Chapter 29

Adam hissed as he carefully extracted the towel from his horns. He should have been paying better attention, but as was typical for him these days, his mind had been focused on other subjects. There was a lot to ponder. Ruby and Yang's drunk uncle. The upcoming tournament his team wanted to win. Ironwood trying to prove Adam was still a terrorist. And of course the White Fang and Blake and what they planned.

He'd always thought he was good at focusing on the goal in front of him. But now… it felt like there were too many of them. Become a Huntsman. Reform the White Fang. Help Blake. Avoid being kicked out by the general. Fix the world's issues with Faunus. Keep his team happy. Don't die to drunk Huntsmen. Individually any of those goals would be difficult, but with all of them combined he was way out of his depth

He didn't even know where to start. How can he fix Blake, the White Fang and the entire world? How did he avoid the general's ire and death by Qrow? How did he keep his team happy? The only thing he really knew was how to become a Huntsman, which required him to sit around here.

Maybe he was just stressed. Overthinking the issue. Adam sighed and looked into the mirror. He only ever went to the private showers just so he could finally take off his blindfold. The skin around his scar hadn't healed much at all. He dabbed at it, seeing how it felt. It was still the same, rough skin it always was.

It was still a constant reminder.

Should I show them? The question popped into his mind every now and again. Especially since Ruby asked. He knew they would be sympathetic, and part of him would revel in the anguish and shock Weiss would feel as she realized just how bad the SDC really was. But that wasn't who he was trying to be. He didn't want to bring any of his team pain.

He wanted them to be happy. To fulfil their dreams of becoming Huntresses.

And I want Blake to be there with us. I want her to be happy with us. I don't want to force her, but the longer I stay here the more pain she can inflict. Should I bring her in? Or let her go if I can't convince her?

The answer eluded him so he let out another sigh and prepared for the day. More training beckoned. Strength beckoned.

It didn't take him long to return to the dorm. Ruby sat on her bed writing in her strategy book, she was likely coming up with more team-attack ideas. Weiss was finishing some homework and Yang was playing on her scroll. A year ago he would never have imagined sharing a dorm with three girls could be so… normal and familiar.

He felt at peace here.

His peace was interrupted by a heavy knock on the door. As he was standing and closest he answered it.

He regretted it instantly as Winter Schnee glared at him. He blinked for a moment. And as she opened her mouth to speak he slammed the door shut. He stood there silently for a second, took a deep breath and opened it again. The elder Schnee gave him an even worse glare.

"Sorry. Wind." Adam deadpanned. He took amusement in how her eyebrow twitched.

"The wind? Of course. Is Weiss in?" Winter tried to keep calm.

"And if she is?" Adam folded his arms only to get pulled back as Weiss tried to take his place at the door.

"Winter! Excuse him. He's had a bad week. What are you doing here!?" Weiss was excited. It was like a whole different Weiss, he hadn't seen her this excited since the beginning of the Festival preparations months ago.

"It's alright Weiss. I came to aid in security for the Festival. Fortunately, it gives me an opportunity to speak with you. And watch your matches in the tournament."

"That's great! Do you need a tour of Beacon? There is a great spot near the cafeteria. It's like a private cafe!" Weiss exclaimed. Adam couldn't help but smirk. She wasn't being very dignified.

Winter held up a hand. "I would enjoy a tour, yes. Why don't we start with your room? Along with an introduction to your teammates." Weiss hesitated for just a moment before she nodded and motioned her sister in. Adam glared out at the pair of guards that had accompanied the Specialist. They wisely stayed outside.

"Bunk beds?" Winter's astonishment and vague horror made it clear to Adam. The bunk beds had been a great choice.

"T-they're safer than they look?" Weiss offered. Winter stared up at Ruby's bunk, hanging as it was from several stretches of rope. Ruby had dashed down, standing perfectly, and awkwardly, straight. Yang was a little more casual when she jumped down to stand next to her sister.

"I see… I'll trust that you made absolutely sure." Winter said, trying hard to be diplomatic. "Now these must be your teammates?"

"Oh yes! That's Ruby, the team leader, and that's Yang." Weiss pointed them out. Ruby awkwardly waved while Yang gave a big grin.

