"Hmmm" Klein hummed as he meticulously looked over sheets of paper with a fine-tooth comb. It had barely been over a week since he came back from his leave and yet, he could already tell from the look in their eyes that Weiss and Whitley had missed him, even if they wouldn't admit to it. Still, there was a reason why he had to take a leave and have a novice, at least by professional standards, replace him. While he had been with the Schnee family for years now and his loyalty to the family was beyond question, Klein was also human and he knew there would come a time where he would have to step down eventually, and for that, he wanted to leave behind someone worthy and qualified to take over the reins: a successor of sorts.

This Bismarck Dorian was supposedly one of the most suitable candidates to learn under him and from the glowing recommendation given to him by the Atlesian Academy of Hospitality, Klein had high expectations for him based on the fact that his grades in the written examinations were off the charts. Sadly, it seems expectations and reality didn't always mix well together.

Looking over the marksheets signed and provided each member of the Schnee family told a different story that contradicted the image of an academic ace. It was the written rule in the world of service and hospitality that for any aspiring butler to earn their first star ranking, they had to undertake a week-long service for a particular client without any sort of outside help or guidance in order to both test their mettle as well as their skills and their ability to handle the pressure. The reviews and gradings of Schnee family members told a strange story.

Whitley gave the worst with an overall E for Bismarck with Weiss following second with D. Klein wasn't surprised that these remarks would be very, very biased since filling in his shoes was something not everyone was eager to get into. What did surprise him was the fact that Weiss actually ranked him slightly higher than the last one several years ago, who received a humiliating F on all fronts. Klein moved his gaze from the heaps of paper to eye in on the trainee standing still with a cool demeanor; though he knew better from experience that that was simply a front and that he was probably sweating bullets on the inside.

Bismarck did fare slightly better with older Schnees as Jacques gave him a C while Willow marked out a B for him. Though, it simply could be due to the fact that Jacques was far too busy to actually care and did it on a whim while anyone who indulged in Willow's alcoholism would instantly be on her good side. Klein sighed and shook his head, putting the papers away as he held out the last piece.

Finally, it came down to the baby of the bunch, Laphicet. Being an adopted child, and thus, an outsider who wasn't completely familiar with the ins and outs of the Schnee family meant that Laphicets perspective would be unique and different from the other two children. Klein always knew him to be a warm and kind hearted boy with brighter disposition than his siblings, and so it came as no surprise when he gave Bismarck an A in the gradings.

"Oh, Master Laphicet" Klein chuckled as he finally put the last piece of paper down. He chalked up Laphicets grading of him being done either out of the goodness of his heart or pity. It was a trait that Klein liked the most about him, and it was also something he had hoped the boy would be able to pass along to the rest of the family, albeit to no avail. However, Klein also felt that the same kindness also made Laphicet overly emotional and unable to deal with negative discourse. But then again, he was just ten years old, so the senior butler had to cut him some slack.

The only member who was left out of this grading was Winter, since she was justifiable absent for most of the family affairs as she had matters relating to military work to deal with.

Klein was unsure as to how to actually go along with this: on the one hand, these grades reflected poorly on the trainee and by all rights, he had mostly failed. On the other, most of these rankings were probably based less on his actual service and more on a purely subjective stance since he had the misfortune of having to temporarily replace him. Tapping his finger into the table, Klein thought it over on how to actually proceed with the process. Eventually, he decided that he would test the young butler in his own way to see if he would be worthy of being employed as his protégé.

"So, Bismarck" Klein called to the junior butler, who instantly turned to face him.

Standing as still as a pillar, Bismarck looked over to his professional senior with the pose and stance required of someone in service. "Y-yes Mr. Klein?" he nervously asked.

"What do you think of your chances in earning your first star as a butler? Do you believe you have performed adequately?" Klein asked in a lower, more serious tone which was in stark contrast to his usually upbeat demeanor.

After taking a few seconds to think things through, Bismarck gave his answer, "Well…. I certainly hope so, and I know I have performed to the best of my abilities."

"I see" the senior butler began as he started playing with his mustache, "and what if your performance does not meet the required expectations? You are not serving any ordinary family after all."

"Then I will head back to the academy and start from scratch" the blonde answered, shifting his position just a little to ease any stiffness, "or maybe just move on from this and serve somewhere else."

