Chapter 4: Out of the Shadows
I just shoveled down $100 on Smite to get Demonic Pact Anubis. I feel so satisfied.
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This chapter focuses on day 1, a bit of Eris lore, and I will start speeding up the plot after some things are hashed out.
Enjoy
Ruby beamed at Weiss.
Weiss stared at Blake
Blake gazed at Yang.
Yang was hugging (crushing) Eris.
Eris was flailing uselessly.
"Welcome to the team!" she happily greeted after Ruby returned to their dorm. "Believe me, you'll ~love it here~!" Yang sang as she released Eris from her friendly hug (Death-Grip). Eris landed on her feet, subtly creating some distance between her and the smiling blond woman.
"Yeah! We're gonna be the best team in the school." Ruby exclaimed, raising her fist into the air in triumph. Blake remained silent as Weiss spoke up. "Especially with me on the team, my expertise will secure our place." she arrogantly added.
Eris wondered if karma was coming to collect her debt.
"Yeah, were pretty awesome." Yang confidently supplied. "We already wrecked a nevermore in initiation, we got this year in the bag." she said confidently as she plopped herself onto her bed. Blake silently made her way to her own bed, the fatigue from earlier coming back with a vengeance.
Weiss also made her way to her bed, gracefully sitting on the end, while Eris took in her new team. Ruby, as she stated before, was kind of an airhead, but had a innocence about her. Weiss, on the other hand, held herself with grace, taking great pride in her abilities. Yang has an incredibly strong physique (She has first-hand experience), and had a voice full of humor. Not much could be said about Blake, other than she prefers silence and is closed off.
In total, they were the most merry band of misfits Eris had ever seen.
Ruby, in a flurry of movements, managed to move Eris's bed into an unoccupied part of the room. "We haven't got around to customising the room yet." she explained to Eris, "so you can just kinda…" she made multiple different gestures to her, their meaning completely unknown.
"Uh huh…" Eris responded slowly, pretending she understood. Ruby grinned and and gave a small laugh before turning to her own bed. "And now for my next trick." She said before propelling herself under the covers of her bed, instantly falling asleep.
Weiss and Yang were also sleeping, their previous tiredness returning. Blake, who was lazily reading a book, simply looked at Eris and shrugged, closing her book and blowing out the a candle, before she too entered dreamland.
Eris hummed to herself in amusement, moving to her own bed. She pulled the covers off and deposited them onto the floor. She never liked using them. She smoothly glided onto the bed, wrapping herself in her soft cloak, and sinking slightly into the comforting embrace of the shadows.
A bed was fine, but the familiar sense of weightlessness was much more pleasant to her. Eris felt at home in the endless expanse of the shadowy void. Her senses didn't work the same as they normally did in the corporeal world, as she couldn't see, hear, or smell.
The only thing she could do was feel, but not in the same way as before. She Feels smells, she Feels sounds, and she Feels her surroundings. The sensations can not be accurately explained, but she knows what the are. Each smell has a unique feel, each sound feels different, and every object has its own distinct feeling.
It's different when it comes to people, however. A person's smell, voice, aura, and appearance all muddle together to form one, unified feeling. It was as if their very being was manifested and projected to her.
She felt Ruby.
She felt Blake.
She felt Weiss.
She felt Yang
She felt their very being.
Eris dedicated their individual feelings to memory, making sure to remember them.
Whenever she tried to explain to someone their feeling, they were unnerved. They always remarked that they felt disturbed, as if their secrets were revealed. The one thing she could not feel was herself. No matter what she tried, she could never sense her own being. It was irritating.
She slept peacefully in this realm of weightlessness and feeling, floating aimlessly. She had a vague sense of time. She could sense the darkness of night, and the lack of it during the day, but could not pinpoint its exactness.
This was how she realized it was approaching the afternoon when she regained her consciousness, also feeling a sharp noise in the air and her teammates moving about. Eris, regretfully, exited her favorite place in the world, her senses returning to her once more as she breathed deeply.
"GOOOOOD MORNING TEAM REWBY! (E=Eris)" Ruby exclaimed excitedly, ready to start their first day. Weiss, who for some reason was laying on the floor, indignantly berated Ruby, "What in the world is Wrong with you?!" she asked, still on the floor.
Ruby merily put her hands on her hips, raising her chin in authority, "Now that you're awake, we can officially begin our first order of business" she continued. Weiss picked herself off the floor as Eris moved off her bed. "Excuse me?" Weiss asked in confusion.
