Unexpected Incarnate (RWBY Ozpin Incarnate SI)

As I promised to do today after everything that had happened the day before, I was back on the rear patio training with Oathkeeper in hand early in the morning, around four. But I have to admit. I did not sleep well last night since Neo popped up in my room.

I must be overreacting, but I can't help but feel that I was being watched by her the whole night.

Nevertheless, I couldn't voice out that Neo was in our house to the gang for now because I believed she would return to where she was staying at. So, until more evidence shows itself to confirm my suspicions, I will keep my lips shut and see what happens.

At the moment, I was in my sports outfit and would perform some morning stretches before performing some physical training. That will be followed by an hour or two in the forests bordering Mistral for some live training on Grimm. So it isn't that bad. As I was performing my usual morning warm-up, I heard footsteps slowly approaching me. And from the way they sound, it must be Yang.

Which was strange to me. "Last I checked, Yang's not a morning person. So, what is she doing here so early?" I could only try to come up with potential reasons why Yang was here when she suddenly let out a wolf whistle in the background.

Confused about why Yang did that, I returned to my feet and wiped the sweat off my forehead with my shirt to see Yang's lilac eyes checking out my body like I was eye candy to her.

And how she's staring at me like that made me feel unusually self-aware and embarrassed. I know my body has been developing well over the past couple of weeks with the constant training Oz puts me through, but the fact that Yang's checking me out made me turn quickly away from facing her as I felt my cheeks burning like fire.

God, Yang, please leave me alone so I can hide in a corner and die alone!

I am not used to all this attention on me!

"Oh my, you got quite the body now, Zacky…" Yang began teasing me as she swayed her hips when I couldn't help but take a peek at her. Yang was wearing what I can guess is an orange sports bra with pure black sports shorts. Then, of course, I can't forget about her simple white shoes and the white socks on her feet.

And her entire outfit doesn't leave much to the imagination… I mean… Those abs…

…

Wait! No! Bad brain! Go to horny jail! I can't act like a weirdo and stare at her like that!

My legs gave out from the pressure as I could only whine and crumple to my knees with my hands to my face, all while my tail wrapped around me like a fluffy blanket. A groan fill to the brim with embarrassment came out of my lips when I noticed that Yang caught me ogling her red-handed!

As I knelt on the ground, I could hear Yang giggling at what I was doing as she walked towards me and judging from her footsteps, growing ever louder by the second. "Please stop with the teasing, Yang." I could only softly whine out for Yang to stop.

Good thing Ozpin's resting at the moment. I don't want him to know presently that I was unintentionally ogling one of his students. But most likely, he would find out eventually.

But God damn, my hormones! Oh! How I hate going through you again! Going through you once was a pain in my ass! Now I have to go through with it again!

"Nope! ~" Yang denied my request as she laughed some at my expense, all while I groaned again. "You're too cute acting like that, Zack. Especially with your fluffy tail of yours." Yang admits as I feel her hand resting on my shoulder.

Refusing to look at her due to my situation, I decided to change the topic for my sake. "What are you doing here so early in the morning, Yang? You're not one to wake up early last, I remember." I explained as I slowly stood up while she hummed at my question.

"Well, if you must know, I was wondering what your morning schedule was like, and it was worth it seeing you all hot and sweaty." Yang teased me again as I grumbled once more. Then Yang spoke again, except her tone was more serious this time. "But I want to ask you something, Zack."

Oh? What is it she wishes to ask me? I could only tilt my head slightly to the side while looking straight into Yang's eyes. And as soon as she got the message that I would hear her out, Yang spoke again. "We talked much about your Earth memories and how it contains our potential future. But… I want to know one thing…" Yang paused momentarily, as if she didn't know how to say it.

"Will Blake come back to us?" Yang's voice was barely a whisper. And from it, I could tell she dearly missed her partner. I understand her desire to know it. While I have never known Blake personally, I know much about her from Oz's memories and back on Earth. Of course, she will return to Haven, but she would be unaware that everyone's here.

It must be a coincidence that she ends up meeting everyone here again, now I think about it, Or it must be RT doing it.

Raising my arm and resting it on Yang's shoulder as she looked me in the eyes as I gave her an honest answer. "Well… if things go as they did in the story, you will see her again in Haven. Trust me."

I swore I saw the light in Yang's eyes as they widened with a shine as she asked. "Tell me the details. Please, I need to know." Yang begged and I simply nodded and obliged.

"Well… I guess there's no harm in it. I have to tell the others what they could expect later." I could only mutter as I glanced at the shattered moon above.

"Anyway, Lionheart will call your uncle about having a breakthrough with the council and wishes us to meet him at Haven at midnight to discuss sending a raiding party to retrieve the spring maiden. Unfortunately, the meeting was a trap, and a fight broke out. Blake will come along with other Faunuses from Menagerie later to help save Haven, as the Fang will show up there to destroy it, but those with Blake will foil their plot."

I slowly explained while Yang absorbed it all as I continued. Yet, I noticed her prosthetic arm shivering briefly in the corner of my eyes, but I chose not to comment. PTSD is a bitch.

"But we can't expect it to go according to how it could happen, Yang. My existence alone and everything already happening is all I need to know that tells me that things will not go exactly to what I know." I explain as a sigh exits my mouth. I can't expect things to go as planned, but I believe Blake will be there when the fight begins.

