Here we go

Cover Art: Z-ComiX

Chapter 71

Bright light continued to aggravate Ruby, shining across her face in just the right way as to cover her closed eyes. Her nose scrunched up and her face dipped down into the covers but there was no escaping it. Groaning, she rolled over and mumbled, "I don't want to wake up."

Instinctively, she sighed, knowing Weiss would be ripping the blankets off and berating her for being lazy not a second later. Ruby clung onto them like she always did, sleep winning out over common sense.

It never came.

Slowly, blearily, Ruby opened her eyes.

There was no Weiss anymore, was there? Sitting up, she let the thin blanket fall, yawned into the back of her hand and looked around the room. It was smaller than her last, but it was also only her in it, so she actually had a lot more space. There was a single bed in the corner running lengthways down the room beside the wide, open window. A dresser stood at the end of it, tilted diagonally across the corner of the room, and there was a chest at the foot of the bed.

Opposite the bed and to the left of the main door was a smaller one leading to the bathroom, and further along, by the other corner of the room and close to the window stood a dark wood desk and chair. Three drawers were on the left of where the chair tucked under, and several empty shelves were attached to the wall above for books, stationary or whatever else a new Arcanist might need. Currently, her white robes were tossed over said desk. Ruby stumbled out of bed and toward them, yawning again and rubbing her eyes.

Mornings had been a routine before. She would try and sleep in, Weiss would wake her and then march her to the bathroom. Washing her face would wake her up and Weiss would have already dragged some fresh robes out for her by the time she was done. They'd then go to breakfast together, Weiss complaining constantly about how lazy Ruby was.

I guess I'll have to get used to a new routine now, Ruby thought dully. Padding into the bathroom, she ignored the spotless tub and instead splashed her face with water, running her hands over her hair to flatten it before moving back to the main bedroom. The new dorm was for Arcanists only, and it wasn't really a dorm so much as a complex of small single bedrooms, almost like a tavern.

There was, in fact, a small restaurant sort of facility on the ground floor, but Arcanists didn't eat communally, at least not like the Initiates did. Most would go eat at their Arcana, forging bonds and cohesiveness with the people they would directly work under. If you needed food otherwise, you asked the servants to prepare it and, if you gave them enough time, they would have it hand delivered to your door.

Ruby had been told all that the night before but hadn't really listened. Sliding yesterday's robe over her head, she yawned a third time and stepped into her shoes, then unlocked the door and made her way out.

The building was quiet. Nearly empty. There weren't the crowds of students she was used to, and even the night before when there had been people, they weren't chatty. Most hadn't even looked her way, and the few who had were likely more curious if she was really an Arcanist than anything. Everyone staying there had their own tasks, their own life, and they weren't interested in making friends.

The small dining area on the ground floor was similarly empty, both of people and of food. The lingering smell of it had Ruby's stomach grumbling, and she approached a serving girl running a mop across the floor.

"Excuse me…"

"Lady Arcanist." The girl held her mop down with one hand and curtseyed. She was older than Ruby, yet her eyes were fixed firmly below Ruby's own, staring at her chest. "Is there some way I can help you?"

"Is breakfast on?"

"B-Breakfast is finished, my lady." The girl stammered as she spoke. "I'm sorry but it's gone ten, and we're told to prepare food from seven until nine. I'm very sorry."

Ten…? Ruby glanced out the open doors and winced. The sun was definitely up, though she couldn't exactly tell the time from within her room. I can't believe I overslept so badly.

"Uh. You don't have to-" Ruby's stomach gurgled loudly, betraying her as it so often did. She grimaced, even as the serving girl almost laughed. She didn't. The woman caught herself at the last, as if she wanted to giggle but was afraid what a noble might do. They didn't know her as the staff in the dorms had.

"It won't take me a moment to ask, my lady," she said. "You must have been up all night with your responsibilities to wake so late. Give me a moment and I'll return with what I can."

The girl left before Ruby could stop her. Sighing, she took a seat at a lonely table in the centre of the empty dining area, idly looking around all the empty corridors connecting to it. No wonder the place was so empty, the other Arcanists had all been up hours ago and were off working. There was no one to take her to lessons now, and no lessons either come to think of it. If she wanted to laze around and do nothing, she absolutely could.

