Unexpected Incarnate (RWBY Ozpin Incarnate SI)

Zack POV

Minutes passed since the gang and I left our hotel for lunch, and things were starting to look much better after the battle of Haven, despite the earlier unease caused by it. White Fang members bearing blue could be seen interacting with the locals and overall helping reconstruct the city after the White Fang under Adam tried to wreck the place and blow up Haven.

But honestly, what was Adam thinking when he decided that blowing up Haven was a good idea? And how he had that Khan lady assassinated. What's her name again? Oh, right. Sienna Khan. The thing is, Adam is still a threat to everyone, even without the support of the White Fang. To call him an afterthought would be foolish since we will no doubt see him again in Argus.

But should we manage to get to Atlas, would he chase us all the way there, all because of Blake? He might, now that I think about it… The dude's gone nuts at this point after Haven. I wonder what the sisters would think of him going so far away from our purpose. Would they-

"Yo Zacky, you there?" I felt someone poking my cheek, and I was immediately brought out of my thoughts. My eyes blinked for a moment right before Yang purposely leaned her prosthetic arm over my shoulder and nearly made me lose my footing. Thankfully, that did not happen as I glanced at Yang.

"Sorry. I was lost in my thoughts about some stuff…" I admit while looking at everyone else. All of them were watching me with worry on my face. Look, I understand that I'm not okay after that battle, but I will recover with time. I also noticed that there were numerous restaurants near us, and most interestingly, some of them that initially banned Faunus from entering had their ban removed from us.

Wow.

Who would have thought that having your ass saved by Ghira Belladonna and the Faunus of Menagerie would make us seem in a better light than before compared to the Fang under Adam? Sarcasm, by the way. Now, if we do the same for Atlas, things would be better for everyone.

"Do you wish to tell us about it?" Ren asked right as I shrugged.

"It's something related to the White Fang," I explained as everyone perked up, with Blake being the most noticeable one with her cat ears. "Though more accurately. Adam." A second of stunned silence passed over us as I felt Yang and several others tensing up. It was even easier to tell when I could hear their heart rates spiking when they heard his name.

"I assume this relates to the show from your world about us and what could happen in the future?" Weiss raised an eyebrow as I nodded. Weiss's getting good at guessing what I'm thinking of.

"Yeah. Adam kind of goes even crazier than before, and he even lashes out and kills his fellow White Fang members when they refuse to take orders from him after the Battle for Haven. He even couldn't control his rage to the point where he vandalised his throne and was left with one desire." I explained before my eyes ended up on my fellow Faunus.

"His hatred for you, Blake. All because you left him when he started crossing the line." I could only remain silent while everyone gasped in horror at this revelation. Blake wasn't faring any better as her ears twitched all over the place while her eyes narrowed at me. "We will see him again, no doubt about that. He's determined to get his 'revenge' on you. Despite how pointless it all is." I let out a sigh before I scratched my eyebrow.

"I swear, Adam's just a Yandere at this point."

"Yandere?" Nora popped in front of me curiously, while I took a step back with the assistance of Long Memory still in my hand.

"Yandere, derives from the Japanese word yanderu, which comes from my world, meaning insane or sick, and deredere, meaning affectionate or loving. To simply put, a Yandere is someone who is lovesick or someone who has been driven to insanity by extreme obsession or love, thus resulting in abnormal behaviour and likely violence involved." I explained as everyone blinked at me.

"How do you even know about this?" Jaune then asked as I felt my cheeks burning. How can I say that I was obsessed with anime when I was younger until the point I regularly research about them? I was even a chuunibyou at one point, and I am not proud of that part of me, okay?!

It's embarrassing looking back on that!

And to make the situation for me, Ozpin decided to chime in and read my head! "And I thought you were normal compared to the other hosts I had or compared to the people from your world, but my goodness, what's wrong with you people on Earth? Is it common to have such… eccentric tastes?"

"Shut it, Ozma! Not now!"

I felt my cheeks burning red again. "The people in my world have their versions of entertainment compared to yours! And besides, everyone here seems too busy trying to survive in this death world to worry about advancing the local culture! I noticed they are backwards compared to ours."

"I see… though I noticed some of these 'animes' seem perverted in nature, and you seem to have watched much of them in your younger days. How depraved are you people to have such entertainment?" Oh, god. I am not proud at all about watching some of them Ozma! Thanks for reminding me of my shameful past!

"I refused to dignify that with a response! And it is called fanservice!"

"I think you've already done that."

Fuck!

Ozpin then continued snarking, much to my dismay. "You apparently called yourself a 'man of culture.' alongside those with the same interests on the internet." Oh my God! Never thought I'd say this to you but shut the fuck up Oz!

SMACK!

*Groan*

"Are... you okay there?" I heard Ruby calling to me while I slowly began to pry my hand off my face, and it left a red mark behind. "You've been standing there for minutes and looking weirdly at something for a while." Ruby continued, while I could tell that everyone was watching me quietly. No doubt things were getting awkward for them, waiting for answers while I had weird looks on my face.

"Yeah… Oz chose to speak and ruined my day." I mutter out before walking ahead of the gang. I do not want to talk about it, guys.

