Chapter 26…
It had been six days since the prototypes had been tested in the training rooms and final versions of the weapons had been completed. Sage had decided on a simple dark green colour for his grenade launcher and had adopted timed grenades rather than contact ones so he could ricochet them.
In an effort to honour her original blades Mauve adopted a similar colour scheme and engraving style for her new ones. The lynx faunus was currently showing off her handiwork to her father via scroll call. Asher and Rust had been kind enough to give her some privacy by going for a workout session at the Beacon gyms, Sage was off somewhere else, presumably with his other half.
"-and by pressing the small buttons in the side… ta-da!" Mauve smiled at her father. She was currently sitting cross-legged on Asher's bed (well, their bed nowadays).
"Lovely work!" her father beamed, showing off well kept teeth. "How long did it take to make these new weapons?"
"Just under two weeks," Mauve answered. "My team and I tested out the first drafts a few days ago and the final versions aren't too different."
"And you did this all by yourself?"
Mauve paused for a moment. "Not exactly… I had some help from a friend down the hall, she's very skilled when it comes to mecha-shift technology."
"Give her my compliments, the work here is simply incredible… did you do the detailing?"
"The detailing was all me… I wanted to keep them similar to Proton and Electron."
"So," Argent paused, steering the conversation elsewhere. "The Vytal tournament is coming up, do you plan to participate?"
"Yes, dad." Mauve replied as she gingerly set down her new weapons. "My team is going to try out in the entry exams once they become available… you'll be watching, right?"
"I can do better than watch my dear!" Argent grinned, holding up a silvery coloured slip of paper. Mauve gasped when she realised he was holding a ticket.
"You're coming to watch!"
"Of course! You really think I would pass up the chance to see my daughter on the world stage! I want to be there!"
"That's wonderful!"
Argent chuckled at the beaming grin on his daughters face, happy that the two of them could still hold such a close relationship despite the distance.
"Plus, it will give me the chance to shake your boyfriend's hand… in person" Argent added, grinning as a pale look spread across Mauve's face. "How has that been going by the way? Forgive my prying."
"I'm very happy with him…" Mauve grumbled, flattening her ears down. "I'll have you know that he's a gentleman and that he took me to dinner a few nights ago…"
"Did he?"
"Yes!"
"Good… I'm glad to hear that he's treating you right."
"Lest you treat him wrong?"
"Precisely!" Argent grinned. "I hate to cut this short… but I have to get back to work… talk soon?"
"Of course dad… I'll call soon," Mauve replied, blowing him a kiss as he ended the call. Leaning back against the headboard and slipping her scroll back into her pocket Mauve released a sigh of contentment. She was truly happy that her father was coming to watch her team's performance, although she should probably warn Asher beforehand…
Chances were that Asher was still working out with Rust, she knew that they were probably engaging in "guy talk" and that it wasn't best to barge in.
Just as Mauve was considering her next course of action the door to the room swung open. Standing in the doorway was Sage, his arm slung affectionately around the smaller form of Honey.
"Oh hey Mauve!" Sage blinked. "You still making that scroll call? We can come back…"
"No, no!" Mauve replied with a smile. "Just finished actually… you two are free to come in… how are you Honey?"
"Good, good!" the blonde girl chirped as she and Sage walked in. Mauve had had little social interaction with Honey since the night their teams had hung out, but she seemed kind enough. "Sage and I were planning to play video games… that's not going to bother you or anything?"
"Go ahead," Mauve yawned. "I might be heading out in a bit anyway."
Honey smiled at this and the game console was quickly set up, the two plopped onto the nearest bed as they navigated to the multiplayer mode. Mauve watched with half-interest as they began to play. Mauve saw the appeal of video games but never really had the time for them. After all, why kill virtual grimm when there are real grimm out there that needed eradication?
The screen flashed and a gunshot echoed from the speakers as Sage's sniped Honey down with a well-placed shot. The play elicited a grumble from the blonde haired girl, who gripped her controller tighter.
Well… Mauve had nothing better to do…
"Hey?" Mauve called out softly once the two finished their game. "Don't suppose you two could show me how to play?"
"Sure!" Honey chirped as she retrieved another remote. She missed the horrified look on Sage's face, the green haired boy was no doubt terrified about Mauve finding a new frontier to dominate.
"The first thing to understand is the aim of the game, you need to get the most points… got it?"
"Makes sense…"
"The controls are relatively simple… I'll show you." Honey launched into a quick explanation of the controllers many buttons and their functions. "Does that all make sense?"
"I suppose…"
"Alright then… it's a free for all so shoot whoever you see!" Honey called as she retrieved her own remote as plopped next to Sage again.
