V1E8 - Cat Girl's Out The Bag

Awful.

This was the only word that could describe Anon this morning. He sat at the CVFY table with Coco and Velvet; hunched over and resting his forehead on the table. Coco periodically poked his cheek, eliciting a tired grunt.

"Could you kindly fuck off?" His speech was slurred.

"Why did you bother waking up if you're so tired?" she asked.

He straightened his back, revealing the full extent of the damage. His hair was an even worse mess than it usually is, his skin was pale and clammy to the touch and the circles under his eyes are worse than CVFY has ever witnessed. He cleared his throat.

"Cause I have my day set out for me and I can't afford to be lazy today." He managed to say coherently.

Velvet wasn't having any of his crap. She took a deep, patient breath.

"Anon." she rubbed her eyes exasperatedly. "You look like you haven't slept in days."

"It's only been two days," He revealed flippantly.

"Two days?!" Velvet shrieked indignantly. "What were you thinking?!"

He stared blankly at her, his empty stare telling a long story by itself.

"Too much." He simply said.

Anon grunted before leaving his seat.

"On that note, I have to go." He sighed in annoyance. "Weiss has been badgering me to help her take notes on the transferring students."

Velvet sat up and gripped his arm, desperately pleading for him to reconsider.

"Anon, Please! You need rest."

"You think I don't know that?!" He snapped back.

Velvet took a step back in shock. Realizing what he did, he hung his head and looked away in shame.

"Look, I know it's bad. I'm fully aware of that."

He looked back at Velvet, who looked down sadly.

"I'm worried about you."

"...I know."

He gripped her hand kindly.

"Look, will you let me off the hook if I sleep tonight?"

She looked up at him, hopeful.

"Promise?"

He rolled his eyes, his lips curling up.

"Fine," he promised, holding his pinky out.

Velvet linked their pinky, sealing the promise. Coco whistled.

"Well now, isn't this sweet?" She grinned.

Anon flipped her off without looking.

"Suck my balls, Adel."

Coco gasped in mock offence.

"How could you?! Trying to cheat on Velvet like that! In front of her not less! Have you no shame?"

"COCO!" Velvet shrieked, red as a beet.

Coco laughed heartily at Velvet's expense.

The Vale docks were, as expected, smelly and unsightly. Luckily, the streets above were clean as a whistle. The buildings were being decorated for the upcoming Vytal festival, the usual hustle and bustle was twice as chaotic as people set up streamers, banners and welcome booths.

Weiss skipped and hummed cheerily on the sidewalk. Stopping as she did in the show to throw her arms up in awe and amazement.

"The Vytal Festival! Oh, this is absolutely wonderful~!"

Anon walked past her, a large courier bag hanging from his back.

"Chill with the grin, Eidelweiss. You're creeping out the others."

She scoffed.

"Oh please! You are far worse! Besides, how could I not smile?"

She framed the road with her hands.

"A festival dedicated to the cultures of the world! There will be dances! Parades! A tournament!" And now she'll ruin it. "Oh, the amount of planning and organization that goes into this event is simply breathtaking!"

Yang palmed her face, sighing.

"You really know how to take a good thing and make it sound boring," She complained.

Weiss shushed her.

"Quiet, you."

Yang groaned.

"Remind me again why we're spending our Friday afternoon visiting the stupid docks?"

"They smell like fish..." Ruby complained in disgust.

Blake took a big whiff, smiling at the distinct aroma of the deep sea. Anon snorted at Blake reinforcing her stereotype. Once she began glaring at him, he gave a toothy smile, motioning her to tighten her bow. She sulked at the reminder of her previous blunder.

"I've heard that students visiting from Vacuo will be arriving by ship today," Weiss explained matter of factly. "And, as a representative of Beacon, I feel as though it is my solemn duty to welcome them to this fine kingdom!"

Anon grimaced, pulling a large binder from his courier bag. The binder was labelled: 'Competitor Info' in big red marker.

"Bitch, why did you goad me into hauling this piece o' shit around then?!"

Team R*BY accusingly looked directly at Weiss, who bumbled excuses now that she got caught with her pants down. Weiss stopped her bumbling suddenly. The group curiously turned toward what gave the heiress pause.

"Whoa..."

