And, here we go. Chapter 11, Part I. This chapter isn't very long, mostly because of a few issues I had while writing it. Nothing with the story, mind you, but rather my computer. It decided to take a shit a few days ago; first it randomly Blue Screen of Death'd on us every hour, and then, after reformatting it, the power supply went poof (literally, it almost caught fire.) Thankfully, I backed my stuff up. Well, most of it, I had more than I could fit on the piece of crap flash drive, but I saved the Fanfictions.
Anyways, this chapter has pretty much no action at all. It's entirely character based. There's a bit of world development in this chapter, hopefully making it feel more alive than it has before.
So, here we go. Enjoy the chapter.
Day 21, Month 9, Year 75 of the Sixth Age
Ruby bounded around the cabin of the small transport with barely restrained excitement. The team arrived in the Vytal system an hour ago, and they were on their way to the surface, to the city of New Vale, capital of the entire Order.
RWBY was allotted a full week vacation upon their return. Hunter Command had yet to decide where they would go next, but it would likely be an Inner Colony that had the facilities to train Hunters. That left only a three options; Remnant, Atlas, or Menagerie.
Three guesses which one Weiss hoped they didn't get.
But that was at least a week and a half away, at the earliest. Right now, all that mattered, at least to the two sisters, was one thing: They were home.
The small transport craft made the twenty-minute trip from Orbital Station 4 to the New Vale Greater Spaceport with no delay. The entire time, Yang would point out landmarks to Blake, although there wasn't much you could see from the small excuse for a window.
Upon landing, Ruby immediately shot up and started to gather her few personal belongings. Most of her stuff was still aboard the Emerald Forest, but fortunately it had returned to Vytal space. She'd be able to collect her things before they left to wherever they were going.
Weiss watched her leader's antics with a mixture of mild annoyance and exhausted humor. How Ruby could be entirely focused during battle, then turn around and act completely childish out of it was beyond the heiress. While it was annoying at first, by now it was just one of the unique quirks that team RWBY dealt with.
The reason for Ruby's eagerness was apparent as soon as the team stepped into the greeting area. Weiss's gaze found the first familiar face in the sea of people, even though she had only seen it one time. Summer Rose stood next to a tall, mostly blond man, a smile donning her face upon the sight of her two daughters.
Ruby shot towards her mother, her arms wrapped around the older woman's waist. Yang opted for a more casual approach, staying with her two teammates as they approached.
"Summer said you had a Schnee on your team." The man spoke to Yang when she was within earshot. "Didn't actually believe it, though."
Yang smirked, but Ruby was the one to speak. "Guys, this is our dad." She introduced, one arm still holding onto her mother. "Dad, this is Weiss," Weiss politely nodded upon being introduced. "And that's Blake."
Blake also nodded politely. The man returned it. "I see. My name is Taiyang Xiao Long." Taiyang said, shaking both girl's hands. "I hope this hellion hasn't caused too much trouble." He teased, nudging Yang playfully.
Yang frowned. "I'll have you know I haven't done a single thing." She defended, her voice a comical whine. However, Summer's gaze made the boisterous blonde shrink considerably.
Blake chuckled. "That's not entirely true, Yang." She started, her voice full of humor. "Need I remind you what you did to poor Sun?"
Yang's face went red, looking at the faunus with faux anger. Taiyang raised an eyebrow. "What did you do this time?" He asked knowingly, his voice direct but somehow casual. It was clear Yang had a history of getting into trouble.
Yang refused to answer, but that's what little sisters are for. "Well, she challenged him to a boxing match." She started, not backing down when Yang began glaring daggers.
Summer sighed. "I hope you didn't hurt him permanently." She said in exasperation. Blake smirked deviously.
"Not permanently, but I don't think he'll taste properly for at least another week." She chuckled. Utterly defeated, Yang just frowned.
Summer laughed at her older daughter's pout. "Alright, I think that's enough teasing for now." She said through her laughs. "Let's get you guys home. You must be starving."
The prospect of food immediately flipped Yang's mood. "Oh, thank god, I don't think I've had real food in weeks." She mused dramatically, getting a small laugh from the heiress.
Weiss turned to Ruby. "Alright, I guess I'll see you in a week." She said, her voice even. Ruby gave the girl a confused look.
"What are you talking about?" She questioned, her confusion evident.
Weiss sighed in annoyance. "We have the week off, Ruby." She started, her voice flat but slightly agitated. "I've already got plans for that time."
Ruby frowned. "Where will you be staying?" She continued her questioning, now slightly concerned.
Again, Weiss sighed. "You forget that I'm a Schnee." She reminded proudly, but not in a condescending manner. "I can afford to stay at the highest quality suites in all the Order."