Klein shifted back from his seat a little bit when he heard that answer, since it was one that caught him off guard. Previous trainees would go on length about how they would be devasted or that they would stubbornly try again despite the fact that second chances were quite rare.

Bismarck noticed the look of surprise on Klein's face, realizing that he had said something that must have surprised him. "Did I say something wrong, sir?" he asked, almost as if he was feigning nervousness as well.

"No" the Schnee butler answered, "not at all. In fact, while it is true that determination has great benefits, it can also be turned into obsession and lead to one's downfall. It is good that you have set realistic expectations for yourself and that you are patient enough to deal with any hurdle."

"Thank you for your kind words, Mr. Klein" Bismarck complemented the senior butler with a small respectful bow with his head.

"Don't thank me yet" Klein replied as he shifted his eyes towards papers on the table. "Now, before I tell you the results, I want to ask you some questions. You can be as straightforward and blunt as you possibly can. Do not wince any words."

"Yes, sir" Bismarck answered.

"Good" Klein nodded with a smile. "Now then, tell me; What do you think of Weiss, Whitley and Laphicet? You can take your time and give me your honest opinion."

Bismarck went quiet for a few minutes as he placed a hand on his chin and become enveloped in his thoughts. Eventually, he straightened himself as he rested his hands behind his back and looked towards Klein, who gave him a nodding approval. "Let's see…." he murmured to himself before continuing with the rest of his answers, "Whitley is difficult to please and seems to have a low opinion on everyone around him, but he can be affable, refined and articulate. Weiss is much more straightforward than her brothers and does not mince words. She can be quite harsh and demanding but she does seem to tolerate others so long as she's pleased. Laphicet is the opposite of his siblings in that he's kind, cheerful and well, much more easier to approach but he's too reliant on his emotions and cannot seem to handle negativity well."

"Interesting" Klein noted, with a slight smile forming on his face, "and what do think of their behavior towards each other?".

Bismarck stopped himself just as he was about to speak, letting out a small cough before he began speaking again, "Well, while Master Whitley does seem standoffish and priggish towards his siblings in equal measure, he behaves passive aggressively with Weiss while being acting a bit more impish when it comes to Laphicet."

"I see" Klein leaned on the table with his hands clasped together, listening with interest.

"However, despite all of this, he does seem to relish in the attention he gets from his siblings, especially Laphicet. Though I guess, he might just be glad that he is no longer the youngest in the family and that the idea of a younger sibling looking up to him and depending on him pleases him, even if he has a poor way of communicating that" Bismarck continued.

A chuckled escaped Klein's mouth as Bismarck finished his description of Whitley. This was probably humor only Klein had the privy of knowing due to Whitley's own description of Bismarck, calling him an "incompetent buffoon".

"Please continue" he added to a confused Bismarck.

"Of course," Bismarck said, "Miss Weiss seems indifferent when it comes to her brothers, although she does acknowledge and talk with Whitley from time to time, even bickering with him on the rare occasions. Sadly, the same cannot be said about her and Master Laphicet since neither of them ever seemed to speak to each other. I've heard that they got into a very heated argument some time ago, so that could be the reason why".

"Unfortunately, that is true" Klein acknowledged his reasoning, "so tell me, for what reason do you think they argued?"

"Well" Bismarck shifted his eyes from Klein and stared at the ceiling, "since the knowledge of Master Laphicet being adopted is an open secret, I have a feeling it pertains to Miss Weiss letting off a tint of resentment towards what she perceives to be the amount of attention he's receiving."

"Very Observational" Klein thought as he straightened himself on his seat. So far, this Bismarck seems to have paid a lot of attention to the people he was serving, what type of personalities they had and how they interacted with each other. Not only that, it seems he had been doing a lot of independent investigations of his own into the matters regarding the children, despite not being his business which would probably take quite a lot of dedication to pull off. That being said, it felt like his would be protégé was not telling him the entire story, almost as if he was holding onto more information until Klein gave him something back in return. He could tell, that despite his aloof demeanor, the young blonde was smarter than he let on. It was subtle, but it nearly impressed Klein.

Sadly, everything that Bismarck had answered was also nearly accurate, especially with regards to the Weiss and Laphicet situation. So far, he wanted an update on the situation and now seemed like the best time for that opportunity.