"I get what you mean, and… thanks for telling me." Yang nods as a small smile grows on her. "You know, you're not so bad." And my cheeks turned red again. God fucking damn it. Oh, how I hate hormones.

I don't know if it is just me, but Faunus hormones are even more bothersome than Humans, from what I can tell.

Upon seeing my reaction, Yang giggled again as I sighed with a smile. Good thing it worked out. "Anyway, with that out of the way, do you have anything else to ask me?" I asked as Yang shook her head.

"Not really, but since we got plenty of time, wanna have me join along with your training session?" You know… Having a training buddy wouldn't be so bad now that I think about it. And it would be nice for a change of pace.

"Sure, why not. But promise me this." I spoke up as I glanced at the house and back to Yang. "For the sake of both of us, you are not to mention anything to Weiss. She would no doubt chastise you for it." I let out a snigger as Yang joined in.

"Aww… you do care about me." That made me let out an amused snort.

I'll let it pass, Yang.

Yang then smiled at me as she continued. "But fair enough. Now lemme see what Ozpin put you through!" Yang grabbed my shoulder before she began dragging me off the patio.

"You do know you don't have to drag me away, right?" I could only deadpan at Yang.

"I know, but I wanna do it anyway."

Rolling my eyes with a small smile, I showed Yang what Ozpin had put me through for the next few hours. It was fun having a training buddy.

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Later on, I soon found myself back with Yang where we were staying, and it was nice to have someone to talk to while doing my morning. Minus the part where she won't stop teasing me for how I reacted to her earlier. Also, Oz woke up, and I had to explain why I was training with Yang in the morning. It was awkward, and it didn't help that Yang was there with me.

Don't get me started when Ozpin joins in on the teasing for some fucking reason! Which was hella out of character for him! And all because he got curious and read my mind about what happened.

Did I also mention he also gave me one hell of a headache for unintentionally having lewd thoughts about his student again? I'm starting to suspect that Ozpin is overprotective of them. Still, that conclusion goes out the window when you figure out how he put every student on the firing line by hiding both the Relic and a comatose Maiden in Beacon.

Yup. Kind of a dumb idea to have your students in constant danger. Or are they unwilling caretakers of them? I should ask Oz about it later. Assuming I remember to ask him.

Regardless, what am I doing again?

Oh, right.

As soon as Yang and I made it back, we were immediately bombarded by everyone else with questions about why Yang was with me. I had to give them a modified version of the truth that Yang was just curious and decided to join in my morning training. Everyone quickly accepted my reasoning before Weiss began berating Yang over her choice of clothing to train in, especially with me around.

Huh? What's going on with Weiss? What's her deal? Actually, you know what? Not my problem to know what's going on with her. And with that, I left to shower quickly before joining them later for breakfast.

Later, as I had my food with everyone, Ozpin suddenly called me out. "Zack, it will be time to return to our spar session after breakfast." He said as I chewed on my salad.

"Uh-huh. Who should I go up against next?" I asked as Ozpin gave a suggestion.

"How about Miss Schnee? It will prove an excellent opportunity to assist her in practising her Semblance and summoning. And to see how you will adapt to her fighting style."

"Oh, so am I just a training dummy for her?" I sarcastically commented as I swore I could feel Oz rolling his eyes at me.

"If you're not fighting back. Then yes, you are a training dummy for her." Ozpin deadpan.

Oh. So, the great wizard of Oz can be cheeky, huh? Very well, then. "I was just messing with you, Oz." I chuckled slightly as that earned everyone's attention. But I was busy entertaining Ozpin at the moment. "Besides, Weiss could use help in her fighting, especially her endurance and summoning skills." I admit as I finally noticed everyone looking for answers on me.

"Oz wants everyone to start sparing after breakfast. And I would be going up against Weiss later." I announced before shoving more salad into my mouth. I still don't know how they made SALAD sweet, somehow. And there's no sugar in it! Even more, it was just called sweet salad on the market!

It's just salad leaves! How did-?!

No, I shouldn't get distracted by a sweet salad, of all things.

"Is that so? Very well then." Weiss seemingly nodded nonchalantly as an idea popped into my head.

"Oh yeah. Oz wants to work on your combat endurance and summoning skills."

"I did not say that, Mr Arakan." Ozpin immediately points out as I ignore him while Weiss looks surprised.

"Oh… of course…"

"Yup." I offered a smirk to the ex-heiress. "It should be interesting now, would it?"

As if to drive the point that the oncoming spar would be interesting, our friends agreed about witness me sparing up against Weiss. Yet, it was Yang and Ruby who were more vocal than the rest. As for me, I wish to help Weiss out because, my lord, she keeps getting her ass beat in the main show when she fights alone for some reason.

Let's see… Weiss had to retreat from a pack of Beowolves after starting a fire during the fight in Volume 1's Initiation arc, lost to Adam's Lieutenant in a one versus one fight, performed a near-Senseless Sacrifice against Flynt, lost to Winter's summons back when she was still training, lost in a duel with Vernal and nearly got killed by Cinder shortly afterwards...

Yup. I remembered everyone joking about Weiss's apparent uselessness and poor tactical skills, even though she won most of her fights while working alongside her team. Sure, she did improve in the later volumes, but it would be wise to get her skills up as soon as possible.

