Byzan, small bags under his eyes, rests a hand on his chin as he listens to Ash's lecture. Rose sits next to him with a smile as she listens to her older cousin.

  "Now-" Ash puts his hands behind his back and walks back and fourth in the front. "I know the dance is in a couple and you have a mission on Monday, that could take up to several days. So I'll be nice and not assign any homework tonight, but I can't say what my fellow Professors may do. But tomorrow will be a study hall, so you all can either catch up on any csses, finish homework, or do what ever the hell you want."

  Ash looks over all his students as the bell rings, signaling the end of css.

  "But do not sck off, for your mission may be really tough and stressful, so do try to get some sleep and get some practice in. Css Dismissed."

  Byzan walks as he stretches slightly like a cat before his ears twitch. He leaves the css room with Rose slightly behind him.

  Rose looks rather nervous as she shifts around as she follows the cat Faunus. "Um, Byzz?" She speaks up.

  Byzan stops and gnces back at his teammate with a smile. "Yes, Rosie?"

  Rose sweats heavily, making Byzan raise an eyebrow. "U-h-h-h... Um! Wo-Would you like t-t-to accompany me-"

  "Byzz!" Yang suddenly appears behind him.

  "Goldie!" Byzan chuckles as he turns around, making Rose slightly growl in annoyance. "Whatcha need? Oh, are you here to ask me to the dance?" He smirks and leans towards Yang. "I must say, I think you should ask Bke first~"

  "Naw, I'm not here for that sadly." Yang states. "Look, I need your help to try and get Bke to come to the dance. So-" A ser pointer is shover right into her face.

  "Here, you'll need this." Byzan winks.

  Yang grabs the object and looks at it in confusion. "A ser.... pointer?"

  "Cat Faunus are indeed a lot like real cats, we like shinny objects, naps, the sun and fish. And also ser pointers." He gets real close to Yang and whispers. "Don't tell anyone else okay?"

  "...Right. But what am I-"

  "Use it on Bke, to bring her over to you, drag her into a room and force her to talk. Get a little rough if you have to, and try to tell her something personal."

  Yang rubs her chin and nods. "I think I have an idea. Thanks, Byzz!" She runs off.

  "Any time!" Byzan ughs and turns to Rose, who looks rather unhappy. "So, what were you saying?"

  "Nothing." Rose walks off in a huff.

  Byzan looks at her in confusion, then looks around as he grows more confused. "Did.... Did I do something?" He grows even more confused. "Rosie!" He runs after her.

  At the end of the day Byzan is in the dorm shuffling through a pouch that holds his supplies to make his Deadly Nightshade drink. He pulls out a few sheets of paper and a couple pencils. As he sets them on his bed something falls out from between the pages and nds on the floor.

  Byzan purrs in question and looks down, he picks it up and stares at the photo.

  In the photo is a much younger, boyish looking, Byzan, along with his sister Bke. They're both smiling at the camera as they hold up fists to the sky.

  Byzan smiles as he puts a hand on the front of the photo. But then he frowns as memories start to flood in. A memory that takes pce a week after this photo is taken.

  Baxterbro

  Smoke raises in the sky as a rge house is engulfed in fmes. Blood drips off a bck katana as someone stands a few meters away from the house.

  A teddy bear burns in the entrance of the house as a small hand, unmoving hand, clutches onto it from within the burning fmes. The crackle of the fire echoes as a few crashes are heard from within the house as it starts to fall apart.

  A pair of amber eyes stare, slightly shaking, at the burning house.

  A young Byzan clenches onto his katana as dark red blood drips off it and onto the grass below. A white Grimm mask, with blood covering it, is at his feet. His jaw is slightly dropped, before he clenches his teeth.

  Part of the roof caves in on the house with a cloud crack, fmes pouring out of the new hole. A couple burning photos fly out from a second floor window, showing a human Mother, a Faunus Father and two faunus daughters smiling at a camera before the photo burns away.

  Byzan then looks down at his red stained hands and weapon. He drops his weapon on the ground and clenches his fists in anger.

  "Byzan!" A new voice calls out as someone approaches the cat.

  Byzan gnces to the side to see his friend Adam Taurus approach him, blood covering part of his white Grimm mask.

  "Adam..." Byzan mutters.

  "We must go." Adam orders. "The authorities will be arriving soon."

  Adam turns to leave, but Byzan suddenly speaks up.

  "Why... Why did we have to do this?" Byzan asks.

  Adam turns around, with a frown. "We do not allow traitors to live. It had to be done."

