AN: I present the second in my Disney/RWBY fusion things that I find myself writing. The first, Frozen can be found on my profile or
Here if the hyperlink worked.
If you are interested in some details of the writing/plans then a longer note is at the bottom. For the majority that don't care - I hope you enjoy my story!
I own nothing.
"You know, a Friday night is traditionally spent out on the town. Drinking. Partying. Having fun. NOT in a dorm room, studying, reading and pretending not to watch someone studying." Yang Xiao Long observed aloud to the fellow members of Team RWBY as she sprang from her bed.
"You forgot complaining on your little list." Blake shot back casually, still reading in the comfort of her bed.
The blonde only took her response as encouragement and continued "I mean Ruby isn't sick anymore." She pointed towards her sister who had come to be fascinated by the ceiling after Yang's previous observation. "We can go out without her falling over again."
Weiss looked up from her notebook to grace the group with her opinion.
"I think a quiet night is exactly what we need to prepare for mission assignments next week." She informed them "But if this is too boring for you then go watch a movie or something else that doesn't bother me."
"But if I'm not bothering you then I will still be bored." Yang smiled towards Weiss "So whatever I do has the requirement of preventing your studying."
Weiss was about to make her comeback when Ruby cut her off. "What if you told another story?" she sat up in bed as spoke and seemed far too excited for something so childish.
"A story?" Yang and Weiss asked in unison. Sure there had been a story time before, but that had been a special occasion for an extremely ill teammate. Neither of them had thought it would become a common occurrence.
"You did seem to enjoy yourself last time." Blake stated with her head still buried in the contents of her book. "Just try not to make me a moose this time."
"You were a reindeer!" Yang defended "A totally not racist reindeer. And besides if you do want another story I have a much better role for you play." The smile that came across the blonde's face would have served as a warning to anyone but Blake was still too focused on her book to take the hint of what was to come.
Weiss began to put away her books as she asked "Are we really doing this again?"
"Yup!" Ruby answered for Yang as she jumped from her precariously hanged bunk.
"Hmph, well I better be the best character again at least." Weiss said, any protest forgotten as she made herself comfortable.
Yang laughed "Sorry Ice Queen but I think it's time for the real hero to step up." She moved to her favored spot and took a seat. "Now, I'm going to tell you how Beauty came to save a supposed Beast."
"I don't like this already…" Blake began
"Oh shush."
The Outskirts of the Kingdom of Vale
Sweat poured down her back as she increased her pace through the scorching summer haze, made worse by the fire she had just barely escaped. The heat was unbearable, but the turmoil that rolled through her mind allowed the girl to ignore it. This was all wrong; it wasn't supposed to turn out like this. The screams and shouts of those trying to fight the blaze surrounded her, making it difficult to think.
"You can't just run from all of this!" a man shouted behind the girl as she ran faster than either of them thought possible "The kingdom won't forget what you've done, what you can do!"
What had she done? This question ran through her mind for the millionth time. Everything had spiraled out of control and now…now she had no choice but to run. The things she had done were unforgivable but she would be sure to never do anything like them again. It had all been for the right reasons. This had been her justification until the horror had built up to be too much. No, she was finished with everything. There had to be somewhere she could hide and be forgotten. Where she could forget. Losing sight of the man as she turned to make sure, the girl kept going. She had no choice now.
Five Months Later
The forest of Forever Fall was never a completely safe place for a lone traveler. Even groups had been known to run into trouble with the wild Grimm that called the forest home, many opting to take the longer route around then risk a confrontation with the animals. Yet despite the inherent risks of the path, a lone traveler did walk the shorter path in an attempt to cut her trip in half.
Not that she didn't have her reasons of course, and even though the forest would not have deterred her any way, this particular trek was motivated by a need to get home as soon as she could. The blonde hummed merrily as she continued through the woods and thought of what awaited her at the end of her journey.