"You going to tell us how you know that? Or are you going to leave us in suspense?" I heard Yang asking while I walked past her before blurting out agitatedly.

"Yes, I will tell you! I mean, NO! I mean! Fuck my life!" My eyes were twitching erratically, and so was my fluffy tail the minute I began yelling out, much to my friend's shock and some passers bys surprised by my sudden reaction. "I'm extremely worked up after what Ozpin says in my mind, so I am in no mood to talk about it!" Forgive me, my friends, for I am not okay right now!

An awkward moment of silence went by as I stared at my friends while they stared back at me. Or at least that was until Ruby suddenly burst out laughing, during which we all brought our eyes onto Ruby, who continued laughing until she wheezed. However, it appeared to be exceptionally infectious just as a chuckle broke out of my lips, and I began laughing alongside her.

And to be fair, the only reason I'm laughing is that her laugh reminded me of that scene involving Jaune's bunny hoodie. That reminder alone made me feel much better than I was just now, and by the time I was about to calm down, Nora began laughing, and it proved to be the final push needed to break the dam, during which everyone joined in.

Ultimately, we ended up there laughing for a few minutes straight.

Man, do we look like a bunch of idiots laughing at something while the people nearby could only give us weird looks while on their way to wherever they need to go. "What was that laugh?" Nora giggled while pointing at me. She does have a point.

For some reason, my laugh sounds like a mixture of a dying seal and a hyena laughing. This results in an incredibly goofy laugh, which I couldn't help but make. The thing is, I seem to have inherited that trait from my Earth life. Nevertheless, I stifle a giggle while holding Long Memory for support. "That… Hehehe… How I used to laugh back on Earth." I said with a smile plastered on my lips before Weiss spoke ludicrously while covering her mouth.

"You're kidding, right?"

"Nope! But that certainly made me feel better." I replied before looking at Ruby. "Thank you, Ruby. I needed that. And as thanks, I'll make a new batch of cookies."

I could only watch Ruby hopping on the spot in sheer excitement at the prospect of cookies before rushing over and hugging me. "Really? Oh, you're the best!" With a simple nod of acknowledgement, Ruby broke off from her hug before I glanced at the restaurants in the distance.

"Well, I think we wasted enough time here. Who's tired of waiting?" I asked right as pretty much everyone raised their hands. "Good. Let's go find something to eat. I feel a grumble coming." And with that, the gang and I went off to find Lunch, and we did. Despite the initial protests about having burgers earlier, Weiss relented when it was clear as day that she was outvoted by pretty much everyone.

I pity her, so I suggested we go to a steakhouse restaurant that happens to sell burgers. It worked, and Weiss was happy with her salmon and salad combo meal alongside Blake, while the others had burgers or steaks. As for me, I also had salmon, mainly because it had been months since I had had it and mac and cheese in addition.

I was initially concerned about the price, but news of us saving Haven has begun to spread, and we became a local celebrity here. Because of this, the manager decided to give us a 'Saviours of Haven' discount, as she calls it. Nevertheless, it was tasty for its price, and everyone's mood improved. Then, of course, Yang had to bring up the topic from earlier again.

And with sheer reluctance, I answered the question of how I knew about it, which took a while because I had to awkwardly explain that Yandere is part of the dere character archetype in anime. I even had to explain what anime was to the gang, which was hard to do because Remnant doesn't really have an anime equivalent available for me to reference. Anyway, I had to explain that Yandere is just one of them, and them being the curious buggers they are.

They made me explain the other deres to them. So that means Dandere, Kuudere and Tsundere. That's all if I recall them all correctly. And it makes it even more awkward or humorous. I might have accidentally commented on how Weiss can sometimes act like a Tsundere to Ruby. Yeah, she didn't like that at all, but Yang and the others did.

Weiss berating her teammate ironically proves my point now that I think about it, but she doesn't need to hear that from me.

But what caught me off guard was Blake's apparent interest in the types of anime I watch. One thing is for sure. I will not tell her about High School DXD for my sake because of Ozpin. I have many regrets watching that perverted show now that I have Ozpin in my head. Perhaps the less… fanservicey type of anime are a better choice to share…

Now that I think about it, Blake can act like a Kuudere at times…

In the end, and after lunch, everyone returned to our hotel since we had nothing to do outside. First, I need to figure out which parts of the door the gang accidentally broke and prepare for my meeting with the Belladonnas, Ilia and Sun. I wonder what those two would ask me?

Probably questions about my unique looks… Right. I have to somehow come up with a reason why my tail is unusually big and fluffy.

By the time we got back to our hotel, most of the gang had dispersed to do their own thing, while I headed straight for my room since I still needed to fix the door they accidentally broke. Ruby, Weiss and Yang chose to tag along since they had nothing worth doing, while Blake had to check on her parents when they'd be here.

"Hmm…" I hummed while observing the broken hinges. "From what I could tell, both the barrel and the pin had snapped off… Were all of you leaning on it or something?" I brought the topic up while my eyes were still on the broken hinges. Seriously, the whole thing snapped off from what I could tell. It doesn't help that those parts of it looked barely maintained and rusted to hell.

Yup. These things are in desperate need of replacement.

