Lmaoooo please enjoy this chapter, mi amigos.
Velvet could barely conceal her excitement as T.A Nebula yammered on about the details of the Remnant Arts Networking Event. Only a select group of students were invited to it, and to the Rabbit-Faunus' pleasant surprise, it would seem that both Dew and May made the cut too! They were currently in one of the lecture rooms with a handful of other students, and were listening to their T.A go on about what was to come.
She was glad that she wasn't going to this thing alone. Of course, she also had Coco by her side, which was something that she was grateful for too.
"The theme of the event is a simple black-and-white tie theme... you may bring your portfolios...and camera's... don't forget that the event starts at..."
The Faunus girl could tell that she was bobbing in and out of attention while Nebula spoke. She was also preoccupied with the events that occurred the day prior, which in itself gave the Rabbit-Faunus a different rush of excitement. The plan that Weiss and her family made up was so elaborate that it made Velvet feel like they were in one of those heist movies!
She just hoped that the date they were going to expose Jacques didn't clash with the date of this Networking Even-
"I'm sorry, could you repeat that?" Velvet interrupted as she was sure that she missed a very important part of Nebula's summary.
Nebula quirked a brow, but nevertheless repeated herself. "I was saying that the Networking Event will be taking place tomorrow at-!"
"Tomorrow!?" May exclaimed incredulously as she flailed her arms up in the air.
Apparently, Velvet wasn't the only one who missed that part of their T.A's rundown of the social event. Even Dew, who usually wore a calm and collected mask, seemed to be bewildered, if not slightly miffed, at this new piece of information. The Rabbit-Faunus didn't blame her, though... this was ridiculously short notice.
"That's barely enough time to find something remotely nice to wear, Nebula." Dew deadpanned. May followed up the dirty-blonde's statement with an angry 'Yeah!'
Nebula simply rolled her eyes, "I'll help you pick out a dress later on tonight, Dew. You're going to look great, regardless of what you wear."
"Ohohoho~" May interjected as she stared between the two women, "Is our T.A your plus one, Ms. Dewy?"
Dew immediately smacked the beanie-clad girl upside the head. Velvet, on the other hand, giggled and decided to join in on the fun. "Oooh how scandalous~" The Rabbit-Faunus playfully commented.
"Oh you're the one to talk about scandal, Velv." Dew retorted, squinting her eyes at the Faunus girl. "Or should I say, Miss. 'Dating-the-daughter-of-the-Remnant-Art's-Headmaster' Velvet Scarlatina."
Velvet's jaw dropped in response to her friend's words, and May let out a boisterous laugh. The Rabbit-Faunus even noticed that their T.A was struggling to stifle her laughter too. When the Rabbit-Faunus came to, she could only let out a string of incoherent words in an attempt to refute the other girl's statement. Although... there really wasn't anything to refute...
She truly was dating the Headmaster's daughter.
But she knew that had nothing to do with the fact that she was chosen to go this prestigious event. The Rabbit-Faunus was confident in her own abilities as an aspiring photographer.
Dew chuckled and then ruffled the top of Velvet's head. "Relax, Velv. I'm just playing with you."
Velvet stuck her tongue out at the girl.
Soon, their T.A coughed to grab their attention once more, and just continued on with her little spiel about the Networking Event.
"So... remember that it starts at around 8:00 o'clock tomorrow evening in the Remnant Arts ballroom." Nebula began, "You are all representing our Academy, so please conduct yourselves professionally. But don't forget to have fun. This is a very rare, and excellent opportunity for you guys to show the teachers of Remnant Arts what you're made of! And I know just how talented you all are!"
The purple-haired woman then let out a wicked smirk. "So lets make this a great night!"
Everyone immediately let out shouts of affirmation when Nebula finished her little pep-talk. Even Velvet got caught up in the excitement of it all, and let out an enthusiastic 'whoop!' herself.
After a couple of moments, the buzz of the atmosphere died down and everyone went their separate ways. Velvet properly bid her photo-buddies goodbye, and wandered about; trying to figure out what to do for her free period. Normally, she would have classes on Art Theory, but since she was one of the students chosen to go to the Remnant Arts Event, she was given the rest of the day to prepare for it.
"I'd ask Coco for help... but she has business lectures right now." the Rabbit-Faunus mumbled under her breath, to nobody in particular. She then shrugged.
I should send her a message to meet me at my place after her lectures are done.
