Yang didn't precisely know what to feel at the moment. Hell, she was sure most of her team was roughly in the same predicament as she was. Especially her baby sister. This was beyond what a first-grade huntress team leader was supposed to be able to deal with, she was sure of it. Everything had been completely blown out of proportion until Team RWBY was left to pick up the pieces.
Oh Ruby… Not even a single semester down and you've already been involved in such a major incident…
But her baby sister was a strong soul. Yang knew that she could handle anything thrown her way. She'd inherited that part from her parents, without a doubt. On one side, a part of her was frankly quite impressed that Ruby had caused such wanton devastation to a bunch of terrorists. Clearly she was strong enough to handle practically anything that Beacon threw her way.
Then why does it hurt me so much to see you go through all of it, Ruby?
…Yet the fact remained that Ruby had been forced to become so strong… so very quickly. She wasn't even sixteen years old for oum's sake, yet she had ascended to joining Beacon Academy two years early as some form of prodigy, been placed as the team leader and Ruby also assisted in stopping not one but two major crime sprees all in the span of a few mere months!
She shouldn't have had to grow up so fast.
Nobody should have to grow up so fast.
It wasn't right.
Not for Ruby.
Ruby deserved to have her time to just enjoy life, rather than delving deep into all the seedy parts of the world and trying to fix everything. All that she was doing was setting herself up for a major disappointment down the track. Simply put, the world was never going to change for the ideals of one girl, no matter how hard she tried. That's not how the world works.
...Perhaps reading all those fairy tales to you as a kid was a mistake.
...I cannot even begin to imagine how you're dealing with it all, Rubes. Oum. I'm so sorry.
I wish we had never had that stupid argument.
Everything was spiralling all out of control.
Yang felt as if she could no longer help her baby sister anymore. That she had failed as a sister. As a protector.
"Ruby I..." Yang trailed off.
What could she even say?
Yang wasn't sorry for the things she said to Ruby in the heat of their argument. They needed to be said, if not now then sometime later on. She was just sorry for how she went about saying it. Admittedly Yang wasn't the type of girl to sugarcoat things. She remained firm that Kirakishou was a bad influence on the girl and she wasn't budging on her opinion any time soon.
The girl hadn't done anything to prove to her that she was a good friend to her baby sister. Causing this whole argument was just icing on the cake.
Whilst this was just another petty argument for her, Yang knew that Ruby would be taking things far more seriously with everything going on. She was always a bit too into the drama of the world when something got to her, no matter how hard she tried to put up an image of an easygoing girl.
Ruby was a vulnerable little soul.
But the fact remained that she needed to put on her big girl pants and get over it quickly. There were bigger problems to deal with at the moment then simple relationship drama. They were in the middle of a crime scene, for oum's sake. There wasn't any time for moping.
Yang just needed to show her baby sister the truth. Then she'd understand.
She had spotted her sister, sitting down at the edge of the pier with her legs dangling off the side over the water as she gazed up at the sky. It was heavily overcast at night and, coupled with the power outage in the area, Yang could barely make out her baby sister.
Yet she didn't know anyone else that wore a cloak.
The figure turned slightly and angled their face her way, staring back at her. Yang could vaguely make out the shimmering silver orbs her baby sister was known for, amidst her crimson-tipped black hair. It was in a rather weird style that reminded her of-
"Yang."
That… that was not her baby sister's voice. Ruby had a rather high pitched tone after all, whilst this person's voice was rather low and melodious- a huge difference compared to her baby sister. Ruby had possessed that same nasally voice throughout all her life, to the point where it had become something that Yang loved to tease her about on occasion. All in jest, of course. But Ruby knew that. It was just something that sisters did.
This voice, however. It belonged to a single person. She knew who it was. How could she forget?
"M-Mom..?"
She hated how weak her voice sounded. How pleading it was.
She was supposed to be beyond this.
A small smile etched its way across the woman's face. The same loving, nurturing smile that had haunted her childhood dreams for far too long. She could barely make it out in all this horrid darkness, but nothing could hide that. Yang felt all her reserves crumble in an instant.
