Chapter 72 - Argus - What About Second Wedding?
Cover Art by Mi Chumi
Year 71VE, June
How do you measure riches?
Several million lien had passed through the hands of The Lone Huntsmen. Granted, ignoring the small fraction of it that they'd set aside as salary, the bulk of that money had then flowed outward. Training facilities and equipment. A comprehensive electronics forensics laboratory, fully air-gapped. A contract with Branwen Tribe to supplement the protection money they were charging in Southern Mistral. Rebuilding a manufacturing facility in Vacuo on the sly and buying up the resulting product. Covering the initial construction stages of Menagerie's Cove Combat School and Chimera Tower, both of which should be fully operational by the end of the year. Covering the fuel costs for the staggering number of miles that they'd put on the bullhead.
But money was only one way of measuring wealth. It can also be measured in joy.
The joy of filing their wedding certification, duly signed by Reginald Cass as officiant and witness, with the Argus Civil Authority. They'd opted to change both of their last names, as a symbol of the equality of their relationship, to Grae-Lumerent.
And then, as soon as those records had been processed, the joy of filing a formal notice of adoption of one Cinder Scoria into the family, with that same administrative body. When it came to her name, the three had discussed whether to change it as well, and instead had agreed she would keep her previously chosen one.
Afterward, Cinder had at first tried to pretend the whole formal adoption thing was no big deal, since she already called them mom and dad by this time. And she'd managed to convince herself of that too.
Right up until they'd given her a legal copy of the adoption certificate, at which point she'd stared at it and then lost her composure within minutes, tearily demanding they take her to the Emporium so she could show her friends, weeping happily starting from the drive over and well into the group hug that ensued.
That certificate now held a place of honor in a wooden treasure box on her dresser. Its playmates were a very special first tear-stained letter from Rhodes, a printout of her acceptance to Sanctum Combat School, and a collection of handwritten love notes from Argent.
Wealth can also be measured in the joy of a second wedding ceremony, more an affirmation of vows and reception than a true wedding.
She'd imagined a small affair at first, but the guest list ballooned quickly. The Lone Huntsmen including Crystal. Garek's parents. The entire Arc household. Cinder's friends from both Pete's Emporium and Sanctum Combat School and their parents. Rhodes. The Nikos family; though Alexander Nikos had politely declined for himself, the rest happily accepted. Headmaster Lionheart along with his adjutant Professor Vermilion. Summer Rose and her family.
Raven Branwen had been invited and had declined, declaring herself 'too busy making sure these idiots south of Lake Matsu stayed breathing'.
Dr. Polendina had also been invited but had demurred stating that he was nearing a breakthrough in some sort of critical research.
The Belladonnas had been included in the invite list, at the insistence of Cinder's friend Sarah, and had agreed to attend.
They had not invited Qrow Branwen. Not because they didn't like him, but because he still thought of Garek and Selene as (at most) a footnote of Raven's activities in Mistral rather than the ringleaders of an anti-Salem / anti-Ozpin cabal, and they wanted to keep it that way for now. So anything that focused him on exactly how many powerful people they were associating with was a bad idea.
Heck they'd already had one prior stress-inducing visit from him. That had happened less than two weeks after Cinder's return, when Qrow had shown up on Garek's doorstep. Thankfully both Selene and Cinder had been away at the time.
"Hey Garek," the lanky and rough-shaven Huntsman had rasped upon Garek opening his door.
"Qrow!" Garek had managed to hide his worry beneath real surprise. "To what do I owe the pleasure?
Qrow shrugged. "Running down missions for the boss. I told you about Oz?" Garek nodded. "Anyways, yeah. A story hit the nets about some weirdness out near Argus that he wanted me to check out, and I remembered you lived here, so I looked you up to see if you'd heard anything other than the same gossip I had." There were a few moments of silence, and finally Qrow's red eyes flicked between Garek and the apartment's first floor. "So… you gonna invite me in?"
Shit. "Uh yeah, sure." Garek waved him in and toward a chair in the living room. "Want a beer?" Qrow stared at him as if he'd asked whether Qrow liked breathing. "Right. Gotcha." Garek disappeared into the kitchen, as much to give himself some time to recover and think as to actually grab the beer and pop the top off, before returning and handing the bottle to Qrow, who nodded in thanks and took a healthy swig.
Garek went for nonchalant, leaning against the back of the sofa "So… what kind of story?"
Qrow suddenly looked embarrassed. "Uh… rumors about a group of Huntsmen that got killed, and some sort of humanoid Grimm riding a Nevermore? Ringing any bells?" Garek gave the older Huntsman a look like he was waiting for the punchline. "Yeah, sounds stupid when you say it out loud, huh?" He shrugged and took another pull of his beer.
