Chapter 1: Mirror Mirror
It should have been routine.
Like clockwork, Weiss wakes up at 5AM sharp. She gets up, gets breakfast, and gets dressed; each task accomplished in a minute, fifteen minutes, and half an hour respectively. She's done this so many times that she's got it down to the last seconds and a quick glance at her wristwatch only confirms what she already knows. It's 5:46AM and she's already out the door.
Everything else that follows is also part of routine. The schedule however isn't as clinical as she would have liked given certain factors beyond her control.
Two of her fingers tap on her steering wheel, an annoying habit any person would develop upon missing the green traffic light just because the car before her wasn't fast enough.
Quite the tragedy indeed. The only saving grace is that when she finally arrives at her first stop, no idiot tried to park in her designated space. She certainly hoped it would stay that way since she made herself perfectly clear last time.
With a calculated step, she walks into an establishment named 'Expresso Yourself' in a poor attempt at humor. Unironically, she holds the record of having the most deadpan expression but the employees would never live to tell the tale.
One would think it would be beneath her to order something herself when she could have just as easily ordered someone else to do the chore for her. And she has done that before, more often than not actually. After all, time is worth more than wasting it on something as trivial as mundane chores.
It's just that she never does the same for coffee.
She makes it a point to personally procure her caffeinated needs. And why shouldn't she? She's the CEO of Schnee Beans Company or SBC— the largest supplier of high quality coffee beans worldwide. What's in her blood isn't just the highest quality of caffeine but also the sheer tenacity it took to dethrone her father at the young age of 25. It might have helped that she also genuinely loved coffee above the normal dependence on it.
So it is only imperative of her to scrutinize every coffee based purchase she makes especially when it's from a partner distributor.
She doesn't even glance at the menu anymore. She does however check her watch and is satisfied to note that she is making good time. Perhaps she'll savor a sip or two before heading out again. She takes a deep breath, the aroma of coffee already filling her with comfort second only to actually drinking some.
Definitely staying but only for a while.
She could afford a few minutes to enjoy the ambiance. After all, she does wake up earlier just to drive a bit farther out to this particular coffee shop which never seems to be too busy and yet oddly still never goes out of business. Maybe that's why she enjoys the coffee here. Less prying eyes can do wonders to the flavor.
She's out of place here but at the same time, she feels as if she fits just a bit better here than anywhere else.
There are already several customers seated, some looking as if they had just gotten out of bed which they probably have, some sporting styles that were trying too hard at this hour, some wearing uniforms which they wore with less than pleasant expressions, and then some more.
But nothing stole glances quite as much as Weiss' pristine white business suit, pressed and tailor fitted to accentuate all her intimidating angles. That and her long snowy hair cascading behind, white on white like snowfall on frozen waters.
It feels like it's forever fall in the cafe but she walks in like how winter comes in too early. The only other color on her person is the bright blue necktie but even that just compliments the striking blueness of her own eyes.
It's warmer than room temperature in here but anyone who dares meets her gaze, shivers.
When she reaches the counter, she is greeted by a new face. Then again, this place shuffles employees every few months and she's been a loyal customer for years so it barely fazes her. The sight of long sleeves in contrast to the usual high collar short sleeved shirt uniform almost breaks her momentum but she catches herself at the last second. A change of uniform hasn't been unheard of after all and if anyone asks her, it's about time.
"Just the usual Americano. To go, please." She hands a few crisp bills, takes her receipt and leaves the change.
Later on, she would recount the memory and note that the numbers didn't quite add up.
It surprises her when her order comes in two minutes later than usual. She supposes it's the human factor. The newly hired must not be up to par or at least not yet. She sincerely hopes it's the latter case.
"Hi! Thanks for waiting! Here's your coffee!"
The new barista greets with more cheer than any functioning adult is capable of at a 6AM workshift serving grouchy customers before their first coffee fix. What's more is that her enthusiasm actually seems genuine. It's a bit refreshing if unexpected.