"Ohhhh, Ruby is gonna be so surprised." Yang blurted out, unable to contain her excitement in comparison to the monotony of walking for hours on end. Her sister was going to be crowned princess soon and proclaimed heir, despite her being an adopted child to the king and Yang was going to surprise her by attending the coronation.
Yang had been gone from home for nearly three years in pursuit of adventure, something that her father supported despite Yang's relinquishing her claim to the throne to become truly free. Besides, the whole princess thing just wasn't for her. Not that it was for Ruby either….but she would find a way to deal.
Yang's train of thought was interrupted as she came to a sudden fork in the road. Stopping, she turned towards the left and could make out the setting sun in the distance. The light seemed to reflect perfectly off of the light green on the trees, granting the illusion of the path welcoming her down its twisting road.
Turning to the right, Yang couldn't help but notice a stark contrast as the lack of sun caused the green to grow dark and the twisting branches to seem more menacing than natural. Rustling in the distance made her suspicious, while the lightning out of nowhere led her to turn back to the left.
"Nope." Was all the beautiful adventurer said as she made her way down the sunny path and towards the last village before arriving in her home city. Blonde and thrill seeking she may be, but stupid she most certainly was not. Besides, anything that occurred down the right path would have likely led to a significant delay in making it home and Yang was already cutting it close. No, it was time to be responsible and make it back in time to see her sister in a tiara. Just the thought made her laugh aloud as Yang continued down the road and towards the setting sun.
"So Ruby gets to be a princess again, but I don't?"
"Maybe you'll get to be one too. But this isn't either of yours story so how about you just relax and enjoy being a spectator for now?"
"And what about me, do I get to be a spectator?"
"Oh, just you wait Kitty cat. The role I have for you is just…purrfect."
The sun had been below the horizon for over an hour when Yang finally made her way into the village. The sleepy town was dark as the night that had overtaken it as she ventured further in, towards its center. A smile crept upon her face as she spotted light coming from a medium sized building in what Yang assumed was the town square. As she got closer, Yang could make out the sound of singing and general merrymaking, confirming her suspicions that she found the tavern. A place to eat, drink and sleep – taverns had made Yang's journey much more comfortable than it would have otherwise been and she was looking forward to a hot meal and bed after several days on the road.
Arriving at the entrance, Yang pushed open the door and made her way inside. Spreading her arms dramatically, she quickly took in the place, noting the drunken group of men by the fire singing praises to some idiot as he caressed the severed head of an animal and the lone figure sitting at the bar. Apparently going unnoticed and not wanting to interrupt the reverie, Yang made her way towards the bar and took a seat.
"What'll it be, blondie?" came the gruff question from the bartender as he continued to clean out a glass. Apparently she wasn't the only one disconcerted by the little musical number occurring in his tavern.
"Strawberry sunrise." Yang ordered "Oh, and with one of those tiny umbrellas!" she added as the bartender turned to make her order. The singing had died down and Yang took the temporary silence as an opportunity to meet a local. Meeting new people had been one of her favorite parts of traveling and she took every opportunity to do so. "Sooooo, not the singing type?" Yang ventured to the man as he stared at his drink.
His only response was a grunt as he finished off the beverage. Yang took the time to take in his appearance and judging from his well-tailored coat and the obviously dyed highlights, he had to be from a city somewhere – not a local. His thousand yard stare combined with the constant tension throughout his body led Yang to also conclude he had a rough history as a soldier or perhaps a mercenary.
Taking the hint, Yang turned back to the bartender who had returned with her drink.
"So what's the story around here?" she asked, curious about a village so deep in Forever Fall.
The bartender seemed reluctant but answered any way. "There is no story, we're a convenient waypoint for travelers heading into Vale and the kingdom conducts regular hunts to keep the Grimm at bay." He tried to turn back to work but Yang wouldn't let him go.
"Aw come on, that's it?" she asked "No ghost stories or monsters?" Villages like this always had some sort of boogeyman to tell travelers about. Luckily for Yang, these imaginary monsters usually had some sort of root in fact that she could take care of for a price.
