Weiss Schnee was not having, what she would consider, a good day. She had awoken that morning in high spirits, ready to attend Beacon Academy and finally begin making a name for herself. Of course, her family name was already widely known throughout the world; being Atlesian royalty generally had that effect, but this wasn't what she wanted. A Schnee was excellent at everything they put their mind to, her older sister, Winter, was a perfect example of this. The older Schnee was intelligent, graceful, gorgeous and was more than a match for most opponents in combat. It was something that Weiss found herself often admiring her sister for, but secretly she was also jealous.
Growing up Weiss had always been compared to Winter. Her instructors would recount Winter's countless records and achievements whilst pointing out how poor Weiss' attempt was by comparison. Weiss had gained full control over her semblance by the age of eleven, an admirable feat for most people, with the average age being around thirteen, but Winter had done so at ten. Weiss was a straight A student, but Winter had rarely dropped a single mark in any of her exams. Weiss was a fencing champion in her age group, but Winter had been the one to teach her and to this day she had yet to take a single round from her older sister.
Beacon had been a way for her to leave that behind and finally make her first name mean just as much as her last. However, it seemed that fate intended to be cruel to her on this occasion. The airship journey had been nauseating; with masses of other students crowding around her, all vying for the chance to be her 'friend' and 'get to know her'. She had inwardly scoffed; not a single one had been even remotely honest, reminding her of her father's court of self-entitled, conniving sycophants; all licking her boots just so they could step on her later down the line. Of course, she had hidden her feelings; she had done what she always did, smiled, nodded and politely ignored them.
Unfortunately, the airship journey had only been the beginning of her problems. The eager groupies had followed her for minutes after landing, all content with arguing with each other over who would lead her to the headmaster's speech and who would sit beside her during it. She could have dealt with this, after all she was used to it; growing up it had been hard to actually acquire friends that saw her for her, rather than 'The Schnee Princess', and harder still to find said friends her father would actually allow her to remain in contact with. However, it was what came next that truly threatened to push her over the edge.
Yang Xiao Long Branwen was someone she had the unfortunate displeasure of knowing rather closely. The buxom, blonde brawler was, after all, royalty in her own right and soon to be related to Weiss through the marriage of Winter and Qrow. It was no secret that they hated each other, but both families seemed to constantly find excuses for them to interact, to the chagrin of them both. The students around Weiss had quickly tried to acquaint themselves with Yang as well, only to be shrugged off and told to leave.
At first none of the hopefuls had moved; simply confused by the blunt order from the blonde. Some had moved to protest before being silenced as Yang's eyes had begun glowing red and the edges of her hair had caught fire. The message had been clear, and the students had quickly filed away, unwilling to risk their lives with the volatile royal. In a way Weiss was a little jealous that Yang could afford to show her emotion openly, but it was also something she hated about her. The blonde may have been royalty, but she was far from refined and in some cases was outright repulsive. The two simply glared at each other for a long moment before Yang broke the silence.
"So, the failure is attending Beacon. I've gotta say, I'm disappointed." Yang looked Weiss up and down before grinning and leaning against the fountain as Weiss continued to stare at her. Yang gestured to her left eye, pointing at something Weiss knew stuck out on her face. "I hear daddy's combat test was almost too much for his little princess." A crack appeared in Weiss' mask as a phantom pain whispered across her left eye. However, Weiss, for once, had her own information and allowed a smirk of her own form on her features.
"A pleasure as always Yang." The blonde adopted a cocky leer. "You always come off as this strong, warrior-like woman, who isn't afraid of anyone or anything. So, imagine my surprise when I hear that some random girl in a local bar knocked seven bells out of you just the other night." Yang's expression dropped and she moved to retort only for Weiss to continue. "Of course, it would be scandalous for one such as yourself to not only be in such an establishment but to then be beaten so thoroughly that the media were barred from reporting on it." Weiss couldn't help but let a grin slide its way onto her face as she noticed the blonde's fists curl up. "Perhaps the 'Phoenix of the Branwen family' isn't so unstoppable after all." Yang visibly flinched, clearly something triggering a memory, but the weakness lasted only a second before her eyes flashed dangerously. She stepped forward, roughly grabbing Weiss' blouse and pulling her close enough for Weiss to feel the scorching aura that Yang emitted.
