Chapter 50: Growing Pains

Riding the elevator to Ozpin's office, I leaned against the back and closed my eyes. My first day as Team RWBY's mentor hadn't been too bad.

There were a few hiccups here and there. Weiss, much like Winter, had a stiffness in her posture that had the potential to slow her progress. Luckily, it wasn't as ingrained in her as it had been in Winter. She'd taken to relaxing far better than Winter did. There were still a few issues, but nothing that couldn't be fixed.

Ruby and Yang… Well, they'd taken to it fairly well. Yang was initially disappointed that we were going over something that seemed so mundane, but, having seen how Pyrrha benefited from it, she didn't argue too much.

Ruby on the other hand had been a bit too enthused and impatient that she ended up passing out… More than once. Her team had been concerned the first time, but they'd gotten used to it after a while.

Blake was a little difficult to pin down… She mostly kept to herself, practicing her breathing in silence and correcting her form when I pointed out a flaw in it. It was still our second meeting, so I wasn't too worried. She'd eventually open up.

Feeling the elevator come to a stop, I opened my eyes just as the doors slid open. Entering Ozpin's office, I found the man himself sitting at his desk while Qrow stood to the side.

"It's about time that you showed up," Qrow complained. "I feel like I've been waiting here forever."

"Now, now, Qrow. If anything, he's ahead of schedule," Ozpin tutted, looking up from his desk. "That being said, you arrived earlier than I was expecting. I trust that you've had a productive day?"

"I have. I thought I'd call it a day early... Give Team RWBY a chance to catch their breaths, figuratively speaking," I hummed. This was still their first day after all and they probably had a few other things they needed to do for class tomorrow.

Ozpin nodded his acceptance. "Learning the basics of Total Concentration Breathing is quite a process. Giving them time to adjust instead of rushing them through it can be just as beneficial as hours spent practicing, if not more so. At least, that is what I've found in my experience as a teacher."

Raising an eyebrow, I glanced at Qrow before turning back towards Ozpin.

"Ah, I see you caught on to that," Ozpin commented. "Qrow here had some… concerns over his niece's education and so I saw fit to inform him of what it is you'll be teaching them."

"I'm still not exactly happy with it," Qrow added. "But if this means they'll be able to better defend themselves, then I guess I can live with it."

"…Okay," I replied, accepting his answer. It didn't really bother me at all, in fact, it saved me from having to explain Total Concentration Breathing to Qrow. "So is that why you called me here today or…"

"Oh, no. I was merely explaining Qrow's presence," Ozpin hummed. Standing, he reached beneath his desk and placed a wooden crate on it. Lifting the lid, he pulled out a small ingot that he tossed to me. "That is why I called you here today."

Squeezing the ingot in my hand, it began to rapidly heat up.

"The man that you told me to get in contact with assured me that it was the right metal," Ozpin continued.

"It is," I said, placing the ingot on top of the box. The ingot wasn't hot enough to leave scorch marks, but it did radiate a noticeable amount of heat.

"Excellent," Ozpin replied, eyeing the hot ingot with a look of curiosity. "I think you'll be happy to find that Beacon has a forge available to students and faculty alike. Most use it for weapon maintenance, but there are a few cases where a weapon is damaged beyond repair and needs to be remade."

That made things a lot simpler. I'd already talked to Pyrrha and Winter about the need to reforge their weapons, so it seemed that everything was in order… Better than in order in fact, it'd arrived at just the right time.

Reforging their weapons was bound to take some time… Time that could now be spent mastering Total Concentration Constant.

"Do I need to reserve it first or…" I trailed off.

"It's freely available for all to use," Ozpin answered immediately. "You could go through the trouble of reserving it for yourself, but it would be unnecessary. The year has just begun and few if any will need to use it to repair their weapons."

Then I could go as early as tomorrow.

"You may take the crate with you," Ozpin continued, sliding it to the end of his desk. "But, I would like to keep one of the ingots for myself."