This time, Summer frowned. "Nonsense." She said. "You'll be staying with us. No teammate of my daughters' is staying in a hotel." She added, leaving no room for an argument.
Of course, that didn't stop Weiss. "Ma'am, you don't have to make room for me. I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself." While her voice retained formality, there was still some pride in it.
Ruby stifled a laugh. "Weiss, quit being such a stick in the mud." She spoke. "Besides, our house is plenty big enough for you and Blake to stay for the week."
Blake's face flared slightly at the mention of her name. "I'm with Weiss. You don't need to bother yourselves with me." She said in a low voice.
Yang sighed. "You two are the most stubborn people I've ever met." She chuckled.
Taiyang barely contained his laughter. "Yang, I don't think you have a right to point out someone's stubbornness." Yang shot a glare at her father, though it held no merit.
Summer turned to Weiss with a kind smile. "Look, you two are staying with us, and that's final." Her voice held a playful air to it, mixed with an ordering undertone.
Weiss turned to her leader, only getting an agreeing smile. The heiress sighed. "Oh, alright." She said in humorous defeat. This made Ruby's smile deepen greatly.
xXxXx
Weiss was honestly impressed with the Rose/Xiao Long house. It wasn't nearly as large as her home; there were only a few houses in the entire galaxy as big as Weißburg. However, it wasn't small either.
Located in the hilly outskirts of New Vale, the Rose/Xiao Long residence was built to look very archaic, even though it was anything but. The tall entryway opened into a large living area, with two couches set in an L shape, framing a large coffee table. Under that was an intricate area rug with covered the hardwood flooring in the room.
To the right upon entering was a den area. In here, there was a television and enough seating for four people. The room itself had two full walls and two mostly glass walls that gave an amazing view of the city below. A patio was accessible from this room, with a complete dining table located in the middle.
If you were to turn left, you'd find yourself in the dining area of the house. There was a collapsible table in the middle, framed by four matching chairs; two armless and two larger chairs with arms. In the back corner, there were several more chairs, a sign that gatherings were commonplace in the residence. The room was lit by an intricately designed chandelier, simple and yet elegant.
The kitchen was as one would expect. Brightly colored countertops and appliances made the room seem larger than it really was. Instead of a wall separating the kitchen and dining room, a bar-like counter separated them, four stools pushed out-of-the-way against them. At the back of the kitchen, a small window let more natural light in than it seemed capable of.
Finally, if one were to head straight upon entering the house, they'd find themselves in the main hallway of the household. To the right, behind a door marked 'Weight Room' was, unsurprisingly, weights, most likely Yang's. The weights themselves ranged from as light as 3 to as heavy as 25 kilos. In the back corner was a dull red punching bag, the leather heavily worn from years of abuse.
Next to the weight room was a smaller room labeled 'Rec. Room.' Inside there was a billiards table, a dartboard, a mounted television, another bar with a mini-fridge behind it, and a treadmill. Judging by the wear on the outer edge of the billiard table, it was used quite often.
Continuing down the hallway led to the various bedrooms of the residents. Ruby's was the first one you'd run into; it was a dark shade of red, but with various lighter red accents. It was well-kept, but based on Ruby's haphazard organization system, it was likely the room was not in normal lived-in condition for the redhead.
Yang's room was across the hall from Ruby's. It was a lilac room, although you could barely see the walls themselves. Posters covered nearly every inch of them. There were no less than three Achieve Men posters, each one from a different album. Also adorning the walls were posters of the 'New Vale Dragons,' the Grifball team from New Vale. The most prominent one was of the Year 61 Season, the year that New Vale went 26-0 in one of the most dominating performances by a team in history.
Next to the sister's rooms were a single guest room each. These rooms were undecorated; they had a bed, dresser, and nightstand, but that was it. The one Weiss was given was a light green with white accents, while Blake's room was a tan color.
Weiss and Ruby were sitting on the smaller of the two couches, the redhead flipping through the local channels with little luck. Weiss was reading through the rest of her translation of the Grimm data.
Ruby saw this and frowned slightly. "Weiss, we're on vacation." She whined comically, though the white-haired girl dismissed it. "At least tell me you aren't going to go all crazy this time?" Ruby added humorously.
Weiss refrained from scowling at her leader, instead opting to sigh. "I won't." She said with perhaps more pointedness than she intended. "Besides, you can't decide on what to watch, so I have to do something to occupy myself."
Ruby quietly giggled at Weiss's small joke. "Anything interesting?" She asked, pointing to the piece of paper in Weiss's hands. She had translated the rest of it on the trip, but she hadn't told anybody what it said.
Weiss sighed again. "Well, the Grimm seem to have struck a deal of some kind with the White Fang." There was a small hint of hostility in the words, but they weren't directed at anyone. Still, Ruby felt herself hardening slightly. "I'm not saying Blake had anything to do with it." She added when she saw Ruby's expression.
