[IC] RWBY Saga: Generations After Us

[ChazGhost]

Croc Sustrai and Bruno Port

Location: 3rd period class
Nearby: everyone
@Tags: IG42 The Suspicious Eye

When Bruno heard what march would be apart he was so exciting and would of expressed in a little speech but the bell rang and he had to return to his seat. During the class Bruno did his usual detailed notes on everything the teacher said down to the letter though he was slightly off on it with he excitement of being able to help protect such an important march.

Croc on the other hand did really care either way what the march. He figured Cirrus would have some problems, Bruno would be... Bruno, and him and Io would be just another faunus their, except they would have badges and weapons. And the badge part was what Croc looked forward to the most, so he could abuse it to get away with some good old pick pocketing.

After class was over Bruno and Croc went over to their leader who told they would be signing up for the mission. "Yes we should. We needed to know what threat my come for such a..." Bruno began his mini rant about justice and the importance of such a march.

"He'll be at this for while, let go and hope he follows as he talks." Croc commented looking at Cirrus and Io.

 

[The Suspicious Eye]

Location: 3rd period class
Nearby: Everyone

IG42 KingofCool Black Jade LoneSniper87 ChazGhost
Dante Verren WoodenZebra @Garuda)
KarenAKAMint Hibiscus Brinni​

Mood: Uncertain
OOC: Go Cirrius, being a brave guy.

Iola Rose Sakra Io didn't think too much about Croc's criminal interest or his more selfish want for taking on the role of a Jr. Detective. In honestly Io hadn't even noticed that Croc had any criminal inclination, she's what others would call a easy mark. Right now she was worried for their leader and for herself. Knowing that he was a Schnee and how strained his family relations were with the faunuses was something that would be a obstacle in their mission. Meanwhile she was a ruthless killer.

<---( Look at that Face! That is the face of a deranged serial killer!)

Io's own relationships with other faunuses sometimes was strained. Her claim of being a faunus, her background as a killer, her attire it all brought other faunuses to hate her. Still maybe since Croc and the others don't seem to mind, maybe it'll be alright. Io didn't pay much attention in class her mind was wrapped up on what to do for the mission. She scribbled a few notes, but her heart wasn't in it.

Class quickly flew by as it was over. Looking over to her teammates she decided to follow their lead and be excited to help out. "Right let's go sign up!" Giggling at Bruno started a speech about it she nodded to Croc and took Bruno's hand leading him down with the others as she listened to his speech. They were long and somewhat circular, but all around enjoyable.

 

[KarenAKAMint]

Rose Twins

Location: Auburn's Class
Nearby: First Years
Interacting: Jade
Mentioned: Titan, Valentine, and Onix
@Tags: Brinni Hibiscus KingofCool LoneSniper87

As Professor Aumbur ended the class, every single student was up and heading to the door. Summer had over heard the talk of missions what she was just excited to talk about it. Not having Titan around much, she instinctively rushed over to her other half. "Nixie! Can you believe this! Our first mission! Well," Summer's cheery tone slowly diminished as she sank a bit, 'We won't be together... and-" Summer stopped herself, not wanting to bother Phoenix about her situation with Titan, but she was not able to hide anything from him.

"But Titan?" he finished her thought, "What's happened between you two?" Phoenix took hold of her shoulder as she tried to look anywhere besides her brother. "I'm not sure really..." she started, "He claims everything is fine, and I know he's lying or just doesn't want to talk to me about it... I feel like I have done something wrong..." Phoenix enveloped her in her arms and just patted her head, "He'll come around, you'll see. On the plus side, are you up for some Grimm Hunting?"

Summer pushed away as a small glimmer of excitement lit her eyes. "You bet I am! I have been waiting for this since the first time mom told us about the beowolves she fought off!" Phoenix laughed as he looked over to Jade who was still sleeping, "I should wake her up..." Summer nodded as she watched and waited for Phoenix to finish with Jade. She noticed Valentine slip out of the classroom, but Onix was making her way over to her.

Phoenix packed up his things, along with packing Jade's. "Hey, sleepy head," he nudged her lightly, "Class is over. Maybe you should skip the next period and head back to the dorm. You never came back last night..." Phoenix sighed, frustrated about how much of a heavy sleeper Jade was. I'm hard to wake up myself, so I won't judge... He slugged both of their book bags over his shoulder and warned her, "That's it. I'm taking you back to the dorms..."[/side]

 

[Brinni]

Jade

Location: Third Period
Nearby: First Years
Interaction: Nix
@Tags: KarenAKAMint

Jade tried to stay awake in class. But not sleeping the night before made that difficult. She managed to make it halfway through before she dozed off again. There were no dreams this time, which was probably a good thing. She was awakened by her teammate nudging her. "I know. I was busy all night. You really don't have to do that though Nix. You'll end up late if you take me."

She put her hand in her pocket and played with a thumb drive she had there. She placed her other hand out, wondering if he'd pass her her bag or if he'd insist on bringing her. He either gets it now if he stays or at the dorm if he is determined to walk me there...or later today if I forget. Today definitely. I'd have given it to him yesterday, but he had already gone out by the time I was done. Next step is to make one for the others.

 

[KarenAKAMint]

[FONT=Shadows+Into+Light]

Phoenix Rose

[/FONT]

Location: Remnant History Classroom
Nearby: Students
Interacting: Jade
@Tags: Brinni

"I know. I was busy all night. You really don't have to do that though Nix. You'll end up late if you take me."

Phoenix took a deep breath as he handed her her bag. "Fine," he told her, "I'll cover for you, with Professor Polendina. You need all the rest for the mission." Phoenix patted her on the shoulder and turned around to find Summer talked to by Onix. He shrugged and walked over to them, sending Jade a final look as he signed, Get some sleep, seriously. No midnight training alright?

Phoenix wanted to take Jade to the dorm, in order to make sure she was actually there sleeping, but he hates to push his brotherly tendencies on her. Let's focus on ending the day fast and getting on with the missions, maybe this can get Titan and Summer together again.... I hate seeing them like that. Hands in his pockets he slowly, beginning to worry about having a messed up relationship between team members before a mission. Just glad I'm fine with my team...

 

[Brinni]

Character Name

Location: Third Period/PRWI dorm
Nearby: Nobody
Interactions: Nix
@Tags: KarenAKAMint

Jade was actually disappointed he hadn't insisted, but only a little. She would have liked the company on the walk back. I wasn't training. Not that you're one to talk She touched the drive once more as he hurried off.

"Guess I'll just have to leave it for him." she said aloud to nobody in particular.

Shouldering her bag she made her way back to the dorms. As soon as she closed the dorm's door, she took an index card and same tape out, folded the card in half and taped to drive to the inside. On the inside of the card she wrote "Here's what I've been working on all week. This is for you. Let me know what you think. -J". On the outside she simply wrote Nix's name. She opened his door, placed the card on his bed, shut the door behind her and went into her own room. She was too tired to even change out of her uniform and fell asleep before her head even hit the pillow.

 

[LoneSniper87]

Onyx Belladonna
Location: Remnant History
KarenAKAMint

Onyx had once again enjoyed today's class, though it was partially because she still had the missions on her mind. She took notes on the small things that were pointed out, because she could always go back and study the larger things. When the bell finally rang she stood up and gathered her things. She searched the room for Summer, wanting to get with her on which mission she wanted. She finally spotted her with Phoenix, and made her way over.

"Hey Summer! We need to get Titan and Val together so we can talk missions. But first, what mission were you thinking about us doing?" She asked. "Personally, I wanted to the do one where we would hunt Grimm, but it depends on what everyone else thinks." She told Summer, glancing around for Valentine or Titan. "Have you seen either of them? Or have they already left?" She asked, not even sure Summer would know, but it was worth asking.​

 

[Hibiscus]

Titan Xiao Long

Location: 3rd Period
Nearby: Phoenix, Summer, Onyx, Jade
@Tags: KarenAKAMint LoneSniper87

The distance between himself and Summer permeated the space between them, but relaxed as the lecture went on. The stories and relaxed way Shamrock lectured, it gave Titan a feeling as if listening to a story teller and less like a lecture. By the end of it Titan had lost his frown and his usual grin was on his face, growing wider at the mention of missions. Out of reflex Titan went to look at Summer at his side, but the feeling returned when his gaze met empty seats.

As the class came to an end, Titan stood up and was immediately overtaken by Summer. Arms locked, Titan did his best to hide his frustration and overall confusion with his emotions. "No, just been spending some time getting antiquated to the training area." Not a complete lie, but definitely withholding the truth, and Titan's lying face was never something he had practiced.

Luckily Onyx took their attentions away, inviting them out to lunch and to train. The walk over to the lunch area was silence, the tension grew with every step in the awkward hold. Finally Summer cracked, giving Titan the out he was looking for, but also making him feel even worse for his actions. They separated and Titan found himself going without lunch that day.

The rest of the weekend went by fast, but one day did stand out. Early morning, Titan found an equal close combat opponent to practice with, exchanging some very provocative thoughts during the exchange. The man seemed familiar, as did the moves, but Titan only thought of it briefly before heading to the city. Since time with his teammates only left him distasteful at the moment, time alone was his only option. To his surprise, Titan met someone; it was a different meeting then most. Between the talk with Slate, meeting Mai, and the breath of fresh air; Titan's old worries seem to be ill thought.

The last thing of the weekend was the meeting with Summer, and unlike the rest of the day; it left Titan sore. The feelings, the facade he had for protectiveness had been jealousy over both his cousins. He couldn't bring himself to be honest, and once again didn't face Summer. The weekend passed, and with his usual lone training; Titan discovered a new exercise. Every night he would remember one moment with his family, and use that to remember that jealousy, anger, and distance wouldn't help him.

Thus Titan made his way to Amburn class, deciding to take notes as normal, but thought mostly of how to apologize to Summer; as well as his teammates. As class ended, Titan made his way to the twins and Onyx, more sheepishly then the man intended. "All of the missions sound fine in my opinion." Titan avoided eye contact with the twins as he spoke, not knowing if they harbored any ill feelings.

 

[KarenAKAMint]

Rose Twins

Location: Hallway | Just outside Auburn's Classroom
Nearby: Students
Interacting: Titan and Onix
Mentioned: Pyro, Valentine, and Jade
@Tags: Brinni Hibiscus KingofCool LoneSniper87

"Hey, Summer! We need to get Titan and Val together so we can talk missions. But first, what mission were you thinking about us doing? Personally, I wanted to the do one where we would hunt Grimm, but it depends on what everyone else thinks. Have you seen either of them? Or have they already left?"

Summer tried to keep up with Onix's excitement as she tried to figure out how to answer her. Phoenix was back as Jade slowly made her way out of the class room. When she brought up the hunt, she beamed and exclaimed, "We were just talking about wanting to hunt some Grimm." She looped her arm around her twin's as she continued, "As for Val she might have slipped out of the room for a bit, Titan and haven't talked through..."

"All of the missions sound fine in my opinion."

Summer jolted from Titan's sudden voice as a band of pain hit her heart. She looked over to him, along with Phoenix as they were faced with disappointment that he wasn't looking at us. Summer tightened her grip around Phoenix's arm as Phoenix spoke for them, "Well, I'm not sure what Pyro will choose, but I was thinking on some Hunting. I dought we would be in the same hunting group, but it would be interesting."

"Yeah... like the fact that we aren't really ready..." Summer said under her breath, not happy about the training that she had with only Val and Onix. She was not in the mood about all of this as she began to walk down the stairs as she called out, "Well, I'm off to sign us up to the hunting mission. See you guys at Professor Polendina's class." Phoenix was shocked at Summer's sudden cold mood as he watched her leave to classroom.

"Uh," he started, "Well, I have to go cover for Jade... see you guys at the combat practice. Oh and Titan... we need to talk later" Phoenix gave him a heavy look before quickly climbed the stairs as he tried to catch up to his sister. "Sum, wait," he called out. He took hold of her arm as he continued, "You can't go on a mission with that sort of attitude. It would only bring more Grimm. Just play along... Once the mission is over, you can be mad all you want." Summer nodded, agreeing with him, "Okay..."

