Your finger is tapping the 'accept call' icon on your scroll before you can even think about anything.
Who the hell cares that she was under suspicion, who cares that she was the closest thing to enemy territory in the world. She's alive, she's safe, and she's comfortable. The entire country of Mistral could be listening in, just waiting for you to give up your position. From there, someone on the court would be able to come here and cause you pain in some way.
But none of that matters
Right now, you just want to hear her voice again.
You press the scroll to your ear and the line clicks as the connection comes into focus. For a second, you can't perceive anything. You can't feel the wind, you can't hear the students around you. Nothing in the world mattered except what was in your hand and who was at the other line. The only thing you can hear is your heart threatening to burst out of your chest. Someone might have ran into you, another might have been trying to get your attention, but for the life of you you didn't know.
"Shirou?"
It takes everything you have not to take in a breath in surprise. But you can't, you can't show hesitation, fear. You can't be anything less than a hero, especially for her. She's the reason behind everything you do after all.
The one woman who could understand you, who could support you through your choices, who would be able to smile when everything is over.
Your Sakura.
"It's me, who else would it be?" You say, your voice dripping with forced humor.
You hear the sound of a soft giggle on the other end, and you smile despite yourself. You probably look like an idiot, smiling like a kid who just confessed to his crush. On the plus side, you weren't paying much attention. Good thing Siegfried was busy with Signy, or else you wouldn't hear the end of it.
"I…. I've missed you too Shirou."
And just like that she says what you should have said in the first place. But you're going to make it up to her, you promised you would.
"There isn't a day that goes by that I don't think of you." You whisper.
"There isn't a day that goes by that I don't hope for your safety."
You laugh for the sake of it "Do you think that I'm getting myself into things I can't handle?"
"Yes."
Wow, there was no hesitation in that comment, damn.
"You always rush in, helping without ever thinking about what's going to happen to you."
You shrug "Yeah, that's right."
You hear another small laughter, but this one feels forced.
"You know I'm wrong, you know I'm doing a lot of things wrong. But…"
You turn around and look back at Siegfried. The dragonslayer is holding his daughter close, and walking next to his sister as the three of them head to the center of the courtyard. The way Siegfried puts himself between them and the rest of the crowd, it's like he's afraid that someone's going to come and take them away at any moment. Even in the center of all his power, surrounded by those who would give their lives to protect them, he's still scared.
You would be to, all things considered.
"...I'm doing at least one thing right."
Silence is all that meets you on the other end of the line. You grip the scroll a little tighter, and you lean against the wall. Seconds stretch out for an eternity.
"Please," You whisper "Please say that I'm doing at least this one thing right."
Again silence.
You grip the scroll to the point that it nearly shatters and a blade begins forming in your hand out of instinct.
"You're doubting yourself again, aren't you?"
You let out a shocked breath, and everything seems to fade out. You don't feel the aura in your hand, you can't feel your breath, the wind, anything. The world has stopped, just to give you some space. Sakura's laughter brings you out of it again.
"Shirou, I fell in love with a hero. I married a hero. Nothing in the world is going to make me forget what you've done for me and Cinder. You've saved us, so many times. You gave her a family, and you saved me from mine."
Your eyes begin tearing up before you can stop them, but you don't mind.
"I'll never forget how you scooped me off my feet and brought me into the world. I'll never forget those nights you taught me about the world. I remember every dream you told me, and I remember every smile that you've made for my sake."
The tears slowly make their way down your face, making it's way around your smile.
"I'm safe thanks to you, I'm happy thanks to you. And if I'm in danger, I know you'll save me. So don't worry about me. I'm safe, I'm happy, so be with your friends, and smile with them. Be their hero, just as much as you are mine."
You stand there, your entire body locked up.
"I'll mess up." You say.
"I know." She answers, effortlessly.
"I'll say the wrong things."
"You will," Sakura agrees "But in the end, you'll do everything to save them. And if they don't see what you've done. At least remember, that I do and that I love you, forever, till death do us part."
The line cuts off and your arm falls to your side, utterly useless. Your knees threaten to give way, and it's a miracle that you're able to stay standing. And you're still crying. Your mouth slowly morphs itself into a smile and a small laugh escapes your lips. You bring a hand and wipe away your tears just as someone puts a hand on your shoulder. You look up to see Siegfried smiling down at you. You dry the rest of your tears with your arm and balance yourself on his shoulder. Once you were up, the four of you start walking into the main auditorium.
There wasn't a single word said between you, there wasn't any that needed to be said.
The crowd intensified as you got closer, until it erupted into a cacophony of noise and chattering madness. The noise level alone hurts but you grit your teeth and bare through it. You reach a hand out, and pull Siegfried aside before he can say anything, leaving a surprised daughter and equally surprised sister looking at you. You just give them an offhanded wave as you drag Siegfried to the side. When he finally stops resisting, you meet his questioning glance with a shrug "The speech is about to start, and teachers aren't allowed to be with the students when it's made."