At the end of the street once was a quaint little. Now all that remained was it's vandalized remains, its window turned into a shattered pile of glass on the floor. Police tape blocked the perimeter, giving the forces of law and order room to investigate.

The group approached the crime scene along with a few others, including picture-taking journalists. Inside the taped perimeter were two Vale Police Department officers, one was inside the shop while the other kept order around the tape.

"What happened?" Ruby wondered aloud.

"Robbery, second Dust shop to be hit this week." One of the officers answered. "This place is turning into a jungle."

Yang frowned sadly.

"That's terrible."

The other officer left the shop, scratching his head in confusion.

"They left the money in the register again."

The group, minus Anon, made a confused noise.

"Yeah, that just doesn't make a lick of sense." He shook his head. "Who needs that much Dust?"

"An army of fanatics," Anon said, staring blankly at nothing.

"White Fang?" One of the officers blurted immediately.

The other officer tapped his colleague on the arm.

"C'mon, we're not paid enough for this stuff." He waved to the crowd. "Scatter, people!"

The group left the scene has the city services entered the scene to do their jobs. Weiss was visibly upset since the police officer mentioned the White Fang.

Oh fuck, here we go.

"White Fang..." Weiss spat the word like it was a slur. "What a filthy bunch of degenerates!"

"And there it is..." Anon whispered.

Blake glared at Weiss.

"What's your problem?"

"My problem? I simply don't care for the criminally insane."

"The White Fang is hardly a bunch of psychopaths." She crossed her arms seriously. "They're a collection of misguided Faunus."

"Misguided?!" Weiss repeated in outrage. "They want to wipe humanity off the face of the planet!"

Anon lit himself a cigar as the two argued.

"This is getting nowhere," He complained after letting out a puff.

He looked at one of the docked boats, waiting for Sun to make his appearance.

Any second now...

The boat slowly but peacefully began emptying. Anon frowned at the monkey's odd absence.

Aaaaaaaany second now...

Sun wasn't there. The group kept on arguing, past where the show had interrupted them. Anon's eyes widened as he marched across the street, glaring at the boat.

Where the fuck is Sun?!

He kept glaring at the now empty boat and still no sign of Sun. He chewed on his cigar nervously.

"He's not here..."

Shit shit shit! This could fuck everything!

Anon back away from the dock's overlook.

"Shit. This isn't good..."

"Is something the matter?"

"GAH?!" He shouted in startled shock.

Anon stumbled back, tripping on his own feet from surprise at the sudden voice in his ear. In his fall, he hit his head on something clearly metallic and dragged along whatever it was he hit. He winced as he held the nascent bump on his head.

"Argh! Did I hit a fucking lamppost?!"

"I seem to have frightened you. My apologies!"

Wait...That voice!

Anon flipped over, a tuff of curly orange hair invading his peripheral vision. He looked down, his hollow brown eyes meeting a pair of vibrant green eyes.

"Sal-u-ta-tions!" Penny Polendina greeted.

YESYESYESYESYES!

"Uh, Anon?"

He looked up to an amused Yang, a disapproving Weiss, a curious Ruby and a Blake with cocked eyebrows. Only then did it hit him that he was straddling the metal maiden.

"Whoops! My bad!" He blurted as he got off her.

"It is of no issue!" She said while remaining on the ground.

The gang approached the two, Penny remaining on the floor.

"You uh... You ok?" Yang asked worriedly.

"I'm wonderful! Thank you for asking!"

Team RWBY looked at one another in baffled bewilderment.

"You... You want to get up?" Yang asked again.

Penny thought about it before smiling.

"Yes!"

She leaped back unto her feet, causing the others minus Anon to back away. She saluted with a big, pearly white smile.

"My name is Penny Polendina! It's a pleasure to meet you!"

Ruby smiled back politely.

"Hi, Penny! I'm Ruby."

"I am Weiss Schnee."

"Blake."

Yang raised a finger.

"You sure you didn't hit your head?"

Anon hit her in the side with his elbow.

"That was me, dumbass," He whispered. "Now greet the robot girl!"

Yang looked at Anon funnily on the robot comment but pushed that aside.

"Uh, yeah! I'm Yang."

"It's a pleasure to meet you!" Penny reiterated.

"You said that already," Weiss commented.

Penny paused to compute.

"So I did!"

I fucking love this ditzy robot chick.