In an instant she was rushing forward to greet her mother in a hug, yet Summer didn't move from her seated position and Yang found herself stumbling to a halt before quickly taking a seat beside the woman when it became clear that she wasn't going to budge.
Now, Yang Xiao Long was not her baby sister, whom would no doubt be about three seconds from collapsing in shock at the mere sight of her mother. She, unlike her sister, had grown up with the knowledge that her mother was long dead and there was nothing else to be done about it. Whilst Ruby had eventually come to terms with things, Yang had known from the very beginning that her mother wasn't coming back from her final mission- whatever it was.
Dead is dead. There's no point crying about it. After all, her mother had gone out doing was she did best; kicking ass and taking names. Yang Xiao Long had stopped crying long ago, in order to move forward and protect her baby sister. She had become the woman of the family in Summer's absence, as difficult as it had been.
Whilst Summer Rose was not her biological mother, she was all but her mother in blood.
Yet… despite her hardened heart, despite every core aspect of her mind telling her that was she was seeing was most certainly impossible… there was no denying that the woman sitting beside her was indeed Summer Rose.
"How… I don't…. how are you even here?!"
Summer gave a brief, bitter chuckle as she continued to avoid Yang's gaze, staring up into the sky with a solemn look on her face. She looked tired, for lack of a better phrase. A huge contrast to the slayer of grimm and baker of cookies that had been there for a good portion of her early childhood.
"I've been asking myself the very same thing for the past few hours, little bloom. At this point, I'm sorry to say that you probably know as much about this situation as I do. What a strange time it is that I've found myself in. I'm still trying to come to terms with things."
...As much as Yang wanted to, she didn't pry. This was her mother. Well, her surrogate mother but her mother nonetheless. And besides, Yang wasn't stupid. There was clearly something going on and she didn't know enough to just snap and make a rash action. Even if the anticipation was killing her.
She was afraid that if she said the wrong thing, this delusional fantasy would break apart and be gone forever. It was stupid, but it was how she felt.
Of all the times she, as a child of course, had fantasised about seeing Summer Rose again… this was most certainly not how she was expecting things to play out. She had been assuming a tearful reunion straight out of a film; some magical declaration and a reveal of some major scheme that had saved her life.
Instead, they were just two women sitting at a pier after a large battle. No hugs. No kisses. No tears.
Summer's presence appeared almost subdued. Like she was barely even there. Her mind flashed back to a traumatised Blake when she and Weiss had found their missing teammate right after she'd finished being interrogated by the VPD. The girl had been quiet and soft-spoken. Skittish.
Who wouldn't be after a battle like that?
Her mother had probably went through the same thing. Yet still, she could count on a single hand the amount of times that Summer freaking Rose had ever been this calm. Most of her memories of the woman were of her going a mile a minute over this and that. She was like… super-mom or something. Endless energy, just like her daughter.
Seeing her so detached was unsettling, to say the least.
What in the world had happened to her?
"...It's almost funny." Summer voice found its way to her ears. She sounded rather faint. "I never expected something like this to happen, Yang. One moment I'm leaving to go on some urgent mission into oum-knows-where… the next thing I know is that years have passed and I'm racing through the night to reunite with my daughters… who I learn are training to become huntresses. At Beacon of all places." she breathed incredulously, shaking her head in disbelief. "Oum. How insane is that? What… what in the world happened?"
Yang kicked her feet idly as she tried to think of a way to explain things. It was all she could do to keep her mind straight. Nothing that Summer was saying was actually making any kind of sense to her, but right after fighting off faunus extremists she guessed that anyone would be a little frazzled.
It was still weird as heck.
"...After you… well… dad kind of shut down, you know? It wasn't a sudden thing, but it wasn't that gradual either. Even Ruby picked up on it, though she was still too young at the time to even understand what had happened. We lost contact with Uncle Qrow for… oum, probably a few years in the least." she chuckled slightly as a memory flashed before her eyes. "H-He just… stumbles in one day, reeking of booze. Yet little Ruby, she didn't care in the slightest, even though it was far past her bedtime she bolts down from her room and tackles him in a hug. Of course he picked that moment to pass out. Poor Ruby was so worried. She thought she hurt him or something."