"I see… is this the reason for throwing me under the bus to assist Miss Schnee out?" Ozpin suddenly asked as I froze for a split second.

"Did I say that out loud?" I could only ask as Ozpin let out a titter.

"No, you did not. But I have a rough idea of what you're thinking about." Ozpin cheerfully comments as I feel my eye twitch. Stop reading me as if I'm a bloody book. "Though… If you're willing to help Miss Schnee, I am starting to believe something else is happening in mind."

Oz, what the hell are you talking out? Are you - Forget it! I won't bother with it. And with a visible eye roll, I was reminded of something, didn't Jaune discover his Semblance after Weiss got arrowed by Cinder? So, then… how will he get it if I were to stop Weiss from getting her ass beaten?

And Aura amplification is a powerful tool to have in the coming future. Or did he have his Semblance unlocked from the start but didn't realise it? Hang on… Lemme think… Wasn't there a flash when Cardin punched him in the face at forever falls in Volume 1? It's getting harder to remember the details now. Perhaps I should write all I know down in a diary or something…

And speaking of semblances…

I still haven't unlocked mine.

And I won't lie.

I'm a bit envious of the others having theirs, and I know I would eventually gain access to Oz's magical bubble shield thingy and whatever AWOR did to me, but still. I feel left out without one to call my own. And besides, using his powers would accelerate our merging process, and like hell I'll let that happen sooner than later.

Actually… Does Oz even have a semblance, to begin with? Or does he only have magic to call upon, and the rest is all skill? Now that I think about it, I don't think Oscar develops a semblance in the current volumes I'd witness. Of course, he might develop one later, but I have no way of knowing now.

Shaking my thoughts away, I resumed eating as my friends began chatting again, as a smile grew on me. Seeing all their smiles reminds me that no matter how painful the future may be, I have them to rely on in need. And perhaps…

Just perhaps…

We can have a chance for a happy ending. Well… as far as one could have in this godforsaken world.

Later on, after our breakfast, every single one of us was back on the rear patio as Weiss and I were with our weapons and facing each other. While everyone else, including Qrow, showed up to oversee our spar. As he described it, he was curious how I would fair compared to mini–Ice Queen.

I must admit that Qrow's comment made me let out an unwilling snort, while Weiss was displeased with the new nickname he gave her. And everyone else started laughing as well at her expense.

With that out of the way, I drew Oathkeeper and wielded the experimental gauntlet I'd been working on with everyone else. Weiss did the same as she pulled Myrtenaster before opening it and inserting several coloured Dust before closing it and getting into her fencer stance.

"Okay… First time-fighting Weiss… Putting immense combat pressure on her would force her on the defensive and, if possible, exploit it to the fullest by hitting her hard and fast. Her lack of endurance will be my advantage. If she used her Glyphs, be prepared for anything, as she can combine it with her Glyphs to give it elemental properties."

I began advising myself and, at the same time, got into my stance. In comparison, Weiss had seen me spar against the others before. I have some cards she doesn't know I had with me.

And before the spar started, Qrow was at the side drinking his canteen before speaking. "Alright, kiddo, mini–Ice Queen,"

More laughter broke out from everyone watching as Weiss looked indignant while I glanced at Qrow. Yet, Ruby's uncle didn't even bother to finish the speech. "Ah, what the hell, I'm sure both of you know what to do, kiddos. First to red loses. You may begin now." Upon finishing with his speech, Qrow proceeded to fuck off somewhere as Weiss and I could only stare at him as if he had said a terrible joke.

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As Qrow left, both Weiss and Zack could only glance at the drunken Huntsman, followed by each other, and with the go to start the spar, Zack dashed in as he swung Oathkeeper at Weiss, who raised Myrtenaster and dodged the oncoming attack.

"You're not holding back, are you?" Weiss questioned Zack, who shook his head in response and countered as Oathkeeper clashed against Myrtenaster.

"I'm not, are you?"

Yet, Weiss had a stern stare as she did a backflip away from Zack before jumping into the air as orange glowing Glyphs materialised around her. Before Weiss even lands back on the ground, fireballs fly out of them and zip straight for Zack, who counters by dodging them as he closes the distance. Yet, Weiss immediately lands on a black Glyph before launching herself straight at Zack.

Zack's eyes widened as he parried Weiss's attack as Myrtenaster was swung straight for his head. "Does this answer your question, Arakan?" Weiss smirked as Zack gave an awkward grin.

"Yup, definitely not holding back." And so, both broke off from the clash as Weiss and Zack began trading strikes, which were either dodged or parried. However, that changes quickly when Weiss immediately avoids Zack's strike and responds with a quick thrust of Myrtenaster straight for the fox Faunus's chest, which connects.

Weiss's attack sends Zack flying back. However, that attack does not deter the fox Faunus at all, and as he flies back, Zack aims his grapple hook and fires it to his side. Upon the hook's connection with the ground, Zack did a U-turn as he skied himself back to his feet, all while Weiss summoned Boarbatusk with her Glyph. But Zack had a plan.

Bringing up his right arm, the gauntlet unfolded as a barrel appeared on it. With a flick of his finger, Zack launched a single grenade at Weiss's Boarbatusk as he got back to his feet and charged. Weiss could only gap with shock when the grenade detonated and covered her recently summoned Boarbatusk in ice, while he unfolded his shield.