"~Decorating~" Yang cheerfully supplied. Blake also spoke up, "We still have to unpack." she explained, holding up her suitcase as indication, before its contents spilled onto the floor. "And clean."
Ruby blew her whistle again, knocking Weiss of her feet and promoting Eris to cover her ears. "ALRIGHT! Weiss, Blake, Yang, Eris, and their Fearless leader Ruby have begun their first mission. BANZAI!" Ruby said in determination, raising her fist into the air.
"BANZAI!" joined Blake and Yang, also raising their fists. Eris hummed in amusement, before picking up her supplied uniform and heading to the bathroom as Weiss let out a melancholy sigh.
Yang, Weiss, and Blake quickly proceeded to customize the room, adding their personal touches. Ruby was about to join when she noticed Eris's lack of contribution.
"Eris? Aren't you gonna help?" Ruby asked curiously, wondering what was up. Eris lazily lifted her uniform, "changing" she replied in her usual soft voice. Ruby tilted her head slightly before shrugging and joining the others in beautifying the room.
Eris closed the bathroom door behind her, sighing as she removed her cloak, letting it fall to the ground as she walked over to the sink. She placed her uniform on the ground before gazing lazily at the mirror. She ran a hand through her loose, shoulder-length maroon hair, moving the right side behind her ear. She gently adjusted the small black bow above her right ear, confirming it was secure.
She took in her appearance, making sure she was presentable. Her pale skin was clean and smooth, with a subtle pink blush on her upper cheeks. Her silver eyes, once dulled and hidden beneath her cloak, shone brightly. In most instances, she would be considered attractive, but as a mercenary in Mistral, that only brought trouble.
That's why she wore a cloak to hide her features. Her youthful appearance prevented her from getting any jobs, the employers usually thinking she was too young to help, or they would try to hit on her. It was much easier and simpler to hide her appearance, using the unknown to look more mysterious. She would appear as someone who could get the job done, rather than a beautiful young woman.
Her small frame helped in that regard , as well her combat style. She prefered to use incredible speed to quickly incapacitate enemies and to avoid injury. Having a smaller body helped increase speed and decrease the likelihood of being hit. She could also sneak easier too.
That was another deception though.
Most people who saw her true appearance thought she was around 16-20. That was (technically) untrue, as she just looked younger than she was. This was because Eris spent a lot of time deep within the shadows/void, where time moves slower. She did not age with the world around her when she did this, meaning some time in there was more time out here. Normally this was a disadvantage and was why she wore a cloak most of the time, however, this time it would help her play-off her disguise as a student.
Removing her normal attire, which consisted of a simple loose-sleeved black blouse with a black thigh-lengthed combat skirt, tinted grey towards the end, and black shorts underneath (she abhorred leggings), and equipped the standard female uniform. She backed up and twirled, making sure everything was on correctly. She also kept her shorts on, as she wasn't going to wear the leggings, nothing in the world could make her.
Humming in approval, Eris picked up her cloak and put it back on. She pulled the hood back and shrugged back the the parts covering her her body, making the cloak fold on itself behind her. She walked back to the door and opened it, eyes widening in shock at the scene before her.
Books covered the entirety of the walls, with boxes dominating the floor.
Then there were the beds.
'Wow' was the only thought Eris could think when she saw the formation of the beds. The 2 beds on the right were stacked neatly on top of each other using books, while the beds on the left were...slightly less organised. One bed was on the ground, while another was lopsidedly suspended above it by ropes connecting it to the ceiling. Another bed was attached to the top bed by duct-taped.
She could only assume that one was hers.
'Why wouldn't it be?' Eris thought while contemplating the physics behind it.
The rest of the team looked at their creation with approval, before Ruby spoke. "Alright! Our second order of business i-" she cut suddenly cut herself off. The rest of the team looked at her in confusion.
"Um, HELLO? Remnant to Ruby?" Yang said uncertainly as she waved her hand in front of Ruby's unblinking face. Weiss tilted her head at this, "I know you don't have many brain cells, but you never broke like this before." she said with concern. Blake followed Ruby's gaze, before her eyes widened, her cheeks turning slightly red.
Weiss huffed in annoyance, "Now YOU'RE doing it! Why am i surrounded by-" she then saw what they were looking at, a slight blush coloring her normally white cheeks. Yang almost laughed at her expression, "Weiss, you're freezing up there." she noted humorously, before turning to what they were all staring at.
Yang paused.
Then she smiled.
