Yeah. So here's another thing. Read it. Like it. Maybe don't like it. Up to you.
Enjoy!
REWRITE:
Made a lot of changes to the pacing throughout this chapter. Also some minor tweaks to character.
The cold night air whipped through Blake's hair as she ran across the deserted campus of Beacon Academy, the moon and stars providing more than enough light for her sensitive eyes.
Rather than take the long, winding road that snaked its way down the cliffs into the city, Blake opted for the less open route and stuck to the trees, jumping from branch to branch with practiced finesse, occasionally using Gambol Shroud as a grappling hook. This path, however, tended to sacrifice peace of mind for stealth, as the Faunus couldn't help imagine some awful creature emerging from the black of the forest to grab her and carry her into darkness.
Her mind eased only slightly as she neared bright lights of the city, for she had traded the mysterious shadows of the forest for the blindingly exposed streets.
Blake figured that it would be best not to draw any unnecessary attention to herself, so she found the nearest fire escape that would take her up and away from the light.
As she reached the rooftop, Blake took a deep breath of the cold night air, and as she gazed up at the shattered moon, she couldn't stop her mind from returning to another time. A time of violence and chaos, a time that had, until now, seemed like another life, one that she had left behind.
Until now.
Smiling sadly, Blake understood the irony of her situation. I guess I'm not so different now from how I was. The set has changed, but the script and actors are the same.The stars stared back at her as she gazed upwards, taunting her with their carefree, twinkling light.
Blake thought of Yang, and she realized that it wasn't entirely true. The only difference is that now I have so much to lose, whereas back then, I had everything to gain. Blake felt that this was even more reason to not have brought the blonde along.
I can't force this life on her, she thought as she began her long journey across the city, grimacing because she knew that Yang would gladly choose this life over one without her kitty-cat.
She shook her head to break the reverie, it was essential that she focus on the task at hand. Yang could wait for now. If her days in the Fang had taught her anything, it was that the mission always comes first.
When did I start thinking of this as a mission?
The rooftops were easy enough to traverse, the buildings were close enough to one another that she could jump most gaps, and even when her path was blocked by a particularly wide street, another route was within reach. At this rate I'll get there early. Might be able to deal with the contact before Raven even arrives. That would make things considerably easier.
Ten minutes later, she could see the old warehouses looming up out of the darkness, and her heart quickened as she neared her destination. Ozpin said 12 didn't he? Of course it's the one at the very end...
Blake used the rooftop she was currently on to make the large jump over a barbed-wire fence which surrounded the building. She could have easily cut through it with Gambol, but preferred to leave no evidence of her presence.
The area closely resembled where she had first fought Torchwick and the White Fang with Sun and Penny, an event which now seemed like years ago. The only difference being that these buildings were in considerably worse shape than the others had been.
Like a shadow, she slipped past the silent and still buildings until she reached the last one in the row, number 12.
Scanning the structure, she decided it would be best to approach from above, since she'd noticed the roof was covered in broken skylights which would provide easy and discreet access. She quickly scaled the building, and as she peered down into the dark below – her night-vision doing little to pierce the gloom – she felt an old, but familiar feeling...excitement. She was excited at the prospect of her assignment. It's just because this is going to help you find Adam, nothing more. But there was something else, something more primal. Something that she'd tried so hard to bury deep within.
Blake shook her head. No, that isn't who I am anymore. I'm just here to wait, then find out what I need to know.
She didn't have to wait long. Less than three minutes later, her ears picked up the faint sound of footsteps from the black below her. Blake figured that it had to be the contact, since Raven would more than likely appear out of one of her strange cloud portals.
She waited until the footsteps had passed right underneath, then drew her weapon and silently dropped down behind whomever it was the noise belonged to. Little thought was given to the fact that she suddenly seemed so prepared to kill, almost as if it would be no effort at all.
