Black Paladin
Chapter 11: Relaxation, and other difficulties
AN: I apologize for how long this chapter took. I was struggling with the direction of this chapter, and where it was going, and with school… it's a mess.
After we got back to the dorm room, I leapt into my bed, and went to bed.
In the morning, an alarm woke me up. Obsidian's alarm. I dropped down from my cot, and knocked on the wall of his room. A brief groan told me something was wrong. I peeked through the curtain, and found a well lit, but spartan room. I wasn't exactly surprised, Obsidian was a spartan character. I shook him and he refused to wake up. I shook him hard. He stayed unconscious. I ran out, into Yang, demanding "Shut that off."
"He won't wake up." I say, waving to him, as Weiss stands up. She walk over, and kneels down. Looking for a pulse, as she feels his wrist. She goes white. Well white-er, and stand suddenly.
"He doesn't…" Weiss began. "He doesn't have a pulse."
Blake walks up. She puts her cat ears to his chest, and for a moment, looks scared, then she breathes easier. "No, it's just.. but it's their."
"What do we do?" I asked, looking to Yang now awake, Blake looking about, confused, Weiss stood, and picked up his scroll. She opened it up, and called the fifth, and only number that wasn't present from his speed dial.
To the confusion of three teens and the mortification of one across the hall, 'Is This Love' begin to play.
Nora Ren and Jaune look to Pyrrha, bright red, as she answers her scroll, "Yes, Obsidian."
"It's Weiss, Obsidian got hurt last night during an excursion, and we can't wake him." Weiss says.
Nora's evil smirk, Ren less evil smirk, and Jaune's laughter only made the mortification worse, Pyrrha got dressed, walked across the hall, and found a room highly similar to hers, with a corner boarded off. She went in and asked what happened last night.
"A new Atlesian Paladin. Roman Torchwick was piloting it." Weiss began.
Pyrrha looked down, "Did he use his wings, or any other Grimm parts?"
"Why?" I asked.
"Did the Paladin hit them?" Pyrrha asked.
"Yes." I said.
"Then why are you surprised he is out for the count? His powers, especially when he needs to grow more Grimm matter, like say a set of wings or two being shot full of holes." Pyrrha said. "Get him some food, he should be up in another couple hours."
"So this has happened before?" Weiss asks.
"Nora was testing shrapnel grenades, but ya, after practice, he just kinda collapsed, his heartbeat is reminiscent of a Grimm hibernating to heal." Pyrrha said. "He is always damn hungry after waking, but nothing life threatening." As she walked out, I heard her mumble, "Now, how to I explain that to my team."
On Monday we went back to class. All five of us, as Obsidian had woken up. When the subject came up in class, Weiss volunteered us to set up the dance. After class, Obsidian asked pointedly, "Why?"
"Well, given the diversity of our backgrounds, we could plan a party that would be fun for all involved." Weiss explained.
"Weiss." Obsidian began, slowly, "My experience with formals has been decidedly… negative." He ticks off a finger, "Given the stories Yang seems to have an unlimited supply of, Beacon wouldn't be standing after a party that she would throw, no offence." He turns to Yang.
"I am well aware of my explosite Yang-ality." She responds, to a round of sighs.
He hold up a third finger, "Ruby has, on her own, admitted to being a loner who is obsessed with guns, and I have been to several gun shows and that isn't a good party setting, and finally Blake, who was affiliated with some… unsavory individuals… for a majority of her life and more than likely never had time for them. Therefore I ask you...Why did you volunteer us?"
"I wanted to run the party, is that so bad?" Weiss admits, pouting.
"No, but don't hide it behind wanting a team bonding experience. Tell us what we can do to help set up, and we may have some design choices, but this is your beast, OK?" Obsidian says.
"Understood." Weiss says.
After letting the other three walk away for a bit, he holds me back, "So Ruby, I would like to make you an offer."
"What?" I asked, confused.
"I have been curious, and I wanted to know, just how fast can you go?" Obsidian asked.
"But I don't know, I…" I began.
"Would you like to find out?" He says, with a smile that cased shiver to crawl down my back, one that would look more at home on Nora's face.
Right before something explodes.
Into pancakes.
The three of us, (Yang had insisted on coming with us) came to a wood and Grimm circle.
"I measured it out, and this ring is exactly 1 mile on its interior diameter. That means, that Ruby can accelerate until she no longer feels she can, then I will begin tracking her top speed." I explain.
"Why do you…" Yang begins.
"I want to know how fast Ruby can go, primarily so that I can help her." I say, "I helped you understand your limitations, by testing them, same with almost all of JNPR."
"Almost…" Ruby began.
"Jaune was a job outside of my abilities. Pyrrha, Ren, and Nora have their work cut out for them." I say.