Winter stepped forward and shook each of their hands. "Thank you for assisting Weiss." She looked down to Ruby. "She wrote a lot about you."

"Me?" Ruby squeaked out.

"Yes. Said you were a terrible choice of leader. That sentiment quickly changed, however. Her last letters said you were growing nicely into your role." Winter said it quick enough to keep anyone from arguing. And argue they would have. Adam saw Yang's eyes turn red for a moment before they calmed back to their usual colour.

Winter turned to Adam. He spoke first. "Adam Taurus. But you probably already know that."

"I do. How does a man like you get into Beacon? It doesn't seem reasonable."

"Well, first I went onto the Beacon website. There's this tab there where you can go and fill out a transcript. I filled it out and sent it in. The Headmaster obviously thought it worth giving me a chance." Adam smirked while Winter sighed.

"I see. I didn't think you were the kind of person to joke like that. Tales of the terrifying Adam Taurus must have been exaggerated."

"Maybe they were. Want to find out?" Weiss looked horrified by his response. Yang stepped in between them.

"Okay! Lots of tension here. How about we take a few breaths and calm down? Adam, you were wanting to go train so why don't we go do that and Weiss can spend time with her sister if she wants?" Yang's eyes pleaded with him.

"Yeah. That sounds good." Adam said with a nod, already making his way to the door. He left the room quickly. Yang and Ruby both said their goodbyes to Winter and followed after him. Weiss would be fine.

He needed some air, however.

It didn't take long for Yang and Ruby to catch up to him. Yang grabbed his arm and slowed him. "Ok. Talk. That was aggressive. Even for you. I get that you really don't like the Schnees but I thought you had gotten past that?"

"I… I thought I had too. But I saw Winter and it all came back." Adam didn't look his partner in the eyes. He couldn't.

"Come on. You know she's just like Weiss."

"Maybe. But she's also working for the man that wants to arrest me. She's the perfect person to keep an eye on me. She has good reason to be around our team and could probably keep us from escaping if we resisted. I'm just a little tired of people being so suspicious of me."

"I get that. I really do. But take a few breaths. If you go off on her you just prove them right."

Adam took a deep breath and nodded. "Yeah. I just needed the reminder. Thanks." He rolled his shoulders. "Let's train."

Yang smiled. "Let's go!"

Weiss would catch up when she was ready.

Adam just had to make things more difficult, didn't he? Weiss thought as she sipped from her cup. She'd shown Winter around the school, giving her the tour of the most impressive sights. She didn't show everything, however. They'd need somewhere to go if they wanted to avoid Winter and Atlas after all. Lesser used classrooms and hallways would be useful.

And now they sat in the private cafe-like area, sipping tea and chatting with each other. Winter wanted to know how Beacon was going while Weiss was all too happy to talk about Winters job as a Specialist. Of course, it couldn't last.

"I must say, Weiss, your teammate is rather… aggravating." Winter said, gauging Weiss' reaction.

"He can be. It doesn't help that the last few weeks have been quite troublesome for him." Weiss took a sip of her tea. "After all he had an Atlesian official proclaiming that he would see Adam removed from Beacon and then he was attacked by a rather annoying older man. I'm sure you can see why the sudden appearance of an Atlesian Specialist would set him off."

"Weiss." Winter spoke, her voice cautioning Weiss to be careful with her words. "That man is a murderer. A terrorist. He is dangerous."

"You don't know him like I do. He may once have been those things but now? Now he just wants to help the people he cares about. That includes me." Weiss' tone brokered no rebuttal. "I don't know if I would say we are friends exactly, we don't spend nearly enough time outside of work and training. But he is dear to me. He is a part of this team and he is important to Ruby and Yang. And they are my friends. If they want him kept in Beacon. Then Beacon is where he shall stay." Weiss glared at her sister over top of her cup as she sipped once more.

Winter seemed stunned. She hadn't expected the response she got. She quickly got a hold of herself, however. "Weiss. You have to understand-"

"He hasn't hurt anyone here in Beacon. The only people he hurt were the White Fang, and yet he was the only person demanding we head into the tunnels to save them. I didn't see Ironwood fighting to save their lives."

