Team JNPR had woken up.
Why am I even surprised at this point, considering how loud my outburst was? Had I really expected to be subtle enough not to have my voice travel down the corridors and the room opposite to Team RWBY's?
Being an underground lab, I should've expected it to echo throughout the drains and alert every rat in town. Why Professor Polendina had set up about 3 guest rooms big enough to fit a team? I have no clue. Perhaps it was because he had expected both teams to visit at my mention of Penny having made 'Friends'.
The first was used for the Professor himself and Penny, though due to how busy he was it was rarely occupied. The Professor mostly just fell asleep on the table full of circuits, spare joints, and other mechanical nonsense. The other was used by Evans in his time as an intern and occasionally on visits, me.
The third... was never used.
Until now.
Suddenly, I found myself surrounded by the two teams in a rough circle, isolated in a dark room, who were trying to interrogate me hooked on phonics style.
"So let me get this straight," Jaune held his chin up with one hand. Every thought of him looking smart or threatening was quickly washed away in the fact that he was still in his Pumpkin Pete onesie and sleepily smothered a yawn with a fist. There were black eyebags under his eyes, and a perfect white line running all the way to the back of his neck along with a red mark which I tried hard not to pay attention to.
Damn... Pyrrha is more daring then I'd cared to admit...
"You were gonna go and talk with the other guys on what to do, but decided to not include us in it," The blonde knight's eyes glinted in the darkness as a flash from his scroll was directed into my eyes. "Again."
I swear, did they read something that came out of 'Interrogation for dummies' or something...?
"Like I said," I sighed for what felt like the 5th time as I didn't crumble under their not-so-angry glares, all while blinking the spots out of my eyes. "I was and still is going to, include you guys in the plan, and even tell you about it afterwards in Remnant terms! I just wanted this to be an Earth boys night out. A relaxing, peaceful, quiet nig-"
"Morning." Pyrrha corrected, rubbing her emerald eyes.
"Right, sure, whatever." I rolled my eyes. "Point is, why do you guys have me strapped to a chair? Even after explaining all this?!" I nodded off below me, where I was suddenly strapped via Gambol Shroud. As strong as the material was, the knot it was tied in was so loose and lackluster, so half assed, that I could've snapped the material that was equivalent to Kevlar free with one quick jolt.
On a quick glance and dim lighting however, it looked like it did it's job, so I had to convince them that it worked, lest I wanted to risk a sleepy Nora overdoing it and suffocate my blood regulation. Not that normal Nora wouldn't do the same.
"How can we be sure you aren't just gonna run away once we let you go?" Blake's eyes narrowed dangerously as she tried her best not to trip over her feet.
Despite the energy she had in our... encounter, it seemed to be but a short burst of energy from her adrenaline rush was all but used. She looked just as exhausted as when she was chasing after the White Fang in Volume 2 if her eyebags and red rimmed eyes were any indication.
"Really?" I deadpanned. "And just where am I supposed to run off to? Ironwood and his Atlesian Fleet is gonna shoot me down before I could explain anything, the global news of me being dead is still fresh and won't be forgotten anytime soon, you guys are gonna hunt me down to all four corners of Remnant until you find me, which might mean encountering Grimm as dangerous as Beringels, Sea Feilongs, Geists and inadvertently Petra Gigas's and whatnot, which defeats the purpose of protecting you in the first place, and do I have to remind you that Evans is in Amber's body, who could outfly me or any Bullhead at lightspeed if he wants to?!"
Blake and the others glanced at each other, before Pyrrha shrugged as to say there isn't a counter argument against it. Or... that they were too tired to retaliate.
"I swear Blake," I growled under my breath as I rubbed my wrists, wriggling the ribbons loose. They all gaped and blinked, but made no attempt to fix it. "I'm not you. I'm not gonna just bolt after hearing 'White Fang'." As if to prove my point, like a hypnotic catch phrase, Blake's shoulders instinctively stiffened and her feline ears twitched.
"You sure you don't want us to come along with you?" Ruby asked nervously as she played with her pointer fingers, fiddling uneasily with a shy and sheepish smile as she looked up to meet my eyes. "I mean we could understand it better if-"
"Like I said before, how would you like it when I stick around during a girls night out?" I questioned with a raised brow, causing her to cringe as she imagined it, echoed by Yang, a nervous chuckle by Pyrrha, and a pondering Nora. "Precisely."
