Team RWBY and Ash drove around Vale in a hurried manner, as the cat Faunus in the back was late to mention that the White Fang meeting and recruiting started at night fall. With only a couple hours of daylight left, at best, they still had many things to do; and one of them is to find the monkey Faunus who said he was waiting by the café that he and Blake went to.
The five teens were getting frustrated as they circled the café city block for the umpteenth time.
"Alright this is getting ridiculous," Weiss complained, her eyes darting from one corner of the street to other, looking for the Faunus. "When you say you're at a certain location, you had better be at that location!"
"Just drop me off here," Blake said for, probably, the twelfth time. "I'll look for the damned idiot before we go to the meeting. You guys still need to find the location of the meeting anyway."
"Really contemplating it against my better judgment," Ash told her, looking left and right, for the same Faunus. One would think that s monkey Faunus with sand colored spiky hair, and an outfit that unashamedly shows his front would be easy to find, but apparently, that was not the case.
"There's the idiot!" Blake exclaimed, pointing ahead to the monkey Faunus looking at the sky, holding a cup of coffee with his tail. Ash immediately pulled over to the side and used the horn to attract the monkey's attention. Blake rolled down a window and motioned the boy over. He quickly made his way to limo, but slowed down to admire the group in the vehicle.
"What's up guys?" he said nonchalantly. No one answered him, instead, Blake got out of the limo.
"Come with me," she demanded sternly in a quiet tone of voice. "We're joining the White Fang."
"Wait what?" the monkey asked, more confused than he had ever been before.
"Miss Belladonna will explain in a minute Mister Wukong," Ash replied, rolling down his own window, looking back at the two Faunus.
"Who's the dude?" Sun asked, somehow more confused by the un-introduced butler than the Blake's previous statement.
"Introductions can wait later still Mister Wukong," Ash replied. "We currently don't have the time."
"Contact us if you guys find out the location," Blake said, ignoring her fellow Faunus' confused stare, asking for a detailed explanation. "We'll keep looking around and see if we can find it ourselves."
"Blake," Yang called out worriedly. Blake smiled at her partner, a little amused by how her eyebrows scrunch together lightly whenever she was worried. "Be careful ok?"
With a nod, Blake ran off with Sun Wukong on her tail. Ash rolled up the windows when the Faunus were no longer in sight, and drove away towards Beacon going slightly faster to preserve time. Fortunately, it only took them nearly twenty minutes to have the academy in sight, but Ruby refused to let Yang go back to Junior's club alone.
"I'll be fine sis," Yang tried to convince her little sister once more. "I've been there so much already. Besides, I've already pretty much proven that no one in that club can take me down."
"But what if that other person is still there?" Ruby reasoned, obviously not convinced that Yang could take on something unknown like that. "I'll go with you."
"No," Yang adamantly said, suddenly turning stern. "If that 'other person' is still there, then there's no way I'm putting you at risk too."
"We can take them together," Ruby further reasoned. "There's nothing in the world that can take the two of us down."
"Ash did," Weiss interrupted, earning a glare from both sisters. "What? He did."
Ash spotted a spot of blue simply walking to Beacon and quickly pulled over, coming to a screeching halt at the shock of his remaining passengers and the blue haired boy, stopping him in his tracks.
"Mister Neptune Vasilias correct?" Ash called, rolling down his window so that he could talk to him.
"Umm yeah?" Neptune said cautious of the butler and how he knew his name. That is until Ruby rolled down the adjacent window to greet him.
"Hey Neptune!" she exclaimed, forgetting her argument with her sister and earning the boy's attention. Neptune pointed to Ash, while giving her a questioning look. "That's Ash, Weiss' personal butler and now driver of Team RWBY."
"Mister Vasilias," Ash called for the teen's attention once more. Neptune turned to him, now without a guarded expression. "How would you like to help Team RWBY with their mission? Mister Wukong has already agreed to help and is out with Miss Belladonna right now."
"You guys got Sun to help?" he asked. Ash nodded with a smile. "Alright sure. Why not?"
"Then please get in," Ash said hurriedly. Neptune got in the back with Ruby, Weiss, and Yang, greeting the heiress and brawler. "Mister Vasilias can go with Miss Xiao Long. That way Miss Rose can rest easy that her sister isn't going alone, and Miss Xiao Long can be assured that Miss Rose is safe. Is that arrangement alright?"
He got a nod from both sisters and a smile from his mistress at how easily he resolved the problem. In a few more minutes, Yang and Neptune were dropped off just before the main pathway to Beacon; the two immediately running to wherever Yang kept her precious Bumblebee.
Ash didn't wait for them to disappear from sight, and sped off to the Cross Continental Transmit System tower, as Ruby and Weiss went over the plan.
"Ash will access the security feed of the traffic cameras to try and find wherever this White Fang meeting is," Weiss summarized, receiving a set of nods from her leader. "While he does that, I can look at Schnee Dust Company records for any missing cargo that is probably connected to the White Fang."
"Right," Ruby verbally confirmed. "While you guys do that, I gather any other information that we can use. Keep your scrolls available; you never know what kind of trouble Blake and Yang can get themselves, and Sun and Neptune, in to."
"We're coming up to the tower now," Ash called from the front. Ash parked as soon as he could, and the three ran to the tower. However, Ruby stopped when she saw a familiar face among the crowd. "Miss Rose?"
"You guys go ahead," she called, already running towards wherever she last saw that familiar face.
Ash and Weiss ran to the tower and asked the receptionist for their desired access. Weiss was a bit hesitant to access any kind of information if she had to use the Schnee name to do so, but the circumstance would have to be enough to make this an exception.
"The data and security feed has been transferred to Terminals three and four," the receptionist told them. "Would you like to speak with your father Miss Schnee? Or your sister?"
"No, it's fine," Weiss replied, albeit delayed and unsure. "I'll contact them at a later date."
"If that's what you wish ma'am."
