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 Eighteen:
Willow Schnee sat on the edge of the sofa as if she would was poised to jump off of the cushioned piece of furniture at any given moment should the door she'd just locked behind her begin to remotely rattle on its hinges. Clover figured that wasn't too far from the truth of the matter, given how hurriedly she'd delved into her story the second she'd sat down, her eyes nervously sweeping over the room as if afraid that someone was waiting in the shadows.
"So you're telling us that Jacques somehow acquired the True Water Rune from where Jimmy had been keeping it hidden?" Qrow started brusquely after her tale.
The white-haired woman's hands tightened their death hold on her knees as she nodded her head in response to the elf's question, "Strange people I had never seen before brought the Rune here several weeks ago." She told them, "You do recall how we used to house the Bright Shield Rune here?"
Clover mutely nodded at her question. The Schnee family had held onto that particular Rune since ancient times, using it as a symbol of their noble lineage and power up until it had chosen Winter as its bearer and she left the household to serve in the knighthood.
"The area that had once housed that particular Rune is now completely cut off from everyone but my husband and his guests." Willow told them, raising an eyebrow, "A lot of effort for what has been an empty space for all these years, don't you think?"
Clover and Qrow exchanged a look then, Clover trying his hardest not to remember what had happened mere seconds before Willow had entered the room lest his face burst into flame right then and there. "Even if they aren't hiding the True Water Rune there, this does sound rather suspicious." He muttered.
"And it's our first real lead we've had about its potential whereabouts to begin with." Qrow agreed.
Clover turned back around to Willow then, "Have you uncovered the identities of these people your husband has been visiting with?" He asked her, hoping she could provide them with more details.
The older woman shook her head, "They keep to themselves when here. Though," she paused as she furrowed her brow, "I wouldn't put it past them to just be using Jacques. It wouldn't surprise me if they're more than willing to betray him as well when the time comes."
"Which is why you're approaching us at all." The brown-haired mer realized, teal eyes lighting up in understanding.
She tilted her head slightly on acknowledgement of what he said, "I need to at least try and keep safe what little family I have left. If Jacques does something that might endanger them, then..." she trailed off, her hands clenching tightly once again.
"But with Jacques' influence on the Council of Nobles, what we can really do about this is limited currently." Clover spoke up gently.
Qrow nodded, a hard to read glint in his light red eyes, "He's right. Something tells me storming the place isn't going to work out due to..." here his lips twisted into a grimace, "Politics."
Willow's eyes landed on Qrow thoughtfully then, "I'd heard rumors that you were something of a master spy, Huntsman Branwen." She said pointedly, "Surely you could come up with a way to infiltrate the area while my husband has his guard down."
Qrow smirked at her comment, rising to the challenge in her voice as he crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back in his seat, "Oh, I'm sure I could if he's distracted enough." He said confidently.
"Such as if he and the rest of the Council of Nobles are busy planning for the establishment of the new Royal Consort?" She asked, her eyes landing on Clover pointedly not a moment later.
The elf scowled at her remark then, his own eyes peering over at Clover in concern as he lowered his arms, "Hey, now." He muttered, clearly not liking the direction their conversation just took.
But Clover was already pondering her words, resting a contemplative hand on his chin as he did so, "She isn't wrong, Qrow." He finally said at length before turning to the man sitting beside him, "It would most likely provide us ample time to explore the manor grounds."
"But you shouldn't agree to something like that just for this!" Qrow vehemently exclaimed as he jumped up, the stricken look on his features causing a sharp pain to stab into Clover's chest for some reason. After all, the bearer of Soul Eater was only concerned about him.
"It wouldn't just be for that, Qrow." Clover finally said gently, "You heard what James said. This could be a positive symbol for both Atlas and Mantle. If he's willing to accept me, cursed Rune and all, then..." he trailed off, unsure of how to continue. If he could make a difference with whatever time was left available to him, then...
"Lucky charm." The older man addressed him, but when the knight looked up the still stricken look on Qrow's face hurt all the same and he had to look away.
Willow cleared her throat then, "It would certainly provide us with the opportunity we'd need." She said diplomatically, ever the politician.
Clover nodded at her assessment, "Right." He stood up, swallowing dryly, "I'll go and tell King Ironwood then."
And before either of the other two in the room could respond, the mer had deftly exited the space and was heading down the hallway, trying desperately to ignore the dread swirling in his gut and the way his eyes seemed to be getting blurry.
He was almost to the stairs when a hand gripped tightly around his bicep from behind, and he turned to see Qrow staring back at him intently, "Cloves," the other man's voice was thick with emotion, "You don't have to do this, you know."
Clover couldn't help but smile sadly, his eyes lowering towards the hand still around his arm, "I know. But think of it this way, Qrow," he explained, "You won't have to worry about the Rune of Punishment passing along to someone for a while if I'm being kept sequestered in Atlas."