Her smile stretches from ear to ear and there is a mesmerizing shine in her eyes— silver eyes, Weiss notes absentmindedly.
Silver eyes gleam, framed by the darkness of her bangs, similar to how the moon could only be appreciated when shrouded by night. Except Weiss does not think of the night. The tips of the hair are dyed red like the sunrise and that infuriating smile is too bright. The sheer brilliance momentarily stuns her. She stares at her in a daze, feeling as if she's only waking up now.
It's not an unwelcome feeling. If anything, it's strange.
And just when she thinks she's already seen her fair share of strange things in the morning, her eyes shift and catches something even stranger.
Weiss didn't think she was ready for any more surprises and let the record show that she has never been fond of them. So it was only natural for her to freeze at the outright absurdity of what was presented before her.
A steaming cup of latte had the audacity to take its place on her table. It was served in the signature coffee cup, white and curved but never spilling. The drink itself was a latte, if the art is telling enough. And oh, did this art tell indeed.
A gorgeous rose was drawn with such professional precision to details that it felt like a crime to desecrate such a work of art. The petals looked soft and blossoming, and the red dye contrasted magnificently well against the dull mocha background.
And maybe Weiss just isn't quite awake yet because she could have sworn she could smell the faintest hint of actual roses, intermingling subtly with the intoxicating aroma of coffee.
It's breathtaking.
It's a masterpiece that makes her think if maybe she's daydreaming. It's the finest cup she's ever laid eyes on and her mouth dries in anticipation if it tastes just as divine as it looks.
It's not her order.
And suddenly, all of that strangeness or dares she say awe or whatever potentially positive feelings that Weiss had, is wiped with absolute indignation. With anger boiling only rivaling the coffee's actual temperature, steam would have come out of her ears if it were possible.
"Take this away before it goes tepid. I'm sure the customer who ordered this would appreciate it better." She practically snarls.
In the back of her mind, she has the decency to remind herself that she is in fact, bitter about having gotten her order wrong and she is not at all bitter that she is not the supposed owner of this promising drink.
She raises her chin in a way that feels as if she's looking down at the poor barista despite being the one seated. "I'll overlook this mishap once but for the sake of continuing good business, I expect that the next time you bother me is with my actual order." Her words may be polite but her tone is sharp and any lesser person would have been shredded.
It unfortunately has no such effect on the intended person.
"Huh? But this is... your order?" The barista's smile falters, less out of shame but more out of confusion. It didn't make sense that she looked at Weiss as if she was the nonsensical one. "You said, 'the usual', right? And I usually make lattes so…" She fiddles with her fingers in what Weiss recognizes as an act of nervousness and maybe it would have been cute if only the blatant absolvement of the crime didn't add to her frustration.
"What kind of simpleton logic is that? I didn't ask for your usual! I ordered for my usual!" She finally snaps at the incompetent woman. Honestly, she shouldn't even have to explain herself and yet here she is.
Three minutes behind schedule and still without her morning coffee. A scarcity of caffeine has left her lacking in tactfulness as well.
"And if I must repeat myself to get it through that thick skull of yours, it is an Americano!"
The barista flinches as if scalded. But like before, there is no shame, only confusion. "Well that's… good to know?" She tries to smile but it comes out as a grimace at best.
In another surprising twist of events, rather than dawning on the barista, the understanding falls upon Weiss. It's not an epiphany she takes joy in. "You dolt! Do you even know what an Americano is?!"
"Um…" The woman opens her mouth as if to reply. It hangs there precariously for a moment. And then closes. She bites the inside of her cheek which speaks volumes on that question's answer. And if that wasn't incriminating enough, her next words are,
"Is there a non-racist way to answer that?"
Weiss briefly considers if there's a non-violent way to express her outrage.
"Unbelievable! How were you even hired with such dubious credentials!"
"Hey! I can make a pretty good latte rose!"
