Author's Note: Just going to say that the next 2 chapters are going to switch between Gage's and team RWBY's pov(mostly Yang's) a lot, so there might be a few weird transitions. This is going to be a long and CRUCIAL chapter, So here it is!
Gage was looking out the window as snowflakes began to fall outside. "Gage! come here for a sec!" Gage put on a long sleeved shirt, and got off of his bed. "Okay dad!" He left his room and walked into the living room where his dad was about to leave for a week long trip. "What is it?" Gage asked. "Here." He handed Gage a box that was wrapped with red and green wrapping paper. "Christmas is next week, dad." His dad shook the box, "I know, but I just wanted to give you something before I leave." Gage frowned sadly when he remembered that his dad was leaving. Gaigus looked at his son. "Don't worry, i'll be back in time for Christmas."
"Here, If I know my son, you're going to open at least one present while i'm gone." Gaigus shook the box again. Gage smiled, took the box, ripped off the wrapping paper and opened the box. Inside it was a Sage leather jacket. "I remembered that when you were a kid, you always wanted one." His dad said. Gage immediately put it on, and buttoned its collar. "Aww! Its so warm!" He yelled. His dad laughed.
"Okay, now... what are you going to do for food?" Gaigus asked. "Im 17 dad, i think i can take care of myself for a week. Besides, I have a job. Ill get some fast food or groceries... or something." Gage answered. "And how are you going to get home from your job? I'm taking the car remember." Gaigus asked. "I'll take the bus again." Gage smiled, "Like we use to." His dad put on a parka, and his glasses. "You're taking a parka? It rarely snows in forever falls." Gage said.
"I don't want to freeze to death before I get there, do I?" Gaigus looked out their dining room window and saw that it was snowing. "Hey, if you shovel the snow out of the driveway, i'll make some of mom's gingerbread cookies." Gage looked at the star on their christmas tree. "Do you even know where the recipe is?" He asked his dad. "Eh, we'll find it..."
Gaigus checked his scroll, and saw that he had to be there in 20 minutes. "Shit. I've got to go. You know the Schnees, they'll kill you if you're late." He put a beanie on and opened his arms. "Come on, come give your dad a hug!"
Gage sauntered over to his dad and hugged him. "Don't you think i'm a little too old for this?" He asked. Gaigus patted Gage's back,
"Heh, one more year, and you'll be hugging your first girlfriend." He muttered. "Shut up dad..."
Gaigus let go and started to open the door.
"Don't open anymore presents until I get back, got it?"
"Got it."
Gage watched his dad as he closed their front door.
"I'll see you in a week!"
Gage woke up from his dream as he felt water being poured on his head. "*cough* *cough* What the hell?!" He got up and looked behind him. Green Bean was there, and she was holding the handle of a bucket, that Gage found, in her mouth. "*sigh* Was I freaking out again?" He asked the horse. She responded by nodding her head. "Thanks, Beanie." He then petted her.
Gage thought about the dream he just had.
"Its not even that time of the year yet..."
Gage pulled out his scroll and saw that it was 6:00 am, he fell asleep at 5:00. "1 hour, new record." It was almost another restless night for Gage, since Green Bean wouldn't sleep.
Gage felt a burning sensation on his left cheek. "Ow! What the-" He then Remembered that was where Yang punched him yesterday, and it left a burning bruise. "Oh yeah..." Green Bean started braying happily, and it sounded like she was laughing. "Whatever, I still won." Gage added.
He heard his stomach growl.
"Ruby said breakfast starts at six." He got up and took the bucket from Green Bean. "I'll get you something too."
He took one step, and stepped on something squishy. Gage turned around and glared at his horse. "BEANIE! YOU DID NOT!" He yelled. Green Bean sat down and looked away from Gage. He looked at the bottom of his shoe, and there was horse poop on it. "Okay, Next on the shopping list: Another bucket." He grabbed Beanie's water bucket, so he could refill it, and hopped towards the bathroom. "You're lucky there's toilet paper in here."
He exited the old locker rooms and wiped most of the excrement on the grass that was outside. "The breakfast better be good here."