You have no idea, Qrow. And thank all the gods that Selene is out with Helena and Crystal, and Cinder is with her crew. "I mean, I did hear about a team of young Huntsmen that got killed, but you know as well as I do that isn't all that uncommon." He frowned. "Tell you what though, that was my last beer," he lied, pointing at the bottle. "Why don't we go out, grab a few more, and you can fill me in on the details?"
And that was all it had taken. He'd managed a furtive message to Selene regarding what he was doing, and a request to Reggie for extraction if things went too far off the rails.
By the end of that evening, Qrow had been plastered, Garek was barfing into some bushes, and no one had been any the wiser. The next day Qrow had suffered through the resulting hangover and then returned to Vale to report back to Ozpin that it was probably just more rumors that had expanded from the one that had started in Vacuo.
And all without Qrow and Selene so much as spending five minutes in the same room.
So yeah. Qrow was definitely not on the invite list, poor guy. Of course, he wasn't the only person blackballed.
Pete had suggested, jokingly, that they invite Madame Tremayne and her daughters to dig the knife in, and then had laughed his ass off at Rhodes' reaction to that idea.
"Might as well invite Watts," Rhodes had retorted, scowling.
And from there, the proposed guest list had veered into the ridiculous, including Hazel Rainart, Tyrian Callows, Ozpin, Queen Salem, Blackfeather, and the Brother Gods themselves.
But in the end the real guest list still totaled somewhere north of 70 people, which was surprisingly large for someone who only a few years ago had not had any friends at all.
The day of the ceremony dawned, and Remnant smiled upon them. The weather didn't turn to storms. Arthur Watts didn't decide to assault the CCT that day. There was no sudden catastrophic influx of mimes.
Yes, for Selene Grae-Lumerent, wealth was better measured in the friends that would soon surround her. All invited to the the modest banquet hall knew that a smaller, private ceremony had already been held, though not why it had been required. They just assumed that the couple wanted things that way.
When Selene and Garek entered, wearing the same clothes that they'd worn for that other prior ceremony but walking arm-in-arm, the hall fell quiet immediately, and Selene's breath caught.
So many people, she wondered. Almost four score. Yes, some of them were not her direct friends, but all of them had ties to her, to their little family. She felt that her heart would burst from the sight of it. That her face would break from smiling too much. Gods, she feared that in her exalted state, she would lose control of her Aura and therefore her appearance.
Ye gods, would that not be a pretty problem. And that was enough to sober her, just enough to not appear manic.
But still here she was, walking down the cleared middle of the room, her husband by her side, and on either side were tables occupied by smiling, happy guests. Friends. Acquaintances. Family members of friends. To her left sat the Rose-Xiao Long family. Summer was shaking her head in disbelief and smiling broadly as she leaned on her husband, whispering something. Their two young sat girls on either side of the couple. Seated with them was Visha, beaming at Selene. At a table to their right sat the Grae family. The Graes were nudging each other happily and mouthing words of encouragement to Garek. And it was not lost on Selene, that this was after meeting her mother.
Sharing both the Grae's table and two others was a sea of blond hair that made up their Ansel neighbors, the Arcs. That poor family had their hands full keeping the youngest in check, and Selene marveled at the parents' patience. What would it be like, to have such a large happy family? Well… mostly happy, she laughed to herself as she saw Coral Arc, nose in book and scowling slightly. And Terra Cotta had managed to insinuate herself among them, her darker hair and skin striking in that sea of paleness.
The Lone Huntsmen and Rhodes sat together on the right side of the aisle. Even Pete had dressed in formal attire, and he had made sure that Selene and Sophia knew it was for both of them that he suffered through it.
The Nikos family, except for Alexander, of course. Helena gave Selene a double thumbs-up as she passed, and then laughed at something young Pyrrha said.
Cinder's classmates and Emporium friends were a tight-knit group of teenagers had crammed into a table, giggling and whispering among each other as their nearby parents rolled eyes and tried to shush them. Cinder had asked to sit among them, and Garek and Selene had agreed. Their daughter needed that, more than they needed her stuck by their side. Rhodes kept switching his gaze between Cinder, Selene, and Garek, and seemed unable to decide whether he was happier with how Garek and Selene looked together, or with how Cinder seemed, nestled next to Argent.
Selene's father, smiling broadly and eyes suspiciously glassy, sat at a table with Headmaster Lionheart and his adjutant Professor Vermilion. Selene took a moment to wonder whether there was anything going on there between the two Haven staff members.
The Belladonnas sat close by them. Blake and Kali's ears were perked up and they were all three smiling happily.
And then they were turned, hands linked, and standing on what would soon be the dance floor in front all those happy guests, ready to share this joyful moment. Some of them for the second time.
Selene and Garek traded smiles.
"I realize this is not a typical ceremony," Selene began, addressing those present. "For personal reasons, we were required to hold a very private ceremony before this one, but we wanted to be able to share the joy of our union with all of you, as well as announce some additional cause for celebration." There was a round of happy clapping and a few whoops from some of the teens. Selene looked to see Cinder beaming with Argent whispering something in her ear.
