Back FROM HOLIDAYS AND HERE WITH A NEW CHAPTER. I just got home two nights ago and got this out for you guys. I feel a little bad for the wait so I hope you like this chapter, more at the bottom of course.
…
…
Weiss checked Myrtenaster's chamber, making sure it was loaded properly with dust.
The first round of the doubles, two members of team RWBY against a team from Atlas named… FNKI. A peculiar name but with the naming conventions headmaster Ozpin had used to name their own team she couldn't really blame them.
If she was to expect anything from them, it would be militaristic strategy and skill. It would be difficult, but with the two of them it should be fine.
"Are you ready Blake?"
The Faunus took a breath, strapping Gambol Shroud to her back and fixing her collar high.
"Ready."
The heiress nodded back and the two of them made their way out of the changing rooms and down the hall, towards the stadium opening. There was a pause.
"Are you alright Blake? You seem quiet."
The dark haired girl shot her a look.
"Okay," she amended. "Quieter than usual."
"it's nothing just…" Blake looked her way. "Why do you think Yang asked me to take her place in this fight?"
Weiss blinked. "that's what you're thinking about?"
"It's strange though isn't it?" she pressed. "Yang usually loves a good fight, and in front of so many people? Why do you think she gave it to me, I mean, we all know she's stronger than me."
"I don't know," the Schnee shrugged. "Maybe she just wanted to give you the chance to have fun in the tournament."
"She did a poor job of it then."
"I'm sorry?"
Blake sighed, scratching her neck. "I don't want to be in front of so many people, not on TV, especially not like this."
"It's… not that bad Blake."
The Faunus glared at her, clearly she disagreed.
"Okay… it might seem bad, but I promise you it isn't. I doubt anyone can even see it on TV, let alone in the stands."
"I guess." She sighed. "It's still… whatever, it doesn't matter."
Weiss studied at her teammate for a moment. "After the tournament, I'm going to accept that interview; the one from Lisa Lavender. I want you to do it with me."
"What?!" Blake stared, eyes wide. "Why?"
"isn't it obvious? You're a Faunus, and even if you don't mention who your father is, being next to me, a Schnee, could send a message to people… have… have you told Yang yet?"
Blake looked away, it was enough of an answer.
Weiss sighed. "After the tournament, you tell her or I will, this time for real."
"…Okay."
"Come on," Weiss said, smiling in an effort to dispel the mood. "We still have to win for team RWBY. The two of them would never let us live it down if we lost."
The monochrome pair made their way down the rest of the hallway and into the open arena. This was their second time in front of the roaring crowds, and Weiss could still feel the excitement whirl inside her. This time, Winter was there somewhere. Either in the crowd or watching from somewhere else.
She could finally show her sister what she'd learnt.
They made it to the centre of the stage, though for some reason their opponents still hadn't arrived. Were they running late?
"So what's the plan Weiss?" the Faunus asked, drawing her sword.
Weiss hummed. "I'm not sure yet," she admitted honestly. "obviously we should stay together, with my zone control and your agility we can form a plan around that, but we can't be certain until we see the capabilities of the pair we're up against. All we can assume is that they'll have advance Atlas technology and military-like training."
"Reasonable," Blake said. "Do you think we should have watched more of the fights to think up a strategy then?"
"It wouldn't have made much of a difference," the heiress said with a shake of her head. "People work differently in doubles than they do as a full team. The most we might have gleaned is their semblances, if they even used them at all in the first round."
She paused. "Still, we should be wary. There's no telling what tricks they have up their-
She was cut off as smoothing zipped by her and kicked up a gust of wind. Weiss whipped around only to find no one there, and when she turned back, two people stood before her.
She stopped, blinking:
There in front of her were their opponents. Right away she could tell what had happened, the bright one had somehow gotten behind her. A speed semblance perhaps?
Beside her Weiss could see Blake wince and she could see why:
She was a cat Faunus, though with a tail instead of ears like Blake but while Blake's attire was dark, practical and sombre. This girl was…
Everything.
It was… it was so bright! Like a someone had taken a rainbow of colours and flat-out dumped them on the girl. And what was she doing on rollerblades? What even was her weapon?
The other one wasn't much better.
A trumpet? Really?
These two were from Atlas, weren't they?
"Hey," the dark-skinned male said. "You're Weiss Schnee right? The Heiress of the Schnee dust company?"
"Oh! Yes, I am." She wasn't sure why being recognised had surprised her, but it had. Maybe it was just the acknowledgement that-
"Yeah, I can tell just by looking at you," he went out, far less friendly than before. "The little princess that thinks she can be a Huntress."
…What?
He wasn't finished. "You know, it's your dad's fault my dad lost everything, he probably ruined hundreds of other people too and you stand here like nothings wrong. I guess all Schnee's are twisted right?" he smirked. "I'm going to enjoy showing you what a real Huntsman looks like."
