"Is there any way you could ever forgive me?" Crue asked, his together in prayer as he stood before Weiss and Yang. Off to the side, Ruby and Blake watched the interaction with smiles between them. Crue had arrived near immediately after Blake had called him.
When questioned how, the Faunus simply replied that he hitched a ride. The fact that his locker was currently in the Emerald Forest had nothing to do with it. Weiss and Yang both gave upturned noses, the Heiress doing a much better job.
Weiss was laying in the med bay of the Amity Colosseum. Her Aura had been completely depleted when she tried to take out her opponent with a geyser. She retained some small burns from the incident, but with her Aura replenishing they were slowly being healed.
Yang threw an arm dramatically over her eyes as she leaned across the bed and exclaimed. "Oh, our own brother! How could you! Such a betrayal of our trust!" She continued to let out cries of woe that sounded straight out of a historical drama.
It finally ended when Weiss pushed her off the bed and turned to Crue. "Maybe we'll forgive you." Weiss said, looking down her nose at Crue. "If you get on your knees and beg."
"Not the best thing to ask a Faunus." Blake spoke up with a chuckle. Weiss froze up, her face scrunching up as she had just bitten directly into a lemon. Both Yang and Ruby began to laugh, the brawler's annoyance at Crue gone thanks to the hilarity.
"Uh, how about I get you some blueberry froyo instead?" Crue suggested to Weiss. Her pale blue eyes sparkled, though she quickly passed it off with a cough.
"That seems acceptable." She nodded. "Though I must ask, what happened that made you miss it? It's very unlike you, Crue." At her words, the rest of her team focused their attention on the Faunus.
"Yeah. Your 'girlfriend' was looking for you." Yang joked, referring to a certain redhead. Her joke caused Crue to blink in confusion.
"What? No she wasn't. I was just talking to Pollllll-ah shit." He trailed off, realising he had dug his own grave.
Each pair of eyes stared at him like a hawk. "You were talking to Polly?! That's great!" Ruby said, appearing before him in a burst of petals. "Are you back together? Oh please please say yes you were so cute!" Her sisters hand covered the reapers mouth, as Crue shot Yang a grateful look.
"Things don't work that quickly, Rubes." The Faunus answered, before quickly looking up to Weiss. "She was worried about you, actually." He phrased it in a way that wondered, in the most polite possible interpretation, why she cared.
Before Weiss could open her mouth to respond, Blake suddenly let out a gasp. "Oh no! Did I call you while you were talking?" Her amber eyes looking apologetic.
"Maybe." Crue smiled awkwardly. He could see Blake's bow twitch, as though her ears were trying to lay flat against her head in sorrow. "It's fine." The Wolf Faunus said quickly. "I said all I had to by that point."
He was distracted by a yell of disgust from Yang, who removed her hand from Ruby's mouth and shook any saliva from it. "Stupid games, sis." Ruby smiled, before turning to Crue. "So, does this mean you don't want to get back together?"
"You're killing me here, Ruby." Crue wheezed, as the whole team stared at him once more. He took a deep breath, as he prepared to spill his guts in front of his friends. "I still love her, but I know this isn't a good time to try and get back together."
"That makes sense." Weiss spoke up. "The Vytal festival is a very stressful time, you wouldn't want to pressure her into anything." Crue couldn't look the Heiress in the eye as he nodded in agreement.
"Yeah. That's what's stressful for her." Crue thought to himself sarcastically. "Now, can we please stop talking about my loop of a love life. Why don't you guys tell me how your match went?" That seemed to work, as Yang and Weiss immediately began to regale him of their fight.
Crue took the opportunity for what it was, a moment to breath and think about what he had told Neo. He hadn't lied. He knew bad off his life was, which is why he kept it to himself. That, and everyone else thought he had amnesia.
Even his friends from Ireland, the ones he had pictures of in his Scroll, they were all in same situation as him. "They were friends with me in the same way Neo is 'friends' with Emerald. Even if they weren't the best, I'm not going to forget them. That's why I have the pictures. Why I haven't deleted them."
"And then there was Hannah…" He gave a laugh that had nothing to do with his thoughts, reacting to a joke Yang had made about their competition. "Bad influences on top of bad influences. We weren't good for each other; we were each other's first and thought that meant we had to stick with each other."
Crue sighed mentally, wishing to go back in time and smack his younger self upside the head. Instead of focusing on how bad the past was, he laughed alongside Team RWBY and congratulated Weiss and Yang on a fight well won in the present.
