Tick. Tick. Tick. That was the only sound that filled the room. My eyes drifted away from the book I was reading to the clock for what felt like the hundredth time, noting the time. Only another five minutes and then detention would be over. It was not an experience I wanted to repeat, being stuck in that room surrounded by wannabe gang members. The only saving grace was the fact that Yang and Ruby were right beside me. Literally. Ruby picked the desk next to me and Yang chose the one directly behind me. The three of us hunkered down in the front corner.
Of course, my worst enemies were also there with me. In the exact opposite corner at the front of the room, the trio had set themselves up in a similar position. Though, even they didn't seem to have the heart they had before. Madison just kept her eyes firmly down on her book, only occasionally shooting furtive glances towards the three of us. Emma and Sophia were much more obvious, Emma occasionally whispering comments to Madison. Sophia just sat there and glared at Yang for the entire time. The smirks Yang gave in return probably didn't help.
The day had been surprisingly quiet and pleasant. I'd even got to eat lunch with Ruby and Yang! There had been some worries that the Trio was gonna try something, but they hadn't. Madison's attitude had been there before detention, she and her group of friends keeping their distance when we shared classes. Emma didn't do anything more than whisper comments to her friends behind my back, and Sophia ignored me. What little tidbits I could overhear in class just told me that she was completely focused on Yang.
Guess she felt threatened as the toughest bitch in school. Honestly, I wasn't particularly worried anymore about Sophia getting super violent again. Yang was her target, and Yang could handle herself. I was more worried about what rumors Emma could try to spread about us. While I was used to it, were Ruby and Yang used to getting constantly harassed? Could they handle it, or would they wind up blaming me for it?
I was jostled out of my thoughts by Mr. Carson finally letting out a sigh and standing up from his desk. He didn't even say anything as he packed his stuff up. Like that, the silence was broken, all the students starting to pack up and talk to each other. The Trio were the first to get out of there, Madison practically running to escape, followed by Emma's confident stride and a reluctant Sophia. A small snort sounded from behind me, and I turned to look at Yang's grin. "Seems like we got off on the wrong foot. Though, she didn't have a leg to stand on when we first met."
… What? The confusion on my face must have been apparent because Yang's smile dropped, and she tried to explain. "You know, cause I ended our last fight by kicking her… It's a pun."
A groan of exasperation escaped Ruby as she turned to look directly at the two of us, kids passing us by to get to the doors. "Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaang. Those were awful and you know it."
"It wasn't… that bad," I lied through my teeth. It was pretty awful. No point in not at least trying to be polite about it? Ruby gave me a look that told me she didn't buy it, and Yang just let out a sigh and shook her head.
"No no, she's right. Those two are awful, I tried to force them where they didn't fit. I should know I need to put a bit more sole into my jokes." It took the both of us a moment to realize what she had done. What elicited a facepalm out of Ruby actually got a surprised chuckle out of me. Yang fist-pumped at her success as she slid her school stuff into her bag. Ruby and I took her lead, packing up as well.
"I knew I had a good feeling about you, Taylor! Ruby, why can't you have as good of taste as our new friend?" Yang's question came as she got up and moved to leave, the room mostly empty by this point.
"She hasn't had to listen to them for the last lifetime. They aren't cookies or strawberries Yang, you can have too many of them!" The following jab towards Yang just prompted a roll of the eyes from the older girl, as we all stepped out into the hall.
"Only you can stuff your face on those two things and not get tired of them Sis. Puns are that for me." She ignored the gasp of shock and the following cries of heresy and blasphemy that escaped from Ruby, turning to look over at me. "You think the trio of bitches is still hanging around, or can we not have to watch our backs?"
It took a moment to realize exactly what she meant by that, and I mentally checked for the gnats I had stuck in those three's hair. Not there at all, so either dead or out of range. "They didn't stick around. Emma and Madison's parents probably were waiting to pick them up. Without those two around, odds are Sophia just wandered off to do her own thing."
She nodded her head in understanding, as we reached the doors out to the parking lot. Stopping for a moment, she flung the doors open and let out a loud whoop that attracted the attention of literally everyone. "WOOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOO! FREEEEEEDOOOOOOM!"
With everyone now staring at her as she strolled across the parking lot, the only thing I could do was duck my head and trail after her. Ruby's "Yaaaaaaaang!" went on deaf ears as she followed after as well, giving me what was originally a 'can you believe her?' look followed by a more concerned one. I tried to smile back, but there was only so much I could do to hide the discomfort of the fact that everyone was staring at us.