Weiss and Ash walked over to the said terminals slowly; Weiss, deep in thought about her family, and Ash, worried about his mistress. When Weiss sat down at Terminal three, the vast data of the Schnee Dust Company appeared on the screen. She reached out to filter the data shown, but Ash gently grabbed her hand, stopping her from doing so.
"Miss Schnee are you alright?" he asked her, turning her chair to face him, despite knowing that this would eat time that they simply didn't have. He kept his hand on the chair, preventing Weiss from turning the chair away.
"I'm fine Ash," she replied, trying to turn her chair back towards the screen, not wanting to pursue this conversation any further. However, Ash simply wouldn't let her turn away. With a sigh, she answered him truthfully. "I just don't know what to say right now. We're not exactly on such good terms anymore."
"A simple greeting would suffice as a start," Ash told her, smiling at her problem. "Everything else will fall in to place afterwards."
"I wish it's as easy as you make it seem," Weiss sighed at her incompetence in the matter. She knew the boy is right, but she it wasn't like she hadn't tried before. "I just can't say anything I want to."
"Maybe not say Miss Schnee," Ash said with a smirk, producing a small flash drive from his pocket. He released the chair from his grip and reached around the monitor and plugged the drive in. Weiss turned the chair towards the screen to see what the boy has planned.
An extra icon appeared on the screen, which Ash immediately opened. Only one folder was shown afterwards. The butler pressed it, and a video started playing, one that Weiss remembered almost immediately. It was her recital, for the song that she herself created.
She looked at Ash, who only stared at the screen intently, smiling when the Weiss in the video started to sing.
"You know," Ash said quietly as to not interrupt the song as much. "I wasn't supposed to be there. I snuck in because I wanted to be there for when you finally told your father, your sister, and the world what you truly felt after years of simply 'fulfilling your duties as a Schnee.'"
"You knew?" Weiss asked, listening to the sorrows of her younger self.
"Of course I knew," Ash replied, shocked that she doubted him. "It's hard not to when I was forced to ignore your cries behind a closed door almost every single night."
Weiss only stared at him, wondering what else the boy knew that she thought she had hidden well.
"Yes Miss Schnee," Ash continued noticing the look on Weiss. "I heard your soft crying behind those closed doors. It was only due to your orders, stating to never enter your room unless specifically called that prevented me from barging in. Now I know that there are some orders that are meant to be ignored."
Weiss and Ash listened till the song's end. Ash ejected the drive and put it back in his pocket.
"I'll talk to Winter tonight if we still have time," Weiss declared, making the butler smile. "I'll tell her about your reassignment too. It's about time I do anyway."
Weiss turned to Ash to say something, but was inevitably unable to say it, deeming that it simply wasn't enough. Ash smiled at her before turning around to go to Terminal four, but Weiss grabbed his hand and pulled the boy back.
"Thank you Ash," she told the boy, placing a simple and innocent kiss on the boy's right cheek. "Simple words can never be enough to express my gratitude."
"Their value are much higher than you may think Miss Schnee," Ash replied, raising his hand along with hers. He kissed the digits of her fingers as a way to show her his appreciation for her words and action. "To me, they are irreplaceable."
"Time's running out," she said, looking at the darkening sky through a nearby window. "We should probably get to work."
"As you wish Miss Schnee," Ash replied, letting the heiress' hand go before going to Terminal four.
Weiss started to filter the data in front of her to the most recent missing Dust shipments, to find a few trains full of Dust crates and both air and land convoys go missing in the last few months alone. On board security tapes all show people with the White Fang symbol on their backs. She had no idea what the White Fang would need with so much Dust, but maybe Blake knew.
Weiss stole a glance at her butler, flipping from camera to camera, trying to find any sign of a White Fang recruitment meeting, keeping eight different camera feeds on the screen at all times. Not wanting to be outdone by her butler, Weiss turned back to her terminal and broadened her search to any disturbances caused by the White Fang, believing that there might be a clue there somewhere.
Ash, to say the least, was not having a fun time. Yes, he found research the most uneventful thing in the world, but it was never stressful. That is, with the exception of this one. Time was running out, and he honestly can't find any sign of this supposed recruiting anywhere.
He's seen some petty robberies and mugging, which he archived to turn in to the proper authorities later, but not a single inkling of White Fang activities. By just sitting in that one terminal in the Cross Continental tower, he's been in every single corner of Vale.
He reached in to his pocket and brought out his scroll, putting the thing down on the table, just in case he does find something or if something occurs in any of the teams and Ruby out somewhere in city.
After twenty minutes of examining every single camera feed, Ash started to get frustrated. Their time's nearly up, and they have yet to have anything to show for a half a day's worth of research.
He switched the eight camera feeds once again, and something caught his eye immediately: two to three dozen Faunus of different age groups that seemed to converge somewhere close to the docks. He switched the feeds once more to the ones by the docks, trying to find what might be there that they could want. A Faunus no older than he was stood facing a fenced portion of the abandoned warehouses' perimeter. Wondering what the Faunus was doing, he got rid of the seven other camera feeds and focused in just the one.
Not a minute has gone by when the Faunus looked around once and moved the fence as if it was some sort of hidden door before disappearing behind it and putting it back to its normal position. He continued to watch the same feed for nearly ten more minutes, watching a dozen Faunus copy the first Faunus' actions, disappearing behind the fence. That was way more than enough reason for Ash to suspect something.
He picked up his scroll and called the Faunus of Team RWBY. Within a few rings, she picked up.
"Ash, did you find it?" she asked over the scroll.
"Quite possibly Miss Belladonna," he replied, still unsure if sending her and Sun there is a good idea. "Try checking the abandoned warehouses by the docks close to Junior's Club."
"Alright, we'll check there," Blake assured the butler, though a funny feeling arose within the boy. "I sure hope you're right Ash. We won't have enough time to check somewhere else."
"I hope I'm wrong Miss Belladonna," he muttered to himself, not wanting the cat to hear him. He shook his head free from negative thoughts and cleared his throat. "Good luck you two."
The call ended there, and Ash sent the archived feeds to the police station, hoping that they'd do something about it. He finished his search, shutting off the terminal, and putting his scroll back in his pocket before heading over to Weiss.
