Chapter eight: Identity

(a/n- gonna try something a little different here. By that I mean, a different technique. Basically we're trying shorter paragraphs (mostly). Tell me if this works or if I should go back to my normal style.)

"Jaune?"

I slowly opened my eyes, groaning. My head was pounding like someone hit me with a hammer… or slammed me into a wall. I felt my vision clearing up slightly as I saw Ren standing over me, holding Weiss in his arms. I shut my eyes again as I saw Nora come up to me, licking my face for a few seconds. "Down girl! Down!" I said, pushing her back as I stood up, looking around. The bathroom door was closed, and Nora was growling at it, no doubt the small cat from last night in there. Ruby was laying on my lap, seemingly asleep, with her tail wagging every direction. "I had the weirdest dream…" I muttered, rubbing the back of my head as I picked up the little husky, standing up and laying her on the bed. I heard slight whimpering as I looked over, seeing Ren trying to comfort Weiss. After a second though he just held her out towards me, a knowing smile on his face. I took her from him without hesitation, holding her close as I saw big, beautiful blue eyes gazing back at me, meeting my own.

"Who's my little girl huh? Who's my special little girl?" I said, talking in a more babyish tone as I saw Weiss start giggling. Then I felt the sense at my leg, the pawing. When I looked down, I saw Ruby looking up at me, barking and, if dogs could look jealous, man was she jealous of what was going on. I chuckled as I sat down, letting Ruby up in my lap as I kept Weiss close. "Don't worry Rubes, you'll always be my special little puppy." I said, taking a hand from Weiss and petting Ruby.

"Can I ask why you were lying on the ground?" Ren asked, raising an eyebrow towards me. I just shrugged, turning my attention to Weiss for a moment as she started crying out again. I stood, and Ruby, being the smart pup she was, jumped onto the floor, circling around my feet as I walked over to the counter. I handed Weiss off to Ren before I grabbed a bottle of Weiss's formula, preparing it as quickly as I could. When it was done I took Weiss back, holding it towards her. She grabbed it without hesitation, suckling on the bottle as I looked towards the bathroom.

"I wonder, was that cat part of the dream too? Maybe I was so exhausted I just crashed on the floor." I thought. It didn't make much sense to me but, hey, it was the best I could come up with. Though, when I walked over to the door and opened it, a little black cat ran out past me, going past Ren as Nora started bounding after it. I heard the barking of Pyrrha and Yang too as they no doubt started chasing after the cat. "I should… probably go deal with that." I muttered as I set Weiss in her crib, running towards the entrance of the store with Ruby bounding by my feet.

When I walked past the door I saw the three big dogs jumping up towards the small cat, who had wisely decided to climb up to the top of a nearby shelf. I frowned as I saw a dog collar fall off one of the racks, "Girls!" I yelled, whistling a second later as the three of them moved back down, walking towards me. I leaned down, rubbing behind Yang and Pyrrha's ears respectively as Nora bounded over to Ren, who pet her with that same fervor he always had. Which was to say, an impassive gaze. "Calm down, act like you two have never seen a cat before." I muttered, smiling at them as I stood, walking towards the black kitten. I held held out my hands towards her. At least… I guessed it was a her anyway. I wasn't really sure.

"Come here. Don't worry, I won't bite." I said, smiling at the small black cat as she gingerly stepped down onto my arm, letting me cradle her in both arms as I heard the distinct sound of knuckles on glass. I turned, raising an eyebrow as I saw… Blake. Or rather, an older Blake. She was clad in a pair of overalls, with little sun pins to hold them up mind you, and a white t-shirt. Covering most of her hair was a long-brimmed hat, bright yellow, the hat of a gardener if I'd even seen one. That fact was even more confirmed when I saw that she was holding a clean trowel in one hand, knocking with the other. She had a gentle smile on her face, waving towards me when I noticed her. I walked over, opening the door and smiling at the woman. "Sorry ma'am. We're uh… not exactly ready to open just yet." I said, giving her a sheepish smile. She pointed towards the kitten in my arms, amber eyes sparkling up at me.