Zack also ignited Oathkeeper with fire Dust as the entire blade was on fire with a single click, of the button on his sword. However, over the fear of accidentally setting himself on fire, Zack kept it a breath away from himself.

"Sorry about the Boarbatusk." Zack apologised. "I can't let your summon do your work now, can we?" He grins before zipping close and swing Oathkeeper at his opponent. But Weiss quickly ducked underneath his attack, only for the fox Faunus to predict her move and stomped on her foot hard. Weiss let out a pained yelp before Zack decks her in the face through a shield bash, with enough force to throw her flying back.

As for their friends watching by, they could only wince as they watched Weiss fly a distance back while Zack dashed in and, with a kick, he sent Weiss into the ground. Weiss landed on the floor with a thud and groaned before she rolled to the side as Zack missed her with Oathkeeper's flaming attack. Once Weiss moved back to her feet, she got into her stance and dashed in as she thrust Myrtenaster into Zack's torso.

Weiss's attack alone forced Zack to dodge back, as Weiss took the time to summon a Beowolf and sick it at Zack. With a gasp escaping his lips, Zack barely swerved to the side and sent a single slash that decapitated the Beowolf. However, that distracted him as Weiss used her Dust and surrounded the fox Faunus in ice. Zack immediately leapt out of the ice surrounding him, and with his gauntlet, he grappled close to Weiss, only for her to jump out of the way and send another barrage of ice shards.

With Oathkeeper, Zack began slashing and blocking the numerous ice shards as he charged in. However, while still in the air, the ex-heiress mixed electric Dust with her Glyph as she landed on it. In a second, Weiss summoned a series of glyphs surrounding Zack as she leapt.

Weiss soon began bouncing off her glyphs faster and faster, darting around Zack and slashing him each time she passed by him. As for Ozpin's incarnate? He yelped in pain as Weiss zipped by each time she bounced off another Glyph, and all the while, the fox Faunus could only hope to block all her strikes.

Yet, the fight isn't concluded, as Zack activates something Weiss did not expect him to do. The fox Faunus finally revealed the trick card he had in store for a while as his left gauntlet began to glow in ice Dust.

With a clamouring yell, Zack slammed his fist into the ground as a shockwave of ice erupted and knocked Weiss out of her attack. But as Zack stood up after the icy shockwave passed, his entire forearm was covered in a layer of ice, and so was his hand, as was a crater of ice that surrounded him. Tiny particles of ice began to coat Zack from top to bottom as he lifted his forearm to eye level.

"Uhm… I should have seen this coming." Zack could only mutter sheepishly at the sight of his frozen arm. As for Weiss, she could only give him a ludicrous look as if he had done something insane and stupid.

Which he did.

Yet, Weiss roars her lungs out at him instead of resuming the spar. "JUST WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?!" Weiss stomped towards Zack, who grew incredibly nervous as he took a step back. "You could have lost your ENTIRE arm with that stunt you pulled off!" Weiss continued yelling as everyone got to their feet and ran towards them.

"Give me that!" Weiss snatched Oathkeeper, which was still on fire, from Zack's hand and held it near his forearm to melt the ice. "Seriously, of all the things you could have come up with. You have to do something this insane. And your stunt could have cost your arm." Weiss huffed.

"Zack!" Both combatants heard their friend rushing towards them, as Ruby was the first to speak. "Zack, what just happened?"

"This dolt decided to do something absurd that could hurt him." Weiss began to grumble as Zack tried to say something, only for Weiss to snap at him. Then, noting how speaking at all would only worsen the situation, the fox Faunus chose to keep his mouth shut as the others arrived.

"Is your arm okay?" Jaune wondered as Zack shrugged.

"It is fine but covered in ice. As you can see, my Aura prevented most of the damage. I think. However, I failed to consider that to happen." Zack explained as Yang chuckled as what she had seen struck her.

"So that's why you wished us to modify it to have those vent-like things." Ruby rubbed for her for a moment before she remembered the details.

Oh… Now that makes sense. Why did you not tell us about it?" Ruby asked as Zack watched as most of the ice on his forearm melted.

"It was still an experimental feature I wished to test out. The idea was for it to be used if I'm surrounded. I guess it still needs more fine-tuning not to freeze my arm solid. Or affect me if I were to use the other variants of Dust." With a roll of her eyes, Weiss handed Zack back his sword as he sheathed it while Nora wondered.

"Soo… are they gonna continue fighting?" Yet, Ren shook his head as he held his scroll in his hand.

"I don't think so. That move he did with his gauntlet drained at least thirty percent of his Aura. He's in the red at the moment." What Ren said made Zack's eyes pop out from sheer shock.

"Wait, what?! Thirty percent?! Okay! Perhaps it needs some heavy tweaking first!" Zack could only say as Jaune asked.

"So, now what?" With the spar put on hold thanks to what he did, an idea strikes Zack's thoughts. This was the perfect time to test if Jaune had his Semblance unlocked from the start! Zack began to grin as he spoke.

