Putting The Band Back Together
"The vigilante rampage against the White Fang continues, this time claiming the life of a White Fang officer last night after a prolonged shootout in the commercial district of Vale. While no calling card was left behind, multiple eyewitness reports point to a lone strike by the 'Ace of Spades'. Despite the property damage caused, public opinion continues to rise for both of these mysterious fighters, peaking at 63% in the most recent poll." Adam laid back in his bed in the night, teetering between the edge of sleep and wakefulness, listening to the news coming from Weiss' scroll.
She scoffed and rolled her eyes before turning it off. Upon hearing the heiress take a breath, Adam closed his eyes and wondered if maybe by some miracle he'd fall asleep before the inevitable inflammatory, political commentary.
"I don't understand how anyone can support those criminals!" Too late. "Whether or not they're fighting the White Fang, they are still putting innocent people at risk with their actions! What about when someone gets hurt?" Weiss huffed. "I just don't get Vale, sometimes," she said with disdain.
Ruby, who was trying to get some homework done before bed, shrugged. "They can't be that bad; they just want to help! Besides, it's just the White Fang! Putting criminals away is a-okay in my book!"
"What about putting them in the grave?" Weiss countered.
Ruby shot a nervous glance over to Adam.
"Well, uh... o-okay, maybe that's a little far..." she mumbled.
"Just a little? What about when it's not just a bunch of radicals who actually deserve it? What if they decide the average Dust thief needs to die, or just someone they don't like? No one can play judge, jury and executioner!" the heiress all but lectured Ruby. "Besides, if they really wanted to help, why don't they join up with the proper authorities!"
Adam stifled a laugh.
Weiss glared at him. "Oh, have something to add, Mister Belladonna?"
Adam didn't bother rising up to sit at Weiss' provocations... but he did, however, rise metaphorically to them:
"I just think it's funny that you believe the authorities can do a thing to stop the White Fang or Torchwick."
"Aren't you a vigilante, too, Weiss?" Ruby added.
"W-well, that's different!" Flustered, Weiss tried to defend herself, but to no avail, especially with Adam fully jumping into the conversation.
"Ah, I see: it is fine when you blow up property, but not others, right?"
"I blew up my own crates, you simpleton!"
"You also blew yourself up," Ruby said with a snicker. "Oh, and the docks that didn't belong to you."
"Don't forget the warehouses caught in the blast," Adam reminded them both.
"Oh, oh! What about the crates that didn't belong to her?" He heard the creak and swing of Ruby's bed as she bounced off to the floor, ignoring Weiss' growls completely.
"Technically, none of it belongs to her just yet," Adam added.
"Oh shut up, both of you!" Weiss shouted. Ruby let out a sudden squeak, and Adam found out rather quickly why when a pillow smacked into his face, too.
"I'm keeping it." His muffled voice managed to be heard just barely over Ruby's giggles. Content to finally get that nap in, Adam let himself drift off.
That is, until the door was suddenly slammed. Adam grunted in surprise and flung himself upright, Wilt in hand, only to strike his forehead against the bedframe.
"Get up, loser, we're going to the club!" Yang gallantly declared as she strode in.
Groaning and glaring daggers at Yang, he growled. "Is there any particular reason you are shouting so loudly?" He flung the pillow back at Weiss and Ruby upon hearing them snickering at him.
"Because this is important! It's Friday, I want to go to the club, and you need to lighten up. Plus, you're the only one I'd actually take there, anyway."
"Excuse me?" The heiress, formerly looking so disinterested, clearly took exception to that. "I'm just as old as you are, unlike Ruby!" She crossed her arms and glared at Yang.
"Wow, way to throw me under the bus," Ruby mumbled under her breath.
"Well, yeah, but you're..." Yang looked over Weiss. The heiress growled. "You."
Weiss just rolled her eyes and grabbed her Scroll.
"Whatever—"
"Besides, a nightclub is no place for a princess!"
Adam knew bait when he saw it, and this had to be one of the most blatant attempts at reverse psychology he had ever seen in his life.
"That's it! I'm coming with you!" Which made it all the more sad, even knowing Weiss' reasons, that she fell for it hook, line and sinker. Snapping her Scroll closed, she hopped up on her feet and stormed off to her closet, all while Yang and Ruby tried and failed to hold back their victorious grins.