"Miss Belladonna and Mister Wukong are headed to a Faunus meeting Miss Schnee," he reported. The heiress hummed, confirming that she heard him even though her eyes never left the screen. "Though I don't know if it's the meeting that we're looking for."
"People don't just get together for nothing Ash," Weiss reassured the boy. "Never mind that for now. Tell me Ash, what else do you know about the Atlesian Paladins?"
"Not much else Miss Schnee," Ash admitted, confused at Weiss' question. "The Schnee Dust Company teamed up with the Atlas military to build them, and as of right now, the Paladins are still in the prototype stage. It's equipped with several cameras to ensure a 360-degree view and a highly sensitive laser motion sensor. It has high grade Atlas plasma cannons on each arm and homing missiles."
Ash tried to think of anything that he might've forgotten, but came up with nothing but a single useless fact.
"It's supposed to be sold at a much later date. Other than those, I know nothing else."
"So then," Weiss started, maneuvering through icons on the terminal, looking for something specific. She stopped and enlarged a photo of members of the White Fang, opening a crate with the large prototype inside. "Why is it being transported to every corner of the world?"
"It seems that they never made it to their location," Ash muttered out loud, with Weiss agreeing with him. "It could be that they were being transported to hold a demonstration in every single major city. How many have gone missing?"
"Nearly two dozen," Weiss answered, scowling at the image on the screen. "It almost seems like Atlas has supplied the White Fang with the means to complete their goal."
"We have to warn Miss Belladonna," Ash concluded. "If the White Fang recruitment is taking place at the dock warehouses, then it is quite possible that one or more of the missing Paladins are there, along with someone who can pilot them."
Ash pulled out his scroll again and called Blake once more. Unfortunately, this time, she didn't pick up. Weiss and Ash stared at each other, giving each other a nod, before shutting off the terminal and running out of the tower.
They ran to the limo, while Weiss called her partner, trying to warn her about the emergency. It only took several rings for the fifteen year old to pick up.
"Ruby, we have an emergency," Weiss told her, her and Ash slowing trying to keep the same speed as they briefed the leader. "Blake and Sun are in trouble, and we have no way to contact them right now."
"How are you so sure?" Ruby asked through the scroll, her breathing harder than before indicating that she had started to run.
"We'll explain as soon as we can meet up Miss Rose," Ash told her as he and Weiss reached the limo. "Where are you?"
"I'm in the city," Ruby answered as Ash opened the door of the limo for Weiss. The heiress practically jumped in, Ash closing the door after her before getting in the driver seat of the vehicle. "Where are they?"
"The abandoned warehouses at the docks close to that horrid man's club," Weiss answered. Her rather biased answer caused Ash to laugh a bit, despite the severity of their situation.
"I'm close," Ruby told them. "You guys just get here as fast as you can."
Ash didn't need her to tell him. The limo came screeching out of the tower premise and sped towards the city. The sun set soon after, and a feeling of regret started to come over him. He had ignored his bad feeling earlier, and now Blake and Sun may be paying the price for it.
"Miss Schnee," Ash called, not wanting to take his eyes off the road because of the speed they were going. "Any word from any of the others?"
"None," Weiss answered, already putting her scroll down after trying to contact either Blake or Yang. "I can somewhat understand Blake not picking up; I mean she can actually be fine and in the meeting right now, and just isn't picking up as to not blow her cover. Yang on the other hand, well, I don't know with her."
Weiss tried to call Yang once again, but a call from the cat Faunus interrupted her. She quickly picked up only to be met with one evident cry.
"HELP!" Sun cried from the other side of the scroll. Ash nearly lost focus and crashed when that cry echoed throughout the limo and beyond. "BIG ROBOT! TORCHWICK GUY INSIDE! TRYING TO KILL US! HELP!"
"Location!" Ash yelled back, not meaning to sound so demanding, but the monkey Faunus didn't seem to mind.
"HIGHWAY! JUST LOOK UP!" Sun yelled back. At his words, Ash slowed to a stop and looked at the nearest highway. Sure enough there was a Paladin knocking cars out of the way, chasing two small figures.
"We're just behind you guys," Yang said, Ash realizing that the call connected probably all of Team RWBY. "We'll try to slow it down."
"I'm under the overpass," Ruby groaned in annoyance. "I can't do anything from down here."
"We'll find a way to bring it down there Miss Rose," Ash assured her, though not entirely sure how.
"Oh by the way, I know this isn't really the time," Sun said, relaxed unlike earlier. "But, nice to meet you Ash. Blake here told me a lot about you."
"Oh, well… nice to meet you too Mister Wukong," Ash replied in a similar calm demeanor, with the rest of the seven man squad completely deadpanned at how nonchalant the two were. "I sure hope she's only told you good things."
"Pretty much," Sun continued their conversation as he dodged yet another car that flew towards him and Blake. "The only bad thing she told me is that you can paralyze me for a long time."
"You really shouldn't be worried," Ash replied, looking for a way to get up to where they were. "I only paralyzed Team RWBY, with the exception of Miss Belladonna, for very good reasons."
"Yeah, I guess they can get a bit too adventurous huh?" Sun joked. "Dude, we should absolutely hang out some time. I know this one place that sells the best noodles in all of Remnant."
"Oh shit can I go?" Neptune joined in, realizing the location that Sun spoke of.
"Neptune? They dragged you here too?" Sun asked his partner from the scroll call. "Scarlet and Sage here too?"
"FOCUS!" Blake exclaimed after dodging another shot of plasma from the murderous machine still chasing her and Sun. The three boys muttered a quick apology.
"We'll be there in a few minutes Miss Belladonna," Ash reassured her, going back in to a serious expression. "Do your best to slow it down. No more innocents should be hurt."
"What can we do Ash?" Weiss asked her butler. He smiled at her nervously, silently telling her that he had no plan. "Ok, I have something. Just get me ahead of that thing."
"As you wish Miss Schnee," Ash sped towards the highway, doing all he can to get in front of the rouge Paladin. Ash drove through the city ignoring all traffic laws at the complaints of the citizens of the city. How the authorities have yet to get involved is truly a mystery.