He started to walk towards the lunchroom as the sun began to come up.
Gage was eating a breakfast burrito, and he had a bag full of vegetables for Green Bean. He was on his scroll, looking for a heater and some farming materials on Rbay. "Let's see, the heater was 90 lien, shipping was 10." Gage was now looking at a hay bale that was being sold. "120?! For some hay?!"
He checked to see if there were any other listings, but there wasn't. "*sigh* She better be happy..." He then pressed on the 'Buy now' icon.
Gage exited the web browser on his scroll, and put it away. He grabbed his food tray, and the bag, and was about to get up, but someone pushed him back down.
"Hey buddy."
Gage recognized that voice... it was the student Yang told him about, Cardin Winchester. "What do you want?" Gage asked sternly. "I couldn't help but notice that you were sitting here, by yourself." Then three other students sat down in front of Gage.
Cardin pointed to them, "This is Dove, Russell, and Sky." Gage gave them a look of despair. Cardin smiled, "Since your new, i'll go easy on you and let you join our group." Gage tilted his head towards Cardin. "Thanks for the offer, but I already have some friends." Cardin and his goons moved closer towards Gage.
"So you're going to ditch us for that blonde bimbo?"
Gage snapped. "Listen here, bitch. Yang is my friend, and I take care of my friends, because I know they would do the same for me."
He stomped on Cardin's foot and rubbed the remaining horse excrement on top of the bully's shoe. "But you could never do anything like that, since you always have your thumb up your ass."
Gage grabbed his veggie bag, and got up.
"I cant wait to find an excuse to beat your ass." He started to walk away.
Cardin looked down and saw the brown stain on his shoe. "IS THAT SHIT?!" He looked up and saw that Gage was walking away. He was about to charge towards Gage, but his teammates were holding him back. "YOU JUST MADE THE BIGGEST MISTAKE OF YOUR LIFE! YOU HEAR ME ASSWIPE?!"
Gage couldn't help but laugh a little bit as he left the lunchroom.
Gage was back at the old locker room's doors.
He entered, and Green Bean was waiting behind the door. "I'm only stopping by for a little bit." She immediately tried to grab the bag Gage was holding.
He walked next to one of the benches, so Green Bean sat down next to it like a dog.
"Okay! Hold on!" He set the bag on the bench and pulled a paper plate out of it. Green Beanie brayed loudly. "*sigh* Yes, I got your favorite." Gage reached into the bag and pulled out a handful of yes, green beans.
He placed them on the plate, and Green Bean dug in. Gage took an apple out of the bag and bit into it. "Sorry I didn't get here sooner, I was ordering some stuff for you, and i ran into those wild assholes I told you about."
He put some carrots on the plate, but then Green Bean looked at Gage and grunted. "What? They were making fun of Yang in front of me. You can't expect me not to do something..." Beanie tilted her head and winked at Gage.
Gage took another bite of his apple, "Hey! Its not like that! Sure she's kinda hot but..." His face was red again. Beanie nudged her water bucket to him. "Ugh women..."
Gage stood up and took the poncho off of Green Bean. He then unzipped one of the horse's saddle bags, pulled out some folded clothes, and put the poncho in the bag. "Okay, i'm going to take a shower, and i'm going to go out to get some school supplies."
Beanie grunted sadly as Gage walked towards the exit. "It'll only be for a couple of hours. Don't worry."
Gage entered his dorm room, and walked to his bed. He tried to fix his bed, and when he did, he turned around and saw an open door that was next to the bathroom door. There was a washer and dryer inside it. "YES!" He yelled. Gage placed the folded clothes on his bed and walked to laundry hook up.
On top of the washer was a basket of small soap pouches which were labeled 'softener'.
"Thank god." Gage immediately took off all his clothes, put them inside the machine, put a softener pouch under the clothes, and started the washing cycle.
Since he was now completely naked, Gage stepped into the bathroom. He looked at bathroom sink and saw a collection of shampoo bottles.
He grabbed a bottle of body wash and shampoo, and turned on the shower.
