Sorry for my bad English.
This chapter is just to fill some space between the plot, so don't expect too much.
To the fic!
Vacuo – Shade Academy
Training grounds
Brawnz never felt more frustrated in his life.
He punched the punching bag with all force he could muster in his fists, trying to easy the feeling in his chest. Even if the bag was made to handle strikes from huntsmens in training, still was not enough to handle the last punch from the boy.
The bag opened and the sand starts to escape to the ground, yet Brawnz was not satisfied.
-Brawnz, that's enough. –Gwen, a girl from another recently formed team approached Brawnz to calm him down. –It's been weeks already. Just let it go.
-Let it go?! How come I can let it go when he just decide to travel to the other side of the world when we have unsolved business?! –Brawnz shouts.
-Technically, he defeated you a couple of times already. –Gwen thought. –Look, we can do nothing about it. It was his decision to study in Beacon.
-And threat our rivalry like was nothing?!
-He must have his reasons.
-He just ran away.
-You know that is no true! –Gwen shouts. –You two have been fighting since the first day at the school. Just because he decides to study in an academy away from Vacuo you have to act like that?
-It is not about where he is but why he decides to go!
-And you think he ran away?
-What more reason he would have to not be here? –Brawnz did not wait for an answer and left the training grounds.
Gwen sighed. She was one of the few people who actually know why Ryan decides to go to Vale, and the reason is her old friend and now partner in Shade Academy. It is not something Brawnz would understand.
For starters, he considered himself to be Ryan's rival along with Russell. She was actually surprised that Brawnz did not go after him in Vale like Russell did. However, knowledge about the reason did not make less painful for her to see Ryan go away. She also wanted nothing more than slap the good cheek of his bandaged face.
- Ryan, if only you could see how much she misses you, I'm sure you would decide not to go. I know you wanted to move on and I know what I said, but … -Gwen crossed her arms and let a long sigh. - I did not want you to go either.
Beacon – Corridors
-Who is so lazy to the point of not deliver the books back to the library? –Jaune asked as he and Ryan were carrying two piles of books which were forgotten in the cafeteria.
-Y'know, sometimes the burns in my face start to ache a little. –Ryan said, moving on to a completely different subject. –This often happens when someone is talking about me.
-Like when someone sneezes? –Jaune asked.
Before Ryan could give to him an answer, Cardin appeared in front of them in the corridors with a smile which said "I'm the greatest guy on Remnant", and knocked over the piles Jaune and Ryan were holding, most precisely, only the pile Jaune was holding.
Cardin was surprised at first but then tried again to knock over the pile in Ryan's hands, and again, and again, and again, with no success.
Losing his calm he put both his hands on Ryan's chest and giving a good push, Cardin fell on the floor, being unable to move Ryan's body a meter away. The duo did not know what to do in the situation, so Jaune just grabbed the books which were knocked over and leave with Ryan.
Cardin just growled on the floor.
Cafeteria
-So! -Nora began, using a spooky tone to talk. -There we were, in the middle of the night...
-It was day... -Ren corrected her after.
-We were surrounded by URSAI!
-They were Beowolves...
-Dozens of them!
-Two of them...
Only four of them were listening Nora's tale while Blake was busy with her book, and Weiss was filing her nails.
-But they were no match... And in the end, Ren and I took them down and made a boatload of Lien selling Ursa skin rugs!
-She's been having this recurring dream for nearly a month now.
-My aunt once told me that dreams sometimes try to tell something to someone. –Chocolat spoke. –Perhaps those dreams are telling you something.
-That I will become the greatest and richest huntress of Remnant by selling Ursa skin rungs?
-No, that you should stop eating candy before sleep.
Everyone chuckled a little at Chocolat's statement except for Nora who pouted her cheeks.
Chocolay may not be Pyrrha's first choice of partner but she enjoyed the company of the brunette. She is strong willed, charismatic, and funny girl. She is also very talented. While Pyrrha shows up superior in combat, something she learned when they fought in the Mistral tournament, Chocolat not only knows how to fight but also cooks and sings.
And she was able to make a friendship with Jaune. Time to time she meets with him and he welcomes her presence with a smile, a real smile, something she often no see back in Mistral. So while she was not able to become his partner, she could hang out with him when she wanted.
His partner also is a nice guy so Pyrrha knows that Jaune is in good hands. Despite Jaune's obious lack of combat skill, Ryan helped him survive the Danger Zone, and this was proof enough that Jaune could count on Ryan when the first fight of the Challenge comes.
-Ow! That hurts! –Her thoughts alongside both teams conversation were interrupted by a cry of pain. The teams turned their attention to see Cardin tugging one of the ears of a rabbit faunus. His team laughed at the poor girl's suffering. -Please stop... -The Faunus pleaded, but Cardin just keeps laughing.
-Ha! I told you they were real! -Cardin said laughing.
-What a freak! -Russell snorted.
RWBY and CNVL frowned at their behavior. Could not be seen with the book covering her face but Blake was frowning more than her friends, she wanted nothing more than jump between those jerks and the girl, and then kick their butts with strength enough to send them to space.
The worst is not matter how much painful is her cries are sounding, no one does anything to help.
As if was for Blake asking for anything to stop the leader of CRDL, one of the professors happens to enter the cafeteria. Unfortunately, some thought, it was the blind teacher who entered the cafeteria hitting his cane on the floor while walking.