She carried out the action just as soon as that thought came to mind.
The Faunus girl continued to make her way throughout Beacon's halls, and pondered going back home to take a nap. At least until Coco was finished with the school day. She might as well... it wasn't like she actually had anything else better to do.
"Hey, you!"
Velvet stopped dead in her tracks, and whipped her head around to see who was addressing her so aggressively.
When she saw that no one was near her general vicinity, she figured that this person was calling out to someone from around the corner. Velvet was about to turn around and mind her own business, but then another voice came along and stopped her yet again.
"What is it, Adam."
The Rabbit-Faunus tilted her head to the side in confusion.
Ilia...? What the hell is she doing with a guy like Adam?
Even though Velvet wasn't a part of the Athletics sector of Beacon, she at least knew about the nasty track record that Adam Taurus had within their student body. He was notorious for being a White Fang fanatic, and getting into a lot of fights in the name of the organization. Hell, she wouldn't be surprised if he was an active member of the extremist group.
She was also positive that he truly was the one who attacked Yang; she knew that the blonde wouldn't lie about something like that.
Soon, Velvet found herself listening in on their conversation. She leaned her back against the wall, and strained her ears so she could hear them.
"Don't act dumb." Adam borderline snarled. "The investigation starts today, and I need to count on you to not blow it all up."
"And what on Remnant would make you think that I'd snitch?" The Chameleon-Faunus spat back, "I was actively a part of her assault! Which wasn't even supposed to be an actual assault in the first place!" She then let out a frustrated noise. "But you just had to go and get all violent with her! The fuck, Taurus!?"
"Oh and your plan of verbally threatening her was going to be super effective..."
"Even if it didn't work out that way, then I'm pretty sure she wouldn't have gone to Ozpin and start an investigation!" Ilia growled. "Shit, Adam! The cops might get involved, and I literally cannot afford to get arrested or kicked out of this school!" The Rabbit-Faunus listened on as the girl paused. "They'll ship me back to Menagerie if that happens, and I'll have nowhere to go! I-I'm too old for any of the foster homes or orphanages to take me back in..."
Velvet felt a twinge of pity for the Chameleon-Faunus when she said that last part. It wasn't an unknown fact that orphaned Faunus children around the world were basically shipped off to random orphanages in Menagerie. As if the population overcrowding in the Faunus-ridden country wasn't enough, the other nations made it worse by participating in such a protocol.
Especially after the Terrorization of the Mistral Faunus Rights Movement... there was a huge surge of Faunus children sent there. The Rabbit-Faunus would've shared that same fate too, if it weren't for the Rose-Branwen's.
"Oh boo-fucking-hoo." Adam mocked, completely belittling the other Faunus' situation. Velvet resisted the urge to stomp around the corner and punch the guy. She knew she could hold her own in a fight (being practically raised by Raven and all...) but she wasn't stupid enough to go against a guy like Adam.
"And don't act as if you're all innocent," the Bull-Faunus continued, "I know that you were part of the group of Faunus that totally trashed Yang's shop."
"T-That was her shop!?" Ilia immediately exclaimed, "and how the hell do you know about all of that!?"
"I've got friends everywhere, Ilia. But to think that you'd be associated with Salem's Faction..." he then scoffed, "If you wanted to join an organization, you might as well have joined the White Fang."
"Oh, like you?"
Adam said nothing to counter Ilia's accusation. If anything, the Rabbit-Faunus swore she heard the boy chuckle.
"And 'Salem's Faction' isn't actually a Mafia like most people think. It's a bodyguard service." Velvet heard the Reptile-Faunus sigh. "At least I thought it was. Maybe I was wrong... but I quit my internship there right after they told us to trash that place!"
"That won't matter once they find out that you were involved with the whole thing."
"W-What are you trying to say, Adam."
BAM!
Velvet had to fight the urge to audibly gasp from the sudden sound. She contemplated running over to the Chameleon-Faunus' side to help, but then Ilia began to speak again.
"Was that supposed to scare me?"
"Just a little..." Adam replied with a sharp edge. "Anyways, what I'm trying to say is..."
Velvet waited in anticipation for the Faunus boy to continue on.
"If you, for whatever reason, decide to sell me out... then I'm dragging you right down to hell with me. I'll tell the investigators all about how it was your idea to scare off Yang with our little 'threat', and I'll tell them that you were one of the thugs that destroyed her family's shop." The Faunus boy then laughed mockingly, "So if I were you, I would think twice before doing anything stupid."
