Sunburnt | Coco Adel x Fem!OC

2 - Back on my Feet

The past few months have been hard. As soon as Tilly introduced me to Granite, the training started. It was brutal, but it had to be. Since my aura 'never regenerated', I had to learn to fight faster, harder and better to have a chance at survival. And it took a toll on me.

While I was once out of shape and scar-free, I was now littered with scars and could easily lift over my body weight. Granite often boasted about my progress, and the rest of the settlement quickly took me in as their own. I helped build, moved equipment, and defended the camp, but I avoided fighting Grimm even though it was almost impossible. I was still more than happy to hunt and gather food alongside Tan, but I rarely left camp more than that. Tilly and I were still close, too. The settlement quickly became my home away from home, and I stopped feeling out of place.

I smiled at one of the scouts sitting by the settlement's entrance as I passed through, carrying as much Mole Crab meat as I could in one arm and dragging the rest behind me with the other. For once, everyone was out in the square, talking happily and gathering around a point of interest. I noticed Tan standing near the canteen's entrance and called out to him, tossing one of the piles of meat at him as he turned to me. "Welcome back," he laughed, catching a second bundle as I passed through the doorway with the rest, "I'm guessing your hunt was successful?" I stuck my tongue out at his question, handing the meat I had to Topaz so she could start preparing it.

Tan handed over the meat I gave him, keeping a small amount for the two of us to share on patrol tonight. "What's all the commotion about?" I asked, glancing back at the excitement outside as I took my payment from Topaz. The Pig Faunus laughed, noticing my disdain towards the large crowd. "Team CFVY is visiting from Shade," She said as she tossed one of the bundles into the freezer, "They're the ones who helped us escape the Grimm a while back. Without them, we might not've made it."

"You give us too much credit." A familiar voice sounded from behind me, and I turned to see the entirety of Team CFVY following Slate into the Canteen. Slate noticed me and smiled. "Good hunt today, Beks?" she asked, gesturing to the meat still sitting on the counter.

"Yes, Ma'am," I said, returning her smile as I tore my quiver from Tan's bored hands, "Though I would've been able to bring back more meat if somebody had gone with today." I jabbed my elbow at Tan, who narrowly avoided the attack.

The blonde-haired boy huffed, crossing his arms as he sat on one of the bar stools. "I told her to wake me before she left! If she didn't, that's her problem!" I rolled my eyes, fastening my quiver around my shoulder before taking a seat next to him.

"I did!" I growled, "Three times! You kept falling back asleep!"

Slate shook her head at us, leading Team CFVY to sit at the seat on the other side of the register. I glance at the four of them, catching Coco's amused gaze. "Good to see you're doing well," she said, taking off her shades momentarily to wipe a bit of sweat from her eyes. I gave her a confused look, glancing at Slate to see if I missed something before realization hit me.

"So you're the ones who found me then," I ask, setting my cup down.

Coco nods, thanking Topaz for her coffee. "Yup. You were in pretty rough shape, too—no Aura and hiding in a crack from a Ziraffe," She chuckled as she took a sip of her coffee.

My face went red as she said this, making me clear my throat and hide my face behind my drink. This earned a chorus of laughter from the group, making me go even redder as I took a deep gulp of my beverage. "Well, she's changed a lot since then," Tan chuckled as he chewed a bite of his sandwich, "Still no Aura, though."

That comment earned a few shocked glances from Team CFVY. Velvet spoke up, "You still haven't regenerated your Aura?" I shrugged, taking another sip of my tea. I wasn't supposed to have an aura in the first place, so it didn't bother me much. I did fine without it. Coco frowned, and I could feel her gaze on my maze of scars.