Chapter 8
Weiss: The Atlesian Way Part 4

Dating a commoner wasn't as easy as it might sound. Weiss doubted Blake knew the finer details of living such a seemingly charmed life. There were many important qualities that Weiss just couldn't do without. Keeping butler was one of those qualities.

Having competent household staff was about as personal as an invasion of privacy could get. Thankfully, Klein could be trusted. Still, in his line of work, very little was left to his imagination.

Private matters were not so private in the many Schnee households. At the main manor a butler was in charge of oversight, keeping the entire staff in order. The countless staff tried to stay out of sight and out of mind, providing invisible conveniences to their employers. They usually did their best never to disturb the wealthy residents of the households they cared for. Those that did interact with the Schnee family were those paid the highest salaries, and were usually human.

That might have been well and good for those with sprawling estates, but, Weiss didn't have such a large home.

She took a more practical approach when it came to hired help. She didn't particularly care if Klein stayed out of sight or not. She had nothing to be ashamed of, and she wasn't squeamish about relying on her own independence if he happened to be busy. All of the mundane household tasks usually fell onto Klein. She held a high expectation of him when it came to social matters. He would always be sure that the esteemed family manor was adequately prepared for every formal event she was expected to host. Secondly, she certainly expected her daughter to be well taken care of. Lastly, she preferred the household to be tidy by the time she returned every evening.

Weiss trusted Klein with everything. He did almost all of the cooking, cleaning, shopping, and laundry. As such, he knew very intimate details that most others never would.

He usually changed her sheets weekly, or more often whenever Nolan made an appearance. It was obvious that he knew her level of sexual activity. When she was on her cycle he restocked feminine hygiene products without her having to ask. He filled her prescriptions and gathered the rest of the supplements she needed. Klein knew her so well, he had even made note of the brand of stool softener she kept in the medicine cabinet.

Weiss thought very little of his attentiveness to detail. In fact, it was something she expected to make each day easier. It was a fact of her life that wouldn't ever change, even when Klein was no longer able to provide service. She would still need a butler regardless. She would be forced to hire a new one.

Still, Weiss had to wonder, could Blake even tolerate having a butler around?

If not, a relationship would be impossible, and that was just one complication of many…

"So," Coco started conversationally with a hot cup of coffee in hand. It helped to chase away the lingering chill of the cold weather. "You don't think Blake can adjust to your lifestyle, is that it?"

"I'm not sure. Why?" Weiss genuinely asked. "Is it so wrong to worry about something like that?" She was holding her own coffee, even if it had gone mostly untouched. The warmth itself was soothing through the container. the dark liquid grounded her, even if it was a little bitter.

"No." Coco said after a bit of thought on the subject. "I think it should worry you."

"It does, rest assured." Weiss replied, looking at a bird that perched on a nearby tree. It had managed to catch her daughter's attention too. The little girl gawking at it and waving a small pouch of bird food in attempts to attract it. This indoor park was covered in greenery and foliage. It felt closer to a cool spring day inside, even if snow collected all around the windows outside. "I didn't sleep well last night. I was too busy thinking about her."

"And?" Coco pressed. "How do you feel about her?"

"Confused." Weiss deadpanned, lifting that coffee to her lips for far longer than she needed to in order to sip from it.

It was rare to have an outing like this. Both of them waited for the small hours where they could just sit on the park bench. Watching their children play together was its own reward. Too bad it happened so rarely, mostly because Coco couldn't find the time to have to herself. The fashion industry was a social one, bleeding into almost all of high society. There were just some things that just couldn't be avoided, and to be successful reclusiveness wasn't an option.

It had been a difficult path, but one Coco chose without any regrets. Weiss only wished she could have Coco's conviction.