Luckily Yang's car wasn't too long of a walk, a beat-up old blue sedan. We, and by we I mean Ruby and Yang, had already decided that my days of taking the bus were over. Besides, they had invited me over to their house so I could 'take a look at Ruby's collection' and 'get a feel of what I might want.' It was kind of nerve-wracking, going to someone else's house for the first time in years. For some reason Ruby joined me in the back seat, leaving Yang upfront to drive.
"Uuuuugh, why is detention so boring." A groan of exhaustion escaped the younger sister, though she perked up immediately afterward. "So, Taylor, you got any ideas on what kind of weapons you want to try first? I've got big weapons, little weapons, long weapons, short weapons, heavy weapons, light weapons, ranged weapons, melee weapons, weapons that go shlict, weapons that go boom, weapons that go bang, weapons that go phuft, weapons that go bonk..." She stopped for a moment, an expression of thought on her face before she spoke up yet again. "Weapons that go shnict… Weapons that go twang… Weapons that go thunk..."
"Ruby, you got your point across. Give her a chance to respond at the least." Yang's voice from the front got Ruby to stop thinking of ways to describe her weapons and give me this look of excitement. Chuckling awkwardly, I rubbed the back of my neck before responding.
"Well… I'm not really sure. I've never actually held… any weapon before, besides a bottle of pepper spray. Didn't even do research into it back when I was preparing to go out as a hero… Got any recommendations?" That was apparently the right thing to say, as Ruby jumped right in.
"Oh, I've got tons of weapon ideas for you Taylor! Absolute tons! But wait, no, you want recommendations on what to try first… Well, there's a fair few simple weapons I made early on. Sword and shield combo that turns into a longsword, a set of pistols that have got knife blades attached to them, two-handed mace with a nozzle on the top, there's that cane, got a few basic combinations with rifles and shotguns… Plenty of stuff for you to try!"
"... Is that all the weapons you have, or are there even more?" Seriously, she listed at least six different weapons right there. Combined with Yang's gauntlets and her scythe, that was eight. How many more could she have?
Ruby's giggling informed me that there were indeed even more, even as Yang's snort drew my attention up to her. "Yeah, she's got more. To be entirely honest, Dad fuels her tinkering way too much. It was a pain in the ass moving all the stuff she had built cross country when we moved last. She gets an idea in her head, and she just makes it. Trust me, you couldn't even guess the weird stuff we've got stored away in our basement."
"Oh come on Yang, I haven't made anything too weird! Dad'll buy me a lot of basic materials, but he won't splurge to get me the really expensive stuff I want." The tone she used told me that she had asked a lot. Though it raised the question of what exactly was so expensive that her Dad wouldn't buy it? Yang for her part didn't look too impressed, just glancing back in the rearview mirror.
"... I mentioned wanting something that I could hide when we go out in public, and you designed a minigun that folds into a purse that both me and Dad have to turn our shields on to use. You can't even use it with yours on!" … Wait, a minigun purse?
"I'll have you know that it proved to be a highly effective form of thrust! I got ten meters off the ground before I let go of the trigger!" I just stared at Ruby, trying to absorb what she just said.
"Too bad you weren't trying to fly. Either way, there are better ways of flying than using a minigun Sis. Though you do use Crescent Rose, and I use Ember Cecilia to get ourselves some extra boost… That's not flying though! That's just jumping plus." Yang's response made Ruby roll her eyes, but I was caught on one part of
"You all named your weapons?" They both gave me an odd look after I asked that.
"Out of all the things you could have gotten out of that conversation, you got the fact we named our weapons?" A faint blush covered my face as Yang asked that, ducking my head slightly in response. Ruby for her part just excitedly bobbed her head up and down.
"It's tradition! Uncle Qrow always named everything he made. It helps express their personality." That got an odd look out of me, even as Yang not so subtly rolled her eyes.
"... Personality?" Weapons having names wasn't too odd all things considered, just surprised me. Weapons having personality though, that was weirder.
"You know, their style, their purpose, their owner, the little quirks all weapons are gonna have. Their personality! Plus, it helps keep track when I've made so many you know." Now my head bobbed in response to that. It made sense, though the names were…
"Why... those names though? Crescent Rose I can sort of get, it's a big red scythe. But why Ember Celica?" Ruby jumped in before Yang could explain, even though she was the one who needed to explain.
