Weiss followed Blake though they made a turn at a room close to Blake's. "You'll want to cover your ears," she warned. Weiss blinked but did just that as the two black birds sat on the nearby banister.
A loud screech erupted from the room, making Weiss cringe. What unearthly being had made that noise?! That sounded like… Well, she didn't even know! But it did not sound like it belonged on any planet, fae or not!
However, a look up a moment later revealed another bird sitting on Blake's hand. It was large and extremely colorful. Its chest was yellow with a green face and beautiful purple-blue wings and a tail. Actually, it reminded her of those birds some of the upper-class families. Macaws? But this one didn't look sad and destitute. The macaws she'd seen often were naked and kept in small cages.
This one was glossy and fully feathered. It practically glowed in the sunlight coming through a window. It looked better than any she'd seen in Atlas.
"I'm sorry about the noise. Vona always gets excited when I come get her. I haven't seen her since this morning, so she's extra excited." Blake smiled and held up the bird for Weiss to see. She really was quite the striking bird. The colors were unlike any she'd seen in a macaw before.
"What type of bird is she?" She couldn't help but be curious. But what was it with this girl and her birds? First the two black ones, now a rainbow-colored one… The whiplash was not lost on her.
"I believe Serlia people in your modern modern age call her a Caloshua macaw? She's a hybrid of two different species. I believe they're the hyacinth and blue-and-gold macaws? My parents got her for me as a gift for my birthday last year. I've had ravens all my life, so they thought I could handle a macaw." Weiss glanced at the two black birds. So those were ravens. She'd read about how intelligent they were. She'd also read that Hunters often used aura corvids for intelligence work. It was very sneaky and made sense since most people wouldn't notice black birds sitting around unless they were birders.
"She's beautiful. Where did you get her from?"
"A Lider merchant that deals with the mortal realm. My parents made sure I read up on macaw behavior before giving her to me, though. I went through a lot of books before getting her." Were macaws really that intense? Then again, what did she know about birds?
The room beyond Blake held almost nothing in it aside from branches, ropes, and long toys dangling from the various stands. It looked like the whole thing belonged to the bird. It was nothing like she'd seen in Atlas. They were simply shoved into small, barren cages and left to sing or speak on command.
Weiss frowned at the realisation.
Toys.
The birds were nothing but toys for Atlas' elite. It was yet another way for them to show their wealth. They didn't care for the bird's wellbeing like Blake clearly did. The difference was so clear to see. This macaw had bright, glossy feathers and carried a spark of life in her eyes while the others were simply dejected and plucked their own feathers.
Disgusting really, but sadly not unexpected with the Atlassian elite.
They headed back to Blake's room where a tray with food sat on the dresser. Blake put Vona on a stand in the corner of the room, then offered Weiss one of the plates. "Isn't this going to be what you're used to, but hopefully it's okay. I know our chefs worked hard on it." They settled on Blake's bed and Blake offered her two small, wooden paddles. They looked kind of like overly large butter knives… How was she supposed to eat with these…? Thankfully, watching Blake for a few moments revealed that to her and she quickly fell into eating.
"By the way, if you have any questions, feel free to ask now. I know you have a lot on your mind." Blake brushed some of her hair behind her human ear. Where to even start…? She had so many questions and not enough time to ask them all.
"Well… What are some important basics to know…?" she asked hesitantly. That was probably the best place to start. She could formulate questions around the information Blake gave her. She did have her own questions, but that felt like the least offensive place to start.
Blake's ears twitched slightly and she looked up. "Well… Fae are the dominant race here, but we do share this realm with many others: dragons, unicorns, leprechauns, banshees, merfolk, and others. We all have our own designated territories, but we're allowed into other races' areas as long as we're respectful. We don't want to go hunting in a unicorn forest, for example. We don't want to offend the unicorn queen and possibly get sanctions against gathering important herbs we need." Apparently even the fae had politics… Was it the one universal? Were politics inherent to every sentient species? Well… Aura breeds didn't deal with politics…
"Another major thing to know is fae can be classified into two different ways: by alignment and by race. In human mythology, our alignments have been known as Seelie and Unseelie. However, we refer to our courts with our own names. Lider for Seelie and Misum for Unseelie. Lider are a lot more gentle and more cooperative. Misum are a lot harsher and are often agents of chaos. Auria, who you'll meet in a bit, is a very prototypical Misum. Not to say Misum lack gentleness and kindness; they just don't let it hold them back.
"There are four fae races, two Lider, two Misum. The Lider races are Sylphs and Sitphins, air and fire elementals respectively. The Misum races are Undine and Zuvires, water and ground elementals respectively. Sylphs and Undine are the noble races while Sitphin and Zuvires are serfs. And we each have our own eye color: Sylphs are amber, Sitphin are red, Undine are blue, and Zuvires are brown." Weiss blinked at that information as she looked at Blake. So she was—
"…A Sylph and Undine, yes." Blake shifted uncomfortably and looked away. She would ask what was so wrong that but she knew better. Atlassians didn't like to marry outside of Atlas. It happened on occasion but it was rare. The kids were seen as outsiders and not fully welcome in upper-class society. Even if they were Atlas born and bred. How much different would it be for somebody literally born with opposing magic genetics? She was glad she didn't have to deal with that in particular. Though something else hit her.