"Oh WOW." she then put a hand on her hip. "Eris, I didn't know you were so pretty." she continued, her grin widening. This got the others out of their stupor. Shaking there heads in a cartoonish fashion, they regained their composure
Weiss was the first to speak.
"She's ok." she tried to play off her behavior. "Definitely better than most." her blush returning as she realized what she said.
"She's more than ok Weiss, she's damn near perfect!" Yang announced shamelessly.
Eris's natural blush intensified as she pulled her hood back up to cover her face. Seeing this Yang quickly grabbed her in another hug. "~Oooh I didn't mean to embarrass you~" she said as she cuddled Eris, pushing her hood back down as she growled indignantly in her arms. Some red dripped from from Blake's nose before she wiped it off.
"You kinda look like me." Ruby mentioned, noticing her silver eyes, roundish face, and maroon hair, although her own hair was pure red and black. Yang also looked closely at Eris, "Ya know, she kinda does." she admitted.
Weiss noticed this too, "Maybe she is a distant relative?" she suggested uncertainly. Blake also contributed. "Or maybe it's just a coincidence." she suggested. They all looked at Eris for an answer, only to notice her struggling to free herself from Yang's Iron grip.
"Oh, sorry." Yang apologises as she gently set Eris down. After sending Yang a glare, she turned the others and shrugged, "No idea."
There was an awkward silence, broke only by Ruby, who continued where she left off. "Alright! Our second order of business is…" she raised her hand triumphantly, before she crashed onto her bed. "Classes." she completed dejectedly.
"Now" she continued, "We have a few classes together today. At 9:00 we've gotta be-"
"WHAT?!" Weiss exclaimed in alarm, "Did you say 9 o'clock!" Ruby just stared at her dumbfounded. Weiss grabbed her head in panic, "It's 8:55 you DUNCE." She said before she ran out of the room.
The Rest of REWBY, as well as JNPR, watched her go, before Ruby issued their next order of business, "uhh. T-t-to class!" she said before speeding off, followed shortly by Yang, then Blake. Eris quickly merged with Blake's shadow as she left, causing JNPR to stare in shock, collapsing on each other as they stared at the spot a student fell through the floor.
"D-d-did anyone else see that?" Juane stammered out, looking at his teammates for confirmation that he's not crazy. Ren nodded, "It was likely their semblance, but I don't know what it was." he logically guessed. "Maybe she broke her legs?" added Nora.
"We should really be getting to class." Pyrrha suggested. They listened to that advice and followed after REWBY.
4 minutes and 55 seconds later
REWBY and JNPR crashed through the doors at the same time, falling over each other and looking quite winded. Blake, who was last to enter gracefully maneuver around their bodies, slipping inside the classroom. When she felt everyone was preoccupied, Eris hopped out of Blake's shadow. Blake's bow twitched slightly as she turned around, surprise written on her face, "When did-"
"Excellent Timing!" professor Port bellowed, "Please take a seat so we may begin todays lesson."
The two teams then moved to open seats before Port began his lesson, "Monsters! Demons! Prowlers of the night. Yes, the creatures of grimm have many names, but I merily refer to them as prey. HaHa!" He joked, only to receive silence as a response. "Uhh, and you shall too, upon graduating from this prestigious academy." the round man continued unperturbed.
"Now as I was saying-blah blah blah, blah blah, blah." The man words became a distant noise as Eris zoned out. It's not that she was a bad listener, but she suddenly found herself suddenly, and irrevocably bored (cough-Reverence-cough). She picked up her pencil, and started doodling on her notecard. She'll just copy off Weiss, who was on her left, without her noticing. She wasn't paying much attention to what she was drawing, but let her hand do what it wanted to do.
After a short moment her hand stopped, signalling her works completion. She looked down, curious as to what her idle mind decided to draw. She was not disappointed in the slightest. Eris heard giggling to her left and noticed Ruby had doodled too, and was currently showing them a crudely drawn picture of Port, with stink lines whirling off him while making a small fart noise.
In response, Eris showed Ruby her well-drawn picture of Ruby showing them a crude drawing of Port. The rest of her team looked at her in confusion. Port must have noticed their lack of attention, as he coughed loudly, bringing them out of their thoughts. "In the end, the beowulf was no match for my sheer tenacity, and I returned to my village with the beast in captivity and my head held high, celebrated as a hero." he said with nostalgia in his voice. He took a bow.
"The moral of the story?"
"A true huntsman must be honorable" Ruby balanced an apple on top of a book on top of a pencil.
"A true huntsman must be dependable" Ruby fell asleep.
