Been a while since I posted anything. Time to rip on the bandage, I guess.
Thrill Seekers
Yang lay in bed staring blankly at the ceiling. She heard her teammates' alarms going off as they woke up for another day of school, but she'd been awake for a while now. She couldn't help but wonder if this was how Blake had felt before when she'd been on her sleep deprived, downward spiral.
"Hey, you all right?" Blake popped her head up over the edge of Yang's bed. "You were tossing and turning a lot last night." Yang turned to look at her and shrugged, in the process revealing the dark circles under her eyes. "Geez, did you sleep at all?"
"Not much," Yang admitted.
"Something bothering you?"
"Just thinking."
". . . about?"
Yang sighed. Blake wasn't going to let it go.
"About... about that little twerp who helped Roman get away."
"The umbrella girl?" Blake raised an eyebrow. "Why?"
"It was humiliating! I had everything under control, was feeling like a god after I punched out an entire mech, and then she swoops in and ruins everything!"
"Yeah, swooping is bad. I hate swooping."
"Don't make fun of me." Yang glared at her.
"Well I'm annoyed too, but what can we do about it right now? I feel like we've reversed roles here." The irony was not lost on Yang.
"I know, I know. Ugh, it's just... how can something so cute and small make me so pissed off!?" Yang mimed the act of strangling someone.
"Cute?"
"Y-you know what I mean! She didn't look threatening, but she took about five seconds to end our whole operation!" Yang remembered it clearly. The girl had come out of nowhere, looked right at her, and just winked at her. There had been no fear in her eyes at all. That was what got to her; the fact that she hadn't seemed to consider Yang a threat. She'd been completely dismissed and unable to prove her wrong.
She really wanted to prove her wrong.
"Well... that really sucks, Yang."
"It really does."
"Especially because you really needed the sleep for our mission today."
"Awww, son of a-"
. . .
"You've gotta be kidding me!" Roman threw his head back and groaned, his voice echoing throughout the cavernous space they were in. "These kids again!?"
A certain ice-cream flavored girl was staring at the person before her. She was small, though still not as small as her.
She preferred "fun-sized."
"Just you wait! My team will find you and kick your butts!" The red-caped girl they'd captured growled at them like a feral animal.
"Sure. Uhuh. Someone get rid of her. Please. I'd do it myself but I don't like shooting children in the face."
"You've literally already done that!" the girl spat at him.
"Yeah, well, you lived, didn't you, Red?" Roman shrugged. "This time, however..."
"I-I wouldn't do that if I were you! N-not if you want Yang to leave you in one piece!" Red looked a lot more nervous now.
"Yang?"
"My sister!"
"Yes, I suppose that would make her angry. Not sure wh- What, Neo? Not right now! What do you mean which one is Yang?" Roman tilted his head in befuddlement at Neo's frantic signing.
"She beat you up last time! She'll do it again!" Red insisted. Neo's eyes went wide. Red's sister had to be the angry one with red eyes. This was perfect. She would definitely be here again!
She'd been watching the whole fight from the shadows, watching the little ants try and take down the giant Paladin. And then they'd succeeded. Her violet eyes had flashed red and she'd completely overpowered the Atlesian mech.
A beautiful display.
She'd never met anyone else who could change their eye color. Mind you, Neo had her beat there; she could make her eyes rainbow or polka dot if she so pleased, but it had still been fun to watch. She'd joined into the fight with childish glee, hoping to take the girl on, but Roman had insisted they run.
Phooey.
Suddenly: explosions.
Red grinned knowingly.
Roman just raised an eyebrow as Neo grinned, too.
. . .
Yang was exhausted, dumbstruck, and a little excited. Secretly, they'd taken this mission in order to find the White Fang. Oh, they'd found them all right. They'd found them and their train filled with explosives deep in the tunnels under Mountain Glenn.
They'd also found her.
"Oh no..." Blake groaned, knowing what was coming.
"You guys go stop the train. I've got this!" Yang spoke to them, but her eyes were fixed on the small, colorful girl before them.
"OK, let's go!" Ruby nodded and took off with Weiss right behind her. Of course, neither of them knew what was going on in Yang's head. Honestly, Blake wasn't sure either.
"Be safe..." Blake relented to her wishes too, however. They simply couldn't afford to waste any more time on one enemy.
And thus, the two were alone. Neo, wasn't it? She was pretty sure Roman had let her name slip before.
Neo tilted her head curiously and then faked a yawn before smirking at her.
"Oh, I've got plenty of gas left in the tank for you, don't worry," Yang growled and set her feet. Neo gasped silently and then looked flustered, fanning herself with her hand. When Yang faltered, looking confused, the other girl just smirked and bobbed her eyebrows. "No, stop that! Whatever you're doing, stop it!" What the hell was this girl's problem?
Neo just blew her a kiss and beckoned her with one finger.
"THAT IS IT!" Yang's eyes flashed red and she charged forward. It was a wild swing that even she wasn't surprised missed. The following flurry of hooks and jabs that the girl dipped and dodged around, however, were more annoying. "Stop dodging!" Yang snapped and threw a right straight.
The girl slipped around it and kicked her in the back of the knee.
Yang stumbled forward and turned around, glaring at her. The girl just shrugged innocently.
Technically she'd stopped just dodging.