The girl beside him laughed. "Good one Flynt. It's weird though right?" she said, turning to look at Blake. "What's a Faunus doing with a Schnee? Shouldn't you two be killing each other now? I mean, her family kill Faunus all the time in the mines right?"
Weiss recoiled as if she'd been slapped but the damage had already been done. How had she forgotten? All her time around Blake had made her forget about the Faunus closer to home, the ones that worked in the mines, the ones in mantle. The girl's comment hadn't been directed at her, but it-
"How about you mind your own business?" Blake hissed. "If you think you can get in our heads with pathetic judgment like that you're wrong. All you've done I give me a reason to bury your face in the dirt, and I intend to deliver."
Weiss flit her lip twitch upward as the duo looked at her in shock. "You know," she said. "It looks like Yang's rubbing off on you more than you think."
"Get ready for battle!" Port sounded from above.
"3…"
"2…"
"1…"
"Begi-"
Weiss was blown back by some unknown force before Port had even finished speaking, spinning in the air, landing on her feet and skidding back.
She only managed to come to a stop thanks to her glyphs. Blake had no such protection and was propelled back into the ruined city quarter of the arena.
The heiress' eyes narrowed as she took another look at the teen in front of her. He was smirking at her, but he held himself with confidence that spoke he was ready to act.
That blast.
So his trumpet wasn't just for show then?
There was an easy way to find out.
Weiss reached out with one hand, summoning a trio of fire glyphs and hurled all three at him once.
The smirk on his face grew wider as he brought the instrument to his lips.
Her eyes widened when the noise that came from the trumpet was coupled with a blast that snuffed out her fire and pushed her back another step.
So it was a weapon. It didn't seem to be a conventional weapon. Sound wasn't enough to do things like that to fire, it wasn't even that loud. Was it dust? Some kind of semblance. One thing was for sure; she'd been right about advanced technology. It wasn't a usual offensive weapon, perhaps even focusing more on support. One thing was for sure, it was still dangerous.
But still… a trumpet?
"What's the matter Schnee?" he called form the other side of the platform. "Scared already?"
Her lips thinned into a line.
Once again, Qrow's words came to her:
"In a fight, the one talking is usually the one who'd distracted. Words are for before and after, but during a fight the only thing with a damn is actions. Every second matters and a mistake could cost you your life so don't open yourself up by talking when you could be winning. The only exceptions are if your stalling or you know enough to mess with your opponent otherwise the best thing you can do is stay quiet and focus."
With that in mind, Weiss didn't answer and instead lunged in. Flynt saw it coming and blasted another soundwave right at her.
She winced as it ran off her aura, and worse slowed her down enough for him to sidestep out of the way and deliver a kick to her side.
She took it with a grunt, but instead of falling like he probably expected she pun on her heel and shot her heel into his chest. He stumbled and she moved into close quarters. The close range wasn't her speciality, but with that weapon either was it his. The heiress took advantage of that, striking at his throat with her palm.
The Atlas student saw it coming and tried to back away. He was partially successful, and her attack missed his neck, but still landed painfully on his jaw. He brought his trumpet up but Weiss was already sliding away, out of his range.
He growled, rubbing his chin whilst glaring at her.
"Dirty move Schnee."
She almost baulked. Dirty move?! Was he serious? This was a fight!
"Remember this brat's, in a fight everything is allowed," Qrow imparted to team RWBY after a spar where he'd kicked them around. "Every dirty move, every cheap trick and hit below the belt is applicable when fighting somebody. The idea is to deal as much damage and inflict as much pain on the other guy as possible. To win. If you remember that then nobody should be able to do the same to you."
"Fine," he spat when she didn't reply. "Guess I'll show you what real skill and hard work looks like."
And then suddenly there were four of him.
Weiss raised Myrtenaster. This had just got a whole lot more complicated.
At the other side of the arena Blake rolled back as the other cat Faunus took a high swing over her head.
She was fast, really fast.
The only reason she was able to keep up was because her eyes could track her movements. If Blake had been any slower, any less agile she might have been at a disadvantage, but she was used to speed semblances, Ruby had drilled the basics of defence against it into all of them.
With speed semblances came the idea from its users that they were to fast to be hit and so fell into predictable patterns. Wit this girl on roller-skates, it also meant linear movements.
Practically speaking, Blake could hit her, and she already had a few times. The problem wasn't the fight itself.
But this girl…
"You know, those colours don't look good on you. You look like an emo are you an emo? Do you read dark poetry? Do you stay indoors all-day?"
Just wouldn't stop talking.
"I was thinking actually," the girl went on, though not before striking at Blake from the front and managing to score a hit. She wasn't faster than Ruby, actually she was slower by a lot, but her weapon had some kind of dust properties that were making it harder to predict.
"Seeing you really annoys me. You wanna know why?"
Blake really didn't, she was to busy trying to hit her. This was infuriating on the highest level. Her voice was so grating.
Blackened ichor crawled its way up Blake's neck.
"You stand there beside that Schnee and act all buddy-buddy with her like what she's a part of is no big deal. I was born in Mantle you know, had to drag myself up from it, as hard as I could, all the way to Atlas for a better life."