 

[The Suspicious Eye]

Time Skip: Questing day!!The day is warm the weather called for clear skies without a single cloud in the sky. All the students have already said their goodbyes to one another and have made their way to their quest locations. Some walked, others were taken by cars while one team was taken by a airship, however each was starting their first adventure. Delving into action as danger and mystery were to come their way.

Quest: Besting the Beasts

Teams PRWI and SABL were driven out of the city towards the wild forests of Vale where grimm roamed free. A wolf faunus woman in a safari outfit grinned at them as she explained their quest. "Thank you so much for volunteering to help! We all really appreciate it." She ran her fingers through her hair and sighed as she looked at them, "recently there has been a large migration of grimm into the area that you're headed to. I don't what is causing it but the increase in grimm has gotten so bad that we've had to start evacuating villages." Her tail swished as she looked at them, "your mission is to remove the most dangerous additions to the current grimm population the Beowolves and the Sobecks. They have been the two that have focused on terrorizing inhabitants. There are so many of them the best we can do is evacuate others before they attack, but we've lost quite a few lives from their rampages." Looking a bit dejected she looked at them, "we need to thin this new heard. We've estimated a needed loss of at least forty Beowolves and thirty Sobecks will help with control and motivate them to leave the villages alone. This is what we need of you all."

The car slowed as the car reached as far as they could take them. Letting the young huntsmen off the woman gave them a kind smile. "Take care of yourselves I know that you usually work in teams of four but this hunt I think its best to work together. There are more than just Beowolves and Sobecks here. Besides we still don't know why they all came here. I believe that's what your professor wants you to find out." Hearing the driver honk his horn the wolf faunus woman waved to them as they drove off. "Good luck guys! And thank you so much for your help! Call us when you're ready for a pick up!!!"

As the car drove off the two teams were finally left alone and could gather their wits only to hear the howls of a near by pack of Beowolves (6) slowly stalking them. Their hunt has already started.

Defeated Monsters:
Beowolves - 0/40
Sobecks - 0/30

KarenAKAMint Brinni Black Jade KingofCool LoneSniper87 Hibiscus
(Got more coming!!)

 

[The Suspicious Eye]

Quest: Vale's VillainsUnlike the others students teams SEAS and CROC weren't given a transport instead they took a buss down into Vale's bustling city to the police headquarters. The building was tall and full to the brim with both human and faunus officers along with robots, cyborgs and androids. It was with their tireless efforts that the streets of vale were safe for all the people here. It was a safe place to be, and a good place to work. Entering the bustling and clean police station the teams were greeted to kind smiles and warm welcomes. Lead to the police chief's office they were met with a strong built man with a impeccable mustache.

He placed his hands on his waist and stared down the students of Beacon academy. "Alright you runts, let me make this clear. Just because you all are in training to become fancy hunstmen and women doesn't mean you aren't susceptible to the law. Without it you got nothing and we cops are the ones who enforce it." The gruff officer grumbled and pulled up his pants belt and looked over at the others and huffed. He motioned to the badges laying on the table. "Once you take this badge you are making a promise to abide and enforce the law. Like a officer, not a huntsman or a criminal. These are not toys. They are not your get out of jail free passes they are for the law which you are always a servant of." Looking to the other officer he nodded to him.

The other officer was young and handsome he smiled as he stepped forward. "I think what Police Chief Jefferson is trying to say is welcome and thank you for your help. We are separating you into two teams. One of you will be working as riot control for the march today. We don't expect any trouble but we can never be too careful. While the other will be helping us investigate a series of robberies at dust stores. The store From Dust to Dawn has been targeted and is in need of protection. Those who are working with the riot control will be reporting to me while those who are working with the robberies will be reporting to Chief directly." He gave them all a kind grin as he looked at them. "So since you are both are already separated go ahead and make your way to your locations." He handed each of them their Jr. Detective badges and gave them one last charming smile. "Good luck you all!"

From Dust Till Dawn The dust shop has been open for the longest of time. Having gone through various reopenings during the years. The store's insurance is through the roof and is quite impressive. However, what is the most impressive is the shop owner's ageless appearance having not changed since the students parents were their age. Having received a letter from a series of mysterious robbers stating that his shop is next he has agreed to have his store staked out so the police and huntsmen could catch these robbers red handed!

Streets of Vale The streets of vale are bustling with faunus community members as the march of remembrance was about to begin. People flooded the sidewalks as a entire section of the city was blocked off of the march. This was a important day for the faunus community and one that stirred a lot of trouble between those who hold ill will towards faunues and the white fang. Little do they know that ill will was not the only thing beginning to stir within the crowds.

Dante Verren WoodenZebra ChazGhost IG42

 

[WoodenZebra]

Schafer Blitzen

Location: Police Station
Nearby: SEAS,Evil Jefferson
@Tags: Dante Verren

Schafer listened intently as she was focusing on Jefferson's hat. It was nice,but he was a grumpy old man who needed some cheering up! After his little lecture and the other officer talking to them Schafer saluted and took the badge,"Yessss sir!" she replied putting the badge on her little lion as he was brought to life saluting her. "Alright guys you ready? Especially you my Ebonie wonnie" Schafer said staring at Ebon lovingly. Schafer spun 180 to see Sage looking a bit nervous and she pat his back,"Don't worry little guy everything will turn out groovy!" her words jumping up and down like a trampoline Sage looked a bit better and Schafer was happy as she walked to the chief's office.

Sage Auburn

Locationolice Station
Nearby: SEAS
Interaction: IG42

Sage was a bit nervous walking into the station and he was even more nervous listening to old man Jefferson. The cranky old grandpa sounded like he wanted nothing to do with them and that scared Sage. Being the shortest on the team because somehow Schafer got taller. He watched as Schafer was being so nice and reassured him even though she made a short joke about him and he nodded to her. Then Sage turned to look at the other team with them. Team CROC and there was this boy there. A lot taller than him in height,but he was soooo cute! Sage found himself staring and he couldn't look away even though due to being 4'8 he was kind of looking up. Sage just couldn't stop staring nor did he want to.

 

[LoneSniper87]

Onyx Belladonna

Battle of the Beasts Quest
Vale Forests
Team SABL, Team, PWRI​

KarenAKAMint The Suspicious Eye Hibiscus KingofCool Brinni

Onyx sat towards the back of the vehicle, staring out the window to the wildlife that look so familiar to her from her time at home. She listened to the Faunus intently, trying to pick up any details she could about what was happening. What she had learned was that Grimm were attracted to anger and fear, and that once this fact had help her Mother and team RWBY stumble upon a plot that White Fang had cooked up. She stepped out of the vehicle and gave a nod to the Faunus as she said her farewells.

"Alright guys, let out task finally begin." She said with a small grin, unsheathing her sword, then holding the sheath with her other hand. "I hear a group up ahead, I think we should wait until we get a solid count before we chose our attack method." She said to them, mainly as a suggestion. She didn't fancy herself to be a commanding person. Well, at least she tried not to be commanding.​

 

[KarenAKAMint]

Quest: Besting the BeastsRose Twins

Location: Hallway | Just outside Auburn's Classroom
Nearby: Teams SABL and PRWI
Interacting: Jade, Pyro, Ivory, Valentine, Titan, and Onyx
Mentioned: Ophelia
@Tags: Brinni Hibiscus KingofCool LoneSniper87 Black Jade

Pheonix and Summer were sitting next to each other, as they both listened to the Faunus woman explain the situation that they were heading toward. Summer played with her gloves as she let the nail like blades protrude out from the fingertips. Phoenix, on the other hand, lightly tabbed on Thorne as he tried to channel his happy place. He had talked to Jade for a bit about what happened with Ophelia. All together, they both never looked at anyone, just their weapon or the Faunus woman.

Spoiler: Past Event with Phoenix and Ophelia

The Suspicious Eye
The night before their quest Ophelia sneaked out after Silver had calmed down. She didn't want to leave the girl but she needed a moment to herself to process all that had happened. Her brave face only held on for so long before she would crack. Her bare feet felt cool against the marbled floors of the halls. Looking around she smiled, Ophelia preferred the stillness of the school at night rather than noise and excitement of the day. She'd always been a night owl of sorts, never afraid of darkness and shadows. Besides, when night arrived she had someone she knew would be there for her.

Looking over to the fountain she smiled as she saw him there. It was sort of a tradition now, they would meet at night and simply talk about anything. She mainly kept it trivial, especially since she knew how he'd react if she told him the truth about her parents. Still, it was nice to just talk as people, neither enemies nor truly friends. Not yet. Though maybe before they leave she should tell him something that has been bothering her for quite some time. She knew it wasn't her place to say, but something urged her to let him know.

Making her way over to him she smiled and waved to him. "Good evening Phoenix. What brings you here so late at night?"

Phoenix was going to go to the gym again, like always. He was listening to the song that Jade made for him as he sat at the fountain, looking up at the stars. Phoenix was always the one to keep his eyes in front of him, at the moment, but ever since he and Ophelia had actually come to a common ground, he found himself looking up at the stars. He would be leaving for the mission tomorrow, meaning this would be the last meeting with her until they get back. He felt someone approach as he looked over to the familiar sight of Ophelia, and pulled off his headset.

"Evening Ophelia. To get one final training session in before I leave tomorrow, and..." he gave her a small side smile, "To have one last time meeting with you since we won't be seeing each other until we get back from the missions."

Phoenix never thought he would ever be this open with her, not after they first met at the airship heading to Beacon. Something about it now, made it feel better. No cat and mouse, just a pair of huntsmen to be, talking about small trivial things. They never talked about each other's family, besides Summer and Titan since they were here with them. Never going in depth on what has been happening, just small hints of what they like or hate. it was simple, but it was enough for him to enjoy her company every night.

Ophelia noticed his side smile and her cheeks grew warm. Looking away embarrassed for a moment she pulled a wayward strand of hair behind her ear as she looked into his eyes. At first, she felt so uncomfortable looking at them, but after getting to know Nix, she found herself drawn to him. She wasn't afraid of what was to come tomorrow, but she didn't like missing their talks. What if after this we'd stop meeting like this? No, I can't think like that, Phoenix isn't like that.

Smiling at him she placed a hand on her hip and raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Don't tell me that you're saying you'll miss our rendezvous?" She said playfully.

"Maybe, I am," he told her, plain and simple.

And it was true. In the back of his mind, he would miss meeting with her to just talk. Maybe they weren't friends, but that didn't stop the distant feeling of wanting to see her again after they come back from their mission. On the plus side, he would have Summer there, which would make the mission trip a bit easier, but now... he was worried about Ophelia. Not able to talk to her is one thing, but not see here around the school or just, in general, gave him a bad feeling in his stomach. What has gotten into me?

Ophelia was surprised by his answer, she didn't expect him to say that. Feeling her heart begin to race her cheeks flushed instantly as what he said registered. Turning her head she looked down at the fountain and tried to stop her heart from beating so quickly. "Oh...well...I would be lying if I said I wouldn't as well. I really enjoy these moments together." She glanced over at him and smiled softly.

It was strange to feel this way, it was different than lust, something she wanted to cherish and take care of. Which is why I should tell him the truth. It isn't fair to him. She took a deep breath and moved over closer to him as she spoke. "Still I think I can find comfort knowing that regardless of how far we are we are under the same sky. Looking at the same sun, the same moon and the same stars." She couldn't meet his eyes if she did she'd blush again and it would be too hard to hide it. Biting her lip for one last moment of hesitation she opened her mouth and started, "Hey, Phoenix?"

Phoenix smiled at that fact. The same sun, moon, and stars... It was just too perfect to not cherish the fact that they can always think of that when they are apart. He looked over to her when he called for him, noticing that she was avoiding his face. He leaned forward and placed his chin on his fist as he propped himself on his knee. "Yeah, what's up," he asked, wondering what she would say let alone when she would look at him once more.

Ophelia shifted her weight as she watched him lean a bit. "You remember the bottle factory and how I knew to turn on all the lights to block your shadow semblance?" Rubbing her bare shoulder she looked quite uncomfortable. "I knew that because Pyro told me about it. He told me about the rest of your team too."