"Grrr- OW!" Yang had advanced once more, winding up her next punch only for the tiny girl to out range her by jabbing her in the nose with her umbrella. Yang's face took on an offended pout. Even Neo looked a little guilty.
But not that guilty.
This time Neo took to the offensive and Yang was forced to practically dance her way backward. She hadn't really wanted to practice her footwork tonight, but it was what it was. The vicious little thing was fast and it was taking everything she had to stay ahead of her.
Unlike Neo, she was less dodging and more blocking while trying to keep an advantageous distance. It was going well enough until the cramped train-car caused her to run out of room. She threw a desperate punch, even firing a round from her gauntlet, hoping to ward the girl off, but it was, predictably, dodged.
Maybe the girl hadn't felt guilty at all, because she made to jab Yang in the nose with her umbrella again. This time Yang was having none of that. Her other hand clamped down on it and Neo's eyes widened slightly.
There was no way in hell she was freeing it from Yang's iron grip.
So she didn't.
Suddenly the handle slid free, revealing a blade that had been concealed within the umbrella. Yang just barely maneuvered around the incoming stab and threw herself forward, rolling her way behind the now blade-wielding girl.
Yang came out of her roll, turned, and then slammed her fist into the floor. She was using up energy stored for her semblance, but something needed to change. She nearly put her fist through the floor of the car, but more importantly the resulting tremor unbalanced Neo.
She then braced herself and swung her leg out, sweeping Neo's legs and dropping her. She fired her gauntlet once more for the recoil, redirecting her momentum to twist around and attempt to bring her fist down onto Neo's face. The girl pulled her head away at the last second, Yang instead putting another dent into the floor.
The fight paused for a second, a wide-eyed Neo shooting an accusatory glare at Yang. Yang matched it.
"Don't look at me like that, you tried to break my nose!"
The two both quickly pushed themselves to their feet and squared off again.
Neo began with an exploratory jab of her blade. It found Yang's fist, a shotgun blast ripping it from Neo's grasp and leaving it stabbed through the metal floor.
Neo stared at the weapon in bewilderment and then at her now empty hand. Yang took the opportunity to swing the umbrella top that she still had. Neo tried to lean away, but it still clipped her chin. She staggered away and Yang grinned. She knew even a light graze of the jawline could-
"OOF!" Yang doubled over. Neo had suddenly regained her footing and speared her gut with a sudden kick. She then spun and kicked the umbrella out of Yang's hand.
Cheeky little brat had been faking...
GONG! Yang's head bounced off the wall of the train-car as Neo's third kick was to the side of her head. She shook her now aching head to try and clear it and turned around to find that Neo had reassembled her umbrella.
She found this out because she was surprised by the girl's sudden reach when she was jabbed in the chest by it.
"SON OF A- You hit me in the boob!" Yang clutched her chest. Neo just smirked.
'All's fair,' she mouthed.
"GRRRR!" Yang's hand suddenly shot out to one of the nearby containers. The metal creaked and groaned under Yang's obscenely mighty grip. Neo's smirked faded and she took a nervous step back.
Her eyes shot wide and she grimaced when Yang just hurled the metal crate at her. There wasn't a lot of room to maneuver and Neo was forced to unceremoniously dive clear. Neo rose to a knee, both hands now gripping the umbrella as she clearly considered using the blade again.
Yang grabbed another crate.
Ring-ring!
They both froze. Yang's scroll was chiming at her.
Ring-ring!
Was someone really trying to call her right now?!
Neo just motioned for her to go ahead. Yang narrowed her eyes suspiciously, but went for it. She'd just throw that at her too if she had to.
"Yang!" It was Ruby.
"Not really a good time, sis!" Yang snapped. "Kinda fighting, here."
"Wait, then how-"
"Break in the action." Yang shot another wary glance at Neo who waved back. "What's up?"
"Uhh, well... Train's gonna crash."
"I'm sorry, what?"
"Th-the train is gonna crash and punch a hole straight into Vale!"
"But I'm on the train!" Yang's jaw dropped.
"So are we!"
"Well stop that!" Yang hung up, needing to think fast. "Uhh, can I get rain check on kicking your ass?"
Neo rolled her eyes and then pulled out her own scroll. She saw her lips tighten. Clearly she'd lost track of the time.
"Yeah, forgot about the impending crash, huh?" Yang crossed her arms.
The girl just shrugged and went to the door at the back of the car and opened it. She then gestured that they should just jump out.
"Whatever, go ahead and run. I need to stop this thing before it floods the city with grimm!" Yang scoffed at her. The girl then mimed pulling a lever and then gasping in horror. "Of course the brakes are cut..." No doubt Ruby had already tried that.
Neo then crossed her arms and tapped her chin thoughtfully before sighing. She ran her hand down one arm, but then had it run off the side before pantomiming an explosion.
"Huh?" Yang tilted her head. Neo frowned and shook her head before pointing back out the door. "I said I'm not-" But Neo pointed more forcefully. Downward, to be precise.
Yang pursed her lips, but went and looked. Neo was pointing at the tracks. Rails.
Derail the train.
". . . THAT'S IT!" Yang swung herself out the door and found the ladder that would lead her to the top. "Just gotta... derail an entire train..." Yang grit her teeth. How the hell was she gonna do that?
She glanced over her shoulder and saw the Neo had joined her now as well. She tapped her wrist to remind her that time was running out.