"It doesn't matter! It is NOT my order!"
And Weiss would have been eventually charged with homicide (and she would have gotten away with it too) if not for the sharp beep of her wristwatch interrupting her train of thoughts. She chances a glance, 6:20AM. That only seemed to fuel her already growing frustrations.
She lets out an exasperated sigh punctuated by pinching the bridge of her nose. She is certainly not caffeinated enough, or at all, to deal with this and there is an increasing likelihood of being late should she let this exhausting tirade go on.
"You know what? I don't have the luxury of time to deal with this." She stands just to emphasize her case and points in accusation at the liable party. "Seeing as your only redeeming skill is your questionable latte—"
"Hey! My latte is NOT sketchy!" The woman protests but Weiss silences her with a glare so cold that would have left frostbites.
"I have yet deemed its worth since I have not sampled it. Hence, its questionable reputation." She explains nonetheless and all with the faith of a non-believer. It's late and in her defense, she's holding a grudge instead of her usual cup of coffee. "Still, it would do. I'll have another but this time, I want it to go and I do hope that you have the basic training in at least serving it in the right cup...or else."
The barista mumbles something close to an agreement but Weiss is having no other slip ups.
"Can you do this?" Her voice is cold and commanding, and as if called upon, a pair of silver eyes meet her gaze readily.
"Can I?" The woman asks as if scandalized by the mere accusation of otherwise.
"Well, can you?" Weiss narrows her eyes, unimpressed.
But her eyes widen even if only for a fraction as soon as the barista's smile catches her by surprise yet again.
"Of course, I can!"
"I can't do this."
Red fluttered in the makeshift breeze as a figure frantically paced across the floor.
"What? Don't tell me you're getting cold feet already because if I knew that earlier then I would have gladly given up the fire gimmick for you." The only other person in the room stood confidently, only moving her eyes to follow the cluster of nerves having a nervous breakdown in front of her.
"Yang! I'm serious!" The younger one whipped her head in an instant of raw fury that her cloak billowed in such a dramatic flair behind her.
"So am I." She answered levelly. But a desperate glare sent her way had her backpedaling. "I'm kidding!" Both hands raised in her defense.
The glare softens just a bit but it's all the leeway the jokester needs.
"You'll just have to figure out those cold feet without my heat." She wiggled her eyebrows in a way that only the truly confident could pull off. She never did lack in that department. "There ain't no way I'm giving up those fireworks. I am an eternal flame, baby!"
It's such a shame that humor is so easily lost to the young and panicking ones.
"Yang, please." Ruby practically begged at this point. She loves her sister and all but she could do without fun and playful sister now. Right now she needed wise and coaching sister instead. "Focus. Me having a nervous breakdown is still an ongoing thing!"
"Yeah, and this show sucks. How is it still on air? Not because of the ratings that's for sure."
"Yang…"
"Okay, got it. I Yang-derstand," She couldn't help the smug grin as she delivered that line. Sure, Ruby didn't appreciate it now but that didn't take away from the fact that it was a good line.
But anyways, sister mode on.
"Look, you're obviously doing your thing where you're overthinking again. I mean, what could possibly go wrong?"
"A lot. A lot could go wrong, Yang," Ruby readily answered and it's the most certain she's sounded during the whole night. "I mean for starters, what if we suck? What if we suck so bad that the crowd hates us? Do we even have a crowd out there? What if we don't have a crowd out and then we suck and then we'll have even less than no crowd? That's like, a negative crowd! Like negative as in less than zero. Wait, is it possible to get a negative crowd?"
Her face was painted sickly pale as a newfound horror dawned on her.
"Oh my gosh, we'll be the first band in history to have a negative crowd."
Well that escalated quickly.
"Slow down there, Rubes." She placed a comforting hand on her sister's shoulder, only now noticing the quick shallow breaths she's been having. She gave her shoulder a firm squeeze and their eyes meet. It's enough to remind Ruby to at least slow down her breathing. Yang gave her another gentle squeeze and with a smile, she suggested,
"How about we get you out of that negative thinking for starters. How about some positive thinking instead!"