A door to the kitchen area opened and the same woman came out with a plate of food. It was small, Ruby noted despairingly. Just as they hadn't heard of her being nice to servants, they hadn't heard of her appetite. Just a simple plate of scrambled egg on one and a half small pieces of brown bread.

"We managed to scrape some together," she said proudly. "We had to use brown bed – sorry for that, I know it's a little lower class, but we have our own breakfast after you all, and it's what we had left."

Ruby hid her hunger behind a big, goofy smile. "It's great. Thank you so much."

"Ah." The servant reeled back at the praise. "Thank you? I mean it's no problem, my lady. W-Would you like us to prepare a late breakfast for you tomorrow? In case this happens again?"

It was tempting but she knew it would mean these folk would have to take time out to do it for her. Besides, it was better she learned to wake up with everyone else rather than make them adjust to her habits. "No. Thank you for offering though. That's kind."

"Anything to serve, my lady."

The eggs were fluffy and even if it wasn't filling it would give her enough to last until she could get more food. Ruby wolfed them down and left with a quiet thanks to the serving girl, heading outside and taking a deep breath.

Hew new living quarters were in a large and pretty looking manor set against the outer wall of the Collegium, practically on the opposite side of the village-sized complex from her old dorms, the academy and Weiss. The gardens were quieter and better tended, sparsely populated too without the Initiates all sitting around chatting between lessons.

Other houses dotted the area, smaller but more expensive, privately owned or rented by wealthier Arcanists who could afford to actually buy land in the hotly contested Collegium. Most were like her, nobles in name but having nowhere near the money and staying in shared accommodation.

It's not so different, Ruby thought. The rooms are single, the buildings nicer, but we're still expected to stay in the Collegium. The only thing that's changed is that we get just a little bit more freedom.

In the end, they were still prisoners.

Sighing, Ruby trudged toward the Azure Arcana.

/-/

The Archives were busy again with White Arcanists coming and going as if they owned the place. Ruby made her way down the staircase and kept her eyes firmly off the fire, fresh books burning away, pages crinkling and turning to ash. The Arcanists must have been travelling far and wide indeed to find books now, although maybe the Rubricator was helping them. Her hands tightened into fists as she walked by it, resisting the urge to smash the creation she'd help make.

It wouldn't matter since they could have Nora make a new one.

"There you are, lass," the large Arcanist known as Port boomed on seeing her. "I thought you'd gone and run on me when you didn't come earlier. Not changed your mind, have you?"

"No. I still want to work here. I was just… I had research," she lied, taking the excuse the serving girl had given her.

"Of course. Of course. This is light work anyway, so you shouldn't worry too much about it. Those Azure can be patient. Always complaining, like the world will run away with them if they're not running at a sprint."

He laughed and set several rough booklets down. They were more individual sheets of parchment bound by cloth than books – holes punched through the left hand sides and cotton thread wound through them to form a spine.

"What do I do?" Ruby asked.

"These are reports on the research studies still taking place in the Azure," Port explained. "Each set corresponds to a different Arcanist's work. There are notes inside from those who looked over them. I'm expected to look through them and decide which are safe to be handed back to their owners and which aren't, but then I'm also expected to handle about a hundred and ten other things, each more important." He crossed his arms and sighed. "Even a man as great as I can only get so much done. If you want to take it off my hands then I'll appreciate it."

"And I'm meant to just make sure they're safe?"

"There are notes inside like I said. Mostly, you just need to read through them and figure out whether there are any ramifications of releasing that research back to their owners. The White Arcanists who took these down will have given you enough to go on. Honestly, it's more mundane than it sounds," he said. "If there are notes saying `potentially dangerous` or `unknown consequences` then put it in the no pile. If the notes are calling it pointless, harmless or anything else, put it in the yes pile. Then take those ones at the end of your day and hand them to the Arcanists guarding the portal. They'll contact the Azure in question and tell them they'll get their research materials back."

"That sounds easy enough."

"It is. I'd have it done in a day or two if I wasn't buried under other work." He slapped her back and laughed loudly. "You'll be doing me a favour if you handle it for me. I've a budget working for this, so rest assured I'll see you paid fairly for your time, lass."