Gage stepped inside it and closed the shower curtain.
Gage felt the hot water run through his hair, and down his back. "Ah god dammit!"
It felt like his back was burning. "I thought i stitched those.." he forgot that he still had Grimm scars on his back. Gage backed up and let the water hit his face, which calmed him. "Ah, its been too long."
Team RWBY were walking in the streets of Vale, shopping. "What's next on the list?" Ruby asked. Yang had a piece of paper in her hands. "The food for that party next week."
She answered. Weiss spoke up as she pulled a small mirror out of her purse, "I'm so glad that we finally get some sort of break." Ruby laughed. "No, You're just glad Neptune's going!" Weiss blushed, "Shut up you dolt..."
"Blake, are you and Sun going?" Yang asked. "Since he won't stop asking me, yes." She answered. "Hey Yang... maybe you should ask Gage to go..." Ruby muttered. Yang pointed in front of them "Oh-Uh t-theres the supermarket." she then started to walk faster towards it.
They entered the store, and Ruby grabbed a shopping cart. "Whats first?" She asked. Yang looked at the list, "Uh...chips and dip." Weiss interrupted her, "Who asked for it?" Yang looked at the list again, "Jaune, Sun, and Neptune." She answered. Ruby looked up and saw a sign which said, 'snack aisle' and it was pointing to the left. "Down there!" Ruby yelled.
The team walked down the aisle until they found the chips. "What type?" Blake asked asked. Ruby stepped away from the cart and looked at the selection of chips. "Here! tortilla, cheese puffs, and potato chips!" She pulled three bags off of the shelves, and put them inside the shopping cart. Yang walked to the cart and put two jars in it. She then stood in front of Blake and held a yellow chip bag in front of her. "Hey Blake, you should get these for Sun!" Blake read the text on the bag, and sighed when she saw that it said, 'Banana chips'. She grabbed the bag and put it in their cart. "Thats still not funny, Yang..."
Yang looked at the list while Weiss read the food labels on the chip bags. "Guys, these aren't really... healthy." Yang turned to her, "Well, these aren't just for you, and its a party, you're not suppose to eat healthy." Weiss groaned and put the bags back in the cart.
"Okay next is... cookies. From Pyrrha, Nora, and Ruby." Yang said. Ruby lit up with joy, "Ooh! Yang! Can I-" Yang finished her sister's sentence. "Yes, but get two different types."
Ruby beamed out of the aisle with her semblance, and re-appeared seconds later with four containers of cookies. "Got it!" She yelled. "What type?" Blake asked. "Choco chip, and Oreos!" Ruby answered. "Well, You and Nora are going to be happy." Weiss said. Yang looked down at their list again. "Okay! Next is... Soda, obviously." Ruby pointed in the air, "TO THE COLD DRINKS!"
Ruby was the first to get to the coolers, while her teammates followed from behind her. "Not so fast Ruby!" Weiss whined as Yang and Blake were panting. "I just want to get home so I can see Zwei!" Ruby yelled. She looked down the aisle, and saw a man looking at a six pack of beer. "Yang, come here for a sec."
Yang walked towards her sister, still panting. "Okay, Weiss, Blake, you guys pick out the drinks." She now stood next to Ruby. "What is it Rubes?" She asked. Ruby pointed down the aisle.
"Is that Gage?"
Yang looked at the man. He had brown hair, he was holding an ice pack against his left cheek, and he had black backpack on his back, which said, "Beacon Academy" on it. Yang smiled, "Only one way to find out!" She then cupped her hands around her mouth. "HEY SHADY!"
The man turned around, and Yang saw a sage bandana that was wrapped around his right arm. "Yup, thats him." Yang answered.
Gage put the pack of beer inside his cart and started to approach team RWBY. "heh, I was wondering what that red flash was." He said.