I didn't really see an issue with that. "… Sure. So long as there's enough for Pyrrha and Winter's weapons." There seemed to be more than enough to go around for at least two separate teams, although I could be wrong. If there wasn't, well… I could always get more. From what I understood, it wasn't exactly a rare material.

"Thank you," Ozpin hummed. Taking the ingot that sat on top of the box, he briefly examined it, likely trying to find out how it had gotten so warm before placing it in his desk.

With everything said and done, I moved to leave, before pausing. "Hey, Qrow. If you want, you're more than welcome to come with the next time I train Team RWBY. I could show you the basics of Total Concentration Breathing," I offered.

There was no harm in teaching him as well… Quite the opposite actually. He was already one of the best Huntsmen in Vale, adding Total Concentration Breathing on top of that would see him become one of the best in the world.

"Heh, yeah, no thanks," Qrow declined. "If it's all the same to you, I think I'll just stick with what I know… At least for now."

That was a little odd.

"Are you sure about that?" I asked. "It would make you a lot stronger than you are right now. I'm willing to bet that if you mastered it, you'd be able to take on a Leviathan class Grimm and come out without a scratch." And that would be without learning a Breathing Style.

"Yeah. Oz here explained how that technique of yours might amplify Semblances along with Aura and well…" Qrow trailed off, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. "That's something I'd like to avoid. If my Semblance gets stronger I might end up killing someone just by bumping into them."

Right… Misfortune. That was a legitimate worry. Qrow already led an unlucky life and wouldn't want to make that any worse than it already is. He was waiting to see what its effects were before he made his decision. I could respect that.

"Total Concentration Breathing amplifies everything about you. Mind, Body and Spirit. It might make your Semblance stronger, but… It would likely improve your control over it as well," I replied. "If you change your mind, I'll be happy to show you the basics."

"I'll think about it," Qrow muttered softly. "Good luck mentoring Team RWBY, by the way, you're going to need it."

There was something really ironic about a perpetually unlucky guy wishing me good luck. "…Thanks," I hummed, a little unsure of what else I could say.

"Man, it's going to be hilarious when Tai finds out that you're teaching his daughters," Qrow commented, taking a swig from his flask only to find that it was empty. "Right… I forgot about that."

…Breathe…

The next time I saw Oscar, I was going to have to thank him. I just didn't know how he did it… Helping me master Total Concentration Constant, that is. I'd been sitting in a dark room, forced to stay awake and monitor both Pyrrha and Winter's breathing for close to an hour already.

It was… Tedious at best. although there was an upside to this, I had a massive amount of time on my hands… More than enough to get some training in while they slept.

Unfortunately, I couldn't do anything too noisy, like practice using the Six Powers, but I was able to focus my efforts on manipulating my Aura, like Ozpin had suggested.

Spreading it through the room in order to increase my surroundings durability, extending its range, creating another layer around my body, hardening it… All could be done without a hint of sound. Only someone that had a Semblance that allowed them to sense Aura or a Grimm would be bothered by my experimentation and since neither one was near I had free reign to continue my practice.

It was only a matter of time before I fully mastered my Aura. The only question was if I would master it before Pyrrha and Winter mastered Total Concentration Constant. It was a self imposed challenge in a funny sort of way.

Hearing Winter's breathing hitch and shift back to its regular pattern, I quietly made my way over to her and gently grabbed her shoulder.

"Winter…"

Blue eyes snapped open with a practiced clarity as Winter woke up. Appearing momentarily confused at my presence, her eyes suddenly sharpened as she remembered why I was here.

"Thank you for waking me," She hummed. "I'll do my best next time."

"Don't worry about it, we still have more than enough time for you to master this" I replied, moving back to my seat, I was just about to sit down only to pause when I heard Pyrrha snore loudly.

Sighing, I moved over to her side and did the same as I did with Winter. Gently grabbing her shoulders, I shook her lightly.

"Pyrrha… Wake up."

And it had no effect. I'd kind of expected this to happen. In the time that I'd known Pyrrha, I'd learnt that she was an extremely heavy sleeper. I could probably roll her out of her bed and she'd only just begin to wake up, but there was no way I was going to do that.