"Honestly, it should worry Blake, too." Coco went on to say. "I realize that they're two very different people, but, a Faunus will always be scrutinized in hour social circles. It can't be helped." Her words were slowing as she became distracted by her own wayward thoughts. "Velvet doesn't handle the spotlight well…"

"She seems to do well enough in the papers." Weiss mentioned. "I haven't seen a scandal yet. The press speaks very highly of her. It's Fox they seem to take issue with."

"Being in fashion allows me to do questionable things that you'd never get away with." Coco said, her grin dark and voice cloudy. "Velvet just so happens to fall into that category. If Fox wasn't so offensive to the media, then all of the attention would be on her. She would fold in an instant."

"That's not the impression that I get."

"Velvet's a rabbit Faunus. She's a pervert's wet dream. When she's reduced down to that really it bothers her." The way Coco said it, words dripping in disgust, Weiss knew that her friend felt the same. "I hate to say it, but, it rings true. Fashion isn't all about glamor. We've got our seedy underbelly just like every industry out there. Fashion… Dust… It doesn't really matter, Weiss. They're both exploitative."

"And yet, we're both masters in our craft." Weiss said, knowing that admitting such a thing came with its own twisted sense of pride. "What does the say about us?"

"That if there is such a thing as hell, we're going to burn in it." Coco shook her head. Morbid little truths aside, it didn't change her point. "All in all, the media doesn't care about Fox, and I'm a heathen either way. Velvet's the easy target, and the media knows it. They're after her like bloodhounds every chance they get. I'd be willing to bet the media would go after Blake too…"

Weiss supposed that much be true, but that was the least of her worries. "The media isn't my main concern. It's the personal things that worry me." Weiss confided, feeling awkward about doing so. "How do I boil my entire life down into something more sustainable?"

"I don't think you can. The commitments she'll need to make aren't going to be easy." Coco bluntly shot back. "Velvet, Fox, and I were together back at Beacon. We built our lives around our future. You and Blake don't have that luxury. If Blake can't take the pressure, she shouldn't get involved."

"There must be something I can do…" Weiss pressed. "You've helped them acclimate, I'm sure of it."

"Word of advice, let Blake drown a little bit before you try to rescue her." She brought her coffee to her lips, not liking to admit that she hadn't helped her lovers quite as much as Weiss thought. She wished she could have, but the demands of high fashion weren't modest. They had to stand on their own merits without Coco's protection. It wasn't easy, but it was a choice they made as a couple. "You can bend over backwards for Blake all you want, but if it makes things harder for you, it doesn't do any good at all."

"I see…" Weiss murmured unhappily.

"Blake waited too long, and now you've got an entire list of other priorities that come first. If she can't handle that, it's her problem, not yours." Coco replied, fishing around in her purse for her metal cigarette case and the lighter she kept with it. She took one for herself, before offering Weiss the chance to partake. She watch as Weiss pulled the slender white tobacco product from the case, perching it to her lips. Coco lit them both at the same time, taking a long drag. "It would be different if you loved her."

Weiss could only laugh bitterly. "I don't see what difference that would make at all."

"People do stupid things for love, trust me." Coco said offhandedly, wetting her lips with a long sigh. "If you were equally invested in Blake, it might be worth it to entirely upheave your life for her sake. The problem is, it's not worth it if you don't love her."

Weiss said nothing as the smoke filled her mouth and lungs. It was a horrid habit to have. She didn't even like it, but, she did like the memories they brought back to her. She'd spent so many nights in pubs in her youth. Hunter's inns were filled with smoke and cheap booze. A slow exhale released the poisonous guilty pleasure. She never could understand why so many people born into money took up smoking, it was hardly glamorous. She didn't partake the habit often, but, she had to admit, it was one of the least deadly things she could do in her life.

"…do you love her?" Coco asked while Weiss pondered the nature of the smoke twirling at the end of her cigarette.

"No, of course not." Weiss said with the slightest scowl and a flick of the cigarette. "It's only just recently that I've begun to understand the depth of her affection. How could I possibly reciprocate that kind of thing so soon?"

