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Chapter 20: The Dark Road
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As I'm sure many of you know, I already posted Chapter 20. But, the chapter I posted... was not very good. There was a very big tone consistency problem, and the scene with Eugene and Coco was entirely irrelevant. So, I wrote a new one. I only hope I can get this out there fast enough.
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In the week since his capture, Torchwick had managed to divulge absolutely nothing. Oz walked out of his latest interrogation session with Torchwick. Delsin and Eugene were waiting for him, just outside the door.
"Anything?" Delsin asked.
Ozpin shook his head.
"It seems Mr. Torchwick is well versed in saying nothing of value. As are all of his White Fang compatriots," Ozpin explained, "Though you did good work in capturing him, I'm afraid further attempts to garner information from him may be an exercise in futility."
"Man, even you can't break him?" Eugene asked.
"Mr. Sims, I've used almost every trick I know to get information out of him and nothing has worked. I'm running out of avenues to pursue."
Delsin and Eugene grimaced.
"But rest assured, I will keep trying," Ozpin told them, "Even if this old dog has to learn a few new tricks."
The pair nodded.
"And how fares Mr. Roman?" Ozpin asked, his tone very delicate.
Delsin dropped his gaze to the floor.
"He's... he hasn't left our room since we got back from the mission. He spends most of the day curled in a ball, staring out the window. We've tried talking to him, but he hasn't said a word," Delsin explained.
"I see," Ozpin said, "And Ms. Rose? What's her condition?"
Despite the dark tone of the conversation thus far, Eugene couldn't help but grin, making sure Delsin couldn't see. Delsin sighed.
"Let's just say that after a few too many water blasts, everything has gotten back to normal," Delsin said.
Eugene was trying not to laugh. After Ruby had found out she had one of Delsin's Conduit powers, she went a little prank crazy on her friends. And since Delsin's Semblance literally gave his Water power away, he was helpless to stop her. He was very glad when she ran out of juice and his power returned to him
Oz nodded, a small smile on his face. Before they could continue their conversation, Oz received another call on his Scroll. With a quick apology, the Headmaster left to go take care of other business. Delsin and Eugene left soon after.
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Weiss slapped both her hands down on the table where Ruby was sitting.
"I need you to pick a tablecloth," Weiss said.
Ruby studied both of them.
"Aren't they both the same?"
Weiss sighed in exasperation.
"I don't even know why I asked," she said, storming away.
Blake approached from behind her.
"Don't feel bad. They were exactly the same," the cat Faunus said.
"They are not the same!" Weiss shouted.
Behind them, Yang set one of the big stereo speakers down. Apparently, it was very heavy, because when she did, Ruby, the chair she was sitting in, and the table in front of her all jumped several inches in the air. Ruby didn't seem to notice. She was toiling away at her checklist for what all was needed at the dance.
"You picked out a dress yet?" Yang asked her sister.
Ruby groaned.
"Do I have to wear one?" she whined.
"Yes, yes you do," Yang said, her tone leaving no room for argument.
Ruby banged her head against the table.
"Fiiiiiiiine," she whined.
"Weiss, I thought we agreed! No doilies!" Yang said, only just shy of shouting.
"If I don't get doilies, you don't get fog machines," Weiss countered.
"Don't worry, if she takes those away, I'll provide the fog myself," Delsin said as he and Eugene walked in.
Ruby perked up the second she saw him.
"Delsin!" she said, rushing towards him.
She tried to tackle him with a hug, but only managed to make him stumble a bit. Delsin sighed.
"No, Ruby, I will not give you back the power I loaned you," he said.
"Awwwwww," the rose reaper cried.
She lingered for a few seconds, hoping that appearing pathetic might make him change his mind. When it became clear it wasn't working, she let go and sat down in a huff, an expression she currently shared with Weiss.
"So how did you guys get saddled with all of the dance preparations?" Eugene asked.
