Welcome back everyone! Sorry for taking a bit longer on this chapter, but school work takes priority. It is a long one, so hopefully that makes up for it.
I do not own RWBY nor My Hero Academia all rights belong to Monty Oum and Kohei Horikoshi and their respective publishing companies.
I do not own the cover image.
Chapter 19: The Cherished Moments
10:23 P.M., Beacon Academy Ballroom
"Well well well, look who finally decided to show up!" Yang cheered from behind a podium as Team MSKI entered the ballroom. "Wanted to be fashionably late, huh boys?" She teased.
"More like Deku took forever to figure out how a bowtie worked." Katsuki scoffed as he himself adjusted his black tie. His dress shirt was red with a navy blue vest and black dress pants.
"You guys all told me to wear it though!" Izuku protested. In addition to the red bow tie, he wore a green suit and pants and a white undershirt. He still had on his signature red boots though.
"Sorry about that. I bought a bow tie since you don't know how to tie a regular one properly." Shoto said in his signature blunt honesty. He wore a white suit and pants with a pale blue undershirt and a red tie with diagonal stripes.
"There's no reason to fuss over things. We should just enjoy the time we have here." All eyes turned to Tenya as he adjusted his glasses. He wore a blue suit and pants with a dark blue vest, white undershirt, and a golden tie. He still didn't look at his best physically speaking, but the good night of rest did make him look a lot better. That was also helped by the way he carried himself, no longer looking like his mind was always off somewhere else.
"Well said, Tenya. Honestly, you guys should listen to him more." Yang said with a satisfied smile.
"Thank you, Miss Xiao Long. And about yesterday, thank you for-"
"You can thank me by getting another night of sleep tonight, how's that sound?"
Tenya paused before nodded with a gentle smile. "I promise I will."
"Perfect, then why don't you fellas go join in on the party! Everyone else has pretty much shown up. I'll be there to join you guys in a bit!" Yang waved them off as the four teammates worked their way into the ballroom.
The place was packed to the brim with students dancing, eating, and simply hanging out. Music filled the entire space a Present Mic worked his magic as the DJ. Streamers and balloons decorated the area. It all combined to be quite the breathtaking sight. The four of them found themselves on the side of the dancefloor taking it all in.
"They really did a nice job with everything." Shoto commented.
"Yeah. It's even crazier when you realize it was mainly just four students and a teacher." Izuku agreed.
"It is indeed marvelous." Tenya said.
"More like boring." Katsuki said.
"How is it boring?" Izuku asked.
"Cause all we're doing is just standing here watching people! None of us have dates so it's just gonna end up being the four of us standing here doing nothing."
"Then what do you propose we do to fix this?" Tenya asked.
"I'm gonna go get food, you three can do whatever the hell you want." Katsuki turned and walked towards the snack table, mumbling about how there'd better be something spicy.
"That sounds about right." Izuku said with a sigh.
"Oh, there you guys are!" The three of them turned to see Ruby walk up to them with a cup of punch in hand. She wore a short, sleeveless red dress and black pumps which she had a tendency to wobble in every couple of steps.
"Oh, hey Ruby." Izuku greeted.
"I was starting to worry you guys weren't gonna show up." She said with a sigh of relief.
"Sorry about that." Shoto said.
"Have you been enjoying yourself so far, Miss Rose?" Tenya asked.
"Kinda. These heels are killing me, but, you guys are all here and Blake showed up, so it's all good!" Ruby joyfully motioned towards the dance floor where Blake and Sun were dancing with one another, both clearly having a good time.
"Excellent. I'm glad she showed up too." Tenya smiled.
"Hey, what did Yang talk to you and Blake about? I've been asking her all day but she still won't tell me!" Ruby begged.
"She hasn't?" He asked.
"Wow, you really are that curious, huh little sister?" All four turned to see Yang walk up to them with a mischievous look on her face. "Sorry, but I think it's best to just keep that between the three of us, at least for now."
"I'll have to agree with Miss Xiao Long on that. My apologies, Miss Rose."
"Oh come on, not you too!" Ruby sulked. Izuku tried to pat her on the back to cheer her up, but she was still clearly bummed.
"All done with the podium?" Izuku asked.
"Yessir! I've been waiting all night to join in on the fun! Speaking of which…" Yang gracefully walked over and grabbed Shoto by the hand. "Mind if I steal Pretty Boy for a quick dance?"
"Huh?" Shoto said in surprise.
"C'mon, it'll be fun! I'll be more than happy to teach you how to dance too!" Yang began dragging him away to the dance floor. After a brief moment of hesitation, Shoto shrugged and began walking with her.
"H-Hang on, you're stealing our teammate?" Izuku asked in confusion.
"Just think of it as payment for knocking your other one's head on straight!" Yang said with a wink over her shoulder and the two of them disappeared into the dance floor.
"And then there were three." Ruby said to herself.
"Enjoying yourselves?" The three of them looked to see Ozpin walking over, cane in hand.
"Oh, good evening professor!" Izuku said. "Tenya and I only just got here, so we're still just kinda taking it in."
"It's pretty good, though I guess I'm not much of a fancy pantsy… dancy girl." Ruby said.
"Well, even for people like us, you can't spend your entire life on the battlefield. No matter how badly you may want to." Ozpin said.
"Yeah, that lesson's been going around a lot lately." Ruby crossed her arms, an annoyed look on her face. Izuku was a bit confused by it, but didn't say anything.
"Indeed. It's a lesson I've had to learn myself." Tenya confessed. Ozpin nodded before looking out into the crowd of people.
"If you really think about it, fighting and dancing aren't so different. Two partners interlocked, although one wrong move on the ballroom merely leads to a swollen foot." Ozpin chuckled.
"Or a twisted ankle." Ruby mumbled as she looked at her feet.
"Look around you. It's not every day that friends are able to come together like this. Time has a way of testing our bonds, forcing even the closest of friendships to fade away." Ozpin's eyes seemed to glaze over for a moment, reminiscing about something. The three students could only guess at what it was, but it clearly brought back a mix of joyous and painful memories for the old headmaster. "But it's nights like these that can make bonds stronger. These are the times we'll never forget. The cherished memories that will accompany us until we reach the end of our time."