"I'm here for my little Blakey actually." she said. At that the kitten in my arms jerked up it's head, looking over at her as I felt her start to squirm. I just nodded a few times, letting the cat down as the woman laid her trowel up beneath her hat. "Come here! Come here sweetie!" she said in a similar tone to what I used with Weiss, beaming down at the cat as she held it up, cradling it in her arms just like I was.

"Oh I've been looking everywhere for you! Mama's sorry she couldn't find you sooner. Can you forgive me?" she asked, pouting down at the cat as it just laid it's head down, seemingly nuzzling into the crook in the women's overalls. If I didn't know any better I'd say she was trying to hide herself from embarrassment. The woman smiled back down at her cat, running a hand along the kitten's back as I heard a faint and, almost restrained, purring coming from her. "Wonder how she got here?" I muttered, looking back towards my room. I mean, there were no windows in it, the only real entrance being the door. Unless this cat could disappear through walls. The woman only giggled, a deep and mature sound that made her seem a bit older than she looked… granted, she didn't look that old to begin with. That and she looked so much like Blake… and her cat's name was Blakey… "If you don't mind me asking ma'am, do you have a daughter by chance?"

"I do actually. OH! I'm so sorry! I seem to have forgotten my manners!" she said, her face sporting a light tinge as she awkwardly rubbed behind her head. Then she cleared her throat, holding out a hand towards me, the one that was previously petting the cat. "I'm Kali. Kali Belladonna." she said. I reached over, shaking her hand to find it was surprisingly soft, and her grip rather light. She moved her hand back after a second, going back to petting and cooing to the little cat… it was rather adorable actually. Something about Kali was almost… childlike, in a way. "I'm Jaune Arc; you're Blake's mother?" I asked, giving her a slight smile. Of course, I'd kind of figured when she said her last name was Belladonna. She was either Blake's mother or sister and, considering she had a daughter, I highly doubted sister was the right answer.

"Hmm? Are you Blake's boyfriend? OW!" Kali said, dropping the cat that, naturally, landed on it's feet. The cat was hissing up at the woman as she grabbed at her shirt, just above where the overalls ended. There were two scratch marks, no doubt made by the small kitten. I shook my head, my face retaining the blush from being called Blake's boyfriend, "No. I'm her boss actually. I hired her just yesterday… is she coming into work today? I mean, we open in an hour." I said. From the brief encounters I'd had with the girl, she didn't seem like the type to be late. Kali just nodded, picking up her cat, glaring at it slightly before the motherly smile and manner came back. "Yes she'll be coming in. I'd be careful if I were you though," she leaned in, whispering this next part below anyone's hearing. "Don't tell her I told you but, it's her 'strawberry season' if you know what I mean." she said, winking at me as I nodded, watching the woman turn and walk away.

"It was nice to meet you Jaune. Blake should be in soon, don't worry." she said, waving at me with a bright smile before she walked out the door, heading off to the left down the sidewalk. I looked over at Ren, who was just casually petting Nora as he sat back on my stool. "She seem a little… strange, to you?" Ren asked, looking off towards the woman. I just nodded, knowing full well what he meant. She seemed a little too attached to that cat if you asked me… maybe her daughter had moved out? Empty nest syndrome or something like that? Whatever it was, I didn't really have the time to think much over it. Mostly since, I heard Weiss starting to cry. I dashed past Ren, walking in and smiling slightly as I picked Weiss up, sniffing the air as I normally did. "Alright Missy," I said, holding her at arm's length as I gave a slight smile,

"You need a change."

…

"I don't see why you had to scratch me."

