Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY. I am writing this purely to see reader reaction and for fun. I make no financial profit doing this.
Chapter 2 – How to Child
Weiss's lungs were burning, but she didn't dare stop. She didn't know why she was running, but she knew she had to keep going or something horrible would happen. What exactly? Who knew? She didn't question it, that's just what it was.
She tripped over a stray root, stumbling a few steps before regaining her balance. Something was coming, and it was getting closer.
"Get back here girl! You can't hide from me!"
Weiss made the mistake of looking back. She saw a familiar Faunus burst into view, angrily cleaving an entire tree in two to make space. It was that Badrick person, with the same unforgiving, enraged amber eyes. His axe gleamed through the darkness, swiping through the air.
Weiss screamed in fear, and turned to run again. Before she could take another step, she felt him grab her arm in an iron grip, and spin her around to face him.
"You might have gotten away once, but you won't this time." He growled out at her, eyes flashing. "This time, I'll kill you and be done with it." Without ceremony he threw her to the ground and raised his axe overhead. She saw the muscles in his arms bulge, and then the axe was descending straight towards her head.
"AHHHHH!" Weiss shrieked, shooting upright. She looked all around her with a wild eye, heart pounding and gasping for air. Where was she? This wasn't her room. What happened!?
Suddenly the door burst open as Jaune ran into the room with a war cry, brandishing a bat. He made it two steps into the room before he tripped over his own feet, landing belly first on the hardwood floor and slid several feet, coming to a stop at the foot of Weiss's bed. To his credit, this didn't seem to slow him down as he shot back to his feet in only a few seconds, bat ready to swing.
"Where are they!? I'll get them this time!" He spun around in place a few times before determining that the only occupants of the room were him and Weiss.
Weiss stared at the blonde in bewilderment, forgetting the terror she'd been feeling no less than a few seconds ago. As Jaune spun around in his blue footie pajamas, Weiss's lips twitched a few times, before she couldn't help herself and began giggling, soon enough descending into full on laughter as she clutched at the sheets around her.
Outside of the room Jack and Isabelle quietly crept back to their room, smiling in pride for their son. Clearly they'd been doing something right for the boy to so quickly jump to the aid of another. And he seemed to be doing a fine job of calming Weiss, whether he realized it or not.
It took Weiss a few moments to compose herself, wiping away the tears that had gathered. She looked up to find Jaune sulking with a small pout.
"I'm sorry Jaune, you just looked so ridiculous sliding in like that."
"Wasn't that funny." He muttered to himself. "What were you screaming about anyways? I thought more of those kidnappers came for you again."
Weiss's good mood quickly sobered, and she cleared her throat uncomfortably. "It was nothing. Just a dream."
"Just a dream?" Jaune hopped onto the bed, sitting cross legged across from her. "You don't just scream like that for any normal dream."
"Okay, so it was a bad dream…A very bad dream." Weiss tugged at the oversized shirt she was wearing. Mrs. Arc must have given it to her before putting her to bed.
"I know what that's like. I used to have nightmares all the time. Do you know what always cheered me up afterwards?"
Weiss looked at him, silently urging him to continue.
"Ice cream! C'mon, there's some in the freezer." Jaune grabbed her hand and pulled her out of bed, bringing the both of them to the kitchen.
"Wait! What're you doing? We can't eat ice cream now. It's the middle of the night. We're supposed to be in bed and asleep right now." Weiss said, hands on her hips and looking sternly at Jaune. And the mention of food at such an hour reminded her that it had been over a whole day since she'd last brushed her teeth. Totally unbecoming of the Schnee family.
"Pshh, that's silly. You can't go back to sleep just like that after a nightmare. Now what flavor do you want, chocolate or vanilla?" Jaune pushed a chair over to the kitchen counter, using it as a stepping stool to reach the cabinet the bowls were in, then repeated the process with the freezer.
"What do you think you're doing? We're only kids, we're not supposed to mess with the food. Only adults get to do that." Weiss's heart was pounding again, as she glanced down the hallways to check for Jaune's parents.