They all took a silent moment to look around the whole ballroom. Over by the food was Katsuki, vigorously arguing with Neptune and Sage over something. Whatever it was, it gave the latter two a hearty laugh.
Not too far away was Team PIUS. Camie was trying to get her other teammates into some sort of group dance. Seiji was having none of it, and while Inasa did his best, it was far from elegant. Penny couldn't help but giggle while trying her best to keep up with Camie's instructions.
Elsewhere a small crowd was growing around Mina and Ren, with the two of them having a friendly dance-off. Nora was yelling something about breaking legs, whether it was encouragement to Ren or a threat to Mina they couldn't tell, and Eijiro and Ochaco cheered their teammate on.
Off to the side, it appeared Blake and Sun were taking a short reprieve from dancing, enjoying a chat with Momo and Scarlet, respectively.
Not too far away was Yang doing her best to walk Shoto through basic dance moves. She had trouble at times, considering she would end up laughing too hard to breathe at Shoto's stilted movements, but it was clear that both of them were having a good time, even if Shoto's expression was as hard to read as ever.
Even some of the teachers were getting into it, with Eraserhead and Ms. Joke dancing together. Aizawa looked annoyed, as the second they got onto the dance floor Present Mic coincidently happened to pick a much slower song than the others he had been playing. Ironwood had managed to snag a dance with Glynda, whether through charms or pity was hard to say, but they both seemed to be enjoying it, even if Glynda wouldn't let it show. All Might happened to be dancing with Professor Peach, a slightly awkward pairing seeing as one was over seven feet tall while the other was five foot four, but they made it work.
While the sights before them were nothing more than simple moments, they all combined into a mosaic that was absolutely irreplaceable.
Tenya broke the silence. "It really is quite amazing."
"I'm glad you agree. Please be sure to make the most of the night." Ozpin said as he casually strolled away.
Same Place, 10:50 P.M.
"Nice to see you here tonight."
Blake, taking a break from dancing by grabbing a cup of punch, turned to see Tenya walking up to her.
"Oh, you're here too. Good! Wasn't sure if you'd make it." She responded with a small smile.
"I could say the same for you." Tenya responded. "We really do owe Miss Xiao Long a lot."
"Yeah, we do."
"So, what're your plans for everything with the Fang?" Tenya asked, pouring himself a cup as well.
"We're gonna try and get a mission in the southeast tomorrow. That's where Torchwick said they'd be doing their work. What about you?"
"I'm not sure if I'm being honest. I still do want to bring Stain to justice, but I'm uncertain if it's actually feasible. I don't want to waste an opportunity for my teammates to fight Grimm in the wild just so we can have a mild chance of finding the man in Vale." Tenya said.
"I guess that would be pretty hard." Blake nodded.
"And if I'm being honest," Tenya transfixed his gaze on the punch bowl, staring at his dark red reflection. "I don't think I'd be able to contain myself if I actually did run into him." His fist tightened. "I still want to make him pay."
The look in his eyes made Blake worry. "W-Well if that's the case, maybe you guys can try and get a mission in the southeast as well. It is a big area, so the more the merrier, right?" She said nervously. Tenya took a deep breath, his fist unclenching.
"That isn't a bad idea, Miss Belladonna." He said with a relaxed smile. "It would do a lot to keep Vale safe. I'll try and compile all the information I've gotten on Stain, then I'll send it anonymously to the police in Vale. Hopefully it will do some good."
"I'm sure it will." Blake said with relief. Tenya took his cup of punch and held it out to her.
"Cheers. To healthy ambition." Blake smiled, tapping her own cup against his.
"To healthy ambition."
11:15 P.M.
Izuku stood off to the side of the ballroom. Idly tapping on his cup of punch. He would occasionally glance around the dancefloor, seeing friends, acquaintances, and strangers appearing to have the time of their lives as he stood on the sidelines. That wasn't to say he was having a bad time, per se. Just knowing that Tenya, Blake, and the people he cared about were alright was more than enough for him. However, he couldn't avoid a hollow feeling that was slowly building up. He wasn't exactly sure what it was, but it seemed to grow stronger every time his eyes drifted towards a particular part of the ballroom.
"What're you doing you damn nerd?"
"Huh?!" Izuku's head quickly flicked to his left. "O-Oh, it's just you Kacchan." His partner walked up to him, hands shoved in his pockets. "I wasn't doing anything, really. Just enjoying the atmosphere, you know? What about you? Enjoying the night?"
"Tch. It's about what I expected. All pomp and circumstance, so action."
"Well, it could be worse. At least we got everyone here, right?"
"Obviously." Katsuki looked out into the ballroom, gazing around for a while before sighing. "What're you going, Deku?"
"D-Didn't you just ask me that?"
"I mean why are you just standing here, you idiot?" Katsuki growled.
"A-Are we not allowed to stand here? S-Sorry about that, i-it's just that other people were too so-"
"Gods, you can be even denser than Icy-Hot. I mean why are you not at least talking with the Ice Queen?!" Izuku took a moment to process what his partner had just said. He turned his head towards one of the other sections of the ballroom where chairs had been set up. There, a girl in a white dress sat alone, idly watching the party unfold before her. He felt the hollow sensation in his heart grow again.
"Weiss?"
"Yes, you damn nerd! You've glanced at her at least twenty times in the past five minutes!"
"I-I have?!"
"You're lucky she hasn't noticed." Katsuki scoffed.
"I didn't even realize I was doing it. I guess I am lucky though, doubly so since her date didn't see either." Izuku said with a pained laugh, scratching nervously at the back of his head.
"She came here alone, Deku." Izuku's thought process stopped entirely. He blinked several times, trying to process the information.
"I-I thought Neptune… and Jaune too?"
"Hoodie got turned down, not that that's a surprise or anything. As for Goggles, he never asked her out."
"He didn't?"
"Nope. I asked him myself earlier. He said that it was clear to him that she wasn't interested in being anything more than friends, so he figured he'd just leave it at friends."