"Then my point still stands. If you're going to give it a try, play it safe." Coco told Weiss. "In the short term, it'll be easier for Blake to make the compromises for your sake. Who knows? You two end up playing the long game on this. If that happens then it'll be your turn to make sacrifices for her…but, that's only if you two make it that far."

"You don't think we will, do you?"

"Let me put it this way, I don't make bets that my tight little ass can't cash. At the end of the day, a bet is still just a bet. I don't throw into the pot more than I can afford to lose." Coco shrugged then, downing the rest of her coffee and tossing the cup in the trash. "It might work out, it might not."

Leaving romance by the wayside, Weiss felt compelled to wonder, could she even manage a relationship?

She wasn't entirely sure that she could. Happiness came secondary in her life for many reasons, most of them due to her upbringing. Old memories lingered in the back of her mind, and she hadn't done well to disprove all of things she had been told over the years. She wanted to believe that she deserved all of the happiness the world had to offer, but one look at her family made her doubt that.

She might not have been guilty for committing her father's atrocities, but she had fully accepted the responsibility of cleaning them up…

That took time and attention, both of which came at a premium in her life. Ada required constant care, and the company itself occupied a large quantity of nighttime insomnia. Weiss wondered if Blake would be willing to come secondary for a little girl who still needed her mother most. If she couldn't, there would be no way that Weiss could even entertain romantic overtures.

Her daughter had to be her first priority.

It was a reminder not easily forgotten as returned home. Ada was not in her room, and Klein was not in his. Instead, he had pulled a chair up by the master bedroom. Dressed in his pajamas and made further modest by his bathrobe, he placidly sat guard. He held a book in hand, idly thumbing through the pages. His beloved pipe perched to his lips. There was only one reason in the world why he would be sitting in the middle of the hall at this ungodly hour.

"Oh, no, not this again." Weiss sighed, already guessing the trouble.

"Yes, this again." He murmured, pulling his pipe from his mouth and concealing it from view. "Although, I hardly think it's a surprise."

"You should have called me." She said, eying the little twirl of smoke that dissipated from behind her butler. It was improper for a man to smoke in front of a woman who didn't partake the same indulgence. He only had one peipe, after all, and he wouldn't think to offer her that. His decorum went above and beyond what she often expected of him. "Klein, I don't like it when you end up working at this time of night."

"Indeed, but, as you can see I'm hardly working." He replied, lifting the book with a soft grin. "I'm merely enjoying my evening reading in a different location."

"Don't be ridiculous, the sun set hours ago, and for the last time you can smoke in front of me." Weiss said with a fond roll of her eyes. She would never admit how much the smell of it comforted her. The minor childish indulgence was one of the few she allowed herself. There weren't many things more heartwarming on a cold Atlesian night than Klein sitting in front of the fireplace, a pipe to his lips and his nose to a book. "So, was it a nightmare?"

"I believe so." Cautiously marking his place in the old tome, he regarded Weiss with a somewhat sleepy expression. "She convinced there's a Grimm hiding under her bed."

"I see." Weiss said, not even remotely surprised. "And was there any evidence of such a thing?"

"Of course not." Klein shook his head. "I would have notified you if there had been. There's no reason to think that a Grimm has entered the Schnee grounds."

"I'll take it from here. Thank you, Klein."

"Think nothing of it." He replied, folding the chair and heading back to his own room for the night.

"You have my gratitude either way." She called back to his retreating form.

Weiss pushed open her bedroom door. Ada was huddled in a lump of blankets at the foot of the king sized bed. Pink eyes peered out from the makeshift blanket fortress, as if it could actually protect her from anything. Weiss already knew how the night was going to end up, but she knelt down to Ada's level anyway.

"Ada, you need to go to bed."

"No."

"Why not?"

"Cause."

"Ada, answer the question." Weiss said sternly. "Why aren't you in your own bed?"

"There's a Grimm." She said from between the safety of her blankets.

"Where did you see it?" Weiss asked.