Giving up on shaking her awake, I tried sitting her up, only to end up with a sleeping redhead that giggled softly when I accidentally poked her in the ribs. Beginning to lose hope for waking her up, I was struck with a sudden idea that had the potential to wake her up. Poking her in the ribs again, I smiled when she let out another giggle… I could work with this.

Laying her back down, I moved a little further down the bed and pulled the sheets off her feet. Glancing over to Winter who was attempting to fall asleep, looked back towards Pyrrha.

Tickling her foot, I was immediately met with three different reactions. She burst into laughter, likely heard by Maria who slept in the other room, her eyes snapped open, proving that my attempt at waking her up had been successful and she lashed out with a kick that caught me off guard and threw me to the ground.

"What…" Pyrrha began, more than a little confused. Turning on the light, she stared down at my surprised form on the floor. "Coal! I'm so sorry, are you alright?"

Blinking a little dumbly, I nodded. "Yeah… Just a little surprised." Looking over to Winter, I found her halfway out of her bed with her swords in hand, appearing more than a little startled.

"I'm sorry," Pyrrha apologized while helping me up. "I didn't hurt you, did I?"

Not able to contain it any longer, I let out a short laugh at the sheer absurdity of the situation. "I'm fine… Really, I am," I reassured her, seeing that she didn't quite believe me. "I'm sorry for waking you up like that."

"N…No, it's okay. I know that it can be a little difficult to wake up," Pyrrha replied, before looking over my shoulder. "And sorry for startling you, Winter. I didn't mean it."

Having already put her swords away and climbed back into bed, Winter gave a slight nod. "It's alright."

Settling down, Pyrrha let out a deep yawn.

"You should probably try and get some sleep," I hummed. "If you're ever going to master Total Concentration Constant, then you'll need to practice it while sleeping."

Nodding, Pyrrha sat down on the edge of her bed. "Okay, just… Be careful the next time you wake me up. I don't want to accidentally hurt you."

"I will," I replied. "Good night."

Turning the light off once more, I sat back down in my chair and waited for the duo to fall asleep again before I continued experimenting with my Aura. Sadly, this was only the first hour of the night with several more left to go. It was going to be difficult for everyone involved, but I was determined to see this through.

…Breathe…

Sitting in the Amphitheatre, I watched as Pyrrha and Winter sparred for the fifth time for the day, sharpening their skills on each other in a fight that would seem excessively fast and violent to others, but, in truth, was far more controlled than it seemed.

Their moves, while incredibly precise, were the slightest bit sluggish, likely due to the numerous times I'd had to wake them up last night.

Having the entire night to myself left me with a large amount of time to think and one such thought led me to realize that I'd made a potential mistake when it came to Pyrrha and Winter's Nichirin blades. One that I'd managed to avoid by having my blade forged for me.

Nichirin blades changed colour to suit their first user and might change colour mid-forging if it was handled by Pyrrha, Winter or myself. I had no idea if that would affect the quality of the blade.

Luckily, it wasn't that big of a problem. All I needed to do was…

"We're here," Ruby announced, stepping into the Amphitheatre alongside her team. "And we're a bit late, but I can explain why. You see, yesterday we came straight from class and had to wear our school uniforms and I thought it would be better if we could wear our regular clothes."

"It's fine, you're still on time," I hummed. "There's still plenty of time for you four to practice."

"Yeah, about that," Yang began, glancing at the fight that was going on in the Amphitheatre. "We're not going to be stuck doing those breathing exercises again… I mean, I can see how they'd be beneficial, but they're kind of boring. Can't you show us how to do something cool, like when you taught me how to move faster?"

Having spent an entire night making sure that Pyrrha and Winter kept using Total Concentration Breathing… Yeah, I could see where Yang was coming from.

"Wait, he taught you something before?" Weiss asked. "And you're only telling us this now?!"

"It didn't really come up," Yang grinned sheepishly. "Besides, it's not that big of a deal."

"Not that big of a deal?!" Weiss repeated dumbly before turning an accusing gaze to Ruby. "Did you know about this?"

