Suggested Readings are Crimson XVI: Off Time
Extra 008: Doctor's Orders
"Dang it, where is it?" the rabbit Faunus, Velvet Scarlatina, groaned to herself as she walked down the halls of Beacon Academy. "I've been through the classrooms and the teacher's offices twice now, and this is the last one to deliver." The small parcel in her arms wasn't very large nor was it very heavy, but it had Fragile written across the top of it which was more than slightly nerve wracking. "Now what am I supposed to do?"
"Sounds like someone's having a rough start to the day. Aren't you supposed to be enjoying your vacation?" Even if Velvet hadn't spent an entire day shopping with him yesterday, it would be next to impossible not to tell when Ragna was speaking due to the impact he carried (words or otherwise). The apparent Grimm Reaper wasn't wearing any of the articles of clothing that he bought with her the day prior, letting Velvet know that he was going to be as stubborn about his wardrobe as anything else. Currently he was only wearing his black hamaka set, his clothes looking shifted and messy on him while his usual bed hair was worse than normal. Giving a grunt, he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. "Morning."
"...Ragna, it's four in the afternoon," Velvet informed, trying not to sound too disappointed.
"Yeah, and I'm on break so I'm trying to catch up on sleep since finals," he told her, clearly fighting back a yawn. "So what's up with you? It sounds like you're in a bind."
"N-No… well maybe," she admitted. "Do you know who Doctor Faye-Ling is?"
"Yeah, I've met her," he told her, leading Velvet to give a sigh of relief.
"Thank goodness, I've been searching for her office all morning and I haven't the slightest idea where it is. Goodwitch and the rest of the teachers are either out or in meeting for the next term so I didn't have anyone I could turn to. I even headed to check all of the classrooms and I didn't find any that belonged to her. I was going to head to the teacher's quarters, but I know students aren't usually allowed there."
"And that's your problem; wrong type of doctor… I think." Ragna wasn't entirely sure how far Litchi's credentials went himself. "As far as I can tell she's not going to be a teacher here, we only brought her on a couple of weeks ago as a new medical professional at the Academy. If you head to the nurse's office-"
"I'll be able to give her the package there," she realized. Ragna gave a short chuckle as Velvet sighed in relief. "Thank goodness, I was getting worried that I wouldn't be able to deliver this. I get the feeling it's something important." She gave Ragna her best smile. "You really helped me out of a bind, that's one more I owe you."
"Don't worry about it; I'm not really in any mood to collect," he told her with a casual shrug. "Though… maybe you can tell me how you got stuck with this job?"
"How I got… stuck with it?" she asked, having no idea what he was talking about.
"You don't have to tell me if it was something really bad, I was just sorta curious how you managed to piss Goodwitch off. You don't really seem like the sort of person that would try something like that. Was it some kinda accident? Wrong place at the wrong time?"
"No, it was nothing like that," the rabbit fanus explained. "I'm delivering packages today because I volunteered to do it while everyone was on break. Other students either volunteer like me or are assigned to help with chores around the campus by a responsibilities list."
"O-Oh, so that's how that works," Ragna realized, scratching the back of his head awkwardly.
"Ragna, you didn't really go through an entire quarter thinking everyone helping out around campus was forced to work because they got into trouble with Goodwitch, did you?"
"I mean…" The Reaper sighed. "I might have." Velvet did say anything further to him, only shaking her head as she headed off to deliver the package to the new Academy doctor. 'Damn, maybe I should've just asked to pet her ears and saved myself the trouble,' he thought before reconsidering. 'Nah, Blake probably would've slapped me when she found out.'
Later -Doctor's Office-
"Hello, Doctor Faye-Ling?" Velvet asked, knocking on the doctor's door. "I have a package here for you! Hello? Doctor?"
Just as Velvet thought she'd come to the end in both her search and her duties, another problem appeared to rear it ugly face. Now she knew that she could have easily left the box outside the office door, but with Fragile marked clearly on top of it she knew that she'd be in trouble should anything happen to it. There was no telling when Litchi was going to be back, so she was stuck with a difficult choice.