I looked up at the pouting woman as she walked down the sidewalk, carrying me in her arms. "Meow! Meow meow me-!" "Sweetie, no one can understand you while you're a cat." she interrupted me, giving a little smile as I felt her rub her hand along my head. I couldn't help but to roll my head slightly, my instincts betraying me as I let out a low purr. My mother let out a light giggle, smiling down at me as she kept it up, moving from my head to my back. "You're just like your father was, loved having his ears pet and his back rubbed." she said, petting me in those same areas as my body let out more traitorous purrs. I was one of Beacon's best agents! Why was I purring like some common house cat!? I looked up, seeing my mother turn off the side and walk into a small, brick building. Once she got in, she set me down on a nearby table. My mother took off her hat, exposing her cat ears with the small, golden earrings attached. She set it on a nearby rack before she started walking away. "I expect you to be a faunus and not a cat when I come back, otherwise I'm dropping you in the bath." she said playfully, but the threat itself, however jokingly it may have been said, caused my eyes to widen as I jumped onto the nearby couch, shutting my eyes as I felt myself changing out of my cat form.

When my mother came back, she didn't see a small cat on the couch, rather, a naked teenager with a red face, covering themselves on the couch. She sighed, "Blake, I'm your mother, and there's no one else here. You don't have to cover up." she said, giving a slight smile as she unclipped her overalls, letting them fall down to expose a pair of shorts beneath them. I didn't speak as I stood, walking back towards where I knew the bathroom was. I strided past the rooms, looking in and keeping my breasts covered, just in case there was some unseen guest I wasn't aware of. "Think I'd be used to being naked by now after all my infiltration missions…" I thought as I opened the door to the bathroom, shutting and locking it behind me as I walked towards the bath.

I couldn't help the small sigh that came from me as I slipped my legs into the steaming water, the rest of my body soon following as I leaned my head back, smiling as I felt the water warming me up. It'd been cold sleeping on that bathroom floor, since Yang and Pyrrha adamantly refused to allow me to sleep elsewhere, so the warm water? A welcome change. I shut my eyes, just letting the water warm my cold skin… for a while anyway. "How did the mission go?" "EEH!" I suddenly yelled, reaching down and covering my breasts, since they were above the water level, before I looked around, trying to find the source of the rather deep voice. Though, when I saw it, I let out a sigh of both relief, and extreme irritation. "Mom! Don't do that!" I said, glaring at the tall, black cat that was now perched on the sink, the door still shut, but unlocked. Had I really been so focused on the warmth I'd not seen her walk in, turn into a cat, and then shut the door back?

"Sorry sweetie." she said, her voice going from her deep, disguised one to her normal one. She bounded off the high sink, perching on the top of the shower head as she hunched her kitty shoulders, looking down at me with eyes of sparkling amber. "Remind me why you can talk in your cat form and I can't?" I asked, glaring up at my mother as I kept my arms around my chest. Sure, she was my mother, but it was still somewhat embarrassing. Mom jumped off from the shower-head, landing on a clear bar in the shower, meant for if one of our members was handicapped. "Thirty years of practice, that's how." she said, jumping from the railing to right next to me, on the edge of the tub. I glared towards her, giving a slight smirk as I had a devious idea. I uncovered my breasts, reaching over and grabbing the shampoo nearby in one hand, with the other? I immediately dunked my mother into the water. "BLAGH! PFFT! BLAKE!" I heard my mother nearly shouting as she splashing around, only for a large amount of white suds to suddenly encompass her tiny form.

"GAH!"

I said as I felt a heavy weight suddenly on me. I looked down, seeing my mother spread out over me, naked as I'd expect, with shampoo on her ears and head. She leaned back, sitting up against the other side as she glared at me. Then that glare turned into a smile as she leaned over. "AH! MOM!" I said, feeling my mother pulling me almost onto her lap, roughly rubbing her hand along the top of my head. I felt a purr building up in my throat but, thanks to me being in human form this time, I pushed it down, looking up at my mother as I felt her pull me into a hug, my head just above her chest, the rest of me spread out over her legs. "If I'd known you'd make this big of a fus I'd have washed you when you were still a cat." she said, grabbing a shampoo bottle and squirting a bit of it on my head. I had to shut my eyes as I felt some of it dripping down. "Mooom… I'm not kitten!" I said, feeling almost mortified at the fact she was washing me off, I mean, I was seventeen!