"Weiss! Now that is enough! The General is the reason the Breach was stopped at all! Without him and the Atlesian fleet, the casualties would have been immense!"

"And yet with the strongest military on the planet, he saw fit to stand around and wait for us to return so he could threaten my teammate. I apologize, Winter, I don't think this conversation will be going anywhere productive." She stood tall and looked down at her sister. "I have training to attend to. We are looking to win after all." She turned and left, ignoring Winter's attempts to continue the conversation.

She wasn't going to listen. She was going to ask me to leave. I know it. She was going to use Adam to get me to move back to Atlas. Well I won't go. My home is here, with my team.

She'd grown. found a family that cared about her and didn't feel the need to hide it. As much as she loved her sister, her team was more important to her. That's just how it was.

Winter would have to deal with that.

Weiss joined them for training after about an hour. They spent the rest of the day drilling new manoeuvres. They didn't know who they would go up against, so they trained to make sure they knew how each member acted in battle and to work around that. Previous team fights had Ruby calling out combinations, so any team worth their salt would have heard and learned about them.

It would be a pretty big shock when they acted without calls.

After training ended they cleaned themselves up and prepared to return to their dorm. It was then that Weiss pulled Adam aside.

"I just wanted to ask you something." She whispered. Yang and Ruby were ahead of them, out of earshot if they kept it quiet. Adam nodded, a little unsure. "Winter was adamant you were a monster. I know how you are now and I can safely say you aren't that."

"But?"

"But I want to know. When you were in the White Fang… What did you do to be treated as some kind of monster?"

"Do you really want to know?" She nodded. "Will it change your opinion of me?"

"Not as you are now. But who you were before? Probably."

Adam considered for a long while. They were almost back to the dorm when he finally spoke. "I killed a lot of people. Hurt more than I killed and ruined the lives of even more than that. I regret it all. I wish I had never gone that far."

Weiss took in a deep breath. "I thought so but… well it's different to hear it from you." She slowly nodded. "You have really changed then. Good."

"Oh?"

"I wondered how different you were since you left. You've had every opportunity to kill me but haven't. You could have taken my head and been hailed a hero in the White Fang. You didn't though. I think that shows just how dedicated you are. No matter what Winter or Ironwood or anyone else says, you aren't the same man you were." Weiss walked ahead of him and then turned back. "So… friends?"

Adam laughed. "Damn Schnee, and here I thought you were better at reading people than your sister! Of course, we're friends. You wouldn't have put up with me otherwise."

Weiss smiled. "True. Now that that's sorted, let's catch up." She suited words with action. Adam smiled and followed suit. The team was closer than ever.

The weeks passed by as Amity Colosseum was set up. Team RSTY trained hard, joined at times by their friends in JNPR. As she heard it, Adam was training hard to counter her speed. But that was why she had other ideas.

Emerald grunted as she hit the floor. Blake quickly unwound her ribbon from the green-haired girl, wrapping it around her arm once more. Emerald may have regretted offering her assistance. Neo was good, but not available to help with developing new techniques.

Blake ignored the girl as she grumbled to herself. This will work nicely. He won't be expecting this. She patted herself down, wiping off the dirt from training, and left Emerald to deal with herself. It was almost time after all.

Blake returned to camp, observing her forces as they loaded the Grimm onto their stolen Bullheads. Some were left empty to transport the White Fang. The rest? Well it would be interesting to see how a school dedicated to fighting Grimm would deal when Grimm were dropped on their doorstep.

She saw Banesaw organizing her forces into teams. She'd made a good choice keeping him back from the Mountain Glenn operation. His experience was invaluable.

Blake returned to her tent to find it as alone as always. Her eyes lay for a moment on his corner, where she had put everything he had left behind.

He'd see. He'd see the light when she was done. She would show him how wrong he was. When Faunus were on top he would finally accept that she was right. Violence was the answer.

She couldn't wait to see his face when she was done.

A/N: Adam doesn't like Winter. Not at all. Of course, the feeling is mutual. We're pretty much at the start of the tournament now. I could have dragged out some more but I felt it might, well, drag. Plus Volume 3 starting on Chapter 30 sounds pretty nice! Things are gonna be interesting, that's for sure.

I hope you enjoyed and I'll see you next time!