Crimson XXIV: Desire
'...It's a win... That was sloppy as all hell... I made a complete fool of myself out there... but it's still a win... against him of all people.'
Ragna put up the best front that he could to hold his arm steady, the point of the Aramasa under Cardin's chin. The front did little for his image as the students around him had seen the mock fight, seen the countless mistakes and slipups he'd made to completely embarrass himself. Drenched with sweat, he kept his eyes on Cardin who despite his loss was looking smugly at the solid hit he'd scored on the Reaper's ribcage.
"You can put your sword away, Mr. Bloodedge. You've won this match." Even Goodwitch sounded disappointed in him. Ragna almost wished she'd angrily lay into him like she normally would, but here she had no words for him. He complied and placed his sword back upon his belt before picking his sword rifle off the ground from when Cardin had knocked it out of his hand. "This will conclude today's matches. I hope that everyone will head my words and read the chapters I've outlined for your project. If you don't, it's only yourself that you'll be failing."
"Not looking too hot out there," Cardin told his rival with a shit-eating smirk. "In fact, I'd say you're about ready to collapse."
"And you still got your ass kicked, so what the hell's your point?" Ragna growled, but it was hard for him to seem intimidating when Cardin of all people had his number. As people piled out of the battle room they all gave him differing glances as they passed him by, some of pity and others of immense satisfaction. He did his best to stay standing, but it was pretty clear that he was still breathless from the bout. Even still, he was so focused on keeping his own stupid charade up that he hadn't noticed someone approaching him until he felt a hand tap his shoulder. "Weiss..."
"What happened to you out there? It's like you were moving in slow motion, and all of your movements were completely off too." Weiss had never been one to shirk her commentary, even (especially) when it came to Ragna. He didn't offer any rebuttal, instead electing to stay silent. "And you've been struggling a lot lately in your matches. What's going on that's so-?"
"I gotta go." Ragna didn't say anything after his interruption, instead walking out as fast as he could on the stunned Weiss. Balling her hands into shaking fists, she was starting to lose her already short temper with the man.
"He left in a hurry. What on Remnant did you say to him?"
And just like that her ire was approaching its peak. If Ragna's current attitude was frustrating, then it's cause beside her was downright agonizing. As usual Cinder had her pleasant smile on her face to convey just how gosh darn friendly she was with everyone. Weiss could see a farce like this a mile away, one of the few things she was glad she'd learned from spending time around her father.
"...Just some friendly words of encouragement," the Schnee heiress finally responded, doing her best to keep her smile up in front of this... person. "He just seems a little tankered out right now. But why wouldn't he be? He's been helping you out quite a lot."
"It's for his benefit too; at this rate we'll be done with our project far before anyone else," Cinder said happily. "Besides, we work just so well together. We just seem to... click."
'Well I'm about to give your face a couple of cracks," Weiss thought irately. "Well I guess I can accept that, after all this will leave him with plenty of time to get his own affairs in order."
"Worried about him are we?" Cinder said teasingly.
"Of course, as his close friend," she retorted.
"I'm sure, well you can be sure that Ragna can have plenty of time to work on his own once we're finally done... but that doesn't mean we can't visit outside of our project meetings."
'You'd have to kidnap him to do that... oh Maidens, that's exactly what she's been doing with her own projects.' "Just make sure that you're giving him the time he needs to rest; he looks terrible now."
"Really? Well I guess you're entitled to your own opinion; whenever I see Ragna every inch of him looks great."
Though Weiss had been sure that the Mock Battle room had been cleared out before she and Cinder had started their little scuffle, she still had to check around her to ensure that the two were truly alone. It might've been only the two of them, but she couldn't help but be taken aback at Cinder's wording.
"...And just what do you mean by that?" she demanded with a look stern enough to compare to Goodwitch. "Have you been making untoward advances at him? And is that why he's been so... so..."
"So what? You seem to have plenty of ill to speak of him; meanwhile I've done nothing but offer him words of praise and I'm getting scrutinized for some reason." Cinder shook her head while Weiss was on her last nerve. "I just care about what's best for Ragna, what am I going to have to do to prove that?"
"Well..." Weiss tried to at least appear diplomatic. "Maybe you could let him have some time off tomorrow evening? I have a little something I need Ragna for."
"Sure, when have I ever gotten in the way whenever someone from your team has needed him?" the antagonist questioned rhetorically, mostly to stress the fact that Weiss wasn't the first to do this. "If you don't mind telling me, what is it that you need him for?"
"I'm afraid that's for him and me... of course you can ask Ragna afterwards; if he's willing to tell you." Weiss wasn't backing down here; even with her less than confident footing, she could hold her ground as well as any soldier.
"...Fine then, but if you're accusing me of keeping him too busy you'd seem like quite a hypocrite if you did the exact same thing."
"I'll keep that in mind, have a pleasant weekend."
'She's sharp, much sharper than her ditz of a partner,' Cinder thought to herself. 'I have to be careful with her, it sounds like she might already have my number. Luckily I'm already prepared for something like this with a few key red hearings. She can't stop what comes next, none of them can.'
Later -Team JACK's Room-
"Out of the question," Jin said with a stern glare. "I'm not getting involved with this petty scuffle of yours."
"You have to be kidding me! It's obvious that she's causing your brother trouble! I don't know what she's doing to him, but he's suffering because of her!" Weiss shouted. "Surely with all of your stalking you've-!"
"Let me stop you right there before you make an even bigger fool of yourself. First off, I was being overbearing, not stalking."
"I don't believe you."
"Hmph. Second, I've given my brother much more space lately both for his benefit and because I'm currently dealing with the headache that your father is putting on us... not that I'm blaming you, just putting things in perspective."
"That's right," Weiss groaned as she gripped her forehead. "With everything else I'd almost forgotten about that. Any progress?"
"None; thanks to all of the work that projects are forcing on us we yet to find the time to come up with a clear and decisive stratagem," Jin explained. "But back to your own romantic issues for the moment." A slight pause. "You're not denying it."
"I'm humoring you. Continue."
"...Third, is my brother really the type to remain silent or not take action when something's bothering him? When he first saw Cardin bothering a Faunus he put him in the ceiling and since then has caused his fair share of property damage. If Cinder really was the root cause of all of this, I think he would've sent her to the infirmary by now."
"That's fair, unfortunately," Weiss said, before turning stern. "Then what is the cause here? What could be leaving him so weakened?"
"I haven't a single idea and Ragna himself wasn't any more willing to elaborate." Jin sighed. "I'm worried about him too honestly, but it's hard to offer help to someone that doesn't want it... I can tell you from personal experience."
"And your brother's hardheaded enough to where he'll just try to power through this on his own," Weiss agreed. "So what are you going to do?"
"Simple, I'm going to leave this to one of the few people he's been willing to listen to."
"So in other words you're counting on me," she decided, feeling a bit odd at the fact that Jin was relying on her for help. "Well if that's the case maybe you could offer me a little extra help. Tell me a few of Ragna's likes, let me surprise him with something-"
"Let me be frank; it's not you or your connection with Ragna that I care about," Jin interrupted sternly. "All I care about is my brother's happiness and... helping him to let go of his past. As long as that's achieved, I don't give a damn who does it."
'Right, Ragna's past is something he's only let on for a few small details. He hasn't told us the bigger picture yet," Weiss thought. "Fine then. I'll play along because Ragna's my friend, besides I already have an idea to help bring him out of his current state. I just wanted to know if you had something to offer, guess not."
"Then we don't have anything else to discuss," her project partner told her off. Getting the less than subtle hint, she headed to the door to finally end this conversation. "Actually..."
