AN: Daaaamnnn adox, back at it again with the Coven updates (and outdated memes apparently). I hope you enjoy this chapter! We get plenty of explanations here, and we get the true beginnings of this fan fiction! I plan to take it really really far. Whether it gets there, I'm not sure, but hopefully this will be a ride! *disclaimer*
Chapter 3: An Explanation
"What?"
Yang's mouth dropped in disbelief. "A witch? Magic? I swear this has to be a dream. Or a nightmare. Probably both."
Mercury, instead of elaborating, clapped his hands together and coughed. "Al-right! Explanation done, let's go to the back."
He pushes himself off of the bar stool and dusts his torso off before yanking Yang towards a back room. "You're not going to even tell me what that means?"
"Nah"
"This is technically sexual harassment you know! What if you and your just staged this as an elaborate scam! Oh god what have I gotten myself into…" Sure she was rambling but this entire situation was so jarring that doing anything else would've just complicated things.
Mercury hummed, giving her a light smirk "You've gotten yourself into a shit-show, that's what."
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He took her to a back room, opening a few doors and lazily waving past a few groups of bouncers who were obviously intimidated by him. She wondered what there was to be scared of about the lanky male, other than the whole, ominous, "you're a witch" thing.
The room was almost entirely clothed in red: its velvety couches and crimson wallpaper complementing the wine bottles lining one the mahogany shelves. Sat on the couches were three women, one Yang recognized as the mute girl, Neo, and the others being completely unfamiliar. Sitting to the right of Neo was a thirty, or so year-old woman, who's golden eyes reflected the fragments of light like two torches. She seemed more mature and dangerous than Mercury or Neo, or even the other girl sitting to the far right in a separate loveseat. Said girl seemed the least intimidating of the bunch, though the look gracing her features were far from welcoming.
Mercury pointed at the golden eyed woman "Cinder; basically our boss, and then Emerald" he moved his hand into the direction of the other unnamed girl, who's scarlet eyes softened a bit in looking at him. Yang's eyebrows perked a bit, that must've been who he meant when he said he was taken.
"I'm pretty sure you're already acquainted with our resident psychopath." He gestured towards Neo, who winked and gave Yang a sweet smile. The blonde felt chills crawl all the way up through to her neck.
Cinder gave a professional simper "Ms. Xiao Long, please sit." she motioned to one of the smaller couches peppering the lounge, this one being right across from the three. Mercury took Cinder's words as an invitation towards his sitting down as well, and plopped down right onto the love-seat next to Emerald casually, resting his arm around her shoulders. Yang couldn't be so extemporaneous, and sat down stiffly, never loosing eye contact with Cinder, matching golden glimmers with lilac pools of determination.
"If my assumptions are correct, my subordinates have left you with more questions than answers." She started, voice like a syrup of seduction.
"You're spot-on in that assumption!" Yang retorted, eyes flickering to Neo, who just shrugged and flapped her eyelashes coyly at the angry blonde.
"I deeply apologize for that, they are not the best at recruitment, but drastic times call for drastic measures. Especially in the supernatural community." She lifted her wine glass and took a slow draft of the crimson liquid, eyes still never leaving Yang.
Yang found it time to voice her skepticism "You say 'supernatural community' as if it's normal. Can you not skip the whole explanation of what's going on, and why you want me."
"Right, I had assumed that my trusted subordinate had explained it all to you," Cinder sighed, glaring for a second at Mercury who chuckled dryly and turned away to look at literally anything else. "In short, magic is real," she picked up her right hand and contorted her fingers around each other for a second, before her entire hand burst into flames that matched her smoldering gaze.
Yang was taken aback, practically leaping out of her seat and darting back-first into one of the red walls. "What the fuck?"
Cinder's fire went out before she blew the remaining steam off of those perfectly manicured fingernails. She used those same fingers to motion Yang back into her chair.
It was then that Emerald decided to speak, Yang recognized her voice as the one on the phone. "It's not like stereotypical magic though, we all have different attributes. For example, Cinder can control and create fire, while I can manipulate minds to an extent." Yang gave her a confused stare, prompting an eye-roll from the dark skinned girl, who sarcastically put her fingers to her head in a Professor-X fashion and spoke into the blonde's mind.
See? Telepath.
"Oh Oum, what the fuck?!" Yang shrieked "That gave me a fucking heart attack!"
"Anyways, it's not like we can't do spells or anything," Emerald continued, completely ignoring Yang's freak-out (save for the slight smirk gracing her originally grumpy face). "But we all have our talents that no other witch can replicate. Neo, for example," Neo gave a little wave "is what we call a medium. She can communicate with the spirit world- acts as almost a bridge between us and those no-longer with us."
Yang was finally beginning to understand what Emerald was implying.
