Legal Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY or any of the show's characters. They are the rightful properties of Rooster Teeth. The True Runes and any other Suikoden-related lore that pops up in this fic are the rightful properties of Konami.
Chapter Seventeen:
Silence permeated the balcony for a long while after Jacques Schnee's declaration. Clover gaped at the white-haired noble, who seemed far too pleased by the shocked reactions he'd gotten to his news, and at the king who, for the moment, seemed to find the floor of the balcony infinitely fascinating. The only noise drifting out into the air were the muffled sounds from the party going on inside behind them.
Jacques glanced from the stunned mer to Qrow to Ironwood once more, a smug gleam in his eyes as he scratched at his mustache, "Ah, please don't try and tell me this comes as a surprise." He stated snidely, "After all, we in the Council of Nobles have been discussing this very matter with His Highness for several months now."
Next to him, Clover could feel Qrow recoil as if the news had physically struck him, and he looked over at the elf briefly to see a positively ashen look on his face. He turned his regard back to Ironwood not a second later, swallowing dryly, "Sir, is this true?" He asked disbelievingly.
Ironwood lifted his head up at the mer's question, steel blue eyes finally settling on Clover briefly before they narrowed in Jacques' direction, "I had been hoping to discuss the matter privately with Clover first before the announcement tonight." He said, clearly annoyed by this turn of events.
"Tonight?" Qrow finally got out, "What the fuck, James?"
Jacques turned to the king fully then, "Well, you really shouldn't have delayed the matter as long as you have, Your Majesty." He said mockingly, "No wonder your dear captain is so confused."
"Sir." Clover tried again, stepping forward. He needed for someone, anyone, to talk to him and explain what the hell was going on.
"Confused about what?"
Robyn Hill's voice entered into the fray then, the blonde and Winter both standing in the doorway leading back into the hall. Winter paused at the sight of her father there, the young woman suddenly standing straighter and narrowing her eyes at his presence. Clover notice her hand was clenched around Robyn's own in a vice.
"About the main purposes of these festivities." Jacques stated in his haughty tone of voice, barely giving the de facto leader of Mantle or his own daughter any real regard before turning to cast a triumphant gaze at Clover once again, "To announce Captain Ebi's new position as Royal Consort."
"What now?" Robyn asked, tilting her head to the side to get a better look at the still stunned Clover, "Did you know about this?"
"And since when have you ever addressed him as Captain Ebi?" Winter demanded, remembering well how the Council of Nobles had disparaged over a mer and a citizen of Mantle being the captain of the Ace Operatives before.
Winter's father pursed his lips together as he twirled the wineglass in his hand, "It is only fitting to address the chosen consort with respect." He stated plainly.
"But I..." Clover began, stopping short as he found he wasn't quite sure of what to say just then.
"I'm surprised you nobles would even be okay with this arrangement given the hard time you've given Ebi in the past." Robyn noted, the hand that wasn't still holding onto Winter's resting on her hip.
Jacques bristled at being called out by a commoner from Mantle no less, but he shrugged indifferently not a moment later, "It is imperative in these troubling times that something be done to help further unite our two cities." He told them, "Ideally, we'd hoped that King Ironwood would have chosen you."
Robyn snorted derisively.
"But Captain Ebi is a suitable secondary choice given his status amongst the knights of Atlas despite his non-human heritage." Jacques carried on as if Robyn hadn't reacted at all.
"But my Rune!" Clover exclaimed, desperately trying to think of some kind of counter to this situation.
"Is problematic but not necessarily a deal-breaker given how mer produce offspring." Jacques started, "If anything, it provides a bit of a tragic note to a heroic love story for the masses, wouldn't you say?"
"Father!" Winter said, eyes lighting up indignantly at his words then. She dropped her hand from around Robyn's to take a step towards her disowned father in order to defend her comrade.
She halted only when Ironwood raised his hand up in the air, his gaze never leaving Clover's still stunned face even as he said, "That's enough, everyone." He placed his hands behind his back then, "Clover, your thoughts?"