"...she really came here alone?"
"Do you want me to ask everyone else in this fucking ballroom too, you damn nerd?! I'm telling you she came here alone, so go talk to her."
"B-But w-why are you telling me to in particular?"
"Because that's obviously what both of you want, you idiot!"
"...both?" Izuku asked.
"Do I really have to spell it out for you?! Look, you and I both know you have a thing for her, don't even try to deny it. And I'm guessing it's the same with her. So, since you both look so damn depressed right now, why don't you go talk to her?"
Izuku looked back at Weiss. He was right, sort of. He wouldn't exactly call Weiss depressed, as her expression was rather neutral. Rather, it was a different feeling he got from her.
Loneliness.
"But… what if she doesn't feel the same way?'
"You're joking, right? Even after being told you were Severed, you still thought you could become a Huntsman, but you don't have the confidence to ask someone for one fucking dance?" Izuku turned back to Katsuki, a look of surprise on his face. "You know you're gonna regret it if you don't, so just do it. The Ice Queen is a bitch, but it's not like she'll laugh at you or anything."
Izuku looked to the ground, thinking. His eyes darted between Weiss, Katsuki, and the floor beneath him. Even if things don't turn out the way I want them to, I still want to. "Thank you, Kacchan."
Izuku wordlessly walked over towards Weiss while Katsuki stood and watched.
"Hmpf. Took you long enough."
"You seeing what I'm seeing?" Katsuki flinched and whipped his head around to find Mina and Eijiro standing there, jaws practically on the floor. "I think he just gave Izuku a pep talk." Mina continued.
"I think we somehow got sent into the Twilight Zone." Eijiro agreed. Katsuki snarled, a dusting of red on his ears.
"Hey dipshits, wanna see who can hold their breaths the longest? Here, why don't I give you a hand!" Katsuki proceeded to leap at Eijiro, trying to wrap his hands around his neck and choke him out. Eijiro brought his arms up to fight him off while he and Mina began dying from laughter.
Elsewhere
"I-Is this seat taken?"
Weiss was jolted out of her thoughts at Izuku's question. She turned up towards him. He scratched awkwardly at the back of his head with a small smile on his face.
"Please, take it." She responded, gesturing to the seat to her left. Izuku nodded and sat down.
"You… uh, y-you look really good, by the way." He said. She felt a bit of red make its way onto her face.
"T-Thank you! You look good as well. Enjoying the night?"
"Yeah, it's been pretty good so far. You guys really did outdo yourselves with this whole thing."
"I suppose we did, didn't we? Oh, by the way-"
"The doilies are very nice."
"Yes!" Weiss cheered to herself. "Better than the fog machines?"
"Um, maybe? The fog machines are pretty cool though."
Weiss huffed, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "I suppose we can't all have taste." After a brief pause, the two of them broke out into laughter.
Izuku brushed a tear from the corner of his eye. "If you don't mind me asking, what're you sitting here for? I figured you were a good dancer because of the whole, well, Schnee Heiress thing."
"I assure you I am a fantastic dancer." Weiss said with a hint of pride. "However, almost all of those dances were at balls and galas hosted by my father. The only people I really knew there were my brother and sister and some of the staff. They weren't exactly what one would call fun."
"Oh. That… sucks."
Weiss chuckled. "That they did."
"You don't really like bringing up your family. Besides your sister, I think the only time you've ever mentioned them was… well, back at the end of the first semester."
"It's… complicated. I love my sister dearly, and while I'm not nearly as close with my brother, I do still care for him. My father however. He doesn't see people as people. Only as pieces on a chessboard to move around as he likes. And my mother… it's been years since I've ever had a real conversation with her. Speaking of which, I don't think I've ever heard you talk about your own family, either."
"Yeah, I guess I haven't. Not much to say, really. My mother lives in Aldera as an accountant. She still calls me every weekend asking if I got hurt that week or if I need anything."
"She sounds sweet. What about your father?"
"My dad? He was an archeologist. One of the bigger ones in Vale, too. He used to work a lot with the Hunters Guild since they provided him and his team protection when they dug. I still remember him telling me stories about some of them. He died when I was pretty young though."
"Oh. Sorry for bringing it up."
"D-Don't worry about it. It's not like you could've known."
"I suppose you're right. As usual." Izuku was surprised by her words. He saw her look out into the crowd of dancers, a melancholic look on her face. He followed her gaze to see her looking at Sun and Blake, the two of them having resumed their dancing. "I never did thank you for that by the way."
"I-I'm pretty sure Yang did most of the heavy lifting on that front."
"I mean at the end of last semester. When you talked about giving them all a second chance. Back then I would've given a hand just to see myself become the leader. But now, Team RWBY actually is a team. We all get along well, our grades are great, and I think we're actually prepared to go on our mission tomorrow. So thank you."
"I-I think you're giving me a little too much credit here, Weiss."
"If anything, I'm probably not giving you enough credit. I honestly might've tried transferring to one of the other academies if you hadn't said what you did. If I did that, I doubt I'd have half the friends I do now, and none of them would be as good." Weiss turned back to Izuku, a grateful look on her face. "I really do owe you one, Izuku." The young Huntsman blushed and turned his gaze to the floor. Weiss followed suit, realizing just how much she had been praising him.
"I… I appreciate it Weiss. Really, I do. But I don't think I really did anything that noteworthy." Weiss turned her gaze back to Izuku. His eyes were still on the floor in front of him. "I might've helped you get there faster, but I think you would've arrived at the same conclusion to give being a team a second chance anyway. But even if you hadn't you would've made it work out. You're smart and you have a good heart, and you're confident. Even when you have doubts, you still never lose faith in yourself and your ability to arrive at the right answer.