'I guess I could try bringing this back later,' she thought before shaking her head. 'No, Goodwitch wanted to make sure everyone had their packages by the end of the day. Maybe I could try to find Goodwitch and just drop it off with her? But then she'd probably be in the meeting herself. What to do...'
Just for the sake of trying, the Rabbit Faunus attempted to turn the door handle. To her surprise, the door into the nurse's office hadn't been locked before Litchi left. Telling herself this was going to be a quick in and out just to drop off the package, she entered and switched the lights on. There was a half full mug of cold green tea on the desk, letting her know that the doctor had likely forgotten to lock the door after leaving in a hurry. Sticking to her plan, she headed over to the desk and set the parcel down. She was about to head off, but she caught sight at some of the pictures and couldn't help but taking a look with her Photography obsession.
The first photo was of a younger girl with darker skin wearing a child's swimsuit. She was splashing around happily, laughing as she ran through a low wading pool. The second photo was of the same young girl only now she was wearing what appeared to be a young grade school uniform, smiling proudly as her hands held onto her backpack straps. The third was again of the girl, again a little older. She was carrying what appeared to be a box of medical supplies and instead of a bright and childish smile, she was smirking proudly at her duties. The fourth and final picture had the girl in it as well, but there were also two other people. One was the woman that she'd assume was Doctor Faye-Ling while the other rugged man appeared to be her husband. She and her husband were both wearing tradition Haven wedding attire, showing that they'd gotten married after she'd already had a daughter. While the rugged man and Litchi had one of their arms around the other's waist, their other arms was put lovingly on their daughter's shoulders, all three faces beaming with happiness.
"I've always loved looking at that photo. A lot happened that day and my husband was even louder than normal, but it was the day we officially became a family."
"It's a really great pict-" Velvet had been about to compliment the photo, before realizing she'd been spoken to. Like a rabbit realizing an incoming treat, she quickly whipped around to see Doctor Faye-Ling standing behind her. That was the least of her troubles as she'd accidentally slammed her arm into the package and knocked it off the table. Realization came too late as she watched the package fall, her eyes growing wide as approached the floor in slow motion. She prayed that whatever was inside could survive the impact.
CRACK!
...It didn't.
"Oh? What was in there?" Litchi asked as she leaned down and picked up the box. "Fragile… oh dear." She then looked at Velvet and saw that the poor Faunus was shaking, her eyes still on the box and tears forming in her eyes. "Miss, are you all right?"
"I… I'M SO SORRY!" Velvet shouted, bowing her head as low as she could. "I-I didn't mean to break that! I'm sure it meant a lot to you!"
"I-I have no idea what was in here!" Litchi told her quickly, trying to calm her down. Trying to give her best smile, she began to fiddle with the box. "Here, let's see if the damage sounded worse than it actually… is."
Hearing the strained pause in her voice, Velvet look up at the object and her complexion managed to worsen. The contents of the box was a small incense vase recently broken into six rough pieces. To make matters worse that was a small note beside it that read
'Hope you like this decoration for you new office mom!
Love, Linhua'
Velvet buried her face deep within her palms trying to fight back tears for what she'd just done. Litchi sighed as she closed the box and put it back on her desk. Giving a soft smile, she looked at the young lady like a mother would.
"Would like a cup of tea, dear? Do you think that might help you relax?" As Velvet's slowly showed her face from behind her hands, Litchi continued to remain supportive. "I happen to have great set with me, brought straight from Haven's finest. It was actually an anniversary gift from my husband."
"B-But I-"
"Oh hush; we both know that you didn't mean to break anything and even if you did I'm sure that Goodwitch would be more than happy to repair it for me. And as for the tea, my husband would love nothing more than to know that I was giving a cup to someone that needed it. He's quite the heroic type you know."