"Why not us..." Yang demands.
"Did you ask?" I ask, and the sputtering left in my wake was hilarious. "I helped you, because you came to me for assistance with form. Ruby had showed interest in the training I was putting Pyrrha through, and she is almost completely caught up of the two years she missed, I figured now was a good time."
"And you build this ring because…" Yang asks.
"Well it is a sparring ring, and I was experimenting with an…" I stop, how can I describe this, I never exactly told them about my cave… "ability of mine that I wasn't comfortable using around the school."
"So, how is this running test going to work?" Ruby asks, interrupting of the awkward conversation.
I hand her two of my daggers. "You are going to run until you feel you can accelerate any further. Then you are going to drop the first dagger. Then you are going to do 10 laps around the circle, until you reach where you dropped the knife, Ok?" I explain.
"Ok!" Ruby says, and starts running.
As she starts running, going all out, a cascade of rose petals fall from the path. At the twenty second mark, a crack appears in the track, as a simultaneous pulse of air nearly deafens Yang and I, while Ruby just keeps going. At thirty seconds, I lose track of my knives, She is going too fast for me to accurately tell when they pass in front of me. At almost a full minute, the first knife drops into a speed I can detect again, and I hold it. THe problem is that I can feel secured the knife a short moment after Ruby stops in front of us.
Only slightly winded, Ruby asks, "So, how fast was I going?"
I blink, stunned, "I...um… slightly after you broke the sound barrier, I lost track."
"I broke the sound barrier?" Ruby asks, looking ecstatic.
I pause, fully understanding the amount of force even that ten second burst could cause. I once again have a thought that is both comforting and terrifying. 'Pyrrha Nikos, the women who is widely known as the best fighter of our generation, wasn't good enough to qualify for Beacon evan a year early. Ruby got in two full years early.
"We will need a better measurement system." I say, still almost in a daze, as we walk back to school and I got ready to have an awkward conversation.
I walked in for my session with Pyrrha. After a quick warm up, Pyrrha stops and asks, "What's wrong?"
"Just a lot on my mind." I say.
"Like?" Pyrrha asks.
"Well, we did Ruby's speed test today."
"Well how did she do?" She asks, curious.
"Well after shattering the sound barrier, she accelerated for almost thirty more seconds." Pyrrha looks shocked, "Then ran 10 miles in less time than it takes for me to sense my knife after se dropped it."
"You have instantaneous control. You've shown that dozens of times." Pyrrha said.
"And yet Ruby ran ten miles in the time it takes me to connect with me knife."
"I can see how this can be concerning, but you seem distracted by something else." She asks, almost too intuitive.
"Weiss is having a review/lesson for the dance, and I was hoping, that to minimize embarrassment…" I begin, until a very fast right hook stops me.
Pyrrha, almost in tears, demands "You know exactly how much I like dancing, and you have the nerve…"
"I don't know how to dance!" I interrupt.
For a moment we simply look at one another. Then Pyrrha, red in anger and embarrassment commands, "Explain."
"Remember how you told me all the stories of you learning to dance, and the dances you attended?"
"Yess, but what does that…" She pauses, and realises, "You shared dances, but never learning to dance. But how did…"
I interrupt by taking her hand, and moving into position for a formal waltz. As we go through the beginning motions, and spiral into more advanced motions, and eventually, separate from her a bit, and say, "Look down."
She looks down, and bursts into giggles. My legs are nearly robotically moving back and forward, roughly in time to avoid her feet, but fairly obviously not actually dancing.
"I am holding my shoes about a millimeter off the floor. And moving just enough to be indistinguishable in a crowd. I can't actually do the dance. So I was hoping that, if only not to embarrass my date, I could actually dance."
"Why learn? This trick would have worked." Pyrrha asks.
"I have someone worth learning for." I say, just holding her close.
Her smile. Her eyes. Just her. She was worth it.
"So, do we have a date?" I ask, spinning her about some more.
"Why Obsidian, I believe we do."
"Can I let you in on a secret?"
"What?" She asks.
"Look down." I say again.
She looked, and her gasp is amusing. She stood, my embrace holding her still. About 5 feet off the floor.
"I don't need to be a millimeter off the floor." I say, lowering us again, as she lays her head to rest in the crook of my neck, both of us content.
The next weeks passed quickly. Weiss was slowly losing her mind prepping for the dance. Blake was quiet, but I had come to expect that, and given how little I have been back to our room, I may have been in different circles. I have been experimenting with Ruby's speed, and enhancing my ability to 'see' her move.