"Well. yeah… I guess." Ruby sheepishly admits before her sister adds in.

"Kinda. TsunWeiss here did lean on it heavily when she was trying to listen in on your story session." Thanks to me, Yang created a new nickname for our resident, Schnee.

Sorry…

"Hey!"

Weiss angrily sputtered before I pulled a screwdriver out of my pocket and unscrewed the hinges since they needed replacement badly. And since Qrow's outside, perhaps I could have him repurchase some replacements. Wouldn't want the hotel owners fining us for breaking this should they find out.

"What? Zacky's right, isn't he? You were so cold back when we were first a team. Part of the reason we called ya Ice Queen. But you're much different now. I say even sweeter…" I swore Yang was giving a shit-eating grin as she said that.

"Yeah! I prefer Nice Weiss to Cold Weiss!" Ruby helpfully adds in while I chuckle at their bantering before I decide to add in.

"You know, Weiss, I always prefer you with a smile on your face, if I say so myself." I couldn't hold my chuckle when I saw Weiss gaping at me while red in the face. As for her teammates in my room, Ruby and Yang did their best not to laugh before the blond teammate of team RWBY whistled.

"Who knew Zacky could make Snow Angel here speechless." Yang laughed again while I watched Weiss grumble about me being an idiot dolt while leaving the room. Heh. Who knew teasing people could be fun. By the time Weiss left the room, Ruby couldn't take it anymore, and she burst out laughing before she collapsed onto the floor, heaving for breath.

"Well then." I took a ruler and measured the length and height before snapping a photo and sending it straight to Qrow while Yang checked on her sister. "Time to send this to your uncle and let him sort it out." I murmur my thoughts out before Ruby suddenly pops to my side.

"Sending what to Uncle Qrow?" She asked while I blinked at her suddenly on her feet. Seriously, how does she move this fast all the time?

"Since your uncle is out, I figured I could have him buy spare hinges for us, and then we can fix it up without problem since the screws are still in pristine condition," I explained right before receiving a text from Qrow asking me what happened and why, followed by him complaining about becoming a pack mule. It is just two hinges, Qrow. I even gave you the specifics, so stop complaining.

"Though it appears that he's in the middle of something." I said while typing back to Qrow, and in the meantime, I heard the girls walking over the room before Yang's voice caught my ears.

"So… what are you planning to do now?" She asked right as I shrugged my shoulders.

"I dunno, probably rest up for a bit and prepare for my talk with Blake's parents as well as Ilia and Sun. In addition, I have other plans I wish to work on eventually." I explained.

"And they are?" Ruby joined in as she sat on my bed from the corner of my eye.

"Finally begin working and designing an emblem for myself, continue working on my semblance, and perhaps do a couple of training exercises and another, which I cannot tell you right now."

"Why? Are you hiding something from us?" Yang asked before simply raising a finger over my smirked lips.

"Now then, why would I ruin the surprise?~" I couldn't help but give a cheeky reply as I was done texting Qrow. After all, I can't exactly tell that I want to plan for Ruby's birthday with her still here. Speaking of Ruby…

"Ruby, can you go to the kitchen and check if we have all the ingredients we need for cookies? I plan to make them after my talk with them." I suggested my thoughts before seeing her silver eyes shining in response. There is no doubt she loves cookies, and this should give me some time to talk to Yang alone.

"Sure thing! Leave it to me!" And with that, Ruby vanished from my room in a blur of red while her sister blinked.

"Now that your sister's out of the way…" I said while I moved to my bed and grabbed my hairbrush on the nightstand. "Part of the reason I can't say it just now is because it involves her. As I'm sure you are aware, Ruby's birthday's coming up in a few days."

Since I had the time, I better make myself presentable by the time the Belladonnas arrived here. Now understanding why I had Ruby go to the kitchens, Yang smirked while I began brushing my fluffy tail. "Lemme guess, you want help in preparing Rubes birthday."

"Not just yours. I'd like to have everyone's help in it. But… I would prefer it if we could make this a surprise birthday party, and since she's your sister, I think you know what Ruby would like."

"Yeah, makes sense to me." And for the next few minutes, Yang and I planned how we were going to celebrate Ruby's birthday without alerting her. That was until Blake came into the room and told me her parents were arriving thirty minutes from now.

And here I thought I would have some time to rest a bit.

I guess not.

Better go and prepare some drinks for them. Perhaps some relaxing tea will do nicely.

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Much later…

Zack sat alone in the living room wearing a simple white shirt and his pants as his outfit choice since it was pretty warm in the afternoon, and wearing his jacket would just make the heat worse.

Besides that, he has a purple Dust crystal floating in one hand while the other rests comfortably on the couch he's sitting on. The fox Faunus had only recently arrived and sat here waiting for the arrival of Ghia, Kali, Ilia, Sun and, of course, Blake herself. She would be there mainly because of her parents, but for now, she was elsewhere. Even so, the Fox Faunus wasn't wasting his time idly for guests to arrive as he stared at the Dust given to him by his goddess.