"A… all right," Velvet agreed, her muscles seeming to give out all at once as she sagged to the floor.
"I should probably give you the herbal mix; the last thing you need right now is caffeine."
It wasn't long later before both Velvet and Litchi had taken a seat and each had a steaming mug of tea in front of them. While Velvet hadn't said a word, Litchi had been telling stories of her life in Haven and even telling a few stories about her daughter and the man that eventually became her husband.
"Velvet was it? Drink some tea," she said after a moment, taking a sip of her own to show that it was cool enough. "Doctor's orders."
"O-okay," Velvet said before taking the smallest of sips from her mug. Once she'd gotten a taste though she couldn't stop herself and quickly downed the entire thing, letting the drink's warmth spread throughout her body.
"Better?" Litchi asked. Velvet's face turned crimson at her actions, but nonetheless she nodded. "I'm happy to hear. You looked like a ghost after that parcel dropped."
"I-I'm fine now," she assured trying to get the courage up. "Misses- I mean Doctor Faye-Ling?"
"Please, you can just call me Litchi; we're all friends here dear," the older woman insisted.
"P… PLEASE LET ME FIND SOME WAY TO MAKE THIS UP TO YOU!" she demanded, falling to her knees and going into a Dogeza bow (that one where you're on your knees and put your head to the ground).
"Please Velvet, you're overreacting. I already told you that I can get Goodwitch to repair this without a problem, there's no issue here," the Doctor said, being very patient with the girl.
"Even still it was my fault that I broke this in the first place. Not to mention that I already entered your office without permission. I'm really sorry."
"You were just trying to help, in fact I was always so forgetful when it came to getting the mail at home." Litchi didn't even have to lie to make Velvet feel better, Linhau often had to remind her to check the mail lest she miss payments on important bills. "It's water under the bridge."
"Please…" Velvet continued to beg, not listening to word she was saying. "Please let me make it up to you."
The doctor gave a sigh as she saw the student begging before her. She'd made it abundantly clear several times that she didn't harbor a shred of ill will against the poor girl, but with her state start to get worse it was clear that she had to do something. Though… Litchi smiled as she realized a solution where everyone could get what they wanted.
"If you really want to make it up, I think that there's something very important that I could have you do for me," Litchi decided. Velvet finally raised her head off of the floor to watch as the doctor headed for her office's closet. Looking across several bags, she seemed to smile as she chose a very specific one.
"I think that this will fit you nicely. There's a curtain over by that bed, change into this if you please," she instructed before heading back to the seat. Velvet eagerly nodded as she took the bag, closed the curtain and began to change. Litchi only smiled as she sipped her tea, her evening having just become much more interesting.
"Um… Doctor?" came the Rabbit Faunus's weak voice from the other side. "I… I don't think I can possibly wear this."
"Nonsense, I think that outfit is going to be a perfect fit for you," Litchi encouraged. "Well don't keep a girl waiting, put it on so I can see how it looks on you." There was a small shuffling of clothes as Velvet slowly compiled, nervously changing into the outfit. Litchi heard a deep breath on the other side as her victi- volunteer readied themselves for the show. Once the curtain was pulled away however, Litchi was the one short of air. "You... look… adorable!"
Velvet let a low whimper as she clung closely to her sides, glancing down at what she'd been made to wear. It was a short sleeved white chinese outfit with a dark blue sash tied around her waist to form a butterfly on her back. Her school uniform's skirt had been traded for a pair of black tight shorts and she now even had to wear chinese style sandals. All in all, she looked like Litchi's daughter from the photo where she was carrying medical supplies.
"Why do you even have an outfit in this size?" Velvet whimpered.
"I just wanted to see if my daughter's favorite fashion statement would still look this great as she gets older, and now I can clearly say with confidence that it will! There's certainly going to be a lot less of an innocent child flair, but if she grows into it right she'll have all the boys' heads turning! The aura of a beautiful woman in traditional attire!"