Seeing an exit from the highway, Ash turned, going the opposite way of how the lane was meant for. He dodged on coming traffic and they did the same, the citizens completely oblivious to the Paladin behind them. The limo reached the top and Ash came skidding to a stop.
"What's your plan Miss Schnee?" Ash asked, looking back at the heiress who was already out of the vehicle.
"I'm bringing that thing down to the underpass," Weiss declared to the entire team. "Ruby, get ready."
The Paladin came in to view only a few seconds later, moving as if it was skating on the pavement, chasing the two Faunus. From what Weiss and Ash could see, Sun split in to three different people and attacked the Paladin in tandem with Neptune. Unfortunately, the two were thrown off the Paladin.
Weiss didn't have the time to ask whether or not they were alright, as the Paladin got closer at an alarming rate. Weiss stabbed Myrtenaster in the ground and a coating of ice appeared on the pavement stretching across the entire lane. She jumped safely out of the way and the giant Atlas technology came crashing outside of the barriers and down in to the underpass below.
Ash didn't waste time, picking up the heiress before jumping down. To lessen their fall, Weiss placed a glyph under the butler's feet. Ash smiled at her, thanking her for her concern. Ash landed with ease thanks to the glyph and put the heiress down. Soon, the rest of Team RWBY joined them.
"Alright, let's take that thing down," Ruby declared.
Ash went in first, drawing his blade from his back. The Paladin switched its right arm from cannon to fist and threw a punch towards the butler. Ash was forced to stop his advanced and swing his blade to counter the blow. The blow from the armor proved to be too much, and was only able to redirect it slightly to his side.
Ash ducked under the extended arm, slicing the leg, merely scraping off some of the armor. The Paladin lifted its leg and brought it down to try and flatten the butler, but Ash managed to get out of the way.
With the Paladin distracted, Team RWBY commenced their attacks.
Weiss created dozen glyphs in the air around her and unleashed a barrage of Dust shots just as she has done with the Nevermore during the initiation. The barrage all hit the Paladin's back, but it didn't seem to phase the armor.
The armor turned to the heiress to retaliate but was met with Yang clocking it in the front of the cockpit with a strong right. A shell shot off from the gauntlet when it made contact with the armor, but like Weiss' attack, it didn't seem to work.
Ruby and Blake attacked together. When Yang got free from the Paladin, the two rushed in front of it and jumped, slashing the cockpit as they crossed in the air. The Paladin staggered a small bit, but quickly corrected itself before anyone else can attack.
The five teens gathered together when it staggered.
"We're not doing anything to it," Ruby said frustrated.
The Paladin quickly spotted them due to its 360-degree view, and turned its right arm back in to a cannon, unleashing a barrage aimed at the five. The teens scattered, moving in different direction, confusing the armor as to who to shoot at.
"It can only take so much Miss Rose!" Ash yelled, his voice echoing throughout the night sky. Luckily, the entire team heard him.
The Paladin turned to him and fired off several plasma shots, tracking him accurately. Yang got behind it, to try and deal more damage to it, but the Paladin turned to her quickly, firing more plasma at her. Yang managed to get out of the way, the shots instead demolishing the ground.
With the armor seemingly distracted, Weiss created six more glyphs in the air and shot more Dust at the armor. Without even turning to her, the Paladin jumped out of the way unlike before.
"360-degree view Miss Schnee!" Ash reminded her.
"Someone has done their homework," Roman Torchwick's voice came out of the Paladin's speakers. "You have to go first."
The Paladin turned to Ash and chased him, firing off shot after shot from its cannons. Yang and Blake tried to distract the Paladin, but it just released missiles from its back to discourage the attack. Yang and Blake managed to shoot the missiles out of the air, but the Paladin was still chasing Ash.
"We have to get rid of that sight!" Ruby called out. "FreezerBurn!"
Weiss loaded Myrtenaster with fresh dust and stabbed the ground, once again freezing a large portion of the ground. Jumping out of the way, Yang leapt from where she was and slammed her right fist on the center of the frozen ground. Steam filled their battlefield.
"Thanks!" the team heard Ash yell from somewhere. "Don't let your guard down! It can still track us with laser motion sensor."
True to his word, the Paladin produced several lasers coming out of its body spanning nearly 180-degrees.
"Ash! What about that EMP Dust crystal?" Weiss asked, remembering the day he came to Beacon.
Ash's form appeared from behind the Paladin and jumped on its back. He held on for his life as the Paladin tried to shake him off. Ash brought his blade down on the cockpit several times, flashing his semblance each time before his blade made contact with the armor. Each time, the blade went further and further in the armor. He jumped off the armor, rolling away and disappearing in the mist.
"I'm afraid it won't work Miss Schnee!" Ash finally answered. "It has a light gold coating. It completely negates any form of EMP!"
"You're not just some brat are you?" Torchwick asked from the armor. "How the hell do you know all of that?"
"Checkmate!" Ruby yelled.
Weiss and Blake rushed towards the Paladin, slicing at its legs, causing it to move back. The two jumped up, aiming for the laser sights of the Paladin. Weiss stabbed the laser sight under the cockpit while Blake moved for the two on top, using her semblance to get from one to other and using it again to get away.
Ash moved in and grabbed the heiress, carrying her like a princess, before jumping off the cockpit, flashing his semblance again just before his jump, giving him extra momentum.
The Paladin released another barrage of homing missiles at the butler. Weiss placed an unusually gold glyph on the ground just behind Ash with what seemed like the gears of a clock in the middle. Blake jumped in the middle of it, starting to glow gold like the glyph. She brought out the blade inside the sheath and sliced at the air, creating shockwaves every strike she completed. The missiles were cut and exploded in the air, as Blake's body stopped glowing.
"Ladybug!" Ruby yelled as she passed Blake.
The two ran towards the Paladin, and sliced at its legs, alternating several times before jumping up and cut the left arm on their way down. The left arm shattered at their attack, the two running back in to the mist.