"How did your mission go?" she asked as she flipped me around, wrapping her legs around my stomach, my arms held at my sides with her surprising strength as she washed my hair. I tried to struggle for a minute, but eventually just gave up. She wasn't called 'Killer Kali' for nothing I guess. "I was about to secure the girl but… things happened, okay?" "Did you mate with your boss?" she asked, causing my face to burn bright red as I gave my mother my strongest glare… which probably wasn't much, being as I was held in her leg's death grip and having my hair washed by her. "No… Ruby, Pyrrha, and Yang are his dogs. They were all faunus." I said. I heard my mother humming softly as she ran her hands through my hair, seemingly not caring about what I just said. "Did you not hear m-" "I heard you just fine Blakey, I could tell they were the second I walked in." she said. This caused my eyes to widen as I turned my head as far as it would go, getting only a glimpse of my mother's smiling face.

"What? You get old enough dear, you start to notice these things. Most faunus smell different than their animal counterparts. That's what helps us know which animals we see are faunus, and which one's are just regular animals." she explained, reaching behind her and flicking on the water. I felt the pressure around me move as she stood, pulling back the curtain and pressing a small button on the side. The water suddenly started pouring out of the shower part of it, "KYA!" I yelled, instinctively wrapping my arms around my mother as I shut my eyes, feeling the cold water hitting my side. I froze a few seconds later, realizing that I'd been cuddling against my mother's chest, basically unconsciously, when I felt it's warmth. She smiled down at me, "You've got a long way to go before you aren't a kitten Blake. Even then," she reached down, lightly pecking my cheek before she crouched down, submerging herself beneath the water.

Whenever she came back up, I instead saw the familiar cat with the golden orbs in it's ears. "You'll always be my little kitten. Now wash up, you've only got an hour before work. Don't forget to wash behind your ears!" she said, hopping out of the bath before she, oddly enough, shook herself off, much like a dog, before jumping down. I heard the sound of a door opening and closing. I turned back towards the shower, washing off my hair and… behind my ears, despite my internal objections. They were just so sensitive. Washing there was always such a pain. In the end though, I did it. I didn't want mom to clean my ears herself the next time I turned into a cat. I stayed in there probably a bit longer than I should have, letting the blush from being washed by my mother at my age fade away, before I turned off the water, getting out and grabbing a towel. I wrapped it around my head as I looked in the mirror, smiling slightly. Without my ears I almost looked… human. It was kind of strange.

During this time I saw the door open, my mother coming in wearing the same clothes she was a few moments ago. "Here are your clothes sweetie." she said, laying them down on the closed hamper about a foot away from the bathtub. I just nodded, turning around to face her. She only smiled at me, walking over and wrapping her arms around my back. Then she leaned in, planting a kiss on my cheek before she stepped back, her hands around my shoulders as I saw her frown. "Be careful out there, okay?" she asked, her eyes taking on that old, pained quality she had. I'd thought she'd lost it whenever dad died but… I guess you never really did lose that look. I sure hadn't.

"I always am Mom."

…

"Reporting for duty sir."

I raised an eyebrow towards the white haired girl, seeing her saluting me with a blank expression. "Umm, Maria…" I said, trying to figure out what she was doing. Her eyes widened as she put her hand down, her face slightly flushed. She turned away, frowning slightly as she looked down towards Ruby. She embraced the distraction, quickly picking up the small puppy and almost roughly stroking her fur. "Apologies Mr. Arc. I um… that's how I was train- I mean, taught! Taught, by my… last job." she said, her entire body going rigid as I saw her hand quickly striking across Ruby's back. Ruby, though, seemed to be liking it, pressing against the woman's every time it made one of it's quick passes. I just shrugged, chalking up the nerves to first day jitters. I knew I had them whenever I started my first job.