Soon... Velvet could hear him walking away from the Chameleon-Faunus.
Her eyes then widened in panic when she realized one thing...
Which was the fact that the Faunus boy's footsteps were getting louder.
S-Shit! He's walking towards my end of the hallway!
The Rabbit-Faunus' mind went into overdrive as she tried to find a place to hide. She could see a utility closet in plain view across from her, but she knew if she tried to run into it, she'd risk being seen by the Bull-Faunus. There was also the fact that Velvet didn't even know if the closet was locked or not.
She then directed her gaze towards the lockers next to her.
Oh you have GOT to be kidding me...
Before she knew it, Velvet had already opened one of the locker doors and jammed herself into the tiny spice. She made sure to leave the door slightly ajar so she wouldn't somehow lock herself in.
She held her breath when Adam briefly came into view. Velvet watched as the unsuspecting Faunus boy continued to walk past the locker she was currently inside of. The Rabbit-Faunus could hear her heartbeat beat loudly in her ears, and prayed to whatever Gods there were that Adam couldn't hear it.
Apparently, her silent prayers worked, seeing as the boy continued leisurely on his path. Gradually, his footsteps became fainter by the second, and then disappeared altogether. The Rabbit-Faunus was about to let out a sigh of relief, but then she was reminded of the second person that was still near her general vicinity.
"Fuck!"
Velvet flinched at the sudden utterance of that profanity. She listened on as the other Faunus girl stomped her way down the hall. Unfortunately for Velvet, Ilia had decided to go in Adam's direction, and went down to her side of the hallway. The Rabbit-Faunus sent out another silent prayer this time around, too. There was no way that Ilia could figure out that she was in the locker, so Velvet wasn't too worried at this point-
DING!
"Shit!"
Everything went dead silent.
Velvet cursed herself for even letting out a sound.
Maybe she didn't hear me-!
"You can come out now."
"You may come in now, Yang."
Yang took in a deep breath before opening the door to Ozpin's office. The blonde could feel her nerves getting to her, and she mentally kicked herself for being so antsy. She didn't know why she was so damn nervous. Maybe it was because she didn't really fair well with authority; and seeing that Ozpin was the damn Headmaster of Beacon, the blonde couldn't help but be on edge.
Well... there was that and the fact that she was going to have to seriously recall the events of her assault.
It wasn't that Yang didn't want to think about it... but, whenever she did, her head would get all hazy and muddled. She figured that the blunt trauma to her head caused her to have some amnesia with regards to what happened. However, that wasn't going to stop her from trying to remember the event.
She really wanted to see Adam knocked down a peg... or several.
"Please, sit down and make yourself comfortable." Headmaster Ozpin said as Yang came into view. Yang simply did as she was told, and sat down on the seat across from the man's desk. She shifted in that very seat as she waited for the man to continue, and watched in impatience as he took the longest sip of life from his damn coffee mug.
"As you already know, this meeting sole purpose is to get a detailed report of your side of the story."
"R-Right..."
"I will be conducting this same meeting with Adam tomorrow..." Ozpin continued, "However, I will also place him under investigation and question everyone who was reported to be on Campus at the time of the event. This the type of behaviour that I will not tolerate and if anyone is proven guilty, they will be immediately expelled. Do you understand the severity of the situation?"
Yang stared the Headmaster right in the eye. "Yes, sir. I understand."
"Even so, do you wish to continue?"
"Yes."
Ozpin nodded. "Then please, try to relax and recall the event from start to finish. It is important that you leave no details out."
"Alright..." Yang responded. "Er... should I start from the morning? Or...?"
"Just include the details of the event itself. I doubt your morning routine had anything to do with the assault, unless the accused assailant, being Adam Taurus, was a part of it and displayed some unusual behaviour."
The blonde nodded. "O-Okay..."
Yang then shut her eyes so she could concentrate. She took in another deep breath, and slowly let it out. Soon... she could vaguely visualize the girls locker room, and she began to recall the event.
"S-So, after school, I went to kickboxing practice like usual." Yang began. "Before practice, I couldn't find my hand wraps in my bag, so I went into the locker room to see if they were in my assigned gym locker." the blonde paused, and tried to think about how she felt while she was in the locker room. "But as I was trying to open up my locker, something felt... off. I think I could sense that I wasn't alone."