"What now?" she demanded irately.
"As I said, I don't care who helps Ragna achieve his happiness," he reminded, his tone quite dark. "And if it's how the cards fall... I'd also leave it to Cinder and have you step out."
"...LIKE. HELL."
With that firmly declared, Weiss roughly opened the room's door and brushed past the arriving Amane without so much as a glance in her rage as she stormed down the dorm hallway.
"May I inquire what that was about?" the dancer asked playfully.
"For the daughter of a business mogul it isn't difficult to determine where her heart sways, even if she continues to deny it."
"Oh? Then can we say that you just gave her a helping ultimatum?"
"You can say what you want, it doesn't matter to me."
"Of course not."
Out in the hallway, Weiss was still far from calming down. All of the students in the hallways cleared out from the woman's path, as they knew messing with her would mean trouble. Not only did the Schnee heiress feel that Cinder in all of her scheming ways was trying to steal Ragna for herself (as her friend of course), but now even Jin who was supposed to be on her side was treating her as nothing more than a means to his own ends. Worse still, it wouldn't be a problem for him if someone else filled the role that he'd been using her for; she was just a castaway.
'...Maybe... I should stop this...' she thought to herself, her rage starting to wane as her reasoning started to break through. 'I'm not even sure if Ragna and I are... right. It's not like he doesn't have others who can make him happy. I should probably just focus on what my father is trying and let the rest of my team-'
"Man, can you believe how pathetic that wimp was looking today? What a joke."
Weiss froze. She recognized the two she was passing, a male and female pair of third year students. These two had been known for giving Ragna trouble in the past, so it was obvious that they were talking about him. She realized they were both viewing a screen recording of his earlier fight with Cardin and were laughing as he was floundering for most of it.
"Looks like the whole dark and scary Grimm Reaper bit was just a front, now I'm surprised he can even hold that oversized sword he's got! Probably only used that thing to compensate anyways!"
Weiss's eyebrows twitched at the (unoriginal and overused) insult. She decided maybe it would at least help Ragna's if she reminded that he had put them both through several of the Academy walls.
"Gotta wonder how he managed to put up a front like that in the first place. I mean he could put someone through a wall easy enough and without a semblance. What do you think hit him?"
"Isn't it obvious? That kind of power was never his to begin with. He had to be doping like hell to reach those levels."
'Doping... She thinks Ragna's been taking drugs this whole time?'
"And he's finally run out, so he's coming down now that his supply's gone! Of course!" her partner confirmed with a laugh. "Like some backwater idiot could ever get that tough on their own! And after taking all of those drugs, his dick's probably shriveled up like a-!"
CRASH!
Weiss didn't realize what she'd done until it was too late and even then her actions didn't leave her with any regrets. Utilizing her semblance, she had created a powerful glyph beneath the two badmouthing the Reaper. They could only let out surprised yelps before the force threw them both viciously across the hall where they slammed into the opposing wall hard enough to leave deep, body shaped indents. Every pair of eyes in the vicinity watched as the two crumpled to the ground and lost consciousness before turning their collective gaze to the Schnee heiress. Giving a dignified glare at the crowd, Weiss wordlessly made her way past the equally speechless masses... now with strengthened resolve to push forward.
'I'm not going to listen anymore... Not for what Jin's trying to use me for in his plans... Not what my father's trying to gain for his own profits by marrying me off... and especially not to another word of what that witch is telling me!'
"He's mine... and that's final."
The Next Morning -Breakfast-
"Weiss, I'd make a joke about cold shoulders..."
"Yang, please."
"I'm just trying to let her know how worried I am, sis."
"We all are, Weiss," Blake said. "You're acting a lot like I did back when I couldn't open up to my own team. You haven't said a word to anyone all day and it looks like you're constantly scouting out the whole cafeteria with your eyes."
"...I'm just waiting for someone," she said reservedly before taking a meager bite out of her toast. "Also, I should let you know that I won't be able to join you for our project work tonight... I have plans."
"Okay, we can work around that," Ruby said (knowing that it was her job as a leader to arrange such things). "What are you doing then?"
"Something that I've been neglecting for quite some time." Weiss was more tight lipped than she usually was, so the rest of her team decided to leave her well enough alone... for the time being.
"Anyways, that camping trip is coming up soon, right?" Yang mentioned, trying to change the atmosphere at their table. "That's probably going to be a blast!"
"Yup! Super looking forward to it!" Ruby said with only half forced excitement. "You managed to get everyone on board to go like you promised Ragna, right?"
"Didn't really have to; the event ended up being so popular that the staff just decided 'screw it' and made the camping trip mandatory for staff and students alike. They're going to have the regular security programs going once we leave, but I hear even Goodwitch and Ozpin are attending."
"Seriously? That sounds awesome!" Ruby said with excitement. "If the event's this big-!"
'It'll also mean that Cinder's going to be there too,' Weiss thought irately, hardly even listening to the rest of her conversation. Taking her upteenth glance to the entrance, her eyes finally landed on her target in question. "Excuse me."
"Huh?" Ruby asked as her partner rose from the team table and headed off to speak to the entering Ragna. "Oh... what did she need to talk to Ragna about?"
"...I can make a couple of guesses, but for now I think we'll just have to wait and see," Yang decided, though she seemed oddly reserved.
'If she just needed to talk to him, then why was she looking so stern all morning?' Blake considered. 'Normally she smiles or acts only mildly annoyed when it comes to discussing Ragna, but now... just what on Remnant is going on with her?'
Over with Weiss, she'd managed to get Ragna's attention and stop him near the entrance to talk.
"Have a moment... for me?" she asked him.
"I guess, but what's with that stern tone you've got?" the Reaper asked. "...Also that glare, kinda feels like I'm being put on trial."
"Oh, sorry..." Weiss said as she finally started to drop her defenses. "Just... a stressful night studying." A lie, but if Ragna saw through it he didn't let on.
"Tell me about it, that camping trip can't come soon enough," he said with a sigh. He wasn't just complaining now. Weiss could see dark spots under his eyes, his hair looked even further ragged, and his skin looked unhealthily pale... close to hers though.
"...Ruby and the others really sounded excited about it though," she said, mustering up a smile for her dear friend. "I'm looking forward to it as well."
"Really? Didn't seem that way at first," Ragna mentioned. "Back when Yang first brought it up, it definitely sounded like you were the most against it out of everyone."
"Opinions can change, mine certainly have these past few weeks." ...The Reaper wasn't sure what she was implying with that. "I was hoping to ask you, do you have-?"
"Miss Schnee."
With an interruption at such a critical time for her questions, Weiss was just about to explode with the harshest words she could use... only to find it was Professor Goodwitch that had addressed her. With the teacher's scowl and crossed arms, Weiss knew what the teacher was here for... and her plans were in Jeopardy. (A/N Rest in Peace Alex Trebeck, Rest in Peace)
"Catch up later?" Ragna offered with a bit of pity.
"Y-yeah, let's do that," she agreed. Watching Ragna walk away would have been painful enough, but seeing Cinder grab him and guide him to sit with the rest of her team was twisting the knife.
"I'll be quick and blunt," Goodwitch promised. "It's been brought to my attention that you had an incident in the hallways yesterday. The damage caused is proof enough of that. Anything you have to say in your defence?"
"...Nothing." Weiss didn't even bother protesting. She knew this teacher's mind was near impossible to change when it came to doling out punishment. Goodwitch admittedly showed a brief flash of surprise, but regained her demeanor quickly enough.