Argent, of course, knew exactly what that other celebration was about, as did Cinder's friends. Really everyone there probably knew, but there was still reason to formally declare it.
"That said," Garek continued from there, "We want this to be a short and enjoyable celebration instead of some stuffy ceremony." There were some additional cheers at that one. "So, we'll begin by reaffirming the vows we made less than a month ago."
And thus, he and Selene turned toward each other and repeated their prior vows, slightly adjusted for the broader audience. They made a show of their rings at the end, and kissed each other passionately in front of the assembled guests to further applause, hoots, and in a few cases gagging noises from some of the younger kids.
Selene felt like she would float away, and Garek's ears were quivering with excitement as he continued on. "And of course, not content to double the size of my family from one to two, we are overjoyed to announce that we've formally adopted Cinder as well," he nodded toward her, and she popped up, blushing furiously and threatening to tear up. "I don't know how to explain how much this strange little family we've created means to me, but…" he choked slightly, and Selene saw that he and Rhodes were trading looks, "well… dammit you two ladies are my life now. I don't know where I'd be without you."
"It's my fault!" Rhodes yelled from the crowd, to laughter.
"Shut up, you jack… uh… jerk."
Selene laughed. Leave it to Rhodes to nearly make her beloved curse in front of a room full of children. She looked out to see that his mom was wiping her eyes and laughing.
"But enough of the formalities," Selene managed through happy tears of her own, "let us celebrate. Eat drink and dance. Do what brings you joy!" And she nodded to her left, where the hired DJ kicked off a popular dance tune, loud enough to dance to, but quiet enough that those wishing to hold conversations wouldn't be impeded.
She turned to her husband, and found herself enveloped in his arms, and then her lips were captured by his, and for a few more moments she forgot completely about the dozens of onlookers.
"Get a room!" Rhodes called from off to the side, laughing.
"Asshole," Garek muttered with a grin. "He's just jealous because I got the girl first."
For the next few hours, the entire thing devolved into eating, drinking, light conversation, and dancing, with groups coalescing and dispersing as the topics of discussion ranged from congratulations over their union, to congratulations regarding Cinder's adoption, to lighter topics and heartfelt affirmations of friendship.
As the evening wore on, Pete offered to 'take the youngest of the younglings off their hands'. He and Sophia, along with "Grammy Visha" had scooped those off to the Emporium for free gaming so that the rest of the attendees could focus on dancing and more adult-focused carousing.
Selene and Garek soon found themselves cornered by Summer and Taiyang, along with Headmaster Lionheart and Professor Vermilion, which was quite an accomplishment considering the chaos. Taiyang was in the middle of relaying something that he apparently found hilarious when they approached.
"… so I'm sitting in the car, right?," Taiyang gesticulated, "Waiting for Summer to finish up her first day as an assistant teacher at Signal." He gave his wife a grin and caught Selene's eye. "Selene, you should have seen her that morning. So excited. She'd shown up for work all sunshine and roses."
Lionheart took in Summer's mock scowl and made an educated guess. "And I am to assume the day didn't exactly end that way, eh Huntsman?" He asked in his deep voice, eyes wrinkled and tail flicking in anticipated amusement.
"You're dang right they didn't," Summer interjected with mock horror, arms crossed. "I could barely drag myself up from the desk by the end of the day," she gave Taiyang a dark look. "Be a Combat School Teacher, I said. It'll be fulfilling and all, I said." She turned up the glare on her husband, "You knew, Tai." She uncrossed her arms and aimed an accusatory finger at him. "Why didn't you freaking warn me?"
Taiyang's grin grew wider, and his arms and shoulders went up in a 'who me?' gesture. "Warn you about what? That a bunch of early teens can literally sap all your energy and your will to live? Where'd the fun in that be?" He replied cheekily.
Selene found herself enjoying the interplay immensely, and decided to join in. "Oh dear," she said sadly. "Am I to understand that I should be more empathetic to young Cinder's teachers as well?" Her eyes scanned the crowd, picking out Sarah's aunt, Sanctum Combat Instructor Raspberry Regalia. "Though I must say I cannot imagine Ms. Regalia so vexed."
"Ah Mrs. Grae-Lumerent," Professor Vermilion emphasized the new last name, and Selene felt a warmth wash over her at the mention of it, "I suspect while Ms. Regalia may not appear to be so affected, I'd bet that any such sympathy would be greatly appreciated."
Lionheart nodded along and then stroked his beard, eyes going distant for a moment. "Though to be honest it's the parents that are often the more difficult to deal with." He turned back to Summer, "And I regret to be the bearer of worse news, Mrs. Rose, but it does not get easier when they reach their Academy Years. Unfortunately, by then, the…" he gave Tai a long look, "less discipline-minded Combat School Instructors have let some of the children have their way for far too long. Often the sense of entitlement takes months to correct, or at the least a serious humiliation in the arena is required." Beside him, Professor Vermilion shuddered slightly.