With the left arm gone, Yang moved in and jumped on the Paladin's back just as Ash had done. She punched and shot the area that Ash's sword struck several times.
Torchwick started to get frustrated at his inability to even hold his ground against the teens. The monitors around him blared red, warning of the extensive damage the Paladin had taken.
The Paladin jumped back in to a pillar and flattening Yang against it. The girl started to fall from the height when the Paladin took a step forward. It turned, switching its remaining arm from cannon to fist, and struck the blonde, forcing her through the concrete pillar.
"Big mistake Mister Torchwick!" Ash yelled from the mist.
Yang stood up shakily, her hair starting to glow its fiery gold and her eyes turning blood red. The Paladin tried to take out the girl once and for all, throwing a punch at her. Yang stopped the fist with her left hand and spotted the initial damage that Ash had left for her to capitalize on. She cocked her right hand back and threw a devastating blow at the crack on its metal fist.
The remaining arm shattered in to pieces at the blow.
"Bumblebee!" Ruby yelled.
Yang turned to see Gambol Shroud already headed for her. With her left hand, she grabbed it and Blake swung her towards the Paladin, only for it to jump away.
"Ice Flower!" Ruby yelled once again.
The cloaked leader planted her precious scythe's blade on the ground as Weiss placed a glyph in front of the barrel. Ruby shot the legs of the Paladin five times, ice spreading from wherever it got hit, rendering the Paladin immobile.
Blake swung Yang around once more, but the Paladin was unfortunately still out of reach.
"Ash!" Ruby yelled, noticing the problem with the ribbon's length.
Ash jumped in front of the arc of the ribbon. Yang let her partner's weapon go, reaching out for Ash. The butler grabbed her arm with his right arm and activated his semblance, a deep colored red smoke engulfed Ash until his right arm was completely covered in it, as if the smoke was another bracer. Ash threw the girl towards the Paladin.
A boom resounded throughout the city as Yang breached the speed of sound. The girl threw a right straight at the Paladin, the metal bending against the fist and gauntlet. The Paladin shattered in to a million pieces as Roman was thrown out of the cockpit, the force of Yang's punch sending him crashing through a pillar just as he'd done to Yang earlier.
Blood came out of Roman's mouth as he coughed. Ash ran towards him, but slowed to a stop as a small girl with half chocolate and half strawberry with a few stripes of white hair, came out of nowhere and stood in front of the mastermind.
The girl bowed to the butler, flashing him a smile. Bound to his own rules, the butler bowed to her as well. Yang started to run, annoyed by Ash's action.
"Neo," Roman coughed out, standing behind the girl. The girl stood up straight, smiling at Ash.
Ash noticed Yang running towards him, and stretched out his hand for her to take. Yang took it as soon as she can, and once again, the butler threw her towards Roman. The girl and Roman shattered as if glass before the brawler could even make contact. With her targets gone, Yang pushed Ember Celica in front of her, and countered her momentum with several shots from her gauntlets. A Bullhead appeared above them and flew off with the girl named Neo and Roman inside it.
"You know Ash," Weiss started as Team RWBY walked up to him. "Sometimes your chivalry is absolutely annoying."
"I apologize Miss Schnee," Ash said turning to the team. He smiled at them before turning his attention to the pieces of scrap metal that were once an Atlesian Paladin prototype. A smile formed on him. "Nothing but useless heavy armor."
"I think that's as good as a Team RWBY initiation as it's ever gonna get," Ruby said proudly, smirking at Ash. They all shared a laugh, the girls experiencing the feeling of euphoria they got when they took down the giant Nevermore again, but this time with their new team member.
"If it's like this all the time, I think I may consider resigning," Ash joked. "Miss Schnee, if you don't mind providing glyphs up to the highway, I can come get the four of you with the limo."
Without saying a word, Weiss created a sigil underneath Ash and lifted the boy all the way up. It only took him several minutes to get to them in the underpass, and they all got in, enjoying the much-needed rest.
"Go back up on the highway Ash," Yang requested, stretching in the back seat. "I still need to pick up Bumblebee."
"Understood Miss Xiao Long," Ash said, turning to go back up the highway, the team still had yet to see a single police car, but they were too caught up in their latest victory over Roman Torchwick to notice.
Yang soon got out of the limo and made her way to her precious bike and they all started to make their way back to Beacon side by side. That is until Ash slammed on the breaks. The three girls in the back held on to their seats until the limo lost all of its momentum. Yang simply stopped, looking at the limo.
"Ash what is the matter with you?" Weiss demanded, glaring at the boy, as he looked around confused.
"Does anyone know where Mister Wukong and Mister Vasilias are?" he asked them. The realization of their friends going missing before the actual fight even began dawned on the team as a guilty feeling took hold of them.
Blake and Weiss took out their scrolls and called their plus ones. Blake called Sun, and Weiss called Neptune. The girls didn't say anything for a minute, and only spoke when they put their scrolls away.
"Drive," Blake told the butler with a rather bitter expression on her.
"Leave them," Weiss added, confusing the butler and Ruby. Ash followed the instruction and just drove back to Beacon, wondering what happened to the two members of Team SSSN. Yang, who had no idea what was happening, innocently drove along side the limo.
Hiding Bumblebee was an easy task, as Yang already had a place to hide the tinier vehicle. The limo on the other hand, was a bit of a problem. Sure, Ash could just park the limo anywhere, but eventually they'll need to explain where it came from, and retell their experiences on that night. Normally wouldn't be a problem, but sooner, rather than later, General Ironwood would hold an investigation of how a stolen Paladin found its way to the underpass, and why it lay in over a thousand little pieces.
"We could just abandon the limo," Ash offered, looking back at the three girls in the back. They glared at him, already fond of the limo as if it was always part of the team. "Guess not. I could try to convince Headmaster Ozpin to just let us leave it in front of the school."
"Even if you manage to convince him, it's still in the view of every student," Blake reasoned, simply stretching her limbs outward as to not feel to stiff after they inevitably exit the vehicle.