Jaune continued on as if he hadn't heard her. "You strike me as a 'vanilla' girl. Same here. Can't go wrong with good old fashioned vanilla." Jaune scooped out a couple of generous helpings before putting the rest back in the freezer. "Here." He handed her one of the bowls, then dug into his own.
Weiss looked down at her own in confliction. Hesitantly, she nibbled on it, gradually growing more comfortable until she was eating in full bites of the delicious frozen treat. Who knew eating ice cream after bed time could be so exhilarating. She'd never have done this back at home, but it was fun. What would daddy say if he knew?
"So…" Jaune began hesitantly, looking a little unsure of himself. "Wanna talk about it?"
"There's nothing to talk about. It was just that horrid, filthy Faunus, Badrick." Weiss looked up and away, pushing another spoonful of ice cream in her mouth. She shivered lightly, remembering those eyes. What could her family's company ever have done to make them hate them so much?
"Yea, he was scary wasn't he? But we don't have to worry about him anymore! Dad and Uncle Elmont beat all them up, and they'd be crazy to come back. And when I get bigger I'm gonna be a hero just like them!" Jaune swung his spoon around like it was a sword, battling some imaginary foe. "Then I can protect you too!"
Weiss smiled shyly at his enthusiasm. "Thank you, by the way. For rescuing me in the forest." She blushed lightly. "I'm sure you'll be an amazing hero someday."
The pair finished their midnight snack and went back to their beds, this time with Weiss managing to sleep through to the morning.
The next few days were a whirlwind of new experiences for Weiss, some of which may or may not have threatened to undermine the strict upbringing of the Schnee family.
"I don't understand." Weiss stared down at Jaune. "How can someone have that bad a balance?" She hadn't known Jaune very long, but he seemed to fall down an awful lot. "Especially when you moved through the forests so easily before."
"I didn't fall over! I uh…" Jaune paused, looking around him, clearly searching for an excuse. "I just decided I wanted to make snow angels!"
"What's a snow angel?"
Jaune blinked up at her. "You're kidding me right? Everyone knows what a snow angel is." Weiss stared at him blankly. "You're not kidding me. Well okay, it's fun, I'll teach you."
Jaune reclined in the snow, arms and legs fully extended. "All you do is lay back in the snow like this, and start moving your legs up and down, which makes a shape in the snow that looks like an angel." He demonstrated as he explained, before getting up. "Tada!"
Weiss still stared blankly. "That's supposed to be fun? All you did was push around some snow."
"Oh C'mon! At least give it a try!"
She considered him for a moment. "…No." And tossed her hair back over her shoulder. "A Schnee can't be caught doing something so frivolous anyways. There would be no point to such an unproductive activity." She crossed her arms and looked away imperiously.
Jaune looked at her and narrowed his eyes challengingly. "I dare you to do it."
"No, it's silly. It's just rolling around in the snow. I'll get all wet."
"Oh yea? Well I double dog dare you to."
Weiss didn't know why, but suddenly everything seemed a lot more serious. Like Jaune had just challenged her honor or was subtly calling her a coward.
"Or are you scared?" …Or blatantly calling her a coward. This could not stand!
"Fine! A Schnee is scared of nothing."
Weiss awkwardly lowered herself on a clear patch of snow and hesitantly began moving her arms like she saw Jaune had, eyes closed in concentration. Was she doing it right? Was there some sort of technique that she wasn't aware of!? Oh god she hoped that she wasn't embarrassing herself right now.
"Uhh, Weiss, that's good. You can stop now."
"Huh? Oh right. I knew that!" Weiss quickly stood back up and turned to look at her creation, only to note with great dismay that whatever she'd created she'd demolished in her scramble to rise. She glanced between her own, and Jaune's near impeccable version, the only mar being the single handprint he'd had to create to stand back up.
"Well, it was a good try. We can do something else if you want." Jaune offered, noticing her small scowl.
"No! This is completely unacceptable! We will keep doing this until I get it right!" She threw herself back down into the snow and began flapping far more confidently than the first time.
Jaune shrugged and joined her with a wide grin. They spent the rest of the afternoon creating the perfect snow angels, until at the end they stared down at their latest creations. It may have taken longer than Weiss would have liked, but she finally figured out that creating the perfect snow angel was a two person job. One to make it, and another to pull the first up so they didn't ruin it with their movements.
