"So… what do you think the boys are doing right about now?" Summer asked as she strolled along the beach with her friends at her side.
Sand grains filtered through the girl's toes as she went, massaging the skin with a pleasant, cooling sensation. A quick look over her shoulder told her that they were far out of potential earshot of the beach house and nearly a half mile from the deck.
"Massive orgy," Kali suggested, though her tone was more bitter than playful. "And we're gonna miss the whole thing."
"What's an o-" Willow began, only for Raven to cut her off by clearing her throat.
"They're boys, so they're probably training and trying to impress each other," the dark-haired girl said. "Knowing them, they're having a massive brawl in the lot just outside the house, and we'll come back to cracked concrete. Maybe Adam will slice the entire house in half with his semblance. Who knows?"
"I certainly hope not," Willow replied in a wary tone. "My parents likely wouldn't respond well to us 'trashing' the place…"
"All the more reason to trash it," Kali grumbled.
"Hey…" Summer tried.
"Yeah, yeah, I'll behave," Kali said as she moved ahead of the group and turned around to speak while walking backwards with her arms out to her sides. "I'm just… frustrated. Really, really frustrated. I don't want to be the one that makes everything awkward and shitty while we're finally out here trying to relax, but I also don't think I'll be able to relax unless I say something. That scroll call was really fucked up, Wil."
The group naturally slowed to a stop and formed a loose circle, each of the other girls looking expectantly at Willow. With a deep breath, the heiress herself met Kali's eyes and offered a nod.
"…I know. I've been thinking about it since you said something… but I'm not sure what to say to you, or to them…"
"…the truth," Summer suggested. "Say how you really feel."
Willow reached a hand up to play with the fringe of her hair for a moment before she lowered herself into the sand and sat down to stare out at the ocean. One by one, the other girls joined her. Kali was the last to sit, and when she did, she set herself down right next to Willow and followed the girl's gaze out over the water.
"If you want to know how I really feel… then it's true that my parents love me, and I've had an easy upbringing that I'm more than aware of. But at the same time, I've recently started to feel as though my father has never really… respected me, until now. I've gotten everything I've ever wanted, been reassured that I would always have the best, and been told that the future of the S.D.C. is in my hands, but… any time I tried to get move involved, I was brushed aside. Whenever I showed an interest in something that he thought was out of my depth, he would simply reassure me that it was being taken care of and that I needn't worry. It always came off as condescending, or as though he didn't want me involved in certain things. I'm only just seeing it now, ever since we started working on the faunus issue together."
"He probably didn't want you involved," Kali let on. "That would mean bringing a moral compass into things, and that gets in the way of making money."
"Perhaps not," Willow agreed as she tucked in her legs beneath herself. "Still… I'd rather that not be true. He has to know that when I'm in charge, I'm not going to be so easily swayed by profits."
"He might know that now," Raven chimed in as she began to lay out her beach towel. "But how much does your father really know you, beyond just the surface level?"
"…I don't know how to answer that," Willow admitted.
"Well… you did sneak into the hunter's course at Beacon without them knowing, and they seemed pretty surprised," Summer considered as she, too, laid out her towel. "Maybe he's just now finding out who you really are."
"Consider yourself lucky to have the opportunity," Raven said with a sigh. "At least he's trying to adjust to who you are, in a way. My father refused to accept Qrow for who he was, and that's what led to the two of us turning against him after enough time. If he had only kept the two of us close… things would be very different right now."
"I'm… sorry about how things went for you, Raven," Willow tried. "But you may be right. He is trying to make changes at the company for my sake, even if the fact that it was all a charade before isn't exactly a positive."
"And that brings us right back around to the original problem," Kali said with a roll of her eyes. "He's actually making moves within the company and Solitas at large for you, and not for the faunus. My people getting a break is just a side effect of making you happy. If you'd have asked him to do this and I hadn't even been there for any of those useless meetings during the school year, would it have made any difference?"
Willow finally moved to spread out her towel as she thought the question over. The more she thought about her upbringing and the trajectory of the dust company, the less she liked the answer she believed to be most likely.
"…there's really only one way to find out- we ask him. When we return from Vacuo, I think it might be a good idea to stop by the mansion together. The path forward may be a righteous one, but the intentions behind it clearly matter to you… and you matter to me. I already promised Adam that I would help him hold my father accountable when the time comes. I see no reason not to promise you the same thing."
There was a brief period of silence as Kali stripped off her bikini top and flung it aside. The faunus laid back atop her towel, well aware that Summer was watching her with a hesitant curiosity. Kali simply kept her eyes on the sky as her friend also decided to strip down, albeit much more slowly. Even without seeing the results, Kali couldn't help but be a little proud.
"Thanks, Wil. I'm starting to feel a little better about the situation, even if it does still suck. It's good to know I've got you all in my corner."
"You do," Raven confirmed. "But I'm still not taking my top off, if you're about to push for that as a show of support."
"…damn it," Kali cursed. "Wil? C'mon, it seems like you're willing to walk paths you're uncomfortable with for my sake. You know you want to."
Willow hesitated for only a moment before reaching back and undoing the clasp on her bikini. She refused to look at her friends as she tore the garment aside and closed her eyes as she tried her best to convince herself that none of them were looking at her.