Yang looked at Gage, his hair and skin actually looked clean, but he looked and sounded like he was tired. "What are you doing here?" Ruby asked. "I asked Ozpin if i can start my classes on Friday, and he said yes, so im getting some school stuff." he answered. "Then why are you buying alcohol?" Blake interrupted. "Yeah. Why don't you just go to bar?" Weiss added. "First off: because I can. Second, like to be alone when i drink, and i don't really like the whole 'bar scene'." Gage answered.
Yang saw that Gage was wearing a black Achievement hunter tank top, and that it showed off his chest and biceps. "Don't you think thats a little too revealing?" Weiss asked. Gage chuckled, "What? See something you like?" He then saw that Yang was staring at him, and that her cheeks were bright red, "Because I know Yang does." He added. Yang's hair started to glow. "What?! No! I-uh-"
He turned back to Ruby, "So why are you four here?" He asked. "We and some of our friends are having a little get together on Monday, so we're getting some snacks for it." She answered. "A party? on a Monday? Kinda weird, but then again, what am I talking about? I've never really been to one." Gage said. Ruby walked back next to Yang, "Great!" She nudged her sister's shoulder. "Yang!" She whispered.
"Oh, uh do you want to come with me- us! Do you want to come with us?!" She asked awkwardly. Gage took off his backpack and put it in his cart. He spoke, but he sounded a little... depressed. "Sure, i'm probably not going to be doing anything anyway."
"So are we done here?" Weiss asked sternly as she put three bottles of soda in their cart. "Can it Weiss!" Ruby whispered while gritting her teeth. Gage signaled Blake, "Blake come here."
She walked towards Gage, and he pointed inside his shopping cart. "Is there anything im missing for school?" He asked. Blake looked inside the cart and saw an assortment of items such as, pencils, binders, a huge notebook, clothes, shaving cream, razors, the six pack of beer, a dartboard, and a bucket, but no books. "You need a reading book." Blake uttered.
"Well, I don't know what's best selling right now, so can you recommend one for me?" Gage asked. Blake smiled, "Sure, lucky for you, I've been here before." Weiss started to push Blake forwards. "Then lets get a move on!" Weiss yelled. Ruby and Gage followed them while Yang tried to calm herself. Gage turned and smiled slightly, "Need some water sweetheart?" He asked. Yang raised her infinity scarf over her face so Gage wouldn't see her start blushing again. "Don't make me punch you again." She whispered.
Team RWBY and Gage were walking towards the book/novel aisle, "Okay Blake, surprise me." Gage said as he pointed down the aisle.
Blake sprang into action, and searched through the bestseller shelves. In less than a minute, Blake came back with a small leather book that had a small red string of nylon as a book mark. "Here, it's one of my favorites."
She handed Gage the book, and he looked at it's cover, which was titled,
Intertwined: A Collector's tale
"What's it about?" Gage asked. Blake smiled, "It's about a man, a 'collector', that has two souls, and both are fighting for the control of his mind." Gage put the book inside his cart. "Sounds pretty hardcore." He said.
Gage turned and immediately froze, "Oh my god." he whispered. He was looking at a huge, white book with a detailed stick figure on it. "Its been forever!" He screamed. Blake read the title of it. "Rooster Teeth Animated Adventures?" She asked. "It's called RTAA." Ruby muttered. Gage opened it and started to read it. "Isn't that a children's book?" Weiss asked. Gage chuckled as he turned the book's pages. "No, this is a comic, and trust me, this is NOT for kids!" He answered. "How many volumes are in it?!" Ruby asked as she got behind Gage. "Eighteen! And I've only read six of them!" He answered. Yang lowered the book, "come on, you two can read it when we get home!" Ruby groaned while Gage closed the book.
Ruby walked to the rest of her team, but then she looked back at Gage, and noticed something. "Hey Gage, what are those red marks on your back?" Yang looked at his back, and saw there were three, red diagonal claw marks that were partially blocked by the tank top Gage was wearing. He started to talk, but it looked like he was distracted.
"I was out there for a year. You can't expect me to come out unscathed."
All of team RWBY stopped. Ruby, Weiss, and Blake were about to bombard Gage with questions, but since his back was turned, Yang jumped in front of her team and mouthed, "DON'T ASK! DON'T FUCKING ASK!" Which stopped them. "What is with him?" Yang thought.
