Hey, another update!
Party Crashers
"Isn't this a little obvious?" Ren deadpanned from his seat in the dorm room.
"What? No!" Nora stood back with Yang and Pyrrha to look him over.
"It does look a bit odd…" Pyrrha observed, leaning and doing interesting things to the crop top she was wearing. Internally flaring his semblance, Ren remained in control of his more baser desires. Gods he wouldn't know what he'd do without it.
"Maybe it'd be better if he didn't have anything, instead? Who said Faunus had to have 'obvious traits' if you catch my drift?" Yang said. She was in her underwear, the rest of the team long lost their decency and making him an 'honorary girl' among them. A cursed blessing, it was, for each one of them could soundly beat the hell out of him. If there ever was a being akin to fate or God, he would like to meet the entity so he could straggle the wretched life out of it.
Scantily clad dangerous women aside, there were more import things to worry about. Like why he got dragged along to infiltrate the White Fang. No, he knew why. That was Nora's doing to see her band. It was more of the 'what' they were supposed to do after they got there. He had a feeling a lot of Blake's plan that they got dragged into was improvised, and badly at that. But what was he supposed to do? Leave Nora unsupervised?
Not on his life.
Tuning back into his surroundings, he caught Nora pulling out dog ears to try them on. How the way her hips moved, and the curve of her firm ass followed. And she'd be dancing while trying to stay undercover. Swallowing the thought of doing unsavory things to his best friend, Ren steeled himself for the night ahead.
My whatever god help him.
Jaune was debating whether or not this was reality. "Stop. Struggling!" Weiss ordered, fighting with Blake.
"I do not consent to this! Help!" Blake fought against her partner, being stuffed into a suitcase. Jaune and Ruby watched in morbid fascination as the two wrestled in their room, secretly enjoying Blake being manhandled. Or in this case, Weiss handled, since the heiress was bending her partner in what could only be described as a demonic pretzel.
Jaune internally noted not to piss her off.
"This was your idea!"
"I said sneak out, not this!" Blake protested.
"How did you think you were going to sneak out? Put on a hideous mustache and fake an accent? People have eyes and ears Blake!" Weiss shot back before slamming the lid on her.
"Ow!" Blake muffled through the suitcase as it wiggled back and forth. "Let me out!"
"Quiet!" Weiss kicked it for good measure, toppling the container and earning another yelp from Blake. "We're smuggling you out, so the least you can do it act like a silent piece of baggage."
"I think you carry enough baggage for all of us." Ruby mumbled.
"What was that!?" Weiss's head whipped toward them.
"Nothing! Nothing."
"Definitely nothing." Jaune and Ruby said together. The heiress's eyes narrowed for a brief second before relenting.
"Fine. Let's head to the bullheads before anyone realized what's going on."
"What about the tracker?" Ruby asked. Weiss starred at Jaune.
"You took care of it, didn't you?"
"Uhhh…"
"Listen, I need a favor." Green eyes starred up a Jaune as he asked, as if silently asking what the fuck he was on about. "I need you to watch this. Keep it safe, whatever. Just make sure it stays in Beacon." Mint rubbed her chin, thinking it over. "I would've asked Mercury or even Emerald, but I can't find them." She nodded thoughtfully, black twin tails following the motion. "Please?" He pleaded. Mint mulled it over for a couple moments, taking her time.
Thinking that it would probably be a no, Jaune started considering back up options. Without warning, the anklet was swiped from his hand, Mint twirling it the same way Blake did. "You'll take it?" She rolled her eyes and nodded, as if saying he was an idiot. "Thanks, I owe you." Instead, Mint held up two fingers. She wanted two favors? Fuck. He didn't have much choice in the matter, did he? "Fine. Two favors."
Mint smiled at that. Before he could react, she stood on her toes and kissed his cheek before sauntering away. Jaune watched the exaggerated sway of her hips, the motion attracting his eyes to her fantastic ass. Mint even looked back at him with side eyed smirk, catching him in the act. Heat creeped up his face at being caught.
'Why do I have a bad feeling about this?'
'When do you not?'
"…Yeah. Should be taken care of." He hedged, really not knowing how she would handle it.
"Could you sound a bit surer of yourself?" Weiss asked.
"It is definitely somewhere else."