"Then at least let Jaune or Ren-"
"Again, they're just gonna stand there and do nothing. We're gonna be talking on Earthen terms, which means that he won't get most of it. Besides, it's almost half past 3." I nodded off to the wall clock for further emphasis. "If anything, they'll just nod off. You guys should be asleep at this hour."
Their faces clearly wanted to say 'And so should you', but nobody dared to further push it.
They're unused to pulling all nighters, being in their first years and all. Their sleepless night before the Fall of Beacon had played in the factor that their movements were more sluggish and held no power during their fight against the Grimm, and that immediately after the Fall was over, they fell fast asleep before their heads even hit their pillows.
Or so I was told by Evans.
Well... I eyed Yang out of the corner of my eye. Except her and her late night bar visits, I guess...
After a while where nobody dared to speak, the small leader took it upon herself to break the silence.
"Promise us that you'll return...?" Ruby held out her pinkie in front of my face.
I just blinked owlishly.
Really...? I mused as I scanned the faces of the 7 main characters in front of me. Some grit their teeth or have the top row tease their bottom lip, others hid their concerns through their thick facades, but most were just waiting for my answer.
Were they really that scared?
My eyes finally settled on the red hooded leader, eyes glassy as tears threatened to spill out of her eyes when I made no move to acquire her pinkie.
With a sigh, I grabbed the back of her head and dunked her head below my chest. I felt her shoulders stiffen, but made no move to pull away. She was quivering and shaking as if she was just dunked in a pool of ice. I felt her take short breaths as she started to choke back a sob.
"Yeah, I'll return by the time you wake up. I promise."
"Then I won't sleep..." Ruby's muffled voice was smothered in my chest, but it was still audible, even to the others.
"I'll give you 10 minutes until you eat your words." I chuckled as I ran my hand across her hair.
I never seen so many of their shoulders slump in relief.
"And here I was worried there were a new species of ant sized Grimm, crawling in your ear canals with the ability to attach to your cerebral stems and brainwash people." I sighed with a chuckle and shook my head. "Salem needs to make them work on their interrogation skills though."
Ruby whimpered like a kicked puppy as she instinctively cupped her ears.
"I'm glad you aren't on her side." The eastern gunman said with a tired voice. "Your ideas for Grimm are terrifying."
"Yeah, what he said," Nora pointed to her not-together together friend. "I'm pretty sure this Sandwitch-"
"Salem." I amended.
"Salad." Nora corrected. "Would've conquered Remnant by now if you'd had joined her. Oh!" She perked up as if she'd just remembered something. "We have to name it!"
I blinked owlishly. "Name what?"
"The thing. That thingy thing inside you silly," The ginger girl shook her head with a smile as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "We can't just keep calling it 'It' or 'That thing' forever now could we?"
Before I could say that we can, Nora slammed a hand her knees, before she spread her arms wide and snapped her fingers. I could imagine an imaginary lightbulb shining brightly above her head. "I got it! Since you were in that armour when it took over, how about 'The Dark Knight?'."
"That's... more of a title." I deadpanned. "Also, taken." If anything, that suited Evans more. Batman wasn't one to kill, and Evans had made most of the gadgets we have with us till this day.
"Drat!" Nora stomped her feet in place. "Ooh, ooh! I know! 'The Black Swordsman.'." She said over my shoulder and slowly hovered an arm across the air, like a director saying the infinite potential of an actor in tow.
"Again, Title, again, taken." I somehow managed to deadpan further. I stole his sword, his armour, and his fighting style. The last thing I need to steal right now is his badass title. "Besides," I shrugged. "The last thing I want is for me to be mistaken as some wimpy edgelord with some bitch in a rapier as a wife."
Everybody balked.
"Wait what's wrong with Weiss?" Ruby asked as her head tilted in confusion.
"Woah woah," Yang held out both arms, as if to calm down an angry mob. "I know you don't always get along with the Ice Queen, but I don't think she deserves that."
"Huh," I put a hand to my chin in thought. "I almost completely forgot she exists. Nevermind. The point is, I can't take that title."
"Then I guess I'm out." Nora's shoulders slumped, getting a massage from her not-so-secret soon to be lover- I mean... childhood friend.
"Do we really have to name it though?" I asked honestly. "We could go on with it being nameless or come up with something tomorrow."
"Of course we do!" Nora shouted. "When do we know what to call you if you're not you?"