Siegfried takes in your words the grudgingly nods in agreement. You gently make your way through the masses. They move aside for Siegfried, you just push them aside when they start staring at Siegfried and forget that you're there as well. It does clear out a little faster at the end. The second you get to the wall you take a position that exuded power and authority. So you just lean against the wall next to Cu next to the exit so you could signal people later. The Faunus merc gives you a single finger in greeting, no points for guessing which one he chose.
You guessed it, it was the pointer finger.
Siegfried has to literally push students away from him just to get the chance to come close to the two of you. Across the room, Lancelot, Bedivere, Iskandar and Vlad waited in similar positions to yours. Karna walks purposefully out of the archway and takes a stand next to his fellow teachers. On the stage, Ozpin steps up to the podium and clears his throat. And just like that, the entire room grows silent. Ozpin pushes in his glasses up and sighs mostly for show.
"I'll make sure to keep this brief. You are all here to become something. Some of you, hunters and huntresses, others, heroes. I am here to tell you leave such dreams behind. This world does not take kindly to dreams of Heroes. Legends do not exists, despite the evidence standing in the room today."
He takes a second to look at each one of the teachers.
"You cannot go through this school following the dreams of another. But, if you have the courage to take the first step towards a dream that is truly your own, then you will find your way. Welcome to Beacon, may you all find exactly what you're looking for."
The headmaster of Beacon bows, leaving a very bewildered student body and a laughing teaching staff. Well, actually, only Cu is laughing. Glynda takes the mic but when her lips move, you don't hear any sound from her mouth. You blink in confusion, but you feel another weight on your shoulder. It takes all of your self control not to reach up and crush the bird doing a breakdance on your shoulder.
"Let me go or I swear I will put you through a wall."
"Glynda already did that." The bird says.
You turn and glare at the bird, but he's not there anymore. He's, not anywhere that you can see anymore. Meaning he's either invisible, or is literally out of the room.
He could at least have given you your hearing back. Bastard.
"Did you enjoy your talk, my young apprentice?"
Oh great now he's in your head again, perfect.
"What was that? You think I'm amazing? Oh you're too kind~."
… Ok, you were going to thank him for getting that call to Sakura through, now you're done.
"Tell me what you want now Merlin, or I will drag you before Glynda in irons with a sword so far up your ass you'll be able to kiss a woman across the room with it." You say.
"You drive a hard bargain! But I think I can help with that."
A smirk naturally comes to your lips. That was easy.
"Glynda wants someone to be in the camera room for the night, just to keep an eye on the children. She recommended to Ozpin that he ask Lancelot, but he and I figured that you would be more than happy to take over for them."
He's sticking you with more work? Honestly what does he do for this school? Other than pay the bills, make the teams, organize teachers, fight grimm, make deals with other headmaster- and you're just going to stop right there. Wow that list was longer than you remember it being.
But make no mistake, you're still annoyed.
"And why did you think of me?"
"You're the only one here who doesn't have direct family in the student body."
"… point made. When do you-."
"The second the students are all out."
Something in your inner ear pops. You imagine the release of pressure when you try to equalize yourself when you go into deep water. It's like that, but everything comes back disjointed. Everyone is suddenly quiet, but then the sound readjusts to much and the sound alone makes it feel like you're ears are going to start bleeding. You wince slightly and rub your ears as innocently as you can. But of course, Cu notices. He jabs your side and gestures with his head towards the podium.
"The Wizard?"
You nod "I'm on camera duty tonight."
Cu winces "Damn,"
You blink, he actually sounds sorry for you.
"Well, I'll save you a beer, maybe, probably not, I won't."
Aaand just like that all trace of sympathy is gone.
He claps you on the shoulder as the students begin slowly making their way to their temporary dwellings. Probably the ballroom, they always stick the first years in the ballroom. No need to get the hopes of of everyone by showing them the rooms, given that some of them might not be making it out of that forest. Cu waves his hand and screams something incoherent. He turns and starts leading the kids down the archway. The students, visibly confused, slowly make their way after him. But thankfully, Bedivere, Lancelot and Iskandar put on some kind smiles and help them on their way. You give him a thankful glance and walk along the wall to get to the other end of the room. As you walk, you see Karna simply leaves his spot on the wall. He walks to the other end of the room, just like you were going but Rama steps in between him and the door. You can only see half of Karna's face from where you are, but you can see him look down at the boy with nary a word. He has the same emotionless face that he always had. he stares at Rama, waiting for something, but the boy's will isn't as strong as his father's. He tries to keep eye contact, but he breaks off, looking to the floor in shame. Without a word, Karna steps to the side and walks straight past the boy.