"Oh yeah!" Yang grabbed Anon by the neck, putting him in a headlock. "And this loverboy here's Anon!"

"Argh! Lemme go, you fucking cockgoblin!"

"Hmmm, Nope!"

"Fuck you!"

"Please do not do that," Penny said. "Public fornication is punishable with jail time, community service and/or a fine."

Yang paused at that before trying to stifle a laugh. Anon wrenched his head free from Yang's grasp, dusting himself off.

"Seriously!" He turned to Penny, who got really close. like really close. "Hi?"

"Salutation!"

Anon smiled awkwardly.

"You have difficulty gauging distance, don't you?"

"Quite the contrary! I am exactly one point three-four inches away from you!"

"...You're somewhat dense aren't you?" He joked.

Penny froze to compute again. She slowly backed away to a more comfortable distance.

"Yes... Somewhat..." She admitted, her eyes pivoting around.

Anon chuckled at her awkward, robotic antics.

"Well, sorry for bumping into you, Lil' bolt." He turned to walk away. "See ya."

Team RWBY followed his lead.

"Goodbye, friend!" Ruby waved cheerily.

The group walked away from the robotic girl. Yang looked back momentarily, weirded out by the cyber-chick.

"Well, she was weird!" She didn't mince words.

"Ha!" Anon exclaimed. "Wait till you see the fucking lasers!"

"The what-"

"What did you call me?" Penny asked, suddenly appearing in front of Yang.

Everyone, minus a smirking Anon looked back to where she was not a moment ago than to where she is.

"How did-" Weiss wondered.

"Oh, I'm really sorry!" Yang scrambled. "I definitely didn't think you-"

"No, not you." She pointed to Ruby. "You!"

"Me?" Ruby pointed to herself, surprised. "I-I don't know. I, what I, um, uh..."

"You called me 'friend'!" Penny joined her hands excitedly. "Am I really your friend?"

Ruby looked over Penny's shoulder to her friends. Everyone variously expressed their disapproval. Except for Anon, who gave her a cheeky grin and an OK hand sign.

"Y-Yeah, sure! Why not?" She blurted.

*WBY comically fell to the ground as Anon pumped his fist back victoriously. An overjoyed Penny grinned from ear to ear.

"Sen-sational! We can paint our nails, and try on clothes, and talk about cute boys!"

She said that last bit as she looked discreetly yet pointedly to Anon, who shrugged at the thinly veiled compliment.

I'll say it as many times as I need to, y'all have shit tastes in men.

Weiss got up with a groan, brushing herself off. Ruby leaned into her ear.

"Oh, is this what it was like when you met me?" She whispered to her BBF.

"No. She seems far more coordinated."

"Sooooo what are you doing in Vale?" Yang changed the subject.

Penny puffed her chest proudly.

"I'm here to fight in the tournament!" She gave an Atlas-style salute. "I am combat ready!"

"Wait, you're fighting in the tournament?" Weiss was unconvinced. "Forgive me, but you hardly look the part."

"Says the girl wearing a dress." Blake scoffed.

"It's a combat skirt!"

Weiss and Blake began to argue. First about what constitutes appropriate combat attire, then the subject shifted back to the White Fang. The discussion went from civil if confrontational to a shouting and insulting match.

"You ignorant brat!" Blake spat.

Well, that escalated quickly.

Weiss gasped in offence.

"How dare you talk to me like that! I am your teammate!"

"You are a judgmental little girl."

"What in the world makes you say that?"

The other four people stood to the side awkwardly.

"Um, I think we should probably go..." Yang finally said.

Anon sighed as he tapped his cigar with his finger.

"Fuck me..."

Penny pocked her fingers shyly.

"But... We've only met today..."

Anon paused before palming his face. Yang began laughing hysterically, much to Penny's confusion. Anon looked back at the empty docks one last time, worry weighing on his stomach like lead. The smoulders on his cigar began dying until it put itself out.

Anon massaged his temples as he sat by RWBY's dorm room window. Ever since they left the docks and bid Penny goodbye, Blake and Weiss hadn't stopped arguing about the White Fang. The only respite from the argument was when Anon nearly shat himself when Yang's bed was about to fall on him. Luckily, the sisters caught the mistake in time and 'fixed' the issue, by restacking the books that separated the bed. Unfortunately, the respite was temporary.