"I didn't name it that because she's red! Well, not entirely. Crescent Rose is my pride! My joy! My magnum opus! She's my baby, and of course, I'm gonna give my baby my name. Crescent's just because she's a scythe though." I couldn't help but stare at Ruby as she explained her thought process. My eyes shifted over Yang, and she just shrugged.
"I've got a sort of fire aesthetic with my hair and the ammo. So Ember just sounded nice. Then it was just trying to find a name that matched. Apparently, Celica derives itself from the Latin word for Heavenly or Celestial. It sounded cool, and wasn't as dorky as just naming it "Heavenly Fire" or whatever that'd be in Latin." That made sense. Not nearly as emotional as Ruby, but it made sense.
"I'll have to think on what to name mine. Once we figure out what exactly it's gonna be. Probably gonna be some spider or insect reference in there." I managed to catch a mischievous glint in Yang's eyes as she glanced back at us.
"Well, I'm sure whatever you come up with, it'll be a real stinger!" That got another chuckle out of me, though Ruby groaned at it. Maybe we should talk about something more important...
"Since we brought up weapons, when do I start training?" That got Ruby's attention, and she put on a thoughtful expression and rubbed her chin.
"Well, if you're feeling better by then, this Friday! Then we can go on patrol over the weekend, try to hunt down that bomb tinker Armsmaster talked about!" That… seemed like a big jump. Yang seemed to thank the same thing, as she spoke up from upfront.
"Sorry Ruby, but we're not gonna be able to go on patrol this weekend. Gotta get ourselves registered as an official indie team, and more importantly, gotta see about updating Taylor's costume. Gotta get her on the brand you know?" The common sense in her statements made me nod, even as it made Ruby huff.
"But the longer we wait, the more prepared the ABB's gonna be for us! You know what Dad always says, don't give tinker's enough time to tink!" Wait, what?"Don't you mean think?" The question made Ruby shake her head rapidly.
"No, tink! If thinkers think, then tinker's tink!" The fact that the sentence wasn't proper English just went over Ruby's head.
"She's already gonna have at least one week to prepare Ruby. I think both our dad, and Taylor's dad would want us to make sure she's able to handle herself before anything else. What if that tinker made like, fumigation bombs first thing? No bugs, and Taylor's in trouble. No offense to you Taylor." She added at the end for my benefit. Part of me wanted to disagree, but I couldn't deny it.
"None… taken." I didn't say anymore, turning to look out the window instead. There was a gulf between me and them in terms of experience and training. They were slowing themselves down to catch me up to speed. I felt kind of guilty about holding them back. Especially since it might be putting them in further danger since they couldn't go after Bakuda.
Ruby nudged with her elbow, knocking me from my thoughts. She gave me a grin as she waggled a notebook at me. "Wanna see what idea's I have for what your weapon could be?"
With nothing better to do, I nodded. She leaned in a bit closer than I was comfortable but I didn't say anything as she flipped the notebook open. That's how we spent the rest of the car ride, going over her designs. Well, she excitedly explained what everything was as I nodded. Turns out, trying to understand tinker tech was pretty damn difficult to understand if you're not a tinker. She at least had sketches of what they'd look like when finished, and explained things I didn't understand.
We were busy arguing about the name of a crossbow that could turn into a sword when the car came to a stop. Blinking, I turned myself away from the argument to look out the window. We had pulled into a driveway in a suburb I wasn't particularly familiar with. From the position of the buildings in the distance, we were west of Downtown, in the more middle-class neighborhoods. Yang stopped the car and climbed out, Ruby following suit even as she commented. "Huntress just sounds cooler."
"I guess... TellTale just has more character and a reference to actual history." Grabbing my backpack, I climbed out of the car and looked up. Their house was in a lot better condition than my house. Painted a pale blue, it was what you'd expect from a suburban house. Two stories, built-in garage, small porch, there wasn't anything that made it stand out from the rest of the homes around it. I didn't know what I expected, just something that hinted at the fact that some extraordinary people lived there.
"Come on!" Ruby's voice brought me out of my thoughts. Blushing a bit, I hurried after the pair. Yang punched in a code and opened up the door, stepping to the side and throwing out an arm in an extravagant gesture.
"Mi casa es su casa. Come on in, make yourself at home!" She gave me a grin, which I returned with a bit of nervousness. Following Ruby in, I heard the patter of little feet running along the ground. What's that?
"Zwei!" Ruby tossed her backpack to the side and spread her arms wide. Something white and black leaped up from the ground and almost bowled her over. She just laughed and hugged it close, even as it licked her all over the face. It only took a moment to realize what it was, which just left me with another question.