"So she can bring Ruby back?"
"Most likely."
"What do I have to do? I'll do anything!"
Cinder grimaced. "Now this brings us to our current predicament. See, Witches aren't the only supernaturals. There are others; from the expected werewolves and vampires to the more dangerous demons. Witches merely act as a governing body to them."
Yang cocked an eyebrow "I sense a 'but' coming on"
Mercury let out a "you'd be right, Blondie" before promptly getting elbowed in the stomach by Emerald. He just smirked, showing no sign of pain.
Cinder continued "But, some demons are too dangerous to let loose. And some are too powerful to kill. One of them being the first demon, Adam."
"Adam?" Yang questioned, wondering what was so important about this guy. How it had anything to do with her sister coming back.
"I believe you've met him," Mercury drawled lazily, loosely pantomiming his right arm getting cut off.
Yangs heart accelerated, her eyes widened, and a lump formed in her throat. "Are you implying what I think you're implying?"
"If what you "think we're implying" is Adam being the demon who shot up Beacon Academy— then yeah." Mercury replied sardonically. If Yang wasn't currently freaking out over her life and all of reality at that moment- she was sure that she'd punch him in the face.
"His name wasn't Adam—" Yang started, before Neo threw her scroll at her.
But you saw something that day, didn't you? Like the kid was possessed or something. All red and glowing? :?
Yang grimaced at the emoticon but gave the scroll back before slowly nodding. Fist clenching around her jacket. "Why? Why would Adam do that?" She said his name with enough bite to gnaw through the tension in the room.
Cinder decided to speak up again, since she must've thought that sitting there menacingly wasn't enough to creep someone (Yang) out. (She was wrong, she was plenty cHer voice was just as cinnamon-laced as before, yet held a bit more emotion than Yang had gotten used to.
"Our Coven leader, the Supreme Witch, Salem. Hundreds of years ago she sealed Adam away, in order to protect witches and humans alike. Somebody found it in their best interest to let it loose."
"That doesn't explain why the first thing he did was shoot up a school. Kill innocent kids!" like Ruby. "And wait, hundreds of years ago? Are witches like gods or something?"
"Salem's ability, or semblance, is immortality." Emerald jutted in, before snapping her mouth shut, looking at Cinder to continue.
"Adam, as one would imagine, hates Salem's Coven. Its one desire is to wipe out witches, the most efficient method of doing that is to stop any new ones from awakening. We have reason to believe that you and your sister were those potential witches he aimed to… eliminate." Cinder explained, and Yang's eyes widened.
"How do you know that?"
"Salem knows of every unawakened and awakened witch of her bloodline, it's typical of coven leaders." Emerald interjected, receiving a look from Cinder which promptly shut her up.
"But Adam doesn't know. Or isn't supposed to know. Whoever let him out has access to witch records or abilities. But that's besides the point," Cinder paused leaning closer to Yang, eyes burning from within.
"You survived Adam's assassination, Ms. Xiao Long."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Seeing as Adam hasn't shown up since then, we theorize that your semblance has already awoken. That it awoke with the anger of seeing your sister's passing."
"And what ability is that?"
Cinder grinned a maniacal grin.
"That's what we're here to find out, Ms. Xiao Long."
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Yang wasn't sure that Junior's could possibly have any more back rooms, but there she was standing in front of yet another door, in yet another improbable scenario.
So they weren't sure what her "semblance" even was, but they knew it was powerful. (or in Mercury's words; "fucking badass, but not as badass as me, y'know? Like because no one is as badass as me. But it's close.")
Instead of doing what Yang thought most logical (going to their all powerful, all knowing leader or whatever, and just asking what her semblance was) they, of course had to do the tedious approach of figuring it out through training, perseverance and the process of elimination.
After giving her orders of "come back to me when you figure out Ms. XIao Long's semblance. I hope to see you within a week." Cinder left dramatically through some magical door that she just summoned with a few hand gestures. Even if they hadn't basically blackmailed her with Ruby, Yang probably joined them eventually, seeing as they had magic and hung out in nightclubs.
That left Yang with Mercury (who she wasn't even sure was a witch… or wizard or whatever, but she felt the most comfortable with since he seemed the least irritable or psychopathic. Plus he bought her drinks), Emerald (who seemed to hate her for no reason, she seemed to hate everything for no reason) and Neo.
Unlike with Emerald and Mercury, Yang couldn't really pin down how she felt about Neo. The short girl seemed to be enthralled with Yang, in a very creepy and cutesy way. The ice cream themed Neo seemed to have so much to say, but couldn't say anything- which could explain why she just stared, wide-eyed and creepily at whatever she wanted to converse with.