Gage couldn't think straight. He was focused on the scene in front of him. there was a family of three, and the parents were trying to buy their son a reading book. "Mom! I hate books!" The child whined. The mother took a book from one of the shelves. "I hate them too, but you need to learn to read." The child groaned as his father took his hand. "Come on, we'll get you some ice cream." He said.
Gage smiled, "Heh, I know how you feel kid..." he thought about how his life use to be like that, and how he wished it could have stayed that way...
"Gage. Gage!" Weiss yelled. He snapped out of it and turned around. "What? What? What is it?" Gage asked. Yang spoke up, "Are you okay? You seem a little... out of it." Gage rubbed his eyes, "I'm fine, I just... I didn't get a lot sleep last night..."
"Uh, Is there anything else you need to get?" Ruby asked awkwardly. "Yeah, I... need to get some medicine." he answered.
The group walked towards the pharmacy, but Weiss made Yang stay in the back so she could question her. "You knew?! Why didn't you tell us?!" The heiress whispered. Yang gritted her teeth, "He asked me to NOT tell anyone!" Weiss continued, "Do you even know why?!" Blake turned around, "Weiss, stop. He's right in front of us remember?! You can interrogate Yang when we get home." She whispered.
Gage turned and walked into the pharmaceutical aisle, and scanned the shelves, until he found what he was looking for. "This is my last resort. If these don't work, I don't know what will." He thought. Gage grabbed a box of sleeping pills, and quickly turned, but Ruby was right in front of him."What are those?"she asked. "Oh just... allergy pills." Gage quickly tossed the pill box over Ruby and into his cart. "Okay, im done. Lets go." Gage grabbed, and started to push his cart to the checkout aisle.
When they arrived, Gage let team RWBY go first into the checkout aisle, since they had more items.
Yang passed the groceries down while the female cashier scanned them. "That will be... 70 lien." She said. "Weiss, im out. Do you have enough?" Yang asked. "Hold on..." Weiss rummaged through her purse, and found her money, but she didn't have enough. "No, not enough."
"What?! I thought you were rich Weiss!" Ruby yelled. "Well I don't keep it all on me!" Weiss replied. Gage pulled a silver card out of his pocket and held it in front of her.
"I'll pay for it... if I can add a few of my things" He said. Weiss started to speak, "You don't need to..." Gage stopped her. "I owe you guys a lot more than this. Besides, Ozpin needs to check my receipt and I don't think beer and comics will make me look responsible."
He handed the card to the cashier, and put his beer, dartboard, and bucket with Team RWBY's items. "How do you even have any money?" Weiss asked. "I had a job back in Atlas, and my dad would always pressure me to save my money, so I did." Yang interrupted him, "Wait wait wait! You had a job?! In Atlas?!" She asked. Gage nodded. "What'd you do?" Ruby asked. Gage scratched the back of his head, "I uhh... worked at the CCT."
"I thought the A.I. ran that place..." Weiss said. Gage shrugged, "Someone's got to fix their computers." He replied. Ruby spoke from behind them, "A.I... What's the A-" Gage, Blake, and Weiss quickly answered, "Artificial Intelligence."
The cashier handed Gage his card, but Yang saw that it had an old photo of him on it, "Ooh!" so she quickly swiped it from him.
"Hey!" Gage yelled. Yang looked at the photo. Gage had the same hair style, but he was wearing glasses, and his face wasn't as scruffy as it was now, instead he had a small,light stubble on his chin. "Heh, you actually look... sophisticated." she said. Weiss laughed, "Yeah, what happened to that?"
"Is there anything else you would like to purchase sir?" The cashier asked. "Yes, one moment." Gage answered. He took his card back from Yang, passed down the rest of his items, and handed the cashier a coupon.
Gage passed down a pack of razors, and a can of shaving cream. Yang cupped Gage's chin, "Aw you're going to shave it?" She asked. "I thought you said I looked sophisticated without it..." he said while smiling. Yang smiled and patted his cheek, "Yeah, but... I think you look better with it." Gage lowered her hand, and grabbed his shopping bags. He walked next to Ruby and whispered, "told you they love it."