"Perfect!" Weiss declared with a smile, uncaring of the fact that the two of them were soaked with snowmelt.
"I think I should start calling you Snow Angel from now on. I've never seen anyone enjoy it as much as you did."
Weiss huffed. "There's nothing wrong with enjoying your work."
"Kids!" They heard Isabella calling them from the doorway. "Come inside before you get sick!"
Isabella got the two settled in front of the television, buried in blankets, sipping hot cocoa, and watching a movie.
"Isn't there supposed to be something…productive we should be doing right now? Like, some sort of lessons or something?" Weiss stared at the open doorway to the kitchen, wondering why Mrs. Arc had left them there. This never happened at Castle White. There was always something to be learning or practicing. She could write off the snow angel thing as a cultural phenomenon, but this was getting ridiculous.
"Lessons? Like school? No, we're on winter vacation right now. Aren't you?"
"I get home schooled. The only vacations I have are when daddy decides that I should be learning more about the family business or we go to some social function."
"Well, you can relax here. No lessons, no homework and no worries."
Weiss was able to gradually relax, finding herself enjoying the movie quite a bit. It was about two dogs and a cat trying to find their way home. Or at least she was enjoying it until they got near the end.
"Jaune! They're leaving him behind! Why're they leaving him behind?! They can't leave him behind!" Her eye was locked on the screen as she pushed Jaune's shoulder insistently. One of the dogs had been injured and was trapped in a deep mud pit, and was ordering the other two animals to leave him there. Don't ask how they talked, they just did.
"If that were my railroad I'd make sure there weren't any stupid mud pits around! What kind of business do they think they're running?"
She didn't calm down until just before the credits when the trapped dog somehow made it back home, despite all the odds.
"You really got into that movie. Like it?" Jaune asked her cheekily.
Weiss crossed her arms, closed her eyes and turned her head away. This seemed to be her default pose whenever she was embarrassed by something and was called on it. "I-It was okay. I'm just appalled at how poorly maintained that business was. A simple wooden board over a ten foot deep mud pit is not an acceptable solution. That poor dog could have died down there and no one would've even noticed." She snuck a look out of the corner of her eye at Jaune in a moment of silent scrutiny. "…I've always wanted a dog. A big one that I could play with!" She admitted with a smile, arms spread for emphasis. The smile dimmed with the next sentence. "But daddy always said that a dog would be too rowdy for the Schnee family."
"Too rowdy?" Jack poked his head into the room. "That's nonsense. Dogs are like, the best companions in the whole world. It all depends on how well trained they are." He entered the room fully.
"By the way Jaune, I think it's about time to start teaching you how to really fight."
"Really?!" Jaune's eyes lit up with excitement.
"Well, if you're going to keep going off to rescue damsels in distress then you'll need to be as strong as possible right?"
"Yea! Woo!" Jaune jumped up and started dancing around. Weiss noted with surprise that he seemed very well coordinated. Quite unexpected given all the earlier tripping incidents.
"I will never understand how you can dance so well yet trip over yourself so often." Apparently Weiss wasn't alone in that department.
The next day Weiss's bandages came off. Weiss attached herself to the bathroom mirror, prodding at her new scar worriedly. It ran from a little bit above her left eyebrow and extended to just below her left cheekbone. Father would be very displeased when he saw it.
"That is so cool!" Jaune's enthusiasm for her new feature was reassuring though. "Something like that will make people think twice before messing with you."
"You really think so? It's not…ugly or anything?"
"No way! I wish I had one. Then everyone would know how tough I was."
"Speaking of which, when do you start training?"
"In a couple days I think. I can hardly wait." Jaune almost seemed to vibrate in place in his excitement, nearly tripping himself again.
"Okay seriously, this is ridiculous." Weiss marched purposefully out, hauling Jaune behind her. "I'm going to teach you how to walk, and keep still."
"I know how to walk and keep still. I'm not dumb ya know." Jaune said, his tone offended.
