Old Dogs, New Tricks (private w/Rosé)

[Silvanus Waldstein]

Silvanus hated being cooped up in his office perusing paperwork all day. It made him feel good to go out and hunt down some Grimm for a change. It reminded him of his younger days in the army, spending time with his brothers-in-arms. He perished the thought before thinking too far ahead, most of them died during the war anyway, and the ones that survived were definitely not around any more. Best to not think of death when you could feel it creeping up on you.

Another Grimm disturbance that was too powerful for the Rangers to handle is what brought him out here. An exceptionally large Beowolf Alpha from what the scouts saw, naming it 'Old White Eye' on account of one of its eyes being a stark white color. Being more than enough for the job, Silvanus elected to go out and slay it himself. Robin, his trusted assistant, would handle things back in Oakhearth in his temporary absence. Silvanus's armor and Fragarach was strategically dirtied, as anything shiny made him a beacon for danger due to the sun peeking through the canopy of trees. Silvanus stopped to check a set of tracks by a tree.

Hmm... That's Old White Eye alright. Certainly a large Grimm to say the least... he mused. Silvanus stopped suddenly as he was about to stand up. Another set of tracks, human or Faunus sized by the look of it.

A bit on the smaller side. A female, perhaps, or a younger male based on their weight alone. Fresh tracks, too... Silvanus continued thinking, wondering if the person was nearby. Silvanus noticed the tracks split off from each other, the person's heading one way and Old White Eye's in another. Making an executive decision, Silvanus followed the person's tracks. It would put his mind at peace to know the state of the person. Besides, he can always backtrack to the Grimm's tracks later.

[Rosé Carmine]

Rosé opened her eyes, slightly surprised to see the tree canopy above her, sunlight peeking through to create sunbeams. She sat up, casting her gaze about the clearing as she tried to recall just how she ended up here. Compared to the serenity of the canopy above the clearing looked like a small tornado had passed through, the undergrowth torn up, branches scattered across the ground, tree trucks with large gashes in their bark. "A fight...?"

Rosé stood as some details returned to her. She recalled flashes of the fight that occurred here and... Rosé frowned as she realised that her blade had gone missing, however a memory returned of a large Grimm with her blade stuck in it's shoulder. A Beowolf if her memory served her right, though there was something different about it. Her gaze turned towards herself, checking the rest of her equipment when she noticed two large holes in the armour plate on her right forearm; another memory flash, this time face-to-face with the Beowolf, her forearm in it's mouth as it bit down. "Ah... the eyes. That's what's different about it." Rosé continued to check the functionality of her arm to ensure no damaged had been done to the prosthetic. Finding her arm to be in working order with no complications, Rosé murmured to herself. "Another victory for not having my original limbs."

Rosé looked around for an indication of where the Grimm had gone, spotting trampled undergrowth and broken branches leading away from the clearing. "Right, you bastard I'm coming for my blade." She set off in pursuit of the Grimm, keeping an eye out for any other threats, what with her now down to only her limbs and pistol for defence.

[Silvanus Waldstein]

Following the person's tracks, Silvanus entered a clearing which had been wrecked by some type of scuffle. A shame to see nature harmed like this, but Silvanus had other priorities to worry about. Large gashes in the tree trunks, snapped twigs and branches, and smashed and torn undergrowth made it evident that something big was here.

Old White Eye, perhaps? But how? It must have taken an alternative route to this clearing... Silvanus thought as the snap of a twig echoed from outside the clearing. It sounded too quiet to be from Old White Eye, perhaps that was the person-!

Silvanus was shocked from the sudden impact as something very large pounced on his back. Instinctively, Silvanus elbowed at the thing on top of his back, knocking it off and sending it flying towards the edge of the clearing. Standing up, Silvanus immediately noticed one white eye, along with a large red blade sticking in its shoulder. Undoubtedly it was Old White Eye, but the blade was a new addition. Raising Fragarach, Silvanus readied himself as he kept an eye on the foul Grimm as it circled the edge of the clearing, keeping its eyes on Silvanus.

Old White Eye seems to act with predatory behavior rather than basic aggression. It acts more intelligently than your typical Beowolf Alpha... mused Silvanus as Old White Eye continued circling him, its deep growl echoing throughout the clearing as it patiently awaited for an opening to attack.

[Rosé Carmine]

Rosé hadn't gotten far when she heard a loud crash coming from the clearing she had just left. She stopped, looking back and hesitating for a moment. The sound of deep growling got Rosé moving, returning to the clearing. As she closed, she could hear small twigs snapping underfoot coming from the clearing, the low menacing growl continuing like an idling chainsaw. Rosé stopped short of the edge of the clearing, taking in the sight of a very tall, old man wearing armour wielding a sword almost as long as he was tall, facing off against an all too familiar Grimm with her blade sticking out of it's shoulder, seeming mostly unfazed by it's presence.

She drew her not oft used revolver almost comically large in construction, it's dull finish still reflecting in the late daylight, levelling it at the Grimm. It was times like this she could appreciate having a ranged option as she sighted the Grimm down the length of the revolver, her finger gently caressing the trigger.

A moment of tense calm, suddenly broken as Rosé discharged her revolver at the Grimm, one loud report announcing her presence to the few gathered. Smoke trailed up into the green canopy above from the end of the revolver's barrel. "You didn't think you'd gotten rid of me that easy did you?" She declared as she brought the hammer back with her thumb, already in motion as she prepared for another shot, moving into the clearing to flank the Grimm with the old man. "And I'll be taking back my sword!"