"Actually… I want to test something…" Everyone could only look at Zack with confusion as the fox Faunus walked towards Jaune. "Jaune, in the story on Earth, it is said that you unlocked your Semblance later. But I have my suspicions that you already had it since Beacon." Zack rubbed his chin as if lost in thought while everyone else gasped, including Jaune, who was stumped as he stared at Zack.

"Is that so? I was always under the assumption that Mr Arc doesn't have his Semblance yet." Ozpin whispered with intrigue in Zack's mind as the fox Faunus nodded in confirmation.

"It's a theory some of us had about Jaune for a while. And it's time to see if that's true."

"I had my semblance unlocked already from the start?" Jaune asked as Zack shrugged in response.

"It's a theory, but I must see it through." Zack hummed as he looked at Yang. "Yang, I need you to punch me in the face as hard as possible."

…

Silence permeated the rear patio as everyone tried to process what Zack had requested. "Wait, what?" Yang could only utter as Nora questioned Zack's strange request.

"Why do you need Yang to punch you, Zacky?"

"Jaune's Semblance allows him to amplify his Aura or others in the story. So using his Semblance on someone else would boost their Aura's and Semblance's strength, effectively making others receiving Jaune's Semblance stronger." Zack began to explain in detail. "That also includes its accelerated healing as well."

"You sure you want Yang to punch you? There has to be a better way to test your theory." Weiss questioned as she sighed. Honestly, she can't believe this dolt sometimes comes up with absurd ideas.

"Well, there probably is, but I figured this would be faster," Zack admits with a shrug. "So, take your shot, Yang. I'll be waiting for you." Zack said as he stepped back with his arms to his back, closed his eyes and waited for the blond bruiser to strike him.

"Yang? You're not going to punch him, right?" Ruby could only ask her sister as everyone turned their eyes to Yang.

"Well… He did ask for it, sooo…" Yang looked indecisive for a second before swinging her fist into Zack's face and sending him back. "Who am I to deny his request?" Yang gave a cheeky grin while the fox Faunus landed back on the ground with a thud not too far away.

With her mouth wide open at what she'd seen, Weiss berated Yang. "Yang! Seriously?! You don't even need to oblige his request to hit him!"

But before Weiss could continue yelling, Zack groaned out. "Owww…" Zack let out a pained groan as Ruby rushed to Zack's side, as he now had a bruised cheek.

"Zack! Are you alright?" Ruby asked as she assisted in getting the fox Faunus back on his feet.

"One hell of a mean punch your sis gave me that was," Zack uttered as he winced slightly from the pulsing pain on his cheek. "Yup. That's pretty bad, ouch." Zack winced again as he shuffled towards everyone with Ruby's help.

And once Zack reached his friends after Yang's mean punch, he extended his hand to Jaune. "Ok, Jaune, I need you to take my hand and imagine yourself amplifying my aura with yours." Zack ordered as Jaune hesitantly nodded and grabbed his fellow friend's arm before closing his eyes.

Nothing happened for the next few seconds as Zack stared at his hand. And it lasted a whole minute as everyone held their breaths to see it happening. Only to be left disappointed when nothing changed.

But before anyone could say anything, a white aura suddenly emerged from Jaune's hands and began coating Zack's hand. When they saw what was happening, everyone gasped, and Zack's eyes lit up as he smirked as the pain on his cheek faded.

"Whatever you're thinking, Jauney! It's working!" Nora yells out excitedly as Jaune opens his eyes from the commotion.

"It did?" Jaune asked as he saw a white aura slowly coating Zack. "Whoa... Is that my doing?" Jaune could only ask as Zack confirmed him.

"Yup. It looks like my suspicions were correct. You do have your Semblance unlocked all along. It's just you didn't fully discover it until now." Zack then offered a congratulatory smile as the bruise on his cheek slowly faded from his face. "Congratulations Jaune. You have a semblance. A powerful one at that."

Jaune's smile grew wider as his eyes brimmed with joy as everyone congratulated him for discovering his Semblance. "Thank you, Zack. You have no idea what this means for me." Zack closed his eyes and nodded his head with a hum.

"Yup, but don't thank me. You had it all along. It is just that I had a theory, and it was proven correct. Anyway, Aura amplification is a powerful tool, and I intend to do my best to help you learn to use it despite its lack of offensive capabilities." A cheeky smile grew on his face.

"And I just might have an idea."

"How are you going to do that?" Ruby asks as she tilts her head.

With a smirk still on his face, Zack let Ozpin take over as the headmaster spoke while taking out his cane. "With my experiences with training Huntsman's, I believe I am suitable in teaching you how to push your semblances to their fullest potential, Mr Arc."

Ozpin then points his cane at Weiss. "The same goes for you, Miss Schnee, Mr Arakan had made me aware that your more powerful summons will require more significant time and effort to summon. And during that period, you will be vulnerable to interruption. He suggests some alternatives, as he calls it, to help you."

"This gonna suck, isn't it?" Jaune suddenly had a bad feeling as Ozpin chuckled.

"Fret not, Mr Arc. I'll go easy on you." Ozpin said as he pointed his cane back at Jaune while everyone gulped. "The same goes for everyone. Now, let us begin.

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Zack's POV

Hours later, and after Ozpin worked on training everyone's Semblance, we soon found ourselves sitting in the living room chatting. And I had to admit. Oz went hard on Jaune by stress-testing his Semblance to his limit until the poor noodle boy collapsed. And as for Weiss, it involves training mainly on her summoning time and teaching her to time her summoning amid a fight.