I wanted to point out that there was no indication when the swap of personalities happen. And besides...
"You're making it seem like it's on our side." I deadpanned again.
"You're talking to a woman that eats a dozen pancakes for breakfast everyday and rode an Ursa to death in initiation." Ren reminded me with a deadpan of his own.
"Fine..." I sighed as I ran a hand through my hair. "I guess you can call it... Uh..."
"The Big Bad Wolf?" Yang offered. "The Lone Wolf? Beowolf?"
"Title, title and mixup. Not that I don't like it." I added when the blonde brawler's shoulders slumped. "It's just that we might have to come up with something simpler. A name."
"Then..." Ruby drawled on, curious silver orbs eyeing me eagerly. "What should we call it?"
"Call it... " I thought hard. Darkness was the first thing that came into mind.
It's not like Blake where her team had been the light that could seep in and pull her out of her White Fang problems. Evans had been the only guy there to save me during the Fall, and even that was against my orders in an attempt to keep him safe. But what's done was done, and he had no regrets doing it and I didn't fault him too much for it.
As long as he didn't drag any of the girls into it. I would have never allowed them to even come close to that... That thing.
...
...
Wow, Nora was right. We really do need a name for it.
Let's see...
Nothingness.
Emptiness.
The void.
The place where even light couldn't reach.
The dark side of the moon... Penum-
Wait... that's it!
"Umbra." I answered after a good moment of thought.
"Okay, that went faster and better then expected." Yang admitted. "Sounds great. Let's roll with that."
"Good." I nodded. "Now that that's out of the way, Nora can finally leave you guys to rest easy." I chuckled while the other members of team JNPR seem to agree with a tired sigh. "You guys get some rest. Looks like you need it."
"Yeah no... kidding." Yang stretched and I heard a small cracking of her neck. Pyrrha smothered another yawn, and even Ren seemed to teeter a little.
I laughed mirthfully.
They really are compact for sister teams.
That'll never change.
At least I hoped not.
"Come on Rubes, you can let go no-"
My eyes widened as I stared down, before my lips twisted up into a smile.
Her shoulders were slumped, and her eyes were closed, and she mumbled something about cookies under her breat-
Wait-
Chomp
The next thing I knew, she was biting my hand, hard enough to bruise it, but not hard enough to pierce skin.
"Aww, li'l Rubes is all grown up now," Yang cooed. "Marking hickeys on a man that technically isn't even hers yet."
"Go to bed Xiao Long." I chuckled with no actual heat in it. "You're drunk."
"Ooh, wanna join me?" She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.
"Soon." I teased and poked my tongue out, and caught amber eyes grimace reel back at the corner of my eyes.
The lights were turned on and Team JNPR groggily made their way out, with Nora even hitting the door frame and passing out completely, causing Ren and Jaune to groan as they hefted the ginger girl by her shoulders.
Passing Ruby onto her sister's arms, my eyes honed in on the last person in the room.
Blake's looked away once she noticed me glancing at her, and her cheeks turned noticeably red.
Remembering back to what she'd done before they apprehended me together, I could feel my own heat up.
"So..." I started. My mouth opened and closed like a fish, but no words came out. "Uhh..."
"Do you want me to leave the room to yourselves?" Yang poked a tongue out, earning a sharp glare from her partner. "I don't know if you guys can get it on with nothing but a stone cold floor and a chair. I'll take Rubes to a hotel and leave our room empty if you'd lik-"
"We'll be fine, Yang." I gritted out as I felt my cheeks heat up even more. "I just... need you to wait outside for Blake. I won't take long."
"Don't worry, take as long as you'd like. I won't tell anybody how loud you two are." Yang put a finger to her lips, and then roared with laughter when we both looked away flustered.
Some things never change...
...
"I..."
"So-"
Both of us looked at each other, then at the floor again.
"You were saying?" She asked, not quite meeting my eyes.
"Please, after you."
"No no, you go first."
"Please, I insist."
After a while, she finally gathered enough courage to break the awkward silence. "I..." The cat faunus started, scratching her other hand as she fiddled uncomfortably in place. "I'm... sorry...?"
"For what?" I took the distraction for what it was, and continued any topic she was happy to offer.
"For... believing in what Evans said. Immediately." She added when I wanted to point out she wasn't wrong to do so, and that Evans was trustworthy. Though a bit of an ass at times. "I just... thought," She muttered awkwardly, bending her knees slightly and twisting on the spot."After what you've done, it all lines up and made perfect sense. And I just... reacted accordingly."
