XIV.

The First Semester

The days passed by without much fanfare.

It didn't take long for Kirei to settle into a new routine. He would wake up early in the mornings to jog with Pyrrha before class. Then he would diligently attend his classes before retreating back into the confines of their dorm. Occasionally, he would meet up with Yang for a spar every few days when they were both free. There were divergences, of course, some days he would attend the library for research on a particular subject, and other days he would work out in the gym, but the core concept of it all was the same in the end.

Even though Beacon was supposed to be a new experience, he didn't feel that it was any different from the monotone routine he had during his time at Signal.

Sure, there were some new faces and a different environment, but that feeling of novelty wore off after a week or so. His life was back to the same old mundane routine that he had followed back when he was still in Patch. That unshakable tedious feeling was always the same no matter what he tried to do. Even back during his time working under the Church as an Executor, it was all so very dull.

There was only one thing in life that gave him satisfaction.

And yet, he was cursed to throw away his morals, the very fiber of his being into the wind if he wanted to pursue it. He was a being that could only seem to thrive on schadenfreude, someone that could only take pleasure in the suffering of others. Were he to seek out the stimulation he sought, he would have to give up everything, his faith, his honor, his relationships, all of it would have to be thrown away like trash.

The ghost that hid away in the depths of his mind was right. Those little juvenile antics that he was so fond of could only quench his thirst for so long. How long would it be until he finally broke under the pressure and gave in to his true desires? How would all the people in his life react to that?

The very thought of that gave him shivers of excitement.

And he hated that about himself the most.

Would life be any different once he became a full-fledged huntsman? Would he find the fulfillment that he desired so dearly? Summer had seemed to think so, and that had been enough for him to follow in her footsteps.

But what if she was wrong?

It was a thought that crossed his mind many times.

It was also a thought that he never bothered to entertain. He would rather remain ignorant to the answer to that question if only so he could latch onto that singular ray of light amidst the darkness of his very own soul. It was a foolish notion, naive even, but was it not human nature to pray for a miracle even in the most unfavorable of circumstances?

"Kirei! I found you!" Ruby's familiar voice called out, shaking him out of his thoughts. "Did you see the news?"

Ruby was different from him.

She knew what her purpose in this world was from a young age. Like her mother, she was a kind, gentle soul, someone that could undoubtedly be considered to be a representation of 'good'. There weren't many people that made him envious of them, but Ruby had always been one of those people.

She had a dream to strive for, something that made her genuinely happy. She took pleasure in helping others while he was the exact opposite in every possible way. She was a true paragon of virtue, the prime example of what a person should strive to be. She was who Risei Kotomine had thought he would become.

His father had never been more wrong about anything.

Kirei had always treated Ruby differently from everyone else. He never let the mask slip around her and always treated her with kindness. With everyone else, he could let loose a little bit with a few snarky comments here and there or even a juvenile prank.

But never with Ruby.

He had always thought that it was because of his obligation to Summer, but after that conversation he had with Pyrrha, he began to question himself. Yang was Summer's daughter too, and yet, he didn't treat her in the same way. No, rather than because Ruby was Summer's daughter, it was because she was her spitting image instead. Ruby was someone that he always wanted to be like and just like how it had been with Summer, he could never allow himself to tarnish that image of virtue in his mind, no matter how badly the specter desired it.

Kirei closed the book in front of him and turned his attention towards the younger girl with bright eyes.

"You need to be quieter in the library, Ruby."

"Oh! Oops, eh-heh." Ruby whispered as she sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. "But did you see the news?"

"No, I didn't." He calmly replied. "Did something happen?"

Ruby pulled out her scroll and slid it over towards him. "It's that Torchwick guy, look!"

Kirei caught the scroll and browsed through its contents.

Famous thief Roman Torchwick escapes Vale PD custody.

He had a good idea about what Ruby wanted to do.

"You want to capture him again."

It was a statement rather than a question and the girl in question only nodded her head vigorously in response.

It wasn't a surprise, Ruby wanted to be a hero after all. What kind of hero would be satisfied with having a criminal they had apprehended terrorizing the city once more? Ruby could never leave something like this alone, especially not after being directly involved. When it came to her dream of becoming a hero, she could be as stubborn as Yang.

"And how do you plan on finding Torchwick? You can't expect him to coincidently rob the same Dust store that you just happen to be shopping at again."

Ruby just gave him a sheepish look. "I was hoping you could help with that." She said as she rubbed the back of her head.

Even if he refused, she would still try to find Torchwick on her own anyway.