She looked up at him and met his eyes her face full of worry. "But I didn't tell anyone I swear. I just thought you should know, so you weren't left in the dark. I don't think he knew what he was really giving away. Still, I thought you should know. I'm sorry."

Phoenix was quiet for a moment, shocked at the thought that his secret was broadcasted outside of his family and team. How... how could one's leader just tell anyone that!? He was furious. Not at Ophelia, but at Pyro. For all he knew, Pyro was the one that told her, he couldn't be mad at her. He got up from the fountain and said, "Thank you for telling me this... It would have been better to know it after the mission, but better now than never..."

He gave her a wary smile as he just told her, "I'm going to let out some steam... We'll talk again once we get back..." He began to walk away, his head low, trying not to push his anger on to Ophelia. She didn't deserve it. "Oh, and thanks for keeping it to yourself... I like to keep it to myself for as long as I can..." he stopped and called over his shoulder, and headed over to the gym, ready to make use of this pent up energy to use. Tomorrow he and Summer would need to be on their positive behavior if they want to not cause any problems.

Ophelia would look into his eyes and see the shock there. She shouldn't have told him she knew it. I was a fool, now I hurt him. Feeling a growing pit of discomfort she hated the thought of hurting him. As he got up he expected him to strike her like her mother would, but instead, he thanked her. Looking at him confused she wasn’t sure what he meant. Why was he thankful?

As he told her it was probably better to have done it after the mission Ophelia nodded, “yeah…you’re right.” Looking at his tired smile she felt a pang of pain that struck directly into her heart. “Oh okay…” She watched him walk away angry at herself for ruining the moment. That is until he thanked her again. Blushing she held her arm behind her back, “no need for thanks, I understand. I’ll see you when we get back..."

The car came to a stop as everyone began to file out to the open field. Summer looked around the area, going back to her past training with Phoenix as she placed her back to his and they slowly looked around the area. at the sound of the honk, they both jumped at the sudden sound and looked over tot he woman as she began to enter the car again.

"Good luck guys! And thank you so much for your help! Call us when you're ready for a pickup!!!"

With that, they drove off. As they did, Summer noticed movement along with Onyx's comment, and called out, "Heads up!" Phoenix transformed Thorn to her scythe form and looked over to Pyro, allowing him to take control of the situation. "Better to get these out of the way, before we have a colony of them on us! Titan and Onyx! Take the right side, Val and I will take the left" Summer called out as she took off running to the approaching Grimm. Using her semblance to get some height, she flipped over the Beowulf and took a hold of him with her claw like a weapon.

 

[IG42]

Cirrus Jay Schnee

Location: Police Station
Nearby: Team CROC, Team SEAS
@Tags: ChazGhost The Suspicious Eye WoodenZebra

Standing at almost military attention Cirrus listened intently to the police officers' briefing and tried not to throw glances over his shoulder at Croc, the thieving faunus had weighed on his mind constantly since they had accepted the mission. He still wasn't sure how exactly to keep him under control, obviously Cirrus couldn't just pull over his partner at random and pat him down in the street doing that would infuriate the marching faunus and encourage any possible counter-protest groups but even if he caught Croc in the act the effect would be much the same.

Once the police officer started passing out the badges he preempted the cop by picking up the badge meant for Croc along with his own, giving the reptilian faunus a pointed look he slowly held out the badge. Right now Cirrus fervently wished they he had told Bruno that they were going to go kill some Grimm whether he liked it or not but that was no longer an option. Maybe I was trying so hard to be everyone's friend that I wasn't being a leader. Now that they were here he was responsible for his team.

Turning away from Croc he resolved to find time to pull his partner aside for a word before they got started, his earlier lighter attempts to get through to the pickpocket or effectively bribe him had been met with flippancy and jokes but he had to at least try.

Feeling like he was being watched Cirrus looked around and abruptly realised that the deer faunus that from Team SEAS was staring up at him for some reason, he also realised that the tiny faunus was both utterly adorable and a guy both things that their choice of seating in classes had evidently hidden from him until now. At any other time Cirrus might have tried to pick up and hug his possible new admirer forever and ever he really wasn't in right sort of mood for flirting so he simply settled on giving a weak smile and a small wave.

 

[ChazGhost]

Quest: Vale's Villains
Croc Sustrai and Bruno Port

Location: Police station
Nearby: team CROC and team SEAS
@Tags: IG42 The Suspicious Eye

Croc kept his cool and hid his excitement as the badges were revealed. Croc then was annoyed and surprised when Cirrus grabbed his badge. He almost growled but he kept himself from doing it did what he thought his brother would do, act. "Thanks for handing it over to me Cirrus. How nice" Croc said taking his badge quickly with a fake smile. He then looked over his badge and smirked slightly to himself. He then put it on himself happily.

Bruno gave a salute to the chief as soon they enter the building and walked up to him. Then once the other officer came he saluted him quickly as well. Bruno also gave a bow before he slowly grabbed his badge savoring the moment before putting it on. He was so happy about being a guardian of justice (in his head) and almost couldn't wait to head to the march.

 

[The Suspicious Eye]

Quest: Vale's VillainsThe police chief grumbled as the young girl cheerfully saluted him. Waving his hand he waved the two groups off annoyed at Officer Hotpants's kinder introduction. He didn't want these kids thinking that this was a soft and easy job to take. There was a lot of danger that a officer faced and these were just kids. Sighing as he heard the girl say groovy he knew that she wasn't taking it seriously. He knew he'd have to keep a eye on them and the crocodile faunus boy. Don't the the glint in the boys eyes as he saw the badges was going unnoticed. He crossed his arms and sighed as the kids left the office and looked to Officer Hotpants, "You know I'm glad that they won't be left alone. They're just kids."

Officer Hotpants smiled and patted the chief's shoulder, "They'll be fine boss. You're such a softie."

"Get back to work Harry." The officer grumbled.

"Yessss sir!"
-----

Location: Police Station ---> Riot Area
Nearby: Tem CROC and SEAS

IG42 ChazGhost​

Mood: Uncertain
OOC: Go Cirrius, being a brave guy.

Iola Rose Sakra Working for the police was quite intimidating to be honest Io didn't know exactly what she was agreeing to. Moving here Io never knew what a police force was, Menagerie wasn't a place where there were officers everywhere. Still with her record, undisclosed of course, Io wasn't sure what to expect. However, she certainly didn't expect everyone to look so nice and be so kind to the. Even the gruff police chief was only stoic because he cared about us and about the law. It was clear to her that he was just worried for them all and Io smiled at him. Looking at the officer who handed her the badge she smiled and thanked him. "Umm, thank you very m-much sir."

Pinning it to her hoodie she blushed and looked at the chief giving him a polite bow. Glancing over at the other team she smiled at them they seemed to be quite cheerful and she was surprised that there were so many faunuses there. Her chest tightened a bit in a eerily familiar way. Grabbing her chest she took a deep breath and sighed letting the urge leave. The medication is working, this is just a hiccup. I'm alright. Little did she know that while she was out someone had sneaked in and swapped the medical pills with something less potent.

Turning her attention to Cirrus she was so impressed by how he held himself. She could never be like him, she was fidgeting and felt quite uncomfortable, she was quite shy. Being around so many people was intimidating and she was worried about how she would act like in the crowd. Shuddering at the thought she looked over to the others and decided that she'd rather rip the bandaid off. Clapping her hands she looked to the others, "well we better get going! The march starts at noon and it's already eleven right now."

Leading the others from the department Io watched the crowds of people grow as they got closer. She grew less confident with every step. Slowing down until she stopped there looking at all the people. Noticing others beging to see her Io felt uncomfortable and moved to Bruno. "I...Um...I guess...we got here early..." Looking at her scroll she read the time as 11:34 am.
---

 

[KarenAKAMint]

Heads up, major collab post!​

Quest: Besting the Beasts

Location: Wild Forest of Vale
Teams: SABL and PRWI
@Tags: Brinni Hibiscus KingofCool LoneSniper87 Black Jade

Pyro was excited. My first mission... I can't wait! He intently listened to the information that was given by the kind Faunus woman. Alright... 40 Beowolves and 30 Sobecks. Better be careful, though. Like she said, there are more than just Beowolves and Sobecks here. When he, his team and SABL walked out of the vehicle and the vehicle drove away, Pyro smiled as he got out his heirloom sword and shield, ready to take out some Grimm. Pyro smiled again as he heard Summer's plan. "Covering more ground... I like it. Smart-" Before he could say his compliment, he saw Summer run off. "... thinking." He sighs. He didn't even get to finish his compliment... Oh well. He walked up to his team and began talking. "Alright, team here's the plan. The four of us will stay together to take out the Beowolves and Sobecks. Now, be on the lookout, in case any Grimm try to catch us off-guard. Now come on. Let's go help out Team SABL with the pack of Beowolves." Pyro rushes at one of the Beowolves. The Beowolf slashes at Pyro with its claws, but he blocked it with his shield. He slashed at the Beowolf's chest, sending the Grimm onto the ground. Before it could fully get back up, Pyro slammed the side of his shield against the Beowolf's neck, slicing its head clean off.

Valentine charges at one of the Beowolves. "... Hmph." Buzzsaws came out of the bottom of her purse as she slashes at the Beowolf, pushing it back. Her purse turned into her mechanical bow and arrow as she inserted an ice dust capsule into the bow. She pulls back her ice arrow and releases, the arrow hitting the Beowolf and freezing it in place. Valentine clenches her right fist and throws a strong punch at the frozen Beowolf, breaking the frozen Beowolf into multiple pieces.

Summer stabbed the Beowolf under her, multiple time in the head as she sent her daggers to finish off the Grimm. Landing on her feet she collected her daggers and ordered to her team, "Watch Team PRWI's back! We don't want them to get ambushed." Summer had planned a back and forth attack, one team at the time. Not only would it help them to keep watch, but to also not get in the way of the other team's way. "I'm taking a look from above," she called out. Jetting her small frame up above the tree's canopy, she surveyed the surrounding area. From the looks of it, the Grimm were in different groups and equally divided into groups of no more than fifteen and no less than three.

Phoenix did as Pyro ordered, trying to focus his mind on the fight and his training with his mother. A smile danced on his face as he charged toward one of the Grimm and didn't waste any time to activate the chainsaw on Thorne and cut through the Grimm that leaped at him. He nodded at Summer before she shot up to the sky with the help of her semblance. He looked over to his team and watched them work to get rid of the Grimm around them.

Jade was having mixed feelings about the mission. Certainly, she was excited to finally be getting out and getting practice as a Huntress, but the morning had put a damper on things. Phoenix had told Jade of his most recent run in with Ophelia. Although the fact it happened so often raised a flag to her. Two run-ins with conversation in four days? Something isn't adding up here. Any questions she had asked were met with either silence or a change in subject. She didn't see what the big deal was, it's not like it was something that could be kept secret for long. Once there was no way to discuss it in public she let it drop, but she worried about what it meant for the mission considering they were hunting creatures attracted to negative emotion. If it becomes a problem I'll deal with it.

She listened to the instructions carefully. 70 Grimm, that's a lot. But there are 8 of us I suppose. She was going to get the lay of the land when she heard Pyro say that the four of them were going to stay together. Welp. He's the boss I suppose. She lifted her headphones on to her ears and put on a noise canceling track, there was no need to expend any aura just yet. The world faded away until there were just her and the Beowulfs in front of her. She saw movement to her right as Pyro went in. She rushed in, drawing Buide from its sheath and putting it into its sword form. She took one that had become isolated as four of its pack were taken down in seconds. She darted in and out around it, making small cuts here and there. Her dad's words echoed in her head. Battle is just another kind of dance, just deadly. So that's how she treated it. It reminded her of Sunday night. There was just her in this world, her and now her partner. She dropped into a split as the creature tried to slash at her, feeling the air as the claws brushed harmlessly overhead. She came up, headbutting the creature and backing up before it could retaliate. She used her sword to deflect another swipe, using the momentum to spin and deliver a closed-fist backhand to the Beowulf, sending it sprawling and angering it further. Unlike the others on the field, she didn't smile and wasn't reveling in the thrill of combat. This was her first real combat, with risks of real consequences and had to make sure she didn't make a mistake. As the Beowulf got up and howled a challenge at her, she curtsied. "It's been a pleasure dancing with you"

It charged. She changed Buide into its spear and used it to vault above the creature, narrowly missing it's snapping jaws. When she was directly overhead she quickly changed it to the sniper, put the barrel on the back of its head and fired. At that range, the creature didn't have a chance. She landed, collapsed her weapon and returned it to her sheath, and watched as one of the others took care of the final Beowulf.