"It's funny actually. That day, when I talked about me being… well, thinking I was Severed, I said that I almost gave up on being a Hunter. When I look back on it, I think I was actually closer to giving up than I ever realized. Like, a lot closer. I'd been told it was impossible by pretty much everyone I'd ever broached the subject with, and no matter how hard I tried I still hadn't figured out a way to unlock my Aura. I don't know where I'd be today if I hadn't been blessed by the miracle, but I doubt it'd be a good place. But you wouldn't have been in that mindset to begin with." He turned his haze back to her, his emerald green eyes shining in the ballroom light. "You never lose faith in yourself. If you were in my situation, you never would've contemplated giving up, not even for a second."
After a brief pause, Izuku's face became beat red and he turned back to the floor, doing his best to hide his face from view. Weiss too was blushing, her eyes as wide as dinner plates.
Oh Gods why did that happen?! I was trying to compliment her, not pour my heart out! What were you thinking, brain?!
The two of them sat there for a moment, neither one being able to think of something to say. After almost a minute of silence, the lights in the ballroom changed from red and yellow to blue and purple as the songs changed. Weiss looked up, eyes narrowing as she intently listened to the beginning of the song. Izuku, despite his lingering embarrassment, took notice.
"I-Is something up?"
"O-Oh, it's nothing. I just... happen to enjoy this song."
"Oh, really?"
"Yes. This is actually a song Winter used to use when she taught me how to dance." Weiss smiled, reminiscing as she looked out over the crowd of dancers.
Izuku looked between her and the dance floor, his thought process racing at a mile a minute. He thought back to his conversation with Katsuki. Even if things don't turn out the way I want them to, I still want to ask you. Izuku swallowed audibly, summoning up all the courage he could. He stood up, bringing Weiss out of her own thoughts.
"What's wrong?" She asked.
"W-Well, you said you didn't have many great memories of dances right?" he turned back to her and offered his hand. "Wanna try and change that?" Weiss blinked in surprise, a very visible blush on her face as she looked between Izuku's face, his hand, and the dance floor. After only a few seconds of contemplation, she placed her own hand into his and stood up.
"I would love to." Izuku, with a blush of his own, nodded as the pair walked hand in hand onto the dance floor.
(Music Cue - Put Your Head on My Shoulder by Paul Anka)
The dance between the two began slowly as both they and the other dancers lined up their movements with the pace of the song.
"Uh, i-is something wrong?"
Well, most of them.
Weiss' question rang through the air unanswered as Izuku stood almost perfectly upright, "dancing" with the most stilted movements imaginable. "Are you ok, Izuku?"
"Ican'tdance."
"Huh?"
"I've never danced before in my entire life." Izuku confessed, his face a deep shade of red. "I've never even tried on my own let alonewithanotherpersonIjustkindagotcaughtintheheatofthemomentbackthereandthoughtitmightbeagoodideabutthiswasaterriblemistakelet'sjustgobackbeforeanyone-"
"Izuku, it's fine!" Weiss interrupted. "Slow dancing isn't that bad, I can walk you through it. Just… j-just hold onto me and follow my lead, alright." Both of them were as red as Ruby's cloak, but eventually Izuku nodded. Weiss took Izuku's left hand in her right before guiding his other hand back around her waist. She placed her free hand in his shoulder and began guiding him.
It was slow at first. Granted, the song was slow-paced, but even still, their dancing took a while to get up to speed with the other students in the ballroom. Izuku's movements were rigid and lacked grace. He was barely even holding onto Weiss at all, almost like he was touching a glass sculpture he was afraid to break. Weiss, for her part, was doing better, but it was obvious that she was still a bit embarrassed.
"I-I'm sorry Weiss, I really should've-"
"Shush." Weiss held up her finger an inch in front of his lips. "You wanna be as 'confident' as me, here's the first lesson: Don't apologize if you haven't done anything wrong. And the second lesson: Don't back out of anything you've committed to. Got it?"
"Yes ma'am!" Izuku shouted out nervously. Weiss did her best to stifle a laugh.
"Besides, you're not doing bad. Just relax a little bit. Don't lock your knees either. Try to smoothen out your footwork a bit too; you're lifting your feet off the ground a bit too much." Izuku was a bit surprised by the sudden onslaught of critiques but he took them all to heart and tried his best to put them to practice. About halfway through the song, the two of them started to look on par with the other dancers.
"Hey, I think I'm starting to get the hang of this!" Izuku said in surprise.
"You kinda are actually. We may have discovered a secret talent of yours."
"I-I think you may be giving me too much credit."
"Lesson Three: Learn to take a compliment." Weiss deadpanned.
"R-Right. I think Professor Ozpin may've been right though, fight and dancing are pretty similar."
"Huh?"
"You just had to be there." Izuku said.
As the song reached its conclusion, their movements felt entirely natural. Every step was smooth, no movements out of place. Izuku was mesmerized by the grace with which Weiss moved, like a butterfly in the wind, while Weiss was transfixed by the way the light caught Izuku's emerald eyes.
For the briefest of moments, the two of them were in their own world, dancing together to their heart's content. And they wouldn't trade that feeling for anything.
(Music End)
As the song came to a close, they both stood there, silently gazing into one another's eyes. While they both had neutral expressions on their faces, their minds were racing, trying to figure out what to do next.
Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on how you look at it, something else managed to pull their attention away.
That being a growing chorus of snickers and repressed laughs.
After a shared moment of confusion, they followed the gazes of the crowd only to find Jaune and Pyrrha standing in front of each other.
And they were both wearing dresses.
"A promise is a promise." Jaune shrugged, a small grin on his face.
"Do you have any idea what he's talking about?" Weiss whispered to Izuku.
"No clue, but I think we missed something big." He responded.
Jaune extended a hand out to Pyrrha. "Now do you wanna stand there and laugh at me, or do you wanna dance?" Though she was still in a bit of shock and recovering from a fit of laughter, she offered her own hand.
"I would love to dance."
Not too far away, Nora was just as excited about the prospect as either of them. "Ren, this… is… happening!"
"Wait, what's happening?"
Nora ignored the question and turned towards Professor Yamada. "Hey DJ! Give us a good song!"
"I got just the thing, Valkyrie!" He responded, quickly changing tracks with his signature grin on his face.