"Listen here, you frigid bitch," Her voice was barely more than a whisper but Weiss' eyes widened at the fury beneath the surface. "You're in my kingdom now, that thing was no random girl, it was a monster in human flesh and if you're so insistent in my apparent weakness, how about I show just why your sister is marrying into the Branwens." Weiss made to speak as Yang practically snarled at her, but the heat was robbing her of her voice and only an unintelligible croak escaped the white princess. For a moment Yang simply held Weiss in her grip, daring her to retaliate in some way, before eventually releasing her causing the Atlesian princess to unceremoniously stumble before eventually regaining what was left of her composure.
Weiss was under no illusion they stood on the same level in combat. Perhaps if Yang were to fight honestly and stick to traditional fighting methods, she stood a chance, but the moment the blonde used her Grimm, Weiss couldn't possibly hope to win. It was just another thing she hated about Yang; even if Weiss laboured day and night, more so than she already did, she could never overcome the power that was Yang's birth right.
Yang made to turn away, visibly irked but seemingly happy with her cowing of the other princess. She made it a few paces before stopping, as if remembering something. Halting her steps, she called out over her shoulder.
"Don't forget your part in this deal." Yang didn't give Weiss the opportunity to reply, simply walking away the moment after she spoke. Weiss waited for the brawler to disappear around the corner before scoffing to herself. Of course, she wouldn't forget, after all, a Schnee never forgot.
With her calm facade back in place and her mood thoroughly soured, the Atlesian princess walked towards the hall. Hopefully, her team would, at least, be tolerable.
Hearing her name called out had sent a strange set of conflicting emotions surging through her. On one hand, she was excited and determined; she was officially part of a team and she was getting closer to her goal, finally making her own way in life. She would excel, she would thrive, standing tall above any who doubted her, and she would do so on the bodies of the conquered if she had to. However, on the other, much larger, hand, she was baffled, surprised and, if she was being honest, irked to no end.
Her team consisted of three odd characters, all of which she found hard to read. The ginger girl seemed far too chipper and childish considering she was in a school that taught warriors skills with which to attack, maim and even kill others at times. Her clothes were rather bland when compared to others in the hall, most people either dressed smartly or to make a statement about themselves, with very few in everyday clothes with no noticeable colour. Weiss was half inclined to believe the girl was hiding something sinister underneath all of the energy; the girl acted oblivious to the social happenings around her all whilst concocting plans to end out with her standing above all those around her. Perhaps the princess was over thinking things, but there was certainly something amiss with that one. Polendina was a last name she was familiar with, though she had no dealings with the Professor, she at least knew of his famed intelligence, perhaps his daughter shared that quality. That would be useful.
The ginger's partner was an entirely different story. The girl was brightly coloured and was definitely unique, being easy to pick out from the crowd despite standing at little over five feet tall. At first glance, she seemed rather simple, once one could push past her appearance, but Weiss knew better. She assumed that Penny was hiding something, but she knew Neopolitan was not what she seemed. The girl had waved and smiled, but she hadn't opened her mouth to speak even once, but this wasn't what unnerved Weiss. No, it was the girl's eyes that spoke volumes to the princess. There was a light-hearted joy glazing over the top, nothing more than a thin glamour to fool the unsuspecting, but Weiss could see something more. There, under the surface of the small girl's façade, was something she was familiar with, very familiar, though she could not quite place what it was in the few seconds she had looked. Perhaps she would find out in the near future.
However, it was the third person that perplexed her the most. Ruby Rose, her partner for the next four years and she was… well that was the problem, she didn't know what to make of the girl. Had Weiss not been in heels, Ruby would likely stand an inch taller than herself and was definitely very attractive. Weiss herself never cared about romance and the such; the idea was pointless, her father would likely pick a husband in a few years and she would have little to no say in the matter, but, if the wide eyes of the various teenagers around her were anything to go by, she could comfortably describe the girl as beautiful.
Ruby had smiled, coming across as slightly nervous as her gaze flickered around the room as she walked up to the stage, but what confused Weiss the most was how the girl kept changing. Ruby had been rather skittish at first, before seemingly finding her calm and seamlessly fitting in beside her on stage, but finally she had changed again.