"Not here."

"Obviously.." Weiss muttered as she glared at the bundle of blankets. "Ada, where did you see it? Was it In your bedroom?"

The ball of blankets shifted as Ada nodded from within the confines of safety. "Yes."

"I was just in your room. I didn't see anything." Weiss told her.

"I saw the Grimm."

Of course she did. It was always a Grimm. Or sometimes merely a wayward sock under the bed that looked like a Grimm…

"There are no Grimm in the house, I promise."

"I saw it!"

Deep down, Weiss didn't doubt it. A child's mind could fabricate anything from the depths of a dark room and lonely house. She firmly recalled that detail firsthand. Her own childhood nightmares were only mitigated because Winter had always been down the hall. Her older sister fully willing to protect her from any beasts, real or imagined, that her own young mind had come up with.

"I don't think it was a Grimm." Weiss said softly. "It was probably just a shadow."

A sad, somewhat pathetic sound drifted from the blanket.

Obviously, whatever it had been was plenty real to the little girl cocooned in blankets. Weiss squashed down the urge to arm herself, realizing how stupid the notion was. There were no Grimm inside her house. It would be impossible not to set off the alarms. Still, her daughter trembled as though there were in fact Grimm stampeding through her bedroom.

Weiss was no stranger to the uneasy feeling that had settled into the pit of her stomach. She knew the anxiety well by this point, especially in regards to the concept of guilt. Her ambitions failed her so terribly on occasion. There were some things that she could not excuse away. Seeing Ada curled up in such a little ball was one of those failings. Just another painful reminder of what solitude could do to such an impressionable child.

Weiss knew that she wasn't the warmest person on the planet, but this reminded her of too many unhappy memories.

How many nights had she done this? Spending hours huddled in a wad of blankets, terrified that a Grimm was going to eat her? How many times did she wait for someone to come save her from the dark room and angry shadows? Sadly, it wasn't a threat that could be completely tossed aside, either. Grimm weren't imaginary, they were real. A healthy fear of the Grimm wasn't exactly a bad thing. Weiss relented, standing from her position and preparing for bed.

Mindlessly, she shuffled out of her work attire and into a nightgown, stopping by the bathroom to brush her teeth. Craning her head outside of the bathroom, she could see Ada glaring at the bedroom door. She was so tightly coiled she would likely spring out in shock at the slightest surprise. Weiss rolled her eyes before sliding back into the bathroom, rinsing her mouth and washing her face.

Finally ready to get some sleep, she untangled her daughter from the wad of blankets she had cocooned herself in. "Come on." She said, managing to withhold her sigh. "It's bed time."

"The Grimm's out there…" Ada insisted, finger pointing outward to the hallway.

"Ada, I'm a huntress. There are no Grimm in this house. If there were, I would have killed it already." Weiss proclaimed rather adamantly. "Now, come lay down by me so that we can both get some sleep…"

As an owner to an entire company, days off weren't as relaxing as they used to be. She chose to spend her days at home if she could, but even that came with a list of chores to oversee. Half an eye on her computer and half an eye on her daughter made for an exhausting Saturday for a single mother.

Klein took his leave after breakfast, happily accepting his time off to partake an outing of his own. Weiss didn't ask where the man was going. He was quite happy not to disclose the matter, either. He dressed more dapperly than usual, and carried a tin of chocolates in his hand. He looked as though he was off to a date. Weiss had her suspicions, but, that's all they would ever be.

She had her own love life to figure out. Her mind drifted to Blake. Another question tumbling round in her mind.

Even if she could maintain a relationship, could she manage it with Blake?

That was a harder question to answer. Weiss chewed on it over breakfast, and fixated over during the mid-morning cartoons that her daughter liked to watch. Her eyes followed the colored blobs on the screen absently. She wondered if Blake could learn to appreciate this type of morning. It was something akin to a gift, being able to watch Ada enjoy a snack and play on the floor. She wondered if Blake would be satisfied by such a simple little thing. Could Blake even tolerate this sort of life? Would she willingly acclimate to Ada's needs without hesitation?