Blake grit her teeth as she missed her strike on Neon. If she had the ability to bait her in this wouldn't be a problem, but her semblance wasn't working. She hadn't tried it since she'd gotten back to Beacon.
"But I was fine with my situation. I mean,m Faunus have it bad everywhere yeah but Mantle is just expected to be worse. When I got into Atlas I thought I'd never have to hear about the Schnee's again, about their dust mines, about their businesses or about them. Didn't happen though, because next thing I know my partner Flynt finds out his dad was ran out of business by the same family."
Neon's face morphed from a happy-go-lucky smile to a sneer in seconds. "But then I see you, a Faunus who talks to the Schnee like she's a normal person, like her family hasn't done anything wrong. I bet you're one of the Faunus who got the easy life here in Vale. You probably never had to struggle did you? You never had to fight like the rest of us for your freedom."
Blake forced herself to take a breath. Katt was just trying to get in her head, mess with her so she'd slip up. She had to ignore it.
On the next pass, the dark Faunus sidestepped Neon's attack, before ducking under and reaching out with her free hand.
The other girl shrieked as a hand clasped around her tail and yanked her back into the pommel of Gambol Shroud. Her back arched in pain as in slammed into her spine and Aura flared. She fell forwards, rolled back and stumbled in a desperate attempt not to lose her balance.
When the Atlesian girl stopped she sent Blake a glare and scoffed. "I saw the rest of your team too. They're just as bad."
Blake tensed. She better not-
"I mean really, some pipsqueak brat leading your team is bad enough, really makes you all look like a joke, but the other one?" Neon sped up, circling Blake faster and faster. "Typical blonde bimbo material, with that ugly looking hair and body of hers, yuck! What's beacon even doing letting in a cripple?"
A dark, twisted feeling rolled in her gut.
She just wanted this bitch to shut up!
Snap!
Neon let out a shriek as Blake's left arm twisted backwards, bending against the way a person's natural joints should allow them along with the sound of bones snapping and muscle tearing.
The pink Faunus stumbled from the shock, and one of her arms was trapped as Blake's hand closed around it.
And squeezed.
"A-ah!" Neon cried, trying to regain her footing, but in such an awkward position with one arm held above her head the rollerblades made it even harder.
She looked up.
And froze.
As she saw the black ichor that was crawling it's way up the left side of Blake's face. A face filled with rage.
Savage, animalistic, rage.
Blake growled.
And Neon screamed.
Across the filed, Weiss crashed onto the ground, rolling painfully as she did so. She winced as her eyes sought out the scoreboard and showed her aura dipping down further. It was less than fifty percent now. That wasn't ideal.
His semblance, was incredibly powerful; the ability to multiply one's state into four people was insane and from the looks of it they could synchronise there attacks like it was second nature. The fact was he had her outnumbered and her combination of all four trumpets was a frightening one.
But…
Flynt smirked at her form as she pushed herself onto one knee. "What's the matter Schnee, have you finally gotten a good look at what a really Huntsman is like? Must be painful knowing all that money of yours means nothing here. I bet you-"
"Oh shut up."
He froze, the tone of her voice, bored and dry, and stopped him in his tracks. Weiss rolled her sword arm slowly, working out a kink. "What did you say Schnee?"
"I said shut up," she drawled. "I mean, what's wrong with you? This who time you haven't stopped with the insults and really bad ones at that, my father's said worse to me on the days he's feeling friendly."
"Wha-"
"You do realise this is a fight right?" she interrupted again. "If you have a problem with me personally – which you shouldn't, since I've never met you before – then deal with it after the fight. All you've accomplished is making me tired of your voice."
"I-"
"And what are you trying to suggest anyway? It's almost like you have some sort of inferiority complex. You keep comparing yourself to me like you have something to prof. it's actually kind of sad."
The Atlesian student's face contorted in anger. "Big talk coming from someone who was just on their ass!" he growled. "You think you beat me with how much you've been beaten already?"
"I do actually," she answered easily. "Because there's one thing you seem to be forgetting; I am a Huntress-in-training," behind herm a glyph formed at her feet, glowing brightly. Flynt's eyes widened. "I am a student of Beacon, and a member of team RWBY,"
Weiss allowed a smirk to spread across her face. His semblance was a fantastic one, but she had it figured out:
It granted a numbers advantage and increased firepower but the truth was that most of it was simply intimidation. He had next to no mobility while it was in use, and despite what might have looked like, it wasn't that his clones worked well with him, it was that they couldn't do anything on their own. That was why he used a trumpet. It was the only thing that mashed well with his abilities.
Weiss has something to counter that.
She hadn't perfected it, over the summer she'd realise that she wasn't quite there yet, not to the scale she'd faced originally, but in that weakness she'd found something else.
Her summon, she could summon something her size, human-sized and fight with it rather than have it coy her moves. It could make up for her lack of swinging potential, it could defend her openings and allow for even more dangerous attacks.