The feeling had crept up on Weiss, dragging its way up her back like frozen knives teasing her flesh with the promise of pain but never quite delivering. The whisper of a cruel, unforgiving agony worming its way into her mind as the girl beside her began trembling as if fighting some internal turmoil. Weiss glanced around, noticing some of the other students had begun shivering or even sweat slightly as they too became enveloped in the eerie feeling.
Certain people were reacting differently than others and the Atlesian princess heard as a small commotion broke out as it seemed some people near the back tried to push their way to the front but found it hard to navigate the sea of carefully aligned students. Most notably her teammates were reacting the oddest. Penny was frantically looking around, seemingly trying to find something but also trying to remain in place. Neopolitan wasn't reacting at all simply wearing a loose smile and facing forward like they were supposed to. Finally, there was Ruby, who seemed to be on the verge of some sort of mental breakdown. It was this thought that urged Weiss to carefully place a hand on her partner's shoulder; she couldn't very well let her partner embarrass herself, and by extension Weiss, on the first day.
"Hey, are you okay?" The question seemed simple enough, no malice showed in her voice, no irritation, perhaps a little curiosity and yet the girl violently flinched at the sudden sound and faint touch. She received no further reply save for Ruby to pointedly avoid looking at her and turn away to the best of her ability, though the movement seemed strained.
Weiss tried to hide her annoyed expression at being ignored, allowing her face to settle into neutrality, though she failed to completely remove the hard edge in her eyes. Slowly she applied pressure to Ruby's shoulder, attempting to goad her into looking at her. When she was met with resistance and further silence, she couldn't help her eye from twitching, a drip of anger showing through.
I am trying to show concern for your wellbeing and yet you have the audacity to ignore me?
A red haze took over her actions, suddenly yanking on the girl's shoulder and forcing her to turn around and face her. Weiss let a smirk cross her face as Ruby stumbled under the sudden force, her balance already weakened from her internal struggle, before eventually catching herself and began looking up. Weiss' expression and words died on her lips.
Crimson pools of molten hate bore into her, sizing her up like prey. Weiss felt a tremble set in as she began to step back, and Ruby tilted her head like a confused animal, leaning towards Weiss. The Atlesian princess swallowed thickly as faint growls, barely more than whispers, seemed to surround her and red, ravenous eyes opened and stared at her from various shadowed corners of the hall. Weiss tried and failed to tear her gaze away from Ruby as the girl reached out towards her, the girl's sleeve moving as if something underneath it was thrashing around.
Weiss could feel a warm bead of sweat fall past her brow, fear gripping her in its entirety as she was stared down for the second time that day. She knew those eyes, just an hour ago she had been similarly cowed by the eyes of a Grimm, but this was different. Yang's eyes had burned with fury and Weiss had been unable to speak from the scorching heat she had emitted threatening to rob her of her remaining air, but Ruby's eyes were different. Weiss' body commanded her to remain still and let the other girl do as she wished, ignoring any of her fleeting and panicked thoughts. She felt as if an endless black abyss were about to swallow her whole, an ocean of bone and shadow forced its way into her mind and drowned any other thoughts that dared speak against the midnight tide. All the while, a cacophony of starved beasts robbed her of her hearing forcing her attention solely on the girl before her.
Until it stopped.
A sudden silence permeated through the princess' mind and she heard as she gasped for the air that she had been robbing herself of. Ruby blinked, her eyes slowly slipping back into their usual calm, dark red hue, as she too seemed out slightly out of breath. Weiss just now noticed a new figure had pushed her way over to them, a taller girl with various patches of her skin looking as if they were scales. Said girl was currently rubbing comforting circles on Ruby's back as she trembled and huffed. Eventually, the newcomer spoke up.
"Ruby, what happened?"
Ruby's breathe was ragged as she struggled to remain standing. Luckily, the speech from the headmaster had ended at some point in the minutes she had been wrestling with her Grimm, so she was only surrounded by a few people, with most of the other students out of her immediate vicinity. They had definitely felt the effects of her Grimm, but most seemed to have dismissed it after it passed a minute or so later. Small mercies, she supposed.