Taiyang's grin faltered slightly. From what Summer had told Selene, he was known as a savage fighter, but he was also considered a softie when it came to kids and discipline outside a direct spar.
But it was Summer who was first to object. "Oh poo, that's a load of bunk and you know it, Leo. Why when I went to Beacon—"
Lionheart barked a laugh and interrupted her, "Summer Rose, I have it on very good authority that when you went to Beacon, you and Raven were a pair of holy terrors." His eyebrows rose, challenging her to contradict him, and Vermilion snorted quietly.
Summer had the decency to look slightly contrite. "Well… I mean… Raven…"
Selene had heard variations on this topic several times over the past months. She was not surprised by who responded next.
"Oh yeah, blame it on Raven since she's not here to defend herself," Taiyang said helpfully, and laughing dodged the mostly playful fist that headed his way in response.
Selene and Garek shared a look, and she joined in. "Indeed. I must confess to you, Summer, that I was led to believe, based on the stories that Raven told me, that you were the instigator of most of the mischief during your Beacon years." She gave Summer a long look and shook her head sadly. "I am disheartened to see you throw your friend under the bus in such a manner."
There was a moment of shocked silence, and then Selene could no longer keep her facial expression schooled, and the entire group erupted into laughter.
Summer leaned on Taiyang, trying to catch her breath. "You… you… oh that was good, Selene. Wow. You had me for a second."
"Yes well, I have been watching you and Raven together, and have been taking notes."
"Oh gods," Garek groaned.
Apparently, however, Lionheart had not had his fill of poking various bears that evening, and next turned his attention to Selene's husband. "And what about you, Garek? You know, I am sure that the next generation of Huntsmen in Training could benefit from someone with your unique combination of experience and skills, as well!"
Garek's arm slid from Selene's shoulders, and he held both hands out in front of himself as if fending off the entire idea. "Oh no. No no no. Not me, Leo. I'm…" he thought desperately, "you know, Rhodes would be a much better choice. Hell, he trained Cinder!"
Lionheart's eyes narrowed, "That is not what Cinder has told me. She claims that, while Rhodes laid the foundations, it is you who gave her the advantages she now has at Sanctum. Why Headmaster Brand tells me she's near the top of her class." Leo's smile had entirely too many teeth showing.
Shit…
"And besides," Vermilion added with her own shark-like expression, "I wouldn't want Huntsman Rhodes in a parent-teacher conference with our single mothers… that man has… a reputation. Did you know he even hit on me once?"
Selene noted that Leo's eyes narrowed at that, and wondered if, perhaps, there might be something brewing between the two staff members.
I mean, he did ask if he could bring her…
Next to Selene, Garek rolled his eyes. "Well… that's… fair I guess. But he's getting better!" He glanced off to his left, to find that Rhodes had apparently set his sights on Helena Nikos and was applying a full-court-press charm offensive. From the amused look on the woman's face, it wasn't quite working.
Crap. Points for trying I guess. "Ok fine, I see both your points about Rhodes." Selene watched as Garek's expression shifted to actual suspicion. "Wait… this is just teasing, right Leo? You aren't… actually trying to recruit me for an Academy, are you?"
"You, Huntsman?" Lionheart's tone was comically dismissive. "A young but highly-skilled faunus Huntsman? One whose daughter, I daresay, will likely end up applying to Menagerie's future Academy someday?" Garek started at the mention of the Academy's location, but Selene noted that Professor Vermillion didn't react at all.
It appears Lionheart has informed her of at least that portion of our plans, Selene mused. Perhaps another hint?
But Lionheart wasn't done. "Ah Garek, why on earth would I consider recruiting you for a teaching position in Menagerie? Why… it boggles the mind!"
Garek's expression was one of abject defeat.
Selene found it adorable.
It was a few minutes later that Selene saw Juniper Arc waving her over from where they were standing around a table, Garek and Lionheart having been dragged into a conversation elsewhere with the Belladonnas. She knew the Arcs well, having spent more than one evening visiting with them while in Ansel, and found them imminently likeable.
They seemed to be enjoying themselves very much. She expected it was a side effect of having a rare evening where their youngest were being minded by someone else in a different location, and their oldest had been corralled by Cinder's gaggle. Well except for Saphron Arc, who had apparently disappeared completely.
She made her way over, noting that Garek's parents were already there, deep in conversation. From the expression on Grace's face, she needed some assistance.
"Selene!" Juniper Arc said, giving her a quick hug. "I was just telling Grace that it's a shame your mom couldn't make it tonight."
Oh. Oh dear.
"And she let slip that they did get to meet her at your first ceremony," Juniper said, eyes narrowing, "to which we were not invited."
Grace slid between Selene and Juniper, eyes wide, "I told her it was very private! For personal reasons!"