Her mother laughed softly alongside her own fond chuckles. It was a choked sound that had escaped the older woman, one filled with emotion that clearly showed her mother was trying to do everything in her power to not cry out. Yet it was, without a doubt, Summer Rose's unique tinkling laughter.
To hear the sound in person hurt more than anything else that Beacon had thrown at her so far.
"...I wouldn't have expected anything less." her surrogate mother answered in a far off tone that probably has about a thousand different meanings that Yang could only begin to grasp at.
"But what happened, Mom? Why- How are you here?"
Summer smiled ruefully, staring deeply towards the starlit sky. With the moonlight reflecting off her skin, what little that was able to poke through in an almost completely overcast night at least, it painted her mother in an almost ethereal manner.
"...I'm… I'm not entirely certain."
Yang rolled her eyes at her mother's declaration. She'd known her mother enough to realise when she was hiding something.
"Come on, mom. Please just tell me. You owe us an explanation in the very least, me and Rubes."
Her mother flinched as if scolded, an odd creaking sound breaking the silence after her words. Yang assumed it was just the rickety old wooden planks of the dock. They would probably need to get out of here soon, then. Getting dunked in cold seawater was the last thing she wanted right now.
"I don't know, Yang. I… my memory. It's foggy. Clouded. I can't remember a thing after I left for my… last mission. I'm sorry."
Summer Rose had lost her memory of the one thing that killed her.
Ding…. Ding…. Ding….
Oh, how Glynda was beginning to loathe that infernal elevator sound.
There had been a time where the deputy headmistress had complained to her superior about the utter pointlessness of all elevators, whether they be for student or staff use, playing infernal musical tunes as they ascended or descended across the various floors of Beacon Academy.
It had been unnecessary.
Ozpin… well. The man had been alive for quite some time and developed some eccentricities. Such things were rather common amongst those in any form of command, especially those whom possessed a strong aura and had manifested a semblance. It was a rather well-documented study, actually.
Whilst she was appreciative of some form of concrete knowledge to explain why damn-near every single hunter or huntress she interacted with tended to have rather odd personality quirks, she was beginning to despise the 'quirk' of her superior.
He was a vindictive little thing.
There was a saying that her mother had told her, long ago. At the time she had discarded them as she had discarded many of her mother's words beforehand. Yet, it was clear that the woman had in-fact been one of the smartest people in existence.
"Do not poke the bear."
Headmaster Ozpin was many things. A headmaster, a leader, a warrior, a bastion of knowledge and wisdom.
'He is, also, the most spiteful little monster I have ever encountered.'
Much to her surprise at the time of submitting her report on the inane pointlessness of elevator music, the headmaster had listened with rapt attention and personally saw fit to remove the speakers himself.
Only to boost the volume of something far, far worse.
'Ding…. Ding…. Ding….'
She was also of half a mind that the esteemed headmaster, in all his knowledge, had saw fit to slow down the elevator by only the slightest fraction so as to throw off her usual timing. It was beyond agitating.
Yet she had certainly learnt a valuable lesson.
Probably.
'Ding.' the elevator chimed a single time, in a much deeper tone. The doors flicked open.
Headmaster Ozpin was sitting at his desk, sipping his mug of hot cocoa in the middle of the night without a care in the world. Where most, herself included, would have taken the precious weekend off to finalise class schedules in the modest comfort of her own home, Ozpin was one whom felt most at peace with himself in the very academy he saw over.
It was almost solemn, really. Alone in a tower all day and night with the weight of the world on his shoulders. She briefly wondered how such an individual could continue fighting, let alone teaching, after so many endless years.
For a moment, she pitied the man she worked for.
And then she remembered his horrid pranks and decided that she wasn't going to put too much thought into attempting to understand such a man.
"...Glynda."
"Sir. I have news you might want to hear about."
Ozpin sighed immediately even as his eyes narrowed in alertness. It was a tired, weary sigh that betrayed his true age for a brief moment.
"Go on."