Yang would have told her to haggle over the price, but the amount didn't really matter here. Ruby nodded and took the booklets away. "Do they have to stay in the Archives?"

"Not at all. You can take them away so long as you realise it'll be your case to explain if someone gets hold of them. Truth be, I doubt it would matter," he admitted. "The only ones that would be upset are the Azure having their secrets spilled. If they're doing anything illegal, we won't be keeping that hidden either way, and otherwise they've nothing to worry about being revealed in the first place."

Ruby wasn't sure any of the Azure would have agreed, but she collected the booklets and held them against her chest anyway. While it was tempting to try and explore the Archives, she already knew that was a task that could take days or weeks. Before then, she wanted to go see Yang and Blake, along with Cinder and Adam, and tell them all the news. Maybe I should try and make up with Weiss before then as well.

"I'll get these done as soon as I can," she promised Port.

The large Arcanist nodded but was already lost back in his own work, scribbling something down while muttering under his breath. Another White Arcanist came back to the centre of the portal area and tossed a book into the fire. The pages crinkled and turned black, curling up until they turned to dust. Licking her lips, Ruby forced herself to walk the other way.

/-/

The last person she expected to run into on the way back to her new abode was Pyrrha. The Crimson-White Arcanist saw her and waved, approaching at a quick jog and with a huge smile. Considering how few people did that anymore, Ruby returned it, holding the booklets against her chest.

"Ruby. It's good to see you. How are things?"

"Good. Good. I'm doing some work for the Azure. With the Azure," she amended. "I mean, it's for the White but it's at the Azure Arcana."

"In the Archives?" Pyrrha's face paled. "Is it dangerous?"

"What? No, no, it's book work." Ruby hefted the books as evidence. Lowering her voice, she said, "The Archives are safe now. There aren't any Grimm near the portal at all."

"None? They've all been killed?"

"That's what it looks like. There are White Arcanists working normally in there. I don't see why they haven't given it back to the Azure yet."

Pyrrha hummed. "There must be a good reason for it. Maybe they want to be sure. If it happened once, it could happen again. I'm sure they've only got the best interests of the Azure at heart."

Yeah. Sure. If Pyrrha wanted to believe that. Ruby changed the subject. "What are you doing now?"

"Oh, I'm learning anti-Grimm tactics," Pyrrha said excitedly. Without being asked for more, she dove into an explanation. "Lady Goodwitch suggested it when I told her I wanted to master a combat craft. She says the Grimm are the biggest threat we face right now, more than Rogue Arcanists. I'm working in conjunction with more experienced mentors and I'll even be going out into the forests with them tomorrow."

"Into the outskirts?"

"The woods outside the city, yes," she said. "They say that since I was of the Crimson first, I can skip the required combat classes. Well, I could once I duelled one of them to prove it."

"That sounds exciting," Ruby said as nicely as she could. It sounded dangerous, but Pyrrha was a Crimson Arcanist, so she must have always been interested in fighting to join them. "I guess you're a lot stronger than the average White Arcanist, huh?"

"Most White-Red are. Or, well, maybe that's a generalisation," she admitted with an embarrassed blush. "I'm sure there are strong people among the other Arcana, it's just that we – the Crimson, I mean – prioritise the combat arts."

"It's fine, Pyrrha. I didn't think you were insulting anyone."

"Hah. My apologies." Pyrrha rubbed her cheek and laughed. "There's still that little bit of Arcana pride, I suppose. I'd rather not let it grow to arrogance. You're not going to keep working in the Archives, are you? Lady Goodwitch said you would be looking into Grimm."

"Why do you think I'm down there?"

"Oh. You're searching for information on them? Of course. That sounds so obvious now." Good, because that wasn't at all why she was there. "Are you going to be going out with Lord Merlot to join in the hunts?"

"Probably not. Glyn- Lady Goodwitch said I wouldn't be allowed unless I learned more combat oriented spells."

"Would you like me to teach you?"

The offer was so immediate, so sudden, that Ruby was caught flat-footed.