[Silvanus Waldstein]

The familiar crackle of gunfire reverberated throughout the forest, originating from behind Old White Eye. The bullets came into contact with the Grimm as if they were mere mosquito bites. The mighty beast turned around, roaring loudly at its new quarry before charging her. Silvanus, acting quickly, invoked the creation of roots that strangled Old White Eye's right hind leg. The beast tripped, falling onto its belly. The roots grew along its body and other limbs, effectively restraining it. Old White Eye attempted to wrestle free of the mysterious roots to no avail, practically quivering in fear as it did so. Silvanus looked over at the person who the Grimm nearly charged, giving her Aura a notable surge in defensive ability.

"I can only hold it briefly, take your blade!" Silvanus called out to the woman.

[Rosé Carmine]

Rosé scowled as she noted the effects of her shots on the Grimm. Ineffective. In a blink it had whirled and charged towards her, only to be brought to a stop and held down by... roots? Her attention shifted for a moment to the old man opposite, reasoning that the roots must be his doing when he called out to her that he could only hold the Grimm briefly.

Rosé darted forwards, holstering her revolver as she neared the Grimm. She planted a boot square on the Grimm's snout as she made her way to stand on it's back, reached to her blade and with a hard pull, freed it from the shoulder of the Grimm. In one fluid motion she brought the blade above her head, point down towards the back of the Grimm's neck. Rosé took a heartbeat to steady her aim and then brought the blade down; only to be thrown aside as the Grimm, sensing a killing blow coming, struggled, strained and made true on what the old man had said, freeing itself before Rosé could land her killing blow.

Rosé hit the ground rolling, only noting now that her aura felt saturated as it took the brunt of her fall for her. She continued her roll back up onto her feet, immediately having to back pedal as the Grimm swiped at her with one of it's large paws. Rosé started to swing her blade trying to build up some momentum to create a whirling dance, however the Grimm was clearly not interested in giving Rosé any room to breathe. "I guess- you're up-!" Rosé called out, her speech stilted as she blocked, deflected and dodged incoming attacks.

[Silvanus Waldstein]

Old White Eye was strong, very strong. Silvanus's plants were stronger than your average variety, and yet this powerful Grimm was able to break free of its restraints. The normal fear response Grimm usually display from his plants seemed to be diluted in Old White Eye as well. Yes, it did manifest, but usually your average Grimm would have run off by now. This beast was definitely a force to be reckoned with...

Silvanus hacked away at the hind of Old White Eye, flanking the beast with the red-haired woman. Blades seemed to be a more effective means of damaging it rather than bullets. A look at the fresh wounds dealt by the pair of warriors would reveal an almost armorlike cartilage underneath the skin of its body that seemed capable of stopping bullets from smaller firearms. Fearing for its life, Old White Eye turned around and bit down on Fragarach, slamming it into the ground as it bounded past Silvanus running deep into the forest. Having been knocked to the ground, Silvanus grasped the grip of Fragarach as he used his own sword to pull himself up.

"I suppose that could've ended worse..." Silvanus muttered, groaning as he stood up and pulled Fragarach out of the ground.

Strange, Old White Eye seemed to have a lesser but delayed fear response to plants made from Rhythm of the Wild... Silvanus mused as he looked off in the direction it ran before looking back to the red haired woman. At first he couldn't place it, but he realized that she was eerily familiar.

"You seem familiar, weren't you here approximately a century ago?" Silvanus inquired. He recalled a memory from long ago, serving as a volunteer in the Oakhearth militia. He was saved by a small, crimson-haired woman during a Grimm attack. Could this be her?

[Rosé Carmine]

Suddenly the Grimm turned tail and ran, clearly not liking the match-up it found itself in. Rosé kept her blade at the ready in case it decided to return for another go. She turned her focus to the old man once she was satisfied that the Grimm wasn't immediately coming back. Did she...? No, she was sure the old man was familiar, maybe she had encountered the old man's father or something. "Yeah... like with it running off with my sword again." She didn't always mean to sound so unfriendly, but it just came naturally to her as a way to keep people away from her, to keep herself safe.

Her slight, ever-present scowl deepened when the old man expressed his familiarity with her, a century ago. "A century ago...?" She murmured, taking a closer look at the man. Not just at his face, but his armour and weapon too. The way he stood, held his weapon. "Oh? Perhaps? You do seem familiar to me..." She brought a hand to her chin, the other holding her blade still, as she pondered. "Though I'm not entirely certain why?"

Her attention turned once more to the woods around them, to the Grimm now hiding in it's undergrowth. "I assume this wasn't a chance encounter with you though. You were after that unusual Grimm right?" She reasoned. "I was heading to Oakhearth as I remembered it being out here recently and felt like visiting." Her gaze turned back to the old man once more. "Though I can spare all the time you need to take this Grimm down. It's not like I'm in a rush any way." She gave a half shrug.

Rosé blinked as she half remembered a name. "Wait, your name... Sil-?" She stopped, the foggy memory not giving up the man's full name just yet. It was there on the tip of her tongue, right there. The memory cleared slightly as she continued looking at the man, an name echoing in the foggy memory. "Slivanus, right? Did I ever give you my name when we last met?" A century ago meant, around the time she was running around saving people and not being in the habit of giving her name out. Probably not then...