As far as Weiss was concerned, there were only two kinds of people in Remnant: those who could get what they wanted, and those who could not. She considered herself to be not just fortunate to always get what she wanted but also skilled and capable enough to the point that, if she were to lose her fame and fortune over night, she'd be fine without it. At least, that's what she always liked to think of herself, as she was never short on pride or lien. Thus, when she had developed enough of a relationship with Blake Belladonna to want more, she felt that getting more would be no issue. After all, she could get what she wanted.
As far as Velvet was concerned, there were only two types of people in Remnant: faunus and humans. The former had their issues, but were an ally, whereas the latter were to be regarded with suspicion and anxiety, as she had far more unpleasant memories of them than actual, positive ones. She considered herself to be a survivor, one who might not rise to meet the enemy head on but still capable of maneuvering around them. However, she also considered herself to be limited when working alone. Thus, she always wanted for more friends and allies, as the world was an unfair and overwhelming place for her. Fortunately for her, when she and Blake Belladonna had shared enough time in the academy's theatre club, she felt that they both of them had enough in common to try a date.
Blake was happily sitting in a corner at the bustling Malum Cafe on campus, sipping some tea and angrily thumbing through a dusty copy of Brigades of Vale, because she had just last week read about a battle in which some cornered brigades had used their Black Burner rifles in a short-ranged volley to break the Grimm, letting the Hunters to jump in and drive them back. Blake remembered reading it, but she was not able to find it when she had tried to show Yang, who had vehemently argued that the ancient rifle was useless in the modern era. This led to a week of teasing, and Blake had finally been driven to check out every ancient text that covered the military history of her kingdom.
It was at that most inopportune time that Weiss entered the cafe, having learned of Blake's location via her Pinch Conversation(™) story. That fateful day was the day she'd finally do it: sit down in the opposite corner and casually spy on her teammate to learn more about her interests for the tenth time that week, a true milestone for Weiss. One could never do too much scouting, especially when searching for their prey.
It was also at that moment that Velvet entered the cafe, having learned of Blake's location via casual comment from Yang, who had agreed to trade history homework for physics homework. Weiss had to raise an eyebrow as Velvet locked onto Blake, moved a few steps forward, and then stopped to wheel around and get in line to order some kind of conversation food.
Weiss saw Velvet enter her domain and move in on Blake. Weiss, not wanting to blow her masterful cover, continued to hold up her scroll and discreetly peek out of the corner of her eye. Scowling as menacingly as a seventeen-year-old could manage, she sharply drew in the mixed aroma of caffeine and adderall-esque medicines as everyone crammed for finals. She watched as Velvet drew Blake's attention away from whatever she was reading.
"Blake, it's nice to see you," Velvet calmly began with a warm smile and a nice cup of hot chocolate.
"Hello, Velvet." Smiling back, Blake sat up straight, placing her finger on the page she was reading. A gentle shock wave of dust emanated from the text as she closed it, giving her undivided attention to her friend. Seeing the eagerness in Velvet's eyes, Blake cocked her head and asked, "How can I help you?"
"Oh, well, if you don't mind, I don't really feel that confident about our fluids class. You know how Professor Awfulson is," she jokingly began, hoping to create a thicker conversation. Seeing Blake bat her eyelashes and give a knowing smirk, her heart began to bounce with glee.
"I see you've got your lunch with you. Care to join me?" Blake politely offered, motioning for her friend to join her. "Were you hoping to form study group?"
Smiling, Velvet folder a napkin in her lap as she prepared her grilled Grimm rabbit. "Actually, Blake, I was able to pre-order two seats for Professor Oobleck's history review for next week, and, well, I just thought that you'd like to come with me," she offered with as much platonic indifference as she could muster.
Nodding, Blake considered the offer. "I suppose a little extra reviewing wouldn't hurt, though if you want to save yourself some time, I can give you my notes..."