And as he laughed, surrounded by genuine friends, he couldn't help but think to himself.
"Do I even want to go back?"
…
"Crue!" A voice called as Team RWBY plus one left the med bay. The Faunus looked up, seeing a woman with red hair and a purple jacket with red flames waving to him. It took Crue a split second to recognise her.
"Sunny?!" He said incredulously. The redhead gave a laugh as she jogged up and wrapped the dirty blonde in a hug. Crue returned it with a laugh. "What're you doing here?" He asked, stepping away from the hug.
"I had to come to cheer on my boyfriend, obviously." She jabbed a thumb behind her. Crue looked over her shoulder to see Russel waving from a distance.
"Russel has a girlfriend?!" Yang exclaimed, causing the Faunus to jump. Sunny looked at the group in confusion, then to Crue for an explanation.
"Right. Introductions." He nodded. "Sunny, RWBY the group, Ruby the person." He gestured to all of them, before setting a hand on the shortest girl's head and tussling it. "Guys, Sunny. We met when I was on my mission with CRDL."
"Oh, the one in Mentis." Yang nodded, before apparently remembering something as she gave Crue a dig in his arm. The boy went sailing with a 'WHY?!'. "You went on a mission with Uncle Qrow and didn't tell us!?"
"Wait, Qrow?" Sunny spoke up. When Yang and Ruby nodded, she continued. "Is that the guy who drank half the bar and tried to flirt with every bar maid?" Her words caused the sisters to break down in laughs.
"Oh, I like you already!" Yang held out a fist to Sunny, who bumped it with a smile. Past the girls, Russel helped Crue to his feet.
"Think I might have just lost my girlfriend." The mohawked teen joked, dusting off Crue. The Faunus gave a small laugh, as he watched Ruby dart around Sunny, asking questions about her sniper rifle.
"I'd say you'll probably be able to keep a hang on her." He gave Russel a reassuring pat. "I'd be more worried about them telling her embarrassing shit you did." The boy's eyes suddenly widened as he quickly ran over to the group.
"Hey! Uh, why don't you show them your ride?" He suggested. The question confused everyone; Sunny included.
"My ri- OH! You mean Y.O.K.O!" Her happiness was interrupted by a strangling sound that came from Crue. The group turned to see his eye twitched as he bit his bottom lip.
"Nothing. I'm fine." He said, looking not at all fine. "You changed the name? I was calling it Northstar." He finally spoke, looking a little disappointed.
"Yeah but, I also changed how it looked." Sunny countered. "Also, you never told me you called it that. How was I meant to know?"
"Um, could someone explain what Y.O.K.O. is?" Weiss spoke up, sharing what her confused team members were all thinking. Sunny grew a wide smile as she placed both hands on her hips.
"It's my giant robot."
"YOU HAVE A GIANT ROBOT?!" Ruby's voice reached a pitch that could only be heard by dogs, so it was understandable that both Blake and Crue winced in pain.
"Yep." She crossed her arms in pride. "These fake White Fang had a prototype Atlesian Paladin." She looked confused at Blake's sudden interest at the White Fang.
"Fake, White Fang, Blake." Crue said, watching the Faunus carefully. "They weren't real. This psycho therapist mindwashed them all into thinking they were working for her." He gave a slight roll of his shoulders. "She also tried to get into my mind."
"Yeah, she passed out after that and freed everyone from mind control." Russel explained. "Still don't know what her plan was. Or what the Hell you did in her head." He eyed Crue warily.
"My head, not hers." He clarified, before shrugging his shoulders. "And I told you, my mind ain't a nice place to be- Where are the girls?" He suddenly realised it was just the two of them.
"Oh, they left to go check out Y.O.K.O." Russel said casually, before stepping back as Crue began to froth. "OH HOW IS THAT A PUN?!" He complained. "IT STANDS FOR 'YOU ONLY KILL ONCE'!"
That seemed to be too much for Crue, as he froze up mid-yell, and stayed that way. Russel poked the Faunus with concern, watching as he tilted back and forth like a statue. "Huh. Maybe I should get Dr. Grey-" "SHE'S HERE TOO?!"
The sudden outburst startled Russel as the Faunus grabbed him by his torn hoodie. "Yes?!" He answered, grabbing Crue's wrists and forcing him off. "She's been here since we finished our mission. She's been working in Beacon's infirmary. How have you not seen her?"
"I haven't had to go to the infirmary." He replied. "I don't injure myself-" He paused, thinking. "I don't injure myself that badly."