She nodded affirmatively. "There have been a few things that have occurred recently. First, there have been some rather disturbing rumours regarding the girl that was originally discovered at the docks, she-"
"...Kirakishou, I assume." Ozpin interrupted. "That is the one you're speaking of, yes?"
"Yes."
The long exhale that come from the headmaster spoke volumes. It reminded her much of the sigh that Ozpin had given her when she had originally spoken up about the elevator music. He was tired. More than she could likely hope to understand. "...I see. And these rumours are?" he questioned neutrally.
Cautiously, Glynda continued. "There were sightings of strange, vine-like growths originating from her dorm room. From eye-witness reports gathered by students, the vines match the one mentioned in the Vale Police Department's report of her initial interrogation and assistance capturing Sun Wukong. Albeit these vines appeared far longer, growing much like roots."
It was a rather odd thing to have several students speak to her about such a matter, concerned that the school was being overrun by some plant-based semblance or somesuch nonsense.
"I take it that you wouldn't be here speaking of these rumours if the problem was as immediate as your wording implies." Ozpin stated flatly, sipping from his coffee.
It was true. Had the situation called for it, she would have contacted Ozpin through more immediate channels. The fact that he both understood this and was appearing so calm spoke leagues of the faith he held in her abilities as a Deputy Headmistress.
She nodded appreciatively. "Yes. It has been resolved. When I went to investigate, there was no visible evidence of such a thing existing and I saw no damage to the academy structure. However, several students took pictures of the incident and I was able to gather a few of them. I believe you may wish to see them." Glynda explained, accessing her scroll and sending the necessary files to Ozpin's holodesk system.
The headmaster stared at the pictures for a brief minute or so, flipping through several of the pictures before finishing at a single picture. It displayed Kirakishou in the background, speaking with a flustered Ruby Rose. Ozpin frowned slightly and hummed, before dismissing the display and returning his attention her way.
"...Certainly an odd display." he stated eventually, sipping his hot cocoa with a rather considerate look on his aged face. "Yet it is a nonissue for the moment. We may question her on the eccentricities of her semblance at a latter date. It was a given that there would be some… difficulties in handling an outsider. She is not like other students, whom have been through years of monitored tutoring. Her semblance is not as fine-tuned as most."
She knew that look he gave her after his little speech. That damn knowing half-smile hidden by his seemingly never-ending supply of hot cocoa. He had some thoughts on the matter that would likely be of great interest to her. But she surely wasn't going to be getting any information out of him at this point, until he wanted her to know.
That was simply the way that her superior operated.
Compartmentalisation, he called it. Psh. It was completely unnecessary for something like this. Unless the situation became one where he would require her assistance, she doubted she would ever hear the man speak of it again.
Regardless, she dropped the issue and opted to continue with the rest of her report. All she had wanted was for him to be aware of the current happenings of the school. It was up to Ozpin to decide what to do with the knowledge. She had far more pressing matters with which she needed to inform him about, now that her observations had been voiced.
"Will that be all, Miss Goodwitch?"
Glynda shook her head. "No, sir. There is more. Much more."
"By all means, then, please continue."
She took a brief moment to steady herself, before doing as the headmaster had requested. "...Roughly five hours ago, the VPD was called in to assess a possible terrorist attack on the Vale General Hospital."
This, she noticed internally, seemed to surprise the headmaster. His eyes, which had previously been teetering on the edge of tiredness and an attempt to remain serious in the face of what he likely assumed to be another boring report, had hardened considerably.
Oncemore, the deputy headmistress sent over the necessary files to Ozpin's holodesk. A scrolling text appeared facing the headmaster. Through the holoprojection, she could see Ozpin's eyes quickly reading through the rather detailed document and assessing the damages.
The most import part, however, was most certainly the headline which gave a rather prompt summation of events.
VALE HOSPITAL INCIDENT
78 DEAD.
The headmaster blinked. Once. Twice.
He gave her nought but a single word. It was enough.
"Explain."
She nodded curtly and ran through what she could understand from everything that the current acting police commissioner had spoken to her about during his call.