Blake's response warbled out of earshot for Weiss as she retreated into her thoughts. Velvet taking Blake on a study date? Two academic minds having one of the most intimate and thought-provoking episodes that could be animated? It was too perfect to let Velvet steal it from Weiss. This, she would not allow. As the enemy was already engaged, she felt it was appropriate to swoop in. "Hello, Blake!" she deliberately shouted so as to sideline her attention on Velvet. Go big or go home, and Weiss wasn't going home without Blake around her arm.
Blake jolted ever so slightly as Weiss barged in on the scene. "Weiss," she calmly welcomed. "Finally come out of your corner?"
"Yes, I found it to be uncomfortably warm at ninety degrees," Weiss rambled in an attempt to play off the whole 'You Caught Me Stalking You' thing. "At any rate, Blake, I just, erm, received word from Yang that she wants us all to have a four-way-brawl to practice for the physical section of our final!"
Raising an eyebrow, Blake scrunched her lips as she wondered if her memory had failed her. She certainly didn't recall Yang expressing such a desire, though it wasn't out of character for the brawler. "That is a good idea," she admitted, nodding in thought. "When did she want to practice?"
"Next week! Unfortunately, it's at the same time as Oobleck's history review," Weiss answered with renewed vigor, as Blake had not immediately called her out on her bologna. Seeing the knowing scowl on Velvet's face as she realized what was up, Weiss offered a confident, nonchalant role of her shoulders, clearly signaling to the faunus, "Come at me."
As Blake had come to fill her brain with knowledge and not chit-chat, she hoped to bring the conversation to an end. "Okay, Weiss. The team does take priority over a review session." Looking to Velvet, Blake felt that her logic was sound but still felt bad. "Maybe we could stop by his office hours?" she offered in consolation.
Velvet was not one to back down from a challenge. She once spent thirty hours modding her scroll so that she could romance all her companions in "Mythical Salamander Time" at the same time, so she wasn't going to let Weiss just walk out with Blake on her arm like she was another exotic animal purse.
Standing up literally and also for herself, Velvet tried to keep her racing heart from popping out of her mouth. Timid as she was, she was desperate and foolish enough for true love, and by golly she was going to get it! "Weiss, I- I think tha- that you have not business butting into our conversation when we were already making plans."
Weiss had expected resistance, but she fretted not.
Blake had not expected any of it, and so she began to fret. "I'm sorry, Velvet, but the team takes priority."
Smirking, Weiss took a slight bow to Velvet. "Yes, Velvet, the team takes priority."
"I've half a mind to call Yang now and v- verify that, well, that you're not havin' us on!" Velvet dared to suggest, standing up and towering over Weiss.
"I don't need some faunus talking to me like this!" Weiss gasped, shocked that the girl would even dare to call her bluff. In fact, she was so caught up in taking offense that she failed to take in Blake's scowl.
"And I d- don't need some spoiled brat adding to my problems!" Velvet countered as Blake stood up.
Sighing, the object of affection discretely made her way out of the cafe as a few people were starting to take notice of a faunus verbally assaulting some poor, and very short, human.
Team RWBY's dorm was usually the model room: furniture clean, beds made, articles in order. However, as it was finals week, the bed sheets had gone without a cleaning for two weeks; every wooden surface was stained with coffee, Blue Cow, and empty cups; and articles were in complete disorder. If Team RWBY had lived in some ancient society that used paper for documentation, they would have had stacks strewn about the floor, too.
Yang sat alone, making a bit of a mess as she sat on the floor space between the bunk beds. She had a mixer plugged into the lamp's socket and she was at present pouring Blue Cow and its various knockoffs into a bed of coffee grounds. At least, she was trying to; the shaking in her hands wasn't going to go away until she had gotten her fix.
Blake entered the scene, only to stop at the doorway and groan. Slumping her shoulders, she asked, "How do you expect to pass the physical when you can't even load a mixer, much less your gauntlets?"
"I'll get there!" Yang firmly reassured her as she barely managed to pour seventy percent of the liquid into the mixer. Powering up her lifeline, she fell back on the floor and hummed with glee as she jittered and jolted. "How about you?"
"Help me, please" she begged. Tossing her book to the bed, Blake bluntly explained, "I'm having boy trouble with two girls who want me."