However, the way that Weiss trailed showed that she was still unconvinced that the faunus in the team was entirely honest.
Ruby dropped it, not wanting to cause a scene, in her own house of all place. "So, do you think those White Fang that attacked the ship were working with the Grimm?" She asked after a moment.
Weiss shrugged. "I don't know." She started, shifting in her seat slightly. "However, seeing as they attacked us in mid-trip, it's a strong possibility." She sighed. "At the very least, they had help on board before we left; it's the only way they could've stopped us."
Ruby nodded with the words. Stopping a ship in mid-trip meant being on board to disable the multi-dimensional drive, returning the ship to normal space.
There were a few more moments of silence as Ruby returned to her channel surfing, finally stopping on something she found acceptable.
Weiss sighed. "Really?" She said in exasperation. Ruby decided on a Grifball match; the season was about halfway over at the moment, so the games were becoming more important for playoff seeding. In other words, games were becoming more intense.
Ruby smiled innocently. "It's pretty much the only thing on." She said matter-of-factly. "Besides, isn't that your team?" The redhead pointed to the screen. Indeed, the match was between the New Vale Dragons and the Schneehafen Dust.
Weiss scoffed. "That's not my team, Ruby." She said flatly. "It just so happens that the city I live in has a team." Ruby smiled deviously.
"Then why's it got your name in it?" She countered playfully. Weiss felt a flare of heat reach her face, a slight mix of annoyance and mild embarrassment.
"So the city's named for my family..." She said under her breath. Ruby giggled cutely, returning her attention to the screen.
There was a small silence between the pair, broken only by the sounds of the commentary on the television. That is, until Yang decided to join them.
"How're we doing, sis?" She asked, sitting on the other couch and looking at the screen. Her previous smile faded when she saw the score; New Vale-11, Schneehafen-24.
Blake sat next to Yang as Ruby spoke. "Apparently, Revis got injured in the first and hasn't come back." The redhead said, to which Yang's face fell even further.
"Damn." She said flatly. She then looked over at Weiss; the heiress looked slightly amused. "You a fan there, Princess?" She called over, getting a glare from the shorter girl.
"Why does everyone assume that I follow them?" She asked rhetorically and in annoyance.
Yang chuckled slightly, a devious smile on her lips. "Well, do you?" She asked plainly. Weiss went to make a snide remark, but she caught herself before she did. A small flare of red donned her cheeks. The blonde couldn't help but laugh. "I could've sworn you said you weren't one for brutal displays of physicality." She teased, getting another glare from the heiress.
Blake softly smacked the boisterous blonde in the shoulder. "Alright, enough teasing." She drawled, turning back to the television.
Ruby let a small giggle escape her lips. "So, Blake, you have a favorite team?" She asked. Blake shrugged.
"I never got into a team, honestly." She said offhandedly. "I did follow the Tenhu for a while." She added.
Weiss snorted silently, getting a weird look from Ruby. "What?" She asked the heiress, genuine confusion in her words.
Before Weiss could answer, Blake did. "The Tenhu are a rival of the Dust." She spoke plainly. "One of the older rivalries, if I recall correctly."
Ruby realized immediately. The Tenhu, the largest team from Menagerie, was the anti-thesis to the Dust. The Menagerie Tenhu, whose name came from the Old Arata for 'Champion,' were the league's only all-faunus team, while the Dust were the only team to never have a faunus player on their team. For a while, the Tenhu and the Dust only played games occasionally, as they were in different conferences and thus rarely matched up.
However, when the Greater Vale Grifball League restructured 121 years ago, the Tenhu and the Dust were not only placed in the same conference, but the same division. From that point on, every year, both teams would play each other twice. The rivalry practically wrote itself.
Yang chuckled as she went back to watching her team get destroyed. "Well, I think they play after this. We should be able to catch it."
A few moments went by in relative silence, broken only by the commentary and chanting from the crowd on the TV. This remained for nearly three minutes, when the silence was broken by the doorbell ringing.
"I'll get it!" Ruby called, standing up and approaching the doorway.
When she opened it, her face broke into the widest grin she could muster. The man on the other side was of average height, with a messy mop of black hair that covered grey but not dull eyes. He wore dark clothing, blacks and greys that clashed with his pale skin.
"Hey there Rosebud." The man said, ruffling Ruby's hair playfully. Yang turned to the sound, her eyes lighting up upon finding the source.
Ruby batted the man's hand away with a faux glare. "Mom didn't say you were coming over." She said, slight surprise in her voice.
The man chuckled as he stepped into the house, taking his coat off and hanging it on a nearby hook. "Ruby, did you expect me to miss my nieces' homecoming?" He asked playfully, getting the desired blush from the younger girl.