"We volunteered," Ruby said.
"Really? Why?"
Ruby said nothing, but quickly and nigh imperceptibly nodded her head in Weiss's direction.
"Ah," Eugene said, getting the message, "I see."
"Yeah," Ruby sighed.
"Well, if you guys need any help, we're here," Eugene told her.
"That is kinda why we came," Delsin added.
"Great!" Ruby exclaimed, "Well, we don't have a lot that needs doing just yet, but-"
"Hey, Ruby! We brought those streamers you asked for!" they heard a voice say from behind them.
A quick look in its direction revealed the source of the voice to be Coco and Velvet, each carrying a cardboard box.
"Little help please?" Velvet said, struggling slightly with her box.
"Here, let me," Delsin said, taking it.
He almost dropped it.
"Jeez, what is in this thing?" Delsin asked since the box weighed more than triple what he thought it would.
"Table decorations," she said.
"Made of lead?"
Velvet giggled. They set the boxes down on the table where Ruby was sitting.
"You know how I said that we didn't have anything for you guys to do?" Ruby asked, "Forget I said that. Eugene, start hanging those streamers. Delsin, table decorations."
"On it," Delsin said.
The two of them got to work.
"Hey, maybe Alex can help you with those streamers," Coco offered.
Eugene smiled sadly.
"No no, I got it," he said, summoning his own wings.
"Ok," Coco said.
"So Coco," Yang interjected, "You finished your dress yet?"
Coco smiled.
"Almost. It'll be done before the dance."
"Great! Maybe then you can help Ruby find something," Yang said, nudging her little sister.
"Yang!" Ruby said, throwing up a hand, "Cut it out!"
"I think I can find a dress or two for Little Red here," Coco said with a grin.
Ruby tried her best to look mad, but it ended up just being a cute little pout.
"What about you Velvet? You are coming, right?" Blake asked.
Velvet nodded enthusiastically.
"Definitely. I wouldn't miss it," she said.
"Glad to hear it," Blake replied.
"Same here," Delsin said.
Since his back was turned, no one could see the funny little smile on Delsin's face. Though, everyone but Velvet assumed it was there anyway. Velvet was positively beaming after she heard him, and she didn't even try to hide it.
"What about you big man?" Coco asked, looking at Eugene.
Eugene nearly dropped the stapler he was holding to attach the streamers.
"Uh, I'm... I'm not good with crowds. I think I'll sit this out."
"Uh-uh, no. You're coming to this dance," Weiss said, her gaze withering.
Eugene gulped.
"But I don't have any dress clothes," he said, desperately trying to find a way out.
"Really? I can fix that," Coco said.
"C'mon, Eugene! It'll be fun! Pleeeeeease?" Ruby pressed.
"Give it up man, you've already lost," Delsin commented.
Eugene sighed, defeated.
"Fine," he said, "I'll come. But I wasn't kidding, I have absolutely no dress clothes."
"Like I said, I can take care of that," Coco said, "When you're done up there come find me. We're going shopping."
Eugene gulped. Something about the way she said it made him feel like he was going to regret getting Coco's help.
"You ladies all excited for dress-up?" A new voice asked.
Blake audibly sighed as Sun and Neptune walked into the room, and if looks could kill both Coco and Weiss would have killed them twice over.
"Yeah, right," Ruby muttered.
"Laugh all you want, I'll be turning heads tomorrow night," Yang said.
"Yeah, one head in particular," Sun said, giggling.
"Dude," Neptune said, elbowing him in the side, "Not cool."
Sun looked around the room to see that the expressions of everyone but Coco and Velvet suddenly darkened. He stifled his giggles in a hurry.
"Speaking of, where is the birdbrain anyway?" Coco asked, "Out shopping?"
Delsin stopped in the middle of placing down one of the table decorations and just stared at it, a sad look on his face.
"Something like that," he said.