(Music Cue- Shine by Jeff Williams featuring Casey Lee Williams)
With scarily little hesitation, all four members of Team JNPR began dancing, all of them in sync with each other. The display was as impressive as it was unexpected, but it still elicited great cheers from all those around them.
"I may not have been there," Weiss said. "But whatever Ozpin said about fighting being like dancing, he was probably right."
"Yeah, he's definitely onto something." As the two of them continued to watch the display in front of them, Weiss absentmindedly leaned against Izuku, resting her head against his shoulder. Izuku, not even noticing, leaned into her a bit too, resting his head on her own. They stood like this for a while, only up until they heard a barely audible click from a camera.
"Well aren't you two the perfect couple?" They both flinch before turning to see Mina and Yang staring at them, the former having just taken a picture of the two with her Scroll.
"You got some nice dance moves by the way, Green Bean." Yang teased with a smug grin.
"Ugh, you absolute troglodytes!" Weiss quickly made her way over to them, practically jumping at Mina in an attempt to grab her Scroll. Izuku just stood there, face entirely red as he failed to stutter out some sort of explanation; a display which Yang started dying at.
"C'mon, Yang help me out here!" Mine cried out for aid, doing her best to fend off Weiss. Eventually the heiress managed to wrestle the device from her, quickly turning around and looking at the picture of her and Izuku. She looked closely and realized that was not the only photo she'd taken.
"You were taking pictures while we were dancing too?!"
"Aw, c'mon, Weiss! How could I not? You too looked so great out there!"
"Some people just have no sense of privacy." Weiss huffed to herself.
"You're not gonna delete them, are you?"
"Of course I am." Weiss said indignantly. "Right after I send them to myself first."
"What was that last part?" Mina asked with a wry grin as she leaned over Weiss' shoulder.
"Nothing!"
"W-Wait, what did she say?" Izuku asked.
"I SAID NOTHING!" Weiss yelled back.
(End Music)
Elsewhere
Ruby took several deep breaths as she exited the ballroom, taking in the fresh air. Gazing up, she took a moment to admire the stars, each one shining beautifully. She smiled. Tonight had been a good night. Everyone was enjoying themselves; Blake, Tenya, Izuku, Weiss, Jaune, and Pyrrha. It warmed her heart to know her friends were in high spirits.
"Had enough of the party, brat?" Ruby turned around to see Katsuki walking out to join her, a cup of punch in hand.
"I guess so. Isn't it exciting?"
"The party?"
"No, silly, tomorrow! We'll finally get to go on our first missions!" Ruby cheered, stars in her eyes.
"You're like a kid about to open their birthday presents." Katsuki laughed. "Not that I'm surprised."
"Speaking of surprising, were my eyes deceiving me, or were you actually being nice to Izuku back there?" Ruby shot back with a smug grin.
"Shut up, brat! All I was doing was getting him out of my hair! Do you have any idea how annoying it would be if he was sulking with regret all week if he hadn't gotten a dance with the Ice Queen?!"
"Funny, I didn't hear a 'no' in there anywhere." Ruby retorted.
"If you're really that desperate to die, the cliffside's tha-" Katsuki stopped his yelling and stared out over Ruby's shoulder.
"What's wrong?" Ruby turned around and followed his gaze up to the rooftops of the nearby dormitories.
There, a dark figure moved, running and jumping from building to building. They eventually jumped off the far side of a building to the ground below, out of their view.
"Would ya look at that? Guess tonight might be interesting after all." Katsuki said, a manic grin plastered on his face.
"Do you have any clue who that was?" Ruby asked.
"No, but I'm gonna find out." Katsuki said as he went in the direction of the mysterious figure.
"Wait for me!"
Same Time
Cinder tuck and rolled as she impacted the ground. Midnight, huh? Not much time, but I can work with that. She thought to herself as she sprinted towards Beacon Tower. She barely had to think of where to go, she'd already walked this path dozens of times over the past three months, instead keeping her attention on if anyone was around. It seemed everyone else was happy with dancing together for the evening. Fine by her.
After a few minutes, she found herself at the base of the tower. A lone guard stood at the entrance, idly walking the same path back and forth. Just as planned. She waited until he turned away before swiftly making her way up behind him. A quick Aura-Enhanced chop to the back of the neck was all it took to knock him out. She caught him before he hit the ground and dragged him out of sight, hiding him and his weapon behind a pillar.
She quickly moved into the tower itself. Inside there were four more guards. The closest one spotted her as she walked towards him. "Excuse me, no one's allowed in this area. The guard outside should've told you that." Cinder increased the length of her stride ever so slightly. The soldier reached for his pistol. "Ma'am, please don't come any closer." Cinder began to run at him.
The guard pulled out his gun, firing several shots which she easily dodged. Closing the distance, she grabbed his arm and delivered a left hook to his face. "Stop!" Cinder turned to see a second guard running at her, stun baton in hand. She grabbed the first soldier's gun before kicking the second in the gut. She fired the gun at his stomach, launching him backward. The gun was set to stun, so he would live, but he wouldn't be getting up any time soon.
She finished off the first soldier by throwing him into the handrail in the middle of the steps towards the elevators. From those same steps jumped down the other two soldiers, each one wielding stun batons. She chuckled to herself as they approached. The first one came in for an overhead strike which she easily dodged. He stumbled forward, giving her the opportunity to strike him in the back of the neck. The sound of his body impacting the ground echoed throughout the room as the last soldier ran at her. He took several swings in quick succession. Cinder took a step back with every attack, always staying just out of reach. Eventually, out of either frustration or incompetence, he overextended himself just enough to give Cinder a chance to slip past his defenses and deliver a swift punch to the gut. He collapsed down to his knees, allowing her to finish him off with a kick to the side of the head.
This was painfully easy. She didn't even have to use her Semblance or her weapons. Of course, she wanted to avoid using those in general. It would make identifying her easier if she did use them, and with the plan about to reach its endgame, she knew better than to take chances.
She strolled up to the elevator so casually one wouldn't be blamed for thinking she hadn't just fought four people. As she got to one of the elevators, its doors opened to reveal two more guards. They looked at her in confusion as she joined them in the elevator. She pressed the button for the main floor of the CCT, not even bothering to acknowledge the guard's existence. The door closed as Cinder patiently waited for them to make the first move.