"I know! I'm thinking!" The girl just held her hands up in mock surrender and turned around to abandon ship. "H-hey, you're really OK with this?" Neo glanced back and raised an eyebrow. "Look, you're not the White Fang. This isn't your fight. You really want to kill an entire city?"
Neo's body sagged, but she looked more annoyed than anything. She trudged over like a scolded child and scowled up at Yang. Finally, she sighed and her figure relaxed a little bit. She pointed to her own eyes, mimicking them being... headlights? She then made a punching gesture and then pointed at the train.
"You... want me to punch the train?" Yang muttered in confusion. Wait. Eyes? Her semblance! "I can punch the train!" She grinned in excitement. This could work. "Quick, punch me as hard as you ca-" Neo slugged her in the jaw. "OW, F- I WASN'T READY!"
Neo just forcefully pointed at her wrist again.
". . . point." Yang then shook her arms and bounced on the balls of her feet. She needed to do this right the first time. Neo walked past her to the edge of the train and then held her hand out. She pointed to the tunnel wall and then back to the train. "Rebound? Got it!"
Neo nodded and set her feet.
Yang pulled out her scroll.
Ruby's shaking voice answered, "Yang? Th-the brakes aren't work-"
"Brace for impact or get off!" Yang hung-up with no further explanation. She got some distance and then ran. She really hoped that Neo didn't just trip her or something in the end.
She didn't.
Neo, surprisingly strong for her size, grabbed Yang's wrist and swung her, throwing her at the wall. Yang landed and launched herself back at the train. Her heart was beating a thousand miles an hour. The train was fast; what if she was too slow?
Her semblance exploded and her fist impacted the side of the train. A half-second slower and she'd have flown past.
"OW! GAH! FU-" Yang rolled and bounced along the ground until she came to a slightly tenderized halt. She looked up to see the train-car tilted almost totally sideways and skating along on one rail. "You've gotta be-" And then it fell, pulling the next car out of line... and the next... and the next... and then it all went to hell in a cacophony of screeching metal and thunder.
Yang slowly lifted a hand to her mouth. It was glorious in a horrifying kind of way.
She really hoped her team had braced.
She checked her scroll and saw that her aura wasn't looking too hot. She supposed crashing into a speeding train would do that, never mind the grimm from earlier and her fight with the little imp known as Neo.
More importantly, she checked the aura of her team. All worse for wear, but all still above zero. That was encouraging.
Yang broke into a jog, figuring they might want a hand getting out of wreckage. She found the train in a crumpled heap, smashed against the end of the tunnel. Fortunately, the way it had crashed had prevented it from punching through into Vale, so that was a plus.
"H-" She barely got her mouth open before she was grabbed and dragged to the side of the tunnel, and then pushed to a kneeling position. She was face-to-face with Neo again who held up a finger to shush her. "What are-" This time Neo slammed her hand over Yang's mouth to keep her quiet.
That was when she heard it. Echoing down the tunnel were the snarls of grimm.
The White Fang's plan had been to blast holes into the tunnel and then lead the grimm into Vale. The grimm had now caught up, but there was no entrance into Vale. Just them.
Yang held her breath as a few grimm eyed them, but then kept on going.
'How?' Yang mouthed at Neo. The girl did the eyes gesture again. 'Wh- Oh! Semblance?' Neo nodded.
A sliding door on the side of one of the train cars screeched open; somehow not totally warped shut. A large man in a White Fang uniform crawled out of the train and fell to the ground. He hauled himself to his feet as the grimm swarmed toward him. He had a massive chainsaw-style weapon, and the first few grim were torn apart, but soon they swarmed him.
At least his screaming didn't last too long. That said, Yang still felt sick to her stomach.
How long could they just sit there and hide using Neo's semblance? How were they going to get out of the tunnel? Why was Neo hiding her?
Arf! In a strange turn of events, if one hadn't met the family dog, a barking fireball slammed into one of the nearby grimm. This was followed by a green-haired man in a trench-coat who seemed to be clubbing the grimm to death with a thermos on a stick.
Professor Oobleck really was just the strangest guy.
"I gotta help him!" Yang tried to move, but Neo pulled her back. She was about to complain, but Neo held up a scroll that showed Yang's low aura. "Wh- Hey, when did you steal my scroll!?" Neo just shrugged. "Pfft, what? Worried about me?"
About that time, the rest of Yang's team managed to pull themselves free of the literal train wreck and began taking it to the grimm as well.
Neo and Yang stared each other down and finally Neo just huffed and turned away, waving at Yang to go if she wanted.
'Go, see if I care,' she seemed to say.
Yang went.
"Yang! You made it!" Ruby cheered happily as Yang jumped fist-first into the battle, clobbering an ursa.
"Yep! Like my handy-work?" Yang grinned back.
"That was really you!?" Weiss's jaw dropped after she finished freezing a few creepers into creepsicles. "How?!"
"I punched it real hard!"
"Of course she punched it..." Blake shook her head, not surprised, as she gunned down a beowolf.
"Using your semblance, no doubt! Marvelous work, Ms. Xiao-Long!" Oobleck told her before they were all forced to focus on the task at hand. The only problem was that they were all exhausted. They hadn't had a real break since the previous day.
"Yang!" Ruby called out, trying to take aim with her gun, but she didn't have time to adjust her aim around Yang.
Yang turned to see a larger than average beowolf lunging at her, claw reared back. It swung and missed, it's arm now ending in a stump instead of a hand. It had been sliced clean off. It tried again, but again found itself a sudden amputee.