"But that's...!" Qrow all but shouted, his grip tightening a fraction.
For a split second Clover thought he was going to pull him closer once again, his heart speeding up at the thought. "I want to do what's best for Atlas and Mantle, Qrow. For everyone," he murmured, teal eyes boring into light red then, "Including you."
Qrow's eyes widened at that soft admission, and he did pull Clover forwards towards him then, opening his mouth to speak...
"Clover, Qrow." Ironwood's voice spoke up from the top of the staircase then, the two men turning to find the sovereign standing there in his perfectly poised manner, "It seems like you found one another after all."
The pair glanced at each other almost bashfully, Clover's face heating up at the memory of what had happened earlier that evening between them. He gently pulled his arm out of Qrow's suddenly limp grip, turning around to fully face his king, "Sir, about your proposal," he began, hating speaking the words out loud but knowing it was probably for the best all the same even as he tried to ignore Qrow's imploring eyes on his back, "I accept."
Sunlight, or what served as its best approximation here in Solitas, filtered in through the frost-tinted windows of Pietro's workshop. Qrow narrowed his eyes at it, feeling as though it were somehow mocking him. Life seemed to have a habit of it, after all.
"Uncle Qrow?" Ruby's voice sounded from somewhere to his left, and he turned around to face the cluttered kitchen table that his youngest niece was sitting at along with Penny, Pietro, and Maria, her silver eyes lit up in concern.
It reminded him of that one time when all of their group and Clover had been sitting around that very space, and something in his chest ached at the memory. He almost smiled wistfully there. Who knew he would have fallen this hard, this fast before having come to Atlas and Mantle with the kids?
"Sorry, pipsqueak." Qrow mumbled as he approached the table yet again, "Just lost in thought for a second there."
The bearer of the True Wind Rune bit her bottom lip, a concerned look passing between herself and Penny at his remark. Maria, ever the straightforward one, merely scoffed at his remark, thudding her cane heavily on the ground, "You've been lost in thought for a good whole week, you know." She muttered tersely.
It had been one whole week since Clover had accepted the role of Royal Consort from Ironwood, and a very large part of Qrow still had a hard time processing things. It had been made all the more challenging by the fact that the brown-haired mer seemed to be trying to avoid him since, constantly excusing himself very quickly whenever matters brought them together for a split-second.
He supposed he couldn't blame Clover for that, given how awkward their last run-in had been, but still! The whole thing was really just starting to piss him off. Fucking politics.
A long and heavy silence permeated the air following Clover's announcement, Qrow's grip on his scale-covered arm having lessened entirely in shock at having heard the declaration out loud despite how he wanted to do nothing more than to pull the brown-haired man closer to him then, his breath coming out in a painful gasp.
Clover kept his determined teal eyes focused on Ironwood, his expression just as determined and set as if he was preparing to walk into a battle. Maybe that was how the mer honestly viewed what he had just done.
For a moment, steel blue widened in slight surprise, and then Ironwood's expression softened somewhat, relaxing as if in relief to what he'd just heard. He squared his shoulders, "Good, that's good, Clover." He said quietly, extending his hand towards the younger man, "This will be for the best. You'll see."
Clover nodded slightly, his teal eyes lingering on Ironwood's outstretched hand momentarily before placing his own on top of it, "I'll hold you to that, James." He said in a voice so guarded and without emotion it almost didn't seem like it was the Rune of Punishment's bearer who said the words.
...And just like that, Clover gently pulled his arm out of Qrow's still lingering grasp, the elf standing there in shock and bewilderment with his hand still held out, feeling as if his chest was about to cave in. Ironwood shot Qrow a mildly concerned look before smiling slightly and leading Clover further down the stairs to make their announcement to the room at large, Clover resolutely refusing to look back over his shoulder.
"Clover has been lost in thought quite often now too." Penny mused out loud, her concern for her adoptive brother evident in her tone.
"He did just accept what amounts to a political marriage offer, after all." Maria informed the redhead gently, a slight frown creasing her features, "Even if he felt that was the best option for whatever reason, it would still be hard to process."
Eyes sympathetically flicked the elf's way and Qrow clenched his fists and promptly looked away. When he finally turned his attention back to the table, there was a determined look in his own light red eyes, "Pietro. You were talking about activating the Forgiveness Phase of Clover's Rune earlier?" He asked the older man, hoping to jar his memory of their previous conversation of the topic.
This was something he could focus on, at least in the meanwhile, along with the search for the other True Runes and guarding the cities.
Pietro pushed his glasses up further along the bridge of his nose, nodding slightly at the assorted notes thrown haphazardly about the table around him, "Yes, it's just a theory, mind you," he said, "And it would require a great deal of magical energy I can't quite figure out just yet."
"You mean like the Runes themselves?" Ruby asked curiously.
