Team GOTH: Mission 5

Haruna's memories of Mission 5, the mission she and Team GOTH were sent on during their first year as hunters.

## Mentioned Characters

* Gaetana Otieno
* Orion Nacht
* Tomas Lachance
* Haruna Tsukishima
* Hilda Astrid

## Mission 5 (ver. Haruna)

“TOMAS!”

Gaetana screamed.

Not yelled. Screamed.

It was the most emotion— other than anger— Haruna had ever heard from her.

And Tomas…

Was…

His aura was protecting him, but he was stuck between the jaws of a Grimm. His aura wouldn’t protect him for much longer.

And Haruna was frozen.

Entirely, utterly, frozen.

Useless. Scared.

With no hesitation Orion moved to rescue him with a speed Haruna thought was impossible. His eyes were the colour of a hurricane.

Gaetana soon followed, moving with the same intensity and purpose.

They need to save him. They need to.

Haruna couldn’t move. Everything played in slow motion, like she was watching one of her stories unfold in real life. She wasn’t really there. She was just watching others save the day. Others experience anguish. Others cry in frustration.

She was an observer.

Gaetana threw one of her chakrams with deadly precision, directly into the Grimm’s eye, causing it to howl in pain and drop its prey. Tomas fell to the ground, limp. His aura was completely dissolved. And…

Oh.

His shirt was torn. He was bleeding.

“STOP STANDING AROUND AND HELP, HARUNA!”

Gaetana yelled with a ferocity Haruna had never heard before, not once in any of their countless arguments, or the reprimands Gaetana would constantly hound at her.

Help…?

How can I help anyone? I don’t know anything. I’ve spent my whole life having others do everything for me. Spoiled and weak.

…

He’s going to die if I don’t do something.

Move.

Move.

“MOVE!”

Orion yelled out, directed at Gaetana, not Haruna. Just in time, as the Grimm was about to hit her in her blind spot.

Haruna rushed forward, kneeling down and summoning every single one of her seven spirits to surround and protect both her and Tomas.

She worked on impulse, knowing only that she had to get the bleeding to stop.

She tore off her impractical cape and applied pressure on his wound using it. The noise of the battle around them faded into the background. Insignificant. Distracting.

She pulled out her phone and dialed the emergency number they were given for this mission, as she did her best to stop the bleeding.

With the perfectly calm voice she had mastered over years of dealing with annoying people that she was only allowed to smile at, she began to explain the situation.

“Team GOTH is in an emergency situation. We need medical assistance immediately, as well as a team of backup huntresses. We’re fighting Grimm around Outpost 4. Please, hurry.”

Tick-Tock, Tick-Tock.

If this were a fairytale, maybe they could handle this on their own. Maybe the power of friendship would be enough to heal Tomas. She wrote countless stories like that when she was a child, where the heroes would always win. No matter what.

No matter what.

And she was supposed to be a hero, wasn’t she?

“There’s no way in hell I’m letting you die. I know I’ve been a shitty teammate, but I can at least save your life. Please.”

…

It felt like hours, but soon, help arrived.

She vaguely remembered a tall, red-haired girl— a second year, maybe— doing something to Tomas. With a glow, the wounds began to heal, but it still wasn’t enough.

Tomas was rushed to a hospital. Gaetana, Orion, Haruna, and the four backup huntresses defeated the Grimm quickly.

Team GOTH was silent.

Tomas woke up, a few hours later. He wasn’t in mortal danger anymore, but the bite left him with a scar that would never heal.

“Never again.”

Never again, would Haruna freeze in fear.

Never again, would she slack off in her training.

Never again, would she refuse to cooperate with her teammates.

There was no room for doubt anymore.

“I never wanted to be a huntress. I still don’t. But I know that I want to be able to protect you. All of you. No matter what. I swear, I’ll stay by your sides forever.”