"In Beacon?"
"Yes." Jaune assured her, tipping Blake upright and grabbing the handle. "Ruby, you scout ahead. Warn us if there are any teacher wandering."
Ruby did her best impression of a saluting officer. "Sir, yes sir!" Rose petals were left in the wind as she zipped off. Jaune and Weiss watched as they gently fell to the ground. Now that she was ahead, he grabbed the straps to the suitcase and hefted it up on his shoulders. She was lighter than he thought, which was kind of weird. Must be the training.
"Woah, what's going on?" Blake's muffled voice came through the luggage.
"Just carrying you for now." Jaune shifted the weight on his shoulders. "I'll try to be gentle." He looked back to see Weiss staring at him with a perplexed look. "What?"
"N-Nothing. Let's go before we get caught." The heiress walked past him, leading the way.
"Well… Here goes nothing."
Students gave her a wide berth as she walked through the halls, both out of fear and respect from the student body. Helpful for when she had places to be, reports to file, and paperwork to finalize. Times like these are when she wished she was back out in the field, really stretch her legs. Fulfilling as the career might be, nothing really replaced the rush of a good fight. Huntresses needed to be sharp after all.
Sharp enough to notice the breeze of rose petals from around the corner. Then the subsequent silver eyes that peeked out. Glynda raised an eyebrow. "Can I help you Ms. Rose?"
"Hehe… Uh…" She looked guilty at being caught but emerged. "I was just… Um.." Her eyes darted back and forth. Looking at something from down the hall.
"Words, Ms. Rose." She said with masked irritation. "I know you can use them."
"I'm… Uh…" Ruby started fidgeting in place. Whether it was anxiety or panic, maybe even indecisiveness, Glynda didn't have time to care. There was still more work to be done, and a comprehensive dormitory report had to be on Ozpin's desk tonight. Sooner she did that, the sooner she could relax. Maybe even break open her stash for some quality 'me' time. Glynda looked down at the mumbling student before her.
"If you'll please excuse me, Ms. Rose. I'd love to stay and chat but I'm quite busy at the moment." She honestly would. Ruby was making progress from her recent trauma and seemed to be on the way to a remarkable recovery. Work needed to be done, unfortunately. The Vytal festival was too important for any half measures, and Ozpin was up to his usual shenanigans.
"Wait!" Ruby caught her wrist before she could walk past her. "I didn't get your autograph!" She blurted it out.
"My autograph?" Glynda asked to be sure, caught off-guard.
"Y-Yeah." Ruby walked around her, letting go of her wrist. "It's just, after seeing you fight Torchwick and that bullhead was awesome, but you were really mad for some reason and I forgot to ask afterwards because Ozpin accepted me into Beacon and it was a really long day and I had to clean Crescent Rose again after the fight. Then the White Fang thing happened and I was – still" Ruby amended with a finger. "a hot mess and you came in with Yang and her team and took care of Jaune and us and stuff."
"Then you doubly or is it triply? You triply helped us with you r therapy sessions and I think it's really cool how you could do all that as a huntress and still be a teacher." Ruby was out of breath by the end of her tirade, blushing. "So… I want your autograph." Her silver eyes darted back and forth away from her, most likely from her anxiety of such a confession.
And a part of Glynda's heart melted at Ruby's words. A rare small smile graced her lips from the honest compliment. Sure, she was sure Ozpin, Qrow, and the rest of the staff appreciated her, but it never felt genuine. It was expected of her to handle matters and do her job, Glynda knew that, it's just… She would like a 'thank you' more often. "Well, if you put it like that I don't see why not." Glynda took out a pen from her pocket. "Where do you want me to sign?"
"You'll do- You'll do it! Um… Hold on." Ruby started patting herself, looking for something. It was adorable how flustered she was. And to a surprised Glynda, Ruby pulled out her weapon, presenting it to her. "I… Didn't have anything else." She chuckled weakly.
"That's fine." Glynda leaned forward and began writing her signature on the armament. A squeal came from Ruby in what she could only assume was excitement. Leaning back after scrawling her name, Glynda felt a small sense of pride. Etched in the red paint of Ruby's weapon was her name, her mark on a student. That she had an effect on the next generation. It was assumed that each student that passed through Beacon was affected by her in some way, but to see it was something else. "What do you think?"