"Lucky you." Russel rolled his eyes. "Me and guys end up there sometimes. Mostly from training too hard and pulling something." He explained, referring to the rest of his team. "Speaking of, Cardin apologised to Velvet."
Crue took a moment to let that sink in. He reached into his breast pocket and removed a hip flash. Russel watched as he unscrewed it open, took a gulp, and spat it out in a fine mist. "HE WHAT!? I'M GLAD! BUT HE WHAT?!"
"Yeah, it was a while ago." Russel shrugged. "Since our mission he's been trying to right all his wrongs. Or, at least the ones he can fix easily." The mention of the mission stirred something in Crue's mind.
He remembered the mission in Mentis, of course. He also remembered who he met during the mission. And what she did to him. "Salem…" He thought angrily, ignoring the migraine that suddenly struck. "Wait, are all the Huntsmen we freed from yer wan here as well?"
"From who?" Russel asked, as Crue clarified. "Oh, the mindfreaker. Yeah, I think a lot of them are here. Ozpin gave them all tickets to the festival, to make up for the fact they weren't rescued sooner, at least that's what one of them told me."
Crue let out a short laugh. "More huntsmen means more people to fight against the fall." He grew a feral grin, which gave Russel a step back. "Salem can eat her heart- OUCH!" Another lance of pain struck his head.
"You good?" Russel asked, seeing Crue wince and rub his head.
"Yeah. Just a pain in my ass."
"That's your head." Russel pointed out.
"I know what I said." The Faunus responded, glaring skyward. "It's probably just the altitude." He excused, causing Russel to shrug in acceptance. They continued to talk about random topics for a bit, before separating.
Russel went to go find his girlfriend, and Team RWBY. Crue had a different destination in mind…
…
The Emerald Forest was so quiet you could hear a pin dro- "WOLF MODE! WOLF FORM! WEREWOLF GO!" Crue was standing in the middle of the forest, shouting and posing in random ways as he grew more and more angry at his own ridiculousness.
"TURN INTO A FUCKING WOLF ALREADY!" He finally shouted, kicking a tree in his rage. All that succeeded in doing was give the Faunus more reason to swear as he hopped on one leg and clutched his foot.
"Salem could turn me into a fucking werewolf why can't I do it myself?!" He tried to concentrate, ignoring the throbbing pain in his toes. "Mac tíre!" He exclaimed. Still nothing. "Claochlú!" He grit his teeth, growling not unlike the beast he wanted to become.
"God what was it called when Cú Chulainn did it?" He scratched his head. "It was ree-ah-something or other." He brought his hands to his face as he dragged them down his cheeks. "Should've paid more attention to the scéal."
As his hands dropped from his head, they brushed against something on his chest. Crue glanced down, and felt a scowl immediately appear on his face. He grabbed his sunglasses from where they hung on his shirt.
He stared into them, making sure his eyes were his own. Steel blue eyes glared back at him. "I'm not letting you control me." He said aloud. "The only reason I'm holding onto these is in case I have to fight Emerald…"
Crue trailed off, as he suddenly had an epiphany. With a wide smile, he took off running back to Beacon. Yang had sunglasses. She could wear them in her fight with Mercury. If she fought Mercury, that was.
Crue slowed down as he thought. He hadn't been able to find out whether or not Cinder had managed to upload the virus or not, for reasons he'd rather bleach from his memory. And even if she didn't, Crue's knowledge was limited.
He didn't have a perfect memory, and he couldn't anticipate everything that could go wrong. What if Emerald used her Semblance on Yang, and it wasn't Mercury she was fighting. What if it was Penny? What if Yang's blast took off her arm, revealing her nature?
"Fuck." He cursed, stopping in place among the lush forest. He needed to make a decision and soon. He glanced upward, seeing the sun nearly beginning to set. He let out a breath that seemed to age him as he sat down on a gnarled root.
"Better the Devil you know, right?" He asked rhetorically. "Is it better the Hell I know, so I can pick up the pieces. Or do I stop that Hell, and hope things turn out better than worse." Crue brought a hand to his forehead as he cursed.
"I fought Mercury before, but I only won cause I distracted him." He stood back up, pacing around the tree. "And the stupid glasses." He paused, looking down to the glasses once more. "I fought Mercury." He repeated.
"And won." A fanged smile appeared on his face, as he ran. He had a plan.
…
"Yang!" Crue called out, finally catching the brawler. The blonde stopped halfway through a doorway that would have led her to the arena of Amity.