While she had no idea what was wrong, Velvet got the feeling this was a subject they should ignore for the time being. She grabbed onto her partner's arm and started dragging her out of the ballroom.
"C'mon Coco! They've got work to do and so do we," Velvet said.
Coco picked up the subtext and quickly followed behind her. When they were gone, Sun spoke up.
"Sorry guys, I shouldn't have said that," he said, apologizing.
"It's ok," Blake said.
All of them sat there in silence for a moment, no one knowing what to say next.
"So what are we going to do?" Weiss asked, her voice uncharacteristically soft.
"I don't know," Ruby said.
"We've already tried talking to him," Delsin said, gesturing to Eugene, "It got us nowhere."
"We can't exactly force him," Blake said, "And even if we did somehow manage to, it would probably just end up causing more problems."
"You're not wrong," Neptune commented.
Yang stood up. While the rest of them continued discussing the problem, she walked right out of the room without a word. To be perfectly honest, she didn't really know if her idea would work. In fact, she wasn't entirely sure why she was trying at all. She was still plenty angry with him for almost killing Ruby. But, Alex needed help, and whether she wanted to or not, she needed to help him, if only so her sister would stop worrying.
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Fear.
In the moment when he'd nearly killed someone, that was the only thing Alex could remember feeling.
Fear.
Not fear of failure or loss, nor fear of anything external. Instead, for the first time, Alex was scared of himself. He was afraid of what he could do. Such a fear is paralyzing. It gets deep into the soul of its victim and destroys them. Such a fear can shatter the strongest of hearts, break the strongest of minds, and erase the strongest of wills. It is the kind of fear that drives people insane.
His friends were wrong. It was not guilt that kept him locked in his room, trapped. It was fear. Fear that if he moved again, if he tried to stand again, he would break everything he touched. It was why he simply stared at the sky he used to own, wishing he could go into it again.
He didn't hear the door open. He didn't hear it close either. He didn't hear the person who had entered between those points. He didn't hear them grab a chair and sit next to him. He didn't hear anything at all.
It wasn't until she put a hand on his shoulder that he had any idea anyone was there with him. He turned ever so slightly and caught sight of Yang in his peripheral vision. He was confused by her presence. Why was she there? Didn't she have more reason than most to hate him right now? Those questions kept bouncing around in his head, and he sat there silently asking them over and over for the next hour.
Finally, he broke the silence.
"Why?" he asked.
Yang turned to him.
"Why what?" she asked, her tone neutral.
"Why are you here?" he elaborated.
"Why do you think? Use that big brain you're so proud of."
Alex shook his head.
"I don't know," he said, "I don't know if you're even really here."
Yang answered that question easily. She punched him in the face. As his head collided with his chest, he was thoroughly convinced.
"Can your imagination do that?" she asked, her voice hard.
Alex shook his head, this time to recover from the blow.
"No, I suppose it can't," he said, "but you still haven't answered my question."
Yang stood up.
"Yeah? Well you answer mine first."
Alex looked at her, confused.
"Why are you just sitting here?"
Alex blinked.
"What?"
"You heard me! Why are you just sitting here?!" Yang shouted, her anger rising.
"I don't know," Alex said.
"You don't know?! Figure it out!"
She dragged him to his feet and shoved him at the door.
"I don't know!" he shouted.
"Wrong answer!"
She shoved him again, this time slamming him into the door.
"Because!" he yelled.
Yang moved forward, clenching her fist. Her eyes burned red.
"Because what?!"
"BECAUSE YOU WERE RIGHT!" he screamed.
Alex spread his arms wide. He activated his telekinesis on instinct and propelled Yang back several feet to the other side of the room. Alex sank to his knees and took his face in his hands. A small stream of tears fell down his face.
"You were right. It was my fault. Ruby nearly died because of my mistake. If Delsin hadn't discovered his Semblance right then, she would have died and it would have been my fault," Alex said, his voice just barely above a whisper.