"Great. You have your partner. Have fun." Once more, Adam tried to sleep. Yang threw her arm around his shoulders before he could even lay his head down an inch. He tensed and grit his teeth: he still was not particularly fond of physical affection.
"If I agree, will you let me go?"
"Aw, what's wrong? I thought giving me the cold shoulder was Weiss' job!"
Face blank, Adam patted Yang's back, then threw her off of his bed.
She laughed even as she tumbled onto the ground. "That was a good one, come on, give me some credit!" He supposed it was good they were actually going to a club.
He needed a drink.
"You aren't really thinking of going there in that getup, are you?" Weiss scoffed.
Two drinks would be better, now. The princess had gotten herself a white peacoat, skirt and stockings, the latter two with a trim of black lace. Yang, on the other hand, had gotten a decidedly more complicated attire: a cream-colored coat with darker sleeves with a chest window just large enough to show off her low-cut black shirt, among other things. Adam supposed he was not surprised that the 'show-off' of the three girls by far would have a miniskirt that barely covered a thing and was shorter than the space between it and her stockings. He was, however, bothered by the fact that she had a belt thrown on that had no real purpose in existing.
And then there was him... dressed the exact same as he usually was. Just without his hat. Same black coat. Same gloves. Same red undershirt.
"What? Those are pretty good going-out clothes!" Yang protested, then paused and gave him another look over. "... Though, did you lead your pals looking like you were about to hit the nightclub?" The temperature dropped instantly upon those words leaving her lips, and suddenly emerald and ice alike were glaring her down. Yang awkwardly laughed it off and waved them to follow her out of the dorms.
By now, the moon had long since taken its place in the sky.
"That doesn't change the fact that it's the same thing he always wears! Special occasions call for different outfits!" Weiss continued on as if nothing had happened.
"Spoken like a true princess," Adam dryly retorted.
"Spoken like someone with fashion sense, more like. Something you seem to sorely lack." A familiar argument. The image of Coco flashed in his mind. He snorted.
"Says the girl going to a club dressed like a businesswoman."
Ahead of them, Yang sighed. She really hoped they weren't going to keep this up the entire way to where she kept her motorcycle.
"I am not short! I'm taller than Ruby!"
"In heels. She's also two years younger than you."
They did. Honestly, she didn't even know how they'd gotten to this new argument from the old one. Still, Yang realized now more than ever the great importance of her mission! Even if from how they argued like a married couple, she wondered if it'd just be easy to leave them in a locked room for a few hours. Having thought ahead, she'd gotten herself a sidecar, one that she unceremoniously shoved Weiss into.
"Hey! How come I get the side seat!" Weiss complained as she patted herself down and watched Adam take a seat behind Yang.
"Sorry, you must be this tall to ride the motorcycle," Adam sniped at her with a smirk before Yang could so much as open her mouth for a joke. Yang failed to hold back her laughter even as Weiss crinkled her nose in agitation and silently fumed in the sidecar, defeated. She revved up the engine, and the three took off into the night.
"Who does a wheelie when they have a sidecar attached!" Weiss shrieked when they finally came to a stop at their destination. The poor princess was still trembling while she tried to get herself out and closer to Yang and Adam casually walking away. "Don't you just walk away from me! Hey!" She stormed up beside the two and took a look around.
It looked like she'd taken them on a express trip to the worst part of Vale: dirty, industrial-looking buildings, power lines hanging loose and visible, not a single hologram in sight, and Adam was even rather sure that he had a White Fang safehouse set up not too far from here before he and Blake had abandoned them. Obnoxiously loud, thumping music came from the only building that looked to have its lights on just ahead. Two men stood guard at either side of its sliding doors, each in sharp, black suits with red ties and hats all too similar to his own.
They took one look at them and ran right through the door in a panic.
"Is this how most nightclubs react when you approach, Yang?" Weiss murmured, already not liking this place one bit.
"Mmm, I'd rather not say." She dug her fingers between the doors and forced them open with a mighty push.
Ten armed guards with guns pointed right at them were on the other side, right between them and the second door to get inside the club in full. Yang stood there with a dumb grin and her arms still spread wide, while Adam had, in the split second of the door opening and her seeing the guards, managed to draw his blade, leaving it pointed at one guard and his sheath-turned-rifle pointed at another.