Clover blinked as he felt several sets of eyes land on him, his heart beating wildly in his chest. His gaze fixed onto Ironwood's face not a minute later as he guarded his expression, "Is this an order, James?" He asked, deciding to fall back on his knighthood protocol.
James stiffened somewhat at the overly neutral tone in his subordinate's voice then, "No." He finally said at length, "But, if I were you, I'd think long and hard about how this could potentially benefit both Atlas and Mantle."
Robyn snorted once more as Jacques played with his collar, "But don't take too long to decide." He said gleefully, "After all, we'd like to make the official announcement tonight."
Clover frowned and nodded, his mind going a mile a minute. He turned around to face the surprisingly silent Qrow to gauge his reaction to what they'd just heard, only to find that the spot by his side was now completely empty and the elf nowhere in sight.
Clover blinked, unsure of where Qrow had disappeared to when he'd been standing right next to him on the balcony mere moments before, "What happened to Qrow?" He asked, genuinely confused.
Ironwood and Winter both hardly seemed surprised by the sudden vanishing act even as Robyn's eyes widened in surprise to match Clover's, the king merely pressing his fingers against the bridge of his nose at this turn of events, "It figures Qrow wouldn't be able to stomach this kind of talk for long." He mumbled, as if the bearer of Soul Eater's vanishing act was somehow all to be expected.
"Not one for politics, I take it?" Jacques sneered at the notion, "Still, jumping from a balcony seems a bit extreme even for that."
"That's not what happened." Winter responded tersely when she noticed the alarmed looks on Clover and Robyn's faces.
"No? Then where, pray tell, did he run off to when we've been standing in front of the door this entire time?" Her disowned father asked haughtily, crossing his arms over his chest.
"That's—!" Winter began, though she stopped herself when Ironwood raised up his hand once more as if to indicate that what had happened was none of Jacques Schnee's business in the first place.
Clover bit his lower lip, clenching his hands into fists at his sides. Briskly, he made to move past everyone and head into the grand hall again. "Where are you going, Clover?" Robyn asked him, resting a hand on his shoulder to temporarily halt his progress, the concern for her childhood friend evident in her tone.
Clover's eyes remained fixed on the party happening inside the manor, not wanting to turn his head in case his eyes fell on Ironwood at that moment. After all, his head was still swirling with what he had just been told. "Qrow's bound to be here somewhere still." He finally managed to get out, pulling his arm gently from her grasp, "I'd like to see what's wrong. Think about things on my own for a while."
Robyn sent a challenging look over at Ironwood and Jacques then, nodding her head, "That's more than fair." She told her friend, stepping out of his way then, "I'd need some time to, if I was given that kind of bombshell."
Ironwood looked as if he wanted to say something, but the king held his tongue while Jacques scoffed, "Well, do be quick about it, Captain Ebi." He said, "I'd like to make the announcement soon, after all."
The brown-haired man didn't even bother acknowledging Schnee's remark as he made his way inside once more, head spinning with an assortment of thoughts and emotions though the primary one on his mind was finding out where exactly Qrow had run off to. For some reason, he especially wanted to hear the elf's thoughts on what they'd just learned before he made his decision.
"Oh! Hello, Clover!" Penny's cheerful voice invaded his troubling thoughts just then, the red-haired girl for some reason having Whitley in a headlock while Ruby and Oscar were trying to do damage control, "What appears to be the problem?"
He blinked at her casual and quite friendly demeanor then, temporarily caught off-guard, "I could be asking you the same thing, Penny." He told his adopted sister.
"Hmm?" She asked, tilting her head to the side as she glanced down at a struggling Whitley.
"Unhand me!" The boy demanded, pushing at her side.
"I will once you have properly calmed down and apologized!" Penny told him cheerfully.
Oscar's face turned bright red as Ruby leaned over conspiratorially to the mer to explain, "Weiss' brother got a little handsy with Oscar earlier," she said, "So Penny thought a time-out would be in order."
"Handsy?" Clover asked, glancing over at Oscar for further explanation.
Oscar's freckled face was tinged slightly pink around his cheeks, "He just thought we weren't paying appropriate attention to him, so he grabbed my shoulder." The teen explained.