"You have a dog?" Yang blinked at the question, before facepalming. Ruby was too busy with the dog to even notice I asked a question.
"Can't believe we never mentioned him. Yeah, we have a dog. Taylor, meet Zwei. Zwei, meet Taylor." I looked from Yang's hand gestures over to Ruby and Zwei. He'd stopped licking Ruby and now was sitting comfortably in her arms, staring at me with this happy expression on his face. I wasn't entirely sure what breed he was, we'd never been dog people. He was small though, kind of around the size of a loaf of bread. Black on the top, white on the bottom, with bits of cream and brown along the edge. On one hand, he looked kind of dumb, sitting there with his tongue hanging out, stumpy legs resting on Ruby's arm. On the other hand, something about his black beady-eyed stare... kind of creeps me out.
Not that I'd admit it. Who gets creeped out by a tiny dog? Putting a smile on my face, I stepped over and offered Zwei a hand to sniff. "Well aren't you… cute. Nice to meet you Zwei?"
He gave my hand a single sniff, before licking it once. Then he squirmed seemingly in the perfect way to slip out of Ruby's arms, dropping to the floor and landing feet first. He padded over, and just stood by my legs, looking up at me with that same expression. I could already tell that Zwei was likely to be my least favorite member of their family. Ruby on the other hand let out a little coo. "Awwwww, Taylor, he likes you!"
"Haha, yeah… I guess I've made a new friend?" I offered lamely as Yang slipped past me, throwing her book bag onto the couch. Ruby followed suit before making a beeline for the kitchen. Copying them and dropping my own onto the couch, I couldn't help but notice that Zwei followed me. I was expecting him to get underfoot, but he stayed perfectly out of my way as I followed the two to the kitchen. Just stuck by my side. It'd be endearing if it wasn't for those beady eyes of his.
The interior of the house was just as normal as the exterior had been. Black sofa with two chairs, oak coffee table, and nightstand. They were facing a TV set in a pretty simple white entertainment center. The walls were a light grey, and the only real thing of note was the pictures hung on the walls and sat in frames on cabinets. Stopping by one pressed against the wall, I took one in.
It was Ruby and Yang, younger than they were now. I would guess by around five years, considering the gap-toothed smile and pig-tails Ruby had. There was no sign of their dad in the picture, but what made it even more interesting was the setting. Visible over their shoulders was what looked to be some geyser. Water spraying in the air, a large crowd watching it. Yellowstone maybe? "Hey Taylor, you want something to drink. We got water, a couple of different kinds of juice, milk… chocolate milk... Ruby, did you drink all the fruit punch again?"
"It'sh not my fault that it'sh delishioush!" Their voices pulled me out of my thoughts, and I turned my attention back towards the kitchen. Yang had her head stuck in the fridge, and Ruby… had her hand stuck in a container of cookies. As well as at least a couple of cookies stuck in her mouth, considering the way her cheeks had puffed out.
"Just some water will be fine." It seemed like the safest option. Yang straightened back up, bringing two bottles of water with her. She tossed one over to me, which I nearly fumbled as I caught it. Turning towards Ruby, she swiped the container of cookies from her as she turned and left the kitchen.
"I wash eating thoshe!" Ruby followed after with a full-mouthed yell. Yang just gave me a roll of her eyes, offering the container to me. I took one of what I now recognized to be snickerdoodles, figuring refusing would be impolite. Yang then dropped it on the kitchen counter, stepping to the side to block Ruby's attempt to retake the container.
"You can keep eating them after we give Taylor the tour. Kind of hard to be a good host when your mouth's full of cookies, Sis." Yang chided Ruby, earning a small pout from the younger girl. For my part I just stood there nibbling on the snickerdoodle, watching the dynamic the sisters had. Plus, it was a good snickerdoodle.
"Alright, so, important stuff first! Taylor, follow me." Ignoring Ruby's pout, Yang proceeded to lead the way through the house. Glancing down at Zwei who was still following me, I moved to follow her. Ruby followed a second later, mumbling to herself about cookies.
"Alright, first door on the right, utilities. Door on the left, bathroom. Door on left again, guest bedroom. Door on the left again, basement. Then, stairs on the left. Yes, that's a lot of lefts, because we're just not right." The pun managed to drag another chuckle out of me and a groan out of Ruby. Yang for her part just opened up the basement door, flipped on a light switch, and started down the stairs.
