfer it to Ray, eager to help her but no matter how fast or hard he tries, the huntsman's aura does not even activate

"L-link!"

(Don't call my name! I don't want to hear you right now, R-ray...) Link attempts to cover his ears with his hands but, angrily growls when his arms do not move, despite them moving seconds ago; the young man shuts his eyes in frustration. (This is all being done to torture me time after time after time again!)

"W-what's happening?" Ray struggles to speak, "I d-don't want... I d-don't want to die, t-there's-! So many things I want to do-!" The girl chokes up and stops mid sentence as tears slip down her cheeks, she makes a last ditch effort to weakly wrap her arms Link. "I don't want to go, please."

(I-I'm so sorry Ray, I should've left your village as soon as I was healthy enough to walk. The village, your people, your family, and especially you did not deserve this. You should be right here with me ready to fight Salem and her stupid crew! I was supposed to take you to explore and see the whole world! I was... Supposed to protect you, Ray.)

"G-goodbye." Ray quietly whispers

Silence consumes them both as Link feels Ray's grip become weaker and weaker, the young girl soon her eyes slowly close for the last time

(NO!)

Link opens his eyes and to his relief, the scene in one of the worst days of his life is over and he's back in Mistral, in the back patio of their house. He glances at Jaune, Nora and Ren and then turns to Oscar and Ruby in the middle of their spar

"AHHH!"

Ruby throws a straight right punch with the same form as she showed earlier, Oscar blocks it with his forearm, smiles at his efforts, but his smile fades quick when she throws another stiff spinning roundhouse kick, but luckily due to the farmhand's height, her kick is aiming at his head. Oscar ducks under, then fires back a punch of his own, an uppercut that Ruby dodges easily. Oscar follows up with more punches, a right and left hook that Ruby blocks with her awkward guard. She slightly shoves Oscar when he is too close for her liking, Ruby winds up, throws a punch, and really puts her entire body into it... Only for Oscar to duck, which results in Ruby losing her balance and flapping her arms uncontrollably for assistance

(Oh no, come on Ruby, beat him before he lets Professor Ozpin take over.)

Ruby quickly recovers her balance and drops down to surprise Oscar with a leg sweep out of nowhere, but the farmer leaps over it and throws a punch when Ruby is back up to her feet. The huntress ducks and dashes forward to get behind Oscar, she reverts to her childness and teases Oscar by pressing both thumbs up to her cheeks, opening her hand and wiggling her fingers jokingly. Oscar does not match this energy but does maintain her pace. He whips around and throws a kick while she's crouched. Ruby throws both arms up and blocks it, then slides away to retreat. Oscar chases and throws more hooks, with their short ranged nature, combined his short arms, they are all blocked but eventually, the farmhand mixes up his striking and throws a straight right punch that lands perfectly on Ruby's left cheek

"!" Link frowns when the punch is landed but resists the urge to step in. (He's just fourteen years old and this is a spar... This is just a spar, they are both learning a lot.)

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!" Oscar leans forward and extends an arm to check on Ruby, letting his guard down

"HYAH!" Ruby picks her head back up and answers back with a dashing straight left hand, which sends Oscar crashing to the ground

(That's more like it. Good job Ruby.)

"I DID IT!" Ruby jumps in celebration

"What? Why didn't you tell me?!"

Oscar shouts and groans as he sits up, visibly having a conversation with Professor Ozpin in his head. The next thing the five teenagers see is the farmer stiffen up briefly while his eyes glow with a bright golden color

"That was a good fight, Miss Rose." Ozpin speaks now. "But Oscar doesn't have the years of training that you do... Or the years that I do."

Oscar's body glows with a green aura that shines brightly, which is Professor Ozpin's doing as he engages the aura for both of them. Jaune and Nora's eyes widen, with Nora nervously glancing over at Link, fully aware of his obsessiveness to protect Ruby. Professor Ozpin, as Oscar approaches Ruby with a menacing look in his eyes

"O-oh really? Haha, well... Maybe we should ummm? Take a break?" Ruby backs away and unknowingly makes the mistake of looking at Link with a pleading look in her eyes

Professor Ozpin attacks Ruby first with a right cross, Ruby dodges but is immediately met with a left hook that she blocks. Although, it partially connects as she only blocks it with one hand.

"Oof!" Ruby blinks rapidly

The huntress continues on the defensive when Ozpin throws a straight right punch that Ruby blocks, another straight left, which is also blocked, but leaves herself open for a right hook that lands perfectly and knocks her back, stumbling and confused. Ozpin leaps forward to close the distance, jumps in the air, spins mid air and lands a flying spinning kick to the head. Ruby stumbles backwards and eventually hits the ground. She slams her fist into the ground in frustration, gets up and charges at Ozpin, leaping in the same way he did, but to throw a slow left cross that is easily dodged when Ozpin ducks underneath and immediately rises up to connect a headbutt below Ruby

"UGH!" Ruby bounces back and falls on the ground back first

"Miss Rose, the bout is not over!" Professor Ozpin runs at the prone huntress, jumps high and adjusts his legs mid air, aiming to connect with a flying side kick; when he turns to look at the spectators, Ozpin notices that somebody is missing

BLOCK!

Jaune, Nora, and Ruby all gasp as nobody had seen when Link grabbed his shield, let alone took off from where he was standing previously. But now, he is directly in front of Ruby, and blocks the flying side kick from Professor Ozpin using minimal effort. The ticked off, yet still calm professor lands with both feet on the shield and promptly kicks off the strong defensive weapon, flips and twists mid air, then lands safely on the ground with both feet

"Mister Link..." Ozpin mumbles while shaking his head in disappointment. "I understand that you care for Miss Rose deeply but-!"