Onyx made her move towards off the Beowolves, it makes its own charge at her. They both met, it's claws meeting her sheath. She took the opportunity and slashed up at it, causing it to retreat a few steps before it charges again. She dashes off to the side and holds out her sword, making it across the Beowolves side. It howls in anger and pain before making another charge. She uses the sheath and sword with both hands and blocks the attack, then pushing the thing off. She switches to her handgun and quickly fires a few shot into the Beowolf. She turned around in time to see the last one charge her, which she hastily tried to blocked, but it still knocked her back a good 10 feet. She stood up and rolled her shoulders, taking a glance at everyone else.

Titan sat at the front of the airship, wanting to be the last one out. Listening to their mission, it seemed straightforward. Kill the Grimm, not as a permanent fix, but just to reduce the pack numbers. Stepping off the airship and into the forest, Titan gave one last glance before watching their only way out, leave.

The leaders of the teams gave orders, with PRWI to make the forward advance and SABL to cover their backs and sides. Titan nodded when he was told to be with Onyx, the disappointment at Summer choosing Val over him only slightly affecting him. The drama, seeing Summer, Phoenix, and Pyro; all of it was drowned away at the prospect of fighting.

Thus, Titan took his stance next to Onyx. The beowulves near the landing site were easily dispatched, and it seemed the one near them was the only one left. "Go ahead, I've got your back." Titan nodded to Onyx, watching as she attacked the Grimm. During the time Titan watched the others fight, his face that had been plastered with content the past few days now smiling.

Just as it seemed the fight would wrap up, Onyx was knocked back far enough for Titan to move in without danger to her. The team had not trained with Titan extensively, and he didn't want his large size or large attacks to cause friendly fire.

As the beowolf recovered from its attack on Onyx, Titan rushed to bring both the Grimm's arms behind its head. Once in a headlock, Titan spread out his stance wider to give him the tension to flip the Beowulf. Once in the air, Titan released the beast to let it fall and bringing his left leg up and down onto the beast. The sound of the skull head of the beast was audible, and Titan's wide smile was true to the excitement he felt. "I should have stretched before using an axe kick," Titan rubbed the back of his head as he shook the tension from his leg.

Summer came back down from her lookout point and landed lightly on her feet. From instinct, she complimented Titan for his attack, "Nice!" Clearing her voice, she looked over to the rest of the group and informed, "Alright, here is what I could make out." She relayed the info she collected from the group sizes and the number of groups. Once everyone was up to date, she spoke up once more, "We can let them come to us or go to them. Take down some of their numbers. What are your thoughts?"

Phoenix listened to what Summer had to say as he kept an eye around the opening. He tried to keep his attention on the Mission as best he could as he tried not to allow his anger get the best of him. "Well I say we go to them... means we can get this mission over with..." he voiced his opinion as he looked over to Pyro, "Unless you have another plan, oh fearless leader..."

"What's with the attitude?" Summer asked him, straightening up to look at Phoenix, "What happen to keep our emotions out of this mission?"

Phoenix put Throne on the hooks located on his belt and answered, "Things came up... So what is it going to be? Sit here and get attacked, or bring the attack to them?"

Ivory was utmost silent, watching everyone with his normal happy go grin on his face. He was so excited! There was something about the rush of danger and the adrenaline that pumped through his system that just made him explode on the inside! Sometimes, he had to admit, it wasn't exactly . . . safe. When he got in the mood to fight, nothing could bring him down. He was like firecrackers on dried leaves, explosive, irrational, unsafe, and he was about to start a wildfire. He drew his weapon, an insane grin on his face as he barely caught the words of his leader. "Boom," he muttered, before shooting forward, and jumping into the air, bringing the double bladed scythe into the ground. What exactly happened afterward is still a confusion in his mind . . . When he gets excited his brain almost turns off. He stood up, looking around slightly shocked. "A-Are . . . Are we done?" he asked confused.

"Nice! Alright, here is what I could make out." Pyro gladfully listened to what Summer had to say, and so did Val. "We can let them come to us or go to them. Take down some of their numbers. What are your thoughts?"

Before Pyro could say something, he was interrupted by his partner. "Well I say we go to them... means we can get this mission over with... Unless you have another plan, oh fearless leader..."

Pyro was surprised and rather saddened at Phoenix's attitude towards him. It sounded like he was upset with him. "P-Phoenix?"

"What's with the attitude? What happen to keep our emotions out of this mission?"

"Things came up... So what is it going to be? Sit here and get attacked, or bring the attack to them?"

"... Wh... While I don't appreciate Phoenix's attitude, I agree with him. We bring the attack to them." Pyro said.

"I have to agree as well." Valentine joined the conversation. "We can't just sit around here and wait for Grimm to come at us. What if a larger pack of Beowolves catch us off-guard?"

Jade stopped the track and the world came back to her...or her to it. She laughed at Ivory's comment. "Not yet man. We've still got about 64 more Grimm to kill, or thereabouts."

She listened to Summer's report of the whereabouts and started thinking. A group of fifteen might be difficult, so we should pick off smaller groups as much as- her train of thought was interrupted by Phoenix's comment. Right. Slight amendment to that plan. Deal with this first. But subtly.

"I agree. We should take it to them. Pick off the small groups first so that way when we go after the larger ones there are less reinforcements that could potentially show up. However, despite the large number they want us to take down just taking out Grimm seems too simple. They easily could have sent a more experienced team to do it faster than us. I think this mission is more than that so we should be ready for anything. To that extent, I propose having a couple scouts or some kind of treetop over watch at the very least to keep us all informed. I know I can scout, I can move through the treetops without making noise. And I think Nix should go both because of his Semblance and the long range strength of Thorn."

She waited, and upon hearing Summer's information of where groups of Grimm generally were, and her and Nix both agree to the plan, established one of them would send Summer a text in no more than ten minutes if it was safe. If they didn't hear back, don't go that way. She and Phoenix headed off into the trees. The second they were out of both eye and earshot she caught him off guard, spun and slammed him into a tree so he was facing her and growled "What the hell do you think you're doing. Don't answer that because clearly you aren't thinking. You are putting everyone in danger. Or do you not care about the safety of your team? How about your friends? Your cousin? Or your sister even? We are hunting Grimm you idiot and they will smell your anger from a mile away. And if our safety isn't your concern, tell me now. Because I swear to God Nix, I will call our ride and tell them our team is dropping out for safety reasons. I will. I will bench us all because of you. Then I'll explain everything that's going on to our team and your sister's. Now get your shit together" She forced him to look her in the eye, to see the steel in there. To show she wasn't bluffing. As she did, she used the eye contact to land a sucker punch across his jaw. "And that is for ignoring me all morning when all I was trying to do was help you."

She stepped back, her expression softening. "I get you're mad at him. I do. He should have asked before revealing your Semblance. But dude. You're a Hunter in training. It's not something you can keep secret for long. You're mad because you are suspicious of her and now she knows what you can do. She would have found out eventually man. You have to know that, right? You're like...my best friend here and now you've gone and made me worry about you. Don't shut me out Nix, you know I'm on your side. Is the fact that Pyro told Ophelia your Semblance really all this is about?"

Five more minutes until check-in

Phoenix agrees with Jade's plan as Summer sent him a worried look. He just patted her shoulder as he followed Jade toward the trees. The last thing he expected was to be slammed onto the tree by Jade. Angry at the sudden attack, he was about to snap at her, but he stopped. He listened to what she had to say. His anger was still there, but it was no longer at Pyro or Jade but at himself. She's right, after telling Summer to cool it, here I am making things worse. He was about to say something, as he looked into her eyes when she landed her fist onto his jaw.

"What the hell!?" he exclaimed. Jade continued as she brought up a good question. I am I willing to risk my friends and family's safety over an ability... He saw Ophelia on his side now after he has been able to know her better during their midnight meetings. He wasn't mad at her when she told him, but mad at the fact that Pyro broke the one thing he asked him to keep within the group... "Okay..." he finally spoke out, no anger in his voice, "I deserve that... But damn, Jade!"

Phoenix took hold of his jaw and continued, "And no... it's not about having my semblance known... it's the fact that Pyro broke the trust I put upon him..." He began to climb a bit more as he activated his semblance, wanting to keep them hidden, even when they had clothes that blended into the canopy well. "I trusted him to keep it a secret until I was comfortable enough to announce it. You know, his mother hid hers... I didn't see the harm in hiding my own..." He finally stopped climbing as he looked down to three groups scattered around the forest. They were small groups of 4 or 5 but they were close enough to attract the other group to the fight. "Thanks for the wake-up call... maybe I'll treat you to ice cream later," he laughed at the last part and remembered, "But it's not a date..."

"I'd like to say that's fair, but really. You've known him for like...two weeks and have spent more time with me than with him. Not a whole lot of trust building there. And more importantly, she's got him wrapped around her finger and could make him do almost anything. You've seen how he practically drools over her, haven't you? Can you blame the kid for being in love and wanting to make her happy?"

Jade laughed at the mention of ice cream. She took a piece of chalk and marked the tree they were climbing before beginning her ascent. "Deal. But 1) I'm still gonna tell your sister you're on a date. And 2) It totally is this time. You owe it to me for smacking some sense into you, especially away from everyone else. And 3), and probably most importantly, you owe Pyro an apology. I don't care if you lie and throw me under the bus for your foul mood, but you owe it to him....just like....make sure your sister and cousin know I didn't actually do anything. I'd rather not turn them into enemies if I can avoid it. Val already hates me and I don't want all of their team after my head. Mission at hand first though"

She scoured the area below them, spotting the groups. She sent off a text to Summer.

"Movement to current spot clear. Marked tree we're in. Three groups of five nearby. Too close to each other to engage"

Summer looked over to where Jade and Phoenix went. She stayed level headed as she crossed her arms, waiting to hear from the two. She was ecstatic when she felt her scroll go off, getting a text from Jade. "That way has a group of fifteen," she told the other about the the text and sent Jade back a message, "Alright, head back." She placed her scroll back in her pocket and turned to the others. "I think we should have other groups do the same," she stated, "Anyone want's to volunteer?"

 

[WoodenZebra]

Sage Auburn

Location: Police Station
Nearby: SEAS,CROC
Interaction: IG42

Sage started to feel nausea as he kept staring. A pain in his neck occurred but he never turned the other way. Sage felt this feeling. Being so familiar with his emotions feeling that one random emotion made him confused. Like a sickness
Sage watched as one the other members of team CROC seemed jumpy . You and me both Sage thought as he pivoted once more to realize the boy was staring at him. The dude gave him a weak smile followed by wave and Sage's heart started pumping. What was this? It was like he'd just been punched in the gut. Sage smiled a smile to make him look insane, and a wave which was more like he flopped his arm around and that made Sage lose his balance as he was fell backwards. Sage couldn't stop as going backwards like his antlers were a ton. He then tripped over Wimu Gya that Schafer put back down and he fell over practically doing a flip as he landed on his antlers like an idiot.
The pain it caused him Sage made the loudest deer like sound ever sounding like a high pitched creaking door," MMMMMAAAAAHHHH ahhhhhhhh" catching the attention of everyone in the area to a boy he was flipped upside down on his antlers not knowing what to do it scared the crap out of Sage as he tried to stay calm,but he stayed upside down as everyone just stared. Sage felt the blood rushing to his head like an hour glass and it hurt as he felt his antlers. It felt like they were being forced into his head. He couldn't handle it as his antlers were his weak spot and he started to embarrassingly whimper followed by a few tears like a child. Oh no what am I doing. Wait. My mask! Sage felt his face realizing his mask fell off when he tripped and now everyone saw what seemed to look like a little kid crying on his antlers in a police station. Sage was mad at himself for making such a scene as many were staring at him," C-c-can somebody p-pick me up. I-i'm stuck" the little faunus said through stutters like a broken record. Hopefully Professor Auburn won't hear about this.