The Arma Gigas appeared behind her, a thinner, longer sword in its armoured hands.
Flynt took a step back.
"This fight was decided the moment you revealed your grudge against me."
He glared at her. "So you exploited that? Guess you really are a Schnee."
And just like that, her smile turned cold. "Oh, and one more thing," she said, as if she'd forgotten something and was just realising it now. "My name is Weiss."
…
…
The doors before Pyrrha opened and she stepped into the headmaster office.
She'd gotten the summons a few minutes ago, and it had left no room for arguments. Not that she'd have argued to begin with. They'd been attacked so close to the school, Amber had been downed and she'd been no better. No doubt the headmaster had heard from the older girl what had happened, and that Pyrrha was being called only spoke of how serious he was taking this.
Still she felt some nervousness on her trip up, and a great deal of confusion once she realised who was present:
There was Headmaster Ozpin and Miss Goodwitch of course, and Amber, sitting at the other side of the desk. However there was also General Ironwood at one side, and a man with dark hair she'd never met before leaning against the wall at one side and… Ruby?
What… was she doing here? And why did she have such a pensive look on her face?
"Miss Nikos," the headmaster greeted kindly. "It's good that you're here, please, take a seat."
She did so, though she tried to catch Ruby's eyes all the way. What was she doing here? What was the general doing here? What exactly was she expected to talk about?
It was hard to gather herself though, with the screen on Ozpins desk playing the fight between Weiss and Blake and their opponents. (Another question for Ruby, shouldn't she be there cheering them on?) At the moment, Weiss was soundly decimating her enemy, and though it was only in the corner of the screen due to the spectacle being on Weiss, she could see Blake dealing with her own foe brutally.
Pyrrha actually found herself flinching at the savageness displayed by the Faunus. Was no one else seeing this?
And then the screen blinked off, Ozpin sending her a knowing look as to where her attention had been, right, there were other matters to deal with
She'd already run the conversation through her head; most likely she'd be asked her take on what had transpired, what did she remember, had she been hurt in any way, did she know who the attacker was. She didn't obviously, but she doubted there was much they could do now that the moment had-
"Tell me, what's your favourite fairy-tale?"
And in an instant her train of thought had been derailed, leaving her to blink in confusion at the man in front of her.
"I'm sorry?"
"Fairytales." He repeated curiously. "Stories you hear whilst growing up, from your childhood or otherwise. Do you remember any of them? Your favourites perhaps?"
"I…" what was she supposed to say? She fought for something, but her mind drew a blank.
"No? that's fine, perhaps you will when I mention a few… how about the day of the black sun? or the White lady?... or the story of the seasons?"
"Oh!" Pyrrha suddenly perked up. "Yes, my mother told me that one when I was a child, she loves it."
Ozpin smiled at her. "It is a good story isn't it. It sounds like your mother has good tastes."
In the corner of her eye, Pyrrha was sure she saw Ruby twitch violently.
The headmaster didn't seem to catch it. "What do you remember about it Miss Nikos if I may ask?"
"Well… I remember there was a wizard, and four young girls who helped him see the importance of life again… and that in the end he gave them great powers to help others like they did with him. It's a fairly simple story, though I suppose that's why it stuck."
He hummed softly. "I see… well would you believe me if I told you Amber here was one of those maidens?"
"…I… what?"
"Amber," he repeated. "She is the maiden of Fall, one of the four women in this world and we have decided to give you a task – should you accept it – that I believe no one else is fit to fill."
The champion barely heard him. She was to busy staring at the older girl beside her. Amber saw her look and smiled. It was faked, nervous, Pyrrha could tell easily but it just made things worse. What was…
She looked to Ruby again, but this time, instead of catching her eyes, Ruby looked away.
Away from her.
This was… this was serious wasn't it? They were really telling her about a fairy-tale really existing.
The powers she'd seen Amber use in their fight with that woman… was that the power of a maiden?
"What-" she swallowed. "What kind of task are you talking about."
Ozpin met her gaze with a solemn intensity she found herself unable to break away from.
"You are to be the guardian of the Fall maiden, her bodyguard."
What?
Ozpin explained to her who they were; an order that hid the existence of the maidens from the world. That the power they were talking about was magic, and how she was to be a part of that, becoming Ambers defender.
All the while, Pyrrha couldn't help but take in everything around her as the Headmaster spoke.
Miss Goodwitch was calm, listening to Ozpins words with a feeling of assuredness in what he was saying, the same could be said for the dark haired man, the one Ozpin introduced as Qrow. Amber was quiet, taking in as much of this information as her. Was it news to her too?
But… not everyone was in agreement it seemed.
It was a tiny thing, subtle twitches of the face, but Pyrrha had been in the spotlight long enough to learn when people were faking things, hiding their expressions. Ironwood was not pleased with this. For whatever reason, he disagreed with her inclusion. She couldn't even feel offended by that, she barely had a clue what was going on, Ozpin was acting like it was nothing, like he was telling her the sky was blue or water was wet.