Till now, he still wonders about what properties it had, but he lacked the necessary equipment to understand its full potential. Even his local Dust Specialist Weiss couldn't find much except for its apparent stability and ability to assimilate other types of Dust into itself. Imagining it in his head, Zack flicked his finger before the purple Dust crystal flowed like water and condensed into a highly designed bracelet of a serpentine dragon, all while the fox Faunus' eyes rose with interest.

"How interesting…" He mutters to himself. "I could make precise jewellery out of them. I wonder what else I could do with them besides using them to fight…" Zack mutters while raising his hand to have a better look at it and marvel at his work. It was then that another idea stuck in his mind, and Zack smiled.

The fox Faunus took out the hair band, holding his hair in a ponytail and let it loose. And with a hairbrush he also brought along, Zack began grooming them up. It has become a habit of his to brush his hair regularly compared to his time on Earth when he had much shorter hair.

But now, with his hair going all the way down to just above his waist, it takes a while to prevent all that hair from tangling up, and while he had considered cutting them in the past. But Zack didn't feel like giving away his looks for the sake of convenience. Was it stupid? Yes. But the Fox Faunus always wanted to have long hair, so he has to live with this inconvenience just to maintain his style.

Sectioning off the top half of his hair and leaving the fringes untouched, the Fox Faunus used a hairband and tied it up into a ponytail before pushing it aside so he could do the same for the lower section of his hair. He then converts the Dust bracelet on his hand into a three-inch long crystallised hair bracelet and uses that to hold the lower section of his hair into a ponytail as well.

By the time he was done, Zack took the time to marvel at his new hairstyle of a double ponytail with his scroll. And he could only smile and feel proud of his new look. The upper ponytail was much shorter than the lower, giving the Fox Faunus's style a sense of uniqueness.

Zack couldn't suppress the excitement coming from his lips when he could hear the wizard speaking in his head. "What a fascinating hairstyle if I ever saw one. Using stable Dust as a form of hair bracelet is an interesting concept." Ozpin says while Zack simply hums with a smile.

"Figured that it's time for a change of looks. Sure, the ponytail is nice and all but I figured it's time to shake things up. So I just thought, why not go with the double ponytail?" The fox Faunus then stands up to stretch his legs when he hears several unidentifiable footsteps coming from outside, but one of them he recognises as Blake's, among others. "Ah, they must be here." Zack hums before Ozpin asks him.

Do you have this under control?" Ozpin asked before the Fox Faunus simply shrugged his shoulders before leaving for the kitchen to brew some tea.

"Eh, I'll ask ya if I need any help Oz." The fox Faunus simply says in his mind before grabbing a tray with empty cups and a teapot he prepared minutes earlier. By the time he returned to the living room, Kali, Ghira, Ilia, Sun, and Blake, who was in front, could be seen walking into the living room through the main door.

"Wonderful, just on time." Zack hummed before he found himself in the middle of everyone's attention. The Belladonnas watched him quietly while Ilia was curious about the fox Faunus and his apparent connection to the past Faunus civilization. She heard stories of how the Arakans were the first Faunus, but other than that, she knows nothing of them.

As for Sun, his first impression was a sense of fascination over Zack and his looks. He never really cared about it, but to see what could be considered a relic of the past and how this kid was supposed to be the descendent of the first Faunus ever to exist. He couldn't pass up that offer. That and Miss Belladonna so kindly ask him to come. And after he is done here. He needs to check up on his team.

As for Blake, she blinked while the fox Faunus walked in with tea. "Did you change your hair?"

"Yup. Have you decided to change my looks a bit? What do you think?" Zack asked as he gently swivelled his head around to give his guests a good look. However, it has a tomboyish look if one thinks about it. "But come, you are all guests here. How about some tea?" He asked before placing the tray on the coffee table and pouring tea for everyone.

"Of course, Mr Arakan, we accept it." Ghira said right as his dear wife Kali giggled while observing him in detail.

"My… how nice of you to offer us drinks." She said before resting on one of the couches, as did Blake, Sun and Ilia, who joined in and sat down with Blake by her parent's side.

"Please just call me Zack. Calling me Mr Arakan makes me sound old for my liking. And you're guests here, after all. It's only fair to offer guests a drink, such as the lavender Earl Grey tea I have prepared for you all. I hope you will like it." The fox Faunus said before he picked and offered everyone a cup of tea, which they accepted.

Kali took a sip from the cup offered by Zack when her ears perked up upon tasting its contents. "Oh my. This is brewed well. Ghira grunts in agreement with his wife, and the others also take a sip.

"This tea should relax you while we talk," Zack explained before sipping his one. And with a satisfied soft moan coming from his lips, the fox Faunus placed his tea onto the coffee table. "Now then, I heard from your daughter that you have some questions for me, and I will do my best to answer them all. So, what can I help you with?"

With a quick glance and a nod, the chieftain and chieftess of Menagerie began asking their questions. While most were basic information and involved what Zack knew of his ancestors and their history, which he didn't know much except what the Sisters of Twilight had told her, the fox Faunus started to show signs of unease regarding their gods and purpose.

Blake noticed her friend's uncomfortable look when her parents asked why his tail was much larger than an ordinary Faunus, but before she could help him, her fellow Faunus friend spoke first. "My tail, huh? I suppose it'll eventually come to this." Zack sighed as he held up his right arm to show the extensive tattoo of a fox travelling from the back of his hand and up his arm. And momentarily, the tattoo's eyes flicked violet for a millisecond.