"Combat spells, I mean," Pyrrha explained, even if she needn't have. Ruby hadn't thought it was how to bake a cake. "You did well learning the flame net from me and I wouldn't mind teaching you some others – or training with you. We're both Arcanists now so it only makes sense if we help one another."

It would only help, wouldn't it? If anything, Ruby was more surprised by the sudden generosity – and the weight of it – than anything else. Pyrrha looked like she expected an answer, waiting with an awkward and pinched smile.

"Sure…?"

Pyrrha relaxed. "Great! When are you free? I can help- well, not tonight, but maybe tomorrow? We could meet somewhere, or I could tell you where my room is, and you could come there. Unless you're busy, that is-"

"Tomorrow is fine. And your place is fine. Or wherever."

"Grand. I'm glad we can work together again. Oh, you can bring Weiss along if you like. I don't mind teaching her as well."

"Ah. Well…" Ruby couldn't quite hide her cringe. "Weiss and I… we're not… things aren't great there."

"O-Oh. Is she…?"

Jealous. Mad. Upset.

"I don't know. I… I'm not sure what she is right now."

"Oh, I… I'm sorry. I'm sure things will work out," Pyrrha said helplessly. "You two seemed like such good friends that I can't imagine something as small as this getting in the way. Even if you're an Arcanist and she's not, it won't matter once she passes the rites, be that in a few months or a year."

Ruby smiled as best she could. "Yeah. I know."

"Have you had lunch?" Pyrrha asked randomly.

Ruby's stomach grumbled a loud no.

"Why don't we go eat together?" she offered happily. "I've been an Arcanist a little longer than you, so I know some of the better places around here. I can show you where the best eateries are." Pyrrha patted her pocket. "I'll pay."

How was she meant to say no to that?

The place Pyrrha brought her to was an odd cross between a café and a tavern, sort of an up-market inn, the likes of which could never have existed in the slums. It had a main central room but also a second floor which was predominantly made up of wooden tables and stools at which to sit and eat. The centre of the second floor was carved out, making for a balcony looking down on the ground floor, where a more traditional bar sat.

Unlike the breakfast hall earlier, the inn had a few Arcanists within it, one or two drinking at the bar but most of them at individual tables, some alone looking over books or writing away, and others in groups of two to four, quietly talking or eating. There was no music, drunken singing or games of dice or cards going on like Ruby was used to. In fact, everything was so quiet and polite that Yang would have called it the dullest place alive. At least it was warm and well lit, with a lovely smell of roast pork and beef that set Ruby's mouth watering.

"They do a lovely roast dinner here," Pyrrha said as they came in. "I always like to sit on the upper floor. Why don't you get us a table and I'll order? What meat do you like?"

"All of it." Ruby blurted out. "Um. I mean, I woke up late and didn't get a proper breakfast so…"

Pyrrha laughed. "Weiss told me about your appetite. I'll get you a large. Drink?"

"Juice is fine. Thank you."

Ruby climbed the wooden spiral staircase to the upper floor and peeked around. It was completely empty and would likely only fill up naturally when the tables on the lower level were full. What the upper floor did offer was a wonderful view down on everyone else, but she wasn't sure why Pyrrha liked to sit up there so much. Claiming an empty table by the balcony, Ruby set her books down on one side of the table and waited for Pyrrha's return.

It didn't take long for her to come back up with a jug of juice and two crystalline cups. "The food will come up soon," she said, sitting down and pouring some grape and berry juice for them both. "I always like coming here," she said, sitting down. "It gets busy in the evenings so it can be hard to find a table."

If the alternative was eating alone, Ruby wasn't surprised.

"Maybe we could make it a thing to meet here," Pyrrha suggested, looking away from her. "If you want, that is. I don't mean to push and you're free to do whatever you like, but the food is good, and I wouldn't mind having someone to…" Pyrrha closed her eyes and sighed. "Sorry, I'm rambling."

"I wouldn't mind," Ruby said. "Are you sure, though? I'm not exactly loved by most nobles. Your friends might not enjoy having me around."

Pyrrha laughed. "That won't be a problem."

"If you're sure…"

"I am," she insisted. "Oh look, the food's here."

