Beta/Creative Assistant: Jefardi

Cover Art: Natzo

Spectrum

Change

"It's quiet."

That was the last thing Ruby had said before drifting off to sleep. It was those words Yang kept coming back to as she lay in bed awake.

It really was quiet.

When was it that they had become comfortable with having so many additional people in this room? Even when it was cramped, so cramped they couldn't even have a bed to themselves, it was something they had grown to tolerate and actually kind of enjoy. Every night hanging out in this room was a different experience.

It seemed like life had been a series of new experiences lately in general. Unconsciously, Yang was stroking the jagged line on her throat. No longer could she feel the cushion of hair beneath her back as she layed on the bed and looked up at the ceiling. What hair she had left was haloed across the pillow beneath her head.

An involuntary shiver ran up Yang's spine as she recalled the incident that generated this scar. The palpable fear in Ruby's eyes as Jaune's eldest sister threatened to do the same to her was haunting. Yang had never wanted to go through that again, helpless to save her baby sister. She certainly didn't expect to when fighting Jaune's sisters.

Why was it that was such a surprise? Jaune had never told them this would be easy. He made sure they knew from the very beginning how overwhelmingly strong and powerful his sisters were. This was something Yang thought she had learned after that first battle in Vale. It wasn't until she was put in a situation where she truly couldn't do anything did it finally click: Jaune's sisters were terrifying.

Again she shuddered. Not only could she recall Ruby's terrified look, but Violet's confident gaze. They hadn't been so much as capable of laying a single finger on her. She had dominated them… injuring them all past the point of battle in the span of a single second. How were they supposed to compete with that?

She wondered if Jaune even had a reasonable plan? "Ja-" Before she even realized it, she had rolled over and leaned up, halfway through calling out to him to ask; only to find the corner he always curled up in empty.

That was right. This was why it was so quiet in here. Even when Jaune and his sisters never said anything, it still felt like the whole room was louder and more alive with them in it.

"Yang?" Blake called from the bed beneath her. Just loud enough for her to hear without waking Ruby or Weiss. The blonde winced lightly, having not realised anyone else was still awake. That was assuming Yang hadn't been the one to wake her up. Her partner had always been a rather light sleeper. Wordlessly, she leaned over the side of the bed, lilac eyes catching a small glimpse of amber in the darkened room.

She just really hoped she didn't want to talk about the scar or her hair. She knew it was coming eventually, but still didn't feel like quite reliving that out loud just yet. Maybe Blake could sense she didn't want it brought up, because instead she started with something completely different. "Did something happen between you and Jaune at Kessel?"

Had it been that obvious that she had been about to call out for him? Doing her best to give away nothing, Yang grinned cheekily, knowing Blake had no trouble seeing it in the dark. "What's this? Hoping for something juicy like in your smutty novels?"

"You know that's not why I'm asking." Blake deadpanned, always quick to be a buzzkill. "I know you can sometimes be a bit of a hard teaser… but what you did to Jaune and Reese seemed oddly personal." Damn. Yang hadn't thought anyone else was really paying attention to that.

"Are you thinking I might have a thing for Vomit Boy?" She continued to not let her smile falter, determined not giving away any of what she was actually thinking. If Blake wanted information, she was going to have to work for it.

"You tell me."

Yang was surprised by the commanding tone in her usually more docile partner. Blake was normally pretty good about respecting boundaries, but apparently this was something she was really curious about. Yang would admit it, she was kind of impressed. "Alright then, if you want to know so badly."

It wasn't like she had anything to hide from her about what she was feeling. After all the things she had convinced Blake to tell her about herself, she supposed this was only fair anyways. "You remember when we first met him?" Yang knew Blake nodded, only because of the sound of her hair brushing against the pillow. "Now that I think about it, you asked me way back then if he was everything I had hoped for."

At this, Blake let out a short chuckle. "As I recall, you were pretty disappointed."

"You sure got that right." Yang rolled over the rest of the way, laying across her stomach and letting arms dangle over the side of the bed. "I'm not going to lie, after that first one on one chat I had with him, the only thing I felt was pity." That was the only thing she felt for some time. Even when she saw his hands, that pity only became more deeply rooted. Those scars of his made her realize how twisted he was, thinking himself alive only for the sake of his sisters. That was no way to live.

Even when she spared against him. Even when he knocked out Pyrrha - someone she had never been capable of beating - her opinion did not change. Because that was even more sad. He was actually a strong, adaptable fighter. Yet he wasn't capable of seeing that, trapped in the shadow loomed over him by those sisters he lived for. So the only thing she could see when looking at him was pity.