Much to Blake's surprised, the footsteps stopped abruptly as she hit the floor, and complete silence descended on the room. I don't like this, Blake thought as she quickly ducked behind an old storage crate. Where did they go?
"Do you really think you can hide from me, Blake?" She froze, the question had come from directly behind her.
I know that voice. It can't be! Spinning around, she lashed out with Gambol Shroud at the voice, but the attack was easily blocked as a blood-red sword flashed from its sheath and knocked the weapon from Blake's hand. A fist lashed out from the darkness, connecting with Blake's jaw and sending her sprawling across the room. She could taste blood in her mouth as she scrambled to pick up Gambol, setting her feet as she struggled to make out the identity of her attacker, but as he stepped into a small pool of moonlight coming through the ceiling, her heart stopped.
He was tall, lean and wiry, clad in a black jacket, red shirt, and black pants. Spiky crimson hair stuck up from above a red-trimmed Grimm mask, accented by dark horn-like appendages.
"Adam...?" Her voice shook, despite her aggressive stance.
"It's been too long, Blake." She couldn't tell if his tone was mocking, or sincere, but either way she didn't care.
"Where's Raven?" She tried to distract both herself and Adam from the cannon-fire in her heart by changing the subject immediately.
"What, I'm not good enough? You're hurting my feelings Blake." Now his tone was definitely mocking, and Blake gritted her teeth.
"Shut up. I'm not in the mood for your shit right now Adam." The bull-faunus sighed audibly, making a show of checking his watch.
"Unfortunately, I have no idea where she is. You see, she's got this really bad habit of showing up late to all of our meetings. It's pretty annoying actually."
Blake had no idea how he could be so casual about this, after all that had happened between them, how he had driven her away with his savagery, how she had betrayed the one man who trusted her. And here he was, acting as if nothing had changed.
Her mind clear and her heart settled, she spoke.
"I've waited so long for the chance to see you again. Do you know why?" Adam simply stared at her.
"I'm listening."
"Because I swore that I would put an end to your violence, your senseless killing. And the only way I can do that...is by killing you!" Her former partner remained unmoved as she charged upon finishing her sentence, clearly hoping to end it as quickly as possible. However, just as she was about to pierce his chest, there was a flash of red, followed by pain.
His sword, Wilt, had sliced right through Blake's protective aura as if it were nothing, blade finding flesh as it left a gash in the girl's side. Adam threw her down again and stood stock still as if waiting for something, his face hard as stone.
"I thought you were here to kill me. Get on with it." He challenged, as Blake stumbled to her feet.
"Fuck you Adam!" She charged again, Adam shaking his head in disappointment.
Wilt flashed from Blush again, blade cutting straight through Blake's path as she left a clone behind and shot off to the side, hoping to catch him off guard and attack his weak side. But she was shocked as a hand shot out, grabbing her by the throat and slamming her up against a nearby wall.
Adam held her off the ground with one hand, the other still grasping his weapon as he spoke, "Don't you remember thatIwas the one who taught you to do that?" His voice low and menacing as he tightened his grip on Blake's neck, oxygen quickly abandoning her.
"...Adam," she choked out, "Adam...please."
Hearing her plead like this must have struck a nerve, for his face finally showed some signs of emotion as he dropped her, Blake gasping for air as she slumped against the wall. She still hadn't fully recovered from the night they'd met Raven, and that in addition to her new injuries was taking its toll. She could barely move, let alone continue to fight him.
"Adam..." She began, but fell silent as her former partner spun around and pointed his weapon accusingly at her.
"NO! You lost that right the second you left me on that train!"
His voice had changed. No more mocking, no more menace, just pain, a lot of pain.
"I call my comrades in the White Fang brother and sister, yes, but more out of tradition than any true familial bond." Unsure of where he was going with this, Blake elected to remain silent.
"But you were always that one exception. You were like a sister to me Blake, a sister who left without any explanation!"
A fresh wave of guilt rolled over the girl as she realized the full extent of how she'd hurt the man who now stood in front of her, filled with anger and resentment.
