Weiss let out a long suffering sigh. That was the eighth person she had interviewed in the last two hours. As the man who had been sitting in front of her for the past twenty minutes began to leave, the CEO ran a hand through her hair. How she had been coerced into this she didn't know. Her 'meeting' with Winter, if it could be called that at all, happened last week. They had later discussed terms on how Weiss should go about hiring the two full-time staff her sister required of her, and had decided, much to the chagrin of the business woman, that she would take a week off of work in order to hire her bodyguard and assistant, and settle them into her schedule.
It had taken an entire week of preparation before she was even remotely comfortable with leaving her company in the hands of her employees without her supervision, as this was by far the longest length of time Weiss had been off since she took the reigns three months ago. She typically did not even take weekends off. She was absolutely not looking forward to this next week. She didn't need anyone else, but she did value her relationship with Winter, so the CEO begrudgingly accepted the situation and resigned herself to the torture that would undoubtedly be the following week.
She had decided that on Saturday, which was today, she would hold the initial interviews. In the morning, she would cover everyone who had applied to and qualified for the ads she had put out after her and Winter's agreement was set up for the role of Weiss's personal bodyguard. In the afternoon, she would cover the ones who applied and qualified for the role of Weiss's personal assistant.
So far, there were no glaring issues. In fact, the only thing Weiss could really find to complain about was the fact that so far, everyone who had walked into her personal study today to apply as her bodyguard were all the exact same people. As the next person walked in, Weiss let out an internal sigh. Even before looking up, she already knew what this one would be like. Everyone that walked through that door this morning were all the same.
The man sat in front of her. He had short, brown hair, cut close to his scalp, deep green eyes, and a stern face. He was bulky to the point that she could see the definition in his arms even through the formal suit he was wearing. She shook his hand, and she could feel the thick calluses on his fingers and palm. He introduced himself, "Good morning, Ms. Schnee, I'm retired Staff Sergeant Muller, former Atlesian Military Police. How are you?"
There it is.
Even as she greeted him politely in kind, she internally sighed. So far everyone who had walked through that door had the same, close cropped hair, muscled, brutish figure, was several years older than her, and always, always, was either ex-police or former military. It was not as if she had anything against the Police or the Military, quite the contrary actually, and it wasn't like they were anything but polite, but none of them clicked.
Before Weiss even realized it, the interview was over, and the man was handing her his resumé and walking out the door. He was nice enough, she supposed. A little gruff, she supposed, but she could probably deal with it, even if she wouldn't like having him around on a daily basis. She realized that she wouldn't want any person around on a daily basis, let alone two. She would bite the bullet, though. She had promised Winter as much.
Yes, this week would be torture for her. She didn't want, or need, people around her. People made things complicated. People caused problems. People hurt efficiency. People hurt her. She idly realized with a dull, familiar stab of pain in her chest that this would last for much longer than a week. These two people would have to be around the CEO indefinitely.
She held her face in her hands for a few moments, relishing the respite from the interviews and wallowing in the fact that she had been coerced by her sister to allow not only one, but two people to come into her home and workplace, monitor her, and practically dictate what she could and couldn't do. Idly, she realized this was much like the situation with her Father. She had fought so hard to break from her Father's control, and had only succeeded when she had proved herself and took her Jacques's place in the company. He had gone on to live through his retirement in a smaller manor on the coast of the southern border of Atlas, leaving the Schnee Manor to Weiss. With the exception of the staff, which Weiss kept as scarce as possible, she had the large property to herself and her solitude.
With a humorless chuckle, she realized how history was now repeating itself. Her freedom would soon fade.
At the sound of the knock at her door, she quickly collecting herself. Burying the pain in her chest, she sat up and resumed her posture. Hands folded across the desk, she said, "Come in." She was more than tired of these interviews, but she kept in mind there was only two more after this one. Weiss knew it would be almost painfully dull though. As the door opened, she expected more of the same.
Imagine her surprise when she got anything but.