'She's planning a bit ahead…' Velvet thought to herself. "Well, if that's all, then I-"
"Oh no Velvet; that's all for Linhua, but I'm afraid that I still have a few outfits for you to try on." While Litchi was still smiling, Velvet had an underlying feeling that the previous sweetness had been replaced by something else entirely. "Let's see… this one next."
"Um, Doctor? Why do you have all of these costumes in your office?" Velvet asked as Litchi thrusted the next bag into her hands, this one feeling much heavier than the last one.
"They had to go somewhere, didn't they?" she reasoned.
'Okay, but why do you have them in the first place?' the rabbit Faunus thought to herself as she closed the curtain. 'Might as well see this through for since I said I wanted to make it up to her. She's not going to go too far here.'
Upon showing Litchi the next outfit, she was whimpering as she was proven wrong… so very wrong. The reason why the bag was so much heavier than the last was because she was now given armor to wear. The armor was a set of purple plates at functioned similarly to breastplate but left her arms, stomach, and midriff exposed. She didn't have any shoes, but she did have a set of plate armor on her lower legs But that wasn't the worst part, that would have to be fur shorts that she had to wear (with an added tail of course) along with the fur braces on her wrists.
"WHERE DID YOU EVEN GET THIS!?" she demanded with a crimson flushed face.
"It was a recreation of armor worn by the Rabbit Faunus of an ancient past!" Litchi explained excitedly. "That armor supposedly offered them great protection while allowing its wearer to be quick on their feet and without sacrificing mobility! It was the perfect armor for them!"
"Then what about the fur short pants?" Velvet demanded, feeling naughty just saying it.
"...To keep you warm," Litchi suggested.
"MOST OF MY BODY ISN'T EVEN COVERED!" Velvet screamed. "Just get me out of this! Now!"
"If you insist dear, but I think you look spectacular in those little outfits," the doctor tried to compliment. 'Alright, maybe I went too far on that one. This next one should be a little more playful… Ah! Perfect!' "This is just the one you need, go try it on!"
'Wait a minute, I could've just changed back into my normal clothes and stopped this all here,' Velvet realized as she had yet another bag forced into her hands. Litchi was still prodding her to try it on, claiming how good she'd look once she was in better clothes. 'Darn it. At least I'll be out of this thing…'
Out of the frying pan… into more humiliation.
While it certainly covered a bit more than the last outfit, how it covered more was where the problem lay. She was dressed in a black, sleeveless, and very form fitting leotard, showing off every bit of her curves that lay beneath the fabric. Her legs were covered by dark but thin fishnet leggings that ending in black stilettos. She had an unconnected black bow tie and white collar set around her neck to pull the outfit together… only amplified by her natural bunny ears.
"What even is this?" Velvet demanded as she looked down at what she was wearing in embarrassment (which seemed to come with every outfit at this point) and concern. Her face managed to drop even further as she glanced behind her, noticing the ball of white fluff at her rear. "Litchi!"
"I knew you'd look the part~!" she exclaimed joyously. "Over in Haven this costume's been taking off in all of the host clubs! Some of their most popular hostesses have been Rabbit Fauni, and these outfits are often made to pay tribute to them! Even some of the most Faunus intolerant people have eased their positions after spending some time with one of these lovely ladies! It's a progressive movement in the making!"
"Th-this isn't progress! It's the exact opposite of that!" Velvet shouted in denial as she tried to cover her body. "I… I can't let anyone see me like this…"
"Dear, where's your imagination? I can think of several people that would love to see this," Litchi told her, trying to bring out Velvet's more adventurous side. "I can especially imagine a lot of First Year Students that would LOVE to have you as their Senpai when they get the smallest glimpse of you in this."
"Th-that's not what I'm trying to do!" Velvet expressed trying to defend herself and what sliver of pride she still had. "Just what are you trying to accomplish with all of these outfits?"