Honestly, she wasn't sure if she had fully managed to supress them; if she looked too long at people, she could feel a familiar haze creep into the edges of her vision and the dull din of the demonic menagerie would get ever so slightly hungrier. She paled at the thought of what she was about to do to Weiss before Ilia managed to give her the nudge she needed to snap out of it. The Grimm had been angry, ready to lash out at whatever it was that had riled it up, but them Weiss had reached out…
Ruby had been so busy restraining her shadow, holding all of the beasts within their endless black cage, that she hadn't noticed that her own body had started to move on its own. It had been the first time her Grimm had taken over and she remained conscious, it was disconcerting and, if the safety of nearly a hundred people hadn't been on the line, she found herself wishing she had blacked out for it. Being trapped in her own mind, with no ability to do anything but watch, as she stalked towards a panicking Weiss, and try her best to hold onto the last few threads of her control, she hated it.
She knew roughly how to use her powers; the principal was simple really, but she couldn't ever go as far as she wanted, the moment she leant too hard into her power it wanted out in its entirety. The most she had managed to achieve without losing control had amounted to ordering already created Grimm, like Nora's collar, though she could only make it do certain things as if something was limiting her authority. She had managed to make a few smaller Grimm too, but she had been unable to quell the beasts' inherent bloodlust that all young Grimm possessed. She could order them into being passive when she was around, but if she ever got too far away, they would revert to its instincts. Bart had explained to her that Grimm grew exponentially more intelligent the older they got, but when they were young their memories likely could only last a few hours.
However, she didn't know what had set her off. Taking a final few heavy breathes she managed to right herself and look around. Her new team stood before her, all in various states of different reactions, and her sisters' along with their new teammate, Blake, stood to her left all looking worried with the exception of said teammate, who looked confused at what was happening. Neo mirrored Blake's expression, simply looking unsure of what she was witnessing, though a small, encouraging smile spread across her features.
Weiss looked, understandably, rather horrified at whatever had transpired just a few moments ago. Ruby knew the princess wasn't stupid and likely knew what a Grimm was, though she held out hope that she couldn't connect the dots between this incident and them. The hope was fleeting, at best, as she saw an accusatory glare appear in the Atlesian's eyes whilst she recomposed herself. This would likely be a long afternoon, but she dared tear her gaze away to look at the final gathered member, and she jumped at finding just how close they were.
Penny Polendina was the only person amongst the small group that she didn't know to at least some extent. She also didn't really know Weiss, but she had seen plenty of news broadcasts with the girl either featured or headlining on them, so at least she knew something. Penny though, was an enigma. Said girl was currently only a few inches away from her, ignoring any potential concept of personal space that Ruby may interpose. Her face was uncomfortably close, seemingly inspecting every nook and cranny of Ruby's form, like an excited puppy sniffing around a new person. Eventually she adopted a giddy smile and her eyes lit up with childish glee as she met Ruby's gaze.
"You're like me!" She grabbed the smaller girl's shoulders, seemingly unaware of the otherwise sombre mood, and Ruby could feel the Grimm rose tense up at the girl's touch. Her head began to ache again as the familiar racket of Grimm let out warning growls when Penny drew closer still, now only a few centimetres between their noses. "You're different too! You've got a Gri…" The ginger girl seemed to remember what she was about to do and quickly slapped her hands over her own mouth to prevent a further slip. Eventually, when she was comfortable that she had stopped herself, she giggled and continued. "Oops! Hehe. Oh, this is sensational!"
Penny suddenly leant forward, wrapping her arms around Ruby's torso and lifted her up in a bone crushing embrace. The others simply watched in silent awe as the ginger girl held a surprised Ruby aloft as if she weighed nothing. Penny looked like she would struggle to lift her own weight, with a thin frame that seemed to lack any of the lithe muscle most of them had, so it was with great curiosity that they spectated Penny twirling Ruby around like a doll. Eventually, Ruby left out a wheeze, indicating she was running out of air from the overly powerful hug, her struggling was futile, Penny's grasp had been like iron and it seemed that the ginger hadn't even noticed Ruby's escape attempts. Luckily, her pained noise seemed to finally register with her new teammate, and she was promptly put down.