Rama eyes go wide, and his body begins to shake. Fire, white hot and brimming with aura flares in his hand as his fingers curl into a shaking fist. He bares his teeth and he turns towards his father, but Karna had already left. Rama looks surprised, like he was expecting something else. You finally get to the doorway, just as Rama's fire begins burning just a little bit too bright for your liking. You don't know the relationship between Rama and Karna, but you know just how far a boy will go to be acknowledged by his father. You could work for years, and at the end of it all, he only looks at you slightly differently. But it's enough, it's enough to show that he was watching.
Right now, Karna wasn't watching.
"If you want his attention, rest, and prepare for tomorrow. Show him then, but for now, wait."
His eyes shoot up from the ground and he stares at you in confusion. You meet his confused gaze with a commanding stare of authority. You don't wait for him to say anything. Wordlessly, you head through the open doorway and start walking through the halls towards the teachers wing. The halls were split into two distinct departments. Storage and rest, and classroom. The rest rooms were simple teachers areas, a small room where you could grab a cup of coffee before your next class. Storage is exactly what you'd expect it to be. Room after room filled with different supplies and equipment that might become useful during the year. Among these rooms, lies a certain room that shows just how seriously Ozpin and Merlin take security with their school.
The security room is a literal wall of screens along with a single control desk and two chairs for said desk. The room itself is no larger than your average bedroom, but every inch of the space is filled with a monitor or a cooling system, or in the case of the walls, screens. You count at least a dozen screens at least, each one of them showing a different section of the building. One with a constant feed of all of the major classrooms while the rest cycle through the halls. Each one of the cycles showed a different batch of students as they went through the halls with Cu leading the quote un quote charge. You grab the closest seat and stretch out as much as you can in the available space. You crack your knuckles and rest your head in your hands as you lean back and enjoy the show.
You let out a yawn, the toll of this job finally getting to you. It took a few hours, but it's official, you're bored of this. They're just talking, and the cameras to the ballroom are muted for privacy reasons. But still, this was getting far too boring, even for you. And you once spent a week on stake out just to complete a job. And a bet, but that part isn't important.
In front of you, each and every hopeful first year is trying and failing to get some sleep before the big day. They at least got into respectable sleepwear, except for a few of the guys who insisted on going to sleep without a shirt. You move from one camera to the next, tracking every student that you could.
Weiss and Signy are nowhere to be found, but they were probably with Boss. There's no place safer for them. The next student that catches your eye is Rama. The price of fire is sitting by himself, alone in the corner with the closest students about fifteen feet away, and even then they were sweating. Guess the poor kid is just as bad at controlling his aura as his father was.
Galahad and Mordred were bunked together, like twins ought to be. Galahad is trying to keep to himself, reading a book to pass the time. But every couple of seconds he looks up from his book to see his sister choking a poor man with a headlock.
Lancelot would have gone for the elbow break, but she's headed in the right direction.
Serenity is… sleeping in Tristan's lap while the man himself is staring down any other student who so much as looks at Serenity. So, first on your list, tell him that he really needs to lighten up. Edmond is close by the two of them, and you only know it's him because you see his hat on the ground next to him. Edmond himself looks like he just drowned himself in black, fading into the corner of the room. Everyone just looks by him, or in some cases walks right in front of him without noticing.
Family semblance at work.
There are other standouts in the crowd. A blonde in the stupidest onesy tried to catch the eye of a few girls, but they at least didn't say anything to his face. He looks a little like… wait a second.
You lean forward in your chair, taking a closer look. Your hand moves across the keyboard and the camera zooms in on the boys face. Blond hair, green eyes, decent features. You take out your scroll, and look up the list of students that all teachers are privy to. You don't have to look far for the name you're looking for.
Jaune Arc.
You laugh right then and there. So the kid who couldn't leave his sister's side is now trying to be a hunter? Damn, kids got balls. Or he has no idea the kind of shoes he's got to fill. He'll be fun to watch.
You keep looking through the camera's, but try as you might you don't see anything out of the ordinary. Everyone talks to one another, no one except Mordred gets into a fight and even then Galahad stops it from escalating after a bit. Nothing happens for what feels like hours, and after that, nothing happens anyway. You yawn and you feel your eyelids getting heavy. You shake yourself awake, but it only helps a tiny bit. But, as much as you want to stay awake, there's not much reason for you to do that if everything's ok. If initiation was tomorrow, you'll need some sleep. Can't have yourself falling asleep when you're watching the student.
Just a short nap, help lighten the load.
You close your eyes and instead of dreaming, you remember…
[] The fire, the night you met the man you called father
[] The war, the night the world burned blue.
[] The meeting, the day you first saw the purest soul.
[] The test, your first step as a Huntsman.
[] The duel, the day you stared down the titian