Chapter Fourteen
The girl that stared back at Lune from the mirror's reflection was definitely not a stranger.
Yet at the same time, she was. She was tall whereas Lune was short, dark-haired when Lune's was moon-white, fair-skinned when she was pale, and her cheery brown eyes were a stark contrast against Lune's green ones.
It was her past self.
Dreaming. Of course.
The same kind of dream, in the same night, every year. Always related to anything that was a lifetime ago. It wouldn't have stood out from the rest of her dreams if it hadn't been so vivid, like she was reliving a memory in the flesh.
Lune stepped back from the mirror and turned around to take in what used to be a familiar sight: a room—Amelie's room.
The specifics would be entirely lost to her once she woke up, but she knew this room was hers the moment she saw the anime posters stuck on the low ceiling, the eternally messy bed, and the bean bag chair that was in a different spot in every other day in the week. Then there were her collection of plushies displayed in pride atop the cabinet beside the bed, the window seat at the far side of the room, and the desktop computer she'd managed to assemble after numerous consultations from all sorts of guides in the internet.
"You miss all these, don't you?"
Lune turned again to find herself face-to-face with her grinning past self. She raised an eyebrow. Yep. Definitely a dream. This is getting too bizarre.
"I—"
"Don't answer. I can see it in your face, clear as crystal, bright as day," she said, her tone of voice almost musical in tone. She winked, took a step back, clasped her hands behind her, and turned away. "So, word of advice? Move on already. Stop thinking of the what-ifs about that day and just enjoy your new life, dammit. You've got a lot of years ahead of you. Angst makes you so look so unflattering."
"I'm—"
"Oh, sure, your new life isn't exactly all it's cracked up to be, considering the circumstances, but it's as good as it gets," she continued. She shrugged. "Honestly, it's like a fanfic at times, y'know? Some ups, some downs, a touch of secrecy, a dash of oh-hey-I-know-this-will-happen, and some other things that are too good to be true. But you've gotten this far without getting mauled badly, so there's that."
"…Are you even going to let me finish my sentences?"
She looked aside at Lune and grinned. "I just did. Anyway, where was I? Oh. Right. You'll do fine without me holding you back. So just… let it go, okay? Just like that song in that Disney movie." She moved towards the door. "And don't follow me."
Lune blinked. "What?" Then her eyes widened. "Wait. No. I've got some questions, you weirdo. Don't just walk away like that!"
The faunus stepped forward to reach for her past self, but her hands only grasped at air as the girl faded from view.
And then she woke up inside her dorm room.
Darkness, save for the rays moonlight shining through the window's blinds. Night time. Early morning, past twelve? Probably.
The first thing Lune did was grasp for her scroll underneath her pillow to check the date. She pulled the gadget into view, powered it up, winced from the sudden brightness, and after a few seconds of getting her eyes adjusted, she performed a few touch commands and accessed the built-in calendar. She stared at the screen.
"…Oh." Her voice was a low whisper.
Today was her birthday.
Early afternoon. Combat class. And a certain rabbit faunus was beating the snot out of her opponent.
Lune had to admit, there was a certain satisfaction to be had with performing maneuvers in near-perfection. A certain pleasure in seeing her moves connect as she heard the sounds of flesh hitting flesh, and a certain high in finally feeling like she could make her opponent give a damn about her. If it wouldn't be detrimental to her sparring session, she would have given herself a moment to pump a fist and whoop in joy.
For the first time in a long while, she was actually enjoying this.
Amazing, really, when things felt like they finally clicked and here she was, steadily going higher and higher up the figurative mountain with nothing to knock her back down.
Lune saw the kick coming before her opponent could even raise his leg. She sidestepped accordingly and felt a burst of wind whip against her. Knowing this was as good an opportunity as any to punish the guy, she made a quick dash forward, spun around, and delivered her own kick that was strong enough to nearly knock the bastard into his knees.
But she wasn't done yet. She quickly followed up with an assortment of punches and kicks that, in the background, had Yang whistling, impressed.
Her opponent never got the chance to react—she didn't give him any. She was never going to doubt her mother again; those hellish dance sessions the woman had given her was finally paying off in spades. She moved with grace and precision, and… wow, getting into the rhythm of things did help her in combat.
Lune then decided that it was time to draw this session to a close. After letting her opponent get close by pretending to miss a beat, so to say, making him think his chance finally came, she then activated her semblance and, while keeping up an appearance of struggling against his flurry of punches, she slowly, subtly, made all the water on the floor slide towards her opponent until they surrounded him.