The moment Fernando enters in the cafeteria, Cardin stopped pulling the girl's ear while he slowly walked through the place. Fernando made his way through the tables until he reaches Cardin, and for the surprise of the team leader and his team, Fernando grabbed Cardin by his ear, making him release the faunus as he was pushed away.
-Ow! Ow! Ow! Teach, what are you doing? –Cardin asked.
-We will have another talk about why not make fun of someone just because he is different. –Fernando said, then stopped and turns his head to the rest of the team. –Are you guys waiting for an invitation? Move!
The rest of CRDL moved in high speed past Fernando to where everyone thought his office, except for Cardin who was still being dragged by the ear until he reaches the entrance. Fernando just pointed and the team leader growled.
Once Cardin was out of the cafeteria, rabbit faunus approached the professor.
-Thank you sir. –She thanked him. –But you have permission for this kind of punishment?
-Hey! If Glynda can hit someone with her crop, I think pulling someone by the ear does not sound so bad, don't you think? –She just giggled. –Alright Velvet, now go get a meal. You don't want to go to classes with an empty stomach. -Velvet nodded and went back to her seat while Fernando frowned once he turns around. –Dove! Don't you dare! –The blind man screamed as he followed the problematic team.
While Velvet went back to her seat, teams RWBY and CNVL just chuckle before it becomes laughs at what happened to Cardin.
-Tit for tat, it seems. –Chocolat said.
-Fernando seems to be a very nice teacher. –Pyrrha said after.
-Nice? He's the best! –Ruby spoke happily. –When I got late for his class, instead of giving me detention as Oobleck did, he let me stay until later to catch with his class.
-I think he is a bit immature. –Weiss spoke after. –He can't even go through one of his classes without making a joke or two.
-I didn't though I would hear someone complain about his jokes. –Chocolat asked. –He is a very funny.
-Not to mention he kind handsome too. –Yang spoke making some of her friends raise an eyebrow.
-Yang, you don't plan to…
-Relax sis. I'm not that type of girl but doesn't hurt to look. –Yang said, remembering about the guys who look at her.
Ruby sighed in relief. The last thing she needs is her father breaking the academy just to have some talk with Yang and her teacher.
-I'm most interested in how he seems to know about everything happening around him. –Ren said. –Even being blind he knows when someone raises his hand or nod with the head.
-Hey! What if he is not blind! –That was Nora of course. –What if he just can't look directly into peoples' eyes, or he will burn them depending on how much wrong doings they made during their lives.
While Ren explained why it would not be possible for Fernando be some kind of rider who punish the wrong doers, Blake hid her smile with the book in her hands. This blind man earned some of her respect by helping a faunus without retort to violence… much violence.
Just like Chocolat said, tit for tat.
Staff room
The first battle of the challenge still was going to take a while before happen, so professor Port, who was going to choose the first students to face the duo, was already looking for their first challengers.
He needs to choose carefully. He cannot choose students who will make the battle too much easy for them, neither choose students who will make the battle too hard to win, even if Glynda suggested, Pyrrha Nikos would be out of the question.
He looks into his scroll who would be the first as if was an opening act. The Challenge was an event which rarely happens, and Port was confident that Jaune and Ryan would go far, so he was a little disappointed that he was not going to choose the ones from the third fight, those were the most exciting battles. Sadly, he thought they would not make beyond the third fight, no one ever made it.
-I see you already are choosing the first combatants. –Oobleck zoomed inside the room.
-How long it make since the last Challenge? Seven years?
-Seven years and six months to be precise. –Oobleck sip some coffee before continue. –I was a little disappointed that those three did not make far the second battle.
-Very unfortunately. I was confident as well they would make far.
-So what are your thoughts about Mr. Arc and Mr. Forest?
-Mr. Forest sure has some skills behind his clumsiness but Mr. Arc needs to work on his potential. I divided between the second and the third fight. Ozpin on the other hand, thinks this will be a memorable Challenge. Only time will say if he is right or not.
Oobleck could see that Port was very excited with the Challenge. Oobleck also was. It was like the Vytal Festival but only in Beacon and with very different rules. Whatever is the reason of who come with the Challenge decide to let everyone in the school watch the battles will always be unknown for the staff, even to Ozpin.
Corridors
Ryan was sure that Glynda was planning something. Why made him fight twice in a roll?
On the other hand, he may just is being a little paranoid. He just placed his revolvers back in the locker and when he was about to close it, someone pushed him inside it.
-What the…
-Surprise attack. Never fail. –Someone spoke from outside, and Ryan recognize the voice as being of Cardin. –Now, here for you a free trip to outside loser!
Cardin pressed some buttons on the locker and waited till it launched to outside. If was not for the motor of the locker, he would hear the sound of metal being rip apart. The locker flew away and Cardin laughed, but his happiness was short lived when he notices Ryan in front of him, on his knees, holding the floor.
Cardin could only stare with eyes and open wide open when notices that Ryan hold himself on the floor to not be launched with the locker.
Again, Ryan did not know what to do so he just left Cardin alone, who still was having difficult to understand what just happened, despite already knowing.
End of the chapter.
What I made Fernando do with Cardin is less painful than anything I see someone do so far. If the author wants to torture Cardin with an OC, he should do with a Chibi version like I did. I not always do of course.
Grammarly is being very useful to me, although I don't have the premium version which shows me the mistakes on the sentences I write. Next time I will do some interaction between the duo and the teams.
Until next time!