She had definitely had a woman or two come in earlier, but they were always very 'masculine' in stature, toned and muscled, tall, short hair, a few to several years older than her. Always ex-police or former military, just like the men. This woman, however was different. She looked to be fairly young, a few years younger than Weiss even. She was average in height but still an inch or two taller than Weiss in her heels. Even so, she was fairly small statured. The woman was of average weight, unlike the ones who came before her, and had little to no visible musculature to her body. She was dressed in a formal maroon blouse with black trim, along with a business skirt and a pair of flat shoes. Unlike the closely-cropped hair Weiss had become accustomed to, this woman's hair was more fashionably short. It went down to her neck, and was a dark brown color, and, oddly, it faded to a red color around the tips. The most eye-catching feature of the woman, however, was her eyes.
They say eyes are windows into the soul, and this woman's were stunning. They were a silver color. Bright, lively and open in a way that was a stark contrast to the world around them at the moment. They looked innocent, sweet even.
So, obviously, Weiss was befuddled as to why such a woman was in her office during the applications for the position of her bodyguard. As the woman walked in, Weiss asked awkwardly, if politely, "Um, ma'am, you do realize that this morning we are holding applications for the bodyguard position, and that the applications for the assistant position is not until this afternoon, yes?"
The woman let out a light chuckle as she came up to the desk and said enigmatically, "Yep, I know that." Weiss once more eyed her form skeptically. The girl looked like she couldn't hurt a fly.
A bit thrown off by the woman's laid back personality and relatively informal language that contrasted so severely with those before her, the businesswoman raised a single white eyebrow and asked, "And...you want to apply to be my bodyguard?" As enthusiastic as she was about this whole ordeal, something about this strange girl caught her attention.
"Actually, I'm hoping, if it's at all possible, to apply for both positions, and work them side-by-side if I get the job." The woman said with a small grin that just barely showed teeth. At Weiss's confused look, the lady in red extended her hand across the table, and when Weiss took it, she introduced herself with a certain pep to her voice that Weiss was absolutely unused to, "Hello, Ms. Schnee, I am Ruby Rose, retired Huntress of Beacon academy, and business minor."
The CEO realize how misleading the woman's appearance was, as her grip, though not painful, was like iron, and the faint calluses on Ruby's hands spoke of years of experience. Still though, it was odd. What was a Beacon graduate doing in Atlas? Why was someone so young and fit already retired? While she was no expert in the lives of Huntsman and Huntresses, she did know that they were typically very devoted to their duty, and most didn't retire until they fell either to Grimm or the march of time. One thing stuck out to the white-haired woman more than anything else, though. Ruby Rose wanted to apply for both the position of her bodyguard and her assistant.
If she gave Ruby the job, she would only have to share her life with one other person, instead of two.
As absolutely wonderful as that sounded, though, there were questions that still needed to be answered. Her time in business had taught her that, as promising as a situation looked, you must always confirm before taking any risks. Even cautious, Weiss had to make a conscious effort to keep the enthusiasm out of her voice, "Hm, well, as unorthodox as your proposition is, Ms. Rose, I don't see why not." Releasing their handshake, Weiss motioned to the chair next to the huntress, "Please, have a seat. Let's start this interview."
When they were both settled down in their seats, Weiss said, "Well, I suppose I should start off with my most pressing concern. You said you had a degree in business, but that you are a retired huntress? How is that, and, while we are on that, why are you retired?"
Ruby nodded politely in acknowledgment of the questions and took a few moments to put together an answer before saying, "Well, I went to Beacon for my training, and part of their curriculum is that you are required to minor in a civilian course just in case your Hunting career falls through, whether that's because you decide it isn't for you, have some medical issue that puts you out of the job, or have an injury that makes you unfit for duty..." She talked with her hands, Weiss noted. As she explained, her hands made all sorts of motions and movements that accentuated her speech.
What an odd woman...
Her attention was brought away from the redhead's hands and back to her face as she continued speaking, her voice increasing tempo slightly, "Well, I was always kind of interested in business stuff, and I was always really good with numbers, so I figured I'd do business as my minor. I was really good at it, and even though it was a tad boring to me, I enjoyed it. As for why I'm retired..." her face fell a bit, the excited glimmer in her eyes fading too, and her hand curled into a fist over the center of her chest. Weiss assumed she didn't even realize she had done it. Ruby Rose's eyes fell to her lap as she said in a more somber tone, "I was hurt pretty bad last year. I...don't really want to get into it, but I was too hurt to fight in the way a Huntress needs to fight..." she trailed off for a few moments before meeting Weiss's eyes once more. There was a fierceness in the undertone of the redhead's voice as she said, "Ms. Schnee, I grew up wanting to be a huntress. My dad was a Hunter all his life, and my mom died in combat when I was little"
Weiss felt a pang go through her chest. Very briefly, the businesswoman had a flash to her own childhood. She hardly remembered her mother's face anymore, but she remembered her smile. She remembered an 'I love you'.