"Sooo, just tell them you're already married to your job?" Yang offered as she sat back up, scotting to the left to allow Blake room to flop onto her bed.
"I can't. They both know me, and they're both students, and one of them is Weiss, and the other is Velvet," Blake drawled, rolling onto her back and staring blankly at her partner.
Yanking the cord out of the socket, Yang dunked a dust crystal into the mix as if it were shaved ice from a brandy bar and guzzled her synthetic blood to power through the week. Even as she drank heartily, she motioned with her free hand for Blake to continue.
Obliged, Blake ran her hands through her hair. "Weiss think she deserves me, but so does Velvet, and they both kind of barged in on me when I was just minding my own business. They also didn't notice that I left when they started fighting each other.
As Yang's buzzing settled down, she felt a disturbing buzz coming from her shorty shorts's pocket and vowed to buy proper pants at some point. Reaching in, she removed her scroll and read aloud, "Hey, Yang, have you seen Blake. Question mark, question mark, question mark." Looking to her partner, she asked, "Leave it?"
Nodding, Blake thanked, "If you don't mind."
Yang did so and hopped to her feet, reenergized and firmly stabilized for the next four hours. "So, how do you feel about them?" Sitting down at the foot of Blake's bed, she prepared for some heart-to-heart.
Cheeks growing red, Blake tried to cover her face as best she could. With a muffled voice, she confessed, "They're both so attractive for completely different reasons, Yang!"
Raising her eyebrows, Yang nodded along. "Feels good to be the center of two people's worlds?" she offered with a knowing grin.
Blake had to nod. "I swear, that's not the only reason I like them. Weiss is assertive, she knows what she wants. She's a no-nonsense xenophobe, but she's so attractive. I mean, have you seen her collarbone? It's so petite and defined."
Sharply inhaling, Yang turned away and suppressed her laughs with violent coughs. "I'm not one to kinkshame, but I also can't say I see it that way," she managed to grunt. "What about Velvet?" she asked, desperate to change the subject so that she wouldn't pop a lung.
One or two hormones had slipped into Blake's otherwise logical brain, and she gladly rambled, "Velvet is just so cute! The way she talks, I could listen to her all day. She's thoughtful, far smarter than she lets on, and we both share a mutual love for theatre, right? She has such passion and vigor when she's on stage, and I just adore that about her too."
Whistling, Yang decided to lay down, orthogonal to Blake. She knew Blake had gone to the semester tryouts, but she didn't know Velvet was involved too. "So who deserves your hand in a teenage relationship?"
"You make it sound so easy," Blake groaned yet again as she flopped onto her back.
Splaying her arms over her head, Yang used them as a counterweight with her legs to stay on the bunk. "Well, Blake, it's not like you both magically confess each other's feelings and decide that it's love for life. I mean, we're kids, this is a kid relationship."
Blake couldn't find any glaring flaws in that logic.
Yang continued, "It'll last, what, maybe two years? If you think the two of you could have some fun, go for it! If it ends in heartbreak, at least you'll be richer for it. You could go on a date with both of them to see how you like it."
"It's not that easy," Blake insisted, burying her head in her pillow and fantasizing about walking down the aisle with Velvet wrapped around one arm and Weiss around her other.
Sighing, Yang sat up, ducking under the rim of her own bed. Hunched over in Blake's available space, she determined, "I can't tell you how to feel, and I'm, like, the last person who should be telling you how actual love works and all that nonsense, but let's try something."
Craning her neck, Blake looked back at her partner with slight suspicion.
Hopping out of bed, Yang got down on her knees in front of the girl and melodramatically told her, "Blake, my dear, you are my light and world and star and moon and yadda yadda. How I dreeeaaam of taking you on long motorcycle rides, of sledding with you down snowy hills, keeping you warm with my magnificent rack!"
Blake had to snort at that one. She sat up to enjoy the performance.
Thrusting her hands to the sky, Yang exclaimed, "I wish to take you to bed! To make sweet love to you! To make you as happy as you make me!" Taking Blake's hands into her own, she asked, "What do you have to say, my fair maiden?"