Despite how quickly it came and left, it was bright enough for every single Faunus in the living room to notice. "The main reason is this big is because I'm physically changing by magic," Zack explained before Ilia spoke up.

"Magic?"

"This is a terrible idea. Are you sure you wish to tell them this?" Ozpin's voice echoed in the fox Faunuses' mind.

"Not that I got a choice. Eventually, people will know of my existence, and there's so much I could do to hide it with the physical changes I'm beginning to develop. Besides, I trust them four to keep the secret until it is time. Though perhaps Sun is questionable at best."

"Yes. Magic. I have met the Gods who created our people. And this," Zack says as his eyes focus on his right arm. "It symbolises that I am marked by them. They call themselves the Sisters of Twilight. They are our creators and have been watching over us from the start. We Arakans are unique to any other Faunus because we can gain more than one animal trait due to our unique bond with them." The fox Faunus explained right as Sun blinked before staring at his tea and looking back.

"You sure you're not making this up? Because it sounds like you're making all that stuff up, dude." Yet, that earned a soft laugh from Zack, who nodded his head in agreement. It does sound absolutely absurd to first-timers.

"Ha. Hahaha. I won't blame you. I didn't know the significance of my heritage until months ago when the Sisters spoke to me when I was unconscious… My mother didn't have the opportunity to tell me this. But I know for sure that this is just the beginning, and the changes I will go through will continue in the coming months."

What makes you say that?" Ghira asked next with no effort to show emotion.

"When I spoke to one of our Gods, she told me that I will undergo five stages before I become a Kitsune Faunus. One of several unique species of Faunus that only Arakans like myself can evolve into. And I'm approaching stage two, according to her." Zack sighed softly, while Kali let out an intrigued hum.

"How interesting. Related to our Gods, what are they, and what is our purpose? Our people have always believed that our history is still unfolding, and the reason for our purpose is yet to be found. Perhaps you know what they are?" Blake's mother asked next while her daughter visibly gulped.

"Who they are and our purpose, huh?" Zack seemingly stared out before returning to reality and lifting two fingers. "There's two of them in the Sisters of Twilight, AWOR and Ishmael." The fox Faunus paused for a moment as his guests absorbed it.

"AWOR is the heart of Remnant. She is the manifestation of this world we call our home. Her sister Ishmael is the shattered moon above, and we were created with one single purpose: to help humanity survive in this world as equals and not slaves or second-class citizens."

Silence overtook the living room as every Faunus in the room except Blake and Zack took the time to process everything he had said. The idea that Remnant and the shattered moon are their God

"We were made to help Humanity as equals? Why?! They discriminate against us for our looks. Why are we created to help them?" Ilia points out with a frown while her skin turns red for a moment while the Fox Faunus nods his head.

"I want to answer your question, Ilia. But now's not the time yet. Perhaps you and the rest of the world will know the reason in the future." Zack said before picking up his cup and taking a sip of tea. "But I can tell you have something else you wish to ask me?" Zack raised an eyebrow at the chameleon Faunus, who looked at everyone as they nodded back. Taking a breath in, she spoke.

"Yes… I request your assistance subduing the remaining White Fang loyal to Adam, Arakan." Ilia explains, while Zack could only blink in response. He hadn't expected this kind of request, though, in hindsight, this could be an excellent chance to hunt down the remaining radicals and Adam himself.

Of course, the fox Faunus was unaware that the Sisters already had plans for the bull Faunus.

"I'm surprised you needed my help with them. I thought all of them were arrested days back in the Battle of Haven." He finally responds after bringing himself back from surprise.

"This is true," Ilia confirms. "However, stragglers did escape the battle and fled to their cells, and if we are to allow Mr Belladonna to rebuild the Fang, the remaining extremists will need to be arrested." The chameleon Faunus explained while Zack leaned back with his hand on his chin. Glancing at Blake, he could see that the cat Faunus had a sheepish look on her face, as if she played a part in having Ilia ask him for help.

If he were to think about it, this might work in his favour now.

"If I accept and help, is it alright to bring some friends along? I'm sure some will volunteer to come along and help out." Zack offered an idea, while Blake blinked. He wants to bring either her team or JNR to help hunt for the remnants of the White Fang extremist? What is he planning?

"The more the merrier if you were to ask me," Sun added with his hands behind his head, while the fox Faunus simply smiled at Ilia, who glanced at Blake's parents. Though they didn't seem to mind it at all, judging by the looks they were giving to the fox Faunus. "Anyway, we could use their help! They're one of the best teams back in Beacon!"

Sun continues adding in more praises before Ilia comes to a conclusion. She could use more help despite them leaving in two weeks. And by the time that happens, the operation should be done by then.

"I see no harm if you trust them." She mutters back with a hum while Zack claps his hands with a smile.

"Wonderful. I understand your hesitance, but team RWBY and JNR are good people. They can get the job done. As will, I." The fox Faunus rests his hand on his chest confidently before bringing his attention back to the Belladonnas.