"Can you blame me if I think that you're a perfect model for them? It's like a gift from the gods themselves walked right into my office," the doctor tried to compliment. Her words were quickly starting to lose their effect on the girl and there was no sign of any confidence rising… not that it had been Litchi's only objective to do so. Looking through the remaining bags, Litchi decided it was time she went all out. "The one I'm about to have you try on is probably one of the cutest in my set! I'm sure that it might just manage to put everything else I have to shame!"
'I'm starting to reach my limit with these outfits,' the poor student sighed to herself as she glanced at the bag Litchi was getting for was about to try and deny the request, but couldn't as she saw how brightly the doctor was smiling at her. Something told Velvet that this particular dress meant a lot to the Doctor. So (giving a rather large sigh) she decided it would be best to at least try it on. Of course, those thoughts quickly disappeared as-
"WHY AM I WEARING A WEDDING DRESS!?"
Litchi couldn't contain her own excitement as she looked over Velvet with a girlish giggle. The Rabbit faunus was indeed in a white dress, one with a red underskirt. The white dress was completed with odd spikes towards the rim of the dress and a collection of red belts along it. The open bust window still left this dress as plenty revealing and on the dress's back was a large bouquet of red roses.
"Velvet… whenever you run into the soul mate of your dreams, you are going to make them very very happy," Litchi said with the strangest sense of motherly pride… despite not having known the student for even an hour.
"Misses Litchi, that's kind of you to say… but I could never wear something like this, even to my own wedding!" she denied as she examined the dress. "Look at it. Why does it even have METAL on it?"
"It's all part of the design! You have to make sure that you're dearly beloved won't be calling all the shots! They signed up to marry one risque woman and you're going to give them the whole package! You're going to love 'em to death 'till the day they die!"
"I don't want to make that kind of vow to my future spouse, it'll scare them right off of the altar!" Velvet protested. "If anyone saw me in this they'd think I was lovestruck crazy!"
"And that's just what you need! Everyone knows that you're going to be in the market for your one true love, so this is exactly what you'll need to get everyone to know that you're available! Get them ready now because there are going to be wedding bells in their near future!"
'Most people would be expecting a shotgun wedding if I always wore this…' "Doctor, this has been… an adventure for sure, but can we end this here? I've been having a really stressful day so far and I don't think playing dress up is helping."
"Aw, but we were just starting to dip into the good stuff," Litchi protested with a small whine. Looking at Velvet with her best puppy dog eyes, she tried to convince Velvet to just stay for a while longer. The Faunus had to struggle, but she managed to not give in to the look. "...I guess you have a point; I wouldn't be doing my job as a doctor if I was just causing you needless stress. Hows about we have you try on one last outfit? This last one is something that I think is going to give you a well needed… edge."
"An… edge? What do you mean?"
"You'll just have to try it on and find out. This is honestly going to be more for fun than an actual attempt since it's going to be so hard for you pull off, but if it doesn't suit you at least we can laugh about it together."
"Only one of us can be laughing at this point," she sighed as she took the outfit and got changed behind the curtain. She'd only opened the bag before she stopped and looked at the outfit. "Doctor Faye-Ling? I think someone destroyed your outfit."
"What?" Litchi asked, showing some rare concern in her words as she gasped at the news. "Are you certain?"
"I'm sorry but yes," the student said. Though she was relieved that she would get out of trying this single outfit on, she couldn't help but feel a little bad as she knew how much Litchi seemed to treasure these garments. "I don't know what it was, but these garments look like they've been put through some kind of shredder. There's barely any fabric that isn't just hanging loose and there barely anything more than a few strands of cloth to cover the skin."
"...And?" Litchi asked, expecting more.
"Um, that's what I see?"
"Oh, you had me worried there," she sighed in relief. Velvet had a very bad feeling about this. "Go and try that on! Oh, and make sure you completely wrap your left arm with the bandages in the bag. You need to look the entire part!"