"Very well. I'll do some research and see what I can find out." He simply replied before he turned his attention back towards the closed book in his hands. "But until then, I don't want you to do anything on your own."

Ruby had a big smile on her face as she hugged him.

"Thanks, Kirei. You're the best."

He knew that she was playing him like a fiddle, but just like that time with Yang and Raven, he couldn't let them go at it alone. He felt a sense of obligation to look after them for Summer after all. No, perhaps that wasn't the only reason.

They… had become almost a staple piece of his life now and he couldn't imagine what his life would be like without them there.

"Of course. You want to be the one that kills them yourself in the end after all."

Kirei closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

It took all of his willpower to not grab a Black Key and fling it at the specter that he knew was standing behind him. He knew that it was staring at him with his own face twisted into that infuriating smirk. He wasn't going to let the mask slip, not in front of Ruby.

Not again, after what happened all those years ago at Summer's funeral.

He wasn't sure if she even remembered it anymore, but he didn't want to see that look on her face again. He didn't want to think about the elation he had felt and how his heart had fluttered in response.

"... Kirei?" Ruby's voice broke him out of his thoughts as she stared at him with wide eyes. "Are you okay…?"

"I'm fine, just a little sore from sparring with Yang."

It was a lie and he disliked lying, but with Ruby, he had always been willing to lie if it was the correct choice.

"Oh!" Ruby hastily let go of him and stepped back with a sheepish smile. "Sorry, eh-heh."

"It's fine, don't worry about it." He replied in an attempt to change the subject. "Do you plan on letting the rest of the team know? I'm sure they would be curious as to why we would be going off to Vale on our own."

Ruby bit her lip in response.

"Well… I could talk to Pyrrha and I think that she would help." Ruby eventually began. "... I don't know about Weiss though."

Pyrrha had spoken to Weiss and the girl was at least polite with Ruby now, if not a little cold, but there was still a rather tense distance between the two. It wasn't something that other people could resolve for them, it was a problem that could only be dealt with by the two people that were involved in it, as much as Pyrrha might have tried otherwise.

"I'll talk to Weiss about it then." He simply replied.

"Thanks, Kirei." She said with a bright smile.

Weiss wasn't sure what was going to happen when Kirei had asked to speak with her privately out of nowhere. They had decided to move out of their dorm towards one of the many benches outside. It was still early in the afternoon so students were still moving about, but they would know if there was anyone eavesdropping.

When Kirei had asked her if she wanted to help capture Roman Torchwick, the question had caught her off guard for a moment. She had heard of Vale's infamous thief, he had been making headlines lately for his Dust robberies and his recent escape from prison. She didn't know why Kirei wanted to capture him, but she wasn't going to refuse since she had a stake in the whole situation anyway.

Torchwick had been known to target SDC conveys, so the thief had effectively been stealing from her family. Or at least, that's how she felt about it anyway.

"Of course I'll help."

Kirei raised an eyebrow in response.

Weiss wasn't sure why, but even that simple facial expression irked her. It was as if everything that her partner did was in an attempt to irritate her in one way or another.

"Why do you look so surprised?"

Kirei simply gave a slight shrug in response. "You are the heiress of the SDC after all. I simply assumed that you would consider something like this to be beneath you."

Weiss narrowed her eyes at the backhanded compliment.

"Hardly. It is precisely because I am the heiress of the SDC that I can't let that rogue continue to run wild." She sniped back. "He has been known to target SDC shipments as well as Dust stores all around Vale after all."

Kirei just chuckled in response.

"Is that supposed to be funny, Kirei?" She asked as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"I was just thinking that perhaps you and Ruby are more similar than you thought."

She was similar to her?

Weiss couldn't tell if Kirei was simply saying that to annoy her or if he truly was that blind when it came to evaluating people. Ruby Rose was just a little girl that had somehow gotten into Beacon through sheer luck while she had to work hard enough to get out from under her father's thumb. Pyrrha was right in that her little spat with the girl was childish and bad for team chemistry so she had addressed that as any mature adult would.

The headmaster had assigned Ruby as their leader and she would respect that decision.

That didn't mean that she would respect her though. Pyrrha was someone that she could respect because of her accomplishments and reputation. Even if she loathed to admit it, she could respect Kirei because of his prowess on the battlefield. She had not seen anything like that from their so-called leader who would rather fall asleep during classes than take her position as leader seriously.

They were anything but similar to one another.

"I think that you need to get your eyes checked, Kirei."

He just smirked at her in response with that insufferable look in his eyes.