"Oh, I'm so sorry! I-I forget my own strength sometimes." Penny gazed pointedly at the ground as she apologised her head bowed and shoulders locked in practiced submission. "I-it won't happen again. I Promise." Ruby looked up at the others, receiving confused shrugs from all of them bar Weiss, who was now recovered and glaring holes into her, though she noticed the princess' calm, calculative eyes flicker over to Penny for a moment and narrow before returning to Ruby. Deciding to ignore the low growl that built up in her shadow, she looked back to Penny who was still bowed, waiting for a response.
"Uhh… it's fine Penny, really, you just caught me off guard is all." Ruby placed a comforting hand on the ginger girl's shoulder, who slowly stood back at her regular height. The taller girl seemed confused at ruby's response, her head tilting to the side in puppy-like fashion.
"Are you sure?" Penny asked, seemingly sceptical of Ruby's approach. Ruby simply nodded.
"Of course." Ruby gave her an encouraging smile, which, after a moment lead to Penny beaming happily and moving in to hug her again. Ruby nimbly stepped out of reach before patting the girl on the shoulder again. "But, perhaps give my spinal column a few minutes to recover." She smiled again, and, though she looked disappointed, Penny eventually gave her own half-smile in response. Ruby was still struggling to get a grasp of what Penny had said, or at least had insinuated, when Weiss finally decided she had enough of being left in the dark.
The Atlesian princess managed to conjure an inkling of her father's authority as she paced forward, her gaze never dropping from Ruby whilst she approached. Her body seemed to reject her idea, the deepest parts of her acting as if it had been traumatised into fear, but she managed to push down the mounting dread and kept her fragile, commanding façade up. As she reached Ruby, she made to goad Penny out of her way, only to find she couldn't move the girl even an inch. It wasn't until the ginger realised that Weiss was trying to push past her that she finally moved aside with a friendly smile plastered across her face, though Weiss noticed she was seemingly more cautious around the princess. Weiss was too busy maintaining appearances to bother to broach as to why this was and instead locked gazes with Ruby as if some angry spirit had overcome her.
"Who are you?" Her tone was cold and accusatory, matched only by her glare. Ruby managed to remain calm but was struggling to come up with a justified response, leaving her in an awkward state of just staring Weiss down for several moments. Eventually she decided it was best to beat around the bush a little and buy herself or her sisters time to answer the question. Though as she looked around her sisters seemed more stumped than she was, mixed with a hint of controlled anger mostly aimed towards the princess.
"Well, Headmaster Ozpin already said my name, I'm Ruby, Ruby Rose." Ruby tried not to strain her voice as she laid out the obvious and stretched out a hand for the princess to shake. Weiss' eyes simply narrowed as she looked down at the offered limb before promptly ignoring it.
"Ok then, let me rephrase that; What are you?" The question drew rather confused looks from Blake who, whilst she had remained silent the whole time as a bystander, seemed to have some barely tempered hostility towards the white clad royal. Ilia and the twins adopted a darker expression, stepping forward to place themselves between their sister and Weiss. Ilia took an additional step forward her skin slowly shifting towards a bright warning red as she moved.
"I think it's best if you leave it alone prin…" Ilia's words fell on deaf ears as Weiss ignored her and continued to glare at Ruby.
"How did you get that?" Weiss moved to step forward again, attempting to shove Ilia aside. When the chameleon faunas didn't move, she spared a venomous glance at the obstacle in her path. "I don't recall addressing you." A challenging sheen flashed across Ilia's eyes and her mouth tensed as if she was suppressing a growl. Weiss simply scoffed. "Now, move aside." The princess' scowl was withering, and Ilia made to challenge further, only to be interrupted by a familiar voice.
"Ilia, it's okay." The faunas turned around to see Ruby giving her a small, reassuring smile and her hand slowly applying pressure to her shoulder, prompting her to move aside for the princess. "I'll be fine." Gradually, Ilia loosened her shoulders and nodded moving to stand just off to the side of the pair. Weiss simply kissed her teeth as the taller girl stepped away from her target, a small amount of disgust seeped into her gaze as she beheld the now unobstructed girl.
"Well?" Weiss' back straightened in an attempt to look down on the girl, using her heels to add to her otherwise more diminutive stature. Ruby seemed to handle the question well, her face was in a state of cool neutrality even as the older girl fumed, though, admittedly, her ailing head may have been a key factor in doing so.