"Ok."
"Okay...?" Blake asked as amber orbs met black. "What does 'Okay' mean?"
"Figure it out for yourself," I chuckled as I held out my hands out wide to take a step forward.
She took a step back.
"Did... I do something wrong?" I asked with a frown as my hands rested on my sides.
"N-no, I just... " Amber eyes flicked to me for a second, before snapping back down on the floor. Her cheeks heated up furiously.
Of course it was gonna go back to that.
"I..."
Her voice died in her throat as she shuffled uncomfortably.
"You were carried away with the thoughts of never seeing me ever again." I didn't look at her, but instead at the door or more specifically, piercing through it. Towards corridors, exactly where it had happened. "I... guess that's understandable..." I mumbled, not quite able to look in her eyes without closing them and seeing her face inches away from mine.
Her hot... panting, pleading face as beads of sweat traveled down her nec-
No!
BAD!
"Yes..." She muttered in agreement, though the way she said it sounded like she didn't quite believe her own words. "That must be it. I just got carried away. It's perfectly normal." She reassured herself, saying it over and over again as if it were a mantra to calm herself down. "It's all normal... Just lost in the moment and hormones. Nothing to be ashamed of... right?"
"Ruby got carried away as well." I pointed out with great effort to keep myself from stuttering while my mind conjured up the mental image the exact moment it happened. "But there's no need to bring it into the light if she doesn't ask." I scoffed and chuckled at the thought. "She'd probably deny it flat out too to avoid embarrassment or teasing from Yang."
"Yeah," Blake put a hand to her mouth to smother the small chuckle that slipped out. "That sounds like our team leader for you."
And then, the conversation slipped back into awkward silence.
Damnit Blake...
"Why... why haven't you given her an answer?" She finally asked after what seemed like a whole minute had passed. "Ruby." She specified, in case I wasn't clear on it.
Diverting attention away from her own feelings.
Okay, I mused as she looked at me expectantly for an answer. I'll take you up on that...
"Why haven't I, ponder I yonder?" I held a hand up to my chin and paced slowly around the room theatrically. "Is it because the small rose is too young to have her petals plucked?" I grinned as I caught Blake scowl, not missing the innuendo. "Or is it perhaps it's because the powerful dragon is protecting this little bud? Is the small rose eternally cursed never to bloom?" I grasped the air and held my hand close to my chest.
"Oh hie thee," Blake bowed dramatically as she rolled her eyes, tension draining from her shoulders. "Thou art foolish, for thou clearly hadn't noticed the time that he is wasting when thee had promised to his comrades are for all but naught."
"Surely you jest. Would the time really be wasted?" I paced to her and posed as I tilted my head up to the ceiling and palmed my face. "If I could spend much time with a beauty like thine?" I peeked from under my fingers.
We both roared with laughter and clutched to our stomachs. It wasn't the answer she sought, but it was the one she needed. Soon, after wiping a couple of tears from our eyes, our chuckles died down and silence took the room once more.
"Thank you, Blake." I stepped into her guard with a smile. She had both arms crossed across her breasts, but this time, she made no move to shy away.
"For what?" She asked with a bit more confidence than before and less stuttering.
We were only a few inches apart that I could feel the heat emanate off her body. I grabbed her shoulders, then drew her into a hug, not that she returned it. It came out slightly awkward, with me feeling her crossed arms on my chest.
The breaths that came out of nostrils, along with my height, caused her feline ears to twitch cutely.
"For everything." I breathed out, feeling the soft fur tickle the underside of my chin. I tightened my grasp, knowing very well my limits and not attempting to grab anywhere lower. "I'd knew out of all of them, you would've understood me the most. Also..." I glanced down. "The same could be applicable to you too, Kitty Kat."
"What do you mean?" Her eyes narrowed into stilts as she glanced upwards.
"The White Fang isn't your burden to bear alone, so please." I said as I pulled apart. "So don't worry if you're unable to provoke change in faunus equality overnight. Don't carry it all upon your shoulders, alright?" I chuckled as I pulled away.
"You don't know what it's like Louis... to live in shadows," Blake shot back as she turned and shuddered, hugging her arms. "Always regretting what you've done. Spending time counting every little mistake, and knowing it's always easier to run."
Of course she won't let go that easily.
...
...
Welp,
It's a good thing I memorized the lyrics like the back of my hand.