A thin blade than punched through its chest and it collapsed, revealing the diminutive form of Neo standing there, foot tapping away impatiently.
"Awww, you were worried." Yang grinned tauntingly at her.
Neo just flipped her off before joining the fray.
. . .
The last grimm finally fell, and so did most of them. They all were gasping for breath and grateful the battle was over.
"So... same time next week?" Yang panted and received groans of dismay in response. No one even wanted to consider doing that ever again. Even Neo was looking flushed from exertion. The grimm had sadly been immune to her silent sass and so she'd been forced to just fight them head-on like everyone else.
Once everyone was able to breathe normally, they assembled in a circle. Everyone quickly took to staring at Neo.
"OK, since no one else is saying it... Why is the criminal who aided and abetted terrorists here?" Weiss glared daggers at her. "And why are we not apprehending her?!"
Yang sighed, "No point. She's probably not even really here. Watch." Yang's fist flew out and slammed into Neo's cheek. The girl stumbled away and then glowered at Yang is disbelief, her arms held out in a distinct "what the heck" manner. ". . . OK let's be honest, you deserved that."
Neo crossed her arms and turned way.
"What? I'm not gonna feel bad!" Yang scoffed. Neo just looked over her shoulder, her eyes narrowed angrily. "Uuugh!" Yang ran a hand down her face. "I'm sorry I hit you and thank you for helping derail the train..." she grumbled through grit teeth.
Neo immediately spun back around, beaming happily.
"I see. However, I'm afraid Ms. Schnee is correct. We must still arrest you for the crimes you've committed. However, perhaps in light of your assistance here some leniency will be given," Oobleck chimed in, causing Neo's head to snap around and stare at him in shock.
A moment passed with Neo just standing there, stock still.
"This should come as no shock to you. You were caught up with a very bad bunch of criminals, after all. The law is the law, grateful as we may be," Oobleck continued. Neo remained unresponsive. "Ms. Xiao-Long, it seems you know her best. Perhaps you can make her understand."
"Yeah, see, I'm pretty sure she actually bolted this time." Yang flicked the side of Neo's head and the girl shattered like glass. "Yep. She's gone."
"Figures. Whatever, we got Torchwick." Blake stomped off back to the train and climbed in. A minute later Blake's enraged roar echoed back out.
Yang sighed. "Aaand she took Roman with her."
. . .
Neo flopped down onto the ragged couch in their latest hidey-hole.
"OK, now this is gonna sound strange, but... why did you rescue me?" Roman asked her, slowly pacing back-and-forth before her. "That wasn't the plan."
Neo just averted her eyes.
"True, true. Very little actually went according to plan there, but they still could have arrested me. Cinder's gonna be royally pissed when she finds out about this." Roman stroked his chin. "Oh well. We have you, right, kid? You opened my whole world up. Endless possibilities with that semblance of yours. We'll find a way to make it work."
Neo shook her head.
"No?" Roman halted.
I want out. Neo signed.
"Come again?"
Out. She repeated.
"Kid, this is the worst time to get cold feet. Ironic since your feet will be very warm if Cinder gets word of this." Roman chuckled and wrung his hands nervously. "So, if you're joking, haha, funny, now-"
You told me I could stop whenever I wanted. Neo insisted and furrowed her brow.
"I-I know, but the timing here is just... you know... not ideal." Roman swallowed hard. He'd told Neo long ago that if she ever wanted out, he'd let her go. No questions asked. That had been before Cinder was a thing.
Free pass. No questions. Out. Neo stared him in the eyes.
"OK, can I at least go back on the questions bit?"
". . ." Neo frowned, but then sighed. She owed him that much. I might be in love.
Roman stared at her for a long while; face blank. He then burst out laughing. "Holy hell, I thought you were- Oh dust, you're actually serious." His eyes slowly went wide at her unflinching expression. "What? When? How? Who?"
Yes. Recently. She's really hot. None of your business.
"So... into the sunset with you, huh?" Roman sighed and shook his head. "Hard to say no to that one. Hmph. Would I approve of her?"
Almost certainly not. Neo grinned deviously.
"Typical." Roman smirked.
You should lay low now. I'm going along with the plan for a bit longer. I still need to make sure before I get us killed.
"Your caution is appreciated," Roman said drolly.
Don't give me that. I told you terrorism was a bad idea.
"Yeah, but I skimmed so much of that stolen dust!" Roman laughed. "Ahhh, I'm so gonna die before I can sell it now..."
. . .
Cinder Fall sat in the stands, her hands steepled before her lips with a very anxious Emerald Sustrai sitting next to her, glancing between her and the arena below.
There had been a plan. Had been. Past tense.
Emerald and Mercury were supposed to have gone into the next match together. Instead, a certain tri-colored girl had somehow taken Emerald's place! Somehow she'd hacked the system to change things! OK, so Cinder knew exactly how she'd hacked it, but only Cinder was supposed to be touching that!
That... wasn't the issue, though. Emerald, Neo, it didn't matter. Mercury was the important part. Mercury, who had just been eliminated from the match.
By Neo.
Mercury had been knocked out of bounds, and then Neo had "accidentally" blocked him from launching himself back in at the last second.
What the fuck was that little shit doing?!
. . .