"Jaune, you have tripped over yourself no less than seven times since I met you. And just now you looked ready to explode." She continued on, interrupting Jaune as he opened his mouth to protest. "Besides, think of it this way. Every great hero needs a good sense of balance and poise. I've been raised my entire life to be graceful and dignified, so I can teach you how to be as well."
"I do-" Jaune cut himself off at the glare he was getting from Weiss, with a deer caught in headlights expression. Jaune quickly lost in the battle of wills and slumped in resignation. "Oh fine."
"Good!" Weiss plucked a pair of hardcover books from a nearby shelf and stuck one on her head, balancing it perfectly even as she walked around. "The first step is good posture and controlled footwork. In this exercise you balance a book, or a stack of books atop your head and practice moving around. Once you can maintain the books while moving at your regular walking pace, you've mastered the exercise."
"Sounds easy enough. How hard can it be?" Jaune plopped his own book on his head and it immediately slid off. "Uhh, that was a practice round." It took a long time, much longer than Weiss would care to admit, but eventually she managed to get him to be able to stand still while balancing the book.
"See? Easy. I totally coulda done it in my slee-eeeep!" Sure enough, the moment Jaune started talking, the book began sliding, and he lost his balance in his attempts to keep the book in place, resulting in him landing flat on his back. "Ow."
Weiss facepalmed. "This may be more difficult than I thought."
"Keep your shield up Jaune! Never let your guard down!" Jack smacked his practice sword into Jaune's wooden shield.
"Guard above! Left! Right! Center!" With each call Jack made slow attacks from that direction, getting his son used to the basics of shield play. "Good, again!"
Jaune stumbled backwards as he caught a thrust on his shield. "When fighting a bigger opponent don't try to stop their attacks head on. Redirect them away from yourself by tilting your shield, or catch the attack and move with its momentum to get some space."
"He's not doing too badly is he Miss Schnee?" Weiss glanced behind her to see Elmont approaching along with his wife and daughter, who she had met just a little bit ago.
His wife's name was Oriya, and she had blonde hair, a shade darker than Jaune's and his fathers, green eyes and a tan complexion. She owned her own bar and restaurant in town, the Hunter's Home. Like the name suggested, it was a popular stopping place for Hunters and Huntresses. Being on the outskirts of the kingdom of Vale, Oakfield was a fairly frequent stopping place for passing through Hunters. The woman was nice, not quite so upbeat and mothering as Isabella was, outside of her own child at least, and didn't hesitate to reel in the children, Weiss and Jaune included, if she felt the need to.
Elmont's daughter, Lucia, was a six year old girl with brown hair in pigtails, blue eyes, and what Weiss considered an unhealthy amount of suspicion. She seemed absolutely certain of the fact that Weiss was out to steal her big brother Jaune away from her. But other than that she was a very nice little girl.
"Good afternoon Mr. Scorpius. Yes, Jaune seems to be taking to it rather well."
"Hello brother thief…" Lucia stared at her with narrow, suspicious eyes. "Plotting when to drag him away are you?"
"Once again," Weiss narrowed her own eyes at the girl, noting with some amusement that Lucia's gaze periodically went to her scar. Maybe it would be useful in the future. "I'm not stealing Jaune away. We're friends." The word sent butterflies flying in her stomach. Butterflies and happiness. Weiss could acknowledge it to herself, Jaune was her very first, real friend. Not one of those sycophants whose parents were trying to curry favor with her father.
"Lies! I've read the manga! Boy meets girl, girl coerces boy into following her on some crazy adventure, boy marries girl, and boy's younger sister is reduced to an infrequent side character!" She waved a fist animatedly over her head before drawing her hand down to point at Weiss. "I'm on to you Schnee." Lucia's blue eyes flashed with defiance.
The staring contest was broken by Oriya ruffling her daughters hair. "You have such an active imagination Lucy. Jaune won't ever forget about you. You're his favorite little sister after all."
"That's right!" Lucia crossed her arms and nodded with a satisfied huff, before scrunching her face in confusion. "…Wait."
Before she could explode Elmont spoke up. "I'm glad you're here Weiss. Last night your father asked me to start training you in the art of fencing, for self defense purposes of course, and I agreed. If it's alright with you we can begin immediately." They had been careful to contact Weiss's father every evening with updates of her status as well as the progress on repairing the airport. The supplies he'd been having airdropped to the town had been accelerating the process nicely.