"...In that case, head straight to the mock battle rooms. You'll start there and continue your cleaning for the rest of the day." It was about the level of punishment that she could expect. "At the very least you won't be doing it alone, Jin Kisaragi had already been assigned to cleaning duty today. He'll be there to give you help and instruction."
Weiss kept her own composure quite well given the circumstances. This was an obvious setback and worse, a coincidental(?) point in her father's favor. But it was nothing more, she'd still have her chance by the end of the day.
Later
'At this point I gotta wonder if my damn arm is magnetic,' Ragna thought to himself as he made his way down the hallway with Cinder attached as per usual. He heard the occasional whisper of gossip coming from around them, most of them about his most recent performance while others were talking about his apparent connection to Cinder. "...I've been meaning to ask about that arm hold you've got there."
"You don't like it?" she asked him sweetly, that way that had used to make his skin crawl, but now... maybe he was just numb to it.
"I'm not saying that, just that maybe you don't have to hold me like that every time."
"Have to? You say that like I'm forcing myself to do this," she informed (underlying some of her true feelings).
"Still... Can ya let go? Please?" Most of the time Ragna could have ripped his arm away from her or had her back off from the start. But with Cinder, at the start something had made him so anxious that he could barely form the words to ask her to give him space and now he was in such bad shape it was getting harder for him to care. Luckily for him, she honored his wish and let go of his arm. She also did her best to add a cute pout to show she was disappointed, something he was already used to dealing with. "At least we're almost in the-"
"Brother."
Ragna paused, as did Cinder beside him. Turning to face his younger sibling, Ragna saw that Jin was scowling at him for some reason. Knowing how their conversation could go, he quickly put up his own front with a dark glare.
"What do you want?" he roughly demanded.
"Don't act so hostile, I just needed a favor from you," Jin said ominously. "I just happened to pass by the cleaning schedule and saw that while I was working today, your next assignment is on Wednesday. I was hoping to switch so I could work on my group project today."
"You need to trade shifts?" Ragna summarized. 'Thinking back, I remember that Jin and I would always get in trouble for trying to pawn our chores off on each other... pretty sure I almost lost dessert for a week because I tried to get him to mop the floors.' Dropping his guard enough to smirk at the memory, a small chuckle escape from his lips. "This isn't payback, is it?"
"No..." Now it was Jin's turn to smirk. "But if recollection serves, you were the bigger offender."
"I was and I ain't apologizing," the Reaper joked... only to notice the small glare that Cinder had directed at his brother. Deciding another break from their time together wasn't exactly a bad thing and knowing he should probably step up as the big brother here, Ragna answered before she had a chance to interject. "You owe me one... but fine. I'll do your literal dirty work for today."
"Save the jokes; somehow your puns are becoming worse than Yang's," Jin told him bitterly as he headed into the library. "I didn't think that was possible."
"Everybody's such a damn critic these days," Ragna groaned before turning his attention back to Cinder who didn't seem too pleased with him. "We've already put more than enough time into our project and we've still got plenty of breathing room. Just give me today to help him out and we can pick this up during the week... which you were probably going to grab me for anyways."
"True enough, but alright," Cinder said before flicking the taller man on his nose. "You can change our schedule around this much, after all fair's fair for all the times I've needed to grab you with my work schedule."
"Glad you see it my way," Ragna agreed seriously, seeming to ignore Cinder's advances. "See ya around."
...What Ragna didn't see was that once Cinder got inside the library her smiling facade seemed to instantly fade to annoyance. Passing by Team JACK's table, she gave Jin a scathing glare out of the corner of her eye which the blonde didn't back down from.
"Funny, and here you kept telling me that you weren't pulling for Weiss," Kagura amusedly commentated from next to his teammate.
"I'm not in the slightest; the less she's seen with me the better for breaking her father's plans."
"True, true... but that didn't mean you needed to set her up with your brother today," the Black Gale reminded.
"I didn't, but he was the best choice. My brother happens to be very dependable," Jin insisted. '...Even if he could never consider himself as such.'
Later -Mock Battle Rooms-
"...Hey again?"
Ragna was repeating himself here; ever since he'd walked into the room, seen Weiss cleaning, and given her his greeting she'd been staring at him like a deer stuck in the headlights. It couldn't be seeing him in an apron and headscarf, she'd already seen him in this attire plenty of times for punishment during the first quarter. She was actually wearing both cleaning accessories herself, leading Ragna to smirk snarkily. "Not sure that a noble would want to hear this, but those look pretty good on you."
Weiss's face showed small signs of blushing as she finally snapped out of it. "I thought I was supposed to be working with your brother."
"You're disappointed? And here I thought that you'd be glad to get a break from his shit for a few hours. You both must've gotten much closer than I thought."
"Th-that isn't even close to the case! A-And I never want to hear you say anything like that again!" Weiss yelled with a still blushing face. Ragna just laughed... almost seeming to break out of his fatigue momentarily. "Seriously though, Goodwitch told me that I was supposed to be working with Jin today as punishment."
"Jin just asked me to switch days, and as the ideal older sibling that everyone should have I was only too happy to lend a hand," Ragna said sarcastically (okay, half sarcastically). "But... punishment? That's a new one coming from you, what happened?"
"It's..." Weiss considered not telling Ragna, only to figure he should know what was being said about him. "I lost my temper on some fellow students when I overheard them exchanging nasty rumors about you. Now they're saying that the only reason you were so strong during the first quarter was because of some drug you were taking."
"That's what they're going with now? Last month they were saying that my clothes and weaponry was some sort of combat test equipment that I got through my brother's family. The petty ones will always find some damn excuse to reason why they can't measure up to me; this ain't nothing new." Ragna then shook his head. "And I seriously wish you hadn't bothered; look at where it got you."
'So this isn't anything new for him after all.' "If I recall correctly, last quarter you overheard some students saying that I was just some brat using her father's money and would never make it as a Huntress. You then punched them both so hard that they didn't wake up for a full twelve hours. Goodwitch found out and gave you cleaning duties for the whole weekend. If anything, I was simply returning the favor."
"If you want to put it that way, go ahead," Ragna reluctantly agreed before his smirk returned. "So, overreacted eh? What'd you end up doing to 'em?"'
"I sent them into a wall, I embedded those two deep enough," the Schnee heir admitted, a little proud. "Though unlike you, I had to use my semblance to do it."
"Seriously?" He went for a casual smirk returned to another full on laugh, something Weiss was realizing just how much she'd missed. "Looks like I'm rubbing off on you after all, Snow White."
"Can you stop calling me that?" she asked, though knowing how stubborn Ragna could be. "Besides, you need to start working too. If Goodwitch comes in here and finds us loafing around she'll assign tomorrow's cleaning to us as punishment."
"I'm not even supposed to be here really, but whatever you say Empress." Ragna then took a look around what Weiss had already done. "Nice job vacuuming, but there's a lot more we still have to get through. We'll also need to mop the place and considering what week it is we'll also be waxing the floors. At least it doesn't look kike we have to buffer out any scratches or-"
"What did you call me?" Weiss interrupted. She was oddly rigid as she was talking, Ragna didn't think she'd blinked for at least a minute. "That nickname you just used. What was it?"
"Empress. Just sorta figured it fit you, regal woman and all that," he explained, wondering what she took issue with for this new name. "No good? Guess I can try to find something else that'll-"
"It's fine," Weiss insisted, interrupting him yet again. Now Ragna could tell she was blushing. "I mean I'd still rather you call me by my proper name... but I guess I don't mind this one as much as the others."
"Heh, guess your wish is my command then," Ragna joked before turning his attention back to the room. "But I don't know how regal you're going to look cleaning this place. Not like I'll be much better, but still."