She remembered blood and fire.
Weiss could relate to the pain in Ruby's eyes more than the redhead would ever know. She pulled her mind out of the past and buried her pain once more, though, when Ruby began speaking again, "It took me a long time to get back on my feet after that. I mean, my aura still works mostly, and I was healed in just about a month, but I just...couldn't keep going for a while. Only recently I started looking for a job, and I saw you were looking for a bodyguard and an assistant." Ruby leans forward, resting her elbows on Weiss's desk, and giving her hopefully future boss an intense look, she said, "I felt I was uniquely qualified for the job."
"Well," Weiss began, jotting down what Ruby had said on a small notepad of hers, "Ms. Rose, you said you had an injury? If you are applying for the bodyguard position as well, then I must ask, are you capable of fighting?" Her eyebrow rose at the grin that spread across the other woman's face at that question.
Ruby leaned back in the plush office chair confidently and said, "I can't fight like a Huntress anymore, with all the flips and jumps and stuff, but I am more than trained and capable enough to fight off everyone in that lobby," she jutted a thumb over her shoulder towards the door.
Weiss gave a hum of acknowledgement and said, "Hopefully I'll only need to take your word on that." Ruby gave an amused chuckle at that. The CEO found herself favouring that girl. Even as she dreaded having someone forced into her life who got to dictate what she could and couldn't do, this Ruby Rose woman seemed...tolerable. More so that anyone else who had waltzed into her office today, anyway. Not only that, but if she hired Ruby, then she would only need one person. It sounded like a good compromise to her. Even so, Weiss was cautious, and there was much more to discuss before she made any decisions. "You attended Beacon, correct? If I recall, that is down in Vale. Why are you looking for a career in Atlas?" the white-haired woman asked.
What mirth Ruby had from her previous comment died away at that. Sighing, she ran her hand over the back of her neck, a nervous or stressed tick, Weiss assumed, and said, "There is...more to my injury than I've said so far, Miss Schnee, and I don't want to get into it, so I guess...I guess there's just nothing left there for me except for the memories. Coming here, well, I'm just moving forward."
Weiss's curiosity was peaked, but she decided it would be unwise to pry further, as the woman across from her seemed rather upset by the memories being dredged up. "Well, I believe that is all I need to know about that. There is only a few more questions I have for you," Weiss said, looking down at her notepad she had been quietly scribbling on throughout the interview. Ruby let out a small huff of breath and closed her eyes. Weiss could see the internal struggle the red woman was having, and recognized it all too well. After a moment, Ruby nodded for Weiss to continue. "You said you minored in business at Beacon? The workload you would have as my assistant is much more complex than a minor would train you for. However adept at combat you are, are you qualified for the work of what is essentially co-managing the SDC?"
Ruby gave a professional nod and said, "I took a remedial course in business this past year, and did some online work for the more advanced courses. I may not have a full degree in business, and I realize how absurd it is that I am even applying without one, but I am more than capable of handling whatever you can throw at me," she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear at the sceptical look her hopefully future employer was giving her, "I can show you at some point if you want?"
Shaking her head, the CEO sighed. That may be a deal breaker, but if this woman was willing to show she could do it, then perhaps she could throw together a small test of some sort for tomorrow's secondary examinations, if Ruby made it that far, that is. "Well, I suppose we'll see. If you have records of your grades or contact with your former teacher, I suppose I can judge your performance based on that."
Ruby nodded, relieved that the CEO was keeping an open mind, and said, "Yeah, I think I can do that. Is there anything else you need to ask me?"
Weiss thought for a moment, looking at her notepad, then at the resumé Ruby had slid across her desk when she had sat down. Her eyes scanned across it for a moment, noticing also that Ruby had actually lead a team of huntresses, until coming to rest on her list of contacts and references. It was the usual list of names, along with their connection to the redhead across from her. It seemed to be the usual list of former professors and previous employers (of which there was only one), but one thing caught her eye. There was only one name that didn't have either 'professor' or 'doctor' in front of it.