"Is there anything else you wish to ask me?" Zack tilts his head to the side, though neither the Belladonnas nor Ilia said anything. But Sun has one.

"You know, I'd like to have a go at you?"

"Pardon?"

"I want to have a spar with you since you look like a fighter, you know?" Sun says while folding his arms. On the other hand, Blake was understandably concerned about her Faunus friend going into another episode and was about to protest when he spoke.

"I… see no issue with that. I will eventually need to get back into the rhythm after staying away from it for a while." The fox Faunus explained.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Blake asked with concern right as Zack nodded at her. He had to. If nothing else, to speed up his recovery from his mental trauma of Cinder. The fox Faunus had friends looking out for him, after all.

"Yeah. How about the three of you? Will you stay to watch us spar?"

Ghira gave a slight bow. "It will be an honour to watch you spar."

"I agree!"

"Why not? It should be interesting to watch."

Though Blake remained silent, she simply nodded her head. "Well then, I'll see you at the rear patio in about thirty minutes, Sun. I need some time to prepare my gear."

And with that, Zack took his leave while Blake took over and brought them around the hotel she and her friends were staying in.

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Zack POV

Turns out, Sun wasn't quiet about our planned spar thirty minutes later, and he pretty much announced it to everyone living in this bloody building. Much to my exasperation for his decision.

And as expected from my friends, all of them expressed their protests and worry about my decision. Even Oz protested and voiced his concerns about my decision. But… I've agreed to this spar and upheld my end of the bargain. Though… having Ruby suddenly hug me from the back while I was in the process of putting on my gear caught me off guard, and so was her whining worryingly about my mental state and how I shouldn't push myself in an awkward position.

Even Weiss joined and voiced her disapproval of my decision personally, all while Ruby was still hugging me in that pose.

Nevertheless, I managed to convince the ladies to let me do it, and they, alongside everyone else, can watch the spar with our guests. However, the thing that caught me off guard was how Ruby and Weiss both expressed their worry since yesterday, ever since my episode. I'm… still ashamed of that incident that nearly resulted in me punching Ruby, and I only wish not to think about it.

Even now, I did my best to never look into her eyes. I remember my friends calling me out, only to see that my fist was an inch away from her face. I was so close…

And I get it. I wasn't the same after the Battle for Haven, and they worried about my mental state. But I can't afford to let my pain hold me back, especially when there's more that must be done to hopefully avoid the oncoming fate of everyone I grew to care about.

Honestly, having the knowledge of what could happen is a blessing. And a curse.

When I arrived at the rear patio, everyone was already waiting there while Sun was in the middle with Ruyi Bang and Jingu Bang in his hands. A Nunchaku shotgun that can turn into a staff. If I remember the details correctly, Sun prefers using his staff defensively while using his Nunchaku offensively.

And the shotgun part. Can't forget that, either. That gun will fuck me up if he gets a good shot like Yang whenever she lands a perfect hit on me. It's not pretty, I can tell ya.

Another thing I noticed was the wariness my friends displayed on their faces. I get it. I appear to be pretending that the problem doesn't exist, but… I'm not. I just don't want to think about it now, and we have time to address it at a later date. For now, I just want to focus on something else besides my pain.

Like getting a chance at the monkey Faunus himself. Seriously, though, I could never understand why he would go without a shirt. I get it that Aura protects us and not to bitch about it, but what happens if your aura breaks? You'll be fucked at that point without proper protection. Jaune had the right idea with some additional protection on the vial parts of his body.

Come to think about it. I should get some armour or something. Like hell I want that to happen again!

Making my way to the middle of the rear patio, Sun whistles upon seeing all the gear I had on me. "Sweet gear you have there!" At times, it feels like I've gone overboard, but I like being versatile in combat and can change tactics on the fly. And with the addition of my semblance, well… I have a feeling I can deal with most Grimm threats well enough.

"Thanks! Made most of them with some help from them." I couldn't help but smile at Sun's enthusiasm before jabbing my thumb at my friends watching me from the side. "So, first to red or aura break?" I then changed the topic and asked my fellow Faunus as he shrugged.

"How about red first? I don't want to hurt you too badly. Blake mentioned something horrible happened to you recently. She didn't talk much about it out of respect for you."

"Really?" My eyes and tail unconsciously perked up. "Well, I don't want to talk about it. The memory still stings badly, you know? But thanks, we can go red." I said before offering Sun a fist bump. It's the same one that I remember seeing used in UFC matches. Man, those were entertaining…

Of course, I have forgotten that such things don't really exist on Remnant. "What are you doing?" Sun blankly stared at me while I could see his tail scratching his head, confused as to what I was doing. You're making me look like an idiot over here, buddy.

For a moment, I could feel the stares of everyone on me before Ozpin whispered. "What are you doing?" Without saying a word, I sent him a memory of UFC fighters touching gloves before they began.

"That. It is a way of showing respect and sportsmanship to an opponent before the round begins."

"I see…" Ozpin hums with interest at my explanation. The next moment, I can feel him peering into my memories, besides that.

"Fighters respect before we begin Sun. Come on, please don't leave me hanging. It's getting awkward." I muttered before I saw an amused look coming from Sun.