"A true huntsman must be strategic"
"Well-educated"
"And wise"
Eris stopped looking after Ruby's fingure approached her nose. "So who among you believes themselves to be the embodiment of these traits?" Port asked, trying to encourage the students to participate.
"I do sir!" said Weiss confidently, instantly shooting her arm into the air, looking ready to explode. Port grinned from under his mustache, "Well then, let's find out. Step forward, and face your opponent!" he loudly proclaimed, gesturing to a large cage with two glowing red eyes emanating from within. Weiss stepped to the front of the class regally, eager to show her superior skills.
"Gooooo Weiss!" Yang cheered.
"Fight Well!" Blake encouraged, holding a small flag with REWBY written on it.
"Good Luck." Eris softly supported.
"Yeah, represent team REWBY!" Ruby happily yelled, raising her arms in the air with excitement. Weiss turned and snapped, "RUBY, I'm trying to focus!" she shouted irritably, clearly bothered. Ruby visibly deflated, murmuring "Oh...sorry."
The rest of the team watched weiss with concern, as she only addressed Ruby. They were unsure why she reacted that way. After some thought, they blew it off as just some of her Weiss-ness. Eris had no idea as to the cause, choosing to observe for the moment and possibly put the pieces together.
"Alright. Let the match...BEGIN" Port bellowed as he cleaved the cage's lock off with his blunderbuss-axe, revealing a menacing boarbatusk. The creature of grimm immediately charged at Weiss, setting its sights on mutilating her. Weiss waited until it approached, then deftly hopped to the side, striking the grimms side as she did so. The boarbatusk wasn't fazed in the slightest, and turned bear its hollow gaze on her, as if to stare her down.
'Go for the belly,' thought Eris, 'it's weak there.'
"HaHa, weren't expecting that, were you?" Port mused as Weiss tried to think of another strategy. "Hang in there Weiss." encouraged Ruby, voice filled with suspense. The grimm then charged at her, intending to overpower her with brute force. Weiss also dashed forward, intending to impale the creature using its own momentum. The grimm wasn't deterred, however, and angled its tusks so Weiss' blade slipped between them, and then it turned to face her again, catching Myrtenaster hilt and locking it in place.
Weiss was flung around, trying to maintain a hold on her weapon, landing in front of the boarbatusk as they each struggled for dominance.
"Bold new approach, I like it." commented Port, thinking it was intended. The grimm and huntress-in-training continued there tug-of-war, neither giving ground. "Come on Weiss, show it who's boss!" said Ruby from the sidelines, trying to inspire her teammate. Weiss turned to glare at her, mouth opening to speak, but the rupture in focus caused her grip to slack, which the grimm took full advantage off. Myrtenaster was viciously yanked from Weiss' hands as it flew through the air, embedding itself in the ground a short distance away. Weiss was violently tossed to the side as the boarbatusk tusked her.
"Hoho, now what will you do without your your weapon?" Port asked rhetorically. 'Engage it in CQC unarmed, and punch it in the gut really hard.' thought Eris, answering the question in her mind. She also noticed Weiss lapse in concentration when Ruby commented again. She just needs to make the connection now.
The grimm charged at Weiss again, attempting to skewer her when she was defenceless. She rolled to the side at the last second, narrowly avoiding injury. She dashed to her weapon, picking it up as the grimm regained its footing, its eyes locked onto her. Ruby again tried to boost her moral, "Weiss, go for its belly!" she said, "There's no armor underneath-"
"Stop Telling me what to DO!" Weiss screamed angrily, turning to Ruby, fury and indignation blazing in her eyes. Ruby sunk into her seat with a sorrowful expression, whimpering slightly.
'Ah, there it is.' thought Eris, feeling stupid for not noticing it earlier. Weiss, who was trained since birth to be better than everyone else, to become a strong independent leader, was forced to take orders from a childish teen 2 years her junior. It completely destroyed the system she believed in and probably felt incredibly insulted that she was forced into subjugation. 'We're gonna have to talk about this' thought Eris solemnly, shaking her head in disappointment, although technically it wasn't Weiss' fault.
The boarbatusk charged once more, putting everything it had into its next charge, going for the death blow. It curled into a ball, using circular motion to increase its speed and power, rushing towards Weiss with the strength of a train. Weiss calmly waited until it was within 10 feet of her before activating a defensive glyph, stopping the grimm in its tracks and leaving its vulnerable belly exposed. Weiss hopped onto another glyph , and propelled herself forward with incredible speed.