"Not to worry, I won't be judging you today," she assured him as she headed over to a bucket filled with water and began mixing their cleaning solution. "But speaking of that, I have to ask... did I ever get on your nerves? Judging you I mean?"
"I mean I mouthed off to you a couple of times, that should tell you something," the Reaper reminded as he cleared the floor making it easier for the two to begin their cleaning. "Don't feel bad about it though, there's a difference between you doing and the regular assholes around campus."
"They're doing it because they want to put you down; I'm doing it because I know you can be better."
'...Better huh? She wouldn't say that if she knew-' He put the thoughts out of mind. "I was going to say it's because you're my friend... but thanks."
"Now who's blushing?" she said a bit smuggly herself. "Enjoy the compliments from me while you can, you're not going to be getting them from most of the students or staff here."
"I get them from who it counts," Ragna answered quickly...
...too quickly.
'Shit! I didn't mean to-!' He wasn't able to come up with anything snarky to add in time.
"...Glad to know how important I rate then," Weiss finally answered with a gentler smile. "But you're not going to be able to sweet talk your way out of working today."
'...Deal with it.' "Yeah, figured I'd try it at least. I mean Yang's able to do it to me, so I figured I might be able to switch it around." He then gave a laugh to end his statement... a pathetic one.
"You're not going to have much luck emulating her," Weiss told him with honesty. "Maybe with your own poor jokes, but that's about it."
'...Again with my sense of humor? Don't tell me she's a critic too... Actually, knowing Weiss it should be more surprising if that isn't the case.'
Later
'Dang, did this stupid work really leave me this winded? This is getting worse by the day. If I was ever like this when I was out traveling the wastelands with my master, this would've gotten me killed a dozen times over! But at least out there I'd still be able to fix this problem.' Ragna shook his head. 'Just try again tonight... you're just about done here with Weiss. If I keep up this front, it'll keep her from worrying at least.'
"Done with the boys bathroom?" she asked, mopping down the last bit of the dorm room hallways. Despite coming from a noble household, Weiss had shown that she was both competent and willing enough to perform the menial labor. She'd been assigned the job a few rare times during the last quarter so she already had some experience in what to expect, though Ragna had clearly done this a multitude of times more than her. "You were working there for quite a while. Was it really that bad?"
"Probably worse off than yours, but I don't think it's just the 'boys are sloppier than girls' stereotype here," he explained. "Most of the students seem to have some sort of alliance against me; whenever they find out that I'm assigned to cleaning duties they try to make the areas I'll be working on as filthy as possible." Ragna shook his head. "At least this time wasn't that bad, they probably didn't find out I was working here until a bit ago and it's also good I wasn't assigned to clean the cafeteria... that's when the real petty shit starts."
"Sounds... rough," Weiss said sadly as she continued to finish her mopping. "Doesn't Goodwitch do anything about this?"
"Only when she catches them in the act," Ragna admitted, before giving a bittersweet smirk. 'Once or twice though, it managed to get me out of the work that had been assigned as punishment. She caught onto what they were doing and made them take over all of my duties for the day. I'm not saying that she and I always see eye to eye... but she's at least got a bizarre sense of fairness somewhere in there."
"But if she's at least realized what they're doing, then why don't you let her know when they try this again? It could save you a lot of stress in the future."
"One, because I don't know who's actually doing this most of the time. I mean plenty of ideas of who could be doing it, but I'm at the top of too many shit lists to keep track of. Second, if I tried it too much then Goodwhich could see it as me trying to get out of cleaning duty. No doubt I'd give up what little points I'm already losing from her. Third reason is..." Ragna seemed to pause as he started taking off his cleaning gloves (which of course were already on top of his regular gloves). "...Chalk it up to my ego."
"You have an ego?" Weiss retorted with a bit of a smirk. Ragna returned it with a wolfish grin of his own. "But what do you mean exactly? You're trying to show them that it isn't bothering you?"
"That. Also my old master said I always complained and ran my mouth when the going got tough. Guess some of his teachings are still hammered into me." Ragna gave a tired sigh. "At least clean up duty isn't nearly as bad as the crap he put me through during my training. Those are some real horror stories for you."
"I'll take your word for it, since you hardly ever seem to be in the mood to delve any further into your past," his friend pointed out, trying to make a point to how unforthcoming he still was about his own life. "But speaking of training, that reminds me of something. You've been skipping out of practicing, which might help explain why you look like you're struggling."
"Weiss, I've still been practicing. Not as much since it's hard to find time around my projects, but I'm still swinging my blade around in the style my master taught me whenever I get the chance. The only reason you haven't seen me is because Ruby always has to watch me when I do it, so I have to practice in secret to actually focus at all."
"Those are... good reasons," Weiss admitted... though she was starting to scare Ragna a little with how seriously she was looking at him. "But that's not the practice I'm talking about. I'm referring to our other lessons. When was our last dancing session again?"
"Last quarter before Grimm's Day I think," Ragna admitted. "Not sure how you think it's going to help me fight; my style isn't exactly like going dancing for the night."
"Maybe not, but I doubt the extra work on your balance or movement wouldn't help you right now," she insisted before giving a victorious smile. "Mock battle room. 20 minutes. That should give us both enough time to freshen up beforehand. I don't want to smell you like you are now."
"...The implication that you're normally smelling me when I haven't just scrubbed down a bathroom?" Ragna had to tilt his head to the side in order to dodge the filthy sponge Weiss just threw at him. "Right right, I'll clean myself up."
"And lose the attitude!" she screamed at him in enraged embarrassment.
"Your wish is my command, Empress," Ragna retorted snarkily as he walked down the hallway. 'I forgot how much fun it is to tease her like this... not that she doesn't try to get her own licks in.'
Heading down a bit further in the empty hallways, he paused as he was about to round the corner. Hearing two familiar voices, he figured he'd stop and listen.
"Thanks so much for helping me today Tsubaki-sama. We managed to get so much done today!" Ragna couldn't completely recognize the voice, but the tone somehow reminded him of Cinder's.
"It's not a problem Venus, that was your project we were working on as well." While Tsubaki was talking in her regular polite and elegant way, Ragna could tell that there was an underlying exhaustion to go with it. He had a sinking suspicion that it wasn't just from all of the Random project work. "But I'm glad we managed to get so much done, it looks like we'll be nearing the end of our work soon enough."
"And just in time to enjoy a nice camping trip as a vacation," her classmate added. "I've spent every minute that we haven't been working on projects to get ready for the break. I've gotten things for s'mores, several books to read while we're there, card games... so much more!"
"You... certainly sound like you're prepared for your vacation," Tsubaki noted, taken aback at how eager Venus was for the event. "I'm sure you and the rest of your team are going to have an amazing time out."
"We will! We will!" Venus agreed only too readily. "Won't you join us Tsubaki-sama? My entire team would love to see you~!" Being as antisocial as he was, Ragna didn't know how much water her statement held. "I mean, it's not like you'd be spending much time with that team leader of yours."
'Not usually, but this is a good chance to patch things up between everyone... as much as I can manage with Cinder depending on how Cinder tries to get involved.'
"...I'm sorry Venus, but what happens between him and I is our business," Tsubaki said with a bit of a sterner tone. "Besides, I'm hoping that we'll be able to use this camping trip to set our differences aside and act like actual partners."
"But Tsubaki-sama-"
"If you or the rest of your team wishes to join me and my friends then they are more than welcome. I'll see you Monday like we'd planned, but you'll have to excuse me for now."
"S-See you then, Tsubaki-sama."