'The part of what? A Demon Queen?' Velvet later questioned with a grimace as she stood in full display of the doctor.
Much like Velvet had said earlier to try to get our of wearing the outfit, there wasn't much that would be able to cover her skin. All she had was the occasional torn piece of black fabric against her legs with led up to a pair of very damaged black shorts with a studded belt. The red garment she wore as part of her top barely did anything to cover her breasts. The ragged clothing that she had did extend into a cloak in the back, so at least her rear was properly covered. Once again she was wearing metal boots as armor, only this time she had her left arm wrapped in white bandages while her right hand had some sort of metal bangle on the wrist.
"...Doctor Litchi? What exactly am I wearing?" she demanded, the rabbit Faunus actually starting to develop some sense of anger.
"Hmm… I'm not exactly sure," she admitted as she looked over the outfit. "I thought I was going to try and give you a Bad Girl look. Something so that you look a bit more intimidating… I've heard that you used to have quite the problem with being bullied."
"That's… true," Velvet had to admit, remember what Cardin's team had taken to doing early that quarter and the troubles that she'd faced her first year at Beacon. "But I think things are better for me now, and even then wearing… this isn't going to help me."
"I can see it's not going to help you, there's no possible way you could wear the outfit right like you are now," Litchi told her. Velvet was disappointed as she looked down at her chest and hips. "No not like that; your body is able to fill out clothes perfectly, the problem is your face and eyes. Both parts of you are just too innocent to wear something like this. You're face needs to say that you're ready to fight if someone just look at you funny and your eyes need to be twice as merciless."
'I only know one person at the Academy that could possibly meet that criteria and they wouldn't… oh who am I kidding? Ragna would wear this a hundred times better than I could, it's even red and black for him,' Velvet admitted before noticing that her right arm was getting pretty sore with such a heavy bangle on it.
"Honestly I was hoping that these clothes might get you to pursue a more aggressive edge, find something burning in your soul that wants you to go out there and take what you want by force if you have to," she admitted with a sigh as Velvet fiddled with her arm bangle, trying to make the fit a bit less uncomfortable. "I guess you're just too pure of heart for something like this, I mean I know I was expecting a lot, but for now you look like-"
SHING!
"EEEEP!"
Hearing Velvet scream then crash to the floor, Litchi looked on in shock as a small blade had extended from the bangle. It was well metal, sharpened, and looked especially deadly. Velvet looked at the thing in horror before turning to the doctor.
"Why is there an assassin's blade as part of this outfit!?"
"I don't know! I just thought it was part of the cosplay!" she shouted as Velvet tried to tug at the bracelet, this time to remove it for good. "Be careful! You could hurt yourself with that!"
"Then help me get this off!" the young woman begged, continuing to pull at the blade concealing bangle. Worried for the safety of a student (and a nifty volunteer for her cosplay kink), she got up and did her best to pull the dangerous piece off of Velvet. Both of them were so preoccupied with the process that neither of them had noticed the door opening.
"Oh," came a familiar voice that sent Velvet rigid. Thankfully that somehow did the trick with her bangel and retracted the deadly blade, but she had bigger worries at the moment. Both she and Litchi slowly turned their heads to find Coco stand at the doorway with her hands placed modlily on her hips. "...I see how it is."
"Coco!" Velvet exclaimed as she tried to better cover the rags that made up her outfit. She wouldn't want to be seen like this by anyone, but being seen by her team leader was another realm of hell altogether. "Wh-what are you doing here!?"
"I was looking for you because I didn't see you at dinner!" she told her teammate with a scowl. "I can now see that you were doing something more important." She glared at Litchi before turning her attention back to the rabbit Faunus. "So I can't even get you to treat some of my best fashion suggestions seriously, but you'll wear this!?" she demanded, gesturing to Velvet and what she was wearing.
"I-It's not like that!" she fought to deny.
"Oh?" Litchi asked, putting an arm around Velvet as she seemed to pull the student affectionately close. "And just what's wrong with my outfits?"