Ozpin did the same for everyone else and began drilling their semblances, mainly on Ruby. This was partly my fault, as I noticed that Ruby was not utilising her Semblance in combat, only for movement, and so did Oz. If she were to use Crescent Rose with it, physics would be happy to help, as well as how hard it is to block or dodge an attack if you cannot see when and where it's coming from.

And in the end, everyone was exhausted, including my body. And seeing the opportunity to reward everyone for their effort today after going through Oz's training, I brought out the bubble tea I had prepared yesterday.

Strange… who took some of it? Eh, I'll investigate it later.

As it turns out, Remnant has its version of bubble tea, which was interesting when I read up on it yesterday. I even managed to grab the boba pearls as well! Though, the variants of toppings were pathetic compared to what I offered everyone today. I even questioned myself how I missed it as several stalls sold it at the Central Station!

How did I miss something so obvious!?

Anyway, once I brought them over and much to everyone's surprise, Weiss was the first to try it out, and she enjoyed it if I were to judge it from her satisfied expressions. Ruby was next, and she also liked it when I added strawberry jelly to hers. Afterwards, I gave Ren the one with herbal tea jelly and pudding for Nora.

As for Jaune and Yang, I added brown sugar syrup for both since I didn't exactly know what kind they would like. And for myself? I had peppermint syrup with whipped cream in it. And it was enjoyable watching their reactions as they enjoyed their drink.

It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside, seeing them this happy.

"Zacky! Can I add ice cream to it?" Nora giddily asked me, while I could stare at her while I sipped my straw. The calories she will be taking will be staggering, even though hers has pudding inside. And Nora's already behaving more energetically than before.

With ice cream…

I fear that we will be unable to hold Nora back if she goes on a sugar rush.

"I advise otherwise." Ren suddenly spoke as Nora began acting dramatically again. Yet Ren ignores it as he continues. "Not only because of the number of calories inside, but someone ate all the ice cream recently." Ren explained as Nora grabbed Ren by the arms.

"What?!" Nora cried out in shock. "Renny! Who ate it? Who ate all my ice cream?!" Nora demands as Ren shakes his head.

"I do not know, Nora. But someone did." Ren then looked at the rest of us. "Do you know who could have eaten all the ice creams in the fridge?" Ren asked the rest of us.

"It's not me!" Ruby proclaimed as she continued slurping her milk tea. As if this were a game of who is the imposter, my friends and I glanced at each other with a hunch that someone at all the ice cream. Then Yang had the idea to throw a suspect with a half-assed excuse, and chaos broke out immediately as everyone began throwing accusations at each other about who ate Nora's ice cream.

Strangely enough, I noticed most of my friends pointed out that they saw someone around midnight in the kitchens. But each of them accuses a different person of the other.

Unless…

"It looks like both of us came to the same conclusion, it seems." Ozpin hummed as I subtly nodded my head.

"Yeah. Neo seems to be our prime suspect. But I need to check with her." And with a suspect in mind, I stood up, grabbing everyone's attention back to me.

"Pardon me, for I must thoroughly investigate Nora's lost ice cream tub and find out the true perpetrator responsible." I couldn't say with a straight face as I began snickering while everyone started chuckling at where it would go. Except for Nora, who was ecstatic that there was an investigation into the matter.

"Thank you, Zacky! This is a serious matter that must be resolved!" Nora declared as there were smiles all around as they continued drinking their bubble tea. "Detective Zacky and Ozzy on the case, people!" Nora continued as laughter soon broke out.

"Hey! It's just like Sun and Neptune with their junior detective stuff!" Ruby points out before she wonders about them. "I wonder how they're doing right now?"

"Please do not call us that." I heard Ozpin whisper as I snorted, left the living room, and went to the kitchen with my bubble tea. And once I was there, I took out my scroll and began texting a particular woman to see if she had eaten Nora's ice cream.

[Zack] - (Neo)

[Neo, did you eat the entire ice cream tub in the fridge last night?]

(No?)

[That doesn't sound convincing. Everyone pointed out they saw someone around midnight, snacking on ice cream. And all of them say they saw a different person at night. So, it makes you on my suspect list.]

(No comment.)

[Ok… Whatever. Where are you right now?]

(On your roof.)

Wait, what?

[…What? Why are you doing up there around this time?]

(Found some milk tea earlier in the fridge and had to try some. Pretty tasty. Did you make it?)

[Oh! So, you're why it looked like someone drank half a litre of milk tea. Bloody hell, why, though? Don't you have a place to stay?]

(No.)

[Oh. Ok… Good talk, I guess…]​

As I kept my scroll, I was unsure how to feel about what Neo did. First, she stalked Ruby and me back to our home yesterday, trespassed our house, stole a cookie (Outrageous!), ate Nora's ice cream and took some milk tea for herself! Whatever the case, I got my answer that Neo was responsible for this mess.

I soon returned to the living room after conducting my 'investigation' about who was responsible. And as I walked towards where everyone was, Nora immediately jumped from her couch and landed right in front of me.

"Zack! Did you find the suspect?" Nora asked, while I shrugged and glanced at everyone still having fun.