Hydrokinesis didn't really require moving her hands or any of her body. They helped make the water flow better, but she could just as easily move the liquid with her mind.
Or in this case, her aura. It required some skill in multitasking, sure, but hey, this was why she was constantly training with her semblance. It wasn't too difficult to imagine water as another part of her body now. Darn thing was like an additional arm. Or a leg.
Anyway, time for the cherry on top. She caught her opponent's fist and didn't let go when he tried to tug it back.
He scowled at her.
She winked.
And then she put her all into making her collected water rush at him like hungry wolves.
The fake geyser she made with her semblance wasn't going to win her any awards anytime soon. There weren't enough water, and it was mentally straining on her part to just put in enough aura to somehow increase the pressure… wherein the specifics would forever be lost to her because she was definitely no science geek.
But man, did it feel good to finally put into actual application something she'd been practicing during those semblance drills her mom made her do. The water basically sent her opponent flying at juuuust the right height. Not too high for her to reach, not to low for the guy to break out of his trap. Lune, putting a lot of power into her legs, then leapt up into the air.
The kick she delivered after flipping forward and swinging a leg down sent her opponent crashing down into the ground. Painfully.
(And to think, she used to be at the opposite end of a finisher like this.)
Some of the watching students winced. On the other hand, the ones who were faunus held back smirks. The guy that Lune had just beat, you see, wasn't exactly popular with that particular crowd. There wasn't really much need to explain why beyond the words "faunus" and "bully."
"And that's a wrap," Qrow said, stepping forward from the wall he'd been previously leaning on with folded arms.
Lune stood straight, stuffed her hands into her hoodie's pockets, and moved back. And, of course, yawned. Qrow noticed, held back a smirk, and nodded at her and at her opponent, who groaned as he pulled himself up. As predicted, he glared at her as if she'd committed crimes against humanity.
She ignored him entirely.
"So… A for awesome or F for freakin' awesome?" she asked her teacher.
"I'd say B for better than before, but no hard feelings—I'm just a really harsh critic," Qrow replied with a wry smile that Lune then returned.
"Good enough for me."
To be fair, it was a fight that didn't finish in the first few minutes, which was the usual amount of time her other classmates spent sparring. She might have taken her sweet time getting a good feel of the combat's flow, and then there was the way she was going over some tricks before she finally found her momentum. But it was a huge enough improvement over the ones she used to have, so no complaints there.
She then returned to the crowd, an enthusiastic Yang greeting her with a hard slap on the shoulder and a smiling Vanilla with a quiet, "You did really well back there." All three returned their focus on Qrow as the man went on with his usual critique of the spar. Lune tried not to beam too much at the compliment sent her way after being told she made smart use of her semblance this time.
Yep. This time. Hey, that might have implied she still had the occasional screw-ups… which was true to an extent… but at least she was making progress. She took it like the boss she was and nodded at her teacher before he proceeded with the amusing act of chewing her practice partner out.
Something something don't lower your guard, be smarter in battle, etcetera, etcetera. It was something Lune had heard often enough that she could tune it out and still recall it with enough accuracy.
Then the bell rang.
"…And that's it. You guys know the drill by now. I'll see you all tomorrow," Qrow finished.
On cue, the students all filed out of the training room with the usual chatter filling the air. When Lune listened for a moment, she found that they were mostly talking about what they plan to do for the rest of the day.
She wasn't surprised; they only had one combat class for the entire day. All this free time was allotted for everyone in her year to fix up all the kinks of their weapons or do some private practice with them. Getting used to wielding a personalized weapon, basically. The next academic year was when things get a lot more interesting.
And harder.
Still. To them, it was just a typical day with typical things needed to be done.
But for Lune…
The moment she was out of the classroom and on her way back to her dorm room, she exhaled. She had to admit, that entire session was a good diversion. But now that it was all coming back to her… She kinda-sorta wanted to cling to that happy feeling she had earlier and not let go. Ever. She'd use super glue if she had to.
Birthdays. Argh.
She should be celebrating with wine, with a party—anything. Not thinking of the past. She should be thinking about whatever kind of celebration her friends had cooked up for later—and the gifts they were working so hard to keep her from finding out. But she kinda… didn't. But, alas, the thoughts of what-could-have-beens stomped on that feeling like you would a pesky cockroach.
Just let it go, okay?
Easier said than done. She wondered when she'll stop thinking of what her family and friends were doing now. Did they still talk about her? Had they just… moved on with life? They were questions she always asked herself every year.
She shouldn't. She'll never find the answers anyway.