"I don't understand why this is causing such a problem!" Weiss complained.

"That is the problem!" Blake retorted.

Weiss got up from the bed, worrying Anon as she stood in front of the door.

Better safe than sorry.

He unlocked the window and left it slightly ajar, ready to swing it open for Blake once the cat girl's out the bag.

"You realize you are defending an organization that hates Humanity, don't you?" Weiss crossed her arms, glaring accusingly. "The Faunus of the White Fang are pure evil!"

Anon raised an eyebrow.

Pure evil?

He snorted at the thought.

If only you knew what hid the shadows.

"There's no such thing as pure evil!" Blake said. "Why do you think they hate Humanity so much? It's because of people like Cardin,"

She pointed at Weiss.

"People like you, that force the White Fang to take such drastic measures!"

"People like me?!" Weiss held her chest.

"You're discriminatory!"

"I'm a victim!" Weiss screamed.

Both became completely silent, Weiss trembled as she clenched her fists and teeth. She leaned forward, leering furiously at Blake.

"You want to know why I despise the White Fang? Why I don't particularly trust the Faunus?" She asked quietly. "It's because they've been at war with my family for years. War, as in actual bloodshed. My grandfather's company has had a target painted across its back for as long as I can remember."

She leaned against the door, glaring at the ground angrily.

"And ever since I was a child, I've watched family friends disappear; board members executed; an entire train car full of Dust, stolen. And every day, my father would come home, furious."

Anon saw Weiss' eyes welling. He immediately remembered her father, then the sound of a hand hitting a cheek.

I think I know what she's remembering.

"And that," Weiss calmed down with a shaky breath. "Made for a very difficult childhood."

Ruby, ever the empath, went up to comfort her partner.

"Weiss, I-"

"No!" Weiss stomped forward. "You want to know why I despise the White Fang? It's because they're a bunch of liars, thieves, and murderers!"

She spat every word with such anger and hatred, it gave Anon pause.

She wasn't this... animated, or emotional for that matter, in the show. At least not to this extend.

"WELL, MAYBE WE'RE TIRED OF BEING PUSHED AROUND!" Blake yelled emotionally.

The room became dead quiet. Blake's eyes widened at the realization that she messed up badly. Weiss backed back, inadvertently blocking the door.

"WHAT?!" Weiss yelled in shock.

Blake looked around for an escape.

"I-I..." She bumbled guiltily.

Anon whistled, gaining her attention. He swung the window open and in a heartbeat, Blake dashed toward him and out the window. Before anyone could give chase, he slammed the window shut.

"Anon?!" The sisters asked in unison.

"That's quite enough."

"What do you mean 'Quite enough'?!" Yang mocked angrily.

"Look, things are pretty heated. Calm down."

"Calm down?" Weiss asked.

Her voice conveyed cold anger, something that Anon immediately picked up on.

"How? How am I supposed to 'calm down'? We had a White Fang Terrorist hiding right under our noses!"

Weiss was losing her cool fast and Anon was not going to help.

"I already knew that."

"YOU KNEW?!" She shrilled.

"Yes." He sounded tired.

He walked toward the door but Weiss blocked the door.

"Move," He ordered.

"No! not until you explain to me-"

"I don't have to explain a fucking thing, princess. Now move."

"I deserve an explanation! Didn't you listen to me?!"

Anon frowned.

"Yes, I also don't care. Now, if you'll excuse me."

Anon went to leave despite Weiss's protest, she kept blocking his path but Anon wasn't having any of her shit. He grabbed her by the shoulder and pushed her on the work desk's chair.

"Sit the fuck down, Schnee."

She groaned.

"Why aren't you on my side?! She's a terrorist!"

"WAS a terrorist, Weiss."

Anon glared at Weiss, poking into her chest angrily.

"Maybe if you stopped being so daft and single-minded, you'd see that she had every opportunity to execute your sorry ass and still didn't do shit!"

Anon turned to the sisters.

"I'll deal with Blake, you guys stay put."

He left the dorm as Weiss called out for him.

"Anon, Get back here! ANON!"

Anon ignored her, too busy thinking about what comes next.

Without Sun, I don't know if I can safely leave Blake alone. God, I fucking hope things'll go well.