"Um… Yeah," Ruby admitted a little awkwardly. "Yang kept running into trees, so I helped her get used to it."

"I just," Weiss began. "I don't… I can't even…"

"Then odd," Yang smirked proudly.

I let out a snort of laughter at the terrible pun while Weiss and Ruby groaned tiredly. Blake on the other hand gave no outward reaction, but there was a hint of a smile on her face. Whether it was due to the pun itself or Weiss' outrage, I didn't know.

"Unfortunately, the Six Powers require an extremely powerful body. Shave… The technique that you learnt was the easiest one," I explained. "Once you master Total Concentration Breathing, you should be able to use the remaining five."

Yang slumped forward. "I was afraid you'd say that," She sighed, before looking towards Pyrrha and Winter. "Any idea on when we'll be doing things like that?"

Humming softly, I tapped my chin in thought. "I'd say that the four of you should be around that level when the Vytal tournament comes around." It was still a few months away, that was plenty of time to get them up to speed. "Maybe a little stronger. It really depends on how much effort you put in."

"So where were we last time?" Ruby asked a little too eagerly. "You were showing us how to breathe properly… Something about how it excites our blood and makes our bones heat up…"

"Something like that," I replied. "But before we get to that, I have a favor to ask you, Ruby. If I gave you some metal and access to a forge, do you think you could use it to make a few weapons?"

She'd only just begun to learn Total Concentration Breathing and hadn't even started learning her Breathing Style, so it shouldn't be an issue.

"Wait… Are you saying that you'll give me access to a forge and materials and all I have to do is build you a weapon?" Ruby asked. At my nod, she grinned. "Can I use it to upgrade Crescent Rose?"

"I don't see why not," I hummed. She'd eventually need to use the Nichirin metal on her Scythe and Ozpin had given me more than enough ingots… She might as well upgrade hers now as well. "Beacon's forge is available to everyone, so you don't exactly need anyone's permission to be there."

"I'll do it," Ruby replied. "But… You're going to have to show me where the forge is"

"Alright," I hummed.

Well that solved my problem, now I only have one problem left… Finding out where Beacon's forge was. It shouldn't be too hard to find, right?

…Breathe…

"Coal… Do you think that I could talk to you about something?" Weiss requested, her eyes briefly flickering in Ruby's direction. "In private."

I exchanged a glance with Ruby, before shrugging. We were just about to leave for the forge, but there wasn't any harm in delaying another few minutes… Assuming that this wouldn't take too long. "Sure. Ruby, could you wait for me by the entrance? I'll be out in a few minutes."

"Okay," Ruby chirped. "Don't take too long, alright. I still have some homework to do before tomorrow, meaning I can only spend so much time in the forge before I have to head back to my dorm."

"Sure," I hummed as Ruby darted out of the Amphitheatre, leaving Weiss and I alone. "So, what's on your mind?"

A few moments passed and Weiss remained silent. Spending half a minute in complete silence, Weiss finally spoke up. "It hasn't even been a week since I've been in Beacon and I've really enjoyed my time here, especially being trained by you, but… I just can't help but think things would be even better if I'd been chosen as the leader for Team RWBY."

Ah… So that's what this was about.

"Let me ask you a question," I hummed. "Out of Pyrrha, Winter and myself, who do you think is the team leader?"

"That would be you," Weiss answered. "Wouldn't it?"

"It might seem that way, but it's not," I replied. "I make sure that they're safe and nothing attacks them while we're out on missions and they do the same for me. Each one of us has our strengths and we help cover each other's weaknesses. I might be the strongest, physically, but Winter can operate aircrafts and Pyrrha saved us on our last mission by preventing the train we were on from being derailed."

"I understand what you're saying, but surely there's a point where having a team leader is necessary."

"Maybe in the beginning, but it's less important when you get to know your teammates," I explained. "Pyrrha, Winter and I… We all trust each other. When we fight together, it's about the overall flow of the battle… Coming out alive and learning from it, not who led the team. Instead of worrying about who's the leader, you should try to get to know your team. I'm sure Ruby would appreciate having you help her out."