Maybe… maybe she was just struck hard by mood swings this time and she couldn't help but feel bittersweet. They were part and parcel of puberty, after all. Which meant her hormones were going crazy with a capital C and—
"So, birthday girl," Yang interrupted her thoughts, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. Lune nearly bent forward from the sudden weight. When she looked at her with a question in her eyes, the blonde was grinning. "Once Ruby's done with her classes, we'll be going on ahead to your house to prepare for later. Look forward to it. It will be a total blast."
"I trust it won't be something that'll scare a few years off my life?"
"Oh, ye of little faith," Yang said, bending her arm to give her friend a slight, friendly squeeze. "I promise that nothing's going to explode in your face. Huntress's honor. Well, huntress-in-training, if we gotta be specific."
"You're really sure? Because I distinctly remember something that ended with a literal bang."
"That last time was a total accident and you know that."
"…Fine, fine. I trust you."
Yang grinned a toothy one. Leaving it at that, Lune took notice of her other friend walking quietly beside her. The teenager looked strangely wistful as she stared ahead.
"And you, Vani? I'm going to guess Yang and Ruby hogged all the work and told you to just come with me later or something."
Vanilla didn't respond.
"…Vanilla?" Lune tapped her on the shoulder.
The teenager blinked. Her mouth opened slightly and her cheeks were reddened as she nearly whirled towards Lune, who then withdrew her hand. "Um. Sorry about that. What were you saying?"
"I'm going to dance under the moonlight naked," Lune said with a straight face. Yang snorted and broke into laughter and Vanilla… well, she looked more like she was at a loss for words instead of blushing outright. Lune shook her head. "Kidding, obviously. Anyway, forget I asked. You okay there? You're not usually absent-minded."
The older girl smiled. But to Lune, it was painfully obvious that it was a strained one. "Just… thinking of something. I'm sorry. But about the party…"
"Yeah?"
"Hey, I didn't say anything about the whole thing being a party yet," Yang said in a light tone. Lune elbowed her, which Yang returned with more enthusiasm. "Anyway, go on."
"Thank you. I'll probably… arrive later than expected. I have something to do with my older sister today. That's all," Vanilla said.
"Oh." Lune nodded, despite curiosity tugging at her deep inside her mind. "Well, I'll save you a slice of cake—"
"I didn't say anything about cake, either!"
"—so you get to enjoy something today, at least," Lune finished. And elbowed Yang again. The blonde stuck her tongue out. "Me, on the other hand… Well, I've got some things to do for the meantime while Yang here sets up what might be the grandest disaster of all time."
"Like?" Yang asked. "Also, I'm totally ignoring that last part."
"Refining my weapons, napping, whichever of the two reigns supreme," Lune answered. Something else entirely, more like. She shrugged like it was no big deal. "It's pretty boring stuff, to be honest. But it's gotta be done."
"Well, whatever keeps you distracted, I'd say," Yang said. "Rubes and I, we need to work our magic without interruption. It's an especially delicate process."
"Suuuuure it is."
And before they knew it, they were finally at the dormitory area. They entered through the sliding doors of the building and passed by the common room. The place was, as expected, filled with students of different ages doing homework, watching a movie, or some other things Lune didn't bother finding out. The three of them headed right into their respective rooms, with Yang promising Lune great, great things before parting ways.
"I'm serious about the explosions!" Lune told Yang before the blonde was completely out of earshot. In response and without looking back, Yang waved a hand as if to say, "I got this."
Now left to just the two of them, Vanilla and Lune wordlessly entered their dorm room and deposited their bags on the floor. Lune plopped down on her bed and savored the comfort it gave her, and Vanilla… was looking absent-minded again. Her eyes looked glazed, staring straight into the distance.
"You know you can tell me anything, right?" Lune broke the silence. "If it's personal, too personal, I understand. But just say so, at least."
Vanilla stared at Lune. "…Sorry. I didn't want to dampen Yang's mood earlier. It's just that, well, today is—um. The death anniversary of my parents. And… sisters—I had some older ones before… the accident. Which, um, explains why the age gap between me and Idrisa is that big." She explained. "Anyway, we're going to visit them in their graves today."
Lune knew she didn't have any parents, going by what Vanilla told her on the day they first met. But from the way she'd worded it, Lune had thought her parents basically ran off and left Headmistress Blackthorn and Vanilla behind. Abandoned, basically. So to learn that they were dead as dead could be… And that Vani had also lost sisters…
Yup, that was definitely regret she was feeling right there, gnawing at her from the inside. From the sounds of it, Vanilla had it worse than her.