"…I want to do a lot of things I've never done while we're here…"
The Schnee manor, for all its gaudy accoutrements and ostentatious décor, was very much a home. In fact, it was such a home that many servants and cleaning staff lived in and around the grounds and could be constantly seen walking through the plush-carpeted hallways and cleaning various statues, armor stands, and trophies all throughout the premises. Even the Torchwick residence, while much smaller and a single building, gave off the feel of a place that was lived in. Far more artwork adorned the walls, and while the rooms and general layout were far messier, there were still signs of lush life.
In stark contrast, the Winchester family compound looked more like a well-armed fortress or supply depot. Barely a sixth of the facility was above ground, and most of the rooms within the 'house' that the family occupied were more for show than anything. Sterile white walls with red trim, tile floors, the smell of gunpowder mixed with other chemicals, and metallic sliding doors occupied the space. Jay Winchester always thought that the place looked more like a hospital than a home, and despite the stories he would tell to those unfamiliar with the building, his living conditions could hardly be called luxurious. He hated 'his' room and the ones surrounding it, and he hated spending time above ground while in his own house.
The underground was a different story.
Things beneath the surface of the compound were even more clinical, cold, and depressing, but their starkness befitted their function. All research, development, and refinement took place down in the various warehouses, labs, transport facilities, and training rooms that extended into a sprawling complex deep within the floating island of Atlas. Most of the city's residents were blissfully unaware of just how large the Winchesters' underground reach extended, and when asked by the media in a fluff piece earlier in the year, the average guess was 15% of the island's internal space.
The actual figure was closer to 60%.
Jay and Robin had said nothing to each other throughout their journey across the "house" and to the platform elevator leading underground. The mesh cage around the moving platform afforded them a perfect view of the open-air chambers of the overall complex, though several rooms and hallways beyond the more public sector were closed off and hidden from view. Barely visible from their position high above the chambers and tunnels, at the extreme end of the halls, was a large chamber hidden behind several layers of tight security. Even seeing the area from a distance made Jay feel uneasy.
Robin refused to look at it and was quite literally shaking throughout their descent.
"…hope you're fucking happy…" the redhead began, his voice barely above a whisper. "He's going to beat the shit out of me. Probably you, too, but at least you'll deserve it."
Jay rolled his eyes as the elevator continued its noisy descent. They locked themselves back on his destination almost immediately, as though they were being magnetically pulled.
"…Rob… let me handle it. If you want to ride the elevator right back up, go ahead. I'll take the hit… literally. If you don't want to be involved, then run. Hide. Give up as soon as things don't go your way and keep being a total asshole. You know, for a while, I thought you might come around. Start being less insufferable, aggressive, and just overall shitty… but after what you pulled at the start of summer, what you're still trying to do with Willow, and now, keeping up the divide between us when we're both about to catch hell? Guess I was wrong."
The slow grinding of the elevator was accompanied by the noises of various machines and gunfire as the platform crawled closer and closer to the ground. Neither of the brothers said anything else until the doors opened and Jay stepped through them without looking back. Robin didn't move.
"…think what you want," Robin spat. "I'm not going to his office if you're stupid enough to do it alone. Fuck that. I'll see you topside after you get thrashed."
"Will you?" Jay asked as he turned around to face his brother. "I could hide down here until autumn and never see you again until Beacon. There are enough spare rooms, and it sounds to me like you just got effectively cut out of the S.D.C. deal unless I'm there with you. You think Arcturus Schnee gives a shit whether you show up? And what's our old man going to do when you spend the rest of the summer directionless, without my help, and doing nothing to further the company? Still think you'll end up at the head of the table after graduation?"
Robin was stunned into silence, his facial expression twisting into something unreadable as he tried to process his emotions. The scowl only deepened as Jay offered him a hand.
"…or we do this together," Jay proposed. "Make him understand that the deal didn't go tits up because of us and find a way to make this work. You're going to have to start making some changes to avoid being left behind, both up here and at Beacon. Unless, of course, you want to end up like him… just with none of the power, money, or influence. That's the road you're heading down right now."
"…gods damn it," Robin cursed as he stormed out of the elevator and past Jay. "Fuck. I don't have a choice, do I? Never really did."
"No, you don't," Jay confirmed. "But you're quick to proclaim victory without seeing all sides of the problem. Fortunately for you, I'm quick to forgive."
"Why?" Robin snarled as he led the way out into the underground.
"…because we're family," Jay answered simply as Robin came to a stop ahead of him. "Because we're stuck together, and I'd rather this not turn into a mirror of our relationship with our dad. I don't think you want that either, do you?"
Robin took a deep breath and then spat a glob of phlegm onto the otherwise pristine tile floor.
"…no."
"…so, were you just being an asshole to gain his favor and dump all of his negative attention on me in order to save yourself?" Jay asked with a cold glare. "Because that's what it feels like."
Again, Robin refused to look at the source of his problems as his face turned red enough to match his curly hair.
"…yeah…"
"Well, fortunately for you, not all family is created equal, and I get it. Really, I do," Jay explained as he walked up to Robin and laid a hand upon his shoulder. "But take this to heart- this is your last chance with me. Start thinking carefully about what you do and to whom, or I'll make our dad look tame in comparison."
Robin flinched as Jay patted his shoulder and walked off. There was a moment where Robin looked longingly at the elevator once again before turning to follow his brother.
Author's Note:
Lots of balls in the air right now. The Winchester father will soon be getting a reveal, after all this time. He makes Nero look like a decent human.
-RD