"I think…" Ruby studied it, lost for words. "It looks great…"
"I think so too. Please excuse me, I still have work to do, but thank you for stopping me. It was refreshing." And Glynda meant it when she walked away. A barely noticeable smile on her lips and renewed purpose to her gait. She didn't want to jinx it, but she felt this night might be quiet for once.
Glynda Goodwitch would be blitzed by the end of it.
Jaune waited on the bullhead with Weiss, their human luggage next to him. "Ruby's taking a while." He thought out loud. "Do you think Goodwtich caught on?"
"Doubt it." Weiss said from her seat. "If Goodwitch thought something was up we would've seen her by now. Or at least heard something over the PA."
"Fair enough." Jaune leaned back into his seat and continued waiting. Fifteen minutes of Smalltalk between the heiress and the secretive Faunus passed before Ruby finally showed up. She looked… Shocked? She didn't even say hi to either of them, just sat down beside him. "Ruby?" Jaune looked to Weiss who only had a raised eyebrow and shrugged.
"Remnant to Ruby." The Heiress waved a hand in front of her face.
"Is she catatonic again?" Blake asked from within the suitcase.
"Yes?" Jaune answered and poked his partner's side. That got a reaction out of her, where she cupped her hands to her face and let out a painful groan. The groan turned into rapid mumbling. Ruby's hands muffled the sound which slowly turned into a shriek of anguish.
"GOODWITCH!" She cried in fury. What followed after that was a series of ranting and raving that Jaune labeled as 'incoherently cute'. Jaune glanced back to Weiss, who had the same confused look on her face. A mouthed 'what the fuck' was asked by her and he didn't know how to respond. Falling back on default Jaune procedure, he asked the obvious.
"What did Goodwitch do?" Crescent Rose being shoved into his faced determined that was the wrong question.
"This!" Leaning back to actually look at what she did, Jaune was able to see Ms. Goodwitch's cursive name scratched into the weapon's red paint.
"She gave you her signature?"
"What? How?" Weiss asked.
"While you three were sneaking, I had to distract her!" Ruby shot the heiress a glare.
"How does that equate to her signing her name on your weapon?" Weiss asked again, becoming annoyed at being yelled at.
"I panicked!" She shot back. "And now my poor baby is scarred." Ruby hugged her weapon like a mother held her hurt child. "It's okay baby. Momma will make it all better. We'll get through this together, okay?"
"Can't you just buff it out?" And again, Jaune asked the wrong question.
"No! I can't just 'buff out' Ms. Goodwitch's signature now, can I? It's Goodwitch and she so damn cool but how could she hurt Crescent Rose like that? She'd notice and start asking questions, then I'd have to lie more and I. Hate. Lying!" Ruby poked him with a finger with each word. "So, what do I do Jaune? How do I fix my baby!?"
"I… Uh…" Think, Jaune. Think you idiot.
I'm trying!
"I don't suppose you can just get it engraved?" The man hoped.
And Jaune, as ever, gave the wrong answer.
"Tell me a bit about yourself. I've barely heard anything other than that dude with the blue hair and goggles." Yang leaned forward on the coffee table.
"My name is Neptune. Neptune Vasilias. My friends call me Nep, but you can call me anytime." The blue haired boy said with finger guns.
"Ha. Cute." She propped her head on her hand. "Got anymore pickup lines or are you a one trick pony?"
"Give me a minute, I'll think of something." Neptune said, avoiding her gaze. All of Team YPLN plus Sun and Neptune were waiting at a nearby café that Hunters in training frequent. Clad in their civilian clothes to make sure they didn't stand out. They still had their weapons, though. Ember Cecilia was in its bracelet form, nothing more than accessories at the moment. As much as she hoped nothing would happen, a gut feeling told her to have some protection.
And Yang always trusted those gut feelings.
Like it was telling her the guy across the table was all talk and no bite. Hell, Sun was more interesting, and he was asleep in his chair. Ren and Nora went somewhere else for food and Pyrrha was next to her, wearing shades and a sun hat to avoid attention. If she wore a sundress with that outfit, then the champion would've turned all the heads in Vale. Shame she preferred armor instead of regular clothes. Goals for later.