Penny glanced down at the now red-faced boy, "Which was quite rude to do." She said matter-of-factly.
"He really didn't mean any harm by it, Penny." Oscar tried again, raising his hands in a placating gesture.
"Right." Ruby said as she bobbed her head in earnest agreement, "We're all friends here."
Penny considered their words and then smiled brightly, "New friendships are always so interesting!" She released her hold on the pale boy then, "I am glad to count you among them though!"
Whitley sputtered indignantly as he stepped away from Penny and ran his hands over his wrinkled outfit, "I'd hardly consider us friends!" He snapped out.
Oscar merely smiled and patted his shoulder, "Would that really be so bad though?" He asked the other boy, genuinely curious.
Whitley considered the trio with a contemplative frown before sighing, "Well, perhaps I was a little rough earlier." He finally conceded.
"If you're really that concerned about us causing trouble, it would make more sense to be close by, wouldn't it?" Ruby asked him happily, elbowing the white-haired boy in his side with a mischievous wink.
His frown deepened, "I suppose..." Whitley said, trailing off when he couldn't think of an obvious counter argument.
Penny clapped her hands together excitedly, "Oh, Weiss will be so pleased!" She exclaimed cheerily.
"I sincerely doubt that." Whitley said, the white-haired teen's eyes holding a distant look, "My sisters barely notice me."
A heavy silence settled over the group, the three other teens glancing awkwardly at one another at the youngest Schnee's admission. The Schnee family situation was certainly complicated, to say the least.
Ruby's silver eyes lit up not a second later, "Hey, why don't you show us around now that we're all friends?" She asked, smiling brightly. Whitley stared at her for a moment before nodding, the girl's wings flapping excitedly on her back underneath her cloak as she and Penny high-five each other over being able to explore the manor more freely now.
Clover smiled, glad that the altercation had been dealt with without any further complications, "None of you saw Qrow come by here, by any chance?" He asked the group, though he knew it was only a slim chance that had happened.
They shook their heads, "No, but Blake and Yang said they saw him upstairs before they went to the ballroom." Oscar informed him.
Ruby patted his shoulder, "I'm sure you'll find him in no time flat!" She told the mer assuredly, giving a friendly wave along with Penny as Clover moved away from them and headed up the grand staircase, wondering just how Qrow had gotten up there without anyone seeing him do so earlier.
The second floor of the Schnee Manor was quieter than downstairs. It seemed only a few partygoers went up there to mingle somewhere more private. Noise still drifted up from the ground floor as he ascended, eyes darting every which way to see where the dark-haired man might be.
"Clover?"
The Rune of Punishment's bearer started at the sound of Weiss' voice coming from in front of him, cursing himself for being so lost in his thoughts that he hadn't even realized she and Ilia had approached. The two girls were standing in the middle of the plushy carpeted hallway, their hands nearly touching the other's as they stood side-by-side. He doubted they even realized their closeness at the moment.
"Snooping around hardly seems fitting for a knight of your caliber." The white-haired girl teased, seeming to be in an oddly cheerful mood despite being in the home she'd run away from several years ago. Clover couldn't help but wonder if that had to do with her current company.
He smiled slightly and rubbed the back of his head, "I could honestly say the same about the two of you." He joked back, "Not a huge fan of the party?"
Weiss' face lit up in a blush then, her eyes widening slightly as they held onto Ilia's gaze as a shy, awkward air settled between them when they smiled slightly at one another, "Not particularly, no." She admitted.
"It was a bit too stuffy downstairs, so Weiss offered to show me what was on the second floor instead." Ilia informed the mer, her freckles taking on a slightly pink hue at that moment.
Their fingers did touch then, albeit briefly. The Ace Op was glad to see that they had apparently gotten over some of the hurdles that had been placed between them earlier. "I'll try not to hold you two up then." Clover stated, teal eyes glancing past them down the hallway, "You haven't seen Qrow, have you?"
The two young women glanced at one another before turning their heads to a door that was slightly ajar several steps down the corridor. "He seemed like he wanted to be with his thoughts." Ilia informed him quietly, the white-haired girl nodding her head in agreement.