And Ruby still wasn't looking at her.
Magic, the singular word raced through her head. This was… magic. Why her? Why had she been picked?
She voiced her question aloud and the headmaster smiled at her.
"I believe you have potential Miss Nikos, to grow not only into an excellent Huntress, but someone who could join us, someone who could help us protect the world as we know it, and perhaps even one day save it. All you have to do to begin your journey, is accept this task."
Accept it? This conversation was still in her mind being processed.
Magic. Magic was real and Amber was a being of immense power. Ozpin, the other headmasters were part of some… secret group that no-one knew about. What did this mean for the world? Laws, religions, society as a whole… how much had it been influenced by these secrets being withheld? How could it have changed the world?
And Ruby was a part of all this, from the beginning she'd been part of this secret group. Had this always been the case? Had she always been the person Ozpin wanted to pick for this? Had Ruby been her friend or just gotten close to report back to the headmaster? Was she being paranoid?
"Can… can I have some… some time to think about it?"
Again, an almost grandfatherly smile. "Of course, this is an important decision, however, I would ask you to have made your decision at the end of the festival… are we clear?"
"You must be prepared for a fight, there will be one… do not tell the headmaster, for your own safety, I'm sure he already has plans for you."
Those words, that warning echoed through her mind. Was this what that woman had meant? No, something else was going on here, something they weren't telling her.
Pyrrha bowed her head and stood up. Amber still hadn't said a word, nor had Ruby. It made her uncomfortable.
"Miss Rose, please accompany Miss Nikos down as you go. I'm sure she has a lot to think about… a friend to talk to would be good for both of you."
The younger girl hesitated, but after a pointed look from the man, nodded and followed the champion into the elevator. The doors closed, and the two of them fell into an awkward silence.
It dragged on, for one, two, three, four, five seconds. The only sound was the machinery above and below them, the shunting of metal.
Eventually. Finally, Ruby spoke.
"Pyrrha I-"
"Were you my friend?"
The younger redhead blinked, turning to stare at Pyrrha in confusion, shock. The Mistralian didn't let it faze her. Or she did, but pushed on despite it.
"Were you actually my friend or did you fake it? Did you fake being kind to me, in taking an interest in what I said just because you were told to?"
"What? No I-"
"It's the same thing, I can't believe it." Pyrrha's laugh was bitter. Ruby was trying to explain herself, she knew that, a logical part of her mind begged her to give Ruby a chance to prove that she was just making this up. But she couldn't listen, wouldn't, because it was all too familiar.
"Back in Mistral it was the same. People would get close to me, so many people, not because of me, but because of what I was, a champion fighter, an idol, someone famous. This is the same, just for different reasons and I-" her voice failed her. Was she crying? No, but she felt like she might.
Pyrrha clenched her teeth, forcing down her feelings. The doors opened and she rushed out, Ruby called out to her and out of habit she replied. "We're going out tonight aren't we? CRDL, CVFY and the others all promised we'd go out together. If you want to explain things, do it then. If you can even come up with a proper excuse for being a part of… this… I'm going to talk to my team."
Ruby watched her go. The reaper's eyes gazing at the champions back as they separated.
She let out a sigh, a long, tired on.
Damn Ozpin, what was her thinking with this? What was the plan?
Suddenly, her scroll buzzed. The girl blinked, opening up the messages and seeing a curious contact.
It was Winter.
'Miss Rose, I wish for us to convene to discuss matters in a more relaxed manner. I have discussed this situation with my sister and I believe it would be better for me to get a proper opinion of her partner. I do not wish for this to feel like an imbalance, so I give you the choice as to where we will dine. Tonight is when I am available, I will leave the rest to you."
Cold, professional and mildly intimidating, yep, she was Weiss' sister alright.
Ruby frowned. If she was serious – which she was sure Winter was – it meant her and Weiss wouldn't be able to make it to the club with the others… or, maybe they could, they'd just be late. But there was something else to this. Winter was testing her, judging her on something, she just wasn't sure on what.
Was it whether or not she was a decent partner?
If that was the case, she needed to make an impression.
There was still the thing with Pyrrha though…
Ruby's eyes hardened, her decision made. She sent a text to Yang, hoping she'd be able to deal with it, that she could trust her to help, and then dialled another of her contacts. It rang twice.
"Cardin?" she said. "Listen, there's something going on tonight, I won't be able to make it… yeah, it's still on, we might be able to get there late if we try… yeah we, listen, I need to cash in a certain favour, you know from a way back… could you help me arrange something?"
…
…
Yang's obsidian hand drifted along a scarred tree trunk.
This was it, the place Pyrrha had been attacked. Still a secret around Beacon, but Ruby had told her right way. It made her happy in a way she wasn't quite she sure of, that her sister trusted her like that.
That didn't matter right now though, right now, she'd decided to investigate, to see what was really going on.