Yang Xiao Long-Teammate
Weiss was no expert on the matter, but she knew there was four people to a team at Beacon, as there was a time in her early teenage years when she entertained the thought of pursuing a hunting career there, against her father's wishes. She found it curious that only one was listed, but didn't question it. This strange woman seem like a decent candidate for the job, but under any normal circumstances, the mysteriousness and lack of business training would definitely be a red flag for such a sensitive position in the company, but these were no normal circumstances. Certainly, they made her decision more difficult, but the one little factor stayed at the forefront of the businesswoman's mind was the simple fact that she could preserve her lifestyle much easier with only one person tagging along with her.
Though the CEO inside of her cringed at the poor reasoning for her appealing to this huntress, the person in her scratched and clawed at her to allow her. Perhaps she could find some balance point. She decided there that she would wait until tonight to begin making any hard decisions, after she had narrowed down a list of likely candidates and contacted a few of their references. "Well, Miss Rose," she began, "this has been an enlightening interview, and you seem to be a good candidate for both jobs. I will consider you for tomorrow's more personalized screening, and we will be in touch. If you pass on to the next level, I will contact you tonight at around seven o'clock."
The retired huntress stood with a polite, pleased smile. "That's all I ask." They shook hands, and Weiss once again noticed how firm and calloused her grip was. That strange woman turned to the door, and walked out of Weiss's office, giving a polite wave as she left. Weiss sat back in her chair, the leather squeaking under her slight weight. That woman was so...unique, especially compared to her competition.
What an odd woman.
The next candidate walked into her office. Short brown hair, green eyes, gruff voice, thick arms, ex-SWAT. As he sat down, the CEO's mind was already back on Ruby, the one exclamation mark in a sea of periods. An hour later, she would remark to herself that she couldn't even recall the man's face. Several hours later, when the last potential assistant left her office, she found she could not recall any of their faces. Yet still, red hair, silver eyes, and an upbeat, intelligent grin were fixed in her memory.
Weiss stood, alone, in her bedroom. Her hands sat on her vanity, and she stared at her reflection. It was thirty minutes ago that the last potential 'life assistant' had left her office, and now she stood in her bedroom. She had taken off her business jacket, and the top few buttons of her dress shirt undone. Her hair was down, flowing down her back like a sliver waterfall. Objectively, she observed that many people would call her beautiful. She knew that many women sought out this beauty, and would be more than satisfied with looks like hers, even with the scar that ran over her left eye, which was what her gaze rested on. She was satisfied with how she looked, as little as it mattered, but she still felt cold. Not physically, but deep inside her. It was a crushing weight on her shoulders, and she began to feel her will crack as it always did in these quiet moments when she had nothing else to do.
She felt anger well up inside of her. She didn't understand. She had everything. She controlled the single most wealthy and powerful company in the world, she practically had the world beneath her feet, yet something was missing? She was one of the most wealthy and blessed people on Remnant, so what more could she possibly want?! With a grunt Weiss shoved off of her vanity, and trudged over to the the small end table by her bed, and stared at the small stack of papers resting on it. She needed something to do to take her mind away from this pain.
Briefly, the image of a pair of silver eyes flashed through her mind, and she dug through the pile and pulled out a single paper. It was Ruby's resume. She scanned over it once more, despite having looked at it enough times today to know all the information it held on the woman. She had called most of the numbers in her contacts at some point during the day, reaffirming from Ruby's previous teachers her administration skills, as well as one positively glowing, and painfully long-winded, story on her combat skills from one "Professor Peter Port", but she never touched on her more personal contacts. She glanced through the list, and her eyes caught once more on the name "Yang Xiao Long".
Reasoning to herself that calling a former subordinate of hers would help her to see if Ruby had the leadership skills she would (probably) need as her assistant, Weiss punched the attached number into her scroll. She certainly hoped this Yang woman wouldn't find the time unreasonable. The scroll would ring for a few moments, before an upbeat, if slightly confused, voice came through, oddly muffled, as if there was something in her mouth, "Hello? You've reached Yang, who is this?"