"Adam, I'm sorr-" She began, but he cut her off violently by slicing a nearby crate in half.
"SHUT UP! You don't get to be sorry, not after what you did! Do you have any idea how much it hurt to see you leave? How much it hurt to know that Iwas the one who made you do it?"
So he did realize why after all. I'd hoped he wouldn't.
"And then you show up here, after all this time," he continued, "with the intention of killingme, and all you can say is 'sorry'?" Blake's ears flattened, and she knew how hollow her weak attempt at an apology must have sounded. In this case, amends could not be made so easily.
All the same, she chose to make one effort to defend herself, and hope that it was enough to justify her actions.
"I just couldn't do it anymore. I couldn't stand by and watch you kill innocent people like that! I wanted to talk to you, but I didn't think you'd understand..." Blake tried to stand, but her battered body couldn't support the weight and she crashed back down. "You were always so sure of yourself and your beliefs..."
"You're right, I wouldn't have understood, and I still don't. But long ago there was a time that I respected your decisions as a partner, it just would have been nice for you to tell me before running off." There was bitterness in his voice, a bitterness that Blake never knew he was capable of.
The menace returned as his expression hardened once more into one of businesslike indifference. "But now, things are different. You're in my way this time, and that's something that I can't allow."
Blake was beginning to feel faint. I've lost a lot of blood, I won't last long no matter what he decides to do next.
"So do it. Get it over with." Adam hesitated and his hand slackened on the hilt of his weapon, clearly taken aback by the absolute defeat in Blake's voice.
"What are you waiting for? JUST FUCKING DO IT YOU COWARD!" She was answered by a savage kick to the head, pain stabbing through her as her vision blurred.
"You've left me no choice." Adam drew Wilt and steadied himself.
I had hoped that it wouldn't come to this Blake, he thought. I'm sorry.
A strange sound stopped him in his tracks, a sound that Blake clearly recognized as the opening of a large scythe. Ruby?
The world exploded as a man leapt out of the shadows, swinging a massive scythe which was clearly bigger than Crescent Rose.
Adam snarled as he barely avoided the attack, turning tail and running as he yelled back over his shoulder. "I WARNED YOU BLAKE! KEEP OUT OF BUSINESS THAT DOESN'T CONCERN YOU!"
And then he was gone. Vanished into the night.
The man spoke. "Well. Doesn't he seem like a lovely young gentleman. You certainly know how to pick your friends don't you."
Through blurry eyes, Blake studied the man. His outfit was not dissimilar to her young teammate's, he wore a small red cape with a hood, his slightly greying hair was spiked up towards the back in a distinctly bird-like fashion, and he had large combat boots on. The most distinct feature was the massive, black scythe that he carried, similar, yet at the same time different from that of her teammate.
The last thing she noticed was the symbol which he wore on his belt. It looked not unlike a bird's eye, but with a cog instead of an iris. Wait, that's the symbol that Yang drew when she first told me about her mother...
"You're Yang's uncle Qrow aren't you?" The man looked down at her, mildly surprised that she knew who he was.
"Why, quite correct you are young lady. And who might you be?" His head tilted slightly as he spoke, definitely like a bird.
"I'm one of your nieces' teammates at Beacon, Blake."
"Ahh I see. And what, may I ask, are you doing here?" He then noticed Blake's injury and the pained expression on her face. "Perhaps another time would be better, right now, we need to see about treating that wound of yours." The Faunus had no argument against that.
As he helped Blake to her feet and slung her arm around his shoulder, their attention was drawn to the appearance of a swirling red vortex. Better late than never, was all Blake could think.
As Raven stepped out, she took one look at Blake, one look at Qrow, one look at the large amount of blood on the ground, and sighed.
"I missed something, didn't I."
I'm sorry RedMage101, it had to be done.
Soooo, what did you guys think? Let me know. I love to hear your guys thoughts, so send 'em my way!
Peace out.