"Promise me you'll leave this life and escape…"
"Winter!" Weiss shrieked in a desperate attempt to make her open her eyes. "No, Win! You can't leave!"
"You… might be next… promise me…"
It was harder for Winter to speak with every passing second. Blood trickled out of her mouth and down her chin. Between those few words, she coughed weakly. Weiss squeezed her hand, hoping somehow that would keep her sister conscious.
"I promise!" Weiss yelled as droplets fell onto her face below. "Just be okay!"
"Redo your life… snowflake… and escape… for me…"
...
A jolt.
She awoke with a gasp, only to be greeted with darkness. Her adrenaline shot through the roof as if she was in fight or flight mode. Frantically, azure orbs darted around the area. Her breathing came unevenly when she noted the surroundings were foreign.
Weiss almost fell into panic mode, but then her memory was jogged.
I moved here yesterday… Weiss thought. This is my new place… I'm okay.
She was away from him and away from Argus. As promised. She was safe. At least for now. From the realization, she took a steady breath.
Warily, Weiss checked the time on her new cell phone. She only had ten minutes until she had to start the day and her new routine. Might as well get up now. Cautiously, she opened the windows and surveyed outside. A nearby park provided a beautiful view. She peered around anxiously, satisfied no one was present.
At least I'm on the fifth floor and not the first, Weiss told herself. It's harder for people to creep this way.
Satisfied, Weiss grabbed her school uniform that was draped on the floor by her mattress. She threw it on and gazed at her reflection in the bathroom mirror.
It looks cute. I look… normal. Like another high schooler.
Satisfied, Weiss grabbed her backpack and closed the blinds. Her room was bathed in darkness as she used her phone to guide her out the door. When it opened, there was a soft thud.
From the unexpected noise, her adrenaline spiked, and her body moved on instinct. In one swift motion, she yanked out the switchblade that was hidden in her stocking. The blade flicked outward, announcing its presence with a resounding click.
Immediately, she flew out the door with the blade poised like she was ready to fight.
Only for no one to be in the hallway.
Confused, she lowered her arms. That's when she spotted tupperware on the floor.
Are those... brownies?
Before picking up the box, she slid the switchblade back into her stocking. While her adrenaline gradually settled, she inspected the tupperware and was pleasantly surprised to see the baked treats.
I thought brownies were going to kill me. Get a grip, she told herself. It had to be that faunus girl. She's the only one who saw me here. That was nice of her. Brownies were a good choice.
Quickly, she placed the brownies on the counter and headed out.
The students' chatter reverberated in the class before the first day of school began.
In the back of the classroom, Yang rested in her chair with her hands behind her head. She let out a yawn that forced its way out her mouth.
A blonde boy sat next to her and watched her yawn, causing him to yawn. "I'm tired too and you're making me yawn, so quit it."
Yang chuckled from that and sat upright properly, hoping that would wake her. "Uh, Jaune, I want this year to be better. It has to be..."
When she trailed off, Jaune didn't know what to say. Considering her circumstances, it would be a cakewalk for this year to be better.
"I have a good feeling about this year," Jaune said in finality, trying to distract her thoughts from wandering. "You got your sister and Blake in the same class, at least. That's awesome."
"I don't know," Yang gave him a smirk, which made him feel like he was successful in distracting her. "I get enough of them at home."
Upon hearing that, Ruby whirled around in her chair and narrowed her eyes. "I heard you're talking crap?"
Yang crossed her arms and smugly smirked. "When am I not?"
Abruptly, their short blonde teacher with a bun walked to the front of her class. She cleared her throat before speaking.
"Class, please settle down. We have a new transfer student this year."
From the unexpected news, mutters lingered in the classroom. Probably because new transfers were almost unheard of during the second year. Since this was their second year at Beacon, everyone knew almost everyone.
Not wanting to be left in suspense, a boy with blue hair in the back shouted. "Where are they, Ms. Goodwitch?"
To answer his question, Ms. Goodwitch opened the door. The transfer student walked with grace into the classroom, standing at the front. From her presence, the class fell quiet. She had virtually platinum blonde hair and piercing blue eyes that stopped time itself.
"I'm Weiss Snow," she politely bowed. "I'm from Vytal and I look forward to working with you."
While flashing a forced smile, Weiss thought. I hope my last name selection and origin are suitable.
Many boys couldn't help but shout in glee.
"A girl?!"
"A cute girl?!"
"Heck yeah!"