Yang approached the man with a goofy smile on her face. The man chuckled. "And there's the birthday girl." He said with a small laugh. Yang gave the man a quick hug.
However, Blake looked at the blonde with a confused look. "Birthday..?" She asked, her tone matching her expression.
The man chuckled, seeing the small flare of red on Yang's face. "Oh, come on, how could you forget to tell your teammate?" He teased, nudging the older sister.
Ruby smirked deviously. "Yeah, Yang, how could you?" She imitated the man's tone.
When it was clear Yang wouldn't be answering, the man did. "Firstly, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Qrow Rose. I'm these devils' uncle." That got a small look of false anger from the sisters. "Secondly, today is Yang's 20th birthday, although she seemingly didn't want anyone to know."
Blake gave the blonde a look of amusement. "And why's that, Yang?" She chided, her voice akin to one used to loosen the lips of children.
Yang mumbled something under her breath, getting an amused laugh from Qrow. Blake smirked. "What was that, Yang? I didn't quite catch that." That, of course, was a lie; Blake's hearing was better than any human's ever could be. However, it wasn't often she could tease Yang, today being an exception.
Yang groaned comically. From the couch, Weiss let out a short chuckle. "I don't like people making a big deal of it, okay?" She answered defiantly. Ruby and Qrow both rolled their eyes at the answer.
Blake, however, just kept smirking. "Well, when you put it that way…" She trailed, heading back to the living area, leaving Yang to finish the sentence herself.
The blonde immediately followed after the raven-haired faunus, her eyes slightly worried. "Blake, don't you dare." She warned, trying to sound defiant in her worry.
Ruby chuckled silently at her sister's reaction. "So, where's your mom?" Qrow asked, breaking Ruby's attention.
The redhead had to think a moment, even though she knew exactly where her mother was. "Oh, she's in the kitchen." Ruby led her uncle to the kitchen, noticing that the dining table had been opened and plates had already been set out. Dinner must nearly be done.
As the pair entered, Ruby saw Summer moving about between the stove and the refrigerator. She looked up when she felt another presence in the room, smiling slightly upon the sight of her older brother. "Qrow, you made it."
The black-haired man shrugged. "Well, someone seemed to forget to tell this one that." He teased, patting Ruby's head. Again, the girl batted his hand away. Summer's face fell slightly, almost in embarrassment. "Really, sis, you're starting to go senile." He teased.
And then Summer's face flared in faux anger. Ruby barely contained herself. "You talk big, but you never could back it up." Summer shot back, returning to her chores.
Qrow didn't challenge his younger sister. There were things you didn't do with Summer, and trying to win an argument was one of them. Even if you did win, you still lost. "So, where's the Dragon?" Qrow asked, looking for something he could occupy himself with. He decided that trying to steal some of the food would do it.
Summer batted his hand away, and the man held his hand in exaggerated pain. "Taiyang had some work to do, but he'll be back in a little while." She said, noticing Ruby still standing in the room. "Go tell Yang that dinner's almost ready. I'm sure she'll appreciate that."
Ruby gave a mocking salute, something she tended to do with her mother. Summer chuckled; she gave up trying to explain when it was the proper time to salute. Note: Indoors was not one of those times.
Ruby entered the living area to find the three watching the Grifball match intently. It was still the New Vale/Schneehafen match, but it seemed that the Dragons had started coming back; they were only down 21-24. "How the heck did they do that?" Ruby asked in shock. It had only been maybe 5 minutes since she last saw the score, but in that time the Dragons scored ten points.
Yang chuckled. "C'mon, sis. It's the Dragons." She said matter-of-factly. Weiss scoffed. "Hey, you're just made your team can't play defense." She shot.
Weiss frowned. "You overestimate your team." She countered. Blake chuckled.
Ruby plopped onto the couch next to Yang with exaggerated weight. "Mom says dinner's almost done." She said, looking up just as the Dust scored.
Yang groaned at the TV. Weiss just chuckled at Yang's dejection. 4 more points to the Dust, with less than a minute left in regulation. Ruby sighed. "Well, guess that's it, then." She said finally.
Yang sighed. "It's not a big deal, anyway." She said as she leaned back. "It's not like the division's all that great. They'll be in the playoffs." She then turned to Weiss. "That's more than I can say for Queenie's team."
Weiss glared daggers at the blonde, both for the nickname and for the jab at her team. "Not this year, blondie." She countered. Blake, however, scoffed at it. "Oh, not you too?"
Blake chuckled. "Trust me, you won't even be close." She teased. Ruby couldn't help but chuckle; the team was finally acting like a normal team. It was nice.
Hopefully things would only get better.
And there we have it. Hopefully the next chapter will be out soon.