Selene took in the expressions on the husband's faces, which were both some variation of 'I'm sorry for them, can you leave me out of this?' at the moment. "I see. And yes, that is correct, Mrs. A—"
"I've told you, Selene, you can call me June."
"I… yes. June… Grace is correct. It was a very private affair," she had considered what her response to this question would be, "because my mother is… eccentric."
Grace Grae laughed a little too loudly at that, took a deep drink of her beer, and seemed to realize that the rest were staring at her. "Oh yeah… yeah… eccentric." There was a cautious squeeze on her arm by Rorson, and she scowled at him.
It wasn't like she was going to just spout off to the Arcs that Selene's mom was part of Team Grimm.
"Well, I just think it's a shame that we didn't all get to meet her," Juniper Arc complained. "Eccentric or not. I mean, Selene, your dad's a hoot and a half," she nodded toward the dance floor, where the silver-haired man was currently dancing with Pyrrha and Helena's mother, Artemis Nikos, "Has he told you about some of the contracts he did on the Vacuo border? I swear the man has to be making those up."
"Oh, you'd be surprised June," Nicholas Arc replied, apparently as happy as Selene was to shift the conversation, "things can get pretty wild out there. That area is a lot like Southern Mistral, from a law and order standpoint. And it's the only real land border between two Kingdoms in Remnant, which makes things really fuzzy as far as who's actually in charge." He shrugged.
"But still…," Juniper complained, "I would have liked to have met her."
Selene shook her head, "My mother is… not a people person," she took note of Grace's snort followed by a soft apology. She smiled, "I love her dearly, but… people can find her difficult to deal with, in the best of circumstances."
"Well, I just don't understand how that's possible," June continued, smiling brightly, "considering how absolutely lovely a person you are, Selene. It can't all be from your dad."
Selene, despite everything that she knew, took the complement at face value, and it actually felt nice. "Well, I thank you for that. And I will say that she is… a rather doting mother." She heard another muttered comment, but couldn't make it out, from the general direction of Grace.
"But enough about that," Rorson said a bit louder than necessary. "How about we find out whether that dance floor can handle the four of us, and stop monopolizing Selene's time!" and without waiting for a response, he grabbed his wife by the hand and began drawing her toward said dance floor.
"Shall we show them how we did it back before the kids and the scars, June?" Nicholas Arc asked, arching a blonde eyebrow.
"Oh fine," Juniper Arc said airly, "but no slow dancing. I don't want you getting any ideas."
Selene decided then and there that she owed Rorson Grae a favor. Oh, it wasn't as if she hadn't expected someone to ask the questions, and she could answer them if required. But she didn't exactly relish having to tiptoe around the topic.
Scanning the room, she felt her spirits lift. There, huddled around their table, she could see Cinder and her friends, laughing and talking and playing some sort of game that appeared to involve bouncing a ball into a cup and then taking a drink if you missed.
Wait… are they playing a drinking game? She considered the amount of actual drinking going on, as well as how much fun they were having, and sighed, Perhaps, just this once, I can pretend I did not see anything.
Instead, she set her sights on Rhodes and Helena.
The prior departure of the younger kids had left the older teens, including the Grimmslayers, Cinder's Sanctum classmates, and the older Arc children, to their own shenanigans.
This apparently included Sarah and Laurel sneaking a pitcher of slightly alcoholic punch to the table, an impromptu game of what Clay had explained as "Punch Pong" (and where the heck had he found a ball?), making fun of how their parents danced, taking turns losing at Punch Pong, some not-so-subtle comments and speculation about where Terra Cotta and Saphron Arc had gotten themselves off to so early in the evening, and drinking aforesaid punch.
Cinder was having a blast, not that the punch was all that great. She found that she didn't really care for the alcohol taste of it. But the game made it sorta fun.
And she also couldn't really care less what Terra and Saphron 'got up to', either. I mean, it wasn't any big secret at this point that Saphron and Terra were 'together'. She and the other kids had watched it happen in real time over the last year or so. She suspected what they 'got up to' was the same kind of thing that Garek and Selene 'got up to' when they locked their bedroom door.
No, what she cared about right now was being Garek and Selene's daughter, perched happily in a chair, with her girlfriend sitting sideways in her lap and an arm draped across her shoulders. And she was surrounded by her friends, who were laughing and having a blast. And her parents were finally married and everything.
I mean, how the heck do you top this?
Even Argent's mom had stopped scowling at her when she saw them together and had shifted to slight smiles or eye-rolls, which was just icing on the cake.
Sure, it had taken a few months, but still.
Argent leaned down so she could be heard without the others overhearing, "You think Sarah and Tommy are gonna be a thing?" She motioned with her nose toward the two, who were bickering good-naturedly over whose turn it was to try to bounce the ball into the cup.