"Really now?" He grinned while I confirmed what I said earlier.

"Yeah."

Sun proceeded to fist-bump me, and with that, we both did a one-eighty turn and walked a few paces. By the time we turned, both of us drew our weapons. Ruyi Bang and Jingu Bang versus Oathkeeper. Clearly, one has a flashier name than the other.

I silently watched as Sun changed Ruyi Bang and Jingu Bang into their staff form exactly when I did the same and changed Oathkeeper into its polearm mode before doing a flashy twirl with it and then holding it in one hand because I could. And from what I could tell from his expression, Sun seemed amused by me.

Activating my shield and getting into our stance, Sun and I stared at each other for a minute before we charged and swung our weapons at each other. All heard a loud clang as our weapons clashed against one another while cheering from my friends could be heard in the background.

Then, Sun disengaged from me and did a broad, low sweep while I performed a backflip to avoid his attack before thrusting Oathkeeper at my opponent. Time seemed to slow as I could see his eyes widening while Oathkeeper barely missed his face by an inch or two. However, my fellow Faunus recovered quickly when he kicked his staff down while making it knock my weapon up into the sky and made me stumble in the process.

"Shit!" I cursed out right as Sun did a spin kick to my face. Thankfully, I reacted fast enough to bring my shield up, though the force of his kick did send me skiing metres back away from him. And for a moment, I saw Cinder! But she disappeared from my eyes and was replaced with Sun, moving in to attack with Ruyi Bang and Jingu Bang in their Nunchaku form.

Hissing at my hesitation because of a sudden phantom Cinder, I activated the Dust within Oathkeeper as fire began to coat the blade. At the same time, I fired a shard of ice from my gauntlet at Sun, who jumped out of the way as it exploded in a cloud of ice. Now, in the air, my fellow Faunus began unloading shotgun rounds while I dodged them before we clashed again in the middle.

The next few minutes followed a dance of clashes, punches and kicks against Sun and me, with neither of us gaining the advantage just yet. Though I will never say this out loud, it feels good to get the blood pumping again. However, that excitement was tempered by the occasional Cinder appearing before my eyes. Gods, I hate it so much!

Why won't she leave me alone?

"Not bad, and none of us had used our semblance yet. How about we ramp this up?" I suggest while my fellow Faunus agreed with me with his boast.

"Hah! You're on!" He laughs before I shove Sun back and send waves of fire at him. And as expected, Sun easily dodged them. Unfortunately for him, I could sense the activated Dust within those fire waves, and as soon as they passed him, I brought my hand out before yanking back at me.

And with the given result, those fire waves became flaming swords from behind, much to Sun's shock that I could do that. While he managed to avoid most of my sudden attacks as they pierced the ground, one nicked him in the arms enough for me to close in the distance and land a haymaker directly to his bare chest.

A chuckle escaped my lips as Sun took off from the ground and flew into the air. With a short reprieve, I raised my hand, and the fire swords began to gather in my hand, form a fireball, and throw it at my opponent. Though he saw that coming and with his staff, Sun quickly dispersed that fireball I threw at him, during which he landed on the ground.

"What kind of semblance is that?!" Sun yelled out while I chuckled and pulled Rock Dust from my jacket while glancing at our audience. And I could see the look of intrigue from Blake's parents as well as Ilia, who were watching me closer.

"Dust manipulation, my friend." I couldn't help but feel a bit arrogant at how broken and versatile my Semblance is. "With it, I can manipulate Dust, as you can no doubt see just now. And if required, I can use the properties of whatever Dust I absorb to my advantage." I explained while Sun laughed.

"Yeah! You got me good there!" He yells with vigour before I notice that his hair and tail are starting to glow yellow. Within the next second, two copies of himself popped out of him while I began draining the rock Dust floating in my hand after sheathing Oathkeeper.

As I did, I started to see something covering my tail, and with a brief look, I could see that most of my tail was covered in a layer of purplish rock. The thing is, it's heavy, and it feels as if I have several weights on my tail. It is not a great feeling, I will say.

"That doesn't look pleasant." Sun says before he and his clones charge at me. Alright, it's time to see what this baby can do!

With a stomp of my feet, I felt stone begin to cover my body, leaving only an opening for my eyes while I brought my hands to the side and commanded for a pair of blades. And they did manifest in the form of two purple crystal blades. And with a bellowing war cry of my own, I charged straight for Sun as he fired at me, only for us to be surprised when his bullets bounced off me harmlessly!

Wow. I did not see that coming. Did I seriously become a juggernaut with Rock Dust?

Sun's clones came right at me at once I clashed with himself while his clones attempted to hit me from behind. But I saw it coming as I ducked underneath it and sent a low kick to his clone. However, it appears that Sun isn't going to let that happen as he clonks me over the head, but nothing happens. Guess he needs more force to go through them.

Though… It is getting increasingly difficult to react to anything with all this additional weight on me. Because of this, Sun had an easier time avoiding my slashes while trying to aim for the opening, though with no success so far.

