The Third Wielder Of The Holy Sword - 13

Disclaimer: This is a work of fan fiction based on multiple existing anime/manga series. The characters and settings used in this story belong to their respective owners and creators, and no copyright infringement is intended. This story is purely for entertainment purposes and is not intended to infringe upon any existing intellectual property. I do not own any of the original works that inspired this fanfiction, and I fully support the original creators and their works.

I'm also occasionally chilling in JaxWolf4's (Author of Nah, I'd Adapt and Zenin Days) Discord Server. It's a chaotic lobotomy mess. Not for the faint of heart.

Here's the link:

Disc: HrPrTeam

KOKUSEN?

-Story Start-

The door was shut with a foreboding slam as two men exited an apartment, donning thin, troubled lines on their faces.

An older man and a young man with a brilliant blade attached at his side - their eyes were immediately greeted by the sight of the opposing three-story apartment complex and the staircase just before them, leading downwards into a narrow street with a moderate stream of people walking by.

The stand-out feature was that most of them were Faunus, and their eyes lingered for but a few moments on the eye-catching light that suddenly walked out of an unassuming apartment.

Accompanied by a curious murmur, simple disdain, or indifference, the usual passerby kept to themselves and walked off, not before a theory was conducted in their mind in connection with the uniformed individual stationed just below the staircase.

Uniformed men don't bode well these days for the Faunus.

Alex, leading the march forward, went down the stairs, his steps heavy as the steel stairs rang like bells at his every step.

Following him and adding to the cacophony of metallic racket, Professor Port's uneasy complexion was given voice. "Young man, I must confirm. Are you truly intent on murdering her should she rashly request such an act?"

Before Alex could respond, Professor Port added, "First, I will direct the anguished mother to the officer." His voice gained strength, "While I consider your resolve admirable, reminding me of my youth. I am vehemently against you committing such a crime, especially when she can be saved."

Heaving a sigh and slowing down his descent down the stairs, Alex turned his head to meet Professor Port's gaze with a stoic, determined line on his face, "If, after thinking it through, she still calls me... I'll do it."

"Maybe it'll be worth it to live. Maybe it won't. From experience, I know it sucks to be denied rest. So... who am I to stop someone who truly wants to die?"

Nodding, he mentioned with tight lips, admitting, "It's purely selfish, hell, I might've made things worse by coming here to apologize to make things right as I saw it."

"Regardless, I don't care if she does herself in or not. But for my mess up, if requested, I have to bear the burden." He genuinely requested, "Please allow me to do what I have to do if it comes to it, Professor."

[You are an ignorant and insensitive fool, Master. However, to give credit where credit is due, there is a modicum of courage and nobility in that disobedient soul of yours. A by-product of your proximity to Excalibur, no doubt.]

Disregarding the vermin's nonsense, Alex met Professor Port's deep frown.

A simple statement leaving the Professor's lips, "That is quite..." he had trouble putting it into words, "the despondent outlook, Mister Andrite." He almost levelled a look of pity, wondering what the young man had experienced to have such an outlook.

"It works for me." He shrugged, pressing on in his path down the stairs, his eyes gravitating towards the easygoing figure of their little guide.

Leaning on the cold steel railing at the bottom of the staircase, clad in the Vale Police signature uniform and hat concealing a green forest of hair, he listlessly gazed at the dimming orange sky with a puff of smoke from his cigar, being swept by a thin breeze.

Recognizing his two curious wards by the footsteps, the policeman knowingly inquired without turning his head or batting an eye, "How'd the talk go, and do I have to take any of you two to the hospital?" He sighed, stating with a rather cynical amusement in his tone, "Hell hath no fury like a mother bereaved; there's no shortage of them even here in Vale."

Taking yet another puff of his cigar, his eyes narrowed at the two familiar figures that had appeared in his line of sight as they stood in front of him, "Though I have to admit, trying to apologize to a grieving mother when you are the one responsible for his death, White Fang scum or not, takes some serious gall."

The policeman scoffed, his sharp gaze sparkling with amusement, "Oh, and a considerable lack in brain cells, too."

Professor Port's tone was measured and professional: "Mister Grey, instead of making inconsiderate and pointless offhanded comments, would you care to do your job and tend to the grieving mother on the verge of taking her own life?"

Grey's calm and amused exterior hadn't faltered even in that rather dire request as he pushed himself off the railing to stand to his full height, a full head taller than both Alex and Professor Port, "I'm afraid I'm a bit overqualified for that, my job isn't to take care of some wailing White Fang Broodmother."

"Then why are you here?" Port's tone sobered up from it's professionalism and turned sharp, dangerous.

His aura fluttered, and as if carefully controlled, the air turned thick and heavy.

It was a facet of the silly Professor Port that Alex had never seen before.

It almost made him believe some of the stories from Port's glory days as a Huntsman, as his amber eyes widened marginally.

Unfazed, Grey took out his cigar and pointed at the aloof and indifferent figure of Alex with it:

"To monitor that thing." He stated with the toothiest grin.

He tilted his head, inquiring with a complete lack of tact or professionalism, "You are a thing, right?"

"Cause the stuff I've seen and heard about you? Sheesh." He waved his hand with a genuine sweatdrop.

"Sure." Alex agreed without a single change of expression.

"But now I'm worried, you see. This little debacle clues me in that you are, in fact, somewhat Human, at least in terms of behavior."

"Do not answer his-"

"As far as I can tell, that is the case, yes. Though, why is that a problem, exactly?" Alex nodded once more.