"Nothing's wrong with them; they're perfectly fine… FOR COSPLAY CONVENTIONS!" Coco finished as she lowered her sunglasses to show the scowl they'd been hiding. "Half the girls at the academy wouldn't be caught dead wearing anything close to that and the rest would be extremely hesitant to try them on at best. I understand wanting to go bold in a wardrobe, but be crazy just for the sake of it is insane!"
"Oh, so we have an up and coming fashionista at the academy do we?" Litchi questioned. Velvet noticed that the doctor's tone wasn't angry from the insult, but rather she intrigued by the newcomer's claims. "You mentioned something about having your own little outfits selected for Velvet, did you not?"
'Oh no,' she thought, her ears starting to droop as she realized where this was going.
"More than a couple, but it's almost impossible to get her to model for me," Coco admitted. "Why? You think that you've got something that I don't?"
"Of course not, Miss…?"
"Coco, Coco Adel of Team CVFY."
"Coco then, I actually have an interesting proposition for you. Maybe the next chance we can find in the upcoming Term, why don't the three of us head into some of those adorable little fashion boutiques in Haven. While we're there, I'm sure that you could benefit from a second opinion at least, meanwhile I'd love to get your input for a few sets of clothes for my little daughter. It'd be a win-win for all of us!"
'NOT ME!'
"...Maybe I had you pegged wrong," Coco admitted as she put her glasses back on their rightful place. "Sure, whenever you're up for it, I'll be more than happy to put your fashion skills to the test."
"And I'm happy to see that that Beacon has someone so fashion savvy enrolled! Trust me, by the end of the year the three of us will have changed the entire concept of fashion for every student here!"
A bond was formed… a friendship was made upon a first meeting… and poor Velvet was stuck in the crossfire.
Later -Goodwitch's Quarters-
"Thanks again for fixing the vase; the last thing I'd want to do is tell Linhua that it broke before the next term even started. I owe you one," Litchi said kindly as she looked at the repaired vase in her hands, silently praising her daughter's taste in decorations.
"You know that I'm always happy to help," Instructor Goodwitch began. "But I hear that a certain someone is up to their old tricks."
"Old tricks, why what could you ever mean by that?" the doctor asked slyly, not making much effort to feign her innocence.
"I think you know well enough, after all Velvet's reactions were very vocal," Glynda accused with a scowl.
"Vocal maybe, but I don't remember you stepping in to put a stop to it," Faye-Ling rebutted.
"Only because I know that I'd be dragged into it somehow…"
"Oh, but you were so cute back when you tried on those dresses," Litchi squealed at the memory while Goodwitch's face managed to glow in a harsh blush while she adjusted her glasses. "That white Micro-bikini I had you try on was especially-!"
"Even if you're not a student, I know I can still find a way to put you on mopping duty this weekend," the instructor threatened, trying to get Litchi to keep from finishing her thought. That was a part of her past that she'd rather not relive.
"Are you suuuuuure?" Litchi asked with a purr to her words as she addresses her lifelong friend. "Just before I left Haven, I happened upon a set of maid outfits that I think would look perfect on you!"
"Litchi Shishigami Faye-Ling..." Goodwitch threatened, using her peer's true name to show she was completely serious.
"You at least have to see them with your own eyes, you won't believe some of the craftsmanship, the designs," she smirked. "The… placement of the lace…"
"...Maybe… just a quick peek…"
Meanwhile -Beacon Hallway-
'Where did this day go so wrong?' Velvet sighed as she walked through the hallways of Beacon Academy. She was back in her own clothes (thank the Maidens) and her job delivering packages was finally completed, but that was the only improvement to her situation. She was tired, embarrassed, and hungry. She'd missed dinner thanks to all of her time playing dress up, but going out wasn't an option for her since she had been trying to save money. Anything in the student cookroom was fair to use, but she felt too tired to make anything now and she was pretty sure those kitchens wouldn't be restocked until tomorrow. 'Guess I'll have to go to bed hungry…'
"Yo," came a casual greeting from down the hallway. Ragna was heading down to pass her by for the second time that a small tupperware container held under his arm. The Reaper himself looked like he'd cleaned up nicely enough since Velvet had seen him a few hours ago, now Ragna looked like he'd showered and gotten rid of his drowsier aura. He was still dressed in his black hakama set, but by the smell Velvet could easily tell that it had been washed since she'd last talked to him. "You doing alright?"