And then there was Weiss, standing behind them both and wondering with each passing moment if the risk of crashing a motorcycle she had no clue how to drive would be worth escaping this place.
Yang looked over the guards.
"... Well, are you gonna let us in, or what?"
Adam remembered that he despised clubs. The music turned up so high he once genuinely contemplated if it was a human plot to irritate faunus, the lights so bright and chaotic he'd rather sit in a pitch-black room for eons, the humans, the heat, the scent of alcohol, shame and sweat, the dancing, the noise, it was all so insufferable. He had prayed that one of those guards would take a shot just so he'd have a reason to trash the place and go back home, but no, somehow through Yang's charisma, threats against some giant named Junior and her annoyingly short skirt, they managed to get into the club proper.
Which was why he was currently sitting in a crimson booth next to Weiss, swirling a tumbler of amber alcohol and ice as the two all but stared one another down. A fruity drink that had a fanciful name he couldn't recall sat in front of the heiress completely untouched: she had pushed it away as if it were the foulest substance she'd seen. Meanwhile, Yang already had emptied a cocktail, and had taken a seat on the other side of him, blocking his way out. He was trapped.
This was it. This was his judgement for his actions.
Adam let the alcohol pleasantly scorch his throat on the way down and shoved the empty glass away from him.
Yang looked upon the two of them, deep in intense thought. The plan was falling through! Something was supposed to happen!
"Geez, I know you two are sticks in the mud, but I don't think I've seen you two this huffy about something other than when you're fighting!" Yang had to shout over the booming music. She reached out and yanked over a passing gangster to shout new orders to him. Sure, he wasn't actually someone who took drink orders, but what was he gonna say about it?
"I could've told you the Princess wouldn't have fit. It's not my fault that she's dragging the mood down," said the one radiating frustration. Whereas Weiss had nothing to do but stew in her anger and glare at Yang for fun, Adam had his favorite past time since he'd joined the White Fang in the first place: bothering a Schnee.
"I'm the one who's bringing the mood down? Please! Do you ever have fun?"
Adam opened his mouth.
"That doesn't involve fighting?"
He closed it.
"Ha! I thought so! Why did you even come along, anyway?"
"I said I would come, and I did. I thought you came to disprove that you're a stick in the mud. Doing quite the opposite, aren't you?" Adam crossed his arms.
Yang groaned and laid her head down just as another pair of fruity drinks and a second tumbler was passed over to them by a grumbling man in a suit. She suddenly brought her head up. Idea!
"Fine!" Weiss slammed her hands down and rose from her seat, blue eyes gleaming with challenge. "How about we go dancing then, and I'll prove it!"
Adam scoffed. "I don't dance."
Weiss blinked. She... didn't expect Adam to refuse so plainly. With a groan of frustration, she plopped back down just as Yang stood up.
"I've got it! How about you two settle this like real..." Her lilac eyes bounced between her two teammates, trying to find any kind of similarity between them. "Uh... paaartners?"
"Are you going anywhere with this?" Adam's monotonous inquiry was almost lost in the music altogether.
"Of course I am!" Yang snatched a pair of shots of whiskey from a passing man in a suit, ignoring his complaints as she slid one to them both. Adam was befuddled. Weiss looked like Yang had told her to go pickpocket an old man.
"You're joking. Please tell me you are. Do you really think I would partake in such a barbaric practice?"
"Don't be such a wuss, Weiss!"
"Oh, yes, a little peer pressure is all it'll take. Come now, Yang, I'm far better than that."
As Yang and Weiss bickered, Adam stared blankly down at the two glasses. On one hand, he could save himself an undoubtedly massive amount of trouble, likely some dignity and a headache in the morning. On the other, he'd have to agree with Weiss to do so, and the thought had barely even ended before his mind was made up. Really, as he snapped back to reality, he didn't even know why he needed to think about it anymore.
"... And I will have you know that I am a fully grown woman, but I still refuse to even consider this brutish contest." Especially when Weiss made it so terribly easy for him.
"There are many definitions for 'grown woman'," Adam finally entered the conversation, and made a show of looking the heiress over. "I don't think very many apply to you."