Sighing, the bartender gave her a look of resignation before answering. "Look, we're not interested in paying some stranger to kill some Grimm or whatever is actually shutting down that road. So how about you just pay for your drink and room, if that's what you want, and you can be on your merry way on the morrow."
Undeterred, Yang latched on to what he had said. "So you have some trouble traveling a road?" A glint had entered her eyes at the idea of adventure. Maybe she could spare a little time after all. Ruby wouldn't know either way.
"Yes, some thing is sabotaging the road towards the communal orchards. Like I said, it's probably just some Grimm that the next hunt will clear out and we get along just fine without some fruit. Besides, the only other thing down that way is the old Winchester place and that's been abandoned since the last war." The stare he had leveled towards Yang was clearly meant to end her interest but it only served to do the opposite.
Before she could question him further, the anti-social stranger beat her to the punch.
"You didn't seem to know anything interesting like that when I asked." He observed, finally looking up from his drink.
The bartender let out a gruff chuckle before answering "You don't possess the same…personality that she does."
Yang smiled at the obvious allusion, she had used her charm more than once and wasn't ashamed to abuse the idiocy of others.
"So are you going to check it out?" the man asked her, diverting his attention from the bartender.
"Uh, yeah probably." Yang answered "Why? Interested in coming along?" She wasn't really interested in a partner but she wouldn't exactly be able to stop him from tagging along.
"No." he answered flatly "I have something I need to take care of near the palace but am interested in what you might find. If you're still around in a few of days, mind sharing?"
Yang wasn't really sure what made him so interested in what honestly sounded like a standard Grimm that needed taken care of but didn't want to put him off. "Sure. I'll probably be heading towards the palace myself by then but if I'm still here for some reason…"
"Good." He stated, standing up.
"Wait." Yang called as the man made his way to the door "I'm Yang. I didn't catch your name."
The stranger seemed hesitant as he paused at the threshold but eventually responded only with "Adam."
The girl silently slid her latest conquest back into its proper place amongst its fellow books. Seemingly one of an endless supply in this incredibly stocked library. Sighing, she turned away from the shelves that had brought her such solace these past months. She couldn't believe her luck when she had first stumbled upon the abandoned home. Everything was still in place, though in desperate need of cleaning. Something must have prevented looters and thieves from venturing here, though she was at a loss as to what it could be.
Either way, this place had become her refuge. At first it had simply been a place to lay low and hope that she would be forgotten. Hope that she could forget. Overtime, she had grown comfortable in her exile – surrounded by books and having the nearby orchards to prevent starvation. She had found lately that she had no desire to leave. It was an unrealistic plan, but she was at a loss for other options.
Here was a place that she was no longer the monster that everyone thought she was. No longer bound to an organization she couldn't trust. No longer an adversary to a kingdom she hated. She was simply Blake Belladonna and for the first time in as long as she could remember, she felt free.
AN: First, I'd like to address some expectations. Unlike the Frozen fic, this is a firm Bumblebee story and not just a tease. I received a couple of reviews/messages mentioning that they didn't like ships being part of the stories but its what I enjoy writing and am sorry. This story will not be as purposely funny as the Frozen one, I tried to add some humor where I thought appropriate but Beauty and the Beast is likely the least "funny" of the Disney movies I will be doing. I hope you enjoy anyway though. Second, I would like to thank everyone who reviewed my Frozen story, I appreciate it a lot and really liked some of the ideas people presented. I'm not a big fan of Jaune but The Little Mermaid proposal really made me think. Finally, I am not sure if I will be doing the interludes that were throughout my Frozen story. I already have this whole story written and am looking through, trying to decide if they will be added or not. I will upload chapters daily, it's only four parts though and will reveal the next story at the is my first attempt at Bumblebee and I am not entirely comfortable with writing either of the characters so I hope this is good practice/improvement and look forward to reviews/messages of this story immensely.