"So, tell me, what is their situation now? Weiss and Laphicets I mean" Klein asked with a somber tone.

"They are both still not on speaking terms yet and neither of them even so much as look at each other" Bismarck answered.

"I see" Klein said, the disappointment could be read all over his face. Months had passed and not a single progress had been made towards making amends. He had dealt with children who argued before but none of them showed the level of stubbornness and vindictiveness that either of these two had. Perhaps it was the Schnee pride at work here and Klein was a bit worried that even Laphicet might have caught onto it as well. "Thank you for answering my questions Bismarck" Klein's face switched up with a smile.

"Of course, Sir" Bismarck quickly bowed.

"Now, as for your results; I'am sorry to inform you but your gradings from the Schnees are simply not enough to earn you your first star ranking" the senior butler bluntly stated, causing Bismarck to freeze in place with wide eyes and an open jaw.

"I…. I see" Bismarck gagged for a bit before he recovered enough to talk back with a nervous smile while he rubbed the back of his head.

"Hold on, I said you couldn't have your first star" Klein interrupted," I never said anything about you failing to become a full fledge apprentice of mine."

"Really!? Whew!" the blonde butler let out a deep breath, relieved to know that he had passed the test.

"That is, of course, if you want to take this offer. Otherwise, you can simply look elsewhere for service or start from scratch again" Klein teased with a sly smile curving on his face. This was one of the few instances of him showing his more casual side to fellow employees outside of breaks.

"Not all sir, I'd gladly take up your offer" Bismarck enthusiastically replied.

"Good" Klein nodded with approval, "then we can begin your training tomorrow morning. For now, you are dismissed."

Strong winter winds slammed against the walls of the manor as its inhabitants huddled cozily inside of its warm interior. It would seem that this was a last-ditch effort by the winter season to remind everyone that while it was nearing the end of its term as it surrendered dominion over to spring, it was still a force to be reckoned with and that it would come back at the end of next year.

Speaking of the end of the year, it was apparently going to be the new year for Remnant soon. Laphicet was actually looking forward to the new year event, as the late-night countdown and firework celebrations were one of the most exciting festivities he had experienced in the orphanage.

But as of this moment, his mind was not on the new year festival that was coming in the days ahead. He already had high expectations, being that the Schnees would most likely have the most extravagant celebrations for it. Instead, for the time being, he was content with simply sitting next to the fireplace with his study chair and tinkering with his scroll. For a minute, he would be browsing through the ridiculously high number of SDC videos that his father had him involved in, while in the next, he would looking through the hundreds of pictures that he had taken, ranging from simple garden sceneries to certain people like Klein standing next to him. He even managed to get a few with his adopted mother somehow and much to his chagrin, even Whitley found a way to butt in. Even so, they still managed to crack a smile from him.

Yet, this was not enough to distract Laphicet and he soon found himself back to boredom. Even browsing through the net wasn't enough as he just wasn't in the mood for it. He thought being adopted by a rich family would mean access to more exciting things, but honestly, the reality seemed further from that idea. Of course, the difference in comfort was higher, but life felt somewhat cold and miserable.

Gently placing the scroll on his lap, Phi looked up to the ceiling and sighed. He really had been giving some thoughts as to what Bismarck had told him regarding Weiss for some time now. Was he really at fault here as well? But how could he know, he wasn't there when everything went down; for the longest time Phi had been nothing but cordial and nice to her while she was as cold and standoffish as ever. How could this be a two-sided problem when Weiss was clearly the one with animosity?

If that was the case however, Laphicet would've just ignored his statement and moved on. But he couldn't move on. He wanted answers! The heavy and violent whirling sound of the snowstorm descended upon his room even if it was at the innermost part of the manor. It was as if they were manifestations of all of the emotions he was feeling right now.

Bismarck was as cryptic as ever so he was of little help in solving this puzzle. Yet when Laphicet continued to stare at the dizzying ceiling, he couldn't help but think that there some point in his riddle that was correct.

"He laughed when I told him that Weiss reminded me of Velvet" he mumbled as he continued to stare at the ceiling. "Velvet" he slowly diverted his gaze from the top and back to the burning flames of the hearth as he muttered that name once more. It belonged to a…...special person: one who not only gave him his name but changed his life forever, for it was her who helped turn him from an emotionless tool to his own person. Sure, she could be ruthless and abrasive, even threatening to eat him at times and yet for all of her faults, she was her own person and there was no one like her.