At least they didn't have to wait much longer before the rest of their little reconnaissance group showed up. Ruby looked mildly pissed off, which was weird. Weiss was in more casual clothes, which to say it was a longer grey dress and jacket. And Jaune, the bastard, carried a suitcase on his back. Only one person was missing. Yang was surprised that Ruby stood next to her and started grumbling to herself.
"Where's Blake?" Sun asked, miraculously awake on their arrival. The response Sun got was Jaune setting down the luggage next to him. Unzipping the case, a wild Blake fell out. "Oh, hey Blake. What's up?"
"People are not meant to bend this way." Blake groaned on the concrete.
"Who let the cat out of the bag?" Yang commented. Groans erupted around her, but it was just too easy.
"I hate you."
"Join the club."
"Now that we're all here." Weiss interrupted, drawing everyone's attention. "It's time we go over the details. Blake, if you could please stop lying on the ground."
"You shoved me in there!" Blake shot back, dusting herself off and stretching. "I'd like to see you sit in there for an hour."
"At least I wouldn't whine the whole way here." Weiss waved her partner off.
"You'd bitch up a storm, don't lie to me." The two devolved into a sedated squabble. Yang knew there was no real venom there, just two girls venting.
"Should… Should we stop them?" Neptune asked, looking between her and the arguing partners.
"Nah. They'll be fine." Jaune said, taking a seat next to Sun. "I was wondering when they would start fighting anyway. Name's Jaune by the way." Said man extended his hand to him. "Jaune Arc."
"Neptune Vasilias." A handshake was exchanged. "Heard a lot from Sun about you."
"I hope it's all good?" Jaune chuckled nervously. "Who's Sun again?"
"That's me dude." Sun deadpanned from beside him.
"I knew you looked familiar."
"No worries, dude. Just glad to be here."
"So, what happened with you Rubes?" Yang let the guys talk, ignoring them in favor of her little sister.
"Goodwitch happened." She grumbled. Honestly, everything her sister did could be classified as adorable.
"Gonna have to be more specific than that." Instead of saying anything, Ruby pulled out Crescent Rose and gave it to her. Her sister was meticulous when it came to equipment. Which raised more questions of what the Witch of Beacon actually did.
"Flip it over." Yang did just that and saw it and all her questions were answered. The professor's signature scratched into the pristine red paint of her weapon. Great.
"Yeah, that explains a lot. Are you going to buff it out or…?"
"I don't know! I can't get rid of it, and I can't just leave it on there." Ruby crossed her arms and started mumbling something about rotten luck.
"Tough cookies sister. Mind filling us in on this master plan monochrome over there have?"
"Dunno." Ruby shrugged.
"Alright." Yang turned to Jaune. "You know anything Vomit boy?" He pointedly ignored her, making her eyebrow twitch in irritation. Fortunately for Jaune, Ruby was there. Reigning in her anger, she compromised by kicking him under the table.
"Ow!" He shot her a glare. "What was that for?"
"Hi." Yang smiled sickly sweet at him. "Do you know what Blake and Weiss have cooked up?" Jaune rubbed his shin angrily, making sure he kept eye contact with her.
"Well…. She did say something about groups…."
"Crimson Eye, come in." Weiss's voice came over the com-bead in Ruby's ear.
"This is Crimson Eye. We're in position." Ruby said glancing at Pyrrha next to her. They overlooked the alleged meeting point for the White Fang recruitment drive from a nearby factory that produced cardboard. From their point, the view overlooked the warehouse where people were congregating. It honestly baffled her how blatant the whole thing was and the VPD still couldn't narrow it down.
"Perfect. Black Bait, how copy?"
"Waiting on Nora." Blake's voice came over. "Why do we have codenames again?"
"Winter said having code names prevents vital intel from being leaked by eavesdroppers."
"Ice Queen, that is perhaps the dumbest thing I've ever heard." Yang chimed in.
"Quiet, Golden Girl. We'll get to you."
"Did I mention racist? I think it's racist." Now Ruby knew Yang was poking Weiss's buttons.
"It's not and we're moving on."
"Yeah, there's no fixing that one Yang. I've tried." Blake ignored her partner.
"You have my sympathy."
"MOVING ON. Golden girls, are you on standby?"