A gunshot rang out as Mauve dropped Honey's character like a sack of bricks.
"What have you done…" Sage mumbled to a shocked Honey, the horrified look still etched on his face.
Meanwhile…
"-jeez man… you're a beast!"
"You know it!" Rust huffed under the eighty pound bar. Asher had been kind enough to take a break and spot for him. Rust had lost count a little while ago but his arms still felt strong despite the imposing weight.
"Been meaning to ask you… how are things going with Vermillion?" Asher asked, crossing his sweaty arms over his chest.
"Excellent," Rust responded. "I didn't really know how I felt about her when we first started dating… but she's a lot of fun to be around."
"Yeah?" Asher responded. "Don't get me wrong, she seems really nice… but isn't she a little snarky at times?"
"The good type of snarky…" Rust huffed. "The cute and endearing kind… not the irritable kind."
"Fair enough."
"What about you and Mauve? Didn't you take her to dinner after the training session?"
"Yep, we went to this small restaurant in Vale, good food and not too expensive." Asher explained.
"It's good to see you two doing some proper couple stuff." Rust joked as he thrust the bar back up into the air again.
"What do you mean by that? Were together all the time..."
"You two are crazy about each other… and that's a good thing," Rust wheezed. "But if you two aren't talking each other's ears off you're involved in heated physical affection…"
"Were not that bad…"
"Oh please," Rust snorted. "You two at least had the decency to keep it behind closed doors before last week…"
Rust paused and grinned when he saw a blush spread across Asher's sweaty face. What Rust was referring to was a heated scenario that had occurred a week prior. It had been lunch hour and Team MARS had claimed their usual spots near RWBY and JNPR. Yang had been teasing Asher and Mauve about their intimacy and Mauve decided to shut her up by pulling Asher into a searing makeout session right at the table.
"What… we can't show our appreciation for each other?"
"To each other… sure. But to the rest of us… please refrain…"
"Whatever… are you almost done?"
"Just about…" Rust muttered as he completed one final lift. Holding the bar up for Asher to grab and set down, Rust stood up with a stretch. The two worked in companionable silence as they put away the equipment and wiped down the exercise equipment. Rust was taken aback when Asher next spoke…
"Hey Rust… can I confide in you about something?"
"Of course man, you know I can keep secrets." Rust responded in a more serious tone.
"Alright…" Asher paused. "I wasn't just nervous about entering the Vytal tournament because of the shit I pulled back at Signal…"
"Oh?"
"To be honest… I'm worried about how my parents will react…"
"Why? Because you're on a team with two faunus?"
"I'm on a team with two faunus, the leader is a faunus and I am also dating said leader," Asher elaborated, counting on three fingers. "They don't know about the team situation… I've kept it quiet by saying we're all humans..."
Rust sighed and looked down. "A long time ago you told us that you don't care about what you parents think… right?"
"I maintain that stance…"
"Then what's the problem?"
"I don't know… but I do know that they will either be there in the stands… or there will be an angry scroll call…" Asher muttered as he and Rust walked back to their dorm.
"On the same topic… can I ask you something?" Rust asked.
"Shoot."
"Asher... are you dating Mauve to get back at your parents?"
Rust swore he saw a whirlwind of air when Asher whipped around to face him, an enraged look etched on his face.
"What the hell man?" He hissed at Rust. "Do you really think I would put Mauve through that? That I'm so shallow that I would use her to further my own vendetta? Really?"
"No… I don't," Rust responded calmly. "And that's what you're going to tell your parents when they accuse you of it… after they inevitably find out about you two…"
Asher's face softened in realization, "I'm sorry… I shouldn't have snapped…"
"S'fine… you really are passionate about her…"
"Of course I am!" Asher breathed out. "She's incredible…"
Rust chuckled and ruffled Asher's mop of fair hair. "Young love…"
"Jackass…"
"Hah!"
The two friends paused when they heard yelling coming from the dorm room. Quickening their pace to see what the matter was, Rust slammed on the door and swung it open.
Asher and Rust were treated to a bizarre sight, Sage and Honey frantically squeezing their controllers and smacking buttons, their eyes seemingly glued to the television screen. Mauve sat in total ease atop Asher's bed, smirking when she directed her character to jump off a ledge and execute a perfect three hundred and sixty degree sniper shot. The round made contact with Sage's character, adding another point to Mauve swelling counter and eliciting a wail of primal rage from the wolf boy.
Asher shrugged at the weird display and plopped down next to Mauve. He snaked an arm around her waist to embrace her as she stared at the screen; she returned his affection by scooting closer to him.
Rust just shook his head and softly closed the door. Another wail of rage (this time from Honey) shook the room's foundations.