Neo was quite pleased with herself for coming up with this plan. It wasn't perfect, but it was working. The original plan had been to hack the system to set up the fights in the finals, where the fights would be one-on-one. She'd have loved to do that, but she knew she'd only get one chance to hack the system before Cinder caught her.
That meant she'd had to rig this one match. Her and Mercury versus Weiss Schnee and Yang Xiao-Long. She'd have much preferred to get Yang alone, but this was all she was going to get. Mercury was dealt with, now she just had to get rid of Weiss.
She'd told Roman she was in love, but she knew better. At most it was lust, and more accurately comparable to a schoolgirl crush. A pretty girl had simply caught her eye. It wasn't even the first time, really, but it was the first time the girl had been so... off limits.
The amount of effort it was taking to find out if there could possibly be more to it should have made her scoff and turn back. This was just crazy.
Thing was, she was a bit crazy; or so everyone told her.
Well it wasn't like she was basing it off of nothing! It might've been a crush at first sight, but after the train Neo hadn't been able to stop thinking about her. She should've been some typical "good guy" huntress. She should've been boring.
There was an energy to her, and a viciousness. And dammit, she'd actually punched the train! And won!
She was the kind of person who Neo could imagine making giving up her life of crime worth it.
She could imagine it, but she wasn't convinced. Not yet. She still hadn't gotten what she wanted out of that last fight. She wanted all that train-punching-power aimed at her. She wanted to see Yang at her best. She wanted to know she wasn't imagining everything she was feeling.
So there she stood before the girl, hips cocked and finger beckoning silently for her to come at her. Part of her deep down scolded her. She was in disguise, but after their last fight there was a good chance Yang would recognize her by the way she acted... and the more telling way that she never talked. Because she couldn't talk, she'd picked up some very telling mannerisms. Just because her hair was black instead of pink now wouldn't necessarily save her.
Maybe she was OK with that.
"Oh yeah?" Yang smirked, but then her gaze hardened a bit. "Stay back, Weiss. This one's mine." Well, that solved that problem in a hurry. She wondered if Yang actually had an inkling, or if she just really wanted the fight. Maybe it was a bit of both. Maybe even just making Yang think about her was enough to get her going, even if she didn't know it was her.
She liked that. She wanted to believe that.
Dammit, she really did have a schoolgirl crush...
With Weiss scowling in the background, but indeed hanging back, the battle began again. The difference from last time was immediately apparent. Yang's assault was far more ferocious than before. No matter what the girl had wanted her to believe, she'd definitely been tired on the train.
However, they weren't in an enclosed space this time. Yang couldn't corner her, and so her greater agility and flexibility were keeping Neo ahead of the game. There were also no shipping crates to toss at her.
Yang hadn't exactly been winning the last fight either. Neo was starting to wonder if this had been a waste of time – if Yang was all flash and no substance.
It was when a full minute had passed that Neo realized something. They were stalemating. Neither had landed a hit. Neo had spent nearly the whole time dodging, successfully, but she wasn't the type to spend a whole fight on the run.
Yang hadn't left any openings for her. Suddenly Neo was grinning. Really? To pull that off, she'd have had to train specifically to beat her.
It was almost enough to make her blush.
Regardless, this was no good. She'd never get what she wanted out of this fight if they played cat-and-mouse until the referees called the match due to time. There was no official time limit that she knew of, but she doubted they'd let them fight forever.
If Yang wasn't going to leave an opening for her to exploit, Neo would have to make one. It would be a bit more annoying without her umbrella, but she'd manage.
The field of battle they'd been given included a forest, which Yang had now chased Neo into. Neo jumped back from Yang's latest punch and ended with her back against a tree, leaning casually against it and once more beckoning for Yang to come and get her.
She saw the brawler's eye twitch, but beyond that she was doing a much better job of keeping her cool. To her further surprise, Yang went for a body shot rather than a punch to the face, apparently resisting the urge to wipe away her smug little smirk.
Yang's fist hit the tree trunk hard enough to leave the whole thing trembling with leaves raining around them. Neo just slipped away and hid behind it. Yang darted around to follow her, but Neo had already slipped away again, keeping the tree between the two of them.
"Grr! I am not playing this game!" Yang shouted, her impatience finally starting to show. That said, she did catch Neo slightly off guard when she next punched clean through the tree. If she hadn't voice her frustrations ahead of time, she might've actually caught Neo in the back of the head.
Neo had to take the opportunity, though. The extra half-second it took Yang to rip her arm free of the tree gave Neo the time she needed to dart in and slam her boot into Yang's ribs, driving her to the ground.
Neo held up her index finger and then pointed her thumb to her chest. First point: mine.
She'd broken their stalemate.
Yang pushed herself up carefully, keeping her eyes on Neo. She was definitely doing her best to exercise control, no doubt doubling her efforts after her outburst being punished. Neo would just have redouble her own efforts and draw her anger all the way out.
Neo pressed the attack this time, aiming to keep her momentum. She could quickly tell that Yang's defense was shakier than her offense. She kept aiming to make counter-attacks to shift the tide of battle again, but Neo didn't let them connect.
On Yang's next counter punch, Neo rolled past, ending up back-to-back with Yang. She rammed her hips against Yang's, but it was like slamming into a brick wall. She pursed her lips, discarding that strategy as Yang powered through and spun around, aiming a hook at Neo's jawline. Neo just ducked low and shot her fist out into Yang's gut.
Two points.