Weiss jumped at the opportunity. She'd been having fun the last few days, but she'd been getting increasingly irritable with the lack of anything really productive to do. Learning how to fence would be a welcome change to all the unstructured free time.
"That would be wonderful Mr. Scorpius. I've been going mad with nothing productive to do."
"Marvelous!" He tossed her a bundle of gear. "Get changed into that and we'll get started right away!"
"You're gon-oof!" Jaune rolled to a stop at Weiss's feet, staring up at her with the wind knocked out of him. "You're gonna learn to fight too?" He wheezed out.
"Eyes on the prize Jaune, distractions can be hazardous. But yes, Mr. Scorpius is going to teach me the noble art of fencing."
"Cool!" Jaune sprung up, apparently recovered from his winding. "We can be sparring buddies or something!"
Lucia jumped up from where she'd been sitting, watching Jaune fight, and jabbed an accusing finger at Weiss. "Aha! I knew it! You are trying to steal away my big brother! Admit it fiend!"
"I am not trying to steal away Jaune you brat, so stop saying that!" A red faced Weiss nearly shouted back at the younger girl.
The next few weeks passed by in a blur to Weiss. She'd play games with Jaune and Lucia, train with Master Elmont, and have a generally all around pleasant time. Though she did suffer the occasional nightmare, remembering her time as a captive. But the edge was taken off of those by Jaune's steadfast midnight ice cream cure. He never failed to come charging when she awoke with a cry, and he never made fun of her for it. She missed her father, but this could very well have been the most fun she'd ever had in her life. No boring meeting sit ins, no unforgiving, super strict tutoring, no overbearing step mother, but most importantly, none of the loneliness that she had come to associate with Castle White.
It was a sad day for them when Oakfield finally got the airport up and running and her father was able to get a jet out to pick her up.
She and Jaune were sitting together in the lobby. Her father would be arriving soon to pick her up. Jaune's parents and Elmont were elsewhere, officially checking up on arrival times, but unofficially because Isabelle wanted to give them a chance to say goodbye.
"So, uh, you're going back to the city then." Jaune said, voice shaking ever so slightly.
"Yea. Back to the city." Weiss said quietly. Then there was an awkward silence where neither of them knew what to say. Eventually Jaune was the one to break it.
"Um, ehem." He cleared his throat, attempting to bolster himself. "I'm uh, I'm gonna, you know, miss you and stuff." He said haltingly, eyes stinging. "I mean, uh, you're well, probably my best friend."
Weiss bit her lip, her own eyes stinging with tears. "You're my best friend too." She was faring only slightly better than Jaune, her family's training having its effect.
Jaune took a deep, shuddering breath and quickly looked around them. Deeming the area clear and before he lost his nerve, he grabbed Weiss in a tight hug. Weiss was surprised into a moment of inaction, but she eventually returned it.
A few minutes later they were at the gate with the adults, waiting for Weiss's father to exit the plane. Weiss was sad to go, but she couldn't deny that she was happy to see her father again.
"It is good to see you well father." She said with a curtsy as he reached them.
"Weiss, I am glad to see that you are unhurt. I hope you've conducted yourself properly while away." Her father looked much better than he had over the video phone a few weeks ago. His burgundy suit was crisp and clean, and his short white hair was in order, each strand immaculately combed. His eyes lingered for a moment on her new scar and Weiss winced inwardly, knowing there'd soon be a conversation about it.
"Of course father." Albert nodded in satisfaction, his face stoic and neutral. Then he turned his attention to the adults, shaking each of their hands firmly.
"I cannot thank you all enough for the rescue and care of my daughter. But I hope this will at least slightly convey the gratitude I owe you." He handed one envelope to Jack and another to Elmont.
"Oh, Mr. Schnee, we don't need a reward. It was a pleasure having Weiss with us." Isabelle attempted to give it back.
"I must insist Mrs. Arc. If you do not want it then give it to charity, but I will not accept it back." She looked like she wanted to protest more, but seeing Albert's conviction quickly gave up.