"You don't have to spend your life looking backward." I hummed. "We've been through this over and over again. You can't just wish it away, the past is the past, it'll never change. That was before, this is now and when. We have a chance to make it better if we try..."
...
...
...
She scowled as her cheeks heated up and a wild blush spread across her cheeks. "That's just not fair..." She pouted with constantly reddening cheeks, not as cutely as Ruby, but close enough with the flicking of her feline traits. "You always seem to know what to say."
"Who told you to challenge me of all people?" I snickered, causing her cheeks to darken even more as she elbowed my gut. "We'll solve this. Together." I chuckled as I grabbed her shoulders.
"Don't use my own words against me." She mumbled under her breath as she kept her eyes locked to the ground.
I laughed harder at her honest opinion for all the good it did and the other, shy side that she rarely shows in public, only to receive another elbow to the gut as I turned away.
"Night Blakey." It might've been my imagination, but I'm pretty sure I caught the edges of her lips tug up into a small smile.
"Night... Lou." She replied casually.
I froze. My shoulders stiffened.
"Don't..." I said as my body tensed up. "Don't call me that."
"Huh...?" Even though I didn't turn back, I felt Blake's amber eyes boring into my back. "Why not? Evans and the others do it."
"Only my friends call me Lou."
"Oh..." I felt her face sadden and grasp at her chest. "And I-I guess I shouldn't be surprised..." I can feel her bite her bottom lip. "I'm not your friend?"
"No." I replied flatly.
There was another awkward silence and tension seemed to grow in the air around me.
...
...
I heard a sniffle.
"You're not just a friend," I stated honestly after a moment. "You're..." I felt her head perk up. "You're.. something more."
The sniffling stopped abruptly, and I felt her gape.
"Y-you're..." She sniffled happily as I imagined her scraping her wrists across her eyes. "Despicable..." She half hissed wearing a smile. "I swear I'll get you back for that."
"Hey, this should be me getting even for that kiss." I snickered as I did a 2 finger salute, and walked off.
With a satisfied smile, I headed out and pretended not to hear the incomprehensible sounds she made between a mewl, a giggle and a squeal over my shoulder.
"Yang." I greeted the blonde brawler outside the doors, holding Ruby close in her arms.
"Smooth going lover boy." Yang smirked as she gave me a thumbs up.
"Just how much did you hear?" I chuckled with reddened cheeks as I scratched a finger across it.
"Enough." Her smirk cracked a little. "I guess this confirms your feelings for Ruby?" The blonde brawler's saddened eyes trailed down to the sleeping figure cradled in her arms. "Before something else interrupts. I just wanted to be clear." Lilac orbs met charcoal. "I would prefer you flat out deny her now rather than she cling onto that small glimmer of hope that doesn't exist. I hold no hard feelings if you choose my partner over my sister."
"Love," I sighed as my face hardened and killed my sheepish smile, and pinched the space between my eyes. "It's not such a simple matter Yang. When I meant Blake meant something more, I meant all of you do too. I wouldn't have risked my life so recklessly if you all didn't mean jack."
Her cheeks dusted with flecks of pink as I said that, and she inadvertently looked at the floor.
"There are different types of love. You love Ruby, but it's gonna be different then your love for let's say... Blake since she's your partner. And even more so with your love for Weiss. I can't really say I want them as a soul mate. It's too fast. My mind and heart aren't in sync. They're not committed to it."
"So, you finally admit one of the drawbacks of men," Yang sighed and shook her head, her face saying she'd known all too well. "Is it really that hard not to fall into temptation?"
"What?" I looked flabbergasted for a bit. "No! Not that. I'm not gonna cheat on them if I get into a relationship with either!" I said quickly. "It's just... it's not a priority right now."
"Not a priority...?" The blonde brawler raised a brow.
"Like I said before," I shook off whatever negative thoughts Yang might've had. "The Dock fight, Train heist, and the Fall of Beacon was just the start of it all. I'm waist deep in this, and it's too late to back out now. I have to see this through."
"And why can't you just decide to run it in parallels?" Yang pointed out as I strode towards her. "See this through while having a relationship? It couldn't hurt to try."
"Because then I couldn't focus," I replied, putting a hand to her shoulder as our bodies aligned side by side. "And I might miss something along the way. Other than that," I added when she made to complain. "It will also screw with the team dynamic."
"What do you mean?"