Suddenly, Yang flinched when she recalled the deafening sound of Adam's fist hitting the locker.
"On instinct, I ducked my head down before I was hit." Yang continued on. "when I turned around I saw Adam, and I know for a fact that I wasn't imagining it. I could clearly see his face."
Ozpin silently nodded, and gestured for her to continue.
"I jumped back from him, and took a defensive stance." Yang then furrowed her brows, as this was the part of her story that would get all blurred together. "I remember him wrapping his hands around my throat. But after that, my memories get all hazy..."
"That's fine, Ms. Xiao-Long. Just take your time with this next part. There's no need to rush it."
Yang simply shut her eyes tight, and tried her best to recall the rest of what happened.
"At that point, I really thought that I could've died..." The blonde went on. "And I don't believe that I'm being dramatic. Adam had a crazy tight grip around my neck; it was like he had the intent to seriously hurt me."
Soon... all Yang could visualize was a myriad of blurred out images. Sometimes her memory would black out, and then it would come back into a barely focused image of the locker room. She could kind of hear what was going on around her, but at that point, Yang wasn't sure if what she heard was real or not. The lack of O2 intake from practically getting strangled caused her to be extremely disoriented.
"Then... I could hear him talking." She paused yet again; but then her eyes flew open when she realized one thing.
Adam wasn't alone.
"Is everything alright, Ms. Xiao-Long?"
Yang simply shook her head. "No- I mean, yeah. I just remembered something important..." She then held Ozpin's gaze. "Adam wasn't alone."
The man across from her stared back intently, and waited for her to go on.
"They started arguing with each other for a bit. The other person in the locker room... I think they stopped him from going any further, but I know for a fact that they were in on it too. I-I can't put a name to their voice... all I can remember about them was that they were definitely a girl." She exhaled sharply. "After that, everything went black and I felt a sharp pain at my left forearm. When I came to, I was in the hospital..."
"I-I don't know if this'll help much... but-!"
The Headmaster raised a hand to politely silence the girl. "Trust me, Ms. Xiao-Long... everything that you've just disclosed to me is more useful than you think."
"Right... So is it okay if I go...now..?" the blonde trailed off. She really wanted to go home, and didn't know if she was being rude or not by asking. It's just... thinking about the whole ordeal drained out a lot of the blonde's energy. She honestly wanted nothing more than to take a nap at the moment.
Ozpin chuckled. "Ah, Yes. You may go now, Ms. Xiao-Long. If you have anything to add to your report, then don't hesitate to come back to give me an update."
Yang wordlessly nodded at the man, and gave him a sound of confirmation along with a small 'thank you.'
As she walked out of the Headmaster's office, Yang thought about the things to come for the next couple of days.
On top of this whole investigation with Adam, there was also the scheme that they were going to pull over Jacques. To say the least, the next week or so was going to be... eventful.
Yang just hoped that no one was going to get hurt.
Velvet wondered what the best course of action she should take to avoid getting hurt.
Namely, by one Ilia Amitola.
I mean... I could jump out of this locker and start throwing punches...
But the Rabbit-Faunus didn't feel like physically fighting anyone at the moment. So instead...
She texted Coco back, telling her that she'd see her later at her apartment.
"So... are you going to actually step out of the locker, or...?"
The Rabbit-Faunus decided to just rip the bandaid off, and moved the locker door wide open. Right across the hallway stood Ilia, waiting patiently for her to fully walk out of the said locker. Once she did so, there was a trace of surprise laced within the Chameleon-Faunus' expression. Ilia's brows were raised for a split second, and she looked genuinely confused.
She probably didn't expect Velvet, of all people, to walk out.
"Uh... Hey." Velvet nonchalantly began.
Ilia seemed to be mildly amused at how the Rabbit-Faunus tried to play this off, so she humoured the girl. "Hi."
And then... Silence.
Oh my God, what should I do?! Do I run?!
Suddenly, Ilia began to slowly walk towards the Rabbit-Faunus and stopped directly in front of her. Velvet noted that the other Faunus girl was definitely sizing her up. However, before she could hold up any kind of defensive stance, Ilia started to question her.
"So I'm assuming that you heard our conversation."
Rather than back down from Ilia's sudden scrutinization, Velvet stood her ground. She stared back at the girl, making sure to control her expression, and offered her the best poker face she could muster up.
"Yup."
Ilia snorted. "Didn't think you would admit to that so quickly. I'm surprised."