"Here are your receipts." The cashier handed a receipt to Gage and team RWBY. Gage then turned back to his friends as he started to walk towards the store exit. "You guys heading back to beacon? Because, the next airship leaves in twenty minutes."
"We'll be right behind you!" Ruby yelled.
Gage was walking down the airstation sidewalk while team RWBY was following him. He gazed at all the buildings that surrounded him, as they were blocking his view of the sun. "This place has changed alot." Its been five years since Gage left Vale, so Its been five years since his 'reality check'.
Gage heard two men yell from behind him, "HEY! STOP HIM! HE'S WITH THE WHITE FANG!" Gage turned around, and saw a man push through his friends. "Gage! Look out!" Yang yelled.
Gage dropped his bags and charged towards the man. The man held a red, curved sword, and brought the blade above his head so he could strike Gage, but Gage acted quickly and grabbed the sword's handle. He then headbutted the thug, and struck his face with the butt of the sword, which knocked him on the ground. "You're not going anywhere, motherfucker." Gage said.
Gage held the blade in his hands, and had it pointed at the man's neck. Gage could end the criminal's life right here, and he was tempted to, but then he looked at his friends and thought, "What would they think of me? A murderer, or a monster? Probably both." He then looked at Yang and remembered what she said to him that night, back at mount Glenn, "You know… i don't care what you think about yourself…. you're not some 'Gaged' Animal..." Gage lightly chuckled, and lowered the sword.
The two men grabbed, and apprehended the criminal. "We don't get payed enough for this!" One of the men said. Gage looked at him and saw that he was wearing a police badge. Gage tossed the sword on the ground, "You two shouldn't be getting paid at all if you're letting others do your job for you!" He looked at team RWBY and pointed to an airship as it began to land. "Come on, airship's here."
Gage stayed silent for the whole trip home, but Ruby started to talk to him as they walked back into Beacon's campus. "You're pretty good at fighting..." Gage tightened his bandana, "My mom trained me to be ready for anything, and any type of situation. Whether it's against Grim, or someone who wants to hurt me. And it's helped. a lot."
"Have you ever had to fight, to protect yourself?" Blake asked. "When i went to Sanctum..." Gage choked up a little bit on the inside. "I was a smart kid, but i never really talked much... so I never had a lot of friends around... and some people thought I was different because of that." He heavily sighed, and his breath was shaking, "So yeah, I had to fight. Just to get by. But sometimes... heh, sometimes I helped others, who couldn't help themselves."
Gage started to physically choke up now. "God damn it. *sniffle* Get yourself together man. *sniffle* You're a mess." He felt Ruby hug him from behind, "it's okay, We've all been there before. Besides, things are different now. You have us, and so many other people that you haven't even met yet." Yang put her hand on his shoulder, "Yeah! Hey, listen, we were about to meet some of our friends in the lunchroom, want to come with us?" She asked. Gage caught his breath and nodded, "Okay." Weiss spoke from behind them, "But get dressed first!"
Yang, Weiss, and Blake were inside the lunchroom, and they were waiting for Gage and Ruby. "So Weiss, has your opinion about Gage changed?" Blake asked. Weiss sighed, "After what i've learned today... Yes." Yang laughed, "Thats a first."
Ruby dashed through the lunchroom, and sat down next to Blake. Gage walked into room, and he was wearing his regular outfit, "Christ, Ruby, how did you not spill it?" Ruby and Gage were both holding mugs. "Whatcha drinking?" Yang asked. Gage sat down next to Yang, "Hot cocoa! Gage made me some!" Ruby yelled. "Yup, Helps me relax, and stay sober!" Gage said as he took a sip from his mug.
Then, a blue haired student sat down in front of Weiss. "Hey snowangel." He said. Weiss blushed, and he turned to Gage, "Who are you?" He asked. Yang quickly answered, "He's that guy we found out by Glenn." The student saw that Gage was wearing a hood, "Oh, so you're that shady kid everyone's been talking about!" Gage smiled, "Damn, that traveled fast."