Clover sighed, "There's definitely been a lot to think about." He muttered more to himself.
Another look passed between the girls then, Weiss raising her eyebrow, "Should we be worried?" She asked, raising a white eyebrow in curiosity.
He was quick to smile reassuringly as he moved past them towards the room they'd indicated earlier, "It's nothing to concern yourselves over." He told them, because in reality it really was something that would mostly affect him regardless of whatever choice he made. No fair to drag any of the others into it.
Weiss looked at him doubtfully for another moment before she reached out and surprisingly gripped Ilia's hand, "Let's hurry up with the tour then." She told the shocked yet immensely pleased brunette, her face flushing at her own action.
Clover smiled gratefully at their discretion. With a deep breath of his own, he headed into the darkened room.
Admittedly, changing into a bird and flying from the balcony while everyone was distracted by Ironwood's announcement had not been Qrow's finest moment. But he just couldn't help it, especially not after Clover had asked if the consort decision was an order or not. Because he knew Clover and his loyalty. If the king of Atlas so much as implied that it was a duty required of him, then the mer would do so no questions asked.
The thought fell heavy and constricting over Qrow. A very large, very selfish part of him simply wanted the other man to reject the offer outright. But why? It wasn't as if the arrangement didn't make sense. It even came with quite a few positives.
Besides, Qrow was only an elven spy and another bearer of a cursed True Rune. He knew damn well that Clover deserved better, that at least Ironwood would look after him. But, still! The entire thing didn't sit right with him and there was a painful tightness in his chest at the thought of the whole affair. It was because Qrow knew he was being selfish. Because Clover should act on what he actually wanted, not because he felt it was in everyone's best interests.
"Qrow?"
The mer in question stepped into the room then, light from the hallway spilling into what turned out to be a rather extravagant-looking guest bedroom. Qrow squinted light red eyes until the door shut behind the knight. He couldn't help but smirk in a self-deprecating manner not a moment later, "Hey, lucky charm, you found me." He said almost sheepishly.
The younger man nodded in the dim light of the room, his expression concerned, "You disappeared so suddenly…" He trailed off when he realized he had no explanation for the elf's vanishing act.
Qrow ran a hand through his greying black hair then, "Yeah, well, I've never been one to be able to stomach politics." He said in way of explanation.
"It was certainly a tough conversation." Clover hummed in agreement, stepping forward to stand close by Qrow, his warmth bleeding into the other man's side.
"You're telling me." The elf replied as he let out a hoarse laugh, "You're not seriously considering Jimmy's proposal, are you?"
The brown-haired knight said nothing in reply, his teal gaze distant. Something in Qrow's stomach dropped despite his earlier thoughts, "Seriously, Cloves?" He asked in staunch disbelief, a rising sense of panic flowing through him.
"He is right in that it could stabilize the kingdom," Clover said thoughtfully, frowning as his eyebrows furrowed, "And my time is limited, so if I can do something to improve things in the meanwhile then—!"
Before Qrow could even really think on what he was doing or why, he surged forward into Clover's space yet again, his mouth finding purchase against Clover's own and effectively cutting the other man off. He didn't know how long the kiss lasted, or when exactly Clover started to just as desperately return it, but there were arms wrapped around him and vice versa when they both finally pulled apart once more for air.
"Q—Qrow?" Clover's voice was laced with both desire and confusion as their foreheads rested together.
Qrow closed his eyes and took in a deep breath, relishing in the scent of the mer close by him, "Clover. I—" He was cut off by a slight knock on the door then, and Qrow cursed his semblance as the two equally red-faced men pulled further apart from one another just as it opened. A white-haired woman that Qrow immediately recognized as Willow Schnee due to her resemblance to her children stood in the doorway.
The noblewoman didn't even bat an eyebrow at the compromising position she'd found the pair in, pursing her lips determinedly instead, "Captain Ebi, Huntsman Branwen." Willow stated without preamble, "I need to talk to you." Before either of them could respond, she quickly added, "It's about something my husband would very much like to keep secret."
Author's Notes: Ah, I wonder what Willow would want to talk to them about? Curiouser and curiouser! :D