"Close your eyes."
Yang just looked at me aghast, then her cheeks flushed.
"What?"
"N-Nothing!" She said a little too quickly as her lilac eyes narrowed and she grabbed her mouth, gritting her teeth and clasping both hands around it.
"Oh relax would you?" I rolled my eyes. "It's not like I'm gonna kiss you again."
Her cheeks burned brighter.
"So you do remember..." She muttered under her breath, before her eyes turned crimson. "Why didn't you say anything then? Wait, screw that! Why did you do it?!"
"You have any other idea on how to stop an angry you in your tracks at that moment?" I raised my brow with a calm tone. "I never brought it up because you never seemed to be bothered about it. Well, at least until we sparred this morning, I guess."
"I..." She trailed off as she blinked back to lilac. "You could've said somethin-"
"Yeah, as if I haven't tried that already." I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms. "What did you say again? Oh right, 'Don't touch me!'." I faked a punch her way.
Her mouth opened, but then clamped it immediately as she looked away ashamed.
"If you think I meant to grope you," I sighed. "I didn't. I just didn't really see any other option to halt you in your tracks other than knock you out. And with your huge ass Aura pool and your quick to burst temper, I couldn't do a bit of both without shocking and drugging you."
"But that's... just w-"
"Just wrong, I know. Nobody has ever made you felt so vulnerable and helpless before and you hate that with a passion. I know."
Yang just gaped as if I've read her mind.
I pinched my nose ridge again. "You were in a similar situation after Blake's ex cut off your arm." I explained. "I know how your mind works, thus I can more or less predict what you're thinking of. You're always the sun, burning brighter then anybody else out there. Always the eye candy on guys and always the confident one. But take that away and what are you?"
Her eyes gleamed with either awe or shock. Maybe a bit of both.
"I take it you rarely lose a fight." I raised my brow, and waited for a nod. The blonde brawler gasped as her chest heaved up and down faster, close to hyperventilating, but eventually nodded. "You're so confident, so sure of yourself in the topic you conquer, fighting that is, that you always charge in without thinking twice. Against Cardin and his boys? Sure you'd fare well. But Adam is at a level not even comparable to Cardin. You fell, and fell hard. Depression took over afterwards, having lost not only your dignity, but your arm as well." And Blake too, but that went unsaid. It'll spark bad blood even though she didn't do anything here.
"So you... replicated that situation." She gulped as her arm subconsciously went to the spot where I'd jabbed the needle in. "Not the exact same, but wielding the same results. To teach me a lesson."
"It wasn't my main intention but..." My shoulders rose and fell. "Two Nevermores one stone I guess. Plus, if I wanted to keep you safe, you needed to learn that sooner or later."
"So... it was just a lesson right...?" Yang asked for confirmation. "Nothing more."
"If you'd think I wanted to release my urges on you when you're unconscious," I scoffed when that got a grimace. "Then you're wrong. While it is true that you are physically attractive, and I'm not talking about just your body," Her cheeks flushed as she coughed into her fist, while I did not such thing and went on ."I see you as more of an older sister than anything."
"Oh sure," She crossed her arms and huffed. "You said the same thing to Ruby the first time you'd met."
"Hey I didn't fall for her. She fell for me." I pointed out. "I didn't intentionally target her or Blake the moment I landed on Remnant, and would have never thought it'd turn out like this. It was..." I gritted out. "An unexpected development."
"So both my sister and Blake shouldn't hope to ever be with you?" Yang raised a brow. "That's just sad."
"I didn't say that." I sighed and scratched the back of my head. "It's not that I don't want to get into a relationship... like ever, it's that I don't need it, especially right now. I don't wanna rush it, and if I have to choose one or the other, I would rather it be neither for the sake of avoiding bad blood or, as I said earlier, mess up the team's dynamic altogether."
"What do you mean?" The blonde brawler questioned.
"Think of it this way," I let my mind wander to Volume 6. "Let's say you get in a relationship with... Blake. Hypothetically speaking." Yang pondered for a moment and finally closed her eyes.
She wasn't into Blake at that point in time yet, but it was leaning there...
I waited for her to nod before I continued. "Let's say you're in a pinch." She nodded. "And that there's a new type of Grimm that swarms and immobilizes people, dropping humans like flies without even laying a finger on them. Let's say... you're trapped in a cellar, with the only way out being a wooden hatch that you know will only have space for one man to go at a time. Someone came to the rescue on their dying breath and give you a 10 second window to run away. Obviously your team lay sprawled out before you, but are all too weak to move around you. 10 seconds became 7 from your time spent in considering whom to take. Who would you grab first? Blake, Ruby or Weiss?"