It wasn't an easy thing to do, and Weiss knew that first hand. She bit her lip as she returned to her work.

"Why are they bad?" The little girl asked innocently.

"Who are you talking about?"

"Grimm." Ada chirped. "Why are they bad?"

It was such an odd question...

Weiss glanced over the glass of her scroll and the image of the hologram. She regarded the little girl who twirled a red block in her hands. Pink eyes looked at the toy as though might have the answer. Weiss struggled with the sight. There was no easy way to condense down such a complicated question. A half-truth was the best she could offer. "They're just not very nice. They do bad things."

"They are big…"

"Not all Grimm are big." Weiss said gently. "Some are small."

"Oh…" Just like that, Ada went back to building her multicolored tower of blocks. "Are small ones bad?"

"All Grimm are bad." Weiss confirmed. "Big and small, all Grimm."

"White ones are good." Ada said then, turning to look at her mom. "White ones are nice."

Weiss couldn't help but wonder what sort of details her daughter clung onto. She couldn't shelter the girl from everything. Ada had been told plenty of over-the-top stories from her father. He embellished the excitement, and hid the gruesome facts for her sake. The television made Grimm into an unavoidable novelty for toys, books, and horror movies. Winter was no help either, she saw no point to hide the family semblance. She had no qualms about showing off the Grimm she commanded.

Apparently those white summons had left an impression…

"No, dear." Weiss said quietly. "The white ones listen to us, but, they are still bad." She would not deviate from that mindset. A half-truth, to protect Ada. Later, when she was older, she would be given the full truth. Right now, she was still too young to grasp the subtle concepts of the Schnee family semblance.

Honestly, it was better that way. Ada was just a little girl, and she would remain that way for as long as fate allowed it.

Weiss swore it.

Yet, even if the family semblance was too hard a thing to fathom, there were other matters to talk about. She placed away her scroll and the work that had been occupying her. She sat on the floor beside her daughter. She picked up one of the white blocks. It looked like it had been scribbled on with yellow crayon. She didn't need to ask why. Instead, she brushed the marked surface with her thumb. Some things were just too difficult to ask.

She needed an easy question, one with a simple answer. "Do you like it when Yang comes to play with you?"

Ada nodded. "We make messes."

"Yes, you do." Weiss said, fully aware that Yang was just the sort of person to invite clutter everywhere she went. "Is it fun?"

"Yep." Ada said, having to stand up to put the block onto the tower. She happily took the next block her mom handed her, placing that atop the growing plastic wall.

"What do you do?"

"Things."

Weiss rolled her eyes. Handing over another block. "What kinds of things?"

"Paint." Ada said, taking the block and repeating the action. "Play blocks." She adored Yang. Honestly, it was hard for any child to dislike the charismatic blonde.

Weiss wished the next question wasn't so hard to ask, but, it was the one that truly mattered. "What about Blake? Do you like her?"

"Na-uh." Ada said, matter-of-factly. "Kitty's scary."

"That's what I thought." Weiss murmured to herself as Ada toppled over the wall so that it could be built anew.

Blake was certainly the most intimidating member of Team RWBY, especially to Ada.

Ruby was a walking supplier of all things sweet. From cookies to candy, there was no telling what sort of treat Ruby would give to the girl. She made a habit to send baked-goods often, and that certainly helped to bridge the long distance divide. Ada had taken to Ruby like a small duckling. She was even more enamored now that there was often a small baby on the screen whenever Ruby happened to be on video.

Yang was everything that Weiss wasn't, and with even less of a societal give-a-damn than Coco. That level of fearlessness only promised havoc, and Ada loved the controlled chaos that only the blonde could get away with. It helped that Ada had known Yang from birth, promising that extra layer of trust that other people just hadn't attained from the child.