Yang grit her teeth and punched again, but Neo leaned away, catching her elbow before Yang could recover and holding her still long enough to stomp down on Yang's foot.
Three points.
Yang swung a sloppy back-hang at her, but Neo ducked past it and slammed her knee into Yang's gut, doubling the brawler over and leaving her vulnerable for a punch to the jaw the left her down on all fours.
Four and five.
It was a little disappointing, really, how quickly she'd turned the tables in the end. With no weapon and her semblance tied up maintaining her disguise, she was still proving herself superior. She let out a sad sigh. Perhaps she'd better start preparing her apology to Cinder before she and Roman ended up charcoal.
"Dammit!" Yang slammed her fist against the ground. "Still not... good enough..." Neo raised an eyebrow at that. It was funny, almost like the girl was putting voice to her thoughts.
Oh well. Neo figured she might as well put an end to it, lining up a kick to the girl's ribs before she got a second wind and dragged things out unnecessarily. Neo was hardly above hitting someone while they were down.
In that instance, Yang's hand became like lightning and flew back, leaving Neo's ankle trapped in the girl's iron grasp.
Oh. Well this was what she got for getting careless she supposed.
Neo winced as Yang's grip clamped down ever tighter. The air suddenly felt strange around her and... why was the ground shaking?
Yang looked up, her eyes now blood red. Right, this was what she'd been waiting for! She might've let out a squeal of joy if she wasn't in such a bad spot at the moment. Also still mute.
Yang jerked her forward, dropping her off her remaining free foot and then grabbed her ankle with both hands before turning and flinging her into the distance. Neo rolled to a stop, glad she hadn't collided with a tree along the way.
She had to sit still for a moment. The dangerous thing now, aside from the enraged Yang, was that if she started taking damage it was going to be a real bitch to keep her disguise up.
Barely had she gotten to her feet and she caught sight of Yang almost literally flying at her. She grit her teeth and hopped back, leaving Yang's fist to careen into the dirt. It hadn't even really come close, but the concussive impact still unbalanced Neo, giving Yang time to recover from missing.
Neo was thus left to dodge a flurry of blows. Why was she suddenly so fast? OK, so she knew why, but did she really have to be fast and strong?! Neo had to block one strike and was left with her arm tingling from the force of the impact.
It was painfully, literally, obvious that blocking was not an ideal strategy. She tried to slip around Yang and get a little distance, figuring perhaps she could win a battle of attrition and let Yang tire herself out.
Yang turned and swung at her, but Neo had already launched into a back-flip, launching herself clear of Yang's fist. With a flick of her wrist, Yang adapted on the fly and launched an explosive flare into the ground. Just as Neo's hand had come down, the explosive force hit her and threw her down.
Focus. She had to focus!
She shook her head and pushed herself up, but Yang was already there. She grimaced and crossed her arms in front of her chest, having no choice but to try and absorb the incoming uppercut.
Oh, she absorbed it all right. Right into her core. She was launched backwards in a ballistic arc, sliding on her back through the dirt when she finally hit the ground again. She sucked in a desperate breath, praying that she could hold onto her semblance.
She was starting to have seconds thoughts about having all of that directed at her. She'd wanted to have fun, but this hurt!
It was glorious up close, though – the red of her eyes, the ferocity of her attacks, the flames that danced through her hair. She rolled over, leaving her stinging arms underneath her where no one could see her semblance faltering. She took a deep breath and stood, turning to face Yang as she folded her arms behind her back.
She just threw on a grin, hiding any pain she was feeling. She tilted her head pensively as Yang glared back. Yang wanted to keep going, but Neo didn't see the point.
Just now, she'd asked herself. Could she win? Could she overcome Yang's overwhelming power? It was a maybe at best, but hamstrung as she was with no weapon and her semblance tied up... no, no she couldn't. She'd lost, but she had one test left and she couldn't do it if Yang punted her out of the arena.
Her semblance stabilized and she raised her hand. Yang who'd begun to charge skidded to a halt, looking puzzled.
"Ah, it seems we have a surrender!" the more portly of the referees called out. Neo nodded silently with her raised fist.
"Well there we have it, ladies and gentlemen! Victory goes to Yang and Weiss of team RWBY!" the second called out.
Neo meanwhile slowly strolled over to Yang who was pouting slightly with her hands on her hips, no doubt wishing that the fight would have lasted longer.
"Well, uhh, good fight?" Yang held out her hand. Neo titled her head this way and that, looking Yang over. Yes, one final test. She took Yang's hand, but had no intention of shaking it. Instead, with a quick pull she drew Yang closer and got onto her tip-toes.
"Oh my! It seems, uhhh, that... well..." Professor Port was at a loss for words.
"Perhaps it's simply a cultural thing," Professor Oobleck said. "Or perhaps... can love bloom on the battlefield?!"
"Errr, wait, she's changed!"
"A disguise? Wait, what are the rules about that?! Do we have rules for that?!"
Yang's eyes had slammed shut in surprise as her opponent had suddenly gotten very into her personal space. She'd almost expected to be punched or stabbed or kicked between the legs, but instead... she'd felt something soft and not all that unpleasant.
She'd been kissed.
Her eyes snapped back open as the girl pulled away and-
"Wh- YOU!?" Yang's jaw just about hit the floor. It was the crazy girl, Neo, from the train. It... wasn't actually that surprising. Her opponent had fought just like her, minus the umbrella. That made sense, considering it had been her.