And that's how Yang ended up standing in front of an entrance to yet another back room with Neo at her heels, gazing at her with piercing miss-matched eyes. Because Emerald couldn't be bothered more by Yang, and because Mercury seemed to be attached at her hip. They unanimously decided to appoint Neo to "figuring out Blondie's semblance duty" and ran off to their own back room. Neo didn't complain.
Instead she shoved her scroll into lilac eyes' cone of vision and dragged Yang away to this ever so curious back room.
Let's have some fun Yang-a-lang :DDDDD
Tired of questioning her situation, Yang finally opened the door.
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When Adam decided to shoot up a school, he did it to make an entrance, to dramatically announce that he was back and bloodthirsty as ever. He didn't do it to get propelled out of his host, kill only one witch spawn, and awaken another one. He definitely didn't expect that.
He knew they were sisters, the magic stemming from their shared father, who couldn't awaken himself due to not being female (thank Oum, that was one more witch that wouldn't exist.) What he wasn't remotely aware of was the content of their abilities. The older one in particular.
The small brunette was easy enough, though he saw sparks of something in her bright silver eyes, he put an end to it quickly. As for the sister, Adam wasn't sure what it was but one moment she was crying about her stupid kid-sister and bleeding out- then the next second she was consumed in energy. Her aura surpassing any second rate witch.
The next thing he knew, he was met with a flash of red eyes and punch to the face— which immediately pushed him out of his host. That was both incredibly annoying and painful. Sure he could survive outside of a host, in the physical, human realm- but it hurt to leave on someone else's terms.
Naturally he was angered by this whole ordeal- so much so that he went out and killed witches with much more intent than before. He even burned a few at the stake, which did give him a good laugh.
He stood in the dark room contemplating all of this, fully aware that Salem's lackeys would recruit this powerful blonde- and he wasn't looking forward to dealing with that later.
"Adam," a voice spoke, causing the demon to whip his head around to face the sound's source.
When he saw who it was, Adam clenched his jaw "You." he replied curtly, trying to size up the person across from him.
"You've done as I instructed… to an extent." The person said nonchalantly, face and torso mostly shrouded in the shadows of the room. There were no windows. Adam growled in reply, beginning to unleash the red glow that characterized him so well. The voice gave a slight chuckle in reply "No need for that… Not yet anyways."
Adam made a guttural noise of annoyance before stepping back into place, body still tense, but the red aura once surrounding him had faded. The person, still hidden by the darkness, gave Adam an unsettling smirk, glad that they could keep such a powerful demon in place. "I'm glad you agree," they drawled, shifting their weight onto one leg.
"What do you want?" Adam spat masked eyes narrowing "I don't have all day."
The person just sighed, pacing back and forth, wall to wall. "From what I can understand," they started "your little stunt at Beacon Academy awakened a powerful witch." Adam nodded in reply, wringing his hands in what could possibly be described as shame.
"Of course, Salem will be sending her lackeys for her any day now, her semblance has to have something to do with demon warding..." They continued to ramble under their breath, eyes darting back and forth as they thought, before their irises rose back up to meet the location that Adam's eyes were assumed to be. "I'll make an arrangement with the witch hunters, they'll like an excuse to go after a Salem witch."
"Right..." Adam huffed before looking up and meeting the figure's gaze "What about me?"
The figure smiled "Continue what you've been doing, until we've collected enough for the next step."
Adam nodded, "Of course."
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By the time that their little "training session" ended, Yang had regretted every choice she had ever made. She regretted not getting a prosthetic arm, for one, as she only had one arm to block Neo's plethora of attacks. She didn't understand why Mercury's paraphrased order of "find out blondie's semblance" ended up translating through Neo's mind as "beat up blondie until she can't move."
See, Yang prided herself on being a strong fighter, she dabbled in every practice of self defense from kick-boxing to karate to wrestling, and she couldn't fathom how this tiny individual could floor her 100% of the time, even if she had a literal handicap.
"How are you even doing this?" Yang panted, blocking another one of Neo's swings "Why are you even doing this?" she added, quieter this time, before recieving an uppercut to the jaw.
After confirming that she had indeed k. Yang, Neo took to her scroll, quickly typing out a reply.
I channel the souls of powerful warriors :) also the devious duo said it themselves- I'm finding your semblance duhhh
Yang frowned, pulling herself off the floor "I thought that your semblance was just, y'know, talking to ghosts." She paused "also what part of finding a semblance constitutes beating me up over and over again?" Neo rolled her eyes as she typed up a reply.
Seriously? that'd be a lame ass power :/
Also your semblance awakened under high levels of stress, it's not like i can kill your remaining family members!
She quickly pulled the scroll back and typed up something else up.
Can i?
Yang looked up incredulously at Neo, who flapped her eyelashes pleadingly even as Yang scoffed "haha no."