She mightn't of in any other situation, this was the sort of thing she was probably better staying away from in case she got caught by Ozpin looking somewhere she shouldn't have even known about…
But Amber had told the headmaster what her attacker had looked like. Ruby had been there… and the description was a familiar one.
The question was even more complicated because of it: Why had Raven attacked the Fall Maiden?
The first thing to came to mind was for the power, but then, why did she let her live? Why had she even been here? The same woman, who she knew now had saved her at Mountain Glenn, had appeared again, in Ozpin's territory, the person she'd turned against, and made herself known.
Yang didn't know, but maybe the way she could find out was by looking around the site where she'd appeared. Maybe there would be answers there.
It was a little hard though, considering her tagalongs.
"Woah." Sun gaped, eyes wide as he took in the carnage, beside him, Neptune was much the same, though a little more cautious. She didn't blame them. The clearing was a wreck. Yang wasn't even sure it used to be a clearing.
Him and Neptune had been there when she'd gotten the message from Ruby, and when they found out about what had happened (in more mundane terms obviously) they decided that if she was going to check it out she should have people to watch her back. A nice sentiment sure, but it made things a little trickier.
"This place is a mess." Neptune said, scanning the surroundings. They were still in the Emerald Forest, which meant Grimm could show up and cause trouble if they weren't careful. Still he was right; trees all around had been splintered and scorched, some incinerated and one was even uprooted. As in, completely uprooted, torn out of the ground. Had that been Amber's doing? Ruby had told her the maidens were supposed to be way stronger and faster than they should have been.
There were also chunks of rock and dirt flung in all direction, all bursting out from a crater in the ground with soot and burns stretching across the grass. But… there was something wrong with this picture.
Yang kneeled down, taking one of the chunks in her hand and running a thumb over it.
It was slightly marked on the smoother side, the outside. From what Amber had told Ruby she'd managed to encase Raven in stone and then burnt it just to be safe… but here, it looked like it had been burned from the inside as well, by a far hotter flame.
She dropped the stone and stood up again, taking a few steps back to take it all in. she focused, and her eyes flashed red.
Sun caught sight of it and flinched. "Woah, are you okay? What's wrong did I do something to make you mad?"
"Relax," she murmured. "I'm working on something."
Yang's eyes were special. Not one of a kind, but since the Branwen tribe and others like it were rare their ability to see magic where others could simply sense it was scarcely documented.
The grimoire from the Order had mentioned it however, and what it was useful for.
Magic was incredible and fantastical, but it was energy like anything else and because of that it left behind traces of itself when used, that 'waste energy' that machines created that went back into the environment.
She could see it here now, all around her like steam, but thicker, and brightly coloured.
Her eyes really changed everything. Even her vision was different, like everything had a crimson tint to it. It held make magic traces stand out with vibrancy. Right now, those traces emanated from the trees, the grown and the air. It looked faint, less concentrated. Was this Amber's power?
The Fall maiden hadn't noticed anything magical about Raven but that could just be from a lack of attention, or that it wasn't used in an obvious way. No matter how strong you were, even Yang couldn't backhand trees away like they were nothing.
Raven could have been a magi like her, it had to come from somewhere right?
Maybe… but the crater gave a different story.
Her chest warmed under her skin. That was another thing too; she'd apparently gotten something else from the doctor that she'd figured out over the summer.
Her other sense were stronger, sharper, more intense.
Yang could taste the magic near the crater. It was hard to describe, something like a spice, it made her tongue tingle in a strangely pleasant way.
Magic traces around the crater and inside it were far, far stronger than anything else. It was purer, more raw.
Her scroll buzzed suddenly and the brawler blinker, her eyes fading back to lilac. It was Ruby.
…that was… definitely a thing.
Yang sighed.
"What is it?" Sun asked. "You find anything?"
"No," she sighed again. "I've got a thought but right now… it doesn't mean anything. I just got something more important to deal with right now though." She turned to them. "Come on, I guess I'll bring you two along to the club with me tonight."
Neptune blinked. "Are… you even going to ask us if we wanted to go?"
She raised an eyebrow. "What? You're saying you don't wanna come with?"
"I never said that."
The laughed and walked past him back to the school, patting him on the back as she did so. "Come on twinkle toes, let's get out of here already."
…
…
Weiss swallowed nervously.
Weiss didn't know why she was nervous, she new realistically she had no reason to be, this was just going to be a simple meal, an opportunity for her sister to actually get to know her partner and talk things out. Yes she had been surprised when Winter had suggested it, and hesitant when she'd suggested tonight, (Coco had been adamant about them all spending time together, but she couldn't say no to her sister seeing that she would most likely be returning to Atlas after the festival) but logically she knew there was nothing to worry about, it wasn't like Winter would attack Ruby.
..right?
No, no she was just worrying for the sake of it. She had nothing to worry about. They'd [probably eat at a dinner or a café Ruby had picked out and they could start from there. The younger girl had already sent her the location, though she'd never been to this part of the city admittedly. It was classy to be sure.