Yang went to his side, her eyes back to their usual purple. She smiled warmly and pulled him into a reassuring hug. Alex kept crying.
"Why?" he said through his tears.
"Hm?" Yang responded, her voice gentle.
"Why don't you hate me?" he asked.
Yang pulled him closer.
"Have you ever read a story called 'The Dark Road?'" Yang asked him.
"No," he replied softly.
"It's a poem I read when I was younger. It was one of my mom's favorites. At least, that's what dad told us," Yang began, "It goes like this."
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A man walked alone in a forest. The road ahead of him was long and winding, but he had nowhere else to be. As the man walked, he noticed the road got darker the further along he went. The man didn't mind. Rather, he preferred it. The cold darkness of the road matched the way he felt inside.
The man continued down the road. As the darkness grew deeper, the man found himself drawn to several painful memories. With each step the memories floated back to him, each one darker than the last, much like the road in front of him.
The day his best friend moved away.
The day he lost his job.
The day his father died.
And so the memories continued. But the man continued. By this point, he had no choice. Even if he wanted to turn around, he could no longer see the road. There was no turning back.
The darkness grew deeper still. The man began to feel suffocated by it. As the memories continued to flow back into his mind, he began to feel as if the forest itself were toying with him, making him relive his worst days.
The day his wife left him.
The day lost his house.
The day his son died.
The pain soon became too great. The man could no longer move forward. He could not bring himself to move. He could barely even bring himself to breathe. So, he stopped. Rather than try and move, to risk even greater pain, he simply sat down on the road and closed his eyes.
The man had no idea how long he sat. In that place, surrounded by darkness, time seemed irrelevant. Hours, days, weeks, all were meaningless in that empty void.
But after a while, he heard something behind him. A whisper, too soft to make out, even in the utter silence surrounding him. He listened closer. As the whisper rose, he felt something familiar about it. He could not tell what it was saying, but as he focused on it, the sound carried with it a single warm sensation.
Hope.
The man felt the thin breath of hope make its way down to his very soul. He opened his eyes. Much to his surprise, the way before him had lightened. The darkness, if only barely, had dispersed.
The man grabbed onto his hope with all he had left. He felt his will return. He stood up and started walking. As before, each step brought with it more painful memories. It became so overwhelming he faltered, but he knew that if he stopped a second time, he may never stand up again. So, he pressed on.
As the whisper grew louder, the man smiled. He recognized it. The combined voices of everyone he cared for at his back, he strode forward. With each step, the light grew stronger and the man could feel the dark memories recede. They weren't gone, they never would be, but they could no longer stop him from moving forward.
And though he knew that that darkness would always be there, the man pressed forward, determined to reach the end of the dark road.
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When Yang finished her story, Alex said nothing. Instead he looked at her questioningly.
"The man in the story?" Yang posed, "He's like you. He's someone who fell down into a very dark place. Also like you, he's someone who's surrounded by people who care."
Alex still said nothing.
"You asked why I don't hate you," Yang said softly, "Because, you are on your own Dark Road right now. Everyone has one, even me. This is yours. And like the man, you have a choice. You can stay here in the darkness, or you can take a step forward. It might hurt, but if you keep going it will feel better."
Yang stood up.
"And if you do decide to move forward, I hope I see you tomorrow night," she said, "I'll save you a dance."
She left the room quietly. For a while, Alex simply sat there on his floor. Then he stood up, and walked out of the room. He was far from ok, but he knew she was right. If he wanted to get there, he needed to keep moving forward.
As he closed the door behind him, he smiled.
Yang was one hell of a big sister.
CHAPTER END
I know its shorter than the first, but I feel like this is a better fit. Now, as for "The Dark Road," I wrote that myself and I do claim ownership of it. If you have a story where you feel it would benefit, you can ask permission to borrow it. Beyond that, I will see you all again on March 6th with Chapter 21.