Sitting down on the bleachers, Weiss palmed her face. "I feel like an idiot."

"That just means you've grown a little," I said, trying to comfort her. "I've done my fair share of dumb things in the past and I'll probably do a whole lot more in the future. The important thing is that we keep moving forward."

Offering her my hand, she stared at it blankly, before taking it. "Alright… How would I move forward from here?"

"Talk to your teammates," I replied, pulling her up. "Spend some time getting to know them. Find out their interests..."

"That sounds simple enough," Weiss hummed softly.

Nodding, I turned towards the Amphitheatre's entrance. "I should get going. Ruby's waiting for me."

"Yes… Thank you for the advice," Weiss replied, giving a small smile. "It helped."

"You're welcome."

Heading towards the exit with Weiss in tow, I spotted Ruby standing to the side, playing on her Scroll while she waited for me. Coughing lightly, I stifled a chuckle when she jumped and tried to hide her Scroll behind her back.

"That wasn't cool, do you know how many times a teacher did the exact same thing to me when I was in Signal Academy?!" Ruby said, crossing her arms. "The answer is a lot!"

"Sorry, I couldn't resist," I smiled.

Attempting to retain her cross look, Ruby immediately caved. "So are we heading to the forge now?" She asked eagerly. "And… Weiss. Didn't you say that you had some stuff you wanted to take care of back at our dorm?"

"Oh, that… I've decided that it can wait," Weiss replied. "Instead, I think my time would be better spent learning the layout of this Academy with you, so we won't miss out on any of our classes… If you'll have me."

You know, I'd like to say that Weiss' sudden decision to tag along surprised me, but it really didn't.

"You want to hang out?" Ruby asked, halfway between astonished and excited.

"I suppose that is the layman's term," Weiss muttered. "Yes, I want to hang out."

"This is going to be so great," Ruby said, before checking her Scroll. "Oh, but it's already five. We'll need to hurry if we're going to see the forge and still have time to get dinner before the cafeteria closes."

"Ruby… The cafeteria only closes at 7," Weiss replied.

"I knew that!"

"We should probably go check the forge out," I suggested, trying to get things moving along. "Before it's full and we're not allowed in." Hearing Ruby gasp, it seemed my attempt was successful.

…Breathe…

Entering my apartment, I stumbled to the couch and fell into it, right next to Maria.

"Long day?"

"Kind of," I mumbled, resting my eyes for a few minutes. "What smells like burnt hair?"

"Eh, I got bored and tried knitting," Maria shrugged. "Apparently, I'm not very good at it."

That explained the smell, but raised a whole lot more questions, namely how she was able to set it on fire in the first place, unless she did it in a fit of anger.

Feeling my Scroll vibrate, I sighed and unlocked it. Staring down at the screen, I blinked several times. "Hey, Maria. Do you think that we might be able to stop Salem by dropping a ton of money on her?"

"What's with the weird question?"

"Oh, nothing. Jacques just sent his payment for the patch of land he's using for his mine… It's a lot," I muttered, still not quite believing the number that was displayed on my Scroll. The hell was I supposed to do with all of this?

I suppose I could buy a few airships and have them fight to the death in order to see which one was the best… Yeah, I might need to hold off on that one until after I got some sleep.

In which Ozpin is left with more questions. Coal starts teaching Pyrrha and Winter Total Concentration Constant and gets kicked, Ruby agrees to help remake Pyrrha and Winter's weapons, Weiss grows a little and Maria proves to be Homer Simpson levels of bad at knitting.

Anyways, I'm up to chapter 55 on the P word website.

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I go by the name of ThatKircguy. Just copy the name and paste it in the Patty Rio On search bar. It'd help me out immensely, but don't worry if that's not your style. I will be uploading weekly, so it's not going to be stuck there permanently.

Also, I post my original stuff there as well. It's nothing much, just two short stories for now, but I'll post more as I write them.

The next chapter will be posted on the 14th of April.
See you all then, dudes and dudettes.