 

[IG42]

Cirrus Jay Schnee

Location: Police Station -> Vale Streets
Nearby: Team CROC, Team SEAS
@Tags: ChazGhost WoodenZebra The Suspicious Eye

Meeting Croc's fake smile with his own Cirrus replied in a falsely bright tone. "You're most welcome." Watching Io take off ahead of them he sent her a mental note of thanks, he should be able to drop back and speak to his partner in relative privacy now and-

A loud noise almost like a groan filled the room utterly derailing Cirrus' train of thought as the tiny deer faunus that seemed to have been checking him out pitched over backwards somehow.

Dropping to one knee next to the inverted faunus Cirrus carefully lifted him so he was the right way up and held him in his arms getting his first look at the smaller teen's face in the process. "Hey there are you-" hhrrrk he's adorable! Slate had had a certain rugged attractiveness about him and the little faunus was at the complete opposite end of the spectrum but he looked so goddamn huggable right there and then! "That looked like a nasty fall, are you okay?" He asked in a soothing tone.

 

[Hibiscus]

Slate Black

Location: Sunday Events
Nearby: Ophelia, Titan, Cherry
@Tags: The Suspicious Eye Brinni Hibiscus

The past weekend flew by without much thought of Slate. Unlike the other teams around him, or more like some, Slate's Team BRSS seem to have done little to gather themselves into a team. Ophelia had Silver, and Slate couldn't bring himself to have Cherry. The question she posed to him, that level of trust, that level of lying; it unnerved the stalwart Slate

Spoiler: Slate and Ophelia: Blue Steel

The early morning light hit the inside of team BRSS's dorm room. Ophelia couldn't get any sleep that night resting felt strange due to the weekend's events. She had to admit she felt so much more empty than before. Still something good came of that. Maybe... Sighing Ophelia stood in the kitchen and looked at the sunrise against the kitchen tops. Calm your mind, remember what you're meant to do and you'll reward for doing this. She pulled a wayward strand of hair behind her ear as she finished the last omelette. Each one made with her teammates favorite toppings each one placed on the table covered in plastic wrap for them.

Hearing the gentle ding of the cappuccino machine She slid the last omelette onto a plate and moved to the machine. Taking out her Yuanyang she placed it next to her plate. "All I need is Turmeric for the omelet and vanilla for the cappuccino." Looking up to the shelf where the spices are she hesitated, but reached up only to feel a hard pang in her side. She winced and grabbed at the counter breathing heavily. Closing her eyes tightly she breathed slowly trying to work through the pain. She leaned closer and tried to reach up again her hand shaking as she tried to get the spices off the shelf.

The early morning light was also cascading into Slate's dorm room, hitting the back of his shirtless body. Muscles flexed with strain, Slate's hands covered his eyes as the mirage of colors cycled in his irises. A gentle ding sounded, alerting Slate that his practice was over. Slate's body immediately collapsed to the bed behind him, his head lying next to his scroll. It was at that time his scroll's alarm went off, causing the already stressed man to jump with the surprise. If that was my alarm, then what was the other sound?

Using his eyes quickly, Slate identified Ophelia in the kitchen, with Cherry and Silver still in their rooms. Breathing out a large sigh, Slate rolled his shoulder back and wiped off what was left of the sweat. Deciding to leave the shirt off and only the loose pajama bottoms, Slate approached Ophelia from behind. Using one hand to grip her shaking hand with his, and the other found the turmeric and vanilla it was reaching for. "You made us all breakfast," Slate whispered gently as he placed the spices down, "The least I can do is take care of the spices.".

Slate felt the twitching of the hand, noticed the heavy breathing. It worried him, as was Ophelia lately. The weekend had brought on some change in her, and the little he knew about her only made this more difficult to understand. Waiting a moment, to see if his hand steadied her, Slate thought of the woman. "Are you feeling well, Ophelia? You're shaking."

Ophelia sensed someone come up from behind. She tensed up for a moment only to calm as she felt Slate’s large hand grip her shaking one. Feeling his back against her own she arched her own to look up at him and gave a calm smile. “I suppose it is the least you can do." Closing her eyes she looked down at the spices and added the to the meals. Her hand still shaking in Slates' she did her best to ignore it.

Subconsciously she gripped onto Slate and pulled his hand to wrap around her. Breathing slowly she rested against him and finally stopped shaking. Nodding slowly she gave him a kind smile, a false one hiding her pain, but one to comfort him. “I’m fine. Just a bit cold, but see you’e seemed to have warmed me up.” Looking into his eyes she could tell he saw through this, but could not drop the act for a moment. If she did what he’d see with those eyes would scare him from her. Ophelia felt a connection to Slate, from their parents and up bringing. Although Slate chose to become as good as his father while Ophelia… Choice is never a option. Looking over at the meals she’d prepared she spoke softly. “Would you like some breakfast?”

Slate's handed mirrored over hers, acting as support as the girl spread spices over the meals. Despite her best efforts and his hand there, Ophelia still shook with pain. The smile on her face was a facade, easily seen through by Slate. At the same time Ophelia gripped him, allowing his other hand against her waist to hold her closer. "I never knew of temperature causing such shakes and flinches, but-" Slate's eyes swirled as they studied the girl, knowing he couldn't call out her bluff without revealing his own. Slate began to wonder about the parallels they shared, giving her a small smile back. "I'm glad I could warm you up."

"Breakfast sounds nice, but are you sure you're well?" Slate slowly turned her to face the man, looking over at her several times. "I'm fairly well versed in medicine, Croc got hurt enough to warrant practice." Giving her a smile as he turned over her hands, "I could look you over, give you a chance to at least rest.". Slate glanced to her room, "Or you can worry me, knowing that a beautiful girl and my teammate might be hurt." Slate lifted her hand and kissed it lightly, awaiting her response.

Ophelia met his eyes as he turned her around to face him. If she was any other girl she’d probably swoon at how smooth he was. It was fun the game they played and one she didn’t want to stop anytime soon. Leaning against him she chuckled and placed a hand on his chest. “I’m fine Slate, truly.” Raising a eyebrow as he offered to look her over, she debated her ultimatum. Her body heated up as he kissed her hand, it was unexpected to say the least.

Deciding on the former she ran her fingers against his jawline as she spoke, “Well I wouldn’t want you to worry about me.” Tilting her head she gave a sly smile, “if you want to look me over, be my guest. I’d love to hear your well versed opinion."

Ophelia's hand on his cheek was welcome, Slate subconsciously leaning into. Gentle, warm, and calm; despite previously having been shaking. Regaining himself, Slate returned her sly smile with one of his own. Taking slowly, by both hands, Slate walked backwards to lead her into her bedroom. It was the first time Slate would see her bedroom, besides glances with his eyes just to see who was where at night.

"I'll look you over, decide if maybe something besides the cold temperature is bothering you, and then I'll eat with you." Slate finally turned around, opening the door and gesturing to her bed. "Lay down, take off your shirt, and I'll give you a check up." Slate's voice was serious, but his smile said otherwise.

Walking backwards to her room she kept her calm appearance as he lead her back to her bedroom. She wasn’t just sure how devoted her dear team leader was to uncovering the truth of her injuries, but she was certain she had more determination in this battle.

It was a average bedroom, kept clean there was nothing much out in the open to reveal about her. The shelves were mostly barren a series of school books still in boxes lay on them. Two potted plants sat in the sunlight, a stuffed teddy bear with a red bow sat on her dresser and posters of the latest pop band were scattered along the walls. The only true evidence were pictures of her and her friends suck on a small cork board. They were two plain looking girls one significantly younger than the other two. The three smiled and hugged each other posing for the camera.

Ophelia nodded to Slate as she moved overt o the bed. Glancing over her shoulder to him she smiled and raised her finger motioning for him to come follow. She sat on the edge of the bed before letting her back rest on the soft comforter. Stretching she arched her back and let out a soft sigh as what she would love to do is take a nap right then and there. How she left the comfort of her bed every morning was a mystery to her. Waiting for him to come up and watch as she unbuttoned her top revealing the lace bra underneath. Running her fingers across her side she looked into his eyes. “See. not a scar in sight."

Slate followed her in, watching her footing and his to make sure neither fell. Opening the door revealed a normal looking room, and Slate realized he wasn't surprised by anything because he'd already seen it several times; unbeknownst to Ophelia with his semblance. As Ophelia got comfortable on her bed, Slate studied the poster and pictures; smiling at the thought of being in a boy band. "I didn't know you were into boy bands?" Slate struck a pose similar to the bad boy in the poster, "I always thought Croc and I would find a way into one, I'd enjoy the singing and he the spotlight." Slate let out an unfamiliar chuckle, a sincere one. It startled him, but he quickly recovered.

After his talk with Cherry by the fountain and his week alone to his thoughts, Slate found himself slipping in his performance quite often. After calming his chuckle, Slate walked over to the undressing Ophelia. Seeing the lace caused a subliminal feeling, but his body betrayed his cover with the slight tilting of his head and smile. Slate came to the side of her bed, getting down to his knees to get a better look. With ease Slate placed a hand on her side, seeing if she would flinch. Looking up to gauge her reaction; Slate, even on his knees, was just slightly below eye level of Ophelia.

As he mentioned the boy band posters on the bed she smiled. Her mom loved the band and whenever they were out shopping would drag her into the music store to buy any new albums out. Over time Ophelia grew to like them herself and had sort of a weakness when it came to handsome boys who could preform.

Rolling on her side she looked over at him striking the bad boy’s pose and giggled. “A girl can have a interest in the musical arts.” She heard a slight difference in his laugh and noticed that he let himself slip, it was cute to see. She’d of course done it herself, but what was underneath her facade was nothing cute.

Running her fingers though her hair she looked Slate up and down. “I think you’d make a handsome member. When you and your brother become famous make sure to remember me.” She rolled back and looked at the ceiling a smile on her face as she watched him walk over to her. She let her mind go back to the place it always went when her mother would cut her, trying to erase the pain from her mind as she felt his hands against her side.

Smiling at his touch her eyes were distant as she let him feel up the side of her body. Her chest rose and fell steadily, but she could feel herself waivering. “Have you gotten your fill, doctor?"

Slate's hand was gentle against her soft skin, feeling for any irregularities. When her body and face showed no pain, Slate began to move his hands down once again. "I suppose, I just hope if you were hurt you would tell me." Slate gave another smile, but gave a final squeeze to Ophelia's side to see if she would show anything. Even with the allure of her body, Slate found himself staring into her eyes the entire time.

Ophelia was grateful that he was gentle with her, she truly couldn't handle if he squeezed to tightly. Reaching out to him as he spoke she caressed his cheek, "if a injury ever caused a problem to the team I'd tell you. " She was about to say something else when he squeezed her side and she felt like screaming. In a split second her facade fell, but instead of cracking and screaming in pain she grabbed his head, pulled herself over to him and kissed him passionately before she could let out a single scream. She closed her eyes and kissed him, not giving him the chance to let up or push her away. The internal bleeding she spent all of Sunday healing was ruined and she couldn't stop the pain but she could push that somewhere else like Slate's lips.

Finally regaining her bearings and she broke the kiss and looked at Slate, "wow..." Sure, she was kissing him as a ploy to hide her pain but damn he was a good kisser. Blushing a bit she let go of him and ran a strand of hair behind her ear and looked at him. "I...I'm sorry. I didn't mean to... but wow..."

Slate saw her eyes fall from the calm facade, but he could never imagine what came next. He allowed himself to be taken in by the woman, and returned ten fold. If Slate considered his eyes his primary weapon, kissing was definitely a close second. The other hand wrapped around her side, but slowly moved to her lower back. As the kiss drew out, Slate pulled her body closer until there bare chests were making an embrace. As she released from the kiss, Slate let his body move away from hers slightly. His hands once again slowly caressed her side, until they eventually moved to and rested on her thighs.