"Crue! There you are." She jogged over to the Faunus, who appeared to be out of breath. "I was worried you were gonna miss the semi-finals too." Her words caused the Faunus to give a short laugh.
"Wouldn't miss this for love nor money." He said, finally catching his breath and standing up straight. "I wanted to give you these." He held out his hand to Yang.
"Your glasses?" Yang asked in surprise, seeing her own lilac eyes reflected in the lense. "Why?"
"Well, they helped me fight. Thought they would help you." He suggested. "Not that you need it but, I don't know, I thought it'd give you some extra luck." Yang looked up warmly at his words.
"Thanks, bro." She said with a smile, taking the glasses and hanging them in the middle of her top. "I'll be sure to mention you in my victory speech." She gave Crue a soft dig in his left arm, the Faunus wondering for a moment why he didn't feel it.
"Oh! You should wear them if you fight Mercury." The Faunus said quickly. Yang gave a confused noise, and Crue very quickly came up with an excuse. "You know he hates me, so if he sees you wearing them, he'll be thinking of me. Could make him mess up."
Yang squinted at the Faunus. She could sense some underlying reason for his words, as well as his actions. But nothing he said seemed to be detrimental, so she let it go. "Alright. If I fight him. Maybe I'll recreate our first fight, make sure he definitely can't try anything on Polly."
The reminder, which should have had Crue cringing and crossing his legs, instead caused him to laugh. "Now that, I would love to see." He smiled, the two sharing a quick hug as Crue wished Yang luck. The blonde thanked him and disappeared to join the finalists.
The minute she was gone, Crue's smile was too, replaced with a grimace. "If you even think of controlling her to do something awful, it'll be your last mistake." He glared skyward, before making his way back to the stands.
He joined the rest of team RWBY, not too far from where Yang had departed. "Finally! I thought you were never gonna show up." Ruby exclaimed, gesturing for Crue to take the seat next to her. Blake and Weiss both looked up at his arrival.
"Why do you have your weapon?" Blake asked, raising an eyebrow as she pointed to Setanta, currently resting on Crue's back.
"Well, last time I was on Amity with my weapon I was nearly arrested. Figured I should keep it with me just in case." He gave a small chuckle, removing it from the magnetic plate on his back so he could sit comfortably.
His eyes scanned the stadium, trying to find Emerald. She was the one who would cause every problem. Cinder would be nothing without her. A small part of his mind whispered that he should get rid of the illusionist.
Permanently.
He shook the thought away, as Port's voice echoed through the stadium. "AND NOW FOR THE MOMENT YOU'VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR! THE ONE-ON-ONE FINALS!" Crue looked to the arena, where eight contestants stood in a row.
Yang, Sun, Penny, Pyrrha plus three others Crue didn't recognise. "And Mercury…" He raged internally. The boy looked as cocky as ever, and Crue wanted nothing more than to rip his smile from his face.
Maybe he could use his Semblance on him, the Faunus thought. He tried it for a moment, activating it and focusing on Mercury. He smirked as the boy stumbled, looking down confusedly. He dropped his Semblance so that the assassin wouldn't suspect anything.
Crue took a moment to relax. He had a way to mess with Mercury during his fight with Yang, if it even happened. "Now! Let's see who our first match will be!" Oobleck announced, and the moment was gone.
Crue sat upright, both hands on his hurley as his foot rapidly tapped the ground as he watched the randomisation process begin. The wheel spun, as Crue held his breath. Blonde hair showed up in the first frame, and Crue's eyes widened.
"Sun Wukong of Haven!" Port announced, as Crue's entire body slackened as he practically became a puddle in his chair, eyes closing in relief. The Virus wasn't there. Yang wasn't going to fight Mercury. She'd be safe. "Versus… What's this?!"
Steel blue eyes shot open to see the selected fighter. Steel blue eyes stared back.
"Crue Cullen of Beacon!"
You know, for the life of me I still can't figure out why Crue thinks I can control him with those glasses. If I could, this story would have gone much differently. But, his mind works differently to most on Remnant, seeing as he isn't from here.
A few reminders of previous experiences with Crue, and why he should be very careful what he wishes for. He didn't want Yang and Mercury to have the first fight, and now he's gotten his wish. He really should learn that his actions have consequences. Maybe that's too much to ask of someone as stubborn as him. They guy makes Adam Taurus look reasonable.
Not a lot to talk about here, but finally we're going to see some action next chapter! A fight between Sun and Crue that doesn't involve the Monkey sneaking up and choking him by accident.
I wonder who'll win?
Until Next Time
-Friday, The author