Elsewhere, Five minutes later
"How do you even know this is the right way?!" Katsuki yelled.
"This is the direction she was heading in, right? You saw her too!" Ruby retorted. The two of them walked up to Beacon Tower, both hoping to find the mysterious intruder.
"I swear to the Gods, brat, if you made me both wait for you and your stupid heels and lead me in the wrong direction, I will make it my personal mission to kill you in the Vytal Tournament."
"Pfft, like I'd ever lose to you! Hey, doesn't this place usually have guards?" Ruby asked as she looked around the base of the tower.
"...Yeah, it does. C'mon." Katsuki and Ruby walked up the steps to the tower, only to stop when they both caught something in the corner of their vision. Katsuki's eyes widened in shock and Ruby gasped at the sight of a guard lying on the ground. Katsuki wasted no time in running up to him, quickly checking for a pulse. "He's alive, but he probably won't be waking up any time soon. I can already see a bruise forming on his neck."
"It's the same inside too!" Ruby yelled back, having taken a few steps into the building. She pulled out her Scroll. "Call in your gauntlets!"
"Don't tell me what to do!" Katsuki yelled as he typed in the code on his own Scroll.
After the longest ninety seconds of their lives, their rocket-propelled lockers landed with a resounding boom, popping open to reveal Crescent Rose and Explosive Emperors, respectively.
"Good thing I put an extra set of boots in here!" Ruby said, her tone euphoric as she took off her heels.
"You could've just worn flats to begin with!" Katsuki yelled as they both began arming themselves.
Four Minutes and Fifteen Seconds Earlier
Cinder adjusted her mask as she exited the elevator. One of the guards had tried grabbing at her face and pulling it off. She made sure to knock him out extra hard for even trying to touch her.
She pulled out her Scroll and walked up to the main CCT console. She hooked it up to the computer and began furiously typing away. She'd gone through the motion of uploading the program many times, but she was sure to keep focused on it. No point in getting distracted.
"A party guest is leaving."
Cinder cursed in her head. "Who?"
"Ironwood." Emerald responded.
"Should we intervene?" Mercury asked.
"No, I should be fine." Cinder said as she pressed the last key. Every computer in the room turned on, every screen showing the same black chess piece over a white background.
The Black Queen Virus was in place.
Cinder smiled to herself. Not her usual, cold smile, but one of satisfaction and relief. This had been one of the tasks she was most worried about. Hacking into computers wasn't her area of expertise. Sure, the work of creating the program had been done beforehand, but she'd still had a hard time containing her nerves over the past few days. But now it was all over. Her Master would be pleased with the news.
But that still didn't satisfy her. She wanted to be able to report more tomorrow morning. And seeing as she was already here…
Cinder searched through the computer's files until she eventually found what she was looking for. A file that, up until now, had been accessible exclusively through Ozpin's Desk, but now was hers for the taking.
"BRTC INCIDENT REPORT"
She opened up the file and scanned through the documents. "Cost of damage". No. "Student Injuries". No. "Report to Vale Council". Later, but not now. Eventually, she found what she was looking for.
"Perpetrators"
She looked through the document, ignoring the countless names of useless thugs and wannabe crimelords. Eventually, she found the information on Tomura Shigaraki and Kurogiri.
Disintegrates anything his hands come in contact with. Can damage through Aura with ease. So that's what his Semblance is. She thought to herself. That was useful information, but she still didn't find what she was after. Nothing in this report talked about someone strong enough to take on All Might. Was she wrong, and that All Might's break afterward was just a coincidence? No, Tomura talked about whoever this person was when they met. Or was that just a bluff? The more she kept reading, the more her expression soured.
Eventually she reached the bottom of the page. She was about to slam her hand on the desk in frustration before she found a note at the bottom of the page.
"For full report on Nomu, see separate document of the same name."
"Nomu?" Cinder said to herself as she looked through the BRTC file once more. Eventually she found the file labeled Nomu and clicked on it.
She was not prepared for what she saw.
The first thing she took in was an image of what she could only describe as a monster. A black behemoth with a bird beak for a mouth and an exposed brain. It was like nothing she'd ever seen before. She continued reading, glancing over statements taken by multiple students about the creature, all describing how fast it moved and how strong it was. Each one corroborated a claim that it took "over three hundred punches" from All Might before going down.
"That's what he fought?"
Once she reached the halfway point of the page, she found something which sent chills down her spine. Two simple words that made her more terrified than she'd been in years.
"Nomu's Semblances"
Her eyes widened the longer she read. Multiple tests, all confirming that Nomu had four Semblances, and that his body had been modified to handle both those Semblances and a high amount of Aura.
The reason why she was terrified wasn't that she'd never heard of someone having multiple Semblances, but because she had. Her mind flashed back to when she was fifteen. When she had first been found by her Master. She never actually talked to the man in the black suit, but she knew he was powerful. He was one of the only people her Master considered to be a threat, an equal. Her Master made sure that she, and everyone else in their group, saw him face to face as little as possible, and never one on one.
And now, that person was back from the dead.
"All For One…"
*Kathunk*
Cinder was brought from her shock by the barely noticeable sound of the elevator rising. She cursed to herself, making sure the file had been downloaded to her Scroll before unplugging it and hiding behind the desk. After a few more seconds, the elevator doors opened with a ding, and two distinct pairs of footsteps entered the room.
"Hello? is anyone there?" Ruby called out.
"We know you're in here, so just come out and fight, dammit!" Katsuki taunted.
Just children then. Good. Cinder released her breath. She was pretty sure she recognized those voices. She had at least one class with those two. Shouldn't be any trouble. Cinder calmly stood up from behind the main desk and walked out, turning towards her opponents. Ruby shot her a focused glare, while Katsuki looked more than eager to fight.
"Took you long enough." He snarled as he brought back both hands.