"You already won the fight, Professor." Link lowers his shield and shakes his head. "The three attacks you and Oscar landed combined stunned, wobbled and dropped Ruby. She learned plenty and has to work on the following: her defense and not throwing easily telegraphed strikes."

"Correct." Ozpin smiles softly and nods along with Link's analysis of the spar. "Did you hear that about telegraphed strikes, Miss Rose? The next time you want to throw a left cross, push off with the right foot. And as always, be aware of any openings."

"G-gooot it!" Ruby groans, struggling to sit up

"Let me help." Link kneels down and helps her up with a gentle grab and pull of her arm

"T-thanks." Ruby smiles gratefully, she leans into Link's ear for a quick whisper. "It's okay, ya know? I do need to learn."

"I know." Link shrugs. "But I personally saw enough."

"Very well then students, as you saw with Miss Rose, I-!" Ozpin is cut off mid sentence, the eyes of the boy's body glow bright gold again as the Professor is forced to relinquish his control back to Oscar, who falls down to both knees, now breathing heavily. "W-whoa, that was something."

"Hey!" Ruby pushes past Link and crouches to tend to Oscar. "Are you okay?"

"How is this so exhausting?" Oscar holds his chest and rises up to one knee. "Professor Ozpin didn't even take over for long."

"Your body isn't used to this kind of training." Ren opens one eye to look at everyone, while maintaining his peaceful appearance. "Not to mention generating a defensive Aura on your own. It takes intense concentration at first, but in time it will become second nature, allowing you to deflect attacks and gradually heal your wounds. And then-!"

"Ahem!" Qrow clears his throat as he is now seen watching the students train and spectate. First he glares at Link. "Nice save, but let Oz do his thing, there's a reason he was the headmaster at the school you were attending."

"Hmph." Link shakes his head. "I have no regrets, your niece took a beating. If I'm the bad guy for not letting it continue, then I'm the bad guy."

"Nobody is calling you the bad guy." Qrow turns to look at Oscar, Ruby, Jaune, Nora, and Ren. "I'm about to head out and recruit our huntsmen, I thought you kids should know."

"Ooooh!" Ruby giggles. "Bring ten! No twenty! FIFTY!"

"I'll bring back as many as I can." Qrow chuckles at his niece's enthusiasm, then turns back to Link. "Do you want to come with me? I don't know if any of your old mercenary buddies are in Mistral but it wouldn't hurt to look, right?"

"Hmm..." Link thinks carefully, he glances at everyone to see what they think. Ruby and Oscar nod happily, Ren is indifferent, then there's Jaune and Nora who nod but it looks quite obvious they want Link to leave. "Alright, I'll tag along. My group disbanded a long time ago but you're right. Trying won't kill us."

"Byeee, good luck you two!" Ruby waves and showcases a big smile on her face

"Y-yeah! Good luck!" Oscar waves, the rest of the group does not say anything but does wave

The two departing huntsmen re-enter the house and steadily make their way upstairs. However, before they exit through the main entrance, the older huntsman pauses when his hand touches the doorknob

"Kid... I have some clarifications I'd like to get out of the way right now." Qrow looks back to meet Link eye to eye. "What you did earlier, I felt it. I just know how to hide emotions better, same with Oz, in case you thought we were unaffected. So whatever that is, make sure to aim it at the enemy, okay?"

"But I don't even know how-!"

"Shhh, I'm speaking." Qrow mumbles. "I also didn't only ask you to tag alone because of your past as a mercenary. I picked you to evaluate huntsmen with me."

"Why not take Ozpin with-!"

"C'mon kid, don't be dumb." Qrow shakes his head. "We all agreed to keep Ozpin's identity a secret, taking him to the lower parts of Mistral would be a disaster. I could go alone and maybe I should, but I want eyes at the back of my head."

"So a bodyguard? Yeah I can do that." Link nods. "Do you expect a fight?"

"Nope." Qrow shrugs. "But you're outspoken, strong, and clearly know more than the other brats about the strength of a huntsman. I'm not buttering you up when I say this either, I just know how jealous the other blonde gets when anyone compliments you and frankly, I'm sick of you two bickering."

"Jaune?" Link chuckles. "That is very true, his feelings would have gotten hurt if you complimented me."

"Yeah yeah, whatever." Qrow nods. "Last thing, I know I gave you crap seconds ago about not letting Oz do his thing but... I respect and appreciate how much you care about Ruby. She's talked a lot about you to me and Tai. You've meant everything to her since the first day you kids met at Beacon. It's obvious that you feel the same too, not many people would constantly fight for somebody. Which means I can rely on you for damn near anything, is that right?"

"Right!" Link firmly nods, with a determinant look on his face

"Good, let's go then, we're probably going to be out all day looking for huntsmen."

Qrow opens the door and exits, Link follows closely behind and shuts the door behind him. They look at each other momentarily and while the seconds feel like minutes, they eventually exchange respectful nods before setting off for what could be an entire day inside the City of Mistral

---

(Author's note: Hello and good morning everyone! I hope you've enjoyed this chapter because as always, I had a lot of fun writing it. Additionally, I have re-written/edited chapters 14, 15, and 16 so if re-reading my story aka those specific chapters is something that interests any of you, feel free to check them out after this if you'd like. Thank you for dedicating some of your time to check out my work and have a wonderful day, I will see you all in the next chapter and when I update my older chapters. Stay safe, take care of yourselves, I love you all.)