"Yeah, we're here. Why can't I be at the party? I dressed for this damnit!" Yang sounded more irritated than usual.
"It would be too suspicious if more than a handful of Beacon students attended. Sun and Blake will already have their hands full with Nora and Ren, and I'd rather not leave those two unattended. I can't go because they'd attack me on sight, and Pyrrha is way to recognizable. Jaune already fought them and doesn't want to be near it. May I say more?"
"I don't think you understand Weisscream. I need this. A girl can't just get dressed up and blueballed on a night out. It's criminal." Ruby cringed at that last part.
"Language. I knew something like this would happen, which is why Jaune's there to keep you in check."
"I'm going to laugh when this blows up in all your faces." His voice came over the channel.
"It's full proof as long as everyone behaves." Weiss stressed. "I'm talking about you Black Bait."
"We'll be fine." Blake said. "Ren's got Nora under control, right Ren?... Ren?"
"They said they were going for a walk or somethin'." Sun chimed in.
"FUCK."
"Stick to the plan!" Weiss ordered. "Just hope they don't attract too much attention."
"This is Norawe're talking about here." Yang added.
"Then I'll add a correction. Pray they don't attracted attention." Weiss amended. "I want radio silence until something happens, understood?"
"Yeah."
"Got it."
"Sure."
"Fine."
"Roger."
"Whatever." The line went dead afterwards, leaving Ruby and Pyrrha in silence. She hadn't interacted much with her, only know that she was Yang's partner and a famous champion in Mistral, how cool is that? And now the silence was becoming awkward so she should really do something to fix that.
"That's a lot of people." Ruby observed from their perch. Nice. Way to state the obvious.
"It is." Pyrrha nodded. More silence followed. Think Ruby! What's something popular girls talk about? Channel your inner Yang.
"So, who are taking to the dance?" The words slipped out of her mouth. She was impressed with the question, oddly enough.
"Oh? I haven't thought much about it." Pyrrha mused. "Ren was taken by Nora obviously and no one has really approached me. Yang's getting on my case to ask someone already, but she's not going with anyone either."
"Yeah, that sounds like her." She agreed. "Always been like that. 'Go out Ruby', 'Make some friends Ruby, it's easy', 'Get out of your room Ruby, it's not healthy to be alone so much'. On and on. Gimme a break." Ruby deflated over the edge of the building.
"That sounds like her alright." Pyrrha lightly laughed at the description. "Though she did help me break out of my shell. I thought a lot of people only wanted to get close to me because of my fame, but it turns out I just assumed that. A lot of people at Beacon don't think that way, including your sister. Not to mention she keeps telling me to be more honest with people."
"You seem pretty honest to me."
"I wasn't always like that." Pyrrha said, gazing in the distance. "I was a 'people pleaser' as Yang put it, and it kind of frustrated her that I just went along with anything. Made her even madder that I could beat her in a fight."
"Ha. That's actually pretty funny." Ruby saw when Yang fought Pyrrha the first time. The look of shock on her face was priceless.
"It was. And you know what? I think she was looking for someone to beat her. Something to strive for, or a goal to reach. It gets lonely at the top."
"Do you ever get lonely?" Ruby asked.
"Not anymore." Pyrrha said with a small smile. "I have friends now. Insane, and downright mental, but friends all the same. Don't know If I can imagine being in a different team."
"That's good. I don't think I can either. They're like…" Ruby searched for the right words. "Like family, ya' know? Got all these weird quirks and everything but you like them all the same."
"Yeah. That's a good way to put it. Family." Pyrrha agreed. A comfortable silence followed for a few minutes before being broken again. "Who are you bringing?"
"What?" Ruby was lost in thought.
"The dance." She clarified. "Who are you bringing? Is it Jaune?"
"What, Jaune? No! No. No. No… No?" Going to the dance with Jaune? She never thought about it before, but it wasn't… unappealing. He was her partner so it wouldn't be too weird. She couldn't dance and she hated heels, but didn't he say he danced a lot with his sisters? So he could teach her, right? Her hand in his metal one, their bodies pulled tight by the arm around her waist. Slow music as they rocked back and forth, her head on his warm chest. The aroma of gunpowder, metal, and his own scent running through her senses.