The whole thing was probably something her friend hadn't completely gotten over yet. Otherwise, the only feeling that should have been there was that of dull pain. Dull enough to ignore, to just keep on facing the day without breaking composure.
Losing a family. She couldn't even imagine how hard that was for Vanilla.
"I… see." She didn't really know what to say in a situation like this other than, "Sorry to hear that. And… thanks, you know, for actually considering me a good enough friend to confide in."
"It's fine. And you are a good friend." Vanilla tried for a smile, ended up with a depressing one, and shook her head. "You know, it's been years since it happened. It's, ah, actually why I entered Signal so late. I wasn't in any condition to learn combat better. But thanks to my sister… I'm where I am now."
That actually answered some questions Lune didn't think too much about, having gone on with the flow.
"And I'm glad you're here," Lune said. "Headmistress Blackthorn. She might be a bit of a hardass at times—with a very, very loud voice—but she's definitely a good person. I mean, running a combat academy's already one hell of a job for someone like her who'd basically gone through the worst thing she could ever have in her entire life. To still be able to care for a sister? That's some sacrifice she's making there."
Vanilla nodded. "Yes. She's always been there for me, even when I know she's more torn up about our family than I ever will be. She's so strong to keep going just like that." She finally managed a small smile. "I really owe a lot to her. I should make sure she knows that, huh?"
"You should."
And then there was a knock on the door.
Lune and Vanilla first glanced at the front of their room before exchanging looks. Another knock. The faunus shrugged, slipped off her bed, and went to answer the door. When she opened it, a smirking Idrisa Blackthorn was lowering a hand.
Well, speak of the devil.
"Big sister?" Vanilla asked from behind, surprised. "I thought we're supposed to leave later?"
Lune was quick to move aside as the headmistress entered with the usual swagger the woman carried with her. Idrisa Blackthorn was a woman of confidence. And considering that she's the headmistress, Lune couldn't exactly block her path if she had to.
"Well, it can't be helped if some things suddenly came up and I couldn't avoid it. You know how plans are; God forbid they don't end up ruined," Idrisa said. She shrugged. "So if you're ready to leave, come on."
Vanilla was standing on her own two feet before she could even say, "Right. I'm coming." She then walked over to her sister who, with affection clear in her eyes and her smile, patted her on the shoulder. Vanilla turned to Lune. "I'll be going now. Um, you'll be fine by yourself, right?"
"Don't worry, if anyone talks crap about either you or me, I'll kick their butts," Lune said.
Idrisa chuckled. "So long as you don't overdo it. Much as I do appreciate someone defending my little sister's honor, violence outside your combat classes is still not allowed."
"Of course."
"…If you get caught, anyway." Idrisa winked. "In any case, we ought to get going."
"Yes, I suppose we should." Vanilla had already moved towards the doorway.
Lune made a shooing gesture with her hand. "Don't let me keep you."
"Wouldn't dream of it, honey."
The two then started walking out of the room, Vanilla leaving first and her older sister following soon after. But before Idrisa could shut the door, she paused. There was a strange, indecipherable expression on her face as she turned back to Lune.
"Um." Lune blinked and sat straight. There was something penetrating about the woman's stare just then. "Something wrong?"
But in the blink of an eye, Idrisa was back to looking more like her usual self. She shook her head and faced the doorway once more.
"Nah," the woman answered. "It's nothing. You go on and enjoy your day, kid. Happy birthday, by the way. I hope it's a good one."
"Right. Thanks."
And then she left.
The door finally closed, the two sisters leaving silence in their wake. Lune could only stare at the front of the room as the seconds ticked by.
What was that all about?
River Beryl was expecting to see a vibrant young girl and her energetic little sister at her doorstep anytime soon. What she didn't expect, however, was the news she was watching on the living room television as she remained curled up on the sofa, waiting for the girls to arrive and help prepare for the small party.
"Bronwen Snow, a seventeen-year-old girl reported missing for the past five days, has finally been located on the Vale docks. But unfortunately, it seems that she is yet another victim of the recent string of killings happening within the city. While initially these murders have been reported to be isolated incidents, the police has discovered that each victim is female, human so far, and possessing a head of white hair. The motive behind these heinous acts have yet to be identified. But while the suspect is currently at large, rest assured that the Vale Police Department are working around the clock to bring this killer to justice—"
River shut off the television before she could hear any more, her heart beating hard against her chest. She swallowed, took several calming breaths, and stood up, pacing around the living room as she let that new information sink in.