"Eh, don't worry about it, once you show them what you're made of, the names will stop." The student looked at Gage's shotgun, "Oh yeah, and cool shotgun by the way." Gage looked at the student's weapon that was on his back, and saw that it was using an energy canister as a magazine, and a power supply, "Thanks, nice... lazer gun."
"Actually, its an high impact, chargeable, fusion rifle-" Then, a blonde haired student slid across the bench and lightly pushed the other student. "Jeez dude, don't bore him to death!" He shouted. He tºhen turned to Gage, "So you're the one who wiped that shit stain on Cardin's shoe!"
Gage awkwardly laughed and tried to look away from Yang, "Heh heh Yup thats me..." The blonde student laughed, "Ha! Way to send a message!" he pointed to himself, and the blue haired student, "Heh. Im Sun, and this is Neptune. Nice to meet you." Sun offered Gage a fist bump, so he accepted it. "Thanks, my name's Gage."
"Sorry if my nerdy friend was putting you to sleep." Neptune glared at Sun, "Intellectual!" He yelled.
Gage drank from his mug as a red haired girl sat down in front of him. "Why Hello! You must new!" She held out her her hand, so Gage shook it, but as he started to let go, he looked into her eyes. "Red hair, and green eyes... is she... oh my god." Gage thought he recognized her, but he needed to be sure.
"Wait a second, are you... Pyrrha Nikos?"
"Why yes, yes I am. Who are you?" She asked. Gage pulled his hood down, "Uh, you probably don't remember me, but we use to go to Sanctum together..." Pyrrha thought for a moment, "hmm..."
"Oh! Here, remember this?" Gage pointed at his bandana and tugged on it. Pyrrha's eyes lit up with happiness, "WAIT! GAGE?!"
Gage put down his mug and opened up his arms, "In the flesh!" He yelled.
Pyrrha leaned across the table and hugged him, "Oh my gosh! It's been forever!" Gage laughed, "I know!"
"Wait! You two know each other?!" Team RWBY yelled. "Hell yeah!" Gage replied. Pyrrha broke the hug and looked at her old friend, "You've grown so much!" She yelled. Gage laughed again, "Well, you haven't changed a bit!"
"So you're the one they found outside Vale?" Pyrrha asked. "Yeah... ill tell you about that later." Gage smiled and sat down, "So Pyrrha, what's your teams name? You are the leader right?" He asked.
Pyrrha smiled, "No. Actually-" then, two boys, and a girl sat down next to her, but the closest boy was a blonde student with white armor, "Actually, that would be me, Jaune Arc." He said. Gage laughed at his entrance, "Well 'Jaune', why don't you introduce me to the rest of your team?" Jaune pointed to the other boy, who had long black hair with a small pink bang next to his left eye. "Oh, uh, Thats Ren." Ren raised his hand in response. Jaune then he pointed to the girl, who had orange short hair, and she had the same eye color as Gage, turquoise. What Gage didn't know was that she was staring at him since the moment she sat down. "And thats N-" she then jumped up and finished Jaune's sentence.
"NORA!"
She leaned across the table and stared at Gage closely, "You're that new mysterious guy! Well, some people called you shady, but I don't know what that means, so I call you mysterious because...well, you look mysterious. AND I LIKE IT!"
Gage backed up a little bit, "Heh, Thanks. Um, quick question, how much coffee have you had today?" He asked. Ren quickly answered, "She doesn't like coffee, thats just how she is."
Nora looked at Gage's mug, "Is that what you're drinking?" She asked. Gage started to hand Nora the drink, "Try it and find out." He said. "Okay" she replied.
Everyone immediately jumped up from the table and yelled, "NOOO!"
Weiss knocked the mug out of Gage's hand, and pointed at Nora, "NO! NO TREATS FOR YOU NORA!"
Nora and Gage both groaned, "Aww what the fuck! I just made that..." he said. Gage grabbed his mug, and tried to clean up the mess, "You're lucky my mug didn't break..."