Neo just winked in response, a tiny tinge of red on her cheeks.
"But... how... why... you..." Yang blinked rapidly, trying to process things. "I... Oh, screw it." Yang grabbed the girl's face and pulled her back in. Anything worth doing was worth doing right.
Neo didn't hesitate an instant. She effectively leapt into Yang's arms, wrapping her legs around her waist and her arms around her neck.
"YANG! WHAT ARE YOU THINKING!? GET AWAY FROM THAT CRIMINAL THIS INSTANT!" The kiss couldn't last forever, and Weiss's shrill yell heralded its ending. Neo dropped back to the ground and took a step back, a dreamy look spread across her face.
She then composed herself, dusting herself off before looking back up at Yang, 'You passed,' she mouthed before giving her a little wave.
"Wait, what?" Yang figured she must have misunderstood. Passed what?! She wasn't to receive an answer in that moment, instead only gasping in surprise as Neo once more shattered out of existence. "Dammit, not again!"
. . .
Neo sat across the room from Roman in their safe house, arms and legs cross and her face passive. Roman was reclined, eyeing her all the while, a cigar slowly burning down betwixt his fingers.
"So... you gonna say anything?" Roman asked her, earning naught but a quirked eyebrow. "Oh for the love of... You know what I mean, kid."
Yes.
"Yes you're going to talk, or yes...?"
Honestly, I'd say she was even hotter than I remembered.
"That's. Great," Roman spoke through gritted teeth. "So then...?"
I have to at least try.
"You have to try?" Roman rolled his eyes. "Dust, kid, are you listening to yours- You know what I mean. Look, you've already pissed off some very scary people. All for what? A nice piece of ass and a maybe?"
Very nice, yes. Neo crossed her arms stubbornly. It's fine. They already know something's happening, obviously. I'll just help them win.
"Yes, because it's just that simple." Roman massaged his temples. "And how do you plan to do that? I can't imagine you're in their good graces."
About that.
"What? Why aren't you looking at me? Neo, look at me." And suddenly Neo's form shattered and she vanished. "Oh you treacherous little-"
Outside, Neo watched as the Vale police busted into the safe house. She kinda felt bad.
Oh well, she was over it.
. . .
Yang really didn't need this kind of stress right now. The finals were looming over her and all she could think about was the stupid kiss! Why? Why was one, tiny criminal so good at getting into her head?
First she'd just been an annoyance; someone she wanted to fight again to settle things. Then Neo had ended up working with her, saving her life, and fighting alongside her before vanishing into thin air without a word.
At least once a day, or so it had felt, Yang would find herself thinking about her, wondering if she'd ever see her again. Still they hadn't settled anything and now Yang was just confused about what they were to each other. Friends? Enemies? Something in between?
Now she felt like she was in the same position again, but worse. What had that kiss been?
"Ugh! I'm gonna lose just because I can't focus!" Yang growled, on the verge of pulling her hair out... OK so she'd never do that, but the point was that it had even cross her mind.
"What? What's wrong, Yang?" Her team had been walking her back to the arena after the break between rounds. Ruby placed her hand on her sister's arm worriedly.
"N-nothing. Forget it."
"It's that girl, isn't it?" Blake asked, having already gone through this with Yang. Yang's uncontrollable blushing gave her away. "Yep."
"Oh do not get caught up over her!" Weiss scoffed. "She's a criminal who runs away from taking any responsibility for her actions! If I were you, I'd put her right out of your mind. She's no doubt halfway to Vacuo by now."
"Yeah, but... why would she do that just to disappear?" Yang pouted. Why would she go through all that trouble just for a goodbye kiss?
"She's gone, Yang. And good riddance I sa- Excuse me?" Weiss turned around as someone tapped her shoulder. Her pupil's shrank to pinpoints at the sight of Neo waving at her.
"You were saying?" Blake raised an eyebrow.
"G-get back you fiend! Don't touch me!" Weiss jumped away, pointing her finger accusingly at the girl, but Neo's eyes were locked on Yang at this point.
"Uhh, s-so... Hi?" Yang rubbed the back of her neck. "OK, so I'm just gonna say it... What the hell is going on?"
Neo just tilted her head and stepped closer. "I-I said get- bwuh!" Weiss attempted to intercept her, but Neo's palm shot out, intercepting Weiss's face and pushing her out of the way. Neo tapped her lips and leaned toward Yang.
Yang's breath caught in her throat, but reason won out in the end. She grabbed Neo's shoulders and held her at bay, "No! I don't know why you keep showing up or why you're so fixated on me, and I want answers!"
Neo rolled her eyes and took a step back, pulling out her scroll. Judging by the speed her fingers flew across the display, she was used to this.
I quit the bad guys.
"Wh- B-because of... me?" Yang's shoulders went slack. That seemed... extreme? Sudden? Insane?
Yes. The short response just about set Yang's face on fire.
"Oh please! It's clearly a trap! We caused them trouble and now she wants to destroy us from the inside out!" Weiss crossed her arms, a suspicious glare adorning her features.
Don't need to set a trap for that.
"Oh you cocky little twit!" Weiss snapped. "We beat you in the arena, of course you can't beat us head on!"
I wasn't at my best.