"Ruby of course." She answered almost spontaneously with a scoff.
...
...
"Hm," I smirked, then chuckled darkly. "What you say now and what you did are two different things Xiao Long."
"Wait, I thought you said this was hypothetical." Her lilac eyes snapped open and narrowed immediately. "It is hypothetical right?"
I walked past her, retracting my hand.
"Louis...?" I heard her call out behind me. "Louis!"
I didn't answer and walked away.
Yang's POV
As she saw Louis turn in the corridor and the door click shut, she couldn't help it as her mind wandered off.
She'd grab Ruby.
She was sure of it.
Her sister was like a daughter to her.
She raised Ruby herself for most of her life.
She would do anything in the world to ensure she was safe.
She would...
...
...Right?
Louis's POV
"Was wondering when you'd show up." Kevin greeted with a drowsy wave, downing a shot as I leapt over a broken brick wall to get to them. "And here I thought we'd ran out of booze first."
I sighed and smacked Amber across the head with a curled up fist.
"What was that for?" Amber rubbed her nape as she shot me a frustrated glare.
"You know very well what that was for." I growled and took a seat opposite to her.
"No, I don't." She said half lidded. "I wonder if my main body also gets drunk without alcohol poisoning." And she downed another shot.
"You really don't remember?" I asked with my arms crossed and an even more cross expression.
"Nope." She popped.
"Louis is gonna run away because the big bad wolf is here~" I pitched my voice and held my hands helplessly in front of me. "Woe is me... Ring a bell?"
"Whaaa..." Amber slurred and looked away. "The weather is great today, don't you think?"
"Evans..." I gritted out.
"The soothing night air and the gentle breeze. Man this booze is great!" She held out a shot cup and offered it to my face. "Want some?"
"Evans..." I tried again with a sharper glare.
"Okay, suit yourself." She downed it. "Man the night is great today and you look great in that vest. Have I told you that before?"
"EVANS!" My hands slammed onto the table, as my chair scraped back. "Don't bullshit a bullshitter!" I said as I downed a shot. "Why'd you say that to them? You made em cry again!"
"Oh that." Amber dragged on drowsily. "I told them that you were gonna go leave them after you'd recover." She slurred innocently, not even attempting to conceal the fact that she was guilty.
"And what," I asked as my brow twitched. "Did you think that was gonna do?"
"On a bare minimum, score you a cat faunus?" She pointed out carefreely.
"Ugh." I rolled my eyes. "And how exactly did you think she would achieve it?"
Amber shrugged. "As long as you two hit it off, I don't really care how."
Everybody just looked at my face flushing.
"Ugh, this is why I hate you." I threw my hands up in the air and sat down on one of the available barstools. "Was that really necessary?"
"If we want to ensure you don't do anything reckless like what you did during the Fall, then yes." She shrugged. "You'd feel bad for leaving your lifelong partner behind. As to who, I couldn't care less, but probably one in your team would do."
"Are you starting to get paranoid?" I deadpanned. "That wasn't necessary, and you know this!"
"Well excuse me for caring for your mental welfare and your safety!"
"Enough." Kevin snapped. "We're here to discuss things, not debate."
"We'll settle this matter later..." I growled under my breath as I popped 2 buttons off my shirt as I downed another shot and slammed it on the table.
The circular table wobbled unstably.
"Now..." I felt the cold liquid trail down and burned at my throat as I scanned the sea of faces set in stone. To my left, Adrian put his hands into the pockets of his navy blue hoodie which was drawn up to his neck. He took one out of it's pocket occasionally to puff out a ball of smoke or tap his cigarette against an empty shot cup.
Beside him, Derrick crossed his arms, attempting to look threatening as his brows furrowed. Dwiki was tapping away on his scroll, carefree as ever, Amber warming herself up with glowing hands as she rubbed her shoulders, and finally, Kevin to my right, looking expectantly towards me.
7 shot cups lay empty in an equally spread radius front of us, with what I assumed was a 5th bottle of strong liquor in the middle.
With the rainbow of colored shards that littered the dusty floor, it was hard to tell.
With a sigh, I started.
"Are you guys sure you want to stay?"
...
...