"Let them," Ruby groaned, already too tired to worry about this after destroying one of Atlas' finest pieces of technology. "It's not like they can do anything about it."
"Miss Rose holds a very good point," Ash concluded, stopping the vehicle at the side of the main road to Beacon. "Let's just leave it here. I'll convince the headmaster, and hope that Miss Goodwitch doesn't kill me. I still need to discuss my new sleeping arrangements with them anyway."
"Yeah sorry about that," Ruby apologized sheepishly. "We thought you were dying. Not our fault you locked the door."
The four of them got out of the vehicle and soon met up with Yang just in front of the doors to the academy. She looked behind them, at the vehicle that wasn't supposed to be there.
"I'll take care of it," Ash said, exhaustion already evident in his voice. "The four of you have yourselves a wonderful rest."
Ash turned to leave the girls to head to their dorm room, while he turned to go to Ozpin's office, only to stop when his mistress called out to him.
"Ash wait," Weiss jogged to him, leaving him and her teammates confused. "I'm coming with you. Someone has to help you explain."
"Curfew's ten," Yang called back teasingly, as she, Ruby, and Blake all made heir way towards their dorm room.
"I'll bring a light dinner afterwards," Ash called out to them, figuring they must be famished after exerting so much energy when they were forced to skip a meal. He only got a thumb up from the blonde as a response before he and Weiss turned to go to Ozpin's office.
The two walked in pure silence for a few minutes, unable to say anything to the other, until Ash decided to break that silence.
"Are you alright Miss Schnee?" he asked her with no real direction in mind.
"I'm alright Ash," she answered simply, smiling in relief that it was he to start a conversation. "Made it out unscathed thanks to you."
"It was because of your team Miss Schnee," he corrected her, turning to face the girl. "You've surrounded yourself with amazing people. It seems like I was worried for nothing."
"You were worried?" she asked, turning to him wearing a questioning expression. "About what?"
"Well…" Ash started looking away from her awkwardly, wondering if he could phrase his explanation a different way, but in vain. "No offense Miss Schnee, but you didn't really leave the family house a social butterfly."
"Ash!" Weiss exclaimed stopping her movement, completely offended.
"I apologize Miss Schnee," the butler said with a smile, nearly laughing, stopping as well. He turned to her, amused at her reaction. "However, I did say that I was worried for nothing."
"Don't you dare try to sweet talk your way out of this one," Weiss warned, slightly drawing Myrtenaster from her hip as a sign showing that she was serious. "I can handle myself in any situation, be it fighting or simply socializing."
"Miss Rose told me of your first interaction with her Miss Schnee," Ash offered, placing his first ammunition of the argument on the table. Weiss' resolve fluctuated for a second, before returning to normal, glaring at the butler.
"It was because she fell on my luggage," Weiss defended thinking back on that time. "She fell on cases filled with Dust crystals. She could've literally blown us off the cliff."
"And your interaction with Miss Nikos right before the initiation?" Ash placed another piece of evidence on the table for his mistress to defend against.
"What are you on about?" she asked, remembering nothing worth of note about her conversation with Pyrrha back then. "She and I were merely discussing the initiation, and how the whole partnering system worked."
"And are you sure you didn't have any… mistakably malicious intent?" he countered, smiling as the expression on Weiss changed from confident to guilty. "I know you all too well Miss Schnee. Let's move on from that. Explain to me your reaction when you first met Mister Arc in the Emerald Forest."
"Alright!" Weiss complained, announcing the butler as the winner of the argument. "I understand your point."
"That was the Weiss Schnee then," Ash said, holding out his right hand for her to grab. As if in a trance, she reached out with her left hand and gently took the hand in hers as he did the same to hers. "The Weiss Schnee in front of me now is a stranger to me. That's why I want to know more about her."
"But if I am a stranger to you," Weiss said slowly, pulling herself closer to the butler. "Then you are a stranger to me as well."
"Oh I doubt you'd allow a stranger to get this close to you Miss Schnee," Ash said, as he pulled her even closer, till the distance between them is practically nothing.
"And I doubt you'd ever do this to a stranger Ash," Weiss countered, a smile playing at her lips. Ash laughed softly, his chest reverberating against hers.
"Well then I guess I was wrong," Ash admitted, the feeling of being unable to control himself going in to a blissful state of being like every time his infatuation for the girl starting to take over. "It seems that you will forever be my precious Weiss Schnee."
"Ash let me ask you a question," Weiss told the butler. Ash simply stared at her, awaiting her question. "Was there ever a time when you loved me romantically?"
Ash's bliss shattered like glass at the question. He knew he had to lie, but perhaps adding a little truth to it would make it easier for him.
"There may have been a time Miss Schnee," he said longingly, keeping a small smile as he spoke. Now that the truth has been spoken, only the lie is left, but it simply wouldn't come out. Instead some unknown force took control of him. "I definitely felt a deep sense of infatuation towards you when we were younger teens. To say that you are my first love, would really only be the truth."
Weiss couldn't say anything. Sure, she had asked the question, but not ever had she expected such an answer. She and Ash stood there in silence under the moonlight. Weiss remained stunned by the answer, cheeks on fire, as the butler came to realize what he had just said.
"But that was before Miss Schnee," Ash quickly defended once the realization dawned on him. He could feel his cheeks burn, but because the only source of light was the moon, this remained practically invisible. "I've learned to let go."
"You mean to say you've given up," Weiss said slightly concerned, albeit a bit spiteful.
"Yes Miss Schnee," Ash confirmed, feeling guilty for agreeing with her on that. "The gap between us can never be filled. You are of noble birth, and I am merely your servant."
"You and I are equals Ash," Weiss told the butler, annoyed that she has to remind him again. "The only difference between us is our names and genders."
"The world will never see us as equals Miss Schnee," he reminded her, with a heavy heart. "I was a young and stupid teen back then, I've yet to know the difference."
"What about now Ash?" Weiss demanded, glaring at him, daring him to lie to her.
"Now I know of the gap Miss Schnee," he told her, knowing that wasn't what she had meant. "Now I know the difference."