She'd look up to those kind sapphire eyes. He would say something, then she would say something. And when the moment was right, she would- "Nope!" Ruby snapped back to reality and was blushing hard, breathing heavily, heart racing, and really trying to figure out where that came from. Strange thoughts are the last thing she needed, especially now. Unfortunately, Pyrrha was watching her with a concerned expression.
"Something wrong?" The champion asked.
"Nothing!" Ruby denied, hiding her embarrassment as best she could. Pyrrha shrugged it off and continued watching the meet. Audible music could be heard from their position, along with the crowd.
"Are you're going by yourself then?"
"Y-Yeah." Keeps it simple, focus on the mission. The horribly planned mission made by an arguably multi-billion lien heiress and an ex-terrorist. You know what, it might be better to focus on something else. Crescent Rose was always a safe topic. But now he had a scar, such a beautiful form of vandalism. From her favorite teacher! Treachery! Betrayal! Confusion? Confusion! Gods, why can't her mind stay still?
"Hey Pyrrha?" Ruby gave up on distracting herself, too excited and too tired to fight the warm funny feeling in her chest.
"Yeah Ruby?"
"What do boys like?"
"I've got blood on my hands, no guilt on my conscious!"
The thrum of heart pounding music and sweltering bodies pushed Blake and Sun while they moved through the masked crowd. Faunus of all kinds, dear, rabbit, canine, feline, lizard, every type under the Remnant sun. All were given a White mask to hide their identities, a sense of anonymity to unify them.
"War in your path, the sex in your violence!"
Motions in White were working the crowd into a frenzy. The mood was infectious.
"All of my flaws, I were 'em with honor!"
Blake could barely hear herself think.
"A purple heartbreak for all we've suffered!"
Sun was keeping track of her by staying on her back, literally. A literal bastion in a sea of bodies.
"I am the enemy! I am the enemy! I am the enemy!"
I didn't feel bad, per se. It was reassuring that he was there with her, just you know, losing Nora and Ren cranked up her paranoia so she wasn't taking any chances.
"Here to save the day!"
Blake just hoped they were alright and wondered what 'going for a walk' meant.
Ren was in trouble.
Going out to Vale for some fun was something his team did every week. Whether it was, watching movies, going shopping, or even getting a bite to eat, it was always tame fun in his mind. Perfect for him. Even the odd night where they all went drinking at a club and he ended up being the only semi-sober one. At least Yang and Pyrrha were semi responsible, Nora would always get hammered. Speaking of which…
Nora was grinding against his body at the moment.
The damned minx dragged him off from the rest of the group, saying she saw something interesting. Then the music started and everyone around them started dancing. And Nora… Fucking Nora. He could feel her body against his with every reverberation of the music. The scent of her watermelon shampoo fought past the sweat of the crowd around them. And even with his semblance in overdrive, when she pressed her back against his chest, linked her arms above her head, and gazed back with those beautiful teal eyes into his…
Ren's resistance broke.
Holding back for so long against the constant teasing of his team wore down his will, and this… this was a long time coming for them. Grabbing her waist, he made sure she couldn't go anywhere. Nora's eyes widened in surprise, but her movements to the music didn't stop. And because of the loud atmosphere and their height difference, Ren had to lean down to make sure she could hear him.
"What do you think you're doing?" He growled into her ear. The little flirt smirked back up at him.
"I saw something interesting." Nora whispered. "I'm enjoying myself." She forcefully grinded her ass against his crotch, his pants growing tighter with each second. "And it feels like you are too."
"Here? Now?" Of course, Nora would be bold enough to do something like this, pushing the boundaries and just doing what she wanted.
"I have been waiting-" She started, "for Years for you to notice me." Ren hold on her tightened.
"I've-"
"Shhhhh." Nora put a finger to Ren's lips. "Nora's talking. You've always been there with me. Always. Ever since we were little. Being the responsible one, shouldering the responsibilities, making sure we were safe. Still giving me a childhood, as fleeting as it was…" Ren's senses were focused on her, ignoring the surrounding crowd and thumping bass. "And after all of that, it felt like you only saw me as a friend… a sister at best."