Weiss took a good, hard look at Adam, her head subtly cocked to one side and her face plain, but the frozen surface of her eyes hiding an absolute inferno of rage. Her eyes narrowed, and in a single fluid motion, she snatched the shot in front of her and downed it. Adam's grin bordered on vicious as the mistake hit her mind far too late, and she was left leaning over, coughing and resisting the urge to gag.
"W-well?" Weiss forced out in a hiss, her fist clenched.
Having had far more experience than her in these matters, Adam's glass was drained far easier. Letting the warmth make its way through him, Adam reclined against the seat, smirked and held his arms out in silent challenge. Yang only hoped they mistook her grin just for her usual amusement at their antics and not as one of victory: was this right of her to do? Probably not. Was it working? Absolutely! She'd have these two loosened up in no time!
All she'd have to do is keep the drinks coming...
Tonight, Yang learned what Adam was like when he was buzzed.
Adam let out a jeering, villainous laugh when Weiss struggled to finish off the next round.
The answer was: dramatic.
"I have taken worse than this before you even crawled out of combat school!" he proclaimed as he slammed down yet his swiftly-emptied shot glass. "Honestly, your defeat was sealed the second you took the challenge."
"Yeah," The heiress coughed. She'd be winning, she swore, if it didn't feel like she was drinking a dose of a campfire! "That's something to brag about. T-typical ruffian."
Yang's giddy glee over stage one of her grand master plan coming to its conclusion was cut short when she swore she could've seen a familiar flutter of red off in the crowd. She glanced down at the table: she scarcely had anything to drink, and there was no way she was seeing things...
The crowd briefly parted, just enough for, even across the entire club, Yang to see a twirling, red cloak worn by a certain little sister in its midst. She wasn't seeing things! What was she doing here?! Yang got up from the table.
Silver and lilac eyes met.
Ruby bolted.
"Hey, I'm gonna be right back, just gotta take care of something!" She wasn't even sure if the two heard her as she jogged off and Ruby immediately tried to wriggle her way out of the crowd. Oh, Ruby was in so much trouble when she caught her! How had she even gotten through the door!
Behind Yang, Adam and Weiss had finally fallen silent: Yang was the one getting their supply, so their contest had come to an abrupt end.
"You know what she's trying to do, right?" Weiss turned to Adam: even tipsy, Weiss wasn't stupid.
He chuckled, waved it off and leaned into the red cushions, letting his eyes fall closed to spare them the bright lights.
"But of course, Weiss: she's easier to read than you are." His eternal guard lowered, Adam laughed when Weiss responded by leaning over and jabbing him in the side. He opened his eyes to find one of the fruity drinks she never got to in front of him and Weiss sitting next to him, staring out at the sea of people with a pleasant smile.
"Think it's working?" She swirled the brightly-colored alcohol in its glass and innocently looked up to him.
As he looked her over, Adam had to admit at least to himself that it was having an effect, alright: even though she had the Schnee symbol proudly displayed on the back of her coat, the buzz left it all too hard to truly connect her back to the family that he despised. It was the reason he did not drink much at all when it was time for him to lead: alcohol had a tendency to force his hate to recede, and the things it would leave behind were often... unpleasant to remember.
This time, however, it left behind the shards of a friendship. One with a girl named Weiss Schnee, no relation to the Schnee family. Just like their little 'peace treaty'. Weiss giggled. Adam wondered if that was that the first time he'd heard her do so.
"Le~et me guess: it feels like that we really did start from the beginning?" Weiss savored this one, both for the fact that it did not taste of smoke and bitter tears, and just to let this moment last. It was nice, to leave behind all the doubt and fears from past days, past hours, even: no worrying about the Schnee name, no mask of the White Fang flashing in her mind whenever she saw Adam, no worrying if her friends would choose others over her, nothing at all. No wonder her mother indulged in this.
Even her tension at that thought faded as quickly as it came.
"You could say that." Adam admitted to Weiss, though his gaze had found something else of interest: a side door. More importantly, one under constant guard, yet on occasion someone would break off from the bar or the crowd, flash some lien, and move right on by. A VIP section? No... But what else could it be—
A light whack at his side told him he must've missed something Weiss said. He only arched an eyebrow.
"I said, how come you don't dance? More secrets and mystique?" she repeated, not so much glaring as much as she was pouting from not being listened to.
"You wouldn't believe me."