"That's not what I mean you idiot," Weiss snapped, making the butler release her from his grip and look away. However, Weiss had yet to release him, she will continue to hold him there until he tells her the truth. "How do you feel now?"
"I love you the way you want me to Miss Schnee," he repeated his white lie for the third time that day still unable to look her in the eye. "I love you the way I should, as a servant and as a friend."
Weiss let the butler go, saying nothing back, before turning and making her way to Ozpin's office. Ash simply stood still for a few more seconds watching her walk away, remembering the dissatisfied look on her face before she walked away.
"Lying to you will never be easy," he muttered to himself before chasing after her.
Weiss and Ash continued their walk, in awkward silence. When they got to Ozpin's office, they quickly explained to the headmaster why there is a limousine outside his school and that they were only exploring the city with Sun and Neptune.
Surprisingly, Ozpin let the two go after hearing their 'believable' story, but in return for destroying school property, and for leaving the limo where it could easily be seen to distract students, Ash had to sleep in the Team RWBY dorm room until he got the door fixed.
They had no choice but to agree, but were left wondering how the rest of the team would react to the sleeping arrangement. Sure they all had already slept in a single room, but that was for a very specific purpose, and most importantly, only for one night.
Weiss headed back to the dorm room to tell the team about the headmaster's decision, while Ash headed for the kitchen to fix the team a much needed dinner.
When Weiss entered the dorm room, Blake and Yang were the only ones in the room, while Ruby was in the shower. Blake was already in her sleepwear and brushing her hair, meaning she had already taken a shower before Weiss got there.
"Hey Ice Queen," Yang greeted from her bunk when she saw the heiress. "So what's happening with Ash?"
"He's sleeping here," Weiss answered immediately, going to the drawer she kept her sleepwear in and laying it down on her bed.
Yang asked more questions, some of them about why she agreed to it, and where Ash was going to sleep, but Weiss ignored all of it.
I love you the way you want me to Miss Schnee, I love you the way I should, as a servant and as a friend.
Ash's words echoed in her head like a mantra. She sat on her bed, with the repetition of the sentence slowly driving her insane. She tried to yell 'Stop' in her thoughts as if that would actually stop it, but she couldn't – or if she did, she couldn't hear her own thoughts. The repetition only stopped when she heard her voice saying, I want more.
At first she ignored the voice, only thanking it for stopping repetition. Soon, Ruby exited the bathroom, with a satisfied smile. Yang entered next, but not before telling Ruby about where Ash was sleeping. Ruby didn't think anything of it, thankfully… the innocent soul.
Ten minutes of silence went by in the room, strange for the group of girls. Ruby was looking out the window and at the stars above, Weiss was trying her best not to let her thoughts drive her insane, and Blake was reading her book. Yang exited the bathroom, in her sleepwear and Weiss didn't hesitate to go in.
Her time in the shower was normal; the thoughts that plagued her somehow didn't come with her. Her mind was free from the thoughts that were driving her insane, but it the middle of it all she found herself speaking.
"I want more," she whispered, the falling water making it so that only she could hear those three words. She squeezed her chest, as her heart seemed to be twisting around in painful ways.
She soon got out of in her sleepwear, to find that Ash had delivered on his promise. In the middle of the room was a cart with various healthy dinners, from pomegranate chicken to tuna casserole for his promise to Blake.
"Come and eat with us Weiss," Yang called out, before eating another bite of her dinner. Without saying a word, Weiss went over to them and sat down on the fourth and last free chair. Ash placed a plate in front of her, smiling at the heiress before moving back; simply standing there while the team ate.
Weiss looked at the plate, finding chicken, broccoli, and beetroot salad all lightly layered with avocado pesto. She started to eat; merely listening to her team – mainly Ruby and Yang – discuss their latest victory. She found the food delicious, but the feeling she felt in the shower stopped her from enjoying it like she usually would.
"Is it not to your liking Miss Schnee?" Ash asked concerned, noticing her plight. Yang and Ruby halted their discussion, looking at the heiress worriedly.
"It's delicious Ash," Weiss said dejectedly, eating another bite. "I'm just a bit distracted right now."
"I see," Ash said, figuring she'd tell him or one of her teammates when she was ready. "If there's anything I can do, Miss Schnee, please don't hesitate to ask."
"I won't," Weiss lied, the urge to ask the boy to help her with her problem slamming itself against the walls of her willpower. "I may just need to sleep it off."
The team finished their dinner and Ash took back the cart to the kitchen, grabbing something small to eat while there. He made his way to the garden pavilion, sitting at the table he and Weiss were. He gathered his thoughts, and simply enjoyed his time alone.
Meanwhile in the Team RWBY dorm room, Weiss sat on her bed, wondering exactly what it meant when she heard her own voice say 'I want more.'
"Weiss did something happen?" Ruby asked her partner concerned, from her bed above the heiress'.
"Nothing," Weiss told her, annoyed that she can't organize her thoughts. "I'm just distracted like I said. I'm just thinking about the information Ash and I found at the tower."
"Then why didn't you ask Ash to help?" Ruby asked, further annoying the heiress, as she had no answer. "I'm sure you guys can sort all that together. We'll help you guys if you want."
"No, I can do this myself," Weiss insisted, her pride kept her from asking for help thus far, and it'll keep her from asking. "Besides, I'm sure you all have your own information to sort through."
"If you say so," Ruby passively said, still concerned for her partner. She didn't know what Weiss was trying to prove but she won't let it consume her. "Let's at least sleep on it. It's not like it's going anywhere."
"Trust me Ruby," Weiss said, narrowing her eyes at the fifteen year old. "The faster we find out what the White Fang are up to, and whoever it is that has Ash unnerved, the better."
"We'll know more tomorrow Weiss," Yang said from her bunk. Weiss and Ruby turned to the blonde. "I mean, remember, we still have that bookstore to go to tomorrow."
"Yeah see?" Ruby said excitedly, finding an excuse for Weiss to take a break. "We're gonna have more after we go there. We can even ask Team SSSN to help out."