She slammed Myrtenaster into its stomach, pushing the grimm across the floor with the power behind the strike, before coming to a stop. She fell to her hands and knees, panting in exhaustion and stamina depletion.
"Bravo, BRA-VO! It appears we are indeed in the presence of a true huntress in training." Port congratulated Weiss on the execution of the grimm. "I'm afraid that's all the time we have for today. Be sure to cover the assigned readings and… stay vigilant." Port finished. Ruby had sunk even further into her seat as she tried to escape Weiss glare. "Class dismissed."
Weiss huffed, turning towards the door and leaving. Ruby got up and ran out the door, Eris following silently behind unnoticed. As they left the classroom she dropped into Ruby's shadow to remain undetected. Ruby quickly caught up to Weiss, calling out to her. "What?" asked Weiss exasperatedly. They proceed to exchange words, Weiss saying Ruby was undeserving, and that she should have been leader instead. Eris moved into Weiss' shadow while they were preoccupied.
"Ozpin made a mistake." said Weiss sternly, ending the conversation by walking away. As she moved toward the balcony, Eris was having difficulty trying to make a plan. She was not the greatest with words, rarely able to hold a conversation that's non-work related. She decided to wing it. "Wasn't that a bit harsh?" she asked softly from her shadowy form, choosing to remain hidden. Weiss turned around quickly, trying to find the source of the voice. "Who's there?" she asked cautiously, fingers gripping her weapon.
"Why are you any better than Ruby?" Eris continued, ignoring her question. Weiss still looked around confusedly, before responding, "I don't know what your talking about." she said with hesitation. Eris pressed again, "Why shouldn't Ruby lead your team?"
Weiss stopped trying to find the voice, and just sighed wearily, "Because she is such a brat." she said with irritation lacing her voice, "She's too childish, and inadequate. I should have been the leader of team REWBY."
"And why is that?" Eris gently inquired, trying to console the young white-haired girl. Weiss huffed and crossed her arms, "I studied, I trained, and frankly, I deserve better. Ruby didn't do anything and was chosen instead." she said with a hint of anger. Eris was silent for a moment before softly replying, "She may not have done anything to deserve it, but neither has she done anything not to deserve it."
Weiss glowered at her shadow, clenching her fists and making Eris fear for a moment that she was spotted. "So? She still did nothing to deserve it." she countered. "And you can't think of any reason why you shouldn't be leader?" Eris countered her counter with a bit more firmness. Weiss just scoffed, "I don't need to think of reasons. I already proved I was more capable."
"So you're self-centered then? I thought you wanted to lead your team, or did you just want the title?" Eris asked. Weiss was about to retort but Eris cut her off. "You said it yourself, you studied, you trained, so tell me, why are you undeserving?" She questioned. Weiss didn't answer, opting to remain silent for the voice to explain.
"You are someone who has gotten exactly what they wanted their entire life." Eris continued. "That's not even remotely true." Weiss interjected sternly. There was silence in the air as the statement rung in their ears. "Well, not entirely true." she added after a moment.
"Being a leader isn't just a title, it's a relationship between a leader and their team. Its constant, and not just some toy you can put down at any moment. Do you believe that Ozpin would reconsider his decision with you acting like you are?" Eris spoke as Weiss listened to her words. "Don't be angry, be thankful, of all the things you Do have. Don't worry about the things you don't." Eris gently consoled.
"Your leader is suffering because her teammate won't acknowledge her. Be there, and show that you respect her authority. That you will listen to her judgment. Show her that you care, and that you will be the best person you can be." Eris softly whispered, her voice fading away. Weiss closed her eyes, taking a deep breath, before smiling and opening her eyes, as if she just achieved enlightenment. "Maybe you're right." she replied simply, gazing at the setting sun.
Eris felt Ruby nearby, and she hoped to Oum that they won't screw this up.
She just BS'ed her way through an entire conversation for their sake, she deserves a raise.
And cut. There we go, all nice and wrapped up.
Eris' appearance is based off the story image, so use that as reference (if it's working now) to help your imagination.
If you're confused about the whole age/void thing, basically:
She entered another realm of existence when turning into a shadow.
Time only slows down when she's deep inside the realm (such as sleeping in it), not as a sneaky shadow.
She is still aware of what happening around her by feeling it.
She is 17-21 mentally and physically, but has existed for longer
When she sinks into the shadows, it's like being underwater, except no water and no pressure. More like being in space.
Think of the time chamber in DBZ, 1 year in there is a 1 day in real life. The void is like that, but backwards. The time frame is less severe too.