Noticing the blush and exasperation in her voice, Slate licked his lips. The taste of her was still present, and he was intoxicated by it. After a moment of recovery on his part, Slate tilted his head in content. "Impressed, want more, or out of breath?" Slate leaned in a bit, "Looks like all of the above." He chuckled, before beginning to stand. "I guess you're feeling fine, my intuition was wrong.".

Ophelia could feel him pull her closer and didn't let it slip up. She could feel her body heat up with something she worried about as she broke the kiss. It was too good, better than any other she had before. He must have quite a bit of practice. The last thing was for him to release her, the pain was still there. She gave a quiet sigh of relief as his hand to move to her thighs and she blushed even a deeper scarlet. Letting out a soft whimper as he licked his lips, she looked into his eyes. Her kiss seemed to have worked, but to what cost?

Breathing heavily, her chest rose and fell as he spoke. He wasn't wrong about a single thing. She was all of the above and hated to admit it but she wanted more of him. Finally getting her voice back she looked up at him as he started to stand. Reaching up she wrapped a arm around his neck and brought him back down to her. "Seems to be working now. I want more." Her golden eyes shined with determination, she needed to be sure that she had covered her tracks.

---Fade to Black---

​

​

 

[WoodenZebra]

Sage Auburn

Location: Police Station
Nearby: SEAS,CROC
Interaction: IG42

Sage stayed on the floor a bit longer. He could feel the blood at his head as if they were starting to reach his antlers filling them quickly. After that Sage was lifted right side up into someone's arms. The young faunus was very dizzy being on his head for so long so he had no idea who it was,"Wooaah" Sage said in his drunken state until he regained sight. Sage's heart almost stopped as saw the guys face. Even hotter up close! Sage rubbed his antlers against mystery boy's face,"That looked like a nasty fall,are you okay?" Sage nodded getting a little too comfy in the dude's arms,but it was sooo nice. "Besides the blood that rushed to my head making me queasy I'm alright!" Sage replied happily. He'd finally calmed down,but really if mystery boy put him down he probably would've fell over again,"Oh,I'm Sage by the way. Sage Auburn"

 

[KarenAKAMint]

2nd Part to the Major Collab Post!​

Quest: Besting the Beasts

Location: Wild Forest of Vale
Teams: SABL and PRWI
@Tags: Brinni Hibiscus KingofCool LoneSniper87 Black Jade

As the time went on, worry was beginning to cloud Titan's mind. Remembering that his two cousins, and some around him he considered as such, protectiveness caved over. Titan worried for Phoenix and Jade, and as the minutes went on, consider going after them. Luckily Summer relayed the information, and Titan relaxed as much as he could.

The emotions of eight teens, with mixed feelings for each other, were bound to bring Grimm to them, and Titan fancied fighting together surrounded then splitting up alone. But it wasn't his call, instead offering to do what he could. Sadly, that wasn't much. "I can't move in the trees silently," Cocking his gauntlets to emphasize the sound they would make, "I'm better off staying here in case they move in on us." This time Titan met Summer's eyes, trying to gauge her emotions.

Around them, the Grimm were most likely moving towards them. Between the anger from Phoenix to Pyro, confusion on Pyro's end, and some residual feelings in Titan; not to mention the rest of the group, the Grimm would have plenty of direction and fuel.propose having a couple scouts or some kind of treetop over watch at the very least to keep us all informed. I know I can scout, I can move through the treetops without making noise. And I think Nix should go both because of his Semblance and the long range strength of Thorn."[/COLOR]
[/B]
She waited, and upon hearing Summer's information of where groups of Grimm generally were, and her and Nix both agree to the plan, established one of them would send Summer a text in no more than ten minutes if it was safe. If they didn't hear back, don't go that way. She and Phoenix headed off into the trees. The second they were out of both eye and earshot she caught him off guard, spun and slammed him into a tree so he was facing her and growled "What the hell do you think you're doing. Don't answer that because clearly you aren't thinking. You are putting everyone in danger. Or do you not care about the safety of your team? How about your friends? Your cousin? Or your sister even? We are hunting Grimm you idiot and they will smell your anger from a mile away. And if our safety isn't your concern, tell me now. Because I swear to God Nix, I will call our ride and tell them our team is dropping out for safety reasons. I will. I will bench us all because of you. Then I'll explain everything that's going on to our team and your sister's. Now get your shit together" She forced him to look her in the eye, to see the steel in there. To show she wasn't bluffing. As she did, she used the eye contact to land a sucker punch across his jaw. "And that is for ignoring me all morning when all I was trying to do was help you."

She stepped back, her expression softening. "I get you're mad at him. I do. He should have asked before revealing your Semblance. But dude. You're a Hunter in training. It's not something you can keep secret for long. You're mad because you are suspicious of her and now she knows what you can do. She would have found out eventually man. You have to know that right? You're like...my best friend here and now you've gone and made me worry about you. Don't shut me out Nix, you know I'm on your side. Is the fact that Pyro told Ophelia your Semblance really all this is about?"

Five more minutes until check-in

Phoenix agrees with Jade's plan as Summer sent him a worried look. He just patted her shoulder as he followed Jade toward the trees. The last thing he expected was to be slammed onto the tree by Jade. Angry at the sudden attack, he was about to snap at her, but he stopped. He listened to what she had to say. His anger was still there, but it was no longer at Pyro or Jade but at himself. She's right, after telling Summer to cool it, here I am making things worse. He was about to say something, as he looked into her eyes when she landed her fist onto his jaw.

"What the hell!?" he exclaimed. Jade continued as she brought up a good question. I am I willing to risk my friends and family's safety over an ability... He saw Ophelia on his side now after he has been able to know her better during their midnight meetings. He wasn't mad at her when she told him, but mad at the fact that Pyro broke the one thing he asked him to keep within the group... "Okay..." he finally spoke out, no anger in his voice, "I deserve that... But damn, Jade!"

Phoenix took hold of his jaw and continued, "And no... it's not about having my semblance known... it's the fact that Pyro broke the trust I put upon him..." He began to climb a bit more as he activated his semblance, wanting to keep them hidden, even when they had clothes that blended into the canopy well. "I trusted him to keep it a secret until I was comfortable enough to announce it. You know, his mother hid hers... I didn't see the harm in hiding my own..." He finally stopped climbing as he looked down to three groups scattered around the forest. They were small groups of 4 or 5 but they were close enough to attract the other group to the fight. "Thanks for the wake-up call... maybe I'll treat you to ice cream later," he laughed at the last part and remembered, "But it's not a date..."

"I'd like to say that's fair, but really. You've known him for like...two weeks and have spent more time with me than with him. Not a whole lot of trust building there. And more importantly, she's got him wrapped around her finger and could make him do almost anything. You've seen how he practically drools over her, haven't you? Can you blame the kid for being in love and wanting to make her happy?"

Jade laughed at the mention of ice cream. She took a piece of chalk and marked the tree they were climbing before beginning her ascent. "Deal. But 1) I'm still gonna tell your sister you're on a date. And 2) It totally is this time. You owe it to me for smacking some sense into you, especially away from everyone else. And 3), and probably most importantly, you owe Pyro an apology. I don't care if you lie and throw me under the bus for your foul mood, but you owe it to him....just like....make sure your sister and cousin know I didn't actually do anything. I'd rather not turn them into enemies if I can avoid it. Val already hates me and I don't want all of their team after my head. Mission at hand first though"

She scoured the area below them, spotting the groups. She sent off a text to Summer.

"Movement to current spot clear. Marked tree we're in. Three groups of five nearby. Too close to each other to engage"

Summer looked over to where Jade and Phoenix went. She stayed level headed as she crossed her arms, waiting to hear from the two. She was ecstatic when she felt her scroll go off, getting a text from Jade. "That way has a group of fifteen," she told the other about the the text and sent Jade back a message, "Alright, head back." She placed her scroll back in her pocket and turned to the others. "I think we should have other groups do the same," she stated, "Anyone want's to volunteer?"

"That way has a group of fifteen, I think we should have other groups do the same, anyone want's to volunteer?"

Pyro looked at Summer. "I'll volunteer."

"I'll volunteer as well," Valentine said. "Should we go to the opposite side? You know, to cover more ground?" The fashionista asked her leader.

Summer looked between Pyro and Val as they both volunteer to scout. "Alright then," she nodded at them and continued, "So both of you will go over there and see what you guys see. Report with in ten minutes." Summer pointed to the other end of the opening, completely oblivious at any hints of them wanting her to come along.

"Actually... We were hoping you could come along with us." Pyro said with that ever-so-sweet smiles of his.

"Yeah, Sum. Come with us." Val said, wanting their friend to come along with them.

"Oh!" Summer was shocked at the sudden request to have her join them, "Alright then. Let's go and get back as fast as we can." She looked over to Titan and Onyx as she gave them one quick look and said, "Ten minutes, if you don't hear from us, then come after us." Summer stood beside Val as she began to head over to the trees. Once they got a bit deeper into the forest, she motioned to the tree, "You guys ready? I'm about to use my semblance to get the three of us up to a higher level."

"You guys ready? I'm about to use my semblance to get the three of us up to a higher level."

"Yup! I'm ready!" Pyro smiled.

"Heh, as ready as I'll ever be," Val said.

As soon as they said they were ready, Summer activated her semblance. All of them were slightly covered in her pink aura as she slowly lifted the three of them up to a high branch. "Alright," Summer announced as she leaned into the tree trunk as she tried to catch her breath. She was used to elevating multiple people, especially Titan who what twice her size but took a bit more out of her this time. "I'm fine," she sighed, "just a bit lightheaded."

Summer looked out to the vast forest as she noticed a single group of five Sobeks as they sat around a river. She nudged Pyro, as he was the closest to her as she pointed out the Sobeks. As they looked over, she looked a bit to the right and left noticing it pretty clear, just the five Sobeks. She took out her scroll as she sent Titan a message "Five Sobeks, just sitting around."

Pyro noticed Summer try to catch her breath. He was about to ask if she was okay before she said that she was just a bit lightheaded. Soon, he felt Summer nudge him as she pointed out the five Sobeks. He noticed them. "Ah. Good eye, Summer." He said to her, making sure his voice wasn't loud enough for the Sobeks to hear.

Phoenix and Jade were walking back at to the opening to what looked like half of the group. "Where is Summer?" he asked the others as he began to look around for a redhead wearing light pink, but she was nowhere to be seen. He looked over to Titan as he pulled out his scroll and looked at the message Summer sent him. "Five for eight of us, that's easy pickings. We should start over there," Phoenix told his cousin and then turned to look at the others as well.

Summer looked at Val and Pyro as she hoped for the other so the to make their way over to them as she was expecting to do and asked low enough for them to only hear, "So, why did you guys want me to join along?" She slowly began to look for ways to attack from up he once the others came into view, waiting for them to answer her question.

"Well... I just wanted my best friend by my side, that's all. Being around you gives me comfort." Val gave Summer a small, but sincere smile. She then looked at Pyro. "Why did you want Summer to come?"

"..." Pyro felt his face turn the slightest shade of red. "U-Um, well... You see... While having one friend by my side would be great, having two friends by my side would be even better... you know?"

Val raised her eyebrow. That... sounded like an incredibly forced lie. Wait, why would he lie about that? Hmm... That lie may fool Summer, but it won't fool me.

Titan watched Summer disappear into the forest with Val and Pyro, the thrill of breaking a Grimm's skull opened overshadowed by his best friend leaving him again. Titan closed his eyes, doing his best to block out his emotions. The concentration was only broken once his scroll vibrated.

'Five Sobeks, easy target.' Titan motioned to tell Onyx, Ivory, and then Phoenix and Jade once they arrived. "Summer went off with Val and Pyro," Titan answered Phoenix's question, an almost unusual amount of unfamiliarity in his voice. "They found five Sobeks, should we move towards them?".

Titan preferred the open space they had, fighting between the tree tops would limit his stances, but he listened to Phoenix nonetheless. Titan messaged Summer, 'On our way.' And began taking large strides towards their leaders. Eyes forward and alert, Titan wanted to be the first to see any danger.

Phoenix caught up to Titan as he kept his eyes watching their surroundings and asked, "How are you feeling?" He kept checking over his shoulder and looking at the rest of the group who they also kept an eye on the area around them. "I know how much you hate small spaces..." he kept his voice down a bit as he wanted to have a private conversation with him as they made their way over to Summer, Pyro, and Val.