A man came up the staircase with a tray and set it down on the table, only slightly misjudging by offering Pyrrha, the much taller and bigger person, the larger plate. He apologised profusely when Pyrrha pointed to Ruby, sliding it across the table to her. Rich gravy pooled over a small pile of vegetables and far grander heaping of turkey breast, pork and beef. Potato stood mashed and buttery beside it, sprinkled with herbs.

Pyrrha was a good judge of places to eat, Ruby decided.

Most people were either hideously dismissive or outright offended by her eating habits, and that was with her being far better thanks to Weiss' badgering, or tutelage as she'd called it. Thankfully, Pyrrha didn't appear too bothered and only commented once that she must have been hungry.

"I missed breakfast," Ruby confided once she was done.

"That would do it. I guess you were unused to living in a new place. It was a surprise for me as well," she confided. "I was used to having a roommate and sleeping in the dorms with everyone like you, then suddenly I was on my own surrounded by people so much older than me. It was difficult to get used to."

"I didn't know you had a roommate," Ruby said.

"Well I was an Initiate like you were. Or did you think I was born Crimson?" Pyrrha giggled. "I spent more time as an Initiate than you as well, so I was even more used to sleeping with other people, waking up for lessons and having everything decided for me."

"Is your roommate an Arcanist as well?"

"Ah. No. She is… she's still an Initiate. We…" Pyrrha sighed. "We don't talk much anymore." Her voice dropped. "Or at all." The silence stretched on, neither knowing what to say until Pyrrha laughed suddenly. "B-But let's not dwell on that. It's normal, isn't it? You make new friends when you join the Collegium, then more in the Arcana you choose and so on. I didn't even know her before we were roommates. I didn't know you or Weiss before we met joining the White. We're friends now, aren't we?"

"Of course."

"Then that's all that matters. I-I have to admit, it's not easy. For me," she explained. "And it probably won't be for you, either. Most people don't become Arcanists until they're closer to twenty. I'm a little relieved to have someone closer to my age around."

Except that she was still two years younger than Pyrrha, so young that they probably shouldn't have much in common anyway. Is that why she likes to sit up here? Because people wouldn't notice her being on her own? Most adults stuck with other adults and kids played with kids.

That was the norm even in the slums. The older Arcanists probably didn't feel they had anything in common with someone Pyrrha's age. Or Ruby's. Since most people their age would be Initiates, they'd be expected to make friends there, except that bitterness and the difference in rank and authority would make that difficult.

Maybe there was a reason most people graduating as Arcanists were older, and maybe that reason wasn't just because of how hard the rites of passage were.

"Meet here tomorrow night then?" Ruby offered.

Pyrrha's smile could have melted any ice. "I'd like that."

/-/

"-frivolous use of their time and resources," Ruby read wearily. "While there is no reasonable value or application to this research, there should also be no lasting and drastic consequences of understanding why or how animals can communicate with one another, if such a thing is possible at all. At worst, we shall have Arcanists able to talk to animals. I hesitate to suggest this could prove useful to the White in any way, but at the same time animals could be questioned on the whereabouts of Rogue Arcanists. Ridiculous as it sounds, if this research does go anywhere then it is my suggestion every White Arcanist keep sensitive material away from household pets."

Laughing awkwardly, Ruby closed the dossier and placed it on the accepted pile, atop two others. One of those was research looking into the capability of dreams and how to control them, more out of curiosity as to what caused dreams than for any use. The other was attempting to research whether magic could be artificially stored until a later time, and while there was a note to `keep an eye` on that in case it went anywhere, the White Arcanist in charge of investigating it had ultimately suggested it was benign.

What Ruby had expected to be a task of deciding for herself the moral and ethical qualities of Azure research was instead a clerical task. The Arcanists in charge had already decided, and she was just organising them into piles based on what those people said.

One had been placed into the no pile. That research had been something she hadn't thought too bad at first – wanting to understand if the sun was magical, gave off magical energy or if said energy could be harnessed in some way. It sounded stupid and not at all a threat, but the White Arcanist involved had rightly pointed out that if the sun was magic, they certainly didn't want a curious Arcanist poking around and disrupting it, dooming the world to eternal winter.

I have a feeling the Azure Arcanist involved is going to complain.