"But you always said we were together but not 'together' together. I thought you-"
"WELCOME EVERYBODY!" The music abruptly stopped as Roman Torchwick's voiced boomed over the speakers. The legendary thief strolled onto the stage, dressed in his white coat and twirling his cane. "It's wonderful to see such an amazing turnout for such a noble cause. Give a hand to our wonderful band!" Scattered applause came from the audience. "Now, now, I'm sure you're wondering 'What's the famous and ruggedly handsome Roman Torchwick doing here?'"
"Well let me enlighten you my scaly and furry friends, I am here to help." Snapping his fingers, the lights focused on him. "I know why you all are really here. You're here because you see injustice. You're here because you see it walking the streets every day, and no one does anything. You're here because you see those with authority and power walk all over those deemed lesser than them and get away with it. You're here because you think you can make a difference."
"And guess what? You're right." Slowly, the black curtains behind him started separating while Roman continued to walk along the platform. "You see, Uncle Roman had himself a little vacation in Atlas not too long ago. Saw the sights, met with the locals, and grabbed a few souvenirs from those nice little giftshops. Found a few interesting things just lying around." The lights slowly came on, one by one, revealing a massive war machine. Gasps of shock and awe rippled through the crowd.
"The Atlas Paladin-290. Atlas's pride and joy for riot control. After all, why would we need this if we have Hunters for Grimm? What's the purpose for such overkill of firepower? To intimidate and keep all of you in line, I'd say." Murmurs of agreement were heard. Ren looked at Nora in concern, the woman in his arms looked back, thinking the same thing. "So, the good old Whitney Foundation, wink, wink, nudge, nudge, thought it would be a good idea to level the playing field."
"What we have is an opportunity, a chance, to show them that you won't take this abuse lying down. To show them that there are consequences for their actions. That justice is still out there, waiting for them." Roman stopped and starred at the crowd making sure he had their full attention. "Problem is, not many people are brave enough to take that step. Noble enough to fight for the cause. Or even strong enough to follow through."
"I ask you, nay, beg you… Do you have what it takes to join? The resolve, dedication, and will this world so desperately needs? Or will you stand by the sidelines and watch your race suffer under someone else's heel, content with your own lot in life? Don't ask what the White Fang can do for you, but what you can do for the White Fang." After the pause of silence, a slow clap started somewhere in the crowd.
Another joined in, then another, and another. It wasn't long before the whole building echoed in thunderous applause. And Ren felt a deep sense of anxiety and held onto Nora tighter. Her hands gripped his arms in reassurance, letting him know she agreed.
They needed to get out. Now.
Fuck. Blake looked up in horror at the paladin, Sun shaking her shoulders. This was bigger than she originally thought. What happened to being a rally? How did they get such a thing in the city? How did Atlas lose one of these things? How the hell could Roman talk up a crowd that well? Who stole it and why was Atlas even making it? Questions kept piling up in her mind and she needed answers.
"We need to go." Blake stated, grabbing Sun's hand to lead them away.
"That's what I've been saying!" Sun's voice was barely heard over the cheers and applause of the crowd. This could still be salvaged. None of them have been caught yet, and she could trust Ren and Nora to have some common sense between them. More than she had for the last couples of days, sure, but she felt it was justified now. The White Fang and ATLAS GRADE ARMARMENTS for fucks sake! In the middle of Vale!
"'Let the authorities handle it' my ass." Blake said through clenched teeth. Get out, radio everyone to scram, and be in Beacon like it was just a long night out. Perfectly salvageable. Know one would be the wiser.
"And what do we have here?" Roman's voice stopped her movement, the flight or fight response kicking in. She turned back to see the smug bastard looking right at her over the crowd. SHIT. "It seems like a curious cat wandered into our midst." The crowd around them turned to her, eyes behind white masks betraying nothing. "Why don't I show all of you a demonstration of what the White Fang does to traitors."
The cockpit for the paladin opened, the thief deftly jumping in from his place on the ground. "Let this be your first test, ladies and gentlemen!" Weapon systems came to life, the war machine moving forward, heavyweight steps shaking the ground. "Who ever bags the cat first, wins!"
Been nice being able to write more. Things have quieted down for the moment and I hope it stays that way. I also just love Roman pulling shit out of his ass to rile up a crowd, never pegged him as a motivational speaker.
Brand New Numb by motionless in white was the song inspiration.
Until next time.