And that bugged him the most because while she was unique in every way and he himself eventually became his own person; the name she gave him did not truly belong to him. It belonged to her brother, the first Laphicet, and in her eyes, probably the only true Laphicet. The way Velvet spoke fondly about him made him envy the real Laphicet even more. It always felt like he was playing second fiddle to him even if he had never met him or seen him before and no matter what he did, Phi always felt like he would be stuck in his shadow. No matter how many times he would lash out or how many times Velvet would tell him otherwise, the young seraph always felt like he was never HER Laphicet, but merely a replacement to fill in that void.

"Replacement?" as he said those words, it snapped him of his thoughts as if a revelation had just struck him.

"After all, just like she doesn't know a lot about you, you don't really know Miss Weiss as much as you think you do"

Recalling that conversation, it would seem that this self-reflection had indeed helped him uncover the riddle. "Am I, doing something wrong too?" he questioned himself, staring at his own hands. Was this truly what Bismarck meant when he said that Phi really didn't know Weiss as he thought he did.

Replacement

That word now carried a greater deal of weight than when it was originally conceived in his thoughts. "Was I trying to replace Velvet with Weiss?" Phi asked himself for clarification, even though everything was becoming clearer by the second. If there was anyone who knew what it felt like to play second fiddle to anyone, it was Laphicet. After all, he always felt like he was second best to Laphi when it came to Velvet's affection. And now, it would seem he was doing the same thing with Weiss even if he was unaware of it, treating her the same way Velvet did to him even if there was no malice put behind the thought or action.

Curling his fists into a ball, Laphicet held onto them tightly as he gritted his teeth. A strange feeling had come over him; a feeling he had not experienced yet and had no idea that he even had them. It made his heart heavy and his mind burned out, though he wasn't exactly sure what it was; was it regret? Guilt? Or perhaps self-loathing? Regardless of its true nature, it made him feel terrible.

"Bismarck was right, I really didn't know her" he angrily grumbled to himself. He had almost done the same thing that he had become resentful of Velvet doing to him; he had practically ignored who Weiss was as a person, just so he could project this idea of Weiss as the person who reminded him of Velvet; a replacement.

Now he truly understood what Bismarck meant that they were both in the wrong and why Klein was so insistent on the both of them making amends.

But was it too late for such things?

His mind may be contemplating it, but his body it seems had other plans. As if of their own accord, Laphicet got up from his chair on instinct and headed for the door. After all those months of Klein telling him how it was a bad idea to remain in this of indifference, it had finally dawned on him on the true gravity of the situation had he continued on this path. He was getting scared: scared of the kind of person he was becoming.

"What should I tell her?" Laphicet mumbled as he walked with a steady pace. His destination was non other than the room that he had dreaded passing by for a month now. Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks as he caught something in the front. There were three figures standing in front of Weiss's room: one was the girl herself, while the other consisted of Klein and Bismarck, who stood from a reasonable distance and seemed to be keeping watch.

Instinctively, Laphicet quickly and quietly dashed over to one of the pillars to his right side as he hid himself. After taking a moment to compose himself, Phi slowly but surely peeked out of the edge of the pillar to see what was going on and eavesdrop on the conversation if possible. As he did so, his eyes met with those of Bismarck's, who simply crossed his finger across his lips, signifying that he was going to zip his mouth shut and not compromise Phi. The younger seraph smiled and nodded as he began watching the other two from a distance.

Laphicet couldn't hear what they were talking about properly, but from their body language, it must have been something lighthearted or humorous, since they were no other explanations for as to why Weiss was uncharacteristically smiling and laughing while Klein was goofing around with one of his personalities. His jaw dropped at the sight of her giggling and laughing at whatever Klein was doing, though, he himself couldn't argue that Klein did have that effect on him as well.

In his eyes, Weiss almost seemed like a completely different person. She looked so happy and content that it unnerved him and pique his curiosity at the same time, possibly due to the fact that he was more accustomed to the icy cold demeanor that she usually showed him. Was this a rare instance of her showing her kinder side as an exception for Klein? Or was this her true self?