"Positive..."
For a while, Ruby locked herself inside her head again. She obviously gave this more thought than necessary but that's just how overthinking works. And then something clicked inside, finally she raised her head and met with Yang's expectant gaze. Again, with rare and certain confidence, she declared,
"I am positive that we are going to suck so bad that we get a negative crowd."
Sometimes Ruby's creativeness could be a blessing and a curse.
"Okaaay, see when I meant positive I definitely did not mean that."
"Is it too late to back out now? It's never too late to back out, right? I know you say quitters are losers but I think I'll be okay with being a loser. Losers only get no crowds which is kind of a plus from a negative crowd. Now that I think about it, that doesn't sound that bad at all, right? Right. Let's back out now. That will at least let our faces from total humiliation for the rest of our lives."
"Sis, chill." Yang stopped that downward spiral right there. She placed her other hand on the other shoulder, effectively capturing her full attention. "We technically don't even have faces to save. That's kind of the whole point of the masks and stage names, remember?"
Ruby shook her head.
"No, I'm pretty sure the conversation went like this. I said, 'Hey, Yang. I'm really not comfortable with people staring at my face but I really like playing with you and I guess it would be cool if people could listen to us play together. But I'm not getting over my fear of people facing so I have this awesome idea of wearing a mask. You know, for theatrics! Oh, and also so people technically won't be staring at my face. Please don't laugh.'"
"I'm still not hearing the contradiction."
"I'm not finished yet." She rolled her eyes and continued, "Then you told me, 'Ruby, masks are lame. You know what's not lame? Stage names. Let's make up our own names! Won't that be totally awesome?''"
"And aren't they totally awesome?" Yang never missed a chance to high five her past self. Her confidence was built on consistency after all.
Ruby obviously wanted to argue that Yang completely missed the point but she couldn't deny the truth to that question. "Yeah, they are," She mumbled with certain affection. She honestly did love the anonymity that the stage names provided. That and with a mask hiding her face, she felt as if she could totally let go without a care about crowd or no crowd or even negative crowd.
The shift in tension brought out a relief in Ruby that relaxes her shoulders just shy enough for Yang to notice and take and spur on.
"Listen, don't sweat the details. All I'm hearing you say is that we have cool masks and awesome names and that WE are totally awesome." She let go of her and affectionately ruffled her hair. "Besides, you're acting like this is the end of the world and this isn't even our first time."
"I still get nervous though." Ruby shrunk in between her shoulders.
"Oh, I know." Yang teased her with a smirk. "But I also know that you always get over it and that you always have fun after. You're gonna be fiiine."
Two knocks. And a muffled call for them to head to the stage in a few minutes.
"So, you ready?" Yang gave her one last reassuring smile before sliding on her mask.
"No, not really." Ruby donned her own mask and just beneath it, her past reservations go unmasked. "But I have to be."
And when they stepped on that stage, they played their roles to the fullest.
"Good evening, Vale! We have a lovely full moon tonight! Which means tonight's a good night to see the Grimm Eclipse!"
A/N: Well this is a thing.
Huh, just to make it clear, this is a Modern!AU with everyone basically aged up. Ruby's 23 while Weiss, Blake, Yang are 25. This just started out as a Band!AU but since there's plenty of those involving the whole team, I thought a sister duo could be just as interesting. The CoffeeShop!AU and the Bar!AU are happy coincidences.
Anyways, thanks so much for giving this a chance! Tell me if you enjoyed this so far. I know introductory chapters tend to be slow but trust me once I get the ball rolling, this ship will be sailing come hell or high waters. But yeah, I'd really appreciate it if you could tell me what you think. Feedback keeps me updating this fic regularly. Thank you so much again!
Expect the other ship's chapter up shortly since I do not break a team.