"And Venus? I keep telling you, you can drop the honorifics. Just Tsubaki is fine."
There wasn't a reply from her assignment party as Ragna heard her walk down the hall in the opposite direction.
"...I never knew you were the type to eavesdrop."
"Wall needed cleaning too; I just happened to be here." An obvious lie. Ragna then gave her a smirk. "The woes of popularity, eh?"
"Just with her. But you seem to have the exact opposite problem," Tsubaki noted as she got a good look at Ragna in his cleaning attire. "Punishment?"
"Hardly, Jin just asked that we traded shifts," the Reaper explained for a second time. "Weiss, though... she ended in trouble."
"So you were working with Weiss today. Good."
"Good?" Ragna asked with an eyebrow raised. "I just said that she was in hot water."
"I... I just mean that it was good that you spent time with one of your better friends. You could use a break with Cinder dragging you off each and every day." Obviously, she'd yet to let him into the chaos that was still going on between her, Weiss, and Jin. Trying to keep her cover, she changed the subject to Venus. "She's been like this the entire quarter. Always giving me heaps of praise for the tiniest contributions to our work. If that was all I wouldn't have minded; she's a great help herself and is always eager to get down to work."
"So what's the problem?"
"She's... not exactly a big fan of yours. More than once she's made an off-handed remark about you. Also whenever I just happen to mention you, her face scrunches up like she's fighting a deathly rage."
"So?" Ragna's face was pure deadpan and nothing more.
"I know you're not the type to care about things like this, but I'm bothered by it at least." Tsubaki's answer was rewarded by light chuckling from her partner. "What's so funny?"
"Just realizing I'm actually pretty lucky to have you as a partner after all."
"Ragna, I went way too overboard when we both met," she reminded him. "I outright attacked you when I found out you were going to be my partner."
"Water under the bridge. Besides, we talked about this at the end of last quarter, didn't we? You're putting your best foot forward to try to make up so quit worrying about it. What's done is done, end of story."
"...I don't understand how you're able to not hold a grudge for this," she sighed.
"Why do you think I end up plowing most people through walls; every action has an equal and opposite reaction and all that crap. I like to settle things quick." 'Course there's one grudge I ain't gonna let go of...' "Anyways I gotta get going."
"Back to studying with Cinder?" Tsubaki guessed.
"No, for once. Weiss said that she wanted me for dance lessons so I gotta clean myself up first."
"Oh, dancing... sounds nice," Tsubaki said with a warm smile like she meant it. "...I have a bottle of really good shampoo near my nightstand. Try it out and let me know what you think." Ragna gave her an odd look. "From what I'm smelling now, you can use all the help you can get."
"...Thanks then."
Later -The Mock Battle Room Again-
'Why does he smell like lavender?' Weiss had to think to herself as Ragna made his way into the mock battle room. It was far from a bad smell and it was certainly miles better than the aroma he'd had after cleaning, but he still never struck her as the type to try cologne. That wasn't the only thing different about him. "You don't usually wear tank tops."
"I don't. Usually I only have this on because it's under something else," he explained. In addition to his blood red tank top, he also had a pair of baggy black sweatpants with the kanji for Beast spelled out in contrasting white. "Noel was doing laundry so... this is all that was left afterwards."
"I see." Weiss had her eyes focused on Ragna's toned arms, mostly on his right one. While Ragna appeared fine now, Weiss knew from his earlier explanation that keeping his arm in this human state required focus and effort. Keeping this in mind, she headed for the entrance to the room and did the lock. "There, now you don't have to worry about hiding it."
"You should probably unlock it, we'd be in deep shit if Goodwitch found out that we were hiding in here when the door's locked. Probably wouldn't look good for you either," Ragna tried to reason.
"We'll be fine; just let the Empress worry about this one," Weiss argued back, quite liking her new nickname. Giving a sigh, Ragna dropped his guard and exposed the true form of his arm to her. Weiss didn't even flinch, but Ragna himself still looked uncomfortable. "...You're not the only one self conscious of what they look like."
"Who said I was? I just can't stand the history behind this thing," the Reaper admitted. "But you're self conscious right now? Why?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Weiss answered with a blush as she wasn't able to face Ragna directly. "...Look at what I'm wearing."
Much like Ragna had just admitted, Weiss herself was probably lacking on clothing options at the moment. Usually when the two danced Weiss would either wear her normal outfit or a similar dress that would be easy for her to move in. Now she was wearing a light grey short skirt and a white and frilly sleeveless blouse with silver buttons.
"You've lost me," Ragna noted despite his friend's fidgeting. "What's got you so uncomfortable?"
"I'm... not used to showing off nearly this much skin," she admitted. She thought about stopping there, but... realized if she was serious it was time to let Ragna in on how she truly felt. "Also... I don't think I can pull it off nearly as well as... as someone like Yang c-"
"Stop it."
"Huh?"
"I don't give a damn about shit like that. And if anyone really did, why the hell should you care?" Ragna's tone was dark and stern. "You're prouder than that, sure as hell better than it too. You wanna be my Empress? Act like it."
"...Yeah, you're right," Weiss said, shooting him another smile. "But... your empress? That's pretty forward of you."
"I just don't think anyone else is going to stop calling you Ice Queen or Snow White, name might be exclusive to me," he explained, his expression oddly neutral. "If you wanted to just talk I'd be fine with it, but didn't you want me here for dancing?"
"Right, but I enjoy our little talks too… and I'm sure you enjoy them more when I'm not lecturing you," she said with a rare joke.
"If anything I was the one with a lecture today, but I guess you're alright with it at least. What are we starting with today?"
"Given the time I think that we could both use a refresher," his friend explained as she set her scroll down nearby and classical music began to play. "You're familiar with the steps for a waltz?"
"Go ahead and lead, I'll just have to do my best to catch up with you," Ragna assured as he took Weiss's left hand in his left gloved one and placed his hand on her waist. "Ready?"
"...Ready," Weiss finally said as she started guiding Ragna's actions. 'Funny, even if his hand's changed completely it still feels familiar and... warm.'
Thinking back a while, she remembered when they'd started these little lessons to get Ragna ready for the Grimm's Day dance. He hadn't been a horrible dancer exactly, but it was quite clear that he'd never been given any instruction or the opportunity to learn. Not like her at all. She was a daughter of the Schnee family. Dancing and especially singing were an important part of her identity. They may have been put on her by her father, but she was strong enough to make them hers strong enough to escape the shadow he'd cast over her and still cast over...
Flashback
'Why do I keep coming back here?' Weiss thought to herself as she continued to stare down the terminal like she had been for the better part of a minute. It was almost like a part of the ritual. She'd try to call her family residence and as always Klein would answer. She would exchange some pleasantries with her butler (more often than not the highlight of her calls), but she would then talk to her family. Whitley if he wasn't somehow busy with something, her father if he wasn't busy with actual business, possibly Winter if she was actually visiting home for a rare change. Any of them were possible, but she also hoped against reason that she might also speak to...
"Here we go again," she said, trying to keep herself from backing out. Putting in the information, she dialed in and could only wait for the rings. The first three gave her no cause for alarm, but by the time she'd gotten to the tenth one she was wondering why Klein was taking so long to answer. It had finally gotten to its last ring before the screen came up and revealed- "Mom?"
"W-Weiss?" Willow Schnee responded in a brief shock. Judging by the surroundings, her mother was currently in her father's study. Willow herself looked like she'd already downed her daily 'medicine' and if the already empty bottle in her left hand was any indication, she was already going for a surplus dosage. "I was... it started ringing suddenly so I..."