"You know, it's not a masquerade party, so why don't you-"
Ruby didn't have time to finish as Cinder pulled out a dust canister from her belt. She released its powdered contents into the air in front of her before condensing it into shards and launching it at the two of them. Ruby spun Crescent Rose to deflect the attack while Katsuki launched himself over them with his explosions. The grenadier wasted no time and used two more explosions to send himself directly at Cinder. He flew through the air at breakneck speeds, fast enough to almost catch Cinder off guard.
Almost.
Cinder pulled out another canister and released its contents, this time however, she used her Semblance to superheat the powder even further. Katsuki grimaced but refused to back down, he brought forth both his hands, preparing to fire off a dual palmed explosion.
"Die!" Katsuki yelled as his Explosion went blow for blow with Cinder's Scorching Caress. The two attacks met head-on, resulting in a large explosion that vibrantly shined orange on one side and blood red on the other. Both of them were sent flying backward as the two attacks canceled out. Katsuki winced at the pain in his arms. That one was a bit bigger than I meant it to be, but she would've killed me if I hadn't done it. He thought.
However, he had no time to think of anything else, as Cinder was still on the offensive. Before either of them had landed on the ground, Cinder's outfit gleamed red as she summoned her jet black bow, Midnight. She notched three arrows in it, superheating them with her Semblance and launching them at Katsuki. He desperately tried to summon up the Aura for another explosion, but he was too slow on the draw.
Fuck!
Thankfully for him, he wasn't alone in this fight. Ruby used her Semblance to blitz through the air and grab Katsuki out of the way. They managed to escape the center of the blast, but the explosive arrows still sent them flying backward into a wall.
"Are you okay?!" Ruby asked frantically.
"Ugh, I'm fine now get off me!" Katsuki grunted, doing his best to push the younger girl off of him. Cinder's eyes narrowed in annoyance as she prepared another arrow, only to stop when she heard a familiar clanking sound.
*DING*
Ruby and Katsuki turned to see General Ironwood burst out of the elevator, gun already drawn. He quickly scanned the room before turning towards the two of them.
"What's going on?" He questioned.
"Don't you think the one you should be asking is… her?" Katsuki pointed towards where the mystery assailant had once been, only to find no one there. Ironwood looked between Katsuki and where he was pointing, eyes narrowing in confusion. All three of them flinched as they felt a strong breeze rush into the room. Ironwood looked back, only to find that one of the windows was opened. He rushed over to it and looked down into the campus below. He quickly gazed between the various buildings, barely catching the image of a figure clad in black running away from the CCT towards the Ballroom. He cursed to himself.
"Are you two alright?" He quickly walked over to the two of them.
"Yes sir." Ruby said as she and Katsuki brushed off ash and soot from their clothes.
"Good. You two come with me." He said as he pulled out his Scroll. "But first, what did that person look like?"
Five Minutes Later
Cinder's heels clicked as she walked through the back entrance of the ballroom. She threw her glass mask onto the ground and pulled her hair back into a bun. It wasn't the best her hair had ever looked, bangs framing her face in a somewhat messy manner, but it was passable and that was all that mattered. She opened the door into the main area, silently and effortlessly mixing in with the crowd.
Mission accomplished. She thought to herself. It was unlikely the Atlas soldiers would find her here, especially since they were looking for a woman in combat gear, not a schoolgirl in a black formal evening gown.
Even so, she struggled to rule this as a victory in her mind. Nomu… those pictures were absolutely terrifying. She knew that All For One was dangerous, but she always assumed that was restricted to the battlefield, not to whatever field of science was used to create those abominations. And the fact that he was alive at all… what would happen now? What would her Master say? Would she have to-
"Miss Fall!" Cinder jolted slightly at the voice behind her. She turned around to see Tenya walking up to her, a smile on his face. "It's good to see you again. I was beginning to get worried I wouldn't find you here tonight."
"Oh, sorry about that. I had no idea you were even looking for me." Cinder said with a false smile. She cursed internally. Having to put up a facade on the spot combined with everything she'd just learned tested her mental faculties in a way they hadn't been in a long time.
"I assure you there's no need for apologies. I never made any attempt to reach out to you, after all." He said. "I simply wanted to say thank you for the advice you gave me the other day."
"Oh, that little talk? There's no need to thank me for that. You do look… surprisingly better than you did then." She said.
"That's mostly thanks to my friends. They helped me get my head on straight." Cinder smiled and nodded while being disappointed internally.
Damn. Guess he won't be getting killed any time soon. Oh well, it wasn't crucial to begin with.
"But still, thank you for what you said. I still wish to complete my goal, but I won't let that consume me either." Cinder raised an eyebrow at that.
Does that mean going after Stain or not? These children really should learn how to make up their minds.
"Well, I wish you the best of luck in that!" Cinder said with a nod, very much tired of putting on a smile.
"Thank you very-"
"Oh, there you are Tenya!" The two of them looked behind him to see Izuku and Weiss working their way through the crowd towards them. Tenya smiled as they came over.
"Have you seen Ruby or Katsuki anywhere recently?" Weiss asked, a frustrated look on her face.
"I thought Katsuki said he was going to go get some fresh air." Tenya said.
"Yeah, but that was almost half an hour ago, and that only accounts for one dolt." Weiss responded.
"Yang looks like she's ready to tear this whole building down if Ruby doesn't turn up soon." Izuku said nervously.
"I'm sure there's nothing to worry about! If your friends are both Hunters-in-training then they should both be equipped to handle themselves. Besides, what place could be safer than a Hunter Academy?"
"I guess that is a fair point. Wait, who are you?" Weiss asked.
"Oh, I see you three aren't fully acquainted. Weiss, Izuku, this is Miss Cinder Fall. Miss Fall, this is Mister Izuku Midoriya and Miss Weiss Schnee." Tenya said.
"It's nice to meet you." Cinder said with a nod.
"Nice meeting you as well." Weiss said.
"Same here. So, h-how do you two know each other?" Izuku asked. "W-We weren't... interrupting anything, right?"