Once more, Anon was surprised by the beauty of Remnant. The blue sky was shifting to orange and red as the sunset took over the horizon. He stopped in front of the statue in the middle of the Beacon courtyard, a sculpture of two heroic figures standing triumphantly over a defeated Grimm. Anon heard the clacking of running steps slowing down the closer it got. He didn't need to turn to know who it was.

"Running again?" He asked.

Blake stood back, holding her arm sheepishly.

"Yeah..."

"Don't know where to go anymore?"

She nodded. He turned back, holding out a friendly hand.

"Are you fine with some bloody human showing you the way?" He said with a cheeky smile.

Tears welled up in Blake's eyes. She began trembling as she covered her eyes with one hand and taking Anons with the other.

"I don't know what to do anymore..."

Anon brought her close and gave her a soft hug, gently caressing the base of her cat ears.

"You don't have to," He whispered gently. "The best you can do is take it one step at a time."

He let go of her and took a step back to give her some space. She wiped her eyes before looking back at him.

"What now?"

"You don't want to go back?"

"No. I... I'm not ready to face them yet."

He shrugged.

"Fair enough." He turned and began walking off. "Let's go then, nightshade."

"Why?"

He stopped and hummed questioningly.

"Why are you helping me?"

He smiled to himself.

"I said I was on your side, didn't I?"

Anon kept on walking. After a few seconds of hearing only his steps, he smiled because the pair of steps multiplied.

"Where to?" She asked.

He put his hands behind his head.

"To a bookshop." He simply said.

The sun had set and the moon would soon rise as the evening transitioned into the night. The unlikely pair had walked around Vale City for an hour, mostly to get some grub at a convenience store because they skipped diner. Blake sat on the curb, waiting for Anon to come back. She shivered from the chilly late evening air. Suddenly, she felt something warm against her cheek, frightening her. She looked back to see Anon, holding a can of warm milk up to her.

"You looked cold, here."

She considered it for a moment, before taking it and cracking it open.

"It's sweet," She commented after sipping from it.

"Sickly sweet or just sweet?"

"Sweet. Just sweet." She cradled her drink.

Anon had noticed that her bow would twitch if she liked something. This was one of those times.

"You like it?" He asked despite knowing the answer.

"Yeah." She smiled nostalgically. "Kind of reminds me of what Adam used to make for me back when... We were on better terms."

Anon sat next to her, cracking a can of coffee and listening to her. She looked at her drink listlessly.

"I wish things were different..."

"We all do," He said in between sips.

"Even you?"

Anon smiled bitterly.

"You think I got dead fish eyes naturally, nightshade? I wasn't always like this."

He looked down at his bracelet, mindlessly rubbing it. The worn weaved fabric had lost its vibrancy and softness a long time ago.

"I told you I was a fuck up and I meant it. I fucked up in relationships, I fucked in college and I fucked up my life and others."

He sipped from his can, staring at it intently.

"Do I wish that things would be different? Yeah, I do. Cuz anything's better than the path I chose to walk."

He chugged the rest of his can before throwing it into a trash can.

"Alright." Anon got up and dusted himself. "C'mon, we still have a bit left to go."

Blake nodded.

"Anon?"

"Yeah?"

"Do..." She hesitated. "Do you want to talk about it?"

He didn't reply. Blake looked down.

"Right, stupid question."

"No."

She looked up to him questioningly.

"I just... not now. You have a lot on your mind right now. I wouldn't want to bog things down further with my sob story."

"But you're fine with telling me?"

"...Yeah, just not now."

Tukson's Book Trade: Home to every book under the sun!

Blake's eyes brightened when she saw the shop's banner. She smiled widely like an awestruck child. She ran off ahead of Anon and ripped the door open. A tall, large man with wicked sideburns stood in front of the counter, sweeping the floor with an old broom.

"Sorry! we're closing." The man said nonchalantly.

"Tukson!" Blake called out in joy.

The man turned to face the new arrival, his eyes widening.

"Blake!"

The older man threw his arms to the side and embraced the cat Faunus in a tight hug.

"Oh, little kitten! it's been so long!" He patted her back warmly.

"Uncle Tuk!" Blake was jubilant. "I'm so glad to see you."

Anon closed the shop's door behind him discreetly, as to not interrupt their little reunion. He flipped the door sign to close and closed the window covers. Blake let go of Tukson.