"I've been… having a day," she admitted with a sigh.
"A day? You looked fine when I saw you a couple of hours ago," Ragna told her as he thought back. "Did you have trouble finding Litchi's office?"
"No, I knew exactly where I needed to go," she told him, almost wishing she hadn't. "I even dropped it off personally…"
"So you met her then?" he noted before smirking. "She seems nice, yeah?" Velvet gave him a… look, one that seemed disappointed and almost a little angry. The Reaper had little idea of how to interpret that. Shaking his head, he offered the tupperware in his hands to the Faunus. "Here, take it."
"What is it?" she asked, not taking hold of it just yet.
"Potato and beef curry over brown rice," he told her, leading Velvet to pout.
"I missed something like that at dinner?"
"No clue what you missed at dinner, but I made this while you were… doing whatever the hell it is that's got you so stressed right now." To say Velvet was surprised was an understatement. While she had a particular fondness for curry, she knew that it wasn't any easy dish to get right even if you knew a good recipe. "Go on and take it; made too damn much to eat all this alone anyways."
"If you made too much, why are you taking it with you instead of just leaving it in one of the fridges?"
"Well…" Ragna began before scratching the tips of his nose, smiling while being somewhat embarrassed. "I was going to see if anyone from RWBY wanted this, but from the looks of things you need it more than they do." Before Velvet could offer any form of protest, her stomach gave off a comical and well timed growl. Ragna's smile turned from a well meaning one into a slightly cocky smirk as Velvet's couldn't keep up her eye contact. "And that just about seals it. Come on, take it."
"...Thanks," she finally relented as she took the food. Even when she held the warm container in her hands, she was hesitant. "You're… not going make dress up in exchange for this, are you?"
"Uh!?" Ragna grunted. He hadn't been expecting that as Velvet's response. Scratching the back of his hair, he tried to find his voice. "I mean… not unless you wanted me to?"
"ABSOLUTELY NOT!" Velvet shouted with enough force that Ragna had to take a step back. Blushing as she realized the scene she just caused, she gave Ragna a small but formal bow for the food and left without another word.
"...Weird chick," Ragna muttered to himself as he headed on his way as well. 'The hell kinda dresses did she think I was going to force her to wear? Why did she think I was going to force her to wear something in the first place? ...Is that really how I come across her?'
Author's Note BIG CHAPTER COMING UP
How many references can you identify? Let me know in your review!
If you've been keeping up with the Grimm Reaper's of Remnant story proper you'll already know that I've got one of my bigger updates planned for Valentine's Day in two weeks. That's going to be my next update so that I'm sure I'll have time to properly develop it and it's not rushed out.
That aside, let's see what the rest of you had to say about my Grimm Blue Radio feature.
Wlyman2009: Not before you brought it up, and I haven't exactly looked into it on my own. Sorry.
P2R50N4: Spongebob! Get serving up those Krabby Patties! Ar ar ar ar!
Fernandamichelleraya: Yeah, kinda nice to see everyone a little more… subdued.
The Unplanner: Jin's power of observation is often overlooked for his… complex. And I do like your idea, but I think I've got a way of doing it that will make much more sense as an actual progression.
Bismarck Alexander: Yeah, I get that sort of impression myself, though I think it's less dominatrix and more 'Stick up her ass about the rules' as Ragna would crudely put it.
Thanks for your reviews everyone! See you all in two weeks for the special chapter! Ciao!