"Interrupting… o-o-of course not! T-There was nothing of that sort going on I can assure you!" Tenya said, both arms flailing about in their usual robotic fashion, face completely flush. "O-Of course that is not meant to be in any way disparaging to you, Miss Fall! It is simply improper for something of that nature to happen between people who've only recently become acquainted." Izuku and Weiss both tried their best to stifle their laughter, happy to see their friend back to his old self.
"Riiiight." Cinder said, a dusting of pink on her cheeks. She shook her head slightly before turning to Izuku and Weiss. "Tenya and I only recently met. I stumbled into him in the halls earlier this week."
"Yes, that's correct." Tenya said, adjusting his glasses and taking a calming breath. "If I recall correctly, it was right after I… after I ran out of our team practice. Miss Fall offered me some heartfelt advice at the time."
"Oh. Well, thanks for looking out for my teammate then. I appreciate it." Izuku said. Weiss nodded in agreement.
"Don't worry about it." Cinder said.
"Well, it was nice meeting you, but I'm afraid we still have two dolts we need to find and scold. Plus we're getting in at least one more dance before the night is over. C'mon, Izuku." Weiss grabbed Izuku by the hand and they went off into the crowd. The last thing they could hear from them was Izuku muttering in surprise about them dancing again.
"I should probably help look for them. I hope to see you again soon, Miss Fall." The two of them waved goodbye as Tenya went after his friends. Cinder sighed in relief, finally not having to worry about smiling. Izuku Midoriya… his Aura felt different. I don't know if I've ever felt something like it, not even from Master.
"Making new friends?" Cinder turned around to see Mercury and Emerald walking up to her.
"I believe I told you that we needed to keep up good appearances, yes?"
"I have no idea that meant getting a boy toy. Good to know." Emerald discreetly elbowed her partner in the gut, almost causing him to double over.
"How did the mission go?" She asked.
"More eventful than I had hoped, but a success overall. I'll need to call my superiors in the morning. The BRTC files had more on them than I imagined."
"We gonna have to make a change of plans?" Mercury asked, hand on his stomach.
"Possibly, but let's not worry about that. For now, we can enjoy ourselves." Cinder said. Her subordinates nodded before the three of them walked over to the food table.
Cinder paused for a moment, listening as she heard the bells on the top of Beacon Tower ring out. Looks like she got back even earlier than she'd realized. Still, as the midnight bells tolled, she couldn't help wonder who they did so for.
A/N
And with that, we're just over halfway done with Volume 2!
Chapter Commentary:
-The outfits that Team MSKI is wearing are all the same one's they wore during the first movie, Two Heroes, with the exception of Izuku. His outfit comes from an artwork Horikoshi did for the One Year Anniversary of the manga that has all of Class 1-A in formal attire.
-As he stated himself, Tenya's still not fully in control of his emotions in regards to Stain. We'll see how that comes into play in the future.
-I really enjoyed writing Weiss and Izuku's whole bit in this chapter. It's one of my favorite scenes so far. I'd had the general idea in my head for a while, so I loved finally getting to type it all out. Having both of them express the reasons why they appreciate/admire one another was a ton of fun.
-This was also the first time I gave any sort of indication at Hisashi Midoriya's backstory. Other MHA/RWBY crossovers have gone with the angle of him being a deceased Hunter, but I personally don't really like the idea of him being in the same vein as Summer Rose (Not that I'm trying to throw shade at those stories or their authors). He isn't super plot-relevant, but he does have a tie in with some other characters which I'll get into later down the line, assuming I don't change my mind at any point.
-I kinda did brisk over everything involving Pyrrha and Jaune in this chapter. I didn't feel like writing down what happened in the show essentially verbatim. However, I do have plans to actually write out Team JNPRs mission that they never got to go on in V2. It won't be identical to how it was described in the show (them shadowing a sheriff), but I am still really excited to write it.
-All For One being alive has finally been exposed to our other baddies! I mentioned it when responding to a review a while ago that AFO was known by Salem, but she had no reason to expect him since she thought he died at All Might's hands. Hopefully any sort of residual confusion about that is cleared up, if it existed to begin with.
-Also, it was fun getting to write Cinder when she isn't just being smug and overconfident. I was planning on having her and Tenya dance when they met up at the end of the chapter, with Cinder using to help give her an alibi, but I ultimately scrapped the idea.
Reviews:
Triton0501- Glad you enjoyed it, and yes, this current arc in the MHA manga has been darker than most, even more so since you initially posted your review. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!
Earl John Diawatan- I'm happy you enjoyed the last chapter. Don't worry too much about not knowing everyone who was in that group chat, most of them won't be showing up until the start of Volume 3, and one of them won't be making an on-screen appearance until we get the V4 (whenever that will be). Hopefully you enjoyed everything between Izuku and Weiss this chapter, and yes, Katsuki did end up being a pseudo-wingman.
1jesus- Hope you enjoyed it!
Earl John Diawatan (2)- Honestly, I'm not too certain on what all the fights in the Vytal Festival will be. I may end up altering the format so that certain fights can happen (obviously it makes the most sense to have Deku vs Todoroki in the Tournament, but that can't really happen if the Vytal Festival occurs in the same way it did in canon). Himiko will be showing up here decently soon, but it'll be a while until she really gets her time in the sun.
Guest (1)- At this point, I can't really think of any other parallels between them. I guess there's the fact that they both kinda started out at the bottom of the ladder; Izuku being ostracized for being Quirkless/Severed and Cinder living in poverty (that hasn't been explicitly stated, but based on what little insights we've been given into Cinder's past, especially with the whole "I refuse to starve" line from V7, I think it's a safe bet. Regardless, that's the current origin I have for her in this fic, and I'm pretty set on it unless her canon backstory gets explained soon and I end up liking it).
Raziel- Hopefully you enjoyed all the shipping bits this chapter.
Guest (2)- That is a good guess, and he will be showing up later in the story, but "M" is not Sir Nighteye.
Next chapter begins the VS Hero Killer/Mountain Glenn Arcs! I hope you're as excited for it all as I am. Prepare for new characters, fights, and hopefully some curveballs you guys aren't expecting. I still have to show you guys Stain's new Semblance after all!
Stay safe out there!