"Nah," Cinder said thoughtfully, "I think it's more just playing around than anything. I mean… they like each other okay, but there's no spark there. Y'know?" She looked up at her girlfriend.
Argent smiled, "Not like with us?"
"Heh. Yeah. Not like with us." She kissed Argent once, softly, and then pulled back.
Argent's mouth turned up at one corner, "I think it was more than a spark there," she cupped her hand, as if she held something in it, and nodded towards Cinder's hands, "more like a flame."
Cinder felt a warmth in her chest that had nothing to do with Scorching Caress, and considered her girlfriend, shaking her head. "You know what I love about you?"
Argent let her impish smile grow, "My staggering good looks and winning personality?"
"Besides that, you goof." Cinder leaned in against Argent's shoulder. "No, its… you never freaked out. Not once. You saw what I did and… you defended me from the start, and then you kept doing it. That meant a lot to me. Still does."
Argent stared at her for a few seconds, and then snaked a hand down to hold hers. "Yeah well… when your knight in flaming armor steps up to save your butt from monsters, it'd be kinda moronic to complain about getting your eyebrows scorched." She caught movement toward the dance floor. "And there go Sarah and Tommy."
Cinder followed her gaze, watching the two reach the edge, argue for a few seconds, and then start dancing with each other. "Huh. Then again, maybe I'm wrong about them."
"You guys not gonna dance?" Clay asked, easing up to their left.
"They're fine, Clay, I told you," Laurel said from behind him. "Besides, I wanna dance, and you're the only guy here who's single, close to my age, and not repulsive."
"Gee. Thanks Laurel."
"Don't get your future Huntsman fee-fees hurt, Clay. C'mon, let's go shake some booty."
"I hope I am not interrupting?" Selene asked as she approached her two friends. She had watched Rhodes and Helena for a few minutes to ensure they were not… progressing, and then decided to see what they were discussing so animatedly.
Rhodes grinned at her. "Nah. We were just arguing over the pros and cons of Huntsman versus Specialist training at this point."
Helena arched a bleached eyebrow at him, "You're leaving out the first part, Rhodes, where you propositioned me."
He laughed, "And you said you were too busy getting screwed daily by your team to have time for a relationship with a Huntsman." He rolled his eyes.
Selene chewed on her lower lip. "I… am going to assume you meant metaphorically, Helena."
The Specialist made a sour face, "Ugh. Yeah. Well besides the fact that Charlie's married, Echo doesn't swing that way, and Delta is more like an older brother… bleh, that'd feel like incest or something. So no, I meant that they always give me the crap jobs, and with all the missions… well who has time for a relationship?"
Selene shook her head. Helena Nikos was… something else. She was direct, physical, and so amazingly self-assured. It was a combination that Selene found herself drawn to, and in some ways wished she could emulate.
"Sounds like Charlie does, apparently?" Rhodes tried.
"Well, he's our Team Leader, so he gets to make the rest of us do all the work," Helena groused. "And before you point out Bravo, he doesn't exactly do relationships." She gave Rhodes a look, "Maybe you two have that in common."
"Heyyy I'm trying to reform," Rhodes laughed. "Honest. I was just looking for a date."
"You invited me to your hotel room, Rhodes, that's not a date."
"It's a kind of date," the Huntsman retorted, "especially if you order takeout on the way."
Helena snorted, and slapped him on the back, "You know, for a Huntsman you aren't a complete jackass," she caught Selene's eye, "I actually like this guy. I understand now why you put up with him."
"Yes well, there are other reasons, you remember," she found her gaze drifting back over to the tables, where Cinder and Argent now sat alone, deep in conversation. They looked so very happy.
Rhodes and Helena followed her gaze. "Ah. Well yeah, that too, huh?"
Rhodes smiled softly, "Geez, look at her. So damn happy. And it's because of us."
"Well, I think that girl in her lap has something to do with it too," Helena snarked, punching him on the shoulder.
"Yeah yeah, wanna go annoy them?"
"I take back everything I said before. You're an immature idiot."
"Allll part of my charm," Rhodes said, and started toward the two teenagers, laughing when Helena hurried to stop him.
How Professor Gilda Vermilion found herself cornered by the leader of the White Fang, she wasn't sure, but she learned very quickly that while Ghira Belladonna looked intimidating, he was, on the contrary, a rather pleasant gentleman.
"And where is your wife?"
"Oh, she's getting a refill for us," he nodded toward the open bar. "Which leaves me here, forced to socialize," he rolled his yellow eyes.
Vermilion smiled, "Surely it isn't such a chore?"
"Well, at least I'm assured that no one here will throw a brick at me." Ghira's smile was thin.
"Oh dear," she considered, "I had hoped things had improved in Mistral?"
"You'd be surprised," Ghira replied. He waved his hand, "Though I will say that Argus strangely isn't as bad as the rest of Atlas or Mistral." The large man shook his head. "Something about the two cultures tempering each other, I suppose. But I'm betting you miss the worst of it in Mistral City. The Academies are their own little subcultures."