She rolled her eyes at him in retaliation. "I'm assuming that Pyrrha and Ruby are in on this well then?"

"Naturally." The boy sitting next to her smoothly replied. "You were the only one that I wasn't sure about."

"Why is it that I feel like you're looking down on me?"

"I would never dare to do anything of the sort." The smirk never left Kirei's face. "You're the heiress after all and what am I but a mere peasant in comparison?"

The sarcasm wasn't lost to her.

"You are absolutely insufferable. How I manage to put up with you is nothing short of a miracle."

"Truly, you have the patience of a saint."

As unrefined as it might have been, Weiss couldn't help but snort at that. That was an understatement if anything, she had a feeling that his snark could get under the skin of even the very gods themselves.

"So, how exactly are we planning on capturing Torchwick then?" She eventually asked. "You do have a plan, right?"

"Not yet, it's a work in progress," Kirei simply replied. "We need more information to work with, and I was hoping that you could help with that."

"Me…? And how would I‒" The realization suddenly came to her mind mid-sentence. "Ah… I see. You want to access the SDC's private files."

"That wouldn't be a problem, would it?"

She didn't want to have to deal with father again, but it should be possible to get the files and avoid speaking with him.

"... No, it's fine. I can arrange that for us." She answered with a firm nod. "I'll have to pay a visit to the CCT tower on our next free day though."

"Thank you."

Weiss looked at him with wide eyes. "Did you just thank me?"

"Yes." Kirei looked back at her with a raised eyebrow. "Why is that a surprise?"

"I was just surprised that a knave like you would even have those words in his vocabulary."

Kirei just chuckled in response. "I suppose that we're both full of surprises today then."

"I suppose so."

"I'd be careful with the name-calling if I were you though," Kirei replied with that annoying smirk of his. "You wouldn't want another stern lecture from den mother Pyrrha again, would you?"

"H-how did you even know about that?"

"Come on Weiss, I was the first person that she came after."

"Of course." She replied with a bit of laughter. "How could I have not guessed."

The trip to Vale by airship didn't take very long.

Beacon wasn't very far from the city, so it hadn't taken more than fifteen minutes to get there. He could see from the sky that the city was the same as it had been the last time he was here, people were bustling about in a hurry to get to wherever their next destination was. Compared to the small village of Patch, it was a busy and hectic place that seemed to move at its own speed.

"Kirei, was there a reason why you wanted me to come with you specifically?" Pyrrha asked as she stepped off the airship and onto the landing bay with him. "I find it hard to believe that it was simply off of a whim."

"Why Pyrrha, are you suggesting that I have some sort of ulterior motive?"

She gave him a pointed look. "Yes, I am."

"You don't trust your teammate?"

"It's not that I don't trust you, I'd just like to know what I'm getting dragged into."

Kirei just hummed in response. Pyrrha wasn't as fun to tease compared to Weiss, she was just too level-headed. Oh, he'd get a few quips in here and there, but it just wasn't the same, the reactions that he got were far tamer compared to Weiss.

"... It's not about you." He eventually replied as he began to make his way towards the city. "It just seemed like a good chance for Ruby and Weiss to settle things between them."

Pyrrha raised an eyebrow as she followed after him.

"Do you really think that will work? I feel like leaving them alone together might backfire if anything."

"And you think your little lecture worked?"

Pyrrha's face settled into a tight frown. "... Weiss has been polite enough."

"But are they truly teammates that can rely on each other on the battlefield?"

"... No." The red-head eventually replied. "I just… wanted to do something to try and help."

He had been on teams before and seen the exact situation a bunch of times already. Unless the two in question worked things out themselves, there wasn't anything that anyone else could do about it.

"That's something that they need to figure out on their own."

Pyrrha didn't have anything else to say as they made their way deeper into the city. He led the way as she followed after him. A couple of people stared, mostly at Pyrrha since she was famous, and someone even asked for an autograph. Pyrrha had signed it, albeit with a forced smile on her face. She wasn't someone that seemed to enjoy the fame that came with being a tournament-winning fighter.

"So, was there any other reason why you asked me to come to Vale with you?" Pyrrha casually asked. "If you wanted to give those two some space, we didn't have to come all the way out here."

"I need your help with gathering information."

"About Torchwick?"

Kirei stopped in front of a building where a neon sign labeled the Club hung on top of the door frame. It didn't take much digging to find out where someone needed to go to gather information in Vale. He was honestly surprised that the authorities even let this place still be in business with how many ties with the underworld the owner seemed to have.