"Alright then Maria… is Maria okay with you? Or would you prefer to be called something else?" I asked, figuring I might as well try and make her a bit more comfortable about the whole thing. Her response came, rather unexpected. I expected her to think for a minute, maybe tell me no, that Maria was fine, but instead she answered like lightning. "Winter." was her response. Now, it may have been my imagination, but I could've sworn I saw her cringe slightly. Though, it could easily have been my imagination, since it was gone a second later. I just nodded, unable to keep the parallels from drawing themselves in my head. Winter, the mysterious benefactor that had told me specifically to hire the girl standing in front of me. Maria Long. Who happened to look suspiciously like Weiss. "I may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer- pretty sure that's in the drawer beneath the cash register- but there' something wrong about this whole thing." I thought as I just nodded towards the newly named 'Winter'.

"Why Winter might I ask?" "It's a long story." she responded immediately, the second, the second I'd stopped speaking she replied. Had she been rehearsing this? She seemed to know exactly what to say, and yet she was so nervous about her delivery… it was like watching an elementary school play or something. "Well, we've got time." I said, gesturing behind her towards the clock. It was noon, meaning we had six hours before the shop closed. That was plenty of time for her to tell me that story. Her muscles went rigid as her hands froze over Ruby's back, her face burning bright red as she looked away from me. "I'd umm… ahem," she cleared her throat, "Prefer not to talk about it." she said.

"You don't want to tell me, you don't have to." I said, holding up my hands and giving her a slight smile. She was clearly embarrassed about whatever that story was, that or nervous, I could never tell the difference. She just nodded, "Thank you Mr. Arc." she said, her blush gradually dying down as she set Ruby on the floor, said husky dashing behind the counter towards me, clawing at my legs. I picked her up, smiling down at her as I set her down on the counter, running one hand along her back as I let the other droop to my side. "You can just call me Jaune by the way." "Hmm?!" she responded, suddenly looking up and meeting my gaze. This… was not at all what I expected, based on first appearances alone. She seemed less confident now that she actually had the job than when she was trying to get the job! I just raised an eyebrow, slowly nodding, "You don't have to keep calling me 'Mr. Arc'. Just… call me Jaune. Just Jaune." I said, feeling somewhat awkward myself. Apparently the girl's nerves were contagious.

"Aaaanyway. I need you to man the register. Just ring up items and take people's money. Oh! And if you see a cop with bright red hair and a hat, come find me immediately." I said, remembering Winter's, the benefactor not the employee, warning about the man named Adam. Winter raised an eyebrow at me, but nodded nonetheless, taking Ruby with her behind the counter as I walked past her, my hip brushing against hers as I moved out from around the counter, towards the adoption center. I saw her sit down on my stool, stroking Ruby as I saw Yang stand up, walking towards the adoption center with me. I opened the door, walking around and refilling the dogs food bowls. "You don't like her I'm guessing?" I asked, looking back towards Yang with a smile. She let out a low growl, turning around and glaring at the closed door that led out to Winter. I reached over, scratching behind her ear to try and calm her down. "Hey, I don't want you attacking her okay? Treat her like you would me." I said, leaning down and wrapping my arms around Yang's head. "Can you do that for me?" I asked. Her response? Lick my cheek before barking.

"Hehe, good." I said, wiping off her slobber before I stood, going back to feeding the animals. "JAUNE!" Until, that is, I heard that. I dropped the bag of food, thankfully closed since I was done, before I flung open the door to the main store, reaching for my switchblade. I looked behind the counter, seeing Winter standing up, against the nearby wall. She looked positively mortified at something, her eyes wide as she looked down. I walked over towards her, feeling my face pale as I saw what she was looking at. There, next to where her knee would've been, was Weiss's drawer, pulled open and her in plain view. I saw two little arms reaching up, a head of white hair and brilliant blue eyes showing themselves for a second. "Pa-pa!" she said, holding out her arms towards me. I smiled at her as I walked over, reaching down and picking her up. I cradled her in my arms, planting a kiss on her forehead. "How's my special little girl doing huh? Did you have a nice nap?" I asked, slipping into that babyish tone of voice I tended to use with her.