"The first time I saw the fragment of an actual human being was that night we went to Junior's." Yang could still recall the blood that dripped down on her cheek and the smile on his face as he held up that piece of broken concrete. "He saved my life. Three times." Twice more after that he defended her, going so far as to waste precious glyph charges to do so. He gave up the chance he needed to save his sisters to protect her.

"He didn't really think about it. He just kind of moved. That's when I realized exactly what kind of person Jaune really is: He's the type of idiot that just can't let someone in front of him get hurt." People showed who they really were when forced to make split-second decisions, at least Yang believed so. That was the first time she really felt like she met Jaune.

Only to then have him pull back from her. "Right after that, right when I finally felt like I figured him out a little, he quit talking to all of us." It felt like she had taken one step forward only to take two massive steps back. "Then all at once he rebounds, calling me his friend and asking about why I'm so interested in helping him."

"Oh, the audacity." Blake interrupted for the first time with a sarcastic drawl, causing Yang to roll her eyes. Okay, so she probably had that one coming.

"I don't like playing hot and cold. It's frustrating. He's lucky he had a good reason for it." She for real would've punched him if he hadn't been able to convince her. "After he explained himself, I told him about my mom." Blake of all people knew how important that was to Yang. While it wasn't something she tried to hide, it wasn't something she just told people either. "He… offered to help me look for her."

No one she ever told had done that before. Most people tried to dissuade her from it. She couldn't exactly describe what it was she felt when he asked her that. She supposed in a way it made her happy, even though it shouldn't have. Finding her mother was her mission, not anyone else's. Maybe it was because she realized that they were doing the same thing by helping him save his sisters? Or maybe it was because he was the first one to ever offer? Either way, she had agreed to let him help, something she wouldn't have done for anyone else.

"Then last night happened." Yang's hands once again found the rigid line on her neck. As she touched it, toes curled under the blankets and her spine gave another shudder. "I think now… maybe I finally understand a little more about why he turned out the way he did." Those dodged glances from strangers cut deep every time. And she had only dealt with it for a couple hours. She could only imagine what it was like, living with something like that for as long as he had.

Not to mention about what they did to his Semblance. That knowledge, combined with her own small taste of his experience… it felt like she saw Jaune in a whole new light. Gone was the pity that dominated her every time she looked at him. Instead it was replaced by something else. Something she couldn't quite place. What she did know was it had a comforting effect.

"This time it really felt like I got the guy pegged down. Only... for a sudden long-lost ex-girlfriend to pop up? I mean, are you shitting me? I thought for sure with the way he was, he had never so much as even tried to ask a girl out, let alone went out with one intimately enough that she'd travel across the world to make sure he's okay."

"So it's not that you're jealous…" Blake started slowly, finally beginning to see the reason behind her actions. "...but just angry because every time it seems like you figure him out, he manages to surprise you?"

"It's not that I'm angry. I know he wasn't trying to hide it from me or anything. If it felt like I was teasing rough, it's just because it feels like I'm back to square one, trying to figure him out, again. Guys were not nearly this complicated back at Signal." Figuring them out had been a walk in the park. All she had to do was lean over and wink and they practically tripped over themselves just trying to get to her.

At that Blake snorted. "Sounds to me like he's perfect for you. You'll certainly never get bored of him that way." There actually was something to what she was saying, Yang would admit.

"You're just hoping I have a crush on him so you can finally get back at me for all those times I teased you about monkey boy."

"Can't blame me for hoping, can you?"

"No I cannot." Yang pulled her head up from around the edge before flopping back onto the pillow. The whole bunk teetered with the motion, but somehow it didn't collapse. "Believe me. If I develop feelings for Jaune; he, you, and everyone else will know in pretty short order."

"If you develop feelings?" Blake parroted back.

"Well yeah. Nothing's impossible." Yang touched her shortened hair, recalling the first thing Jaune said upon seeing the new length. There was also that feeling of warmth in her chest when he did his best to cheer her up about the new scar. It was an oddly familiar feeling, one she had first felt back when she started dating while at Signal. It had been several years since she last felt it, however. So she would definitely say it wasn't impossible. "Besides, according to that Reese chick… it sounds like he's an excellent kisser."

"Yang…" Blake groaned in disbelief. That was the last word passed between either of them and Yang could finally feel sleep begin to take her. All of the previous anxiety was gone and she didn't mind the quiet so much anymore.

She must have really needed to get all that off her chest.

"You want me to hold that for you?" Reese shifted the tray she was carrying to one hand, extending an open palm out to Jaune to take his.

"It's alright, I got it." Jaune shrugged it off and she cocked an eyebrow at him. It was pretty obvious to her since last night that his hands were more injured than normal. In most everyday situations, they didn't seem to bother him much. Whatever happened in his recent fight against Joan must have really done a number on him. Even now, he was balancing the tray on his forearms, not putting any of the weight on his hands or wrists.