Summer pulled out her scroll to see her team's stats. Everyone looked like they were doing well. As for herself, she was slowly losing aura, but not enough to worry about. I need to watch my usage of my semblance before I become tired and useless... she thought about it. She glanced back toward the opening, where everyone else was coming from. She noticed she familiar hint of yellow coming into view in the distance, along with the identical red hair she shares with her twins.

"I think they are nearing," she gave Pyro and Val a heads up as she looked over to the Sobeks. Slowly they seemed to perk up, as another Sobek emerged from the water. "Shit..." Summer cursed under her breath as she noticed another followed suit. There were now seven Sobeks lounging in what looks like their home. "I think that we found their home..." she whispered to Val and Pyro as she pointed down to the new Sobeks in the water. Summer quickly sent a heads up to Titan and Phoenix as they slowly made there was toward the river bend.

Phoenix felt his scroll go off, as he fished it out. "We found their home... two have appeared." Phoenix stopped, taking a hold of Titan's arm. "Summer thinkings the location with the Sobeks is their home..." he told everyone, "I think we need to go in hidden. Stay close and quiet." Sending Summe a quick, "Got it. Hidden," and activated his semblance around the group, causing the area to turn cold and dark. He continued to lead the way with Titan as they came into view of the Riverbed where seven Sobeks sat around. Phoenix flashed his scroll on and off quickly, hoping that Summer noticed the signal, from where ever she was.

Summer looked around the forest from their height, looking for any sign of them. She looked over to the Sobeks once more time when she notices the flash. It was just off to the right and by the tree line that leads to the Riverbed. "They're in position, let's go!" she exclaimed as activated the nail blades and began to jump to the next tree wanting to drop from above.

 

[ChazGhost]

Quest: Vale's Villains
Croc Sustrai and Bruno Port

Location: Police Station ---> Riot
Nearby: Team CROC and SEAS
@Tags: IG42 The Suspicious Eye

When Io headed off to the march Bruno quickly followed behind. Bruno was excited to be on his first mission. Once there Bruno looked around surprised their wasn't more people. Until Io said they were early. "Ohh well that just mean we can make sure it safe from the very beginning and make sure no trouble stops it before it began." Bruno said proudly holding onto Io shoulder. "So don't worry my little friend no need to be scared" Bruno added look down at her with a thumbs up.

Croc watched Bruno and Io go off to the march before rolling his eyes as he knew Cirrus would try to have a talk with him. But lucky for him it appeared that he became distracted with a deer faunus, Sage as he recalled. So with his leader currently distracted Croc followed after Bruno and Io in hope to dodge his partner intervention.

 

[Brinni]

Cherry Caramel

Location: Airship

Nearby: BRSS

Mentions: Iola, Silver, Slate, Ophelia, Professor Sharp

Tags: The Suspicious Eye , Hibiscus , Black Jade , KarenAKAMint

THE RUNNING OF THE BULLS

She stared out the window of the transport ship, watching the world pass by and preparing herself. Cherry twirled her new umbrella, excited to finally test it out. This was what she and Sharp and been designing and working on for the last week or so. She couldn’t have been happier with how it came out. The stipes of the sheath, the intricacy of the handle, even the colors were perfect! It was just as much of a work of art as it was a weapon. In the umbrella was a compartment which she had filled, this time, with Sonic type dust. She wasn’t sure what to expect, but right now it didn’t matter.

Spoiler: Girl’s Day Out

Cherry checked her scroll again for the fifth time in as many minutes. She was sitting outside of Beacon just waiting for Io and Silver to show up. The fact it was still fifteen minutes before she was supposed to meet them meant nothing to her. She was too excited to wait. She had honestly been surprised when Silver had said she wanted to go, not so surprised that Ophelia was busy and wasn't sure how she felt about the fact that Slate hadn't responded yet.

Still no answer...I wonder if that's a good sign or a bad one. He claims to think highly of me and relate to me... but that could be part of the act, or why he's fighting against himself. Either way, I intend to keep my promise even if he doesn't agree to any games.

Cherry tapped her foot and checked her scroll again.

Fourteen more minutes.

Io was running late. Tripping over herself she stumbled out of her room and looked at the others. "I'm heading out with Cherry. There's meals in the fridge for anyone who's hungry." She made her way to the door, "I'm off! Bye!!" Opening the door she stepped out closing it behind her, only to open the door again. Grabbing her jacket she giggled embarrassed, "almost forgot this... alright I'm leaving bye!!" Making her way down the halls she leapt over students that came in her path. Stumbling on her landing she got her footing and ran outside towards Cherry.

"I'm here!!!" Finally reaching her she skidded to a halt. The hood of her jacked flopping onto her head as she bent over and breathed heavily. She hadn't run that fast in quite a while. Looking up at Cherry, face flushed she gave an embarrassed smile. "I'm sorry. I overslept. I didn't mean to keep you waiting." Overslept was an understatement Io's nightmares have been growing much more vivid as of lately and she's been afraid to fall asleep at all. Every moment she did there was another horror of her past that she didn't want to relive.

Standing up she looked at Cherry and looked a bit confused. "Is Silver here?"



Cherry watched as her new friend ran towards her. Well, at least one of them has shown up

She checked her scroll...again. Well...there's still a couple minutes I guess. I can always go get her...

"It's ok! I was early anyways! And no...not yet. She might still be sleeping. She's not exactly an early bird" Cherry said with a grin.



"I'm here . . .” Silver muttered silently, her body tense. Silver didn't want to go, not in the slightest. She didn't like being around most people anyways, not to talk about people like Iola and Cherry . . . But Ophelia had convinced her that she should, to make "Friends", or whatever. And, she had been slightly forced to, since Ironwood would keep bugging her about making more friends. The one thing that the Cyborg didn't seem to understand, was that Silver was an introvert. She liked being alone. But, then again . . . It was Candy. She loved candy. With a passion. She loved it almost as much as she loved Ice Cream.

Silver slowly made her way to the two girls, dressed in the most "casual" thing that Ophelia could find. And the set of clothes that Ironwood seemed to be gushing over. To her, they were just clothes. She was dressed in jeans, which were tight, but oddly easy to move in. A striped blouse and a large sunhat with a red ribbon. "Sorry for taking so long, Cherry, Iola . . . I uh, had something to do." And that something was the silent practice she did to prepare herself. With Ophelia gone, and Ironwood busy, it was up to her to learn how to deal with others.

Cherry, it wouldn't be too hard. She was in the same dorm with her; after all, it would be just like every other day. But, Iola? She didn't know how to deal with someone so happy, without going crazy. And with the feelings of sudden anger and bloodlust that came upon her body, she wasn't sure how she'd react.

"Well?" she asked, tapping her foot. "Are we going or not?"

Cherry spun as her teammate spoke. "And there we go! Speak of the devil and all that jazz. Now that we're all here we can definitely head out!" She looked at her teammates and then towards Io and cocked her head to the side as a thought struck her. "Man it's always weird to me, seeing people from school in normal clothes" she giggled, leading the way towards where they were going and putting air quotes around the word "normal".

"It just seems so...odd after seeing people in nothing but the school uniform. Y'know? Are you guys excited? I'm excited. But with a name like "Sarah's Sinfully Sweeter Candy Shoppe" how could you NOT be? I don't know what I want to buy first...I don't even know what they have! I think that's the best part, the unknown. But more important than the candy itself, we get to go out and have fun, just us girls." Cherry stopped short. "Oops. I did it again. I keep rambling on and asking questions without waiting for a response. Sorry...I know that's a bit...overbearing....but I can't help it! I'm just too excited and amped up!"


"Don't apologize." Silver said with a nod, her arms folded bellow her chest. She herself, as weird as it may seem, was trying her hardest to not explode, and was hoping that Cherry would keep her mouth shut. She herself knew of the candy shop, its legendary sweets, its happy memories. And the thought of actually being able to go there sent a feeling of elation coursing through her body that made her feel warm, happy, and well, not her. But was scared her was the fact that the feeling may slightly originate from the thought that she'd be able to share this wonderful palace with others that were not her mentor, or Ophelia. It was like she enjoyed being with them.

She gritted her teeth, shaking the thought out of her face as she whispered Ironwoods teachings to herself. "Stone cold Silver . . . Stone cold . . .” She turned, looking out beyond them. "I'm . . . excited I suppose. Let's just get on with it. We don't have all day."



"I...err, right. Let's." Cherry said. Geez, she really needs to lighten up, too much time with only one person is a bad thing...and lonely.


As the triad made their way down the streets a cacophony of sights, sounds and smells assaulted their senses. This particular Shoppe was set up near quite a few restaurants and the odors that came from them mixed into a not altogether unpleasant aroma. You could smell the homemade sauces coming from the Italian restaurant, the bakery with its freshly made breads, and the marked smell of meat from the nearby steakhouse all blended into the scent of a full meal. Looking around there wasn't a single drab section in this part of town. There were bright colors everywhere, designed to attract the eye of an unwitting customer to lure them in. The sweet shop could be seen from down the street with its neon colors, a beacon for those with a sinister sweet tooth.

And the noise! The chitter of birds, the honks and hisses of cars coming down the street, and the chattering of nearby people whose conversations you could make out if you listened closely were everywhere. The din was a little overwhelming, even to Cherry. Her head was on a swivel, trying to take in and keep up with everything right up until they entered the shop. The doors opened and cool air hit their faces, a bit of relief from the temperature outside. And when the doors slid shut behind them.....silence. Just for a moment it seemed like all the sound had left the world. But in reality, Sarah had designed the shop to block noise from the outside; she had wanted the store to be like a haven from the outside world, or so Cherry had heard. The store had grown to its currently massive size, but looking around you can see the homey touches. There was a reading nook in one corner with beanbags, in another section a billiards table and some pinball and video game machines set up. One can see that the person that designed this space had kids in mind. "If I had to describe this place in one word" Cherry began, taking a deep breath "it'd be....home. It just smells like home. So....what should we get?

Silver had never felt so overwhelmed before in her life. She'd been through a lot, the assholes that decided to harbor her, not out of their own will and kindness mind you, the Joneses. Coming to this new school, meeting so many new people, having the otherwise quiet platform she was used to completely shift onto something else, but she was able to adapt. That was what she had to do, adapt to her new surroundings, or she'd never get anything done. But god, had she not expected this . . . So many lights, so many sights, so many different things and stimuli that she just couldn't understand fused with her body, bringing in a sense of wonder and elation that had been missing from her life, only to come back when she was either with Ironwood, or the first time she'd met Ophelia. So many different things all at once, she wasn't sure if she was going to be able to handle it. Silver felt almost too lightheaded, like she was going to fall over. But she didn't, she couldn't let something like a simple city bring her to her knees, she was stronger than that. So she blocked it all out, all the emotion, the feeling, the wonder, it didn't matter. She was just there for the candy, so why did she have to-

Then came the silence, all sound was gone, all noise disappearing from the canopy of her ear. She took the time to look up, only for a glance, but felt her entire body grow weak from the impact of everything in the area. Books, people, pinball, video games, it was like the times where she'd hang out with Ironwood in their free time, just having fun. It was a warm, new, and confusing sensation that she felt like she could melt for. It was a moment, just a moment, for a sliver of time that one could have barely noticed, but she let it all go. The weight of everything, the normal cold and emotionless attire of a personality she was so latched on to disappeared, now replaced with a look of child-like wonder caught in her eye, like she was a normal person. There was even a smile caught on her face. "Everything . . .” she said silently, her eyes twinkling as she turned to Cherry, the biggest smile on her face. "We need to get everything, do everything!"