"You and me both..." Velvet quipped, "for obviously different reasons, of course."
Soon, the overall atmosphere between the two girls ran cold. As much as Velvet would've liked the conversation to remain casual, she knew better than to expect as much. If anything, the brown-haired girl could feel the reality of the situation take over; which resulted in Velvet feeling rather sour about the whole ordeal.
The Faunus girl in front of her was part of the reason why the two mother-figures in her life were suffering at the moment.
She could feel her anger slowly bubble within her chest.
Ilia also messed with Yang.
And Yang was Family.
"So what are you going to do?"
Ilia quirked a brow at the Rabbit-Faunus. "Shouldn't I be asking you that question?"
"Maybe." Velvet responded cryptically, "But... just by judging from your conversation with Adam, it seems like you're conflicted."
She then watched as the Chameleon-Faunus narrowed her eyes at her. "You don't know me. What makes you think I'm conflicted about this whole situation?"
"Someone who didn't show remorse for what they did wouldn't be stressing over the fact that the victim was hurt." Velvet explained. "Also... I may not know you that well, but I understand you."
The Reptile Faunus scoffed. "And what do you understand about me, Velvet? I doubt that we have much in common."
"You'd be surprised, Ilia..." The brown-haired girl promptly answered. "But one of the few things we have in common are our relationships with Blake."
Velvet then shut the locker door behind her, and opted to lean on it casually while crossing her arms. She continued to give the Chameleon-Faunus a deadpan, blank look.
"What were you expecting if your plan of intimidating Yang worked out?"
"W-What-?"
"Did you really think that Blake was just going to run into your arms? Just like that?" Velvet went on. "Even now, after you and Adam basically assaulted Yang, Blake is still standing firmly beside her." She then exhaled sharply. "Did you think that just because you're a Faunus, you would appeal to Blake more? Do you really believe that Blake, of all Faunus, is such a person?!"
The Rabbit-Faunus felt a twinge of guilt for acting so vindictive, but she really wanted the Chameleon-Faunus to see the flaws of her plan. Velvet could feel that deep down, Ilia knew that she was in the wrong. And she could also tell that the Reptile-Faunus wasn't, fundamentally, a bad person.
She was just one of many Faunus children that had been shaped by, and involved with, the cruel actions of prejudiced humans.
Velvet knew, from personal experience, that the world could offer people like them a kinder fate.
And she wanted Ilia to understand that.
The Chameleon-Faunus stayed silent after Velvet bombarded her with those questions. Ilia looked off to the side, and held an expression of remorse. The Rabbit-Faunus knew, at this point, that she was getting somewhere with the girl in front of her. She was going to continue with speaking frankly towards the Reptile-Faunus, but then Ilia finally opened her mouth to speak.
"S-She wasn't supposed to get hurt."
"Well she did." Velvet quickly pointed out. She took notice of how Ilia winced slightly from her, rather sharp, response. The Rabbit-Faunus sighed, and placed a hand on the other girl's shoulder in an attempt to comfort her. "Listen, Ilia. You have the chance to do the right thing here."
She then held the Chameleon-Faunus' gaze when she decided to look up at her. "What Adam did was dangerous. He really could've done some actual damage to Yang; and Ilia, if you cover for him... if you let him get away with this it's just going to get worse. I know that I'm asking you to sacrifice a lot, but if you continue to let a guy like that influence you with his way of thinking, you're just going to end up bitter in the end."
As Velvet was speaking, she could see that Ilia was at least listening to what she had to say. The other girl seemed like she was stunned into silence.
Velvet hoped that she was getting through to her.
"And honestly... Blake already chose to be with Yang."
The Rabbit-Faunus heard Ilia audibly gulp when she declared that fact.
"Anyone with eyes can see that Yang is good with her. Good for her." Velvet stated. She then decided to shift the focus back onto the Chameleon-Faunus. "Ilia, I can also see that you're type of person who doesn't stand by when there's injustice."
When she could sense that Ilia wasn't going to respond, Velvet had giving the girl's shoulder one last squeeze.
"I just hope that you can see that, too..."
With that, Velvet walked away to let Ilia think about what she had done.
And what she had to do to make it right.
LOL did you guys really think that I'd feed y'all the main course meal that was Jacques' downfall that fast!?
Naaaw, have some appetizer fillers first xD
Ahahaha please continue to let me know what you guys think!
Until Next Time,
MediocreWriter