"Umm…" I looked back, my smile flying from my face as I remembered Winter was standing ten feet away. I held out one hand, cradling Weiss in one arm as I felt my own face start to burn with panic. "I can explain!" "Yeah… could you?" she asked. Her gaze… strangely, it wasn't confused. There was no confusion, and she seemed to even recognize Weiss, her eyes flashing strangely when they gazed at her. Maybe it was the surprise… but no, that seemed too much. Her shock wasn't fake though, I could tell that much. "This is… my daughter, Weiss Arc. You must've woken her up from her nap." I said, cradling said girl in both arms again, letting them bounce slightly as she cuddled up to her little bear toy. Winter slowly nodded, walking towards me before she looked down, Weiss's eyes turning towards her. Weiss seemed confused, pointing up towards Winter's hair. "Whait! Whait!" she said. Winter looked at me raising an eyebrow, I just shrugged, looking down at Weiss. She kept saying that… and then I realized what 'Whait" meant.

"Are you trying to say white Weiss?" "Whait!" she said, giggling and pointing towards Winter's hair. I smiled at her attempt, reaching down and holding her beneath her arms, lifting her up towards Winter's hair. Winter just stood still, looking up at her as she grabbed bits of Winter's hair. "This is Winter's hair Weiss, it's white. Can you say that? Whi-te." I said, slowly enunciating the word in hopes she would understand. Weiss gave a little frown, moving her lips around a bit, mumbling something. "Whi-te!" "Good job!" I said, pulling her down and into a hug, lightly pecking her on the forehead. Winter still stood there, giving a little smile towards Weiss as the girl held out her hands, smiling at Winter. "Whi-te!" she said. I looked towards Winter, lightly holding Weiss up in an unspoken question. Winter just nodded, reaching over and, somewhat awkwardly, holding Weiss in her arms. I moved Winter's arms back, making it so she was cradling Weiss's head.

"I think she likes you." I said, giving her a smile as Weiss seemed to cuddle next to Winter's rather large bust, almost rubbing her head against it like a cat. Winter's awkward, outer shell seemed to break, her smiling at the little girl. When she spoke… well, she was like a whole other person. "Whi-te!" "No no Weiss, it's Win-ter. Can you say that? Win-ter." she said.

"Whi-te!"

"Come on! Win-ter."

"Whi-te!"

"Nonono! Win-ter."

"Ma-ma!"

(a/n- yeah someone cue the record stopping sound effect here.)

Me and Winter both froze, even Ruby, Yang, and Pyrrha looking up at Weiss as she just giggled, tapping her little fists, on Winter's chest. "Ma-ma!" she said again, giggling slightly as I reached over, lightly tossling her hair as I tried to process what I'd just heard. We were like that for awhile, the only sound being Weiss's giggling and the ambient noise of the nearby fish tanks, until Winter spoke. "She… she called me…" "Ma-ma!" Weiss finished for her. Winter looked down, cradling her a bit tighter as she looked at me, confused clearly. I reached out, Winter seemingly gladly handing Weiss over as said girl grabbed up towards me. "Pa-pa!" "Well, at least that's normal." I muttered, walking over and sitting on my stool, looking up towards my employee. Maria Long, Winter. She looked at me and Weiss, still seemingly speechless about what happened. Though, looking at Weiss, there was something I knew. It was love, but not for a child, like I had for Weiss. No, that look was the love of a sister, one that I had for all seven of mine.

"Maria Long, what are you hiding?"