"What are you doing here?"

He gave her a knowing look.

"Did you hit your head during Adam's training?" He joked. "I'm doing what I've been doing exactly the same thing I've been doing since I separated from the Fang."

"Really? I thought that was just a rumour."

Anon snorted as he closed the last cover.

The Underground Railroad for furries. Kek.

Tukson looked questioningly at Anon then at Blake.

"And the human?"

"It's fine, he's a good friend."

Anon wiped his hands together.

"Partners-in-crime, if you will." He quipped.

Blake rolled her eyes at the label but let a smile slip. Anon turned to Tukson.

"I hope we aren't being a bother, sir."

"Not at all." The Puma replied politely. "Anything for my niece."

"Related or family friend?"

"Family friend." he laughed at an old memory. "Ghira was a righteous and rowdy sonofabitch!"

"Right."

Anon sighed, looking miserable. Blake approached him in worry.

"What's wrong? You look awful."

"I'm tired is all."

He stretched.

"Welp. my job here is done." He waved the pair goodbye. "Take care of her for me."

"You're leaving?" Tukson asked.

"It wouldn't be right to leave her on her own. But with you? I'll sleep easier knowing she's in good hands."

Before he could open the door, he felt a tug at his sleeve. Blake looked away shyly.

Oh for fu-

"Could you... could you stay?" She asked with beckoning eyes. "I'd feel more at ease if you would stay."

Anon levelled his eyes with hers.

Why?

She kept up eye contact, Anon recognized the emotion that painted her gaze.

"Alright."

She smiled warmly.

"Thank you." She breathed.

"Don't mention it."

You're tired of being alone, aren't you? I don't blame you.

Anon laid on a futon couch with a blanket haphazardly covering his legs, listlessly looking at his phone. Tukson, being an ever-gracious host, let him stay in his apartment above the shop, instead of the secret basement for White Fang defectors.

It was the fourth time he's read and reread the 'The Stray' and 'Black and White' transcripts. He grunted as he put the phone down.

"Fucking hell." He exasperated.

Sun's not here. How? I can understand me interacting with the characters would change and shift things around. But this? Entire characters not showing up when they should?

He sighed.

"The best I can hope is that he hasn't been turned into a girl or some such cringy nonsense."

"Talking to yourself again?"

Anon sat up and looked to see Blake. Instead of her usual clothes, she wore a stripped-down version of her outfit consisting only of her hot pants and her shirt.

Well, Sun wasn't wrong. She does look better without the bow.

"Can't sleep, nightshade?"

"No." She sat next to him. "I think I got used to not sleeping alone anymore."

"There's no one else down there?"

"Yeah. The silence is... unnerving."

He hummed lazily. Blake looked embarrassed.

"This is kind of embarrassing to ask but," She paused. "Can I stay here tonight?"

Anon didn't respond, enhancing Blake's embarrassment. This wasn't helped by Anon leaning to the side until his head rested on her chest.

"A-Anon?!"

The soft snoring clued her in that he didn't do that on purpose. The more she looked at him, the weaker he appeared to be. The dark circle under his eyes that almost made it seems that he had two black eyes, his pale dry skin and lips, his borderline skeletal frame. He looked like a dry corpse that just kept on living. She gently lifted his head and was shocked at how light he was. she pulled his body toward hers and it hardly felt like he weighed much of anything. He was just that light. She frowned concerningly.

"What have you been doing to yourself?"

Anon always seemed like someone who didn't show that he cared. Always with the same indifferent expression, always with that fake smile, always with those lifeless eyes. But then something would happen, and he would show who he truly was. She saw the rage when he went to defend that Faunus girl, She saw the pride he had in Jaune when they got back from the Incident at Forever Fall.

She noticed that she had unconsciously been stroking his hair. It was a mop of vibrant brown hair that was soft to the touch. She smiled, thinking back to her mother and how she did the same to her.

"I wonder what you've been doing to get this tired," She murmured.

She took his blanket and properly covered him. She went to shift away but found out that he had latched on to her. She relented and kept being his hugging pillow.

"I swear to the gods that if you hump in your sleep, I will kick you off the futon," She whispered menacingly.

She took a pillow and set it behind her comfortably, then she closed her eyes.

"Goodnight, Anon."

V1E8: END!

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