March 17th
1278 Second Street
City Of Vale
Vale
4:39 PM
Ashley Karen Goodwitch sighed as she and her fraternal twin sister unlocked the door to the townhouse in downtown Vale. "Aren't you glad that we're not getting much homework right now?"
Katharine rolled her eyes. "They're just being nice to everyone right now because we have state testing at the end of next month."
Ash sighed once more. "Damn it."
"Yeah, that's how I feel too," Katharine said as they walked into the townhouse. "Since mom and dad aren't here right now, there's something I just want to say."
"And what's that?" Ash asked her, closing the door as they both set down their bags and ran over to the windows to see when their parent's cars were coming. "Is it something bad? We're only thirteen and year sevens, so -"
"It's not bad, just not something I want to say in front of them," Katharine twisted her dark hair in her hands. "Which is that even though we want to be huntresses, it's going to be awkward if we got to Atlas Academy or Beacon."
"Oh, that's true," Ash agreed. "Since dad's the headmaster of Atlas, and mom's the deputy headmistress and combat professor at Beacon."
"Literally everything to do with what life is like at the academies has lost it's mysterious lustre because our parents are...well our parents," Katharine shook her head. "If I went to Shade or Haven, would you go with me?"
Ash hesitated. "Not Shade, it's too hot in Vacuo for me. Haven...maybe although I've heard that Mistral's got a lot of problems."
"Raven and her tribe live in Mistral," Katharine pointed out. "And they're fine."
Ash shrugged. "I mean...mostly. Minus the fact that they occasionally raid villages and make the job of the grimm, ipso facto destruction, easier."
"Wasn't the tribe a village for a while?" Katharine shook her head. "I wonder why they went back."
"It probably didn't feel natural for them," Ash said, and Katharine decided that was reasonable. "So they went back to Mistral which did feel natural."
Katharine nodded. "So...about that whole thing with that eighth year girl that we've been hearing about..."
Ash groaned. "You know I'm a prime source of gossip, don't play."
"Then tell me about her..." Katharine said as she dramatically collapsed into the window seat. "Tell me everything you know about her, since I don't have access to the gossip you do since our class schedules are flipped."
"It pisses me off that mom and dad had that done on purpose," Ash muttered. "You and I are better together."
Katharine rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, we're a team. So come on! Tell me about this girl!"
"Well, for starters," Ash told her. "She's dating a tenth year."
Katharine's eyes went wide. "No kidding! She's only a year eight and is dating a tenth year?"
"Yeah," Ash said, crossing her arms as she sat down at the other end of the window seat. "And, supposedly, she...she did the you know what with him."
"She slept with him?" Katharine exclaimed. "Oh my god!"
"Not slept together per se," Ash said as she went on. "This part I can confirm because I am an unfortunate witness. During our lunch period the other day -"
"The only time during our classes in which we get a break and get to hang out," Katharine interjected.
Ash nodded. "Well, I walked in after pushing in the door which I thought had been just stuck. But it had been shut that way on purpose. When I got into the bathroom, I smelled smoke because that was one of the things they were doing in there...and I then saw them having sex against the mirror."
Katharine gasped. "Oh my god, that's disgusting! And that's the one closest to the...ugh, I'm never going to be able to go in there again without thinking about that! I might learn to use urinals if that's the case."
Ash raised an eyebrow. "I'm pretty sure that urinals are more disgusting than a mirror that two people had sex against."
"Although that explains why that bathroom always smells like smoke," Katharine rolled her eyes. "So I take it that's not the first time people have done stuff like that in there?"
"That bathroom's been nicknamed the smoker's lounge for a reason," Ash warned her. "The sex only is fitting because -"
"Ashley Karen Goodwitch, what the hell are you talking about?" Glynda asked her as she came in and slipped off her boots. "Please don't tell me that you're talking about yourself."
"No, I'm talking about one of the year eight girls in my algebra level one class," Ash said, and her mother relaxed. "And the drug problem at -"
"That's not uncommon, it even happens in Atlas," She told her as she pushed up her glasses. "I don't like it, but it's not uncommon. Thankfully, that sort of thing doesn't happen much at Beacon."
"One would hope," Katharine said. "Considering that all of them are at least seventeen."
Glynda sighed. "You would be surprised by some of things that happen there, and the two of you have gotten in trouble more than once for...well, what was that whole thing a few weeks ago about you two skateboarding through the halls and dumping glitter and throwing balloons and ribbons everywhere?"
"That was the...three years too early precursor to our senior prank," Ash said stubbornly. "And it's three years too early and not five because we're going to one of the academies in three years."
"What did they do?" James asked, coming in as well and wrapping an arm around his wife. "Are we going to have to explain something else yet again?"
"No, they're finally explaining that...incident involving the glitter, balloons, ribbons, and skateboarding," Glynda told him as he kissed her. "Supposedly it was the precursor to their senior prank before they start at one of the academies."
"To be impartial and not start a full out war between the two of you," Katharine said, punching Ash in the shoulder. "We're either going to Shade or Haven."
"You mean I'm going to Haven and you're going to Shade," Ash said darkly, and her sister rolled her eyes. "What? Do you want to go to Haven with me now?"
"I want you to come to Shade with me," Katharine said. "So -"
"Let's let the two of them figure this one out on their own," James whispered, and Glynda nodded as they quietly slipped down the hall into the formal sitting room. "There's something we need to discuss anyways."
"What's that?" She asked him as she closed the door behind them though neither of them realised that the twins were following them slowly. "James, are you alright?"
"Weiss turns eighteen on the third of September," He reminded her, and she sighed. "Glynda, I swore that I would tell her the truth once she was an adult, and -"
"Maybe at this point it's best to let her believe Jacques is her father," She said as gently as she could. "I know why you want to, but if anyone is going to tell her then it should be Willow."
"She's my child just as much as she's Willow's," James said, shaking his head. "I have to tell her the truth. I've felt so wrong about her not knowing -"
"Which was done to make sure that Jacques didn't know," Glynda countered, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I know that you still have a lot of guilt about what happened between you and Willow, and I know that you feel responsible for Weiss but James you can't fix everything. You always try to do what you think is right, but I don't...I don't know if you can see how emotional this is for you."
"That's exactly why I have to do this," He said, and she dropped her hand. "She deserves to know the truth, and -"
"James, you and I both know that the reason we did everything to prevent Jacques from knowing the truth is because of the things he would do to Weiss and to Willow," Glynda said sadly. "If she lets anything slip to him, it's only going to make things harder for her than they already are."
"Then I don't know what to do," He said as she embraced him tightly. "Glyns, I..."
"Just do what you think is right," She told him, softly kissing him. "I'll still love you either way."
"I love you so much..." He whispered, holding her close while neither knew that just outside the door their twins were staring at each other in shock.