"I don't know." The bluntness with which Ruby spoke took Weiss aback for a moment before she managed to right herself and the vitriol returned to her features and voice alike.
"Excuse me?" Weiss' response was quiet and seething, a near silent warning of her fraying patience. Ruby's expression never changed.
"I said, I don't know." Weiss simply narrowed her eyes further, her teeth gritting as her fury intensified. A voice deep within the recesses of her mind screamed at her to kill the woman before her, or at least get someone who could to do so, Yang perhaps. Yes, that might work; the princess' may despise each other but Yang was likely to not take kindly to finding a stray with a Grimm.
"Do you expect me to believe that? That some insignificant street rat just happened across something so closely guarded by the Branwens. Not only did she find it, but she also miraculously survived it." Ruby flinched, causing the corners of Weiss' mouth to slowly trail upwards; she'd struck a nerve and the voice in her head egged her on to do so again, but she waited for a response first.
Ruby stepped clumsily backwards, colliding with Melanie and falling as she did so. The twin caught her as she stumbled, whispering gentle support into her sister's ear whilst helping her right herself. Melanie's expression dropped as she beheld Ruby's face. Scathing, starving red eyes returned her gaze, though they were surrounded in puffy pink flesh as if the girl had been crying. Melanie's hand flinched away as something undulated under it, the fabric of Ruby's jacket violently shifting as the rose beneath became restless. Suddenly, Ruby leant forward so her cheek was only a few millimetres from Melanie's, her voice ragged and strained.
"I-I h… Have to go." With her words said, Ruby rushed out the main hall door, drawing the stares of several students as she barged past them and out towards the forest on the west side of Beacon. Melanie was slightly dumbfounded and for several moments didn't respond. Eventually, she turned to the others and was surprised by what she saw.
Ilia was on the balls of her feet trying to decide as to whether or not she should chase after her younger sister or instead cave in the princess' skull. Miltia was in much the same state of shock as she was and looked towards her twin for a decision. Penny was the first to act, her eyes had grown wide and almost scared, before she took off after her raven-haired teammate. It was the ginger girl running to the aid of her sister that spurred the white twin back into motion.
"Ilia, go with her." Though hesitant, Ilia nodded and began to move towards the exit. Only to be stopped by a mocking tone.
"Hah, to think, she was sent running with nothing but fact and light prodding. I wonder how she will survive when a Yang hears of this." Blake, who had simply watched the ordeal, could hear an audible crack as some invisible line had been crossed. The murderous glares the princess received seemed to clear Weiss' head, as, for a moment, she seemed to regret what she said. Miltia was the one to speak up.
"Ilia, go to Ruby." Her tone was cold and distant as if she no longer associated what she was going to do with consequence.
"But, she just…" Ilia was cut off by Melanie's equally glacial voice.
"We'll handle it. Now go." Slowly Ilia nodded and sprinted to catch up with her fleeing sister. When Ilia had left something seemed to possess the Atlesian once more as her confidence came back, though not as strong as before.
"Handle it? I am royalty, what are you going to do to me?" The twins simply cracked their knuckles in unison and taking slow calculative steps forward.
"Oh, your highness, you have no idea." Miltia practically sang the words before turning to her twin. "Mel, where are we?" The question, whilst innocent, was simply a thin veil to mask her intent. Melanie grinned.
"Beacon Academy for Huntsmen and Huntresses." The reply was short and concise, lacking the playful hint of her twin.
"And what is the primary skill we acquire at this academy?" They were only a few steps from the princess who had been slowly backing herself into a corner.
"We learn to fight to the best of our ability." Weiss' back hit the wall.
"So, we shouldn't turn down the chance at some friendly sparring, now should we?" Blake and Neo stepped away from the trio, ponder whether or not they should intervene, only to glimpse the livid hunger in the twins' eyes and think twice.
"Of course, not Mil."
Ruby had long forgotten how long she had been running, forgoing perception just so she could get as far away as possible. Her head was pounding as thousands of wicked claws raked against the edges of her shadow, screaming for release. She could feel as her control slipped further and further away like water through her fingers. Faintly, she was aware of two people chasing after her, normally she could outrun almost anyone, but her concentration was solely focused on keeping her Grimm in, and she couldn't spare a thought to activate her semblance and gain more distance.
