Atlas

Volume 7 Ep. 7 - One on One

Atlas Academy Dorms
Y/N

After granted our official huntsmen and huntresses license, everyone headed back to their respective dorms for the night. The wave of sleepiness hasn't washed over me yet. And, so, I decided that I would have myself a cup of coffee and do some small maintenance on Tyche.

Suddenly, I heard soft knocks at the door. 'Who could still be up? General? Qrow?' I asked myself. Putting down Tyche's dormant form, I walked over to the door and opened it to reveal Oscar, Ozpin's successor.

"Hey, Oscar. How come you're still up?" I greeted. "I could ask the same for you." He jokingly chided. A small smile formed as I let him into my room. "Can't sleep?" I ask him as I walk to my cup of coffee.

"I guess that's a way to explain it..." Oscar shyly replies. Turning around to face him, I noticed that the relic of knowledge hung from his belt. He played with his hands nervously in front of me. "Do you drink coffee?" I ask him, hoping to ease the tension.

"Uh...! I haven't had a cup before." He answers. "Well... it can't hurt to try, right?" I ask him with a small smile. He shyly nods as I went ahead and made a cup for him. "Please, relax. Oscar." I say motioning to my bed and my small table.

Turning away from my coffee table, I place the cup in front of him. "These are the sugar and cream to sweeten the coffee to your liking." I notion to the clear glasses in the middle. "Thank you." He lets out as he helped himself.

"So... what's the reason you came here?" I ask him as he stirs his cup. "I was a little hesitant in coming here, to tell you the truth." Oscar says before sipping his coffee. "The reason being is that... it was a favor from Ozpin." He says carefully.

I let his words sink in before finishing my cup. "And I'm guessing this was before he disappeared?" I ask him. He only nods as he takes out The Long Memory. I quietly watch as the butt of the weapon opens to reveal a small piece of folded paper.

He takes the paper and hands it to me. "He said that only you could read it. Nobody else should." Oscar tells me as he puts The Long Memory away. Confused, I unfurl the paper and read its contents.

Dear Y/N,

          I sincerely apologize for all of the lies. As you read this, you have already known what has happened and I have passed. Please take care of my successor while I'm away. There are many things that I should and must explain to you, but that will have to wait another time.

          I know I wasn't that great of a father figure to you, but I hope you learn from both my and others' mistakes. Please don't be like me. Don't hide anything from your friends. Don't feel the need to hide anything at all.

          This is as much as I can say to perfectly fit all of this on this piece of paper. I only wish for the best of you Y/N. I know I should have no say in this, but... it was destiny that formed a bond between me and you, my son.

Sincerely yours,
Ozpin

"I..." I drily let out before clearing my throat. "I will do my best to teach you, Oscar." I tell him with determination. "What?" Oscar lets out a little confused. "Don't worry about it. There was no context." I shook it off.

"So... how was your first cup of coffee?"

Next Day; Early Morning
Hospital

Instead of training first thing in the morning, I was escorted to the hospital together with General Ironwood. The hallway we walked through was tight on security. "Why are we here?" I ask him. "You'll see soon." He simply answers.

I eyed the numerous amount of mounted surveillance cameras watching us descend a flight of stairs. Finally stopping in front of a hefty door, General Ironwood places his hand on a scanner and reads it.

The door slides open to reveal an open room with one occupant. "Wait by the door." General Ironwood tells me. I nodded and walked in and stopped by the door. General Ironwood walks deeper into the room and towards the old woman who laid weak in her hospital bed.

I decided to take in the old woman's features. It's evident that she was holding onto that one thin line of vitality. The old woman was paler than I was. Her kind dark blue eyes complemented her spiky white hair.

"Good afternoon, Fria. Did you rest well?" General Ironwood softly asks. "Good morning." She nods. "Would you care for some tea?" He asks. "I do like hot tea on a cold day. Reminds me of home." She replied.

General Ironwood turns away from her and makes her tea in the small kitchen to the side. He turns back to Fria with the tea on a tray. "Is it cold outside?" Fria asks General. "It is, ma'am." General Ironwood answers as he hands her the tea.

I quietly watch as Fria sips her tea. She looks up from her cup and notices my presence. "What are you doing there, young man?" She asks me with a kind smile. Before I could speak, she waves me over.

I turn to General Ironwood for him to nod. I made my way to her and sat next to her. She takes another sip of her tea and places her cup on the little plate. "What is your name, young man?" She asks me.

"I'm Y/N." I introduced myself. "No last name?" She asks. "I'm afraid not." I sheepishly answered. Fria held her gaze and studied my features. I noticed that her eyes widen slightly before returning to its kind state.

"James... I would like a word or two with Y/N." She requested, turning to General Ironwood. He looks at her in shock before clearing his throat and standing from his chair. "I'll wait for you outside." He tells me. I nod as he makes his way out of the room.

As soon as the door slides close, Fria places her tea aside on her side table and places her hands on her lap. "There's something in the back of my head... that is telling me something about you. Old age has gotten the best of me." She chuckled to herself.

"Have we met before?" She asks me, kindly. I lowered my head in deep thought. "No, ma'am... I don't believe we have..." I honestly answered. "Well, may I see your hand then?" She asks. Confused, I held out my left hand in front of me.

"Now, Y/N," She starts as she grasps my hand. A cold sensation ran through my arm and up, flowing through the rest of my body. "Focus and help me remember." She tells me as I suddenly fall into a small comatose.