The blonde sighed "How do you even know it's awakened, or if it's all that great?" Neo shook her head with a smile and held up her scroll.
I don't, but Salem does.
Yang just groaned "Argh, you witches are all so vauge! Why don't you just tell me everything? Like why are there demons after you— us? Are you even going to bring Ruby back or is that a lie?"
I can bring Ruby back, it'll just take a lot of ingredients and energy. Her body is probably decayed soooo we'll have to make that again. We'll have to wait until Adam is done for.
"Will it be harder the longer we wait? I can't have anything go wrong." Yang demanded, sitting down on the bench at the far end of the room and looking up at the ceiling.
The best time is with a fresh body but, after that it doesn't change. i've done it before :DDD
Yang perked up, looking at Neo with determined eyes "Really? Who? Are they the same as before they... died?" Neo puffed her cheeks out, angry that Yang was making her type out so much. The more questions you ask, the longer it'll take to answer! Why didn't the blonde get that?
It's a loooonnngg story Yang-a-lang :/ he's fine now.
Yang wasn't satisfied with Neo's ambiguous answer but let it be for the time being. Letting herself breathe heavily, to let out all of her exhaustion and frustration out into the air. This whole situation was strange, and if you told the Yang from that morning that this would be happening, magic and all, she would've called the cops. Because those thoughts are both crazy and deserve to be locked away. Yang was so lost in her thoughts that she almost didn't notice the door being opened.
She looked over at the door, which now greeted Emerald and Mercury, dressed far more formally than earlier. The former wore a jade green a-line dress, and her mint hair was pulled up into an intricate braid like bun fixture. The latter had clad himself in a dark dress shirt and black pants, the hair-gel he usually sported was void from his silver fringe- and it was actually far more attractive, in Yang's opinion.
Neo puffed her cheeks out again, waving her scroll right in Emerald's face. Already?! :(
Emerald rolled her eyes "You know I can just read your mind, right? You don't have to type that stuff out. Also yeah, it's time. You had your chance Neo."
Yang looked in between the two before looking to Mercury, puzzled expression and all. "You wanna tell me what they're going on about?" Mercury chuckled, turning to her with a smirk and a cocked eyebrow.
"If you hadn't noticed, Emmers and I are dressed way above our paygrade." He started, gesturing to his attire, before Yang interrupted him with "You get paid?"
"No, but that just backs up my point. Anyhow, you're gonna need to get dolled up." He summed up, looking halfhazardly at the two arguing girls "Because you're gonna meet Salem."
Yang's eyes bulged a bit "What."
Neo and Emerald turned to them, either done with the argument they were having, or had postponed it in order to explain things to Yang, as Mercury was rather blunt when it came to dropping bombshells.
Emerald nodded in response to Yang's remark "We've gotten word of more attacks by Adam. We had hoped to train your abilities naturally and over time but," she paused, now looking Yang straight in the eyes "We don't have time for that anymore, so we'll take the more risky approach. Salem hopes to forcefully bring out the power you hold. It's not ideal, but it will have to do."
When she finished, Yang clenched her fist "That wasn't the deal—" but she was cut off.
"No the deal was you join us, and help with getting rid of Adam— and we bring back your sister. You've joined, and now you have to show it. Follow our rules, and finish off Adam, and your sister? 99% guarantee we can bring her back." She spoke quickly and with such a bite on her tongue, it was probably venomous.
Yang originally had no qualms with Emerald. Cinder had a sort of a 'dark seductress' vibe, Mercury had this glint in his eyes that despite his cool demeanor, rippled with a fiery sadism that was pretty unsettling, and Neo was obviously some sort of psychopath (and she quite obviously could kill Yang in seconds). Emerald, at first, came across much less threatening. She was close with Mercury, sucked up to Cinder, and never seemed satisfied with the situation.
Now though, Yang understood why Emerald was put in charge while Cinder was away. She may have seemed opposed to everything, but she picked her battles, and when she fought them, she won. Her logic was sound.
Yang sighed and looked up at them, making eye contact with each one of them. A glare for Emerald, a confirmation for Mercury, and… She wasn't sure what she gave Neo. She was sure that Neo replied with a wink though.
"Salem it is."
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Author's note: Wooooo look i finished. Sorry for the late update (even though most updates are late hahaha) but i was like 3,000 words in and it all got deleted so i needed to rewrite it. And so I added a few scenes, like the Adam one, which I planned to have way way later. We'll see how that changes the story lol. I might be long again, since I'm working on a really long oneshot for my other OTP, Yang and Mercury (I mean, if you've read this, you can see the underlying struggle on not having too much of them here haha). In this fic I've resorted to making them kind of bros so. We'll see.