There wasn't much she could do about that. Stretching one arm above her head, Ruby looked out the window. The sun was still up but it was getting darker, and she intended to head out into the city tonight – legally, for once. Now that she was an Arcanist, there was nothing wrong with wanting to spend the night in the city, was there? She'd go once it was dark, though. Easier to not be noticed, and people would notice an Arcanist going to the slums. It wouldn't mark her as suspicious, but it would probably cause people to intervene for her own safety.

"That'd be a pain," she complained, picking up the next dossier. "Lie-? Finally!" Eyes lighting up, she brought Ren's research dossier in front of her. He'd asked for her help and she'd finally have a chance to give it. "Let's see, research into using magic as a way of enhancing and strengthening the human body. Yep, that's pretty much what he said."

Not that she'd expected him to lie to her, but there'd always been the chance he could have downplayed it. She was relieved to see he hadn't. The first few pages were his own hypothesis and the aims of his research.

"-to see if magical energy can be used within the body not to create elemental effects as is normally done, but to increase speed, stamina and endurance, potentially allowing Arcanists to exceed the limited potential of the human form."

A lot of the rest was Ren's own research into the subject, his findings and a whole lot of references to other people who had, while not doing the exact same, at one point or another experimented with magic cast internally. Apparently, it wasn't a field anyone wanted to meddle with for the quite obvious reason that a botched water spell outside the body meant a puddle on the floor, while one inside the body could mean internal damage. More so for any other kind of magic. Ruby was about to put it in the yes pile when she caught the note attached.

"While not forbidden, this research borders on human experimentation. There is a good chance the Initiate will reach a bottleneck in their research and be tempted into trying this on human bodies – his own, or perhaps unwilling participants."

Ruby's mouth dropped open. "Ren would never do that!"

"Beyond that, while the overall stated goal of the research may be noble in intent, I cannot help but question if we truly wish Arcanists to have the ability to surpass their physical boundaries. I would pose the question of what we could do if Rogue Arcanists were capable of moving faster than the eye could see, lifting many times their weight or – as the Initiate puts it – forming a barrier around the skin to mitigate oncoming damage.

"It is hard enough to convince people that we are not greater than the average human when we fling magic around as often as we do. Imagine how much more inhuman we shall look if we can perform everyday feats at a level beyond what any other human can achieve."

That was… well, it wasn't wrong but surely that wasn't Ren's fault! If people couldn't handle Arcanists having power, then why were they happy with them having magic? Even as she asked herself, she knew the answer. It was because the White worked to balance that, either by throwing in arbitrary limits on what Arcanists could do or forming the Collegium to make it look like the all the Arcanists were locked away and under control.

They weren't. This whole charade was just that – from what she'd seen, Arcanists could easily take over the Kingdom if they wanted to. All the Kingdoms. The royal families and the nobles probably knew that as well, but as long as everyone pretended it wasn't the case, they seemed find to let it continue.

As long as the White Arcana made an effort to limit Arcanists.

"It is my suggestion that this research be curtailed immediately," the notes went on. "Furthermore, it is my suggestion that the Initiate in question be brought in for a debriefing to explain why his research cannot continue and suggest an alternate, safer, path."

"Ren…"

"I have forwarded this suggestion to Lady Goodwitch."

Ruby's heart lurched into her throat. This was… This was a couple of days old. If the person had already done this then Ren had already been found out. Found out for what? He didn't do anything wrong! Either way, he'd been reported to the White. Glynda hadn't mentioned it, but then did she even know Ruby and Ren knew each other?

"It's just a debriefing," she told herself, re-reading the document to be sure. "There's nothing wrong with that. He's not being arrested, just asked to not continue his research…"

Nothing in the file suggested otherwise. They were even going to suggest other things he could work on, which surely meant he'd be fine as if not, then he wouldn't be able to work on other things.

I'm overreacting. Ren is fine. There's nothing wrong here.

Not for the first time, Ruby wasn't convinced.

Back at work tomorrow! Sort of. Working from home, but my normal job resumes tomorrow. I always feel like Christmas goes quick but this one was certainly the quickest ever. Not even a New Years party to attend. I did have plenty of wine to myself anyway, chatted with friends online and played scribbl with them, lol.

Next Chapter: 10th January

P a treon . com (slash) Coeur