"Quit it, both of you!" Yang intervened. "Look... she has a point, you were an enemy until like yesterd-"
They were all left staring silently when Neo next held up her scroll, showing them a selfie of her with Roman getting arrested in the background.
"You... turned him in?" Yang asked and Neo nodded.
"That doesn't prove anything! He was a two-bit criminal! No doubt they were done with him anyway after we stopped the train," Weiss argued.
Neo just bared her teeth. She wasn't Cinder! Roman had been her partner for years! It was supposed to have been her big romantic gesture! It was times like this she wished she wasn't mute so she could yell at the stupid princess until her ears bled.
". . . No, I believe her." Now everyone was staring at Yang. Neo meanwhile had to resist the urge to swoon. "Why save him from being arrested just to have him arrested again? And besides, she helped me stop the train in the first place!"
"You... did say something like that before..." Ruby mused.
"I'm sorry, Yang, but I'm with Weiss. She was pretty on board with helping terrorists not that long ago," Blake argued back.
"Really, Blake? Really?" Yang stared her down with a most unimpressed look on her face.
"Wh-what? D-don't look at me like that!" Blake took an offended step back, but withered under Yang's gaze. "Alright, so... that's... not as unfair as I'd like it to be."
"You aren't seriously considering this!" Weiss's jaw went slack.
"If we're being totally honest..." The red tinge had returned itself to Yang's cheeks. "I think I'm past considering at this p-"
Neo didn't need Yang to finish and lunged forward to grab the girl's arm, grinning up at her. As far as she was concerned, Yang had just made them official.
So imagine her surprise when she found herself being pulled off of the girl... by Ruby.
"Hold up!"
"Wh- Ruby?!" Yang looked just as astonished.
"I did not get a chance to speak!" Ruby stomped her foot, but then turned on Neo. "Now listen here you! This might not be my decision to make, but she's my sister, got it? A-and I'm not really one for threats and stuff, and Yang might be the big scary one, b-but you're on thin ice!" Ruby did her best to put on a mean glare. She failed, but she'd done her best.
Neo just held up her arms in feigned surrender, but couldn't help a lackadaisical smirk from jumping to her lips. It died on her face when a second later Ruby's scythe embedded itself into the ground next to her.
"I know how to use it." Ruby narrowed her eyes. Looking at it, Neo had to say... it was a lot bigger up close than she remembered. Wielding a weapon twice her size or not, she could probably take her, but Neo figured it might be best to play along and just nodded.
"Uhh, Ruby? Why'd you have your scythe with you?" Yang asked. Everyone else had left their weapons in their lockers.
"You're being stalked by criminals, Yang! Duh!"
"Aww, come on, Ruby! Some of our best friends are criminals!" Yang grinned and ruffled her hair.
"You're talking about me, aren't you?" Blake sighed.
"What? No! I, uhh, coulda been talking about Sun! Technically he's a stowaway!"
Neo watched on in amusement, feeling better once Ruby had put away her instrument of death. However, she was getting impatient. She and Yang were official now, and unless anyone else had any complaints...
Yang suddenly felt a hand grab the collar of her jacket and that was her last warning before she was dragged down to Neo's height and had her lips assaulted.
"Wonderful..." Weiss pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. "Very well, Yang. I hope you're... happy?"
Yang pulled away, but kept her hands on Neo's shoulders. "Yep. Now, uhh, you guys go on ahead. I'm gonna... gonna need a minute here."
"Eww! OK, OK!" Ruby shuddered and grabbed Blake and Weiss's arms to drag them off.
Chuckling at her sister's antics, Yang looked at Neo and let out a quiet sigh. Despite the mental image she'd no doubt given Ruby, she didn't make to do anything.
"Something tells me that this isn't going to be your average relationship where I stop by your house to pick you up at seven and then get you back before curfew," Yang told her. Neo just scoffed at the mere idea of a curfew.
Considering I don't even have a house. Probably not. Neo typed out for her.
"Oof, OK. So what's the plan then?"
You have room, right?
"Err... w-well I live at the Beacon dorms right now. Even if we could pass off some sorta cover story about who you are, it's not like they'd let you move in with us." Yang bit her lip nervously.
I can sneak in pretty easy.
"And then what? I mean I know this relationship is already moving at light speed, b-but come on." Yang let out an anxious laugh. Neo didn't share it.
Neo felt a weight crash down on her. She'd cut her ties with Roman, royally pissed off Cinder Fall, and thrown her lot in with a group of people she barely knew at the end of the day. Now what? Never mind the logistics of dating her new girlfriend, how was she supposed to survive?
"Hey." Suddenly Neo felt herself pulled into Yang's chest. "Calm down. We'll figure it out. I figure I owe you anyway, huh?"
In the embrace, Neo felt her fears begin to give way just a little. She was so... warm.
Bonus:
Roman sat in his cell, lamenting the loss of his suit, his hat, and his cigars. Most tragic was the loss and betrayal by the best partner he'd ever had.
"Women. Why is it always women?" Roman sighed. Well, that wasn't quite fair. It wasn't women, it was "love." "Tch. Overrated."
He was brought out of his lamentations by a dull thud somewhere beyond his cell door. Said cell door slid open a moment later, revealing the form of Mercury Black.
"Well, well, well." Roman stood. "So tell me. Is this a rescue? Or an execution?"
Mercury just smirked silently.
There will be just a tad more to this, but this felt like a good point to cut it off as it was already a bit long and unwieldy.
Til' next time!