I guess this is a trade-off between increased durability at the cost of speed and reaction time. Unless…

He even got lucky and managed to shatter my blades right before I jumped back, and I extended my hand out with a mental image of me commanding the rocks on my arms to fly straight at Sun's clone. And it worked beyond expectations! Shrapnel-like rock fragments that covered my right arm shot out at the rate of a machine gun and forced my fellow Faunus to get out of the way les he gets peppered by hundreds of rock fragments.

But this notably left my right arm and aura exposed, which I learned rather painfully when he shot my arm! A hiss of pain came out of my lips before I launched more rock fragments out at Sun, though it appeared that he couldn't keep up his clone any longer as they began to fade from existence. Still, I wasn't doing any better because I started burning through my aura fast.

"Neither of us can keep this up. I got to end this now." My thoughts rang before I commanded my rock armour to peel off my body and condense into a more suitable armour that allowed me to move quickly. Though I now had stone-plated armour over my torso, arms, legs and a headpiece on my face. In addition, I decided to take a book out of the Dai Li in the form of rock gloves.

Pulling Oathkeeper out from its sheath again, I yelled out. "I think this spar has gone on for too long, don't you think?"

"Yeah! You're not looking too hot!"

"I could say the same about you!" I laughed before getting into my stance despite the creeping exhaustion. "How about we end this right here?"

"You bet!" Sun grinned before we let out one last yell while we charged one last time alongside the cheers of our friends in the background. Sun had his Nunchakus out and swung at me, while I had Oathkeeper in sword mode blocking his assault. With my palm open, I slammed my left hand into his chest before Sun kneed me and did a backflip kick to my face, which really hurt!

"Ow!" I hissed out in pain before dodging an oncoming shot from him while I countered by thrusting my hand out and launching my rock glove at Sun. And it worked! My fellow Faunus gasped when my rock glove caught him by the foot and pinned him to the ground before I thrust out the other and pinned his other foot to the ground.

"Hey, that's cheating!" He cried out as I was rewarded with a humorous sight of Sun struggling to pull his legs free from the patio to no avail. Perhaps I was feeling a bit sadistic, but I couldn't help but flick my finger as parts of my rock armour flew out of me and pinned Sun to the floor by the arms, chest and legs.

"Oh, come on!" I heard him whining while I picked up laughter from Nora and several others. Heh.

"Guess that's a gg right there." I failed to stifle a chuckle from my lips while sheathed Oathkeeper away before finding myself in front of Sun, who was still pinned to the ground.

By the time Sun noticed me in front of him, he was giving me the driest look I've ever seen before coming from him. "I don't know what a gg is, but can you get them off me?" I watched as he signalled to his bounded limbs with his eyes before I heard my friends rushing towards me.

"It means good game, Sun," I said before snapping my fingers, and in an instant, all the rocks holding Sun onto the ground crumbled into dust, freeing him. "You're a good fighter, you know?" I continued before offering him a hand, which he took before I pulled him back up.

"Yeah. I can say the same about you. I mean, your semblance is more powerful than what I thought when you did that fire attack of yours." My fellow Faunus said before I heard something fluttering, and the next thing I knew, everything became a blur when someone slammed behind me!

We tumbled for a bit before I realised I was on the ground with Ruby on top of me! What's with you crash-hugging me all the time? We need to stop finding ourselves in this kind of situation! Also, you're unusually close to me, Ruby, so some personal space will be appreciated!

"That was so awesome!" Ruby had a big smile, and for a moment, I swore I saw her silver eyes shining at me. Even before I could utter a word, the shadows of everyone else loomed over me and Ruby right before we heard Yang speaking.

"Tch tch tch. What are you doing, Ruby? I didn't know you had it for our foxy friend." Yang said with a grin as Ruby turned red in the face as she zipped off me.

"Yang! It's not like that!" Ruby cried out while Yang laughed. At the same time, I found myself back on my feet, thanks to Sun pulling me up before I continued where I left off before Ruby slammed into me.

"Anyway, as I was about to say before Ruby interrupted me, Dust manipulation is also a hereditary Semblance. It's kinda like the Schnees and their glyphs." And speaking of the Schnees, I could see Weiss walking in with the same notebook she had earlier. And I can tell she was impressed by what I could do using rock Dust earlier.

"Oh look. Ice Queen's here." Sun pointed out before Weiss let out a hey while I rolled my eyes.

"I prefer Snow Princess. Fits her better." I muttered to myself before Weiss walked into my view. Though for a moment, I swore I saw Sun's eyebrows perk up slightly for reasons beyond me.

"I assume you learned some stuff from earlier?" I asked while Weiss nodded her head.

"Yes, I can say that. Could you explain some of the details of what happened during your spar?" Weiss asked before I shrugged in response.

"Sure, we can do that later."

And with that, the rest of the day was spent resting alongside our guests or working with Ilia on who would come with me and where we were going once we leave to finish the remaining extremist element of the White Fang. In addition, I am working on making a new emblem for myself and recording the results of my Semblance with Weiss.

Oh, right. And fixing the door team RWBY and JNR (Minus Nora) broke and working with Yang to plan for Ruby's birthday.

And by the end of the day, I could only collapse and pass out entirely on my bed. Little did I know, the next few days hunting for the remnants of the White Fang extremist would bring up questions.

Even more with Adam in particular.