Instinctually straightening her hair, even though there was no way Yang could see her through the audio call, Weiss said, "Hello Ms. Long, this is Weiss Schnee."
There was a dull clack of something hitting the floor, and an expletive Weiss barely heard that sounded something like, "Fuck, my cereal!". After a few moments, the voice came back into focus, "Uh, the Weiss Schnee? Like, big freakin' billionaire Weiss Schnee?" Weiss heard her voice fade again as she (presumably) pulled the scroll from her face again, and she could barely discern, "Damnit, there's milk all over the damn carpet-"
After moment of quiet confusion on the CEO's part, Weiss responded, "Erm, yes, that is me. Is this a bad time, Ms. Long?"
"No, no, it's fine, just kinda spilled all of my cereal. Damnit that was the last bit of milk, too. Anyway, uh, its Xiao Long, for one, and for two, why is it you called me, of all people? I mean, unless you need something exploded, shot, or set on fire, I don't really have much to offer..." the huntress trailed off.
Weiss cleared her throat and said, "No, nothing like that. Your former team leader, Ruby Rose, is applying for a job as my personal assistant and bodyguard, and she had you listed as a reference. Would you mind if I asked you a few questions?"
The business woman was startled by the loud cry of, "Damn! When Ruby said she was going civvie, I didn't expect that! Just like my lil sis to do the craziest thing she could find. Yeah, yeah, I'll answer some questions. Shoot."
Sister? They have separate last names, though. Curious.
"Well," Weiss began, "you were one of her subordinates, yes? What would you think of her leadership skills?" This was something she had asked Ruby's professors already, but it was what she used to justify the call, so she felt obliged to ask.
"Oh, she was great! She actually got into Beacon a few years early, and a bunch of the teachers thought she was like a prodigy, or something," the sunny woman said. Weiss was a bit off balance because of the laid-back language Yang was using. It was in direct contrast to the formal speech the business woman was used to. "I mean, I wouldn't say I was her subordinate, 'cause she never really treated her team in a military-type way, but it was effective for our team, that's for sure."
Weiss took what Yang was saying with a grain of salt, as the two huntresses relationship was not lost on her. Being sisters, Yang was likely to embellish Ruby's records to try and help her sister get the job. Regardless, she continued her inquiries, "Alright, how was her academics? I've heard nothing but good things from her teachers, but her lack of a hard business degree beyond a bachelor's concerns me."
"Oh, uh, she kinda struggled with that stuff at the start of the class, if I remember, but she actually really got into it around mid-semester. I guess she thought that stuff was neat. I swear, she must have gotten that math crap from her mom, cause I once looked at some of her work and just got a headache!" Yang said joyfully.
Her mother? So that's why they have different names. Dear lord this woman talks like she's a sunflower.
Weiss didn't feel the need to ask about her skills in combat, as Ruby had told her already most of her huntress-style combat was unusable after her mysterious injury. Thinking to herself for a moment, Weiss remembered the one question she still had about Ruby's qualifications that no one else had answered. Apparently picking up on the long silence on Weiss's end, the huntress spoke up once more, "Uh, is that it? 'Cause I kinda need to run to the store for some more milk."
Clearing her throat, the CEO responded, "Well, there is one more thing. It's less of a business question and more of a curiosity, but what of your other teammates? I may not be an expert, but I do know that Beacon trains teams of four, and Ruby seemed to be reluctant to talk about anyone but you."
For several long seconds, there was silence on the other end of the scroll. Weiss's brows knit in confusion, and just before she was about to say something, Yang cut in, her sunny disposition gone from her voice entirely. Her voice, even through the scroll, sounded hard as stone, "...Goodbye." The 'call disconnected' tone droned through Weiss's scroll for a few moments before cutting out. She stared at the device in confusion as silence fell over her room once again.
Weiss would later call Ruby Rose, and inform her that she had made it to the secondary assessments, and to come back to the mansion at four the following day, as well as a small amount of other candidates. The white-haired woman could hear the smile in Ruby's voice as she agreed to the time. Oddly enough, Ruby told her goodnight as she hung up.