"As of five and a half hours ago, hospital staff began reporting consecutive failures in the intensive care unit of Vale General Hospital. Multiple patients fell into cardiac arrests of increasing severity and promptly lost their lives. Others experienced life support systems failing for an, as of yet, unknown cause. Multiple patients under comas, whether they be medically induced or through other means, spontaneously passed away. The coroner currently believes multiple organ failure to be the cause. All cases occurred within the same ten minute window. As it stands, there are only twelve people from the ICU that are still left alive. They are being monitored heavily."
Ozpin leant back in his chair, face pale and distraught. It was more than obvious that whatever news that he had been expecting from her report most certainly hadn't been this severe.
Were Glynda to be honest with herself, she was also having a rather difficult time understanding it all. It seemed completely out of left field, without rhyme or reason. Completely and utterly ludicrous. A sudden death toll reaching this high in a medical facility of Vale's level of class was unprecedented.
Yet the reports didn't lie.
"...Are you suspecting sabotage?" he eventually asked.
"If I may be blunt sir," Glynda began slowly, "there is no doubt in my mind. Neither illness nor routine failure can produce such a result. Vale General also operates with several backup generators in the event of a power outage, none of which appeared to have activated during that time period even with several systems failing simultaneously. Sabotage is the possible explanation I can think of."
"...Do you believe She is involved?" he questioned quietly, as if he hadn't wanted to ask the question in the first place.
She could understand why he had asked her that specific question, despite his apparent unwillingness. With Amber's current condition, targeting a medical facility in the hopes of ending her life was a distinct possibility. Yet it was ultimately for this exact reason that she could rule out the Enemy as being involved. She shook her head.
"No, sir. They would know that we would never keep Amber in a public facility. Considering current theories about the size and scale of her operation in regards to the Maidens, if they were to attempt an assassination it would have been a covert mission. Nothing of this scale."
Ozpin nodded slowly. Glynda wasn't ignorant enough as to believe the headmaster was glad that their adversary hadn't been involved, yet it did bring up a certain question. If it hadn't been the work of humanity's greatest threat, who was behind all of it?
"...Do you believe the White Fang were behind the deaths, then?" he asked. She blinked at the question. The headmaster typically refrained from discussing matters regarding the White Fang, preferring to focus on the current situation with the Fall Maiden. The question was, thus, rather surprising.
Once more, Glynda shook her head, taking the time to adjust her glasses.
"No, I do not believe so. Faunus were amongst the deceased. Whilst the White Fang have been taking a notably bloodier approach especially in the Vale region, they still haven't been accounted for any faunus deaths. It is widely believed to be one of their main recruitment points, especially considering the knowledge of their infrastructure provided by Miss Belladonna."
"I see." Ozpin stated gravely. "This is most distressing news, particularly at this time. Most distressing indeed. Yet I cannot help but wonder..." he trailed off, looking thoughtful.
"Ozpin?" she questioned curiously.
The silver-haired man glanced off to the side for a moment, before refocusing.
"There was another event that occurred during that particular time-frame." he stated, much to her inner surprise. She hadn't been notified of such. "Are you aware?"
Disparaged, the deputy headmistress shook her head.
Ozpin gave a slight, bitter chuckle. "I see. I'm not surprised. With everything going on at the moment the VPD is stretched rather thin." he muttered as he stroked his chin in thought. "There was an attempt by the White Fang to steal a Schnee Dust Company shipment this evening. Blake Belladonna was able to interrupt the thieves in the act. A small firefight broke out, which soon erupted into a rather chaotic battle involving Team RWBY."
The White Fang? Glynda thought, blanching at the very prospect. Why in the world would the White Fang target an entire shipment of dust in the middle of Vale?
Yet the sheer amount of dust contained in an entire Schnee company shipment… much of it rather volatile to weapons-fire. It's a miracle that none of it went off. The chain reaction would bring down most of the downtown quadrant before emergency services had a chance to go off. With the VPD already stretched thin…
She froze. A thought occurred to her.