As if awaiting that singular question, the smiling Grey supplied, "It'd be far easier if you were a thing. Forces of nature are unbeatable, but they're pretty simple to circumvent. As you know, Ghoramu has a specific path and cycle, trade and travel adapt to his natural way of behavior that has not changed for millennia or so."

"But a Human force of nature? See, our new boss is rather jumpy with that kind of possibility, no hard feelings, right?"

As Alex was processing the meaning and insinuation for a good minute, Port seized the opportunity to retort, "You will be asking no more questions. Alex Andrite is a student of Beacon Academy and a minor-"

Grey waved him off, "But we're just having a friendly conversation, right? I'm sharing my thoughts and worries, and he's free to answer or ignore me as per his wishes. Don't be so stingy, old man."

Nodding, Alex replied to Grey's words with an unconcerned expression, "I get it, there's no hard feelings about it. Just be reasonable, and I'll do my best to be reasonable as well."

Blinking, Grey bizarrely tapped his chin with his lit cigar, humming, "Hmm, so it's like that, huh?"

Alex blinked as well, simply nodding along, "It's like that."

Chuckling, Grey put an end to the conversation, "Well, sounds good to me. You get a whopping 6.5 out of 10 from me, Ozpin's pocket monster!" He jested, adding, "The pretty sword adds like another 1 point simply for giving me odd butterflies in the stomach just by looking at that museum piece."

"Excalibur." Alex asserted with a devoted tone.

"Another 0.5 points for the cool name, didn't think a dull-face like you had it in you."

He turned around and started strolling past the tiny crowd that was forming from the stand-out occupants.

Ignoring the looks, he added, "Between the three of us? I'm supposed to be monitoring you for the rest of your stay in the city, but take this as a gesture of good faith from lil old me."

Without further prompting, the eccentric police officer, if that was his real ranking in any case, confidently strode off, disappearing into the crowd of the narrow street filled with glaring Faunus.

Eye-twitching, Port admitted with genuine fumes, "Not even a month with Headmaster Ozpin out of the picture, and the Police Force is filled with incompetence!" With that said, he began dialing his scroll to get help for the mourning mother.

Alex voiced his genuine opinion on the man, "He's a bit of an asshole isn't he?"

[Pot calling the kettle black.]

"Insensitive is the more accurate term, Mister Andrite." Port venomously corrected, hiding not a fraction of his scorn for the odd cop.

...

As the sound of Port's scroll ringing filled the silence between student and teacher, Port offered, "Before we head back to Beacon, we still have time to spare. As I am a firm believer in positive reinforcement for my students, for your good effort, would you like to have dinner? It will be my treat."

'What am I? A dog?' was a thought that passed through his mind for but an instant.

On the next instant, the sudden suggestion of food awakened his supernaturally healthy appetite and eliminated any semblance of pride in his being.

"You're treating? For real?" Alex asked with a bit more emotion in his prior lifeless tone.

"Hahaha! Of course, I have a reputation to keep!"

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

Alex and Professor Port found themselves in a rustic steakhouse nestled between the Commercial District and Residential Area, housing the segregated suspected Faunus just past a bridge over the flowing river.

The place was rather packed, and the sounds of conversation, laughter, coupled with a saliva-inducing smell of smoked meats, permeated the air.

The glances here were fewer than around the streets, but Excalibur was as eye-catching as always.

But, ignoring the odd looks, the other source of attention was the five empty plated and four wooden cutting boards that formerly housed prime cuts of meat.

Only one of those plates belonged to Professor Port, by the way.

Now, being the one who so proudly proclaimed himself as the one to pay for this hefty feast - a feast mostly single-handedly conducted by a boy of 17; one would expect Port to be rather distraught, shocked, or perhaps dismayed.

Incorrect.

Port's boisterous, haughty laughter reverberated in the restaurant, "HAHAHAHA! Eat up, young man! So you'll grow big and strong like me! HAHAHAHAHAHA!"

It appeared, at least for appearances' sake, that Port's pockets ran deep.

Ozpin pays well indeed.

"Mhm, thanks." Alex genuinely thanked with a thumbs-up as he gnawed on a whole beef rib.

Fiddling with a proud mustache, Port voiced his honest thoughts, "You deserve it, young man. Eat and cheer up, you did well enduring the last of the two visits. I had not expected such an alarming reaction. It is both a blessing and a curse that some naivete remains in these old bones."

Agreeing with Port's opinion, Alex mentioned, "With Mister Antoine, it was being thrown out of the house. Then again, I don't think you can compare a single, lonely mother with a big, happy family of ten with one bad apple."

"Undoubtedly, the diversity in reaction is understandable. Nonetheless, you had handled it bravely, stand proud, young man."

"Not really, but okay, thanks." Alex didn't seem to agree with the whole taking pride in it, but took the praise.

And so, he simply continued to listlessly gnaw on the empty bone.

Knowing that no matter how much or how hard he tried to scrape off the remnants of meat from the hollow bone.

Knowing that no matter how much he further damaged it, worsening its pristine condition, looking for something that wasn't there.

His hunger will never be satiated by an empty act.

But to him?

It still had meaning.

To Be Continued!

-Author Note Start-

Apologies for the short chapter, but I'm a wee bit tired.

The following few chapters are going to be on a more chill and considerably less depressing note, so don't ya'll worry about it.

Alex's slice of school hunter whatever the fk title I used to call it, is coming back pretty soon.

LOL.

Love ya and bye-bye for now!