"No!" Weiss and Blake protested simultaneously, remembering where Sun and Neptune were during the fight against Roman.
"Or not," Ruby added, confused as to why her teammates were so against it.
"Weiss is right," Blake said, putting her book down on a open spot on her bed. "The faster the White Fang is apprehended, the better it will be for everyone. And if Torchwick is to be believed, then something will be happening soon."
"What do you mean?" Ruby asked, the grim expression on Blake slightly unnerving the leader.
"We got caught before he could go in to it in detail," Blake replied, thinking back on the night before the rather fun life or death battle. "But he said something about a plan being underway to surprise Vale."
"I didn't like the robot surprise," Yang admitted. "Something tells me I'm going to like this surprise even less."
"That's why we should sleep on it," Ruby insisted, lying down on her bed, and pulling the covers on. "Night."
"What about Ash?" Blake asked, shaking her head at the leader.
"I'll wait for him," Weiss offered, letting out a sigh. "You two get some sleep."
"If you're sure," Yang said shrugging. She and Blake got under their covers and shut off the lamp on their side. Weiss let out another sigh, staring at the door, hoping that it would open soon.
Ash came out of Glynda's room, leaving the peacefully sleeping professor to whatever dream she was currently having. He pulled out his scroll to check the time, wanting to kick himself as he read that it was well past midnight.
Ash made his way to his dorm room and sighed at the broken door, reminding him of his current sleeping arrangement. He entered the room anyway and took a quick shower and brushing his teeth, before putting on a pair of black sweats and a black shirt with a white snowflake, the Schnee family symbol, covering almost the entire back if the shirt.
He soon entered the Team RWBY dorm room and found the single lamp by Weiss' bed still on. Weiss was lying down, flat on her back, on the bed asleep, with her eyebrows furrowed. He made his way to the lamp and turned it off, before kneeling by Weiss's waist, wondering how he can relieve her of whatever it was that was worrying her.
He reached out and lightly touched the scar on her left eye with his right thumb, tracing the crooked blemish on her fair skin. He frowned, remembering how he wasn't able to help her with her fight against a giant suit of armor. He finished tracing her scar, ending at her cheek.
This'll be the closest I'll ever get to you huh? Ash thought, a small and sad smile forming on him. It hardly matters. I'll be satisfied with this. So please… just this once… forgive me.
He leaned over, closed his eyes, and kissed her scar. When he pulled back, her eyebrows were no longer furrowed; she had a relaxed expression on her face. He moved his right hand down, and traced the edge of her top lip very lightly, not wanting to wake the heiress.
Ash stood up and bowed to her even though she was asleep. He exited the dorm room, careful as to not make a single sound. He shut the door slowly behind him and made his way to the library, wanting to find out all that he could about the White Fang to help Weiss as much as he could later on in the day.
Inside the Team RWBY dorm room, Blake's Faunus ears twitched under her bow as Ash's footsteps disappeared in to the distance. She checked her scroll, the screen showing Ash leaning over, kissing the white haired girl's eye, only illuminated by the moonlight being cast down in to the room. A smile formed on her, as this time she was successful to remember, not only to silence her scroll, but also to turn the brightness down, as to not attract attention.
Satisfied with what she had, Blake hid her scroll and went back to sleep.
Weiss soon opened her eyes, touching her scar before going down to her top lip. A tear left her left eye, remembering Ash's touch.
Ash you liar, the heiress thought, her hand going back up to the part of her scar that still burned from Ash's lips. Yang was right after all. Ash, you really do…
Tears slowly leaked from Weiss' eyes, the girl wiping them all away just as fast as they appeared. She continued to weep like that in silence.
Why do I feel so unsatisfied? Weiss asked the voice in her head, hoping that it would respond to her thoughts just as it had done before, but nothing came. She continued to swipe at the liquid leaking from her eyes, trying to make as little sound as possible, as to not wake anyone.
After him, the two words were said with her own voice. Unable to do anything else, she did as she was instructed.
She slowly got up, and made her way to the door. Out in the hallway, waiting for her was one Lie Ren. He simply leaned against the opposite wall, looking at the ground, looking up only when she opened the door.
"He's in the library," he told her, pushing himself from the wall before turning to go back to the Team JNPR dorm room. Weiss couldn't even question him, they were in her mind, but it refused to turn in to words. "You should probably wash up first. He'll only get worried."
Without another word being said, Ren returned to the dorm room, shutting the door behind him.
Weiss touched her cheeks, sticky with tears. Weiss entered the Team RWBY dorm room once again, and entered the bathroom. She splashed her face with water, making sure that no traces of her crying was evident, but nevertheless, she couldn't do anything about her reddening eyes.
She exited the dorm room again, and in a matter of a few minutes, she found the library. She opened the door, slowly, careful to not make a sound. Inside, a single monitor was on. In front of it, in the dark was a young man with raven black hair, and rather dark clothing, the only other noticeable feature on him was the white snowflake on his back.
"The things I do for you Miss Schnee," she heard him say with a laugh, his voice echoing in the quiet room.
He let out a yawn; his head drooping down a bit, and his eyes closing for a few seconds. His head shot back up and his eyes wide open in surprise. He shook his head trying to keep himself awake, before reading on about the White Fang and the actions they've taken.
Weiss watched him from a distance for a second, fighting the voice in her head demanding her to go up to him. She had plenty to say, from his lies to her confusing dissatisfaction, but she doubted a single one of them would ever find a way to be known.
Weiss forced her legs to carry her out of the room and a few dozen feet away from it as quietly as possible, leaving the boy alone once more, and the ever-growing guilty feeling inside her build up. The voice in her head screamed at her, demanding her to return, demanding her to say something.
A simple greeting would suffice as a start, Ash's voice echoed twice in her head. Everything else will fall in to place afterwards.
"But so will I," Weiss verbally responded to the echo, her small voice ringing throughout the dark and empty hallway.
"I'll fall too Ash," she continued, several more tear drops leaking from her eyes, forgetting that she left the door to the library open, her voice falling clearly upon the ears of the only soul in the place full of books.