Does Ozpin believe this incident with the White Fang is related to the hospital massacre? She wondered in a mix between disbelief and horror at the very prospect. She peered into the brown eyes of the stoic headmaster behind his spectacles. Use the panic created by the hospital incident to keep law enforcement occupied whilst they haul away the dust? Was that their plan?
Yet there was a glaring weakness in such a strategy.
The faunus deaths. Glynda realised, eyes widening. The White Fang would never stoop to killing their own kind in order to further their own goals. At least under Sienna Khan's rule they wouldn't dare to. If anything, Sienna would have attempted to prevent the attack if she had known about it occurring. Unless things have changed with Sienna's rule, which is unlikely, it would mean that the White Fang likely isn't involved with this. Yet the sheer timing of such things… for it to be mere coincidence cannot be possible.
Thus, the two have to be connected in some way. She realised. But… how? There's something I'm missing. Some major clue. Some peculiar piece of the puzzle...
Ozpin's near-silent chuckling broke her out of her thoughts. "Difficult to wrap your head around, isn't it?" he stated sardonically, "I myself have been attempting to understand the nights events ever since reports started to flood in. Your own report has only served to exacerbate things. However..." he glanced down, reading an alert that had buzzed on his scroll. "I do believe we know of someone who can provide some answers."
Before Glynda had the chance to say anything, she heard an all-too familiar 'ding' sound as the elevator doors opened behind her. She whirled around, shooting a glance at the headmaster at the apparent breach of security.
"Hello again, Headmaster Ozpin. Professor Goodwitch. It's… well, it's certainly been a long time, hasn't it?"
Summer Rose stood at the elevator, shuffling awkwardly.
A woman who Glynda Goodwitch most certainly knew was dead was standing before her.
Glynda reached for her weapon, only for the headmaster to send her a discrete shake of his head, directing his gaze at the dead/alive woman.
She wasn't armed.
...She wanted to talk?
"...It's Deputy Headmistress now." she corrected automatically, the words already out of her mouth before she could think to stop them.
Ozpin ignored her blunder, narrowing his eyes as he stared at the impossibility.
"I do believe we have much to speak about, Mrs Rose."
Silver eyes stared back at him silently for a few moments.
"We do indeed, headmaster."
"Weiss… please… it's too early… not nowwwwwww." she groaned out from underneath the covers, even as the horrid heiress from Atlas pulled relentlessly against the sheets that protected her.
"Ruby Rose if you do not get out of that damn bed this very instant, I shall make it my life's mission to ensure that you never, and I most certainly mean never, lay your hands on a single cookie for the rest of your long life."
She was out of the bed in an instant, jumping out and landing on the floor in all the sudden frenzy that her sleepy body could conjure. She sent a wayward glare to the Schnee Heiress, only to receive a harsh one directed right back at her.
Damn those Schnees could glare.
….Suffice to say, Ruby Rose was glad that activating her aura was second-nature to her now, or else she'd have some pretty bad bruises, judging by the disparaging frown the heiress was sending her way.
Even after however many hours of sleep she'd managed to get, it still didn't feel like enough. Her body ached all over and there were was a distinct tingling sensation in her bones that she hadn't been able to rid no matter how hard she tried. There was a slight ringing sound in her ears, too. Like how her ears used to ring when she was still getting used to Crescent Rose for the first time.
Getting back on point, the clock on Wiess' bedside table was still rather blurry, but she could tell that they were probably pretty close to some early morning lecture or something if Weiss of all people was forcing her up.
She could hear the shower running in the background.
"...Blake is in the shower at the moment, getting ready for class. Class that starts in an hour, need I remind you. Honestly, how can you sleep this late, Ruby? I distinctly remember you being the one to awaken the rest of us on the first day of classes."
Ruby glanced away from the heiress as she moved to gather her clothes from the wardrobe. Truth be told, she had managed to get back rather late from Kirakishou's room after-
Oh oum.
She'd kissed Kirakishou. She… she'd actually…
Even now she could still feel the sensations ghosting across her skin. The coldness of her lips, the softness against her own. That odd metallic taste, tingling against her very being. If she closed her eyes, it felt as if it was still happening to her. A repeating memory, occurring over and over and over again.