Shit, she thought. Shit.
It couldn't have been all a coincidence.
Someone was gunning for her.
All those dead girls… just because she decided to run from a certain responsibility instead of facing it head on. River couldn't fight off the regrets that threatened to overwhelm her. She should have been roaming the kingdoms. She should have done so the moment Lune was old enough to understand. Now, someone knows her secret.
Now, someone knew that secret was in Vale.
Whoever they were, they didn't know enough just yet. That their target was a faunus, not a human, that they didn't know she was in an island close to Vale, not on the city itself. Otherwise she'd be—no, best not think about that. She'd cut off communications from the others who were like her, having wanted to be rid of anything that reminded her of that because she'd never, ever, wanted this in the first place (this bullshit wasn't even supposed to be hers to manage).
But she supposed that nobody could hide forever, huh?
What rotten luck. Of course she'd be punished for running. For trying to put things off as far as possible. Of course karma would slap her with vengeance.
River stopped pacing and couldn't stop herself from stomping in frustration.
She bowed her head in deep thought. The question now was… was it too late to fix things?
And if it wasn't… how could she even do so? Ask help from the man she'd been avoiding for years? The very person—and his dream team—who came to her when enough was enough and was yet kind enough to give her leeway after her rude reception? She didn't even know what clues to go by because she was dealing with a total unknown. Didn't know this person's identity, nothing.
And Lune, her darling little girl, wasn't going to be safe at this rate—
"Congratulations, River, you're getting closer and closer to getting FUBAR'ed," she said to herself in a low mutter. "Ugh, this is all my fault. I'm so stupid. Stupid!"
There was suddenly a knock on the door.
River stood stock still, wondering whether she should open the door or not. Vert wasn't coming home until later this evening, so it was probably Yang and Ruby. On the other hand, what if she was about to be greeted by her end?
Wow, aren't you quite the paranoid one, she thought, shaking her head and deciding to open the door. She peered at the peephole… and found that it was the Rose-Xiao Long sisters. Paranoid indeed. Stop being all doom and gloom when you know you can deal with whatever threatened you, thanks to that supreme package you never asked for. She shoved down her apprehension, put on a convincing smile—thank goodness she'd learned how to act decently—and pulled the door open.
"Hi, River," Yang greeted with a jaunty wave.
Ruby grinned, her hands clasped behind her. "Heya!"
"Hey, kids," River said. Thank goodness her voice wasn't shaking. "Ready to create the best party in the history of mankind?"
The two girls voiced their enthusiastic agreements. With a (forced) chuckle, River opened the door wider to let the two in. The girls were very eager to get inside.
As she watched the two begin chattering about how they were going to start the preparations, she couldn't help but hope that she be given enough time to fix her own mess.
Lune decided that she was definitely not going to spend her alone time in a dorm room that felt claustrophobic without the usual presence of her roommate. Plus, the place was dull. So to rectify the situation, she wrote a note for Vanilla in case the girl returned early, patted her prototype weapons goodbye, promising them she'll work on getting the supposedly retractable, hidden rapier fitting right inside the thickest rib, and left the room.
Now, she thought as she emerged into the outside, her eyes immediately assaulted by the rays of the sun. Where to go?
She wasn't really looking to spend her time in the library building quite a ways to her right. It was a nice place to do research in because of the decent collection of books in both physical and soft copies, and it was quiet enough that the most noise occurring were whispers and the occasional shhh made by either the other Signal students or the strict, but sweet librarian on the front desk. On the other hand, accidentally stumbling deeper into the place could lead to the accidental discovery of teenagers practically eating at each other's faces… or worse, depending on their age and their boldness.
(Bathrooms were, apparently, so passé.)
The assembly area was usually off-limits unless there's an event in the academy like recognition days for those graduating or the occasional holiday event (dances, etcetera). The small stadium was also a prohibited place to go into, not until the upcoming tournament Lune couldn't focus on for obvious reasons, and the infirmary…
Why the hell would she want to be in an infirmary?
Thus, on a logical standpoint (maybe), her next best thing was to go beyond the walls of the academy. Not too far that a Grimm attack was likely, and not too near that she might as well have stayed in her room. A walk around the perimeter—that wasn't such a bad idea. So long as she made sure not to head into any depressing territory, figuratively speaking, that would attract the Grimm like flies.
Y'know, Lune thought as she slipped past the large gates of the combat academy. That leads to a pretty interesting thought. The four kingdoms of Remnant, doing their damnedest to keep their citizens happy and satisfied through any means necessary. How had life been during the Great War, then, with so many negative emotions filling the atmosphere as the bloodshed had gone on? Fear, sorrow, anger, and so many more—those were enough to start off a monster party with a bang. It was a miracle that the kingdoms involved weren't Grimm-infested ruins at this point in time.