'She was trying to end the call,' Weiss thought to herself. "So mom..."
"Your father's currently welcoming a business guest in the downstairs lobby and your little brother's with him. Meanwhile Klein's getting everything ready for dinner before they talk business."
'How does she always seem to know what's happening in our house when so only ever leaves to get drinks?' Weiss had to wonder. "I guess that means I called at a bad time. You probably need to be getting ready for supper then."
"...Actually, I won't be going tonight," Willow denied, little surprise to Weiss. "I'm not feeling my best I'm afraid... and I'm sure your father would want to preserve a good image of his corporation." Weiss caught her mother glancing at her empty bottle of liquor. "Sorry that no one's available to talk, but I really-"
"In that case, why don't we speak for a bit?" Weiss said before her mother could finish. "It's been so long since we've last talked and you're never available. In fact, I don't think we've had a conversation since I left for Beacon." 'Plus a few years, give or take.'
"All... alright," Willow said shakily. It was clear to Weiss that she had to force herself to remain here. But it was still an effort. "How have you been then? How are your classes?"
"Not a problem for someone like me," she assured proudly, with an edge of playfulness behind it. "I have to put on my best image, and I feel like I've been doing such flawlessly. If I might be so bold, it could even be enough to get Winter to do a double take."
"Now now, if you were that good then you would've already graduated, you know how strict your sister can be."
A joke. An actual joke. Most likely her first one in years. And did Weiss see the edge of her mother's mouth twitch upwards to almost smile? Trying to take this rare progress, Weiss pushed forward.
"How's Whitley doing?"
"Same as usual, spending most of the time with your father learning about the business family." Your father. Never my husband, or Jacques. "He seems to be doing well."
"Seems to be?" Weiss asked. It was then she realized that her mother was glancing back to her drinking options, so she quickly changed gears. "Well I hope he's more level headed than the team I've been assigned to! Maybe then he'll be able to get something done!"
"Is that... bad?" Willow wasn't looking at the liquor shelves, only because she was far too surprised with her daughter's sudden outburst. Weiss decided to roll with it.
"You really have no idea mother. Our leader, the one that's supposed to be guiding us, is the youngest member of our team and certainly acts like it! Her older sister can't keep her focus on anything that isn't on either fighting of motorcycles for two minutes! And the other one is so reclusive I can't hold a single conversation with her!" No joke, Weiss had needed this rant all quarter. "But... in spite of all of that... they're still good friends... I guess."
"...How?"
"I don't know!" Weiss screamed again, causing her mother to finally lose her hold on the bottle and dropped it to the floor where it rolled away. Willow covered her face with her mouth and at first Weiss thought she was mortified, but then a small bit of laughter escaped as she was unable to keep it in. "Mom..."
"I'm sorry, I know I shouldn't laugh. It's just, I had no idea and you could sound so passionate about your team." Willow managed an actual smile, breaking out of her husband's hold. "I'm glad that you're doing so well, honey."
"...Better than ever now," Weiss promised with her own smile. "Oh, right. There was Grimm's Day party just a week ago."
"There was? Is it really that time of year already?" Willow asked, shaking her head. Obviously her alcoholism was pretty bad if she was forgetting the time of year this badly, but Weiss did her best to ignore that. "I remember when you were still a little girl and I had to hold you on that night so that you wouldn't cry from all of the scary monsters that-"
"Mom! It was one time!" Weiss returned with a harsh blush on her face. Now her mother seemed to have a teasing smile on her face. "...I ended up going."
"You did? After last time I didn't think you'd ever consider it," her mother admitted. "So how was it? How did your Huntress costume look?"
"Actually, I went as a Grimm Queen," Weiss explained. "It was an amazing costume, you should have seen me. I had- Oh! Actually I think I have a picture of it right here." She then got her scroll out and started going through her photos until she found the one Yang had sent her from that night. "Here it is! See, I tried my best to work my scar into the design with makeup. I know I don't usually wear black, but it was a refreshing change of pace. I even found that scarf to..." Her mom didn't look like she was listening, only staring intently at the photo.
"Weiss... who's that boy you're dancing with?" She wasn't teasing her anymore, now she looked deathly serious.
"That's... Ragna. He's just a really good friend of my team," Weiss explained. "He needed a partner to dance with so I... gave him one." A lie. If anything Ragna had been about to embarrass Yang with their slower dance. She had only gone to him to get out of Jaune asking her for a dance (which had led to him dancing with Pyrrha).
"Is he... does he belong to a noteworthy family?"
"He doesn't." Weiss knew that Ragna had some connection to the Kisaragi clan through Jin, but she had no idea how far that went. "Like I said mom, we're just... friends."
"Are you certain?" Willow sounded almost afraid, glancing back to her liquor like it was the only thing that could save her.
"Of course I am!" Another lie. Even if she didn't know how she felt about him, the fact that after the dance they had almost... "Why does it matter? I should be allowed to choose who my friends are, right?"
"...Just keep him as a friend. I... I doubt your father would approve of him if he didn't have any credentials to his name." Weiss scowled at the direction your conversation had gone. "Besides, it's better that you wait on these things. You can never tell with boys and at your age you won't have any idea what to look out for."
"What to- He's not like that!" she shouted in great offense. "Ragna doesn't care a thing about my money! Politics! Any of it! He's just my friend because of who I am! He's not interested in-!"
"Like I thought your father wasn't interested!? Look where that got me! Where it got our family! Do you really want that for yourself!?" It came out... finally. A moment later when Willow's rage had waned, she glanced around in terror that someone else might've overheard. As she quickly grabbed one of the liquor bottles, Weiss knew it was over. "Just don't get involved with him, I don't want you making the same damning mistakes I did."
"Mom, I-"
"I have to go now sweety; your father is going to need his study soon." And with that the communication had ended. She'd been lying, if the company had just arrived then they likely wouldn't be needing that study for about another hour. Weiss took a deep breath and tried to gather herself.
"...I won't make your mistakes," she promised to an empty room. "I'll get stronger here at Beacon, for both of us... And we won't be his puppets when I come home."
Back to the present
"Weiss? Weiss? Weiss!" Ragna said, snapping the fellow pale hair out of her trip down memory lane. "You doing okay? You were nodding off quite a bit."
"I'm... fine," Weiss said as she looked to her scroll, only to realize that the music had already stopped playing. "How long was I out?"
"Pretty close to when we started, I think. You were able to follow my lead, so I did my best to recreate the five different dances from memory," the Reaper explained as he took his hands away from her. "Can't really say much about it myself, but at least we didn't trip up... mostly."
"Sorry about that," she tried to apologize, but something in her voice seemed... hurt. "I was just remembering something."
"Must've been a pretty bad memory," the Reaper had to guess.
"...I don't think so," she said cautiously. "Do you... remember Grimm's Day? The party specifically?"
"Not much to remember; my own damn party and I don't even think I was there for even a half hour." He grunted at the memory. "A dance with Yang where I basically made a fool of myself, a slower dance you, and then a friggin' punch bath."
"I guess it wasn't that great of a night for you," she said before giving a soft smile. "But... aren't you forgetting something?"
"I am?" he questioned as before he broke eye contact, appearing deep in thought. "I mean... I guess that was the start of the still ongoing mess that's Jaune and Pyrrha."
"It's not about them; it's about us," she said. "After our dance we... we almost..."
"Almost what?"
'Does he not remember? Or is he trying to forget? I could bring it up to him now, but I'd just put him in another corner. I want him to be happy, but if I really need to do that...'
"Weiss, I think you're nodding off again. You sure you're okay?"