"I'm human. Where am I going to fit into fae society?" She would hopefully take over the SDC one day but it felt less and less likely with how Gisbert acted… They'd been betrothed only about a week and he was extremely close with President Jacques. He attended the meetings she should have been sitting in with him. But no… She'd been left behind. It was like he was going to take over instead of her.
"That…will be rather up to you. About the only two positions you can't hold are Sylph priest or Misum shaman. Priestly lines are hereditary in Lider culture. Misum shamans receive a special calling and, in over a hundred fifty thousand years, only a handful of changelings have ever received that call. However, it will take you quite some time to find your place… Almost all changelings in our history have been taken as babies. So they grew up in the cultures and found their place naturally. You'll have to study and watch us." Weiss' heart sank at that. It did make sense but at the same time…what if she never learned enough to fit in anywhere? She was more than willing to study and learn. She loved learning. But taking on two entire cultures… It felt overwhelming.
"But wait…" She was kidnapped. Why would she be worried about finding her place in society? She was a captive here. They wouldn't let her out. There was no way she would be allowed out of their sight. The bird had really distracted her and made her think otherwise. She knew her place. She would probably be made a servant at best…
Blake shook he rhead. "I apologise for responding to your soul again, but I can't ignore it this time. Changelings are a part of the family. You aren't a captive here. Normally you should be with your doppelganger's family, but I don't think the duke wants the responsibility of helping you adapt. He didn't speak against us supporting you." Yes, that did feel invasive and she couldn't quite accept it. They'd taken her form her home to theirs. That was textbook kidnapping. They wouldn't be so kind to her. That wasn't how this worked.
"Do you think you'd like to go to the bookstore tomorrow? We might be able to find you some books to help. There are books from Serlia and both sides of Koiria. You might be able to find some books to help you understand us better." That got Weiss to look at Blake and she nodded. She'd never been to a bookstore or allowed to have free rein of the Schnee library. There were so many books she'd never been allowed to even touch with how restrictive President Jacques was. It was always her dream to have her own library…but with Atlas' culture, it would never happen.
"Once we finish eating, we can go to your room. How does that sound?" Okay. Not that that meant much. Her room wasn't hers. It was where she stayed when not having her lessons. It brought her no comfort. It was as sterile as the rest of Schnee manor. She would barely call it home, but it was the only place she had known.
At least until now.
Would this place feel like home eventually…? Then again, she was a captive here. Nowhere she was being held against her will could ever be called home. Even if she had free rein of the place, it remained a gilded cage. Then again, they probably wouldn't be allowed out of her room aside from lessons, then it'd be back to the sterile confines of her room.
Blake rolled her eyes a bit but said nothing about it. "Also, by the way, I'm not a Faunus. We fae don't see human- or Faunus-like fae. We only see the four races I mentioned. I'm able to do almost everything a fae without animal features can do." Almost? Maybe something to do with the conflicted racial nature? Blake's ears flattened and Weiss winced. Apparently she'd hit the nail on the head. She wasn't trying to be rude. It wasn't like she was trying to broadcast her innermost thoughts to be read.
"You're right there unfortunately… There's a lot of racism between the two courts, then the noble and serf races… People really don't know how to handle me because I'm half and half…" Her ears drooped over. "But enough of that." She offered a smile but Weiss could tell how fake it was. It didn't meet her eyes and was quite obvious. It was a quick coverup to continue to the next subject. Not that she was really complaining. Emotions had no place in polite society. They were the means to an end for other people to use. They did literally nothing but hurt others and the one that felt them. Why was Blake able to smile and express herself so much?
"If you don't mind my asking, what's an awakened animal?" Might as well get back to the Q&A. It was far easier than dealing with those pesky emotions. Blake had revealed a major weakness to her. Was she not worried Weiss would use it against her in due time?
"They're like your horse—animals bred to have extra soul energy. So much that it eventually allowed them to reason like you and I do."
"So an aura breed, then." That made life a lot easier. It explained why the raven could talk like it did. "Is Vona one?" Blake had said fae only kept 'awakened animals' so it did stand to reason that she was one too… She'd seen some of the macaws in Atlas able to hold coherent conversations even if grammar was limited.
"Is aura the term you use for the soul in this cycle? If so, then yes; they are the same thing. Vona is one too. She cost two hundred fifty gold coins. Voath and Ryna, my ravens, were pretty cheap at ten silver coins apiece even as babies." So the economy still revolved around gold and other precious metals here. How primitive. Couldn't they switch to some other physical currency? It'd be much easier than having to mine the metals.
"Yeah, aura is our term for the soul. What do you mean by cycles, though?" She finished up eating and put what passed for silverware on the plate. She was still hungry, though… It was smaller than even a serving at Schnee manor. She wouldn't survive long term if that was all they'd get her at meal times.