He shrugged, "I honestly am not exactly sure at the moment, as the texts simply describe it as "the collected energies of a miracle" on the rare occasions it is brought up." Pietro explained, his uncertainty evident.
Maria harrumphed, "Leave it to the ancients to be as unhelpfully vague as possible." She muttered under her breath.
"But that, combined with a great act of forgiveness itself, should be the key to unlocking that particular phase of the Rune of Punishment." Pietro explained as he ran a finger along a specific line of text in his notes, Penny and Ruby both leaning their heads down together to look at it as well.
"And Cloves wouldn't be burdened by that, at least." Qrow mumbled, feeling a small bubble of hope inside him as Pietro nodded his head in conformation.
Qrow wanted desperately to figure out how to free the mer he'd come to care so much for from the burden of his Rune of Punishment, even if he could never be free from his own Soul Eater. Clover deserved a good, long, and hopefully happy life after all. Qrow couldn't do anything else for him at the moment really, but he wanted to try and give him this if nothing else. He just had to try and not dwell on the reasoning behind his desire too much under the circumstances.
"So this really was a spot built just for me?" Clover asked incredulously, his teal eyes taking in the underground cave and lake before him.
He wasn't sure how he felt about the admission, honestly. He had been so adamant that Robyn, Qrow, and the others had been wrong before, but now here they were, him and James, standing on the artificial shoreline and he was wracked with a bevy of emotions at the realization of just what Ironwood had meant when he told him he would show him his new home as was befitting the title of Royal Consort.
How long, exactly, had all this been planned? The thought sent a twisting sensation through his gut. It had only been a week since he'd agreed to Ironwood's proposal, and already he was having doubts. But he couldn't, wouldn't let them show. After all, this was for the best, wasn't it? He'd be able to help support Atlas and Mantle further this way, and assist his king. They could figure out who Jacques was working with, and Qrow...
...Qrow would hopefully not worry about the Rune of Punishment so much if he was in Ironwood's care. So why did he feel so hesitant about everything, regardless?
Ironwood nodded his head in response to the earlier question that Clover had nearly forgotten he'd asked due to his own rambling thoughts, "It was originally going to be a home for you and your mother, given the ordeal you both had to endure." The king of Atlas said in way of explanation, a pained look crossing over his eyes momentarily, "But she unfortunately passed away before its completion."
"I see." Clover swallowed dryly at Ironwood's answer. He could honestly picture his mother loving this place, especially compared to the captivity she'd endured in Atlas beforehand. In a way, it was a shame she wasn't there to see it. But Clover could only ever now picture Pietro's workshop as his "home" whenever the word was brought up. This was a beautiful place he would very much not mind visiting, but he...
"You don't like it?" Ironwood asked when he saw the mer's clouded over expression, his voice surprisingly tentative and awkward.
Clover knew he wasn't the only one having a hard time with adjusting to all of this, and he quickly waved his arms up in the air, "No, it's not that. It's lovely, James. It's just..." he frowned, trying to think of the right words, "A lot to get used to at once."
Understanding fell across Ironwood's bearded features then, and he reached over to gently pull on Clover's shoulder, leading the younger man over to the side-cave where Clover knew a living space had been set up. "I know this is a lot to process." The dark-haired man said, smiling slightly, "It's been quite a week so far."
"And things will only get more hectic as it becomes official." Clover finished for him. Already his mind was close to bursting with the myriad amount of information, arrangements, and protocols he'd been forced to learn this week alone. He hadn't even had time to really get back to his duties as leader of the Ace Ops or check in on his father and Penny. He smiled ruefully as he was guided to the bed and sat down on the edge of the mattress, Ironwood sitting next to him, "I don't know how you do it, James." He admitted, yawning at how tired and drained the whole thing had made him.
Ironwood hummed, and Clover tensed for a moment when his arm draped across the mer's shoulders then, pulling the brown-haired knight in closer to his body until his head was leaning against the king's side, "You'll get used to it in time." He said gently, as if assuring himself too.
"Maybe." Clover muttered unsurely, not feeling nearly as confident as he normally did in his day to day tasks.
Ironwood's grip on his shoulder tightened, his warmth bleeding into Clover as he listened to the sound of the waves gently lapping on the shore just beyond the cave room. He had to admit, this was a peaceful place regardless of his nerves and doubts. The exhaustion that had been eating away at him all this week finally seemed to catch up to him in a rush, and he couldn't keep his eyes from drifting close.
Fingers were threading through his hair gently, Qrow's warm breath against the shell of his ear. "Rest now, lucky charm," he heard the elf whisper, "I'll be right here."
...Clover tried desperately to ignore the sharp stab of sadness and unease that jolted him to alertness once again then, his new home suddenly taking on a suffocating atmosphere all around him.
Author's Notes: Things have certainly gotten quite emotional and heavy. I hope that you'll be able to bear with me through this long journey! :D