He ignored her pointed gaze as he scanned Beacon's cafeteria, looking for team RWBY and his two sisters. "You guys on a date so early in the morning?" Both of them jumped as Yang's smiling face popped up between them. "You sneak away from your leader or something?" She asked, looking around exaggeratedly for Arslan.

"Arslan isn't much of a breakfast person. She usually meditates before classes." Reese looked Yang up and down. Being only the second time she seen her since coming to Beacon, it was still taking some getting used to recognizing her with shorter hair. She never thought Yang would willingly cut it. Although it might have something to do with the scar she was obscuring with a bright orange muffler.

"That's no fun. Here I thought we could get to know each other." Yang shrugged it off, lilac eyes catching the tray balancing precariously on Jaune's arms. "Here, let me take that for you." Without waiting for a response she snatched it from him.

"Hey!" Jaune began to protest but Yang was already walking off.

"We're all sitting over this way." He partially extended his arm to reach for the distancing tray before just giving an exhausted sigh and following after her. Reese couldn't help but notice the red tinting at his cheeks as she stepped into place with him. She glanced from Jaune's face to the back of Yang's head. Now this… was interesting.

"I didn't know you were into the forceful types, Jaune." She really should've had her scroll out and ready, the expression on Jaune's face like he was trying to re-swallow his own lung, coughing and sputtering all over the place.

Yang paused long enough to turn around and make sure he was okay, but Reese waved it off, so with a shrug she continued to guide them. Reese grinned mischievously as fear welled up in Jaune's eyes. "Don't you worry," She leaned in and whispered just loud enough for him to hear. "Your secret is safe with me."

She never got tired of that look of absolute shock that always crossed his face. It was good to know he still wore his expressions like an open book. A part of her had been afraid the tragedy at Domremy would've left him closed off. No doubt the students helping him here at Beacon had a part in keeping him up to his old self.

"Y-you're not mad?" To her surprise, he didn't deny what she said. Unlike him, though, she didn't show any of that shock on her face. Instead, maintaining a neutral expression when turning back to face him.

"We broke up over a year ago now. You don't really think I've been sitting at Haven, laying awake thinking about you every night?"

"That's not what I meant!" His hushed whisper nearly became something louder than that. The panic in his voice was too much for her and face twisted with barely restrained laughter.

"I'm just screwing with you, Jaune. Don't take everything so seriously." She leaned over and bumped him lightly with her shoulder. "Look, I wouldn't be here if I didn't care. Our relationship is in the past though, yeah?"

The complicated expression on his face told her that wasn't entirely the case. She supposed they probably should sit down some time and talk about that final argument they had. Last night hadn't seemed like the right time, since they were still getting settled. And now would definitely not be the time as Yang finally arrived at the table the other members of RWBY were all gathered around.

That just meant it would have to be later.

"Here we are!" Yang dropped Jaune's tray down right next to a towering man that looked only vaguely familiar to Reese. He must have been in the tournament last year, but she really had a hard time believing she forgot someone as big as he was.

"Morning, Yatsu." Jaune greeted him casually, plopping down in front of his tray. Reese slid down in the open space between him and Autumn, much to the younger girl's irritation if the dissatisfied grunt she made was any indication.

"Good morning, Jaune." The tall man Reese only knew as Yatsu nodded to him. Around him, two long, furry rabbit ears poked out before the face of another girl leaned over the table to get a look at Reese.

"It's a pleasure to meet you." She called across the two boys. "Ruby told us a little about you this morning. My name is Velvet Scarlatina."

"Yatsuhashi Daichi." The tall man formally introduced himself. "We're friends of Jaune's." That was a word Reese had never heard others use to describe themselves in relation to Jaune. Just went to show some things did change after all.

"Name's Reese Chloris. Attending Haven." She didn't know how much Ruby had or hadn't told them already, so she simply left it at that. If they had questions for her, they would surely ask.

"So did you all miss us last night?" Yang plopped down on the opposite end of the table, leaning over it as she looked at the three Arc siblings.

"Not at all." Autumn responded without missing a beat, earning a chop in the head from the sibling on either side of her.

"I missed you." Rouge quickly tried to cover for her older sister. Yet another thing that hadn't changed, Reese noted with a dry smile. "All of you." The redhead looked at each member of RWBY individually, before turning to Reese. "I am also very glad to see you again." She said in her most reassuring voice possible.

"I already know, Rouge." She leaned over and jostled her red hair. Rouge's reassurance was unnecessary after the truckload of questions about what she'd been up to since they last saw each other. Still, Reese appreciated that about the younger girl, that genuine care she had.

"Has anyone seen my twin?" Jaune, perhaps wisely, deftly avoided answering the question while changing the topic. Although, he did look concerned about the whereabouts of his only other freed sister.