Cheers of victory erupted from the boys, while the girls could only stare in awe at how Weiss carried herself. Every movement was precise and elegant. Her posture was perfectly upright and poised.
Seems like I picked well, Weiss thought, suppressing a smirk from their reactions.
"Settle down," Ms. Goodwitch reprimanded them and pointed to an empty seat. "Ms. Snow, you may sit in the back next to Ms. Belladonna there."
Stoically, Weiss strode to the chair and maintained a poker face. That was definitely the cat faunus that she ran into the other day. Her new neighbor.
Great, it's her, Weiss thought in dread. I hope she doesn't say anything about my new hair color.
As Weiss sat down, she felt a million stares tear through her. Anxiety started to crawl in until she felt a tap on her shoulder. Behind her, a familiar friendly face sent her a sunny smile. It was the blonde girl with wild hair and flirtatiousness that never quit.
"It's… Weiss to see you again," Yang whispered, grateful for this turn of events.
And she saw my white hair too, great, Weiss thought as she cursed herself. I need to blend in and I'm doing horribly at that so far.
From the pun, Weiss remained quiet and turned around to face the teacher.
Ms. Goodwitch cleared her throat to ease the chatter. "You can get to know Ms. Snow after class. Now, onto the lesson..."
As Ms. Goodwitch spoke, Weiss found her mind drifting.
I haven't been in a class like this since… I can't remember….
Nervously, Weiss glanced around. Only to find several of the boys gawking at her. Upon meeting her gaze, they got flustered and quickly looked away. It's not like boys taking an interest in her was anything new, but she was still taken aback by the attention she received.
The class was over in a heartbeat. When the bell rang, a dozen boys rushed to her table. She was left with no time to react.
So much for blending in.
"You're from Vytal? What's it like?"
"What're your hobbies?"
"Are you thinking of joining any clubs?"
"Why'd you come to Vale?"
So many questions left Weiss almost disoriented. And the boys kept rapid firing one after the other. Words jammed into her ears but faded before she could process anything.
"What's your-"
"Guys," a familiar voice interjected, which made them all focus on her. Weiss snapped out of her stupor to see it was Yang. "Give her some space. You're making poor Weiss disoriented from all your questions."
"Fine," the blue-haired boy spoke for the group. "We'll talk to you later, Weiss. Have a great first day!"
Most of the guys steadily left the classroom after Yang interfered. It seemed she possessed a lot of influence in this class.
"Thank you, Yang," was all Weiss could think to say.
Yang was beyond elated that she remembered her name. "They can be overwhelming sometimes, but they mean well. Of course a pretty thing like you would catch their attention."
Ruby appeared beside her sister and threw an arm around her shoulders. "That was awesome! It was like moths to a flame! I wish I had a video of that. I'm Ruby, by the way."
Blake joined the conversation, thankful the classroom was empty besides their group. "I'm Blake. You're our new neighbor, right?"
"'Our?'" Weiss quoted, she thought only the faunus was her neighbor.
Yang nodded and gestured to them. "We all live in 531."
That must be why it was loud last night, Weiss thought. I have noisy neighbors. At least they're thoughtful.
"You made me the brownies," Weiss realized.
That earned wide smiles.
Ruby placed her hands on her hips in accomplishment. "We bake a lot."
"They look really good," Weiss praised. "I was going to have one later."
Yang warned her before she could have one. "If you eat one, you're gonna have a dozen. They're addicting."
"It's a good thing you made me a dozen, then," Weiss replied.
They seem nice, Weiss thought. I need to be careful with them. Classmates and neighbors? It will be hard to keep my distance.
"I know this is kinda random, but why'd you dye your hair?" Yang asked, genuinely curious. "It looks good now, don't get me wrong, but you had the most beautiful white hair I've ever seen!"
When she asked the question, Weiss was beyond grateful that no one else was in the room. Only her new neighbors. She wasn't used to compliments, so a blush tinted her cheeks.
"I got tired of it," Weiss said. "People always stared."
While that was true, Weiss wished she could keep the ivory tresses.
Ruby had to agree with her reasoning. "That would get annoying."
Gradually, students began to flood the classroom again. The group returned to their seats after more chit-chat. The bell rang, and it was time for another lesson.
Weiss internally sighed.
This might be harder than I thought.
Lyrics from Redo: "The next version of me will have a meaning. We can restart. Redo." "I can see the promise we made becomes a guiding light I know will never fade. So I will take this oath for your sake. Until the end."
Stay dandy,
~Toto