"Oh, sorry about that… I forgot soul-using humans and Faunus require more sustenance than fae… I'll tell the chefs to… About how much more do you think you'll need?" This time she didn't mind the reading so much…
"Maybe about two and a half to three more times that? I don't really know how much I need to eat most of the time…" She knew she was underweight. The doctors had commented on it numerous times, but President Jacques never amended her portion sizes. She was far from frail, but she knew she needed more food. She missed when Winter would sneak extra from the kitchens to help sate her hunger more. She did hate revealing that, but Blake would know she was lying…
"All right then. It won't be a huge deal in the Misum court when we go since we serve ourselves. But here in the Lider court, we're served individually. You're also welcome to grab snacks whenever you want, either way." Free access to food? What nonsense was this? Food was restricted to meals unless one ewas breaking the rules. The only 'snacks' she'd had were Winter sneaking her extras and that hadn't happened since Winter was last in the manor four years ago…
"Really, you're free to do what you want here, Schnee. All we ask is you don't leave the manor without one of us. I have my own studies to take up about four years of my day. You're welcome to sit in on them, but they're about religion." Blake picked up the tray before putting it outside her door. However, she looked around, ears twitching and swiveling around. "Would you like to see your sister?"
See Winter? "Yes, of course!" She hadn't seen her in so long! She wanted nothing more than to see Winter again. She missed her so horribly. Could Blake take her to see her?
"We'll have to keep it super short and hurried. I'm breaking a lot of laws by doing this but… I need you to focus on her. I'll have to put a hand on your shoulder, okay?" Weiss nodded at Blake's words. She really didn't care what Blake had to do to get her to see Winter. It was the first time in four years they'd seen each other.
She closed her eyes and focused on Winter. Her image, her presence, her heart, her soul. She did feel Blake's hand on her shoulder. And within a moment, the very sense of the environment changed. It felt cold and forlorn, isolated and frigid compared to the relative warmth of Blake's home.
And she heard the clear sound of somebody spitting. "W-Weiss?! What are you—" Her eyes snapped open and she saw Winter at a table over dinner. She wore more casual clothes than Schnee manor allowed.
It didn't take but a moment for Weiss to attach to Winter and start sobbing. "Winter… I've missed you so much… I'm sorry…" She was a blubbering mess. She wasn't sure why she was apologising. Something felt…amiss but she wasn't sure what.
Winter wrapped her arms around her little sister and shook her head. "If anybody should be apologising, it's me… I wasn't able to protect you like I promised." Weiss wanted to reach out and tell her it'd be okay, that it was okay. But she was sobbing too hard. It wasn't Winter's fault President Jacques still saw her as collateral… But she was supposed to take over the SDC, not her husband…
"I do hate to interrupt this reunion, but I have to say we only have about five minutes here." Of course Blake had to barge in. Weiss was still sobbing but she felt indignant. Couldn't she see how important this was? They hadn't seen each other in so long! Couldn't she wait?!
"Who…are you?" Weiss felt Winter's grip tighten on her and she snuggled closer to her sister. She didn't want to leave… Winter meant the world to her…
"You can call me ABlake. I really am sorry to interrupt but I have to pass important information onto you, elder Schnee. I'm a fae or fairy…" She gave a brief overview of the situation. Even from her position buried in Winter's chest, she could sense her sister's disbelief. Winter was never one to change her views or believe new things easily without empirical evidence. So she'd have to take most of this at Blake's word.
"…So you'll be getting a 'new' sister, so to speak. And if your father is as bad as I've gathered, then Auria won't let him live past a day, so prepare for big changes in your life."
"You expect me to believe such nonsense?" Winter scoffed.
"How else do you explain me bringing your sister here yet there probably being no news on her disappearance yet?" Winter sighed at Blake's words. Yeah, she wasn't going to believe it until she had proof. "Anyway, I'll let you two have the last few minutes."
Weiss looked up at her sister and Winter wiped her tears away. "It's okay, Weiss. I love you so much." She kissed her forehead and held her close then fells ilent. Few words usually passed between the sisters… They never had much to talk about… Nothing ever really happened at Schnee manor that was noteworthy.
Unfortunately, it didn't take long for Blake to speak again. "Do you have any sort of long-range communication device? If so, I can hook it up to my pearl. I'll get your sister one then you can talk at any point."
"Pea…rl?" Winter asked. A rare show of confusion for her older sister.
Blake pulled out a shell-shaped device and opened it. "It's our long-range communication devices. If you have one, let me see and I'll hook it up."
Winter hesitated but handed Blake her scroll. A few minutes of tinkering later and the scroll rang. "There we go. I'll do the same for her when we get her pearl tomorrow. But we have to go. Now."
Weiss whined and Winter kissed her forehead. "I'll talk to you later, Weiss. Be good." Weiss nodded and looked at Blake.
Within a moment, they were back in Blake's room. Weiss dried her tears though she sniffled. It was good to see Winter again even if it'd only been a few minutes. Hopefully she'd get another, longer visit in the future… She missed her sister so much…
"Sorry to push you, but how about we go meet with Auria?"
"Okay…" Apparently, she didn't even get a moment to process what had happened. It was all so fast and hurried… But, at the same time… She was a Schnee. Being able to jump one thing to the next was important. So she squared her shoulder and smoothed out her dress. "Okay."