She shook her head. Well, no sense in thinking too much about it right now. All she wanted to do at the moment was have a quiet moment to herself, reflect on those days long gone, see how far she'd come, and figure out what to do from there.
Too bad that was a challenge in and out of itself. Because on the day she'd died, she'd pretty much sealed her family's fate by no longer being the last person to keep them all together.
In a city whose name she no longer remembered, in a country she knew was somewhere in the west. Thirteen years ago.
She couldn't believe it when she'd heard it from her siblings first. And even after her parents had pretty much flat-out told her what they were planning to do, she still wondered if this day was just a dream.
"Amelie, dear, I know this is going to be hard to take in. But your father and I… we're not going to stay together anymore."
A divorce. It just didn't add up when her parents had never even fought each other once.
Every day, they'd greet each other with smiles, sometimes with the occasional kiss that had her smirking and her siblings making fake, disgusted noises in the background. They'd always agreed with each other, were quick to talk out any problems encountered, and if their Date Night Fridays were of any indication, they had the healthiest post-marriage relationship there ever was. Perfect enough to even make any other couple go green in envy.
So for them to break things off? Just like that? It was mind-boggling.
She couldn't accept it. She just couldn't, not when so many would have moved mountains just to have what they had. So she did the only thing she could after being told of the big news: nod, turn away, and leave for school without a single word.
There has to be something she could do to stop it. She didn't want her family to fall apart just because of that.
"Yo, Earth to Amy! Are you still listening or do I have to re-enact Operation H2O?"
Operation H2O, also known as her Savannah Lim's—her self-proclaimed bff-forever—infamous water sprinkling tactic used on friends whose heads were threatening to be lost in space. It wouldn't have been so bad if it wasn't ice-cold water she kept using, but alas.
Amelie—Amy, as her best friend had taken to calling her—blinked at the hand being waved in front of her face. She forgot for a moment that she was spending her lunch time in the cafeteria, on a table they've taken for themselves with a tray of food that was almost as equally forgotten. She was quick to munch on a cookie.
But then the words her best friend told her finally registered in her mind.
She grimaced after she swallowed down the chocolatey goodness. "Please don't."
"Then pay attention or, you know, face my watery wrath," Savannah said, grinning. That faded, though, the moment she noticed the frown on Amelie's face. "On second thought, let's forget about that for a moment. Something is clearly wrong here."
"Well, yeah. I wouldn't be Miss Doom and Gloom if that wasn't the case. So here's the thing…"
Amelie told her everything that had happened that morning. Somehow she even managed to start sharing what this meant for her siblings, who thought everything was going to be fine despite knowing what was up. She talked about her fears of the future, of having to choose who to stay with and wondering if things would be the same way ever again.
As soon as she finished, Savannah smacked a hand down on the table. That, in turn, caused many a student to look at their table with either confusion or annoyance, but the bespectacled, dark-haired and intense-looking girl who committed the act itself was too busy not caring.
"Then this calls for an emergency," she then said, with an air of seriousness and tone of voice that implied a plan was about to be hatched. "You and me, a trip to the mall later. Let's see if we can work something out, save a marriage from total disrepair."
Amelie's eyes widened slightly. "You have a plan?"
"Sure do, ma cherie." Savannah nodded. Her use of that French term made Amelie smile a bit, knowing that her friend was referring to her part-French background. But then Savannah's expression took a turn for the sheepish. "Well. Actually, not yet. But that's why you and I need to have this trip later. Hopefully with some milkshake to sweeten things up." Her eyes almost glazed over at the thought of the beverage Savannah loved. Almost. "So no more moping, you hear?"
Somehow just hearing her friend say everything was going to be okay was enough for her to face the day with a better mood. "Alright, alright. You have my word. Pinky swear."
And they did. Literally.
That was pretty much how they ended up in the only mall in town, several hours of boring classes—and a mildly gross Biology one—later. While the building had clearly seen better days due to the lack of consistent maintenance, the structure still stood solidly enough not to collapse the moment a couple of people stepped within.
It could use a new paint job, though. At least that, if not ensuring the public that the crack on one side of the wall was going to be repaired soon.
"I just don't get it," Amelia said as she and Savannah spent some time in their favorite go-to place for some snacks and, in the words of Savannah, "some comfort food."