"As I understand it, you are the one responsible for my daughters safety." He said, giving Jaune a considering look.
"What? Me? No, I just lead her to town. Dad and Uncle Elmont are the ones who saved her. The both of us really."
"Yes, but if you hadn't acted as you did, then your father and uncle wouldn't have been there either, and Weiss may still be with the White Fang right now. You are a very brave young man, and I suspect that I'll never be able to fully repay you."
Jaune flushed in embarrassment at the praise. "Oh, you're welcome. I was just doing the right thing. And besides, Weiss has become a very good friend ever since."
"Anyways, I'm sorry to cut this so short, but there are matters that must be tended to. Farewell and thank you all again." With another quick set of handshakes, Albert herded Weiss into the dustplane. She sent one last look back at the family that had taken her in and gave them a wave and managed a small smile for them.
The Oakfield residents stayed there until the plane was well on its way, a mere speck in the sky.
Jaune sighed in despair. There goes his best friend. He'd probably never see her again. Or if he did it'd be on tv or something. He remembered her telling him all about how important her family's business was, so maybe when she finally inherited it he would see it on the news.
Weiss sat next to her father, staring out the window at the steadily shrinking town.
"So, how was your stay there Weiss? Did you enjoy yourself?" Her father sounded a little bit uncomfortable, but at least he was making the effort.
"It was nice. Jaune and his family took very good care of me."
"So, I can assume that you wouldn't be opposed to returning regularly?"
Weiss's eyes snapped to her father. "Pardon?" Her tone was blank.
"I have arranged for you to return to Oakfield regularly to continue your lessons with Mr. Scorpius."
Weiss was barely able to keep her composure. Nonetheless, Weiss was unable to keep herself from smiling. She'd see Jaune again! This wasn't the last time they'd ever meet! "Of course daddy. I would love to continue my lessons with Master Elmont."
"And, there is one last thing. I have been convinced, that it may be prudent to have a…companion for you, just in case." He handed Weiss a book, the cover of which read, 'How to Train Your Dog'. German Shepherds in particular.
Weiss looked between him and it with wide eyes. "Really? I'm getting a dog? I thought you said they were too rowdy for a Schnee."
"I think you're big and mature enough now to be able to handle it. But if your grades and performance starts slipping, we will get rid of it."
"I understand daddy, thank you." Weiss tore open the book and began memorizing as much as she could.
Jaune sighed for the umpteenth time since Weiss had left, and they hadn't even left the airport yet.
"So what're you so down about Jaune?" Jack asked his son.
"What do you mean? Weiss is gone! My best friend just left!"
"Don't be so dramatic Jaune, she'll be back in a few months."
"I'm probably never even going to see her again! Who knows wh-" Jaune paused. "What?" he asked, tone blank.
"Yea, Weiss'll be back in a few months to continue her lessons with Elmont."
"What!? Why didn't you tell me!?"
"Mr. Schnee wanted to tell her himself, so we couldn't tell you. You'd go blabbing it the second you found out."
"Do you know what I just went through!? I thought I was never going to see her in person again!" Jaune started chasing his father, wishing he had his practice sword, further provoked by Jack's laughter. But, under all that annoyance with his father's secrecy, Jaune had never been so relieved in his life. The problem now was, how was he expected to wait that long to see his best friend again?
End Chapter!
There we have it, I think in the next chapter we'll be jumping to the start of the show.
Thanks everyone for the reviews, they were really great! I loved hearing that you liked it so much…Then I started writing this chapter and started worrying about whether I was doing it justice or if I'd set the bar too high on myself. I hope I'm able to keep you all entertained throughout this fic!
Does it surprise anyone that the biggest dilemma I had in this chapter was whether to give Weiss a dog or not? My god, I must have spent hours agonizing about that one. In the end I decided, 'My fic, she's getting a freaking dog!' Also, pretend the German Shepherd breed exists in RWBY and ignore the fact that Germany isn't a place in that universe.
Also also! I hope all of you have a safe and Merry Christmas, or whatever holiday you happen to celebrate.
Please let me know how you liked it! All feedback, constructive criticism, and questions are all welcome and appreciated.