In any case, whatever her reasons were, the one thing he did agree on was the fact that she looked several times more approachable and perhaps, even cuter too, enough to bring a smile in Laphicets own face. Maybe, it was the fact that she rarely if ever, smiled and seeing one of hers made it that much more worth it. It probably spoke volumes of how much of a valued person Klein had to be that he could bring this side of her.

Just as he was getting far too comfortable spying, the conversation had abruptly ended as the two figures said their goodbyes. It was also the cue for Laphicet to immediately go back into hiding as he quickly fell back into the pillar. Sadly, he would not have time to catch his breath as heavy footsteps began thumping their way towards him, causing him to freeze up. He really didn't think this through and now that Klein was on his way, he wasn't exactly sure of how to respond if he ever got caught. Phi was internally groaning at the thought of being stuck in an embarrassing situation again.

However, much to his surprise and relief, the footsteps stopped abruptly. As luck would have it, Bismarck had apparently convinced Klein to head in the other direction for some reason or the other. As the footsteps changed direction, their sounds grew fainter and fainter, convincing Laphicet to cautiously peek through the pillars again. Just as he predicted, the two butlers had their backs turned and were walking away towards the other side of the manor.

After a few minutes, the two of them had disappeared completely, signifying that the coast was clear for Laphicet. Slowly emerging out of his hiding, Phi nervously made his way towards the door. It almost felt like his sense of touch had been sent into overdrive as even the slightest gust of wind sent a chill that ran down his spine while his heart started pounding like crazy. It took every ounce of willpower to force his shaking hand to reach the door and another ounce of strength to actually knock. It was now or never and he had hoped three knocks would be enough.

It took a minute or two but the door eventually opened as a figured emerged from the room's interior. Laphicet was frozen again at the sight of Weiss appearing again, curious as to how she would react towards him after Phi had just seen a different side of her yet cautious all the same, on account of their interactions these last few months, with all of them ending badly. He was surprised to see her with her hair down while wearing nothing but a blue nightgown. Even before she spoke, vestiges of her fierce exterior, especially in her eyes, had already been imprinted into Phi's mind and right now, so he couldn't help but see that again. Conversely, that long hair of hers reached beyond her waist, almost like…

Phi quickly shook his head as he tried to dispel those thoughts.

"Klein?" Weiss paused immediately.

It would seem she too was genuinely surprised upon seeing the person who was actually knocking on her door. She immediately took a step back as the words became incapable of escaping her mouth, almost choking in the process.

"Y-you!?" Weiss asked with twitching eyes, though the boy remained silent. Perhaps he needed some time to gather his thoughts. Whatever his reasons were, it seemed that he had come at the worst possible time. Fresh off of a hearty conversation with Klein, Weiss had been in a good mood for a while and was just about getting ready to sleep contently. But then, out of the blue, the kid she had been arguing with shows up at her doorstep, completely throwing her off guard.

"Well…...this is awkward" she thought to herself as she slowly made her way towards him. Internally, she was kicking and screaming at everything around her, a conflict of mood and personalities clashing as she found herself unable to decide whether to humor him and listen to what he had to say or just brush him off and shut the door. Her feelings regarding him were just as conflicted: she didn't know whether to loathe him for all of the love and affection he took away from her or pity him for being unable to comprehend her situation. Yet every time Weiss looked at him, she felt a heaviness within her heart that she never felt before. Was it guilt? Regret?

Regardless of what it really was, the ivory haired girl let out a deep breathe before placing a hand on her hips as she gave a stern look towards Laphicet. "If it means lifting that heavy feeling off of me, maybe I should at least hear him out" she convinced herself.

"What is it" she asked once again, with a firm voice that was only an octave short of aggressive.

"i…..I…..Uhhhh…..uhhh" Laphicet choked, his cheeks reddened as if he had fever all of a sudden.

Weiss could see that the boy was frozen; because of what, she had no idea. But it was certain that the words could not escape his mouth. Her expression softened a little and it changed from stern to one of slight confusion as she gently bent down closer to his face. "Are…. you alright?" she asked, with an almost passive look on her face.

Unbeknownst to her, Weiss was actually making it worse for him by getting closer as Phi no longer began to see Weiss through his eyes.

"Your face is red. Have you caught a fever or something?" Weiss asked once again.