"Try me."
With one of the secrets he wouldn't dare let someone like Weiss know at risk, Adam decided that door's mysteries were now of the highest priority and called over one of Junior's goons. He decided to ignore the fuming heiress next to him.
"You, goon! What's that door, over there!"
The uniformed man looked between the two. Friends of Blondie and he'd heard some rumors that a couple of students who looked suspiciously like them had stopped an entire White Fang operation by themselves.
Yeah. Yeah, it'd be better to just tell them and run.
"Look, I'm not supposed to talk much about it out here, but..." He sighed, looked over his shoulder and leaned over the table towards the two. Normally, this would call for hushed tones, but normal speaking volume might as well be whispering in this place. "Because of someone tearing up the joint not too long ago, the boss had to open up something on the side. If you've got the lien, you could turn it into a little extra, if you know what I mean."
An illegal casino.
Adam smirked and looked over to Weiss.
"Now that sounds like a good time..."
Yang wasn't sure if she should've been worried, jealous or excited when she finally dragged Ruby back to their booth by her cape to find Adam and Weiss were nowhere to be found.
"Adam, even if this wasn't many kinds of illegal, I don't have any money, remember?" Weiss mumbled in hushed tones as the two made their way through the hall connecting the club to the racket, the heiress occasionally needing to slow and regain her balance: she could've sworn she was feeling fine when she was sitting down!
Adam simply reached into his pocket and withdrew a number of lien cards.
"We'll be fine." The roar of the music had already turned into just a dulled thumping by the time they reached the second door. He paused and turned to hold the cards out towards her. "Of course, I can understand why a princess like you would be so afraid of—" Weiss snatched the lien from his hand before he'd even finished.
"I will have you know, right now, that I absolutely would not be doing this, were I not impaired," Weiss tried to preemptively defend herself.
"If you can say that now, I gravely doubt that. Now, prepare yourself! I'd hate to walk out of here empty-handed." With that, Adam opened the door for her, mockingly bowed and waved her forward. The first thing that hit her senses was the scent of smoke: it was a more cramped room than the massive club, likely even a converted VIP area. The walls were still black and outlined with white and red lights, and people of many classes of wealth—though all likely still criminal, Weiss thought—were packed in surrounding red felt tables that stuck out like sore thumbs, or lingering around a substantially smaller bar.
Even with her senses dulled, she could feel the eyes of many of the faunus patrons being drawn to her instantly, even when Adam stepped in beside her.
He scanned across the room, thinking on where to go... at least, that was what he wanted people to believe. He wanted to look unsure. Coupled with walking in with the closest thing to royalty you could get without a crown, and...
"Would you look at that, you're just in time to join in. New here?" A snide voice called out from one of the closer tables to them: a group of rough looking men focused their stares on the two of them, the speaker being a rather large man with a scruffy beard. A dealer had just finished gathering up the cards by the time Weiss noticed him. Many glasses, some half-full, some emptied altogether were scattered about: it was someplace even Adam would stick out, let alone an heiress.
"More or less," Adam drawled. "Unfortunately, all we have is 500 lien; I hope that's enough."
Weiss glanced over to Adam with a hint of panic in her eyes: he hadn't just offered a large sum, he'd offered everything they'd brought in the first place. She nudged Adam's side to try and get him to back down, but she could already see the lien signs in their eyes. It was already too late.
"Well, why don't you two grab a seat, then. Grab a drink: they're free down here, if you don't mind bottom shelf. Your little princess friend over there looks a little tipsy, already"—A blush rose to her cheeks; did it look that obvious? She thought she looked just fine—"but a couple more won't hurt, right?" the scruffy one said with confidence oozing from him. Dragged along into this madness, Weiss sighed and took a seat beside Adam.
"What's the game?" Adam casually asked as the dealer shuffled. A couple players chuckled to themselves; joining without even asking what the game was? Now that was the move of a chump.
"Atlas Hold 'Em."
Now, they had Weiss' attention.
"Look, Blondie, you gotta have at least 100 on you to get in." The guard tried to hold Yang back from the side door. As it turned out, though, an elbow to the jaw was a perfectly acceptable payment!