That night, Weiss lay in her bed. She thought back on the previous day. She knew this would be hard for her, having to shoehorn someone into her life like this just to please her sister, but she would force through it. Maybe after a few days, Weiss could convince Winter that it was not that good of an idea. Weiss could hope. That was not what was keeping her from sleep, though. Rather, it was Yang Xiao Long's reaction to her question about her former team. It was troubling to say the least. Something told Weiss it would take a little more than spilled milk to make her mood do such a drastic one-eighty.
It was nagging at Weiss. It was much too late to try and get in contact with either of the two sisters, not that Weiss would if she could, and there really was nothing she could do to scratch this itch in her. Rolling over in bed, she opened her eyes. She had left her curtains open, so she could see out her window. It was picturesque. The view from her bedroom was one of the few things she truly enjoyed about her wealth. Through her window, she could see over the manicured garden her family had upheld since her great-grandmother planted the first rose in it, and into the city of Atlas. The garden looked so beautiful in the moonlight, giving all the rose bushes an almost ghostly white hue, and it was all framed by the twinkling lights of the not-so-distant city.
She admired the view for a moment, before her eyes drifted to something else, in her own room this time. Her eyes found the small laptop computer she kept on her nightstand next to her bed. An idea occurred to her, and she swiftly sat up and pulled she computer to her. Setting the device in her lap, Weiss booted it up. She felt a chill run up her spine, as her thin nightgown did little to protect her from the frigid temperature she liked to keep the thermostat on at night.
Almost urgently, Weiss opened up a search browser and, praying this would give her some insight, typed "Ruby Rose Huntress" into the search bar. After a few moments, the list of results loaded up. There were only a few web pages that fit her inquiry, and Weiss reasoned that school records were technically confidential information, and Huntsman were no longer formally on teams after graduation, so there wouldn't be anything there.
One item did, however, catch the Businesswoman's cold blue eyes.
It was a small document, entitled, "Incident Report: Ruby Rose" followed by a string of numbers Weiss assumed were a date. Curious, Weiss clicked the link. It was nothing more than a single-page incident report published by the Beacon Academy Huntsman Guild, and had little to no information. Regardless, Weiss scanned through it, noting that is was indeed talking about her potential employee and her receiving a grave injury of some sort. Weiss got a sense that this was something that was trying to be kept quiet. In her admittedly short time running the SDC, Weiss had sadly seen her fair share of documents like this, thanks to her father. She was trying to change it all, but that would take time. Weiss had learned to spot hushed files.
She read through it in its entirety, hoping it would give at least some insight into Ruby Rose's former life. Most of it was just some medical talk Weiss barely understood, and some Huntsman jargon she definitely didn't understand, but there was one statement in the final lines of the document that almost startled Weiss. Just to be sure, she read through it again.
It...wasn't a Grimm that wounded her?
One final time, Weiss read though the sentence, muttering the words as she read, "'...Huntress Rose stated at her debrief in no uncertain terms that her assailant was indeed, as of the writing of this report, now Rogue Huntress..."
Who the hell is "Blake Belladonna"?
A/N
Order-Wow, this took forever to make. I'm truly sorry for that, both my readers and my Cultists, but this is more like my usual Writing Speed and Word count. Just over 5,000 words. Holy Hell my wrists hurt. Anything you have to say, Alisa?
Alisa-I feel like I've been waiting years for you to update this story. It was fantastic! I wasn't expecting the end of the chapter. I'm excited to see what happens as the plot thickens. Dude, you should definitely update the next chapter soon because I'm ready to see what Weiss and Ruby do. Especially more on what Blake did (or is doing? I don't even know what to expect anymore).
Order-Oh, I have plans, trust me. For the readers, I do keep Alisa out of the loop, plot-wise, so hehe. I'll do my best to get chapter 3 out soon, and damn I am excited for what I have planned. Also I think Alisa is going to stab me if I don't write the next chapter quick. I'll get it done, school permitting. Advanced Chemistry and Human Geography can go fuck themselves.
Alisa-I'm supposed to be doing apush stuff right now, but fuck it I'll cram tomorrow.
Order-"Eh, we'll wing it." -Lavernius Tucker. Anywho, if that is all, I think I'm going to sleep. I can't wait for you all to see what I have planned.
Update (6/20/2018): Fixed some grammar and phrasing issues.