The cafeteria was too crowded; he should've had lunch elsewhere.
Ronald sat at the dining table. His eyes focused on his grey plastic tray, drowning out the voices around him. People were staring at him, gossiping about him. His stomach churned. The smell of the noodles started to disgust him. He pulled his hood up further; he didn't need to attract more attention. His teammates found him weird already. He mustn't make it worse.
He glanced around. Philip had tilted his head upwards, sniffing the air. His sight eventually set on Blake sitting with her team across the long table. Her face was hidden behind her book. He narrowed his eyes before letting out a light scoff. Beside him, Grayson rubbed his fingers and stared at his untouched meal. He must be thinking about the training again.
Jonathan said, "I'm just saying, I didn't expect they've fixed the door."
Philip laughed. "It had a big ass hole. What do you mean?"
"Well, they replaced it within the same day. I think that's pretty efficient."
"We are in a nationally-funded academy," Grayson said.
Jonathan sighed. "I guess? Don't you think it's strange too, Ronald?"
Ronald immediately tensed up. His lips twitched, and he nodded. He nodded again to be sure. That should be a normal enough response, right? Yet, the pressure remained. Jonathan just kept staring at him. What had he done wrong?
"Phil, you were absent in our last training," Grayson said.
Philip started cutting his noodles. "Sorry. Got a supplementary class."
"Again?" Jonathan frowned. "If you're having trouble with Professor Goodwitch's lessons, I'm more than happy to help you."
"Thanks. But I'm not gonna miss out on good ol' Witchy."
Jonathan winced. "…Please don't say that to her."
"Too late." Philip grinned.
Jonathan shook his head. He looked at Ronald again, forcing him to clench his fork. He knew it. Jonathan was going to talk to him again.
"Are you okay?"
Ronald snapped his eyes at him. His racing heart was on the verge of escaping from his throat. Whatever Jonathan was trying to do, he definitely had an ulterior motive. His gentle tone was only a front.
Jonathan said, "I know this might be your first time living with someone. But you haven't talked to us for the last few days. I'm just worried."
Two more people were staring at Ronald now. He should run. But that'd be too weird. No, he had to stay and blend in.
"Sorry..." he muttered.
Jonathan blinked. His expression softened as a smile appeared on his face.
"No, it's fine. I was being pushy. Take as much time as you need. We can talk when you're ready."
Ronald froze. It was a trick, for sure. But it was still a nice thing to hear.
"Thank you," he mumbled.
"Ow! That hurts!"
Ronald turned towards the commotion. At the table on the other side, one of his classmates grabbed a rabbit Faunus's ear. He laughed with his team as he kept pulling her ears. Ronald knew him well. Not only was Cardin one of the strongest in the class, but he was also the biggest bully. Jaune could testify for it.
Cardin grinned. "I told you it was real!"
"What a freak!" His teammate Russel laughed.
Ronald swallowed hard and looked away. He didn't need to get himself into trouble. Faunus had always been unpopular anyway, especially from where he came from. His classmates might be murmuring amongst themselves and glaring at them. But it wasn't like anyone would defend them.
After a deep sigh, Jonathan stood up. He kept his hands low and approached Cardin. It was subtle. But his hands were shaking.
"That's enough."
Cardin's smile disappeared. He released her ear and raised, towering over Jonathan. The Faunus quickly shuffled away while his teammates giggled.
"Oh yeah? What are you going to do?" Cardin asked.
Jonathan flinched. "Cardin, we're all on the same side. There's no need for that." His voice was low and tremulous.
Cardin burst out laughing. "What? You're one of the Faunus-loving men? You think she'll fuck you because you want to be a hero?"
The air plummeted into icy cold. More eyes were on them. Their murmurs got louder. All the colour drained from Jonathan's face. He was quivering now. But the smirk on Cardin never left him. Ronald looked around. He needed to help somehow. But Grayson simply gazed at them. His face didn't change at all. Nearby, Philip only clutched his cutlery knife, bending it in half.
"Phil…" Ronald muttered.
Philip looked at him. His intense gaze almost caused Ronald to duck under a table. When Ronald gingerly pointed at Jonathan, it seemed Philip finally got the message. He groaned and stepped over the table, cracking a few plates under his weight.
"Hey, asshole."
Cardin looked up slightly at Philip. His grin immediately vanished. He stepped back and let out a shaky chuckle.
"I-I knew it. Animals like you stick together."
Philip chortled. "Really? That's the best you got? Be more creative."
Jonathan looked at him with widened eyes. More people were staring at them. Everything told Ronald he should leave, that he should disappear before things got out of control. But he needed to stay; he couldn't leave his teammates like this. Ronald steadied his breathing and stood up as well, standing behind Philip. Jonathan glanced at him and gave him a faint smile.
"Cardin, I think you should stop."
His body stiffened again; he recognised that voice. He immediately pulled his hood as far as he could. His cheeks were burning up. Luckily, Pyrrha seemed too distracted while being flanked by her teammates.
A groan escaped Cardin's mouth. "Why do you guys care about the collars so much?!"
There were a few audible gasps, and the cafeteria dropped into a heavy silence. Philip's smile faltered. The fur on his arms raised. Jonathan just stood still with an agape mouth.
"Cardin…" his teammates muttered.
Cardin twitched. "Y-Yeah, that's right. You're all a bunch of filthy collars. What are you doing to do about it?!"
Jonathan waved his hands frantically. "This isn't something you want to double down on!"
Ronald yelped when Blake pushed past him. She lunged at Cardin and pinned him on the ground, striking him with bare hands. But Cardin wasn't going to take it. They exchanged blow after blow. Their bodies shook from every impact. Cheers and screams mixed in the growing crowd. It took his team, her team, and Jonathan to pull them apart. The combined commotion finally caught the teachers' attention. With Blake and Cardin now escorted away, Jonathan turned towards Philip. He'd been standing motionlessly since.
"…Are you okay?" Jonathan asked softly.
Philip slowly looked at Jonathan. He flashed a smile and shrugged.
"Meh, used to it."
Jonathan opened his mouth, but no words came out in the end.
Author's Notes:
You have no idea how much time I'd spent coming up with a racial slur (please don't take it out of context). I needed something that was based on the Faunus' past. But also universal enough that it can apply to any Faunus. It got a bit too serious that I had to look at the etymology of some real-life examples (again, don't take this out of context).
If you think the word is ridiculous, yes. But the mere exposure effect will take care of it.
On another note, thank you very much for the guest review! I would've privately replied to you if I had the means. The "Non-canon compliant" is primarily due to future major plot divergence. I aim to retain most, if not all, of the canon characters' personalities. There will be explanations regarding some of their behaviour, e.g. Yang. Though I can only hope they're compelling enough. The later chapter, "A Red Field Trip", will probably significantly change/affirm your opinion about the characters, too.
See you next week.