Yet slowly but surely, the more she asked, the more she began to morph in his eyes. Through this strange hallucination, her snow-white hair slowly began turning into shining raven black, messy and unkempt, almost touching the floor before ending in a braid. The strands shifted towards her left side with a shoulder length braid plaited by white bandages. Her piercing blue eyes began morphing into a fiery golden one as her did her brows and eyelashes. Her blue nightgown had changed into a plain earthly yellow and her voice became…. deeper?

"Phi? What's wrong" she asked. Her fearsome eyes were contradicted by her softer expressions. But it was enough to get his attention.

"Velvet?" Laphicet slowly asked as he continue to stare at her.

"Of course, it's me" she answered standoffishly, "So, tell me, is something bothering you?"

At this point, Laphicet no longer knew what was real and what was an illusion. All he knew was she was here, right now talking to him. Gripping his hands tightly, a year worth of her absence and several months of depressing life in the Schnees had built up a copious amount of pent up emotions buried within him. And now, she was here, standing right next to him.

"Velvet…I…." tears began flowing from his eyes.

"What is it?"

"I'M SORRY VELVET! I JUST MISS YOU SO MUCH!" Laphicet closed his eyes and answered at the top of his lungs.

Letting out all those pent-up emotions seemed to have done the trick as it immediately snapped him back to reality, and with eyes wide open, the full gravity of what he had just said and in front of whom. Almost looking shocked and in contemplation of what he had just said, a terrified Laphicet slowly looked up to see if he had been brought back to reality.

And unfortunately for the young seraph, there was no longer a vision of Velvet standing before him but rather, the person who he had just called Velvet. At any moment, he expected a tight slap to the face and this time, he felt that he deserved it for not only embarrassing her but for making a complete fool of himself as well.

Yet, it never came to be.

The Schnee heiress instead had a petrified look on her face and seemed to be taken aback by what he had just said. "Velvet?" she asked, genuinely confused beyond her comprehension but strangely composed nonetheless. Weiss could see tears flowing from his eyes that left her puzzled yet concerned as to what could've been done to him to warrant such an act. "Did something happen to him? Who is this Velvet?" questions began forming in her mind as to what stories were behind this to justify the sudden and strange behavior. It almost felt like a confession or an apology of sorts, but not directed towards her. It seemed like the boy had problems of his own.

Yet before, she could get an answer from him, the boy immediately tuned tail and ran, hiding his face while doing to. As he disappeared from sight, Weiss herself couldn't help but feel a little bit saddened by this sight. She didn't like him much but that didn't mean she enjoyed his misery, and behind his cheerful demeanor, it seems he was hiding a lot of grief and sadness. Just like…. her. Weiss really didn't know who 'Velvet' was, but it seemed that person meant a lot to him.

He screwed up. Badly.

And he knew it.

Since that night, Laphicet had mostly shut himself off completely within his room from the rest of the outside world. Whenever someone would to check up on him or to remind him that he had lessons, Phi would lie that he wasn't feeling well. At the same time, he would refuse to see a doctor as well, even at the insistence of Klein who had to give up after several attempts. Fortunately for Laphicet, Klein and Bismarck did their best to cover for him, providing him food through the door and acting as a sort of middlemen between the seraph and everyone else, alleviating the worries of Willow, who had shown a surprising amount of concern not seen in a while.

This act went on for several more days before Laphicet eventually came out of his shell at the behest of Klein who told him that an attendance to the New Year's Ball the next day was both mandatory and a great way for him to forget about all of the problems he was facing. By the time he begrudgingly came out of the room, Klein was a little uneasy at what he was seeing. It wasn't that he looked sickly or malnourished, but it was clear to Klein that his radiant smile had been replaced with dull eyes of unhappiness.

"How are you, Master Laphicet?" he gently asked.

"I'm fine" Laphicet gloomily answered.

Klein knew that he gave a rhetorical question and that his young charge would give an obvious answer that contradicted his true feelings. He had a good guess as to what it was all about and decided that it wasn't his place to pry into the matter any further. "Hmmm, you're looking way too gloomy and doomy to be fine" he said as he leaned in closer with a grouchy face and red eyes.

Laphicet simply gave him blank look as if he was unsure as to how he should respond.