"I did. But let us return to our seats first. Then I'll talk." I explained before Nora zipped back to where Ren sat as I joined and sat down.

"So, Zack," Jaune was the first to speak. "Who's the one who ate the ice cream?" Jaune asks, as I can tell that everyone awaits my answer for who among them was responsible.

Answer: No one.

Taking a breath in, I answered him. "None of us."

"Wait a minute! Then who ate my ice cream?" Nora exclaimed as she pouted while Ren rubbed her shoulder. As for Weiss, Ruby, Jaune and Yang, they were confused as they all tilted their heads in sync. Then, taking another breath, I explained who might be responsible.

"After doing a bit of digging, all evidence points to one individual, not in this room. Neopolitan herself." I could hear gasps from my friends as Weiss raised an eyebrow at me.

"What makes you say that Neo was responsible?" Weiss asks, as I sheepishly admit.

"Well… Last night, Neo was apparently curious about where Ruby and I were staying and stalked us after we signed our deal. And after that, she sneaked into my room because she was curious about me, particularly my… unique looks."

Ruby's eyes were wide in alarm. "Wait, Neo followed us home!?" Ruby said as Nora was next.

"You mean the big fluffy tail you have?" I nod at Nora's guess as I continue.

"Correct. According to Neo, she had never seen a fox Faunus with such a large and fluffy tail before, and that got her attention on me. She also stole one of the cookies I made yesterday and ate it right in front of me. Outrageous, I know."

"Hey!" Yang noticed something. "I was wondering who stole the last cookie I saved for later! Of course, that midget took it." Yang pouts for a second as Ren takes over the conversion.

"Why hadn't you told us about Neo appearing in your room?" And immediately, everyone turns their eyes to me, expecting answers.

After what felt like minutes of pure silence as I thought of an excuse for failing to inform everyone that Neo knew where we were staying, I spoke. "I… wasn't sure whether Neo would leave us alone after visiting me yesterday, but that proves false." I explained, as Jaune was next.

"Why so?"

"She's resting on our roof right now."

…

"WHAT?!" Everyone shouted at the same time as I winced in pain. Ow! My poor ears, guys! As to drive it further that I'm in fucking pain, my hand shot up to my ears.

"Guys! My ears, please!" I begged as everyone calmed down for like a second.

I heard a sorry coming out from Ruby as Weiss voiced her shock. "Why is she doing on our roof?!" Weiss asks as everyone nods their head in agreement.

"Quite the state of affairs you found yourself in, Arakan." I heard Ozpin whispering in my head while I could only frown as I replied to him.

"Shut up, and lemme resolve this mess." I replied as I returned focus to everyone. "Hell if I know why she's up there, except she took some of the milk tea I made for you guys for herself."

"Wonderful," Yang rolled her eyes as I sighed. "Might as well have her come here since she's already taking stuff from us…" Yang muttered sarcastically as all of us suddenly heard slurping noises. And as we turned our heads towards where that noise was coming from, we all saw another me happily slurping his cup of milk tea!

It didn't take an idiot to figure out who that was, as Yang couldn't believe it and yelled out. "I was being sarcastic!" Yet, Neo giggled silently before sticking her tongue out at Yang, who I could see clenching her teeth. Then, as if Neo was trying to piss Yang off, she used her Semblance to change her appearance to Yang before giving a two-finger salute and disappearing in pink glass shards.

...

"Well, that just happened." Jaune muttered after what was a couple of minutes of pure silence. And before we could do anything, my scroll suddenly received a text from Neo.

(Thanks for the milk tea. I'll leave you and your friends alone for now.)

(Do keep me updated when Cinder arrives in Haven.)

(If not, well… you know what happens.)

-Neo​

Besides the implied threat there, it is a good thing for us that Neo decided to leave us alone. "Okay, some news for everyone. Neo just texted me that she will leave us alone for now." I explained as the tension in the room dropped.

"Soo… now what?" Ruby asked as we all looked at each other before I huffed.

"Well… dunno about you guys, but I must return to work. That gauntlet of mine would need some serious tweaking if I were to prevent what happened just now from happening again." I said as I got nods all along as I stood up.

But what I did not expect was for Weiss to stand up as well suddenly. "I'm coming along," Weiss said as all eyes were now on her. "You need some help with whatever you're planning, and I prefer what happened earlier in our spar won't happen again."

"Uh… sure! I won't mind the help of someone who knows the inside and out of Dust." I accepted Weiss's assistance and saw a haughty smile coming from Weiss.

"Good. At least you know when to accept help when provided."

I could only internally roll my eyes as Weiss followed me out of the living room with our milk teas. Yet as I did, I swore I heard Ozpin chuckling to himself for some reason.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Three days passed, and it was around ten at night. Things were moving smoothly so far. Well… as much as one could be with whatever has happened. First, with Weiss's assistance, we fixed the issue of my gauntlet's Dust explosion feature, as I liked to call it.

But according to Weiss, it would always doom to fail due to how it was designed. Lesson learned, leave me out when introducing ideas without supervision.

So with what I originally planned now scrapped, I went with a different approach with another idea that works.

I call it the Dust thrower!

Compared to before, which vents out through my gauntlet, Weiss, Yang, Ruby, and I agreed to modify my left gauntlet to not vent them out but launch them like a flamethrower. Except it can launch powdered Dust of my choosing.