Humored, Blake smiled and gently bowed to Yang before letting go of her hands. "I am honored by your affections, my equally fair butler," she professed as she stood up. "And I know exactly how to deal with this."
Grinning ear to ear, Yang happily announced, "Then do whatcha gotta do, girlfriend!"
Still on the floor, Yang watched her walk out.
"You had me worried," Velvet confessed as Blake sat down across from her, again at the cafe. Though it was in the evening, people still bustled about. However, the manager had his eye on the troublemaker.
"You had me worried more," Weiss one-upped, also sitting across from Blake.
The three teens formed a triangle, and though the symbolism was lost on all three, Blake began gently, "I appreciate the admirations you both have for me."
Both Weiss and Velvet, their hearts racing with anticipation, simultaneously realized that Blake had called them to the cafe to make a dramatic choice on whom should be the lucky girl.
"Weiss," Blake started, "You're my teammate. I kind of have to trust you with my life. I'm sure you'd buy me many, pretty bows-"
Weiss made a mental note to throw away the silk bow she had ordered on Yasuni.
"-but I can't accept your offer. If we didn't work out, we'd run the risk of compromising our compatibility as teammates."
Slumping her shoulders, Weiss began, "I suppose that's a logical reas-"
"Also, you're a xenophobic, prideful heiress who cares more about her image," Velvet added with glee as she realized that she was the lucky girl.
Blake firmly grabbed Weiss' wrist to prevent smacking. "You're not off the hook either, Velvet!" Blake had to exclaim a little louder than she would have preferred. It got both girls to calm down, though, and that was all she needed.
Leaning back, Blake stared off at the cashier across the floor. The aroma of coffee, tea, and freshly baked cakes filled her nose as three dozen study groups quietly mumbled about their impending doom. Turning back to the problem at hand, Blake acted in her own best interests, much like one eats nasty vegetables.
"Velvet, you're a good friend to me, but I can't say that I've felt like one over these past few weeks," Blake reluctantly confessed. "It's not that you grew distant," she explained as she saw Velvet's ears droop, "it's just that you seem to have made me into an objective to accomplish."
Weiss grinned, but Blake promptly pointed a finger at her. "And you did the same thing, so you keep your mouth shut," she warned.
Sighing, Velvet shrugged. "I'm sorry I came off like that, Blake, though I'd argue that I only got aggressive when I was inspired to treat this like a competition."
Nodding, Blake countered, "It was more than just today." Looking at both girls, she decided, "I'm sorry, but now just isn't the time for love, or even a harmless teen romance."
A few moments passed as the two accepted their lots for the moment. Blake stood up first. "Weiss?"
Weiss stood up and straightened her combat skirt. "Oh, don't 'Weiss' me," she assured her teammate. "I won't make it weird between us, I promise. It's not like you'd run away at the first sign of trouble anyways, right?"
Smirking, Blake waved goodbye to the girl as she assured her that she'd see her later, leaving Velvet alone with Blake, who then turned to her fellow actor.
Knowing the question already, Velvet reluctantly nodded. "I..." she hesitantly began. "I kind of envy you, Blake. You like to pretend."
Blake grimaced, the lively atmosphere of the cafe zoning out completely for her. "I wish we lived in a world where I didn't have to, or that you didn't need to envy me."
Velvet's gaze drifted to the bow, and she grimaced. "I really don't." Sighing, she pushed her chair back up and prepared to leave. "Maybe, in the future, you won't have to feel like acting. I guess I had hoped to give you enough joy to... well," she stagnated, leaning on the chair, knuckles white as she gripped it.
"To remove it?" Blake offered, her arms slowly crossing over in a defensive 'X'.
Smiling, Velvet nodded. "See you around, Blake."
"No hard feelings?" she wondered.
Shrugging her shoulders, Velvet waved goodbye, leaving Blake to decide whether or not she had preferred the happy illusions of undying love or the chemical reality of hormones.
Congratulations to Tennsion-P for competing in the Spring 2016 Contest and winning big!