"Upstairs is just the bedrooms. If this was just a hangout day, then we'd be up there. But since we've got hero stuff to do, the basement is our destination!" I followed them down the steps, taking in the basement and trying to ignore the nervousness that the word 'hangout' brought. It looked like your average basement, though cleaner than mine. A small room, with a bunch of boxes stacked up around the place. Yang for her part simply walked between them all and opened up a door on the opposite end of the room.
Following her through, I blinked at what I saw. A home gym. I shouldn't have been surprised, Tai, Yang, and even Ruby seemed to work out on a fairly regular basis. Considering their powers, it would make even more sense to have a private place to do so. It looked like it had everything a gym needed. A bench for lifting weights, one of those workout bicycles, some other pieces of equipment I didn't know, mats spread all over the floor and on the walls, a bunch of weights lined up on the shelves, and even a punching bag set up in the corner. "Hope you like the sight of this Taylor, it's where I'm gonna whip you into shape!"
Turning my eyes to Yang, I couldn't help the shiver that ran down my spine at the grin she shot my way. It was an equal mix of mischievous, and predatory. Gulping, I gave her a nervous smile and chose not to say anything.
"Yaaaang, don't scare her! It won't be that bad. She talks a big game, but she knows Dad won't let her live it down if she pushes you too hard. Now come on, we're gonna check out my part of the basement!" Ruby shot Yang a slightly annoyed look, to which the older girl just gave a grin back. Grabbing me by the arm, she dragged me towards a door I had missed opposite of the punching bag. Another door with a code lock.
Punching a set of numbers in, the door unlocked with a beep and she dragged me through. The room beyond was another storage room, but one of a different kind. Instead of a bunch of cardboard boxes, it shelves, covered with different labels. Stuff like "¼ in. -20 Zinc Plated Hex Nut". Paired with larger boxes of what looked like metal piping and just general hunks of metal scattered around, it became apparent that this room was for Ruby's tinker supplies. Another door with a code lock, and then she led me into her workshop.
The exposed concrete had stains here and there in what I could only describe as an armory. A fair portion of the walls was covered in what I could only assume were more of Ruby's creations. In all sorts of colors, the strange boxy shapes caught the eye. Looking past them though, there was a refrigerator and various power tools, along with benches holding additional tools. This was exactly what I had expected a tinker's workshop to look like. There was only one thing I could say in response to seeing it. "Wow."
"Wow's right! Welcome to my workshop, where I keep my collection! Take a look around, tell me if you see a weapon that interests you. Just uh… don't touch it before I can take a look at it." Ruby smiled at me before she ran over to one of the walls, grabbing what I was pretty sure was a sword in a sheath off the wall before running over to one of the benches. I turned my gaze to Yang, who just shrugged.
"Tinker thing. Without maintenance, a lot of tinkertech either doesn't work or gets dangerous. Ruby's tech isn't the worst about doing that, but the more complex the piece is, the more likely it'll jam or misfire if she hasn't maintained it. So she'll be doing quick maintenance before you try it out." I hadn't known about the tinker tech thing, but it made sense. So I nodded my head and looked around the room again, just standing out of the way.
"That makes sense… So I guess I'll be trying that sword first? Also, is that what I think it is?" My eyes had finally noticed a small purse sat against the wall next to a tool chest. Yang nodded, before seeing what I meant and grinning wide.
"Yep! Seems ridiculous that a little purse can turn into a whole damn minigun, right?" I just nodded along, staring at it. There was no way Ruby wasn't also making some weird 'bigger on the inside' stuff with her tech because that was just impossible. Speaking of Ruby, she ran back over, carrying the sword in its sheath over to me. Dumping it into my arms and taking my water bottle, she dragged me into the middle of the room.
"Okay, made sure it was properly lubricated, time for test one, longsword! Okay, you're gonna want to hold it like this, and then press this button right here. Got it? Good!" Giving her a wide-eyed stare, she shot me a thumbs up and backed off. Looking over at Yang, she gave me the same encouragement. Breathing in, I took in what I was holding. It was a sword in a sheath. Primarily colored white with some accents of orange and gold, there were faint lines that indicated spots that shifted, as well as a single button on the handle. So, I pressed it.
I almost dropped it as it shifted in my hands, parts of the sheath dropping down to connect with the guard and hold it in place. From the sheath came out multiple parts, shifting up and out until it formed the shape of a regular sword before slotting into place. It… was now a longer, larger sword. Holding it in two hands, it didn't feel particularly heavy. Glancing back over at the sisters, I gave it a tentative swing. Then another. Then another, grinning as the blade whistled through the air. I got the feeling that testing out what suited me best was gonna be a lot of fun