Io didn’t really know how to react to the young white haired girl. Giving her a kind, but nervous smile she introduced herself. “Hi Silver, I’m Io Sakra of team CROC. It’s nice to meet you.” More nervous of social interaction and bullying rather than afraid it was clear the rabbit faunus felt uncomfortable. Glancing over to Cherry he was glad that she was able to keep a positive attitude. She may have been going a bit off the rails but she appreciated the energy Cherry brought forth. Honestly with a name like Sarah's Sinfully Sweeter Candy Shoppe what else would you expect to get other than excitement? Chuckling to herself as she too was excited to try out some of their sinfully sweet delights she looked over to Silver who was gritting her teeth. What was left of her rabbit ear twitched as she heard her whisper, no more like chant ’stone cold’ to herself. Not sure how to react she simply nodded and agreed. “Yes. Please lead the way Cherry!" Following the two down the streets of Vale she looked around amazed at all there was. Only having moved here in the past few years Io rarely spent time just traversing her new home. As she looked around her nose caught a plethora of scents wafting through the shoppe. The sauces on pasta, the flash bread from the baker, and the scent of blood and meet sent familiar tingles up her spine. Turning her head she focused her nose on finding something cavity-creating-ly sweet. Looking around at the bright neon colors she smiled thinking that the next weekend she’d do some more adventuring to see all that there is of Vale. It was much livelier on the streets than she thought and shouldn’t miss out on the opportunity to be a part of her community. Catching up to Cherry’s side she stepped into the shop and sweet shop everything grew quiet and the scents and colors seemed to be like they were in sweet heaven of sorts. “Wow…"

She was taken aback by the peace that she felt here. It was a cool feeling that made her feel as light as a feather. She took in everything around her and a smile grew on her face. As she heard Cherry ask what should they get she looked over to the two only to be surprised by Silver’s twinkling eyes and wide childish grin on her face. Hopping up and down excitedly Io nodded. “Yes! Yes!” She took the two girls’ hands and lead them both inside. “Let’s do everything!!"

Seeing the look on Silver's face, Cherry's smile grew even wider. So… you can lighten up. Good to know

Cherry was happy. Her two friends were actually enjoying the trip. This is what she was missing in her own team. A sense of camaraderie. As Io dragged her and Silver along she tilted her head back and laughed. As the day crept by, she only had more fun. She wasn't very good at the video games that were present in the shop, but pool was a game she could do. All it is is a game of angles and judging. She could do that. Before she forgot, she went up to the counter and purchased a few things. Mostly things that wouldn't melt on the trip back to Beacon. She came back to her friends with three plastic bags full of gummies, jawbreakers, packs of gum, and numerous other candies, sweets, and confections.

"There...that should last me another week or two. So....what next? Or should we call it here and make our way back? I'm sure our teammates are wondering where we are...well...maybe not Silver's and mine....I doubt they've even noticed we're missing."

Silver, however, was slightly preoccupied at the moment. She had a credit card in hand, and was buying everything. As in, everything. It wasn't hers, complimentary of Ironwood and he'd be more pissed than he'd ever been but her mind wasn't on that. So much candy, so many flavors, so many things to try! She had to get it, at least two of everything. One for her, one for Ophelia. But of course some more, she had to save some of them. By the time she'd returned to the group, she was covered in bags, hell, she looked like she'd just gotten a million bucks and spent most of it at the mall. "W-What do you mean?" she asked, dumping a lage portion on the ground. She sighed, wiping sweat from her forehead. She had been having so much fun, and had done everything in the store at least twice already. "They might be clueless sometimes, or more of, the oh so great 'leader' of ours, but they aren't stupid. They'll notice the only other members of their team disappeared." She turned around, eyeing the store. "I was hoping for there to be some kind of ice cream bar . . . "

Io was exhausted by the time they were done. She didn't buy as much as the others, but she had just as much fun. Playing in the arcade, Io was a master at all of them her quick moments sent any baddie running. Though she was terrible at pool she had no skill whatsoever and even broke one of the tables with her semblance. It was a fun time with the three of them and watching them pay for their snacks Io was glad she went. Though she couldn't resist herself from buying a few carrot flavored treats herself. Too delicious to pass up!! As Cherry and Silver talked about their teammates, Io tugged at her hair and wondered what her team was doing right now. Knowing the boys they're all still either asleep or training like crazy. She giggled feeling really good about today, her ears twitched as Silver mentioned an ice cream bar. "Oh! I think there's one not too far from here! They serve the best sweet carrot ice cream." Hopping over down the street she turned and looked at the others. "Come on! Follow me!" Leaving the strip Io lead the two girls down a series of sketchy alleyways that seemed more of a place that criminals went for a drink then where a ice cream parlor would be at. Arriving at a boarded up building with a sign above it that read "32 Below."

Iola clapped her hands together excitedly. "Here we are! Oh I know you two will just love it!" Opening the door she lead them inside. The door slammed against them as they seemingly were teleported to a new world of vibrant colors much different from the gray and grime from outside. The entire building was covered in pink and chilly, the sweet scent of cream and fruity flavors danced through the air and around them. Io waved to one of the men at the counter, a kind looking sheep faunus who waved back. Skiping up to him Io smiled, "Good afternoon Wally! These are my friends from school." "Oh really?" He gave them a kind smile and patted Io's head, "well any friend of yours is a friend of mine. You ladies are welcome to anything here on the house!"

Cherry rolled her eyes a bit at Silver's comment. "Not literally. Metaphorically. I'm sure that physically they would notice we were missing, it's more a matter of if they'd care." Maybe not so much you with Ophelia though, now that I think of it. "We're all kind of....wrapped up in ourselves lately. Not really much of a team, y'know? You're right though, ice cream would be great!"

As Io led the way, Cherry had her doubts. She tried not to judge based off of first appearances but these alleys they were going down couldn't help but make her wonder where they were going. Or how Iola found this place. But she couldn't complain once she stepped inside. "Umm...I'll just do vanilla with brownie bits please." She said, abstaining from any large concoctions. She only had so much money for now.

Spoiler: Reconciliation

Normally, Cherry was an early riser. But after the day out with Iola and Silver she met up with Sharpe and they began working on her new weapon. They worked late into the night, Cherry didn't get back until almost two in the morning. And that's only because Sharp made her leave. As such she slept in, not waking up until late. She had woken up to a text from Slate, saying that he wanted to talk and to meet him by the fountain.

Took long enough.

She got ready, and headed through the common room nodded at Ophelia and grabbing the now cold omelet she had made for Cherry. Noticing Ophelia's messy hair, Cherry shrugged before heading out.

She must have gone back to bed after cooking.

Slate had finished with Ophelia and Titan, only growing ever more conflicted with each meeting. The tender words Ophelia had shared with him, Titan giving insight to family and the ordeals they face, and now his answer to Cherry. Was it right to lie? Was he lying? Could he look at her in the eyes and tell her he wouldn't play games?

Although Slate pondered these questions, he didn't know any other way to respond to her.

Slate waited on the same bench they sat at almost a week before, wearing his athletic attire and staring into the fountain. He looked as if he was pondering something very deep, not noticing the few girls and guys doing their best to wave or get his attention. They giggled at the handsome man lost in his thoughts, but moved on fairly fast.

As she walked, she smoothed out her dress. She didn't know why, but she had felt like dressing extra cute today. So she had put on her favorite black skirt and blouse as well as the various accouterments that went with it, decided on green eyes and had made her way outside. She strolled down the walkway to the fountain, giving polite smiles and friendly waves to the other students who waved at her. She spotted Slate on the other side of the crowd of people and through the water pouring over the top of the fountain. She walked up and stood in front of him.

"Hey stranger" she began, tucking her hair behind her ear, "Is this seat taken?"

Slate noticed people about him, carrying on with student tasks and professor's orders. Some girls gawked at him, some waved, and other made fools of themselves by tripping over some of the potted plants looking at him. Usually Slate would make vindictive comment in his mind, at mostly everything, but after only smiling at the clutz.

Maybe I'm just in a good mood. Slate attempted to rationalize the state of mind he has been in, but found it just covering his true emotions. Luckily the sight of a pink haired girl in a gorgeous outfit stole his view. As she opened with the same question he used, Slate chuckled. "No, but I'm saving it for a pretty girl." Slate looked into her eyes, realizing how much he missed them before speaking again, "I suppose a beautiful angel fits the criteria."

Cherry looked down and blushed. She knew she wasn't that pretty. Cute, certainly but not an angel. She looked up and smiled. "Should I come back then? I wouldn't want to be in the way of you and your angel."


"I'm sorry," Slate chuckled, rubbing the back of his head. "I thought it would be a smooth line, maybe I wasn't forward enough?" Slate patted the seat next to him, "I was saying your both pretty and beautiful, an angel in all senses."

She laughed as she sat down. "Well...perhaps not in all senses. I can only assume that this meeting is about your choice and the fact it took this long means you probably struggled with it. An angel should bring mercy, not strife. I'm just a girl. But I appreciate the compliments anyways." She leaned against him, resting her head on his shoulder; she was still a little tired having just woken up. She stared at the fountain, watching the way the light danced on the water. "Did you come to a decision? Or is this just you asking for more time? I hope for the former because…well that's not important. Not right now anyways"

Slate listened to her deflect the compliment, leaving him wondering if his skills were dulling. Slate paused as the weight of her body on his shoulder set in, his body releasing the tension to make a more comfortable pillow. "I think that I've come to a decision." Slate breathed out, steadying himself. "I won't play any games with you, I'll always be honest." Slate bit the inside of his cheek, "I'll always be myself to you."

It hurt him to say it, for some reason this lie hurt. Slate's chest contorted with the feeling of guilt and disgust at himself. For lying to Cherry, to his team, but mostly to himself. The pain in his chest grew, until it matched the severity of the training he was put through. Slate once again breathed deeply, eyes swirled with concentration, and then looked down to see Cherry's expression.

"But, can I ask a few questions?" Slate tilted his head down at her, a nervous smile at his attempt to please her question. "Was that the answer you were looking for?" Slate's eyes pleaded at hers, glimmers of hope that it was enough.

Cherry nestled in as Slate relaxed further. He's so comfy. I could fall right back to sleep like this and is be perfectly safe with him. As Slate told Cherry his decision her heart lifted. She had thought that would be his choice all along, she had faith in him. But hearing it out loud was another matter. She didn't know why she cared so much, but she also didn't care that she didn't know. Life is full of mysteries after all.

She looked at him when he asked if he could ask a few questions. "You can ask me anything Slate." Seeing his eyes, she couldn't help but be honest with him.

"Yes, that is absolutely the answer I was looking for. Wanna know a secret though? It was never about what you'd answer, I mean it was but that wasn't all it was about. It was about how you would handle the question. You could have called me back immediately after I left you about a week ago with the same answer but I wouldn't have believed you then. Especially since I had just called you out on needing to be in control. The fact it took so long means you thought about it, and that matters just as much as your answer. I like to think it also means that, despite who you may have been in the past, or still are, no matter who you've played, there's some part of you that doesn't like it. That wants to be a good person."

She took a deep breath and looked at the fountain. She looked up at Slate.

"I'll always put my faith in you Slate. Is that the answer you were looking for?" She giggled. "But you had more questions than just that."

Slate felt her body lean into him more, his body relaxing against hers as well. Tensions in his body slightly released after she stated her reasoning, Slate feeling more relieved that his answer was the right one. But the rest of her speech unnerved Slate in ways he couldn't explain.

"...That wants to be a good person."

The words stung, but her body on his felt right. The meaning hurt, but their eyes meeting felt right. The trust was misguided, but her faith was wanted. Slate looked out to the fountain, the water cascading with a glimmer from the sun.

"Hearing that," Slate chuckled with her, "I think all my questions are answered." Slate looked at her, giving her a slight smile.

"Good. I'm glad. I'm happy we can finally talk again Slate....it's been kind of lonely without you around."

She sighed, a bit disheartened knowing the moment had to end and she had to get up. She wanted to go meet up with Sharp and get more work done on her new weapon. The sooner she finished, the sooner she could practice with it and not be a detriment to the team. She sprung up to her feet and looked at him.

"Gotta be off, meeting with Professor Sharp. Bye Slate~!"

She walked off, behind the bench towards where Sharp had his workshop set up. She had just taken two steps when she turned around. She went up behind Slate and hugged his neck from behind.

"I really did miss you, you know. And I know it couldn't have been easy to make that choice, but I'm glad you did and I'm proud of you." She gave in to an impulse and kissed his cheek, light as a feather. She colored a little, released him, and skipped back. "Now I'm off. See you soon partner!"