"I suppose that is true," Vermilion nodded.
"Yes. Well… I noticed that you've met with Headmaster Lionheart several times recently?"
Ghira chuckled. "A few times, why?"
"I assume you have discussed… matters in Menagerie?"
Ghira considered her carefully, then turned and waved Lionheart over, waiting for him to arrive. "Professor Vermilion was just asking me about Menagerie, Leo."
"Ah…" Lionheart shrugged. "Yes, I have brought her into my confidences, Ghira. Gilda and I have worked together for… how many years now?"
"Almost a decade, Leo," her smile was slightly nostalgic.
"Yes. Well, she became suspicious of my change in attitude over the past year."
Professor Vermilion rolled her eyes, "That's putting it mildly, Leo. Ghira, he'd been working his way into some sort of depression for months, and I was days away from demanding he tell me what was eating at him, and then he goes out drinking one night. One night! With Garek Grae, drunk texts the entire campus, and the next day it's like he's a brand new man."
"And she wasn't about to accept anything short of the truth for my… adjustment in attitude." Leo smiled softly, though he hadn't told her the entire truth, only that he'd gotten a job offer in Menagerie that had given him new motivation. "It turns out that she was much more concerned for my mental well-being than I had been capable of noticing."
The leader of the White Fang's eyes flicked between the two of them, noting how close they were standing together. "I see—"
"Well hello there, Leo," Kali Belladonna purred as she slide up beside her husband and handed him a glass. "Professor Vermillion," she nodded, ears twitching.
"Call me Gilda," the woman said with a smile.
"Gilda, then. What were we discussing."
"Actually, I was just about to fill Ghira in on our progress in Menagerie." Lionheart took a drink, and smacked his lips in satisfaction. "I anticipate that the campus classrooms and training facilities will be ready for its first crop of young students by January at the latest. Those buildings are all completed, and they are finishing out the interiors as we speak. The administrative offices are still somewhat rough, but usable, and the cafeteria will work as well. We won't have on-campus housing yet, of course, but it will come. Chief Ursulus is ecstatic."
Ghira and Kali shared a look, "That's fantastic news, Leo," Ghira said slowly.
"You seem… wary."
"It's just that," Kali eased closer, "no one is talking about it, Leo. I mean, when Garek first explained what the plans were, we were shocked that it had been kept quiet. But now its been months, and the facility is nearly functional." She shook her head, "We expected the news to leak, and there to be an uproar by now. Some backlash!"
"Ah, Ms. Belladonna. Well, I can assure you that backlash will arrive. I trust your organization had prepared for it?"
Ghira nodded, "I think we've over-prepared. We expected it to have happened already. It's making us… concerned that they are making secret plans to sabotage it."
Lionheart laughed. "Ah, Ghira, my apologies for laughing, but… no. There are no secret plans. The truth is that for once, their bigotry is fully working in our favor."
"Eh?"
"The problem with bigotry, true bigotry, is that it requires you to ignore some truths. For example, that faunus are just as intelligent and capable as humans. And it requires you to believe some lies, that Menagerie is so poor and technologically inferior that there is no possible way that what they are constructing just outside Kuo Kuana could possibly be anything but what it was advertised as, a three-generations outdated CCT relay and corresponding security base to protect it. And that is if they bothered to give Menagerie a second thought at all." The lion faunus chuckled dryly. "In short, Ghira, their view of us is so far from accurate that the concept of what we are actually doing is… unimaginable to them. And because of that, they are going to receive a rather nasty surprise."
There were a few seconds of silence, and then Kali Belladonna gave a soft, hissing laugh before smiling with entirely too many teeth showing. "Ghira darling, I am so glad we were able to attend tonight. Aren't you?"
"Yes. Yes, I am," Ghira said, eyes glinting.
"That's good to hear, Ghira," Lionheart continued, "because I wanted to go over a few things that Chieftain Ursulus and I have been discussing, with the two of you."
Meanwhile at The Emporium…
After getting past being bewildered by being outnumbered by blond-haired and blue-eyed Arc children, Yang, Blake, Pyrrha and Ruby found themselves happily pounding the crap out of digital monsters with them, racing against each other on mock-motorcycles, or whatever took their fancy. Pyrrha in particular seemed to enjoy herself, though nine-year-old Yang nearly threw a near tantrum after getting thrashed by her in PvP for the fourth time in a row. After that, Pyrrha steadfastly refused to do any more head-to-head games, and the group settled on team-based ones instead.
Of such things are bonds of friendship or frenemy-ship formed.
Young Jaune Arc spent most of his time playing racing games, though several times he found himself watching with some interest as the other kids fought virtual Grimm.