He looked over towards his temporary partner and tilted his head at the front door.

"A nightclub? We can't go in there." Pyrrha said with a frown on her face. "We're not old enough to be allowed in."

"We're not supposed to be going after a wanted criminal either." Kirei dryly replied. "And yet, here we are."

Pyrrha didn't have a reply to that and just narrowed her eyes instead.

Kirei just smiled in response before he made his way through the door. He could hear her footsteps trailing not too far off from behind him. It was late in the afternoon, but it wasn't night yet so the club was pretty empty. He found the owner of the club, Junior Xiong, behind the bar table, cleaning a glass cup in his hands as he made his way over.

"Aren't you kids a little too young to be in here?" Junior asked as he looked up from his cleaning.

"There's a good reason‒" Kirei cut her off before she a had chance to finish.

"Let's just get to the point, Junior." Kirei simply stated. "I need information on Roman Torchwick."

Pyrrha gave him an annoyed look but kept her silence. Junior just narrowed his eyes in response.

"Get outta here kid," Junior replied with a wave of his hand. "I don't have anything to tell you."

The Black Key hidden underneath his sleeve was pulled out in an instant and held directly in front of the bartender's neck.

"I wasn't asking a question, Junior."

"You're going to threaten me?" The older man scoffed. "In my own club?"

Kirei could hear the sounds of multiple guns being pulled out around them with their safeties clicking off. Two girls that looked like twins got up from their table as well. Bodyguards that Junior hired? It didn't really matter in the end, two-bit thugs like this always folded under pressure.

Kirei just bared his teeth in response. "Do you know who my partner is, Junior?"

The man only glared at him before his eyes glanced over towards Pyrrha as he studied her for a brief moment. His eyes slowly grew wide a few seconds later in recognition.

"She's that tournament fighter from Mistral, the invincible girl."

"She is, and that nickname isn't for show, Junior." Kirei continued laying it on thick. "She's never lost a battle before, so do you really think that whatever hired help you have is going to stand a chance?"

"So what, you going to sic your girlfriend on me then?"

"Uhm… I'm not his‒"

"Oh no. She's just here to deal with your hired help." Kirei continued as he cut off Pyrrha again, much to her annoyance. "I'm going to be the one asking you the questions here. You can either talk, or we can do this the hard way, one finger at a time."

As soon as Junior didn't dare to look him in the eyes anymore, he already knew he had won.

It was late into the night when they boarded the airship back to Beacon. Junior had told them everything that he knew about Torchwick, but it wasn't much. Apparently, Torchwick had a new boss supplying him resources since he no longer contacted Junior for hired muscle anymore. It was a bit of a waste of time, but he did manage to get some useful information from it.

Maybe the files that Weiss manages to pull from the SDC would be more useful.

"Did you really have to be so cutthroat with the way you asked him?" Pyrrha asked with a frown on her face. She sat across from him in their airship with her arms crossed over her chest.

"It was the most efficient way to get what we needed." He explained. "People like Junior always fold under a little pressure."

"You threatened to torture him, Kirei."

"He's a known information broker that works with criminals, Pyrrha." He dryly replied. "He wasn't going to sell out Torchwick unless we forced it out of him."

It wasn't as if he never had to dirty his hands for the church before. He never expected to get to that point with Junior anyway, he knew the guy was going to fold at the first sign of trouble.

"... I don't like the way you handled things," Pyrrha firmly stated. "I want you to let me know what you have planned beforehand next time."

"And you would have been fine with my plan?" He questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"... I would have given it some thought, but that's not the point," Pyrrha answered with a tight frown. "We're a team, aren't we? Don't I deserve to know?"

She wasn't wrong, but he didn't think he was either. The results spoke for themselves, didn't they?

"Would you have done the same thing if you were with Ruby instead?"

He gave a wry smile in response. "That's a low blow, Pyrrha."

She actually looked a little guilty for bringing her up.

"... Sorry. Just… Let me know next time, alright?"

"Very well, I'll concede. Who am I to question the authority of the invincible girl after all?"

Pyrrha just let out a tired sigh in response.

Author's Notes- I've actually been getting a lot of DM's about shipping and whatnot, so I'd figure I'd address it here. I'm pretty neutral on the subject, if it happens, it happens, you know? I don't really have anything planned out in regards to that, I'm just letting things develop on their own. I am kind of curious about everyone's thoughts on it though, so I put up a poll on my profile where everyone can let me know. Or you can do it in a review, whatever floats your boat.

As usual, leave me a review if you liked the chapter! I love reading everyone's thoughts!