"Well, honestly, I'd think that some things just aren't that obvious," her friend said. She took a sip from her milkshake. "Just think of how it happens at our school. You have those bad breakups, all stormy and earth-shattering, and you've got those couples who just part ways peacefully and promising each other they'll still be friends." She shrugged. "Could be that they just have some opposing views or something that really gets in the way of daily life that they just have to split. Or jobs. Some jobs demand too much—at least that's what my auntie says. You didn't exactly stick around to hear why they're filing for a divorce, didn't you?"
"What else was I supposed to do? Throw a tantrum?"
"It beats running off just like that, that's for sure. You really should stop doing that, by the way."
Amelie practically winced. "Sorry. You know how I am. I got spooked about what this all meant. Couldn't help but put it off until I've settled my thoughts, is all."
"You always were one to retreat and come back once you have a plan in mind," Savannah said, smirking. In reassurance, she patted Amelie's hand that was resting on the table. "But that's why you have me! So. Let's see what we can do about this…"
A good fraction of the afternoon had ended up being spent by Amelie's friend coming up with all sorts of ideas ranging from the super simple to the overly complicated. All the same, it ended with an Amelie that felt much better than she did that morning.
Maybe it had something to do with having someone watch her back when things go south. Or maybe it had something to do with knowing that things might not be as bleak as she'd thought since she wanted to believe that she could still salvage this whole thing by the end of the week or something. Either way, it made hope bloom inside her and had her thinking that she could do this.
Of course, she'll have to first find out the root of the problem. But from there, she could alter the plan accordingly. If things went just fine, there wouldn't be a divorce. Yes, there won't be a divorce or she'll die trying. Her family's stability was literally on the line here.
"You," Amelie said once her best friend finished with a proud smile, "are a saint. I could kiss you."
"Kiss away." Savannah gestured to her lips. Jokingly, of course. "I know I deserve it after a job well done."
"How arrogant," Amelie wryly said. She took a relieved sip from her own drink, a sharp contrast to the stressed ones she'd done before. It was, like, for every thing that made her nervous, she took a gulp.
"Please, honey, you wouldn't have it any other way." She winked. Then she stood up. "Well, now that we've had that out of the way, let's bolt. Wanna go window shopping on our way out? I also have a particularly delectable piece of boy toy I have to talk to you about." She grinned. "There's a dance coming soon, if you'll remember."
Amelie followed suit, right after she finished the contents of her drink. "You mean that cutie during Math? I'm surprised you're awake enough to notice anything as our ol' teach drones on and on and on about square roots."
"Trust me, I almost missed him." Then, pretending to be an escort during prom night, she held out an arm for Amelie to link hers with. "Now come on, compadre. We've got sights to see. And much chatting to do."
So they did.
For the first few minutes, things seemed to be going just fine. Savannah talked about a wide range of subjects, gesturing wildly as she did so, and Amelie was content to nod and listen as the two took a leisure walk towards the escalator at the other end of the mall.
And at the same time, she thought about how she was going to deal with later. She'll have 'the talk' with her parents, make adjustments to her next plan of attack, and if everything succeeded, she'll buy herself some merchandise of her current favorite animated show online as her way of celebrating a plan well executed. It was probably not the best way to spend her savings, but hell, she was getting those RWBY plush toys or hell would be raised.
Things were definitely turning up. Or at least, she thought they were and she was just being fatalistic or something equivalent earlier.
The day still shaped up to be a good one instead of a total flop, after all…
But then she was proven wrong.
They didn't notice the commotion at first. There was a strange ringing sound from those detectors placed at the store entrances, but since they usually meant false alarms, they hadn't given it much mind and continued at their leisurely pace.
After the shouts, though, that was when the two friends finally stopped to see what's wrong.
A store theft. A nondescript man wearing what appeared to be a large, black jacket was running from a security guard who was chasing him as well as radioing the other guards with the walkie-talkie in his other hand.
The thief was running and shoving people out of his way and—
"Move it, you idiots!"
He'd thrown his hands forward and shoved both Savannah and Amelie aside. He'd done so with so much force that Savannah was thrown aside, hitting another shopper and ending up crashing on the ground in a tangle of limbs. There were cries of indignation.
And Amelie?
She ended up bumping against the railing on her right—
"Oh my God. Amy!"
And went completely over it.
She never got a chance to grip onto anything for dear life. All she could do was hurtle down, down, down from the fourth floor, literally watching her own life flash before her eyes and her opportunity at preventing a disaster slip away from her fingertips. At a happy ending.
She wasn't going to end up being the person who managed to keep her family together.