Winter hummed beside her. "Are you alright Weiss? You look nervous."
Oh great, now her sister was pointing it out. She wasn't nervous dammit!
She smiled up at her. "I'm fine sister, just thinking about the upcoming fights." It was a half-lie. The thoughts hadn't been at the forefront of her mind, but they were there.
Another hum from the elder Schnee. Weiss took the chance to look down at herself. She was dressed for this wasn't she? Winter wore her specialist uniform, which was a sort of standard for her that showed professionalism, but Weiss had gone for a blue dress that faded to white and ended above the knees. It was expensive, new. Was it too much? Was the shrug overdoing it? Why was this even worrying her anyway?
She let out a huff. It didn't matter what she was thinking, whatever it was, it was ridiculous. This would be fine. It was only a meal.
"Weiss!" a familiar voice called out to her and the Heiress' head perked up to see Ruby waving her over from a line of people.
The first thing she took in was Ruby's attire; It was the same dress she'd worn to the Beacon dance, though it seemed to be let out a little, longer and tighter in some- ahem… n-never mind.
There were other things too, like the line itself. It was full of people, queuing out the door and along the building, each and every person there looked far older than her, and very, very rich. They wore tailored suits, long flowing dressed pearl necklaces and diamond earrings, the high society, upper class.
Where exactly had Ruby brought them?
The question was answered a moment later when her eyes flickered up to the name of the restaurant, and it was a restaurant.
Fæger Hatheort.
Weiss only knew because of its popularity, but it was the old Valean language. And it was popular. No, calling it that was an understatement, it was famous, the name of one of the most exemplary restaurant chains in Remnant. There was one it Atlas too.
A not of worry made isn't way into Weiss' stomach. Did Ruby know this? Did she have a reservation for a place like this? Could she even afford a place like this? The heiress had lived with Ruby for the summer, she knew that while her family was well off, they weren't rich.
"Interesting choice," Winter said, giving a hint at her opinion. "I believe this place changed hands recently. It used to be just be called Restaurant."
Weiss did know of that place too. One of the best places in Vale, with the best chefs and staff. They would likely still be working here with even more talent brought in from around the world.
Her sister didn't say anything else, so they made their way over to Ruby, who was getting quite a few glares from the other patrons waiting outside. The fact that she was young, and loud, clearly contrasted with their own sombre presences. They didn't like it.
The recognised the Schnee's however and their gazes turned away when they got close.
Ruby grinned as they got into line beside her. "I'm glad you guys made it, it was starting to get awkward with all these people staring at me, ugh, I hate these heels."
Weiss looked down, she was in fact wearing heels, something she knew her partner hated.
"Then why are you wearing them?" she asked, if only because it was Ruby, who she knew wouldn't take offence to it.
"This is a fancy place, right?" the redhead added reasonably. "I can't wear combat boots here, I'm pretty sure they'd kick me out."
That knot coiled again. "Can we even get in?" Weiss whispered. If Ruby made a mistake with this because she wasn't aware of the rules it would be embarrassing, Winter wouldn't be impressed. She might have been able to salvage it if her account had been available to her but it wasn't.
Ruby just shrugged. "I guess we'll find out."
The heiress paled. Find out? Oh no this was going to be awful.
Winter was watching, she couldn't even suggest they try somewhere else. She began to sweat, this was going to be bad.
A few agonising minutes later they made it to the front door where the greeter waited for them. The man raised an eyebrow at the appearance of the Schnee's but it went even higher when Ruby stepped forward. Even so, he spoke in a professional manner, repeated a line he'd probably repeated dozens of times that night already.
"Good evening Madame's, do you have a reservation for tonight?"
"Uh, there should be a reservation here, for Rose?"
"Rose," he echoed, eyes scanning the paper before him. "Let's see here… it-" he froze, gasped loudly and even Winter looked up sharply.
"M-Madame Rose, my goodness, if we had known of your arrival we would have brought you right in, please forgive us."
"Um…" Ruby blinked.
The man signalled for half a dozen waitresses that appeared out from the doors. They were far better dressed than the others Wiess could spy through the doors, and all looked like they hadn't even worked the night yet.
Weiss shared a look with her sister, who sent her a questioning look. Weiss answered with much the same, she was just as confused.
Either way they were ushered in and an employee offered to take Winter's coat. Though she refused politely it was clear she was just as surprised by all of this, and watching Ruby closely.
Weiss' mouth practically dropped when she realised they were being taken to a balcony upstairs overlooking the other guest below, who were giving them disbelieving stares.
The entire floor was theirs, all of it, a single table was placed in the centre with statues, monuments, painting, artistic painted glass and even water-features surrounding it. There were candles lit for the perfect lighting and soft music playing in the background, as well as a paper shutter they could have closed if they wished to cut out the sight of the other patrons below.
The table was set out for three, and they sat down after the waiters and waitresses arrived behind them.
"This is… interesting." Winter noted.
"I… honestly had no idea this was what we were getting." Ruby admitted, and from the way she flushed Weiss could well believe it. "I only asked for a table for the three of us to talk privately."