With Pyrrha, I've been experimenting with my aura and attacking with my wings, while keeping up my aura. With Ren I was working on my speed, and a rapid form of attacking, back to a form I was more familiar, and I helped Ren expand the knives on Storm Flower. With Nora I helped her expand her style, a long with a few additions to Magnhild, like the electrified full fire mode, that she has really enjoyed.
Yang and I have been working on her form and the power behind her opening swings. Weiss, and the team are learning to dance, and Blake hasn't been interested in training. Ruby has been training with me and Ren in her downtime on her speed and form.
For a while the world was calm. Then Weiss went completely off the deep end with her dance.
Weiss slides over 2 squares of white cloth over to Ruby and I, "I need you to pick a tablecloth."
Ruby asks, confused "Aren't they both the same?"
Weiss sighs in frustration, "I don't even know why I asked!"
"Left." I say.
Weiss asks, "But isn't the right better?"
"Then right." I say.
Weiss walks away happy, and Ruby looks at me in slight awe, as Yang walks over carrying a massive sound speaker on her shoulder, and when she drops it on the ground, Ruby bounced into the air.
Yang asks, "So, have you picked out a dress yet?"
Ruby asks dejectedly, "What's the point? Who cares about the dance if Blake isn't going?"
"Ruby, remember, help others, but exist for yourself." I say, distractedly, sculpting a small red dress.
Yang says, "Oh, don't worry; she's going." before turning to Weiss, demanding "Weiss! I thought we agreed: No doilies!"
Weiss walks up and pokes her, "If I don't get doilies, you don't get fog machines!"
"Hey hey hey, fog machines sound cool, doilies...remarkable less so." I remark, closing my hand, removing the dress.
The sound of doors opening pauses the conversation, Neptune asks, "Your dance is gonna have fog machines?"
Weiss shifts over toward him, "We were thinking about it…"
Neptune says, "That's pretty cool."
Sun asks, walking up acting smooth, "You ladies all excited for dress-up?"
I clear my throat, "I believe I said something last time Sun?"
Ruby asks, "Pfft... Yeah, right!"
Yang asks, "Laugh all you want. I'll be turning heads tomorrow night!"
Weiss asks, "What are you two wearing?"
Sun asks, "Uuhhh... this? gesturing to his current shirtless outfit.
Neptune steps up and hides his friend's face. "Ignore him for he knows not what he says."
Sun knocking his hand away, "Hey, I may have moved to Mistral, but I grew up in Vacuo. It's not exactly a shirt-and-tie kind of place."
Yang looks at, Ruby and Weiss' matching 'duh' faces, and my exceedingly board look, "Yeah, we noticed."
Sun rubs the back of his head, and asks, "Soooo... what does Blake think of all this? She still being all, y'know... Blake-y?"
Weiss says, "Obviously." and turns and crosses her arms in disapproval.
Ruby asks, "I still can't think of a way to change her mind."
Yang says, "Guys." We all turn to look at her, "Trust me; Blake will be at the dance tomorrow."
As the dance approaches, and Ruby and Yang freak out about their dresses, Pyrrha walks in, in a well fitting, red and black strapless piece. "Obsidian, this dress is amazing! It's like a glove."
"Did Obsidian help you pick out that dress?" Yang asks.
I widen my eyes, and wave my hands, signaling not to say… "He made it for me, he wove to right in front of me out of the Grimm particulates."
Both of them look at me, pissed. "You can make custom dresses?" Yang begins.
"Yes." I say, throwing back my feet.
"And why was this not brought up an hour ago, when it would have saved us a lot of stress." Yang asks.
"You didn't ask." I say calmly.
Two dress designs are suddenly in my face. One a white strapped, low cut, two parallel diagonal floral frill. One a simple red, with a waist black bar, roses adorning the dress in a random pattern.
I wave my hands and two threads slink out of the sides of my hand, and slowly form dresses. A shapely white dress, and a formed red dress, both exactly as designed appear in the air, and then a brief glow appears.
"What was that glow?" Yang asks.
"Cutting myself off from the dresses." I say. "You don't want me fully connected to the dress you will be wearing to the dance? Do you?"
All three of them go red. "Pyrrha, I can do the other half if you want?"
Yang and Ruby look at her dress confused.
"Her design was more ambitious." I smirk, and wave my hand, and three more strands creep out, forming her outer shell, and a wrap around shawl, to go with the outer shell of the dress, held up by thin rods of harder material, woven directly into the dress, allowing it to fold up.
After I finish, Pyrrha twirls, and the other two look at me. "Ruby, get the sketch pad." Yang says, and I learn; I am in for a long afternoon.
AN: I just want to apologize for the delay again. Between my freshman term at College, my new job, and hoping I could get Obsidian to the tower to see Cinder next chapter, this has been interesting to say the least.