She… was going to be the cause of their total disrepair.
I'm sorry I never got to fix things.
I'm so, so sorry—
A burst of white.
A shock of pain.
And then, nothing.
Lune shook her head from her reverie and let out yet another sigh. For a moment, she could almost believe herself to be back there, in that mall, feeling light as the air. But with a couple of blinks, she found herself surrounded by trees. Not stores of a different variety of names.
Well, obviously, she couldn't do anything about that whole thing now. And in hindsight, it definitely was pointless to worry about because this, right here, was her life now. A girl like her just couldn't help but think about things at times. That's all. And considering it was her birthday, well, that made her trips down memory lane feel somewhat necessary.
Right now, though, she thought she'd spent enough time alone. She should go back to her dorm room, wait for Yang and Ruby to come back and fetch her, maybe blindfold her or something, and celebrate a party with her new family.
And then go through another year sorting herself out and separating Amelie from Lune.
Lune nodded to herself. Absently, she traced a finger over one of her rabbit ears. Yeah, I definitely need to go back now.
So she turned around to retrace her steps…
Only to pause because there was someone blocking her way.
That person… it was the same one she'd bumped into back when she was in Vale during the last day White Fang was a nonviolent organization. Small world.
"Yes?" Lune asked.
On the outside, she looked nothing more like a bored girl who was looking forward to a nap somewhere safe. But on the inside, something about this encounter struck her as wrong. Very wrong.
The man—woman?—didn't say a word. All they did was step forward…
"She sends her regards."
And the last thing Lune saw was that person as something collided against the back of her head and sent her consciousness drifting away. She had a thought that the person had an accomplice to do the actual takedown, them being the distraction and the other being the action man or something, but by the time that sunk in, she was already long gone.
Lune later awoke to find herself tied from head to toe, with a blindfold covering her eyes and some thick ropes chafing against her skin.
Seriously? A kidnapping?
Talk about a curveball. She didn't even remember being on anyone's radar!
Obviously, she didn't know where she was. She didn't know how long she'd been out, either, but surely it couldn't have been that long. Lune tried struggling against her binds, only to find that whoever did this really meant business if they'd tied her up so tightly that dislocating a wrist just to get herself free might not have done much. She wouldn't really know; this wasn't covered in the curriculum for some reason unspecified.
So what now?
She could use her semblance, but feeling things out with her aura—a handy trick she'd learned from the best—didn't reveal anything remotely liquid. No rope-cutting water shenanigans here. And she wasn't sweating, either, thanks to the… air conditioning(?). That option was out, too.
Great. All she needed to be was a duck faunus or something to be a literal sitting duck—
Wait.
She could hear something.
"…good feeling about this one…"
"An easy job…"
She tried focusing on her rabbit ears until, finally, she could hear more than just snippets of whatever conversation was happening at the moment.
"Considering what's being aired on the Vale News Network right now, this better not be a flop. It'll be on your head if the cops hear about this one. I can get away scott-free, but you… yeah, you're screwed."
"Don't worry. I've got a strong feeling about this one, ma'am. She could be who we're looking for."
"We'll see. Show her to me."
"Right this way."
Footsteps, coming closer and closer.
There was the sound of a door opening, even more footsteps, and then, finally, she felt a pair of hands grab at the piece of cloth covering her eyes and untying the knot. Seconds later, the thing was finally off. Lune blinked at the sudden brightness. Her eyesight shifted from blurry to clear and…
At first, seeing a familiar face had her feeling nothing but relief, warm and light. For a moment she thought, yay, she was going to be saved, even though this wasn't doing her own dignity and pride any favors.
But then, the lack of action and a cold, cold stare had whatever happy feeling she had killed off brutally and efficiently.
Lune couldn't help the chill that went down her spine as she took in that spiky ponytail, that height, and the fur-lined coat.
"You got the wrong person, genius."
Her kidnapper was Idrisa Blackthorn.
A/N: Aaaaaaand that's a wrap, folks. Honestly, this chapter has been long due for an upload. Life got in the way, is all~ I hope this was a satisfactory one.
Also, please note that any announcements I might have about chapter updates are found on my profile. I don't really do Author's Notes as a separate chapter - it's a violation of the site's rules. So if you're wondering where the hell I am with Usagi, just go there.
To be honest, I don't really have much to say. Things are going according to what little I've outlined for the most part. Writing it all out is just the challenge, is all, and I'm thankful for th feedback.
Anyway, see you guys in the next chapter, whenever that is! Being in college makes for quite the busy life.