Gage got up and started to walk away, "I guess ill go make some more..." Then Pyrrha got up, "Gage, meet us in the arena! I want to see what you can do!" Gage gave a thumbs up in response, so everyone got up and started to exit the room.
They were now outside, but Yang started to walk towards the Vale dorms. "Yang! You coming?" Ruby asked. Yang stretched her arms and yawned, "No, im gonna go get some sleep before Weiss can 'interrogate' me." Ruby waved at Yang, "Okay! well, goodnight!"
Yang waved back and continued to walk away.
Yang entered their team's dorm, and immediately, Zwei started to bark."I'll get your food Zwei, just give me a second!"
Yang opened her desk drawer and pulled out a can of dog food and a can opener. "Here boy" She opened the can and handed the dog his food.
Yang then walked next to her bed and started to change into her pajamas, "Now Zwei, you're going to have to distract Weiss so I can sleep, Okay?" Zwei looked up from his food at nodded at Yang. "Good boy!" She then climbed onto her top bunk, and slowly started to fall asleep.
Hours passed. It was now after midnight. Yang still remained asleep, until...
Yang's eyes suddenly re-opened as she heard thunder roll through the clouds that lied above her roof. "Ugh." She looked across their room and saw that, surprisingly, Ruby was still asleep in her bed. Yang looked down and saw that Weiss was asleep, and that Zwei was on her bed. She could hear snoring from under her bed so she knew Blake was asleep."Why me?" Yang thought.
She then felt the urge to go to the bathroom, so she quietly hopped down from her bed and walked towards it.
When Yang was finished, she came out, and was about to go back to sleep, but then she felt a cold gust of wind brush against her body. She looked at their dorm's window and saw that it was open. Yang quietly groaned and walked towards it.
As she got closer, Yang began to hear rain falling outside.
She now stood in front of the window, and was about to close it, until she looked at the tree that was right outside their window.
There was someone sitting on the tree's branch. They had their back against the tree's trunk and their arms were crossed. Yang saw that the person was wearing a hood, so she knew who it was.
Yang: "Gage?"
He turned and faced her.
Gage: "Okay, before you say anything, I just want to clarify that my dorm room's window is at the bottom of this tree."
Yang: "Okay... Uh, What are you doing?"
Gage: "Couldn't sleep... I thought this would help."
Yang: "No, I mean... why are you sitting in the tree... it's cold... and raining..."
Gage: "Back when I was... out there... I never stayed in the city... I was always in the forest, and when I couldn't sleep, i'd look for the biggest tree I could find, and climb it. When I reached the top, i'd sit down, look up at the moon, and just... think."
Yang: "About what?"
Gage: "What I could be doing... what the White Fang are doing... what my parents would be doing..."
Yang: "...Where are your parents anyway? From what you've told me, they must care a lot about you... so wouldn't they be worried sick about you?"
Gage: "...They're not with us anymore..."
Gage pulled his hood down and moved his legs so that his knees were against his chest and he turned away from her.
Yang: "O-oh my god! Im so sorry! I-I didn't-"
Gage: "Its okay Yang. You didn't know. It had to come out anyway... you can always try to hide things like that, but in the end... you just can't. You never can..."
Yang saw Gage's body tighten.
Yang: "Do...*sniffle* do you want to talk about it?"
Gage: "No. If I do right now, then i'm never going to fall asleep."
Gage saw that Yang's eyes were watering
Gage: "You should probably go to sleep. You have classes tomorrow remember..."
Yang: "Okay..."
Yang reached for the window's doors, and was about to close them, but she stopped herself.
Yang: "Gage, I just want to let you know that I...I care about you. Okay? So... if you ever need a friend... i'm never far behind."
Gage smiled and nodded in response.
Yang: Okay... *sniffle* goodnight Gage.
Gage: Goodnight Yang.
Yang smiled and closed the window.
Gage turned and looked at the shattered moon as rain drops fell around him.
Gage: I know you're not behind me Yang. You're standing right here. Right next to me.