There was an intensity that had been held behind the kiss that had originally thrown her for a loop when it occurred. Pure emotion, flooding every fibre of her body. Her vision had flashed and… something…
Come to think of it… she wasn't entirely sure what had happened after the kiss. Everything was a bit hazy.
She vaguely remembered walking back to her dorm room and somehow managing to slip on her pyjamas before passing out on her bed. But…
"Ruby..?" the concerned voice of her teammate broke her out of her thoughts, she blinked at the heiress, "...Are you feeling okay? You're not sick on the first day of class, are you? You completely zoned out just then... and you're looking a bit pale." the heiress added on, levelling her with a scrutinising appraisal.
She waved off the heiress, trying not to wince at the brief flare of pain from her arm. "It's fine, Weiss. Really. Just got a lot on my mind at the moment, you know what I mean?"
Like my mom resurfacing and tearing apart White Fang grunts like tissue paper. Like one of my teammates actually being a former White Fang member with kitty ears. Like Kirakishou resurrecting my mom as a doll, like whatever happened last night to trash my memories.
Weiss' eyes softened immediately, something that she was beyond grateful for.
"Would you like to talk about it? If you're feeling stressed, you know that we're all here for you Ruby. No matter what."
Ruby smiled tiredly at the heiress, giving a small nod that belayed how truly grateful she was to hear those words. "...I'd like that, Weiss, I really would. But it's nothing that I can't handle."
"Whilst the past events have been rather, well, troublesome to say the least, it seems as if things are beginning to slow down again. Team RWBY is back together just in time for classes to resume." Weiss began, only to sigh and slump as she moved to sit on the side of her bed. "Well… for the most part."
Ruby blinked. "...Um..."
"Count yourself amongst the fortunate that you woke up this late." Weiss deadpanned, sipping her morning coffee. "It would seem that your darling sister has discovered a whole slew of horrid cat-related puns that she is now able to use against Blake, now that her heritage has been revealed. It took about three minutes this morning before Yang was threatened with bodily harm and promptly thrown out of the room."
Ruby winced. Her sister was many things. One hell of a fighter. The big sister to end all big sisters. A popular, easy-going girl that seemed to get alone with almost everyone- a trait she was rather jealous of actually. But a comedian, though? Not… not so much. Well, at least in her own opinion. Who knows, maybe there is some unfortunate soul out there that actually found Yang's awful puns to be an endearing trait.
Well, except for dad and Qrow of course. Poor things.
"...Sounds rough." she answered sympathetically. "If it helps, she'll probably run out of ammunition in a couple days when something else catches her eye. We just need to survive till then and we'll be fine."
Yang was always like that. It was one of the things that made her originally look forward to spending her final couple years at Signal Academy without her sister there, before she was pushed forward into Beacon Academy.
"A couple days?!" Weiss repeated in alarm, before slumping in her seat. "...Admittedly, sometimes I cannot help but wonder about the happenings in your family in order to produce such, er, interesting situations."
RWBY's team leader gave a low chuckle. It was, perhaps, filled with more than a little self-loathing than she intended. "...You really don't want to know."
Mom's death really changed us all, didn't it? She thought morosely, mind flashing back, I cannot help but wonder how things are going to be now that she's back.
The sounds of running water in the background finally ceased and Blake soon exited the bathroom as she was fixing up her ribbon, sending a hesitant smile their way.
"Regardless." Weiss shook her head, "You should jump in the shower post-haste, Ruby. You won't have much time before we have to get to class on time. Hopefully Blake left some hot water for you." Blake blushed in embarrassment at the tone, yet said nothing. Oddly enough, the heiress sent a rather teasing smile towards their faunus teammate.
Ruby gave a tiny nod, grabbing her things. She was about to move towards the bathroom before something caught her eye and her heart hammered in her chest.
A small thorned metallic ring lay nestled on her finger, adorned with a red rose.
A/N:
Another chapter down. Writing Yang's thoughts was an interesting exercise. Hopefully it provides some insight into her rationalisations and beliefs regarding the current situation.
Thank you all for your continued support.