  "But... he had a family... They were innocent."

  Adam slowly approaches Byzan. "A traitor will only breed more traitors. They could no be allowed to live." He picks up Byzan's bloody Grimm mask and puts it on the cat's face, and roughly shoves Byzan's katana onto his chest. "This is how we do things now, Byzan. So shut up and follow orders. Lisa doesn't question, so neither should you. Now let's go."

  Adam walks off and Byzan gnces at the burning house and sees the front entrance colpse. He grits his teeth and cleans the blood off his weapon and puts it on his back before following after Adam.

  Night arrives hours ter and Byzan's in a tent, putting stuff in a bag. He's moving pretty fast as he rushes around the room, grabbing stuff and putting it in the bag. When suddenly someone opens the tent fp.

  "Byzz?" Bke enters Byzan's tent, causing him to sigh as he sets the st object in his pack. "What are you doing?"

  Byzan closes his pack up. "I'm leaving Bkey..." He throws the bag onto his shoulder and turns to his sister.

  "Leaving?" She struts over to her brother. "What do you mean, leaving. You're leaving me?" She grows worried.

  Byzan puts a hand on Bke's cheeks. "I promise to come back, okay."

  "But-" Bke starts to tear up.

  "Bkey, I can't be around this anymore. And I want... I want to explore the world."

  "Without me?"

  Byzan smiles. "It'll just be a little while okay, I can't be protected by you all the time. I have to be my own person."

  "I want to be your shield though." Bke grabs onto Byzan's arm. "Please, don't leave."

  "I'm leaving, Bkey, please don't make this harder then it needs to be."

  Bke grits her teeth and turns away from her brother. "Fine. Just... Just go."

  "Thank you." Byzan heads over to the entrance of the tent. "Look, I shouldn't be too long, I just want to see a little of the world."

  "You... promise to come back, right?" Bke doesn't look at her brother.

  "I already promised, didn't I?" Byzan opens up the fp. "See you ter, Bkey. I'll be back."

  With that Byzan heads off, leaving her sister behind. She curls her hands into fists before sitting on the ground, sniffling

  ---

  "Byzan?" Ambré calls out from her bed.

  Byzan shakes his head as he sets the picture back in his bag. "Sorry, just getting lost in memories." He climbs onto his bed, his other teammates on their beds.

  "So, we have the songs pnned out, but not how we're gonna py them." Maize speaks up.

  "We're only pying three songs?" Rose asks in questions as she looks at the papers in her hands.

  "Well, I figured you guys wanted to get some dancing in, so I figured three songs were enough." Byzan holds up his scroll. "I have a pylist set up for the rest."

  Ambré nods, then speaks up. "This sounds good." She reads a paper. "What's a Shamisen?"

  "Oh, it's a Mistranese instrument. My music mentor taught me how to py it, only with every other instrument I know how to py."

  "Do we even have one of those here?" Maize asks.

  Byzan hops off his bed. "Yup! Come on guys, I'll show you!"

  Byzan walks out of the room and his team follows. They all head to the music css room and enter a massive storage room full of instruments from all over the world.

  Byzan walks off to the side and grabs a three stringed instrument. "Here we go." He shows the girls the instrument.

  "Wow, such a strange instrument." Maize looks it over.

  Ambré turns to her sister. "Rose, want to help me get the cases for our instruments?"

  Rose smiles and nods. "Sure!"

  The two sister walk out of the storage room as Byzan slightly tunes his instrument. Maize leans back as she watches the two sisters leave and makes sure they're gone.

  "Sooo...." Maize states. "Byzz?"

  Byzan hums in question as he looks to the pinkette. "Yes, Pinky?"

  "Will you.... go to..." Maize gulps in nervousness. "Go to the dance with me?"

  Byzan grows a rather rge smirk. "Oh, Pinky, I didn't think you were so into me."

  Maize grows a rge blush. "Just answer the question!"

  Byzan puts a finger on his chin and hums in question, making Maize nervous. "Sure, why not."

  Maize smiles brightly. "Really?!"

  Bzyan nods with a smirk. "Yeah, I guess I have to dress up nice now."

  Maize hugs Byzan. "Thank you!"

  "It's just a dance, Pinky."

  "Not to me." Maize whispers.

  Outside the room Rose hides around the corner as she grits her teeth in anger as tears prick at the corner of her eyes. "How could you, Maize?" She whispers as a couple tear drip down her face. "You knew I wanted to ask him..."

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  06-13-2024

  1670 words