"What do you mean?" Kevin asked with a raised brow as he too crossed his arms.
"I know me and Evans are too deep in this to stop." I glanced at the maiden. "But you guys aren't and the bad guys haven't even seen your faces yet. Well, except for Derrick I guess."
Nothing but silence was my response.
"Look," I grumbled. "It's not that we don't want you all on this journey. The more the merrier. It's that it's becoming much more dangerous lately, and you guys aren't trained to fight like we are. Hell, you guys don't even have Aura or the physique of a Hunstman. If anything, any sane person would stop here and disperse, blend in with the locals or something-"
"Lou stop."
It was Adrian who spoke as he puffed out a large cloud of smoke.
He stared.
And stared.
...
...
"He just forgot what he wanted to say didn't he?" I deadpanned as the tall man stared off into the distance with his mouth hung open.
"Then I guess I'll take over." Kevin leant in on the table. "Look Lou, if there's one thing you need to know or get first, it's that you didn't force us to help you, we wanted to help you."
I nodded to show I understood. "But-"
"I get that it'll get dangerous from here on out. And we wouldn't and probably never, learn how to fight on par with the teams you have under your wing." He said as he downed a shot. "But we just regrouped after a year. A year Lou." Kevin hissed out the words. "A whole fucking year. It was a miracle we could even find each other or that any of us were still alive by that point. I didn't come all this way just so that you could shrug us off afterwards. Even if it is for our own safety."
"Actually I wouldn't disagree with a bit of time off-"
"You don't get a say in this Dwiki." Kevin snapped, silencing the man. "Look. A year. A whole year where Adrian was lucky enough to meet one of the main character's uncles to get drunk with him. Drunk enough, that he'd take em with and go here out of all places. A whole year, where Dwiki went to god knows where and didn't get eaten by Grimm. A fucking year where I was stuck to work for old man Johnny Sins! I had to swap jobs every 10 minutes to rush to another store for fucks sake! Yes I survived, learned, earned a ton, but to go back to that hellhole of a lifestyle? No thank you!"
I tried to stifle a chortle, but the others beat me to it and were already roaring with laughter. In the end, I decided to go with the flow and laughed along with them.
"Okay okay," I held out both hands. "You should tell me how that even works sometime. He always does seem to be everywhere all at the same time. How about the rest of you?"
"The boys stick together." Adrian nodded as he wiped a tear from his eye. "That's how it was, and that's how it always will be."
Derrick just grunted and nodded, while Dwiki shrugged.
"And that settles that." Kevin concluded with a loud huff. "So stop babbling around and tell us what's next. Also, I think we should form a team to jump in the bandwagon with the others."
"Louis already has a team," Amber chuckled as she slowly slurped the liquid her shot cup. "It wouldn't do for him to have another."
"Nonsense." Kevin scoffed. "He could be the leader of both!"
"I'm not even the leader of Team RWBY!" I deadpanned further as I palmed my face. "If we were to have an imaginary team, why can't you be the leader?"
"I told you, I'm more of an idea man, not one to execute the plans or lead. Besides, these dumbasses might listen to me," Kevin gestured towards the two D's. "But even with the memorized lore I can't always react accordingly for the best possible outcome. You two know the characters best."
"Even if we form an unofficial team for the shits and giggles, what would it even be called?" Amber asked. "We have 6 members and it's not like any combination of 4 of us could even form a word."
"Uhh..." Kevin looked to the skies for inspiration. "Wait... " He slammed a fist on his palm. "I got it!"
He pointed at me. "But you're gonna have to lower caps your L."
"What do you-" My eyes widened comically. "No. Kevin, no. Hell no."
"Kevin yes!" The rotund man cheered.
"Fuck no." His grin grew wide enough it threatened to split his face in two. "NO! I am not calling our team team IKEA!"
A/N
And so a new team was born.
Wonder if anything and everything we build together will fall apart in a matter of seconds xD.
I'm craving their meatballs now. Dangit...
The pacing for the first 2 chapters have been fairly slow, but don't worry, it'll speed up soon.
This is still considered the setup chapters, after all.
Reviewer Sessions
paradox0.5white: Welcome to my life, which Evans screws with... a lot.
Kage-kitsune9001: Hey, I see that you've finally caught up with my stories. Thank you for coming along for the ride! I'm glad you enjoyed the run of this story, and even though I'm taking this on a different arc, hope that you'll stick and review all the way!