"Well, you should be excited for the New Year's party. It'll make you forget everything" the butler's grinned widely as his eyes turned pink while he clasped his hands together and swayed his hips like a pendulum.

While he did not say a word, Laphicets facial expressions painted a picture of uncertainty and confusion, though not in any negative manner either.

"But…. then again, it'll be too much of a bother to celebrate" Klein continued as he suddenly hunched his back as if to show exhaustion and his tone became dour while his eyes turned mint green.

"Oh Klein" Phi let out a sigh before smiling. It wasn't that the act was funny but rather the intention behind was enough to alleviate the mood slightly. While the act itself wouldn't be enough to solve the problems he was facing, it was the thought and the effort put into it that counted.

"Thank you, Klein…. for trying" Laphicet acknowledged with a smile.

The butler stood upright and smiled back as his eye color reverted back to its default state of light brown. "You're more than welcome, my little prince" he said, "come, your mother has been calling for you".

"Mother?" the young seraph asked, tilting his head.

…

"I heard that you were unwell" Willow said, gently placing the palm of her right hand onto Laphicets forehead. "How are you feeling now?" she asked.

Laphicet felt a little uneasy standing before her. Things just didn't feel the same after that incident where he found her intoxicated, and it would seem that she felt the same about it as well since she no longer spent as much time with him as she did before that little event. This was a problem that Laphicet had been facing with nearly every Schnee, even Winter to an extent: they just never truly expressed how they really felt and thus, he couldn't really figure out what their intentions were. With his adopted mother, Willow, Laphicet couldn't figure out if she genuinely cared for him like a son or if she just wanted someone to fill in the void for her other children. Her mixed messages didn't exactly help either.

"I…. I'm fine. You don't need to worry about me" Laphicet answered, diverting his gaze away from her in the process. There was just an air of discomfort around her and in her private garden, it felt even more awkward.

"I see" Willow said, slowly letting go of the hand from his forehead. She seemed as dour and gloomy as ever, a trait that Laphicet now seemed to have shared.

Returning his gaze towards her, Laphicet felt a little bit guilty over his blunt and aloof answer. For all her flaws, she was probably only mother he knew; a privilege very few of his kind would ever get. Even if she was distant and seemed to be an island to herself at times, Phi still appreciated every thing she had done for him, whether it was out of kindness or selfishness. "But thanks for being worried about me" he admitted as he tried his best to form a smile, no matter how fake it was. That being said, he was genuinely glad that they were both still talking and that she was still concerned for him. Maybe there at least was one rift that could actually be fixed.

Willow seemed a little surprised by what he had just said but slowly smiled back as she place a hand on his cheek. "It's alright" she reassured him while continuing to smile, "just let me know if there is anything that's bothering you."

"I will" Laphicet answered with a nod. As Willow freed her hand from his cheek, Phi began to slowly get up from the chair he was sitting on and turn around to leave her.

"Laphicet, wait" she called out, causing Laphicet to stop and turn around.

"What is it, …...mother?" he asked, though it felt a bit strange to address her as that after a long while. Still, Phi felt that he had to at least try to make it work.

Willow turned her head away from him, opting to stare at her garden instead. "Tomorrow is the New Year's event" she began, almost seemingly hesitant to speak on the matter before eventually turning her head to face Laphicet once again, "and we haven't spent as much time as I'd like to as mother and son. So, I was wondering if we could watch the New Year fireworks together, just the two of us. Will that be alright?"

It took a few moments for Laphicet to take in the everything that she had just said. To be honest, he was genuinely and pleasantly surprised by this offer. At the very least it would definitely help him forget about that very, very, VERY embarrassing night, albeit only temporarily. "Yeah, I'd like that" he answered with a big smile and a quick nod.

"I'm glad to hear it" Willow smiled back with a nod of her own.

After leaving the garden, Laphicet decided to do bit of walking around on his own. He was still a bit uncomfortable with so many of the staff around, especially after the incident where he made a scene of himself, even though no one except him and Weiss were around; which really didn't alleviate matters considering that someone must have been within earshot when it happened and the fact that he confessed so loudly only made it likely.

Now he was just hoping that nobody took notice of him and gave him any strange looks. Laphicet could already imagine a crowd of people surrounding him and laughing at his expense. With the New Year's party on the horizon, he was just praying that it kept them too busy to actually notice.