"...I think it's time for our last dance," Weiss said, suddenly changing the subject. '...This is it... Whatever happens next... this dance is what's going to seal it.' Because of her family's wealth, she had an overabundance of music to listen to on her scroll's account. Flipping through it for a bit yielded nothing, this was a decision that would just be too difficult for her to make.
"So, what's the big lesson for this dance? Footwork? Movement?" Ragna asked from behind her, mostly just to make sure that she wasn't spacing out again.
'...This is it then.' "Improvisation."
Weiss pushed 'Random'.
(Cue Dreams of an Absolution LB vs JS remix)
Ragna was immediately surprised by the music that started coming out of Weiss's scroll; even at the start it was already much faster than any of her other classical music had been. In fact, even with his limited knowledge of the art he was pretty damn sure that this wasn't classical music at all. He barely had any time to react to this odd change as Weiss grabbed his hands and they were already starting to move into her dance. From all of the slower routines they'd just done, Ragna was ill prepared and his partner had to step in for an early lead. Sweeping him down the mock battle room so quickly that he actually stumbled a bit, Weiss herself followed the rhythm of the music flawlessly.
"Hey! Hold on a-!" Ragna could barely get another word in and his awkward feet stopped shuffling to follow Weiss's sudden halt. Twirling into him, her back pressed firmly against his chest as she held tightly to his arm. Before Ragna could protest any further, Weiss looked up at him and locked her eyes with his. It wasn't a stern glare or even a meaningful look at all really, but a message seemed to be sent between her greys and his green and red. Getting the hint, Ragna nodded seriously to show he was done screwing around. With a little more force, he swung her out in a twirl before catching her free hand in his. Now when they moved across the room, Ragna was far more focused as he managed to mimic Weiss's rhythmic steps with his own. At the end of their lengthy stride, Weiss seemed to lean back pretty far in his arms. Quickly getting the hint, Ragna used his own strength to bring her around in a flip as she expertly managed to land to the floor. The two then traversed the mock battle floor once more, this time in a series of pirouettes.
"Going kinda quick though," he had to admit as Weiss let go at his hands before practically leaping at him. Catching the girl at her waist, Ragna might've looked like he'd intentionally held her in the air for the pose but in reality it was just reflex that was saving him. Figuring this was what she wanted, he quickly stepped in circles and gave her a few quick twirls through the air before setting her down with whatever grace he could manage. Grabbing his hand and twisting into his chest yet again, this time she didn't even have to look at her partner as Ragna held her close... almost like he was guarding her with dear life. The hold didn't last long as he let her go in a twirl and caught her free hand in his own once more before taking her down for a long lean.
'I'm glad he chose lavender.'
Helping her back up, Ragna held a single hand as Weiss went into a long series of twirls before him. It was in this short break that he finally had a chance to hear the music's lyrics and ponder the vague meaning behind them. Was there some connection here between the two of them and whatever it was trying to say? Before he could try to make sense of this mess, Weiss had already grabbed his other hand again and was now spinning them both across the floor.
Breaking their spin, the two extended their hands outwards on opposite ends while not breaking eye contact. Coming back, Ragna grabbed Weiss by her waist and effortlessly lifted her into the air for another set of twirls. Setting her down, she actually seemed to lose her footing for a brief moment. Ragna thought he'd set her down with the same intensity as last time, so he had to lunge in a panic to keep her from falling. But when he caught her, it almost looked like she was smirking at him.
"Stay focused," she ordered suddenly. Ragna wasn't sure where this was coming from as the music was actually starting to slow, but then Weiss placed her head into his chest... just like he'd remembered her doing on Grimm's Night. Having to catch his breath, he slowly moved with Weiss as she set a slower pace without caring for the rhythm the music was setting. Her Reaper followed her perfectly step by step, continuing to hold her intimately to himself. Feeling her start a third lean for what looked to be a closure on their routine, Ragna helped her down for the ending move...
Only for her to grab the sides of his head and bring her down with him. Both of them just stared at the other, frozen in time as the song finished playing.
(End theme)
Both dancers stood deathly still after Ragna's final dip for Weiss. They were dangerously close, it wouldn't take much movement from either of them to close the distance. The slightest push, a wrong movement, an... accident was all it would take. Neither of them made that choice, instead just staying locked into each other's eyes. Not blinking, not moving... eventually Ragna had to help Weiss back to her feet.
"That was... I... I don't really know how I can describe that," Ragna said as his mind managed to finally catch up with the rest of him.
"...I can think of a few ways," his dance partner told him ominously.
"Yeah? 'Cause I'm completely lost here. What did you think?"
"...I'm not going to tell you that," she denied. "What you thought of it, what it really was to you... that's your opinion, not mine." She looked him dead in the eyes, this time with a fierce aura around her. "Let me know when you decide."
"Decide...? Aren't you getting a little too intense again? It was just a dance," Ragna tried to tell her with a chuckle.
"...And there goes your worst joke of today." Not giving him another word, she literally turned on her heels and headed for the exit. Ragna just watched her walk off, wondering what it was that he'd been so wrong about. Probably just another of his small mix-ups that she'd forget about in a day or two. Shrugging, he-
'Stop.'
"Weiss."
About to exit the door, she turned to her friend. Ragna had a slight red to his face and he looked at her uncomfortably, but he still spoke after taking a deep breath to prepare himself.
"If it hadn't been for that damn punch bow... and if you had been okay with it... I'd have followed through." He broke eye contact again, either out of shame or his own fears. "You deserve to know that much."
"...I think I always did, but thanks for telling me yourself," she told him with a melancholy smile. "I'll see you around Ragna."
"...Count on it... Empress," he said in return as she exited their makeshift dance room. Once she'd finally left, he facepalmed viciously and let out a defeated groan. His entire body slouched like it had been hit by a surge of gravity itself. 'YOU PIECE OF SHIT. What the hell are you doing!?'
'He's still hesitant at this sort of thing, and I can respect him for that,' Weiss thought as she headed down the hall back to her team's dorm room. 'He doesn't need that sort of commitment in his life just yet, and at the moment I can be content that he acknowledges that there's been something special between us. There's nothing that could ever threaten that.'
"Miss Schnee."
Goodwitch, for the second time that day. The instructor and head punisher (as most of the student body saw her) had her usual slightly displeased look as she approached Weiss.
"I hear that you were working with Ragna the Bloodedge for your cleaning assignment today," she noted.
"You heard correctly, though I can't imagine who would've told you that," Weiss said diplomatically. "Is there a problem? I wasn't aware that there was a rule against trading cleaning shifts."
"There is a rule, but that only applies for students working these duties as punishment," the instructor clarified. "But seeing as Jin Kisaragi wasn't punished, I see no violation in those actions. Locking the mock battle room and using it outside of assigned hours is a different matter entirely, one that Ragna himself has received a large penalty for in the past."
"That's right; he stepped up to train Jaune Arc when he desperately needed the help. How villainous." Goodwitch's features narrowed, Weiss had never been one to backtalk someone of her authority before. So why was she starting now? "Are we both in trouble then? Does this mean we're going to be assigned tomorrow's cleaning as well?"
"...If I did that, I'd just be giving you exactly what you desired," the instructor denied. "I would prefer if we didn't get a repeat of your recent actions in the future, seeing how your family name may be liable."
"No family name is worth abandoning a friend, and I didn't expect a teacher to be making threats," Weiss said, now taking her own turn to glare.
"I assure you, I was just making an observation of who you're representing while you're here. I won't make any such remarks."
"Then as long as we're speaking so openly Professor, may I ask another question?" The professor only returned a slow nod. "Has the academy ever had any dealings with my father? Either in the past or much more recently... I need to know."