It had been sudden, the cacophony of Grimm had returned in force, her previous restraint had been demolished as Weiss approached. Something had been off with the princess. At first, she had seemed nice enough, approachable, if a little standoffish, but suddenly she had changed. The Grimm had sensed it first, snarling from within the recesses of her mind, but eventually she had noticed it too. Weiss' aura had changed, she originally gave off a cool, calm and confident aura, demanding respect but not forcing obedience, but then it had changed. I had twisted, the cool feeling replaced with that of cold sharp ice, tainted with something akin to primal hatred.
It had been this taint that the Grimm had been lashing out towards. The princess had gotten too close and it had taken most of her willpower to not tremble under the unseen pressure the endless black tide had placed on their mental cage. At first she felt as if she could hold it, the Atlesian had a right to know, especially since she likely would know soon anyway, but people like Blake, Neo and whoever else was paying enough attention in the hall didn't and she had tried to stall for time. However, the princess had trod on an old wound.
The memories from Apep had never really faded, for any of them. Ilia had been the strongest, more often than not comforting the others when they had their episodes, but even she would crumble if the wrong memory triggered. The phrase 'survived it' had set her off. The walls of the hall had begun to close in, looming over her and engulfing the people around her in the darkness of a familiar cell with the only light streaking in through a crack at the bottom of the door. That is until steel capped shoes blotted it out. Hitting Melanie had snapped her out, but her sudden loss in focus had almost allowed the beasts out. She had tried to pull them back, but her mind was too panicked to hold for long; her own negativity fuelling their numbers and strength like gasoline to flames. So, she had run.
She failed to notice a protruding tree root as she sprinted, her foot catching on it and sending her tumbling into a clearing. Ruby hissed as a faint sting spread across her grazed legs and head, her focused had loosened again, this time Grimm were ready, her shadow spilling over the nearby plants like a plague. She watched as alabaster bones tore free of their umbral cell, shadowy limbs pulling the creatures out of the black depths. She grasped at her head as the guttural chanting returned anew, only vaguely aware of the two girls who had followed her.
Penny was positively thrumming with energy as she chased after her new teammate, hundreds of emotions flying through her system at incalculable speeds. She was elated at having found someone like her at Beacon, papa had said someone there would be like her, but she had slowly begun to lose hope as she failed to find anyone. Until suddenly, she appeared. It had been beautiful, the realisation that she wasn't alone, whilst she knew that the Branwens had Grimm too she was told she had to avoid them as much as possible, until papa said it was safe. But Ruby, Ruby was different, like her.
However, she had also been confused; there had been something else in the room with them, like them, but different. It had been caged, controlled and muted, but its scent had polluted the air around them, and, try as she might, she couldn't find where or who it came from.
As of this moment however, she was scared. Ruby wasn't in control like she was, she could feel it, Ruby was more Grimm than human, but she couldn't hold back her own strength, it rebelled against her, begging for escape. Luckily Ruby had managed to hold it in until now, bringing the risk of casualty down by approximately eighty three percent, with Ilia being the most at risk as the pair chased Ruby into the clearing. It was in this clearing that Penny truly found out what Ruby's Grimm could do.
The ground was encroached by an endless umbral abyss as twisted monsters pulled themselves from their slumber. Dozens of lupine beasts came first, followed by bulkier ursine and by the second they were joined by more and more complex creatures ranging from huge scorpions to winged lion-like creatures with fire occasionally licking the edges of their mouths. Ruby herself was pressed up against an old oak tree, her breath slowly steadying from its rapid, exhausted wheezing into the calm rhythm of a waking predator.
Penny's daze was interrupted by a flash of steel as Ilia impaled one of the lupine creatures, who had lunged at the ginger from behind, a grunt accompanying the action as she yanked the blade of her knife free from the beast and it slowly faded back into the shadow like ink to a black canvas.