Of course, his biggest concern of all was accidentally meeting Weiss. After his botched attempt at trying to make amends with her, the white-haired girl was the last person he ever wanted to encounter right now. He didn't know whether to be terrified or cringe in embarrassment and die of a heart attack. Having those thoughts in his head just made him grumble more and continue on his way.

After a few more minutes of walking, Laphicet eventually found himself in the dining hall as a very familiar face was working there: Bismarck was busy scrubbing the utensils with a cleaning cloth while humming along to some strange tune that he had never heard of.

"I take it, that it didn't go so well?" the older seraph asked a question the answers to which he probably already knew as Laphicet approached him.

"I messed up" Laphicet whined, holding out his hands in strange gesture, "it was really bad."

"I could tell" Bismarck nonchalantly answered, all the while busily wiping the utensils and plates clean, "you were crying aloud, weren't you? I heard it as well".

"I really thought about what you said Bismarck, and it turns out that you had a point. So, I wanted to make things right with her" Laphicet explained, though for some reason, his tone was becoming more desperate by the moment, "but when I saw her, all I could see was Velvet! I couldn't' help it!"

The older seraph finished cleaning the last plate as he gently placed it back into the cabinet before letting out a sigh and looking at Laphicet with a smile. "Guess this Velvet meant a lot more to you than I thought. Seems like it can't be helped."

"I don't know if anything can be fixed anymore" the younger seraph grumbled as he angrily gripped his hair tightly in frustration, "I'm such an idiot!"

"Now, now, I'm sure it's not the end of the world" the blonde butler tried to reassure his younger kin, "fate does have a way with beings like us."

…

As the two continued chatting, another figure was quickly making advances towards them, almost hastily it seems.

"Master Laphicet!" Klein called out, getting the attention of the other two.

Laphicet saw Klein frantically running over to him, looking uncharacteristically worried. This definitely set off alarms in his head, since he had never seen the calm and jovial Klein act this way. "Klein?" he asked, looking puzzled yet concerned at the same time.

"Pardon the intrusion but you must see this!" the butler pleaded as he whipped out his scroll and began tinkering with it, pressing all sorts of buttons. He eventually handed it over to Laphicet, with the intention of showing to him what all this fuss was about.

Taking the scroll from Klein's hand, Laphicet checked in to see what this was all about. Even Bismarck joined in and glanced while still maintaining distance. Eventually, it turned out to be a video feed of a city block in wreckage as a few small buildings and shops were in ruins while a limousine was crashed beyond recognition. Laphicets hand began to tremble at the sight of what was going on there. The worst part was that this was a very familiar part of the city since this was the route that would be taken whenever they took him outside.

"-Sources say that aside from the damaged buildings, no more than two dozen lives have been lost in this attack while several others have been injured" words could not describe what he was feeling right now; who could ever do such a thing? However, the worst was yet to come. "-as military, police and rescue workers continue to tirelessly aid in the rescue of the remaining survivors, Weiss Schnee, the daughter of the Schnee Dust Company's CEO Jacques Schnee, is stated to have gone missing from the area. Authorities speculate that this was a premeditated attack by the faunus terrorist group know as the White Fang, in a kidnapping attempt to gain leverage over the SDC whose feud with the White Fang has been well documented. Just over a month, certain members of the board- "

Laphicet shut down the scroll and handed it back to Klein again; he just couldn't bear to hear it anymore. "This is…" he gulped, looking over to Klein, who did not utter a single word but simply shook his head with a sad look on his face.

"Oh no. Weiss…."

Finally got past the mental block to do a longer chapter and I'm trying my best to move the forward. I did read the suggestion from a guest comment to add in the White Fang, but I just wanted to let them know that I had been planning that for a long time. Still, your suggestions is very much appreciated.

The next chapters might take a bit longer since it's going to involve action scenes soon and I need to find a way to implement the powers of the Malaks/Seraphs in a balanced way without having them end the plot in seconds. For Bismarck, I can definitely take inspirations from Eizen and Edna since he can be scaled to them. Phi's gonna be a bit trickier since he's the wielder of the silver flame and he's REALLY powerful as a spirit mage. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Well, that's it for now. Hope you enjoy it and let me know what you think :)