The thing is, we had to link both the shield and Dust launcher to use the exact source of Dust, and this allowed my gauntlet's shield function to gain the ability to use a different element of Dust compared to before when it could only use ice. And the results were fascinating.

If I use fire Dust, it will behave like a flamethrower. Next, electric Dust would cause my gauntlet to shoot out entire electric bolts somehow. I don't know how that works, but it gave me the idea that I could provide Nora with an electric boost with it, much to her delight and everyone's horror. Next, ice dust would spit out a stream of ice that would freeze anything it hits.

The last Dust we tested was gravity Dust, and the results were interesting. When fired, it would send a violet ball out that pulls anything near it to it. I wonder if I can make it do the opposite and create an expulsion zone to push anything away from it. It would have made it versatile if I were to use it right.

Hmm… More testing is required.

I could only rub my chin as numerous papers scattered on my bed. They all contained notes related to Dust and the overall blueprint of my gauntlet, which I still need to have a name for and the time to paint it. Letting out a sigh, I could only look at my scroll. We're in the fourth week of October.

Wait. Fourth week of October? Doesn't that mean… oh…

Of course! Ruby's birthday is coming up!

"Planning to celebrate Miss Rose's birthday?" Ozpin asked in my head as I just nodded my head to confirm.

"Yea," I said as I began gathering my papers. "But it's likely that the battle for Haven will begin before her birthday. What a shame." I could only curse at how unfortunate the timing of it was.

"Then perhaps after the battle, we celebrate her birthday, Zack," Oz suggests an alternative as I nod while gathering my paper. It was then that I heard Jaune calling out to me.

"Zack?" Jaune called me as I turned to face him with all my documents in my hand. I wonder what he needs me for?

"Need something, Jaune?" I ask as I tilt my head, as Jaune nods his head.

"Yea, Qrow needs all of us to see him. He got some news for all of us, and he's in the living room." My fellow friend explained the situation as I knew what he was referring to.

It looks like time's running out. The battle for Haven is upon us. I spoke again as I nodded. "Yeah, gimme a moment. I need to settle some stuff, and I'll be down there, Jaune."

"Sure, take your time." Jaune smiled as I watched as he left my room. And once Jaune was out of my room, Ozpin spoke again.

"You're worried about the battle, are you?"

I could only sit on my bed while a sigh came from my lips. I am Oz. Sure, we have the advantage of Neo on our side and Jaune learning his Semblance ahead of time. But it's human to fear the unknown. The future. Especially with what I've done so far. Suppose Salem gets word that the battle of Haven was a bigger disaster for her than Canon.

I can't help but fear that she might personally intervene and hunt us down earlier than expected, compared to interfering later than she does with Altas.

"Zack… I understand your worry. But now, it's not the time to let your fears control you. You did your best in a month. All we have left is to accept what's changed and move on." Ozpin continued.

I suppose that's true. But I had to ask the wizard in my head this.

"I get it, Oz… After we get the Relic of Knowledge and find out how to end Salem permanently, it would be best to tell them your story. The true story of Remnant and its people. Team RWBY, JNR. They all deserve to know the truth, Oz. And I know how painful it is due to the many betrays you had in your lives, but do you trust me? Do you trust my friends to stick by our side till the end?"

All I got was silence from Ozpin, as I knew I had left him in his thoughts.

"I suppose if it turns out that there was a way to stop Salem permanently all along, as you said. I will tell them on my terms. I hope you understand that you're asking much of me. But perhaps, when this is finally over. I can finally rest."

I suppose I can't fault Oz for wishing to compromise. But he needs to accept that not all of it was his fault. He was, Salem was, and The fucking Brothers were as well. So everyone needs to take part of the blame. But especially the brothers.

No matter, I'll take what I can get.

"I accept your offer, Oz. But I prefer not to get my hopes up too early." I explained as I could feel Ozpin nodding his head.

"Agreed."

With our conversation done, it's time to face the music.

And my suspicion was correct. When I arrived in the living room alongside everyone else, Qrow explained that the traitor Leonheart had contacted him and wished us to come to Haven tomorrow at midnight. The fact that it's tomorrow and not today made me raise an eyebrow. Wasn't it by midnight, according to the show? Okay… there must be some discrepancy present here.

And as soon as Qrow finished explaining, everyone looked at me as if expecting me to speak up. "What? Am I supposed to say something?" I asked as Qrow spoke.

"Well, kid, you know what's going to happen tomorrow at midnight from your story, right?" Qrow asked as he took a drink, while I turned to face Yang, who glanced at her friends and nodded at me.

"Yea, I do. But I should tell you the details tomorrow, and that day we will be focusing on getting ready for what Leonheart had planned." I said as Ren asked.

"Why not tell us now?"

"It's quite late now, and I believe we all should get some rest first. And tomorrow, after breakfast, I'll tell you the relevant details. I promise you. Rest well, everyone, because tomorrow midnight's going to get messy. That's all I can say for today." I explained, while everyone hesitantly agreed except for Yang, whom I told earlier. With our meeting reaching its conclusion, we all stood up and returned to our rooms for the night.

The clock's ticking, and I don't have much time left. We could only hope that once the battle began, it would be in our favour and hope no one would get impaled in the chest or something. That would suck.