"How did you even-"
Then, another man appeared, and Weiss realised instantly from the way he was dressed, the way he walked that he was the one overseeing this Restaurant.
His eyes ran over the Schnee sister, but kept going, and lit up when they fell on Ruby. She made his way over to her and when he was close enough, bowed.
Bowed. To Ruby!
"Madame Rose." He said. "It's an honour to meet your acquittance. I hope the table is too your liking."
"U-um, yes, it's… it's great, thank you. Sorry, I'm a little surprised by all of this, I wasn't expected this much."
"I was informed of as much."
The man responded. "No doubt you remember that we worked under a different name last time you were here."
Last time?!
Weiss shot a look at Winter, who stared back just as shocked. Ruby had been here before? When? How? What on Remnant was going on?
"From the time we were of course under new management." He went on to explain. "Our new owners hear that you wished to make a reservation here from your mutual associate and decided this would better suit you. Madame Mirark Godwebb sends her regards in that respect and hopes you appreciate her decision."
Ruby's eyes lit up in recognition, though Weiss had never heard the name Mirark before… no… no that was wrong, she'd heard it once before not that she thought about it; in hushed and awed whispers from her father speaking to the board of directors.
That meant they were powerful, powerful and respected enough for even her father to treat them as such.
How did Ruby know someone like that?
It was happening again, more and more questions were surfacing.
Ruby smiled. "Tell her I said thank you… and… pass on a message for me," her eyes flicked to the two of them, and Weiss' breath left her as she saw those eyes, from Glenn. Sharp, calculating, deadly. "as discreetly as possible."
Rub leaned in as the man did the same, lips to his ear Weiss realised she unconsciously strained to hear what was being said. She managed it however, though if she was even an inch further away she doubted she would have been able to."
"Tell her to gather the Order' defences. Whatever's about to happen, it's about to happen now, very, very soon."
What?
Whereas Weiss had no clue, the man swallowed. "I-I understand," and the heiress knew he did. He understood something she didn't, something Winter didn't. "I will inform her right away, you have my word. Please, enjoy your night Madame Rose, the waiters will be here to talk your orders momentarily."
And with another bow he turned and practically powerwalked his way out of there.
Just… what?
Ruby met their stares with a tentative smile.
"So," she said. "Should we eat?"
...
...
So, Things are moving along, to me, it feels like a lot happened, though maybe just because I'm the one writing it. Another tournament fight, Pyrrha gets involved in the secret world in a way a bit different from the original story, Detective Yang is on the case at Beacon and Weiss gets another surprise,
Lets go in order shall we?
No, I know a few might be upset because I cut away from the fights, but I have very good reasons for that, for both Blake and Weiss, the very important things were hinted at thought not explicitly shown. I'm a firm believer that f something happens to a character, (like a power up or character change) it should be around other relevant character, (Protagonists and antagonists alike) and this is of course just my opinion and you're free to think otherwise, but it HATE Neon and Flynt. to me, they're pointless, meme characters, and worse than that, Neon specifically screws the whole idea that Faunus are discriminated against in Atlas. She's not only in a huntsman school, but she's far, far too happy.
Maybe it's just me, but if they'd given us something to hint at a darker ton with her surface personality i might have been happy, hut no, Nyan cat is good enough. You can like them if you want though, this is purely an opinion.
you will get more of the summon and Blake's... whatever happened with her, but in far more serius ircumstances, mark my words.
Next, Pyrrha. Not much to say, only because not much changed. Obviously Amber's still around, so it wasn't going to go the way it wen tin the show, but I still have a path for Pyrrha, and this is the way it begins. little bit of tension beteen the two redheads though, I wonder what might happen between them.
Yang, being Yang and maybe possibly also the next Sherlock homes, what are you doing Yang? that isn't your Avatar!
and Weiss. you knwo, i had this scene in my head since I brought up the resurtant scene with Cardin a while back. I'm not finished with it yet, more for next chaoter, but i felt i needed to get this to you sooner that waiting even longer and in the end I realsied it makes better pacing sense if I left it for next time.
I also wanted another scene here but left it out for next time too, it would have made the chapter too long.
Things are getting closer, close to what we've been waiting for.
On another not, the character short for Adam came out, loved it, of course and makes me excited for Vol 6. cautious optimism people, for things you enjoy, that should always be the way to go I think, less stressful that way. And you can be damn sure I'll be listening to Lionized when it comes out in full. It has some... interesting lyrics.
And Adam used a lot of kicks in his fighting stlye during the short.
hmm... who do we know that deosn't fair well againt kicks?
Hmm.
Anyway, that's all I've got for now, hop you liked it, it was written in two days so hopefully there aren't many mistakes, man, a beta yelling at me would make this so much easier.
Anyway, if you liked it, be sure to follow, favourite and review, it goes a long way to encourage me and help me improve.
Thankyou and goodbye!
P a treon (Slash) WSpectre . com