"I give my word that to the best of my knowledge, we have not. What's this about?" Goodwitch demanded.
"I can't help but feel that I'm being set up to accomodate my father's own desires while I'm here. And while I believe your words, I can't help but suspect that there's more at play here. Thank you for your honesty nonetheless ." Weiss turned and was about to walk away, but something stopped her. "Just one last thing; I hardly feel it's fair for the other students to pile on their hate for Ragna when he's assigned to cleaning. If they're not caught, they'll just think that they can continue trying without any repercussions."
"While I understand your sentiment, I can't give special privileges to individual students. Besides, it's on Ragna himself to deal with the enemies he's made at the Academy. I think he would even prefer it that way, so I have little reason to step in."
"True, and he did tell me as much... then I guess I'll just have to stay in his corner and not let him have that say." Goodwitch raised an eyebrow at the young Schnee's declaration, but it was clear that the confident girl didn't have anything further to add. As the two parted ways, the instructor had to wonder where her new bizarre sense of rebellion had come from... but couldn't help from feeling a little proud at her student's dedication.
Monday -Mock Fights-
"Ragna's moving a lot better than he was last time," Ruby noted hopefully as sounds of clashing blades echoed throughout the combat room. It wasn't just bias towards her best friend that was creating her opinion, the Grimm Reaper certainly was moving much better than he had in recent memory. In fact the only reason that he hadn't already taken a decisive victory was his opponent, the still undefeated Pyrrha Nikos. "He must have gotten some good rest this weekend if he's recovered so much."
'Relaxation was hardly a factor,' Weiss thought delightedly as Ragna blocked yet another of Pyrrha's lance strikes with the Aramasa. 'His coordination has made an impressive recovery, but his strength and speed seem to still be lacking from where he had them at his prime... I guess he'll just have to continue to work on those.'
Letting loose a devastating jab with his free left arm, Ragna connected with Pyrrha's shield with enough force to launch the undefeated student off of her feet. With her skill, Pyrrha at least managed to make contact with Ragna's sword with her own spear as he sent her further into the air before both of them switched to their ranged weaponry. Letting loose a single shot from their rifles, both bullets managed to collide in midair and Ragna used the opportunity to leap into the air after her. All three weapons and Pyrrha's shield clashed in an aerial rave that was difficult to keep up with. As both of them landed, Ragna let loose a quicker swing to clash with Pyrrha's spear and give him time to sheath his rifle-sword before then following up with a devastating two-handed swing that forced her to leap back because there was no way her buckler was taking that hit. One final swing, one final clash from the both of them... and the match was over.
"Time," Goodwitch called as she looked at the notes that her scroll had taken. "...I determine this match to be a draw, meaning that Miss Nikos remains undefeated. Though it was still very well fought by both participants."
"Glad to see that old side of yours is coming back," Pyrrha complimented the Reaper as he reset his sword. "The way you were moving out there and the way you flowed from one move to the next was almost a dance. You really made me give it my all out there."
"...I don't dance," Ragna denied with a wolfish smirk as he glanced at Weiss for a split second. "But thanks, Miss Undefeated."
"She had to be going easy on him," one of the watching students said to their partner in a huff, lowering the scroll they'd been using to record the match in hopes of seeing Ragna make a fool of himself again. "Look at how friendly they're acting now... she had to try to make him look good."
Weiss overheard this of course, but such petty commentary didn't matter in the slightest to her now. Ragna had proven himself to be one of the strongest fighters, able to even fight someone of Pyrrha's reputation to a standstill... in fact, she was even bold enough to guess that Ragna might've been holding back slightly in some previous bouts against her, trying not to ruin her perfect reputation and put himself in the spotlight. Her mood was only slightly sullied as when Ragna made his way back to the seats, he would of course be next to Cinder as she usually managed to sink her claws into him... to get Ragna as far as she could get him from her own team no less.
"Now for our next match," Goodwitch declared as she brought the random results up on the screen. "Will Miss Schnee and Miss Fall come down please?"
'...Just when I thought things couldn't get any better.'
"Weiss... your face is scaring me right now. And I mean by A LOT," her own partner said beside her in terror.
"Look, I can imagine you have some problems with Cinder. But she's not worth it," Blake tried to reason. "Just promise you won't lose your cool down there and-"
"Give her hell."
"Yang, you are NOT helping."
"Don't worry ladies," Weiss told her teammates in a flowery tone that none of them had exactly been expecting. "It's just a sparring match after all."
"Okay, now I'm really worried."
"I'm not."
"Yang! Please!"
"Miss Schnee. Now." Few people would have left Goodwitch waiting long enough for her to call on them a second time, no one was foolish enough to allow a third time. Weiss quickly headed down the steps, casting a brief smile to Ragna as she passed by.
"Must be nice," Mercury slyly observed from next to him.
"None of your business," Ragna bit harshly before catching sight of Neo. "And quit smirking at me." She giggled at him like she usually did, but he tried to ignore it and focus on the upcoming match.
"Whatever you needed Ragna for over the weekend, the results certainly speak well for you," her opponent noted as she unslung her sword-bow. "He was looking exemplary out there... every last inch of him."
"He did, didn't he?" Weiss said pleasantly, keeping her wits about her as she got her rapier out . "I'm glad to have this chance. You seem to be a worthy opponent for me."
"High praise coming from the Schnee heiress. I'm sure you'll do your family name proud and fight for their honor as always."
"Thank you, I intend to... But that's not really what I'm fighting for this time."
SHING!
Even with their higher than average reflexes and perception, most of the students only saw a single blur. Even the calm faced Cinder couldn't help but raise an eyebrow as she slowly glanced down. In the span of a single quick draw, Weiss had unleashed seven slashes that left clear marks at the floor right at Cinder's feet.
W S
"I'm here to show you my own resolve... EVERY. LAST. INCH OF IT."
Next Time: Project Hell Part 3
Author's Note
Well that's Weiss's chapter. Happy Valentine's Day everyone. I had a lot of fun writing this one, and something about giving Weiss a bit more of that spunkier attitude of hers makes for an interesting clash with Ragna's.
...I can't think of anything else to say, it's late and I'm dead tired. Let's do these reviews.
Wlyman2009: Wrong. The crater used to be the city.
Infinite Zangestu: I mean... I'm fighting this idea in a few ways. On one hand, it's just so obvious. On the other, maybe it's so obvious because it's right.
Ragriz: Yeah, I'm doing much better. And thanks for the rewarding review.
P3R50N4: God that line... criticize Super all you want, but it knew how to do its badass moments.
Guest: Aw thanks, I haven't been the same without FF either.
The Unplanner: Thanks for the summary. And yeah, 2020 can eat shit.
GM9000: I'm not sure it's too childish (especially not for Nora). It's kind of explained later that she knows that there's something between the two of them, but she knows that Ren won't be able to act on that.
Yuki terimi: Rebirth or the Azure... WELL WHICH IS IT? Joking. I have some plans for that, I promise.
Zero: Thank you!
Warmind: KNOCKING ON WOOD!
Carlom2408: Blake's just the most recent focus chapter, but I can understand where you're coming from since she's gotten some of the much bigger chapters. This is why I'm trying to even things out... hence why I went all out with Weiss.
Bismarck Alexander: True, but Pyrrha can get passionate when it comes to these things.
Monkeymerc: I'll... get back to you on that one.
Az-Bebere: Azrael is quite the wild card here. And if he just went haymaker on the town... what would be the real point there? He needs an actual fight.
LATER EVERYONE! TAKE CARE!