"We assume she is still spending time with her team." Weiss answered without glancing up from her food.

"They have been apart for a while. Maybe it would be best to just give them time to themselves?" Blake responded next, amber eyes glancing across the cafeteria for some glimpse of the other team.

A frown marred Jaune's face as he followed Blake's gaze. To no avail if that disappointed sigh that escaped his lips a moment later were any indication. Reese still didn't really know enough about what was going on to make of the situation, but she was a little stumped to find the twin's not hanging off each other if given the chance. Just another thing that had changed, she supposed.

Whether that change was a good one or a bad one, she couldn't tell yet.

Chapter End

Omake 33

First Mission (Part III)

Ciel couldn't help it.

She doubled over with laughter at what she imagined was pure shock beneath the masks on the White Fang's faces. One second, a couple dozen of them were standing there, just patrolling the hanger for any sign of intrusion (not very well, seeing as they never found her). The next and a freak storm of orange lightning ripped through the ceiling and wiped out half their Paladins in one single strike.

Roaring flames engulfed half the hanger and hunks of rock rained down on several of the Paladins that hadn't been hit, breaking them apart too. Somehow, not a single person had been hit by any of the bolts or falling debris. No doubt that was thanks to Autumn's perfect control. Ciel might have been frustrated because these people weren't exactly going to give her the same courtesy that Autumn just gave them, but she had been looking forward to this and the more of them alive, the more fun she could have.

The two dozen faunus didn't disappoint either, immediately getting over the shock and running around like chickens with their heads cut off as they tried to find a Paladin that hadn't been damaged by Autumn's attack. Fortunately for them, there was at least one for each of them, but not too many more. What had once been at least trillions worth of lien was reduced to only that couple dozen in just a matter of seconds.

"Alright, alright. Time to see what you guys are made of." Ciel twirled her dagger around like a baton before giving it a dramatic flick. A wall of ice easily the height of the Paladins and as wide as the whole hanger appeared in front of her in an instant. She sucked in a deep breath before exhaling onto the glacier.

The wall of ice began crumbling apart immediately after she did that, as six distinct figures took shape in the collapsing structure. When the wall completely gave way, there were six sculptures towering over her at the same height as the paladins. Ice sculptures that had the liking of giant, cuddly teddy bears.

Ciel grinned brightly as she skipped around one of them, inspecting her work. "Not bad, not bad." She then turned towards the now moving mechs as all two dozen of them charged at her. "Alright boys! Let's see what you're made of! I even gave y'all a handicap and only created a fourth of what you got!"

One of the Paladins arms lifted and fired a series of rockets right at where she was standing. They never even got close as one of her ice sculptures stepped in front of her and batted them aside, sending them spiralling around the hanger and exploding all over. "My, my. Not very friendly, are you boys?" Ciel shrugged, grin not diminishing in the slightest. "Ah well. Bring it on!"

Her six sculptures charged past and up to the two dozen Paladins. Ciel watched as a scene like something straight out of a movie unfolded in front of her. Or maybe it was more like a cinematic video game? After all, she was kind of like the player in this scenario.

Gunfire echoed across the whole hanger as her teddy-bear-lookalikes were chipped apart by the Paladins' miniguns. That didn't stop them from charging relentlessly. The ground shook as several of the Paladins were tackled to the ground. One sculpture caught another in a sweeping kick, her creations moving far more agilely than the man-controlled Paladins were capable of.

Explosions sent scraps of metal scattering in all directions, some of those pieces flying right over her shoulder. Rockets whizzed around the whole room. One man screamed as he was ripped out of his Paladin and sent flying. With an audible crack he hit the ground and ceased moving. He was probably alive thanks to his Aura. At least she hoped, games were no fun if people got killed.

The ground shook violently and she tilted her head up to see one of the Paladins had slipped past the rest of her creations and was right upon her, swinging its fist down in an attempt to splatter her. "That's cheating." Glacies Inferno created a thick layer of ice at her feet and the clunky robot's metal feet lost all traction as it slipped and flailed, its punch slamming the ground just next to her.

As it crashed onto the ground, the hull cracked open and a mask tumbled out of it. Looking out at her, with absolute fear plastered across his face, was the pilot. She smiled sweetly at him and winked. "Hey there, cutie."

The man didn't get a chance to respond as one of her ice creations came over and ripped him from the cockpit. He went flying across the room, landing right on top of the rest of his buddies that were starting to form a pile.

She gave a bored sigh and skated across the ice to get a better view of the action. In only a couple minutes she had reduced their hulking machines down to half. Meanwhile, only one of her own creations had fallen apart.

Well, this was as good as wrapped up. She clicked the mic on her ear. "This is Ciel. All clear."