"Don't zone out, or we're both dead." Ilia shouted above the primal din of the Grimm a dark blue shade taking over her skin, her panic clear as she sought a way out. After a moment of Penny internally questioning Ilia's sudden pallet swap, she nodded and lowed her stance. She hadn't brought her weapons with her, luckily that was hardly an issue; with no one watching she didn't have to hide her mark. She couldn't really control it, or at least not how she would like. She was capable of turning it on and off, but that was about it and a part of her worried that she may go overboard. Ilia was her main concern; one wrong move and she could splatter the poor girl across a tree.
"I don't want to hurt you; do you think you could sneak around and get to Ruby and then I can handle the Grimm?" The girls pressed their backs together and slowly rotated reducing the chance of getting jumped by the feral monsters that amassed and encircled them. Ilia glanced over her shoulder like the girl was insane.
"Uhm… sure, but you sure can you actually take all of em'?" Penny simply gave a winning smile and nodded. "Alright then. I'll run back the way we came and along the outskirts of the clearing, and when I get a chance ill drop next to Ruby." Penny nodded again as a pair of bears grew brave enough to approach.
Within a second Ilia seemingly vanished into thin air, leaving Penny as the sole target of the oncoming hoard, who, with their prey suddenly halved in number, surged forward. Penny simply grinned like a madwoman as the first bear reached her, bringing down its hulking mass in a powerful overhead swipe, striking the ginger's shoulder with enough force to shatter bone. A sickening crunch echoed through the forest.
The girl simply smiled at the beast as it backed away, suddenly cautious of its target, limping as one of its forepaws hung uselessly at its side, Penny's shoulder unmoved. The ursine looked down at the ginger, perplexed by what had occurred, only for her to let out a low huff, her eyes shifting from their electric green hue to a blood red that the beast itself possessed.
"That wasn't very nice." Depictions of partially melted chains could be seen snaking their way across Penny's exposed flesh as she stepped towards the cowering bear. It could feel it, the overwhelming pressure of her Grimm allowed to burst free of its confines. The other Grimm grew wary, still looking for openings, but less willing to charge her. The most important thing, however, was that Ruby stood, studying her, a strange, alien curiosity entering her gaze.
"A real one." The voice was different than Ruby's usual tone, darker, more sinister. Ruby's body gestured for the Grimm horde to stand down, flicking her hand nonchalantly. "It is nice to meet one such as yourself here after such a long time of isolation. However, I feel I should warn you to leave this one alone." A faint growl emitted from the gathered beasts, almost a sign of agreement had they been more able to express it. Penny simply looked at Ruby confused, slowing her approach but not stopping it.
"I need to calm her down before someone gets hurt. I don't know who you are, but surely you must understand." A heavy sigh escaped 'Ruby's' lips as the legion of monsters readied themselves once more.
"I am afraid I can't let you do that. The young mistress is having issues with her powers at the moment; if she does not work it off the menagerie of younglings you see here will be the least of your problems." Penny tensed as the beasts circled her again, this time more coordinated. "A pretender has reared its detestable head amongst you and the young mistress is not accustomed to her own strength yet." Slowly, black vines coalesced atop the void beneath, gathering at the feat of 'Ruby'.
Suddenly, one of the massive scorpions lunged forward, only to have its stinger bounce harmlessly off of Penny's raised hand. The ginger reacted quickly, as the scorpion recovered from its overextension, simply balling her fist and striking its head. A thunderous boom blasted into the tense air as the scorpion's armour splintered into a million pieces, black ichor spraying across the scenery as the arachnid was obliterated beneath Penny's raw strength. The girl looked back at 'Ruby', a sorry expression on her face.
"I'm sorry, but I have to stop you; the risk is too great." Another defeated sigh came from the possessed girl. Before the vines coiled defensively around her, thorns sprouting like daggers along their length.
"Then I will defend the mistress." The serrated, umbral tendrils shot forward in unison with the horde. "As I always have."
AN: As always thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed. This chapter took a while because I wasn't happy with it for quite a while. I am still not really sure if this is what I wanted it to be originally, but I wanted to get it out and find out how well it was received. There are a couple of things I think I may have messed up and not done right, but that's what reviews are for, so if you feel like helping out and either telling me you think its fine or a steamy pile of crap the feel free to do so, though I do ask you to be constructive with your criticism as much as possible. University is picking up so I have no idea when the next chapter will come out, but know that at least one more will come out before Christmas, hopefully more than that, but I have no guarantee.
- Tabaxi