Blake was the big angry Faunus. She always carried her weapon and she was quiet unless spoken to. She had a habit of rightfully scolding Yang when the blonde playfully provoked her, but she could see how that might look scary to a child. Blake's sporadic visits coupled with her less than jovial temperament made her intimidating to the little girl.

If Blake truly wanted to peruse a relationship that would have to change. With that decision in mind, Weiss decided upon her first test.

"You know, it's funny." Weiss said, looking down at the image of the Faunus in front of her for a moment. Taking her eyes off the screen, she turned away to put a few clean towels into the nearby rack. "I thought that I'd get to know Klein a little better given the size of my home. His mysteries remain the same either way." She said gently, not missing the way that Blake flinched from the statement.

"Doesn't it bother you…?" Blake asked. "Not knowing, I mean…"

"Why would it bother me? Even if I knew the truth, nothing would change." Weiss said humorously. With the linens put away, all she needed to do was prepare her pills for the week. "Anyway. I won't be able to rely on Klein tomorrow, either."

"What's your plan then?"

"On a Sunday? I don't make any plans if I can avoid it. We'll just hang around the house like we always do." Weiss told her. "Maybe we'll stop by the park, but other than that I'm hoping for an uneventful day indoors. While we're on the topic, though, I was thinking that maybe you could come over and watch Ada for a few hours one of these days. Hopefully, sometime next week if you're up for it."

"You…what?" Blake's voice crackled from the scroll before cutting off. "I don't think I heard you."

"I want you to keep an eye on Ada one of these days…" Weiss said again as she leaned on the bathroom counter. Her blue eyes glanced up to the mirror, checking on Ada as she played in the bubble bath. Then she went back to sorting out her weekly vitamins and aura enhancers for the following week. Ada was none the wiser to her mother's chores, happily collecting the suds around her face like beard.

"Um…" Blake hesitated.

"You can manage to look after her for a few hours, can't you?" Weiss did her best to keep the amusement to herself as she capped another bottle and placed it on the highest shelf of the medicine cabinet. She opened the last bottle counting out seven pills into her palm, waiting for Blake to respond.

"I'm not busy or anything." Blake managed, her voice cutting out again. "I just don't think she likes me very much."

"It's not about like or dislike, she's afraid of you." Weiss replied as she nudged her scroll, knowing that her bathroom had some of the worst signal in the entire house. "It shouldn't be a surprise. You never have attempted to endear yourself to her. We need to start amending that somehow."

"If she's scared of me, don't you think leaving the two of us alone would be a bad idea?"

"Oh, I'll be home whenever you decide to do it." Weiss said bluntly, placing the last pill into the box. She snapped down all of the lids and recapped the bottle. "I'm not that vindictive."

"Then, if you'll be home, what will you be doing?" Blake asked, her voice clearly confused.

"Working." Taking the newly sorted box of pills, she placed them on the lowest shelf of the medicine cabinet. Then she closed the door, snapping down the small gold padlock. The key went back to the safe little hiding place inside a small box and placed in the back of a nearby drawer. "I'll be in my home office the entire time. That's why we will need to plan the day. I don't want to be called away to a meeting if it can be avoided. Do you think you're up for it?"

"Yeah..." Blake hesitated, a sure sign of her nervousness. "Yeah, I think that'll be alright. You can pick the day. I'll make myself available."

"Alright then." Weiss said softly. "I'll decide what works best for me when I go into work…"

The night passed by slower than Weiss would have liked. After helping Ada finish her bath and get ready for bed, it was finally time for reading. Weiss made her way through another fairytale from the gigantic book that Ruby had insisted upon buying. Ada finally dozed off. Weiss sighed in relief as she turned off the light, and quietly closed the door behind her. With any luck, Ada would stay in her own bed tonight.

The clock in the hallway struck eight, and Klein was still out.

With the peaceful night to herself, Weiss went into the kitchen to make her own cup of tea...