By the end of the evening, thousands of virtual Grimm had been slain, hundreds of digital vehicles had been completely trashed, and the kids were happy, exhausted, and ready to rejoin their parents. Especially Yang and Ruby, who had started to get antsy without their parents nearby.
Blake in particular had found the two Rose-Xiao Long girls to be fun to hang out with, except for that one time when Blake and Yang had almost gotten into a fight over whether it was okay to touch Yang's hair (it was so freaking fluffy!) or Blake's ears (I mean come on!). But in the end, everyone appeared to have gotten along, and the group chattered happily with their parents as they were picked up about the new friends they had made.
Many hours away by bullhead, or days by foot, Nora Valkyrie and Lie Ren were walking home from the Kuroyuri central market with arms full of groceries. It was rather late for such errands, but with all of the duties of the household during the week, sometimes it was past dark before they were able to complete everything.
Nora didn't care, because she knew the two of them were together and they could take care of anything. After all, hadn't they single-handedly fought off a pack of beowolves?
At least… that's what she sorta remembered happening.
It got kinda fuzzy after a few months. Especially with how things had changed. For one thing, she wasn't living on the street and living off scraps. She felt stronger and healthier than she could remember. And she had a real room with a real bed in it. She'd tried to argue that she could just sleep in Ren's room, but his parents had gotten all weird about that and insisted she have her own room.
Her own room!
But she wasn't just sitting around, oh no! She had realized almost immediately that Ren's dad, Mister Li, was nearly breaking his back trying to provide for the family and take care of his wife, because she couldn't take care of herself any more. And Mrs. An Li was such a sweet woman, but she was having to use a wheelchair and was still getting used to not being able to walk or stand, and it made everything twice as hard as anyone expected.
So Nora had volunteered to be Mrs. An's personal nurse. The look of pride and gratitude on Ren's face had nearly made her squeal with joy!
But it was a lot of work, that's for sure. They had her doing something called 'home school' so she could be nearby and still learn stuff, while Renny went to actual classes during the day. That was hard at first, but she got used to it. And there was so much to do taking care of a house! But she was Nora Valkyrie, slayer of beowolves and breaker of kneecaps! She could do anything! Especially if it meant taking care of the family that had taken her in.
Still, she had to admit that—
"Oi! Watch where yer goin!" A voice suddenly growled from almost in front of them!
Nora and Ren jerked to a halt, nearly spilling the groceries, and realized that there was a man there, who had just stepped out from a side alley.
"My apologies… sir," Lie Ren said evenly. "We were preoccupied with our errands, and you were dressed in dark clothing."
"Yeah! Didn't see you there, mister!" Nora added, eyes narrowed as she took in how the man was dressed. Rough clothing, with tears and mends here and there. It had the worn look of someone who had been living outdoors. The man had a scar on his face that twisted as he scowled at them.
Then his expression shifted.
"Say… I remember you two." He leaned down, then laughed. "Yeah. Knife and hammer, right? Took on that beowolf."
Nora's grin nearly split her face in two. "You betcha! Broke both its legs!"
The man's entire demeanor shifted from irritated arrogance, to something akin to mirth. "Right. Right. That's damn right," he turned to Ren. "You know, I told your old man you'd make a hell of a fighter, little man. You should get some training 'stead of hauling greens around."
Ren and Nora shared a look, "Thank you, sir. But… there are no combat schools in Kuroyuri, and we are too young to attend one."
"And Renny's mom needs looking after." Nora added, slightly wistfully.
The man sneered, "Combat School! Who said anything about a school? You two wanna learn how to fight?"
"Well.. yeah!"
"Aright. Tell you what, stop by the gates this weekend. Vernal'll have you bustin' heads in no time."
Nora's aquamarine eyes narrowed. "What's a Vernal?"
The man laughed. "What's a Vernal?! A Vernal's a little bi- uh… a… well she's the Chief's kid… kinda." He shrugged. "Point is she's tough as nails, and if you wanna be real fighters someday, she'd give ya a hell of a leg up."
He straightened, thought about it, and then patted Nora on the head awkwardly. "Yeah. And… bring a real hammer, not that wooden thing I saw you with. Yer gonna need it."
As the man went on his way, Nora and Ren looked at each other, shrugged, and continued toward the Ren household.
Fighters, huh? Nora thought, it did sound kinda awesome.
[A/N] So this chapter was mostly an excuse to have some conversations, show some interactions, and act as a bridge for a series of "errata" scenes in the next couple of chapters, then we'll have another time skip most likely to when Cove Combat School opens. That'll cause some fireworks.
I enjoyed writing some lighter scenes with Summer, Tai, and Lionheart. The Graes and Arcs, Cinder and Argent, Rhodes and Helena Nikos, Lionheart and the Belladonnas. And of course, a bit of foreshadowing with Ren and Nora off in Kuroyuri.
Oh and a bit of fun with Yang, Blake, and Pyrrha, though I kept that pretty vague. You'll see the impacts of that friendship later!