Yang threw the door open and stormed in with Ruby guiltily slinking in behind her. By now, any emotion before had turned into a constant state of annoyance: first it was kind of cute that the two actually managed to go off and have fun, but around the time she had to catch Ruby a second time and couldn't find them anywhere, the agitation began to set in. Having to basically be their mom was not part of the plan!
But when the second door was flung open and her two teammates stumbled out laughing with drinks and lien in their hands, Yang was not entirely sure how to feel. Her questions would have to wait for later: a group of furious guys were gathering up behind the two, and from Ruby tugging at her shirt and pointing back to goons cracking their knuckles around their fallen buddy at their back, it didn't look like they were in a much better position.
"Well, guess we'll have to do this the hard way," Adam said with a wild grin and his hand reaching for Wilt.
Junior's club would find itself closed for another two weeks.
Yang had managed to drag herself to the first comfy bed she found before just collapsing onto it. Sure, punching her way out of a club got even easier when there were three other people—maybe not as easy as it would have been if two of them were sober—but trying to get herself, a hyper Ruby, a drunk heiress and a tipsy ex-terrorist onto one motorcycle and then not crash and die was a challenge she hoped she never had to do again. She'd lecture Ruby tomorrow; right now, all she wanted to do was sleep.
"Hey, that bed's mine..." Weiss tiredly murmured and uselessly tried to tug Yang away.
She grumbled into her pillow and waved over at the other side of the room, where Adam had all but collapsed onto the sheets. None of them other than her sister had even bothered changing beyond the girls shoving their weapons in their lockers; the closest Adam even got was throwing his jacket off.
"Just take mine, Weiss, whatever." After a few more futile yanks Weiss stomped her foot and wobbled her way over to the other bunk bed. She just stood there for a while, blankly staring ahead, before Adam rubbed the bridge of his nose.
"What are you doing?" He could barely manage the usual agitation in his voice.
"There'sh no ladder!" she slurred.
"Jump, then!" Adam just turned himself over, not even wanting to deal with that. Yang, however, got the wonderful show of seeing Weiss try to form a glyph to hop onto, but without her rapier to focus her Semblance through or even simple sobriety, it was shaky and dull. That didn't dissuade the heiress though, for without delay, she jumped onto the platform.
It shattered like glass, and she was unceremoniously dropped onto her face.
That did not stop her from trying two more times, each with the exact same result.
Yang had to cover her mouth with one hand to hold back the laughter building up and patted herself down for her Scroll with the other.
Weiss growled and stomped her foot a little too hard, leaving her stumbling. With a frustrated sigh, the heiress looked back down at Adam.
"I'm not moving to the top bunk." Adam didn't even give her a chance to ask.
"Ugh, then move over."
After a moment of hesitation and a grunt of annoyance, Adam actually obliged without even sparing her a glance. And just like that, Yang decided everything was totally worth it. She tried her hardest to make sure it didn't look like she wasn't paying attention and nearly dropped her Scroll from how fast she yanked it out, grinning like a madman. While Weiss and Adam quickly drifted off to sleep, Yang was left awake for almost an hour like a kid on Christmas Eve.
The next morning was going to be amazing.
Snap!
Adam knew something was wrong before he even opened his eyes. His head was throbbing and throat was dry, but those could be ignored: he'd had far worse in his life, after all. No, the issue was that he felt pleasantly warm, yet all of that heat was gathered around one side, and attempts to move his arm left it feeling more like someone had left a weight on top of it for the entire night. The answer should've been obvious, Adam thought, but his mind was taking forever to try and piece together such a simple puzzle. Yet another reason why he didn't drink.
Snap!
His eyes snapped open and locked onto the source of the sound of a camera going off. Rational thought took its sweet time coming to him, but the instincts of a criminal fearing being caught already had him reaching across the bed for Wilt. Yang peeked out out from over her Scroll with the dumbest, most devious and most worrying grin he'd ever seen from her. When he pulled his arm and whatever warm, comfortable thing was on it closer to him, reality hit his mind like a bucket of cold water.
The nightclub, the gambling, Yang's little scheme from the night before, fighting their way out, then... then what? Adam tensed when he heard a soft murmur beside him. Someone was on his arm and had been for a long while. The fleeting thought of if it was better or worse that it wasn't Yang slipped through his mind as he glanced down.
Emerald eyes met ice-blue.
.
.
.
Snap!
Yang ducked.
